Chapter 10

Marina sat behind Èomer on his horse, carefully leaning over to peek around his red leather armor. It was fitting that she be paired with him really, being an honorary Shieldmaiden of Rohan still. Pippin rode in front of Gandalf, his blue tunic sticking out almost startlingly against the wizard's white robes. Gimli rode behind Legolas, as per his usual. They truly were an interesting pair, Marina thought with a smile. Aragorn and Arianna rode in front of them all. Aragorn looked almost suspiciously cleaned up, his hair combed and pulled back out of his face. His new armor was the colors of Minas Tirith, all blue and silver. It was odd considering his previously scruffy and well worn armor. Arianna looked almost exactly the same as the day they'd met all that time ago in Bree. Her armor was well worn and looked it. Her elvish cloak was pinned about her neck, and her hair was pulled back into a single braid. But she too had changed a lot over the past months, more than one may guess.

The group was riding at the front of an army of men, the combined armies of Rohan and Gondor. They were almost a pathetically small force, considering they were riding to the gates of Mordor itself. All of Saruman's army lie in wait on the other side; they wouldn't be much of a challenge.

For the dozenth time, Marina leaned around Èomer's shoulder to see what was ahead. Èomer half turned to give her a look. She blushed and mumbled an apology, but only found herself doing it again a few minutes later.

"Is something wrong?" Èomer finally asked.

"No." she said, then changed her mind. "Yes, there is. Where is the enemy? Shouldn't there be someone about to hinder our progress? We're marching on the main gate of their foul land after all, you'd think they'd try and protect it. Èomer looked about, he'd noticed the same thing.

"I think they know we're coming. Sauron does at the very least. And if I'm not mistaken, he wants us to come to the Black Gate itself. He wants to watch as his creatures attempt to slaughter us." Marina didn't say anything. She had the horrible feeling that the monsters wouldn't have to do much attempting, they'd simply slaughter them. She looked over at Pippin who looked back with a confident smile. She smiled back at him, letting it fade after he turned away. She'd seen the fear and worry in his eyes, he couldn't hide that from her.

Arianna was thinking along the same lines. She kept a loose and confident grip on the reins, and an easy posture. But her face was pinched in worry and suspicion.

"I don't like this." She said so only Aragorn could hear. He looked over at her and his eyes told her he agreed. But he didn't say a word, simply looked forward once again. Arianna looked down at the pommel of the saddle, where Erynion sat. "You should have stayed back at Minas Tirith." She told the owl. He looked up at her and gave a small hoot of what sounded like disagreement. He hoped his way up Vanya's mane, perching on her head and looking forwards.

Finally they turned a corner and there it was. The Black Gate. The end of the long road and the beginning of the final battle. Their journey before now had all been leading up to this point. And…there was no one here! The Black Gate sat before them, spanning the width of the entire canyon. But there were no guards, no lookouts…no one.

"Where are they?" she heard Pippin say behind her. Aragorn didn't seem to have an answer, but he spurred his horse forwards. Arianna and the others hurried to follow, while the army stayed where they stood. They didn't have to come any closer yet, and they wouldn't until they had to. When they reached the gate itself, Arianna patted Vanya's neck and whispered what a good girl she was. The mare didn't like the gate at all; she did not want to be there. Arianna couldn't blame her. The gate was all sharp angles and threatening spires. And the land behind it reeked of death. She didn't envy Frodo and Sam for having to journey through the horrible place.

"Let the Lord of the Black Land come forth! Let justice be done upon him!" Aragorn suddenly called. For a moment, nothing happened and Arianna was about to suggest he try again when they heard a groan. Erynion gave a frightened hoot and fluttered to her shoulder. She sat up straight as the gate opened just enough to allow a single horse though. And a single horse came, ridden by a being which made her grimace. It was humanoid, covered head to foot in black armor. But the only part of his face which they could see was a large, grotesque mouth.

"My master, Sauron the Great, bids thee welcome." The thing said, giving them what might be described as a welcoming smile, but from him only looked like a grimace. "Is there any in this rout with the authority to treat with me?" Aragorn raised his eyebrows, the look on his face seemed unbelieving. Arianna was still grimacing. She couldn't look away from the large mouth…it was that disgusting to her.

"We do not come to treat with Sauron, faithless and accursed." Gandalf said. The being hissed at them, but Gandalf went on. "Tell your master this: The armies of Mordor must disband. He is to depart these lands, never to return."

Instead of answering directly, the Mouth of Sauron smiled condescendingly. "Old Greybeard. I have a token I was bidden to show thee."

Marina gasped as the man-thing held up a familiar shining object. It was the Mithril shirt Frodo had been wearing his entire journey. The one Bilbo had given him before they'd left Rivendell. If the enemy had it… The Mouth of Sauron tossed the shirt to Gandalf who awkwardly caught it and handed it to Pippin.

"Frodo!" Pippin exclaimed.

"Silence." Gandalf told him.

"No!" Marina found herself saying aloud. Frodo couldn't be dead, he simply couldn't be!

"Silence!" Gandalf ordered again, louder this time. Marina clapped her mouth shut, but she knew the damage had been done.

"The Halfling was dear to thee, I see. Know that he suffered greatly at the hands of his host. Who would've thought one so small could endure so much pain? And he did, Gandalf. He did." Marina's jaw ached she was clenching it so hard, but it kept her tears from overflowing so she refused to stop. She would not believe that Frodo was dead…if he was then Sauron would surely have the ring already! Aragorn rode forward slowly, looking almost casual.

"And who is this? Isildur's heir? It takes more to make a king than a broken Elvish blade." The creature said. Aragorn smiled at him, before swiping out his sword and chopping his head right off.

"I guess that concludes negotiations." Gimli said from his seat behind Legolas. Arianna smiled a bit evilly. She'd been thinking about doing the exact same thing. Erynion went back to Vanya's head, hooting happily. Aragorn turned his horse around to face the rest of them, an intense look on his face.

"I do not believe it." he told them. "I will not!" The gate behind him groaned and he turned towards it again. It was opening farther, and behind it…was Sauron's army, marching towards them. Behind the army was a large threatening tower, where the eye of Sauron himself sat. And it was staring right at them, unwavering in its gaze. Arianna smiled again. Frodo was now free to get through to Mount Doom, with Sauron being none the wiser! "Pull back!" Aragorn ordered them. They didn't need to be told twice, though he repeated the order. They all turned and rode back to their own awaiting army, who looked very unsettled at the sight of the orc arm before them.

"Hold your ground!" Aragorn ordered, his confident voice piercing through the cloud of fear which hovered over them all. "Sons of Gondor! Of Rohan! My brothers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me!" he cried to the men before him, as he rode his horse back and forth. "A day may come when the courage of Men fails, when we forsake our friends, and break all bonds of fellowship, but itisnotthisday. An hour of wolves and shattered shields when the Age of Men comes crashing down, but it is not this day! This day we fight! By all that you hold dear on this good earth, I bid you stand, Men of the West!"

As he spoke, Arianna watched the faces of the men surrounding her. They all slid evenly from pure terror to confidence. She was impressed. In the time he'd been gone, Aragorn had truly become a leader. She smiled at him, nodding proudly when he glanced at her. He nodded back before drawing his sword and turning to face the coming orc army.

As the army of orcs flowed from the Black Gate, they spit to encircle the small group of men. The horses were panicking as the stench of the Black Land flowed out to them. Without full control of their horses, they'd be useless. Everyone decided it was safer if they were to dismount. Panicking horses would only create confusion, and they couldn't afford the distraction. One by one, the horses were sent off, they ran into the distance, heading home to their own stables where they knew they'd find a gentle hand and good food.

Marina stood beside Pippin, her breathing calm and collected. In the light of the upcoming battle, her mind had completely cleared and she was ready to fight. Pippin stood beside her, nervous, but steady. As the orc army surrounded them, she took his hand and squeezed it tightly. At this point it looked like neither of them would make it out of this alive. But they'd die together, and that was better than nothing.

"I never thought I'd die fighting side by side with an elf." Gimli said as he watched the seemingly never ending army flow from the gate. Legolas smiled down at him.

"What about side by side with a friend?" Gimli looked back up at him with a smile of his own.

"Aye. I could do that."

"Awww you two are so adorable! When's the wedding?" Arianna teased. Gimli glared at her and she leaned down to kiss him on the forehead. "If we live through this, you owe me a tour of your home." She told him, referring back to the day they'd met in Rivendell.

"But of course lassie, I wouldn't have it any other way." He said in a voice which was gruffer than usual. He was trying to be strong and un-emotional, but it only made Arianna smile. She then turned to Legolas and laid her head on his shoulder.

"And you…"

"I owe you a proper marriage proposal." Legolas interrupted. She looked up at him, shocked.

"What?" she asked dumbly. He smiled at her and gave her a short but tender kiss.

"Once this is over, I'm going to have to ask you to marry me."

"Why not here?"

"Because if I do it now, it'll be because I'm not sure we're going to make it through this alive. And I'm not going to propose because we're going to die together. I'm going to propose because we're going to live long and happy lives together." Arianna looked up the short distance to his face, her eyes shining with happiness.

"Well, when you propose later, I'll be saying yes." She told him with a smile. He smiled back and leaned down to kiss her again.

But then the moment was over, and Arianna had to force herself to pull away from Legolas's soft lips. They had a battle to focus on, though her heart was glowing with happiness for the future. They were completely surrounded now, and cut off from any escape. From a distance, their army must look like a rowboat in the middle of a sea.

Then, Aragorn was stepping forward, lowering his sword. He seemed to be hearing something only he could hear. In what seemed to be slow motion, he turned and looked at them all. Gandalf held up Frodo's mithril shirt, tears in his eyes. The wizard seemed convinced that they were all about to die for nothing. But Aragorn just smiled serenely at them all.

"For Frodo." He said softly. He lifted his sword again and started running towards the enemy. Marina looked at Pippin and came to the same conclusion. They nodded at each other and took off after Aragorn, prepared to fight and die for their fellow Hobbits. The rest of the army followed their example, lifting their weapons and charging forwards. This was going to be a day none of them would ever forget, even if they didn't survive to see the end of it.

Marina and Pippin fought side by side, always being sure to stay in each other's sight. And they made a good team by now too. They'd known each other long enough that they could predict the moves of the other and could move in to help where their defenses were weaker. Marina suddenly had to stop short when she almost ran into Gandalf. She looked up to see if he was alright, but he was only watching the sky.

"Eagles!" she heard Pippin cry out. She turned to look up as well, and saw giant golden eagles flying out of the cloud cover. "The eagles are coming!" Pippin yelled to everyone around them. It was worth shouting about, the eagles were attacking the Nazgûl who'd gathered to fill the skies above. As they fought their battle in the sky, those on the ground were able to continue their own, without having to worry about creatures diving down to attack.

Arianna was fighting back to back with Aragorn. She'd gotten separated from most everyone else, but she'd stay to watch her brother's back. Legolas and Gimli could take care of themselves she knew. She slowed down for a moment when suddenly the surviving Nazgûl turned tail and fled back into Mordor.

"What are they doing?" she asked aloud, knowing Aragorn had noticed it too. It was odd for them to leave randomly like that…before a solution could enter her mind however, he was running off back into the battle. Arianna continued to fight where she was, there was plenty opportunity for her to do damage right here. Suddenly, she heard a large rumbling behind her. She turned to see a troll fighting his way towards her. She glared at it and he glared right back. She didn't know why it had singled her out of all people, but she wasn't going to let it get away from her alive.

She dodged as it swung its enormous sword down at her head. She rolled and ended up right back on her feet, taking the opportunity to slash at his face while it was low to the ground. He pulled back with a roar and ripped his sword from the ground where it had gotten stuck, and swung it sideways at her. Arianna barely managed to jump over the blade, but fell when she landed on the other side.

Legolas turned to see Arianna, the love of his life, fighting a troll on her own. He panicked and left Gimli's side to run towards her, but the entire army seemed to be in his way. He screamed her name but he knew she couldn't hear him; she was too focused on surviving the troll's assault. He watched as she barely dodged the troll's blade over and over, and could tell she was tiring. Her jumps weren't nimble so much as necessary now. And each time she fell to the ground it took her longer to gain her footing. She took every opportunity to cause damage to the troll as well, but it wasn't enough.

Finally, she was too slow. She only had time to roll over before the troll stomped on her chest. Arianna grunted painfully as the air was pushed from her lungs and she struggled to breathe in again. Her cloudy mind searched for a solution, but her only thought was to somehow call for help. Finally, her fingers grabbed the hilt of her dagger and without thinking she plunged it into the troll's foot. He roared in pain and stepped back, and she gratefully pulled air into her oxygen starved lungs. He was then pulling his sword back, but right before he plunged it into her, he froze and turned. Something was happening through the Black gate, something she couldn't see. Orcs all around them were dropping their weapons and fleeing all of a sudden. Arianna managed to get herself propped up on her elbows and tried to scramble backwards before the troll could turn. But once again, she was too slow. The troll turned, and without hesitation, plunged the sword through her stomach and into the ground below her. Arianna gasped at the odd sensation of the rough metal tearing through her insides. It was painful…but somehow it was already a fading pain. Dull to her already fuzzy mind.

Legolas felt as if someone had ripped his heart out of his chest and plunged it into a cold stream. He could think of nothing else but getting to Arianna. He cried out her name over and over, but he couldn't be heard over the terrified roars of the orcs and trolls who were fleeing. Finally he reached her side, dropping to his knees. A slow trickle of blood dripped from the corner of her mouth, dripping into the dust beside her head. He stood and pulled the enormous sword from her stomach, tossing it aside and falling to his knees once again.

"Arianna?" he called to her, fearing the worst. He felt his heart skip a beat when her eyes fluttered open. "Ari! Thank the gods, you're alive." She smiled up at him, her lips trembling at the effort.

"Not for very much longer I think…" she said slowly. "I can't feel anything…no pain…no sadness…" Her eyes were glassy, he wasn't certain if she'd be able to see for much longer. Legolas barely noticed Erynion land on his shoulder, hooting sadly.

"No…" he breathed, shaking his head. "No, you're going to be alright." He insisted. "We're going to get married remember? And live long and happy lives, and have children and grandchildren…" He shook her gently, trying to keep her with him. "Ari…you can't die, not now. Not now that we've won!"

"We…we won?" she asked. Legolas nodded, looking up through the Black gate.

"Yes. The tower is collapsing. Sauron has been defeated." Arianna smiled again.

"That's good…" her eyes were fluttering shut, and Legolas was struggling to keep from tears.

"Arianna? Arianna! No, no stop. You…you can't leave me." Her eyes fluttered again, she was having a hard time keeping them open he could tell, and breathing was a struggle.

"I'm not going anywhere…not really." She breathed. "I love you Legolas…never forget that." She took a shuttering breath. "I will…always…" And with that, her eyes shut for the final time and she didn't breathe in again. Legolas felt his tears spill over and he pulled Arianna's body to his chest, burying his face in her hair. It wasn't fair…they'd lasted through everything up till now, and then here, at the end of it all, she was taken away. Her life had been stolen from her, and from him… it wasn't fair.

Marina clutched at Pippin's arm, cheering as the distant tower collapsed. They'd done it! They'd won! She watched in awe as the earth itself collapsed in on itself, creating a canyon where the Black gate once stood. The collapse continued, splitting to go around the army of men, and swallowing almost the entirety of Sauron's forces.

But then something happened to make the cheer die on Marina's lips. Mount Doom exploded in a fiery eruption of lava and fire. But…Frodo and Sam…they were still inside! "No…" she exclaimed. "No, it can't be…" Tears filled her eyes as she stared in horror at the exploding mountain. They'd won, Frodo and Sam couldn't die now.

Pippin was on his knees beside her, sobbing at the loss of their two best friends. Marina looked to see Gandalf staring in horror, tears running down his own face. Legolas knelt in the distance…but…Marina gasped. He didn't seem to have even noticed the eruption of the volcano, but she could see why. Arianna hung limply in his arms, one hand dangling lifeless on the ground beside them.

First Frodo and Sam, and now Arianna as well? Marina shook her head, choking on her tears. She collapsed to the ground, leaning her head forward until her hair brushed the dirt. She buried her face in her hands, sobbing her heart out. She felt Pippin crawl to her and wrap his arms around her, and she leaned into his chest, unable to stop the tears from coming. It was all too much to handle right now…too much for any of them.

Please don't kill me!!! *hides* I will only say this: "It's not what it seems". Yeah...I dunno what that's suppose to mean, I stole it from Swan Princess, lol.

Please do review though ^^

Your humble (and rather frightened) authoress,

Whisperwings