Oh boy, story's finishing soon! Give or take, this chapter or the next.
Enjoy and review!
~littledragoneyes
Chapter 11:
I reared up, striking an Orc backwards, and Legolas shot an arrow, still on my back. "Good hit, Arod!" He congratulated me, stroking my steaming neck of sweat. I let out a neigh of thanks.
Like Caruryn and I used to do, Legolas and I fought together. Rider and steed together make an invincible match. Separated - we fall. Maybe it was just my stubbornness that made me uncooperative. Maybe it was something about my arrogance and pride that made me act stupid. Because, after all, in time, things do change and I must change with it as well.
That's it, Arod. Go with the flow...
A confusion of swords, spears, arrows, and axes were everywhere. I tasted pain when I stumbled and an Orc nicked my belly with his sharp weapon. Half-blinded by a new fury, I struck out with my hind feet, trampling it. I love to trample.
This isn't half-bad, I thought as I panted, before taking down an Orc that got too close to me. But I'm already used to it, so you can't do anything about it.
All except there are too many Orcs for me to be comfortable with. I wonder if Legolas is okay with it.
Twisting around, I side-glanced the Elf, who hadn't shown a slightest sign of weariness or pain. I snorted. Elves. Their petty perfectness. Glowing, clean, healthy, tall, pretty - Elves. I'll never get used to them.
Grunting, I turned to another Orc before the ground slid out from underneath me. I let out a whinny as I slipped on a particular patch of wet grass. Groaning to myself, I realized that there was a dead man below me, bleeding like mad. No wonder, his face is the color of the clouds. The grass was soaked - I slipped and stumbled.
"Arod!" Legolas yelled, his foot stuck on the stirrup. He sounded exasperated.
Oops.
I scowled to myself. Men and their stupid contraptions. Why can't they ride bareback? Gandalf's done it, they should too.
The Orc advanced towards me, growling and snarling all at the same time. I grimaced at the disgusting mess it looked, and leapt up, half-slipping and sliding all over the place. Right into the Orc.
It let out a roar of confusion as I slipped on the grass, plowing into its belly, wincing at the hard plates of armor hit me. The stirrup that Legolas was stuck on was loosened, and I let out a sigh of relief. At least he wasn't stuck anymore, or else I would've had him dragging around painfully. But nor was he on my back anymore.
A twang! of the arrow told me that the Elf had struck down the Orc I knocked over. I got up, shaking back my mane that got into my eyes and scanned the fields. My heart sank when I saw hundreds of more Orcs to go. But I'm tired...
My gaze caught sight of Brego and Aragorn, working side by side to defeat the Orcs. His chocolate brown eyes were focused and narrowed in concentration as he defended Aragorn against an Orc creeping up behind the Isildur's heir.
And then I saw Firefoot, his gray fur blending in particularly well with the silver armor that both men and the Orcs wore. He kicked and bucked, striking the knee of an Orc, who fell to his knees, stumbling. Then Éomer stabbed it with his sword.
Also, Shadowfax and Gandalf, bright white they were, also working together to bring down the Orcs. Not far from them were two hobbits, looking like children wearing armor and wielding blades.
Next was Patch, and Kiva. Both of them were yelling to each other, with their masters still on their backs. I blinked and swallowed past an odd feeling rising in my throat. I stared at the two of them. They were so synchronized together, kicking, rearing, bucking, biting, chopping, slicing, stabbing...
Kiva's blue eyed gaze caught mine, when she spun around to snap at another Orc approaching her. We stared at each other with wide eyes. For once, I was lost in those deep blue eyed depths...and she too, before she broke our long glance as Patch let out a whinny of anger when his master was knocked off his back.
Shaking my head, I looked somewhere else and tried to get her out of my head. Think about her one more time, Arod, I threatened myself, And you'll get yourself killed.
So I did.
I grinned.
Turns out I'm not the only one who fights with their masters.
Except...
There was a certain screech in the air that I didn't want to hear. I looked up and my heart sank even more into the shadows, drowning in evil. Nazgûl spiraled overhead, the Witch-Kings and the horrible fell beasts targeting prey. I let out a whinny as I remembered Snowmane and Théoden and that Witch-King that tried to kill him. And Éowyn...Merry too.
They were here, as well, avenging their leader's, the Witch-King of Angmar, death.
Oh no...
Then a sudden bird cry was heard. Followed by more.
I scanned the dark skies, and my gaze lit up when I saw giant eagles diving and swooping. Golden eagles plunged at the Nazgûl, stabbing at their eyes with their hooked beaks and claws. The Nazgûl fought back as well, but the eagles were clever, several of sizing up on one at a time. When one Nazgûl tried to bring down one eagle, the others ripped it off of their fellow companion and disabled it furthermore.
"Eagles! The Eagles are coming!" Somebody yelled. I grinned. Then that's good. Let them handle that on their own - I've got enough on my plate already.
Yes. That's right. The Free Peoples of Middle-Earth kick butt.
And ho ho ho, I knocked down several Orcs at a time, grinning. Perhaps Middle-Earth would be free once more...Oh, great Mearas.
The ground shook beneath my feet, and I spun around to see a giant troll near me. I reared up in stunned alarm, backing away. It was armed heavily, and had a long, broad sword in his right hand. Roaring fiercely, it advanced towards men, swinging its sword, knocking people off of their feet and sending them flying far.
And that's when I saw her.
Kiva.
Her silvery mane and fur stood out the most in the darkness, as the troll stabbed a certain man she was old friends with. The man let out a dying gasp before collapsing on the ground. "No!" She yelled, and she stood in front of it, guarding the man lying on the ground. It looked as if he were dead. And I think he really was.
"You want to throw my master around like some rag doll, you'll have to go through me!" She snapped at it, her cold blue eyes glaring daggers into it. I swear, her gaze has something in it that makes even a Nazgûl back away and run.
The troll, obviously, was colorblind. It didn't even see her. It let out a roar and tried to cleave her head off with his sword. Kiva yelped and ducked. Great Mearas, what is she doing? I squinted and saw it.
She was defending, alright. But not anyone important. In fact, she was defending her dead master.
I rolled my eyes. This was Kiva. A mighty tough, fierce and skilled war horse. Disciplined and obedient and strategic. And there she was, defending her dead master. And there was no way she could stand a single chance against that troll. Though I did understand why she was doing that, and I almost stopped myself completely from helping her. She was angry. She was hurt. She was furious at fate for deciding to take out her master. She had every right to defend her dead master.
Like I was.
I was, too, angry and hurt and lost by fate. They took Caruryn, why wouldn't I be angry? But I was also blinded. Blinded by grief and fury. All I needed to do was look past that veil of sorrow and anger and see the brighter light shining.
But now wasn't the time to defend what was gone. Though there wouldn't be a master like the master Kiva had that she would want again, it was time to move on and keep moving. If fate decided who was to die and what was to happen, then so be it.
Don't let fate change its mind and let Kiva be taken down too, A thought in the back of my mind said to me. If you want to act, it's best if you act now.
So I did.
I moved forward, plowing through snarling and growling Orcs, kicking them and trampling them. All I was focused on was Kiva. Get her out of harm's way.
As the troll swung his blade up to deliver a final blow, that's when I leapt into the air and knocked her aside.
"HEY!" She shouted as we tumbled into the damp and bloody grass, landing on a pile of dead men. We both got up, panting. She glared daggers at me. I seriously did back away. "Arod, what's your problem?" She snapped.
"I'm sorry - "
"I was going to kill that troll! I was defending Breothain!" I assumed Breothain was her master.
I told her, "Breothain is dead, Kiva. There's no reason why you should be defending dead men." I tried to reason her.
"But there is no reason why you should plow me aside like that, Arod - "
"No!" I yelled at her, with some anger in my voice that she probably had not had directed towards her in a while. Because no one had ever dared to stand up to this fighting female war horse with serious anger issues. "I lost my master, too, Kiva!" I snarled. The silvery-gray mare stared at me, unblinking, before turning tail and stomping away in her anger.
"Kiva!" I shouted, and sighed. I will never understand she-horses.
Kiva walked right away from Arod, who had just saved her life from that troll. Breothain...She thought to herself sadly. Why did you have to go? She heard Arod calling her name loudly, pushing past the Orcs that were still living and snarling. Taking down a few, she tried to ignore the fact that Arod had just saved her life.
Arod was stupid. He shouldn't try to interfere with her business when she was in that sort of mood. If any horse knew better, Arod didn't. Because he was rotten, stupid, idiotic, dumb, stubborn, arrogant, proud -
Wait.
If any horse knew better...Kiva thought to herself. They would not come barging in on my fight, knocking me aside and saving my life from that troll...Arod didn't know better, but he knew better than to stand and watch me fall besides my master...
Kiva stopped walking away and turned back to face a very tired yet patient looking Arod. "Kiva," he began, but she cut him off and said something that she hadn't said in a while. "Thanks." She grunted.
Yes, Kiva was a very proud she-war horse, but I don't think I'd ever live to hear her say "Thanks."
I opened my mouth and was once again lost in those blue-eyed depths.
"I've lost my master, too." I told her quietly, despite the roar of the war going on around us. I was surprised that no Orcs saw us or interrupted us. Weird. "Caruryn. I lost him at the battle at the Fangorn Forest with the Riders of Rohan. He was good to me, as well. He was the kindest, funniest master that I will ever have. But then I lost him, and I blamed myself. I did. And then I was given away to an Elf named Legolas. I was blinded by my sorrow and anger that I didn't see that he was only trying to help me. And then, after a while, I did. All I had to do was look away from the darkness and see the light. Because if fate decides that our masters must go, then I will accept it wholeheartedly."
Awkward silence was made between us, before she murmured so quietly that I strained myself to hear it. "Thank you, Arod, again, for everything."
And for some weird reason why, our faces were a lot closer to each other than I felt comfortable with. Her blue eyes had something more than friendliness...and our faces were closing in. Fast.
"Hey, Arod!"
I whirled around, sighing and gave Kiva an apologetic look and glared at Brego, whose jaw opened for about ninety leagues to the earth and beyond. His eyes lit up when he saw Kiva and I together. His mouth was open, already ready to say something to embarrass me furthermore.
"Don't..." I warned him, feeling my ears grow hot. Did he see that whole dramatic save-Kiva-from-the-troll thing and overheard our little talk? I hope not...
His mouth quirked a smile before the cheerfulness disappeared. "Sorry to butt in your nice little romantic talk," he taunted me, and I snorted while Kiva chuckled, "But Aragorn's run into the troll that you saved Kiva from...and he's sort of in trouble. Can you take five minutes from your lover and help me out?"
I let out a snort. "First off," I snapped hotly. "She is not my lover - "
"Yes, I've heard that before, it is nothing new, Arod - " Brego said impatiently.
"And second, of course I'll help." I looked back at her with a new smile on my face. She smiled back.
Brego trotted towards us and moved in between Kiva and I. "Stop day-dreaming and let's go." He said quickly. "Isildur's heir's life is on the line now, move, come on!"
We raced away towards the giant troll, standing tall above the others. It was easy to find Aragorn. And there he was, lying on the ground.
"Aragorn!" I shouted. "Move - " I was plowed aside by an Orc, dead. "Your butt!" I finished my sentence.
He didn't.
I shoved the dead Orc off of me, and got up, huffing and panting from the effort. You know how heavy Orcs can be?
Brego tried to get to the troll, but an Orc got to him first. He let out a neigh of exasperation.
Painfully, the troll stomped on Aragorn, on his chest. He was lucky he was wearing that armor, or else he would've been crushed to death for sure. "Arag - " I yelled before another dead Orc and man hit me at full force by my side, knocking me to the ground. Alright, that worked. Both Brego and I are occupied.
I watched as Isildur's heir yanked out a dagger and stabbed the troll on its foot that held him down. The troll let out a roar of pain. Didn't they wear shoes or something? I wondered.
Just as Brego helped me shove off that dead Orc and man, we leapt up to our feet, ready to help.
Eh, we were late. Again.
But what I saw was what I wanted to see.
We both looked towards Mordor, and saw the Eye of Sauron, crying out in pain. We could all hear it in our minds. The army of Sauron looked towards Mordor and to their Dark Lord, uncertainty and fear in their faces. Yeah, that's right. Be scared and stayed scared.
And then they fled. Aragorn stood up, panting and weary, with the others, and looked on, holding our breaths.
And then it happened.
The Tower of Barad-dûr slowly fell over, crumbling. The Eye of Sauron was there for a second more, fear in his gaze, before disappearing and releasing a large shockwave.
That was it.
Middle-Earth was free of Sauron's evil and dark clutches.
No more would we cower in fear of the wrath of shadows. No more would we wander in the dark forests, watching for our lives. No more would people be scared of the future. We would all walk free in the sunlight for days to come.
The army of the West cheered happily. Brego and I let out loose neighs of pleasure, and I spotted Shadowfax, Firefoot, Patch, Legolas, Aragorn, Gimli, Merry, Pippin, Gandalf, and many more, delight on their faces. And my spirits were lifted even more when I saw delight on Kiva's face.
She saw me staring at her, and her smile widened. The surrounding landscape crumbled, falling in. The Black Gate fell as well, crumbling and caving in, taking much of Sauron's army in as well.
The men cheered in our victory.
Except...Mount Doom erupted in a large explosion. And much of the cheering was ceased. Dismay, shock, and alarm spread through the army as we watched Mount Doom spew lava and fire into the air, another large column of smoke billowing from it heavily.
"What?" Brego didn't get it. "Why did everybody stop cheering? Are we going to die of that lava?"
"No, stupid!" I snorted. "Frodo, and that Sam! The Ringbearers...they didn't make it out?"
Though the eruption did kill the remaining Nazgûl, to my delight, I felt the pain of others. Three eagles landed, who were circling overhead, near Gandalf. The old wizard quickly made his way towards them and mounted one of them. All three flapped their wings and lifted into the air, flying swiftly towards Mount Doom.
Not long later, the three eagles made their way back, and in two of their clutches were two small figures. Both of curly haired. One of them with brown curly hair, and the other with reddish-brown. Both looked unconscious, yet they were breathing.
And then we let loose the rest of our victory cries.
Indeed, we had made history.
Middle-Earth is saved! Yeah! Whoohoo!
But never fear...there's still a chapter to go. May be a little short, though. ;D
Reviews make me very happy. I made brownies too. :) Have as many as you want.
Cheers,
littledragoneyes
