Excellent chapter! I was completely enthralled, and my heart bled for both these poor girls. What a terrible situation they are in, and poor Bidush missing her mother, too.

Okay, so Saruman is doing both. Geth as a human trafficker, a lot less likable than last chapter, but we'll see where this goes.

Ah! I had always assumed that the Orc/Dunlending crossbreeding had happened in the shape of Dunlending women being kidnapped and raped by orcs. Obviously, your version makes a lot more sense, even if one just considers the logistics! Geth is an interesting maverick character.

"You're one of them." "You're working for them!" That's kind of ironic, coming from Aud. Granted, for her it was an "unknown, unnamed employer," but she still had to know there was something ominous if it involved a hairy little maniac (heh) like Geth. Although his collection methods may have been different at the time, and if he had a woman like Aud working with him it's possible that they would have been able to lure many women along with the kind of promises and pay that drew poor Haley, as opposed to the brutal snatch and grab employed by Geth and his new partners.

Ghaashrak'Hasat is a fun character. Her formal manner of speech and poetic term of phrase made me keep going back to check that she wasn't, in fact, Mannish, but all of the keywords were there: "uruk," "Rarmoz Mal," etc. Her meeting with Gijakzi easily and engagingly sheds some further light on the various breeds of Orc, and also on Gijakzi and his past and travels.

Hasat is all kinds of impressive at the end, and it is clear she really believes in the Eye and a glorious future, but I wonder if she'll be alive and around to see the dismal end in which this project finally culminates. Some obnoxious raiding, one admittedly impressive battle at Helm's Deep, and then a big wet fart at Isengard.

Nice allusion to that poor Dwarf from "War Stories." And... [waves to the young Uruk-hai] Hi Uglúk! This first introduction to the youngsters of both sexes is one that really draws our sympathy, and our apprehension. Build them up, abuse them, build them up some more. No wonder the Uruk-hai are so fucked up, especially when they have teachers like Geth and Hasat.

I like the addition of Ghaashrak-Hasat and the way she clashes with Gizjakzi. The characterization in this is so great all around.

Gah, poor Hayley, getting clobbered for trying to make things slightly easier on the others sharing her horrible situation. Though I can hardly blame Aud either, since Hayley’s intentions were understandable but from Aud’s perspective it must be infuriating seeing her apparently cooperating with their torturers.

I also liked Gizjakzi’s thoughts on the structure and motivations of various Orc tribes, like the part about the northerners and their struggles spurring them to ally with Saruman, and the short-sightedness of raiding your neighbors. It’s the kind of angle I don’t see explored much, and it gives a very fleshed-out feel to the world.

And “I’ll pop you like a tick” is my new favorite threat.

Glad for this long awaited treat. I like Mistress Hasat very much, as a character. Cruel and confident, she's going to be a bit of trouble, I think. But Gijakzi is too smart to fall for the song she's singing. I think he's in Isengard out of expediency and need, but he's got a feeling about how things might work out.

Bidush is heart warming as ever, and the picture of her grabbing Hayley's hand was quite touching. I'm glad she'll get some peace from Geth, that putz.

I feel for Aud, too. Seriously, I don't know what I'd do in a similar situation, and I can hardly blame her for freaking out. That's beyond horrible, what's happening to these women; from her perspective, how odd is it that Hayley seems to get along with the ones Aud sees as her tormenters?

I'm curious as to the difference in... erm... styles... of breeding here. I might have to go back and see if you answered that question already, but what is the reason for the extreme difference in the way the Orcesses are bred, versus the women? It would seem more prudent to drug the Orcesses out. They can do far more harm, they are more accustomed to being underground, and in my mind, they present the far greater security risk.

I also love seeing this build up to the War from the other team's side. And I feel SO badly for these young Uruks. No wonder they turn out like they do. Give it another 20 years, and it will be a blood bath, the way these boys are treated. And yes, I imagine your Saruman will be feeding them each other, just as my Saruman does. How else to keep such an expensive body going? What did he have under that tower eventually? Some tens of thousands? There is simply no way to do that WITHOUT cannibalism.

I enjoyed, for my own reasons especially, the bit about the northerners and their economy issues. Because my clan is facing the same problem. Now that they've gone into the extreme north, and there are no tarks with livestock to raid, and the land does not sustain the same amount of game... What's left to do, but separate into smaller groups and hope for the best?

Thanks for the update!

Ouch. Being forced to bear children in Isengard does not do wonders for one's psyche.

Bidush is so sweet.

I get the feeling that Gijakzi doesn't think highly of Saruman.

I love all the characters in Black Heart. I think they all have very distinct, well-written personalities.

Excellent chapter, are you going to do more or rest and then go back to Splint?
Jaxzan

Hayley’s an interesting addition. I like that Bidush is friendly towards her but not overly trusting. And I love your vivid descriptions of how she moves and her body language. The part with the handshake was great.

Bidush calling out for her mother is so sad, especially after finding out just how young she is.

This is great so far. The characters are all interesting. I love the little detail that Saruman doesn’t know Dezek is female. Really hammers in how detached he is.

And it feels odd to use this word for an Orc (much as I love them) but Bidush is just adorable. I love the way Geth is described from her viewpoint, that this incredibly scuzzy, awful guy who enslaves women is cute and harmless in her eyes. He's surprisingly affectionate with her.

I love Gijakzi so fucking much. What a badass. Really hoping to see him in Splint lol.

Well! I'd have to say this is your best chapter yet. It's short, but the dialogue and the prose are wonderful and descriptive, giving much detail not only about the characters but their lives, and the world they inhabit. Of course, partial to Uruk-hai as I am, I get the chills reading about how the first young Uruks run to Master, trusting him, seeing him as their "chief"... if only they knew, they were but fresh meat for the grinder!
The relationship between Katag and Gijakzi is very believable... I'm not sure if it's a love match per se, but certainly they seem well suited as a couple and I enjoy reading about them. Their little quarrel says much about Katag's naivete and Gijakzi's understanding, his realization about what he's gotten himself into. If he didn't find so much satisfaction in his work, I wonder, would he remain in Isengard at all?
I very much enjoyed this short update... As my computer ist kaputt, it's nice to pop up on my neighbor's and FINALLY find an update to one of my beloved favorited stories. Hopefully this will inspire the rest of the girls... and myself!
But again... Your writing is maturing, and it's a lovely thing to watch. This chapter, brief as it was, is perfection. Hopefully you will find the time to give us more, soon!

So last chapter was our chance to see a rather more sympathetic side of Gijakzi (protector and a lover) and this chapter was our chance to get his opinions over a range of persons and circumstances: the Eye ("It were fuckin' bullshit"), the Hand ("some scrawny, old fuck"), the Balrog (absolutely my favorite line in the chapter: "I'd be real adorin' too, if my Master was a giant fucking fiery cunt"), the Uruk-hai ("Pansy, cunt Uruk hai") and Everyone Else ("You stupid young fools!") During the course of which he manages to alienate Katag in an exchange that is not particularly to his credit, even though the frustration, exhaustion, and old hurts that drive it are completely understandable. Then again, it sounds like Gijakzi's never been the easiest person to get along with (something that he basically acknowledges when he thinks that only Katag and Korklûb were ever willing to put up with his shit.)

That's where this chapter left me a little morose, since it started out, really, rather cuddly and endearing between the two of them - Gijakzi and Katag - and then it just sort of all turned to shit and grim memories at the end. Great for the chapter, but alas for the characters!

Second to that line about the Balrog, of course, I had to love on this bit: "Uruk hai, sha! Aren't we all?" Yes indeed, and I've always thought it must have been galling, to see the "Uruk-hai" ("Orc folk") co-opted for these new hybrid Orcs, as much as to say that *they* are now the "true" Orcs and everyone else is just snaga: slaves. So nice of you to create these distinctions for us, Saruman.

It is rather amusing, in a rather dark way, to see how Saruman is pampering on this first generation: sha! personalized fittings and everything! Based on what you've said elsewhere, that isn't going to last, is it? I suppose it goes back to Saruman's essential narcissism. Proud and excited as he seems to be about his new race of pet monsters, they are ultimately tools meant to advance himself and his agenda (which itself is basically all about him.) The well-being of the tribe he is creating is a poor second to that shining prospect.

"The young Uruk hai had rushed to him as though they missed him, and he had promised the little males something special, though he hadn't been specific as to what that was." Okay, that's creepy, unless it's just a reference to the impending armor.

There's more that I could say about this chapter - comments to be made on Gijakzi's travels and education as a young Orc, and of course the sadness of the loss of his shauk and daughter - but I'd rather post this review before I lose it. Anyway, nice bit of work, and leaves me eager to see what comes next.

Yeah, Isengard's pits must have been a bitch to build, especially considering how the River Isen used to be there. Groundwater would be a problem even for modern engineers.

this ones also awesome too

Loving on this chapter hard. Love the Gijakzi scenes, both of them. No one can be expected to be liked by all of the people all of the time, or even some of the people any of the time. Geth's easy "charm" certainly has absolutely no sneaky toeholds with Gijakzi or Katag. And thank God for that. From my perspective, just makes them all the more pleasing as characters. Not that I dislike the characters who are seduced by him. Not that I even dislike Geth...as a character. As a person, argh. Keep that hairy little bastard away from me.

And he's a dangerous little man. Regardless of how he is with Bidush (and in this chapter, it's not really all that nice; even if she "accepted" him, it obviously wasn't with any great eagerness, and look how crappy he treated her afterward) I'm nervous of his growing power. And wondering if one or more of these nice, or at least sympathetic, little Orcs that we've seen so far is going to end up dead because of him.

Katag received some nice fleshing out in this chapter - quite aside from her liaison with Gijakzi (demonstrating her obvious good taste!) I was already appreciating the additional insights into her thoughts about the women in her charge, Mannish women included. You could say on the one hand that good intentions don't mean much without the good deeds to back them up, but Katag's abilities on that front are both limited (in terms of power) and constrained (by the influence of an omnipresent Will.) She does what she can where she can. I like the exchange between her and Gijakzi re: the tools of her trade ("...she didn't tell him how to forge steel, who was he to tell her how to tend to females?"; "You use this one the least, an' I hope ya don't need ta use it at all") and I like the exchange between her and Hayley, both protective toward Bidush and implicitly calling on the other to look after her.

And I like the further elucidation on Haley. It seems like mothers in these stories always accept or come to love the baby - or, if they don't love/accept, feel shame later about aborting or killing it. Hayley is starting to fall into this first camp, but the softening effect that Bidush's feelings have on her own feelings is both touching and understandable. A nicely reasoned and different reason than we usually see.

Although I haven't commented on it as much here, I thought the first part of the chapter looked awesome good. Interested, as you know, in what will become of Berti, Herb and Ash. And, on a final note, I loved the exchange about "golug." That was funny to me even before receiving Katag's amused thoughts on the matter. Perhaps especially so since Katag's thoughts sort of explain the joke for us, which can have a stultifying effect on humor (though I think some evident amusement on her part and just leaving it at that would have been served to amplify our amusement because of recognizing our own amusement in hers.) But by that very token, her thoughts are giving some readers useful context. So, one small point of ambivalence on my part.

Also, a quick question re: Geth's ménage à quatre (not an hour after Bidush...Geth, you dog...):
"Dezek shared a bunk with two other females"
"Dezek and Dezek's two roommates, Sogar and Zag"
When it says "roommates" there, should I assume Sogar and Zag are the two females who share Dezek's bunk, or are they "roommates" in the more general sense of being housed in the same long hallway? If the former, "bunk-mates" might be a better term.

-.-.-.-

ascened (ascended)
sicle (sickle)
strait faced (straight-faced)
uncharicteristically (uncharacteristically)
grimice (grimace)
appologized/appology (apologized/apology)
forund (found)
gastly (ghastly)
concieved (conceived)
prevelent (prevalent)