Chapter 7

Lurtz ran fast and smoothly, glad to be alone. He would be back at the camp in the middle of the night, but right now the sun did its best to irritate him, although he stayed in the woods of Fangorn as much as he could. Sometimes he could feel the longbow on his back hit low branches with a sharp 'clang,' but there was no better way to carry this weapon. It reminded him that for a split second he had seriously considered leaving the bow with Uglúk.

What is it with this Uglúk anyway? Two days ago I was looking forward to breaking every single bone in his body, and here I am, first saving and now protecting his ass instead of kicking it...

Uglúk's smell was still on his body, sealed in a solid layer of sweat, dirt, dried blood and the ejaculate of two Uruks. Lurtz realized he was pretty filthy – even by non-existent Uruk-hai standards. When he returned to the camp, the others would literally get wind of what had happened, reading from the walking storybook of smells which happened to be their leader.

Determined not to offer them that kind of entertainment, he began to sniff the wind for water and strained his ears for its sound. He remembered that at least two rivers entered these woods from the north east and south east. They would surely branch off in various places.

At dusk he found what he wanted. He approached the creek carefully, as water did not only attract thirsty animals. When he was convinced that there was no danger, Lurtz took off the filthy leather tunic and tentatively stepped into the icy water. It made him cringe, and with a hissing snarl he jumped backward. Nobody had ever told him how unpleasantly cold a creek could be in December!

Cursing, he rinsed himself with scoops of chilly water, thoughtfully staring at the brownish-grey rivulets running down his arms, torso and legs. Although the cleansing felt good after he had gotten used to the sensation of cold wetness on his skin, Lurtz could not cleanse Uglúk off his mind. He hoped that his hunting companion was all right and able to get some rest. Some of that warmth he had felt an eternity ago, while being and bonding with the other firstborn Uruks, had returned, even if it was buried under other emotions.

Uglúk sat on the still warm ground at their sleeping place – the place that had also become the site of unexpected pleasure. He breathed in and out slowly and consciously, relishing the lingering smell of their frantic coupling. Here was food, and here was shelter. Their makeshift camp should be deep enough in the forest to ensure that he would not encounter humans or Elves, not even in the daytime. It was certainly safe for now.

He decided to get as much rest as he could for the remaining day and maybe another night. If he left the next morning, his smell would have dispersed until the other Uruks arrived to get the boar. Uglúk did not wish to compromise Lurtz's plan. Their leader had shown him kindness – a trait that Uglúk had not believed to be existent in the firstborn of the Uruk-hai.

With a yawn, the wiry Uruk stretched on the ground, huddling against the hard earth to be closer to that enticing scent. But while his body, pleasurably relaxed from orgasm and recovering from injury, wanted to rest, his mind kept him awake.

I want him, Uglúk thought. I want him more than I ever wanted anyone else. I care about him.

He had never cared for anyone, certainly not for the ones with whom he had coupled before, driven by the sheer animal need for sexual satisfaction. He had not needed to care, because they had felt same way. They had just wanted a good fuck, and that was that. Coupling with another Uruk usually did not change the way they treated each other in everyday life – when it came to clarifying rank, to sharing food or cooperating on a task.

So why did he feel that this time something was different? Certainly Lurtz did not need Uglúk's care?! It did not make sense.

With a sigh, the Uruk-hai threw his body around, cursing the still strong afternoon light. He dreaded joining their band as much as he looked forward to it.

When the sun was low on the horizon, he finally fell asleep.

Uglúk woke with a start, his eyes meeting daylight. He briefly wondered if he had only slept minutes instead of hours, but immediately his stomach growled the answer to this question, and he slowly raised himself to look around. It was a late new morning. Saruman's strange potion sure had done something to knock him out! Drowsily, the Uruk looked around him.

A milky, overcast winter sun had just crept over the horizon. It wasn't the sun that had woken him up though. His warrior instinct signalled that something was wrong. At this moment, he did neither smell, hear nor see anything suspicious, but the tingling on his spine refused to go away. He carefully tested his injured leg. The wound was tightly sealed by a scaly, black scab, and it felt all right.

Sharkû's stuff isn't all that bad.

He got up and helped himself to some cold meat, all the while checking his environment for anything that might indicate danger. A fire was out of the question, as he would have to leave soon. Standing, he wolfed down as much food as his guts could handle, ignoring its now unpleasant texture and stale taste. Still on edge, he checked himself over and had just fastened his knives to his belt, when he heard them...

Elves!

Their melodic voices were unmistakable, even vaguely familiar. He must have registered them before, possibly in his sleep. They were still far away, and the Great Orc had to hold his breath and concentrate very hard to make out their position. It sounded as if they were moving in his direction.

Uglúk snarled with frustration. His eyes shot to their abandoned sleeping place. These filthy Elves would definitely recognize it as something man-made. The dead boar, its flank and neck marked with the traces of sharp claws and teeth, would correct this assumption soon enough. And did Elves have a good sense of smell? The Uruk-hai's inbred memories did not offer sufficient information to alleviate Uglúk's doubts.

A cold, shivering rage began to suffuse him, but without a moment's hesitation he slid over to the makeshift roof and carefully disentangled dead from living branches. This kind of work was not his forté, but if he could mislead the Elves to assume that the boar had been killed by a bear, they might not look for anyone. It would buy him time – hopefully enough to prepare for ambush.

The Great Orc stepped back to look at his work. Uglúk could only hope their former sleeping place looked natural enough now not to arouse suspicion. The formations of trees and bushes were of no particular interest to an Uruk-hai, and he found it impossible to judge how convincing the whole arrangement looked. Uglúk shifted his weight, peering at it from a different angle. A branch under his foot broke with a loud snap. He cursed under his breath.

Then he slid away as silently as possible, moving with the wind, taking slightly to the North, but his body tingled with the rush of adrenaline, and the urge to spin around and attack the invaders was strong. With no small effort he fought it. Some of his band were heading directly toward the Elves, and they should be fairly close now. He had to learn how many there were on both sides before he could make an effective move.

Had he been uninjured, Uglúk could easily have circumvented the intruders and run ahead to notify his comrades, but as it were, he could only stay near the enemy and observe, hopefully finding a way to be of some use to his companions. Angrily he clenched his fists. He was without bow and arrows – ambushing them would be difficult with just the knives.

All the time running parallel to the Elves as stealthily as possible, Uglúk wracked his brain about what he could do to warn the others. Where a less intelligent Uruk would simply have charged, he controlled this burning desire, edging closer to eventually catch a glimpse of the softly speaking Immortals.

There were three of them: one female and two males. They did not look like warriors, but the males carried delicate, yet deadly looking bows with them. He was grimly satisfied to realize their small number, but these creatures were excellent archers – Uglúk knew that much. They did not seem to expect any danger in this forest, but obviously they had decided not to travel completely unprepared either.

With another annoyed, suppressed snarl he proceeded to run alongside their company. Matching their pace, even with his injury, posed no difficulty. He could run and try to intercept the others, but he knew he might be heard. Moving quietly was enough of a challenge at his current pace...