Thoughts are in Italics
Chapter 32
The Blizzard
The blizzard would be the most unmerciful and challenging of any enemy she had fought over the last few days. The storm had hit full force, shortly after she and Legolas had left the cave and was already hampering her journey with subzero temperatures, biting winds and near white-out conditions. She also knew that no matter how wicked this storm was going to be or how many obstacles it was going to throw in her path, she was either going to endure and conquer these obstacles or die in the attempt. Anayah had promised, on her honor, that she would bring Legolas home, and only death could make her break that promise.
In the sled she pulled behind her, lay a wounded elf. Not only was he one of her kind, but he was a friend not only to her but to her father and brothers as well. He was also a prince and the son of a tall tree she had once accidentally walked in to. She chuckled at the memory of bouncing off the Mirkwood King then thinking she had walked into a tree.
The poor visibility caused by the heavy snowfall was what worried her the most about the journey home. Her sense of direction was highly developed due mainly to all the time she spent riding at night and so she did not need the visual clues most beings would have needed to travel in the conditions she and Legolas were now experiencing, though having some visual clues would have been both useful and comforting. Looking around her and seeing how quickly the snow was accumulating, she knew that eventually she would have only her elvish instincts to guide her.
For the moment, all she could do was trudge along, putting one foot in front of the other while trying to ignore all the little ways her own body was using to protest. She would occasionally stop to rest and check her passenger. Legolas remained deeply unconscious, sleeping with his eyes tightly shut. If she could rouse him she would see to his needs, rebandaging his wounds if needed, adjusting his coverings to make sure he was staying warm and feeding him the special tea she had made before leaving the cave. If she could not rouse him she would continue on her way shortly after stopping. The routine, though necessary, was as monotonous as the stark white landscape around her.
The sensory deprivation caused by her inability to see through the thickly falling snow made the journey not only monotonous but dangerous as well and it was only her own talent for knowing which direction she was going that kept her from walking in circles. She had been walking along, head down and lost in thought when suddenly something hit her hard from her right side knocking her completely off her feet. Before she could identify her attacker, and before she had even fully regained her feet, her hand reached for her sword and drew it.
She dropped to one knee, closed her eyes and listened closely for any sound or movement that would tell her who had attacked her, how many attackers there were and where each was, relative to her present position. Ten, she counted and though she could not see them, she could hear them. Wolves - ten murderous, starving wolves - and here she was out in the middle of Ilúvatar knew where with no cover, no protection and pulling a sled containing a wounded elf.
Her head moved ever so slightly when she heard the snow crunch as one of the beasts began to slink towards her. Rising from the one knee to a semi-crouch she slowly raised her sword into a defensive position in front of her body. Pack animals, she thought to herself and shifted her body a little more to the right. Wolves are pack animals and always hunt in pairs and since one is in front of me, the other must be ... She let her thoughts go, rose to her feet and spun, in one single, fluid motion while letting the tip of her sword drop to an almost horizontal position. The big wolf, luckily for her, impaled itself on her sword. Bracing her foot on the twitching body, she managed to pull her sword free just as the second wolf of the pair hit her from behind, shoving her face first into the snow. Fighting to turn onto her back she screamed as she felt the beast's jaws close on her left shoulder then shake her fiercely.
With all her strength, she rolled to her left just enough so she could free her right arm. Frantically she searched for the dagger that hung from her belt, then taking it from the sheath and rolling a little more to the left, she stabbed at the animals head. The blow, made from such an awkward angle, merely grazed the wolf's temple though it was enough to force the beast to release its grip on her shoulder. After the wolf released its hold, it backed off a step, shook its head then came at her again. This time Anayah was able to thrust the dagger with all her strength, right into the animal's gaping jaws.
For a few moments, she lay quietly, trying to catch her breath. Finally, she rolled the dead wolf off her body and stood to inspect her shoulder. It had been torn both in front and in the back and at the moment was bleeding freely. She groaned at her bad luck. She could reach and tend the wound on the front of her shoulder but from the back, well, that was another story. She would do her best but could only hope the cold temperatures would naturally slow the bleeding.
After applying an astringent herb as well as athelas, then bandaging herself as best she could, Anayah picked up the rope harness and continued her journey wearily putting one foot in front of the other. Three more times the wolves attacked and three more times she drove them off. The pack was stalking her; and they were systematically wearing her down.
She was starting to slip and fall more often as her fatigue and wounds weakened her both in body and mind. Not only was she having to fight the elements, she was now having to battle her own despair. She did not know how much farther she could go and it was only the thought of the wounded friend she was trying so desperately to get to safety that gave her the will to continue.
* * * * * *
Walk, walk, walk. One foot after the other. One step at a time. One step after another step. Anayah giggled. She was running out of thoughts on another combination to put the words into for the new walking game she had made up. Unfortunately she was also not paying attention to where she was going. She took a step and the ground disappeared from beneath her.
It was not a long drop. She knew the area and knew there were no steep drop offs. There was however, a gully and this empty, white pit she was falling into was it. She felt herself sliding then felt an intense burning pain in her knee as her heel caught on a rock causing her to pitch forward onto her face. The drop off was only about five feet deep but might as well have been a mile. When she tried to rise, her left knee exploded in pain and she cried out rolling over onto her right side and cradling it as tears of pain rolled down her face. Once the pain had backed off to a tolerable level, Anayah sat up and started thinking about the gully she had fallen into and how close it was to Rivendell. Though she and Legolas had managed to cover about half of the distance to the Bruinen, Anayah knew that if she could not find a way to get passed this injury then they would probably freeze to death before anybody could find them.
After a few minutes she started to gently flex her injured knee. Though extremely painful, it was an encouraging sign that at least the injured joint flexed without grinding too badly. Rolling over, she stayed on all fours for a moment, on all threes she reminded herself, smiling, then after recovering her walking stick and using it as an aid to get up, she pushed off from the ground as hard as she could and finally regained her feet. The gully's mouth was shallowest on the western end so she began to hobble as quickly as she could toward the west, counting her steps as she went. In this way she was able to keep track of where she had left the sled as well as where the farthest end of the gully was located so she would be able to maneuver the sled around the gully with no more incidents.
When she finally reached the sled she sank to her good knee beside it, breathing heavily. Not only exhausted physically and mentally, her arm and shoulder felt like somebody was continuously thrusting red hot knives into them. All she really wanted to do was lay down and go to sleep but her heart and will, would not let her do so and kept reminding her this was just hypothermia talking and to ignore what she wanted to do, and do what she knew she had to. Still, she said to herself, it would not hurt if she just rested for a few minutes.
A hand on her arm startled her out of her thoughts. Legolas was awake. She pulled back the canvas of the tent she had made on the sled to protect him from the cold temperatures and saw him looking at her intently.
"You can do this Anayah. I have faith in you." His words were soft and encouraging yet he had not been able to disguise the pain he felt in his own body. After speaking, his eyes shut once more as he again became unconscious.
"You are my strength, my friend." She looked once more at the wounded and now unconscious elf lying in the sled then adjusting his coverings to make sure he stayed warm, turned back the canvas and tucked it in carefully so that it would keep out most of the cold. Finding her walking stick and placing the rope harness over her right shoulder, she took a deep breath and turned towards home.
"One step, then another ..." She began her game one last time.
* * * * * *
The house was quiet in the early hours just before dawn. All who lived within its walls were resting, being weary either from the long hours spent tending the wounded or from worrying about those who had not yet returned. Unfortunately, the peace and quiet of the house was not going to last for long.
Lord Elrond sat straight up in bed when he first heard something heavy hit the front doors. The echo from the impact was heard by everyone staying in the Last Homely House and the intrusive sound was soon answered by the sound of feet running from every direction. There was another impact as the front doors were hit again. Grabbing a robe from the end of his bed and hastily putting it on, Elrond was still tying the long sash around him when he reached the front hall. Something big hit the doors for a third time. Then the sounds of screaming and yelling could be heard in another part of the house followed shortly thereafter by the sight of Shakir flying low over the heads of the assembled elves, darting this way then that as he frantically searched for someone who would understand his urgent message. Meanwhile, Elladan had looked out another window and when he turned back to the anxious elves standing behind him, all he said was. "I do not think you are going to believe this."
"What!" his twin demanded.
"Its Elias - and he is alone!"
TBC
To all my reviewers: I appreciate the time you have taken to read and review my story and also for the kind words of encouragement. Hannon le!
Arwen721, Tytianne, Larka Vanimedle, Deana, Soccer-Bitch, DragonLady25, ElvenPrincess ... You are all absolutely the BEST! Oh ... sorry about Chapter 26 being in the wrong place (blush). The problem has been fixed!
The blizzard would be the most unmerciful and challenging of any enemy she had fought over the last few days. The storm had hit full force, shortly after she and Legolas had left the cave and was already hampering her journey with subzero temperatures, biting winds and near white-out conditions. She also knew that no matter how wicked this storm was going to be or how many obstacles it was going to throw in her path, she was either going to endure and conquer these obstacles or die in the attempt. Anayah had promised, on her honor, that she would bring Legolas home, and only death could make her break that promise.
In the sled she pulled behind her, lay a wounded elf. Not only was he one of her kind, but he was a friend not only to her but to her father and brothers as well. He was also a prince and the son of a tall tree she had once accidentally walked in to. She chuckled at the memory of bouncing off the Mirkwood King then thinking she had walked into a tree.
The poor visibility caused by the heavy snowfall was what worried her the most about the journey home. Her sense of direction was highly developed due mainly to all the time she spent riding at night and so she did not need the visual clues most beings would have needed to travel in the conditions she and Legolas were now experiencing, though having some visual clues would have been both useful and comforting. Looking around her and seeing how quickly the snow was accumulating, she knew that eventually she would have only her elvish instincts to guide her.
For the moment, all she could do was trudge along, putting one foot in front of the other while trying to ignore all the little ways her own body was using to protest. She would occasionally stop to rest and check her passenger. Legolas remained deeply unconscious, sleeping with his eyes tightly shut. If she could rouse him she would see to his needs, rebandaging his wounds if needed, adjusting his coverings to make sure he was staying warm and feeding him the special tea she had made before leaving the cave. If she could not rouse him she would continue on her way shortly after stopping. The routine, though necessary, was as monotonous as the stark white landscape around her.
The sensory deprivation caused by her inability to see through the thickly falling snow made the journey not only monotonous but dangerous as well and it was only her own talent for knowing which direction she was going that kept her from walking in circles. She had been walking along, head down and lost in thought when suddenly something hit her hard from her right side knocking her completely off her feet. Before she could identify her attacker, and before she had even fully regained her feet, her hand reached for her sword and drew it.
She dropped to one knee, closed her eyes and listened closely for any sound or movement that would tell her who had attacked her, how many attackers there were and where each was, relative to her present position. Ten, she counted and though she could not see them, she could hear them. Wolves - ten murderous, starving wolves - and here she was out in the middle of Ilúvatar knew where with no cover, no protection and pulling a sled containing a wounded elf.
Her head moved ever so slightly when she heard the snow crunch as one of the beasts began to slink towards her. Rising from the one knee to a semi-crouch she slowly raised her sword into a defensive position in front of her body. Pack animals, she thought to herself and shifted her body a little more to the right. Wolves are pack animals and always hunt in pairs and since one is in front of me, the other must be ... She let her thoughts go, rose to her feet and spun, in one single, fluid motion while letting the tip of her sword drop to an almost horizontal position. The big wolf, luckily for her, impaled itself on her sword. Bracing her foot on the twitching body, she managed to pull her sword free just as the second wolf of the pair hit her from behind, shoving her face first into the snow. Fighting to turn onto her back she screamed as she felt the beast's jaws close on her left shoulder then shake her fiercely.
With all her strength, she rolled to her left just enough so she could free her right arm. Frantically she searched for the dagger that hung from her belt, then taking it from the sheath and rolling a little more to the left, she stabbed at the animals head. The blow, made from such an awkward angle, merely grazed the wolf's temple though it was enough to force the beast to release its grip on her shoulder. After the wolf released its hold, it backed off a step, shook its head then came at her again. This time Anayah was able to thrust the dagger with all her strength, right into the animal's gaping jaws.
For a few moments, she lay quietly, trying to catch her breath. Finally, she rolled the dead wolf off her body and stood to inspect her shoulder. It had been torn both in front and in the back and at the moment was bleeding freely. She groaned at her bad luck. She could reach and tend the wound on the front of her shoulder but from the back, well, that was another story. She would do her best but could only hope the cold temperatures would naturally slow the bleeding.
After applying an astringent herb as well as athelas, then bandaging herself as best she could, Anayah picked up the rope harness and continued her journey wearily putting one foot in front of the other. Three more times the wolves attacked and three more times she drove them off. The pack was stalking her; and they were systematically wearing her down.
She was starting to slip and fall more often as her fatigue and wounds weakened her both in body and mind. Not only was she having to fight the elements, she was now having to battle her own despair. She did not know how much farther she could go and it was only the thought of the wounded friend she was trying so desperately to get to safety that gave her the will to continue.
* * * * * *
Walk, walk, walk. One foot after the other. One step at a time. One step after another step. Anayah giggled. She was running out of thoughts on another combination to put the words into for the new walking game she had made up. Unfortunately she was also not paying attention to where she was going. She took a step and the ground disappeared from beneath her.
It was not a long drop. She knew the area and knew there were no steep drop offs. There was however, a gully and this empty, white pit she was falling into was it. She felt herself sliding then felt an intense burning pain in her knee as her heel caught on a rock causing her to pitch forward onto her face. The drop off was only about five feet deep but might as well have been a mile. When she tried to rise, her left knee exploded in pain and she cried out rolling over onto her right side and cradling it as tears of pain rolled down her face. Once the pain had backed off to a tolerable level, Anayah sat up and started thinking about the gully she had fallen into and how close it was to Rivendell. Though she and Legolas had managed to cover about half of the distance to the Bruinen, Anayah knew that if she could not find a way to get passed this injury then they would probably freeze to death before anybody could find them.
After a few minutes she started to gently flex her injured knee. Though extremely painful, it was an encouraging sign that at least the injured joint flexed without grinding too badly. Rolling over, she stayed on all fours for a moment, on all threes she reminded herself, smiling, then after recovering her walking stick and using it as an aid to get up, she pushed off from the ground as hard as she could and finally regained her feet. The gully's mouth was shallowest on the western end so she began to hobble as quickly as she could toward the west, counting her steps as she went. In this way she was able to keep track of where she had left the sled as well as where the farthest end of the gully was located so she would be able to maneuver the sled around the gully with no more incidents.
When she finally reached the sled she sank to her good knee beside it, breathing heavily. Not only exhausted physically and mentally, her arm and shoulder felt like somebody was continuously thrusting red hot knives into them. All she really wanted to do was lay down and go to sleep but her heart and will, would not let her do so and kept reminding her this was just hypothermia talking and to ignore what she wanted to do, and do what she knew she had to. Still, she said to herself, it would not hurt if she just rested for a few minutes.
A hand on her arm startled her out of her thoughts. Legolas was awake. She pulled back the canvas of the tent she had made on the sled to protect him from the cold temperatures and saw him looking at her intently.
"You can do this Anayah. I have faith in you." His words were soft and encouraging yet he had not been able to disguise the pain he felt in his own body. After speaking, his eyes shut once more as he again became unconscious.
"You are my strength, my friend." She looked once more at the wounded and now unconscious elf lying in the sled then adjusting his coverings to make sure he stayed warm, turned back the canvas and tucked it in carefully so that it would keep out most of the cold. Finding her walking stick and placing the rope harness over her right shoulder, she took a deep breath and turned towards home.
"One step, then another ..." She began her game one last time.
* * * * * *
The house was quiet in the early hours just before dawn. All who lived within its walls were resting, being weary either from the long hours spent tending the wounded or from worrying about those who had not yet returned. Unfortunately, the peace and quiet of the house was not going to last for long.
Lord Elrond sat straight up in bed when he first heard something heavy hit the front doors. The echo from the impact was heard by everyone staying in the Last Homely House and the intrusive sound was soon answered by the sound of feet running from every direction. There was another impact as the front doors were hit again. Grabbing a robe from the end of his bed and hastily putting it on, Elrond was still tying the long sash around him when he reached the front hall. Something big hit the doors for a third time. Then the sounds of screaming and yelling could be heard in another part of the house followed shortly thereafter by the sight of Shakir flying low over the heads of the assembled elves, darting this way then that as he frantically searched for someone who would understand his urgent message. Meanwhile, Elladan had looked out another window and when he turned back to the anxious elves standing behind him, all he said was. "I do not think you are going to believe this."
"What!" his twin demanded.
"Its Elias - and he is alone!"
TBC
To all my reviewers: I appreciate the time you have taken to read and review my story and also for the kind words of encouragement. Hannon le!
Arwen721, Tytianne, Larka Vanimedle, Deana, Soccer-Bitch, DragonLady25, ElvenPrincess ... You are all absolutely the BEST! Oh ... sorry about Chapter 26 being in the wrong place (blush). The problem has been fixed!