It had been three days since Arinya had joined Fundin's unit. Shortly after they departed from the main camp, the company had climbed the slopes of the Misty Mountains until they entered one of the many entrances into the tunnels. Now, Arinya was getting to see just what kind of a squad she was assigned to.
It was a scouting group. Their mission was to march through the labyrinth of tunnels underneath the extensive mountain range, mapping uncharted passageways and tracking enemy movements. If they happened to find a group or nest of orcs somewhere in those passageways, they would do one of two things. If the orcs they find are small in number, then they would simply take care of them themselves. If the number of orcs is far beyond them, then they would send a runner to find the nearest battalion of soldiers who patrol the tunnels that they have already cleared, give them the location of the discovered orcs, and then the soldiers would come in and secure the area by eliminating the orcs. It was an effective system. Or so Arinya believed. But so far, they had yet to find any orcs in the tunnels since she had joined them.
Part of her was relieved. She had never been in a real battle before. There had been the incident with the bear, and even the wolves all those years ago, but fighting orcs was much different. With animals, there was at least a degree of pattern-predictability. With orcs, there didn't seem to be. Their movements were chaotic and unpredictable. Arinya had seen more than her fair share of orc attacks in her visions-seen the blood and carnage they caused. She feared that when her first battle finally came, that she would hesitate out of sheer fear as those images arose in her mind. That hesitation would be her downfall and get her killed. She needed to act swiftly. So, throughout their entire three day trek through the dark tunnels, Arinya had been mentally going over her lessons with Haldir-remembering the advice he had given her for combating their ilk. Even with that knowledge ever present within her mind, Arinya still couldn't still the fear of her upcoming first real battle.
One of the other dwarves roughly slammed his shoulder into Arinya as he passed her, jerking her out of her reverie. He made sure to throw her a look of pure and utter loathing for good measure before his head turned to look at the path ahead. Arinya just glanced at him briefly before turning her attention forward once more. It was her own fault. She had been so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she had started to slow down, drifting into his path as she did so. Still, the other dwarves in her company didn't miss an opportunity to show her just how much they despised her and her kin.
Arinya didn't waste her breath. She didn't even attempt to change their minds about her. She knew that they wouldn't be swayed by anything she had to say, so why should she even bother? If she had tried, she may have just made the whole situation worse by making the dwarves call her a liar for saying she wasn't their enemy and held no ill will towards them. In the end, it was simpler to just keep her mouth shut, which is exactly what she had done since they had set out from the main camp three days ago. For three days, Arinya had not uttered a single word. Not that she needed to. The only times that the others even paid her any heed was when they decided to hurl another hateful insult at her. The elf woman wouldn't lie-she knew that eventually those insults would begin to wear down on her. But for now, she was able to bear it.
In order to endure less comments, Arinya chose to walk at the back of their group as they marched through the dark tunnels. A few other dwarves hung back-more than likely as a gesture of mistrust as they didn't feel like they could let her out of their sight.
The brunette glanced briefly to her left and right, at the dwarves who were flanking her, before returning her green gaze forward once more. Sometimes, it didn't even feel as if Arinya was really there. Like she was invisible to the dwarves-which she essentially was anytime they finished with their insults. Arinya had tried to pay attention and possibly learn some of the other dwarves' names but ultimately failed. The other dwarves preferred to speak in Khuzdul to one another-more than likely an attempt to keep Arinya on the outskirts of their group. Arinya tried to listen in and see if she could discern any names but if there were any stated, they blended seamlessly in with the rest of their conversation-indistinguishable from the rest of the words spoken in Khuzdul. So, in the end, she gave up trying. As of now, the only one whose name she knew was Fundin.
Arinya did her best to focus her eyes on the path ahead. The dwarves carried a few torches, but not enough to fully illuminate the vast tunnel that they were currently exploring. Arinya had trouble with the darkness, for she was so used to relying on her sight. Now though, she was forced to rely on and further hone one of her other senses-hearing. The dwarves didn't seem to have the same issues that she did, though. In fact, they seemed at home in this near darkness. They were surefooted and confident as they marched ever deeper into the mountain. Arinya half wondered to herself if dwarves could see in the dark but instantly threw it away. If they could, then they wouldn't need torches. But surely they must see in the dark better than most. Well, at least better than her. At any rate, she could still rely upon her hearing which gave her an advantage.
Suddenly, the dwarves ahead of Arinya halted. Her green eyes snapped up to the forefront of their company, her gaze wary now. Her eyes locked onto Fundin at the head of the group, his large form just visible from the small amount of light provided by the flickering orange light of the nearby torches. His hand was held up in a sign to stop the march of his men. He didn't turn around, keeping his eyes directed forward and focused into the darkness. He appeared to be listening for something.
Arinya closed her eyes, mentally drowning out all the other noise provided by the grinding of the dwarves' metal armor as they shifted on their feet. She quietly listened, but she didn't hear anything. Her eyes opened, focusing on Fundin once more who had still not moved. Why had he stopped them?
Then, she heard it. It sounded almost like dozens of tiny raindrops falling on stone. As the elf listened, she realized that it was drawing ever closer to where their small company was standing. As the noise continued to draw closer, Arinya finally realized what it was. It was claws. It was the sound of several pairs of claws clacking on stone with every footstep. Arinya felt a pit developing in her stomach. There was a group of goblins out there in the darkness, and they were heading right for them.
With a sharp gesture from Fundin, the dwarves all unsheathed their weapons. The ringing of steel echoed off the stone walls of the tunnel. Fortifying her will and taking a steadying breath to still her ever growing apprehension, Arinya reached down and gripped the hilts of her two hand-and-a-half blades and drew them swiftly from their sheaths.
Normally, Arinya would have preferred to use her bow, but she didn't have that luxury. A bow was to be used in an open, well lit area where she could easily pick her targets. If she used her bow here, in this near darkness in such close quarters, she ran the risk of accidentally burying an arrow in one of her dwarven comrades. That was certainly not something she wished to do. So, for the duration of her time in the tunnels, Arinya was going to be forced to set aside her bow and rely on her blades to defend herself.
Arinya tightened her grip on the hilts of her blades, her knuckles turning white. She quickly glanced down at her hands only to see them visibly shaking. Further tightening her grip, her green gaze shifted upward once more. All of the other soldiers appeared to be readying themselves as well, shifting their grips on their weapons into a more comfortable position. Arinya briefly wondered how many battles these soldiers had seen or how many soldiers were wounded or killed before she had joined them.
The brunette mentally shook her head, trying to rid herself of such thoughts. She couldn't afford to be distracted. She needed to focus upon the battle to come.
Suddenly, Arinya heard the footfalls of the approaching orcs quicken towards them. They had more than likely heard the unsheathing of their weapons-or perhaps had smelled them. It didn't really matter how they had been discovered. All that mattered now was surviving the encounter and eliminating the foul creatures.
Then, all at once, the orcs broke through the veil of darkness ahead of them. They wasted no time and immediately leapt onto the offensive. They uttered shrill cries that sounded like haunting laughter. They drew their roughly sharpened swords and raised them over their heads as the charged the dwarves. The small company was ready though. Uttering a war cry of their own, they leapt into the fray.
Arinya hesitated, hanging back as she watched the ensuing battle with a wide eyed look. Bodies moved and writhed in the near darkness. Occasionally, she would glimpse a flash of steel and the spurt of black blood. She felt her heart beating wildly in her chest as fear gripped her. She knew she should join the fight but something was holding her back with an iron tight grip. Adrenaline was pumping rapidly through her entire body, only heightening every sense and emotion that currently held her. Every part of Arinya's body was tensed and rigid. Everything around her seemed to slow down until it nearly stopped altogether. She had wanted to be a part of this war. Part of that meant that she would have to be in a battle. She knew that when she had decided to enlist. So, why was she so afraid?
The menacing glint of a blade caught Arinya's eye. Her green eyes focused upon its source. It was an orc brandishing a wicked looking short sword in one of its clawed hands. Its attention turned on her frozen form as it pushed its way out of the mass of fighting bodies. Its lips curled up in a snarl, revealing sharp, rotten teeth. Seizing its chance in her indecisive state, it charged her with blinding speed.
But as Arinya saw the orc rushing her-saw the blade poised above its head as it prepared to deliver a deadly blow-she snapped out of her fear locked state. Instinct and self-preservation took hold as all her fears and doubts were forced to the back of her mind while all her training came to the forefront. Her grip on her two long knives tightened further as Arinya raised them in a defensive manner. She spaced her feet into a fighter's stance. As she did so, the brunette was briefly reminded of when Thorin had tried to teach her about swordplay all those years ago-when they were still friends that is. So, taking a quick but deep breath, the elf woman relaxed her shoulders as she readied herself for the rapidly approaching orc's onslaught.
Before he was even within her reach the orc struck out at her, its unusually long arms allowing it to be the first to strike. Its sharp blade sliced through the air, intent on severing her head from the rest of her body. Instinct took over her reflexes as Arinya leaned backwards. She watched as if time had suddenly slowed to a near halt as the orc's crude blade cut through the air mere inches from her face. As soon as it had safely passed over her, Arinya immediately straightened to her full height once more.
As she rose, she saw the orc's long left arm winding up with the blade to strike her down from above. Reacting to this, the elf raised her own left arm and effectively blocked the attempted attack. The blades met in the air with a loud clang. She was momentarily stunned by how strong this creature was as he pressed his weapon hard against her own. As Arinya looked past their connected blades, she saw the orc's lips curl back into an angry snarl. His right arm free and weaponless, he brought it up, sharp claws bared, as it swung through the air straight towards her face.
But Arinya's right arm was free as well. And it held another long knife. Her reflexes lightning quick, Arinya brought up her weapon and in one swift move severed the orc's outstretched arm. It was strange. When Arinya had imagined severing a body part, which she knew she would have to do in this war eventually, she had always thought that there would be more resistance when cutting through the flesh and bone. But there was next to none. Truth be told, she was grateful. She didn't want to have to feel such a thing. So, she inwardly thanked herself for remembering to have her blades sharpened.
As the now severed limb fell to the ground with a thud, black blood spurted forth from the stump. It splattered over her arm as it finished its offensive arc. Arinya had to restrain herself from jumping back in shock, but that did not stop her eyes from widening in horror. Blood came with war. She knew that. But that didn't stop her from feeling sick from the sight of it, knowing that she was the reason it had been spilt. She had to inwardly remind herself over and over: Don't hesitate, don't hesitate.
And she didn't. The orc jerked back, screaming wildly in pain. As he pulled back, his pressure of his blade upon Arinya's own lessened until it vanished altogether as he withdrew. The crude sword dropped from his clawed hand as he reached to clutch at his severed limb, seemingly desperate to stop to bleeding and the pain. Now defenseless with no weapon and having his attention momentarily diverted, Arinya seized her chance. With the blade in her left hand, she arced it swiftly through the air until it cut straight through one side of the orc's neck, through the jugular, and out the other side. The head fell to the ground with a thud, the body falling after it a moment later, black blood spurting forth from the neck where the head was once attached.
Even though she knew she was still in the midst of a battle, Arinya still allowed herself some semblance of a sigh of relief. She had just survived her first fight with an orc-had just killed her first orc. Somewhere in the pit of her stomach, the elf just felt sick. Orc or not, she had just taken a life.
But she didn't have long to ponder this fact. As her vivid green gaze rose from the bloodied, decapitated body laying on the ground before her, she glimpsed the glint of a blade as it reflected the light of the temporarily discarded torches. If she hadn't looked up, Arinya would have had her own head severed from her body.
So, quicker that she knew she could move, Arinya leaned forward, the blade whizzing through the air just above her back. A moment later, she straightened to her full height. Bringing up her blade, the brunette attempted to catch the orc off guard, her long knife cutting through the air, intent on striking him down from above.
But the orc saw this. He raised his own wicked looking blade in a defensive motion. Their blades connected in the air with a loud clang. Arinya gritted her teeth as she pressed down upon it. Then, in one swift motion, she jerked her blade to the side, taking the orc's with her. Now left wide open, the orc's only option for the moment was to strike at her with one of its long, clawed arms. This seemed to be their go to move when they were cornered. Arinya leaned back just enough so that the clawed hand sailed past her face, a mere inch away from striking her across her face. As soon as it had passed by, she straightened up. But what she didn't see was that the orc had dropped his blade and now was sending his other hand towards her, his claws intent on slashing through her throat.
Arinya saw it just in time. She managed to get out of the way- mostly. The attempted attack missed her throat, but still managed to claw her upper arm. Arinya could actually feel her skin tearing and tugging as the orc's claws ripped through her arm. A second later, blood began to pour from the wound, coating both her torn sleeve and the orc's claws. The brunette instinctively gripped her wounded arm, gritting her teeth, refusing to utter even a sound to give the orc any semblance of satisfaction at the sight of her in pain.
As she was momentarily distracted by the pain in her arm, the orc tried to seize his chance and strike her down. He grabbed his discarded blade, raised it over his head, and brought it down. But Arinya still maintained her grip upon her own weapon and raised it defensively above her head. The blades met in the air. The orc pressed down his blade further against her own. Arinya gritted her teeth, strengthening her resolve.
Then, swiftly, Arinya jerked her blade to the side as she had before. Then, using her wounded arm, she balled her hand into a fist and punched the orc in its grotesque face. Arinya couldn't stop the yelp that escaped her lips as the movement jarred her wound- not to mention the fact that the feeling of her knuckles colliding with the orc's jaw was painful as well.
The foul creature staggered back, momentarily caught off guard by the blow. The elf seized this opportunity. Whirling around, she swiftly brought up her leg and roundhouse kicked the orc, her heel connecting with the back of his head. The orc stumbled forward from the force of the blow. Due to this, it was relatively easy for Arinya to bring up her long knife and slice it across the back of the orc's exposed neck. Black blood spurted forth, coating Arinya's hand further with warm flecks of black liquid. A moment later, the orc fell completely to the ground, dead.
Arinya spared one look at the dead orc's body before her gaze rose, searching for her next opponent. As her head turned to look at her surroundings, she suddenly found herself face to face with another dwarf. His unexpected closeness and appearance caught her off guard as she found herself freezing. She realized that the dwarf was actually in the process of spinning around. After a moment, Arinya realized why.
After just looking at him for the brief moment, Arinya suddenly saw bright red blood spurt from a deep slash in his throat. The dwarf's eyes were wide in shock, filled with pain. His lips were parted, as if he wanted to cry out but couldn't. He looked frightened.
The elf felt a fear grip her as she saw the look in his eyes, saw the blood spraying from the gash in his throat. As the dwarf turned, flecks of warm life blood gushed onto Arinya's face and clothes. Her own eyes went wide in horror, every muscle in her body tensing. She could feel her hands trembling. Her green eyes briefly met those of the dwarf, locking onto each other. And then she saw the light leave his eyes. She saw the life leave him-like someone had blown out a candle.
Then, their gaze broke and the dwarf fell to the ground and Arinya's feet. She couldn't seem to take her eyes off of his body. Blood seeped from the gaping slash in his neck, creating a dark pool that spread ever farther across the stone floor of the tunnel. Arinya could hear her heart beat rapidly in her chest as fear threatened to take ahold of her. She could see her hands shaking at her sides. She had just seen him die. He had died right in front of her.
The sound of cackling laughter interrupted the elf's thoughts. Her head snapped up and she saw the source. It was the orc who had just dispatched the dwarf lying at her feet, its lips curled back into a fiendish grin. Its black eyes found her own, their malevolent depths filled with glee at the fact that he had just taken a life. In his clawed hand he held a sword, dripping red with the fallen dwarf's blood.
Instantly, Arinya felt an overwhelming angry grip her, banishing all the fear she had felt a minute ago. Her grip tightening on her long knife, the brunette ran her fingers down to the tip of the blade where she gripped its sides. Winding her arm back, the elf through the knife at her foe with all her might. The blade flipped end over end until it buried itself up to the hilt in the orc's chest. The foul creature stumbled back from the force of the blow. He looked down, as if he was shocked to see the weapon in his chest. Arinya felt a deep satisfaction at the sight, glad that the smile had been wiped from his face and the laughter had ceased.
Slowly, the orc sank to one knee, his own weapon clattering to the stone. His clawed hand wrapped around the hilt of her long knife, as if he thought to pull it from his body. But he never got the chance. After a few seconds of delivering the blow, the orc fell over completely, the light leaving his eyes as he died.
Arinya found herself breathing hard, her arm still held in the position from where she had released the blade. She let it fall back slowly to her side. Her eyes drifted over to the other dwarves in her unit. The battle appeared to be winding down now, nearly all of the orcs having been dispatched of. Arinya turned her attention back to the orc's body in front of her. She needed to retrieve her knife.
Carefully, the brunette stepped over the fallen dwarf at her feet. She tried to not look at him as she did so while also trying to make sure that she did not slip on the pool of blood beneath his body. After she had safely passed over him, she began to stride over to the fallen orc. When she reached him, she knelt down and wrapped her hand tightly around the hilt of her long knife. Taking a steadying breath, Arinya swiftly pulled the blade from his chest. The elf felt as if she would be sick as she felt the metal glide against the orc's flesh as she pulled it from his body. As soon as it was free, black blood began to flow from the open wound. Arinya tried not to look, fearing the sight of such a thing would only make her feel worse.
She briefly glanced down at the two hand-and-a-half blades gripped in her hands, their once shiny surfaces now stained with black blood. Reaching over, Arinya quickly wiped her blades clean on the scraps of cloth that the orc used for clothing. When they were sufficiently clean, Arinya rose to her full height. She cast one more glance over at the other dwarves in her unit. She had just survived her first real battle. She wasn't entirely sure of how she should feel. Triumphant? Sad? Angry? Right now, Arinya just felt sick at the sight of all the blood and carnage-some of it caused by her. But she would have to get used to it. There were going to be many more battles to come.
A/N: Sorry for the long wait! Life was incredibly busy and I found this chapter strangely hard to write. Please let me know what you think in a review or PM. Also, please let me know if you think this story is getting a little violent so I know if I need to change the rating.
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