Disclaimer: Nope I do still not own any of these characters :'(
Chapter 21
Aragorn POV
We rode into Dunharrow two days after the beacons had been lit, there were many tents around the base of the mountain, but not as many as I had hoped for. We rode up the side of the mountain and made camp on the cliff that jutted out over the men in the fields. I frowned as I looked over towards Théoden's tent and saw Eówyn take her pack inside a neighbouring one. This was no place for a woman, least of all one who was now heir to a throne. I had a bad feeling at allowing Eówyn to come this far, Merry had also come and that would lead nowhere good either.
I looked out over the men assembled below and although it looked many to my eyes, I feared it would not be enough. "Six thousand spears. Less than half of what I'd hoped for." Théoden spoke from beside me and I sighed, "Six thousand will not be enough to break the lines of Mordor." Théoden nodded, but answered positively. "More will come." I shook my head and turned away from the view below me. "Every hour lost hastens Gondor's defeat. We have 'til dawn, then we must ride." I told him as I walked away to secure Brego and settle myself into a tent.
As I approached the remainder of the fellowship I watched as the horses began to act strange around a strange road in the side of the mountain. Legolas also noted it and commented, "The horses are restless, and the men are quiet." I looked around and found that many of the men kept their eyes clear of the road. "That road there... where does that lead?" Gimli asked and Legolas studied the road before answering, "It is the road to the Dimholt, the door under the mountain." Eómer nodded as he walked past with his saddle over his arm. "None who venture there ever return. That mountain is evil." I sighed and walked into my tent, determined to get some sleep before tomorrow. I drifted into an uneasy slumber and jolted awake, a dagger in my hand to find Gamling at the entrance to my tent. "Forgive me my lord. You are needed in the Kings tent." I nodded and stood ready to dress.
As I walked towards Théoden's tent, I finished buckling my belt and as I ducked inside, I noticed the strange cloaked figure stood apart from Théoden. "I take my leave." Théoden said as he bowed to the figure and then left the tent; the figure turned to me and lowered its hood. "My Lord Elrond." I bowed deeply as my adopted father's face was revealed to me and he nodded back, "I come on behalf of one whom I love. Arwen insisted I bring this to you. She has forgone journeying into the west, so that she may see this darkness conquered. I fear for her though, you know that as Sauron's power grows hers will wane. I worry that my daughter's fate is becoming tied to the ring, Aragorn. That it will be her end and yours." I shook my head, "It will not be our end but his."
Elrond nodded, "You ride to war, but not to victory. Sauron's armies march on Minas Tirith, this you know. But in secret he sends another force which will attack from the river. A fleet of Corsairs ships sails from the south. They reach the city in a days time." I started, that would severely cripple any of the remaining forces of Gondor. Elrond spoke my fears aloud, "You're outnumbered, Aragorn. You need more men." I shook my head, "There are none." Elrond studied me and sighed, "There are those who dwell in the mountain." I stared at him, spluttering out, "Murderers. Traitors. You would call upon them to fight? They believe in nothing. They answer to no one." Surely he could see the madness in this.
Elrond swept back his cloak and revealed a long object as he spoke, "They will answer to the king of Gondor, Anduril, Flame of the West, forged from the shards of Narsil." I stared at the blade of my ancestors in awe. "Sauron will not have forgotten the sword of Elendil. The blade that was broken shall return to Minas Tirith." Elrond nodded, "The man who can wield the power of this sword can summon to him an army more deadly than any that walks this earth. Put aside the Ranger. Become who you were born to be. Take the Dimholt Road." I nodded and turned to look at the man who had raised me, "I give hope to men, but I keep none for myself." He placed a hand on my shoulder. "Arwen has hope that you will win, as have I. Use that my son." He hugged me briefly before leaving the tent.
I looked down at the blade in my hand, before turning and rushing back to my tent. I quickly repacked any of my belongings that had been removed from my pack and strode out towards Brego with my saddle. I worked quickly to prepare him, wanting to leave as soon as possible in order to reach the coast in time. I paused at the sound of footsteps behind me. "Why are you doing this? The war lies to the East. You cannot leave on the eve of battle." Eówyn spoke from behind me, continuing as I turned to face her. "You cannot abandon the men." I sighed, "Eówyn." I began to speak, but she cut me off. "We need you here." I frowned at that sentence and studied her face. "Why have you come?" She smiled softly and placed a hand to my cheek. "Do you not know?" I removed her hand from my cheek, "It is but a shadow and a thought that you love. I cannot give you what you seek." I told her truthfully, even though I refused to speak aloud of what I was feeling for Ariana, I knew she held my heart.
She sighed, her eyes filling with tears. She nodded and bowed to me before turning and leaving. I sighed again, checked the straps on the saddle and with the knowledge that I had everything; I led Brego towards the Dimholt. I sighed in impatience when Gimli stepped out in front of my horse. "Where do you think you're going?" He asked and I shook my head, "Not this time, Gimli. This time you must stay." As I spoke, Legolas and Boromir walked up beside us leading their horses. "Have you learned nothing of the stubbornness of Dwarves?" Legolas asked me, his eyes sparkling and Boromir nodded. "You may as well accept it. We're going with you, laddie." I sighed at Gimli's words, but nodded and together we walked into the mountain.
As we walked along the path the mist began to grow thicker around the horses hooves and a bone-chilling cold began to settle upon us. "What kind of army would linger in such a place?" Gimli asked breaking the silence. "One that is cursed. Long ago the men of the mountain swore an oath to the last king of Gondor, to come to his aid, to fight. But when the time came, when Gondor's need was dire, they fled, vanishing into the darkness of the mountain. And so Isilduir cursed them, never to rest until they had fulfilled their pledge. Who shall call them from the grey twilight, the forgotten people?"
Soon the path became too perilous to ride and we had to dismount and lead the horses forward. I thought back on the words Legolas had spoke, my hand drifting to the hilt of the sword strapped to my waist. It was not long until we reached a door made entirely of human bones, with strange markings above the entrance. A sudden shill and an unearthly noise echoed out of the darkness and, spooked, the horse bolted. I sighed, now there was only one way forward. "The way is shut. It was made by those who are dead, and the dead keep it. The way is shut." Legolas translated the markings above the door and I nodded, before walking into the darkness with Boromir and Legolas following me. I smiled as Gimli's words echoed down the passage. "Well, this is a thing unheard of. An Elf would go underground, where a Dwarf dare not. Oh, I'd never hear the end of it."
We walked for what seemed like an age, the light of the torches offering very little comfort. It was only when the passage widened and opened out into a great cavernous room that I began to hope. The cavern shone in the murky light that drifted in through a vent in the ceiling of the mountain. "The way is shut. It was made by those who are dead, and the dead keep it. The way is shut." A croaky voice spoke and the words echoed around the room, shapes appearing out of the mist. We all drew our swords and stood backs to each other as the shapes formed into the mountain men of old. Their king stood in front of me.
He sneered at me and spoke again, "The dead do not suffer the living to pass." I grew angry; with each passing minute Gondor and Ariana were suffering. "You will suffer me." I growled out. "I summon you to fulfil your oath." The king of the dead laughed, "None but the king of Gondor may command me." He drew his sword and swung it at my head; I raised the newly forged sword and prayed that it would block it. The blades clashed together and the King stared at it. "That blade was broken!" I lunged forward and wrapped my hand around his throat. "It has been remade. Fight for us and regain your honour." I told him as I released him from my grip. "What say you? What say you? I am Isildur's heir. Fight for me. And I will hold your oaths fulfilled. What say you?" I spoke and my heart plummeted as the figures began to fade.
Gimli placed a hand on my shoulder. "They had no honour in life. They have none now in death. Come laddie, if we can get out of here we may still make it to the city in time." I nodded and followed my friends out of the mountain and down towards the coast. As we walked down the side of the mountain towards the fleet of ships that were travelling towards Minas Tirith, I felt a shiver creep up my spine. I turned to find the King of the Dead behind me, "You will release us and consider all debts paid if we aid you now?" He asked and I nodded. He bowed his head. "Then we will follow you."
I smiled and with renewed hope I strode down towards the river. As the boats came level with where we stood I called out to the lead ship. "You may go no further! You will not enter Gondor." The captain of the ship laughed and looked over at us. "Who are you to deny us passage?" I turned to Legolas and spoke softly. "Legolas, fire a warning shot past the boson's ear." Gimli chuckled, "Mind your aim." I rolled my eyes and sighed, watching as Legolas aimed only for Gimli to knock the base of his bow as he loosed the arrow, making it kill the boson. Gimli shrugged unapologetically as Boromir chuckled, "Oh. That's it, right. We warned you. Prepare to be boarded." I looked grimly at the corsairs as they began to laugh. "Boarded? By you and whose army?" The captain asked through his laughter. "This army." I called out as the army of the dead came running through me and onto the ships, clearing them quickly.
The ghostly army sailed the ships onwards up the coast to the port close to the city and there we found a battalion of orcs waiting for us. "There's plenty for the both of us, May the best dwarf win." Gimli spoke as we readied ourselves along the side of the boat. Boromir placed a hand on my shoulder as the orcs began to call out to us, jeering that we were late. I leapt over the side of the boat and ran towards the orcs with my sword drawn, knowing that my friends and the ghost army were following.
We made short work of the orcs and the river and made our way onto the plains before the city, to be faced with carnage. It seemed that Sauron had reached the men from the east and they had come in droves, each aboard on Oliphant. I focused back on the battle before me when I heard Boromir sounding the Horn of Gondor and Gimli and Legolas calling out numbers. With Gimli protesting the even though Legolas had killed the Oliphant, its driver and the archers on its back. "That still only counts as one." He called and I let myself sink into the battle, hoping that when I came out of this everyone I cared for was still standing. Although as the sky over Mordor erupted into fire, I felt a brief sliver of doubt.