Another chapter done! Phew
Aranel Mereneth - yes, they are married. I probably should have clarified that fact. My apologies for the inconvenience D: i have fixed it. also, I think subconsciously they both wanted a child so it happened. It was a risk they took. Rìan is a risk taker I guess. First, fleeing Mordor and now this haha :) Thank you for you review though. It was very helpful! It inspires me to keep writing, though I should probably focus on school too -.-
Enjoy and review if you guys want to!
~:Elven Kat:~
"What kind of army would linger in such a place?" Gimli asked.
"One that is cursed," Legolas said, gripping Rìan and his child within her tighter.
"The men of the mountain swore to help Gondor. But when Gondor needed them, they fled into the mountains. Isildur cursed them, never to rest until their oaths were fulfilled."
They came upon a small glade, with the door to the mountain buried in it. Legolas read the inscriptions carved into the stone.
"The way is shut. It was made by those who are dead, and the dead keep it. The way is shut."
A foul gust of wind burst through door, scaring off the horses.
"I do not fear death," Aragorn growled and made his way into the mountain.
Rìan held Legolas' hand and together they followed him in. Gimli was not far behind. As they walked through the narrow passages, Rìan stayed close to Legolas. Rarely was she terrified but down here, in the dark tunnels, she was uncertain of their fate. Smoky hands curled around them, grabbing their wrists.
"Don't look down," Aragorn whispered, treading lightly.
Rìan could hear a crunch with each step. She did not have to look down to know what they walked on. Skulls and bones of dead men. They pressed onwards until they reached a wide open ledge bordering a deep drop into the depths.
"Who enters my domain?" came a loud voice.
The friends turned to see a man, rather the ghost of a man, standing in front of them. All around them, more ghosts appeared, surrounding them.
"One who will have your allegiance," Aragorn said.
"The way is shut. It is made by those who are dead. And the dead keep it. The way is shut," the leader of the dead army said, repeating what was written above the door.
"Fight for me and I will hold your oaths fulfilled," Aragorn stated.
"Only the King of Gondor can command me!" came the reply.
The ghost charged forward, intent on running Aragorn through with his sword. With a loud clang, Aragorn caught the ghost blade with his own sword. The ghost stepped backwards in confusion.
"The sword was broken," he said.
"It has been re-forged. Fight for me and I shall release you. What say you?" Aragorn asked.
There was no reply.
"What say you?"
The ghost began to laugh, disappearing as he did so. All around them, the other ghosts vanished with him. It became completely silent. And then, they heard what sounded like a slight creaking sound. Legolas moved in front of Rìan as they looked around, trying to figure out what was happening. Suddenly, the rock in front of them gave way, releasing a river of human skulls.
"Run! Go!" Aragorn yelled.
Crossing the ledge while being bombarded by skulls was no easy task, even for the Elves. It was hardest for Gimli, whose height threatened to let him be buried. Eventually, they made it out, running into the fresh air. They stopped suddenly at the sight that lay before them. Several corsair ships sailed down the river, leaving burning villages in their wake. Aragorn fell to his knees in despair, tears welling up in his eyes.
All is lost, Rìan thought, holding back her own tears.
A loud sigh filled their ears. They turned to see the leader of the mountain men appear out of the rock.
"We will fight!"
~:✿:~
Rìan stood on the bank of the river in between Aragorn and Legolas. They watched the black ships slip through the water. The corsairs crowded the deck, laughing when they saw the friends.
"You may go no further," Aragorn called out. "You will not enter Gondor."
More laughter came from the corsairs.
"Legolas, fire a warning shot past the bosun's ear."
"Mind your aim," Gimli said, tipping the bow as Legolas fired.
The arrow flew straight into the body of one of them.
"We warned you! Prepare to be boarded!" Gimli shouted.
"Boarded? By you and who's army?" the captain called out.
"This army," Aragorn said quietly.
From behind them, the ghost army emerged. With a loud roar, they flew across the water and flooded the ships, killing every corsair on board. The four friends boarded as the last body was thrown over the side of the ship. Rìan stood, leaning over the railing, watching the landscape go by as the ships moved onward to Minas Tirith. A pair of arms wrapped around her. Together, she and Legolas awaited the eminent battle.
~:✿:~
"Late! As usual! Pirate scum!"
Rìan heard the Orc clearly as she hid behind the railing.
"Come on you sea rats! Get off your ships!"
The Orcs laughed. Aragorn nodded to them and leapt overboard, followed closely by Rìan, Legolas, and Gimli. The Orcs were silent in brief confusion before they started to move forward.
"There's plenty for the both of us! Let the best Dwarf win," Gimli said to Legolas as he pulled an arrow from his quiver.
They charged, the two Elves firing arrow after arrow into the horde. The ghost army easily overtook the Orcs. They kept moving towards the Pelennor Fields. Rìan paused for a moment when she saw what they were up against.
"Mûmakil," she breathed. "Legolas!"
Legolas looked up as one charged towards him. A giant tusk swung towards him and the Elf clung to it as it swept him up. Rìan watched in horror as her beloved swung onto its legs, using the arrows that riddled it as footholds. Cutting the rope that held the tower-like structure on its back, he was pulled up as the enemy archers plunged to their deaths. He strung three arrows to his bow and fired them into the beast's head, bringing it down.
"You!" a voice near Rìan sneered.
She recognized the voice instantly. Her body froze.
"Caruryn," she whispered, turning to the man.
He stood before her, covered in the blood of the Men of Rohan and Gondor. He moved closer to her. Legolas saw her, standing wide-eyed in front of a man. He ran towards them, stringing an arrow to his bow.
"No!" Rìan called to her husband. "This is between me and him."
Legolas respected her wishes even though his body ached to kill the man who struck fear into her heart. Rìan and Caruryn circled each other.
"Do not tell me. You love this whore?" he called out to Legolas.
"If only you knew how she cried out into the night as I took her. As I ravished every inch of her body. She is useless. How do you love one that is broken? How can you love such a whore as this one is?"
Something within Rìan snapped. She charged at the man, full of hate and fury. Sword blocked sword as the two fought. Caruryn laughed as his sword slashed at her thigh, drawing blood. Rìan felt nothing but anger. Caruryn's laughter was his weakness, her chance. With one last charge, her sword found its way into his chest. He looked into her eyes as he fell. She twisted the blade roughly, blood spurting out of the wound. And then Caruryn took his last breath as his eyes faded into death. She fell to the ground beside him, tears in her eyes. Legolas came over to her, pulling her away from the body and into his arms.
"It is over. He is gone," he whispered to her.
Images of Caruryn's rape and torture ran through her mind. Times when he had he strung up half naked in front of his loyal followers. Times when he cut her, sliced her open. Times when he let others do his dirty work, bleeding her. She saw her blood shining on the floor of Caruryn's tent.
"Melamin," Legolas said quietly, shaking the images out of her.
She held on to him tightly as the tears spilled out of her.
~:✿:~
With the help of the ghost army, the Orcs were destroyed. Rìan walked through the burning battlefield, littered with the bodies of Men, Horses, and Orcs. She was limping but she barely noticed. A body, wearing the armor of Sauron, gasped for air near her. She raised her bow, ready to fire. As she came closer, a familiar face looked up at her. She dropped her bow and knelt next to the man.
"Guddry!"
The face of her friend stared up at her, bloody and dirty.
"Where are you hurt?" she asked him.
He moved his hand off his stomach. A deep gash appeared. His armor was stained with his blood. She gasped.
"Rìan," he managed to say before he fell into unconsciousness.
He was still alive. Struggling, Rìan picked him up. Aragorn saw her and came over, eyebrows raised as she helped this man of Sauron.
"He is an enemy," he said.
"No!" she responded, anger in her eyes. "He is a friend, captured by the Dark Lord."
Aragorn sighed and called over two soldiers of Gondor.
"Take him to be healed," he ordered them.
They bowed and took the limp body from Rìan. Her thigh stung horribly. She looked down at the blood dripping down her leg and then turned her paling face to Aragorn, who caught her as she slipped into darkness.
Mûmakil - the giant, elephant-looking creatures used by the Haradrim. Hobbits call them Oliphaunts.
Oh my. Caruryn is dead and Guddry has been saved. OH JOYOUS DAY!
