Warrior's Heart

Chapter Seven

Dawn came far too quickly for Arielle's liking. It seemed no sooner did she close her eyes and drift off, but then the fur fell away and Thorin's hand gripped her shoulder to shake her awake. "We need move now, princess," he whispered. "Up you get."

She sat up, still half-asleep and groggy, and tried to force her eyes to focus as she said, "What did you say?"

"I said, we need move. Now." He shoved the top fur into the bag and gestured for her to rise. "Come. We have no time."

The cold air bit into her as she managed to get to her feet and let him stow the second fur. Then she heard it. Footsteps.

That brought her fully awake and she dove toward the campfire to scoop handfuls of dirt to throw on it and put it out. As she did, she looked up at Thorin. "Azog?"

He nodded. "I think so."

"But you said—"

He lunged at her, clapping a hand over her mouth and whispering, "Hush," in her ear as he tugged her to her feet. He released her, unsheathed his sword, and pressed it into her hands. "Just as before. If we get separated, head due west until you reach the Blue Mountains. You cannot possibly miss them, for the ocean lies just beyond."

"No, wait... Thorin, we are not going to be separated. And I am not leaving you."

He shouldered the bag and grabbed his axe. "I hope not, but then, I didn't think we'd be separated from the others, either. Now," he gestured with his head toward a narrow path through the trees. "Stay ahead of me unless I am overtaken. Then, run. Just run. Can you do that?"

The footsteps grew louder, dull and ominous thudding becoming more deafening by the moment. Her blood roared through her ears even as she nodded. "My leg feels almost as normal."

"Good. Here." He passed her the oilskin holding the kingsfoil. "Just in case."

"Thorin—"

"Go!"

She started down the path, which wound this way and that, with exposed tree roots and overgrown sticker bushes that snagged her skirts, her hair, her skin. At the first sound of metal striking metal, she stopped. The path had bent so far, she could no longer see Thorin.

Her fingers tensed about the sword's handle and she didn't hesitate to hurry back the way she'd come. As she rounded a curve in the path, she saw three Orcs bearing down on him. Like quicksilver, she launched herself from the ground, up into the lower branches of the trees, skipping across them as if they were a perfectly level road.

She swooped down, one hand about a branch to guide her and as she spun by, she cleaved the middle Orc's head from his shoulders in a single fluid motion.

"I told you to run!" Thorin bellowed.

"And I told you I would not leave you!" She swooped back, landing with her back to his. "We're evenly numbered now."

"I thought you couldn't kill anything?"

She shrugged. "Orcs are an abomination. I feel no guilt." She ducked as Thorin swung his axe, the blade whooshing past her face as it arced upward and buried in the middle of the first Orc's chest. He howled, thick, acrid black blood spattering everything around them as Thorin yanked the blade free.

The Orc lumbered toward them, but she didn't wait for Thorin to swing again. Instead, he spun out of her way and she went low, dropping to her knees to drive the sword's blade deep into the Orc's belly. Her arms ached as she forced the blade up and back, slicing him from bottom to top. He fell, leaving them with the last one.