Perdita Nightshade is the child of Nathanael Nightshade (formerly Nathanael Nuallaen,) a 3rd generation Half-Elf from the island nation of Tesh, which is part of the Isvaeran Empire, Neiru Shrewd-Eyes, an Orc woman from the Blackmoon Confederacy, the largest Orc nation. https://twitter.com/jazzwoman1992/status/1315901042765172739

Her father was of the Teshian aristocracy, but because Tesh is not held in the highest regard in the Isvaeran Empire (due to a history similar to that of the Vikings,) he wasn't considered the "right kind" of aristocrat. When he joined the Imperial Navy-

-he was repeatedly passed up for promotion. On top of that, he was put into an arranged marriage by his uncle, the head of Clan Nuallaen, & his first wife, Lemorna, was NOT a good match for him. After having two children with her only for her to be unfaithful to him-

-he left his children in the care of his brother, left the navy to become a privateer working for the Isvaeran Empire, & eventually got Lemorna to divorce him. As a privateer, he not only came to command his own fleet but became a hero to the Isvaeran Empire. At that time-

-Isvaera was involved in a series of wars with several other nations over control of the colonies in the western hemisphere of the Human world (called the Midlands.) Collectively called Arcadia, these continents had been home to the Ancient Arcadian Empire-

-which had vanished some time near the end of the Divine War. Due to Sea Monsters coming onto the scene (& some ancient defense towers the Arcadians left along the coasts,) sailing to Arcadia from the eastern hemisphere remained impossible for thousands of years. But-

-with the advent of gunpowder weapons & the Arcane Ballista, ships could repel most Sea Monsters & reach Arcadia again. By this time, most of the automated defense towers had shut down, too. (This was a few centuries before Perdita's birth.) As various nations colonized Arcadia-

-tensions rose until, during the time Nathanael Nuallaen was in the Imperial Navy, war broke out. These wars were called the Spice Wars. One of their hallmarks was that each nation gave Letters of Marque to privateers, legally sanctioning them to steal from rival nations.

Nuallaen became one of the most famous privateers during this time. In particular, he stole a lot from the Draconic Empire, a powerful government controlling the continent of Targassa & led by a council of Dragons. The Draconic Empire was-

-the big bully on the block in the Midlands, so stealing from it not only made Nuallaen famous but reduced the threat it posed to all the other nations. However, when a massive uprising of the Undead (connected to the same uprising that struck Uardin) occurred in Targassa-

-the Draconic Empire had to recall all its forces to deal with the threat. This took it out of the Spice Wars. The other nations decided to stop fighting & form the Alliance, since it would take all their combined might to counter Targassa's. But a few of the nations-

-refused to join unless ALL the privateers who had robbed them were punished. Since getting these nations on board was essential to the Alliance, the other governments agreed & RETROACTIVELY revoked the Letters of Marque they'd issued. This made men like Nuallaen-

-outlaws after the fact. But this actually proved a boon to the Draconic Empire. They contacted the now exiled privateer fleets & offered them an island to use as a base, one which they could run as their own nation. (I'm currently calling it Pirate Island.)

So long as the privateers (now pirates) met certain quotas, the Draconic Empire would bankroll this new pirate nation. Nuallaen saw this as a golden opportunity to great a sort of dynasty of Pirate Lords bearing his name. But, as he was an exile, he also decided-

-this was the perfect time for a name change, so he abandoned Nuallaen & became Nightshade (a reference to his violet eyes.) Needing a bride to help him produce heirs, he decided an Orc woman would be ideal. His reasoning was as follows:

1. Orc women give birth to litters of 3-4 children at a time, so he could get multiple children in one go.
2. Orc women are "mama bears," so she'd be just as capable of keeping his kids safe as he was.
3. Orc women are loyal brides (as long as you don't cheat on them.)

4. An Orc mate would assure his children would be as big as he was. (Nightshade is 6'9" tall.)
5. An Orc woman would be able to handle the rough life of a pirate better than a Human woman.
Now, to be clear, Nightshade looking at matters in these terms is not outside the norm.

Marriage in my setting is rarely done for romantic reasons. Love & happiness is a nice byproduct of a good marriage, but the point of marriage is to produce children, both as heirs & to help with labor. Few people put romantic love at the top of their list of priorities.

Nightshade also was not planning on treating his Orc bride like a doormat. (He knew an Orc woman wouldn't put up with that & could easily kill him.) He was looking for a PARTNER, one far better than his 1st wife, to help him start this new chapter of his life.

And I'll have to pause here because I need to get to work. But I'll continue this later on my break, so stay tuned!

All right, so, continuing where I left off: Nightshade was able to convince his entire fleet to travel with him to the Blackmoon capital, currently called Vulburahd, which is in the Human world but linked to all major continents of the Orc world via Portals.

During & after the Spice Wars, the Blackmoon had remained neutral, so as long as the Pirate Guilds did not rob them, they would not oppose them & were willing to trade with them. Nightshade met with Great Chief Durzug to request an Orc bride.

The Blackmoon were not opposed to interracial marriages, but because Nightshade could not stay for an extended period with them to win the approval of an Orc woman & her family, Durzug decided to invoke an old tradition where a man seeking an Orc bride-

-would take a series of trials to prove he had the right qualities. I'm still working out what the trials were, but I do know that an Orc would take each trial with Nightshade, not only to show they were holding him to the same standards but also so the Orc women-

-could see how he measured up compared to their own men. While the trials were being prepared, however, Nightshade was approached by an Orc woman who would later be his wife, Neiru Shrewd-Eyes. (I don't have any images of her, yet, but these are close to how I see her.)

Neiru was a skilled huntress & Nature Warden (basically a Druid in D&D, but without all the sappy tree hugging.) She had made a name for herself both in the fur trade & as a Monster hunter who helped the Arcadian colonists. Neiru asked Nightshade a number of questions-

-about how he would treat the colonists as a pirate, what he expected from a wife, & how he wished to raise his offspring. Nightshade's answers seemed to satisfy her, especially when he stated that, since his children would be Half-Orcs, they'd be raised neither as-

-strictly Human or Orc but some combination of the two. Neiru then let him ask her some questions, as it was only fair. Nightshade inquired how she thought he should go about choosing an Orc woman as his bride. Neiru said that since he was taking a series of tests-

-it was only logical that the women do the same. That would help him to see which one had the best balance of attributes to be his optimal partner. This idea pleased Nightshade & Great Chief Durzug agreed that it was the best approach as well.

Nightshade more than passed the trials he was given & did so with his signature flare & theatrics. This, naturally, got quite a few Orc women interested in him. It also earned him an Orc name: Brazen-Heart. (He was rather pleased with that.)

As for the trials that the women took, I'm still working out the details, there, as well. I know there was an interview process, one contest was a beauty pageant, another involved cooking, & a third was a grappling tournament. The way the trials were set up was such that-

-a woman didn't need to win any of them to be selected as Nightshade's bride. What mattered in the end was her OVERALL SCORE. Nightshade wasn't interested in a one-trick pony. He wanted a bride who was capable in multiple areas, even if she wasn't a maestro in any of them.

That being said, Neiru came out on top in at least two of the trials: The interview and the grappling contest. The latter came as a surprise to many of the Orcs because Neiru was a huntress, not a warrior, but she proved she was not only skilled but DETERMINE to be-

-Nightshade's bride in winning the tournament as a victorious underdog. Nightshade had suspected that Neiru might be the one to come out on top in the end, but he also had suspected she would not have accepted being chosen without proving herself, first. He was right.

And I'll have to stop here, since my break is over, but I'll continue this later. You guys let me know what you think of what I've shared so far!

Got a bit more time, so I'll add a bit more to this thread. After Neiru had been selected, Nightshade met her family & worked out various arrangements with them. The wedding was held a few days later. It was done in the Orcish style, since Nightshade had already had-

-a Teshian wedding, as he put it, & wanted to see what an Orc wedding was like. (It turned out, steeped in symbolism but still very practical & efficient.) The feast that followed was certainly one to remember. I'm still trying to figure out if they had their honeymoon there-

-or on Nightshade's flagship, the Sanguine Scourge. Regardless, Neiru proved to be an excellent match for Nightshade in short order. Not wanting to be dead weight, she worked in the galley of the ship, helping to prepare meals for the crew. This endeared her to the pirates-

-overnight. Many took to calling her their "Green Mama" or "Orc Mama." (Keep in mind, many of the pirates had either been taken from their mothers when they were pressganged into service at a young age or came from homes with bad mothers-

-so having a positive maternal figure in their lives was a nice development.) One thing that impressed the pirates about Neiru was how much respect she showed to Nightshade even when the two disagreed on something. For a man who'd been publicly emasculated by his first wife-

-on multiple occasions, this was like a gift from the gods. Nightshade had expected a reliable partner in an Orc bride, but Neiru exceeded all his expectations by leaps & bounds. Before the two of them conceived, he had come to regard her as not only his wife & lover-

-but also his best friend. His feelings for her were reciprocated. While their love was not what most people would describe as "romantic," Nightshade had never thought much of romantic affection, anyway, as his observation was that it was often very temporary in nature.

When Neiru finally became pregnant, everything seemed to be lining up with Nightshade's ambitions. He had an ideal wife, commanded one of the best pirate fleets in the Midlands, & was part of the ruling council of Pirate Island. But he still needed to arrange for a proper tutor-

-to educate his children. To that end, he followed a few leads he had obtained regarding the Phylactery of a Lich by the name of Voss. This Lich had become an Undead to cheat death in order to, in his own words, obtain all knowledge. He was reputed to be a scholar above all else.

Further, he had committed the contents of thousands of tomes to memory & was reported to share any information he had in exchange for information he lacked. Voss, Nightshade reasoned, could provide his children with the best education possible.

However, my break is now over & I must return to work. I'll try to finish this thread later tonight. Until then, take care.

I completely forgot to finish this thread yesterday, so, let's rectify that. We'll see how much more I can put out in what remains of my lunch break. So, I was detailing the tutor that Nightshade obtained for his children, the Lich named Voss. While the modern idea-

-of a Lich is often associated with RPGs, there is at least one figure in folklore who could be called one, Koschei the Deathless Sorcerer, a figure out of Slavic folklore. As his soul was stored in another vessel in an impossible-to-reach location-

Koschei could not be killed, even if his body was destroyed. He'd eventually come back. Since the term "Phylactery" seems to work best for this soul-storing vessel, I'll be using it as well. In the case of the Lich called Voss, his Phylactery is rather elaborate.

His Phylactery consists of an Adamant skull decorated with gemstones & a crown stored inside a crystal ball filled with a liquid that can change opacity, being either entirely transparent or totally opaque, at his whim. Voss's soul was trapped inside his Phylactery-

-by Thon, Goddess of Death & Repose, who is the enemy of all Undead. She believed that, unlike the vast majority of Lich, Voss had the potential to be reformed, so when his body was destroyed (by Orcs, in fact,) she made sure he could not transfer his soul into a new body.

For more than a thousand years, Voss was the possession of many different beings, some living, some Undead, some good, some evil, but all used him as a consultant, as he had obtained great knowledge in his long existence. However, he would only share information he had-

-in exchange for information he lacked. This new information could be just about anything, though. When Nightshade obtained Voss's Phylactery (I'm still working out how,) he promised the Lich access to libraries & subscriptions to modern periodicals.

Voss was not in the least bit opposed to being a tutor to Nightshade's offspring. Indeed, the thing he hates above all else is IGNORANCE. Further, educating people can lead to them making new discoveries which can then be added to his vast array of knowledge, so-

-teaching children is, in his view, a long-term investment with a potentially great payoff in the future. With a tutor arranged, Nightshade & Neiru made their final preparations for their coming children. Neiru was determined to be pregnant with two infants-

-a boy & a girl. However, after an otherwise routine delivery, the boy began to die. His lungs had not developed properly, so he perished within ten minutes of his birth. Upon his passing, his sister began to cry unconsolably & continued to do so for several hours.

This was a heavy blow for both parents, but the pirates were actually affected by the loss as well. Neiru, knowing she needed to be strong for the sake of her newborn daughter, used an Orc grieving practice to expel her anguish as quickly as possible.

This practice takes advantage of a few aspects of Orcish psychology, namely their ability to process & compartmentalize pain so that it does not affect other parts of their minds. I'm still working out all the details of how it works, exactly, but-

-I do know that it works by focusing on & drawing out the pain while ignoring everything else. It's difficult to pull off, but if done successfully, it enables an Orcish person to come to terms with their loss in a shorter period than they otherwise would.

Neiru mourned for three days before she recovered. It was an intense process, to say the least, but when it was over, she was resolute in her determination to take care of her daughter. Nightshade, however, never quite got over this loss. While he appeared to have dealt with his-

-grief on the surface, deep down, he was still in mourning. However, because he buried his feelings so far beneath the surface, he himself was not fully aware of them. But they would become a factor in the madness that would later consume him.

As to the names they gave their children, I'm still working out how they reached a decision on the boy's name, but I know that his first name, at least, is Caelan. As for the daughter, Nightshade & Neiru decided to combine the Orc tradition of having the father-

-choose the names of the children with the Teshian tradition of having the mother choose the names. Their daughter's first name would be chosen together but she would be given two middle names, one picked by Neiru, the other by Nightshade.

For the first name, Neiru requested a Human name that was "beautiful but sad." Nightshade, in light of the circumstances of his daughter's birth, chose "Perdita," which means "loss" or "lost." For the first middle name-

Neiru selected the Orc name "Leivalu," which means "huntress." For the second middle name, Nightshade selected "Riona," which means "queen" or "queenly." Thus, Perdita's full name, Perdita Leivalu Riona Nightshade, means "Lost Huntress Queen."

And with that, I'm going to have to stop, as my lunch break is over, but I'll continue this later this evening. I hope. We'll see.

Oh, wow, I completely forgot to finish this thread! Shame on me! And with me planning to write a book about Perdita for National Novel Writing Month, no less! Well, let's get back to it! I believe I just covered the details regarding Perdita's birth & naming, so let's continue.

So, let's take a moment to talk about how Orcish babies work in my story setting. The short version is that, during infancy, they have bigger appetites than Human infants & spend more time sleeping (and growing.) When they are awake, they're very attentive to their surroundings.

Of course, infancy is shorter for Orcish children than Humans because they grow at a faster rate, reaching toddlerhood in under a year, usually. Perdita was no exception to this rule. At nine months of age, she was crawling with almost alarming speed and-

-could climb just about anything, even on a rocking ship. Neiru told Nightshade that the Orcs have a saying, "Orc children will climb a mountain before they take their first steps." This refers to their tendency to focus more on scaling objects rather than-

-walking across a level surface. Perdita proved especially resourceful at this, opening drawers to create makeshift steps & ladders to get on top of dressers & using curtains to climb up to window sills. However, Nightshade observed that Perdita was always cautious-

-in how she went about things, even as she did daring climbs he'd never witnessed a Human toddler attempting. As he put it, "She always looks before she leaps." Learning to walk soon followed. Having to do so on a ship caused Perdita to develop a remarkable sense of balance-

-from a very young age, something she retains to this day. She could balance on her father's hand as he lifted her into the air by the time she was 1.5 years old. Of course, in gaining the ability to walk, she also gained the capacity to move more quickly, which resulted in her-

-becoming quite the handful. Perdita had an insatiable wanderlust & wanted to explore every nook & cranny of the Sanguine Scourge. She was positively hellbent on scaling the ratlines after seeing the pirates using them & her father finally permitted her to try it under his-

-close supervision. She didn't get far the first time, due to her size, which certainly frustrated her, but by the time she was two (& speaking her first words,) Perdita was racing the pirates up the ratlines, giggling the whole time-

-while her father simultaneously perspired & puffed out his chest with pride at her accomplishments. To say that Perdita endeared herself to the Crimson Raiders would be an understatement. They adored her, dubbing her the "Jade Monkey" (despite her being sage green)-

-& even writing a few songs about her. As she grew larger & more talkative, her personality began to come through more & more. I'm actually basing Perdita's childhood personality partly after Madeline, which should tell you a lot about her at that age.

Of course, her growth eventually hit a plateau, as is typical for Orcish children, who grow in rapid surges with periods of little growth between them. A surge is always preceded by a period of greatly increased appetite combined with lethargy (& grumpiness.)

Nightshade would have to grow accustomed to this way of growing. The first plateau concerned him, but when a growth surge came after a 6 month lull, he saw that he'd worried for nothing. Perdita gained nearly 4 inches in as many months. (He then understood why Neiru-

-had been making clothes that were two sizes too big for Perdita when the lethargy began to set in.) While her physical development & coordination was indeed remarkable, what truly impressed everyone was Perdita's mental development.

Even Neiru was not prepared at the pace at which Perdita learned new words & her capacity to solve problems. Nightshade described her appetite for knowledge as "ravenous." Perdita LOVED learning new things, though usually paused to consider new information before-

-asking new questions. Of course, she still loved to play, & being an Orcish child meant she loved physical activity, but if learning could be combined with physical games, Perdita was thrilled to no end. Puzzles & building blocks with letters & numbers were her favorite toys.

By the age of 6, her parents decided it was time to being her education. Neiru explained, however, that Orcish children learn best when their bodies are engaged. While she was not aware of it, this is because of a feature of their neurology that ties their cerebellums-

-to their temporal lobes. If the cerebellum is sufficiently engaged during certain kinds of learning, the new information is retained better. In planning Perdita's education with Nightshade & Voss, Neiru made sure that physical activities would be-

-incorporated into most of the lessons, at least during the early stages, when the "foundations of knowledge" were being laid. Voss was actually easier to persuade to take this approach than Nightshade. Though originally an Elf, the Lich had seen enough about Orcs-

-to recognize that they were a "physical people" & thus needed to be taught in a more physical way. To that end, he agreed to make sure Perdita's lessons involved puzzles, exercises, & other activities to make sure her body was adequately engaged to help her mind-

-absorb as much as possible. One of the largest focuses of Perdita's early education would be learning all the languages her parents spoke. Both Nightshade & Neiru were fluent in multiple languages. Both spoke Isvaeran, so it was Perdita's primary language.

Nightshade also spoke Orphinian (another Human language,) High Gnomish, & Draconic. (Ironically, despite being a 3rd generation Half-Elf, he barely knew any Elven words.) Neiru obviously spoke High Orcish, but also High Elven & High Dwarven, thanks to her work as-

-both a Nature Warden & her involvement in the fur trade. The prospect of teaching a child to speak all these languages fluently was an intellectual challenged that Voss certainly found worthy of a Lich of his scholarly mindset. Developing puzzles for Perdita to solve-

-that would help Perdita master 7 languages also allowed him to flex his mental muscles a bit more than he had with the people who previously possessed his Phylactery. Fortunately, all these languages use alphabets. None are syllabaries or logographic in written form.

And I'll need to take a short break, here, due to Twitter's limitations, but I'll try to get more done tonight, to make up for lost time. Stay tuned & let me know what you think! (And be sure to like so I know you're actually reading these.)

So, Perdita's elementary-level education was certainly intense, but, thanks to the techniques that were used, she absorbed her lessons like a sponge absorbs water. Perdita loved learning, but she also viewed her lessons more as games than work. To say this pleased her parents-

-would be an understatement. Nightshade would bring Perdita along during his inspections of the ships in the fleet, quizzing her on what the different parts were called (in all the languages she was learning) & what roles the different sailors played.

Neiru would also test her while teaching her practical skills like sewing, cooking, & more. Perdita poured herself into everything she did, which actually proved a contagious attitude. In her presence, the pirates performed their sailing duties with gusto, verve, & flare.

But in addition to intellectual training, she was getting training in various martial disciplines. Neiru was well-versed in a form of Orcish martial arts that I'm currently calling Tetcar-Sum. (Sum is pronounced "soom," not sum as in "sum of money.)

Developed by Lothraq the Wise, Tetcar-Sum has multiple disciplines within it, the names of which are all not final, since I'm still figuring out the Orcish language. I suspect none of these will remain the same once I have, since I've decided to use Slavic languages-

-as a starting point for Orcish. (I just can't imagine a woman like Neiru having anything other than a Slavic accent.) Anyway, I'll do a quick rundown of the branches of Tetcar-Sum that Neiru passed on to Perdita in the next few tweets.

Etor-Koz: This is like a fusion of Yoga, Pilates, & Tai Chi. It trains the body for maximum flexibility & muscle control while laying the foundation for many other branches of Tetcar-Sum. This is why Perdita is both a contortionist & ballet dancer. (Art by Shardanic.)

Broda-Vorsh: This is a strictly hand-to-hand style of martial arts with similarities to Karate, Kung Fu, Taekwondo, and Juditsu. Many movements from Etor-Koz are featured in Broda-Vorsh. There's more than one style, but Perdita has mastery of the core style of Broda-Vorsh.

Thulgen-Vir: This is a blend of both boxing & kickboxing. Unlike Broda-Vorsh, Thulgen-Vir is more of a "brawling" type of marital arts, or at least that's how Nightshade saw it. (He actually learned it along with Perdita.) Perdita uses this style primarily in bar fights.

Kagravat: The first form of Tetcar-Sum that involves the use of weapons Neiru taught Perdita was Kagravat, which is weapon THROWING. It is not restricted to just knives, however. Many different thrown weapons are included in Kagravat. Neiru started with the core set, which were-

-chakrams, throwing axes, throwing knives, throwing stars, & throwing needles, but also included slings & bolas. (Perdita was an unholy terror with both, though she rarely used them on people.) The reason Neiru had her learn to use throwing weapons first was-

-because Perdita was still a child so it was best for her to keep opponents at a distance. However, Kagravat was also a part of the techniques that Neiru used in her hunting practices, so Perdita was also learning to fend for herself with this particular discipline.

Hizad-Hok: While it could be summed up as knife fighting, Hizad-Hok has as many different styles as there are knives. Perdita was learning how to use knives by the time she was 7 (which is typical for Orcish children,) so it was natural for her to learn Hizad-Hok when she was 8.

Obakrem: This is a discipline that specializes in the use of hafted weapons, like axes, hammers, picks, morning stars, etc.. Neiru frequently employed Obakrem in dealing with Monsters that were "hard nuts to crack." She made sure Perdita knew how to do that, too.

However, a sub-type of Obakrem involves the use of a shield of some sort in the off-hand. Neiru started Perdita with the targe & buckler, as these were employed by many pirates. Being proficient with a shield also enable Perdita to better defend herself.

Civa-Jert: This discipline focuses on baton-type weapons, like escrima sticks or the tonfa. It is also generally employed with such weapons in both hands. This was also what revealed that Perdita was actually ambidextrous (which is not uncommon among Orcs.)

Vonsuroq: This discipline utilizes staff weapons like the bo staff & quarterstaff. It is also perhaps the most widespread form of Tetcar-Sum that uses weapons. Perdita proved talented in it, but also liked using her staff to vault over obstacles, the little scamp.

Juthren-Lod: This form of Tetcar-Sum focuses on polearms of various kinds. As a Nature Warden who hunted Monsters, Neiru was a master of Juthren-Lod. As spears were also used to repel boarders on ships, she gave lessons to the pirates as well as Perdita.

Neiru was proficient in one other form of Tetcar-Sum, called Volkar-Tan, which specializes in the use of bows, but Perdita did not display as strong an aptitude for bows as she did for firearms. While she did master the basics of archery, Neiru decided that-

-it was more logical for her to focus on learning to handle firearms, since bows aren't as useful on a sailing ship. Perdita was clearly a child of the sea, so guns were better suited for her. Mind you, Perdita secretly hoped she could become as talented as her mother was-

-with a bow eventually. Not only was Neiru an ace with a short bow, she was a trick shot & expert at mounted archery. She could even use her feet to fire the bow, which Perdita never got tired of seeing. But, Neiru was only adequate with flintlock weapons, so-

-when Perdita exceeded her abilities with firearms, her mother was more than pleased with her. As to the martial disciplines Nightshade taught Perdita, he focused on firearms training & swordsmanship. By the time Perdita was 9, she was as good with the cutlass, saber, & rapier-

as her father had been when he was 12. Perdita's ambidexterity gave her many advantages in learning fencing. She could switch between hands with ease, to her father's delight. (And, no, I won't be making a certain reference in the stories regarding this.)

(Though I might have something along the lines of someone asking Perdita, "Wait, are you right or left handed?" to which she'll respond, "Yes.") Now, if you're wondering how Perdita had time for school lessons while also learning all this, again, it's because-

-her mental education WAS COMBINED with her physical educate. The more engaged her body, the more engaged her mind, AND BOTH WERE ENGAGED. But now it is time for another break. Stay tuned. I want to get in one more section of this thread before I'm done tonight.