She Meets Orcs
"The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it."
-W. M. Lewis
Her scream went through the air sending birds flying from the trees. Legolas' eyes went wide as he saw Lizzy fall into the ground. Instantly, he raced to where she fell and looked down. Lizzy sat on cold ground with a sore bum and a face smudged with dirt. She let out a groan as she shook the cobwebs from her head. Legolas couldn't help himself, he let laughter explode from his mouth.
The image of Lizzy covered in dirt felt just. He felt that she deserved to fall into a hole. From the start she had shown him no respect.
"This is all your fault!" Lizzy shouted at him as she tried to rid her green and brown dress of dirt.
She was beyond pissed off and was sure the pompous elf prince had something to do with her fall.
"My fault?" Legolas asked after his laughter calmed. "How is your falling into a hole my fault?"
"Because," Lizzy yelled standing up. "If you hadn't had the stupid idea to come out here my ass wouldn't be down here stuck in a hole! For all I know you probably dug the damn thing."
"Of course you would accuse me of doing such a thing. You deserve to be just where you are."
"Don't tell me what I deserve elf boy. Just...just get me outta here." The dark confined space
began to make her feel uneasy.
"Alright," Legolas sighed.
He wished he could have enjoyed Lizzy while she was in the hole. He got down on his knees and reached his hand down. Lizzy stood on tiptoe and tried to grab the elf's hand but she could not reach it, the hole was too deep.
"Maybe if you'd reach down more I'd be able to reach your stupid hand."
"Maybe if you would jump you could reach my hand," Legolas shot back.
Lizzy did not like to take other people's advice. She gave up and sighed with anger. "Can't you find a rope or somethin'?" Lizzy crossed her arms and turned away from Legolas.
Legolas took his hand back infuriated. Lizzy was just simply unbearable to work with. He pinched the bridge of his nose feeling frustrated with the girl.
"I am going to go find something that will help you out, until then stay put."
"Ha Ha, very funny."
The hole had to be seven to eight feet deep. She wasn't claustrophobic but the hole she was in made her feel slightly nervous. Lizzy sighed and turned around. She swallowed and swallowed hard. She mistook what she had fallen in as a hole and nothing else, when it was no hole at all.
It was an underground tunnel of some sort.
There wasn't packed dirt around her like falling into a hole would look like. To one side of the hole appeared to be burrowed out and led to somewhere unknown. Lizzy crossed her arms and faced the opening of the hole.
Yep, this was all that stupid elf's fault. She let out a frustrated breath and kicked up dirt with her foot. This was not her idea of starting off the day.
"Lizzy Lizzy stuck in a hole all because she accompanied a troll." Lizzy snickered, but it didn't last long because a soft grunt met her ears. She turned towards the tunnel like opening in the hole, her large grey eyes searching for a source to the noise. Fear began to creep into the girl, as the grunts got closer to her. Lizzy turned from the tunnel and looked up at the sky.
"Could you hurry up elf boy, it's getting kinda creepy down here!"
Lizzy turned back towards the tunnel and felt her heart speed up when she saw two figures begin to show themselves. One appeared to be heavy set and hunched over, the other was skinny but was short with long limbs. Both were hidden in shadows until they stepped into her view. The sight of darkened dirtied skin met her eyes. Each had big yellow eyes and wicked sharp teeth.
Black saliva could be seen dripping from the corners of their mouths. The skinny one cocked its head to the side, as if he were studying Lizzy. Lizzy looked down and noted that both of the creatures had crude swords hanging from their waists.
"Well it looks like we can 'ave sum fun after all," said the fat one.
"Ooo such a pretty elfling that has fallen into our trap," the skinny one said, slowly coming over to Lizzy.
Lizzy backed up, too frightened by the two creatures to say or do anything.
'What can we do with such a pretty elfling?"
"I know, lets make her squeal," the fat orc moved toward her with a sick smile on his face. His companion followed behind.
Chest heaving, Lizzy screamed.
Legolas poked around the forest in search of something that would aid him in getting Lizzy out of the hole. He honestly thought if he left her there awhile she would learn to be more thankful for the hospitality she had been shown so far. Alas, he could not for that would too cruel and his father would not be pleased with him. He came across a long sturdy stick and picked it up. It seemed strong enough to lift a light girl like Lady Lizzy up.
"Could you hurry up elf boy, it's getting kinda creepy down here!"
Legolas ignored Lizzy and continued to search for something a bit better than a fallen branch. Perhaps he wanted to delay Lady Lizzy's rescue from the underground to the surface. The trees were offering much comfort it seemed now that she was away from him. The sun shown its bright rays down onto the forest floor, yet something was not right. Why would there be a hole in the middle of a path made by his people?
Perhaps a mischievous elfling had dug a hole to surprise his friends with but left it there. It didn't sound too unlikely since the forest was open to all, but it also sounded sketchy.
A small while later the answer was confirmed about the hole as Lizzy's scream disturbed the forest air once more. Legolas rushed back to the hole and looked down to see two orcs advancing on a terrified Lizzy. As a reflex he reached for his bow that wasn't there. He had left it in his quarters in a rush to meet his father on time. Lizzy backed away from the orcs until she could back away no further.
The orcs looked at her as if she were nothing more than a piece of meat. She was destined to die in a world that she had dreamt up. Soon she would be cleansed of the hurt and pain and reunited with the ones who had been taken away from her.
'I'm not ready to die,' she realized. 'No not like this.' She felt that she had betrayed herself. Every time she thought about taking her own life she welcomed the morbid thoughts. The thrill of imagining someone discovering her body in a pool of blood, she actually welcomed. As the end came to her in a form of repugnant monsters she found herself thinking about all the things she had done wrong in her seventeen years of living. The stealing, flunking classes, being mean to everyone she encountered, it was all wrong.
What was even worse was she had been incredibly rude to those who had helped her. What would her mother say if she saw her this way?
"Here!"
Lizzy looked up to see Legolas holding a long branch out for her to reach. His voice also caught the attention of the two orcs who intern moved quicker towards Lizzy. Lizzy reached for the branch, desperate to get away from the foul beings.
"You must make haste! Grab onto the branch," Legolas urged Lizzy, her eyes darting from her to the orcs.
Lizzy grabbed the branch with both hands and Legolas pulled.
"The elf's tryin' to take 'er!"
The bigger orc grabbed onto Lizzy's leg and began to drag her back down into hole. The other orc caught on to what his partner was doing and began to help pull Lizzy down also.
Lizzy was the rope in a battle of tug of war. She tried desperately to free herself from the orcs but their grips on her body only got stronger. She looked to Legolas who had dug his heels into the ground and was pulling her up with little success.
Her fingers started to slide down the somewhat smooth branch and as if Legolas sensed it, he told her to hold on.
This was her chance, her chance to let go and leave the life she had. There was nothing for her anywhere. Her uncle would be free to smoke, drink, and date however many whores he pleased without having to come home to her. She pictured him smiling happily at her coffin, his back to the few or no one who would be at her funeral. The wickedly rejoicing laughter coming from his mouth when he could finally rid his house of her possessions she could hear clearly.
She could see it all. And her castle that had served as a fortress she had built around herself, she saw, lay demolished on the ground, never to resurrect itself.
Legolas pulled with all his strength. No matter how rude the girl was, how unpleasant her company had been, he would not let her fall in the hands of orcs. For a split second he saw her stormy grey eyes fill with regret and then there was a mighty tug and Lizzy was hurled back into the hole. Legolas staggered backwards due to the sudden force lifted from him.
He rushed forward and jumped down into the aperture in the ground. The elven prince saw no sign of Lizzy, but the sight of the long dark tunnel caught his eye.
An ear splitting scream met Legolas' ears.
"Lizzy," he said and gripping the branch that had at one point connected himself with Lizzy.
Lizzy kicked and struggled against the creature that was dragging her deeper into the tunnel. The smell of their stinking flesh made her want to vomit. Whatever the creatures were, they cared not that their hands were digging into her skin and hurting her as either one of them took her shoulders.
"Let me go!" She dared to talk to these ugly creatures. Her heart was thundering in her chest, her brain was thinking the inevitable.
"Shut your squealing. It'll all be over with," said the smaller orc.
The larger orc smiled. "If you're lucky."
With wide eyes Lizzy looked at the orc. It's yellow pointed teeth smiling at her. The smile though was wiped away and a loud 'thud' was heard by Lizzy. The large orc fell to the ground in a heap. The smaller orc hissed and pushed Lizzy to the side, drawing its rusted blade.
Lizzy looked down at the fallen orc to see it impaled by the stick she had been holding onto a second ago.
It twitched and then went still. Lizzy looked away from the disturbing sight and saw Legolas, all emotion wiped from his face. To Lizzy he looked frightening but she wouldn't ever admit it. He stood straight and unmoving, his eyes focused only on the orc. The only weapon he had was the small dagger he kept in his boot.
Quickly, he grabbed the weapon from his boot. The orc ran towards Legolas, its sword high above its repulsive head. As the orc got closer, Lizzy closed her eyes, not wanting to see the grisly outcome that was sure to come. There was the sound of someone gasping for breath and hitting the ground. Feeling nauseated, Lizzy opened her eyes to find the unsightly orc lying dead on the ground, a small knife prodding from its jugular.
She looked from the orc to Legolas. "W-what are those things?"
"Orcs." He pulled his dagger free from the orc's throat and wiped it clean with its ragged clothing.
"Orcs?" Lizzy walked up to the creature and inspected it. Forever she believed there was no such thing as monsters, save her uncle and the person who had killed her family. Instantly, she regretted having those muffins as black blood poured from the orc's mouth and she watched.
"It appears to me that they have burrowed underground. Let us hope that those were the only ones down here," said Legolas.
Lizzy silently agreed. She followed Legolas back to the opening and saw daylight once more.
"How're we gonna get out of here?"
Legolas looked around for any loose roots that might enable them to climb up, there were none. He looked up, examining the height of the hole. Even if he were to hoist Lizzy up, she would never make it out. The hole was too deep.
"We cannot get back up this way."
Lizzy crossed her arms, "So what're we gonna do, yell for help and pray that someone hears us?"
"There has to be another way out," Legolas said mostly to himself.
Another way out? Lizzy wasn't thrilled with that answer. She crossed her arms, angered. Legolas turned from the hole and began to walk down the dark tunnel. Lizzy quickly followed after him, stepping over the large dead orc.
"What are you doing!"
Legolas whirled around, "Keep your voice down. Do not think that those were the only orcs here." Legolas turned from Lizzy and continued to walk down the tunnel. Lizzy hid her fright and put on a face that said she didn't care.
"What are you doing," Lizzy more demanded than asked.
"Searching for a way out."
"But the way out is back that way."
Legolas stopped and once more turned to face Lizzy. "Understand this Lady Lizzy, it is better to find a way out by going through this tunnel unnoticed than to stand back there shouting for aid and attract Valar knows how many orcs."
"But it doesn't sound very smart to wander around-"
"You have no idea what these creatures are capable of when in great numbers. If they were to find us, they would surely sentence us to death by slow torture. Is that what you want?"
Lizzy glanced at the orc carcasses feeling disgusted and afraid at the same time. The truth was she was scared, scared to follow someone she barely even knew through a tunnel that could be infested with orcs.
Legolas took her silence as a no and bid her to follow him. Lizzy groaned and followed behind the elf. As they made their way further and further down the tunnel, Lizzy kept looking back, looking back until the light that had shown through from the hole had disappeared.