Chapter 26: Of Herbs and Stewed Rabbit

The next day, Ethan is lying down resting, and Conner looks over the edge of a cliff. Gollum appears and drops two dead rabbits in Ethan's lap. Ethan looks surprised.

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"Look! Look!" exclaimed Smeagol, "see what Sméagol finds! Hehehe! Hahaha!"

Ethan looks at Gollum and smiles and then looks towards Conner who sighs. Gollum dances pleased. He picks up one of the rabbits, and snaps its spine.

"They are young," said Smeagol as he began to bite them, tearing in the raw meat, "they are tender, they are nice. Yes they are! Eat them! Eat them!"

Also disgusted to see Smeagol tear into the rabbits like a wild, gross animal, Conner immediately rushed over.

"You'll make him sick, you will," he said while snatching the rabbits from Smeagol, "behaving like that!"

Conner stood, panting over Smeagol, holding the rabbits as he said, "…there's only one way to eat a brace of conies…"

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A pot is cooking over a fire with rabbit stew in it. Conner is stirring the stew, and Ethan sits next to him. Gollum lollops over to them

"Argh!" cried Smeagol, "what's it doing! Stupid fat hobbit! It ruins it!"

"What's to ruin?" queried Conner, "there's hardly any meat left on them."

Ethan goes to get some plates out of their bag and hears a faint bird call.

"Besides," Conner went on, "what we need is a few good taters."

"What's taters preciousss?" asked Smeagol, "what's taters uh?"

"PO-TAY-TOES!" Conner loudly clarified for Smeagol, "boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew. Lovely big golden chips with a nice piece of fried fish…"

"Pbbbttt!" Smeagol sticks out his tongue.

"even you can't say no to that!" said Sam.

"Oh yes, we could!" answered a disgusted Smeagol, Spoil a nice fish..."

Smeagol then scrambled up to Conner as he went on, making a sickeningly happy face, "give it to usss rrraw... and wrrriggling! You keep nasty chips!

"…You're hopeless," said an annoyed Conner.

Ethan is wandering round the bushes, looking for the source of the sound. Suddenly Conner notices Ethan has gone.

"Ethan," said Conner.

Ethan crawls to the edge of the cliff, to see hoards of dark clothed men walking along the valley. He is joined by Conner and Gollum.

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"Who are they?" Conner asked.

"Wicked men," answered Smeagol, "servants of Sauron. They are called to Mordor. The Dark One is gathering all armies to him. It won't be long now… he will soon be ready."

"Ready to do what?" asked Conner.

"To make his war," Smeagol answered dreadfully, "…the last war that will cover all the world in shadow."

"We've got to get moving," said Ethan, "Come on, Conner…"

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Then, for no reason, Conner grabbed Ethan's arm.

"Ethan! Look!" he cried, It's an oliphaunt.

Oliphaunts are seen walking alongside the Wicked men, carrying great canopies full of more men

"…No one at home will believe this," Conner said in great awe, "a real Oliphaunt in front of my eyes."

Gollum creeps away

"Smeagol?" queried Ethan.

As they look on, suddenly firing arrows appear sailing through the air. The Wicked men fall. Hooded and cloaked figures are seen in the bushes around them firing arrows. The Captain appears looking from behind a bush. An Oliphaunt is careering towards Ethan and Conner. Porter draws an arrow and shoots one of the men on it, who falls to the ground in front of Conner and Ethan. Ethan scrambles to his feet

"We've lingered here too long," said Ethan as he went off, "come on, Conner!"

As he turns to run, he runs straight into the arms of one of the hooded men. Conner shouts and draws his sword. He is thrown to the ground by another hooded man, just as Ethan is also thrown to the ground and swords placed at their throats

"wait!" said Conner, pleading, "we're innocent travelers."

The Captain appears amongst the men.

"…There are no travelers in this land," said the captain, "only servants of the Dark Tower."

We are bound to an errand of secrecy," Ethan explained as the captain turned to him, "…those that claim to oppose the enemy, would do well not to hinder us."

"The enemy?" the captain asked incredulously.

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The captain then turned to the Harad Soldier that he killed, who was faced down on his face… and used his foot to turn the soldier face up… so that the captain could look upon his face…

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"…His sense of duty was no less than yours, I deem," he said.

As the captain looked at his face, he went on sadly and solemnly, yet almost to himself, "…you wonder what his name is… where he came from. And if he really was evil at heart… what lies or threats led him on this long march from home. If he would not rather have stayed there…

"…In peace…"

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The captain then turned to face the travelers and finished, "…war will make corpses of us all. Bind their hands."