Marcus was born to two human women—an army instructor and a schoolteacher—and had a rare kind of childhood—peaceful, stable, and full of love. That ended the moment puberty hit and he started to grow tusks. His mothers abandoned him on the same day they understood he wasn't like them.

He was thirteen.

Taken in by child welfare he was placed in a state-run children’s home, where he struggled with malnutrition and survived only thanks to the solidarity of the other ork kids. As his majority neared, the army became his only way to avoid the streets. Three months before his 18th birthday, he enlisted for a five year contract,

He served in engineering, where he stopped being underweight and took the opportunity to pass all his exams and as many licences as possible. Although competent and having won the appreciation of his superiors, he never succeed in integrating into his unit. Considered too small for an ork, he was picked on by his comrades.

He was discharged after four years due to too many conflicts.

Back to civilian life, he bounced between gigs until he found himself working security in a nightclub under a human named Paco. With his other colleagues named Bruno and Enzo, Marcus presented himself as “Marco” for the laugh. The name stayed, and with time, a close bond formed between the four men.

Marcus felt like he had finally found his place.

But things became dark after he was presented to the nightclub’s owner: Suzanne—a cold, calculating fixer and loan shark. Work wasn’t just about security any longer, but also racketeering, intimidation and debt recovery. And when Paco and the others decided to quit and start their own business, Marcus refused to join them—fearing the boss’s wrath.

That decision saved his life, but at a cost: on Suzanne’s orders, he had to execute his friends, or die with them.

The ork chose to live.

With Paco gone, Marcus became Suzanne’s new security manager. He built his own crew, and through a series of successful jobs, earned his boss’s and his men’s trust.

At twenty-seven, it looks like he has it all. He’s competent, no longer struggles, and is ridiculously lucky. People like him. People trust him.

But at home, the deafening silence of loneliness is his only companion—until he’s tasked with caring for a half-dead elf who looks like more trouble than she’s worth.

Stories

Cat Got In