by Tara Maya, Elle Casey, J L Bryan, Anthea Sharp, Jenna Elizabeth Johnson, Alexia Purdy (epub)
The smell coming off that orc body was somethin' else. Four-day-old desert roadkill crossed with the world's worst body odor had nothin' on this guy. It was so bad I started to retch. The monster squeezed me to make me stop; and I did, but only because my olfactory nerves had gone numb. The smell was seriously that bad.
I heard some roaring and grunting as the orcs communicated with each other. Heads gestured to my friends still fighting valiantly. I felt so fucking horrible at that moment, knowing they had been doing so well, and then I had to go and screw it all up. Chase had told me to get back, and I didn't listen. He was going to hate me forever. I'd never get to kiss Spike. And Tony ... what was going to happen to my Tony?
The guys stopped fighting and the orcs backed away. One of them, a big one, was gesturing towards me. The orc that held me moved forward, showing the guys that it held me prisoner. I tried to tell them I was sorry, but the orc squeezed the breath out of me. I almost passed out before it loosened its grip. I used my eyes to transmit as much emotion as I possibly could. I'msorryI'msorryI'msorry.
One of them grabbed some old, black vines from the forest floor and came over to me. It pulled me roughly from the other orc's grasp and shoved my shoulder to turn me around, grabbing my hands and securing them together with the vine behind me. I was now officially a prisoner of war.
The orc grunted and gestured to his friends, holding up a vine. Its intent was obvious: tie up the others like the girl. Now we were all going to be prisoners of war. On the bright side, though, they weren't eating us. Not yet anyway.
The guys put down their weapons and submitted themselves to our captors. Tony tried to fight a little, and one of them smacked him so hard he went down in an unconscious heap. He was so still and dead-looking, I couldn't help but cry out. The orc that had been holding me cuffed me on the side of the head, making my ears ring.
"Why you sonofa ..."
It hit me again, only harder this time, dropping me to my knees.
Spike shouted, "Stop talking, Jayne!" He ducked when one of the orcs came over to shut him up and took a hit to the shoulder.
The orc behind me pushed me, signaling me to get up and start walking.
I stood my ground. I wanted to walk with my friends. I tried to run over to them, awkwardly because my hands were tied behind my back, but I didn't make it far. One of the orcs tripped me, and I went down on my face, my mouth instantly filling with forest muck. I was lying on my side, trying to spit it out, when a pair of leathery, disgusting orc feet appeared in my vision. The last thing I saw before the lights went out was that leathery foot drawing back to kick me in the head.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
I slowly came to, initially only hearing grunts and shuffling sounds, then eventually able to open my eyes. I found myself in a clearing, still inside the Dark Forest. I was tied to a tree, or rather, I was hung from a tree. The vines that had secured my hands behind me had been replaced by vines that bound my wrists in front. These handcuffs were then attached to another vine dangling from a tree branch above me. I had just enough play to sit with my hands suspended at about shoulder-height. I probably should have been grateful that they had moved my hands to the front of my body or that they hadn't hung me from the tree, but I wasn't grateful at all. I was pissed.
The trees here were green, but only newly so. I could tell from all the black and gray leaves on the ground that the trees had recently morphed into the beauties they were now. I wondered how many orcs currently made up the enemy forces - probably a lot. I was seriously regretting the rejuvenation of the forest.
In the center of the clearing was a fire. Something was roasting over it; it smelled like bacon. My eyes were still a little fuzzy, but if I squinted, I could see a little better. The thing hanging over the hot wood coals didn't look like a pig, or even a deer. It looked like ... like ... holy shit, they're roasting a dwarf!
A large branch had been jammed down his throat and out his back end. An orc stood to one side, turning the speared dwarf from time to time, like a pig on a spit. I turned my head immediately, thoroughly repulsed by the sight, trying not to barf.
I looked around the camp in a panic, the fear rising up to stick in my throat. I was pretty sure we were going to be the next few orc meals. Nearby, I could see Tony and Finn, tied up like I was. Finn was closest. He had blood under his nose and on his chin, like someone had popped him one. I saw him looking at me, and I got ready to yell out to him, but the panic on his face stopped me. His eyes were bugging out and his lips set in a thin line. He shook his head very slightly, telling me silently to shut the hell up. I did faintly recall the orcs didn't like it much when we talked. Maybe that's why Finn had a bloody nose.
I mouthed the words, "Where are Spike and Chase?"
I followed Finn's eyes across the camp. The guys were on the other side of the fire from us. I had to look past the roasting dwarf to see them. They were also tied up, both looking at the ground. Chase had some bruising around his face, and Spike had a cut on his cheek that had bled down to his jawline. It seemed as if none of them had gone quietly.
I could see Tony on the other side of Finn. He was either sleeping or still unconscious. If he'd been unconscious this whole time - and I wasn't sure how long it had been, but at least an hour - he could be seriously hurt.
Silently I asked Finn about Tony, "Is Tony okay?"
I tried to read Finn's lips, but it looked like he said, 'They like him again.'
Like him? Then realization dawned. He hadn't said 'like', he'd said, 'hit'.
Fuck. I sent up a silent prayer to the universe that Tony didn't have a concussion - or worse.
The orcs were scattered around the camp. Occasionally, a new one would wander in from farther out in the forest. My guess was that they were newly-freed ones, formed from the goo released by the trees. They grunted and growled at each other. The biggest one, the one Chase had cut on the hand at the beginning of our battle, seemed to be in charge. Yeah, that's just perfect. I had released the leader with that first Ancient tree. Fucking brilliant.
No matter where I tried to look, my attention was repeatedly drawn back to the fire in the middle. My brain entered into an otherworldly level of panic. A real human being ... dwarf being ... was roasting over a fire. My friends and I were tied up and sure to be next. Would they kill us first before they stuck the branch down our throats and out our ass cracks? Or would the branch do the work? Would we still be a little alive when we went over the fire like rotisserie chickens? My mind wouldn't let it go. The panic was real and overwhelming. I whimpered, unable to stop myself.
The nearest orc came over to me and smashed me in the head with its fist. Some of the spittle from its mouth swung out in an arc and landed on my arm, leaving a burn mark as it slid off. I wasn't sure if the nausea I felt was from the beat-down, the bar-b-cue, or the drool.
When he hit me, it spun me around so I was facing outside the clearing. At least I don't have to look at that poor dwarf anymore. But I also couldn't see Tony or the others. I forced myself to do some deep breathing, to keep the panic from rising up again.
A movement out in the trees caught my eye. Someone was there, and it wasn't an orc. The size and coloring wasn't right. I squinted to see if I could figure out who or what it was. The flickering light from the fire made it difficult to see what was beyond our circle of trees.
Then I saw a movement nearby, just beyond the tree I was dangling from. The figure slowly and cautiously crept closer. It moved near enough now that I could see its features in the light of the fire.
Jared! My eyes nearly fell out of my head. Jared is here! My heart soared. I didn't give a flying fuck if he was in league with Dardennes at this point. He couldn't possibly be on Team Orc. I was pretty sure no one was in cahoots with these barbarians, seeing as how they'd eat a dwarf and all. Probably their smell discouraged friendships, too.
Jared put his finger to his lips, signaling me to be quiet. I slowly turned and got Finn's attention, jerking
my head slightly towards the tree I was attached to so he'd look back. He stared at me in confusion, not understanding what I was trying to tell him. I took the heel of my shoe and slowly wrote J-A-R-E-D on the forest floor in front of me. As soon as he read it, I kicked the dirt around to erase it. I was pretty sure these grunting orcs couldn't read, but just in case ...
I turned to look at Jared again, getting up on my knees to ease the numbness in my hands. Finn turned too, also looking at Jared. Jared held up Becky's knife and pantomimed cutting the vines around our hands.
I nodded my head in happy agreement. Get me the fuck out of this nightmare. Jared must have been behind us, following our trail. I remembered Chase dropping the knife in the leaves during our earlier battle.
Jared was trying to give us his plan, charades-style. It was more than frustrating. I thought what he was saying was that he was going to go around and release all of us quietly, and then we would get up and run together. Sounded like a plan to me, or at least the beginnings of one. The question was, where were we supposed to run? I kept mouthing, "Where?" to him, but he wasn't getting it.
It soon became clear to me; this plan wasn't going to work. I plopped down on my butt, resigned to the fact that we had a half-assed plan that barely had even a miniscule chance of being successful. I started to shift my body, aware that my butt bone was now resting on something hard, lumpy, and very uncomfortable. But just before I shifted, I felt something. A tingle.
A tingle in my butt? Suddenly, I realized what it was. The Green. I was sitting on a root that had grown up above the surface of the ground.
I used the toe of my left shoe to push the shoe and sock off my right, and scooted over so my bare foot could touch the root. Now I could feel the connection much stronger. The link was difficult enough to make here in this dark place, and my clothes had been dulling the sensation.
I sent out a tentative request, the beginning of a conversation, just with this tree. The Green was there. It was new, fresh, and just starting to awaken, but it was definitely there.
Finn was looking at me, frowning, wondering what the hell I was doing. He must have seen the smile on my face, because he smiled a little back at me. He probably thought I was happy about Jared - or that I had finally cracked under the pressure.
Things were looking up. We had Jared with a knife and I had a connection to The Green. Now I just had to figure out how to use it to our advantage. I thought it might be worthwhile to try a little experiment. I didn't bother trying to mime this to Jared. He wasn't aware of my little secret yet, and explaining my connection to The Green with charades would be impossible.
I connected into The Green using the link I had with my foot. I imagined a vine grabbing the foot of an orc off to my left, with the plan to trip it.
I didn't see the vine, but less than a minute later an orc got up from the group sitting near Chase and started walking to the edge of the trees. It got two steps and then went down, face-plant style - victim of a vine tripping. Bummer for the orc because its face-plant at that particular spot put it partially into the fire. It jerked back, roaring, its black skin bubbling and smoking where it had touched the flames.
The stench that rose up from that bar-b-cued orc was even worse than their natural body odor. I could see why they weren't cannibals. Double yuck. My eyes watered at the awfulness. I even saw Chase and Spike get repulsed looks on their faces, and Chase didn't usually react to that kind of thing.
The burned orc got up, looking around to see what had caused it to trip, but the vine had long since disappeared back into the forest. The only thing there, several paces away, was Chase. The orc took one look at him and roared. Spike cringed at the sight and sound, but Chase sat stoically. He was one badass dude, that Chase.
The orc turned sideways while it was roaring, and I could see its mouth in profile. There was spittle dripping from its gnarled, pointed teeth and drool sliding down its chin. Boy, was it pissed. And now, since I had once again done a very bad job of considering the consequences of my actions, it was pissed at Chase. Even though there's no way Chase could have done it, the orc was going to blame and punish him for tripping it.
It took two long strides towards my friend and backhanded him. Hard. Chase flew to the side, as far as his bonds would allow, and then swung back the other direction like a human pendulum. Anger blazed in his eyes, fresh blood dripping down his cheek from the gash that had opened up over his cheekbone again. The orc wasn't finished with him yet, though.
Spike and Finn watched in horror at the violence playing out before us. Spike ducked with every hit, as if he were the one being beaten.
Jared used the distraction to sneak up behind me and cut the vines around my wrists. Before heading off to Finn, he whispered closely in my ear, "Pretend like you're still attached. Don't let them see you're free until I get everyone. Get ready to run that way." He signaled the direction that was behind the biggest group of orcs, all sitting down having some sort of powwow together - probably planning when they were going to eat us. I wasn't so sure I wanted to run in that direction, but there was no way to communicate that to everyone, and the worst thing we could do was get separated. Jared had already left me, moving on to Finn.
I kept my hands together, like they were still connected, but my eyes immediately went to Chase. He was getting his ass royally kicked by the burned orc and there was nothing he could do about it. Now he had another bleeding gash, this one over his eye. I could see him trying to blink the blood away. Spike wasn't looking anymore. His head hung low, but I could see him still flinching every time Chase was hit.
I felt horrible that I'd made this happen. Yes, it had provided a great distraction for Jared, but it wasn't worth it. I had to figure out a way to help Chase, but part of me was panicked that I'd make the situation worse again. Unfortunately, the gift of future sight had not come with the gift of talking to The Green.
Suddenly, I saw my chance. Another orc was coming across the clearing, obviously hyped up by the violence he saw. He was nearly jumping with joy, and making motions with his hands like he wanted in on the action. He stood just behind the other orc, ready to take his turn.
I quickly communicated with The Green, asking for another tripping. The vine came out of the trees, moving rapidly across the ground towards the second orc.
Don't look down, don't look down, don't look down. I kept chanting fervently to myself until the vine secured itself around the second orc's feet, effectively tying them together.
The first orc took a step back from beating Chase to catch its breath, and the second orc took a step forward to begin its turn at the fun game called 'Beating the Shit Out of Chase'; but its feet didn't cooperate as expected. The orc's arms went out, flailing and searching for something to stop its fall. They made contact with the first orc, whose back was to the entire scenario and who didn't expect to be touched, or, in this case, tackled.
The first orc spun around, shoving the second one to the side, causing it to land in the fire, face first. But the second orc had managed to grab the first's arm, and didn't let go. The first orc found itself pulled into the fire too. It stumbled, looking for something to grab, knowing it was about to be burned again. The only thing there was to grab onto was the dwarf on the spit. The orc grabbed it, intending to right itself, but the spit wasn't strong enough to hold it.
The stick holding the roasting dwarf split, sending both the orc and the dwarf into the flames and hot coals below.
The group of orcs that were sitting off to the side grunting and conspiring jumped up, enraged that their dinner was being compromised. A few of them came stalking over with angry strides to take care of the problem.
The second orc got pulled from the edge of the fire by its feet, its face a mass of bubbling blackness, its screams of pain and rage ringing out through the forest. Another orc grabbed Tony's axe that was leaning against a nearby tree and hacked the screaming orc's head off, throwing the axe off to the side when it was done. It landed whe
re the other unguarded weapons were.
Black goo spurted out of the headless orc's neck, sizzling as it landed among the coals. The audible anguish of the second orc had ceased immediately, but the first orc's screams and roars continued. I barfed a little in my mouth, spitting it out on the ground next to me. Seeing gore on television was one thing; seeing orc beheadings live was a whole other deal altogether.
I looked over in horror at the group of orcs that were mobilizing in the direction of the fire, but my attention was distracted by the sight of our weapons leaning against a tree where the orc had thrown Tony's axe. I put my foot on the root and sent out a message for the vines to take our weapons and pull them into the forest behind Tony for safekeeping. I could get them later as we left, knowing I was going to grab Tony before I did anything else. I turned my head towards the action for a second and when I looked back, the weapons were already gone. Good ... one less thing to worry about. Thank you, my Green friends.
Two more orcs pulled the first orc off the dwarf body and began beating the shit out of it. I didn't know if their victim was roaring and screaming from the painful burns or the beat-down it was getting, but scream and roar it did. I covered my ears with my hands to block out the sound, forgetting I was supposed to still be tied up. I quickly moved my hands back to the vine dangling above my head.
Jared was behind Chase now. He'd cut the vines from Finn, Tony, Spike and me. Tony was still out cold. I agonized for a brief moment about what a bad sign this was, but I knew I couldn't take the time to really freak out about him now. Hopefully, there would be time to worry later, if we were lucky. Right now, I had to figure out how to get him and the rest of us out of here.
Jared hesitated, trying to get to Chase without being seen. The orcs were fighting very close by, some of the bodies even falling at Chase's feet. He took a chance and darted out, cutting the vine above Chase's hands and leaving him with the knife before melting back into the trees.