I awake abruptly, my head throbbing fiercely. I hear orders being growled, followed by screams of terror. My ribs hurt when I try to take a deep breath. My hands and legs are shackled, and I hang like a ragged doll in an underground tunnel. A single stream of light penetrates the soiled roof, casting a ray of hope in the midst of dark turmoil.

I look around, trying to figure out where I am. A thin layer of shredded gauze hangs before the alcove where I'm imprisoned. I stare at my hands, which are bloodied and bruised, and then my eyes wander over my body, my clothes, or what's left of them. They hang in torn pieces, cut by blades. I'm hardly decent, but I have other worries. I'm trapped, captured by orcs. The last thing I remember is being outnumbered by them, a blade to my throat. I knew my time was up, but one of them said to bring me to "Adar", and then everything went black.

---

He treads the damp earth on his way to see the prisoner. The shadow assassin who's been killing off his children in the woods at night. A she-elf the Uruks said she was. He can't wait to see her, to see her shiver and beg for death before he's through with her.

---

I lift my head slowly, hearing footsteps approaching. A tall figure appears on the other side of the gauze and I can already tell he's no mere orc. He pulls the gauze aside, and I gasp. A scarred, dark-haired, twisted-looking elf stands before me. One of the sons of the dark.

"So, you're the one who's been killing my children?" he asks.
"Children?" my mind races. Adar, I think. He's their father, their leader.
"What quarrel does a lonely she-elf have with my sons and daughters?" he asks.
"I got a quarrel with anyone who seems hellbent on destroying the land and peace of the free people of Middle Earth," I say through my teeth, my voice stern.
"Free?" Adar says disdainfully. "Who is ever truly free? You have been told many lies, some run so deep even the rocks and roots now believe them. To untangle it all, would all but require the creation of a new world. But that is only something the gods can do, and I am no god. At least... Not yet. "
He looks at me with his cold, green-gray eyes. Those eyes. So old, so sorrowful and so very determined. I hold his gaze, not in a challenging way, but in a mesmerized way. This is one of the Moriondor I've heard tales about. One of the elves Morgoth tortured and twisted into a new and ruined form of life.
"One of the first orcs," I mumble.
He heard me, stepping closer, his eyes boring into me. "Uruk," he growls at me.
"What?" I ask.
"We prefer 'Uruk'," he repeats.
"I don't care what you prefer," I spit at him. "You're tainted through and through!"
He grabs me by the neck, squeezing. I can't breathe.
"You speak of freedom, but what do you know, cursing a life form you do not understand? All life should be free, tainted or not. And I will make it happen."
He does not lessen his hold on my throat, but he doesn't finish me off. He brings his face closer to mine. "I will keep you in these shackles and tarnish your glorified beliefs. I will make you beg for the end before I'm done with you."
I black out again.

---

He sits on the ground, watching her. He studies her delicate features bruised by violence. Her red blood sullying her bright attire which can barely be called clothes anymore. He stands up, walking over to the chained elf, his hand only inches from her exposed skin. He wants to shred her flesh, to cut her open, to make her scream. He wants... His hand's reaching for her midriff. She's so warm, and soft. "San alima," he whispers. He looks up, right into her open eyes.

---

His hand is cold and I shudder at his touch. "San alima," he whispers again. So soft.
"I heard you the first time," I say harshly, but his hand does not flinch away. Some wanton part of me does not want him to stop. I am fascinated by this dark being.
"How did you think you could outscore my children and me?" Adar asks. "One, lonely she-elf?"
"I didn't think, I just acted," I reply.
"And look where your reckless behavior has taken you; Below ground, right into my grasp." His hand is more eager, grabbing my garments and I hear the thin threads tear more. I swallow hard. He leans closer to my face. "I will make you suffer for what you did," he snarls at me.
"So far all I've heard are empty threats," I sneer.
His grip tightens, tearing my blouse apart, and I hang exposed from the waist up.
"Your skin might be soft, but I will make it scar," he shouts while raising his armored hand high, ready to strike.
"Adar," a voice sounds behind us.
Adar turns willfully. "What?" he asks.
"There is a tree blocking our path and the elves refuse to cut it down," the orc says.
My mind wanders. Elves? They have captured other elves?
"Make them or kill them," Adar orders. "Nothing and no one will stand in our way."
"Yes, Lord Father," the orc nods and leaves.
"Saved by one of my children," Adar looks at me, clearly irritated by the disruption. "But I have you right where I want you. It will hurt more when you're not prepared." He gives me a wicked smile, his eyes wandering over my chest. Suddenly he shakes his head, at what, I do not know, but a torn expression crosses his face for a split second.
"I should oversee the arisen situation," he says. He looks at the bundle of fabric in his hand, glancing back at me one final time. For a moment I think he will cover me up, but he tosses the torn pieces on the ground, stepping on them while leaving.
I don't care about being exposed, I care about getting out of here, and this talk about other elves gives me a glimmer of hope. Together we might outwit the orcs and escape. Uruks, I correct myself.