A/N

Hey, I'd like to thank whoever's out there for reading my story! It feels good to get positive feed back. Anyway I'd just like to note that I kind of messed around with the pre LOTR timeline and such, but I don't think it's enough to really effect the story.

Anywho, on to the next chapter!

Chapter two:

To Battle a Wraith

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~ One Week Later on the border of Rivendel

"Ride Hard, Arwen, don't look back," Aragorn whispered to the she elf that held Frodo protectively in her arms.

"Noro lim Asfoloth," she whispered as she and the horse took off in the direction of Rivendel, leaving the ranger and three younger hobbits alone once more.

"Who was that?" asked Pippin as he watched his dear cousin and the elf disappear.

"She is Arwen Undomiel, daughter of Elrond and the Evenstar of her people. Fear not young master hobbit. Your friend is in good hands with her." Aragorn answered, smiling down at the hobbit beside him, and Pippin noticed the slight tinge of sadness on his face when he spoke of her. Just then a hideous screech shattered the silence. "I believe not all the wraiths followed the Ring, we must hurry!" Aragorn announced, grabbing Bill and ushering the hobbits forward. "Come it is almost upon us!"

"We can't go much faster Mister Strider!" shouted Sam as he desperately tried to match the man's long gait. They had barely run for five minutes when a huge Black horse suddenly reared up in front of them. Before any of them had time to react, the creature lunged at Aragorn as the Ranger was still attempting to draw his sword. As he looked up, Aragorn saw his own death coming down on him, but the creatures stroke never found its target and the clang of metal against metal was heard throughout the clearing.

"Legolas!" Aragorn cried out, recognizing his savior and life long friend immediately.

"Run, Aragorn!" the elf called over his shoulder as he blocked another stroke of the ring wraith's sword.

"No, I stand by you mellonamin!" returned Aragorn, his sword now in hand.

"You must protect the little ones! I'll buy us time and then I'll catch up!" When Aragorn remained hesitant, Legolas yelled louder, "Go now!" Decided at Legolas's word, Aragorn herded the stunned and confused hobbits in the direction of Rivendel. When he finally saw Aragorn take the hobbits and leave, Legolas let loose the breath he didn't even know he had been holding.

"No!" the nazgul hissed as he saw his prey getting away before turning a cold glare on the elf. "For that, my dear elf, you shall pay," he sneered. Not bothering to retort, Legolas merely gave him a grim smile before he ducked back into action. The nazgul caught Legolas off guard with a sudden sword thrust-the elf attempted to block it with his knife but instead felt the searing pain of cold steel going through his hand. The knife went flying across the field. Before the nazgul could strike again, Legolas rolled off of his horse and hit the ground.

As he got up from the ground, he caught the nazgul charging at him in his peripheral vision. Dodging the nazgul, he pulled a second knife out of its sheath, he took aim at the nazgul's concealed face and threw it as hard as he could. With a screech, the nazgul fell off of its horse.

"Well," said the nazgul, burning with even more rage than before, "killing you should be utterly pointless, seeing as how my eight associates have already completed their inevitable capture of your she-elf and her halfling friend."

"Liar!" Legolas yelled, and with that, the nazgul pulled the knife out of its hood and threw it back at Legolas. As the blade narrowly missed the elf's head, time seemed to slow as Legolas caught the speeding knife by the hilt, and threw it right back at the nazgul. Not waiting to see if it made contact, Legolas dashed to the spot where his previous knife had fallen.

The wraith struck the speeding knife down with his sword, and slowly with deliberate menace bent over to pick it up.

"Elf," the wraith said as it turned around to face Legolas, who was quickly making his way over to a tree, "perhaps you do not realize that the sword by which you are wounded is coated with a deadly Morgul poison."

"Liar!" Legolas yelled back, though he knew that what the nazgul had said was true, already feeling the effects of the poison.

"I have an antidote," said the nazgul.

"Really," said Legolas, hurriedly climbing the tree.

"Yes. It's right here on the end of this knife," the nazgul said, holding up Legolas's knife, "Why don't you come down here and get it?"

"You're pretty witty for a possessed servant of the Dark Lord."

"It's a living," said the nazgul, suddenly approaching the tree. Legolas drew his bow and arrow and began to shoot wildly at the wraith, desperately hoping to somehow slow its movements despite the great pain the added pressure on his wound brought. The nazgul showed no signs of stopping as the arrows buried themselves in its cloak. "Pathetic," the nazgul said, "I've heard that you wood-elves have a unique connection to the trees, is that right?"

Legolas swore at the wraith in elvish.

"Language!" mocked the nazgul, "And I've heard that, at times, you can share feelings with the trees. Even physical pain-" and with that, the nazgul took its sword and buried it in the wood of the tree.

The area around the point of impact in the tree began to darken as the poison spread throughout the wood. At the same time, Legolas felt a burning sensation in his stomach as if he too had been stabbed. He fell from the tree and rolled onto the grass beneath.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

At the sound of his foster son's cries, Lord Elrond was roused from his light slumber at the side of his new patient. Going to the courtyard, he was greeted with by a familiar sight. Estel was busy fighting off servants and demanding to see his father at once.

"Welcome home, Estel," said the Elven lord, cutting off Aragorn mid sentence.

"Ada!" Aragorn forgot all dignity and ran into the outstretched arms of his father.

"Now what's this all about? You know better than to charge in here wreaking havoc and waking all Rivendel with your ranting!" asked Elrond as he held his son at arm's length, noting how tired and stressed the man looked.

"It's Legolas!" Aragorn had almost forgot the reason for his disruption so happy had he been to see his father again.

Elrond was instantly worried. What was Legolas doing near Rivendel? "What of him?" he asked warily.

"A Nazgul attacked the remaining hobbits and me. It was about to slay me when Legolas came out of nowhere. Please, Ada, we must help him!" At the word "Nazgul" Elrond's face had lost all coloring. Those creatures were as evil as you could get short of being the Dark Lord himself.

"Don't worry, Estel, we will get him back," he said before stopping a passing servant. "Get Lord Glorfindel for me, will you?" he asked before releasing the elf's arm.

"That won't be necessary." Everyone turned to see who had spoken to see Glorfindel already attired for battle with Asfaloth at his side.

"Thank the Valar! Glorfindel, you must help Legolas!" Aragorn begged the elf.

"Do not fear, Aragorn, I will find him," Glorfindel reassured the young man, patting his shoulder affectionately. Then speaking quietly to Elrond he added, "Though of what shape he shall be in, I am not so certain of. A Nazgul is an opponent that not even I have faced and do not do so willingly." Then, without another word, Glorfindel mounted Asfaloth and bolted into the woods.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Writhing in pain, Legolas managed to yell something to the tree in elvish. The nazgul attempted to withdraw its sword from the tree, but could not. The tree was using its last dying energy to maintain a hold on to the sword.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Legolas bolted toward his horse. The poison had worn on him, however, and he lacked his usual elven speed. He called out to the horse, and the nazgul did the same to his. The black horse ran in front of Legolas's steed, heading it off. It glared at its opponent through its blood red eyes. Legolas's horse stood its ground. The two exchanged stares and charged at one another.

Meanwhile, the wraith had made its way next to Legolas, who lied motionless on the ground.

"Nice trick with the tree," said the nazgul, holding Legolas's second knife an inch from the elf's heart, "the elves are very unique amongst the free peoples. All mortals covet your unnaturally long life spans. That's the only thing we have in common, you and I, we both are creatures with no concept of time for ourselves as we do not have to measure how much time we have left as those weaker than us do. So please-tell me how it feels to join those pathetic mortals in Mandos. I should hope you've had a fulfilling enough life by now. Three thousand years is quite a while."

The nazgul screeched with pain, and Legolas threw the wraith off of him. As the nazgul was making its speech, Legolas had slowly, cautiously prepared his knife and planted it in the nazgul's back.

"Poison isn't good enough for you!" the wraith yelled as it lunged at Legolas, stabbing him in the stomach with the elf's knife.

Legolas couldn't hold back his cry of pain as his own blade pierced the vital flesh of his stomach. Grinning maliciously, the nazgul slowly twisted the blade inside of Legolas, creating an even larger, more painful wound before cruelly yanking it out, leaving Legolas gasping for air and in indescribable pain as he tried to stem the blood flow with his hand. The wraith laughed at the prince's futile efforts before piercing the young elf's flesh once more.

"Nooooo!" came a cry from behind the struggling pair. The wraith turned to see a majestic elf ride into the clearing and dismount. Glorfindel looked at Legolas in horror at how grievous the wounds he had sustained were, before turning a bone-chilling glare on the dark creature before him.

"What do you want, elf?" the wraith spat, furious at being interrupted as he was about to claim his victory over the pathetic creature below him.

"Leave the boy be, creature of the dark and go back to Udun where you belong! He is not for you!"

"This matter is none of your concern. I suggest you move along before you share his fate!" When the elf had not backed down, the now enraged wraith charged menacingly at him, but was stopped when Glorfindel started chanting something in a language older than Quenya. As the chanting grew louder the elf's light began to shine brighter and brighter. The wraith recoiled from the pureness of it and gave an unearthly screech as though a thousand double-edged swords had stabbed it. It looked upon the powerful elf in fear before turning to his horse which had ceased it's fight with the elven steed to size up the new comer and fleeing into the forest.

When the nazgul had finally fled, Glorfindel immediately rushed to the ailing elf's side. "Prince Legolas?" The only answer he received was a soft moan of pain from the younger elf as Legolas struggled to take in each breath.

"Hurts.to.breathe," Legolas gasped as he was lifted onto Asfaloth. Glorfindel bit his tongue when the prince suddenly started coughing up blood, silently praying to the Valar to give strength to Legolas.

"I'm sc..scared," Legolas said suddenly as the horse headed back in the direction of Rivendel, Legolas's own steed in tow. "I don't want to die."

Glorfindel looked sadly down at the elf he held in his arms wishing that he had a way to soothe the prince. "You will not die," he murmured into the young one's hair. "Mandos shall not claim you."

Legolas seemed to not be listening as he continued. "What is it like to die Glorfindel?" The question caught the elf lord off guard, but before he could respond, Legolas had gone slack.

"Hold on young prince."

A/N

I'd just like to mention that all the actual fight sequences in this chapter from after Aragorn leaves, to when Legolas was stabbed in the stomach were written by my brother with my supervision.

PLEASE R/R