Disclaimer: I own nothing Tolkien created no matter how hard I wish.
Ch 13 Bodies in the Woods
Bob and Fred rejoined the group with three bottles of fresh water from the stream. David was still nursing his arm whilst Ned was pulling food out of the bags, trying to piece together a broken biscuit. She looked up when they approached but David said nothing but mumbled something about evil creatures, they presumed he was talking about Gollum, who had given up wailing and was picking things up and inspecting curiously hoping to find food hidden under the tiny stones on the ground.
No one was paying any attention to him and he seemed to like that. The rope was still tied firmly around his neck just in case he tried anything. He didn't look too interested in escape though, in fact he was trying to ignore everyone there. He looked away whenever he saw David's angry looks.
Fred sat down and handed a bottle over to Ned before putting one in the pack closest to her, she knew David would insist on carrying it anyway so made sure it was comfortable to carry before looking around her properly. Even away from the stream it seemed quiet. It was like when they sat down the danger temporarily left, it was almost relaxing listening to the birds singing. Although the fear of danger was never far away and the occasional loud noise made her jump.
Bob was also looking into the trees trying to make some sense of what had happened and the strange conversation she had heard the night before. She didn't know what any of it meant but it seemed strangely important, like she should know what it meant. 'Dead'. It was a word she had heard a lot over the past few months and yet it had never troubled her as much as it did now. It was as if there was some hidden meaning behind it that she couldn't see.
One thing she knew for certain was that Fred was in on it somehow; the hushed discussions between her and David had not gone unnoticed. Bob reminded herself to ask Fred about it when they were alone. Maybe she could get some answers. She knew it was no good asking David; she had far more chance of getting the truth out of Fred than him.
Fred wouldn't lie to her. Of that she was sure. But the question still nagged, why hadn't Fred said anything to her already?
Bob's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Ned's voice.
"Are you coming or do you want to stay here alone?" She said, a slight mocking tone in her voice. Bob shook her head and stood up slowly, she swung the pack over her shoulder and caught up with them.
"Are you alright?" Ned asked looking over to her friend. "You look a little... distracted."
"I'm fine, just a lot to think about right now. I see things more clearly. It's hard to explain." Bob shook her head as way of emphasising her point.
"Well, if you want to talk about anything you know that I'm here." Ned smiled as she moved to catch up with David and Fred, whose turn it was to drag Gollum.
Bob nodded knowing that if she voiced her concerns she would regret it if Fred ever found out. She smiled to herself at her suspicions and sped up to catch up with the others who were now talking quite happily about something that happened a while back at school. David was once again listening politely to the conversation, even though he didn't understand what they were really talking about and no doubt thought they were completely mad.
"Isn't that right Bob?" Fred shouted back laughing.
Bob smiled at the sudden change in her friend and rushed forward. "What's that?" She said with a gleam in her eye. Ned was already getting angry at the conversation.
"That time Ned spilt all that stuff down her and..."
"Stop right there." Ned warned giving Fred and angry look but knowing that she couldn't hide the smile any more. "It was not funny." This time she couldn't help but laugh.
"Oh trust me from where I was standing it was very funny. Even Gollum thinks so, right Smeagol?" The creature just looked blankly up at her and omitted a slight chuckle. Little did they know that he was already thinking about what they would find next and that was what he was laughing at, not the joke that he hadn't even heard.
"You have to admit Ned that was very funny." Bob laughed at the look on Ned's face. She glanced across at David to find that he was no longer smiling at their joke but looking warily into the forest. She knew that look, something was wrong.
"David, what's wrong?" Bob's voice alerted the others, they stopped laughing and looked at David then into the forest. Everything seemed normal. Seemed normal. Nothing was normal any more, not in this forest anyway.
"I don't know. Maybe it's my imagination. Let's keep moving, the sooner we get out of here the better." He started walking forwards again, wishing he hadn't interrupted the light banter that had been going on between the others. The silence was deafening now, once more they were on edge again. Even Gollum was looking around him wildly as if afraid of what they might find. In actual fact his plan was working perfectly.
They kept walking like this for some time, looking around all the time in the hope they would see something before it attacked them. They had just begun to lighten up when David went crashing into something. Fred screamed as she banged into him and nearly fell over, as did the others, only they were screaming at what they saw in front of them.
Three rotten bodies were hanging from a branch thick branch in a tree, their feet almost a metre off the ground. There were pools of dried blood at their feet with small black flies buzzing around making the most of the free meal. David jumped up and instantly had a knife in his hand waiting for whatever was after them. Something must have killed them and he got the impression that it wasn't too far away.
After quickly scanning the area for any immediate danger he turned his attention back to the bodies. They were still dripping a small amount of blood but the worst of it was on the ground at their feet. The most noticeable and obvious thing about them was that they had no skin, or in one's case only patches of skin. It was like it had been ripped, not cut off and from the look of them no more than a day ago.
The lifeless sockets where the eyes had once been were already beginning to fill with the white creatures from the forest. The flies couldn't be kept at bay so David ignored them as he looked at the bodies. On one there was a finger missing, also deep slashes could be seen despite the lack of skin. Whoever that person was he or shewas tortured and was probably alive as they were skinned.
Fred, Bob and Ned couldn't take their eyes off the bloodied bodies and all three were starting to go pale both at the sight and the smell of the dead things hanging from the tree. They had ropes tied around their necks holding them up, like a noose at a hanging although it was fairly clear that that was not what killed them.
"I'd say they've been here for a day at least." David said walking around them so he could get a view of the whole body, he didn't seem too concerned at the dead bodies, the rest stood where they were quite happy to keep their distance.
"How...what did this?" Ned finally managed to say.
"I have no idea but whatever it was skinned them whilst they were still alive. Slowly and painfully by the looks of it. That can only mean one thing..."
"Torture." Fred cut him off. David nodded but Fred's eyes never left the hanging bodies that she knew would haunt her dreams forever.
"Who are they?" Ned asked.
"A better question. Are they human? I'm guessing they're not those creatures that attacked us, they don't seem like the type who'd let themselves be skinned." Bob said looking at the bodies more with interest than disgust but keeping her distance all the same.
"They look human." David said leaning closer. "They're certainly not the shadows. I don't think they even have skin, it's hard to tell."
"Okay, another question. What could do this?" Bob asked taking a tentative step forward trying to ignore the flies that were buzzing around the bodies.
"I am going to take a guess and say those shadows." Fred said, taking a step back, she didn't want to be anywhere near the things that looked more like aliens than human beings.
"I don't think so. They don't seem like the type to take the time to skin something." David said, looking at her.
"They look like they've been tortured, look at the fingers." Bob said standing right next to the bodies now. They held a morbid fascination for her, she hated the sight and smell, but who did it and what they were over powered the disgust and left room only for intrigue.
"I really don't want to look at the fingers thank you. Can we just get out of here please?" Fred said looking nervously from David to the bushes that surrounded them. "There's something wrong, can't you feel it? Even Gollum knows." She looked down at the creature at the end of the rope. He was rolling on the floor and mumbling something the others couldn't understand. The action unsettled them enough to make them more aware of their surroundings. David once again drew his knife ready for whatever was out there waiting for them.
"We'll go soon Fred, I promise. First we have to find out what killed them. Plus, we can't leave them hanging in the trees. We should cut them down. What if someone finds them?" He said looking respectfully up at the three bodies.
"No one ever comes this far into the forest. They'll be fine. Let's just leave." Fred insisted. She had never liked those horror movies with skinned people and such and seeing them in real life was worse than she imagined.
"We can't just leave them hanging. David's right, someone might find them. How would you feel if some lost kid comes along and walks into three dead and skinned bodies?"
"Fine, just hurry up and cut them down so we can get out of here. I don't like this place. It's creepy."
"You don't believe in all that stuff do you Fred?" Bob asked teasingly.
"No, and I didn't believe that I would ever find skinned corpses in the woods or psychic friends or evil wizards in Middle Earth either but hey it all happened, so forgive me for being a little jumpy." Fred said turning away and dragging an unwilling Gollum with her.
"Fred, don't go too far into the forest, we have no idea what's out there." David warned. Fred waved her hand that she would be fine and went towards the trees, desperate to get away from the smell of death. She sighed when the air was finally cleared of the smell of death and the buzz of swarming flies. She was really starting to hate this forest. It seemed everything was going wrong lately. First there had been the whole torture incident, which she tried to forget but never succeeded. Now dead bodies hanging from trees in a forest where families had picnics and outings. It wasn't right as far as she was concerned and she vowed that she would never go there again once she was out this time. Not that she would have to worry about that if what David said was true.
Bob and Ned took out their own knives and leaned towards the rope, copying David. They were less shy of the bodies now. Somehow they felt they had a duty to cut them down even if it meant getting a little blood on their hands. David was the first to cut through the rope and let the body fall to the ground with a thud. A slight splash of blood fell around him before settling as the flies set to work devouring this new food.
Bob and Ned cut their bodies down seconds after and soon all three were laid side-by-side waiting for nothing.
"Poor people. They were probably innocent." Bob whispered looking down at the two smallest bodies. "You don't think they're children do you? Look at their size. They're small enough. That one looks like an adult though." Bob mused, knowing the others weren't really listening. They agreed that the smallest two looked like children.
"They could just be really small people." David reasoned, not wanting to believe that they had found dead children in the woods.
"Yeah." Bob said dejectedly. She hadn't taken her eyes off the bodies since they found them. There was something still troubling her about them. Like something wasn't right but she didn't know what it was. It was frustrating but there was nothing she could do about it. It annoyed her that her new found psychic powers were so hard to interpret. She wished they were clearer.
"Bob, is something wrong?" Ned asked looking over at her friend who appeared deep in thought.
"No. I was just thinking. There's something wrong here and I don't know what it is."
"You mean besides the dead hanging bodies?" Ned said trying to keep her tone serious although she couldn't help it sounding more like a joke than it was meant to be. "Sorry." She said when she got angry looks from both David and Bob.
"I mean there's something else wrong, something out of place, not normal. I don't know what it is though. Maybe it's just the smell and this thick air that's causing it. I think Fred had the right idea, let's get out of here before we get any more surprises."
Both nodded and followed Bob out of the tiny clearing into the direction they had seen Fred go off. David took the time to cover the bodies with some leaf litter from the floor, making sure it was obvious there was still something there but at the same time giving a little cover to the degrading bodies. Like Bob said, if a child found them...
They found Fred sitting down with her face in her hands, when she looked up she was pale, her face shone with tears. Gollum was just sat next to her, more like a dog than the creature he was. David was instantly by her side, he threw his arms around her and she moved into his touch.
"What's wrong? Fred I'm sorry you had to see that. I know it was upsetting, I should have seen them. I'm sorry." He whispered, trying to comfort her as best he could although from the slight shaking of her body it wasn't working very well.
"It's not the bodies. Well, it is but not in the way you think." Fred tried to explain.
"What do you mean?" David didn't loosen his grip on her. She looked over at Bob and Ned who were watching the two.
"We should go and find some food, make sure this place is safe. I could really use some rest. Right Ned?" Bob said hinting that Fred and David should be left alone.
Ned didn't get it though. "I think we should stick together. It's safer."
"Now Ned." Bob said firmly pulling her away. "God, you just don't get it." She whispered as they walked away.
"What?" Ned asked innocently. Bob laughed and sighed at Ned's comment.
**
"Now will you tell me what's wrong? I know you want to tell them the truth but it's not time yet." David said, seriously looking at Fred
"No it's not that. But I haven't been entirely truthful with you. You remember last night in the woods when I woke up? You asked if there was something wrong and I said no." David nodded. "I lied. I had a nightmare but it was more than that. It was real but not. It's hard to explain. It had you in it. You were calling for me to help you. You were frightened and no matter how much I tried I couldn't get to you. I couldn't help you and you carried on screaming..." Fred started crying again, unable to keep the images from her head any longer. "Every time I sleep I see more of the dream. It's trying to tell me something I just don't know what it is."
"Fred, it's alright. It was just a nightmare. We all get them. I know I do. After everything that happened in Orthanc I'm not surprised." David reassured quietly, trying his best to comfort her. He didn't know why but he couldn't dismiss this as just another nightmare. If Fred said there was something wrong he knew he should believe her.
"No it's different than those dreams. I've had those nightmares but this is more real and it's not remembering what happened. I think it's what could have happened."
"Fred, I know that everything is happening very quickly but you have to remember that we're safe. Do you really think I'd ever let anything happen to you? I love you and I would die for you if you asked me to. I already have once." He smiled.
"That's exactly what I don't want. David I lost you once I don't want to lose you again, I don't care what happened. Even though I know it's a dream it still seems so real and I hate it."
"You think it's like a premonition?" He asked.
"No, I'm not psychic, I'm not Bob but there is something wrong. Maybe you're right, perhaps it is just memories from Orthanc but there is something else. Something more threatening." Fred said trying to remember something that she could tell David about.
"Like I said, I'd never let anything happen to you. Never. I promise you're safe as long as I'm here." He smiled and pulled her closer once more.
"I know. Thank you. I know I haven't exactly been patient. I could never repay you for everything you've done for me. In Middle Earth and here." She smiled and let her head rest against his shoulder.
"Come on, we should get moving again before your friends get impatient. I have no doubt they are tired of...listening to our private conversations." He shouted towards the direction where Ned and Bob were hiding behind the trees.
Fred couldn't help laughing at the way they skulked out like children found doing something bad.
"We weren't listening. Like he said we were just impatient."
"You weren't listening yet somehow you managed to magically hear exactly what David said? Your psychic powers are really improving Bob." Fred tried to keep a stern face but it wasn't working very well. She couldn't help but remember what she they had done when they were back in school, always listening to one another whenever someone else had something to say. Fred missed that. Ned hadn't been there and she wasn't exactly talking freely to Bob a lot of the time. She just hoped that things would return to how they were or better.
Somehow though that dream was still so far away, like it was something she wanted but could never achieve. She didn't know whether the others were thinking of the same things but they all looked slightly distracted when she looked back at them, all but David who was looking nervously at Gollum who was crouched at his feet looking pleadingly up at him, something they had never seen the creature do before. Something was out there. Before Fred could think any more about it something grabbed hold of her and she felt the cold blade of a knife at her neck. When she looked around she found that her friends were in the same situation although David was giving a good fight and lashing out with his knife.
Eventually all of them had to give up including David who still continued to struggle with the person holding him. When one placed a knife to Fred's neck and drew a little bright red blood he stopped struggling and allowed the person holding him to tie his hands with the same hard rope that bound the others. He knew he couldn't risk anyone getting hurt, especially not Fred, the person he had just vowed to protect.
When they were all tied up the figures moved silently away, pulling their charges alone roughly behind them. They ignored all the protests from the four travellers and just continued walking, seemingly knowing exactly where they were going. It was like they saw a path that the others didn't; no one dared to say anything though. When Bob had tried to ask something she had received a hard blow to the head causing her to sway unsteadily but the person holding her made sure she kept walking no matter how much she protested. Finally they all did as they were instructed and walked trying to ignore the slight pain the ropes that bound their wrists caused.
Fred couldn't help but notice that they tied David's a little tighter than the rest of them. Maybe it was because of the earlier attack but that didn't make sense, they were obviously much stronger than he was and yet they seemed afraid of him.
"Where are you taking us?" Bob finally asked, a little cautiously.
"That is not your concern human." The one nearest to her snarled back. Bob knew they had to try and get away. She looked over at Fred who was looking straight ahead of her and trying to focus on where they were going. Suddenly she had an idea.
"We have to stop. Fred's not well, she needs rest." Bob looked over at Fred who had looked up at the mention of her name. She nodded to her friend who was looking very confused by now. Fred looked away and Bob assumed that meant she didn't understand.
"We're not stopping human." The leader (Bob assumed) shouted.
"Fine, then just tell us who you are, don't we at least have the right to know that?" Bob asked, taking full advantage of the situation.
"You have no rights now you're with us. But just to let you know that we are The Young Ones and you will address us with the proper respect."
"The young ones, as in the T.V show?" Bob said, knowing she would regret it. Fred and Ned heard this and couldn't help but laugh. They stopped when they saw the looks on the leader's face.
"Look, please, all joking aside my friend needs rest." Bob said, making her voice as serious as possible.
"Do I look like I care?" The same one snarled back.
"You will care when she can't walk any further." Bob said, hoping reason would overcome their cruelty.
By now they had all stopped and were looking back at the commotion. David was looking at Fred, worry etched on his face, he had heard what Bob had said but obviously hadn't picked up that it was a trick.
"It's hardly surprising I guess, after what that wizard did to them." The leader smiled and shouted for them to start moving again. Before Bob was pulled back into line she glanced over at Fred and nodded her head, she knew what Fred was thinking and just hoped they would buy it.
Bob smiled slightly as she was roughly pulled back into line, which was slowly beginning to move again. Ned looked behind her and smiled at Bob, she had caught onto the plan and hoped, like Bob, that it would work and they wouldn't just carry on. If Fred couldn't walk they would have to stop and rest giving them time to plan and hopefully conduct their escape. Fred and Bob had managed to get out of Orthanc so how hard could a bunch of...whatever they were...be to fool? They would soon find out.
They walked along quietly for some time just looking around them and trying to figure out where the people were taking them. They weren't having much luck, one part of the forest seemed pretty much the same as another to them. Only the black robed people and Gollum knew where they were going.
Fred looked around her and checked that they weren't concentrating solely on her. She smiled to herself and coughed loudly, signalling to Bob that she was ready to play her part in the plan. Bob coughed back quietly so as not to attract attention. Fred nodded to herself and hoped the others knew what was going on.
She suddenly fell to the floor and cried out. Instantly they all stopped, the young ones looked around and then down at Fred who was crying out on the floor. Bob and Ned smiled briefly at Fred's performance before taking on their own roles. David, however, was completely unaware that anything was planned. All he saw was Fred falling to the floor screaming. He stood paralysed for a second before he began his struggle with the person holding him.
Bob and Ned were having better luck. They had persuaded their captors to let them help their friend. Bob pulled away and knelt down next to Fred.
"What's wrong? Fred, talk to me." Bob said frantically, hoping her acting was up to scratch. "Fred?"
"Hurry up and get her up." The leader said impatiently.
"She's not well." Bob said looking up at them angrily.
"What's wrong with her then." By this time Fred's screams had died down slightly and she just lay there watching what was going on and trying to keep the pained expression on her face, even though that wasn't too hard now, when she fell to the ground she had managed to disturb one of the many cuts still on her back. At least she knew it was worth it, or at least it would be when they escaped.
"I don't know. Let David have a look at her. Come on you can't leave her like this, it'll take less time if you just untie us and let us help her. You don't want to carry her do you?" At that point Fred let out a fake moan of pain just to emphasize Bob's point.
"There are too many of us for you to escape." One of the young ones pondered more to himself than any one else although the comment sent a rumble of agreement through the rest of them.
"We can't escape with Fred like this anyway. Come on, I'm sure you sleep as well."
"We're not stopping for the night." One shouted.
"We might not have a choice. When Fred gets sick it can take a while for her to recover. If we stopped now she'd probably be better by tomorrow. In the long run it would save you time." Bob said trying to sound genuine. Yet another soft moan made them agree.
"Fine. Set up a camp and make it fast. We stay here tonight and first thing in the morning we leave whether she's better or not. Untie them, but make sure they have a guard with them. Don't let them out of your sight. And tie that pathetic creature up." The leader shouted pointing at Gollum.
The person holding onto David reluctantly cut the rope around his hands before letting him go to Fred who was laying on the floor. He still had no idea what was going on and bent down to help Fred who was still putting on a pretty good display. Immediately he began fussing over her, until Bob realised he didn't know what was going on.
"Fred's fine." Bob whispered quietly hoping those things couldn't hear.
"What?" David questioned looking down at Fred who had a slight smile on her face. "Don't do that, you scared me. I thought something was..." David stopped himself realised several of their captors were looking at him. "I thought something was wrong when we came here. Why didn't you tell me?" Ned, who had now joined them smiled at his good attempt to recover from his mistake.
At least they were free of their ropes. Now all they had to do was find some way of getting away from their captors without being noticed. All three immediately looked to Bob to come up with a plan, something she hadn't even thought about yet.
**
Ch 13 Bodies in the Woods
Bob and Fred rejoined the group with three bottles of fresh water from the stream. David was still nursing his arm whilst Ned was pulling food out of the bags, trying to piece together a broken biscuit. She looked up when they approached but David said nothing but mumbled something about evil creatures, they presumed he was talking about Gollum, who had given up wailing and was picking things up and inspecting curiously hoping to find food hidden under the tiny stones on the ground.
No one was paying any attention to him and he seemed to like that. The rope was still tied firmly around his neck just in case he tried anything. He didn't look too interested in escape though, in fact he was trying to ignore everyone there. He looked away whenever he saw David's angry looks.
Fred sat down and handed a bottle over to Ned before putting one in the pack closest to her, she knew David would insist on carrying it anyway so made sure it was comfortable to carry before looking around her properly. Even away from the stream it seemed quiet. It was like when they sat down the danger temporarily left, it was almost relaxing listening to the birds singing. Although the fear of danger was never far away and the occasional loud noise made her jump.
Bob was also looking into the trees trying to make some sense of what had happened and the strange conversation she had heard the night before. She didn't know what any of it meant but it seemed strangely important, like she should know what it meant. 'Dead'. It was a word she had heard a lot over the past few months and yet it had never troubled her as much as it did now. It was as if there was some hidden meaning behind it that she couldn't see.
One thing she knew for certain was that Fred was in on it somehow; the hushed discussions between her and David had not gone unnoticed. Bob reminded herself to ask Fred about it when they were alone. Maybe she could get some answers. She knew it was no good asking David; she had far more chance of getting the truth out of Fred than him.
Fred wouldn't lie to her. Of that she was sure. But the question still nagged, why hadn't Fred said anything to her already?
Bob's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Ned's voice.
"Are you coming or do you want to stay here alone?" She said, a slight mocking tone in her voice. Bob shook her head and stood up slowly, she swung the pack over her shoulder and caught up with them.
"Are you alright?" Ned asked looking over to her friend. "You look a little... distracted."
"I'm fine, just a lot to think about right now. I see things more clearly. It's hard to explain." Bob shook her head as way of emphasising her point.
"Well, if you want to talk about anything you know that I'm here." Ned smiled as she moved to catch up with David and Fred, whose turn it was to drag Gollum.
Bob nodded knowing that if she voiced her concerns she would regret it if Fred ever found out. She smiled to herself at her suspicions and sped up to catch up with the others who were now talking quite happily about something that happened a while back at school. David was once again listening politely to the conversation, even though he didn't understand what they were really talking about and no doubt thought they were completely mad.
"Isn't that right Bob?" Fred shouted back laughing.
Bob smiled at the sudden change in her friend and rushed forward. "What's that?" She said with a gleam in her eye. Ned was already getting angry at the conversation.
"That time Ned spilt all that stuff down her and..."
"Stop right there." Ned warned giving Fred and angry look but knowing that she couldn't hide the smile any more. "It was not funny." This time she couldn't help but laugh.
"Oh trust me from where I was standing it was very funny. Even Gollum thinks so, right Smeagol?" The creature just looked blankly up at her and omitted a slight chuckle. Little did they know that he was already thinking about what they would find next and that was what he was laughing at, not the joke that he hadn't even heard.
"You have to admit Ned that was very funny." Bob laughed at the look on Ned's face. She glanced across at David to find that he was no longer smiling at their joke but looking warily into the forest. She knew that look, something was wrong.
"David, what's wrong?" Bob's voice alerted the others, they stopped laughing and looked at David then into the forest. Everything seemed normal. Seemed normal. Nothing was normal any more, not in this forest anyway.
"I don't know. Maybe it's my imagination. Let's keep moving, the sooner we get out of here the better." He started walking forwards again, wishing he hadn't interrupted the light banter that had been going on between the others. The silence was deafening now, once more they were on edge again. Even Gollum was looking around him wildly as if afraid of what they might find. In actual fact his plan was working perfectly.
They kept walking like this for some time, looking around all the time in the hope they would see something before it attacked them. They had just begun to lighten up when David went crashing into something. Fred screamed as she banged into him and nearly fell over, as did the others, only they were screaming at what they saw in front of them.
Three rotten bodies were hanging from a branch thick branch in a tree, their feet almost a metre off the ground. There were pools of dried blood at their feet with small black flies buzzing around making the most of the free meal. David jumped up and instantly had a knife in his hand waiting for whatever was after them. Something must have killed them and he got the impression that it wasn't too far away.
After quickly scanning the area for any immediate danger he turned his attention back to the bodies. They were still dripping a small amount of blood but the worst of it was on the ground at their feet. The most noticeable and obvious thing about them was that they had no skin, or in one's case only patches of skin. It was like it had been ripped, not cut off and from the look of them no more than a day ago.
The lifeless sockets where the eyes had once been were already beginning to fill with the white creatures from the forest. The flies couldn't be kept at bay so David ignored them as he looked at the bodies. On one there was a finger missing, also deep slashes could be seen despite the lack of skin. Whoever that person was he or shewas tortured and was probably alive as they were skinned.
Fred, Bob and Ned couldn't take their eyes off the bloodied bodies and all three were starting to go pale both at the sight and the smell of the dead things hanging from the tree. They had ropes tied around their necks holding them up, like a noose at a hanging although it was fairly clear that that was not what killed them.
"I'd say they've been here for a day at least." David said walking around them so he could get a view of the whole body, he didn't seem too concerned at the dead bodies, the rest stood where they were quite happy to keep their distance.
"How...what did this?" Ned finally managed to say.
"I have no idea but whatever it was skinned them whilst they were still alive. Slowly and painfully by the looks of it. That can only mean one thing..."
"Torture." Fred cut him off. David nodded but Fred's eyes never left the hanging bodies that she knew would haunt her dreams forever.
"Who are they?" Ned asked.
"A better question. Are they human? I'm guessing they're not those creatures that attacked us, they don't seem like the type who'd let themselves be skinned." Bob said looking at the bodies more with interest than disgust but keeping her distance all the same.
"They look human." David said leaning closer. "They're certainly not the shadows. I don't think they even have skin, it's hard to tell."
"Okay, another question. What could do this?" Bob asked taking a tentative step forward trying to ignore the flies that were buzzing around the bodies.
"I am going to take a guess and say those shadows." Fred said, taking a step back, she didn't want to be anywhere near the things that looked more like aliens than human beings.
"I don't think so. They don't seem like the type to take the time to skin something." David said, looking at her.
"They look like they've been tortured, look at the fingers." Bob said standing right next to the bodies now. They held a morbid fascination for her, she hated the sight and smell, but who did it and what they were over powered the disgust and left room only for intrigue.
"I really don't want to look at the fingers thank you. Can we just get out of here please?" Fred said looking nervously from David to the bushes that surrounded them. "There's something wrong, can't you feel it? Even Gollum knows." She looked down at the creature at the end of the rope. He was rolling on the floor and mumbling something the others couldn't understand. The action unsettled them enough to make them more aware of their surroundings. David once again drew his knife ready for whatever was out there waiting for them.
"We'll go soon Fred, I promise. First we have to find out what killed them. Plus, we can't leave them hanging in the trees. We should cut them down. What if someone finds them?" He said looking respectfully up at the three bodies.
"No one ever comes this far into the forest. They'll be fine. Let's just leave." Fred insisted. She had never liked those horror movies with skinned people and such and seeing them in real life was worse than she imagined.
"We can't just leave them hanging. David's right, someone might find them. How would you feel if some lost kid comes along and walks into three dead and skinned bodies?"
"Fine, just hurry up and cut them down so we can get out of here. I don't like this place. It's creepy."
"You don't believe in all that stuff do you Fred?" Bob asked teasingly.
"No, and I didn't believe that I would ever find skinned corpses in the woods or psychic friends or evil wizards in Middle Earth either but hey it all happened, so forgive me for being a little jumpy." Fred said turning away and dragging an unwilling Gollum with her.
"Fred, don't go too far into the forest, we have no idea what's out there." David warned. Fred waved her hand that she would be fine and went towards the trees, desperate to get away from the smell of death. She sighed when the air was finally cleared of the smell of death and the buzz of swarming flies. She was really starting to hate this forest. It seemed everything was going wrong lately. First there had been the whole torture incident, which she tried to forget but never succeeded. Now dead bodies hanging from trees in a forest where families had picnics and outings. It wasn't right as far as she was concerned and she vowed that she would never go there again once she was out this time. Not that she would have to worry about that if what David said was true.
Bob and Ned took out their own knives and leaned towards the rope, copying David. They were less shy of the bodies now. Somehow they felt they had a duty to cut them down even if it meant getting a little blood on their hands. David was the first to cut through the rope and let the body fall to the ground with a thud. A slight splash of blood fell around him before settling as the flies set to work devouring this new food.
Bob and Ned cut their bodies down seconds after and soon all three were laid side-by-side waiting for nothing.
"Poor people. They were probably innocent." Bob whispered looking down at the two smallest bodies. "You don't think they're children do you? Look at their size. They're small enough. That one looks like an adult though." Bob mused, knowing the others weren't really listening. They agreed that the smallest two looked like children.
"They could just be really small people." David reasoned, not wanting to believe that they had found dead children in the woods.
"Yeah." Bob said dejectedly. She hadn't taken her eyes off the bodies since they found them. There was something still troubling her about them. Like something wasn't right but she didn't know what it was. It was frustrating but there was nothing she could do about it. It annoyed her that her new found psychic powers were so hard to interpret. She wished they were clearer.
"Bob, is something wrong?" Ned asked looking over at her friend who appeared deep in thought.
"No. I was just thinking. There's something wrong here and I don't know what it is."
"You mean besides the dead hanging bodies?" Ned said trying to keep her tone serious although she couldn't help it sounding more like a joke than it was meant to be. "Sorry." She said when she got angry looks from both David and Bob.
"I mean there's something else wrong, something out of place, not normal. I don't know what it is though. Maybe it's just the smell and this thick air that's causing it. I think Fred had the right idea, let's get out of here before we get any more surprises."
Both nodded and followed Bob out of the tiny clearing into the direction they had seen Fred go off. David took the time to cover the bodies with some leaf litter from the floor, making sure it was obvious there was still something there but at the same time giving a little cover to the degrading bodies. Like Bob said, if a child found them...
They found Fred sitting down with her face in her hands, when she looked up she was pale, her face shone with tears. Gollum was just sat next to her, more like a dog than the creature he was. David was instantly by her side, he threw his arms around her and she moved into his touch.
"What's wrong? Fred I'm sorry you had to see that. I know it was upsetting, I should have seen them. I'm sorry." He whispered, trying to comfort her as best he could although from the slight shaking of her body it wasn't working very well.
"It's not the bodies. Well, it is but not in the way you think." Fred tried to explain.
"What do you mean?" David didn't loosen his grip on her. She looked over at Bob and Ned who were watching the two.
"We should go and find some food, make sure this place is safe. I could really use some rest. Right Ned?" Bob said hinting that Fred and David should be left alone.
Ned didn't get it though. "I think we should stick together. It's safer."
"Now Ned." Bob said firmly pulling her away. "God, you just don't get it." She whispered as they walked away.
"What?" Ned asked innocently. Bob laughed and sighed at Ned's comment.
**
"Now will you tell me what's wrong? I know you want to tell them the truth but it's not time yet." David said, seriously looking at Fred
"No it's not that. But I haven't been entirely truthful with you. You remember last night in the woods when I woke up? You asked if there was something wrong and I said no." David nodded. "I lied. I had a nightmare but it was more than that. It was real but not. It's hard to explain. It had you in it. You were calling for me to help you. You were frightened and no matter how much I tried I couldn't get to you. I couldn't help you and you carried on screaming..." Fred started crying again, unable to keep the images from her head any longer. "Every time I sleep I see more of the dream. It's trying to tell me something I just don't know what it is."
"Fred, it's alright. It was just a nightmare. We all get them. I know I do. After everything that happened in Orthanc I'm not surprised." David reassured quietly, trying his best to comfort her. He didn't know why but he couldn't dismiss this as just another nightmare. If Fred said there was something wrong he knew he should believe her.
"No it's different than those dreams. I've had those nightmares but this is more real and it's not remembering what happened. I think it's what could have happened."
"Fred, I know that everything is happening very quickly but you have to remember that we're safe. Do you really think I'd ever let anything happen to you? I love you and I would die for you if you asked me to. I already have once." He smiled.
"That's exactly what I don't want. David I lost you once I don't want to lose you again, I don't care what happened. Even though I know it's a dream it still seems so real and I hate it."
"You think it's like a premonition?" He asked.
"No, I'm not psychic, I'm not Bob but there is something wrong. Maybe you're right, perhaps it is just memories from Orthanc but there is something else. Something more threatening." Fred said trying to remember something that she could tell David about.
"Like I said, I'd never let anything happen to you. Never. I promise you're safe as long as I'm here." He smiled and pulled her closer once more.
"I know. Thank you. I know I haven't exactly been patient. I could never repay you for everything you've done for me. In Middle Earth and here." She smiled and let her head rest against his shoulder.
"Come on, we should get moving again before your friends get impatient. I have no doubt they are tired of...listening to our private conversations." He shouted towards the direction where Ned and Bob were hiding behind the trees.
Fred couldn't help laughing at the way they skulked out like children found doing something bad.
"We weren't listening. Like he said we were just impatient."
"You weren't listening yet somehow you managed to magically hear exactly what David said? Your psychic powers are really improving Bob." Fred tried to keep a stern face but it wasn't working very well. She couldn't help but remember what she they had done when they were back in school, always listening to one another whenever someone else had something to say. Fred missed that. Ned hadn't been there and she wasn't exactly talking freely to Bob a lot of the time. She just hoped that things would return to how they were or better.
Somehow though that dream was still so far away, like it was something she wanted but could never achieve. She didn't know whether the others were thinking of the same things but they all looked slightly distracted when she looked back at them, all but David who was looking nervously at Gollum who was crouched at his feet looking pleadingly up at him, something they had never seen the creature do before. Something was out there. Before Fred could think any more about it something grabbed hold of her and she felt the cold blade of a knife at her neck. When she looked around she found that her friends were in the same situation although David was giving a good fight and lashing out with his knife.
Eventually all of them had to give up including David who still continued to struggle with the person holding him. When one placed a knife to Fred's neck and drew a little bright red blood he stopped struggling and allowed the person holding him to tie his hands with the same hard rope that bound the others. He knew he couldn't risk anyone getting hurt, especially not Fred, the person he had just vowed to protect.
When they were all tied up the figures moved silently away, pulling their charges alone roughly behind them. They ignored all the protests from the four travellers and just continued walking, seemingly knowing exactly where they were going. It was like they saw a path that the others didn't; no one dared to say anything though. When Bob had tried to ask something she had received a hard blow to the head causing her to sway unsteadily but the person holding her made sure she kept walking no matter how much she protested. Finally they all did as they were instructed and walked trying to ignore the slight pain the ropes that bound their wrists caused.
Fred couldn't help but notice that they tied David's a little tighter than the rest of them. Maybe it was because of the earlier attack but that didn't make sense, they were obviously much stronger than he was and yet they seemed afraid of him.
"Where are you taking us?" Bob finally asked, a little cautiously.
"That is not your concern human." The one nearest to her snarled back. Bob knew they had to try and get away. She looked over at Fred who was looking straight ahead of her and trying to focus on where they were going. Suddenly she had an idea.
"We have to stop. Fred's not well, she needs rest." Bob looked over at Fred who had looked up at the mention of her name. She nodded to her friend who was looking very confused by now. Fred looked away and Bob assumed that meant she didn't understand.
"We're not stopping human." The leader (Bob assumed) shouted.
"Fine, then just tell us who you are, don't we at least have the right to know that?" Bob asked, taking full advantage of the situation.
"You have no rights now you're with us. But just to let you know that we are The Young Ones and you will address us with the proper respect."
"The young ones, as in the T.V show?" Bob said, knowing she would regret it. Fred and Ned heard this and couldn't help but laugh. They stopped when they saw the looks on the leader's face.
"Look, please, all joking aside my friend needs rest." Bob said, making her voice as serious as possible.
"Do I look like I care?" The same one snarled back.
"You will care when she can't walk any further." Bob said, hoping reason would overcome their cruelty.
By now they had all stopped and were looking back at the commotion. David was looking at Fred, worry etched on his face, he had heard what Bob had said but obviously hadn't picked up that it was a trick.
"It's hardly surprising I guess, after what that wizard did to them." The leader smiled and shouted for them to start moving again. Before Bob was pulled back into line she glanced over at Fred and nodded her head, she knew what Fred was thinking and just hoped they would buy it.
Bob smiled slightly as she was roughly pulled back into line, which was slowly beginning to move again. Ned looked behind her and smiled at Bob, she had caught onto the plan and hoped, like Bob, that it would work and they wouldn't just carry on. If Fred couldn't walk they would have to stop and rest giving them time to plan and hopefully conduct their escape. Fred and Bob had managed to get out of Orthanc so how hard could a bunch of...whatever they were...be to fool? They would soon find out.
They walked along quietly for some time just looking around them and trying to figure out where the people were taking them. They weren't having much luck, one part of the forest seemed pretty much the same as another to them. Only the black robed people and Gollum knew where they were going.
Fred looked around her and checked that they weren't concentrating solely on her. She smiled to herself and coughed loudly, signalling to Bob that she was ready to play her part in the plan. Bob coughed back quietly so as not to attract attention. Fred nodded to herself and hoped the others knew what was going on.
She suddenly fell to the floor and cried out. Instantly they all stopped, the young ones looked around and then down at Fred who was crying out on the floor. Bob and Ned smiled briefly at Fred's performance before taking on their own roles. David, however, was completely unaware that anything was planned. All he saw was Fred falling to the floor screaming. He stood paralysed for a second before he began his struggle with the person holding him.
Bob and Ned were having better luck. They had persuaded their captors to let them help their friend. Bob pulled away and knelt down next to Fred.
"What's wrong? Fred, talk to me." Bob said frantically, hoping her acting was up to scratch. "Fred?"
"Hurry up and get her up." The leader said impatiently.
"She's not well." Bob said looking up at them angrily.
"What's wrong with her then." By this time Fred's screams had died down slightly and she just lay there watching what was going on and trying to keep the pained expression on her face, even though that wasn't too hard now, when she fell to the ground she had managed to disturb one of the many cuts still on her back. At least she knew it was worth it, or at least it would be when they escaped.
"I don't know. Let David have a look at her. Come on you can't leave her like this, it'll take less time if you just untie us and let us help her. You don't want to carry her do you?" At that point Fred let out a fake moan of pain just to emphasize Bob's point.
"There are too many of us for you to escape." One of the young ones pondered more to himself than any one else although the comment sent a rumble of agreement through the rest of them.
"We can't escape with Fred like this anyway. Come on, I'm sure you sleep as well."
"We're not stopping for the night." One shouted.
"We might not have a choice. When Fred gets sick it can take a while for her to recover. If we stopped now she'd probably be better by tomorrow. In the long run it would save you time." Bob said trying to sound genuine. Yet another soft moan made them agree.
"Fine. Set up a camp and make it fast. We stay here tonight and first thing in the morning we leave whether she's better or not. Untie them, but make sure they have a guard with them. Don't let them out of your sight. And tie that pathetic creature up." The leader shouted pointing at Gollum.
The person holding onto David reluctantly cut the rope around his hands before letting him go to Fred who was laying on the floor. He still had no idea what was going on and bent down to help Fred who was still putting on a pretty good display. Immediately he began fussing over her, until Bob realised he didn't know what was going on.
"Fred's fine." Bob whispered quietly hoping those things couldn't hear.
"What?" David questioned looking down at Fred who had a slight smile on her face. "Don't do that, you scared me. I thought something was..." David stopped himself realised several of their captors were looking at him. "I thought something was wrong when we came here. Why didn't you tell me?" Ned, who had now joined them smiled at his good attempt to recover from his mistake.
At least they were free of their ropes. Now all they had to do was find some way of getting away from their captors without being noticed. All three immediately looked to Bob to come up with a plan, something she hadn't even thought about yet.
**