Orcs: First Blood - "The Taking"

"The Taking"

"The Taking" is a short story which follows an adventure of the orcs. It starts with the choosing of a new corporal. The orcs choose Coilla. Braetagg's Day take place, and a great orc leader Braetagg was kidnapped by creatures Pyro, a sect of the people. The orcs start to search for the leader because the disparition would have caused agitation. Haskeer and Jup Braetagg find it, but they are captured by Pyro. The other 28 orcs immediately come to the rescue and save them. Unfortunately, Braetagg is dead. The Wolverines return to Cairnbarrow with the corpse.

"The Taking" originally appeared in the anthology Swords Against the Millennium, edited by Mike Chinn (Alchemy Press/Saladoth Productions; September 2000). "The Taking" was shortlisted for the 2001 British Fantasy Award, and has since been reprinted in a number of magazines and anthologies worldwide.