[Regin Hardhammer]

Ishkur grew anxious as he waited for the group members to walk in front of him down the path. He waited for a long time, but only a few came. He started to worry that something had befallen their party and the rebellion would be stifled before the group could even leave Nurn. Someone must have been foolish and alerted the leaders to their departure. Even if that was true, Ishkur hoped some remnant of the exodus would survive such a battle. But every minute Ishkur spent kicking his rock, at first done for entertainment and now to alleviate fears, made him more nervous. He could never return to that infernal camp now that he had separated himself. Even if no one ever found out that he had participated in the rebellion, his mind would not let itself be enslaved again. No, even if every other orc had been killed, Ishkur must escape to the wilderness and live by himself. Hopefully, he prayed, some of the stronger orcs would survive the attack and the group would press forward, albeit much reduced in number.

Suddenly, orcs began trickling past him, running frantically away from the camp. They stopped only momentarily to acknowledge Ishkur’s presence, and make sure that they followed the correct path, but never gave him a word of explanation. They seemed to be running for their lives. The first to arrive were women, followed by male orcs with their weapons drawn, freshly stained with blood. So I have guessed correctly. Indeed, they have fought a battle.

Ishkur suspected that the Uruk-Hai commanders were responsible for the assault on the escaping orcs. Then, to his horror, he saw two Uruks running in the same direction as the rest of the group. At first he suspected that these creatures were merely a force sent by the commanders to eliminate those who fled. From the way they ran, however, it appeared that these Uruk-Hai did not intend to kill the rebels, but to join them. This realization disturbed him. Never had anyone mentioned that any Uruk-Hai would be joining them. Ishkur had always assumed that the escape consisted of pure orcs only. One of the reasons that Ishkur had joined the group was to escape from the haughty Uruk-Hai and never see them again. Their presence now infuriated him, but he had already made his decision to leave. Not even the stupid Uruks could change his mind now.

Ishkur waited as long as he could to make sure that every orc and even the Uruks knew which way to go. After a while he decided he must flee and that any stragglers would have to find a way on their own. After all, if the final orcs had not made it out of the camp by now the Uruks had probably killed them. The group didn’t need any orcs who could not take care of themselves in battle so the casualties did not hurt them much. He began to run hard in the same direction as those he had guided and in a little while caught up with the others. About fifteen total had made it, including three Uruk-Hai who had pushed their way to the front of the group. Even out here, moaned Ishkur, they continue to be a thorn in my side.

Underneath the new moon in the cold dark sky, the rebel orcs ran down the path to the west as quickly as they could. Many of the orcs looked exhausted. The battle had drained energy from them and caused them to move sluggishly. But Ishkur knew they could not stop now, so close to the encampment. The Uruk-Hai commanders had probably sent squads of troops after them who were following their every footstep. The group continued marching without torches to guide their way through the blackness to avoid being detected. Ishkur well knew what a fine target a torch made to enemy pursuers even from long distances. He had signalled to the whole group that they could use no torches if they wanted to avoid being seen. Ishkur wanted to establish himself as one of the group’s leaders and their obedience to his suggestion pleased him greatly.

From the corner of his eye, Ishkur saw his old battle companion, Gwerr. They had fought together for longer than he could remember in various confrontations against the enemies of Sauron. Although the two had never been in the same unit, over the years they had developed a tentative sense of trust. Ishkur knew that Gwerr would be joining the group, and had even spoken with him secretly about it, but this was the first time he had actually seen him in a while. He gave a quick nod to Gwerr and looked him over to make sure that he had not been wounded. After assuring himself that Gwerr looked completely healthy and appeared to have survived the battle without injury, Ishkur continued to run alongside him.

Later on, the first rays of the morning sun appeared over the distant horizon. Soon the sun would rise high into the sky, and the journey would become uncomfortable for the orcs. Ishkur hated the sun with a passion and could not stand to be out in it for long. Ishkur knew that as soon as the day began in earnest, all of the orcs would start to feel extreme discomfort. Now was the time to set up camp.

Ishkur yelled, “Stop the group. The sun is coming soon and the bad light will burn our eyes. Now we must set up camp and sleep. We cannot continue anymore tonigh.t”

He waited to see how the group would respond, hoping that they would heed his wise advice and set up camp.