|
Adranel was caught completely off guard at the attack of the Orcs. She had been deep in thought, considering her place among these people. As soon as the opportunity presented itself, she figured that she would be leaving the army as well as Sjorging, Gelding, and Beluf. She had aligned herself with them out of necessity, and she remained with they and the army both out of curiosity and for protection and companionship, certainly not because of friendship. Though Gelding had come to appreciate her presence (largely due to her archery skills), she and Beluf were distinctly uncomfortable in each other’s presence and nothing had changed between Sjorging and herself. Already she was distancing herself from them somewhat, even leaving them this morning before they were up to take a walk around and generally keeping to herself as they marched.
So when the Orcs had attacked, Adranel was unprepared and caught in the middle of the melee. She first felt fear. Last time she had encountered Orcs they had taken away everything, and this encounter dragged out a new perspective on the sack of her village. Previously, she had known grief and anger, but never fear. Even aside from being afraid, she knew that she had to get out of there - she had no skill with hand-to-hand combat, nor did she have a weapon for it. Her bow would be no good as it was, and she would be defenseless. She pushed and shoved her way through the ranks of soldiers, and was soon clear, since the army was small, and they were spreading their ranks. She ignored her throbbing side, already hurting from the past few hours’ march and redoubled in her rush to be free of the fight.
There was a small, wooded rise nearby and Adranel hastened up it. It gave her an excellent view of the battle, providing for clear shots. They were clear at first, anyhow, and she was able to shoot several Orcs, emptying about a third of her quiver, each arrow exacting payment for a loved one lost. For Father. For Allagon. For Balder. For Hergon. The list continued for as many arrows as she shot. Her aim was cold and calculating as she found grim revenge on the Orcs that had destroyed her life as she knew it. Soon, however, the Gondorians and the Orcs mixed together in a confused jumble of weapons and blood, frustrating her as her shots became fewer when she had a harder time picking out targets.
To her surprise, she found that the Gondorian army was slowly overpowering the Orcs, even though their force was less than three-quarters the size of that of the Orcs. They were skilled fighters, she admitted grudgingly. That did not mean their problems were over - far from it. After this, the small army would be decreased, and when it came to blows with the main force of Gundabad the odds would be even slimmer. This thought severely dampened her spirit of victory as the final Orcs were cut down and all that remained were the elated soldiers standing amid the bloody carnage of battle. She picked out Beluf, Gelding, and Sjorging among the soldiers, seemingly unharmed.
Adranel eased her way down to the field of battle, now giving heed not to pain her side further. By the time she reached the bottom of the slope, she had begun to wonder when they would be moving on. No one else appeared to be thinking this far ahead, still caught up in their triumph. But for Adranel, it was not a victory. It was payment, and she had barely begun to pay the price.
|