They stopped and each got off of their horses, except for Elviondel who stayed on hers. She retrieved a jug of water that she'd stored in a pouch to the side of the horse and drank from it, satisfied. She eagerly awaited the time when they would begin again, for she had urgent business in their destination, Forochel.

The children walked around a bit, weaving between the horses and walking around them simply to stretch or wake themselves up. After Ohtar did this, he found a soft, dry place on the ground and laid down. He still wasn't feeling 100%, but he was at least a little better. Maybe this break would be longer and it would give him the chance to relax a bit, he hoped.

"There's five of them," Legolas noted, pointing off in the distance. He'd been talking to Aragorn, who nodded.

"I think I see them."

"They are coming this way. They see us."

Legolas felt a tug on his cloak and spun around, a bit jumpy. Then he saw Galia and smiled. "Lle boe penad, iell?" He usually only spoke elvish to his youngest, for she did not speak the Common Tongue very well yet. She did know some, at least enough to make conversation, but Sindarin was a more comfortable language for her. (Do you need something, daughter?)

"Im thang ansu bar," she pouted. (I want to go home.)

Legolas smiled sympathetically at his child. "Im morr, Galia, wil lle allothron. Ha alband." (I'm sorry, Galia, but you can't. It isn't safe there.)

"Wil Im thang ansu bar!" she repeated, her face sad. (But I want to go home!)

Legolas bent down so that he was eye-to-eye with her, and touched her cheek affectionately. "Im gwaedh lle, ammen tegi heltha Mirkwood estent." Then he smiled a little. "Si daro nallon, a ganna." (I promise you, we'll go back to Mirkwood as soon as we can. Now stop crying and go play.)

Galia smiled a little, but she was still sad. "Pán forn." Then she left. (All right.)

Legolas stood and looked in the opposite direction that he'd seen the five newcomers. "What are you looking for, now?" Aragorn asked him.

"The army. I'm curious at how far behind us they are."

"My fear comes from these ex-witches, no longer the army," Aragorn responded, looking back at the new five.

"These witches will be few and want nothing more than us to leave. The army will stop at nothing to kill Arwen. I fear them more."

"Did you mean to multiply our enemies by coming here?" Aragorn asked.

Legolas looked to his friend, trying to decide how to take the question. Had he meant it as an insult, as if saying Legolas were stupid for bringing them into Angmar, or was he simply wondering?

"I meant to multiply theirs," Legolas replied finally.

"Whatever you meant, you achieved both. We must divert our course to avoid the civilians, and go around them."

Legolas shook his head. "They see us, it no longer matters. They will follow us."

"And Elviondel is with us still," Aragorn mumbled, adding her to their list of enemies.

Legolas looked at him, surprised. "What was that?" he asked.

Aragorn knew well that Legolas had heard him, for he knew how good elven hearing was. Legolas had meant, "What do you mean by that?"

"She was supposed to leave us after we got out of Lórien. At least by the time we reached Rivendell. But no, she stayed, and now we are in the middle of Angmar and she is still here. How long will she pose a threat to us? How long must we keep one eye on her, and another split in half between the army and these witches?"

"Elviondel is an ally," Legolas replied.

"That is not what I said to you weeks ago, and I stand by my statement. She is not to be trusted. She has other intentions in mind than the orders of Celeborn, if indeed he even ordered her at all. For all we know, she is responsible for the disappearance of Galadriel. Assuming she was even telling the truth about her disappearance. You informed me that Elrond said Galadriel had been with him during the period of her mysterious "disappearance." That does not help Elviondel's trust."

Legolas looked away. "I suppose."

"You do not believe me, do you? Are you still thinking about Gwilith?"

Legolas smiled. "Yes, a little."

"They aren't the same person, Legolas. You must realize that. Your trust of her may be the death of us."

"No, not her. It will be the army that kills us, if the heat does not get to us first. Either those two or the civillians. Or-"

Aragorn held up a hand. "Please, do not list the ways that we could die. They are too numerous."

Legolas sighed and mounted Homir. "Well, I suppose we should get moving."

"Straight that way?" Aragorn pointed to where the five Angmarians were coming from.

Legolas nodded. "Unless you have a greater idea, Aragorn. I am listening."

Aragorn shook his head. "I have already told you, but you do not listen. Let us move." He walked over to the children and told them to get on their horses, and Ohtar reluctantly got up from where he'd been laying. They started to go again, and soon they could clearly see the five people that were approaching them. It would be no more than a minute before they collided.

"I want Ohtar in the front!" Legolas called behind him. "Elviondel, Aragorn, Yrinvan come up there as well!" Ohtar rode up beside his father, and Elviondel, Aragorn, and Yrinvan rode behind the first two.

"We are going to kill them," Legolas told them. "Yrinvan, can you shoot an arrow?"

Yrinvan nodded. "I may not be as good of a shot as the prince, but I can do it."

"Can you hit a target?"

Yrinvan knew that he was not the greatest, but he wasn't a half-bad bowman, either. "Probably."

Legolas handed him a bow and a quiver as their horses continued walking. "Shoot the one to the far left. Aragorn, the next one in. Elviondel, the one on the right. I'll take the next one and Ohtar, shoot the one in the middle. Aim for the head or the heart."

"My shot is not what it used to be," Aragorn stated. "I'm a 68-year-old Mortal."

"Just try. If you miss, Ohtar, Elviondel, or I can make up for your miss if indeed you do." Legolas looked to the female. "You can hit a target, correct?"

"Of course I can," she replied. "I am an elf, after all."

Legolas nodded and turned back to where the people were approaching. They had just reached shooting range. "Get ready," he said as he took out an arrow. The rest followed his order. "Maer… tir… min… tad… neled!" (Fit… aim… one… two… three!)

Yrinvan was able to understand the simple words and knew when to fire, and the rest spoke elvish fluently. Their arrows were shot at nearly the same time, though some traveled faster than others and reached their destinations sooner. Ohtar's hit his assignment's forehead, but he had been aiming for the eye once again and therefore missed his target. Legolas's hit the heart, Elviondel's did the same, and Aragorn's hit the chest, somewhere close to right in between the shoulders. Yrinvan's arrow hit the ground before it even reached his man, for he did not give it enough strength.

"Ohtar, take Yrinvan's!" Legolas barked. Then he shot his own second arrow at Aragorn's target to make sure he was dead. Ohtar shot the other person in the heart and the five civilians were dead in half a minute or less.

"I'm sorry," Yrinvan said. "I use swords more often."

"That's all right, it didn't matter," Legolas responded. "They are dead." When he glanced behind him he realized in a panic that the rest of the company was no longer there. Their traveling group had suddenly been reduced from 10 to 5. And there wasn't a trace of where they had gone.