The chapter where I show you I can write gore
Tw: Blood, battle, detailed descriptions of pain, wounds, losing consciousness. Gore. Like, serious gore. Took my horror fan knowledge out of the closet for this one. Drowning, hypothermia/description of hypothermia. Angst. Exhaustion. Seriously heavy stuff. Don't send hate mail
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No gif because Wattpad sucks. Tumblr rules.
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The hill seemed almost empty after Bolg was slain. Dwalin dealt with the last orcs, as Legolas and Tauriel could be seen in the distance, aiding the relentless dwarf. Raewyn, Fili, and Kili had found themselves near the frozen lake above the waterfall, watching their king fight the orc who had started it all. How long the pair had been fighting already, they could not tell. But they saw the fatigue of the dwarf, and the blind hits of the enormous creature.
All three were still suffering from their injuries, but refused to show it as they stood there, waiting on their opportune moment to jump in. Neither had decided to halt each other, knowing that if one should stand down, all three should. But the anxiety still hung heavy in the air.
Turning her head towards Kili on her left, she gave him a short nod, her eyes falling back on the white orc rushing towards Thorin. Upon her nod, an arrow shot through the air, halting the orc dead in his steps. Raewyn's eyebrows raised in surprise as she followed the weapon, forming her lips down in an impressed nod.
Azog's head spun to the three in the distance, a Dwarvish arrow imbedded in his right eye. A pained roar escaped him as he reached for the dart, ripping it out in anger, blood spurting angrily from the wound.
"Didn't know you had it in you." Fili teased, a playful smile on his face as he watched his younger brother lean his shoulders back in self-accomplisment.
"Azog!" The Asha shouted, successfully drawing his attention to her alone. "You took something from me!" She began, raising her arm in suspense, showing the orc the decapitated head of his only kin, before throwing it towards him, the part rolling over the ice until it came to a halt in front of Azog's feet. A trail of blood was left where the head had rolled, and Thorin looked at the three in bewilderment.
"So I took something from you!"
Slowly, the orc's head rose up to meet the violent eyes of the Asha, his gaze darkening immediately. A short grimace passed through Raewyn's features as she watched the dark blood of the creature drip down his chin due to the arrow in his eye, but she washed the look off quickly. Instead, she reached for the axe in Fili's hands, who had lifted it for her for the time being.
"Any other clever attack plans from that beautiful brain of yours?" Kili whispered, watching the giant Gundabad orc run towards the three.
Swallowing harshly, Raewyn adjusted her look on her axe, as Fili now used both his hands to wield his sword. Her eyes quickly met Kili's as she shrugged absentmindedly: "Don't miss."
With a ferocious swing, a large rock landed between Kili and Raewyn, separating the ranger and the blonde from the youngest prince.
"Where did he get that?!" Fili exclaimed in surprise, watching in horror as the stone slowly retreated, forming cracks in the ice as it went. Beneath them, the frozen lake began to tremble, tiny cracks forming where the boulder had lain.
"The ice..." Raewyn mumbled, still aware of their enemy nearing the three. Raising her head in alarm, she yelled: "Get off the ice!"
Almost immediately, all three ran away from the growing ice hole, sliding over the floor as they narrowly missed the swing of Azog's blade. Noticing his plan hadn't worked, the orc stopped running, now turning around quickly to spot the four now grouped together.
"Fili..." Thorin uttered, seeing his nephew lean his weight on one leg, blood streaming down the other. At the call of his name, Raewyn's eyes fell on the wounded leg, cursing inwardly as she realised the binding hadn't been strong enough.
"Try not to use it too much." She settled on, instead of commenting how he should abandon the field. She knew he wouldn't; not now. And he seemed grateful for her words, for a tiny nod came from him in response.
Then, the orc struck again, throwing the chained boulder towards the four, causing another - smaller - sinkhole to land in front of them. Abandoning tactic, Thorin ran at the larger creature sword wielded in his hand. It took a while for the three to process that the sword their king was wielding was Orcrist: the blade he had lost in Mirkwood. They had no time to wonder when he'd regained it.
"Cover him." Raewyn mumbled to Fili, referring to his brother, who had raised his bow again. He could have argued with her. He wanted to. But he chose to remain silent, merely nodding his hand, knowing bickering would be pointless.
With that, she took off running after the older dwarf, axe held tight in her hands. She watched how Azog had already attacked Thorin, rendering the poor dwarf off balance. As he stumbled back, she jumped up, swinging her axe towards the orc, slashing him just slightly at the top of his breastplate. Her back muscles tensed with every move she made, but she refused to yield or even show her struggle to the opponent.
As the orc recovered from the blow, Thorin was given time to regain his balance, standing next to the Asha as he offered her a nod of gratitude. From behind them, an arrow came, and lodged itself just above the blade in Azog's arm. Raewyn couldn't suppress the smile on her face as she watched the creature reach for it and tear it out in frustration.
In a fair fight, she would have given him time to recover. To stand up properly and give him a decent change. She would have given him the opportunity to decently rid of the arrow and attack him when his attention was back on her. She wouldn't attack while his eyes were scanning the wound angrily.
But this wasn't a fair fight. The blade of her axe lodged just above the knife stabbed into Azog's arm. Her strength wasn't enough to cut it off, but it left a deep mark, red pooling down the blade as it became visible through the skin.
Then, Thorin struck below his knees, forcing the orc to buckle slightly. Unfortunately, he did not fall, only utter terrifying wailings as he stared at his severed arm, nearly severed again. Taking their distance as a precaution, Thorin and Raewyn awaited his next move anxiously.
A second arrow flew, now missing its mark due to the sudden movement of Azog. His arm was raised threateningly, pointed straight at the two who had caused this damage. His eyes had darkened and his teeth were bared. It didn't scare Raewyn anymore. She had seen it in Bolg, and he was gone now. Azog would soon follow.
A roar like none she heard before echoed over the hills, all originating from the orc she and Thorin had maimed so badly seconds ago.
Azog ran at Thorin first, not even giving Raewyn the time to respond appropriately. His blade hit Thorin's as the dwarf struggled to protect himself. Azog's other arm was too free for the ranger to advance safely, and she found herself struggling to find an open window.
Again and again, Azog's blade beat down on Thorin's, each one with more pressure and strength until the dwarf was kneeling on the floor to keep the sword away from his body. Arrows flew poorly, trying to hide the relentless orc, but his movements had become too unpredictable, and he had become a difficult target.
It wasn't until Azog managed to hit the dwarf on his shoulder that Thorin's blade finally fell. There, defeated, the king lay on the ground, staring up at his terrible foe as his protection had now faded. A malicious grin appeared on Azog's face as the blood from his arm and eye slowly dripped onto the dwarf. This was the opponent's win. There was nothing else Thorin could have done in that exact moment. It would've been his room, had he stood there alone.
But he hadn't.
Temporarily distracted by his victory, Raewyn yanked the chain from Azog's hands with strength she hadn't even known was hers to wield. Instead of wielding the entire boulder, she merely grabbed the end the orc had held, using it as a chain whip to distance Azog from Thorin. Dragging the rock over the ice behind her with every step she took, she forced the orc back, hitting him hard in his chest, knocking him down successfully.
Behind her, she could hear the ice break, and she could feel the stone was now heavier than ever. It was then that the horrible realisation dawned upon her that the rock was sinking. And it would take Raewyn with it if she was not quick enough.
Suddenly ceasing her movements, she took slow steps back, her face set in a teasing smirk as if she wanted the orc to attack her. She swallowed down the anxiety of the cold water below, and kept her feet stepping back.
Standing up in frustration, Azog looked at the Asha with a look she could not quite decipher. All she knew was that she did not like it. But her taunts seemed to work, for the orc had now set his eyes on the ranger. Taking a running start, he engaged her. An arrow suddenly embedded in Azog's left calf, causing him to grip as he set down his foot.
Would she have had the time, she would have protested the arrow. But she didn't. It was only a matter of seconds before the chain would disappear under the ice and take her with it if she would not let go. Quickly nearing the orc, she hit his head with the chain harshly, making sure he was disoriented before she bound it to his hand quickly.
Not even properly registering what was happening, the orc was dragged over the ice, trailing blood with him from his wounds as the chains forced him to disappear through the ice hole.
A heavy silence fell over the frozen lake as Raewyn panted harshly, staring at the sinkhole with a hint of self accomplishment. Sinking to her knees, she held her hands out in front of her, resting them against the ice as she tried to regain her breath. The wounds on her back had felt frozen, yet they burned with every tiny move she made. Her muscles had nearly atrophied under all the stress they had been under, making it nearly impossible for her to sit up straight anymore. From a short distance, she could hear Thorin clambering up to assess the situation.
"Is he gone?" She heard him ask. She didn't respond. She was exhausted. The adrenaline had begun to wear off permanently, and pain had seeped into her system too high for her to properly process.
Her eyes fell on the ice below her, squinting in suspicion as she saw something move. She was vaguely aware of Thorin nearing her and remarking something along the lines of the back of her tunic, but she tuned the noise out.
Her eyes widened upon a horrifying realisation. Her head shot up quickly, panicked eyes meeting the dwarf's confused ones.
"Get back!"
Pushing the dwarf aside while leaning her weight back, she watched as that familiar blade was pushed through the ice in the place Thorin and Raewyn had occupied mere moments ago. A hot searing pain rushed through the ranger's system as her back roughly collided with the frozen floor. She couldn't move. The feeling in her legs had disappeared all together and it took everything in her to move her arms away from the sword skewered through the ice.
As the blade was retracted, the orc surfaced from the same sinkhole he had disappeared in earlier. Thorin raced towards Raewyn's side, trying to help her get up, but when he figured her legs were rendered useless, he gently retreated his hands.
From their distance, the two brothers couldn't properly see what had happened, so as they saw their friend laying on the ground with their uncle beside her, a newfound panic seeped through their systems.
"Raewyn!" Fili shouted over the fields, daring to risk an anxious glance to his brother. As his eyes fell on him, he noticed Kili had already dropped the bow, his quiver with arrows also discarded on the floor. In his hand was now the sword that had hung on his back, his face set in shock and determination.
Before the blonde could say anything on the matter, Kili's feet already carried him to the other side of the lake, avoiding the ice holes littering the floor. With a leap, he threw his body on Azog's back, successfully steering him away from his kin. The orc tried to reach for the dwarf blindly, but Kili refused to let go, making sure the bladed arm could not harm him.
"Kili!" His uncle shouted after him, running after the orc.
Despite his bleeding wound, Fili had found himself running towards the ranger, kneeling down beside her rather uncomfortably. A hiss escaped his mouth as the cold snow on the ice came in contact with his wound.
"We've got to get up." He announced as his hands reached her shoulders, trying to pull her up. Something near a whine escaped Raewyn's throat as one of his hands came to close to the wounds. Immediately, the dwarf pulled back, using his other hand to hold her upright.
Again, his hands reached under her armpits, pulling her entire weight up until he was standing. In her exhaustion, Raewyn's head lulled forward, quickly stopped by one of Fili's hands, his other gently brushing her lower back to hold her against him.
"Mahal, you're burning up." He muttered under his breath, pushing her head back before his hand returned to hold her weight. She seemed unresponsive to his words, instead leaning her head against his shoulder as she struggled to keep her legs straight.
"Raewyn, can you even hear me?" Fili tried again.
A moment of silence passed as panic slowly began to build in the pit of Fili's stomach. That was when a low hum was heard. Sighing louder than he maybe should have done, he closed his eyes in relief. She was still conscious.
"We've got to get out of there." He voiced aloud, making sure his friend was aware of what they were doing. Nearly carrying her with him, Fili slowly made his way over the lake, away from the fight.
"Kili," Raewyn mumbled, the notion barely audible, but Fili picked it up. An unnerving feeling settled in his throat, as he tried to push the lie out. She would never go with him if he told her he was fighting Azog. But for her own sake, she needed to get away from the battlefield. And so, he swallowed the lump down, not stopping his movements.
"He's getting Balin."
That seemed to work, for she remained silent after that, doing her best to keep her legs moving. Fili was now carrying both their weights,moving over to the rocks at the side of the lake, opting to keep Raewyn there whilst he returned to battle.
Gently, he lowered the Asha on one of the rocks, making sure she did not fall off. In the distance, he could see Azog swinging a dwarf wildly, and for once, Fili wasn't able to tell if it was his uncle or his brother.
"Don't move." He commanded softly, holding his hands down to keep Raewyn there. "I'm gonna search the area."
He knew better than to use her barely conscious state to his advantage, but he also knew the ranger a little better than she might have liked. 'She would have done the same' were the words echoing through Fili's brain as he threw her one last glance. Then, he took off running to aid his kin take down the terrible orc.
Raewyn was faintly aware of the battle still lingering around her, but for a short second, she had whole heartedly believed Fili's words. If anything, she had, until she suddenly heard a new voice.
"Raewyn?"
Slowly, her head spun to the source of the noise, her vision spinning with it as a light feeling entered her head. Bilbo had appeared in front of her, seemingly woozy himself too, but he looked better than she did at the moment.
The hobbit climbed on the rock in front of her, his features morphing into one of concern as he observed her bruised and bloodied face.
"What happened to you?" He couldn't help but wonder, grabbing the end of his sleeve with one hand, extending it slightly, before wiping off the dried blood above her brow. Raewyn didn't object the gesture.
"Where is Fili?" She finally asked, her voice soft, almost whispered.
Momentarily, Bilbo's scrubbing halted, looking at her with confused eyes: "Fighting Azog?"
"And Kili?" She continued, her voice now more urgent. And that is when the hobbit realised what had happened. He saw the blonde running from her, but he wasn't clever enough to puzzle the pieces together. There was only one way Fili could make her stay here; lying.
"Where is he, Bilbo?" Raewyn repeated, more sternly this time, giving him a pointed look, for how far she could.
Almost toppling over or not, Bilbo knew better than to pick a fight with her. Simply because Fili dared to lie to her didn't mean he had the nerve to. And thus, he retreated his hand, giving her a sincere look.
"Fighting Azog."
Another moment of silence as Raewyn pursed her lips, closing her eyes. Without being aware of it, her head lulled forward again. This time it was Bilbo that stopped the movement, catching her forehead with one of his hands.
"Foolish hay-heared dwarf." She cursed silently, regaining her balance as she sat upright. Pushing herself off of the rock, she uttered a grunt of pain as her feet came in contact with the floor below. Swaying slightly, her hands reached towards the boulders in front of her, keeping herself steady.
"Are...Are you sure you should be fighting?" Bilbo tried, hopping off of his rock as well, studying his friend with an uneasy look.
"No." Raewyn merely stated, digging in her pockets before fishing out a tiny whistle. She handed it to Bilbo, pushing down the nauseating feeling in her stomach. "Just in case."
Accepting the whistle, he looked at it in confusion, studying the markings on the side. "In case of what?"
As his head rose, he found his friend stumbling over the ice, away from him. For someone who was close to passing out two seconds ago, she sure was stubborn.
"In case of what, Raewyn?!" He called after her, clutching the whistle tightly.
Everything in her body was screaming for her to drop to the floor and take a long and good nap. Her back refused to let her move easily, her legs were protesting with every clumsy step she took, her head was yelling at her to stand still and process her surroundings carefully. But she ignored all the pleas. No weapon in hand, no fully conscious mind, no ranger-like athletics; only a woman carrying herself to the source of danger with nothing but anger in her head.
The closer she came, the louder the scream became. She could hear the blade impact upon blade. She could hear the roars of Azog. She could see the wounds on all three Durin son's faces. These weren't there when she sunk the orc.
She wouldn't announce herself now. Azog had yet to see her. Thorin was busy facing his foe and Kili's face held nothing but anger. She figured they would look very much alike in that moment. Fili, on the other hand, had seen the woman almost crawling over the ice. A remorseful look crossed his features, but she didn't give him a second look.
Kili's knees were buckling underneath him, the extend of his injuries probably worse than what she could see on his face. Thorin looked close to collapsing and Fili was struggling to wield his sword any longer.
Casting her eyes over the lake in a dizzy manner, she spotted Kili's discarded weapons. She couldn't aim to save her life at the moment, but the arrows were sharp nonetheless. And thus, she took a handful of arrows with her, clutching them tightly as she pointed all sharp ends outside.
The closer she came, the more the three others finally noted her presence. All of them were clever enough not to mention her name. Azog's back was still turned towards her, so she could take her time. Yet, she noted the cracks in the ice where Azog had walked. Again; those hadn't been there when she was.
Thorin struck again, his blade knocking Azog back a few steps, huffing loudly in exhaustion. Fili followed his uncle, striking the orc against his stomach as it tried to hold its balance. Angrily, Azog reached out, his blade knocking against Fili's. Surprised at the sudden strength, his sword fell to the floor, his body being thrown feet away.
Shouts of his name echoed over the lake as Raewyn stood there, almost falling over at the sudden overwhelming emotions. She was going to fall; she could feel it. Stubbornly, she took another step. And that's when her legs gave out again. Where once was pain and fatigue, there was now nothing. No feeling in her legs. Her breath stuttered upon the realisation.
The sound her knees had made bounced off of the ice, alerting Azog. Turning around maliciously, the orc smiled darkly, trailing his blade over the floor. Knowing she had now been spotted, Kili shouted her name, his voice scratching as he watched his opponent walk away. Towards her.
"Azog!" Thorin tried to call, but to no avail. His path had been set.
That is when a shrill whistle filled the air, causing all four on the ice to halt for a moment. For just a few seconds there was nothing. And then, a figure appeared from the clouds. She wasn't gigantic nor intimidating, but Raewyn's dared to utter a sigh of relief as she watched Farris respond to Bilbo's tone.
The owl descended at a rapid speed, her claws extended. Azog had no time to respond before the owl latched onto his face, clawing away bit by bit, giving Raewyn time to use her arms in an effort to crawl back.
Wielding his nearly demolished, but still standing arm, he reached out for the owl, trying to skewer it with the blade. Flying off at the sight, Farris circled the group, not leaving, but keeping her distance. Azog roared at the owl, his attention momentarily distracted.
Raewyn used this time to stab the ice next to her with the arrowheads. Cracks already formed and though she couldn't attack as she wished, she could trap the orc again. With the extend of his injuries now, he wouldn't be able to survive another ice bath. Slowly tracing a line, she found the floor cracking with each move she made. Swallowing harshly, she continued her work, head swimming as her back made it harder and her to move her arm.
Loud footsteps were heard and the ranger could see little specks of ice moving at the noise. He was nearing her again. Thorin and Kili would never be there in time. She didn't stop her movements, regardless of how much her body told her to rest. Tiny indents were made everywhere as she continued to crawl over the floor.
And then a long blade landed point down directly in front of her. That was when she did halt. Looking up, she saw Azog looming over her, a menacing grin on his floor as if he was expecting for her to plead for her life. Instead, she smirked back, slamming the arrows down harder than she had done before, screaming in agony as pain rippled from her back through her arm, urging her to let go of the arrows sooner than she would have liked.
Yet, her excellent thinking and experience with ice seemed to work: the impact caused ice to ripple through the indents she had made, until it toppled completely. Azog weight pushed the floor away under them, a sweeping freezing feeling washing over both of them.
The ice cold water of the lake moved underneath her tunic, soaking her bloodied wounds, the salt stinging the nerves and causing her arms to spasm as she tried to process the pain. Trying to claw her way out of the cold lake water, she got back control of her body. Her hands tried to reached towards the surface, breaking water. Instead, they reached the other side of the ice on the floor. Blind panic settled in as Raewyn tried to swim up, hitting her hands against the ice desperately, trying to punche her way out, or find where she had broken the surface on the other side.
Through the mirky water, she could see a figure appearing directly above her, pounding on the ice as well. A brief moment of hope swam through her mind as she continued to pound, hoping to punch her way out. Then, a hand grasped her ankle, pulling her further down. She tried to scream, but found nothing but oxygen bubbles escaping her mouth, wasting her breath. She tried to pull herself back up, lacking air at a rapid pace. Some way to come back to the cold winter air, or some escape from the monster below her, but her body wouldn't let her.
It was done fighting.
Slowly, her hands stopped clawing, her body rapidly focused on her breathing. Looking for some way to protect herself, her body seemed to forget where she had found herself and she inhaled deeply. Water flew freely through her throat, making its way into her lungs. She felt herself chocking on it, incapable to get any air whatsoever.
She had always imagined dying to be peaceful, feeling nothing. To lay there, void of pain and worries fading from her mind at the thought of no longer having to deal with them. This was not peaceful. The nerves in her back felt as if they were burning, there was no feeling left in her legs and her arm muscles had tightened incredibly, a heavy feeling filling them each time she tried to move them. Her head was light, her stomach was filled with bile and her lungs were filled with water. There was no breath, no rest, no peace.
And then everything faded to black.
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