Hey everyone! Sorry for the super-long super-random hiatus! And just before the climax too! Gosh that's like ending on a cliffhanger... Oh wait. Anyway, it's summer now and I've been gone for so long so get ready to be bombarded with lots o' chapters!
Hallie - March 20th - Tomorrow is the Day
It's crazy to think that tomorrow this will all be over. One way or another, it will end. We've been so long on this journey that I'm a little scared to see it go. What will happen? Is it possible I could die tomorrow?
I don't know. You can't ever really know the future.
As the wise turtle Master Oogway from Kung Fu Panda once said, "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift. That is why they call it the present."
So... today's life motto, I guess. Making the most out of whatever time I have left.
Speaking of tomorrow, the little green guy- The Wiser- totally just disappeared after talking to us. He's a Calaith! They're super-powerful! Is he going to help us? No. Just go ahead and strand us here, why don't you. Thanks.
I work up really early this morning- I couldn't sleep, and I didn't want to waste time lying around in bed, so I got up and started to pack all of our stuff in our bags so that leaving would be quick and easy. I had just finished when the sunrise started (yes, I was up really early). I don't know if you've ever seen a Middle Earthian sunrise, but they are beautiful. Enchanted, I sat down in the grass and watched the colour and the light seep into the sky, changing it from an inky black dotted by stars to a magnificent rainbow of reds, oranges, and blues.
I heard footsteps behind me and felt Aranor sit down. We stared out at the sunset together. "Aranor," I said as it grew lighter, "This is all going to end tomorrow."
"Hallie-"
"And we might end up dying. And so because I'm feeling particularly sappy today, I just wanted to let you know that you were the most amazing boyfriend ever, even if it was only for a month."
Aranor chuckled. "Hallie, you're not going to die tomorrow. Or the next day, or the day after that. I'll make sure of it. And since you're feeling particularly sappy today, I will respond with an equally sappy comment and tell you that you are also an amazing person, and I'm happy to get to know you for... a long time."
I smiled and leaned up against him. He kissed me on the cheek and I laughed, scrambling to get away from him, but he grabbed me back and hugged me so that I ended up sitting on his lap. Soon we heard the others begin to get up, and the sound of Liz' familiar grumble as someone struggled to wake her up. At least she'd progressed from slapping.
Iris had almost fully healed, though she still had a nasty scar and pain when she walked. That was why we had taken it slow getting to Isengard- so she could heal. We didn't really have a plant to defeat Ralin and gain our lives back, but I was fairly confident that we could, at the very least, take him with us.
Eventually Aranor and I got up and walked back to the camp, earning us a suggestive eyebrow from Liz. I rolled my eyes and we finished packing up the rest of our equipment. After we'd eaten breakfast (lembas from Lorien), we mounted our horses and started the rest of our journey to Isengard. I know I sound sappy right now, but I mentioned earlier that I was feeling particularly sappy, so I'll have a go: I really did love riding with Aranor. It was nice to wrap my arms around his waist and just kind of sit there with him. Sometimes we'd make jokes to each other or talk quietly, but most of the time we rode in a comfortable silence, and I got the feeling that he liked having me there, too.
We reached the border of the Isengard Lake around noon. I gasped as I gazed, wide-eyed, on the sight before us. At least ten elves in Lothlorien cloaks were lying dead in front of the tower, their chests slashed open. The lake around them was still stained with blood. They hadn't been there long. I tried not to gag as I stared at the bloated bodies floating slowly away from us. Eventually I just had to look away. It was too much.
"Who would do that to elves?" Iris asked, shuddering.
"Ralin," I replied tersely. "Who else." Raordell would have done that, the back of my mind nagged. But Raordell was dead. Gone.
We set up camp a bit upriver, obviously. Iris and Eddy worked together (surprise, surprise) to cook us a wonderful lunch. The rest of the day, we tried to just lounge. We were all tired, but we were going to need all of our strength for tomorrow.
Iris and Liz decided to take a nap in the tent, and Eddy and Haldir were talking about arrows, so that left Aranor and me. He dragged me a bit away from camp, kissing me passionately. We sat down underneath a tree together in the shade, kissing and talking and laughing. He was such a good friend to me... and still so much more. Eventually the birds and the dappled sunlight in the forest caused us to fall asleep, a fact I didn't realize until I woke up some time later with my face pressed into his chest.
I sat up slowly. The sun was a little lower in the sky now. We probably needed to be getting back- our friends would be worried about us, or worse, they'd have eaten dinner without us. I looked back at Aranor. He was still asleep. Smiling and trying not to laugh, I clapped once, loudly. He straightened up immediately, looking around in a frenzied confusion. I burst out laughing and stood up. Aranor grabbed my wrist, dragging me back down next to him. I was still laughing. His face had been priceless.
"That... was not nice," he muttered sleepily.
"But your face was so worth it," I managed to say between fits of giggles. He kissed me suddenly, if only to shut me up. I sobered immediately. "We should probably get back. The others will be worried."
Aranor nodded and stood up slowly, ruffling his hair- which was a complete mess. I hope I looked a little better. We wandered back into camp just as Iris was dishing out supper. "We were just going to look for you," she said, smiling.
"Sure you were," Aranor grumbled.
"What happened to you guys?" Liz asked, trying to stifle her giggles. "Got in a scuffle?"
"Fell asleep." I mumbled, sitting down on a log and grabbing the bowl of steaming stew Iris gave me. "Thanks."
"That is so improper, young lady." Liz said, grinning creepily.
"Oh no you don't-"
"To be a princess is to know which spoon to use! To be a princess is a thousand pairs of shoes!" Liz burst out singing.
"Oh, dear, what have I done?" I mumbled, putting my face in my hands.
The rest of the night was filled with laughter and plenty of happy moments, which I hoped would fuel us for our battle tomorrow. One way or another, this was all going to end.
Tomorrow is the day.
Liz - March 21st, Morning - At Long Last, the Day Hath Come
It's the equinox. Ralin's deadline. We have everything he wants us to give him, but none of us want to give it up without a fight. We could die. Especially because we have no idea what the heck we're doing. We are literally winging this. We have no plan.
Seriously. I'm not kidding. We're kind of acting along the lines of stalling Ralin until we figure out how to break the curse. Or die.
It is now six o' clock. Six hours until noon. We're all dead-tired. Aranor is really worried about Hallie - she's been pushing herself the hardest out of all of us. We haven't really gotten much sleep. I kind of woke everyone up with my nightmares, and we just couldn't fall asleep after that. Sorry, guys.
So... yeah, we're up early and all that nonsense.
I've gotta say. Waking up early sucks. But usually, when we're in Middle Earth, it doesn't matter. All those pretty sunrises, birds chirping, and the sunlight reflecting off the plants and making them look super cool. Middle Earth is just magical that way.
None of that in Isengard. Gosh, if I were Gandalf, I would have figured out that something was up with Saruman long before. I mean, really. He lives in this giant, black, somewhat-scary tower. And the weather around here reflects the personality of Mr. Gloom and Doom Saruman too. It's cloudy, cold, and drizzling. You know, the perfect weather for one of the most important fights of our lives.
Or the last fight of our lives. Depends on how you look at it.
Well, anyways, one of our ideas was to separate the objects between us. Just in case Ralin tries something tricky and separates us. So Iris got the alfirin flower, Eddy got the golden apple, and Hallie's taking the Star of Elendil.
And me? I've got my life, and I'm not about to let it go.
Can time move any slower? We don't have watches or anything here, but I swear it's only been a few minutes. The suspense will kill me if Ralin doesn't.
To pass the time, I stood up and decided to walk around a little bit. We've all been a little on edge this morning, so the air isn't filled with Hallinor's adorableness or Edwiris' fluffiness. And Haldir is just kind of hanging upside down from a tree. I think he said he was meditating or something.
I kind of want to randomly burst into song. That would cheer everyone up. I wonder how Ralin would react if we marched up to the tower singing like the seven dwarves from Snow White.
Iris made food, but I couldn't stomach anything. The food looked and smelled really good, but I couldn't make myself eat anything. I felt queasy.
After a couple hours of sitting and contemplating our place in the universe, Hallie stood up. "I'm sick of this. We're going in there."
"What?" Aranor exclaimed, trying to make her sit down. "Are you crazy? You don't know what's waiting in there."
"Well, we're not going to find out what's in there unless we actually go ourselves," Hallie said.
"I agree with Hallie," Eddy said. "I hate sitting around doing nothing."
"What time is it?" Iris asked.
"According to the position of the sun, I would say it was around nine o'clock in the morning," Haldir, who had gotten off the tree, answered.
"We have three hours," Hallie said, grabbing Elyon and strapping it to her waist. "Let's get going."
Well, it was better than sitting around like bumps on a pickle.
The tower was surrounded by water. It hadn't been cleared. Debris was scattered everywhere, and it looked the same from when the ents destroyed the place years ago. My boots were soaked through with icky, dirty water.
"We should have brought the horses," I grumbled.
"Yeah, but then we'd be… taking the horses to Isengard!" Hallie said.
We looked at each other for about five seconds and simultaneously started laughing. Iris and Eddy laughed too. And then I laughed even harder when I saw the looks on Aranor and Haldir's faces. Aranor looked really confused, while Haldir looked like he was trying to get the joke, but failing.
I almost fell face first in the water, I was laughing so hard.
Suddenly a screech cut through the air. Obviously, we immediately looked at Eddy, but he was completely human (unless there's something he didn't tell us…). We looked up into the sky, and managed to catch glimpse of a wing disappearing into the top of the tower.
We looked at each other.
I took a deep breath. "Was that -?"
"Yeah," Hallie said. "That was Ralin. I can feel it."
"How can you feel it?" Aranor asked.
"I don't know. But it's like… my hourglass is attracted to him or something. It's got to be him."
Ralin was ahead of schedule, but that was expected. And he had probably seen us. Which meant that we didn't have the element of surprise anymore. Ugh.
We were about prepared for this as we were for the showdown against Raordell. We're pretty much winging it. Hopefully that means that we'll defeat Ralin and he'll never bug us again.
Knock on wood. If I had a piece of wood to knock on. Heck, I'd even knock on an Ent. I'm not superstitious or anything, but any luck would definitely help. Especially because weird stuff always happens to us, and bad luck seems to follow us around.
"What do we do now? Are we going to go in?" Eddy asked.
"Do we have a choice?" Iris grumbled in response. We waded closer to the entrance of the tower, our feet soaked and covered in mud. Ugh. Isengard Lake is not on the top of my list of "Best Vacation Places".
The tower looks as creepy 21 years later as it did in the movie. Only this time it isn't Saruman who is waiting for us- it's an equally messed up guy who just wants to kill us for money. And stuff. I really wish we'd stop playing right into people's hands.
Finally dragging ourselves up onto the steps, we sat down, exhausted. I felt like I was going to pass out- I could barely move, and only who knows what had been keeping me going this long. I laid back on what I guess is the "front porch" of Isengard, trying to catch my breath. Iris, Eddy, and Hallie looked just as winded. Haldir, of course, could have run another mile through the mucky water. Aranor probably could have kept up with him.
Me? Not so much. Walking is horrible enough, but now, with our energy constantly being drained, it's even worse.
"Let's go in," Aranor said.
"Yeah," Hallie agreed. "Haldir, I think you should stay out here. I have no idea where Ralin is, but just in case he comes out here, you need to warn us."
"I will," Haldir said.
And then we entered. The lobby, if you could call it that, was completely made of black stone. And pretty much empty. I guess looters had taken most of what was left in Isengard. If they were determined enough to get across the lake. I'm not a girly-girl, but I swear, as soon as I get home, I'm going to take a nice long shower.
"This place gives me the creeps," Iris muttered.
"Tell me about it," Eddy said.
We kind of walked around cautiously, taking in the place. There were stairs leading upwards, but no other corridors.
"Alright, Ralin, where are you? We know you're here!" Hallie yelled. Her voice echoed. But there was no answer.
Maybe we had been wrong - maybe that bird hadn't been Ralin. But honestly, I couldn't think of any other explanation to why a giant eagle flew into the tower. Plus, Hallie told us about her weird hourglass feeling...
Gosh, what if Ralin had convinced the Lord of the Eagles to help him too?
No, that's a stupid idea. I'm stupid. I'm not thinking clearly. I gotta clear my head…
"Anyone want to go upstairs?" Hallie asked.
"No, but we probably should," I said.
We went up the stairs. They were really steep, and I gripped the railing for dear life. I kept feeling like I was going to fall down backwards to my death. There were a lot of floors. We explored every floor, but there wasn't much to see. Finally, we gave up and just went back to the ground floor.
"How many hours have passed?" Aranor asked.
"I don't know. Maybe two or three?" Eddy guessed.
And then the door slammed, and an icy wind blew through, chilling me to the bone. Cliche, I know, but that's what happened.
"It's time," Iris breathed.
Hallie and Aranor gripped their swords. Eddy notched an arrow. I put a hand on the hilt of my dagger. Iris kept alert, probably going through a list of spells she could use. We may have been weak, but when Ralin showed up, we were going to do our best to fight.
There was a flapping of wings. We looked up, and a great eagle came down from the ceiling. I suddenly felt extremely weak. All the strength had left my body. There was a dark aura radiating around the eagle, and as we watched, it suddenly morphed into the shape of a man.
He was tall and muscular. He wore a long cape with a hood, wrapping around his entire body. I caught glimpse of a jeweled dagger at his waist, but then it was hidden from sight. And he wore a black mask. It wasn't an elaborate mask, but I could make out some strange markings in purple.
"Ralin," Hallie hissed.
"Why hello," he said. His voice was deep and somewhat scratchy. It grated on my nerves. It gave me an unsettled feeling, and it just felt so wrong.
"Time to die."
He raised a gloved hand, and suddenly, I was pushed against the wall. Like when Saruman and Gandalf fought in The Fellowship of the Ring.
But instead of hitting a solid wall, I just went through. And then my body was lifted up, and I was grabbed in a choke hold.
"Give me the objects I desire," Ralin growled. His voice was even more horrible up close. He had a dagger pressed to my throat. I looked down, and my friends were there, sitting on the ground. They had been knocked into the walls too. But I was the only one captured. Why does this always happen to me?
"You'd better hurry it up. You have one hour to live."
That's the end of this chapter. By the way, does anyone know how to do the "insert horizontal line here" thing in the Doc Manager anymore? They changed stuff on Fanfiction and I'm not happy about it. :P Anyway, review! We still love you!