Power
Aragorn backed away from the wraith like blood feeders until his back hit the solid stone wall behind them.
"Tell me why I thought this was a good idea again." He said softly to the elf at his side, without taking his eyes off the advancing horde.
"Good or nay, we fight until the end gwador nin." Legolas said grimly, his bow already aimed and primed at a target.
Something in his tone made Aragorn look at him. There was a reckless gleam in the elf's eyes and in a moment of clarity Aragorn realized that Legolas' life force was almost spent. It was there in the minute trembling of his limbs. It was there in the way he seemed to shimmer, like a reflection in a pond of rippling water. A fey light glowed about him.
Aragorn blinked back hot tears, "Till the end muindor nin." he replied.
Legolas inclined his head and the two charged their foes a fierce battle cry on their lips.
"Yavanna Kementari," said the Lord of Imladris in a great voice, "I call upon you, Vala of the earth, you who watch over the growth of all living things, hear me and heed my call. Look down O Queen upon this abomination that mocks you, that threatens the lives of two who are dear to you. Gracious Yavanna, defender of all that is good and pure on this Earth, lend me the power to rid your Arda of its foul existence!"
Scarcely had the words left his mouth when an awesome rumbling was heard and all over the lands of Imladris the earth moved.
Legolas shot down the vampires as fast as his hands could put arrow to bow. The vampires were large, in man form and armed with talons of steel, yet they fell beneath his unbridled onslaught like rows of wheat. When he reached back and felt only air in his quiver he cast aside his bow and with a snarl yanked his twin knives out of their sheaths.
"Come to me, spawn of Morgoth!" he shouted.
Aragorn's sword clanged against the steel talons of one of the foul creatures as it swiped at his exposed side. He kicked the it back and spun to slice the head off another that was sneaking up behind him. Breathing heavily he again raised his sword to stab through the chest of one that leapt up from the ground. The thing fell back, fangs bared, eyes glowing red in the dim light. When another attacked, Aragorn closed with it, his face almost touching that of the hideous being.
"You shall not have us," Aragorn ground out between gritted teeth, "we will be free of you." And he pushed the creature back.
The power of the earth surged up through the ground under their feet and they were bathed in a pure green light. Elrond stretched forth his hand to the heavens and the power of Manwe, vala of the air, filled the sky. With a cry Elrond let loose the power of Vilya and Yavanna.
The trees of the wood bent like saplings under the forceful blow of the power of the Valar and the plant creature was exposed in all its hideous monstrosity to the force of the wind. The earth heaved under it casting out its foul roots from the bosom of the soil.
The wind tore at its branch like arms and over long leaves, rending them like tattered cloth.
The plant twisted and swayed yet it squeezed to its chest the essences of the imperilled elf and human.
A white hot flash of pain, worse than anything he had ever felt, stabbed into Aragorn. His sword fell with a clang from his suddenly nerveless fingers and he opened his mouth in a horrible scream. He dropped to his knees, clutching at himself in agony. The pain lashed through him again and he fell to the stone floor curling around the searing hot ache that was building in him.
Legolas staggered with the impact of the pain, his eyes clouded over but he did not drop his knives. When the pain hit him again he doubled over with a cry. He heard Aragorn screaming.
The vampires stopped their attack. They stood silent and motionless.
Aragorn keened in pain hunching in on himself as he scrabbled and jerked in an attempt to evade the blazing fire that was consuming him inside.
Legolas tried to crawl over to Aragorn. He pushed himself on leaden legs and numb arms for a moment but the effort defeated him. He fell, his face hitting the cold stone. He could see the vampires standing there, like carrion birds.
Then everything began to flicker.
The plant trembled as a pure green light began to pulse up into its trunk. The light ran along its many arms into its veins, into every leaf. It pulsed along the vines where the souls of two children of Eru hung. The plant began to wail, its high pitched screech painful to hear. The air swirled around it, intense in its destruction and the shrill cry became a howl.
Aragorn opened his eyes and saw as though through a waterfall, his elven father, brothers and one that shone so bright that it hurt his eyes. He reached out to them.
Before his very eyes the vampires vanished. Then a thing like nothing that he had ever seen before appeared. Its malice was palpable, its visage dark and its intent obvious. It slithered to Aragorn's recumbent form like a malevolent wraith.
With a cry Legolas surged to his feet and leapt upon the fell creature. They both went down, but the creature was the stronger of the two. It caught the elf in its grasp and as the world that it had created flickered it sank its fangs into his neck.
Aragorn cried out as Legolas fell under the power of the thing.
Legolas clawed at it. He felt his life being drawn out of his body. The creature fed greedily its wet mouth clamped against his dying flesh. He struggled against its grip pushing with all his strength at it, trying to break the thing's deadly embrace.
All around them the world crumbled, the stone walls became a forest, the forest a cave, the cave a wood, then rushing water.
Legolas stopped struggling.
Aragorn saw his friend's hand drop limply to the ground. "No," he whispered.
The plant burst asunder with a thunderous sound and the wind caught up the unnatural parts of its body and carried it up into the skies.
Elrond crumpled as he was released from the power of the Valar. Glorfindel caught him before he could hit the ground.
Notes:
Gwador nin……. My blood brother
Muindor nin……..My brother
Mornflower……I love your phrasing.
Deana…… Ta Da!!
Barbara Kennedy……. I wonder?
Shanna…….. Y yo no puedo ver capitulo 4, creo que lo ha perdido. Ay!
Sielge…… Had server problem for a few days, so I am a bit late.
Someone reading……. You are welcome.
Celebrean…… A thousand apologies. I didn't receive your review until after I posted. Nice Christmas song though. LOL.
Gozilla… muchas thanks.
Lindahoyland……… Tell me what u think of this one.
HaNyou- demoness….. wish I could wear black everyday meself sigh. And I haven't decided what to do with adan and edhel yet!
Kitsune Kida… No problem,, Please enjoy
ps. just alittle note to say that i have not yet written the next chapter so it will be a little late in being posted. Thank you for reading.