More Worlds Than One 2:
The Journey Continues
Chapter 1: More Puzzling News
I have to admit that I'm good at running, but we did that a lot, running after Merry and Pippin who had been captured by Orcs. As I ran along side of Legolas, I remembered back to the times we lost members of our fellowship.
At the Bridge of Khazad-dûm, Gandalf the Grey, the one who dragged me into this life changing even, tried to ward off a monster, but ended up along side it as his grave. The thought stung, but that wasn't the only heartbreaking memory of someone lost. Boromir, heir to the thrown of Isildur, was killed fighting for my life, and his, against the very creatures we were chasing. I hated Boromir, for he was trecherous in his own way, but he stood by his word, and died for my safety. I, Shadow, am brave enough to continue on this journey. I was meant to be here, and I shall retrieve my destiny.
I could understand saving friends, but running for over three days is ludicris! Aragorn, at the moment, held his ear to the ground, listening for signs of the Orcs we were after.
"Their pace quickens. They must have caught our scent. Hurry!" Aragorn had led us all the way since we lost Merry and Pippin, and he was born a leader, so I ran behind him along with my new love, Legolas Greenleaf.
"Come on Gimli!" Legolas summoned back to his friend. He looked to me and I nodded. We ran in step and followed Aragorn.
"Three day's and night's pursuit.. no food... no rest... and no sign of our quarry but what bare rock can tell." Gimli growned, but he continued to follow. Whoever submerged into this world of Middle Earth, were all dragged into the war between everyone living on Middle Earth, and the greatest evil of all...Sauron.
We continued running across a rocky terrain of plants, when Aragorn stopped, bent down, and picked up an elven brooch that we all wore on our cloaks we recieved from Galadriel.
"Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall." Aragorn spoke.
"They may yet be alive." Legolas said with hope in his voice.
"Thank goodness!" I sighed.
"Less than a day ahead of us, come!" Aragorn summoned up to start running again.
"Come Gimli, we are gaining on them!" Legolas ran after I bounded after Aragorn. Gimli growned.
"I wish that on cross-country we dwarves were natural sprinters. Very dangerous over short distances." Gimli huffed. I chuckled. We sprinted as fast as we could, and I could smell the Orcs. We ran, but then came to a stop. Down in a valley we had come upon was a lush plain.
"Rohan, home of the horse-lords. There's something strange at work here." Aragorn stated. I too felt that way about that place.
"You can say that again." I mumbled. And to my surprise, he did.
"There's something strange at work here. Some evil gives speed to these creatures. Sets its will against us. Legolas, Shadow, what do your elf eyes see?" Aragorn called.
"Next time I say 'you can say that again,' I don't mean for you to repeat it. I was just-" But Legolas interrupted her sentence.
"The Uruks turn Northeast. They are taking the hobbits to Isengard!" Legolas blurted.
"Saruman." Aragorn said in a terrified voice.
"That can't be good." I shook my head.
"Aye." Gimli replied.
We were on pursuit after our hobbit friends as the Uruk-Hai kept running across the plains.
"Keep breathing, that's the key. Breath. Ho!" Gimli chanted.
"They sure can run!" I panted.
"They run as if the very whips of their masters are behind them." Legolas said.
"No kidding!" I laughed between a huff of breath.
We ran until Gimli's heart almost gave out. Being an elf, I wasn't that tired. We paused yet again on a hill to find a bright, colorful sunrise.
"A red sun rises. Blood has been spilt this night." Legolas admitted.
Oh no! I thought. Just then, the sound of horses came trotting in our ears. Aragorn spinned around and hid behind a boulder. Gimli did the same, and so did Legolas. Of course, I have never had the course on Agent 101. Right before the riders saw me, Legolas grabbed my arm and pulled me behind the boulder. I panted.
"Thanks. That was close." I whispered. He nodded and gave me the quiet symbol. We watched as a heard of men on horses stampeded past us. Right when they were not that far away, Aragorn popped out from behind the rock. Of course, the three of us followed him.
"Riders of Rohan! What news from the Mark?" Aragorn yelled to get their attention. At a signal from a sute leader, the riders made a quick turn and headed toward us. In no time, we were completely surrounded in a very tigth circle. And to make it even better, they pointed their very sharp spears at us.
"What business do an elf, a man, and a dwarf have in the Riddermark? Speak quickly!" The leader of the group demanded. He did not see me, for Legolas made sure he didn't.
"Give me your name, horsemaster, and I shall give you mine." Gimli spoke boldly. The leader dismounted his horse and stepped toward Gimli. Legolas pushed me behind himself.
"I would cut off your head dwarf, if it stood but a little higher from the ground." The leader taunted.
"Hey!" I growled. Right then, Legolas pointed his arrow at the leader faster than you could breath.
"You would die before your stroke fell!" Legolas warned. I smirked. The leader glared at Legolas, then he finally noticed me. When Legolas made his remark, all the riders around pointed their spears closer to our bodies. I touched Legolas's shoulder when Aragorn lowered Legolas's arm.
"I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn. This is Gimli, son of Gloin, and Legolas, from the Woodland Realm. We are friends of Rohan, and of Theoden, your king." Aragorn spoke bravely.
"Then who is the lady?" The leader barked.
"She is none of your concern." Legolas hissed.
"If you are friends, why not include her? Or is she an enemy?" The man asked.
"They would include me if I need be included." I hissed. The man smirked.
"Theoden no longer recognizes friend from foe." The man pronounced. When he said foe, he looked to me. Legolas, on the other hand, slid a little more in front of me, if that was possible. The leader then took off his helmet and revealed a friendly face. A very hot man if I do say so myself, but Legolas didn't need to know I thought that. "Not even his own kin." So the leader man is related to Theoden? I thought. Then all the spears are withdrawn.
"Sauroman has poisoned the mind of the king and claimed lordship over this land. My company are those loyal to Rohan. And for that, we are banished. The White Wizard is cunning. He walks here and there they say, as an old man, hooded and cloaked. And everywhere his spies slip past our nets." The man said.
"We are not spies. We track a band of Uruk-Hai westward across the plain. They have taken two of our friends captive." Aragorn said innocently.
"The Uruks are destroyed. We slaughtered them during the night." The leader said, and I gasped. Gimli grew distraught.
"But there were two hobbits, did you see two hobbits with them?" Gimli asked frantically.
"They would be small, only children to our eyes." Aragorn explained.
"We left none alive. We piled the carcasses and burned them." The leader pointed off into the distance where we glanced and saw he was telling the truth.
"But how?" I asked.
"Dead?" Gimli almost sobbed. The leader paused briefly, but sighed.
"I am sorry. Hasufel! Arod!" The leader called two riderless horses to come forth. "May these horses bear you better fortune then their former masters. Farwell. Look for your friends, but do not trust to hope. It has forsaken these lands." Aragorn took my hand as Legolas lifted me up onto the horse. I smiled to the man.
"Thank you, my friend." I nodded. The man looked at me, confused at first, but then smiled. Legolas mounted the horse as the man smiled and nodded to me. Aragorn helped Gimli onto his horse and we rode off towards the burning carcasses. We dismounted the horses and Gimli then begane to sift through the carcasses, and in a smouldering pile he retrieves a charred belt and dagger sheath.
"Oh no." I gasped.
"It's one of their wee belts." Gimli said sadly. Legolas closed his eyes and chanted something.
"Hiro hyn hîdh ab 'wanath." It sounded beautiful. It meant: "May they find peace after death." Aragorn kicked an Orc's helmet and landed on his knees screaming.
"AAAHHH!" Aragron screamed.
"We failed them." Gimli said in disbelief. Aragorn, still on the ground, jolts when something caught his eye.
"A hobbit lay here...and the other." Aragorn told. Aragorn nearly crawled over to his next spot. "They crawled." He shifted over more. "Their hands were bound." He bends over. "Their bonds were cut." Aragorn then pulled rope from the ground. It was like one of Gandalf's tricks! "They ran over here..." Aragorn lept up and bounded over to a spot. "...they were followed." He kept on jolting from spot to spot. "The tracks lead away from the battle, and into..." Aragorn looked up to see, "...Fanghorn Forest." Aragorn announced. All that time we followed him. I felt shocked.
"Fanghorn! What madness drew them there?" Gimli called in disbelief.
Meanwhile, we traveled into the very creepy forest. But it's funny; the old trees creeked, but seemed like they were talking to me. As I was about to touch a tree, Gimli gasped,
"Orc blood!"
"These are strange tracks." Aragorn stated as we looked ahead of us. Surely, there were strange tracks. Tracks that didn't look like it came from a being of our stature.
"The air is so close in here." Gimli announced.
"The forest is old. Very old. Fulld of memories...and anger." Legolas touched a tree, and slipped out from under it's dead-looking branch. "The trees are-" But I cut him off.
"Talking to one another..." I mumbled. Legolas nodded.
"Gimli!" Aragorn hissed. Gimli had risen his axe up, closer to his body.
"Huh?" Gimli mumbled.
"Lower your axe." I whispered.
"Oh!" Gimli said dumbfounded, and did what he was told. I smiled.
"Aragorn, nad no ennas!" Legolas chanted. I translated that as, "Something is out there."
"Man cenich?" Aragorn asked in elvish. It meant "What do you see?"
"The White Wizard approaches." Legolas stated.
"Dont' let him speak. He will put a spell on us! We must be quick." Aragorn hissed. With a yell, we four attacked on accord. We were suddenly blinded by a very bright light. Gimli's axe and Legolas's arrow were deflected. I closed my eyes, but I ws struck to the ground. Aragorn's sword grew too hot for him to hold. Legolas ran to me and helped me up. We stood and watched the light, when a voice came floating from the light.
"You are tracking the footsteps of two young hobbits." The Wizard proclaimed. OBVIOUSLY! I thought.
"Where are they?" Aragorn asked.
"They passed this way the day before yesterday. They met someone they did not expect. Does that comfort you?" The Wizard implied.
"Who are you? Show yourself!" Aragorn demanded. The wizard then stepped forward, and there stood Gandalf, the wizard who brought me into this journey, who was dressed in white.
"It cannot be! You fell!" Aragorn said in astonishment.
"God bless America." I whispered.
"Throught fire and water." Gandalf answered.
"Gandalf." Aragorn spoke.
"Gandalf? Yes. That's what they used to call me. Gandalf the Grey. That was my name." Gandalf said as if he had just come out of amnesia.
"Gandalf!" Gimli cried in joy.
"I am Gandalf the White now. And I come back to you now at the turn of the tide." Gandalf renounced. I smiled with joy. Gandalf then started to lead us through the forest. We finally submerged out of the forest and came upon a clearing. There, Gandalf gave a peircing whistle. Soon afterward, a horses's neigh is heard and a white horse appears galloping on the plain, answering the call.
"She's magnificent!" I cooed.
"That is one of the Mearas, unless my eyes are cheated by some spell." Legolas reported.
"Shadowfaz. He's the lord of all horses and he's been my friend through many dangers." Gandalf explained. The horse walked up and after Gandalf stroked it's head, it came to me. I stroked it's mane and let me just tell you, it felt like a velvet cloud.
Okay, just a beginning to something new. I know nothing truly funny yet, but I'm working on it. Please review, and I hope you all enjoyed it!