Involuntary Test Subject

Lady Elizabeth’s French Manor - Lorem’s Workshop

JP = Lorem & mdmanosfan

Cronk awoke before daybreak. He seemed well rested. He noticed his shirt was unbuttoned, his torso cleaned of the blood. He must have really been tired not to notice anyone else inside his room.

He sat up on the edge of the bed, disrobing and throwing his soiled clothing into a hamper. Cronk walked to the bathroom and turned the valve on for a shower. He brushed his teeth with baking soda, tusks and all. He wanted to look presentable this morning, thinking that perhaps, by chance or perfectly planned, he might see Lorem this morning before she headed to headquarters. Cronk took a nice hot shower, added a lot of ode de fluer, for he must smell nice for Pretty Flower.

After shaving, Cronk put on some nice clothing. He remember the dream he had some time during the night.

“Stupid dream!” Cronk muttered to himself. Still, he wasn’t sure of himself. She was beautiful. He was, well, Cronk was an orc. Orcs weren’t designed to be beautiful or handsome.

Cronk went on a walk in the garden. The sun was just creasing over the horizon. Cronk was certain he was the first awake. However, as Cronk glanced at Lorem’s shop, he noticed a light. Could it be Pretty flower was already working? Did she sleep?

Cronk walked to the door of the workshop. He raised his mighty hand to knock, but it froze midair. How silly was this? He was huge! A giant! Full of strength. Yet, the tiny petite Lorem made him fearful. Or was it anxious? Nervous? All three?

Cronk sighed and turned. There was just no way she would feel the way he felt. Dejected, Cronk began to walk away.

Lorem had slept amazing well last night. After all the highs and lows of events from the previous day, her little system was exhausted by the time she climbed into bed. She had woken very early and had indeed gotten to work. If their residence needed better security, they by golly no better time to start improving it then the present. Especially after being inspired by the threats from yesterday.

Cronk was about to find out what the tinkering gnome had been up to since way before the sun thought to rise. His foot displaced a metal plate which she had camouflaged on the ground. There was a clink sound that came with the depression of the device. Then a compartment down below sprung open and a steam powered hiss accompanied a bola net firing up and around the large orc’s frame. It wasn’t a sticky net, but the weighted ends spun around due to the centrifugal forces created by the net’s forward projection being hindered by the obstructing body. It was a prototype, swiftly fabricated and not at all finished; but it was ready for its first trial test.

Cronk had heard the click and quickly turned to see from where it came. If could have easily been someone cocking a pistol. Before Cronk could turn himself all the way, Cronk found his feet swung upward, and himself once again being caught up in a net.

Cronk could do nothing but laugh. It was a boisterous laugh. The tiny gnome had captured Cronk in more ways than one.

Lorem’s ears perked up at the sound of her contraption being triggered. She sprinted to the front door of the workshop and strained to open the door quickly. She jumped up and down and threw her hands up in the air in very quick succession. Her brief celebration came to a halt when she realized that she should probably apologize to whomever the test subject victim was.

It didn’t take her long to realize it was Cronk, he was hard not to identify. The orc was laughing, so it appeared he wasn’t too upset by the situation. She then also noticed it hadn’t quite worked as intended. The weights didn’t actually get all the way around, so the captive would be easily able to remove the net if they tried. She would need to adjust the pressure. And that modification was just one of twelve that had popped into her head seeing the results.

She went over and started trying to remove the netting. “I am sorry Cronk, but thank you for helping me test my perimeter security idea.”