Under slightly false impressions......

Astra sniffles as she reaches out and touches the unicorn, who starts and then settles at Astra's touch......

A sudden shimmering from several locals occur to distract them all. Two shimmers are from the "statues" of a time orphaned adult Astra and her mentor, Anina. This brings a squeal of delight from the nine year old, who'd thought she'd lost her mentor AGAIN (this time permanently). Anina hugs back the crying child and whispers soft, reassuring words as the young one has everything come back on her....emotionally. It's been a rather.....horrible day for this tyke and the other Astra nods and goes and introduces herself as.....a long lost big sister.

The others turn and gasp as a woman comes out from the bushes....and begins to dance for no apparent reason.

The male unicorn blinks and then quickly trots over to the prancing woman and places his horn upon her. The horn glows and the woman stops as the curse that forces her to dance breaks. The Fred that had been transformed into a buxom, dark-skinned woman, dressed in a series of flowing veils, and who'd swayed before a leering group of rich drunkards faints dead away in fatigue as the cost of all that dancing finally catches up with her. The male unicorn shimmers and turns into a young man dressed in tasteful rich finery, catches the dancer before she can hit the ground. People were going to shout questions at the meaning of all this, but are interrupted as a patrol of Orcs surrounds them. They are taken prisoner.

Later, a green skinned bald lieutenant is speaking to the leader of what had been a dwarven clan.

"Should we kill the males and have....fun with the females, sir?" the male orc asks hopefully.

"No to either," the orc who'd been named Balok until recently, "we can use them to our advantage.....and we need something to get out of this upcoming debacle alive....mayhaps even on TOP of this shitpile of orcen rubbish......Keep them well guarded, but in GOOD condition, Mitx."

Murt had recognized several of the prisoners....in as far as being "sisters" and "brothers" of serveral human beings in posistions of power in Aqualaria. Mayhaps the others were useless, but perhaps even these peons had enough value to the "heroes" to play a part in his plans.

The orc then goes about and attempts to contact the Alliance soldier his scouts had encountered earlier......

The former dwarves had found a way to overcome the magical compulsion upon them by relying on a very dwarven characteristic they still possessed. When they go into a berserker rage, nothing their "masters" say gets through.....

The one who'd been called Balok, now only Murt (a derogatory name in orcen circles), had taken great pleasure at the memory of being able to seriously injure Sithe and his shaman flunky before he and his boys (and girls) had made their escape.

Now, with these tokens, he perhaps would be able to garner enough favor to have the Military spare him and his clan. Before, he'd been sure (and prayed) that these eldritch folk would stay out of this fight. But with their sudden appearance, along with the stupidity of his orcen "allies" at wanting to continue this war, had told the disgruntled orc that this was time to go. He had a hatred of humans, and of one human female in general who'd killed his son in a gun battle, but he was still responsible for clan and kin.

Even if the Military were mere humans....they HAD brought the dragons to their knees (and could have gone further if their idiotic human "morals" hadn't stopped them).....

1. But be that as it may....Murt figured that it was best to step aside (and pray that they would live to see another day).

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