Splint
Chapter 50: Waylaid
AN: Is there a dance for 50 chapters?
When their trek began that morning, the scenery was pleasantly green. There were great hills of green, wispy grass and trees that dug their heavy roots into the heart of the earth, growing thick and tall. After only a morning of travel, the landscape had transformed to monoliths of stone and rock, great, grey giants that towered above the narrow path. The trees that grew here were tenacious things, clinging to the unforgiving face of rock by sheer will alone, and every gust of wind seemed as though it would loose them from their precarious perches.
Rukhash had never felt more at ease.
It seemed as though it had been a lifetime since she was back on her mountain, and though this mountain was leagues away, the sight was reassuring. I'm home, she thought, gazing over the miles upon miles of bleak, barren stone.
"Easy, easy," Cadoc patted the muzzle of their new steed reassuringly. She had slipped twice since they started in on this narrower stretch of road, her hoofs unaccustomed to sloping stone walkways. Cadoc was relieved the mare was so tiny. A larger horse would probably have fallen to its doom a mile back.
Rukhash had bounded ahead, her step easy and light. With the confidence of a mountain goat, she leapt atop a high boulder and looked out over the treacherous scenery. The look on her face… Cadoc was very sure he had, only rarely, seen her so blissfully content. When she doubled back to help him with Curudal, he could swear that she was glowing.
Cadoc had wondered how Rukhash would act around the horse, and the horse around her. After a rest stop of oat feeding and muzzle patting, Cadoc was surprised to find that they warmed to each other rather quickly. "She's not the prancing cunt most'a them others were," the orcess had said as she stroked the mare's head. Curudal had gently nudged her then, rubbing her nose against Rukhash's belly.
"How're we doin', my girl," the orcess asked the mare, scratching her whiskered chin as she took the reins from Cadoc.
"She had a bit of a stumble," Cadoc told her.
"Oh, now, my Cudgel, none a that," Rukhash nuzzled her nose and led a now calm horse forward.
"Rukhash," Cadoc said with a sigh, "her name is Curudal."
"Skai, I like Cudgel better," the orcess sniffed. "'N so does she. Don't you, my Cudgel?" The horse nickered and bumped her head against the orcess's rear. Rukhash flashed him a cheeky smile.
"Well," Cadoc laughed, "if she prefers it, then Cudgel it is."
Rukhash pressed her palm to his back as they filed along. "How're you feelin'?" she asked anxiously.
Cadoc imagined she must have noticed his stiff gait. "Well enough, all considered," he said. "I just took a little more of the medicine Lady Éowyn left me."
"Be careful wit' that," his shaûk warned. "Too much medicine fer pain ain't no good fer ya."
"I will be careful," he promised and reached back to clasp her hand. "This is, sadly, not my first set of bruised ribs. I know how much of this sort of medicine I can take. Besides," he added, "too much makes me foggy. I prefer to have my wits about me."
"Wish I had some draught ta give ya," the orcess mumbled.
They walked in companionable silence as the sun climbed higher. He had tried to bring up Thraangzi and his vision earlier, but Rukhash had quickly brushed it off with an uncomfortable look. He decided now was not the time to delve into that particular wound. Perhaps, after a time, when she could look upon what happened with only dulled heartbreak, she would be ready to talk about it.
Eventually, the path widened out as it descended into plateau covered in coarse crabgrass and tough shrubs. Calling them to a stop, Cadoc unpacked some of the rations they were given by Lady Éowyn and went about setting up some lunch. A small stream slithered like a shimmering serpent through the center of the clearing they had found. Rukhash immediately pulled off her boots to dip her feet in the cool water while Cudgel wandered a short distance to find a patch of greener grass to chew on.
He built a small fire to heat a few strips of salted pork. Rukhash had stretched out while she waited, laying back on the rocky shore with her feet half submerged in the shallow water. Cadoc smiled softly at the small rise of her belly. He imagined she must be exhausted after the past week. Pulling their lunch from the fire, he wandered over to sit next to her.
Lancing her lunch on a sharpened dowel, he passed her the pork. She didn't bother sitting up. Snatching it from his hand she took a healthy bite, chewing loudly. "It were nice a yer friends to leave us that slab."
"It was," Cadoc agreed.
"Wish they'd left some a that deer," she grumbled in between mouthfuls.
"We had nothing to preserve it, I'm afraid. It wouldn't have kept."
"Aw now," the orcess rumbled dismissively, "the meat's great after a few days of rotting. Adds to the flavor."
Cadoc glanced at her askew. "Unfortunately, I do not have your iron stomach."
She shrugged and licked her fingers, tossing the wooden stick into the stream. Cadoc made short work of his own meal while Rukhash napped lightly. When he had thrown his stick after hers, he looked down to find her staring intently at his wounded eye.
"I'm gonna make you a nice patch,' she said suddenly. "So's I don't have ta look at that dirty rag no more."
Cadoc pressed his fingers to the rough cloth he had wrapped over the bandage on his face. "I do not mind it," he said quietly.
"I mind it," she insisted. "I'll make you somethin' really classy, don't you worry."
Cadoc ran his thumb along her knotted brow. "I am sure anything you fashion will be more than appropriate." Her hand suddenly shot up and snatched his where it rested on her forehead. She gripped tightly, and Cadoc could feel the light nick of her sharp claws where they glanced his palm. Rukhash said nothing, but there was an intense look on her face, something like sorrow or regret.
"Don't," Cadoc insisted, seeing she was about to speak. "I can see the apology in your face, and I do not want to hear you ask forgiveness. Not for what your brother did to me or for what happened yesterday."
"It's just so fucked up," she whispered.
Cadoc lowered next to her and kissed her cheek, embracing her. "I know," he said. "Do you wish to speak of it? Because I will listen to anything you have to say, even if your words are harsh."
Her gaze settled on the lazy clouds above. "Nar," she rumbled quietly. "Not right now."
Pressing his forehead to hers, Cadoc sighed, knowing that she was avoiding the issue, but not wanting to push her too much. Her arm snaked around him suddenly, and Rukhash pulled herself up to press her lips to his. Cadoc blinked at her when she pulled away, the gentle pressure of her palm against his jaw as she ran her thumb along his cheekbone. "Yer my Cadoc," she told him, her eyes shimmering.
"My Rukhash," Cadoc whispered, and leaned forward to kiss her again. She responded more enthusiastically than he would have expected, opening her mouth to him as she reached between his legs. She maneuvered herself beneath him as they fondled one another and pressed her body against his with enough force to jostle his ribs a little too much. The pain sliced through his budding arousal like a thunderclap and Cadoc jumped back, sucking air through his teeth as he rolled away from her.
"Shit," she hissed, sitting up quickly. "Are you arright?"
He released a long breath through his nose. "Yes," he sighed. "I am sorry, Rukhash. I don't think I am in the shape for that."
A pained little noise warbled in her throat. "I'm the one should be sayin' sorry. I didn't think I squeezed ya that tight."
The pain subsided to a dull throb, and Cadoc turned to her with a strained smile. "Give me a few days," he promised.
The corners of her mouth turned up with soft affection and she nodded. "Sorry," she said sheepishly. "It's just… I feel like we ain't been alone in a million years."
Cadoc pinched her chin fondly. "Not so long, but it has been an exhausting several days, and I was only awake for half of them." Glancing up, he frowned slightly. "We should get going and try to find shelter before evening."
"Yea," she agreed. Turning towards the mare, who had wandered to the far edge of the clearing, Rukhash cupped her hand next to her mouth and yelled, "Oi, Cudgel! Get yer wide arse back here!"
The horse lifted her head and trotted towards them. Cadoc blinked and glanced down at the orcess standing next to him. "You have quite a way with her."
"I'm gonna start teachin' her orcish," she said definitively.
"Are you?"
"Fuck yea, I am. If a flea-brained Warg can speak it, I bet a smart girl like that can too. Can't you, my girl?" The mare sloshed through the stream to stand before Rukhash. Cupping the beast's hairy chin, the orcess raised her head so their noses touched. Cudgel favored her with a soft nicker and the orcess thrummed back.
"I did not think you would warm to her so much," Cadoc confessed as he took the lead reins in his hand. "I thought you hated horses."
"Well, all the horses I met so far were arseholes," she said, falling into step beside the mare. "They was always buggerin' out when I was around. Made me real nervous, what with them big ol' hoofs stompin' like they wanted ta crush my 'ead."
The orcess wrapped her arm under the mare's neck. "But not my sweet Cudgel. She come right up an' 'et outta my hand like we was always friends. An' back when my ankle was busted, she were real gentle underneath me. Didn't mind ridin' her so much. She knows her Rukhash won't hurt 'er, don't she?" The mare snorted. "See? That's a smart girl there. I bet she'll speak orcish better'n you."
Cadoc laughed and patted Cudgel's shaggy withers. "Well, she won't have to try very hard," he admitted.
"How long do horses live?" Rukhash asked, her eyes on the mare.
"It depends,' Cadoc said. "Cudgel is on the older side, but she is in very good condition. I imagine she has many years ahead of her."
With quiet contemplation, Rukhash brushed her fingers along the mare's spiky mane. "How long do Men live?"
Pausing, Cadoc turned to look at her. "That depends as well," he replied softly. "Men of noble bloodlines can live well past one hundred, while others of lesser lines will reach their end much sooner."
"How much sooner?"
Her gaze did not meet his, but Cadoc could see the sorrow written on her face. He embraced her, pressing his cheek to the crown of her head. "I will be with you for a long time to come, if I have any say in it," he told her. "But if it worries you, I will remind you that I am still in my prime."
He felt her smile against his chest. "Tough ol' codger," she said. "Never mind it, I don't know why I bothered asking."
"Rukhash, I will not leave you alone," Cadoc said softly. "We're in this together, remember?" He kissed her gently on the lips. "My shaûk." She grinned at him, looking a little dark in the cheeks. There was a fierce thump where her abdomen pressed against him and Cadoc blinked at her belly. "Someone is awake,' he said.
"Yea, an' we'd better git goin'," she sighed. "Air's smellin' wet, an' I'd rather not get caught up in no storm."
Cadoc frowned at the blue sky. "Are you sure?"
"Trust me," she said, tapping her index finger against her nostril, "the nose don't lie." Cudgel snorted and bumped her hip. "Oi, Cudgel," the orcess grumbled, annoyed. "We didn't forget you was here."
The horse shook her head nervously and stamped her foot. Cadoc had to grip her reins to keep the mare from suddenly bolting. "Easy, girl!" he said, stroking her long nose. "What's the matter?"
Frowning, Rukhash pitched her ears in the direction they had come from. "You've gotta be bleedin' kiddin' me," she hissed.
"Rukhash?" Turning, Cadoc realized that he could see dark shapes descending from the trail. Even from the great distance they were at, he knew it was not Lord Faramir come to talk him into riding to Minas Tirith. These riders wore black. "Run!" he cried and pulled his blade from it's sheath.
"You ain't stayin' here to fight 'em!"
"No," Cadoc agreed, his ribs throbbing, "I am not! Take your bow. They may catch up with us."
Rukhash pulled her bow and quiver from where it was stashed on Cudgel's back and slung it over her shoulder. Cadoc ushered her first down the path that picked up on the far side of the clearing, following with their horse. A horn bellowed, and Cadoc knew that they were spotted. Their one grace was the terrain. The trail was narrow and rocky, and if Dellon and his group were anything like most knights of Gondor, they would be riding tall, sleek horses bred for battle. With any luck, their steeds would slow them down, but Cadoc knew he could not wholly count on that. If he were in Dellon's place, he would stash his horses in the clearing and follow them, much more quickly, on foot.
The next few hours were spent climbing the trail, near breathless as they looked over their shoulders. The path wove serpentine through the rocky peaks, and every turn they made hid their sight behind, but Cadoc knew that the orc hunters were getting closer. Cudgel kept stumbling and Cadoc finally pushed her ahead, taking the rear. A few times, he thought he spotted a dark cloak against the grey stone, but the men chasing could never quite catch up with their hurried pace.
Then, the trail ended.
Quite abruptly, and with no warning, they were faced with a series of boulders blocking their path, the landscape nothing but stacks of broken, flat stone and sheer cliffs with no handholds whatsoever. Cadoc blinked at the insurmountable obstacle in their way. It would seem there was nowhere else to go. Rukhash was, fortunately, not so daunted.
Pulling the packs off of Cudgel's back, she rifled out a long rope. She kissed the horse roughly on the neck. "Guess you won't be learnin' no orcish, my girl," she said before wrapping the rope around the packs and tying the other end to her waist.
Cadoc had no idea what she was doing. "Rukhash, what are you…"
Leaping bodily onto the rock, she scurried up its face easily and was soon at the top. "I'll tie this off up 'ere an' you climb up!' she shouted down at him. Cadoc blinked at her and nodded dumbly.
He could hear shouts, and someone yelled, "I see them!" Cadoc glanced anxiously towards the top of the boulder. "Rukhash!" he hollered. "Sooner is better than later!"
Her head popped over the precipice. "Yer solid! Git up here!"
Sheathing his sword, Cadoc sucked up his pain and climbed that rope faster than he had climbed anything in all his life. As he reached the apex, Rukhash grabbed his bicep and pulled him over the edge. He collapsed breathlessly, barely able to breathe and only half aware of Rukhash's arms whirling frantically as she pulled up their gear and belongings.
"Bugger off Cudgel," she yelled down at the horse. "You don't gotta carry no one's shit no more!"
The last Cadoc saw of Cudgel was her rear as she headed back the way they had come, passing three men as they approached the boulder blocking the path. The men stared up at them, glaring. Dellon was among them, and there were more men coming down from the trail.
"Cadoc!" Dellon bellowed. "I will give you this chance to surrender yourself and your orc!"
Rallying himself, Cadoc rose to his feet. "You can answer that, if you like," he told Rukhash as he turned his back on Dellon and shouldered a pack.
She grinned at him and glared down at the men below, careful to keep her head at an angle they could not hit with an arrow. "Suck it, you nancy, wanking tits!" Shouldering her own pack, she started jogging along the great, granite stones that littered the path for as far as Cadoc could see. He followed after her.
"What did that even mean?" he asked, feeling oddly exuberant, despite the nagging throb of his injury. It would take those men hours to double back and find another way after them.
"The fuck does it matter?" Rukhash snuffed. "It sounded good."
Calon and Rivalon saw the smoke first. Oddly, Calon felt no dread at this. The wisps were white and small – not the dark, billowing clouds of a funeral pyre – and a part of him felt oddly relieved, even before they came upon the men situated near a small stream in an open clearing. The terrain had been treacherous thus far. Calon hoped that Dellon had given up, especially now that it was raining and well past dusk. When they reached camp, the men with Dellon greeted them respectfully and offered them a place under their tent and near their fire.
"Fonor is my name," one of the men introduced himself. "And you have a place with us, rangers. Have you come to join us?"
"Yes…" Calon said warily, glancing towards Rivalon.
"You've come too late," another man replied sourly. "Cadoc and his beast evaded us."
"We don't know that yet," Fonor assured his comrade. "Dellon and Aewion are still looking…"
There was a long, loud hallooo outside. Rising, Calon glanced out of the tent and saw the two men just mentioned striding across the clearing. There was a bright gash on Dellon's head, and a younger man – Aewion, Calon guessed – supported him as they made their way through the rain.
Dellon caught sight of him and blinked, surprised. "Calon!"
"Yes," Calon said, moving aside so the younger man could enter. "And Rivalon is with me. I will guess you've had no luck. How did you come upon that injury?"
"This mountain is impassable," Dellon grumbled. "I lost my footing and was very lucky that I did not fall further than I did. Aewion saved my life." Dellon nodded towards the younger man and Calon caught the blush on Aewion's face.
Oh… you poor, young fool, Calon thought wryly. You have no idea who you fancy.
Calon had lost touch with Dellon over the last few years, but the man he remembered thought only of hunting orcs, of the tactics to use against them, the best techniques to fell them. On the rare occasions when their paths crossed, there were long conversations on that subject alone. Even Rivalon, who had never cared much for orcs as a whole and easily professed his distaste for their race, found Dellon overbearing and exhausting. Calon could not remember ever seeing Dellon with a partner, either a woman or a man, his quest for vengeance was that great.
"Well," Rivalon spoke up from his place near the fire, "I am sorry to hear it." he did not sound particularly sorry at all. Calon would have to teach him to lie a little better.
Dellon didn't seem to notice Rivalon's lack of enthusiasm. Stomping to the corner, he wet a rag and pressed it to the wound on his head. "I don not know what to do," he admitted, looking to Calon. "The land further east is rife with orcs, and we are too few, even with you and Rivalon joining us. I do not want to risk the men that follow me."
"That is wise," Calon told him. "It would be cruel to expect these men to jeopardize their lives over one man."
"It is more than that," Dellon said, approaching Calon with an almost wild fervor. "This is Cadoc. How powerful is that witch, that she could twist his soul to such a state?"
Calon shook his head, unsure of what to say. Rukhash was an emotional creature and blunt nearly to a fault, but Calon saw no deception in her interactions with Cadoc. For all of his distrust and distaste over the matter, even Rivalon – after seeing them together – had to admit that Cadoc stayed with her of his own will. But better not to speak of that. Calon knew, no matter how much they professed in Rukhash's favor, Dellon would not be swayed. If anything, he may accuse them of being bewitched as well, and Calon did not want to come to such an altercation outnumbered and in the middle of the wilderness. Even now, after being accepted into their camp, Calon could feel the fine hairs on the back of his neck stand up, a wary unease around these rim, young orc hunters.
"I suppose he is beyond our reach," Calon said, hoping he sounded disappointed. "As much as it pains me to admit such a thing. Cadoc is a friend to me and to Rivalon also. We have known him many years, but I am not sure I would dare whatever lives on the eastern slopes of these mountains."
Dellon nodded solemnly. "I will just have to wait," he said darkly.
"Wait?" Calon frowned, confused. "For what?"
"For Cadoc to reveal himself," Dellon said. "Or, for the king to take hold of his senses, and finally clear the orcs out of Nûrn once and for all."
"The people of Nûrn put an end to the orc hunts years ago," Rivalon reasoned.
"Trust me," Dellon said, "they will come to regret it. They will ask for our aid, and we will be happy to give it. I will find that orc witch," he said heatedly, "and I will make her pay for what she did to my teacher. And Cadoc will pay as well, for throwing away all he should hold dear in favor of this abominable union. They will not escape me."
Calon glanced quickly in Rivalon's direction, and saw his own thoughts reflected in his lover's face. Dellon was absolutely, raving mad. The young knight in front of them refused to let this go? What reason was there to pursue Cadoc any further? In reality, he had done nothing, merely pledged himself to a partner that would meet with little or no public approval. What was the greater harm in that?
Wherever you are, Cadoc, Calon thought. You had best stay hidden.
The elation of their escape faded as they hastened over the landscape. The terrain was difficult, and Cadoc had to stop often to catch his breathe. Rukhash was holding onto his medicine now, worried that he was taking too much. The rain she had scented earlier came upon them in a great wave, and they were forced to spend part of the early evening beneath a rocky eave as it began to pour in earnest. They ate a silent, cold supper and started out again the moment the rain had stopped.
They traveled in this fashion for all of the night and into the next morning. Running ceaselessly, never stopping for more than a few moments, and Cadoc felt as though his entire ribcage were on fire. The dawn had brought more clouds and by noon it had grown as dark as midnight. Now they traveled along a narrow crack between two mountains, and there were no convenient ledges to keep the rain off of them.
Cadoc drew Rukhash away from the gully in the center of the trail and draped their cloaks over their heads and the packs on their backs. She huddled close to him, shivering slightly in the cold rain, and Cadoc wrapped his arm around her waist as they continued walking at a slower pace.
"We'll find some shelter soon," he assured her, but they found no shelter. As the rain peppered to a stop, they had climbed out of the gully and into a forest of stones, the rocks forming half sturdy structures that resembled archways and tall towers. They were bizarre formations, but a natural ones. Cadoc and Rukhash passed through this area like quiet shadows, as though a single breath might topple the towers of rock around them. There were numerous signs of old avalanches, and Cadoc did not feel safe stopping until they climbed atop another ridge that towered over.
Finally, near nightfall, after two days of little food and less sleep, they came upon a small cave. Cadoc nearly wept with joy.
Rukhash did weep with joy. "We can stop now, yea?" she asked tearfully and Cadoc nodded. He was certainly ready to rest as well. He felt as though he could sleep for a whole day.
Cadoc had the presence of mind to stash some kindling and a log of dry wood in his pack before they had set out over the mountain. He had a fire crackling just as the rain started up anew. Rukhash pulled out their sleeping rolls, which were damp, but would dry soon, and laid their wet clothes out next to the fire. She was naked now except for her loincloth, and Cadoc had stripped to his under shorts. Their spare clothes were damp, and Rukhash laid those out as well. Nearly everything in their packs was at least a little wet. The last item she pulled from her rucksack was the leather bound picture book Cadoc had given her all those months ago. It was a little worse for wear, but the gold inlay still glittered against the dark cover. She laid it out with their clothes. Cadoc was a little startled to realize that all they owned could fit in a small ring around a fire.
"Fuckin' rain," the orcess grumbled as she settled next to him.
"I know," Cadoc said softly, wrapping his arm around her naked shoulder. "But it is a blessing as well. No one will be able to track us in this weather, no matter how well he has been trained. I will suffer a wet shirt for that assurance."
She nodded and leaned her head against his shoulder. They sat drying before the fire along with their possessions, and Cadoc found himself staring dully into the flames, nearly ready to pass out. Rukhash had beaten him to that. She snored quietly from her place at his side.
Her stomach growled like an angry warg, and she startled awake, breaking Cadoc from his random, mindless dozing. "We should eat," he said dully and rose to gather a pot from one of the packs. He set it just outside the cave to fill with water. They had a little grain and dried meat left, and perhaps some salt if the container had stayed mostly dry. Cadoc felt his own stomach rumble. Just the thought of eating made his mouth water.
Cadoc swallowed a little medicine while Rukhash gathered up those clothes that were dry and packed them away, leaving a tunic out for her own use. She pulled a small, clay pot from her rucksack and checked the contents, smiling slightly. "Soaps still good," she rumbled and walked into the downpour.
"Rukhash, that rain is freezing,' Cadoc admonished. "You're going to get sick."
"Won't get sick," she insisted as she stripped her loincloth and let the rain soak her again. She gathered a heaping palmful of soap and began to lather her body, starting with her hair. Their meal assembled and simmering, Cadoc stepped outside to join her.
"Ain't you gonna get sick?" she teased.
"I am certainly sick of the way I smell," he said as he removed the bandage from his eye. cadoc realized he could not feel where the rain struck his wound. Rukhash was frowning at the injury. "Is it alright?" Cadoc asked, lightly touching the hard flesh of his scar.
"Healed up 'bout as good as it's gonna get," she replied and led him by the arm to sit on a small stone next to her. "Let me do your hair," she said, and before he could protest, her claws were scrubbing his scalp.
Now that he was used to it, the rain really didn't feel all that cold. His eye fluttered shut as Rukhash's sharp nails ran through his hair, and Cadoc was not sure if he felt aroused or exhausted. A little of both, perhaps. Her hands traveled down his back and then snaked around to scrub between his legs, and Cadoc sucked in a breath.
"You're hairy everywhere," she said, and Cadoc could hear the playfulness in her voice, even as it was laced with weariness. He chuckled quietly, feeling suddenly quite alert. Reaching back, he maneuvered her to stand in front of him and pressed his mouth to the swell of her abdomen and then to the juncture between her legs. Rukhash made a thrilled, mewling noise and opened herself to him, and the taste of her arousal mixed with the cool rain and the light, clean flavor of the soap had his erection rising in earnest.
He pulled her onto his lap, and she was careful to keep her weight off of him, resting her palms lightly on his shoulders as she took him inside her. It felt as if they had not done this in a lifetime, and though her strokes were shallow, careful of the life she carried, Cadoc soon found himself coming to completion, clutching her to his chest and burying his face in the valley between her breasts as he finished with a strained grunt.
He blinked up at her. "I'm sorry," he said, realizing that she had not reached her peak yet. Rukhash smiled and eased off of him.
"It's fine," she said, rinsing between her legs again. "Let's dry off, yea?"
There was a little disappointment in her voice, and Cadoc knew he could not leave it at that. Sitting by the warmth of the fire, Cadoc found he could not keep his hands from her. He kissed the curve of her neck, the hollow of her throat and she did not stop him from traveling further south. He was annoyed to find he was too weary to rise to the occasion again, but remained undaunted. He used his mouth to draw gentle noises from her throat, and then his hand to penetrate her. Rukhash writhed and cried out, clutching his wrist and stilling his movements as she came to a slow, shuddering climax.
Crawling up her body, he left a lingering kiss on her lips. "Supper should be finished," he said lightly and she laughed, a bright, happy sound that made his chest swell.
"Good," she said. "I'm bleedin' starved."
It was not the best concoction he had ever come up with, but that hardly mattered. They ate like they were racing towards a finish line. Once they had shored up supper, Cadoc dressed, pulling on his breeches, and went about cleaning up their pot and bowls. Rukhash had pulled on his dry shirt.
"Your leathers are still wet?" he asked.
"I hope they ain't ruined," she grumbled. "You don't mind, do ya?"
"Not at all," he said and meant it. Rukhash never bothered with the lacing around the neck, so his shirt fell gracefully off her shoulder. She swam a little in the fabric, but Cadoc found the sight of her in his clothes oddly attractive. Even more so than when she was dressed elegantly for the winter festival. Her damp hair clung to her neck; her black skin was warm in the firelight; her belly pressed a little against the cloth, and Cadoc was very sure she had never looked more beautiful.
They packed their belongings away, draping Rukhash's wet tunics over the packs so they could finish drying. Cadoc was relieved to find their bedrolls dry as he turned in, but Rukhash hovered over her tunics, pulling one from the pile. She drew her knife and cut a considerable amount off of the hem.
"What are you doing?" Cadoc asked her.
She glanced up at him, her attention fixed on the wounded side of his face. "This one's getting too small fer me," she said. "Thought I'd make you a patch."
"Right now?" Cadoc was nearly ready to drop. He could not imagine sitting up for a few more hours to do something so unnecessary. "Is it bothering you?" he asked. "I thought a little air might do it good, but I can wrap it again if it is too gruesome."
"It ain't gruesome," she said. "It makes me sad."
Cadoc snatched the rolled cloth where he had left it by the bedroll and tied it over his scar. "Leave that until morning," he insisted. Lifting his arm, he beckoned her to his side. Rukhash abandoned her project without protest and slipped next to him.
His ribs still ached, but not enough that he could not pull her close. He wrapped his arm around her and drew her against his side. "I love you," he whispered softly.
She squeezed his hand. "I know," she said, a small, sad smile on her face, "shaûkizub."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"Nar," she answered quickly. "Right now I wanna sleep fer a hundred years."
"Or, at least, the night," he amended. She grinned at that and kissed his cheek.
He wished she would rave at him, vent her anger. He did not want to press the issue, but he also did not want the specter of Thraangzi to taint their happiness. He could not resent a dead man, but he also did not want to excuse what happened or brush it off. The shade of her brother still hung over them, and Cadoc wanted it cast out. He could not undo what was done, but he also felt as though Thraangzi had eventually found some measure of peace. At least, if his vision was anything to go by.
Rukhash was asleep already. Though Cadoc thought his dark musings would keep him up a little longer, the second his head hit the rolled blanket they shared as a pillow, he slept the sleep of the dead.
Something was in her mouth. Not something, leather; dirty and foul tasting. Her hands were being pulled behind her and, before she could react, twine was wrapped around her wrists, tight and biting into her flesh. Orcs. The smell of orcs was everywhere. There were gruff voices, speaking a dialect that she could not identify. A few, laughing insults were familiar, but other than those swears, she could understand nothing.
With frantic, half awareness, Rukhash caught sight of Cadoc, also bound and gagged, as he writhed in the grip of a dark shape. He was pulled into a crack in the wall and Rukhash was being dragged after him. Blindly, she wriggled and kicked out at the short, broad figures that had captured her. They laughed and someone smacked her hard on the rear. Quivering with rage, she roared through her gag, and the orcs laughed even louder.
The stone floor beneath her was rough and uneven, rubbing the skin on her thighs raw. She was pulled down, down, down through hole after hole. All around her it was pitch black, and Rukhash could only make out muddy shapes, the orcs around her nothing but squat, wide silhouettes.. She strained to catch a whiff of Cadoc, but the unwashed stink of her captors was too overpowering.
The echoing voices around her were joined by more voices as she was dragged deeper into the mountain. A red light glinted on the walls, firelight, and the shapes of her attackers became more distinct. The male that held her was old, wide faced, with his right eye scarred over by skin. A younger male next to him leered at her, his yellow teeth glistening. As the light became brighter, the additional voices became louder, and now there were females hovering on the edge of her vision, some young, with firm tits and black hair and others old and grey around the ears. They were long armed, larger goblins – proper Mordor orcs – moving about on their knuckles as Rukhash's father had. Their features were much different than his, with wide faces and lower jaws broad and jutting out.
Rukhash was thrown violently next to Cadoc, and she grunted through her gag. A monstrously wide-shouldered male, black skinned and black haired with sharp, mocking eyes appeared before her, looming. A sash over his shoulder sported teeth and half broken skulls of orcs and men sewn into the leather.
He stood tall and glanced over his shoulder, saying something Rukhash could not understand and the whole of the den burst into laughter, their eyes fixed on him as if waiting for the go ahead to tear her and Cadoc apart. Chief, Rukhash thought, appraising him immediately. He certainly had a chief's swagger.
"Welly, well, well," the chief said in common, returning to hover above her. "Look what we have here. A little Isengard girl, if I know my girls," he sneered at her, licking his teeth, "and I know my girls. You wanna tell me what yer doin', Isengarder, fuckin' this stinkin' tark on our back porch?"
With careless violence, he pulled the gag off of her mouth and Rukhash's head snapped forward and back, banging against the stone floor. He cuffed her hard across the brow. "Answer!" the chief barked.
For a moment, Rukhash blinked at him. She didn't expect a chance to explain herself. "We was just passing through!" she said quickly. "Didn't know no one lived here. We ain't lookin' fer no trouble!"
"Oi, chief," a voice called. A younger male pulled something from their pile of belongings. Rukhash was horrified to see it was Cadoc's sword.
"You wanna explain that?" the chief snarled at her. "Your draggin' a bleedin' ranger behind you." The chief grabbed her roughly around the throat and pulled her forward so their faces were inches apart. "What're you, some bloody tark spy?"
A rasping, familiar voice growled from the rear of the cave, "She ain't no spy."
Rukhash was dropped to the ground, and though her head spun a little, she was alert enough to see a stooped, white haired female push her way to the front of the crowd. Rukhash nearly choked on shock. How the hell had she survived the Fall?
"Grazad?" she whispered, disbelieving.
The old orcess grinned at her, and Rukhash thought she looked even more ancient than she remembered. "Well, girl," she said, "fancy seeing you again."
Grazad whirled suddenly on the chief. "I know this one,' she said. "She's a good egg. Real clever. Had her under me in Lúgburz."
The chief eyed Rukhash skeptically. "Yea?" he said, sounding unconvinced. He turned to glare at a still-gagged Cadoc. "What's with him."
"He's my shaûk," Rukhash said, raising her chin a little.
A communal, blinking silence fell on the orcs in the cave. The chief recovered himself quickly. "Yer shaûk? What are you, bleedin' queer?"
"She always were a little queer," Grazad confirmed, shrewdly appraising Cadoc.
"Why've you got a stinkin' ranger's sword? Is yer shaûk a bloody ranger?" the chief asked suspiciously.
Rukhash glared. "That's ours fair an' square," she said.
"Is it? Where'd it come from?"
She lifted her chin haughtily. "It were his own fault for followin' after me," Rukhash said ambiguously, her face grim.
A smaller male stepped up from behind Grazad. "She ain't lyin'."
And it was true. Rukhash had not lied to them, merely omitted a good chunk of truth. Orcs could smell a lie if it was blatant enough, and Rukhash never possessed the skill to hide one. She let her words hang in the air, and much to her relief, the chief was putting his own story in place; or, at least, allowing himself to believe what she implied. She could see it in the his eyes, as his suspicious anger morphed into something more neutral. "So where'd you pick him up?" he asked, thrusting his chin at Cadoc.
"He had a bad fall'n I patched up his broke leg. We been together since."
The chief eyed the subtle mount of her belly and cast a sidelong glance towards Grazad. "You speakin' fer 'em?"
Grazad said nothing, her stare boring into Rukhash, intense and thoughtful. Rukhash willed a plea through her eyes. Please, you old hag, she thought desperately. I got lashes that you owe me for.
Cautiously, slowly, the ancient orcess nodded. "I'll speak fer 'em."
