To Hide a Princess

Chapter Eleven

I know I have to fight but I can't judge how many there are. There looks like a lot, maybe 30, but I am a trained fighter, I just haven't practiced for weeks. Either way they look old or wounded and are distrancted. I dismount Aranel and whistle for him to run away. I am not going to let him die, he us all that I have left. I would use stealth and avoid them but they've already seen me and about ten are riding towards me on the large dog like creatures. They look violent and angry. I have to fight if I even hope to stay alive.

With that thought, I pulled my bow from my shoulder and lifter it to position. Within a split second of this I have pulled an arrow from my quiver and fired. One orc falls, a great many to go.

I continue shooting at them while they are far enough away to do so. I take several down at once as I fire multiple arrows at one time. They fall but still more pour out from behind and under the overhanging rocks. They are getting closer and closer. I fire more arrows hectically, my aim always accurate and never failing me.

Soon they are too close for my arrows to be effective as I'm going to have to fight multiple orcs at one. Little unfair I think to have the odds tipping so far in their favour. However they don't know me. They don't know my skill. Or my technique. Or the danger they're in.

They don't know that I fight dirty.

I whip out my two sharp polished blades from my back, I'm very well armed even I will admit but better safe than sorry. As the first orcs approach, I balance myself evenly so I cannot be knocked over. I took out all of the dog creatures with my arrows so now it's all the orcs on foot against poor little defenceless me. Ha. They don't know what they're in for. Fighting is the one thing that has never failed me.

I duck under the first swinging sword, while jumping to avoid the sword sweeping under my feet. Landing on both feet again, I thrust my knife upwards taking out one orc while I sweep my foot in a wide circle around my body. In this way I use an orc's momentum to send his flying into two other orcs as he trips over my foot and I end with a powerful roundhouse kick to another orc.

As I continue to fight, it appears I may just make it out if this situation alive. If I'm lucky. Then I engage in a one of one short sword fight with another. After exchanging a short series of blows he manages to knock one of my two swords from my grip and into the mass of approaching orcs. Shame, I liked that sword. As he manages this he is distracted, so a quick sweeping blow abruptly ends his short sad life.

After this quick series, as I am fighting two orcs, now with one sword, I notice an orc sneaking up behind me. I duck, causing the two orcs I am fighting to simultaneously kill each other. As I duck I pull out a short dagger like knife and throw this sharp at the approaching ors. He is quickly taken out and I see a new gang of maybe ten more orcs approaching. Looks like this battle isn't over yet.

As I fight it becomes like a dance as I take out two or three orcs at once. I weave and spin while firing arrows, throwing any knives I find on dead orcs and sweeping my sword in a killing dance. It's beautiful and deadly. It's me.

Eventually they are all gone. My path is identified by a line of fallen orcs. I approach the overhanging rock to see what had interested the orcs in that way. Once there I enter a cave like space under the rock. Here supplies are stockpiled as is travelling equipment. It appears that orcs were camping here and getting ready to leave. Looking at the footprints it was clear that they had approached from the opposite direction and were heading towards either the mountains or Rivendell. Even though I didn't live there any more, I was thankful that I had stopped the orcs. Just in case.

I feet a twinge of guilt strick me for leaving Oro and Fin but I quickly crush this. I cannot be weak.

Suddenly I hear a sharp snap behind me. I spin around only to see a shadow flicker and nothing else. I know I'm just being paranoid, but it scares me slightly. I'm always skittish after a fight, some things never change.