SAFETY IN NUMBERS by Jessie Syring
DISCLAIMER: All rights to the LORD OF THE RINGS are owned and reserved by the estate of J.R.R. Tolkien and New Line Cinema. I only borrow them to play a little bit.
Aragorn felt relief at the sight of the Lothlorien Elves. In such numbers, the Fellowship was safe and had nothing to worry about. Haldir was not the friendliest Elf he had ever known, but he took his duty seriously and loved the Lady Galadriel. None would fall to harm if he could prevent it.
Still...
"Haldir," Aragorn said, speaking softly so as not to alarm the Halflings, "we have been pursued since we left Moria. We hid last night from a large band of Orcs hunting us."
Haldir stared at him haughtily. "They will not enter the Golden Woods," he said. "They have learned the folly of such actions."
"They are driven by the desire to please their dark master," Legolas said. "They travel in daylight in their pursuit."
The Marchwarden stared at the Man and the Elf for a long moment, then called, "Rumil!"
Another Elf joined them. His features marked him as close kin to Haldir, though his hair had a reddish tint to it. Haldir spoke to him in rapid Elvish for a moment. Rumil nodded once and vanished into the woods.
Gimli watched the whole affair for a moment. "There are at least a hundred Orcs," he said. "What can one Elf do against them?"
The sunlight reflecting off the river blinded the night-eyes of the Orcs as they sought a safe crossing. It had not been hard to find where the Fellowship had crossed, but they feared Elves might wait in ambush so did not follow there. They split into small groups and spread out, searching for a safe ford.
Suddenly a lone Elf appeared on the far shore near a place where the water was shallow and calm. Clad in green and gray leathers, he made no effort to conceal himself and stood in plain sight. His bow remained strapped to his back and he studied the Orcs across the water.
"Ten Orcs against one Elf hardly seems fair," he said at last. "Do you need a few moments to gather more Orcs?"
The Orcs roared in rage. "Get him!" shouted one big Orc.
The Orcs surged across the river in pursuit of the Elf.
The sound of fighting and death cries attracted more Orcs. They rushed to the area, eager for blood, and surged across the river. Silence greeted them. Clutching their weapons, they searched the immediate area. The scent of blood finally led them to the corpses of twenty of their kind. Sword work had cut them to ribbons.
"One Elf is better than twenty Orcs," a musical voice taunted.
Snarling in rage, the Orcs set off in search of the Elf taunting them, bent on revenge for their slain kin.
And so went the hunt. Orcs combed the woods near the river, searching for the Elf who taunted them. Always with the same results.
Black Orc blood was everywhere. The air reeked of its foul stench. Dead Orcs lay in heaps, scattered through the woods. All had died by blade, yet there was no sign they had so much as harmed who they fought.
Grunach snarled in rage as he picked his way through the bodies. Only Elven swords could cause such clean wounds---his troops had probably died before they knew they had been stabbed. The Orcs with him clutched their weapons and looked about nervously.
"Stand still, you scum," snarled Grunach. "We have work to do."
One of his men let out an enraged roar. Grunach turned as a lone Elf emerged from the woods. The fair creature was casually wiping his sword clean of Orc blood and seemed unconcerned about the number of Orcs around him.
"One Elf is better than thirty Orcs," the Elf said.
Grunach's face split into a fiendish grin. "There are fifty of us."
The Elf smiled as well. "And I am not alone."
The sound of soft voices awoke Gimli from a sound sleep and he sat up, blinking in the darkness. He quickly located the Elves by their natural luminescence, a soft glow in the pale moonlight. Haldir stood at the edge of the encampment, talking with the Elf he had called Rumil and another Elf Gimli didn't know. Legolas and Aragorn were there as well, listening. After a few moments, Rumil and the strange Elf left. Aragorn returned to the sleeping Fellowship.
"Well?" asked Gimli, keeping his voice low. "What about the Orcs?"
Aragorn smiled. "One Elf is better than a hundred Orcs," he said, "and there were two Elves."
END
A/N: I would have spoiled the story if I put this at the beginning. This humorous little vignette was inspired by a joke I read. I'm sorry---I can't find the web site to give it proper credit.