Chapter Ten
The Trinket
From dark to light, dawn to dusk – the days blurred in endless hues of wakefulness and torturous sleep. Some nights were so unbearably warm next to the lump of blue flesh next to her that Nienna often snuck out of the tent and into the encampment. No one was around, no one wanted to be as Azog would take his queen loudly and sometimes for hours. The space between the tent and the rest of the world seemed to only grow along with her swelling belly.
Nienna sat in the tent in growing isolation, the feeling of despair clouded her every thought. Her belly was too big for how far along she was, and it began to settle in her mind that she was having another Orc child. It broke her heart as she stared endlessly into the crisscross of the wooden poles at the apex of the tent. The image of the ceiling of the tent was ingrained in her brain, the crisscrossing as convoluted as her thoughts. Each day passing in her cloth-covered prison, eating her meals alone, waiting to be fucked by her husband. If this was hell, Nienna knew she had earned her place here.
On the occasional day, when Nienna felt a modicum of self-esteem she doubted her position. The acceptance of her future as an Orc Queen, producing above-average warriors for a tyrant leader would eat at her. Some days the fear of her body breaking from birthing one too many mixed children made her skin feel thin, breakable. Every day that passed her body felt more fragile and her heart felt weak. She looked at her left hand sometimes, where the ring used to encircle her finger. The gentle pressure of the ring could be felt even now, even when she sat alone in Azog's tent, miles and miles away.
Each day, each day…a painful cycle of suffering in a million ways.
"My queen?" A face peered through the tent entrance. Nienna saw it was Fiengar and her face cracked into a smile.
"Enter." He walked in before fastening the entrance shut bringing with him a thatched bag on his back. He gave a low bow, his long black hair cascading about his face as he bent lower and lower. Nienna still could not believe how much he looked like her.
"I bring offerings," his mouth grew into a smile as he brought the bag to her and opened it. There was some food parcels, clothes and jewellery most likely taken from a recent raid. Sometimes she wished Ceroden was the one to bring her his loot, it was a tradition for a son to bring an offering to his Queen and mother. But Ceroden…she had scarcely seen him. She knew he hated her, confounded by her choices, he did not understand what it meant to be female in this world. Alone and with a child that looked like him…she had no choice. He could never understand.
"Thank you Fiengar," the half-orc kneeled as he brought the offering to her and Nienna smiled as she accepted it. He bowed his head as is tradition while she placed the bag to the side. Nienna returned to the bed and sat on the edge to look at the bowing second son. Unlike his father, there was a certain Elvish charm to his face and body. Tall, muscular with gentle eyes and a shapely mouth, his mother must have been so absolutely beautiful.
Nienna lifted a barefoot until a toe touched his chin, bringing his face up to view hers.
"I trust you are not needed back soon?" Her eyes glinted with mischief. Fiengar smiled knowingly and raised himself from the floor to stand over her. He walked closer to the bed, stalking Nienna like a predator as she moved back across the sheets.
"Is there a task you would have me do, my Queen?" He crawled over her body, his burgeoning erection gliding over her thigh. His face came to hers and she all that was innocent in his eyes, a deep desire to please her and hold her. Nienna knew why he came to her, although she knew he did not quite understand why he was so attached initially. It seemed like it could be put up to typical animalistic behaviour, seeking a maternal influence where one could find it. Then warped by the power Nienna exuded, the power that seduces any male.
She leant forward to kiss him, his lips pressed against hers in a sweet kiss. Her hands wrapped around his back as the kiss deepened. She felt his heavy press on her pregnant belly, and she gasped at the pressure.
"Careful," she whispered, "don't hurt your little brother." Fiengar lifted and returned, his body gentler against hers as he kissed her again. They lay wrapped in each other for what felt like an eternity, her heart soaring at the subtle touch of Fiengar's innocently probing fingers. As eager as his father to be between her thighs but without the practiced cautiousness. His hands caressed her skin, lips kissed up and down her body worshipping as much skin as was exposed to him. Soon he was undressed and slowly entering her, his movements meant to inspire as much pleasure in Nienna's so that he could watch her orgasm all over his cock.
"My Queen," he'd revere as he'd rock into her, kissing her legs as they rested on his shoulders. Nienna felt him throb in her, urgently expanding her, ripening in her. He was desperate to watch her cum and in Fiengar she saw how he struggled for her approval, for her love. He watched, his hips rotating and her eyes fluttered as each nerve ending sparked alive. She moulded around him, gripping and milking him dry.
"Good boy," she breathed, "just like that."
Her gentle urgings stimulated something latent within him, something he'd lost long ago. His heart thundered in his chest as he watched her cum, the sweet vibrations echo throughout her body. The pulsating grip of her pussy and her sweet words gave him release and he collapsed beside her.
Their labouring breathing was the only noise in the tent and Nienna closed her eyes basking in the glow of her orgasm. She turned to her side and planted a kiss on his cheek.
"You've pleased me greatly, young one." Fiengar turned to her with a soft smile and gave Nienna a long kiss filled with all his love.
It was not long before Fiengar departed the tent, a sudden fear that Azog would appear inspiring his exit. Nienna watched the young male leave, the bag of offerings still beside the bed. She knew their relationship was illicit and she secretly hoped Azog would walk in on their lovemaking. She hoped to hurt Azog, break his heart in his own bed. But all these secret meetings showed her was that Fiengar was the one she would be hurting. He loved her in his own warped way. Nienna knew that there was no happy ending for them.
And with his departure, the torment resumed. The infinite, timeless space where Nienna could only remember and forget and remember again, all her decisions and all her wishful thinking. Then the thundering footsteps would come and Nienna's eyes wouldn't leave the ceiling until Azog stood over her.
Middle Earth spun in harmony with the quick, quiet, and vengeful forces trembling the loaming soil. The heavy stamping feet of the orcs vibrating above and around, crumbling the brittle branches of a perching nest. The world is drowning in the chaos that swirls in Nienna's burgeoning belly. The fate of two peoples and their way of life rested on a gamble, a chance. Some nights felt like two hammers drummed in her abdomen, alternating their strikes so she could find no reprieve. Her chest tightened as her eyes flew open in the night, the walls of the tent billowing in the crosswinds. Her body was immobile as if trapped by an invisible paralysing force. Her eyes darted around the dark space, noting the gentle rise and fall of the large male next to her. With all her strength she tried to shift her body, even just a little bit but to no avail. A panic started in her chest, her body seemed completely isolated from her brain and a looming weight of some invisible force slowly began to push her further into the bed. Its gentle weight dragging itself from her legs to her pelvis before crushing onto her chest. It was enough to knock the wind out of her lungs. Nienna tried to open her mouth to scream but she could not move, her jaw would not unhinge, and her throat remained relaxed in its skin encasement.
"Nienna," a fleeting whisper harmonising with the bitter wind swirled about her ears.
Nienna's body perked up as a warm glowing light grew in intensity from the far side of the room. The glow projected strange markings all over the tent walls and the brighter the glow became the faster Nienna began to understand.
The markings sharpened from fuzzy blurs into fine Elvish script, the kind that was so old no one could ever decipher it. The script covered the billowing tent walls, curling on the turbulent waves of the fabric.
With clearer eyes Nienna focused on the source of the glow, hidden by a shelf perched on the end; the trinket. The lid flipped open suddenly and out of the pores came wafting swirls of grey, dark smoke falling to the ground, unmoved by the strong wind. The smoke travelled slowly across the floor. It twirled about the objects in its path and Nienna watched with panicked eyes as it made its way to her. As the smoke reached the bed it twisted and vorticed into a tall, imposing figure. The greys hollowed or densified to create a ghostly face on top of a large, statuesque body wrapped in sorcerer's cloth and sewn leather coverings. An imposing staff magicked beside the figure which the being held with a large hand. The ghostly face morphed into helmet, the eye holes were small but somehow Nienna knew it could see all. She lay in fear of the large figure as it looked over her incapacitated body. Her pregnancy covered in furs stretched over skin leaving little else for her other areas.
"A sweet offering," the voice was as hollow as the being itself, deep and vibrating throughout the room. It hardly disturbed the sleeping orc next to her. "You have performed very well little one."
The figure reached forward; its murky hand stretched over the swollen belly. The figure ruminated as it penetrated her mind and body.
"Twins," his lip curled smugly, "different fathers."
Nienna tried to move but her fear mounted and continued to paralyse her limbs. Nienna tried to speak but the being moved the staff slightly and a sudden chokehold fell upon Nienna's neck.
"Not yet, not yet." His voice was dripping saccharine sweet and he delivered a deep sigh as his eyes perused her body, "you are still the most exquisite offering in a hundred years."
His eyes once again roamed her body and like a trained dog Nienna could not help her reaction. Her body was so responsive to lust and debasement, even a strange ball of smoke could arouse her.
"I reveal myself to you know, little one, as a warning. My patience has borne me an opportunity to serve my master once again in delivering him the power to rule Middle Earth. I have waited and waited for the perfect offering and nothing could have pleased me more when I found you."
Nienna felt the smoke crawl onto the bed and over the pelts onto her skin. The smoke had a grainy texture that scratched at her softness, yet she was still immobile. She looked onto the face of the figure, her confusion obvious to the spectral being. Her thoughts were loud and fearful.
"I understand your fear, Nienna. There is much to be revealed to you." The greys of the murky figure began to colour and materialise a man from the smoke. Its pale skin solid under the robes, every hair on its head peeking through its hat. Nienna saw the figure become a tall, dark-eyed and black-haired wizard-like being. Its hair cut off at its shoulder framing its ageless face.
"I have tied my life force to the fate of the twins, my reign as their leader shall commence soon."
Nienna realised in that moment, different fathers.
"Yes Nienna, exactly that. One full royal elf child, one half-orc half-elf. You are the vessel for Kings, the catalyst of the greatest army and union in all Middle Earth." Nienna remained wide-eyed at the realisation. She was going to unite orcs and the woodland elves in some unholy alliance.
"Now that I have conveyed the distinct nature of your position, I must warn you. You must not tell anyone, and you must not anger Azog further." The figure sent a probing gaze.
"I know of your visits to the second born," Nienna blushed in deep shame, "it must end immediately. You must keep your duty to your husband, Azog." The figure trailed a finger over her swollen breast, its peak hardening at the soft touch. It trailed all the way down through the gaps between the pellets until it dipped between her waiting sheath. "Although…I, too, have desired this."
He licked his lips before tensing his jaw and Nienna saw his face turn toward her. His bottomless dark eyes absorbing her gaze as the finger breached her opening. Its exploration was slow and stifled by her tight grip.
"You are such a delightful offering," the being returned his hand to lightly grasp at his growing arousal, "I have watched you open yourself for all sorts of males, watched you for years as you gladly received them."
Nienna wished wholeheartedly that she could turn away, her shame evident in every expression her face could muster. But her gaze was focused on the male in front of her who wanted to consume every part of her.
"You have performed perfectly and for your service, the Dark Lord will grant you protection."
A soft pause fluttered between them in the stillness of the tent. The orc next to her was as unmoving as always. Nienna's head was swimming with questions, thoughts, and her insurmountable fear of the being next to her. Her immobile body began to shake and tremble as if slowly breaking free.
"Y-y-you did thiss?" Nienna tried to force the words out of her mouth and she watched as the figure threw his head back and laughed.
"Of course! The males always wanted you, I just helped some of them in taking what they so desired." Nienna's eyes widened, "its so easy to manipulate an aroused male. And you... you were easy to teach. You may have been hard to break but you are the greatest whore of all Middle Earth."
Nienna's breath came out in pants, her whole world began spinning. It was him all along, forcing her to be raped over and over and making enjoy it. Her heart thumped viciously in her chest but the dark being grabbed her face bringing her eyes to look at him.
"Remember Nienna, your part to play is not over yet. You carry the single greatest commodity of all Middle Earth. I will be watching."
In a quick burst of light all the smoke in the room was sucked back into the trinket and the lid fell shut. Nienna felt the pressure of her restraints immediately removed and her breath came out heaving. Her hand flew to her pregnant stomach, gently caressing the bump with a million thoughts rushing through her head.
"Friend, I have longed to see you." Thranduil greeted the familiar elf. "It has been many moons since the great Lord Elrond graced my halls."
Elrond smiled, distrustful of his kin who is known for his callousness. The Elvenking's Halls had remained much the same, the high throne situated above them all in the vast wooden cavern. The King stood by his advisor and captain who had congregated around a small table set for five.
"Yes, and I regret the circumstances of my visit." Elrond's voice remained levelled and stood impervious with his long brown hair twisted in delicate decorative strands. This visit could not be delayed, Elrond knew the second he saw the summons. It contained a name that had not been uttered in years.
Nienna
His whole heart plummeted when he read her name, the cursive scrawl on parchment brought hope to his heart. He set off within days of receiving the news and with a small crew of elves he set off for Mirkwood. Lord Elrond spent much of the journey wondering what had happened to her, how she ended up in Mirkwood, how she even managed to survive entering the forest since the wood-elves were so secretive and just so ruthless. His years of wisdom and experience led him to believe she was in trouble, the worst sort. Cavorting with lower elves and alone. Elrond had been in the palace for a few hours with his own entourage who had taken position behind the meeting table. The atmosphere felt awkward, Captain Tauriel, who Elrond met first at the great entrance, stood with her eyes lowered as if in deep thought. And Royal Advisor Maeglin was sat by some parchment, reading through some writing, his eyes glued to the words. The entire setup was offensive and without unity, it scared him.
"I must say your letter startled me; I am aware you know of my ward Nienna but what has brought her here?" Elrond began, his face creased in worry. King Thranduil gestured to the table and the remaining elves took their seats. Thranduil adjusted his crown, his face passive as he tried to read the high Elf. Lord Elrond did not fear him nor did Thanrduil fear Elrond, but it was intimidating to be in the presence of someone of high birth. Mustering all the charm he possessed the King reclined in his seat which was larger and more decorated than the others. He settled his hands on the armrests and carefully observed the other elf.
"Ah, you see that is precisely the question I am trying to acquire the answer to myself."
Elrond's posture turned defensive. Nienna could never have done anything so as to warrant a meeting with the King and yet, here he was.
"She is an innocent, I assure you. Whatever you are accusing her of cannot be evidenced, I know her."
"Then explain how she has managed to come to Mirkwood pregnant with an orc mutt, laid with my son the Prince of Mirkwood, married him, not before lying with myself as well." The sentence fell from Thranduil's mouth like a waterfall. The words strung together in an impossible combination that Elrond felt he had hardly heard them at all.
"This cannot be!"
"I assure you, her behaviour is not that of an innocent. Her manipulative tactics can only belong to a traitor who has trained her in those arts. Her deception traces itself back to you." Thranduil landed this blow and all eyes were now focussed on Lord Elrond. This situation was impossible, Elrond could not abide by the slander but it was coming from a King! Elrond briefly looked to the empty seat beside him, where he assumed the Prince would be had he showed up.
"I have no quarrel with you, friend, in fact, I have hardly spoken to you these past few years." Elrond held up his hands in surrender..
"Then why has she tried to take down my entire bloodline with her lies?" The ensuing silence echoed between them, the question had been asked and Elrond was more lost than ever.
"Where is she?"
"Banished two months ago."
"Then why bother with her, whatever she had planned has not come to fruition? Why endure her any longer?" Elrond asked in earnest.
Thranduil stared at the empty seat at the table, he had hoped the invitation he extended would be accepted.
"Because she is pregnant."
All this time Tauriel and Maeglin were passive participants in the meeting. Keeping their emotions in check but once Thranduil uttered those words their eyes met. Their mutual sadness at this information was shared. Tauriel took a deep breath before addressing the group.
"Prince Legolas has been monitoring her for a few weeks now. He says she is living at an orc camp as Azog's slave."
The word slave was used hesitantly. Tauriel knew from Legolas that she whored herself to that mutilated orc willingly. She remembered how difficult it was for Legolas to even confide this to her. She tried to convince him to let her be but Legolas wanted to save his child if it was his. Her heart broke remembering Legolas' sullen features, he was truly defeated. She looked to Elrond who was confounded by the information.
"Who is the father of her first child?"
"Azog." Maeglin chimed in.
The table fell silent again as Elrond processed the information. Nienna clearly was not the elleth he thought she was. She had fallen and he knew who pushed her.
"Then it is clear to me who her allegiance lies with." Elrond spoke, he raised his eyes to meet Thranduil's.
"Azog."
Morning broke through the horizon with all its brilliant light and warmth. Nienna had barely slept the remainder of the night, her thoughts were awake with questions. The orc beside her grunted and turned over to face the little elleth still fast asleep. The events of the previous night occupied the majority of her thoughts. The tall figure with his pointed hat and long hair, he seemed like a sorcerer. His staff seemed ancient and his eyes old and ageless at the same time. If he possessed the power, he claimed to have then Nienna was just a pawn in the games of evil men. She was host to the next dynasty of wickedness. Ceroden and now these twins, her offspring would become the most feared creatures of all Middle Earth.
A small part of Nienna felt obliged to the cause of good and all goodness that resides in the world. She wanted no part of any evil scheming let alone to be the mother of some warrior army. Another part of her did not care for the games of males. They used her for their own agendas or gratification and what did it matter that she was now the most valuable vessel in Middle Earth.
A vessel.
Nienna stared for a long time at the roof the tent. There was a time when she decided she wanted a life that was her own, made hard decisions to make sure she could survive in relative peace surrounded by the books that enamoured her. What was the cost? She gave her son away to complete strangers and now he does not even view her as his own mother. Her peace and isolation she bought with silence and more sexual favours. The love of her life, Legolas, with whom she could have been most ardently happy.
Nienna looked at the trinket again, its presence seemed much larger than it did now that she knew its secret. The sorcerer had said, "I will be watching." She wondered if he could see her now, or if he could only view her with the lid open. She imagined many nights where the ghostly form would appear at her bedside and her sleeping form was none the wiser to its sinister agenda. The thought terrified her; how much did the sorcerer know?
Nienna remembered when Master Elrond first gave her the trinket, the immediate joy when she realised its secret. Invisibility. And true invisibility at that. Nienna had so much of Middle Earth opened to her but she only realised how it came a heavy price.
Nienna pondered the idea of summoning the sorcerer, to ask her questions. She turned to look at Azog sleeping beside her and decided now was as good a time as any. Slowly she slipped out of the bed, careful to not wake the sleeping beast. As she approached the trinket, her footsteps muffled by the turbulent wind, she felt a warm pressure on her chest. The temperature rose with every step she took. The feeling was terribly familiar…
When she was scarcely a step away from the shelf the heat had become searing and Nienna saw her delicate pale skin turn to pink. She tested the trinket and took some steps back, the heat lessened, and she understood. He was not interested in being bothered by her.
She needed to coax him out of the trinket, perhaps in the only way she knew how.
Her eyes turned to the sleeping male behind her, from his wide nose to the long canines peeking out of his mouth. Nienna looked over the pale blue orc, glancing over the scratches that tore into the muscled flesh of his chest. Every inch of Azog was scarred from violence, every muscle sculpted from the terrors of war. She returned to the bed, gently placing herself in the sheets. A quick glance to the trinket she saw it glow a soft amber and she knew she had his attention. Her hand traced his flesh and she watched him twitch under her touch. She let her hand trail down until she reached his hips, she smiled at the thought of a little torture first. She delicately traced the outline of scars and bone around his manhood. Her touch caressing the inside of his thigh to the hip bone then dancing across to the other side all without a single touch on his thickening cock. She could feel Azog awaken slowly at her ministrations and she could not resist toying with him some more.
"Vexing slut, do not force me to punish you." The threat uttered from the sleepy orc was enough to send her own juices flowing.
Obeying, she grabbed the head of his cock and gently pumped the shaft. Azog twisted and squirmed under her touch before his pale blue eyes flew open to find her mischievous smile. Nienna quickly knocked the animal skins to the side and slid down to Azog's pelvis. She eyed the trinket on the shelf and made sure to kneel facing away from it. Her knees parted and she gave the trinket ample view of everything between her legs.
Nienna knew that the sorcerer was easily seduced by her, for whatever reason, and an offer so tempting might reel him out of his hiding spot.
As her lips came to the tip of Azog's head Nienna felt a familiar heat. Like a searing warmth that coated the backs of her thighs. Her mouth closed over the head and her tongue swirled around Azog's cock. The heat grew warmer and scorching trails raked over the mounds of her ass like nails. As her head bobbed up and down the hard manhood, feeling Azog's shaft throbbing around her tongue. The warmth behind her morphed into the shape of hands that massaged around her ass moving slowly towards her dripping centre. Nienna bent further so she could lick and suck on his balls, the large sack could hardly fit in her eager mouth. But she could feel heat reward her valiant effort by circling her throbbing nub. The sensation was building in her, the sorcerer's ministrations causing her to wiggle and squirm at his touch when all of sudden and white-hot slap burned her skin. The pain caused her to yelp and she turned back to look behind her to find no one there. The sorcerer…
Azog gripped Nienna's hair and brought her absent mouth to his cock and held her there. She moaned as he thrust upward into her throat all the while being stimulated by that delicious heat. Azog choked her as he spilt his seed into her watching her throat expand and constrict as she received him.
"Good wife." He uttered before pushing her off and getting out of the bed. The warmth settled on her back gently pulsing over her skin. Nienna felt his lust for her and knew she had his attention.
As Azog moved about the room, getting himself ready for the day, Nienna lay on her back across the bed in full view of the trinket. Her legs parted teasingly, and she began to snake her arm around her waist to the apex of her thighs. Her deft fingers stimulated her melting core as she focused her gaze on the trinket, feeling its streams of heat concentrate and gather on the insides of her thighs. Nienna delighted in the idea that he was trapped, unable to touch her while Azog was in the tent.
Are you afraid of him? Nienna thought as loudly as she could. Her fingers slid easily in her wetness and spread the lips before looking at the trinket again. She played in the wetness, the heat hesitantly focusing on her thighs unable to go further. You said you've thought about this.
Her fingers began to pump her pussy while her thumb rubbed her clit. The sweet pleasure she felt scaled her body until every nerve ending was alive.
"No need for that," Azog spoke from the side of the bed, his face contorted into a malicious smile. But before the greedy beast could get his hands on her, one of his orc subordinates sounded a horn and Azog quickly dropped his smile. Fastening the last of his attire he ran to the opening in the tent and disappeared. Nienna looked at the entrance confusedly. Azog has never acted like that, he would never give up fucking her for literally anything. Something was wrong.
Nienna turned to face the shelf only to find the sorcerer fully formed in front of her. His eyes a dark red and in the bright morning light she saw him in full form. His staff was gone and his long bony hands covered in pale wrinkled skin stretched out in front of him.
"You have my attention," he spoke in a deep, piercing voice.
Nienna noted his lustful gaze trailing over her spread legs, her pussy ripe for fucking. His hand grabbed her ankle and dragged the naked elleth to the edge of the bed. Nienna looked at him more terrified than aroused, his ominous grin sending shivers up her spine.
"You will answer my questions," Nienna said with little conviction. The being laughed maliciously as he towered over her, the feeble little elleth making demands to him.
"There is no retribution you can inflict that would do any damage," he said, "I own you, whore."
Nienna felt his confidence and reeled back at his power. The sorcerer was a great deal stronger than her but she had other plans.
"I am not afraid of you," she began, "perhaps I should invite my second son to my bed just before my darling husband comes back."
The sorcerer's eyes became inflamed with rage at her disobedience and he reached forward to her throat sending a gripping force around the muscles without actually touching her.
"Careful," Nienna spluttered, "you don't want to hurt the twins."
The sorcerer gripped a little longer before releasing her, voicing curses on her name. Nienna fell back, her hands instinctively cradling her stomach. Her body seized as she choked and sputtered out coughs.
"Little one, you are not in control. Disobeying my orders will only get you killed. I can be your saviour or your killer, choose wisely and obey!" With that, the sorcerer turned to the grey smoke and returned back into the trinket. Nienna watched the lid of the trinket snap shut and felt a new surge of conviction.
If she wanted her life back, she was going to have to piss him off.
A/N: Please review, would love to hear any feedback!