Chapter Two – 'Faith builds a bridge from the old world to the next…'

//And all I feel is black and white//

My throat burned, words unable to form. The strangely clad man suspiciously glared at me as my eyes wandered from the tip of the arrow to the intricate bow that he was holding. I noticed two other similarly dressed men standing a few feet away from us as well, wariness present on their pale faces.

"Who are you, and what is your business in the land of Gondor?" he asked, hostility masking his voice.

I opened my mouth to reply but the words I needed so desperately refused to come. As I remained silent, the tip of the arrow continued to forcefully sting, unwelcomed, at my throat.

"I ask again, who are you and what is your business in Gondor?" the man repeated, impatience dripping liberally from his voice.

Fear coursed through me when I noticed the two other men reach behind green cloaks and grasp onto sword hilts.

Wait a minute, I thought, swords? And arrows? In Manhattan? My eyes shifted around, focussing on unfamiliar parts of a forest, when I realised that I was no longer in any city. Huge trees towered over us and for the first time I noticed the sweet scent of flowers wafting through the area.

But all this was forgotten when reality sunk in and I did the only logical thing that any one would do – I fainted.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Blink. Blink. White fuzziness seeped through my vision as I tried to clear the haze that was my sight. There was a strong smell of herbs and I was lying on an extremely soft bed. As my eyes refocussed themselves, I noticed that the ceiling held a beautiful array of designs as I continued to gaze upwards.

I was startled when someone beside me cleared their throat. Whipping my head around, I immediately regretted that action as a ton of elephants stampeded through my skull. Groaning, I re-shut my eyes and brought my hands up to cradle my head.

The person beside my chuckled and I shot them a glare that could kill. I saw that it was a man with reddish hair, his body bandaged up quite severely.

"Lady, I mean not to laugh at you. But pray tell me your name, for you have been the topic of much gossip around here," he said, with a grin.

I was confused. Why in the world was this man speaking like he was transported out of the 1800's?

"Um…my name's Summer," I replied.

"Summer," he repeated, testing my name out, "My name is Faramir, son of Gondor."

"I wonder at your clothing. Are you from the East?" he asked.

Looking down, I realised that I was still in my leotards and stockings. I glanced back up at Faramir's face to find him looking curiously at me.

"Um…I'm not sure," I replied.

"Not sure? How can you not be sure of where you come from?" he asked, confused.

"Well, for one, what country are we in?"

"Country? Well this is the city of Gondor in Middle-earth," Faramir said.

Middle-earth? My mother had once spoken of such a place. She would start off a bedtime story with 'Once upon a time in Middle-earth…' and launch into an exciting and adventurous tale.

I was bewildered at how I could have ended up in a place known only to me in fairytales. Clutching my head, I started muttering to myself, in hope that this was all a bad dream and I would be back in…back in Manhattan? Where I would have to face that my mother was…

Oh God, Oh God, Oh God. I can't do this. I can't do this. I need to…

Lurching up, I leaned to the side of the bed and threw up. My vomit creating a disgusting swirl on the pretty tiles of wherever I was. As I continued to empty my guts up onto the floor, I felt a reassuring hand on my back rubbing soothing circles.

Once I could no longer throw anything up, and the need to breathe was crucial, I fell back into the bed, exhaustion creeping back into my body. I could feel the oncoming slaughter of sobs. No, no, no, I was too strong for this, I'll find a way out, I'll…

//But I fear

I have nothing to give

I have so much to lose//

I noticed that Faramir had left, probably thinking that I was some nutcase that ought to be locked up. Can't say I blame him. Speaking of being locked up, I realised that I was trapped here in Middle-earth, without a clue as to what I was going to do. Being pretty certain that this was not just a nightmare, from the pain in my head and emptiness in my stomach, I shut my eyes, hoping that when I woke up, I could figure out what I was going to do.