Part Two: on the plain of Rohan: Uruk Hai
Date: 6/2/03 10:30:30 PM Eastern Daylight Time
Edited: 12/27/06 8:47 PM
Warnings: Attempted Rape. Nothing descriptive nor sexual.
When Frodo awakened from his unconscious state, the first thing he was aware of was the jerky movement of his own body and the thunderous marching that had aroused him in the first place. Blinking slowly his eyes opened against the throbbing in his head, he exhaled shakily at the sight of the ground moving beneath him and the thick calves and feet that moved in rhythm with the thunder. With another shuddering gasp, he soon realized he was not in the Shire with his friends nor uncle Bilbo; He was being carried across the plains of Rohan by the Uruk-Hai. His blue eyes stared at the ground moving rapidly below him, then raised his gaze heavenward; The sky was partly clear, the sun shined through the clouds as they passed by. Upon gathering his wits, the first thing that came to Frodo's mind was Pippin. What had happened to Pippin? Due to the position he currently found himself in, his line of sight was limited to but a few Uruk-Hai marching along aside his captor. His cousin had be somewhere amongst this motley crew. "Pippin!" His cries were muffled against the gag.. Frodo attempted to remove the gag from his mouth when Swarver's harsh laughter rang in his ears, over the marching, stopped him short. "Oi, fellas, look's like we have another Halfling alive and awake!" He bellowed.
The roar of the Uruk-Hai's laughter echoed through Frodo's head, he squinted his eyes at the very sound of it. Pippin's all right, he thought with a sigh, after his brain had registered Swarver meant by "another Hobbit alive and awake."
Pippin watched from afar, watched, through bleary eyes, his cousin Frodo sigh with relief. Why was he sighing? Pippin looked across the plain, they were never going to get back to the others, he just knew it. I wish Merry were here. He'd know what to do, he thought, as he body bounced against the Orc. He winced in pain when his was jarred. No one had treated his wound, so Pippin figured it was infected by this point. He gave an involuntary gasp when the Uruk-Hai came to a stop, he found himself looking about the area along with the Uruk's, his eyes darting every direction. One of the Uruk-Hai came up beside Swarver, in spite of the harsh expression, the concern (or rather panic) that spilled across his face could not be mistaken. "What? What is it, Swarver?" The Uruk growled. Swarver sneered into the wind as the familiar sent wrapped itself around his senses. He turned to the group with a murderous look upon his face. "I smell man flesh!" He growled. Frodo and Pippin sent each other knowing looks, their spirits lifting slightly at the mention of 'man'.
"Aragorn!" Pippin said through the gag. "He must be coming for us!" He felt his shoulder being squeezed, and cried out in pain. "Shut up, Halfling!" Uglli Snapped. Pippin screamed into the gag, thankful it barely came out in its clearest form. Frodo felt his stomach twist in knots at the pale complexion of his cousin's face, the almost lifeless characteristic it took on before he lost all consciousness. Pippin's head fell against the Uruk-Hai's back just as the pack began to move with even most haste. Swallowing against the panic that rose in his throat, Frodo extended his neck out whilst pressing his chin against his chest. After several tries he managed to grab a hold of the broach upon his cloak. It separated from the fabric with a soundless snap and with his prayers, Frodo spat the precious item onto the ground in hopes that Aragorn would find it.
Elsewhere, Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli rushed across the uneven terrain of Rohan with no signs of letting up their pursuit despite the considerable amount ground to be covered. A little ways a head of Gimli, Merry and Sam sprinted across the stretching land as they continued their search for Frodo and Pippin. Merry moved nearly with all the grace of Legolas, his determination to keep up with the group fueled him. Samwise, however, due to excess baggage he had on his back, was significantly more bogged down than the Brandybuck and fought his hardest to keep up with everyone. Merry dared to glance back at his companion with mild irritation. "C'mon Sam, you can't give up now!" Merry bellowed, fatigued himself.
Sam glared indignantly at Merry, he had no idea what it was like to run with cooking utensils, among other things, upon your back. He didn't appreciate the forked tongue he was getting from the Hobbit. "Don't you rush me, Brandybuck. I wanna find Mr. Frodo and Pippin as much as you do. I've got no intentions of givin' up now, I'll tell you that much!" The Gamgee snapped. He knew better than to do so, but he couldn't help it. Merry fell back into silence and picked up his pace. The three lagging travelers finally caught up with their nimble companions and found themselves coming a halt at the sound of Legolas' "Ho!"
Just a few feet ahead of him, Aragorn lowered himself to the ground. Bending over he pressed his ear to the ground. They had tracked Uruk-Hai for measureless nights and days, hardly taking any rest for the fear of losing the trail kept them moving. Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli knew how to keep down or upwind of their prey as they tracked them, but the Hobbit's were a different story. Aragorn almost regretted the time he had to take with the two to ensure that they would not unknowingly give away their position to the enemy. He simply hoped that the creatures did not gain too much ground from their intermission. Silence lingered between them for what seemed like an eternity. Aragorn tensed at the shift of vibrational movement from what it once was. He felt his breath hitch in his throat at the realization that they had been discovered.
Raising his head slowly from the ground, he murmured words only Legolas could hear. "They have caught our sent," Legolas' blue eyes widened at such news, he turned towards the others. "Our presence is known!" He proclaimed harshly. Aragorn lifted himself from the ground and nodded. "Come, hurry!" The ranger bellowed, bounding down the hill. Legolas moved to follow his friend, he turned his head to a degree and called over his shoulder, "Hurry, Gimli! We are gaining on them!" Merry and Sam hurried after the Elf as he vanished down the hill. Gimli fought to keep up with the rest of them. Dwarves were not meant for such stressing task as long range pursuits, he was wasted in such an endeavor!Gimli puffed angrily as he fought to catch up.
Frodo awoke with a splitting headache that made him all too aware of his surroundings. Nightfall had come, he was out mostly the entire day. He looked up to find himself on the ground, his hands still bound in rope. With little force behind his struggle, Frodo tired to slip his way out of his bindings which only succeeded in irritating his already sore wrists; He gave up after several more attempts. The grunts of his captors sang unharmoniously around him, the impact of their bodies and their guttural language put Frodo on edge. What did they plan on doing with him or Pippin? They seemed unaware that he processed the ring of power, which puzzled the Halfling greatly. Would it not be natural for the accursed ban of gold to call out to one of them, tempt them with voices that nibbled at the edges of Frodo's very mind and soul? It would be so easy, yet, it remained dormant against his chest. Exhaling heavily his eyes scanned the ground he laid on until they came upon an unconscious Pippin Took, looking no worse than he had the last he saw him. "Pippin!" He cried through the gag. His cries fell on deaf ears, ignoring the protests of his aching muscles he began to inch his way over to his cousin. Shifting his neck around in different angles caused the gag to fall from his mouth. Frodo took a moment to breath in the air, not exactly refreshing, but cool and welcoming against his dry throat and tongue.
Frodo made his way over to Pippin without hindrance or trouble from the Uruk-Hai who at the moment, were wrapped up in their own dilemmas. Pippin laid on the ground oblivious to the world around him – or so it seemed –, his pasty complexion fit the near-serene expression on his face. Lifting himself slightly from the ground Frodo thrust his arms forward. His fingers bumped Pippin's chin causing the youngest to stir, Frodo removed the gag from Pippins mouth. "Pippin," He whispered. The young Hobbit's eyes fluttered opened, staring into his cousin's face. He smiled weakly at Frodo. "He-hullo Frodo," He rasped. Frodo smiled warmly despite his throbbing jaw line. "Hullo Cousin," Frodo returned. "Are you alright? How's your shoulder?"
Pippin coughed lightly shifting his body weight off his arms, he rolled himself onto his back with marginal difficulty. "I– it still hurts. Worse than before," He muttered. There was a loud sound just across from the two, which caused Frodo and Pippin turn toward the cluster of tress not far from them. Another bellow sounded out into the night but the Uruk-Hai paid no attention to the protests of the forest. Pippin pulled himself a little closer to Frodo, uneasiness radiating off him like a beacon. "What's that sound?" Pippin whispered, frightened. Frodo stared into the darkness with wonderment, without looking down at his cousin he said, "It's the trees," He said it with such awe in his voice. Pippin turned to Frodo in question. "The trees?" He repeated. Frodo's gaze shifted to his unbelieving relative with a quick nod toward the forest. "Remember those stories, the ones Gandalf told us about? Something in the forest made the trees come to life. Talk, even move," Frodo's voice was tainted with a emotion Pippin could not finger. "Wh– what?" He whispered.
"There's no other explanation. Its' forest, that's what's making that noise," Frodo pressed. The idea of talking tress did not excite Pippin like it was obviously exciting Frodo. The notion of living, breathing, talking trees excited him as a child. Adventures with Merry fed this childish fantasy until one day he simply lost interest in it. It had never once entered his mind until now. Now, he was to find that this 'fantasy' may be true? That such beings exist on Middle Earth? Pippin sought to ponder this in hopes that it would distract him from the lightheadedness he was experiencing when an approaching figure caused his blood to run cold. Pippin's green eyes suddenly became wide with fear, Frodo turned in response, he too ran cold with dread. Uglli, Swarver's second-in-command, stood over them with a gleam in his eyes. "Get 'outta 'tha way, ya filthily little Hobbit!" He snapped, pushing Frodo aside.
He hauled Pippin up off the ground, by his scarf, the Hobbit's eyes widened at the haggard face of his captor. "What did I tell ya would happen if you removed that gag again?!" Uglli snarled, bearing his crooked fangs. Pippin remained silent, his lip quivering. "Oh, don't wanna answer, eh?" Uglli chuckled, with a odious grin. "Alright then, time for ya punishment, rodent." Frodo tried to move, he was kicked in the stomach by Uglli. He doubled over in pain, trying to clutch his stomach with his bound hands. "Teach you, to move again," He laughed, dragging Pippin away.
From afar Frodo could hear Pippin's faint struggles against Uglli, whom promised to make his experience was miserable was possible. Rubbing his wrists together Frodo slipped his hands from out of the rope and forced his unsteady legs into action and rushed across the damp grassy ground. He stumbled into the tent, his hand unconsciously reaching for Sting. He gripped nothing but air, ironically in his eyes frantic search for a weapon he spotted his uncle's weapon lying in the grass. Diving forward he rolled and grabbed his weapon up from the ground, with one mighty swing he sliced Uglli from be hind. The Uruk's legs gave out on him, he rolled from atop Pippin howling in agony. Pippin pushed himself upright, he scrambled away from Uglli, joining Frodo's side.
Uglli snarled in pain, twisting around to meet his attacker. "You filthy bugger! How did you get 'outa your bonds?!" Uglli hissed. Frodo did not respond. He directed Pippin towards the door with the vain hopes that none of Uglli's comrades heard his cry of pain over their own mouths when he was pulled off the ground by Swarver. Sting was ripped from his grasp in an flash, tossed aside like nothing. "What is goin' on!?" Swarver demanded. He looked down Pippin with contempt watching the Hobbit straightening his attire out. He looked up at Uglli, who saw it fit to glare at him through the corners of his eyes. "Your beast tried to defile my cousin!" Frodo shouted finally.
Swarver gave Frodo a steely glare then proceeded to growl at Uglli who held his massive hands against his wounded back. He paled slightly when his commander released the Hobbit in his grasp and stalked towards him. "Oi, I was just gonna have a little fun with 'em, was all," He protested weakly. Frodo stumbled over to his cousin, his legs threatening to give way under him. Pippin grabbed a hold of Sting and clumsily hid the short sword behind his cloak, Frodo regarded him with the same anxiety in his expression as before. He regarded the two beasts before them. They were too caught up in their own business to notice a smuggled weapon in their prisoners's hands. Swarver took a menacing step towards Uglli, his teeth gleaming in moonlight that peeked through the tattered tent. "Saruman wants the Halfling's brought to him, unspoiled! Fool!" Swarver bellowed. Uglli rolled his eyes. "Now tie them up, tie them good!" The commander hissed. Uglli knew better than to rebuke an order from Swarver when he was in such a mood (or any mood for that matter); Swallowing the bile in his throat he gave a short nod. "Good," Swarver left the tent without so much as a glance at the Halfling's.
Frodo stared boldly at Uglli who was sneering at them. Picking up the rope, he tied Frodo's hands together. "Now to make sure youse don't try anything stupid . . ." As Uglli was about tighten the knot a arrow hit him square in the chest, knocking him down. The sudden roars from outside brought Frodo out of his shocked stupor. Twisting around the two peered outside to find the campsite in total chaos; The Uruk-Hai rushed about swinging their swords at the passing shadows on horseback that knocked them down with little effort. Whether it was because of the aid given to them by the spears, Frodo did not care to ponder. Reaching into his cousin's cloak Frodo grasped Sting's hilt with strengthened determination, he cut the rope around Pippin's wrists then proceeded to cut his own. The rope fell at their feet, ragged and unusable. Frodo flexed his wrists slowly in an attempt to return the feeling to his hands. "C'mon Frodo!" Pippin cried, running out the back of the tent. "Pippin, wait!" Frodo cried following after him. That fool of a Took was bound to get them killed if he continued to act like this! They rushed through the frenzied battled taking place around them, spears and arrows zipped past and overhead, bodies went down so fast Frodo could not identify them as the savior or the enemy. Frodo Dodged a falling Orc that was hit with a dagger.
The two rushed through the hysteria and madness as the riders and Uruk-Hai fought, Pippin lead the way. He was pulled back by a sudden grip upon the belt that was given to him when the company departed from Lothlorien. "The belt!" Frodo cried. The figure sought to pull them down with him, Frodo and Pippin struggled to undo the belt with numb fingers; The soundless snap of the leather breaking away freed Pippin of the Belt, leaving the fallen figure with it. A horse was pulled into their pathway, for a moment the two were separated, Pippin was bold enough to rush under the panicked beast's belly. Frodo made his way around the giant, he was halted in his steps again when a spear zipped past him – mere inches away from his chest. An Uruk-Hai was unfortunate enough to catch the sharp end of the weapon through the abdomen. With haste, Frodo rejoined Pippin's side. As they moved father away from the battle, the two shared another wary glance the closer they got to Fangorn Forest. Not far behind them, Uglli dragged his bleeding body after them, moving as quick as his body would allow. He snarled in rage, watching two vanish into the shroud of darkness.
TBC
(More to come soon!)
