At Isengard, Saruman and his Orcs were completely shocked by the unexpected attack from the Ents of Fangorn Forest.
An Ent was standing atop the ruins of one of the walls surrounding Isengard and ripped a chunk of it before tossing it forward into the air. Soon more and more Ents appeared to do the same. Inside the walls of Isengard , some of them were killing Orcs as more and more Ents were coming through the destroyed wall.
The thrown rocks crashed against the ground , rolling forward and crushed a few Orcs beneath it in the process . Saruman's lackeys tried to resist, but were easily underpowered as they didn't have many weapons that can do anything to their attackers. Two orcs rushed over, shooting arrows, only for a short-sized Ent , who had jump climbed on the walls, to land right on them , crushing them beneath its feet.
Another Ent swung its arm sending an Orc flying in the air while another one was kicked away. Another Orc was crushed beneath a towering Ent's foot. An Ent pulled down a tower and crushed some Orcs beneath the logs while another Ent was swinging an Orc back and forth across the ground , sending his opponents flying one by one in the air.
A group of Orcs wrapped a chain-like object around another Ent and managed to pull it down to the ground. A few seconds later, another group of Saruman's lackeys began to chop the Ent with axes. Not too far from them, was Treebeard who ,seeing one of his kind in danger, raised a massive rock above his head before tossing it with a battle cry. The rock crashed against the Orcs standing on their 'victim' who seemed relieved to not have them anymore.
On Treebeard's 'shoulders', the Hobbits cheered before throwing rocks at any Orcs nearby. Treebeard growled out before looking down at the Orc beneath him and the Beast didn't have time to leave when the Old Ent quickly stepped on it, crushing him underneath. At the same time, Saruman suddenly appeared on his balcony and watched in disbelief as his force were overpowered by the Ent Army.
Back at the feet of Orthanc, One of the Ents was set on fire with flaming arrows after some Archer Orcs shot him with their bows. The flaming Ent was panicking as he was burning. Meanwhile, two Ents pushed/pulled a wooden tower, sending it over into a pit with some Orcs still on it. . Saruman was holding the railing of his balcony, looking at his soldiers being slaughtered as some Ents were throwing boulders at the tower but it caused no damage on it.
Meanwhile, in the nearest mountain, an Ent was grabbing two massive beams which held a massive dam of stonejust another one was heard yelling out "Break the dam ! Release the river !" The beams were teared off and the Ent who was holding them began to walk away as water began to came out of the rocks.
Then the massive dam broke, releasing a large amount of water which rushed down toward Isengard, taking some wooden structures in the process along with some Orcs. Saruman heard something and turned his head to see the massive column of water rushing toward his tower. Merry and Pippin, still on Treebeard's back saw the water coming right at them "Pippin ! Hold on !" Pippin said to his friend as the two grabbed a hold of the Old Ent.
The massive column of water violently rushed through Isengard, taking with it the wooden structures, and the Orcs who tried in vain to run away as the Ents were bracing themselves for the oncoming impact. "Hold on, little Hobbits !" Treebeard warned his two friends just as the water hit him. The force of the water knocked him out a but he stood his ground and it was the same for every Ents around him.
The burning Ent from before rushed over and quickly leaned down to cover himself with water to stop the flames. The Orcs were still trying to run away but to no avail. The structures and the Orcs were washed away and Saruman couldn't believe what was happening : everything he did, everything he worked hard on… all gone. He retreated back into Orthanc , isolating himself and unable to look at the amount of destruction caused by the Ents of Fangorn.
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Meanwhile, at Helm's Deep, the fight was still raging on between the Defenders and the Uruks of Saruman. However, it wasn't as intense as at the beginning… in fact, the survivors of the colossal army of ugly beasts were retreating as the Rohirrim Riders , lead by Eomer gave chase. Kopa was running beside Eomer's horse and killed the Uruks who weren't fast enough to escape.
Suddenly, all stopped when they saw their enemies running into a large forest who wasn't here earlier. It magically appeared out of nowhere " Stay out of the forest ! Keep away from the trees !" Eomer ordered his Men who didn't objected in the slightest. They all watched their enemies fleeing into the forest.
"Huh ? Was that forest there before ? If is does then I don't remember seeing it..." Kopa asked his comrades as he watched the woods with a frown. "It wasn't there before…." Aragorn responded without taking his keen eyes off the forest. Then, when the last Uruk entered the woods, a loud moan-like sound echoed as the trees began to move !?
All we could hear were the terrified roars of the Uruks until eventually everything subsided,and the roars stopped as a silence reigned for a moment. Everyone seemed in awe of what just happened and Kopa's eyes were wide in shock : after all, he just saw MOVING trees for the Kings' sake !
Meanwhile back in the Keep, Gimli and all the rest of the Survivors looked around themselves and especially at the dead bodies of Uruks . When they noticed that no more Uruks were coming, all of them were overjoyed as it realized it was over.
At the same time, in the Glittering Caves, the women and children began to come back towards the entrance of the cave. Near the entrance, they saw Eowyn and Vitani standing among the dead bodies of the Uruks the two had killed. The Blond Woman was taking deep breathes as she had survived her first combat. Vitani glanced at the King's niece with a proud look in her eyes "Well done Eowyn ! You fought well !" The Blond Woman didn't respond but she gave her a soft smile.
"Auntie Tani !" someone called out and the Beige Lioness turned her head to see Ioreth rushed toward her with joyful smile. Zira's daughter purred when she felt the child's body pressed against her leg and she nuzzled the top of her head in equal happiness. "You are not hurt are you ?" the little girl asked her with concern but giggled when the Lioness licked her cheek with affection "No dear I'm fine… I promise to be didn't I ?~" "You did !" Ioreth responded with a smile.
Eowyn watched the two with a smile before leading the civilians out of the caves where they were greeted by the surviving soldiers. The fathers and sons who survived the battle were welcomed with open arms by their families as many others looked for their loved ones… to just learn about their deaths. Suddenly, among the soldiers, appeared Aragorn who was instantly greeted by Eowyn who seemed overjoyed to see him alive because the two hugged each other.
Vitani stepped out of the caves with Ioreth on her back and saw Aragorn and Eowyn pulling away from each other. The Ranger looked at the Lioness with a smile as he seemed relieve to see his friend unharmed and she gave him a soft smile in return. But then she shot him a concerned look and he seemed to understand what she wanted to know because he nodded his head.
Sighing in relief she looked around , hoping to find him and her heart beat with joy when she saw her mate walking through the crowd : he looked tired but he was fine. "Kopa !" she cried out in joy as she ran toward him. The Brown Maned Lion saw her coming and smiled as the two pressed their heads against each other. "Uncle Kopa !" Ioreth cried out as she looked at him from Vitani's back.
"Hey little one..." Kopa greeted her with a soft smile before adding to the two of them "Its over..." Vitani seemed relieved to hear this "Its about time… I was beginning to lose strength… What happened after I left ?" "Well… You won't believe me if I tell you..." "Try me~" Vitani challenged him with a playful grin. "The remaining Uruks entered a forest who miraculously appeared out of nowhere and were killed by moving trees..." Kopa explained in a neutral tone.
The Beige Lioness looked at her mate with a look of disbelief on her face before frowning angrily "Kopa its not the moment to joke..." "I'm not joking ask Aragorn !" The Brown Maned Lion said as he pointed at the Ranger who turned his head toward them when he heard someone calling his name. "Is that true ? About Moving Trees..." "Yes it is… Many of us can comfort it to you Vitani..." Aragorn responded before walking away to who-know-where.
Vitani looked back at her mate who had a triumphant smirk on his face "You believe me now ?" "I do..." Vitani sighed before saying with a grin on her own "I would LOVE to see Saruman's face when he will learn about our victory !" Kopa laughed out in pure amusement as he imagined the expression on the treacherous Wizard's face "He won't be happy that for sure !"
"You know… I still can't believe we won this battle…" Vitani inquired as she looked around at the remaining soldiers embracing their families. "I know… but we did !" The Brown Maned Lion said back with a sigh of relief as he nuzzled his mate's cheek, causing her to purr in affection. "Hey I want hugs too !" Ioreth pouted cutely as she climbed down Vitani's back to hug Kopa's right front leg.
The Two Lions glanced at each other with amusement before the duo lowered their heads down to nuzzled the child who smiled in content. The three were unaware of their surroundings : the dead bodies were gathered to be buried while the remaining Elves bed their farewells to began their long journey to Lothlorien.
Some times later, in the Deep, the Rohirrim Soldiers were still taking care of the dead Uruks as they placed the bodies into a pile so they could be burned. Kopa had left Vitani and Ioreth behind when Morwen and her children Eothain and Freda came over and was currently walking toward Legolas who was approaching their Dwarf friend.
Speaking of Gimli, he was sitting on a dead Uruk ,smoking his pipe. The Blond Elf stopped in front of the Dwarf and fiddled the top of his bow as he said with a grin "Final count...fourty-two !" Gimli seemed in-fazed by this as he said back "Fourty-two ? Hum... That's not bad for a pointy-eared Elvish princeling hehe !"
Legolas looked at Gimli suspiciously when the Dwarf laughed softy the last part before adding triumphantly " I myself am sitting pretty on fourty-three !" The Blond Elf frowned at those words and as quickly as he could, he aimed his arrows and shot it. The arrow went straight into Gimli's Uruk , between his legs. The Dwarf looked up questioningly at him as Legolas retorted with a grin "Fourty-three !"
"He was already dead !" Gimli said back with a grim expression on his face "He was twitching !" Legolas noted back calmly and those words caused the Dwarf to said back firmly " He was twitching because he's got my axe embedded in his nervous system !" To prove his point, he moved his axe, which was indeed embedded into the side of the Uruks head. Moving the weapon caused the Uruk's dead body to twitch.
Kopa, who had staid behind, smiled in amusement at the two's antics but then grinned as he stepped closer "You know I lost count after sixty-three..." The two looked back at him with shock but soon Gimli grumbled in annoyance and anger " Of course you won… You and Vitani staid behind while us barricaded ourselves inside !"
Kopa grinned at those words and walked away leaving his two friends behind but not before saying "Not my fault if you have goosebumps !" The Dwarf snarled in anger and the look in Legolas's eyes promised vengeance later.
Meanwhile, at Isengard, Merry and Pippin found some barrels of Longbottom Leaf , the 'finest pipe weed in South Farthing' and happily smoked some. The fight was over and the Orcs were no more, it was time to relax.
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Far way from there, at Osgiliath, Frodo , Sam and Gollum were following Faramir, Boromier's younger brother, who was leading them under a building where they came across a doorway with the light of water reflecting onto the wall inside " This is the old sewer…. Runs right under the river through to the edge of the city…. You'll find cover in the woods there !"
What happened so Faramir, who at first wanted to bring the Ring-Bearer to Gondor so they could use the Ring of Power, could let them go freely ? Well many things in fact… When they arrived at Osgiliath, the ruins were under attack by Nazguls. Frodo was almost captured by one but was stopped by Faramir's arrow who went straight into the Nazgul's mount. The Gondorian Captain then heard Sam talking about the Shire and he realized that he was doing a mistake. He asked his men to release the three and that why he was helping them right now.
Back to present, Sam looked at the Man with a thankful expression on his face "Captain Faramir, you have shown your quality, sir. The very highest !" The Man seemed surprised by those words but soon smiled as he said back "The Shire must truly be a great realm, Master Gamgee, where gardeners are held in high honor…. What road will you take once you reach the wood ?"
Faramir asked the last part with a frown but also with curiosity. "Gollum says there's a path near Minas Morgul that climbs up into the mountains..." Frodo responded hesitantly and Faramir seemed surprised and worried to hear this as Gollum was crawling away with a worried look on his face. "Cirith Ungol ?" Faramir asked as he then looked down at Gollum before suddenly grabbing the thin creature by the neck, pressing him against a pillar "Is that it's name ?"
"No… No !" Gollum denied but when Faramir tightened his grip on his neck, Sméagol had no choice but to say the truth "Yes !" Faramir looked back at Frodo with a serious expression on his face "Frodo, they say a dark terror dwells in the passes above Minas Morgul... You cannot go that way !"
"It is the only way ! Master says we must go to Mordor, so we must try !" Gollum said as Faramir looked back at him angrily but then the Man turned back when he heard Frodo saying softy "I must..." Faramir wanted to stop them but when he saw the look in the Ring-Bearer's face, he couldn't he couldn't change his mind. With a sigh, the Captain tossed Gollum to the ground before standing up "Go, Frodo... Go with the goodwill of all Men !"
"Thank you "Frodo thanked him as he and his two companions. However before Gollum could get far, he was suddenly grabbed again by Faramir who slammed him again against the walls " May death find you quickly if you bring them to harm !" Then he threw the thin creature toward the sewer and Gollum limped away without second thoughts.
Faramir watched them go before rushing back to his men. Deep down, he hoped that nothing would happen to Frodo and Sam and that the Ring-Bearer would realized that Gollum shouldn't be trusted.
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli joined by Theoden, Eomer, and Gamling climed up a hill not far away from Helm's Deep as all of them were riding their horses. Kopa and Vitani stood with them and the Brown Maned Lion was carrying Ioreth on his back. All of them looked toward one place in particular : Mordor. "Sauron's wrath will be terrible, his retribution swift..." Gandalf began to say as all of them looked at the horizon.
"The battle for Helm's Deep is over... The battle for Middle-Earth is about to begin !" The White Wizard said gravely which caused Aragorn and Kopa to look at him. Gandalf glanced at them before looking back forward as he added "All our hopes now lie with two little hobbits... Somewhere in the wilderness..."
At the same time, in a forest near Osgiliath, the group of three had emerged from the sewers some times ago and were now walking among trees. Gollum was leading the group, followed by Frodo and behind the Ring-Bearer was Sam at the rear of the group. " I wonder if we'll ever be put into songs or tales..." The Blond Hobbit inquired as he walked. Frodo, who had heard him, turned around to face his comrade " What ?"
"I wonder if people will ever say, 'Let's hear about Frodo and the Ring.' And they'll say 'Yes, that's one of my favorite stories. Frodo was really courageous, wasn't he, dad.' 'Yes, my boy, the most famousest of Hobbits. And that's saying a lot.' !" Sam explained with amusement in his eyes. Frodo chuckled a bit before he said back in pure amusement "You left out one of the chief characters. Samwise the Brave. I want to hear more about Sam !"
Then Frodo became serious again as he looked at his comrade before saying softy "Frodo wouldn't have got far without Sam..." The Blond Hobbit was taken aback by the sadness in Frodo's eyes but then frowned "Now Mister Frodo, you shouldn't make fun. I was being serious..." "….as was I" was the Ring-Bearer's answer. The two friends looked at each other but then they continued walking. However, Sam staid behind for a minute as he said softy to himself "Samwise the Brave..."
He liked the sound of this name it seems..
However, a few feet away, the two remarked that Gollum wasn't with them anymore and called out for him "Sméagol !" "We're not gonna wait for you ! Come on !". Sadly they were unaware that Gollum/Sméagol was plotting against them because one he believed that the 'Master' had betrayed him and two because he wanted his Precious back. After a moment of monologue, he led the Hobbits through the woods, with an evil grin on his face. Frodo and Sam were unaware of it and followed their guides.
(To be continued….)