"OK!" Niori panted angrily, "We've been running for almost four days! I am not made for this type of endurance!"
Aragorn looked back at Niori (who had a very angry face on) and waved his hand, motioning them to rest for the time being.
The girls all fell to the ground, panting.
Aragorn lay down upon the earth and put his ear to the ground. He closed his eyes for a few moments, and then he climbed back to his feet.
"Their pace has quickened! They must have caught our scent. We must hurry!"
The three girls groaned and regretably, climbed back onto thier feet.
"Come on Gimli!" Legolas cried to them while he started to run, " Girls!"
" Three days and nights pursuit..no food, no rest- and no sight of our quarry but what bare rock can tell,"
" Oh shut-up!" Carla complained, " we already know that!"
" Anyone willing to give me a piggyback?" Jane asked, but no one actually paid attention to her.
After running for awhile, Aragorn stopped and bent down to pick something up. It was one of the leaf broaches that they had all recived in Lorien.
" Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall," Aragorn stated.
" And in plain english that means?" Niori asked, putting her hands on her hips.
" That this brooch was tossed aside as a token saying that the Hobbits were here, not that it fell off," Legolas told her, and then turned to Aragorn, " they might yet be alive,"
" Yes," Aragorn replied, " and they are less than a day ahead of us! Come on!"
" Here we go again!" Carla mumbled as they again took off running.
Suddenly, Gimli stumbled and fell to the ground. Niori, Jane and Carla laughed a bit as Gimli got back to his feet.
" Come on Gimli!" Legolas cried, slowing his pace a bit, " we're gaining on them!"
" I'm wasted on cross country," Gimli complained, " we Dwarves are natuarl sprinters. Very dangerous over short distances!"
" Sure they are!" Jane muttered sarcasticly.
They came up onto a hill and paused for a moment.
" This is Rohan," Aragorn spoke, " home of the horse lords. There is something very odd at work here. Some evil goves speed to these creatures, sets its will against us. Legolas, what do your Elf eyes see?!"
Legolas gazed over the landscape, and then a surprised look came over his fair face.
" The Uruks turn Northeast. They are taking Merry and Pippin to Isengard!"
" Saruman!" Aragorn mumbled angrily.
"Another day gone," Jane whispered, looking towards the fading dusk on the horizon.
"Can we please stop and rest?" Carla whined to the severely agitated ranger.
"Yeah, I'm gonna lay down here, and never get up," Jane muttered, melodramatically, "My body really hurts!"
"Ditto," Niori complained, "I am so tired!"
Aragorn gave an exasperated sigh. "Fine! Ok! we'll rest!"
without a word, the three girls immediately sat on the cold ground, back to back, and fell asleep. Gimli and Aragorn sat down as well, to give the exhausted girls some time to rest. Unfortunately, the two nodded off a few moments later, and Legolas soon grew bored and did his elvish form of sleeping.
The first to awake was Legolas, who woke with a start. He shook awake his companions, and, with Aragorn, urged the girls onward. The elf turned towards the horizon. where the sun was just coming into sight. "A red sun rises," Legolas looked up at the brilliant pink sky.
"Come," Aragorn again started to run, "We rested for the night and now they gain leagues on us!"
Again, the six companions took off across the plains of Rohan.
"Could you girls run a little faster?" Aragorn asked, irritably.
"Look," Carla panted, "unlike you and elf-boy," Legolas scowled, "we simply can't run like this day in and day out".
"We're only human," Niori spoke in haggered breaths, "and we're only seventeen!"
"Fine," Aragorn said, wearily, "we can rest for- wait, did you hear that?"
"Yes," Legolas replied, looking in the distance, "and I see something as well! riders, a hundred at the least. They're coming this way!"
The girls, Legolas, Gimli, and Aragorn all ran behind a boulder, as about two hundred riders rode past them, on beautifully colored horses. The mysterious riders had passed without any notice of the strange group, when Aragorn jumped out into the open, and yelled, "Riders of Rohan! what news from the Mark?!"
The riders swiftly turned around and rode up to where, now, the group stood. They surrounded them with spears to their foreheads. Then, a voice spoke, "What business does an elf, a man, a dwarf, and three women have in Riddermark?"
"Oh great, more spears pointed at us, lovely," Carla muttered sarcastically, glaring at the riders.
Ignoring the girl, Gimli spoke harshly to the man. "Give me your name horsemaster, and I shall give you mine".
The rider got off of his gleaming horse and stepped close to the group. "I would cut off your head, dwarf, if it stood but a little higher from the ground!"
"You would die before our stroke fell!" Legolas drew his bow and lifted it at the speed of light, and held it just inches from the rider's head.
Niori and Carla gave shrieks of joy and gave each other high-fives. "OH MY GOD!" Jane burst out excitedly, "It's the actual Eomer! OH...MY...GOD...OH...MY...GOD! OH-"
Niori shut Jane up by tightly clamping a hand over her mouth. "Yeah...uhh...she has problems," Niori muttered.
"Anyway," Aragorn said, slowly, "I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn. This is Gimli, son of Gloin. Legolas of the woodland realm, and Jane, Carla, and Niori".
"I am Eomer, son of Eomund, the third marshal of the Riddermark," Eomer spoke, "What do you strangers want in our land?"
"We are in persuit of a band of orcs. They had captured two of our friends many forenights ago".
"Then you need not search any longer. The band of orcs was destroyed, and all with them killed".
The girls gasped in surprise. "The ones we seek were halflings, nothing but children to your eyesm are you certain they were killed?" Aragorn asked.
"All that were there were slain," Eomer insisted, "We piled the bodies of the slain orcs and burned them".
"I must see this for myself," Aragorn spoke with authority, "I must know what fate befell my friends".
"Very well," Eomer nodded, grimly, "we shall give you horses".
"Tell me Eomer," Aragorn asked, "What side does Rohan stand upon?"
"We chose no sides," Eomer said, darkly, "and our king has a hard time telling friend from foe. He does not wish to risk open war".
Aragorn nodded gravely.
"May you have better fortune than their previous riders," Eomer spoke as three horses were brought up to Aragorn.
The horses were all different in color, the one given before Aragorn was a light gray color, the one that Legolas chose was pure snowy white and Carla, (who was the other experienced rider in the group) took one that was as black as night. "Looks like we're riding with two on each horse," Jane spoke.
"Take your saddle and reigns," Legolas spoke to one of the riders, "I need them not".
Legolas' wish was answered, and he patted the nuzzle of his horse, who was named Arod. "Well," Carla spoke, stroking the side of her horse, "Jane, I suppose you want to ride with Aragorn".
"If it's ok," Jane looked up to Aragorn with pleading eyes.
"I would be glad to have you," he answered, "and I'm sure Hasufel (the horse) would be glad to carry you".
Jane beamed happily and walked up to Aragorn, who had already mounted his horse, and pulled herslef onto the horse's back, on the back of the saddle. "I guess I ride with Carla then," Niori spoke, and started to walk over to where her cousin waited with her horse, Arnode.
"Wait!" Legolas practically cried, causing Niori (and everyone else present) to turn and face him, "I was hoping Niori, that you would ride with me upon my horse".
Niori's eyes widened in surprise. "I would love to," Niori replied, with a smile, "but I figured that you would want Gimli to ride with you".
"Gimli is my friend, but," Legolas spoke, sounding like he was trying to choose his words carefully, "I think that for the time being on a horse, he would be more comfortable using a saddle".
"Sure that's the reason, Elf-boy," Carla rolled her eyes.
Legolas got a look of embarrassment and turned his head to look at his horse and away from everyone else. Niori just smirked. Legolas leaped lightly onto the back or Arod, and surprised everyone the way the horse was completely tame and willing to let him ride. "I'm an elf remember?" Legolas smirked in everyone's surprise, "All good animals trust me".
"Show off," Carla muttered, and mounted her own horse.
Legolas held out his hand to help Niori on. She took it lightly and he pulled her onto the horse's back. "Hurry up, Gimli," Carla spoke from atop her horse, you're with me".
"I'd rather not," Gimli spoke, gruffly, "I would rather walk!"
"You must ride, or you will hinder us," Aragorn replied.
Gimli muttered something, but didn't protest as two of the riders lifted him up behind Carla. "Hang on tight," Carla told the dwarf with a small smirk.
"I hope we shall meet again," Eomer told them, "and I hope that you, Lord of Gondor, shall find your friends".
Aragorn gave a small nod, and Eomer and the riders took off, riding away. "Come my friends," Aragorn spoke, as he motioned for his horse to go, "Let us go to where the riders killed the orcs who had our friends".
First, Aragorn and Jane took off, followed by Carla, who gave a cry of pleasure (she loves horses) and Gimli, who looked horrified as Carla started to ride. "Are you ready?" Legolas asked Niori.
Niori brought her slender arms around Legolas' waist and clung tightly. "I am now".
Legolas spoke to the horse in Elvish and the horse took of behind the others.
(A/N Hey, it's Erin, giving you your closing notes! so, you just read a great chapter! long too, I didn't even write any of this one, Jane and Niori did, but I'm writing all of the next chapter! we've noticed that some of our readers either don't review anymore, or are slacking off! lol, please R&R! we love reviews!)