Sarah here again! No hiding or groaning. ;D I guess I'll have to attempt to hurry, since I'm so late, but hurrying isn't something I do very well… :{
SOME MORE FAQs FOR EVERYONE: Those two mysterious people at the beginning? Well, you were all right: they *weren't* Aragorn and Legolas. Kudos to everyone who (most correctly) recognized that our favorite duo wouldn't be awakening evil in Middle Earth! Oh, and our apologies: we didn't even consider that there might be a mix-up — though looking at it now we realize we should have. ;) Who WERE they, then? *innocent smile* If I told you, what would be your motivation to keep reading? :P
'Nwelmai' is pronounced 'NWELL-my'; or rather that is the way *we* pronounce it. If there are any elvish linguists out there who can tell us what the proper pronunciation would be, please do so! :D
This fic is actually 19 chapters long; sorry for the flub! We'll also have a Special Features section like last time — complete with name meanings, a new trailer, and… some weirdness. ;P
Karina: Sorry I missed you last time! We must have passed each other in posting. :D Great to have you back!! And no problemo on the e-mails; hey, the benefits are great for us too! Case in point: You're here. ;D LOL! Psychotic wild cat? No, don't worry, not that. ;D Yeah, Erynbenn's in good hands! And 'creepy' and 'mysterious' make wonderful compliments too! Thanx! :D
phoenixqueen: *big hug* Wonderful to have you! And hey: review when you can! '…you may administer a "cyber scolding" to me when I next review. I know you won't be able to pass that up!' *puts on Gollum voice* Oh yes we could! See, we're only good at cyber-scolding when WE are the readers. :P
RainyDayz: *laughs* Yup, MC en masse! Run for the hills all ye who are still sane! ;D *glances nervously and all-squeezed-out-of-shape-Siri-plushie* Oh, uh, friendship, angst and pain, you say? Uh, yeah. Mm-hm. Lots. *frantically tries to remember* I hope! :P Don't worry, we're prepared! *climbs with Hannah into their Reader Shelter 2000, complete with sound-proof outer shell and villain protection system* Protection from everyone but us, that is. ;)
Mariana Nimeneth: Understood: you didn't fall asleep. Not that I would have blamed you, but we were pleased to have your attention! ;D You read Glorfindel's part aloud? High-five! I love finding fellow nutty people. ;) Hope you get over your cold soon! *sends Mariana a chocolate Glorfindel and a patented Lenablin-Zapper* Just in case he gets out of hand again. ;)
Lurker_elf: If that's how you lurk, I can't imagine how you'd go about posting! ;D Thank you ever so!! Er, sorry we're keeping you from your work… :P 'Strange language' was supposed to be Numenorean in this case, since the Witch King (just like all the other nine rulers of the race of men) was Numenorean originally. But no, like I said in the general note, it wasn't Aragorn and Legolas — so no worries! :D Do trolls smell? Hm. Good question; I think we may have assumed. :| Yes, we got the Sauron/Aragorn thing from the books — after a fashion. We technically got it from The Tolkien Companion by J.E.A. Tyler, but the entries were all compiled based on Tolkien's materials; thus, though I cannot give you a spot in the appendices to check this point, I assume it must be there (or in the Unfinished Tales, etc.) somewhere. One thing that may sound a little confusing, now that I reread it, is that I believe Sauron had a more general idea behind his search when he sent out his emissaries (namely: 'Just make sure Isildur doesn't have any heirs stashed away.') rather than something so specific as 'If Aragorn is still alive, I want you to kill him.'. It came out sounding pretty specific when Elrond said it here. :P LOL! Mind-reading — yeah, it's a parent thing alright. ;D Alas, tis true, Legolas. Sorry. ;) If getting out more causes you to change style then for heaven's sake: stay indoors at all costs!
Cestari: Whoopsie! We seem to be nicking a lot peoples' ideas in this fic, and we're only on chapter 3! :{ I guess there's only so much of even Tolkien's world to go around… Thanks for reviewing anyway! :D
Cassia: 'SoCelboril'? Yippeeee!! After all, he's a used-with-permission character here, so, like canon characters, he has a previous personality that he must live up to. Considering where that personality came from in the first place… Such praise is worth its weight in mithril! ;D Now, character death… I could be really mean and tell you 'wait and see', but I'll only be sort of mean and tell you 'one of our OCs, but I can't tell you which one'. If I say any more Hannah the plot-leak-stopper extraordinaire will have my laptop. ;P Thankyouthankyou on Elrond and Estel, and only Aragorn and Legolas!! We're not exactly spewing confidence over here, if you know what I mean. ;P LOL! We seem to be keeping a lot of folks from their school work lately… I've gotta say, though, you make Design class sound about as exciting as a morgue on its day off. ;)
Hiro-tyre: Wow!! We did not put you to sleep, and lookee there: unadulterated praise! If we were any less giddy over it, we might wonder what became of Hiro-tyre the literary critic… Still, no news is good news, and the longer we put off deflating our swollen heads the better. ;D Thanks especially on our humor! There is a very fine line between 'completely un-Tolkien' and 'too dry' which is difficult to navigate. I am glad we kept our balance. :) I must say, this is the exact opposite reaction to Narandune that I had expected — but in such situations as these, I love being wrong! I was mostly just hoping we could scrape the cameo in without setting off the Mary Sue alarms — maybe even have a few people get a kick out of discovering what Hannah looks like. Unfortunately, because of that, she doesn't come into this fic again. *sniff* SO glad you liked her so much!! A blanket 'thank you' too on our OCs in general. :D *laughs* Oh no, by all means, let's keep the blood! :P
Honk! If you love musicals: We don't know if Glorfindel had a daughter or not. For the info on how Narandune came into being, see the A/N at the bottom of chapter 2. Thank you for all the yummy details!! We positively thrive on those. *dodges salmon* Er, glad you're liking it so much!! :D
Lina: LINA! *nearly topples over as the glomping overbalances her* :D Yeah, yeah, 'curse you, curse you' — we get that a lot, why should you be any different? Elrond: I'm Lord of Rivendell? :P LOL! Fan girls — we should have thought of that! Man. All this trouble trying to describe evil beasts of shadow and all we really had to do was find some teen with a 'Leggo My Legolas' t-shirt and take a snapshot. :D Miss you? But of course we missed you, Lina! Who else could possibly match you in Estel-glomping and threatening villains/female-OCs? *hugs Lina, then realizes what she just said…* Um, uh-oh. *glances nervously at unprotected villain* Eomer: Don't worry. We'll haul her off if she goes too far. Rohirrim: (all nod) Yup. Eomer: (looks around) Right, so… Um, you wouldn't happen to know where she went, would you? Sarah: (shakes head mutely)
w: *hands long-suffering reader a hot water bottle* Oops, hope that helps with the soreness! :} As usual: thank you most especially for all the character praise! A good plot means zilch if we mess up the character interactions, and every jot of encouragement sends us to the moon in sheer relief. ;) Our backstory was 70% too many readings of the appendices (where we first decided where the bulk of our plot would fit), 20% dumb luck (where things that we hadn't planned on just happened to fit perfectly with previous events in canon), and 10% personal embellishment (where Tolkien left just enough of a gap for us to insert our own ideas). Glad it came out sounding feasible! :D You liked Narandune too? Wow! Like I said to Hiro-tyre: we really weren't expecting such a positive response. At worst she'd be labeled a short-lived Mary Sue, at best people would be interested because they know Hannah. I'm glad you liked the mural! Yeah, her opinion was a little ironic, but I thought that because it was her brush that painted it, to her it would only be a piece of artwork, not a herald of doom. :) *jots in notebook* Verb order… passive tense… *puts away her pencil* We'll do our best! It would probably help if we edited this more than three times before posting it… A lot of this could probably be fixed with just a few more read-throughs. *rueful grin* And we certainly hope this turns out to be a darn good story! Not that we mind your 'complaining', but we thrive much more on your praise. ;P
Maranwe: Hey, glad ff.net left your review alone this time!! ;D Don't worry, Aragorn is safe from our wrath! As for the rest… Well, as I said to Cassia: I could be cruel and tell you to 'wait and see', but instead I'll only be sort of mean and say 'it's an OC, but I'm not going to tell you which one'. Sorry, I really can't divulge any more! Hannah would probably have to hurt me if I let my tongue wag. ;D Yes, MC has it's own set of canon, in a way — except that we do not share many characters, mostly jokes. ;D
Everyone Else: *hugs everyone in turn* Oh, thank you SO much!! We enjoy every single one of these!!! I wish I could be this specific with all of you, but alas… *recalls the first chapter of Escape from Mordor (which she still needs to review) and starts crying… AGAIN* Anywho, we are glad we did not bore you to tears, and we are thrilled that you liked our Aragorn/Elrond interaction, and we are over-the-moon that we were able to, well, freak you out! Hem. Uh-huh, yes… *tries to dodge glaring readers* :}
Okay, history lesson is over: back to the action! ;)
______________________________________________________________________________
Darkest Night
By Sarah and Hannah (Siri)
(disclaimers, explanations, and summaries
available at the top of chapter 1)
Chapter 3
No Rest for the Weary
Aragorn gently pulled his horse to a halt and rubbed the tired creature's neck. "He deserves a long rest."
Legolas smiled and nodded; his steed, though significantly less worn down by the journey up the East-West Road, was still heaving slightly beneath her rider and her muscles were atremble from the tension of the long run. "How close are you camped?" Legolas asked at length. Aragorn cocked an eyebrow at that but when Legolas did not return the expression the ranger gestured vaguely into the depths of the Chetwood.
"Somewhere within the trees," he responded dryly. After a short pause he added, "At least we can hope."
Legolas chuckled, "Not a home to call your own, is that it?"
Aragorn smiled, "Unfortunately not here. It is unlikely that they have moved out of Chetwood with these creatures still lurking so frequently in their depths. We will just have to determine where exactly they have moved our camp."
The two riders continued beyond the tree line and with no path to follow they forged through as best they could. Both were long used to such improvising and it did not prove as difficult as Aragorn had believed to find the Dúnedain camp.
The camp, though silent to the untrained ear, could be easily picked out by the ranger and the wood elf, and in another moment they came out into the middle of it, the sentries on duty having long ago determined these two to be friends.
Many of the rangers sat whetting their dull swords to a sharp edge once more, mending tears in worn clothing, or fixing meals from what they could scavenge. A few fires were dotted around the clearing and most of the Dúnedain stood around them, but Aragorn could easily pick out which of them were away on scouting missions.
Dropping down from his horse he removed the sacks of provisions Celboril had insisted he convey to the others. When he turned it was to find Elladan and Elrohir already beside him.
"Finally you have returned!" Elladan cried with a barely concealed smile, embracing his brother. "We thought for certain you had been detained on the way."
Aragorn smiled, trying for the moment to hide the concern he had felt upon his heart ever since his conversation with Glorfindel. "I am well Elladan: you worry far too much. In truth I have brought aid from Mirkwood with me."
The twins turned in surprise and recognized Aragorn's companion for the first time.
"Legolas!" Elrohir exclaimed, embracing the prince before allowing his brother to do the same. "It has been long since we last saw you."
"Not so long, surely," Legolas smiled, gladdened to see the brothers who now seemed very much as his own kin.
"Maybe it is only the absence of Legolas during this last winter that creates that impression," Aragorn suggested.
"That could be it. With all the humans catching some sort of fever, a few cases of frostbite, and the wolves of the north crossing every frozen river east of the Brandywine," Elrohir shook his head, "I could have sworn the Valar were prolonging the season simply to test our endurance!"
"You two are the ones who insisted on remaining with us," Aragorn pointed out. "But believe me, Legolas, you missed nothing worth experiencing. Unless seeing a small company of Dúnedain floundering in a icy river strikes your fancy…" He laughed lightly with the others; the memory, which had been distinctly uncomfortable at the time, now seemed amusing in retrospect. Somehow there was no room for discouragement when all four of them were together.
"I greatly hope to hear how you came to be with Estel this time." Elladan was looking at the Legolas' stiff arm and his tone that suggested he would not let the prince forget to explain.
"It is indeed an interesting tale," Aragorn put in blandly his friend could answer. He had, by one means and another, drawn the story from his friend on their journey from Rivendell and he chuckled now at the elf's exasperated expression.
"Thank you, Strider," Legolas sighed. "To think I *volunteered* to accompany you!"
"You shall know better next time," Aragorn reminded gravely.
Legolas sighed and shook his head, "I doubt it."
They moved into the camp allowing their horses to be taken by another of the rangers gathered there. Aragorn then sought out Halbarad and soon found him near the outskirts of the camp, the other having just returned from a scouting venture. He seemed very much relieved to see his captain returned and greeted Aragorn the moment he reached him.
"It is good to have you back so swiftly, Aragorn. What news do you bring from Rivendell?"
"Nothing as hopeful as I should wish," Aragorn diverted. "I will speak of it as soon as may be."
"You should rest first," Idhrin interceded on behalf of the weary travelers.
In a short while, all of those not scouting were seated around fires eating the meager fare on which all rangers of the wild lived. Their spirits were kept as high as might be and in such attempts Elladan was barely prevented from telling a story of which he had been sworn to secrecy. Aragorn and Legolas practically leapt the elder twin to keep the tale concealed, much to the amusement of the other rangers, and Halbarad went on prodding them for some time before he let the matter drop.
As the night drew on, however, Halbarad told Aragorn of the newest sighting of a dark creature which had occurred in his absence. The beast had not attempted an attack and had seemingly disappeared moments later but it proved that they still roamed close to the Shire lands and Bree. Aragorn's face grew grave as the brief report ended and in return he slowly began to pass on all that Glorfindel had told him.
Legolas could not say where the change was as he watched his friend converse with the other rangers on the matter, but there was something about Strider that seemed to alter subtly when around these people. Without the usual titles, each spoke to him with great respect, and this he returned with an equal respect but also a sense of assurance and authority. Here among the last of the Dúnedain they looked up to Aragorn and depended on his judgment, or at least expected the final word to issue from him.
Here Aragorn was no longer a simple ranger among the remnants, he was a leader and the head of his people. It was yet only a small change Legolas felt in the man and it almost seemed as if Aragorn himself was entirely unaware of it. Conceivably it was the effect of seeing his friend in a different light, but perhaps it was merely that this aspect of Aragorn had not yet had the time nor the opportunity to became all it should be.
Maybe one day it would.
Aragorn completed the narrative exactly as Glorfindel had told it, ending with the grim speculation that these creatures were likely to inflict their violence on the Dúnedain alone. Though he spoke naught of their particular attention on him, his brothers noted the omission, and then for a moment only the snap of the fire and the distant creak of a tree bending under the wind could be heard.
"This changes everything," Nindalf said at length, his pale blue eyes almost white in the dusk. Normally a runner, his slender body was tense.
"It changes nothing," Idhrin corrected softly. "It only confirms our fears."
"How are we to battle beasts of the fell world that cannot be destroyed?" the other ranger's voice was pitched strangely and Aragorn looked up suddenly at his words.
"We do not know that they cannot be destroyed, Nindalf. Only that it will be difficult. We know that they can be wounded, that they bleed as any living beast; they have great advantages over us, but that is no reason to despair until we have exhausted all our efforts."
Halbarad nodded in agreement. He was staring thoughtfully into the flames and asked at length, "What were these words of a book?"
Aragorn shook his head, "I know not. It was possibly only the mindless ramblings of a disturbed and dying man; though I am inclined to think otherwise."
"It is unfortunate that this tower is shadowed in such mystery," Elladan murmured from beside Aragorn, "for it seems to hold the answers to all these questions."
Aragorn nodded, tossing a stick beside him into the fire; it sent small sparks scattering into the night sky like so many shining stars. "We must then look elsewhere for our answers and hope that we do not fail in our attempts."
Malvegil, a towering ranger with his hair braided back over his ears in the elven fashion, made a soft attempt at levity, "Mayhaps the hobbits will have such information. I often wonder if they know more than they let on, for it seems unthinkable that any creatures could be as witless as they sometimes seem." The comment went unnoticed.
Elladan watched his younger brother closely. "Do not take this burden solely on your own shoulders," he murmured softly, his words meant only for Aragorn's ears. "We all stand together, Estel."
The human turned his head and looked about to speak again when a sound broke the air. A sentry's warning call. In another moment Erynbenn burst into the camp, his breath spent and his eyes dilated. Aragorn leapt to his feet and moved quickly to the young man's side.
"What is it?" Aragorn took the ranger by the shoulders, feeling them tremble beneath his touch.
"Th-three!" he gasped. "They're coming this—way!"
Aragorn took Erynbenn's meaning instantly and his hand went to his sword. "All prepare, they've returned!"
At his call the rangers were set immediately into motion. The camp was broken in moments, the fires doused quickly, and all that carried the scent of men was gathered to one point. Each man took up his weapon and moved between or up into the trees, awaiting the attack.
Legolas drew out an arrow, took up his bow, and moved just behind the trunk of a strong oak. Aragorn sent Erynbenn to alert the other sentries before he moved to stand beside his friend.
"Three," the elf murmured. "Have you ever faced so many?"
"Nay, only two," Aragorn answered softly. He turned and his burning silver eyes locked on keen blue ones, "And my friend: two was quite enough."
Legolas nodded and drew his bow taut.
In the following moment all the forest seemed to bait its breath in anticipation of the coming evil. The wind suddenly swept over them like a wave, as though it was being drained from the forest, and then abruptly all went very still.
Every small breath and rustle seemed to pound in Aragorn's ears. He knew that his men would know how to break apart should it come to that. Excepting a bare few, each was a seasoned fighter with years of experience behind him. Even so Aragorn could easily feel the tension that gripped them as they waited to face the enemy that stalked them.
A soft rustle to Legolas' left alerted him to the creatures' approach. It appeared to be only the first one and Legolas glanced cautiously around Aragorn but could not see the creature. He could only glimpse the flicker of a shadow and hear the soft sound of a claw sliding against bark. Raising his bow slightly he tracked the beast's progress up into a second oak just feet away from his and Aragorn's position. Still he could not focus on it.
Then all sound and motion stopped and Legolas experienced the uncomfortable feeling that someone — or something — was watching him.
Its breath was silent, its body rigid. Tense. Prepared to prey upon the slightest movement. Its eyes searched the surrounding area, its nose aimed high to catch the smell it was searching for. In the still air it should be easy to find.
Its heart beat in a solid rhythm, life coursing in its seemingly lifeless shell. Inhaling the air once more it longed to satisfy its craving for blood.
A flash caught the creature's eye.
Moving like smoke, it twisted around the trunk of the tree and its eyes picked out the glowing figure below it. From this distance it was only a bright light standing out in the swirling darkness of the beast's twisted mind. Out of the corner of its vision it could see two more such lights, but the creature ignored these.
For in the light radiating off this being it could easily see one of the prey for which it had been searching. With a high shriek the creature pushed from the tree and dove for the human below it.
The shattering of the stillness sent every man into motion. Many leapt forward to attack the creature before it reached their position; some moved past it to face the second one — which sprang into the camp directly behind the first.
There were still a scant half dozen running to Aragorn and Legolas' aid but in another moment, the third beast had fallen from the trees, blocking their path and lunging for its prey.
Aragorn had no chance to move; only by Legolas' quick reflexes mixed with what the utter shock had left of Aragorn's own instincts was the human pulled aside and out of the Nwelmai's path.
Before Legolas had grabbed his friend he had managed to loose an arrow, but whether it had found purchase in the creature's thick, shadowy hide the elf did not wait to see.
The two companions pulled further away from the creature, making a short retreat to put some distance between themselves and their assailant, and then, as if with one mind, both turned at the same moment and released arrows towards the center of the shadow. One at least, though in the dark it was difficult to tell which one, sliced into the wreaking pelt and there came a yowl of pain. Shortly afterward a foul smell drifted through the air. A second shriek came from another of the creatures and the smell grew.
For a few minutes Aragorn found it difficult to breath, but he kept his sword up and with a cry he lunged at the beast, swiping his blade towards the glitter of eyes and scoring a long slash between them; rancid blood flowed from the wound, steaming where it hit the grass. The creature, now thoroughly enraged, returned the attack with a snarl and slashed its claws towards the ranger's stomach. Its attack was met by an arrow that sank deep into its front leg, but this only altered the course of its swipe slightly and it still hit Aragorn hard in the side. The human spun back with the force of the blow, stumbling to his hands and knees — feeling no claws but gasping as he struggled to fill his lungs. A single breath knifed through his chest, but before he could fully regain it he felt the creature's icy cold hiss against his neck.
Looking up he could only see the glint of sharp fangs and liquid that looked unnervingly like blood dripped from its mouth. Gasping again, Aragorn stretched out his hand to retrieve the sword that had been wrenched from his grasp, but the monster worked quicker and slashed its claws suddenly into the sword, sending it skittering away.
Aragorn looked up in shock — the debate over the intelligence of the Nwelmai suddenly rendered moot. With nothing else for it, Aragorn leapt to his feet and pulled away, his retreat covered by another two shots from Legolas' bow.
Turning just behind his friend, he saw the elf shoot once again into the general center of the creature for lack of a more specific target.
"Hurry Strider!" Legolas called, motioning the man back, and Aragorn pulled back as far as he could. Relieved of his sword the ranger searched around for a replacement weapon; his bow had been dislodged and lost in the fall leaving him only with his arrows and the dagger in his boot.
The Nwelmai advanced on Legolas. Dropping to one knee the elf drew out another arrow and shot it upwards into the looming creature. This time it was ready and sprang aside, light as if the earth had no pull upon it.
The thick stench of acrid blood filled the air and seemed to suffocate the defenders, but though they had wounded all three beasts many times, still not one fell. Again the Nwelmai advanced on the Dúnedain, backing them closer to the rear of their camp.
The creature stalking Aragorn and Legolas leapt at the elf, trying to get past him to the human on his other side. Legolas took the opportunity to strike an arrow into the creature's throat but it missed by a hair and instead buried itself near its collarbone.
The beast let out a ferocious scream like nothing Aragorn had heard before and it suddenly swung forward a massive forepaw, slamming it hard into Legolas before the elf had time to move. The shadowy arm seemed to move like a wave, and like a wash of water there was no way to stay the attack. Legolas felt the impact — felt himself being thrown into the air, and then wrenched sharply as he was slammed full against a tree.
"Legolas!" Aragorn called, the elf slid down the trunk, dazed or unconscious. The Dúnadan looked up in time to see the creature advancing on him. With no true weapon to aid him Aragorn retreated instead, hoping only that he could outrun the creature for a bit. He looked again at Legolas but the elf did not stir. Aragorn pulled back quickly as the creature hissed at him.
At last Aragorn turned and bolted away from the camp; he knew this was a foolish move but he was left with no other choice. The trees would not shield him — nor would hiding do any good, for the cunning beast knew his scent — still he must escape somehow. His breath rattled in his chest and he was very aware that the creature was just behind him. Whether it was moving through trees or along the ground the ranger knew not: he could only hope he had remained ahead of it.
In another moment Aragorn's path broke out into another clearing leaving his cover suddenly open. Feeling the danger thrumming at his heart, he turned quickly in time to see the shadowy creature lunge towards him. Aragorn dropped to the earth instinctively and then realized he had miscalculated. Instead of bounding over him, the creature landed with the weight of a falling tree upon his back, nearly breaking his spine. In a world of pain already, he felt the claws of the beast dig into his back, its weight driving the talons in like so many nails and then it dragged them free as it leapt off of him. Aragorn let out a scream, arching his back against searing pain that suddenly enveloped him, white hot and pulsing.
Stumbling to his knees, the ranger fell again after he had gained but a few feet between himself and the creature. He could feel the warm blood running down his back — running too thick and too quickly.
The Nwelmai turned to assail him once more, its breath coming in a rumbled growl, but all at once it stopped. In an eternal moment all space around Aragorn seemed to grow black and the creature lifted its snout and sniffed the air as the new smell reached its nostrils.
Not the mere smell of man, nor even the smell of a Dúnadan: it was the smell of a royal descendant, a man of Isildur's bloodline.
TBC…