I had fun writing this chapter, it's nice to write something that completely comes out of my mind. I know the elves did actually fight the Orcs and Nazgûl that had occupied Dol Guldur, but I have no knowlege of how any of it happened. And being the head of an army is much harder to write about that I thought ! But I enjoy it, and I try to portray Amelia, Silvia and Jovan exactly as I picture them in my head.

Thanks to Jenna Linda and bamX5-837 for your reviews !

I hope you like this chapter ! And please tell me what you think of Silvia and Jovan, I would like to know your feelings about them to see if I'm writing them properly :)

We traveled back to the forest of Mirkwood, but I did not know what to expect. It was an Elven forest, so I suppose I thought it would be like Lothlorien or Rivendell, but it was not. In fact, it was rather gruesome. The forest was dark and seemed evil, and a lot of trees were rotting away. The atmosphere was heavy, and it seemed there was no wildlife whatsoever.

It only took us a few hours of walking to arrive at the camp, during which time no one spoke. I had tried questioning Marcello, but he was adamant I wait until I met up with Silvia, but questions were burning inside my head. I looked over to Boromir quite often, but he never looked up. I wondered if he was okay, but did not dare ask him.

The camp was on the edge of the forest, at the foot of a small hill tipped by an evil looking fortress, with black stone and high pointed towers. What that Dol Guldur ? Did it belong to the Elves ? If so, the Mirkwood Elves were very different to those I had met so far. I recalled Legolas originated from this forest, yet I doubted he would fit into this fortress.

The encampment was huge. It had at least four hundred tents, all made out of dark leather, placed in perfect alignment. We marched right through the center "street", towards the largest tent. Silvia's tent. My heart raced with excitement and many of the men we passed bowed, recognizing me. I smiled to most, but did not spare them any time. Silvia was my priority.

A man with short black hair stood guard at the entrance to her tent. He did not speak as we neared, and stepped aside to let Boromir and I through when Marcello waved to him. I told Marcello to stay outside, took a deep breath, and pulled the leather to the side to let myself in.

A large table was set in the middle of the tent, with maps spread out all over it. There were also a few daggers, mugs of ale and small figurines representing the army. Silvia was in a deep argument with Jovan, my Lieutenant. Jovan was a short man, the top of his head reaching my nose. He had short curly brown hair and big blue eyes. He was a kind man, and was the most honorable person I had ever met. He was a great leader, and a good friend of mine. He was wearing light chest armor over Numör's traditional uniform, consisting of a white tunic and blue trousers. He looked up at I entered, first noticing Boromir. His eyes screwed up in confusion, but lit up when they met mine. " Amelia ! " He exclaimed, joy clearly heard in his voice as he rushed over to hug me. " It's so good to see you ! "

I hugged him back, genuinely pleased have found him again. " As it is to see you my friend. " I answered him. " This here is my friend Boromir, captain of Gondor. " I said. " Boromir, this is Jovan. " I smiled as the two men shoot hands, exchanging polite hellos.

I looked over to Silvia, who was tucking her long blond hair behind her ears. She dared not move, seemingly just as nervous as I was at our reunion. It had been over five months since I had last seen her. Jovan noticed this, and kindly led Boromir out of the tent, leaving Silvia and I to ourselves.

" Mia. " She said, nodding. " You found us then. "

" I did. " I answered slowly. " Though sooner than I expected. " My voice failed as we looked each other. Her hair had grown, and now reached the middle of her back. She still had bangs that fell into her eyes, so much like mine did. She was wearing an outfit similar to mine, though instead of wearing shorts and socks, she wore blue trousers underneath her white tunic. She was barefooted, like she often was, and her green eyes stared up at me in disbelief. I suddenly walked over to her, and hugged her like I had never hugged anyone before. " I missed you so much. " I muttered.

" I missed you too Mia. "

" It's been too long. " I said as I let her go.

" It has. " She said. " Now come, we shall catch up later, I will be meeting the Elves before tonight. " She proceeded to place a few more figurines on the large map on the table. I examined it: Our encampment was identified by blue men, the fortress on the hill was full of black ones. And on the other side of the hill, were green ones. Three armies ?

" What is going on ? " I asked her, suddenly in an official mood. If we were at war, then she was right, we would catch up later. Silvia called for Boromir and Jovan, who had apparently been just outside.

" When we arrived in Mirkwood, we were greeted by the Elves. " Said Silvia. " They were wary of us, and at first did not want to let us stay, not even on the outskirts. "

" But we defended our rights, and came to an agreement. " Continued Jovan. " They will give us Dol Guldur, as long as we rid them of the evil of this person called Sauron. "

" Sauron is here ? " Asked Boromir, shocked. " How did he get so far ? "

" He is not here, he is further south somewhere, I do not know. " Said Silvia, obviously not caring.

" Mordor. " I helped, pointing to it's location on the map. " He resides here, in the tower of Barad-dûr. "

Silvia and Jovan nodded their understanding. " Well apparently Dol Guldur is his original fortress, if we are to believe the Elves. " Continued Silvia. " Though he is no longer there, the fortress is still heavily occupied by orcs, trolls, and under the orders of something called a Nazgûl. "

My jaw dropped. Not one of them again ! " The Witch-King Of Angmar ? " Exclaimed Boromir, terror clearly heard in his voice. I put a hand on his arm to try to calm him, though I was a bit fearful myself.

" No. " Replied Jovan. " His name is Khamûl apparently. There were two others, but they left just before we arrived. In fact, not that long ago, they had all disappeared, but Khamûl came back. "

Silence came over us.

" So we have to invade Dol Guldur, kill everything we find, including a Nazgûl, and take the fortress for our own. And then the Elves will let us settle there ? " I asked, trying to clarify the situation in my mind.

Silvia nodded. " That is why Thranduil is meeting us tonight. " She said. " He is the Elvenking, and we attack together at dawn. We've been planning this for weeks, we did not expect to find you so soon. "

I nodded. The plan seemed solid, and I was glad the Elves seemed accepting. I walked around the table, studying the maps.

" This is folly. " Interrupted Boromir. " The fortress is on a hill, and it is made in Sauron's impenetrable black stone. " He said. This is when he reminded me of the unbelieving, underestimating, beaten man I grew to hate during the Council of Elrond. " And with a Nazgûl at their lead, it is impossible. Spare your men's lives, and find other land. "

" Actually, " corrected Jovan in his calm, matter-of-fact voice, " It is not folly. We have a whole battle strategy that we have established over a period of time with the Elves, who know the forest, the hill and the fortress inside out. " He said. " We will be fine, it is just a matter of carrying out the plan. "

That is why I had chosen Jovan as my Lieutenant. He was very intellectual, and looked at warfare the same way he looked at a game of chess. His plans were always fool proof, and with a kind heart and good will, he was perfect for the job.

" You barely have a thousand men ! " Continued Boromor, looking to me for back up. But I did not provide him with any.

" My men, Boromir, are the best warriors you will ever find. They have been trained to perfection, a lot of them by my own hand, and carry honor and good will in their hearts, as well as a bit of my madness. They are the best. " I said, rather angry at him. " And as Lieutenant Jovan has pointed out, we have a plan. We do not go into battle light heartedly. "

" It is Captain Jovan now " Answered my friend, with a large smile on his face. He then turned to Boromir again. " And we have 1982 men, which is a lot more than what you thought. And that is without the Elves. " He said, proud of himself.

When she saw my confused look, Silvia continued. " We lost three of our men on our way here. " She said. " We were ambushed. I am sorry. "

I shook my head, letting her know I did not blame her. I know loosing three men is nothing, but we rarely lost any at all. That is why I trained them so well, and why it did not matter so much that we were often outnumbered. And Silvia knew that I liked to keep an exact account of my army, and kept lists of their names, ages, wives, date of enrollment and, if need be, date and circumstance of death. I knew it was a bit excessive, but my men were my life, and I owed them as much respect as I could possibly give them.

" Boromir, " I said softy, " You do not have to fight. You can stay behind with the doctors, and help the wounded. I understand. " I truly meant every word I said, I never sent any one who was unwilling into battle.

" No " He said. " I go where you go. Aragorn made me swear to protect you. "

I rolled my eyes, and Jovan lead him out to show him his tent. I told him I would not be long, but I wanted to talk to Silvia.

" Aragorn ? " She asked, raising her eyebrows in a cheeky manner, making me laugh.

" Yes, Aragorn. " I grinned like a five year old. " He, um... Well, where do I start ? " I said, and we sat down in the chairs in the corner of the room. I told her my tale from the moment I had come across Aragorn. I told her about the Nazgûl, about Rivendell, about the ring, about the Fellowship, Moria, and then Lothlorien. She was captivated, and only ever interrupted if she did not understand something. " And then this Marcello guy found us and... Well, here I am. " I finished.

She grinned. " I can not wait to meet this Aragorn. " She said. " He must be quite something, to be able to capture your heart. I was beginning to give up on you ! " She laughed.

I smiled also, but I had other questions for her. " Who is Marcello anyway ? " I asked her.

" He is the new Lieutenant. " She said. " Curtis decided to stay behind with his wife and children, so he needed replacing. Jovan took his place as Captain. I hope that is okay with you. " She said.

" It is perfect. " I agreed.

" So we needed a Lieutenant. Marcello is young, but his father is a great captain in your father's legion, and he was personally trained by him. No one else in the army had the qualifications for the position, so I did not have much choice in the matter. Though he is very quiet, he does a good job. And I keep a close eye on him, so I'll know if anything is wrong. " She said.

" Well, I trust your judgment. When this is over, I'll ask Jovan to train a man of his choice to be Lieutenant. I am not too fond on the idea of having a newcomer as Lieutenant, but you are right, for now we have no choice. " I said, more to myself than to Silvia. " When is Thranduil arriving ? "

" Sunset. " She said. " You have a little time before then. Unpack, and relax. You'll need all the rest you can get for tomorrow. "

I smiled at her, and left the tent. I saw Boromir smoking outside the second tent to the right, so I made my over to him, my heart feeling lighter than it had in a long time. Though war was bearing over us like a storm cloud, I was reunited with my friends and my army. I was at home, so I could not feel any better. Well, I would if Aragorn were there.

The tent, thankfully, had two separate beds inside, one on each side. Boromir had taken the one on the left, and my bags had been dropped onto the one on the right. I decided I could not be bothered to do anything, so I just took my cloak, corset and tunic off. I found a new undershirt at the end of my bed, clean and with longer sleeves than my old one, which only reached just past my elbows. I also took my gauntlets off, and weapons, just leaving my daggers. I stepped outside, and found the sky was turning red. " Red sky at night, Shepard's delight... " I muttered to myself. The weather should be fine the next day, which was always good for battle. I sat next to Boromir, who was happily humming to himself as he smoked.

" Mia ! " He greeted me. " I like your men, they are so much more lively than the Elves ! " He said, as he nodded to Jovan as he went past. " And they are much more professional than the ones who fight for Gondor, more hospitable and open. You have done a good job. " He said.

" It took me years to find the right recipe. " I admitted. " But thank you. I am proud of each and every one of them. "

Silvia joined us a few minutes later, and we spoke together. She and Boromir actually got on quite well, and they shared the exact same witty satiric humor. I was glad they liked each other, the contrary would have been a blow. Once the sun had fully set, Jovan came to fetch us. " The Elves have arrived, My Ladies. "

We got up, and all four of us made our way back to the tent we used for headquarters. I let Silvia take the lead, seeing as she was the one that had set everything up. I followed her, then Jovan and finally Boromir entered the tent. We found three Elves waiting for us, the leader easily identifiable. He was tall, and had long golden hair styled in the exact same way as Legolas. In fact, upon looking at him closely, he had similar traits as my Elf friend, making me wonder if there was any relation between the two. Legolas did, after all, originate from Mirkwood. He wore a small silver crown, and long green and white robes, realizing they were similar to the new robes my army was wearing. Though physically young, a great power and presence emanated from him, suggesting he was truly much, much older than he looked. Either side of him were two shorter, yet fearsome looking blond Elves. They were dressed in green armor, and carried a bow and arrows.

" Greetings, King Thranduil. " Said Silvia, as she bowed before the Elvenking. I also bowed, and noticed Boromir and Jovan did as well. " You remember my Captain, Jovan. " She said, waving to the man. " This is Boromir, Captain of Gondor " she continued, " And this is Amelia, our true leader, and Princess of Numör. "

I bowed my head again. " It is a pleasure to meet you. " I said to the Elf.

" I have heard much about you. " He said in reply. I looked up to see he was also bowing his head to me, which immediately made me respect him. He was the first person to actually do that since I had arrived in Middle-Earth. It was not the fact that he made me feel empowered that I liked, it was the fact that he did not think himself superior. " I am glad to meet you, though I am curious as to how you arrived here. " He said. " But you shall tell me that another time. This is Elmo " he said, and the Elf to his right bowed his head, " and Mahtan. " And the other Elf bowed his head. " They are my Lieutenants. "

We proceeded to go over the battle strategy, fixing the time and places each of our armies would attack and then proceed to meet up. Both of our armies put together gave us a force of approximately 3500 men, which was not too bad. We estimated Dol Guldur to have around 4000 orcs, so we were not too outnumbered. What worried us the most was indeed the Nazgûl, and the few Trolls we knew they had. But we established plans for them as well, and after hours of negotiations, the Elves left our encampment, bidding us a good night, leaving us to ready ourselves for the next day's battle.

Once we were back in our tent and getting into bed, Boromir started up a conversation I was not expecting. " Do you realize who King Thranduil is ? " He asked me, as he pulled his tunic over his head.

I was pulling the covers over my legs as I shook my head. " Should I ? " I asked, not really interested. I just wanted to go to sleep.

" He is Legolas' father. " Said Boromir, as he turned to me with a stern face. " Did you not see the resemblance ? "

To be honest, I had not, and I shook my head. I thought his hair looked the same as Legolas', but then again Elves are Elves to me, they were all so perfect I did not see any differences between them. " Should we tell him about his son ? " I asked, as Boromir also snuggled into his bed.

" I don't think so. The quest is secret, we can not tell anyone. " He said as he yawned.

I sighed as I closed my eyes. It was not my problem. I thought about the battle plans for the next day as I felt myself falling asleep, but then Boromir spoke again.

" It is odd, the way you are treated around here. " He said.

" Well, I am a princess, or have you forgotten ? " I asked, probably not very nicely seeing as I was half asleep and he was keeping me awake.

" No I remember. It is just that you are a woman... I did not think that many people would accept your status as a warrior. " He muttered.

I shrugged, forgetting that he would not be able to see my answer. I let myself fall into darkness, enjoying the peace and rest. Until Boromir started snoring. I sat up and looked over at my friend's face, and the small grin that was plastered over his face as he snored. It was going to be a long night...