Half Orc Girlfriend: Sanati (special preview)

The help wanted posters were put up about a week ago, and already you’re getting prospective guards for the farm. Your father is very specific, wanting to find the toughest and scariest he could to protect the farm.

“We need to scare them off at the pass,” he said. “So we need some scary looking motherfuckers.”

This made sense to you, but at the same time you thought you needed someone knowledgeable too. Someone who knew how to fight, knew how to be defensive. You didn’t just need appearances when the rustlers came back.

Still, you and your father took the interviews. It was a bit intimidating to say the least. Lots of the people who came matched the description your father wanted, but none of them came up to your standards. So this put you in the position to argue with your father about what was best needed.

“Those rustlers will be back to steal everything away from us, and we won’t have a single guard around because you’re worried they don’t know what they’re doing?” Your father snapped at you.

“Anyone can throw a punch. We need someone who knows more than that.”

“Aside from stealing a knight, how the hell are we going to find that? Stop worrying about that shit and worry more about looking like a man yourself.” He shoved a gnarled old finger in your face. “You’re going to take over this farm one day, and I ain’t letting you take it over looking like a sissy.” He stormed away, going back to hire the three orcs who you were arguing about.

You stormed away, angrier than ever. It didn’t matter what you looked like or how you acted, you were never going to fill your father’s shoes in his eyes. You’d long ago stopped being ashamed of being more like your mother and sisters. They never said it was bad, just him.

As you were working off your anger stabbing feed bags so you could tend to your chickens, you noticed someone watching from the fence. They looked like another orc, but they appeared slightly smaller. They waved from the fence, holding one of your posters in their hand.

“The interviews are over,” you said as you approached. You saw they were a woman, her thick cloak covered most of her figure. Her long black braid was wrapped around her neck in a strange fashion.

“Oh, too bad,” she said. “I could really use the work.” She leaned back upon the fence and sighed heavily. “You got anything else that could be done around here?”

You looked her over, noting her muscular arms, scarred up knuckles. There were scars across the bridge of her nose that looked jagged and deep into the flesh. Something about her spoke to you in a way the others who’d been interviewed hadn’t.

“What is it you can do?” You asked.

“I’m a trained grappler,” she answered simply. “But I can do whatever work needs to be done. Even if it’s shovelling shit, I just need the work.”

A bolt of excitement rushed through your system. “A grappler huh? How good are you?”

She smiled slightly. “You don’t believe I could be? Well, if you want to test it out, I must warn you, I’ve only lost two matches in my entire life.”

You swallow and shake your head. “It isn’t that, Miss. It’s just that, we’ve interviewed a lot who have said they can ‘fight’ but have no real training. My father just hired three orcs, and while they look tough, I don’t think they’re warriors.”

She smiled again and chuckled. “If you’ve been dealing with rustlers, you’ll need a vigilant night watch. Most of the ‘boys’ around this village seem to be more of a pub watching type.”

“That’s what I told my dad!”

The orc woman held out her hand. “Sanati,” she said.

I took her hand and shook it. “I’ll hire you on. But I’ll have to pay you from my own pocket.”

Sanati hopped over the fence to join me. She’s so much taller than me, and possesses a frame that is equal parts muscular and feminine. “Your dad won’t approve of this?” her skin is forest green, but dappled with spots of light brown, like shadows are moving across her skin.

“Probably not. But if I am paying you on my own, then he can’t say anything. I’ll just tell him I hired you to guard the house.” You motion over to your home where some of your sisters were on the front porch.

“Do you have a big family?” Sanati asked. Her gaze became focused, studying the house closely.