Disclaimer: I don't own it (although I wish I did) I'm using Tolkiens
characters and places. They are not of my creation *sobs*. The names aren't
mine either, they came from the elvish name generator. (Except Bereth, but
then you can just take off a few letters to get that.)
In the Shadows
Chapter Two - Lost Freedom
**
We waited until nightfall, but Bereth left to scout a few hours before dusk. He didn't return.
The Rivendell elves and Orodreth were alarmed and immediately tried to follow but Tarí stopped them. I smiled when she did and wondered whether my actions were affecting her, as she had never confronted the group before by herself.
"Wait!" She had cried, her eyes fearful, something I had not seen in an elf in a long time. Although we had become the hunted, we didn't show our fear of the enemy; we refused to be seen as weak. By showing her weakness, Tarí was showing the other elves that she really thought they should stay.
"He may have been captured and the Uruk-Hai could be waiting for us to find him. If they capture us, they could take us to Isengard as prisoners, or even worse, Mordor!"
Orodreth made a sign against evil against his chest, an old tradition from his homeland. Although we didn't practice it, we all understood what it meant.
"Tarí is right." I said quietly. "We must do this properly."
Aranel nodded and stood up, as we had all been crouched in a huddle. We looked up at him and I cursed on the inside. 'He's enjoying being looked up to' I thought bitterly.
"I will go after him, Orodreth will come with me since the blood bond between the two brothers should help us find him," We all nodded and looked at Orodreth as he stood next to Aranel.
"Next, Oronar, Celahir and Ireth will follow," Aranel said, naming the other three Rivendell elves. The three of them stood, each taking his bow in hand. Tarí and I are the only females in the group.
"You will leave just over an hour after Orodreth and I. Then Ayssa and Tarí shall follow." I stood with Tarí and we both nodded at Aranel.
"Can we trust those two alone?" Orodreth muttered to Aranel, the words meant only for his ears. I nearly laughed. Orodreth should know better, our hearing was as keen as his. Aranel paused to think, then shook his head and frowned.
"Alright then, Celahir," Aranel said, gesturing to the half-elf next to us. "You shall go with these two, to make sure they don't get in trouble." Celahir nodded, but looked uncertain.
So we waited. Oronar and Ireth left exactly an hour after Aranel and Orodreth. I wished them luck, silently, and sat back down in my spot, tipping my head back to look at the stars. There weren't many. Most of the smoke had risen up high, blocking out even the brightest of stars.
The hour passed slowly and Celahir looked nervous. He was showing his weakness too, and I wondered if he could sense something I could not. He was anxious to get into the forest and almost ran when Tarí and I agreed that we should leave. I picked up my pack, and then looked at Bereth's belongings. No one had thought to take them, so I hurriedly packed his bag and carried it, his bag in one hand, and my bow in the other.
Just as we entered the forest, I stopped, something pricking at my senses. An ancient anger washed over my senses as we walked. The trees harboured fury and rage so powerful the air was thick with it.
Celahir was eagerly looking ahead for signs of the others, but I noticed strange footprints on the forest floor. Recent ones, ones that looked like-
"Back!" I whispered furiously to Celahir, pulling him back by his collar. Tarí looked alert and followed quickly, looking about for any signs of danger.
Celahir laughed nervously but covered it quickly with a smug smile.
"You must be dreaming. There is no one waiting in the gloom for you, Ayssa."
I held up my hand to silence him and tried to see through the darkness.
"Do you feel that?" I asked very quietly, not wanting my voice to carry to unfriendly ears. I shouldered Bereth's pack and took an arrow from my quiver. Tarí and Celahir were doing the same; except Celahir's hands were shaking so much he could barely draw his bow.
A twig snapped behind us and I turned quickly and shot my arrow at the sound. An awful shriek came from where I had shot and suddenly arrows poured out from around us. We were being struck at from all over. I pulled both Celahir and Tarí down, tears welling up and falling down my face as two arrows struck my back and a third buried itself in my leg.
A shout sounded and the arrow fire ceased. I collapsed onto Tarí who I had pulled beneath me and bit my lip against the pain. Celahir was on his feet and stood protectively over us as an Uruk came from the shadows, a lethal looking sword in hand.
"All of you stand and follow me. You are surrounded."
I cursed and pulled myself up, trying not to cry out in pain, to do that would give them what they would want and that was the last thing I wanted.
"Surrender your weapons or die."
**
We have traveled with the Uruk-Hai for miles. They make us run, fast and hard. With every step, my wounded leg aches and burns, the wound hasn't healed as it should have. The wounds on my back have healed almost completely, but they still hurt.
Even though we elves are nimble and have great stamina, we tire after long periods of time and when we tire, we begin to make mistakes. For every rock we trip over, there is a whip eager to whip our backs with its fiery sting.
Bereth, Aranel, Orodreth and Ireth are at the front of the group, constantly being whipped by their guards for the sheer joy of it. Tarí and I are near the middle of the group. Every step is agony; we have run for days on end. Celahir and Ireth are kept to the back, if they fall behind, when they finally catch up, they too are whipped fiercely.
Sweat pours down the dirty faces of our awful captors. They hate us. They hate us more than we could ever hate them.
More than once have I felt the burning sting of the cruel Uruk whip across my shoulders, but thankfully, they always seem to miss my arrow wounds. I bless the Valar for the tough clothing I wear as it prevents the Uruks from splitting my skin. The bruises I bear are many, but are nothing compared to what pain Bereth suffers. The Uruk-Hai believe Bereth to be our leader and Aranel tells them no different. I would be angry with him, but we must not let disagreements set us apart when we need to stick together.
Despite our fast healing, the wounds Bereth bears are many and the constant running and whipping keeps his wounds open. I hope infection does not set in.
**
Tarí and I have been separated, the only females among the elves. We are not dressed as normal female elves, but I think the Uruk-Hai know anyway. The eyes of the Uruk-Hai constantly haunt me. Do their expressions show hate or lust? More than once has an Uruk hand strayed and I am certain it is not by accident.
I am consumed in fear of what these creatures could do to Tarí and I. Now they have taken Tarí from my side, I feel open and vulnerable.
Celahir, Aranel, Ireth and the others have also been separated; perhaps they want us to remain apart so we can't plan an escape. Every tree we pass, every cave we go by, I feel the urge to fight back and hide. That is my weakness, but I will not let it show.
**
Tarí and I have agreed to pass as men from now on. We are aware that in the eyes of Uruks, and other races, male elves look quite feminine, so hopefully, we shall have no problems.
While the Uruk-Hai sleep, and our guards doze, we talk, but only in pairs. We cannot leave them now as they have set up watches further away, in all directions. We cannot chance that they may be asleep as well. Besides, our hands and feet have been bound, and none of us carry any weapons. We could escape, but to where? It is likely that we would be caught again, but more brutally. Perhaps they would kill us on sight.
Tarí and I told the others of our plan and it was met with grim approval. All Bereth does is rest, he is too weak to talk and we have tried everything we can to help is healing, but his body is severely damaged.
As discreetly as we could, Tarí and I bound our chest flat with spare pieces of cloth from our outer clothing. We bound ourselves so tight we could hardly breathe, but it had to be done. We then helped each other braid our hair in the masculine fashion. When I was done, I regarded Tarí and smiled tiredly.
"You look like my cousin." I said quietly.
"You look like Lord Celeborn." Tarí replied and we laughed silently.
One could say that Tarí and I look almost identical as females, but as males, apparently we look quite different. Not to the eyes of our kin of course. We are always spotting differences and imperfections. It drives my human friends mad.
**
Our plan is beginning to work. The Uruks kept their distance today although I did receive broken fingers for tripping, causing my guard and several other Uruks behind to fall. The whole group halted while my guard kicking me to the ground and spat at me. Fear was dancing around my stomach as he dragging me up again by my hair. He grabbed my right hand and grinned as he snapped all of the fingers.
I tried my best not to scream in pain as I felt them snap. It was sickening to hear my own bones crunching. I held back my pain for as long as I could and only cried when we camped again that night, in privacy, the others leaving me be.
My fingers still ache, almost every movement causes shock waves of pain to shoot through them. They are healing considerably faster than my leg wound, which reopened when the Uruk kicked me to the ground. I will not be able to draw a bow for a long time, which saddens me.
The group then carried on, the other elves not knowing why we had stopped, as they could not see me. They heard news of it as we ran on, comments passed on, Uruk to Uruk.
**
Bereth was tortured today. When will this end?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hello! I'm updating faster than usual because I'm nervous about exams and this takes my mind of it. In fact my first one starts in an hour and a half...so I'm going to go and get ready for that.
Thanks to Luthien for being the first reviewer! *hugs* At the time of writing, no one else has reviewed, but never mind. This is a bit longer..I think, but I've got about four chapters written down, just not typed up so I'll be trying to find random places to cut off, while still trying to make it interesting.
Please tell me your thoughts (but if you really hate it, don't just scream and yell, tell me WHY you don't like it.)
Thanks!
In the Shadows
Chapter Two - Lost Freedom
**
We waited until nightfall, but Bereth left to scout a few hours before dusk. He didn't return.
The Rivendell elves and Orodreth were alarmed and immediately tried to follow but Tarí stopped them. I smiled when she did and wondered whether my actions were affecting her, as she had never confronted the group before by herself.
"Wait!" She had cried, her eyes fearful, something I had not seen in an elf in a long time. Although we had become the hunted, we didn't show our fear of the enemy; we refused to be seen as weak. By showing her weakness, Tarí was showing the other elves that she really thought they should stay.
"He may have been captured and the Uruk-Hai could be waiting for us to find him. If they capture us, they could take us to Isengard as prisoners, or even worse, Mordor!"
Orodreth made a sign against evil against his chest, an old tradition from his homeland. Although we didn't practice it, we all understood what it meant.
"Tarí is right." I said quietly. "We must do this properly."
Aranel nodded and stood up, as we had all been crouched in a huddle. We looked up at him and I cursed on the inside. 'He's enjoying being looked up to' I thought bitterly.
"I will go after him, Orodreth will come with me since the blood bond between the two brothers should help us find him," We all nodded and looked at Orodreth as he stood next to Aranel.
"Next, Oronar, Celahir and Ireth will follow," Aranel said, naming the other three Rivendell elves. The three of them stood, each taking his bow in hand. Tarí and I are the only females in the group.
"You will leave just over an hour after Orodreth and I. Then Ayssa and Tarí shall follow." I stood with Tarí and we both nodded at Aranel.
"Can we trust those two alone?" Orodreth muttered to Aranel, the words meant only for his ears. I nearly laughed. Orodreth should know better, our hearing was as keen as his. Aranel paused to think, then shook his head and frowned.
"Alright then, Celahir," Aranel said, gesturing to the half-elf next to us. "You shall go with these two, to make sure they don't get in trouble." Celahir nodded, but looked uncertain.
So we waited. Oronar and Ireth left exactly an hour after Aranel and Orodreth. I wished them luck, silently, and sat back down in my spot, tipping my head back to look at the stars. There weren't many. Most of the smoke had risen up high, blocking out even the brightest of stars.
The hour passed slowly and Celahir looked nervous. He was showing his weakness too, and I wondered if he could sense something I could not. He was anxious to get into the forest and almost ran when Tarí and I agreed that we should leave. I picked up my pack, and then looked at Bereth's belongings. No one had thought to take them, so I hurriedly packed his bag and carried it, his bag in one hand, and my bow in the other.
Just as we entered the forest, I stopped, something pricking at my senses. An ancient anger washed over my senses as we walked. The trees harboured fury and rage so powerful the air was thick with it.
Celahir was eagerly looking ahead for signs of the others, but I noticed strange footprints on the forest floor. Recent ones, ones that looked like-
"Back!" I whispered furiously to Celahir, pulling him back by his collar. Tarí looked alert and followed quickly, looking about for any signs of danger.
Celahir laughed nervously but covered it quickly with a smug smile.
"You must be dreaming. There is no one waiting in the gloom for you, Ayssa."
I held up my hand to silence him and tried to see through the darkness.
"Do you feel that?" I asked very quietly, not wanting my voice to carry to unfriendly ears. I shouldered Bereth's pack and took an arrow from my quiver. Tarí and Celahir were doing the same; except Celahir's hands were shaking so much he could barely draw his bow.
A twig snapped behind us and I turned quickly and shot my arrow at the sound. An awful shriek came from where I had shot and suddenly arrows poured out from around us. We were being struck at from all over. I pulled both Celahir and Tarí down, tears welling up and falling down my face as two arrows struck my back and a third buried itself in my leg.
A shout sounded and the arrow fire ceased. I collapsed onto Tarí who I had pulled beneath me and bit my lip against the pain. Celahir was on his feet and stood protectively over us as an Uruk came from the shadows, a lethal looking sword in hand.
"All of you stand and follow me. You are surrounded."
I cursed and pulled myself up, trying not to cry out in pain, to do that would give them what they would want and that was the last thing I wanted.
"Surrender your weapons or die."
**
We have traveled with the Uruk-Hai for miles. They make us run, fast and hard. With every step, my wounded leg aches and burns, the wound hasn't healed as it should have. The wounds on my back have healed almost completely, but they still hurt.
Even though we elves are nimble and have great stamina, we tire after long periods of time and when we tire, we begin to make mistakes. For every rock we trip over, there is a whip eager to whip our backs with its fiery sting.
Bereth, Aranel, Orodreth and Ireth are at the front of the group, constantly being whipped by their guards for the sheer joy of it. Tarí and I are near the middle of the group. Every step is agony; we have run for days on end. Celahir and Ireth are kept to the back, if they fall behind, when they finally catch up, they too are whipped fiercely.
Sweat pours down the dirty faces of our awful captors. They hate us. They hate us more than we could ever hate them.
More than once have I felt the burning sting of the cruel Uruk whip across my shoulders, but thankfully, they always seem to miss my arrow wounds. I bless the Valar for the tough clothing I wear as it prevents the Uruks from splitting my skin. The bruises I bear are many, but are nothing compared to what pain Bereth suffers. The Uruk-Hai believe Bereth to be our leader and Aranel tells them no different. I would be angry with him, but we must not let disagreements set us apart when we need to stick together.
Despite our fast healing, the wounds Bereth bears are many and the constant running and whipping keeps his wounds open. I hope infection does not set in.
**
Tarí and I have been separated, the only females among the elves. We are not dressed as normal female elves, but I think the Uruk-Hai know anyway. The eyes of the Uruk-Hai constantly haunt me. Do their expressions show hate or lust? More than once has an Uruk hand strayed and I am certain it is not by accident.
I am consumed in fear of what these creatures could do to Tarí and I. Now they have taken Tarí from my side, I feel open and vulnerable.
Celahir, Aranel, Ireth and the others have also been separated; perhaps they want us to remain apart so we can't plan an escape. Every tree we pass, every cave we go by, I feel the urge to fight back and hide. That is my weakness, but I will not let it show.
**
Tarí and I have agreed to pass as men from now on. We are aware that in the eyes of Uruks, and other races, male elves look quite feminine, so hopefully, we shall have no problems.
While the Uruk-Hai sleep, and our guards doze, we talk, but only in pairs. We cannot leave them now as they have set up watches further away, in all directions. We cannot chance that they may be asleep as well. Besides, our hands and feet have been bound, and none of us carry any weapons. We could escape, but to where? It is likely that we would be caught again, but more brutally. Perhaps they would kill us on sight.
Tarí and I told the others of our plan and it was met with grim approval. All Bereth does is rest, he is too weak to talk and we have tried everything we can to help is healing, but his body is severely damaged.
As discreetly as we could, Tarí and I bound our chest flat with spare pieces of cloth from our outer clothing. We bound ourselves so tight we could hardly breathe, but it had to be done. We then helped each other braid our hair in the masculine fashion. When I was done, I regarded Tarí and smiled tiredly.
"You look like my cousin." I said quietly.
"You look like Lord Celeborn." Tarí replied and we laughed silently.
One could say that Tarí and I look almost identical as females, but as males, apparently we look quite different. Not to the eyes of our kin of course. We are always spotting differences and imperfections. It drives my human friends mad.
**
Our plan is beginning to work. The Uruks kept their distance today although I did receive broken fingers for tripping, causing my guard and several other Uruks behind to fall. The whole group halted while my guard kicking me to the ground and spat at me. Fear was dancing around my stomach as he dragging me up again by my hair. He grabbed my right hand and grinned as he snapped all of the fingers.
I tried my best not to scream in pain as I felt them snap. It was sickening to hear my own bones crunching. I held back my pain for as long as I could and only cried when we camped again that night, in privacy, the others leaving me be.
My fingers still ache, almost every movement causes shock waves of pain to shoot through them. They are healing considerably faster than my leg wound, which reopened when the Uruk kicked me to the ground. I will not be able to draw a bow for a long time, which saddens me.
The group then carried on, the other elves not knowing why we had stopped, as they could not see me. They heard news of it as we ran on, comments passed on, Uruk to Uruk.
**
Bereth was tortured today. When will this end?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hello! I'm updating faster than usual because I'm nervous about exams and this takes my mind of it. In fact my first one starts in an hour and a half...so I'm going to go and get ready for that.
Thanks to Luthien for being the first reviewer! *hugs* At the time of writing, no one else has reviewed, but never mind. This is a bit longer..I think, but I've got about four chapters written down, just not typed up so I'll be trying to find random places to cut off, while still trying to make it interesting.
Please tell me your thoughts (but if you really hate it, don't just scream and yell, tell me WHY you don't like it.)
Thanks!