Bring Me With Her

How Many More?

The beating of the drums only got louder with every second. It was coming. "Talia." The young woman looked at Thorin to find that he was gazing down at her waist. Talia looked down and slowly pulled her sword out of her sheath to find that the blade was glowing blue.

"Orcs!" Legolas warned, causing Boromir to rush to the door. Talia gasped as he was met with two arrows that barely missed his head. At that, Aragorn turned around to face the Terran.

"Get back! Stay close to Gandalf!" he yelled, throwing his torch to the ground to help Boromir close the doors of the room. As they did, the fellowship heard what sounded like a loud rumbling. Boromir turned around.

"They have a Cave Troll."

With that, Legolas tossed the two Men axes in order to blockade the doors, while Gandalf tossed his hat to the side and unsheathed his sword. Once they had done everything they could to buy more time, Aragorn and Boromir stepped back by Legolas, while Gandalf and the Dwarves stood to guard Talia. Everyone readied their weapons, awaiting what was on the other side of the doors.

Talia jumped when she heard the first of many bangs against the doors. Little by little, the wood gave in. Once one of the holes that was created in the doors was big enough, Legolas let his first arrow loose. There was a loud screech coming from the other side as the Elf drew another arrow. Aragorn released one of his own arrows, and it managed to hit its target right before the Orcs came breaking the doors down.

Aragorn and Legolas were able to shoot down the first of the Orcs that came running in, later bringing in Gandalf and Boromir to fight off more. And when it became too much for the four of them, the Dwarves let out their battle cries, and joined in with Talia close behind them. The young woman slashed her weapons in every direction she could, the little amount of survival instinct she had coming back to her.

It wasn't long before Talia heard the booming of footsteps coming their way. The young woman briefly looked up and screamed as the Cave Troll broke its way into the room with its huge mace. This Troll was far bigger than the three that Talia had faced so long ago. It had a huge spiked collar around its neck, with a long chain extending from it serving as a leash. Legolas shot an arrow in its shoulder, its distraction giving Aragorn and Boromir the chance to grab the Troll's chains to yank it away.

The young woman soon became distracted by an Orc trying to get to her. She slashed every way she could, finally managing to get a stab in the creature's arm. Talia took advantage of its weakness and finished it off with her dagger. Before she could even get up, Fili and Kili grabbed her by the arms, trying to get her out of danger. The brothers hid her behind a pillar, and guarded every side of her.

They stayed there for what nearly felt like a lifetime. Talia stood breathless, with Fili and Kili's hands placed on either one of her arms. The young woman widened her eyes when she could hear the Troll coming closer. She screamed as she felt the force of the creature hitting the pillar that she and the brothers were hiding behind. Kili pulled Talia and Fili with him as he brought them around to the other side of the pillar.

She could hear everything that was happening. The slashes of weapons, the crashes to the ground, the cries of her companions. Was everyone alright? Was Thorin alright? She could feel the thickening of the air as the pace of her breathing quickened. It was so hot. And she could feel all the dirt and grime on her skin in that very moment. She needed to get out of here.

After what seemed like a whole other lifetime, Talia felt a tug on her arm. Kili was pulling her forward to run to the other pillar, with him and his brother close behind her. But when they were half way across, Talia darted her head to see that the Troll had spotted them. The young woman screamed as it lifted its mace to strike them. Talia jumped forward, while Fili and Kili jumped back. The mace came down, just barely missing them, creating a huge hole in the space between Talia and the two princes.