No - orc brigands ambush her.

She sighed with relief when she reached the other side. Nothing stirred in the scrubland except for the wind.

Then, just as she had relaxed a great roar shook the air. Tall, armoured figures burst up from the scrub around her. She recognised their features immediately, although she’d only read about them.

Orcs!

They surrounded her, leering. One of them grabbed her pack, pulling it roughly from her shoulders. He poured the meagre contents out on the ground. Queiss dropped out with a startled yowl, landed on her feet and sped off into the undergrowth before any of the orcs could stop her.

“No gold,” the searcher complained.

“No,” said the orc who seemed to be in charge (he was tallest, and had the best armour), “But maybe we found something better.”

He looked Shairi up and down admiringly. She returned his look with defiance. She had read Lady Baybury’s book ‘Amongst the Orcs’, and knew that the warrior race had an insatiable appetite for beautiful women of all species. She knew what would be coming next. The question was, what could she do about it? Certainly, fighting was out of the question – there were half a dozen orcs, all well-armed. That left magic – or acquiescence, and an attempt to escape later.

While she considered it, she heard the orc leader’s next, predictable words: “I think I’ll give her a try.”