Kahli hummed to herself as she trotted along, the leather saddle squeaking
pleasantly beneath her and her pony's hoofbeats keeping time with the
little traveling song. Cheerful didn't begin to describe her mood at the
moment. No sign of those elves, her "guards" at all. But there were plenty
of signs left by the ponies she was hunting for. It seemed, luckily enough,
that they hadn't gone far at all. Or she had managed to cover quite a bit
of ground after them. Either way, things were going quite nicely.
"Whoa," she muttered to her mount suddenly, catching something from the corner of her eye. A gentle tug on the reins and Kazor was halted. The dwarf dismounted and dropped to the ground, calloused fingers traveling lightly over the ground. More specifically, the packed ground. "Well, well," Kahli chuckled to herself, pressing a finger into a particularly clear print. "Looks like they were headed…" Standing, she strode back over to her pony and swung up into the saddle once more. "That way. Not long ago, either. If we hurry, we might be able to catch them!"
Heels were tapped against the black pony's sides and again they were off, this time a faster pace than before. For all the world it looked promising. Even Kazor seemed to feel that way, as his ears were straight forward and he strained against his rider's hand, eager to go faster. And faster they went, every so often pausing for a second or two to check a freshly broken branch, a trampled patch of grass, a telltale set of hoofprints.
By now Kahli wasn't even bothering to keep her excitement in check. So certain was she that any moment now they would come across the band of runaway ponies, her humming had evolved to a rather loud and merry song. Her father likely wouldn't have appreciated her singing the words to the old mining tune, but she sang it just the same, in too good a mood to care. Any minute now, she was sure. Just beyond this clump of trees, perhaps. Or in this clearing. Maybe inside that thicket.
And then, just as she was rounding a large boulder, she saw it. The very sight was enough to make her laugh out loud.
Exactly as she had suspected, there was a group of ponies huddled and looking awfully forlorn. They were of every color, shape, size. Some wore bridles or saddles, some nothing at all. It all depended on what stage their owner had been at when the attack had come.
As Kazor approached he let out a shrill whinny to his fellows and immediately several heads lifted, ears pricking up at the sound. At this Kahli laughed again, nudging her mount into the midst of the milling ponies and identifying each and every one she laid eyes on with relief.
"There's Smige, the tricky bugger. And Meah! Over there's Dval, Gormon's old nag," she busily ticked them off in her mind, each one bringing back a pleasantly familiar memory.
"See there Teiledh," A voice suddenly spoke, the sound seeming to come from, odd as it seemed, somewhere above. "I told you dwarves talk to themselves."
Quick as that, Kahli felt her cheerfulness vanish. Oh no. Not again.
There was a merry laugh, the sound amazingly like a brook bubbling down a mountainside. "So Dwarf, are these the ponies you were searching for?"
She tensed, eyes widening, and faught back an annoyed groan. It would seem she hadn't lost them after all, like it had seemed. Worse, it seemed her quick finding of the runaways had been helped along a little. By them. What would her father say?
"Uh, yes, thank you." Kahli mumbled, shifting uncomfortably in the saddle. "I'll just take them and get going now. Out of your forest and all that…" She nudged Kazor and the pony turned. Only to be blocked by an annoyingly familiar, tall, dark-haired elf. Forest-green eyes stared directly into the darkness of her hood as if the owner could see beyond it, to her face. He smiled a little.
"I ask again. Would you prefer guards or help?"
"But I'm getting out on my own…"
"It is a rule, which we cannot break," spoke up another voice as its owner suddenly moved forward from the shadows of the wood. "You must be escorted until you are out of our relm. Besides, we are willing to help you keep your animals together."
A third voice, tone distinctly colder than the first two, added, "Like we said earlier, the choice is yours."
Well, at least they're being polite about it, Kahli thought to herself with a mental sigh. But the day was almost over and she was anxious to get back. While she was more than capable of surviving a night alone, it wasn't the most thrilling idea in the world. And here she had help, which would not only make her return easier, but a lot faster as well. Especially seeing as she had managed to get herself completely lost.
"Fine," she replied finally, barely able to believe that she was giving in. A dwarf being helped by a bunch of elves. It was laughable. Just like most of the situations she managed to get herself into. Woe be her. "But only to the road," was added quickly, once she realized there might be a chance to save some self-esteem. "Once I'm near the road you lot clear off and let me be. Deal?"
Quiet laughter came again, and although she wanted to feel annoyed by it, she couldn't. "We agree to this. Once near the road we shall leave you."
"Good then!" Kahli straightened up. "Let's get going. My camp shouldn't be too far away. I'd like to get back before nightfall, if possible."
"Indeed possible." The one called Teiledh nodded. "Borran scouted ahead earlier. We can make it to your camp before dark if he leads." Nodding, the pale-haired elf with the cold attitude stepped back into the shadows. Something no longer in Common was spoken between the remaining two and a moment later the ponies were gathered into a tight group and trotting forward, driven between the elves. Kahli stared after them stupidly for a minute or two before she managed to get her brain working. Trying to maintain some amount of dignity she straightened in the saddled and gave her pony a nudge.
()()()()()()()()()()()
With the three elves in their repspective positions, leading and hearding on two sides, Kahli was left with the task of riding behind and keeping track of stragglers. Which, all in all, wasn't so bad. For once the herd was too tired to cause much trouble and all of them had a fairly simple job. And even better, despite the weariness of the animals they managed to keep up a good pace. The hoofbeats of the band of ponies seemed almost to keep plodding time to the songs of the elves. Magic of some sort, perhaps? Well, elves were known for such things. It wouldn't hurt anything to think that was it.
Time drew on.
The elf she recognized as Teiledh dropped back and instead walked quickly beside Kazor. He didn't say a word, and the dwarf grew curious.
"Something wrong?" Kahli asked gruffly, trying not to sound concerned. If anything it was the grave seriousness on the other's face that worried her. As if he was in deep thought.
"Orcs spotted ahead," he replied after a slight pause. "Not too many from the looks of it, but worth noting anyway. Better to know of their presence before they know of ours."
"Can't we go around them?" Now seriously trying to hide her worry, she halted Kazor so she could talk face to face. The elf stopped as well, a tight expression on his face.
"We shall," Teiledh replied nodding, "but that guarantees nothing. If it were just us and not all the animals we would have a better chance of going unnoticed. With them along…"
"So we may have to fight?" This time she managed to fail hiding the tint of fear in her voice miserably. He didn't seem to notice; in fact, he seemed almost nervous as well. Which didn't make her feel much better.
"Exactly. So here," a hand flashed behind the elf and a moment later he was holding an object out to her. "Take this. In case you need to protect yourself."
"What the—" Surprised, Kahli reached out to take what was offered. It was a long slim knife, a bright blade that looked extremely sharp, and a simple yet beautiful wooden handle. An elvish blade. A dwarf wielding an elvish blade?! "But I can't… I mean, it's… you can't…"
"Just until you are safely returned to your people," came the reply, accompanied by soft musical laughter. "No one will have to know."
"But…" She looked down at the knife, eyeing it carefully. Had it only been this morning she had held another weapon of this kind? When she had killed with it… But it had been self-defense! They had attacked her. So did that make it right? Or at least okay?
The dwarf sighed, nodded reluctantly, and tucked the blade into her belt, beneath the folds of her dark cloak. "Fine. I'll take it."
"Good." Teiledh smiled a little, though the expression was tense. "Stay alert. If anything happens gather your animals and drive them straight. In that direction," he pointed with a long slender finger in the direction opposite the sinking sun. "Whatever you do, do not change the course. You will miss the road completely."
Kahli's eyes followed the direction he pointed in and she started to reply. Only to find him gone from her side and once again driving the ponies forward on foot, now jogging easily alongside to keep up with their quickened speed. Her stomach clenched. The news wouldn't have normally bothered her; reports of orcs were common in her lifestyle. She had survived several of the foul creatures' attacks before, as well. But the fact that the elves seemed out of sorts bothered her. It wasn't hard to tell they were keeping something from her. The question was, what?
Grumbling to cover her fear, she dug her heels into her mount's sides and the black pony sprang forward eagerly to cover the considerable gap that had grown between himself and his fellows. His unusually long strides managed to cross the space swiftly and they soon had taken up their position again, cutting off any members of the herd who decided to lag behind.
The two elves driving the ponies from the sides seemed to be hurrying, urging them forward with greater speed. Faster, faster. Maybe they'd make it out of this okay. If they went fast enough they could make it around. They might even get lucky and find that the danger gone. Right? It couldn't happen, couldn't it?
As if to prove her dead wrong, there came a shout from up ahead. One word that was, although obviously not in Common, dreadfully familiar-sounding. Yrch.
What had once been a peaceful forest at dusk was suddenly little better than the scene she had only that morning left behind. More shouts where following the first, some the melodic language of the elves although this was nearly drown out by the rest; hideous shrieking, growling and snarling echoed through the trees. Something was happening up ahead, but Kahli couldn't see what, save dark shapes of some sort. But what was going on up there suddenly became insignificant, as things enough were happening where she was.
Kazor was suddenly edgy, tensed beneath her. He shifted sharply to one side, danced a little in place with ears twitching and head high, then side- stepped again, nearly throwing her off. Startled, Kahli gripped his reins tighter, trying to keep him still long enough for her to figure out what was wrong. A quick glance about showed that all the ponies, having since halted their march, were acting the same.
Suddenly a black, wailing creature broke through the underbrush, a crudely- made sword waving. Several more followed, snarling in some gutteral langauge. They were terrible creatures, features twisted and grotesque, like living corpses. The very sight of them made Kahli sick and she had to fight back a frightened cry as they lunged. Her pony seemed to have similar feelings and he shrilled loudly, rearing up as an attacker came from the front. Sharp hooves connected neatly with the orc's skull and one was taken care of.
Unfortunately this served only to madden the others further and suddenly they attacked as one, a surprisingly well-organized assult. Near panicked, Kahli reacted more from instinct than any other reason, grabbing the elven knife from her belt and slashing away at anything that got too close. Likewise Kazor was snorting and bucking, doing a nice job of keeping the worst of the attack down but giving his rider a more difficult job of staying seated. All in all though, odds would have been decently in the pair's favor, had curcumstances been different earlier. As it was now, both were near exhausted from the day's activities. They couldn't hold back their enemies for much longer.
A gurgling howl sounded from somewhere behind and before Kahli could whirl her pony about, something had latched onto her back. The orc slung an arm around her neck and hung on, croaking away in its foul language as it tried to swing its heavy sword up from the akward position it was in. Its job was made harder by the fact that the pony it was upon had gone into a complete panicked frenzy right along with his rider and both were trying desperately to shake him off. But this ended up failing miserably and the orc opted to simply knock the dwarf off her mount instead.
Too busy trying to shake the hideous creature off, Kahli didn't think to focus on her balance and when the orc swung sharply to the left she went with. She landed with a grunt and tried rolling to the side so she might have a better angle to attack. Only to find her left arm pinned beneath her and her right pinned by the fell being itself.
It grinned terribly at her, baring foul yellow teeth, as it barked out some orders to its fellows who promptly went about the business of trying to capture the now frenzied Kazor. The pony was putting up a grand fight, keeping himself clear of the horrible beings. He was doing exactly what Kahli herself couldn't do. Fight back.
"Kill…" Hissed the orc she was trapped by, yellow eyes glinting with malace. It hefted its blunt weapon to behead her—and promply found itself knocked to the side, a slim grey arrow through its skull.
"Are you hurt?" Before she could figure out what had just happened, Kahli was staring into the forest-green eyes of an elf. Surprisingly enough there was concern on his face as he looked her over, still tangled in her dark cloak.
"I… I'm fine," she managed to grunt gruffly, untangling herself and sitting up. "Just surprised, is all." A hand reached back to pull her hood, which had fallen off, back up.
"Good. Then you should be able to ride swiftly." Teiledh offered a hand, which was promptly ignored, as she scrambled to her sturdy feet and looked about. The elf named Borran, the rather sour one, had somehow captured and calmed her pony and was now leading him toward her, stepping lightly around the bodies of the orcs that, moments ago, had been full of evil energy. They now all had arrows through some vital part of their hideous bodies. "There are more of the enemy about, so you must go. Now."
"Won't they just follow?" Kahli managed to blurt out, staring at the elf. Where he had once seemed like an unsure leader-in-training, he now seemed cool, confident and most of all, serious.
"No, they will not. We are going to stay behind and take care of them." For a moment, the dwarf was touched by this and was about to say so, perhaps a small thank-you for all that they had done to help. Before she caught herself and instead nodded shortly. "They are a danger to our people, as well. Trespassers are usually not kindly looked upon," Teiledh added. While his face remained emotionless, his eyes gave way to the humor of this last statement and not for the first time Kahli was thankful for her hood, covering the grin that broke out.
"You had best ride swiftly now, Dwarf. Else they will catch you," spoke up Borran. He handed over Kazor's reins with a pained look on his face.
"Yes," Kahli agreed slowly, ignoring the elf's obvious dislike for her. She looped the reins over her pony's neck, preparing to mount up. Before she did, a hand found its way in front of her.
"Be safe," was all that Teiledh said, his voice so soft she could barely make out the words. She hesitated only briefly before reaching forward and taking the elf's smooth, long-fingered hand in her own smaller, callouse one. The handshake lasted only a few seconds, though it meant more, much more. Then she had moved away and climbed onto her pony's back reining him away towards the herd.
()()()()()()()()()
Again she was riding hard, leaning over Kazor's dark mane. But now there were several differences, the most significant one that the entire group of runaways were being driven ahead. And this time she was headed straight, galloping with all the speed she could manage to push the herd, away from the rapidly setting sun.
Almost there. Almost there. Almost there.
The very hoofbeats seemed to pound out the same words over and over. Kahli didn't bother thinking beyond this; the only thoughts that came to her were terrible ones of what she might find when she returned. Had her people managed to beat back the intruders? They had to have. She wouldn't allow herself to think otherwise.
So busy thinking about not thinking, Kahli almost didn't catch the shout up ahead. Luckily Kazor caught it and his pace slowed, his ears pricking up. Curious as to the cause of his slowing, his rider looked up to see a familiar pony coming towards them. Riding that pony was an even more familiar dwarf, his one arm bound up in a sling.
"Oror!" She nearly choked on her own words in her excitement. "Oror, you're okay!"
The other rider chuckled as he pulled up next to her. "Well, I've been better. But I could be worse, yeah." His gaze moved to take in the ponies, which were now being gathered by others she had managed to overlook. "So you've done it, then. Some thought you couldn't, but your dad an' me told 'em different. We weren't sure how long it'd take you, but we knew you'd manage one way or another. Didn't take half as long as we guessed, though."
Kahli laughed tiredly at this. "I guess you could say I… had a little help in the task. Maybe more than a little."
"Oh really?" Oror raised a bushy eyebrow curiously. "You'll have to tell us about it. Sounds interesting."
"It's interesting all right," she grinned, then yawned wide enough to crack her jaw. "And I'll be glad to tell you about it. Tomorrow." Her best friend laughed and nodded.
"Sounds right to me. Just as long as you're back, that's all that matters. I think Copp here was worried about you." The young pony seemed to perk up at the mention of his name, tossing his head. His rider smiled, then reluctantly looked back at Kahli, seeming embarrased. "I guess I was kinda worried too… Only kinda, though. I knew you'd be all right."
By then they had reached the camp, and both halted, suddenly shy and silent. Finally Kahli glanced back up, an exhausted smile breaking out across her face. "It's good to be back Oror," she sighed contentedly. For a brief moment she looked back the way they had come, eyes searching the now darkened forest. Then she seemed to shrug on something and turn back towards her friend. "And you know what? I sorta have the feeling we won't need to worry about thieves again while we're in this neck of the woods."
She received a completely blank look from her friend at this. Laughing quietly she dismounted and began to lead Kazor into the camp. "I'll explain tomorrow. For now I'm getting this brute settled and going straight to bed."
Oror watched after her for a moment, shook his head and grinned. "Strange one, her," he mumbled to himself. "But I don't think I'd have it any other way."
And with that he swung Copp around with his remaining good arm, trotting off to help sort out the returned ponies.
()()()()()()()()
EPILOUGE
Kahli woke the next morning to find things relatively back to normal after the attack. Life went on with its usual repetitiveness and complete lack of even near-adventures. Nalhi's caravan arrived at the city, surprisingly enough, a day early. While Kazor continued to be at least managible, his tameness seemed to wear off almost immediately after Kahli completed her little mission and he still managed to be obnoxious when he set his mind to it. Oror and Kahli remained the closest of friends, and he was, in fact, the only one aside from her father to hear in full detail the happenings of that day.
After the death of Nahli many years later, his daughter was voted into the leadership position and there she stayed her entire lifetime. Never did she marry, as some dwarf-women choose, and never did she again have any sort of contact with elves. But among the wealth and beauty she carried among the caravan's treasures, nothing was so coveted by her as a strange knife that always hung on her belt. And while all her companions gathered around the campfire to tell stories about the strange race of elves, she would sit off by herself and stare into the woods, thinking.
"Whoa," she muttered to her mount suddenly, catching something from the corner of her eye. A gentle tug on the reins and Kazor was halted. The dwarf dismounted and dropped to the ground, calloused fingers traveling lightly over the ground. More specifically, the packed ground. "Well, well," Kahli chuckled to herself, pressing a finger into a particularly clear print. "Looks like they were headed…" Standing, she strode back over to her pony and swung up into the saddle once more. "That way. Not long ago, either. If we hurry, we might be able to catch them!"
Heels were tapped against the black pony's sides and again they were off, this time a faster pace than before. For all the world it looked promising. Even Kazor seemed to feel that way, as his ears were straight forward and he strained against his rider's hand, eager to go faster. And faster they went, every so often pausing for a second or two to check a freshly broken branch, a trampled patch of grass, a telltale set of hoofprints.
By now Kahli wasn't even bothering to keep her excitement in check. So certain was she that any moment now they would come across the band of runaway ponies, her humming had evolved to a rather loud and merry song. Her father likely wouldn't have appreciated her singing the words to the old mining tune, but she sang it just the same, in too good a mood to care. Any minute now, she was sure. Just beyond this clump of trees, perhaps. Or in this clearing. Maybe inside that thicket.
And then, just as she was rounding a large boulder, she saw it. The very sight was enough to make her laugh out loud.
Exactly as she had suspected, there was a group of ponies huddled and looking awfully forlorn. They were of every color, shape, size. Some wore bridles or saddles, some nothing at all. It all depended on what stage their owner had been at when the attack had come.
As Kazor approached he let out a shrill whinny to his fellows and immediately several heads lifted, ears pricking up at the sound. At this Kahli laughed again, nudging her mount into the midst of the milling ponies and identifying each and every one she laid eyes on with relief.
"There's Smige, the tricky bugger. And Meah! Over there's Dval, Gormon's old nag," she busily ticked them off in her mind, each one bringing back a pleasantly familiar memory.
"See there Teiledh," A voice suddenly spoke, the sound seeming to come from, odd as it seemed, somewhere above. "I told you dwarves talk to themselves."
Quick as that, Kahli felt her cheerfulness vanish. Oh no. Not again.
There was a merry laugh, the sound amazingly like a brook bubbling down a mountainside. "So Dwarf, are these the ponies you were searching for?"
She tensed, eyes widening, and faught back an annoyed groan. It would seem she hadn't lost them after all, like it had seemed. Worse, it seemed her quick finding of the runaways had been helped along a little. By them. What would her father say?
"Uh, yes, thank you." Kahli mumbled, shifting uncomfortably in the saddle. "I'll just take them and get going now. Out of your forest and all that…" She nudged Kazor and the pony turned. Only to be blocked by an annoyingly familiar, tall, dark-haired elf. Forest-green eyes stared directly into the darkness of her hood as if the owner could see beyond it, to her face. He smiled a little.
"I ask again. Would you prefer guards or help?"
"But I'm getting out on my own…"
"It is a rule, which we cannot break," spoke up another voice as its owner suddenly moved forward from the shadows of the wood. "You must be escorted until you are out of our relm. Besides, we are willing to help you keep your animals together."
A third voice, tone distinctly colder than the first two, added, "Like we said earlier, the choice is yours."
Well, at least they're being polite about it, Kahli thought to herself with a mental sigh. But the day was almost over and she was anxious to get back. While she was more than capable of surviving a night alone, it wasn't the most thrilling idea in the world. And here she had help, which would not only make her return easier, but a lot faster as well. Especially seeing as she had managed to get herself completely lost.
"Fine," she replied finally, barely able to believe that she was giving in. A dwarf being helped by a bunch of elves. It was laughable. Just like most of the situations she managed to get herself into. Woe be her. "But only to the road," was added quickly, once she realized there might be a chance to save some self-esteem. "Once I'm near the road you lot clear off and let me be. Deal?"
Quiet laughter came again, and although she wanted to feel annoyed by it, she couldn't. "We agree to this. Once near the road we shall leave you."
"Good then!" Kahli straightened up. "Let's get going. My camp shouldn't be too far away. I'd like to get back before nightfall, if possible."
"Indeed possible." The one called Teiledh nodded. "Borran scouted ahead earlier. We can make it to your camp before dark if he leads." Nodding, the pale-haired elf with the cold attitude stepped back into the shadows. Something no longer in Common was spoken between the remaining two and a moment later the ponies were gathered into a tight group and trotting forward, driven between the elves. Kahli stared after them stupidly for a minute or two before she managed to get her brain working. Trying to maintain some amount of dignity she straightened in the saddled and gave her pony a nudge.
()()()()()()()()()()()
With the three elves in their repspective positions, leading and hearding on two sides, Kahli was left with the task of riding behind and keeping track of stragglers. Which, all in all, wasn't so bad. For once the herd was too tired to cause much trouble and all of them had a fairly simple job. And even better, despite the weariness of the animals they managed to keep up a good pace. The hoofbeats of the band of ponies seemed almost to keep plodding time to the songs of the elves. Magic of some sort, perhaps? Well, elves were known for such things. It wouldn't hurt anything to think that was it.
Time drew on.
The elf she recognized as Teiledh dropped back and instead walked quickly beside Kazor. He didn't say a word, and the dwarf grew curious.
"Something wrong?" Kahli asked gruffly, trying not to sound concerned. If anything it was the grave seriousness on the other's face that worried her. As if he was in deep thought.
"Orcs spotted ahead," he replied after a slight pause. "Not too many from the looks of it, but worth noting anyway. Better to know of their presence before they know of ours."
"Can't we go around them?" Now seriously trying to hide her worry, she halted Kazor so she could talk face to face. The elf stopped as well, a tight expression on his face.
"We shall," Teiledh replied nodding, "but that guarantees nothing. If it were just us and not all the animals we would have a better chance of going unnoticed. With them along…"
"So we may have to fight?" This time she managed to fail hiding the tint of fear in her voice miserably. He didn't seem to notice; in fact, he seemed almost nervous as well. Which didn't make her feel much better.
"Exactly. So here," a hand flashed behind the elf and a moment later he was holding an object out to her. "Take this. In case you need to protect yourself."
"What the—" Surprised, Kahli reached out to take what was offered. It was a long slim knife, a bright blade that looked extremely sharp, and a simple yet beautiful wooden handle. An elvish blade. A dwarf wielding an elvish blade?! "But I can't… I mean, it's… you can't…"
"Just until you are safely returned to your people," came the reply, accompanied by soft musical laughter. "No one will have to know."
"But…" She looked down at the knife, eyeing it carefully. Had it only been this morning she had held another weapon of this kind? When she had killed with it… But it had been self-defense! They had attacked her. So did that make it right? Or at least okay?
The dwarf sighed, nodded reluctantly, and tucked the blade into her belt, beneath the folds of her dark cloak. "Fine. I'll take it."
"Good." Teiledh smiled a little, though the expression was tense. "Stay alert. If anything happens gather your animals and drive them straight. In that direction," he pointed with a long slender finger in the direction opposite the sinking sun. "Whatever you do, do not change the course. You will miss the road completely."
Kahli's eyes followed the direction he pointed in and she started to reply. Only to find him gone from her side and once again driving the ponies forward on foot, now jogging easily alongside to keep up with their quickened speed. Her stomach clenched. The news wouldn't have normally bothered her; reports of orcs were common in her lifestyle. She had survived several of the foul creatures' attacks before, as well. But the fact that the elves seemed out of sorts bothered her. It wasn't hard to tell they were keeping something from her. The question was, what?
Grumbling to cover her fear, she dug her heels into her mount's sides and the black pony sprang forward eagerly to cover the considerable gap that had grown between himself and his fellows. His unusually long strides managed to cross the space swiftly and they soon had taken up their position again, cutting off any members of the herd who decided to lag behind.
The two elves driving the ponies from the sides seemed to be hurrying, urging them forward with greater speed. Faster, faster. Maybe they'd make it out of this okay. If they went fast enough they could make it around. They might even get lucky and find that the danger gone. Right? It couldn't happen, couldn't it?
As if to prove her dead wrong, there came a shout from up ahead. One word that was, although obviously not in Common, dreadfully familiar-sounding. Yrch.
What had once been a peaceful forest at dusk was suddenly little better than the scene she had only that morning left behind. More shouts where following the first, some the melodic language of the elves although this was nearly drown out by the rest; hideous shrieking, growling and snarling echoed through the trees. Something was happening up ahead, but Kahli couldn't see what, save dark shapes of some sort. But what was going on up there suddenly became insignificant, as things enough were happening where she was.
Kazor was suddenly edgy, tensed beneath her. He shifted sharply to one side, danced a little in place with ears twitching and head high, then side- stepped again, nearly throwing her off. Startled, Kahli gripped his reins tighter, trying to keep him still long enough for her to figure out what was wrong. A quick glance about showed that all the ponies, having since halted their march, were acting the same.
Suddenly a black, wailing creature broke through the underbrush, a crudely- made sword waving. Several more followed, snarling in some gutteral langauge. They were terrible creatures, features twisted and grotesque, like living corpses. The very sight of them made Kahli sick and she had to fight back a frightened cry as they lunged. Her pony seemed to have similar feelings and he shrilled loudly, rearing up as an attacker came from the front. Sharp hooves connected neatly with the orc's skull and one was taken care of.
Unfortunately this served only to madden the others further and suddenly they attacked as one, a surprisingly well-organized assult. Near panicked, Kahli reacted more from instinct than any other reason, grabbing the elven knife from her belt and slashing away at anything that got too close. Likewise Kazor was snorting and bucking, doing a nice job of keeping the worst of the attack down but giving his rider a more difficult job of staying seated. All in all though, odds would have been decently in the pair's favor, had curcumstances been different earlier. As it was now, both were near exhausted from the day's activities. They couldn't hold back their enemies for much longer.
A gurgling howl sounded from somewhere behind and before Kahli could whirl her pony about, something had latched onto her back. The orc slung an arm around her neck and hung on, croaking away in its foul language as it tried to swing its heavy sword up from the akward position it was in. Its job was made harder by the fact that the pony it was upon had gone into a complete panicked frenzy right along with his rider and both were trying desperately to shake him off. But this ended up failing miserably and the orc opted to simply knock the dwarf off her mount instead.
Too busy trying to shake the hideous creature off, Kahli didn't think to focus on her balance and when the orc swung sharply to the left she went with. She landed with a grunt and tried rolling to the side so she might have a better angle to attack. Only to find her left arm pinned beneath her and her right pinned by the fell being itself.
It grinned terribly at her, baring foul yellow teeth, as it barked out some orders to its fellows who promptly went about the business of trying to capture the now frenzied Kazor. The pony was putting up a grand fight, keeping himself clear of the horrible beings. He was doing exactly what Kahli herself couldn't do. Fight back.
"Kill…" Hissed the orc she was trapped by, yellow eyes glinting with malace. It hefted its blunt weapon to behead her—and promply found itself knocked to the side, a slim grey arrow through its skull.
"Are you hurt?" Before she could figure out what had just happened, Kahli was staring into the forest-green eyes of an elf. Surprisingly enough there was concern on his face as he looked her over, still tangled in her dark cloak.
"I… I'm fine," she managed to grunt gruffly, untangling herself and sitting up. "Just surprised, is all." A hand reached back to pull her hood, which had fallen off, back up.
"Good. Then you should be able to ride swiftly." Teiledh offered a hand, which was promptly ignored, as she scrambled to her sturdy feet and looked about. The elf named Borran, the rather sour one, had somehow captured and calmed her pony and was now leading him toward her, stepping lightly around the bodies of the orcs that, moments ago, had been full of evil energy. They now all had arrows through some vital part of their hideous bodies. "There are more of the enemy about, so you must go. Now."
"Won't they just follow?" Kahli managed to blurt out, staring at the elf. Where he had once seemed like an unsure leader-in-training, he now seemed cool, confident and most of all, serious.
"No, they will not. We are going to stay behind and take care of them." For a moment, the dwarf was touched by this and was about to say so, perhaps a small thank-you for all that they had done to help. Before she caught herself and instead nodded shortly. "They are a danger to our people, as well. Trespassers are usually not kindly looked upon," Teiledh added. While his face remained emotionless, his eyes gave way to the humor of this last statement and not for the first time Kahli was thankful for her hood, covering the grin that broke out.
"You had best ride swiftly now, Dwarf. Else they will catch you," spoke up Borran. He handed over Kazor's reins with a pained look on his face.
"Yes," Kahli agreed slowly, ignoring the elf's obvious dislike for her. She looped the reins over her pony's neck, preparing to mount up. Before she did, a hand found its way in front of her.
"Be safe," was all that Teiledh said, his voice so soft she could barely make out the words. She hesitated only briefly before reaching forward and taking the elf's smooth, long-fingered hand in her own smaller, callouse one. The handshake lasted only a few seconds, though it meant more, much more. Then she had moved away and climbed onto her pony's back reining him away towards the herd.
()()()()()()()()()
Again she was riding hard, leaning over Kazor's dark mane. But now there were several differences, the most significant one that the entire group of runaways were being driven ahead. And this time she was headed straight, galloping with all the speed she could manage to push the herd, away from the rapidly setting sun.
Almost there. Almost there. Almost there.
The very hoofbeats seemed to pound out the same words over and over. Kahli didn't bother thinking beyond this; the only thoughts that came to her were terrible ones of what she might find when she returned. Had her people managed to beat back the intruders? They had to have. She wouldn't allow herself to think otherwise.
So busy thinking about not thinking, Kahli almost didn't catch the shout up ahead. Luckily Kazor caught it and his pace slowed, his ears pricking up. Curious as to the cause of his slowing, his rider looked up to see a familiar pony coming towards them. Riding that pony was an even more familiar dwarf, his one arm bound up in a sling.
"Oror!" She nearly choked on her own words in her excitement. "Oror, you're okay!"
The other rider chuckled as he pulled up next to her. "Well, I've been better. But I could be worse, yeah." His gaze moved to take in the ponies, which were now being gathered by others she had managed to overlook. "So you've done it, then. Some thought you couldn't, but your dad an' me told 'em different. We weren't sure how long it'd take you, but we knew you'd manage one way or another. Didn't take half as long as we guessed, though."
Kahli laughed tiredly at this. "I guess you could say I… had a little help in the task. Maybe more than a little."
"Oh really?" Oror raised a bushy eyebrow curiously. "You'll have to tell us about it. Sounds interesting."
"It's interesting all right," she grinned, then yawned wide enough to crack her jaw. "And I'll be glad to tell you about it. Tomorrow." Her best friend laughed and nodded.
"Sounds right to me. Just as long as you're back, that's all that matters. I think Copp here was worried about you." The young pony seemed to perk up at the mention of his name, tossing his head. His rider smiled, then reluctantly looked back at Kahli, seeming embarrased. "I guess I was kinda worried too… Only kinda, though. I knew you'd be all right."
By then they had reached the camp, and both halted, suddenly shy and silent. Finally Kahli glanced back up, an exhausted smile breaking out across her face. "It's good to be back Oror," she sighed contentedly. For a brief moment she looked back the way they had come, eyes searching the now darkened forest. Then she seemed to shrug on something and turn back towards her friend. "And you know what? I sorta have the feeling we won't need to worry about thieves again while we're in this neck of the woods."
She received a completely blank look from her friend at this. Laughing quietly she dismounted and began to lead Kazor into the camp. "I'll explain tomorrow. For now I'm getting this brute settled and going straight to bed."
Oror watched after her for a moment, shook his head and grinned. "Strange one, her," he mumbled to himself. "But I don't think I'd have it any other way."
And with that he swung Copp around with his remaining good arm, trotting off to help sort out the returned ponies.
()()()()()()()()
EPILOUGE
Kahli woke the next morning to find things relatively back to normal after the attack. Life went on with its usual repetitiveness and complete lack of even near-adventures. Nalhi's caravan arrived at the city, surprisingly enough, a day early. While Kazor continued to be at least managible, his tameness seemed to wear off almost immediately after Kahli completed her little mission and he still managed to be obnoxious when he set his mind to it. Oror and Kahli remained the closest of friends, and he was, in fact, the only one aside from her father to hear in full detail the happenings of that day.
After the death of Nahli many years later, his daughter was voted into the leadership position and there she stayed her entire lifetime. Never did she marry, as some dwarf-women choose, and never did she again have any sort of contact with elves. But among the wealth and beauty she carried among the caravan's treasures, nothing was so coveted by her as a strange knife that always hung on her belt. And while all her companions gathered around the campfire to tell stories about the strange race of elves, she would sit off by herself and stare into the woods, thinking.