An Unexpected Romance

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

"Run!" Gandalf yelled, and we did.

We tore even farther down the slope, wargs bearing down on us so closely that I could almost hear their ragged breath.

"Go!" yelled Thorin.

"Faster!" I screamed, shoving Bilbo in front of me.

A single warg went sailing overhead. Time seemed to slow down as it landed in front of us, growling fiercely. It charged before I could draw my sword, but Bilbo's blade was already sunk deep into it's skull.

"Run!" I yelled to the Hobbit as it collapsed.

I grabbed my bow and knocked an arrow, nailing the beast headed straight for Thorin. He brought his sword down in a wide arc, delivering the fatal blow.

We ran until there was no were else to go. We'd trapped ourselves, backed up onto a cliff. We had run out of earth, but the orcs were still coming. They would be upon us quickly, and we had no place to go.

"Now what?" I ran a hand through my hair, standing on the ledge.

"Up into the trees!" Said Gandalf suddenly. "All of you! Come on, climb! Bilbo, climb!"

I turned without a thought and started scaling the tree closest to me. It came as almost as second nature in this situation- hand here, foothold here, jump and catch the sturdy branch.

"Quickly!" Yelled Thorin.

We all began swinging ourselves higher and higher up into the branches. Bilbo was struggling to reach even the lowest branches on the trees. He was shorter than even I, and lacked powerful dwarfish legs.

"They're coming!" Thorin roared.

"Bilbo!" I screamed.

Nori dropped down and grabbed Bilbo by the back of his shirt. He hauled the the hobbit up to the lower branches before scurrying back up to the post, and not a moment too soon. Bilbo was just barely off the ground when the Orcs came barreling down the slope. I looked around suddenly and found myself alone in the tall pine I had chosen.

"Ariel!" Kili yelled from somewhere in front of me.

"Kili!" I cried.

"Hang on!" I heard Bofur yell.

"Hold on, brothers." Came Gloin's voice.

The wargs were barking and snarling beneath us.

And then he was there, atop a white warg, standing on a stone ledge, his body clawed to shreds and half an arm missing. His eyes shone with hatred and rage, the fires of war, not even a glint of mercy to be seen.

The Pale Orc.

Azog, the Defiler.

He stared straight at Thorin, his warg growling fiercely.

The Orc spoke in Black Speech, one of the many languages I understood.

"Do you smell it?" He said, his voice deep and gravelly. "The scent of fear?" The vile creature inhaled deeply. "I remember your father reeked of it, Thorin, son of Thrain."

"It cannot be.." I heard Thorin say.

Azog pointed at Thorin. "That one is mine. Kill the others!"

The Wargs charged forth, slamming themselves into the trees. They couldn't climb them, but their force was great. My tree began to shake. It was being uprooted. It would tip, and I would fall down to the forest floor below.