Chapter 5:

The Battle of Helms Deep

The battle was about to begin. The men were lined up on the western battlements. While three regiments of elves were upon the eastern battlements. The rest of the men and the three remaining groups of elves were stationed behind the Deeping Wall. The elves on the battlements were led by Haldîr, Legolas and Darsul. Rumil and Orophin were leading the ground forces. All was silent. For hours, they waited in silence on the wall. Watching as the 10 000 Uruk-Hai surrounded the fortress. They moved noisily, occasionally grunting, never speaking. A clap of thunder sounded form the darkening sky, and it began to rain heavily. Darsul turned to look at her troops.

''Amin sinta thaliolle e dagor!'' I know your strength in battle! She shouted. All the elves, even the ones on the ground turned to look at her.

''I 'narr en gothrim glinuva nuin l'anor!'' The bones of our foes shall gleam under the sun! Darsul continued. The warriors hearts were filled with hope as they saw Darsuls eyes gleam under the rim of her helmet. They straightened their backs and turned back to their silent vigil.

Legolas came over to stand beside her. He grinned at her, but only half-heartidly. Many would not survive the battle. They both knew it.

''Lle din siel?'' Are you ready? He said quietly. She did not turn her head, but nodded almost imperceptibly. ''Tira ten ashwa!'' Be careful! He continued. Almost at a whisper she replied,

''Uuma ma' ten' rashwe, ta tuluva a'lle...'' Don't look for trouble, It will come to you... Legolas smiled and looked over sharply. Aragorn was yelling something.

''Hold Fire!''

An old man had accidentally let go of his bowstring and fired an arrow at the massing Uruk-Hai. It hit it's mark. The arrow lodged in the Uruks neck. Just above the shoulder. The Uruk-Hai roared and fell over dead.

''Prepare to fire!''shouted Darsul. Every elf above and below the battlements put an arrow to the string and aimed carefully. Everyone looked on in horror as the Uruks began to charge.

''Fire!''roared Darsul. 100 arrows rose into the sky and fell amongst the onslaught of Uruks. The first line fell to be trampled by the other Uruks behind them.

''Darsul!''Yelled Legolas over the roars and screams.''Cuamin linduva yassen mergrille. Lye nuquernuva sen e dagor!'' My bow shall sing with your sword. We will defeat them in battle!

Darsul looked over in surprise. Legolas was looking at her in total sincerity. He nodded to her and began to fight.

From atop his tower on the keep, Theoden King watched the battle in safety. He growled

''Is this all you can conjure Saruman?''

It had begun.

The battle was raging. The Uruks had ceased trying to break the wall. They took their bows and fired black arrows, fletched with crow feathers. A man screamed as he fell over the battlements into the roiling Uruks below. The Rohan warriors and the elves killed many Uruks, but they just kept coming like the rain.

Darsul found it hard to watch the battle. She had so far seen 3 elves cut down. Three elves that would have otherwise lived for an age, happy beneath the golden boughs of Lothlorien...But Darsul kept giving commands and urging on her warriors. Then she saw the ladders. Darsul realized that they were trying to scale the wall.

''Adalá Hathels!'' Draw Swords! She screamed. In a single movement, the elves gracefully drew their blades. Some of the ladders fell where the elves cut the support ropes, but elsewhere, Uruks had already breached the walls. Many Rohan warriors fell off the wall, in their haste to escape the Uruk-Hai.

Suddenly, a large group of Uruks, broke through the warriors on their left. Darsul and Legolas commanded there troops to face the enemy. The elven warriors moved as a single body. Cutting and hacking at the Uruks. Slowly, they cut down the amount of Uruks on the wall. Darsul tried not to watch as she saw a young boy, decapitated.

''Darsul!''Shouted Legolas in warning. Darsul turned just in time to kill the Uruk that had approached her from behind. Just then, a ruddy faced Gimli ran past. He smiled and roared at Legolas,

''My count is seven!''Legolas calmly wiped blood off his daggers. Then he looked up as if he had just noticed Gimli. He grinned.

''21.''

Gimli roared like a bull and took off towards the nearest group of Uruk-Hai. Darsul laughed at the site of him galloping off. Dragging his chainmail behind him. However, she had no time to fool around. More and more Uruks were getting on to the wall as more and more Rohan warriors fell.

The sky was now dark with rain clouds. It was nighttime and many of the men were getting tired to the point of falling to their knees in exhaustion. The Uruks were slicing away with ease. The screams of the dying were overwhelming. Darsul was fighting like a machine, trying to block out the noise. Many in her regiment surrounded her in order to protect her from the surge of Uruks. An elf in front of her fell.

Suddenly, Legolas was there. He cut through the Uruks quickly. He looked over his shoulder at Darsul and was happy to find that she was still fighting strong. All of a sudden, Aragorn was yelling and gesturing at the roiling Uruks below.

They were running up to a part in the wall and placing several large, black, spiky objects at it's base. After about six of the objects had been put into place, a very large Uruk, wearing an excessive amount of armor approached the wall. Carrying a sparking torch.

''Ndegina ho!''Screamed Aragorn.''Ndegina ho!'' Kill him!

All the elves halted the slaughter and pointed arrows at the Uruk. At Darsuls signal, they all fired. About fifty arrows hit there mark. The Uruk was instantly turned into a pincushion. The Uruk stopped and bellowed. It took a flying leap into the wall.

With a boom that resounded throughout the valley, a part of the wall exploded. Pieces of the thick stone wall flew outwards and landed in the mass of Uruk-Hai. One piece however, landed amongst a group of elves. Darsul looked on in horror as her brother Rumil stopped to try and help those elves wounded. She could only watch as her brother was cut down from behind. He fell and did not rise. Darsul fell to her knees. A wealth of emotions bubbling inside her. A horn sounded as the Uruk-Hai stormed the keep. Aragorn and Orophin led there waiting troops against the Uruks.

''Darsul!''

It was Haldîr. He was dirty and covered with blood. He held out his hand to her. She grabbed it and pulled herself up. Darsul stood shakily for a minute, then hurt and sadness were replaced by rage. She held Naldgrim in front of her face.

''My brother...''She whispered.

A horn blew in the keep as Theoden yelled for all the soldiers to pull back. Darsul pushed Haldîr away and commanded her remaining troops to fall back to the keep. They ran swiftly towards it. Suddenly Darsul stopped and remembered Rumil. The stone he had fallen beside, lay just off to her left. Darsul ran over and searched frantically for his body. Darsul saw a glint of gold in the sea of brown and red. She ran over and found him lying there on his stomach. Darsul grabbed him and slung him over her shoulders. She followed the other elves into the keep. Along the way to the keep, Darsul was slashed by a large scimitar. She felt the hot blood trickling down her arm. Even though the pain in both her heart and her arm was great, she kept running.

When she finally reached the keep and the doors were closed, she looked around her. Among the living she saw Legolas, Aragorn, Gimli, Theoden, Orophin and Haldîr. Most of the survivors were elves. 14 out of the one hundred elves had died. Of the original Rohan warriors, nine remained of the three hundred. Darsul lay Rumil down on a blanket on the floor. Tears streaked her face, running tracks through the dirt.

All noise in the hall stopped as the remaining survivors looked over at Darsul weeping over Rumil. Haldîr and Orophin ran over as they saw Rumil. Darsul felt something move. She looked down at Rumil to see his eyes open a little bit! His breathing was ragged and his chest heaved for air.

''Rumil!''Darsul gasped.

''I am sorry little sister...I have...failed.''He said weakly. With those final words, Rumil closed his eyes and breathed out slowly. He was dead. Dead in Darsuls arms. She held his body in her arms and cried and cried. Haldîr saw Rumils body and fell to his knees in shock. Orophin yelled and kicked a helmet across the room. Legolas and Aragorn put their hands to there chests and mourned silently.

After a few moments of shocked silence, Haldîr tried to pull Darsul away from the body. She wouldn't move. Legolas stepped forward and gently touched her shoulder. She didn't struggle as Legolas pulled her up onto her feet. He softly fingered the wound on her arm. It was bleeding heavily. He handed her over to Orophin. Darsul wouldn't stay still. She struggled against Orophin until he let her go. Darsul ran out of the hall down to the stables. She spoke softly to Haleth. Darsul grabbed his reins and two other horses. She pulled them back into the hall.

''The defenses will not hold! Ride out and meet them!''She implored Theoden. Darsul handed Aragorn and the king their horses. For a moment, Theoden looked at Rumil then at Darsul. He mounted his horse Snowmane and drew his sword.

''Aragorn.''He murmured. ''May this be the hour in which we draw swords together!''

Darsul mounted Haleth and drew her sword. There was a bustle of movement, then silence.

The Uruk-Hai viciously attacked the wooden door into the keep. They finally managed to break down the door. An elven horn blew a single, clear note and the Uruks were greeted by seventy extremely skilled horseback riders. All the elves and some men of Rohan charged through the Uruk-Hai and out into the courtyard. They charged down the ramp and into the mass of Uruks on the other side of the wall. Just as they reached the other side of the wall, a white light shone over the hill to the side of the valley! It was Gandalf. Behind him rode Eomer, and behind him were the Riders of Rohan.

''Rohirrim!''He shouted.

With a mighty roar, 2000 men on horseback charged over the hills into the valley. The Uruk-Hai tried to hold ranks but they scattered as the first wave of riders smashed through them. It took only minutes for the riders to chase the Uruks out of the valley. Fangorn Forest lay not far from the exit of the valley. The riders chased the Uruks into the trees, but Eomer warned them.

''Stay away from the trees!''

The riders watched in confusion as the trees began to rustle and shake. The squeals of the Uruk-Hai were heard but none came running out, and just as suddenly as the battle had begun. It was over they had won!

Darsul and Legolas walked back into the hall to a tremendous cheer. The surviving men explained to Theoden that she had pretty much captained the elves on the eastern battlements. Darsul smiled weakly at everyone, then she saw Rumils body being carried out of the hall on a stretcher. She began to weep again and buried her face in her hands, she ran out of the hall. Legolas ran out after her.

It was still raining and Legolas couldn't see where Darsul had gone. Then, a flash of lightning illuminated the courtyard. Legolas saw Darsul running up to the tower if the keep. Determined to elude all followers, she constantly took different passages and the longest route up. Legolas followed quickly and quietly. He found her in a small roofed courtyard. She did not look at him as he sat down beside her, but sobbed uncontrollably into his shoulder.

''Rumil is with the Valar now...Shh...He is in Valinor with your parents...''He said gently. Darsul slowly stopped crying and began to shake. Legolas held her tighter to cease her shaking.

''Legolas...''She managed to gasp through her sobs. ''May... I tell you...something?''

''Of course...''He replied curiously. She pulled out of his embrace and began.

''When I was just a child...My mother took me and my older brother, Rumil into the gardens. She spoke to us about honor and loyalty. She said that her time in the world was ending and she would not be here to see me grow up in times of light and happiness. At that point she sent me away to speak alone with Rumil. Shortly thereafter, my mother and father sent me away to Mirkwood. I was alone for the first time in my life. My brothers tried to tell me that it was only for a little while. Rumil took me away and told me a secret...

''Darsul!''He whispered to me. ''Mother and father are leaving...mother says that you have taken away her strength and that she cannot remain here. She has asked me to protect you! I promise you that I will...O.K?''

It was the first nice thing that he had ever said to me, I was grateful to him. Then one day in Mirkwood, My brothers came with the news that my parents were both dead. Rumil had been very close to my mother and blamed me for her death, saying that if...if I hadn't been born...that she would have had the strength to keep on living...Rumil never truly forgave me for it.

Even though he was never nice to me, he always protected me. When I asked him about it, he only replied that it was for mother. I don't know what happened but, my aunt Galadriel spoke to him one day. She showed him how I was alike to my mother on so many ways. It broke his heart to see what he had said and done to me. He vowed never to let harm come to me. He promised that he would always be there. And now..he is gone. Gone forever.''

Legolas felt truly sorry for Darsul. He had known that Rumil and Darsul were less loving than her and Haldîr or Orophin but he had never questioned her about it! Legolas hugged her again and played with a strand of her golden hair. She began to breath easier and slowly calmed down. Darsul leaned into Legolas and smelled the scent of pine needles. As long as he was here, Darsul thought to herself, I will be alright...