I know with the length of this one I might have broken it into two parts, but there wasn't a place that made sense narratively to do so, so I just kept going and you're getting a 2 for 1. Which is part of the excuse for the wait. Hope it's worth it. - Cheers.
...
Recap / Glossary:
Andralia: A human country, across the Rampart Mountains from Orthalia to the west, now in armistice from their long war. Ruled in name by a King near the end of his life, but governed in truth by his daughter-heir Valessa, from the capital city: Andrapolis.
Orthalia: An orcish country, less technologically advanced than Andralia. Ruled from its capital: Orthanhall, by newly crowned Queen Gorlana, who will soon be travelling to Andrapolis to negotiate a peace treaty.
Southern Orthalia: A smaller province formerly of Orthalia but broken off and allied with Andralia for several years now, due to Roderick's leadership. Though he is now trying to shift its governing in the provincial capital (Glenhold) to a council (including Korboq and Nardill) before he becomes prince.
Fringeland: The westernmost province of Andralia bordering Orthalia at the Rampart mountains, and the one most affected by the war. Provincial capital city: Fortspring.
Gorlana: A female orc, but a quarter human. Recently won the Goathorn chair in Orthanhall by amassing the most followers and honour against her rival cousins, in particular by allying with the more brutish Rechlinger clans from the north. She is in a relationship with their leader Traulch, but remains tormented by her feelings for her secret long-lost love, Roderick.
Roderick: A human, from Andralia, originally low-born but risen in rank to First-General, and now to the Duke of Fringeland (his home province), besides still being the overseer of Southern Orthalia (and still 'high-chieftain' in their eyes). He's secretly an eighth orc, and also secretly still tormented by his ongoing feelings for Gorlana, though he is now engaged to Valessa.
Princess Valessa: Heir to the throne of Andralia. She recently orchestrated the rescuing of Roderick from his capture in Orthalia, by uncharacteristically winning the friendship and alliance of two female orcish chieftains.
Darganya - An orcish chieftain from Orthalia. She and Roderick were briefly lovers when they first allied, but she is now good friends with Valessa.
Faringoll - Gorlana's cousin, a high-ranking orc woman who had allied with Valessa in her own attempt for the orcish throne, and one of the most eager for peace/alliance with Andralia.
Zurgana - Gorlana's cousin, a high-ranking orc woman who had also tried for the throne, mistrustful of humans and had allied with the Rechlingers as well.
Iringoll - Gorlana's cousin who almost won the throne before her, but is still on good terms. She is now second in command in Orthanhall.
Carthala - An female orcish soldier, and long-time friend and confidant of Gorlana, who is aware of her and Roderick's feelings for each other.
Torvrul - A male orc-chief from Orthanhall
Traulch - The Rechlinger-Orc leader. He had been poised to invade the rest of Orthalia at one time, and perhaps have his former mate steal the throne, but is now Gorlana's mate under her rule, each of them doing so more for political gain than love.
The Rechlinger clan - a different breed of Orc from farther north, brown instead of green, shorter - not much taller than humans but stockier, and most importantly: less respectful of Orcish honour-codes.
Korboq - Southern-Orthalian orc leader, and long time friend of Roderick.
Nardill - Southern-Orthalian orc leader.
Yendell - Andralian lieutenant, long-time friend of Roderick.
Chasdon - A Noble of Andrapolis, head of the treasury and coin mint.
Dabirra - Valessa's cousin. A portly but prim maiden living in the palace at Andrapolis.
Professor Beleros - A Sage of the College in Andrapolis. One of the few humans aware of Roderick's eighth-orc lineage.
...
Roderick and Gorlana. Part 5.
6 Months Later,
"The mating habits of Homo Sapiens-Orthalis, though shrouded in generations worth of myth and misconception, and a topic for which scholarship is admittedly somewhat lacking, is still by no means a complete mystery. Indeed more similarities than differences will be found in comparison to their human cousins all things considered. The basic anatomy of the genitalia is essentially the same, except for a proportionally shorter but thicker phallus with a more club-like flared glans, and the vaginal tissue involving more elaborate musculature. The main difference is, in fact, hormonal, particularly with the timing and triggering of fertility. Unlike a human female's monthly fertility cycles, and human male's constant fertility, orcs await certain cues, both physical and psychological, and for that matter both emotional and social. Mainly expressed in the form of scent, but that is by no means the only-..." Professor Beleros stopped and finally addressed the student with his hand persistently raised. "Yes?"
"Why do you keep referring to orcs as Homo Sapiens-Orthalis instead of Homo Orthalis? My biology textbook always refers to them by the latter."
The Sage frowned, "Which edition do you have?"
"The um... the second."
"The most current edition is the fourth. Yours is nearly fifty years out of date."
The student seemed to shrink at the quiet snickering from the lecture hall around him, "It's the only one I could affor-... that I could find."
Beleros gave him a more sympathetic frown and said, "Meet me at my office at the end of the lecture."
"The new versions are bollocks, making changes for change's sake," another student said. "Everyone knows orcs are a different species, not this 'subspecies' nonsense."
"Oh? You fancy yourself a taxonomist even after your score on the last exam do you? What scientific evidence do you present for your claims?" The Professor challenged.
"Just look at them," the student shrugged petulantly. "I told my pa they were in the same genus and he said even that was too close to make sense."
The professor lowered his spectacles and gave him a sour stare, "Well then. Let us get our new young prodigy on the road with our next delegation from our College to the Continental University in Parabolis so that he may present his findings to the Biological Academy to declare 'Just... Look at them...' for their amazement and appreciation."
As the other students chuckled around him, the dressed-down student bristled, "Well what's YOUR evidence. My pa-"
"Your father is a land baron and barley marketeer. He is not a Sage, let alone a biologist. The evidence is in fact quite relevant to our topic of discussion. Reproduction. As you are of course aware, the distinction between separate species is most apparent by whether they can mate with each other and produce fertile offspring. A horse and a donkey, for example, are close enough to produce a mule, but they remain separate species since the hybrid mule is infertile and cannot reproduce, thus keeping the populations distinct."
"So half-orcs can reproduce?"
"Of course they can," another student chirped in. "My uncle had a hired man that was a quarter orc."
"Pfft, you WOULD out in Fortspring."
"Quiet!" Beleros intoned loudly and the lecture hall was immediately silenced. "I will not have petty insults in my hall. You are correct that yes, they can reproduce and therefore orcs and humans are NOT entirely separate species. Any number and proportions of orc-human mixes have been documented on both sides of the Rampart mountains over many generations."
"Do they have vigour?"
"...What?"
"Hybrid vigour. You've mentioned in other classes how other organisms when they mix to form a hybrid the offspring is often more fit and resilient. You mentioned mules, but some plants too..." the student's voice faded in doubt seeing the Sage's frozen frown.
It slowly curled into an amused smile though, "Statistically?... We don't honestly know. However I have seen... unpublished evidence, fairly recently in fact, that this may indeed be true."
Roderick saw the professor's eyes flit for a fraction of a second up to him, while maintaining his self-amused smirk. He looked away and stifled an embarrassed eye-roll at the secret compliment. He hadn't thought Beleros had noticed him sneak into the back viewing balcony to listen in on the lecture, but obviously he had.
"Getting back to the matter. As you all should certainly be aware, the most glaring differences between orcish and human mating is of course, signalling through scent, leading eventually to the Rutt. Though it shares a rough similarity with other examples of rutting within the animal kingdom, orcish Rutting is distinct in that it can occur in any season. Its triggering will depend on a number of factors; the compatibility of the mate, the strength of trust and affection between them, an environment of safety, privacy and prosperity. Though most of these are not crucial necessities, but simply factors increasing the Rutt's probability, and some could certainly be outweighed by others. For example a pair with an only mild attraction or compatibility may still Rutt after sharing a stable homestead for long enough, and conversely, an extremely compatible pair with intense attraction could hypothetically Rutt after only a short time or in much less than ideal conditions. The obvious comparison being human's conception of love at first sight, versus love grown slowly over time."
Roderick shifted uncomfortably. He had thought listening in on some of these lectures might help to give him more insight into himself and what he had gone through, but they caused too many flashbacks to a life and events that he was determined to move past. He tried to focus on the words simply as unweighted facts, to simply learn, and let the troubled emotions from the past blow by his sails.
