Author's Note: I just want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!! :D And a Happy New Year!
Warning: Couple of swear words. -_-
Kacy: What's wrong with a couple of swear words?
Author: The fact that you are the one saying them.
Kacy: Oh please, all I say is "h"-"E"-"double hockey sticks" and almost another one until you cut me off!
Author: *glares at Kacy* I should wash your mouth out with soap.
Kacy: What? Denis deserves it…
Chapter 37
Erestor was finally panicking. He could not find Kacy anywhere. After asking at least ten Imladris warriors who knew nothing about her whereabouts,he was on the verge of bashing his head into the nearest wall as his frustration boiled. He decided to try one last time before calling on Glorfindel's aid. The Balrog Slayer had much better tracking skills and could cover more ground.
"Have you seen Kacy?"
"No, sir—I'm sorry."
Erestor was ready to throw his dignity to the wind and scream, when another voice grabbed his attention.
"I may have, although it is difficult to remember specific details when in the heat of battle," one of the nearby archers who overheard Erestor's previous questions, commented helpfully.
Erestor nearly cried in relief.
"Where did she go?"
"While we were firing from the east balcony, I saw one of the easterlings knock her down on the west side of the lower courtyard. She got back up and fought him with a vicious strength I did not know a female could possess," the soldier grinned at the memory.
Erestor grew impatient and needed the soldier to spit it out. He grabbed the archer by both shoulders and practically screamed in his face while shaking him with each word.
"But where…did….she…GO?!"
The archer looked surprised by the normally quiet and stoic librarian's angry outburst.
"She followed him down past the gardens, I know not if she ever returned."
Erestor's panic grew as this news sank in. She followed one Easterling to Eru knew where, by herself?!!
He was already running that way the second he heard the first part of what the archer was saying, not even bothering to throw a hasty 'thank-you' over his shoulder. That is how panicked Erestor was.
Kacy, you better have a good explanation for doing something so foolish.
Erestor nearly knocked down an elf wearing traditional Mirkwood armor in his hasty flight and barely registered the question the fellow asked him. He slowed enough only to shout a greeting and reply, nearly speaking a mile a minute before shooting off again, leaving a very confused Mirkwood scout in his wake.
"How nice-a Mirkwood scout-Elrond is up the hill, Last Homely House, Healing Wing-others can direct you!!"
The fact that the Mirkwood messenger was a scout dressed in full battle armor did not completely hit Erestor until about five minutes later after he found the trail that Kacy had traversed after studying the tracks with sharp, scrutinizing eyes. His eyes widened and he half turned, looking back the way he had come.
It's about time... This is only the second time King Thranduil has had to save our sorry hinds. We will never hear the end of it…
Erestor turned back around, shaking his head almost sorrowfully. After following the tracks for some time and finding what could only amount to an injury if the blood drops littering the trail was anything to go by was sorely tempted to throw caution to the wind and simply run after her. His logical and rational side dominated in the end and the scholar knew it may cost Kacy her life if he barged into the middle of a fight. One distraction—one slip up, is all it took.
Hold on Kacy… I'm coming for you.
He quickened his pace but remained as silent and as invisible as the air around him. The sound of swords clashing drew steadily closer.
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Rion saw Erestor run down to the gardens and knew he had to follow him. His mother must have gone that way and there was no way he was just going to sit here and do nothing. Now, all he had to do was, get rid of the twins. Elrond was easy to get rid of since he was currently informing the Mirkwood scout that had just arrived on current events.
"Elladan, Elrohir! I can't find my bow anywhere… I think I dropped it when we were upstairs."
"Elladan turned to look at him and smiled reassuringly. I'll go get it for you."
The elder twin ran upstairs while Elrohir remained with a fidgety Rion.
"Look I think maybe you should go with him, just in case he can't find it, you know?"
"How about you accompany me?"
The suspicion in Elrohir's voice was unmistakable. Rion had to get out of this somehow and then remembered the most common and efficient way to ditch someone, how had he forgotten such an easy ploy?
"I have to go to the bathroom."
"Very well, I shall wait here for you."
"Uh, see you soon Elrohir."
Works every time…
Rion hastily walked off, trying not to look like he was in too much of a hurry and turned around a corner at the end of the hall and entered the common washroom. He pulled the thin, almost transparent window curtains aside and climbed out, not at all worried about getting caught since everyone else was assembled down by the courtyard. Rion was taking the back way, a shortcut to the gardens. Maybe if he was lucky, he could beat Erestor.
Soon enough, he had vanished into the tree line, leaving every possible witness behind in the dark.
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Kacy was growing weaker with each passing moment as Denis continued to strike tirelessly. She now knew her mistake. She had known that Denis probably was drawing her away from everyone on purpose but did not stop to think about the pros and cons of actually following him out here. Now that she had, she was all alone and far from help. No one would be able to save her this time. Not even Elrond…because this fight was to the death.
Why did I have to be so STUPID?!
Denis had actually led her into a trap. He lured her deeper into the forest into a small glade where a band of ten orcs awaited her, in the hopes of tiring her out before he fought her himself. Using her adrenaline and anger, she easily dispatched and killed them before turning her wrath on her husband's murderer. Out here, there were no laws that bound her to Earth's justice systems and laws.
This was war. This was personal. She vowed to see justice served and to end the nightmare that began eleven years ago.
She blocked and then parried two brutal slashes that had nearly taken her arm and leg off. Kacy struggled, unable to keep up her previous offensive maneuvers now that she had foolishly drained herself after being so ruthlessly aggressive. Denis already had a gash on one arm and cut on his forehead where she had managed to either knick or slice him with her sword.
Now that she had become so battle weary she was unable to keep up her assault and now resorted to fighting on the defensive. Her new goal now, was to simply stay alive. She prayed that help would come despite the odds. With each block, her hope began to diminish as her arms quickly tired, already sore and extremely achy. It was becoming an extreme effort to simply raise her sword. He kept pushing her back farther into the woods, further from the Last Homely House and closer to her inevitable demise.
"You grow weak, woman."
"Good job stating the obvious, idiot."
She growled as she ducked from a wild swing that would have taken her head off only to snap back up to see a fist flying for her face. She brought her arm up but her arm block was both a little delayed and a bit off, resulting in his fist connecting with her stomach. Even though she wore armor and it took the brunt of the hit, the force still knocked the wind out of her. Kacy staggered back and looked up in time to see Denis perform a perfectly executed leg sweep, knocking her to the ground.
"Surrender to me and I shall give you a quick death."
"Denis, you really are an idiot," Kacy rolled back to her feet and clutched her sword tightly in her hand.
Snik'ta frowned at her, eyes narrowing beneath his helm.
"My name is not 'Denis'. It is Sin'ed."
The two combatants just stared at each other for a couple of seconds before Kacy's maniacal laughter broke the silence. She snorted and pointed one finger at him as her eyes watered up, a few yards away from where he was standing.
"Didn't you know that Sin'ed is Denis but spelled backwards?! And you never figured that out? You really are slow. I was wrong to call you an idiot, I'm sorry…"
Kacy's apology sounded genuine although it was still laced with sarcasm. Sin'ed clenched his sword tightly as his anger began to build as the woman mocked him. Her apology however threw him for a loop and he stood there looking a little confused, until she delivered the final insult.
"…I should have called you a retarded, idiotic, moronic…"
No one insulted him and lived to tell the tale!
"…troll-for-brains, dumb—"
Kacy's eyes widened when Sin'ed shrieked and lunged at her in rage, cutting her off before she had the chance to finish her tirade.
She side stepped, catching his blade with her own and barely withstood the flurry of attacks he rained upon her.
Looks like I hit a nerve somewhere. I suppose insulting him was not the best of ideas… he looks extremely peeved. Now I'm going to be dead but not just dead… or kind of dead… or half-dead… but the irreversible, sorry- can't-save-you, kind of dead-dead!!
At last, he succeeded in knocking her sword from her hand and with a triumphant cry, kicked her to the forest floor. He used one foot to apply pressure to her neck, half strangling her making it difficult to breathe, preventing her from using any take down maneuvers on him.
Kacy's eyes bugged out as her oxygen supply was brutally cut off. She wheezed as she struggled to breathe and was about to karate chop the back of his leg right behind his knee, when he used his other foot to pin that accessible arm down…painfully.
"At last…you will die. Consider this merciful since you will now be reunited with your pathetically weak, wretched excuse for a husband."
Sin'ed lowered his voice in a deadly growl as he examined his sword blade briefly before twirling it until the blade was facing down, aimed at her chest. Kacy's eyes flashed with hatred at his words. How dare he?!
"Any last words?"
He eased his foot off her neck but only enough to allow her to wheeze something out.
"Go to hell, you bast—"
She defiantly choked out before his foot cut off her air again. Her once defiant eyes began to glaze over as dark spots danced before her once clear vision.
If only I could have told Rion how much I loved him…and held him in my arms one last time.
Just as Sin'ed raised his sword, preparing to plunge it into Kacy's heart, a battle cry resonated in the glade and a blur tackled Denis, knocking him over before he could finish her off. The sudden rush of oxygen back into her lungs made her dizzy and for a moment all she could do was lay there and revel at how wonderful air tasted again.
With a grunt she crawled shakily back to her feet and tried to regain her bearings. Her sword…she needed to find her sword.
She looked about her and spotted it a few feet away, next to a tree.
Wait, where did that tree come from?
Kacy stumbled over to it and snatched her sword up still in a daze and shook her head to clear it.
Oh that's right…I'm in a forest.
After her vision cleared she was able to clearly see who had come to her rescue.
Erestor found me! Perfect timing…wait does this mean I'm not dead?
Kacy nearly pulled a Jack Sparrow as she patted her armor and checked to make sure she was still in one piece and in fact, still alive.
I'm alive!! Thank God…that was a close call.
Kacy dove back into the battle strength renewed now that Erestor had come to help. What were the odds anyway? It was a miracle…
Finally Erestor disarmed Sin'ed and pinned him mercilessly down, the same exact way he had pinned Kacy. Fire was in the scholar's eyes as he growled down at the man with the most venom he could muster.
"Why do you wish this woman dead? Speak!"
Sin'ed sneered back at Erestor and spat at him, refusing to talk. The elf plunged his blade into the man's shoulder and left it there, keeping that arm pinned to the ground.
Snik'ta howled in pain and glared back.
"It's…none of your business, elf."
Erestor leaned over him, his fury nearly rivaling that of the infamous Balrog Slayer and spoke in a soft, deadly tone that sent shivers down Kacy's spine. She stayed a few feet away, silently watching the exchange with interest.
"Youwill find that it is."
After a few more minutes of Erestor trying to get the man to talk and realizing that they were getting nowhere, bound the man with sturdy elvish ropes and began to lead him back to the Last Homely House as a prisoner of war.
Sin'ed began to laugh maniacally as they led him away, enjoying some sort of sick, twisted joke. He did not bother to share what was so funny and left the two wondering.
"You two have no idea."
"Shut up."
"No idea at all."
"I said, shut it!"
"If only you knew."
"What do I keep saying, you retarded monkey?! Shut the hell up."
Kacy snapped at the man, hiding her fear well. What he was hinting at, she could only guess.
They had to be a quarter mile away from the Last Homely House and kept marching through brush and around trees.
"You ignorant fools, haha."
At last Erestor could take no more of Snik'ta and punched him in the face before Kacy could beat him to it, knocking the annoying man out cold.
Kacy looked at Erestor a moment until he caught her eye. He looked like an elfling with his hand caught in the proverbial goodie jar.
"What?"
"You punched him in the face."
"Yes, I did."
She raised an eyebrow and nodded, overcoming her surprise and walked past him taking the lead.
"I just, didn't know you had it in you."
Erestor slung the unconscious form of Sin'ed over his shoulder and began to carry him back.
"You are just now discovering this?"
"Apparently"
They continued their journey in companionable silence. Unbeknownst to them, Rion had reached the glade by another path. He was ten minutes behind them…
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Rion trudged through the bushes, both of his double swords drawn. He used them to hack some of the worst shrubbery that hindered his path. When he reached the glade he sighed heavily to see that his mother and Erestor weren't there. The dead bodies of ten orcs littered the ground in testament of the small battle that took place only an hour before. Maybe they had gone further into the forest?
He stood there thinking for a few minutes. Should he go back or continue forward? Chances were his mother was still out here somewhere. He could feel it.
A clamor of swords clashing and yelling echoed faintly ahead of him. That settled it. There would be no turning back, not when his mother was so close!
Rion raced through the glade, deeper into the forest, leaving the safety of Rivendell behind him.
Fairly soon, the boy stumbled out of the forest and into the practice fields…into a blazing war.
All he could do was witness the mayhem and chaos from the sidelines only a quarter a mile away from him. All of the Imladris warriors along with Gandalf were mixed in with the enemy troops, creating a kaleidoscope of dark and light colors as they clashed furiously together. From his perspective, it looked like Gandalf and the others were winning as a lot of dead orcs and goblins littered the battlefield.
Then he saw it. His breath caught in his throat as the dark, towering form of the Witch King appeared out of the mass of bodies and stared straight at him…
Rion felt immobilized by fear until Gandalf broke his paralysis with one word.
"RUN!!"
He met the eyes of Gandalf and did as he was told. He turned and fled back the way he had come, a dark presence nudged the corners of his mind, making it difficult to concentrate or remember where it was he was supposed to run to.
A bad feeling grew as he realized after five minutes of running that he had gone in a complete circle and was nearly right back where he had started. An unseen tree root tripped him up, sending the fourteen year old face first into the forest floor.
The next thing he knew, the black speech of Mordor filled the air around him and made every hair on his body stand on end. He clawed his way into some bushes and lay completely flat under the thick foliage, barely breathing as heavy footsteps clanked ominously closer.
The terrifying, dark voice of the nazgul leader resonated somewhere above him.
"I know that you are here, boy."
Rion shivered and wished he could melt into the very earth beneath him. He clutched his swords tightly in each hand and struggled not to make a sound.
"Come out and I will not harm you…"
Rion knew not to believe the lie and stayed put, until another nazgul screech caused him to scream involuntarily as pain exploded in both ears. His sharp movements gave his position away.
The next second, one clawed hand lifted him up by the back of his armor plating, leaving him dangling like a little lost puppy. He kicked and struggled until he was turned around, the armored hand now grasping the front of his armor plating where it ended at his collarbone.
"Get off of me!!"
Acting on pure instinct and reflex, he took both blades and struck at the dark being's arm that held him. The metal bounced right off the thick, heavy armor and caused both blades to vibrate. Small shockwaves traveled up his arms and left his head ringing slightly.
"No man can kill me…"
"Oh…that's right," Rion sagged in disappointment. It would sure be nice if Eowyn appeared right about now. But he knew that she wouldn't since they were currently a few centuries or so before she or the majority of the fellowship were even born.
His eyes nearly popped out of his head when he saw the evil being draw a small dagger slowly from his belt. Rion recognized that knife from The Fellowship of the Ring.
Aww crap…….a morgul blade?!
"Look…this is a mistake. I think you have the wrong kid."
The Witch King of Angmar felt a twinge of glee as the child continued to dangle helplessly from his clutches, even more so when the boy's fear practically oozed from him in waves.
"Are you afraid, boy?"
He bravely responded although the fear in his eyes betrayed him.
"No"
A low rumbling, evil chuckle answered his response and Rion knew that he had failed in hiding his fear.
The Witch King of Angmar lifted the knife and prepared to stab him with it but Glorfindel's defensive training kicked in and he lifted his sword, effectively blocking it. The Nazgul tried again only to have the knife blocked once more by one of Rion's swords. The ringwraith rammed Rion's back painfully into the back of a nearby tree, stunning the boy into dropping one of his two swords.
Before he could recover, an agonizing pain erupted in his left shoulder, between his armored plating where he was not thoroughly protected. He screamed as the agonizing pain worsened until it felt like red hot lava had pierced him. His eyes watered and he wheezed trying to breathe through his hurt. Rion glanced down and saw that the Witch King of Angmar had succeeded in stabbing him.
No! I don't want to be a Frodo!!
He clenched his other sword tightly in his hand and as a last ditch effort, began to hit the Nazgul's armored head, arms, and whatever else he could strike as his adrenaline and panic worsened.
"P-please…let me go!"
The ringwraith finally removed the blade earning another scream, now satisfied that the poison had successfully penetrated his system. The blows the child attempted to hurt him with, barely registered as his thick armor deflected most of it. Now that he had what he came for, he turned to leave with his prize in hand, dropping the now useless morgul blade to the ground, next to Rion's other sword. Within a few minutes the blade dissolved into a cloud of ash, blown away by the wind of a nearby storm that was steadily approaching Rivendell.
As he turned to leave, Gandalf the Gray stood a few yards away, blocking his path.
"Let the boy go, servant of shadow!"
"You are too late… Aragorn's line has ended. Sauron's revenge is complete."
Gandalf took a step forward with his staff raised in warning. Rion's tear slickened face pleaded back at the wizard and he whimpered. The shocking news about his relation to Aragorn not registering thanks to the pain in his shoulder.
"Gandalf…please…s-save me!"
"You have one chance…and only one chance to give me the boy."
"Foolish old man, this is the beginning of the end."
Before Gandalf had a chance to attack, thirty Easterlings flooded into view coming to the aid of the dark being.
"You…have failed."
With those final words, the Witch King of Angmar strode away through the forest, away from the wretched elves and their foolish attempts to save themselves from certain destruction.
As Rion cried silently, helpless, defenseless, and wounded in the clutches of one of the most sinister beings in the history of Middle Earth, heard the words of his captor and had his hope for rescue completely crushed.
"By the time they reach you…you will already be one of us."
Gandalf yelled and shouted out to Rion, fighting to the best of his abilities but no matter how hard he tried, he could not reach the child he swore to protect…
TO BE CONTINUED AGAIN…. SORRY. Please don't hurt me for another cliff hanger… O_O
Author: And pretty please will you review? If for anyone….for Rion's sake, the poor kid needs you now, he's been through a lot.
Rion: Excuse me? You just narrated me getting stabbed by a freaking morgul blade!! How could you? *glares viciously at author*
Kacy: *walks in to hear her son* WHAT?! *Picks up a variety of sharp objects and gives author the evil eye*
Author: *Runs away before more violence ensues* PLEASE REVIEW or else Kacy will seriously kill me and I will no longer be able to update!!!