Chapter 12
Night fell and under the innumerable stars, Ariel lay captive the Saruman's Uruk Hai.
When she finally regained consciousness, the army had swelled to a hundred and all hopes of escape vanished in an instant.
Her wrists were untied to allow her to eat, some of the Uruk Hai threw strips of bread at her but she made no move to touch the food, desperately searching for a way out, which at the moment seemed highly impossible.
Furthermore, her head still throbbed from the blow and the shoulder wound hurt badly. But what pained her most was the sight of her fair elven bow and blades in foul orc hands.
They tried to destroy it, but the bow refused to break. For strong was the ash wood it was made of, and the blades were crafted with extraordinary skill. They threw the weapons upon the grass in disgust. Ariel murmured a word of thanks to the Valar.
And then she saw two other captives. Two familiar hobbits she recognized by the names of Meriadoc Brandybuck and Peregin Took. Shocked, she tried to register the fact in her mind but to no avail till Pippin gave her a feeble hello, and Merry scrambled across to her.
She did not know whether to feel glad at the thought that they were alive or distressed that such gay and joyful Halflings are bound by orcs. And what of the rest of the fellowship? Are they in danger? Are they …dead? She suddenly started to feel sick.
"Lady Silverstar, what a pleasure meeting you."
"I am afraid meeting under this circumstances, it isn't much of a pleasure." Ariel replied.
They glanced at their bound legs and wounds, and then laughed grimly at the irony of the situation.
"Where are the others?"
"The fellowship was attacked at Amon Hen. Alas! Boromir died a valiant death, trying to save us. Of the others I do not know." Merry's eyes misted, for he and Pippin grew to love Boromir just as he was as fond of them.
Ariel tried consoling Merry, but was momentarily distracted by creaking and groaning in the forest of Fangorn.
"They say the trees actually talk to each other", Merry's voice dropped to a whisper.
She suddenly remembered, and told the hobbits about Gandalf. They were astonished but glad, that he had not perished in the Dark Abyss of Moria.
"We must get into Fangorn, Gandalf is in there." Pippin said.
"Having a nice little chat eh?" No one needed to think twice in order to identify the owner of that sneering voice.
The orc tied up their hands again, when all of a sudden the ground shook, and hoof beats sounded. Ariel, surprised, tried to stand and see what was going on, but tripped over instead. And she saw about a hundred horsemen galloping by, slaying the Uruk Hai one by one. The orc army was thrown into disorder, and some ran off to the hither plains.
She was quite taken aback. Though it was known they were in Rohan, she did not expect help of any kind to come to their rescue.
Merry and Pippin, however, made use of the moment to cut their bonds on a sharp rock, and then they helped to free Ariel.
"Come on, run!" Pippin urgently tried pulling the lady towards the dark eaves of Fangorn.
"No, wait." Ariel made for her beloved elven bow and blades. Never in her life would she abandon them, unless there was a dire need to do so. She picked them up tenderly, checking for any hurts done to them, before running back to join Pippin and Merry.
Eomer Eadig, Third Marshall of the Mark was extremely shocked to see a fair elf maiden on the plains of Rohan. And an armed one, too.
He got off his horse and started towards her, for no one without leave from the king was to walk freely on their land, elf or not.
She had just slung the weapons over her shoulder and started running towards Merry and Pippin when a hand clamped on her shoulder, the injured one, in fact. Biting down the urge to cry out, she turned and faced the man.
"Who are you, an elf? What business do you have in Rohan?" He demanded.
"I am Ariel Silverstar and headed towards Imladris, Rivendell, it is called in Westron." She prayed fervently the hobbits managed to escape.
But Merry and Pippin were fiercely loyal and not the type to desert their friends.
So it came to be Eomer found himself wondering if his eyesight had failed him or was he really seeing children, swords, or more like little daggers drawn running towards him.
Ariel groaned inwardly and hissed, "Why didn't you leave while you had the chance?"
Turning to Eomer, she explained they were hobbits of the Shire and the Uruk Hai had taken them.
"Let us, or at least let them go, I will be answerable for them."
"It is indeed strange these days. An elf and hobbits found in RiddleMark." Then Eomer noticed Ariel grimaced whenever she spoke and gripped her right shoulder.
Eomer flung open her cloak and drew in breadth at the sight of such a deep gash. How could she still stand there and talk calmly to him? He marveled at her strength.
"You are hurt. I will take you and these Halflings to Edoras at once. But first, your wound must be cleaned." It was not a request, but an order.
He motioned to his men and immediately one of them came over and started to clean Ariel's wound.
Merry, meanwhile told Eomer, "We would be on our way soon and not trouble you any further, sir."
But Eomer would not hear of it. " The lady would be taken to Edoras till she recovers. But I give leave to both of you to go, unless you rather come with us."
"We need to find a friend in Fangorn." Pippin said.
"Go as you may but it does not bode well for anyone to enter the wood, it is full of unknown dangers worse than orcs. But I would not permit Lady Silverstar to go, though I will provide you with food."
"Thank you, our families and us would be forever in your debt." Said Merry.
Ariel protested at this, for she had planned to go into Fangorn too, but seeing Eomer's determined set of the jaw, she gave in.
As the night wore on, several times she tried communicating with Arwen, but her strength failed her. She was still wary of the men of Rohan as elves are as distrustful as hobbits are delightful.
"You have naught to fear from us." Eomer said, as if sensing her thoughts.
"I worry for the hobbits." Ariel said in a bid to cover up her earlier fear.
"You remind me much of my sister, Eowyn. Headstrong, a will of resolve that does she does not seem capable of. Unfortunately, our King, my mother's brother has been under an evil spell."
He told Ariel all about Grima Wowmtongue, and how he fears for his sister.
"He watches her every movement under those pale eyelids of his, and I in turn, watches him. But I cannot always be looking out for my sister, I have matters to attend to as Third Marshall of the Mark."
Ariel wondered if her brothers felt the same about her.
He continued, " Because of him, Theodren, son of the King was slain. I was forbidden to go after orcs. I pursued these orcs against the King's orders with those loyal to Rohan."
Ariel looked around and saw the men were proud, and possessed many qualities needed for a well-trained army. And Eomer made a fine leader.
"I have yet to thank thee, my lord for the kindness shown to me."
"Part of the reason was because I wish not to forfeit my life any further by allowing you to wander about this land without leave of the King. The Halflings would do no harm, so I have let them go. I would have let you go too, if only you were not wounded or armed."
Ariel saw clearly the distrust men had in elves, and wished it were not so. The two races were estranged from one another mainly because of a series of misunderstandings, and, of course, the Enemy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dawn came and the hobbits, well laden with food said farewell and set off gloomily into the dark forest of Fangorn.
Ariel feared for them, but realized if Gandalf were in there, it would be safe. But she could not shake off the worry.
The host of the Rohirrim was ready to leave.
"Come, Lady, your wound is fresh and you have not the strength to ride alone." Eomer held out a hand, which Ariel hesitatingly took.
For hours they rode south, upon the grassy plains of Rohan. Ariel was amazed at the speed of the horses. They never wearied, neither did they falter, and oft held their heads proudly. Such was the tireless energy in them that Ariel yearned to have a steed of her own too. Not one of those gentle palfreys specially trained for women, but a strong and beautiful one, with a spirit matching hers. Little did she know her wish would not remain unfulfilled.
"What news from the North, Riders of Rohan?" A startingly familiar voice called out.
At Eomer's signal, all the riders wheeled around and surrounded three people, who happened to be Aragorn, Legolas and the dwarf Gimli.
Stifling back a cry, she had to restrain herself from falling over. They were on a Quest, and revealing her identity would only slow them down, and she would be a hindrance to them. No, it certainly would not do to join them.
She whispered in Eomer's ear, telling him not to harm them, and not to tell them about her. He grunted in response, and then leapt off the horse, giving Ariel a clear view of Legolas. Her heart leapt at the sight of him, and it was all she could do to keep from crying out.
She nearly had to intervene, when Legolas threatened Eomer with his bow, and the soldiers of Rohan pressed in further, ready to strike Legolas down with their deadly spears if their leader's life was in danger.
Eomer learned that they had been on the Uruk Hai's trail, going after them in hope of rescuing the Halflings. And when he told them of Merry and Pippin, their faces brightened considerably. And Gimli exclaimed: " Then our search had not been in vain!"
They made ready to leave, but was stopped by Eomer, saying, "Loath am I to break the law any further as I have done so by pursuing the orcs, and I cannot let strangers, even if for a good cause to wander freely in our land without leave of the king."
"Then you will have to battle one hundred and fifty to three, for we will not submit to you will when our comrades are in need. Choose swiftly now, for I am Isildor's Heir!" Aragorn suddenly flung his cloak aside and revealed in him majesty of Kings of old for a brief moment that Ariel was amazed.
Eomer, fortunately, was a man of good will and judgment. Not only did he give them leave to go, but horses to aid them in their journey.
He bade them to return the horses to Edoras as soon as possible, and bade them farewell.
Legolas was given Arod, and to the wonder of all save Ariel, he refused the saddle, and chose to ride Arod bareback. As he leapt up gracefully onto the horse, Ariel was undergoing pure torture. He was so near and yet she could not reach him, and the desire to be in his arms was strong, that it frightened her.
What's this? Developing feelings for him? No, she told herself firmly, he is but a friend.
Pulling her hood down further, this action caught the attention of Legolas. Who was this hooded stranger? Surprisingly, he caught a whiff of honey and cinammon.
It brought back memories of Ariel Silverstar, of her fair elven face in which was beset a calm and innocent look. Her sparkling silver eyes made him want to be the cause of all those sparkles, and then the wise words of Galadriel came to mind.
"The time of the elves is about to end, but enjoy it as such fleeting moments allow, lest it comes to pass, and you will regret it dearly"
Legolas had a feeling she was referring to someone else, but who knows what the Lady meant? Soon he will decipher it, but not now.