A Treasure Beyond Compare (ThorinxOCxOC)

Chapter 28

Orcs streamed into the city, a nightmare horde sweeping through the streets in rusted metal armor, holding crudely made weapons. A bloodlust miasma hung in the air creating an oppressive atmosphere.

I crouched on a high wall, Aelfric beside me. He fired an arrow, striking one of the monsters in the neck. It dropped dead, its corpse immediately stampeded by the others.

With my arm still in its sling Legolas had ordered me to avoid close combat for as long as I could. With the elven, dwarf, and human armies outside the city, there were only a handful to defend the city. With half of the Orc army battling in the valley it'd be some time before our allies could get to us.

Everything relied on us until then.

No pressure or anything.

Aelfric took out two more Orcs in rapid succession. "You are remarkably calm." He drew back the string near his mouth and fired again. "Are you not frightened?"

"I'd be crazy not to be." I acceded, deliberately ignoring the tremors running through my limbs. "However, now isn't the time to fall apart."

Our strategic demolition created a minefield of blocked alleyways and narrow streets, forcing the enemy to split up in smaller numbers. When the next Orc fell from Aelfric's deadly aim ten sets of orange eyes lifted to our perch.

Two versus ten.

Showtime.

I picked up a makeshift Molotov cocktail from a basket at my feet and lit the fuse with the torch and hurled it at the Orcs below.

The explosion rumbled the foundation of the wall forcing me to bend my knees to keep my balance. Fire roared in the street, devouring the group of Orcs.

When the smoke cleared a few were still alive, on fire. Their ululating shrieks raised the hairs on the back of my neck, and I was unable to suppress a shiver. There's something disturbing about watching something burn alive, even evil monsters like Orcs. Taking life chipped away pieces of my soul in a way I doubted to recover from.

The scent of burnt hair and cooking flesh made me nauseous. I breathed shallowly but didn't turn away, bearing witness to the death I'd wrought.

Aelfric seemed mildly impressed by the results. "Combining wine with the cooking oil was an ingenious idea."

I shrugged nonchalantly, hiding how unsettled I felt. "People in my world have been inventing new ways to kill each other for thousands of years." Hurling another Molotov, I struck at the center of a group of Orcs storming into view. They were engulfed by smoke and flame. "Besides, you were the one who built them. I didn't."

For all their wisdom elves were too honorable to conceive of something like a bomb on their own. Humans were much more practical.

I was just glad they were working, for the most part. Protecting the non-fighters from slaughter was the only thing that mattered.

Aelfric and I chipped away at their numbers like an artist chipped away at stone. The elf fired his last arrow and sagged against the wall, out of breath.

"I didn't think an elf could get winded." I panted, collapsing beside him when we had a lull in battle.

The corners of his lips curved with humor. "My lady, even elves require rest. Especially I, who is not accustomed to being at the forefront of a battle."

"I'm out of cocktails and you're out of arrows. What now?"

Heaving himself to a low crouch, Aelfric peered over the wall at the armies battling in the valley. "We hope our allies make haste to our aid."