Until now, no orc had chosen me or Amira. That did not surprise me, as it was the girls with the longest, most luscious strands of hair who got picked first.

But there was something that did surprise me: Olivia wasn't chosen either! I internally smirked at that.

“Next!” the leader shouted like he’d been doing for the past half hour or so. He stood next to Betsy and observed what she was writing down in a big notebook. I think she wrote down the names of all the orcs and their chosen mates.

Betsy had explained to us about genes and it was suddenly so odd to realize I probably had brothers, uncles, cousins, and nephews walking around here. At home, we never spoke about them and we didn’t consider them family, but by blood, these orcs were our kin.

“Next!”

I always believed—always was taught—that orcs were dumb, brute creatures. But dumb men wouldn’t think things through as the orcs did. I never expected them to be so organized and was truly impressed by how they dealt with things. And I was a little ashamed I'd misjudged them too.

This day wasn’t about orcs grabbing any pretty woman to breed with. Instead, their organization was like a well-oiled machine. From the orc standing outside to give us directions, to the feast that was specially prepared for us, to this moment.

“Next!” he yelled again, looking up.

Whenever he looked up from Betsy, he seemed to be looking at me. Maybe I pictured things in my head, but I could have sworn his eyes were on me half of the time tonight, and that made my heart speed up. I wondered what he was thinking when watching me.

Whatever it was, it made me more worried than I already was. While there were still more than a dozen women left, there were only a handful of orcs who had to make their choice, and I wondered what would happen if none of them selected me.

Was I to turn back home without even the chance of conceiving a baby?

What would Mother say about that? What would my sisters say? What would the neighbors say? What would every woman back in town say? The thought of going home as a failure scared me. How would it feel, coming home, and telling everybody that no orc wanted to mate with me?

Oh, Mother Moon, please look after me! I begged inside my head while seeing yet another woman get picked. The only fun thing was that Olivia was still waiting too.

“Next!”

Some relief washed over me when the next orc picked Amira. At least, my newfound friend wouldn’t have to fear going home like a loser. And her orc was…okay, I suppose. He was hideous, of course, but not the most abominable creature in the room.

As she and her orc headed over to stand with the other couples, Amira’s eyes locked with mine. Those eyes said it all. She was worried about me as well. I weakly smiled at her and she smiled back, just as weakly.

Three orcs later, there was only the leader left to choose his mate and I knew there was no way he was going to pick me. Because leaders have status. Leaders pick only the prettiest women, eat the tastiest meals, and sleep in the most luxurious rooms. It was like that with our men and I’m sure it worked like that with the orcs too.

And I certainly wasn’t the prettiest woman. Not with this hairstrosity.

He shouted something in his native language and promptly, a few orcs that had already chosen a female, came to collect the rest of the women. They threw them over their shoulders, taking everyone, except for two.

Olivia and I were the only ones that remained.

I guess some orcs were to breed with two women tonight, so I instantly felt hope that maybe, just maybe, there was a chance left for me as well? Maybe the leader would settle for me as his second woman?

“Your turn, commander,” said one of the other orcs. He was even taller than the leader was but not broader. He was also the one that had chosen Amira.

The commander stood far away, but a few big steps were all that was needed for him to close the distance between us. Before I knew it, he stood right in front of me, blocking the view, taking all light away, leaving me in his shadow. He was impressive and I gasped at his size. The man was even larger standing so close to me. I barely reached his stomach! I had to throw my head back, just to look up at him.

"Let's see what we have here…" he said, reaching for the silk ribbon that kept my short hair strands together. I was scared as a weasel but tried to keep as calm as possible. Some orcs laughed after he’d untied the ribbon, but he did not. "You must know that to orcs, there is nothing more important for a woman than her hair. Was yours so ugly that you had to cut it this short?"

"I- I didn’t cut it."

"Then who did?"

I swallowed, knowing everyone was paying attention to us, orcs and women. If I spoke the truth, they would all hear it and Olivia would lead a very difficult life once we were back home. No way the other women would want to have anything to do with her then.

Do I really want to expose her like that?

But then again, wasn’t this all on herself? All actions have consequences. She could have known that. I glanced to the side and saw Olivia looking at me. Fear was written all over her face and her big blue eyes begged me to keep my mouth shut, to not reveal what had happened.

I sighed. Amira would probably think I was crazy for what I was about to reply. "I c-can’t tell you," I answered, looking at the orc again.

“Hmm…” he growled, clenching his square jaw before he turned away from me and headed toward Olivia.

He stood in front of her the same way he’d stood before me, touching her hair too. She flinched like a scared animal trapped by its predator.

"This hair," the orc said, letting his big, grey, clawed hands run through her curls. "Is strong, shiny, and healthy. This woman should be good to bear us orc sons." He slowly walked around her and stopped behind her back. “But it’s not just hair that counts…” he continued, reaching for something he’d kept hidden under his waist belt. I was shocked when I saw it was a knife he was holding!

He looked at me with his one black and his one golden eye and said, “I know it was her that cut off your hair.”

Just like Olivia had chopped off my hair, he slashed off hers, hacking around her head while Olivia stood petrified and trembling. Her wavy, black locks slowly fell to the ground while the sound of women’s gasps filled the room.

“There’s one thing I cannot stand,” the orc spoke, putting the knife away again. “And that is people who stab their comrades in the back. I will not tolerate my men betraying their brothers, and I will not have any of them mate with a traitor, either.” He pushed Olivia away.

She lost balance and fell to her knees, crying. “P-please—” she begged. “Don’t k-kill me.”

“I wasn’t lying when I said we will not hurt any of you. And I have not hurt you. I simply gave you a taste of your own medicine. She”—he paused and looked at me, then back at Olivia—“was loyal enough not to reveal what you did.” He leaned in, grabbed her wrists, and pulled her up to her feet. “But I cannot forgive this action. You will leave my mountains first thing tomorrow morning. Unbred.”

His next words were spoken in orc-tongue, so I couldn’t understand what he said, but whatever it was, it made another orc step forward, take the crying Olivia into his arms, and carried her out of the room.

I was speechless, not knowing what to think. I was just as flabbergasted as I’d been this afternoon. Everyone was. It was completely silent.

The leader stepped in front of me again. “You did not snitch on her. You’re loyal, true-hearted, and have honor. You are a good woman. And tonight, I will breed you myself.”

I was perplexed, my legs trembling and my heart beating in my throat. “Oh-okay…” I stuttered.

“What is your first name?” he asked.

“Gyda.”

“Gyda…" he softly repeated. "Betsy, write it down!"

“Yes, Orvar!”

Notes: not Orvar cursing at Vildon for making a show and doing this half an hour later 😂

Also, These chapters are being proofread by @glynfrans :)