Disclaimer: I own nothing. I have borrowed from the movie and book. All work belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien and associated groups.
A/N: Another scene from the movie. Sorry, it is a little easier to pick scenes from the movie versus the book right now. I am taking some of the dialogue from the movie as a bit of a filler, but it will make sense! I have also changed it around a little so it does not read completely like the script. Please R&R!
The Battle of Hornburg: Chapter 4: Kings of Entrapment
(Helm's Deep, Throne room of King Théoden)
Should a drop of water splash upon the stone floor of the throne room, it would echo as if in a cave. The silence was deafening. Aragorn had borne no good news. Théoden king stood quietly, his back to his council of men. What answer could a king give men on such grievous news?
"They will be here by nightfall." Aragorn stated, a sense of urgency hung in his voice. Legolas and Gimli stood just behind the ranger, as if to back the impact of the Dunedain's words.
"Ten thousand…" Théoden whispered back to himself. He finally turned to face Aragorn and his companions. "Ten thousand! From where did Saruman muster such an army? Orcs don't just grow overnight!"
Aragorn shook his head at the King. He knew this would be news bitter to swallow. The people of Rohan fled from their city to shelter only to be cornered by the enemy. As king, Théoden would feel as if he had led his people to slaughter. "It is an army bred for a single purpose: to destroy the world of men."
The chamber broke out into argument. Théoden's advisors shouting amongst each other, some saying to flee others saying to stay and fight. Some stayed quiet. Théoden watched the mayhem, as did Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli. But these were not their men to command, they were Théoden's. Finally, Théoden called for order. A new air filled the room, Théoden's rage had begun to pump through his veins. Plans were beginning to formulate in his mind. Saruman would not take Helm's Deep, not if his life depended on it.
"Let them come! Let them try!"
(The walls of Helm's Deep)
"This is a fool's errand."
"Shhh."
"But Estel, you cannot think-"
"I said quiet Legolas."
The remaining of the fellowship had walked with Théoden and his advisors for over an hour since Aragorn brought the news of impending battle to them. They were running out of daylight and out of time before Saruman's malice would befall them. It was tedious and ominous as Théoden barked out orders to his men. But every one of them listened as Théoden went over every strategy he could think of. Barricading the women and children, fortifying the walls, arming every able boy and man with even the dullest of table knives. Anything and everything he could think of to make the whole situation feel as if they had a chance. From the back of the group Legolas and Aragorn stood together listening to Rohan's king shout orders of urgency. While Aragorn tried to put together other useful plans, Legolas felt it needed to be mentioned of how unrealistic the matter was. Legolas' side comments to his friend, were not making things any better. But they were comments of reason and Legolas knew Aragorn was not listening. Finally he urged the ranger to pay attention to his voice.
"Estel, stop."
Legolas had pulled the ranger away from the group, letting the others walk further ahead. Aragorn looked at his friend confused and more annoyed than before. "Listen first before you give me such looks. Estel, there is no winning this battle without help. We can get them help! Go and speak with the King. We are outnumbered Aragorn. We will die here tonight if something is not done."
"Do not be so pessimistic Princeling, they can still win this." Aragorn shot back with annoyance. Legolas sighed, staring down at his friend. Aragorn shook his head at Legolas, giving a frustrated growl. "I am sorry Legolas that was unwarranted. You are right my friend. Let me speak with Théoden, perhaps he will send someone out to the elves or even Gondor. We need all the help we can get." Legolas gave a thoughtful nod to the Dunedain ranger before they both jogged to catch up with the group of advisors.
Aragorn and Legolas pushed through the row of men as they walked atop the main wall of the Hornburg. They looked out on the plains before them hoping not to catch a glimpse of their enemy too early yet. Legolas felt his heart skip a beat as his eyes thought they had seen something moving far off in the distance, but it had been a fox scavenging its dinner. Thankfully the plains before their fortress remained untouched.
Théoden continued as he walked onward, "… Within these walls, we will outlast them." He ended as he stepped down off the stairs of the turret.
"They do not come to destroy Rohan's crops and villages!" Aragorn cried out, outraged by Théoden's simplicity. He pushed past the advisors, following Théoden down the stairs. A storm brew in the ranger's eyes, one Théoden was willing to watch with fear. "They come to destroy us people, down to the last child!"
Théoden grabbed Aragorn by his tunic, fear plastered in his eyes. Fear, Aragorn noted, fear was turning into Saruman's greatest weapon amongst these people. "What would you have me do? Look at my men. Their courage hangs by a thread! If this is to be our end, then I will have them make such an end as to be worthy of remembrance!
"Send out riders my lord!" Aragorn cried out. The desperation in his voice was clear. Their survival depended now on outside help. Legolas had been right. "You must call for aide."
Théoden turned to face the ranger with skepticism. As if the question itself had been offensive. Aragorn saw this conversation heading nowhere productive. Behind him, Legolas and Gimli slowly shook their heads. "And who will come? Elves? Dwarves? We are not so lucky in our friends as you. The old alliances are dead."
"Gondor will answer."
"Gondor…" The venom released from Théoden's mouth of Gondor indeed wounded Aragorn's admiration for the great King of Rohan. By the end of Théoden's rant, Aragorn was assured they would see no help or better outcome by the end of the night. It was to be a long night indeed.
Théoden walked on with his council of men while the three companion hung back in bewilderment. Aragorn, Legolas knew, was wounded by the King's words. Though absent from his kingdom for years, Aragorn held a sense of pride for the land of Gondor.
"Huh, some king." Gimli mumbled, leaning heavily on his axe. "What man denies a helping hand? Especially hours before war!"
Legolas chuckled and patted the dwarf on the shoulder. "Those that are afraid, that is who Gimli."
Gimli gave another shake of displeasure before leaving the two friends atop the wall. Aragorn, still silent, walked back up the stairs to look over the wall. He leaned heavily on the wall, taking in the stagnant air around them. The land before them was bare and brown. Unfit for crops and building, unfit for people. Théoden had cornered himself with no escape. Worse of it, he was too proud to admit it. Gandalf had warned him. Helm's Deep would do the people of Rohan no good. How right he was.
"Promise me," Legolas sighed, coming to stand beside the ranger. "When you are king, when I tell you something you'll listen to me."
Aragorn chuckled, lowering his head and shaking it in mirth. "And who says I'll make you one of my court?"
"Arwen and Eleniel."
Aragorn laughed aloud, something that felt tremendously relieving than he thought. Legolas stood beside him with the silliest of smiles. "Ah mellon-nin, I promise you should I ever be king we will never see days like these again. I pity Théoden, for he does not have friends like me who would travel to the ends of Middle-Earth beside me. Come, I need food before we decided to take on ten thousand urukai by ourselves!"
Food was perhaps the best thing Aragorn had seen since he had fallen off that cliff. His friends admitted to him they had never seen a human eat so much or so fast. In turn caused more mirth between that seemed to be much needed. But the merriment was short lived. The company of three had been called forth to the armory to help assemble the men able to fight. The smiles the three companions had shared on minutes before had disappeared entirely. From the entry way of the armory Aragorn watched Théoden's soldiers disperse swords, bows and arrows to men who were crippled and boys who barely knew how to shoot. It was terrifying. To a trained warrior such as the three of them, this was a massacre Saruman would surely triumph over. Aragorn stepped forward slowly, the others following behind him.
"These are no soldiers." Gimli whispered to Legolas. "They are barely men!"
"Farmers, stable boys…"
Legolas paid him no mind as he watched the crowd just as Aragorn did. He noticed too that some of the men backed away from him as he walked through. Perhaps never seeing an elf in their lives or a dwarf. It scared them even more. "Look at them their frightened. I can see it in their eyes."
The room stopped. Every head turned to the three of them. Legolas stared at Aragorn, disappointment inscribed across the elf's face. "Boe a hyn… neled herain dan caer menig." / "And they should be… three hundreds against ten thousands."
Aragorn looked to his friend, stunned by the urgency he spoke with. He tried to gently reason with the prince. "Si, beriathar hyn ammaeg..." / "They have more hope defending themselves here..."
"Aragorn, nedin dagor hen ú-'erir ortheri. Natha daged dhaer!" / "Aragorn, they cannot win this fight. They are all going to die!"
The words angered Aragorn instantly. The distrust that came across his eyes as evident to Legolas it had been the wrong phrase to say, the wrong logic to point out.
"Then I shall die as one of them!"
Aragorn looked at his friend once before turning away and leaving. Immediately Legolas went to follow him though Gimli held him back. He was right, Aragorn needed time. They all did. This would be perhaps the battle that would claim all of their lives despite their superior skills. But because of stubbornness and fear, these men were left unaided and alone against an army bred out of hate and darkness.
Legolas then felt someone beside him, poking him for his attention. He turned to snap at Gimli when he in fact found a boy, no older than ten whose helmet sat lopsided on his head and the belt on his hips nearly slid off of him as he moved around. "Master Elf…" The boy fixed his helmet as it slid over his eyes. Gimli was heard chuckling in the background.
His voice was childish and soft, clearly frightened by all that was around him. Legolas shot Gimli a look who sat atop his set of crates watching the interaction with the young lad. Legolas turned back to the boy and knelt gracefully to one knee. The boy was about the size of his youngest son, Beriaden, though he was much older than ten. Legolas inclined his head as to tell the boy to speak.
"Is there truly no hope? Are we to die tonight?" There was a tear that slipped away from the boys left eye. But he wiped it away quickly as if Legolas had not seen it, as if he would not have the elf see him so weak.
"Enna hartha'ui." Legolas spoke gently to the boy, ruffling his mope of golden hair. "There is always hope."
"I do not want to die." The boy sniffled, lowering his head.
Legolas frowned at the boy. If his own son had said that to him, he would have held him close and spoke in their tongue until the young child lulled to sleep. But alas, this was not his child, but he was someone's son. Legolas placed both his rough hands on the boys limp shoulders. "What is your name, boy?"
"Erronle, sir."
Legolas smiled wide at the boy. "A good name, child. I will tell you this as my father once told me: keep your aim straight, and strike fast. Should you see battle tonight, remember these words. You are young and you are fast, remember that as a means of escape."
The boy smiled and then did something Legolas had not foreseen. The boy hugged him tight around the chest as Legolas knelt down before running off with his sheath knife in hand. Legolas finally stood up only to find Gimli smirking from his seat, holding back a laugh.
"Careful Master Dwarf, I might have to hug you next."
Gimli let out a howl of laughter after that. He wiped away a tear from his eye as he shook his head at the elf. Gimli jumped down from his seat and walked over to Legolas still chuckling. He patted the elf on the back. "Father to three lads, eh? If their anything like you, they'll make you and the lass proud."
"Oh they do Master Dwarf, every day…"
Though Gimli thought those words had passed through Legolas' mouth, it was in fact not his voice. Actually, the voice was feminine and strong. Though all the women, including Eowyn had been sent to the caves below. Legolas and Gimli whipped around quickly from their stance facing each other, and what they found had Legolas' dropping his bow to the ground and running.
Before the group of men, oblivious to anything but their fear, stood a woman. Tall and proud, clad in silver armor shining in the moonlight that crept through a small window with a cloak of fine green cloth that covered her upper torso. Her figure was lean and strong, and her hair was long and a dark brown color that had been braided back in tail that stopped at her tiny waist. Before the woman could say anything else, she found herself engulfed in a pair of strong arms and a scent that still smelt like the Greenwood she loved dearly.
"Eleniel…"