Bring Me With Her

No Journey Home

They were huddled behind a rock as the Orcs passed them. Thorin and Talia waited four days for them to start marching. Finally, they had some luck for once on this quest. There was no way the two of them would have been able to walk across the giant camp without going unnoticed. Now, the great army was occupied. Once they had all moved out, that was when they would make their move. That was when they would cut across the campsite and make their way towards Mount Doom.

Thorin held Talia's hand tightly. Even then, he could feel her trembling with fear as these monsters marched by. It had even gotten to the point in which Thorin had to cut a piece of cloth from his cloak for Talia to put into her mouth to stifle her whimpering. Nothing else could've been done. She was so scared, and she was in so much pain.

But she had to stay quiet. Out of everyone here, Talia's voice would have been the easiest to distinguish. If anyone were to catch the slightest sound of her whimpering, they would know immediately that something wasn't right. But it wouldn't be much longer now. If the Orcs cleared out quickly, Thorin and Talia could be on their way within the hour.

The Dwarf king looked down when he saw what appeared to be one of the captains marching by them. He held on to Talia tighter, and held in his breath. Thorin looked from the corner of his eye to see the Orc staring them down. "Get up!" he roared. "Come on, you slugs!"

Thorin quickly moved so that he was on top of Talia as the Orc's whip came down on them. Talia let out a muffled whimper, while Thorin bit his lip as the shock of the whip cracked down on his back. He grabbed Talia by her uninjured arm and stood up, the Orc captain never letting up on the whip. Once they were up, the captain shoved them into the line of the marching army. "You two are going straight to the front line! Now move it! Come on! Fall in! Move it! Move it! Move it!" he bellowed.

He could feel Talia linking her arm with his, squeezing him tighter and tighter as they were pushed farther and farther along the Orcs' path. Thorin didn't even realize he was holding his breath until he had to gasp for air. There was no way out. They were surrounded by Orcs, bodies pressing against bodies to the point of near suffocation. How were they supposed to get out of this? "To the Gates, you slugs! Now move it! Don't you know we're at war?" the captain shouted.

No. They had to get out of here. If they didn't, only Mahal knew how long it would be before they were discovered and killed. That couldn't happen. That wouldn't happen. They had been through too much. Thorin would not allow Talia to die like this. There had to be some way to get out of this line. But they were completely surrounded. Thorin could hear the deep pounding of the war drums as they walked, his head beginning to ache. How long had they even been on the march? An hour? Two? They were losing time. Thorin needed a plan, and fast.

"Company, halt!" Thorin could hear from a distance. It was that Orc captain that discovered them trying to hide. The Dwarf king was nearly deafened by the sound of the war horns blowing, and he had to hold on to Talia even tighter, as she had almost stumbled to the ground from the force of the army stopping. "Inspection!" the captain bellowed.

Thorin held his breath as he tried to see what was going on. But his head darted towards Talia when he could feel her weight pulling him down. She was collapsing to the ground. Talia was on her hands and knees, her forehead nearly on the ground. "Talia." he tried, taking her arm again in attempts to pull her up. She wasn't budging in the slightest bit. "Talia, you have to stand. Do you hear me? They will catch us. You have to stand!" he whisper-yelled into her ear.

"Too heavy. I can't." she whimpered breathlessly. The Dwarf king swept her hair out of the way, and widened his eyes to see that she was telling the truth. Her neck had an angry mark where the chain that held the Ring was. A small stream of blood was running down either side of her neck. The chain was cutting into her skin. Talia's breathing was so heavy and fast, Thorin feared she would pass out. "Thorin...help me." she begged.