Part 12:

Scott had always been fascinated by military history and had read a lot about medieval battles and strategies. He had never imagined he would find himself in the middle of such a battle though.

After Aragorn and Ororo's return they had prepared as well as they could for the upcoming battle, everyone working with great speed, no one wanting to say out loud why. Everyone had a feeling of coming doom and death. Though the Fellowship and the Rohan King had agreed not to tell the common soldier of their fear that they couldn't win, the warriors weren't fools. They knew well their chances of survival were slim to say the least. Aragorn's return as a leader and commander in the battle had brought many soldiers hope, but Scott knew as well as anyone that hope wouldn't be enough to defeat an overwhelming enemy – they would need help.

As an answer to their prayers and to everyone's, including Aragorn's, surprise help had arrived; in the form of an Elven army of archers ready to help them beat back the enemy. The group was lead by Haldir, the Elf they had met when in the Golden Wood. Though Scott had never seen the handsome but grim man show any emotions at all he could have sworn he saw the man respond warmly to Aragorn's tight embrace as he welcomed him. Now hope had risen within many of the soldiers. The odds were still incredible and against them but they had a chance now, however small it was. 

Aragorn had asked Haldir about Arwen and Haldir had told him her father had asked her to leave with the other Elves. Aragorn had accepted this news with a heavy heart but still with grace and also a sense of relief and joy because then she would be safe no matter what happened. Scott though, had been a little perplexed as to what was going on. First Elrond formed the Fellowship, taking a big interest in saving Middle Earth and keeping it safe from the evil whispers of the Ring. Then he didn't seem to care and just wanted to leave, and now he had agreed to send an army to help them? Well, he guessed thousands of years of life could make even Elves indecisive.

They had had to reorder their strategies with the added force of the Elves. Aragorn, Scott and the Rohan King were the chief planners for the battle. They positioned the Elven archers at strategic places and began to talk about contingency plans. If the gates were to be breached Legolas and Aragorn were to defend it, taking some of the warriors with them. The archers shouldn't move but stay atop the walls, some of them given note that if called upon they should fire at Orcs who had breached the gate and were now in the yard; everyone else should stay focused on the Orcs still outside the walls. Aragorn seemed to be the one most comfortable with the Elves and also the one they seemed to respect and listen to so they agreed that he'd be in command of the Elves with Haldir. He would be protecting the front side of the castle, directly facing the enemy. Legolas and Gimli would stand with the Elves but were not given any direct orders other than to follow Aragorn and stay alert. Though human by birth and destined to become a human King Scott saw how well Aragorn fitted in with the Elves and realised that in spirit and mind the young King was more Elf than human; making it seem very appropriate that to defend his human people he would be an Elfish commander. Scott would have preferred it if Legolas, being one of their best shots, stayed put on the walls but he knew such an order would be pointless. If Aragorn were in danger fighting back Orcs who had breached the gates Legolas would come to his bond brother's defence no matter what.

Scott got a portion of the Rohan army to command on the castle's left side while the Rohan King stood on the right. He had wanted Ororo to get a key position as well but as with Eowyn the King was firm; no women in key positions. Having no time to argue the finer points of equal rights and tolerance with so little time to spare Ororo had asked Scott not to push the matter. Instead Scott had positioned Ororo with Aragorn in the middle and Rogue with the old King at the right. That way they had three key players with long distance powers who could defend their position from afar. Scott requested that Ororo, Rogue and he first fired at least twenty times at the approaching Orcs before anyone else began to try and hit someone with arrows as their supplies were limited. Between them with Ororo's lighting, Rogue's newly gained magic powers and his eye beams they should be able to take down quite a lot of Orcs before the enemy army were even within range of any arrow. Logan had insisted he stayed with Rogue, which Scott had also expected though he would have liked to have him stationed a strategically better place as Logan had no long range powers and would have to function as an archer which he was good at but as a close hand to hand fighter Logan was the best. Still, knowing when he was defeated, Scott had reluctantly given him to the old King, knowing quite well Logan wouldn't obey the King anyway if he didn't agree on his order and thus he felt better knowing Logan would be safe and that he would take care of Rogue, as always. Eowyn had been harder for him to position. Legolas had great skill and speed, Rogue and Ororo had their long distance powers, Logan had his amazing healing abilities, Gimli had his size which would often protect him, Aragorn had his skills and strength but Eowyn would need to get close to her opponents; real close. She was inexperienced in battle and too valuable to lose and he had to admit he wasn't just thinking of Middle Earth in general but him personally as well. She wanted to fight but her uncle was dead set against it and Aragorn didn't look thrilled at the idea either. Scott had made a deal with her. She would stay with him and help defend the walls as an archer but when the Orcs got too close and began to breach the walls she would withdraw to the caves and stand ready to defend the women and children against incoming Orcs with a small handful of warriors under her, all he could spare, if necessary - which he feared it would be. She had agreed to this, happy to finally get the chance to prove her warrior skills.

Everyone had taken their positions and Ororo had called for night to better hide their warriors, ready to let it rain when the Orcs appeared. She and Scott had agreed that maybe if the earth around the castle was slippery and wet it would slow them down for a little while, hopefully making them slip and fall and making it harder for them to get ladders up. Then the hard part had come; waiting. He had tried to keep his mind blank but hadn't really succeeded. He thought of Jean and wished he could have held her and told her he loved her. He worried about the dreams of Phoenix that had plagued him and which threatened to drown out the happy memories he tried to call forth of time spent with Jean. To see the others saying their good wishes and embraces that could be the last hadn't helped on his mood. Legolas had embraced Ororo warmly before the battle, asking her to be careful and calling her that Elfish name he seemed to do a lot lately…what was it? Nîn meleth. That was it. Scott had promised himself to ask one of the Elves or Aragorn about its meaning at some point. Ororo hadn't seemed distant as she had earlier but had embraced him warmly and kissed him, requesting he be careful as well; fear of losing him in her eyes. She had seemed to want to say more to him but hadn't done so. Instead she had pulled back as if guilty and they had parted to go to their positions. Logan and Rogue hadn't had to say or do anything; they would fight together. Still Logan had embraced Rogue warmly and told her he loved her and would protect her. She had smiled and reminded him that with her new powers she might just have to protect him, a warm and teasing gleam in her eyes. Aragorn had looked as sad as Scott felt that they didn't have anyone close to them to wish a good battle. Sure; they had both embraced and wished well to all their friends but that special someone…Suddenly he had found Eowyn beside him. She had looked nervous and he had thought it because of the battle. He was to ask her about it but when she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and wished him well, blushing deeply. He had smiled at her and wished her the same, vowing he would protect her in the coming battle and keep her safe. She had smiled fondly and then returned to her position close to him, a small smile still paying around her lips, making the wait a little easier for her to bear. His heart had been torn between guilt and happiness at her gesture and his own warm reaction to it.

Then suddenly there was no more time for thoughts, doubts or feelings. Orcs had gathered before them, looking as vicious and evil as ever. There had seemed to be endlessly many of them and Scott suddenly doubted they would have much chance even with the Elven archers. The beginning of the battle had gone well as he had thought it would. Rogue, Ororo and he had fired at the enemy, taking out large portions of Orcs at a time. Scott was still more than a little amazed by the white light Rogue could get to come out of her fingertips, making it destroy any Orc it reached. Still new Orcs kept coming and by sheer force of numbers the Orcs got still closer, only slowed down by the long distance attack. Aragorn had ordered the archers to fire as the Orcs were within range and the King and Scott had done likewise. Rogue, Ororo and he had still used their powers whenever possible. Scott hadn't doubted they could pretty much follow their strategy while the walls stayed intact and he had been proved right. It was when the Orcs started knocking on the gate, ladders reaching for them at the walls, that trouble started.

The battle become so large and wild it was impossible to control. Eowyn took her small portion of warriors to the caves as Ororo flew up, throwing lighting blots at the Orcs at the gate while trying to dodge arrows. Ororo had made it rain as soon as she had been able to spot the Orcs and it added to the uncontrollable feeling he got about the battle. It was hard to hear his own commands through the noise and rain also made it hard for him to see at times; his glasses kept getting wet and hard to see through. He saw out of the corner of his eye that Legolas still stood firing arrows from the wall, shooting down Orcs who tried to climb up ladders. Ororo had taken Gimli and Aragorn to the gate to help protect it though he was sure they knew as he did it was only a matter of time before it gave in. He saw that Logan and Rogue also had their hands full. With the Orcs so close and him not bad but not the best with a bow Logan was happy to be able to destroy the wooden ladders with his claws so the Orcs fell down. The few who just about managed to get a leg over the wall he killed with great pleasure. On his own side things were hectic as well. He shot with his powers at Orcs trying to climb up ladders but they just kept coming; worse than cockroaches, he thought irritated. Suddenly a loud "Look out" shook through the castle and Scott turned briefly at the sound, to his dismay seeing the gate had been broken in. It would only be a matter of time now before they had lost this battle. Scott got a determined look in his face. Well, they wouldn't go down without a fight.

"You know your orders! Stay focused!" Scott yelled at his men, seeing the few he had ordered to leave to defend the gate run towards the enemy there while the other warriors dutifully though hesitantly had to turn their back at this new enemy to fight against the Orcs who still tried to crawl over the walls. Come on, Aragorn. Don't let me down here, Scott silently prayed as he focused on keeping his side of the wall clean of Orcs. He had to have faith that Aragorn could protect his back. He saw Legolas leave his position to help Aragorn and swore silently as some of the Elves went with him. They needed those archers at the walls to stop those not already inside from coming in! Of course it wouldn't help much if the Orcs inside the walls killed them all from behind. God damn it! They needed more men! They needed a miracle! 

He saw Rogue throw a large ball of white light at her side of the wall, clearing it for a few minutes. To his worry he saw her fall down as soon as the energy had left her. Logan went to check on her and spotting Scott's worried and distracted look Logan gave him an OK sign. Scott sighed relieved and went back to the battle. They had discussed the possibility of Rogue passing out after such intensive use of her powers and had also planned what to do. Logan would take her to the caves and leave her to Eowyn's protection and then Logan would walk from the caves back towards the battle, killing all who tried to reach the caves on his way.

The battle went on, despite their heavy resistance the Orcs didn't seem to draw back. Aragorn had great trouble at the gate, trying to protect Scott and the Rohan King's backs. More Orcs got so far as to reach Logan and he had more than his hands full defending the entrance to the caves and an Orc or two even managed to get past Logan to their last defence; Eowyn and the few men with her. Still, so far they managed to stop any Orcs from reaching the caves and the defenceless people inside. The attack at Scott's side didn't lessen and with both Aragorn and Legolas gone from the middle position that part had now become weak and Scott tried to command both sides with Haldir's help; an impossible task and Orcs kept hammering into them. Just when everything seemed lost a large, bright, white light appeared at the horizon.

"Rogue?" Scott mumbled confused. She couldn't be out there; she was in the caves. The light came closer and Scott was able to make it out. It was…"Gandalf!" And he wasn't alone. He had the outcast prince Eomer and his riders with him.

Of course. The wizard had said he would get help, had said he would be back. The cavalry arriving at the last minute. Now under attack by two fronts the Orcs were sorely pressed. Seeing help had arrived the battle worn and tired army inside the walls got new strength and hope which gave the fight a new edge, a new desperation as now the warriors could see hope; they wouldn't die here.

Scott noticed quite a lot of the Elves and Rohan soldiers had gone outside the walls to help Gandalf fight the enemy. Scott would have preferred they stayed atop the walls; a safer position though not quite as satisfactory as being in the mist of battle and maybe not as helpful to the old wizard. Worried the soldiers were running wild outside the walls with no leader, attacking in anger and urgency he was relieved when he saw Haldir was outside the walls; as ever looking every bit the stone warrior. He also saw that Aragorn had managed to get by some of the Orcs, through the broken gate and was also outside while Legolas and Gimli stayed inside the walls to keep fighting the incoming Orcs. Scott could feel and see the pressure lessen at the walls from the wizard's attack. Taking the fight to the Orcs, going on offence instead of defence would prove useful now to help shorten the battle.

The battle continued to race on, Scott trying to get a position on his friends whenever possible. Suddenly he spotted Haldir below him. He had been cut off from his warriors and was surrounded by Orcs. Scott could see several Elves lying among the dead on the ground. Scott's first instinct was to run to Haldir but he would never make it. Aragorn was down there but too far away from Haldir, caught up in his own battle. Scott did the only thing he could do; ordered some of his archers to aim at the Orcs surrounding the commander but he knew Haldir would be lost to them.

Suddenly a new figure entered the battlefield. Scott hadn't noticed him before. He was dressed plainly, in no armour and the rain made it hard to make him out, especially as he wore a long hooded cape. No light or anything else accompanied him or marked him as special. To Scott's surprise he came from the opposite side than where Gandalf had appeared from, telling he most likely wasn't one of his riders. He rode alone into the Orcs from behind, fighting to get through to the castle. It was not only a brave move; it was stupid and suicidal. Scott saw the man get a sword into him, caught inside his stomach and he fell from his horse. Scott thought that was it; another sad loss to add to the long list of warriors they had lost that day. Then, to what seemed like both of theirs surprise the man stood up again and pulled the sword free, for a moment he looked strangely at it. Then he went to his horse and got up on it again, picking up his own sword and fought onward towards the castle. Another wizard, Scott figured, taken aback by the gesture. Though immortal he hadn't known Gandalf could do that. The man chose that moment to glance up at the walls and Scott could see his face.

"Boromir!"

It was impossible, yet he could have sworn…it looked just like him. Incoming Orcs demanded his attention but whenever he could he followed the man through the battlefield. He saw him get hit many more times as he fought a path through the Orcs until he reached Haldir, saving the Elf by using his body as his shield after having been 'dead' at least twenty times already. Haldir must have seen the uncanny resemblance to Boromir as well because he stood still in shock for a moment. Then the battle demanded their full attention again and any questions would have to wait.

Finally, after a long and involved battle the Orcs drew back and everyone could breathe easily again, too tired to make much of a victory cry. The large amount of dead or wounded also put a lid on their joy. Everyone got busy attending wounded and trying to find friends to make sure everyone were all right. Scott could see Logan, Gimli, Legolas, Eomer, Aragorn, Haldir, Gandalf, the old King and most of his men from his position on the wall, as they began to gather inside the walls. He walked down towards Logan and in the distance back in the caves he saw Rogue, Ororo and Eowyn prepare to help the wounded and first then, sure his friends were all right, could he could breathe easily. Though tired and with smaller wounds they were all right. Scott felt like sleeping for days and he was sure everyone else felt the same but that would have to wait. They needed to help the wounded, find out what they had lost in the battle. The warrior who had saved Haldir rode through the broken gate and looked up at him and Scott couldn't hide his shock. The man's similarity to Boromir wasn't just amazing; it was so close it was disturbing. Seeing the wounded were in good hands for now Scott decided he first and foremost needed to get some answers. He had felt this surge of hope since first seeing the warrior and needed to either kill it now before it grew or know for certain. Boromir had died; he had seen it himself. Yet so had Gandalf. Could it be? Could he be back? Speaking of Gandalf…he still owned them an explanation regarding Rogue's new powers. Scott intended to finally get some answers from both men. Determined he walked towards them and Logan fell in beside him, over the years having become so attuned to Scott that he knew what he wanted to do and his face clearly said that he was as eager as Scott was to know what was going on.   

TBC

Author's Notes:

To LOTR fans: Again please bear with me about the facts here. I am doing a lot of things not in the books and thus I don't follow them to the letter; I already warned about this. That also includes timeframes like how Boromir managed to reach the battle in time. And as I've said before; if I had done everything by the book then this story would, to me anyway, have been dreadfully boring and if it was just a copy of the books/films you want then I would suggest you read/saw them instead of reading this fanfic crossover.

So…..I hope you liked the battle and look forth to the explanations Scott and Logan will demand in the next chapter. And yes, no need to worry…I will go into both Boromir and Rogue's new powers and hint about their fate.

Any suggestions and comments are welcome (if you can use a polite and civil tone).

Love

Nadja