~ The orcs plan to use Wynne as a human shield and to have some fun with her as well. ~

Trigger warning: Abduction, groping, attempted abuse.

12. In Captivity

"Shush now, darling." The voice was like a growl and its owner's foul breath was hot on her neck.

"Oo she's one tasty bite, ain't she? Can I have a nibble?" A second orc came into her view. His dark face was nearly bald and he had a bent nose that looked like it had been broken repeatedly.

"Get off, Burz! She ain't for eating. She's leverage."

"Lever-what?"

"Dimwit! If those freaking elves comes after us we can hurt her to make 'em back off. Get me now?"

Wynne whimpered and tried to squirm out of the orc's grip, but instantly stopped when she felt a knife at her throat.

"Don't move, luv! I love a frisky gal as much as anyone, but this ain't the time or place." His insinuating tone made her cringe.

The orcs quickly tied her hands behind her back and the first one flung her on his broad shoulder where she hung like a sack of potatoes. Then they ran at speed.

Wynne's position made her dizzy and disoriented and she didn't know which way they went. Her terror mingled with guilt. How could she have let the orcs surprise her like that?

The elves were exceptional trackers but her captors were on foot. Would they leave a visible trail now? And even if the elves somehow managed to follow, the orcs had said they would use her as a shield. She had just made the elves' task to kill them a lot harder.

Was this not exactly what Thranduil had meant when he warned her not to come that first day? She meant trouble. She was a burden.

oOo

The orcs finally stopped, apparently to catch their breath, speaking to each other in a strange language. The speech sounded harsh and ugly and Wynne couldn't even tell whether they were arguing or talking friendly.

She was still hanging upside-down, and the blood accumulating in her head made the dizziness stronger.

She tried to look around. Were the elves on their way? She couldn't see anything but dry, dead grass and brown dust.

Then they were off again, still at the same fast pace. The orc shoulder became sweaty and the stink worsened her nausea.

She couldn't hold back anymore; despite herself she threw up, but the orc didn't even seem to notice, he just ran on.

It was hard to measure time under the circumstances so she had no idea how long the run lasted, but the orcs stopped eventually and flung her to the hard ground.

When the blood left her face, she became even more giddy and threw up again.

"Oo, the little tidbit's feeling sick, poor thing." The orc sniggered.

"Yeah, and she ain't gonna feel better later."

Wynne could see the orc that had carried her clearly for the first time. He was a lot bigger than the other one, with a gray skin color and a large silver ring in his nostril. His dark hair was coarse and twisted into a bunch of fuzzy braids. His pale blue, strangely human eyes were the only normal looking parts of his face.

The big orc squatted below a steep hill, pushing aside a cleverly disguised curtain with brown dirt and withered grass from the surroundings glued onto it, revealing a round door that he opened with a clawed hand. At the other side a dark path went into the hill and Wynne felt a musty, cellar-like smell.

She shivered when she realized that was where they were going to hide.

"Down you go, luv." The big orc pointed.

Wynne didn't dare refuse; they were both stronger than her and armed.

The hole was just as dark, damp and disgusting as she could have imagined. The path was only a few yards long, with a so low ceiling she had to crawl through in an awkward crouch with hanging roots eerily brushing against her face. It opened up into what felt like a slightly bigger cave, but it was pitch black and impossible to tell.

The orcs soon joined her. They had a metal lantern that spread a weak light and Wynne could now see that she stood in a round room, perhaps ten yards wide and tall enough that even the bigger orc could stand upright. Boxes and sacks littered one side in an unorganized mess and at the other side were a long row of what appeared to be beds. The air reeked of stale food, earth and filth.

This must be where the orc gang lived. She wondered what had happened to the rest of them. Had the elves killed them? She hadn't seen how the battle ended and didn't even know who won.

What if the other orcs would come home soon and announce their victory? If so, Wynne would become orc dinner.

"Now what?" asked the darker orc.

"Now we rest and wait for the others." The big orc dragged Wynne to the beds and pushed her down on one of them.

Her arms were still tightly bound, and a spear of pain that shoot up her shoulder made her whimper.

The orcs sat down on either side of her. She didn't like the hungry look in the smaller one's face.

"Can't we have a teeny weeny taste? Do we really need the whole of her for that lever– leverthingy?" He licked his black lips, showing a crowded row of sharp, yellow teeth.

"No, Burz, it ain't gonna work if she's damaged. However..." He had a calculating look in his blue eyes.

"Yeah? What, Lug?"

"We could have fun with her in other ways." He let a callused finger trace her arm.

Wynne desperately tried to back away but the dirt wall of the cave stopped her.

"There ain't nothing funnier than eating."

"Well I have an appetite for other things too. Have some dried meat if you're hungry."

"Fresh meat is nicer," Burz muttered, but still went over to the sacks and began rummaging among them.

Lug turned his attention back to Wynne. "Now, darlin', what shall I do with you?" He hovered over her trembling body and pulled out a long knife.

She squeezed her eyes shut, expecting cruciating pain at any moment. But there was none; instead she felt him slicing the front of her tunic and chemise open.

She couldn't say whether that was a relief or worse than being stabbed. Tears of fear and humiliation filled her eyes.

Cold air swept over her bare skin as the orc exposed her chest. She became strangely passive, limbs numb and rigid. When he groped her breast with rough, callused hands she remained motionless.

"Ain't you a pretty sight, huh? Now, spread those soft legs for me."

When Wynne didn't react he pulled them apart by force.

She felt distant, like her mind had left her limp body on the grimy orc bed and was hovering somewhere above it.

Someone was crying and she realized it was herself.

"Yukk! She's freakin' bleeding!" The orc jumped away. "Dammit woman, you should of said!"

"Did you get any on you?" Burz asked through a mouth full of meat.

"Luckily not." Lug gave Wynne's leg a kick. "You little witch thought you could curse me, huh?" He spat on the ground and sat down as far from her as possible.

Stupefied, she looked after him. Were orcs afraid of blood? How could that be?

Then it dawned on her what he meant. She had her monthly bleeding and apparently that kind of blood scared them.

Saved by her period. That must be a first...

Wynne began to breathe a bit calmer and the strange numbness left her. She had been rescued in the strangest way imagined. Were other races scared of periods as well?

She saw that she still wore her underpants, stuffed with the dried grass she put in them to absorb the fluids; the orc must have smelled her blood before he could remove them. It was a relief not to be entirely naked. She only wished she could close the front of her tunic too, but with her hands behind her back she was unable to.

The most immediate danger was over but the blood incident had only bought her a little extra time. They could still hurt her, or kill her. And what if she had to stay here for several days? Her cycle would soon be over and then she was fair game again.

Wynne hated how weak she was. Why had she not even tried to defend herself? She had just laid there, allowing the orc to have his way with her.

Tears of shame and dismay trickled down her cheeks, and bound as she were she couldn't wipe them off.

A/N:

I obviously made up that orcs are afraid of menstruation blood; I just thought it would be an interesting idea that they are superstitious about something like that.

Welcome new readers, and thanks for the kudos!

Image Credits:

Public domain (Pexels), source: https://www.pexels.com/sv-se/foto/gra-grotta-ingang-klippa-2683577/