Caught in Thorns >EDITING<

Caught in Thorns: Chapter 12

~Chapter 12~

Legolas allows me take the lead as I turn down a back alley. He skids to slow down before following me.

"Remember when we used to hunt down Orcs?" I call over my shoulder.

"If you mean the figures made of sticks my father made, then yes." Legolas shouts back.

I laugh and slow down when I hear something above my head. A large Orc is visible not far ahead. It's head turns and glares at us.

In the same moment, another Orc jumps down right in front of me. The creature startles me and I slash its throat open with my dagger.

"Good job," Legolas says.

"I can't tell if you're being sarcastic or not." I reply, narrowing my eyes.

Legolas laughs for a moment. His smile fades almost as soon as it arrived. His head turns to the sky and he looks around.

I look back to where the large Orc was standing. I can feel the colour drain from my face when I realise that it has vanished.

Two Orc appear behind Legolas and I, and the large one starts walking towards us.

"Who do you want?" I ask, keeping my eyes on the large Orc.

"I'll take the big one." Legolas says.

"Don't think I can handle it?" I chuckle.

"No, just making sure something bad doesn't happen to you." Legolas replies, pressing his back against mine.

"How sweet." I mutter, locking my elbows with his and flipping myself over his back.

The Orcs charge at me and swing their maces at my head. I block the blows with my daggers and kick one back. The one that remains close to me tries to grab my throat. I dig my dagger into its chest and turn to the other Orc that is racing at me.

It stops a little ways away from me and snarls. I bend my knees and lower myself, preparing myself for an attack.

"Filth!" The Orc snaps, his jagged teeth bared.

Anger burns deep in my bones, but I remain still. The foul creature wants a reaction. It wants me to come at it so it can strike.

"We will rid this earth of you!" The Orc sneers. "One by one, we will destroy your kind."

The anger takes over and I throw my dagger at the Orc as hard as I can. I miss its head, but the blade sinks deep into the Orc's shoulder.

As a retaliation, the Orc swings its mace. I jump back and arm my bow. The Orc swings its mace again, this time hitting my side. The force of the swing throws me into a wooden pillar, knocking the air from my lungs.

A screech fills the air and I see the Orc barreling toward me. I drop to the ground as he swings his mace at the spot my head occupied moments ago. It suddenly crumbles to the ground, and arrow going through its head.

I look up to see Legolas lowering his bow. Then the big Orc appears behind him, raising a knife.

"Behind you!" I yell, my voice strained.

Legolas turns around and blocks the Orc's knife at the very last moment. As he fights the Orc, I make my way to my feet as quickly as I can.

The Orc grabs Legolas' throat and spams him back against a building. I take a deep breath, grab one of my daggers, and race for the Orc. I jump onto its back and stab my blade into it's shoulder.

It shrieks and releases Legolas, clawing the air as it searches for my head. Legolas collapses on the ground and rubs his throat.

"Run!" I snap at him.

Legolas stands up unsteadily and fires an arrow at something behind me, most likely an Orc. He draws his daggers and slashes at the Orc. I take the opportunity to retrieve my dagger from the creature's shoulder and attempt to stab it again. The Orc manages to get a handful of my hair while I'm distracted and throws me across the alley.

I catch myself on a brick wall and land on my feet.

When I look up, the Orc punches Legolas in the jaw and runs. Legolas looks at me and we take off after him.

The Orc disappears around a corner. Legolas stop and looks around. I stop next to him and give him a glare.

"I told you to run." I say.

"If I had, that Orc would've killed you." Legolas replies without looking at me. "Now, where did he go?"

"I don't know." I reply. "I've never seen an Orc that big before. How could we loose him?"

"His name is Bolg, he is a spawn of the Pale Orc." Legolas says, starting to walk toward the bridge that leads to the lake shore.

I follow Legolas, listening closely for any sounds that might give away Bolg's location.

Then I hear a snarl coming from above my head. I look up to see a Warg leaping off the roof of a building and racing across the bridge to shore. Bolg is on it's back.

"Get on!" I turn around to see Legolas on a horse.

"Where'd you get a horse?" I ask as I climb on behind Legolas.

"How do you think I got here?" He replies and races after Bolg.