Isolda

Jani'dae had taken Isolda to a tree top sanctuary of sorts, it had been built among the giant black wood trees, thousand of square miles built above the canopy. Jani'dae had invited Isolda to stay in the sanctuary, which sounded better than staying alone in the woods unsure of what to do next.

Orcs traveled by levitation, there large feet never hit the ground from what Isolda could tell, and they never removed their masks. Even the children levitated and wore the same white owl masks that Jani'dae did. Often in the giant tree top courtyards you could see hundred of orcs meditating or doing beautiful bits of magic like creating sparkling rain to help the different plants or creating spark showers as they synchronized danced in groups underneath.

Isolda had been in the sanctuary a few weeks now, and had begun to get into a routine of sorts. Orcs we vegetarians, and would gather in giant cafeteria style eateries, large selections of plant life to eat. Isolda wasn't a big fan of vegetables but what little girl is. She'd grab some fruits and nuts and granola and she would go back to her room and eat. She spent a lot of time practicing what spells she learned before she left the capitol and what shadow skills she knew. From time to time she would watch some of the orcs perform their spells and she'd try to mimic them to no avail.

The orcs were peaceful and kind but also mysterious, the adults would be kind to her when she directly interacted with them but otherwise she was a ghost to them. She would spend alot of time talking to her daemon and trying to figure out how we would be useful.

He had no combat abilities, at most he could provide a slight buff to some of her spells but nothing grand. All daemons had gifts they used with their autumn witch, one of many reasons autumn witches were so powerful. Isoldas daemon was a mystery class daemon, no one had ever seen one like him, he appeared to her when she was three. The expectations of an Autumn witch with a daemon at that age was monumental. She was doted over and treated as a prodigy until the Magestrate learned that her skills were mediocre and her daemon was beyond useless. She became another face at the orphanage.

Vladimir may have been incredibly weak as far as physical power, but she felt he had a strange aura about him, and when he was placed into a vessel like her locket her magic felt a bit stronger. Isolda had decided to try and craft a magical artifact to amplify and focus his power, like arcane mages with their wands or elemental mages and totems. Autumn witches never needed to use magical artifacts, and rarely my forged any. And his inability to inhabit mobile vessels was a real handicap.

The orcs allowed her access to their magical lectures and classes, orcs didn't use written word to learn, instead knowledge is passed down to the next generations in giant public classes and lectures. All orcs considered everyone in their tribe family and all magic belonged to the family. Isolda was considered the adopted daughter of Jani'dae while she remained under orc protection.

Since arriving at the orc city Isolda had become more laid back, allowing her hair to be free from the restraints of her usual tight double buns, she retired the black uniform robes for an olive green dress like robe that made her look like a wood nymph almost. She abandoned shoes since the floor of the city was spotless. Isolda felt better as well, like she belonged with the orcs and savage lands.

Isolda had begun gaining interest in some of the nature magics she had seen the orcs use, causing plants to grow, vines acted as extra limbs, she saw many applications beyond what the orcs used these magics for and she planned to master it. She had a lot on her plate but she had nothing but time, or at least she thought she did.

Autumn had begun to sneak up and the leaves were starting to change colors, reds and oranges littered the canopy making it look like small fires had broken out.

Isolda had painted the scenes many times over the course of the next month, as autumn spread to the rest of the savage lands the orcs had started preparing for a big fall event, close to the capitols Halloween celebrations from what she had learned, but what exactly they were celebrating she couldn't quite get an explanation for.

One morning Isolda awoke to find Jani'dae looking over her, she jumped up startled " jeez Jani'dae! You trying to scare me to death!"

"Apologies little one, but I have to speak with you about something rather important." Jani'dae stopped levitating and sat cross-legged on the floor by Isolda's bed, " you see Isolda, you have been a guest here for quite a while, and as much as we love having you our laws do not permit guests to stay here permanently." Her heart sank, the orcs were gonna make her leave and Isolda had grown to love it in the orc city. Her eyes began to swell with tears, her neon green eyes shimmered beneath the layers of tears pooling in them. " there is no need to cry, the council is extending you citizenship so long as you have an orc guardian, and I have volunteered to be your mother." Isolda couldn't hold her tears back any longer, instead of tears of sadness these were tears of happiness. She was going to have a mother, it may be a giant orc in the savage lands but it still counted. Isolda jumped out of bed and threw herself into Jani'dae's direction, she was caught by all four of her large arms and then embraced. Isolda hadn't been hugged in a very long time, even though her little body was swallowed by the large robes and appendages now wrapped around her she felt like she fit perfectly. "You will go through a ritual ceremony and given your clan mask as well as your house robes, after that you will be considered an orc by all the tribes, you will bare my orc family name and will be educated as an orc. Are you sure you want to be an orc Isolda?" Isolda looked up at her new mothers masked face, her own soaked in tears, and smiled as wide as her face would let her " I would be so lucky as to bare your house name and our clans marks." Large tears rolled out from under Jani'dae's mask, " Then you will be Isolda'dae, of the silver owl clan."

No more la'velle, the marking of an orphan or bastard, she would have a family name of her own she didn't care if it was orcish. " you're ceremony will take place during the Autumn festival, you will be given a couple tutors to help you adjust to orcish life, teach you laws and customs you may not have learned or seen yet. No one expects you to know everything since you haven't been with us long." Isolda let go of her new mother, and wiped off her face, " do I get to live with you?" Isolda didn't mind having her own little home but she yearned for a family home, siblings, " you actually live in a part of my home now, i just had the house cut off from you, once you officially gain my family name all of the home will be open to you." She explained how orcish security worked, all the areas Isolda couldn't enter would allow her to enter while she was wearing her mask, and any place that was owned by the 'dae family she would able to enter freely. Isolda was going to learn the ways of the orc, master their magics and become the pride of her new family. Isolda vowed in her head as watched her new mother leave.