ALEXA'S POV
Alexa watched as Fili's form got smaller and smaller as he ran towards his brother. The eagles will be arriving in a few minutes and Alexa didn't have the slightest clue where Thorin was, but she needed this. She needed just one last minute to herself before she set off to complete her mission.
Alexa breathed deeply, a white cloud leaving her lips with every exhale. Everything ached. Her bloodied fingers shook as they reached into her tunic, grasping the bound parchment hidden within. Another shuddering whisper of vapour left her as she pulled on the ribbon binding the parchment and unfolded it.
Alexa's lips stretched in a smile and tears grew in her eyes, though they did not fall. She ran a worn finger over the parchment, following the lines on the page. It was a drawing of her and Obi-Wan. The pair were sat on a bench, facing one another with big smiles and eyes full of laughter. Alexa remembered the day well. She had been exchanging stories with Obi-Wan. He had told her about some of the shenanigans he and Anakin had gotten into, while she had told him about her time as a padawan under Master Mundi. In particular, the time that Master Windu had caught her having fun and had scolded her publicly. But what got Ben laughing was not Master Windu scolding her, but Alexa's revenge. To put it simply, Master Windu had not always been bald.
A quiet laugh left Alexa at the memory. But her minute was up. She took one last look at the drawing then returned it to its hiding place next to her heart. Folding the rest of the parchment, she bound it with the ribbon then lent over and pushed it into her boot; slipping it inside her sock for extra security.
Exhaling softly, Alexa cleared her mind. It was time.
-/Time Skip/ -
Battle cries echoed in her ears as a dozen orcs several feet away ran past her. Alexa remained hidden behind a stone ruin until the group were out of sight, she could not afford to use any more of her energy before she found Thorin.
Gritting her teeth, Alexa tried to push herself up using the ruin, but the slash on her back was burning up, causing tears to prick at her eyes. Her body slumped against the ruin and hopelessness washed over her. What could she do? Her back was most certainly infected, her shoulder was fucked, her own blood trickled from the cuts on her arms and right cheek mixing in with the orcs. Her thigh was throbbing, and she could barely walk now, but Fili's bind had held true as the bleeding had stopped.
She reached for the parchment that lay over her heart and stared at it again. For the life of her, Alexa couldn't remember what his voice sounded like and that scared her. How could she forget such a thing? And, when had she? She looked back at the drawing and studied his face, she couldn't forget that.
Alexa tucked the parchment back into her bind and released the breath she was holding. She couldn't let him down. With renewed strength she drew the blade at her side, stabbed it into the rock below her and pushed. Shakily, she managed to get to her feet and leant heavily against the ruin and sheathed the dagger. Her lightsaber hung from her belt inactive as she stumbled in the direction the orcs had run, hoping that Thorin was there.
She had been limping for a minute now when she heard a series of high-pitched whistling. Alexa looked for the source and found herself looking towards the sky, the eagles had come.
"THORIN!" She yelled, "WHERE ARE YOU?! THORIN!" No reply came.
Panic struck her and she moved as quickly as she could with her injuries. So much so, that she had just about slipped and fell down a set of icy stairs when she saw him. Thorin was alone, his eyes fixed on the ice as he walked along the frozen lake.
"THORIN!" Alexa shouted, limping hastily across the ice towards the Dwarf.
Thorin looked in her direction and smiled, "ALEXA!" He yelled back,
Before Alexa could reply or feel any sense of relief a pained grunt escaped Thorin's lips and a loud crack sounded as Azog smashed through the ice. A strangled yell left Alexa as her vision played out before her eyes. The pale orc stood over Thorin and thrust his crude extension at Thorin's chest, the Dwarf only just managing to block it with Orcist.
Her heart was racing, with her injuries any hope of throwing her lightsaber was dashed as she could hit Thorin. She stumbled across the slippery ice, gritting her teeth as pain flared in her leg. She couldn't give up now, she couldn't let Thorin die. She was five meters away now and even with her hazy vision she could see Thorin's arms begin to shake. It was about to happen, he was about to give in.
Alexa knew then that she wouldn't reach him in time. So, she did the one thing she could do, she stopped and planted both feet firmly on the ice. She stretched her hand out towards the pair and held firm, beads of sweat grew on her forehead as she willed the last of her strength to come forth.
A blue light appeared beside Alexa, followed by several others on either side of her. "We are with you my old padawan," Master Mundi told her and raised his hand, his arm stretched towards Azog and Thorin.
"Stay with me," Alexa whispered,
"Until the end,"
A strangled cry left Alexa as she sent a surge of energy towards Azog. She watched as the orc went flying towards the bank, hitting the ice with a loud crack, its body slumped to the side. Alexa panted from exertion; her hand rested over her beating heart as she caught her breath. She glanced around her, Master Mundi and the others had already left but she knew that they were with her.
Thorin remained lying on the ice, gasping for air, holding off Azog had been no easy feat. Alexa slowly made her way towards him, smiling down at him as she came to stand above him. Thorin gave her a tired smile and went to stand up when he became painfully aware of the hole in his foot. Thorin gritted his teeth in pain and inspected the damage.
"Just a flesh wound," Thorin grimaced,
Alexa huffed a laugh and was thankful that was the only major wound on him. She then held her hand out for him to grab. Thorin took her hand and a startled squeak left Alexa as he almost pulled her down with him. In response, Thorin gave her a sheepish smile and pushed off the ice with his other hand to give him momentum. Now that was a feat in itself, lifting Thorin and not falling on top of him.
Alexa smiled at the Dwarf, her mission was complete, she had saved the line of Durin. Thorin did not smile back, his features had grown sad and full of shame.
"Alexa, what I did to you." He began, "I- "
Alexa quickly cut in, "I forgive you,"
A look of shock appeared on his face; he was speechless. "Come on," Alexa said, "Let's get out of here, it's cold." She shivered and rubbed her arms causing a smile to once more twitch on Thorin's lips.
But before he could reply, Alexa's face froze and she shoved Thorin aside, knocking the Dwarf on his back and away from her. Turning around she faced the angry pale orc and unclipped her lightsaber, but it was too late. Her weapon was forcefully hit out of her grasp and sent skidding across the ice.
Before she could react, Azog lunged at her shoulder. A piercing scream left her lips as the orcs sharp talons dug into her injured shoulder and lifted her into the air.
Azog held her firmly above the ground and drew her close. Words Alexa didn't understand were whispered to her in a harsh tone, then she was airborne. A pop faintly sounded in her ears and she felt the thick fluid of blood seeping through her clothes and onto the cold ice below.
With her good arm, Alexa tried to get away from the prowling orc, her leg dragged across the ice as she heaved herself backwards until she hit something solid. Panic filled her eyes as she realised Azog had backed her against a wall, she was trapped. Alexa looked desperately towards Thorin who remained still on the ice then to her lightsaber which was too far away. She was alone and there was no one coming to save her.
Through foggy eyes, Alexa stared up at the pale orc who grinned maliciously at her, his wicked arm extension glinted in the morning light. Was this the end? That question was answered rather quickly as Azog reached down and wrapped a hand around her throat, choking her. Alexa felt herself once again being lifted into the air, her right hand clawed at the arm holding her throat as her left arm hung limp and useless at her side and her feet began to kick, when a sharp pain erupted in her side.
The scarred hand around her throat loosened causing a painful wheeze to leave her. Her head hung as she caught her breath. Looking through the fading haze, Alexa saw the end of Azog's stump nestled against her abdomen and it was then that her brain registered the blade embedded in her side.
AN: I'm back again with an update! Hope you enjoyed the chapter :)
Until next time XD
