The Rite (Patreon)

 "The origin of most Orcish rituals are either lost to history or so muddled with conflicting truths as to make the task of sorting fact from fiction an exercise in futility.  Among a bevy of strange rituals, though, the Rite of Service stands alone in sheer inscrutability.  The shaman caste of Orc society is made up entirely of effeminate, undersized male orcs, and they serve in a wide range of roles within the culture.  Priest, holy man, spiritual leader, and adviser are but a few, and they transition into those roles during the Rite of Service.  Several times a year, those kingdoms whose continued survival depends on the Orcs (one way or the other) send women, all willingly, to take part in the Rite.  What role they play, and what truly transpires in the light of those pyres, none can say, but they never stay for any less than nine months thereafter. "

That Orc Chieftain is 'Big'