Author's Note: I'm posting this quickly so I'll just say thanks for
reviews, not Tolkien, and enjoy!
Chapter 4
The two elven brothers ran swiftly and tirelessly, taking care to maintain some distance between themselves and the orcs, but not wanting to risk losing them.
They also had to take special care not to be found out.
They took advantage of what little cover there was and moved as silently as possible. But even when a misplaced step made some noise in the uneven terrain and the brothers winced, the orcs did not even turn to look behind them. They were running fast and did not seem to care about their surroundings.
"They must be trying to make it home before daybreak," Elladan whispered after they had been chasing the orcs for some time. "Orcs do not like to travel in the daylight."
"They can run as fast as they want," Elrohir answered, only slightly out of breath. "There's no way they are going to make it to the Redhorn Pass before daybreak."
"Maybe they are not going to the Redhorn Pass," Elladan answered. "That is only where they overtook mother's party, that does not mean that is where they dwell."
Elrohir had to admit that the thought made sense. He just hoped that they were indeed following the right group of orcs, that they would lead them to where their mother was.
The orcs made good speed and picked their way easily through the land, a feat that even the elven brothers had to vaguely admire. But they had just made it to the Misty Mountains when the sky began to lighten.
The orcs changed their direction and began to veer off to the right. Elladan and Elrohir did likewise, but they fell back even more, feeling more exposed now that the sun was beginning to rise.
And then the orcs vanished from their sight.
Elladan and Elrohir stopped in their surprise.
The orcs had been in plain view of them with their keen sight and they had seen them starting to wind their way through the mountain, but then they seemed to fall right into the earth.
"Did they reach their lair?" Elrohir whispered.
Elladan was looking hard at the place where they had last seen the orcs. "I have never known orcs to make their home so far down the mountain. It is quite possible they have a tunnel system that will bring them to their true lair."
Elrohir turned a lip. He had absolutely no desire to go traipsing underground after the orcs.
"Or they might just be in a small cave to wait out the sun." Elladan was stepping forward. "Either way, we have to get closer to see which it is."
Elrohir followed his brother. "How close do we have to get?"
"Close enough to tell and not be seen ourselves," his brother answered.
Elrohir nodded. "That was what I was afraid of."
If it did turn out to be a tunnel system, they would not know until they were practically on top of it. And if it was just a hiding place, then they would have to be careful to keep their distance, lest the orcs hear them approaching.
A small paradox.
"Look," Elladan said, "there are trees growing at the base of the mountain."
Elrohir thought that was somewhat of an obvious observation so he said nothing.
Elladan looked askance at him. He sighed, "We can climb into the trees to try and see where they went to. That way we at least will not have to worry about them sensing vibrations in the ground."
Elrohir was somewhat indignant. "I do not know about you but I do not create vibrations."
Elladan lifted an eyebrow. "No? Not even when you fall?"
Elrohir fumed. "That was in the cover of darkness crossing rough and uneven land. I saw you stumble more than once."
"Peace," Elladan said, not wanting them to get in an argument now. "I am not implying you to be clumsy. But you are right, the ground is uneven and neither of us know any paths through it. It would be in both of our best interests to not risk a stumble."
Elrohir still felt the sting of a small blow to his pride but he let it go. He quickly remembered why they were following the orcs in the first place and instead focused on that. They had to find their mother quickly.
When they came to the nearest tree both brothers easily scaled it. They were not wood-elves, but they could still easily make do.
Once they were in the top of the first one it was easy to swing over to the next one. All of the trees were fairly close together so they would not have to be risking any leaps, at least not at the moment.
Just when Elrohir began to think that perhaps they had gotten off track from where the orcs had been Elladan held up a hand to stop him. He was peering down through the branches. Elrohir carefully climbed up so that he was balanced next to him.
"There," Elladan said, pointing down and to the far left, "see that pit?"
Elrohir leaned and squinted. "Are you sure that is the right one?"
"Yes, you can see the faint markings of their feet outside of it."
"Well, is it a cave or a tunnel?" Elrohir asked.
Elladan squinted. "I do not think it is deep enough to be a tunnel." He scanned the pattern of the earth around the hole. "It does not look like the land has been disturbed by any tunneling."
"Unless they dug it deeply enough," Elrohir said.
Elladan sighed and pulled back. "Then I do not know, we have to get closer to tell."
Elrohir looked over. There was a tree closer to the entrance than the one they were currently in, but it would require something of a leap. And if there was perhaps an orc on guard duty, they might be able to see one of them make the jump.
Elladan started to move so that he was in a better position to jump.
Elrohir caught him by the arm. "They might be able to see you."
"I know," he said, "but we have to know for sure. If it is a tunnel then we have to get in there now before we lose them. I do not doubt that there will be more than one passageway in there, easy to get lost in."
Elrohir sighed and let go of his brother. "Just be careful, and land lightly."
"I know," Elladan said. Then he moved out further on the branch, perching out beyond the cover of the leaves. Elrohir kept his eyes on the hole in the ground searching for any signs of movement. His brother was in clear view now.
Elladan took a breath and then uncoiled his body from the crouch he was in. He launched himself with his legs and covered the distance between the two trees quickly. Elrohir took his eyes from the ground and instead watched his brother.
Elladan easily reached the next tree and caught onto one of the higher branches. Elrohir relaxed slightly when he saw his brother's grip close around the wood. But then his sharp ears caught an unmistakable sound, that of wood splintering.
Elladan looked up quickly at the branch he was holding onto but before he could do anything the branch broke off. Elladan started to fall.
Elrohir had to bite back a cry and stood up, wondering if he should dare to jump down himself to try to help his brother.
Elladan's hands scrambled to find something else to latch onto and just when he thought he was going to hit the ground his wrist slammed into a branch. Elladan ignored the pain and his other hand automatically closed around it. Elladan stopped his fall, but he was on the lowest branch, his feet dangling only inches off of the ground.
Quickly, Elladan swung himself up so that he had his legs on the branch and then climbed into the top of the tree, hiding within the foliage.
Elrohir let out the breath he had been unconsciously holding and sagged back. Then he looked at the hole again, wondering if his brother's movements had alerted those inside. But there was still no sign of anything in there. Perhaps it was a tunnel then.
From his new vantage point, Elladan could easily pick up on the soft sounds of deep breaths coming from within the entrance. And he could also see that it definitely was not that deep. It was only a small cave. It was only his luck that the orcs had not thought to post a guard.
Elladan tried to tell this information to his brother without saying anything. He gestured to the cave.
Elrohir tried to make out the wild hand gestures his brother was making. At first he thought his brother meant for him to come over and he started to move out onto the outside of the tree.
Elladan waved at him to stop. He did not want to risk another jump by him or his brother. Though there was no guard, they would easily be woken up by somebody missing their branch and falling all the way to the ground. He attributed luck again to the fact that the sound of the breaking branch had not disturbed them.
Elrohir was confused, but then rationalized that if it was a tunnel his brother would already be in there after the orcs. So it had to be only a resting place. Elrohir went back within the leaves and sat down on one of the heavier branches.
Elladan nodded when he saw his brother settle back. All they had to do now was wait until the orcs came out at nightfall. Elladan settled back himself, thinking that from now on he would leave the trees to the wood- elves.
The day passed slowly and Elrohir tried to get some rest, figuring he might as well sleep as there was hardly anything entertaining to do in a tree. But every time he began to doze off he would have dreams of the orcs bursting out from their hiding place, and more orcs than had gone in. They would swarm up the trees the two brothers were in and fight to the death. Or he had dreams of finding his mother, but only after it was too late.
Elrohir would jerk himself out of his sleep and then resolve that it might be best not to sleep after all. When it was a little past midday the two elves ate some lembas bread and drank some water. They did not know how long their journey would prove to be, but it was always wise to ration the provisions in case it proved to be longer than originally thought.
When the sun finally began to sink Elrohir eased himself out of his sitting position and into a crouch. He was tense, waiting for the orcs to come out.
Elrohir glanced over and saw his brother in a similar position, his gaze intent on the opening to the cave. Both were poised, ready to leap down and race after them.
It was not until the sun faded completely that the first orc appeared. He called out something to the rest of them and they were then quickly pouring out of the cave. Elrohir found himself tensing as they passed right underneath the tree Elladan was in. Even though Elladan did not move and was well hidden by the leaves, he could be spotted if an orc happened to look directly up at him.
But once again they seemed intent on their errand and oblivious to everything else and the orcs swiftly made their way down their course.
Elladan waited until they were out of earshot and then gracefully leapt down from the tree. Elrohir followed suit and the two brothers only glanced at each other before taking off in the direction the orcs had gone.
They were further behind than before, and often lost sight of the orcs. But the soil on the mountain was soft and the twins were easily able to track them. In fact, after trailing them for some hours, Elrohir began to think that this was too easy.
So it was no surprise to him when a half hour later the soft soil immediately transitioned into rock.
Elladan was in the lead and he slowed, almost causing Elrohir to run into him. But Elrohir pulled himself up short and then came to his brother's side. Elladan was staring down hard at the ground and then looking up to see if they still had sight of the orcs. But they had gone further into the mountain, surrounded by many clefts and sharp turns. The orcs were nowhere in sight.
"What do we do now?" Elrohir asked.
"Keep going in the general direction," Elladan said. "But we have to go faster now, we have to get them in sight again."
Elrohir nodded and they took off, speeding up from the easy gait they had been using. They had to catch sight of the orcs before they veered in a different direction.
It was impossible to run abreast of each other, the path being too narrow, so Elrohir hung back and followed behind Elladan. Elladan was concentrating on the ground in front of them, trying to make out the most logical course of the orcs.
Elrohir was looking up around them, wondering why there did not seem to be much life in the mountains. There was only the occasional call of a bird.
As it was, Elrohir was the first to sense any danger.
They had just come around from a portion of rock that had jutted out into their path, causing them to go around it while blocking them from seeing what was beyond it. When they came around the rock Elrohir noticed movement from above them.
"Elladan, stop," he called out.
Elladan stopped and looked up right as they heard the first bow- string snap.
Both Elladan and Elrohir dove to the ground to avoid the crude orc arrow that flew past them. But before they could recover more arrows came at them. Elrohir glanced up, the orcs they had been tailing were positioned neatly on the rocks above them. Apparently they had not been as oblivious as they thought.
Elladan and Elrohir moved quickly to the side of the rock so that they could at least shelter their backs, pulling out their bows as they did so. Elladan let loose the first arrow, aiming for and striking an orc positioned right above them. The orc cried out and fell from his perch.
Elrohir took out the next one nearest to them and then they were forced to move as the orcs began to converge on them. The two brothers ran further up the path, hoping to force the orcs off from their vantage point on top of the rocks.
But though some of them leapt down to the ground, others continued to run along the tops of the rocks, firing off arrows from above. Elladan and Elrohir alternately turned to fire arrows back at them, but their speed did not allow for much precision.
As easily as the brothers could outdistance the orcs, they were hesitant to do so, not wanting to lose the easiest path to their mother. But their decision was soon made for them when the twins made their way around another out-cropping and found themselves at a dead-end. They were in a small alcove, surrounded on all sides by tall rock.
The brothers whirled so that their backs were against the rock and began firing arrows at the immediate orcs coming at them. They went down.
But there were still about five orcs above them on the rocks, and now they shot at the twins from under cover.
"What do we do now?" Elrohir asked as he jerked his head to avoid an arrow.
Elladan grabbed his long knife. "We have to go up and get them, they will not come to us."
Elrohir took his own knife. "Fine."
The two brothers charged, each grabbing onto different outcroppings to climb up. The arrows became more frantic as the orcs saw the elves' intent and Elrohir had one come so close that it stirred through his hair.
Elladan had one closer. He was almost to the top of the rock when an arrow landed neatly in his shoulder.
Elladan cried out and paused in his upward descent. The pain was intense, but he could not risk losing his grip and falling back down to the earth below. If he fell, he knew the orcs from above would be on him in no time.
Elrohir turned when he heard his brother cry and saw the arrow strike him. "Are you alright?" he shouted.
Elladan waved a non-committal answer and Elrohir set his teeth. He finished scaling the rest of the rock and was on the top-landing in no time. He went straight for the first orc he saw and was upon the creature before it could even string its next arrow. Elrohir lashed out and deftly sliced the orc across the throat with his knife. He was angered now, nobody could wound his brother like that.
The arrows were now concentrated towards Elrohir, but he moved faster than the orcs could aim and grabbed onto another one, breaking its neck before letting it fall at his feet.
Then Elrohir turned and made a run for the rock his brother was still hanging onto. He jumped and landed smoothly, turning as he did so to avoid an orc rushing him. The orc tried to correct its balance and come back at Elrohir, but Elrohir reached out and carved out a wound in its back. The orc wheeled about in anguish but lost its balance and fell off the side, its cry ending when it hit the earth.
Elrohir turned and saw that there were two remaining orcs, but they had already started to make a run for it, not wanting to face the elf. Elrohir dropped his knife and shot an arrow after them, bringing one of them down. The last one disappeared into the mountain before he could bring out another arrow.
Elrohir surveyed the area quickly, making sure there were no other orcs hiding before turning and crouching on the side of the rock. His brother still hung grittily on.
Elrohir reached down towards him, "Elladan."
Elladan looked up and slowly reached up with his uninjured arm. Elrohir grabbed it and pulled him up. Elladan came up over the side and spilled onto the ground, rolling over onto his back.
Elrohir assessed the damage from the arrow. "It has gone in far, the best thing would be to push it all the way through."
Elladan only nodded and slowly pulled himself into a sitting position, setting his teeth against the pain he knew would come.
Elrohir first broke off the feathered end of the arrow and then placed his hands against the splintered end. "Ready?" he asked.
Elladan nodded and closed his eyes.
Elrohir bit his lip and sucked in a breath. Then he pushed down with all of his strength.
The breath exploded from Elladan and as much as he tried he could not keep a cry from escaping his lips. Elrohir quickly reached behind Elladan and pulled out the whole of the arrow, throwing it down onto the ground.
Elladan paled and Elrohir knew he was on the verge of unconsciousness. "Just lie down," he said, gently supporting his brother as he leaned back.
Then Elrohir was rummaging in his pack, taking out his blanket and ripping strips off of it. He bound his brother's shoulder as best as he could and then brought a water-skin to Elladan's lips, helping him drink.
When Elladan had a mouthful of water he laid back down, looking straight up into the sky. "We cannot rest long," he said.
"Are you mad?" Elrohir questioned. "We cannot go on right now."
Elladan looked at his brother. "Mother does not have the time to waste."
Chapter 4
The two elven brothers ran swiftly and tirelessly, taking care to maintain some distance between themselves and the orcs, but not wanting to risk losing them.
They also had to take special care not to be found out.
They took advantage of what little cover there was and moved as silently as possible. But even when a misplaced step made some noise in the uneven terrain and the brothers winced, the orcs did not even turn to look behind them. They were running fast and did not seem to care about their surroundings.
"They must be trying to make it home before daybreak," Elladan whispered after they had been chasing the orcs for some time. "Orcs do not like to travel in the daylight."
"They can run as fast as they want," Elrohir answered, only slightly out of breath. "There's no way they are going to make it to the Redhorn Pass before daybreak."
"Maybe they are not going to the Redhorn Pass," Elladan answered. "That is only where they overtook mother's party, that does not mean that is where they dwell."
Elrohir had to admit that the thought made sense. He just hoped that they were indeed following the right group of orcs, that they would lead them to where their mother was.
The orcs made good speed and picked their way easily through the land, a feat that even the elven brothers had to vaguely admire. But they had just made it to the Misty Mountains when the sky began to lighten.
The orcs changed their direction and began to veer off to the right. Elladan and Elrohir did likewise, but they fell back even more, feeling more exposed now that the sun was beginning to rise.
And then the orcs vanished from their sight.
Elladan and Elrohir stopped in their surprise.
The orcs had been in plain view of them with their keen sight and they had seen them starting to wind their way through the mountain, but then they seemed to fall right into the earth.
"Did they reach their lair?" Elrohir whispered.
Elladan was looking hard at the place where they had last seen the orcs. "I have never known orcs to make their home so far down the mountain. It is quite possible they have a tunnel system that will bring them to their true lair."
Elrohir turned a lip. He had absolutely no desire to go traipsing underground after the orcs.
"Or they might just be in a small cave to wait out the sun." Elladan was stepping forward. "Either way, we have to get closer to see which it is."
Elrohir followed his brother. "How close do we have to get?"
"Close enough to tell and not be seen ourselves," his brother answered.
Elrohir nodded. "That was what I was afraid of."
If it did turn out to be a tunnel system, they would not know until they were practically on top of it. And if it was just a hiding place, then they would have to be careful to keep their distance, lest the orcs hear them approaching.
A small paradox.
"Look," Elladan said, "there are trees growing at the base of the mountain."
Elrohir thought that was somewhat of an obvious observation so he said nothing.
Elladan looked askance at him. He sighed, "We can climb into the trees to try and see where they went to. That way we at least will not have to worry about them sensing vibrations in the ground."
Elrohir was somewhat indignant. "I do not know about you but I do not create vibrations."
Elladan lifted an eyebrow. "No? Not even when you fall?"
Elrohir fumed. "That was in the cover of darkness crossing rough and uneven land. I saw you stumble more than once."
"Peace," Elladan said, not wanting them to get in an argument now. "I am not implying you to be clumsy. But you are right, the ground is uneven and neither of us know any paths through it. It would be in both of our best interests to not risk a stumble."
Elrohir still felt the sting of a small blow to his pride but he let it go. He quickly remembered why they were following the orcs in the first place and instead focused on that. They had to find their mother quickly.
When they came to the nearest tree both brothers easily scaled it. They were not wood-elves, but they could still easily make do.
Once they were in the top of the first one it was easy to swing over to the next one. All of the trees were fairly close together so they would not have to be risking any leaps, at least not at the moment.
Just when Elrohir began to think that perhaps they had gotten off track from where the orcs had been Elladan held up a hand to stop him. He was peering down through the branches. Elrohir carefully climbed up so that he was balanced next to him.
"There," Elladan said, pointing down and to the far left, "see that pit?"
Elrohir leaned and squinted. "Are you sure that is the right one?"
"Yes, you can see the faint markings of their feet outside of it."
"Well, is it a cave or a tunnel?" Elrohir asked.
Elladan squinted. "I do not think it is deep enough to be a tunnel." He scanned the pattern of the earth around the hole. "It does not look like the land has been disturbed by any tunneling."
"Unless they dug it deeply enough," Elrohir said.
Elladan sighed and pulled back. "Then I do not know, we have to get closer to tell."
Elrohir looked over. There was a tree closer to the entrance than the one they were currently in, but it would require something of a leap. And if there was perhaps an orc on guard duty, they might be able to see one of them make the jump.
Elladan started to move so that he was in a better position to jump.
Elrohir caught him by the arm. "They might be able to see you."
"I know," he said, "but we have to know for sure. If it is a tunnel then we have to get in there now before we lose them. I do not doubt that there will be more than one passageway in there, easy to get lost in."
Elrohir sighed and let go of his brother. "Just be careful, and land lightly."
"I know," Elladan said. Then he moved out further on the branch, perching out beyond the cover of the leaves. Elrohir kept his eyes on the hole in the ground searching for any signs of movement. His brother was in clear view now.
Elladan took a breath and then uncoiled his body from the crouch he was in. He launched himself with his legs and covered the distance between the two trees quickly. Elrohir took his eyes from the ground and instead watched his brother.
Elladan easily reached the next tree and caught onto one of the higher branches. Elrohir relaxed slightly when he saw his brother's grip close around the wood. But then his sharp ears caught an unmistakable sound, that of wood splintering.
Elladan looked up quickly at the branch he was holding onto but before he could do anything the branch broke off. Elladan started to fall.
Elrohir had to bite back a cry and stood up, wondering if he should dare to jump down himself to try to help his brother.
Elladan's hands scrambled to find something else to latch onto and just when he thought he was going to hit the ground his wrist slammed into a branch. Elladan ignored the pain and his other hand automatically closed around it. Elladan stopped his fall, but he was on the lowest branch, his feet dangling only inches off of the ground.
Quickly, Elladan swung himself up so that he had his legs on the branch and then climbed into the top of the tree, hiding within the foliage.
Elrohir let out the breath he had been unconsciously holding and sagged back. Then he looked at the hole again, wondering if his brother's movements had alerted those inside. But there was still no sign of anything in there. Perhaps it was a tunnel then.
From his new vantage point, Elladan could easily pick up on the soft sounds of deep breaths coming from within the entrance. And he could also see that it definitely was not that deep. It was only a small cave. It was only his luck that the orcs had not thought to post a guard.
Elladan tried to tell this information to his brother without saying anything. He gestured to the cave.
Elrohir tried to make out the wild hand gestures his brother was making. At first he thought his brother meant for him to come over and he started to move out onto the outside of the tree.
Elladan waved at him to stop. He did not want to risk another jump by him or his brother. Though there was no guard, they would easily be woken up by somebody missing their branch and falling all the way to the ground. He attributed luck again to the fact that the sound of the breaking branch had not disturbed them.
Elrohir was confused, but then rationalized that if it was a tunnel his brother would already be in there after the orcs. So it had to be only a resting place. Elrohir went back within the leaves and sat down on one of the heavier branches.
Elladan nodded when he saw his brother settle back. All they had to do now was wait until the orcs came out at nightfall. Elladan settled back himself, thinking that from now on he would leave the trees to the wood- elves.
The day passed slowly and Elrohir tried to get some rest, figuring he might as well sleep as there was hardly anything entertaining to do in a tree. But every time he began to doze off he would have dreams of the orcs bursting out from their hiding place, and more orcs than had gone in. They would swarm up the trees the two brothers were in and fight to the death. Or he had dreams of finding his mother, but only after it was too late.
Elrohir would jerk himself out of his sleep and then resolve that it might be best not to sleep after all. When it was a little past midday the two elves ate some lembas bread and drank some water. They did not know how long their journey would prove to be, but it was always wise to ration the provisions in case it proved to be longer than originally thought.
When the sun finally began to sink Elrohir eased himself out of his sitting position and into a crouch. He was tense, waiting for the orcs to come out.
Elrohir glanced over and saw his brother in a similar position, his gaze intent on the opening to the cave. Both were poised, ready to leap down and race after them.
It was not until the sun faded completely that the first orc appeared. He called out something to the rest of them and they were then quickly pouring out of the cave. Elrohir found himself tensing as they passed right underneath the tree Elladan was in. Even though Elladan did not move and was well hidden by the leaves, he could be spotted if an orc happened to look directly up at him.
But once again they seemed intent on their errand and oblivious to everything else and the orcs swiftly made their way down their course.
Elladan waited until they were out of earshot and then gracefully leapt down from the tree. Elrohir followed suit and the two brothers only glanced at each other before taking off in the direction the orcs had gone.
They were further behind than before, and often lost sight of the orcs. But the soil on the mountain was soft and the twins were easily able to track them. In fact, after trailing them for some hours, Elrohir began to think that this was too easy.
So it was no surprise to him when a half hour later the soft soil immediately transitioned into rock.
Elladan was in the lead and he slowed, almost causing Elrohir to run into him. But Elrohir pulled himself up short and then came to his brother's side. Elladan was staring down hard at the ground and then looking up to see if they still had sight of the orcs. But they had gone further into the mountain, surrounded by many clefts and sharp turns. The orcs were nowhere in sight.
"What do we do now?" Elrohir asked.
"Keep going in the general direction," Elladan said. "But we have to go faster now, we have to get them in sight again."
Elrohir nodded and they took off, speeding up from the easy gait they had been using. They had to catch sight of the orcs before they veered in a different direction.
It was impossible to run abreast of each other, the path being too narrow, so Elrohir hung back and followed behind Elladan. Elladan was concentrating on the ground in front of them, trying to make out the most logical course of the orcs.
Elrohir was looking up around them, wondering why there did not seem to be much life in the mountains. There was only the occasional call of a bird.
As it was, Elrohir was the first to sense any danger.
They had just come around from a portion of rock that had jutted out into their path, causing them to go around it while blocking them from seeing what was beyond it. When they came around the rock Elrohir noticed movement from above them.
"Elladan, stop," he called out.
Elladan stopped and looked up right as they heard the first bow- string snap.
Both Elladan and Elrohir dove to the ground to avoid the crude orc arrow that flew past them. But before they could recover more arrows came at them. Elrohir glanced up, the orcs they had been tailing were positioned neatly on the rocks above them. Apparently they had not been as oblivious as they thought.
Elladan and Elrohir moved quickly to the side of the rock so that they could at least shelter their backs, pulling out their bows as they did so. Elladan let loose the first arrow, aiming for and striking an orc positioned right above them. The orc cried out and fell from his perch.
Elrohir took out the next one nearest to them and then they were forced to move as the orcs began to converge on them. The two brothers ran further up the path, hoping to force the orcs off from their vantage point on top of the rocks.
But though some of them leapt down to the ground, others continued to run along the tops of the rocks, firing off arrows from above. Elladan and Elrohir alternately turned to fire arrows back at them, but their speed did not allow for much precision.
As easily as the brothers could outdistance the orcs, they were hesitant to do so, not wanting to lose the easiest path to their mother. But their decision was soon made for them when the twins made their way around another out-cropping and found themselves at a dead-end. They were in a small alcove, surrounded on all sides by tall rock.
The brothers whirled so that their backs were against the rock and began firing arrows at the immediate orcs coming at them. They went down.
But there were still about five orcs above them on the rocks, and now they shot at the twins from under cover.
"What do we do now?" Elrohir asked as he jerked his head to avoid an arrow.
Elladan grabbed his long knife. "We have to go up and get them, they will not come to us."
Elrohir took his own knife. "Fine."
The two brothers charged, each grabbing onto different outcroppings to climb up. The arrows became more frantic as the orcs saw the elves' intent and Elrohir had one come so close that it stirred through his hair.
Elladan had one closer. He was almost to the top of the rock when an arrow landed neatly in his shoulder.
Elladan cried out and paused in his upward descent. The pain was intense, but he could not risk losing his grip and falling back down to the earth below. If he fell, he knew the orcs from above would be on him in no time.
Elrohir turned when he heard his brother cry and saw the arrow strike him. "Are you alright?" he shouted.
Elladan waved a non-committal answer and Elrohir set his teeth. He finished scaling the rest of the rock and was on the top-landing in no time. He went straight for the first orc he saw and was upon the creature before it could even string its next arrow. Elrohir lashed out and deftly sliced the orc across the throat with his knife. He was angered now, nobody could wound his brother like that.
The arrows were now concentrated towards Elrohir, but he moved faster than the orcs could aim and grabbed onto another one, breaking its neck before letting it fall at his feet.
Then Elrohir turned and made a run for the rock his brother was still hanging onto. He jumped and landed smoothly, turning as he did so to avoid an orc rushing him. The orc tried to correct its balance and come back at Elrohir, but Elrohir reached out and carved out a wound in its back. The orc wheeled about in anguish but lost its balance and fell off the side, its cry ending when it hit the earth.
Elrohir turned and saw that there were two remaining orcs, but they had already started to make a run for it, not wanting to face the elf. Elrohir dropped his knife and shot an arrow after them, bringing one of them down. The last one disappeared into the mountain before he could bring out another arrow.
Elrohir surveyed the area quickly, making sure there were no other orcs hiding before turning and crouching on the side of the rock. His brother still hung grittily on.
Elrohir reached down towards him, "Elladan."
Elladan looked up and slowly reached up with his uninjured arm. Elrohir grabbed it and pulled him up. Elladan came up over the side and spilled onto the ground, rolling over onto his back.
Elrohir assessed the damage from the arrow. "It has gone in far, the best thing would be to push it all the way through."
Elladan only nodded and slowly pulled himself into a sitting position, setting his teeth against the pain he knew would come.
Elrohir first broke off the feathered end of the arrow and then placed his hands against the splintered end. "Ready?" he asked.
Elladan nodded and closed his eyes.
Elrohir bit his lip and sucked in a breath. Then he pushed down with all of his strength.
The breath exploded from Elladan and as much as he tried he could not keep a cry from escaping his lips. Elrohir quickly reached behind Elladan and pulled out the whole of the arrow, throwing it down onto the ground.
Elladan paled and Elrohir knew he was on the verge of unconsciousness. "Just lie down," he said, gently supporting his brother as he leaned back.
Then Elrohir was rummaging in his pack, taking out his blanket and ripping strips off of it. He bound his brother's shoulder as best as he could and then brought a water-skin to Elladan's lips, helping him drink.
When Elladan had a mouthful of water he laid back down, looking straight up into the sky. "We cannot rest long," he said.
"Are you mad?" Elrohir questioned. "We cannot go on right now."
Elladan looked at his brother. "Mother does not have the time to waste."