Breath of Midnight
Please read and let me know what you think!
Promises Fulfilled
A battle can not be fought alone.
A soldier is only a part of a whole.
A war is fought on many fronts.
When we struggle,
We do not struggle alone.
It goes without saying that the best made plans are usually doomed to fail. Aswin and I had been waiting for the opportune moment to escape. The moment someone opened that door from the outside we were as good as gone and ready or not our time had come. The door was opening, and that someone was coming through. Aswin motioned for me to move to the other side of the room while he broke off another leg from the cot to use as a weapon. I decided to grab the leg already on the floor, and we prepared to take on anyone who dared show themselves. So far we were doing well, but that was not to last long. The door cracked and bright light flooded the dimly lit room. A hand came into view; soon to be followed by a lovely head of long red hair. Aswin lifted his broken piece of wood and moved to strike.
"Stop!!! Don't move!" I yelled while I ran into Aswin; knocking him to the floor.
He pushed me off and yelled back,
"What is wrong with you, have you gone mad?
The stranger coming up from the door was of course Rose.
(The red hair gave her away in an instant.)
While we were arguing; she climbed back down and tried to re-close the door behind her. I shouted back at Aswin,
"Don't let her close that door, grab her, but try not to hurt her!"
I took a dive and slid across the floor just in time to lodge the cot leg in the door; thus preventing it from closing. Rose fought with the handle anyways, and kept trying to pull it shut, but Aswin managed to get a good grip and pull it open the rest of the way. I reached down, grabbed Rose under her arm, and pulled her up through the floor. I covered her mouth with my hand to muffle her scream while Aswin lowered the door back down, but only enough to keep it open just a crack. Rose tried to kick and twist her way out of my grip but I held her down under my weight.
(Don't be too mad at me. She did manage to land a few smart hits.)
"Be still Rose, I don't want to hurt you. I'm going to let my hand off your mouth, but if you scream or struggle, I'm going to have to get rough."
She stopped her struggling and seemed to accept her situation; at least for the moment. I slowly let my hand off her mouth.
"Now you're going to be a good girl and tell me what's going on here. Where are we? Who were those men in the woods, and how do you know them?
"Feaestel…I'm so glad to see that you're alright…I was so worried after that horrible night. You took a nasty knock to the head my friend.
"Friend?! You betrayed me!"
"Feaestel, I swear to you that I have not betrayed you! I want to help you!"
"Lie to me no more!"
Suddenly without warning the door opened again, but this time it did not open slowly; it flung open with a great force. Aswin jumped down to hold it shut, but the door caught his chin on the way up. Aswin fell to the floor as the fourth party made his entrance.
It was the man Rose had clung to just the night before. His hand rested steadily upon a large sword that hung loosely at his side; ready to draw. His eyes fell down upon on Rose and myself.
"What is going on here?"
I let go of Rose and bolted towards the door. I had already had enough of this guy and I was going to bring him down. Leading with my shoulder blade; I rammed myself into the stranger and knocked him to the ground. The man recovered his bearings much quicker than I expected and soon he was back on his feet with his sword drawn. I tucked and rolled under the swing of his blade. Coming up behind him, I reached around his back and freed his spare dagger from its sheath. I plunged the dagger towards his open right side, but he shifted, and successfully dodged my thrust. He then turned and shortly followed with his own. I managed to cut into is left rib cage as I moved out of his path. The man spun around in pain and drew a small knife from his belt. He tossed it lightly into the air and let it rotate twice before catching it, and finally throwing it. The knife spun through the air until it burned its way into the side of my leg. The sheer force of the blow spun me and knocked me back to the floor. I felt the strangers hand grab my shoulder and roll me onto my back. He set his knee on my chest and his sword at my throat.
What he said to me then I shall never forget.
"Lle tela? Lle lava?" (Are you finished? Do you yield?)
He spoke to me in perfect Elvish! I was so taken aback I froze in place.
I yielded to him; "Amin lava" and dropped the knife.
"Good. I'm too tired and too old to fight with you anymore."
I looked over at Rose. She was kneeling on the ground holding her stomach. The man looked back at her and spoke with a voice of loving concern.
"Meril…are you alright? Did he you hurt?"
"No Eldritch, I'm fine. Not even a scratch."
"Good, I'm glad to hear that… Alright, now let's see if we can behave ourselves. You are not among enemies here master Elf, so you can calm yourself, and cease the knife work for a while."
He turned his attention to my leg. He gave me a look, I gave him a nod, and he pulled the knife out of my leg. I let slip a pain filled yell as the knife tore back through muscle and flesh. Aswin returned to his senses at the sound of my yell, and pulled Eldrich's back away from me. Aswin got hold of Eldrich's knife and pressed it against his throat.
"No Aswin Don't! Let him go for now."
He let go and gave me a cross look.
"Would you mind telling me what is going on here? What's happened to our plan? You are officially ruining all my fun."
With that he threw down the knife.
Rose left the room and returned with bandages and stitches. She offered to help me but I choose to bandage the wound myself.
She looked slightly offended when I refused her help, but her attentions soon returned to Eldritch.
"That you for your help Eldritch. You can go now; I'll take it from here."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes I'm sure; we're all good friends here."
Eldritch gave her a confused look, but gave in to her wishes and left…keeping the door open just in case.
"I'll be right down here if you need anything."
Aswin shouted back,
"I could use some breakfast while you're down there."
Rose scowled.
Aswin shrugged and sat down. As he slid down to the floor a slight streak of blood smeared the wall behind him. When he reached back to feel his shoulder his hand returned red and sticky.
Rose went over to him quickly.
"Lean forward and let me take a look. I think you pulled your stitches…Feaestel, throw what stitches and bandages you have left over here."
Aswin took the time to introduce himself while he leaned forward. Rose giggled slightly and gently removed his shirt.
I tossed over what I had left, and began asking Rose the same questions. I still needed some answers.
"Now let me see…where were we before we were so rudely interrupted Rose? Who is this Eldritch, and how long did you know about him and his men following us in the woods? I must say I certainly hope they are paying you well for all your hard work. I hear there is good pay in sneaking around and telling lies."
She began to re-stitch Aswin while she spoke.
"I'm going to pretend you didn't say those things just now, because I understand how you must feel, but as I said before I have not lied to you in anyway."
"You still haven't explained your friend."
"Eldritch is a gift of providence to be sure. He came down from the North around the time my Father was killed. He became my tutor, and he kept a close eye on my wicked Uncle. When I ran away, it was planned that he should meet me outside the city, but unfortunately he was temporarily detained. My Uncle held him for questioning about my sudden disappearance, but no fault could be found in him, and he was released. He hurried to our meeting place and became extremely worried when he discovered that I was not there as planed. His worry soon grew into distress when he came upon the bodies of the hired mercenaries at the edge of the forest. It was clear that I was not alone, but no trace as to what had happened to me could be found. So he called the other rangers together to search Fangorn. They happened on us completely by chance. Eldritch believes the trees were guiding them to us. The only reason they attacked was because they thought you and Aswin had kidnapped me and were holding me captive."
Her words silenced me. I knew she was telling the truth. I could see it in her eyes.
I felt about three inches high. If what she said was true I owed her an apology.
(I probably owed one to Eldritch too, but I still didn't know if I liked him or not.)
Before I could say anything however, Rose added in.
"Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter…the important thing is that you two recover from your wounds. Try to get some sleep."
Rose placed the last herb in the last bandage with a light smile. Aswin pulled his shirt back on and asked Rose one last question.
"Where exactly are we?"
"Oh! Of course, I almost forgot. You're in a small village in Rohan only a half a days ride from Fangorn's eastern border. This room is our temporary house of healing. It's just an old attic on top of a reused barn, but it's warm and dry and it serves its purpose well."
She helped Aswin back up to his feet and led him to one of the beds. She examined them with a confused look.
"What happened to these cots? They both only have three legs!"
Aswin and I both gave each other a mischievous look. I answered,
"Must have been really big bed bugs."
Aswin quickly added,
"If we break the other three legs off it should work out about even."
I was really beginning to like Aswin.
The next morning I awoke to the sweet smell of warm bread, and the sight of fresh clothes carefully folded at the feet of the two beds. The new tunic was that of a farmer, but it felt clean and soft against my skin as I slipped it on. While changing I re-examined my leg and saw that it was healing well. I guessed by tomorrow it would be as good as new.
(Elves heal quickly. This is a very good thing because lately I seem to be quickly wounded.)
Aswin was still asleep and I didn't want to wake him. He was still in bad shape and needed as much rest as he could get. I would make sure he saw his new clothes later.
I began to put on my boots, but before I could even lace them, an older woman pushed open the door and climbed up into the room precariously carrying a large tray.
"Good, I'm Glad to see that everything fits alright. You're taller than my boy, but much thinner. I must say I'm glad to see those old things being put to good use again. Here, I brought you both some breakfast if you're interested. I'll just set it here and you can help yourself when your ready.
She winked.
"I heard you had a bit of trouble last night."
I winked back.
"Oh just a little misunderstanding that's all."
There was something oddly familiar about this woman. Her face was strange to me, but her brown eyes seemed to shine young and bright against her age worn face. Those young eyes were very haunting; they seemed to hold a well of fire in their memory.
"May I ask who exactly you are?"
"Don't you remember me? Well I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. You look just the way I remember you, but I suppose I look very different…very different indeed."
How could she now me?
"My name is Mayda. We meet over sixty years ago. You pulled a small child out of a fire when your people came out from the woods to help save our village."
As she spoke it was if I could see the years melt away from her face. I could again see the small frightened child reaching out to me.
"My parents told me to stay in the mill while the men on horses trampled and burned through our town. I was all alone when the mill caught fire in the chaos, and you were the only one to answer my screams. You gathered me in your arms, wrapped me in your cloak, and pulled me out of blaze. You ran with me in your arms, and set me down behind the old oak tree. You sang a soothing song to me as you wiped the tears from my face. I made you promise to find my parents, and you kept that promise to me. You made sure everything would be alright. My family said you would always be welcome in this village as long as it stood. It stands still, and so does that promise."
I didn't know what to say. The promise still stands. Those words filled me with something I had not known for so long; it filed me with hope.
"We know they are hunting your kind. You should know that you are not alone in your fight; some of us have been with you from the beginning."
"We?"
"You have no doubt meet Eldritch and some of the other rangers? Eldritch is the man who gave you a hard time last night I imagine. He is old and stubborn, but don't let that young face fool you. He is of the line of Elendil. He may not yet be a king, but the rangers follow him still."
"Elendil?! How can that be? King Elessar's line has long been lost; it disappeared after years of civil war?"
It has been said before that not all those who wander are lost dear Elf. I should think you would remember that."
"How did he come to be here? Why…"
"I'll let him answer those questions for you when he is ready, until then eat and rest."
"Thank you, but I need to be on my way. I must return to Lothlorien and report what has happened to her army."
"They already know Feaestel. Believe me they know… Besides you can't go there at this time, the entire Northern border is being controlled by Gondor. We sit no further than twenty miles from an army camp. The only reason they don't dare come here is because they think the village is cursed."
"Why would they think that?"
"We told them it was, and so far it has worked like a charm."
She gave a final wink and climbed down the door.
Aswin began to stir as he wiped the sleep form his eyes."
"I smell food."
He pushed himself to the edge of the bed and began to eat the food Mayda had left.
"Don't you want any?"
"No I'm not hungry; you can have mine if you want."
I left Aswin with a large bite of food in his mouth and decide to take a walk. My leg was still throbbing but I decided it was worth a little pain to get a breath of air. I stepped down onto the ladder and found that it led into a small crowded kitchen. There was a large flour covered table, and several chairs. Some cracked egg shells and batter were all that remained of the fresh bread I smelled baking earlier. Past the kitchen I could see a cozy sitting area, separated by a waist high wooden divider that must have been used at one time to pin animals. This place was truly nothing more than a converted stable. The most obvious feature was the two large blue barn doors. One of the doors was partially opened so I took a step outside into the bright afternoon sun. My eyes scanned the impressive landscape. I saw many tall Mountains guarding the horizon all around the village, and I saw a large glass lake that mirrored the reflection of the sky on the earth. I took a deep breath as a cool breeze blew the smell of fresh hay past my nose. I walked a short way and found the same old oak tree I had hidden little Mayda under.
It's amazing how the little things of the past can shape the course of our future. Things had truly come full circle. Nothing was now left that could have spoken to our past presence there. The only thing under the oak now was Eldritch; casually sitting and smoking a long pipe.
"Is today not a beautiful day Master elf?"
"It is indeed a fine day sir."
"How is that leg of yours feeling?"
"Not too bad, but it would have felt better if it hadn't become acquainted with your knife last night."
He grinned.
"Sorry about that, but you were beginning to test my patience. You're a tough fellow to put down. You injured four of my friends the other night, and you did a fine hurt to my ribs yesterday. Hadwin was fixing on killing you after you cut up his arm. You're very fortunate to have Meril… errr… Rose as a friend, she explained everything to us."
That would have been the perfect time to apologize, but I still wasn't all that sorry.
"Thank you for helping her by he way; She is like a daughter to me and I don't know what I would have done if anything had happened to her."
"It was my honor."
I said it and I meant it.
"I still can't believe Meril changed her name. She can be so odd at times."
"I can believe that."
He smiled again and extended his hand. I reached for him and we clasped arms. He stood and a mischievous sort of look spread across his face.
"How are you with horses Feaestel? I hear Elves are good with horses."
"You hear correctly I imagine."
"Good!"
"I happen to be short a rider after you injured Hadwin in the woods. I was hoping you would be willing to do the right thing, and ride for him until he recovers. We need to transport some much need supplies to a nearby village. The army recently marched through and picked the town clean. They need food and medicine as soon as possible. Our goal is to travel unnoticed, so we will set out as soon as the sun goes down. You will find your horse tied up behind the barn. "
I nodded. I didn't have anything better to do at the moment, so why not?
Eldritch turned to leave, but then stopped himself. He looked back at me and said in a sincere tone,
"By the way, it is always a pleasure to meet one of the Eldar, especially one from the line and house of Elrond. It will be a great honor riding with you."
With that he stood and left, leaving me with a look of overall confusion on my face. How did he know that?! How did he know of my family? This man was creating so many questions I thought my mind would burst. Not knowing what else to do, I decided to go check on Aswin and inform Rose about what I had gotten myself into this time.
To be continued…