Chapter Three - War of the Forgotten Pt. 1

Aragorn sighed, and settled into an armchair to wait for Legolas. The night was one of the longest of the year, which he usually spent with Arwen in Rivendell. He placed his head back, remembering the days of the past, and smiled faintly, small creases rising around his mouth.

Legolas stood for a moment longer, then turned back towards their cottage, then stopped. The fog had settled in, and he could no longer see but a mere two feet in front of his face. He sighed, and leaned against the trees' trunk, thinking of was to find his way back. Even climbing the tree to Kaladram's cottage was difficult in the fog, so he had not an option there. He tried to strain his eyes, to make any distinctive shape near him, but only made out the faintest outline of his foot prints in the grass near him.

At last, he thought of a solution, after many minutes of standing an sitting next to the great tree. He pulled out an arrow, and his bow, both of which he had retrieved earlier that day, and tugged his cloak from around his neck. He skillfully unraveled part of it, creating a somewhat thin thread, and tied that to the feathers of the arrow. Cocking his bow, he made sure that the thread would not tangle as it hung limply by his side.

Kaladram sat on her bed, which was much like that of Aragorn's' in the cottage below. Though she was tired, she dare not fall asleep. A great disturbance was being caused in the fog, and none of the Watchers had been sure what it was. She rose from the bed, and silently paced the room, glancing out the window at the bleak-looking fog. "Whatever is out there at this time, is certainly not friendly." She muttered, and drew the curtains closed, and lit a candle. "Hopefully we will all live through the night."

Gimli woke as a loud 'thump' was heard directly over his head. "Who is shooting arrows at the house?" He muttered angrily to himself, and threw the covers from him, and stomped to the door. He was quite surprised when he opened it, and everything was gray. There was no sign of what time it was, or if there was anything there two feet in front of him. "Gimli?" He heard a voice cry softly through the fog, not far off. "Legolas?" He answered, making his way around the side of the house, always keeping at least one hand on it's siding. He stopped, reaching the point where the arrow had hit the wall, and felt the string, and tugged on it lightly. "Hey!" Legolas' voice rang out, tugging the string back. Gimli smiled, and waited for the elf to find his way back to the cottage.

Legolas appeared in Gimlis' view as a dark outline. "Nice to see that you can find your way back, elf." He smiled, and clapped him on the small of his back. Legolas smiled, yanking other now out of the wood, and putting it back in his bag, removing the string first. "And it's nice to see that a mere thud of an arrow will wake you up. Proof that you don't sleep as sound as you say." Gimli glanced at him, as he was turning to go back inside the cottage. "Many a weary night on the lookout has made it so."

Aragorn sat waiting in a chair as the two arrived back in the house. "Fancied a midnight stroll, did you?" He questioned, drawing his pipe from his mouth, and blowing a smoke-ring. Legolas and Gimli smiled, and sat in the other chair nexts to Aragorn. "The fog gets very dense here. I sense that there is something amiss." Aragorn looked at Legolas with much thought. "Yes, indeed. Though, it might be just a stray horse, or a rabbit. Animals are very unpredictable, and even in this dank marsh, there is still life." "However annoying or noisy it may be…" Gimli muttered, thinking of the many, many insects that followed their path.

"How many men that have died does not account for all the lives that have been shattered during this war." Aragorn looked up, and saw Kaladram sitting among the many branches of her tree. "But the amount of loss is still great." She looked down, and glared at him, somewhat coldly. "War took much of my life. It sent me away from my home, here, to live amongst these others. To see these people suffering so much over a lost-cousin or a brother, is mind-boggling to me. I do not understand grief." She sighed, and looked to the pale beginnings of a sunny day. "The sun does not awake this morning. Go rouse the others. I shall go into the city." She turned to go back into her home, and stopped, watching him as he watched her. "A great evil has been unleashed. And I believe it is after the friends of the Ring-Bearer." Aragorn stood next to the tree, his mouth still slightly open, and stayed there until she descended from the tree, where she closed his mouth with two fingers, and set off, disappearing into the morning fog.

Aragorn stepped into the house, and felt a strange, unnoticed smell. He looked around in the immediate area, and, finding nothing, moved towards the bedrooms. He found the source. Legolas was standing in a room, to which it's door had not been seen, bent over a table, seeming to be looking at something. Aragorn stepped in, and his foot made contact with a shred of old parchment, creating an odd crack. Legolas jumped, nearly toppling the table over, drawing one of his arrows. "There's no need for friendly fire. No matter how friendly it may be." He smiled faintly, and put the arrow back. "You startled me, Aragorn. Things do not seem well for Gordamir."

The room was a room of maps. Many old and frail, some new, seeming as though they had been drawn that very hour, and the ink was still wet. "Why so many maps, I wonder." Legolas stated, walking to a bookcase filled with maps of Isegard. Aragorn shook his head, pouring over drawings of Minas Tirith. "One cannot question these folk of Gordamir. They are strange, and seem to have an odd connection with fog." Indeed. Each of the maps that had been drawn of Gordamir, had an area of gray, with strange, fluid markings. It resembled fog, and was drawn around the walls of the castle. "Though, I do not wish to ask anyone about it." Aragorn laughed at himself, shaking his head, and putting the drawing away. "And I will not ask how you found this room, Legolas. I do not wish to know of your peeping."

Kaladram walked down the cobblestone path leading towards the city, and stopped. She stood still for nearly a minute before breathing. An archer on the gate had spotted her, and raised his bow, ready to strike if she moved again. Yes, something was defiantly wrong. She moved towards the gate again, but the man spotted her, and drew his arrow and bow once more. He cocked it, and aimed, smiling slightly at the chance of promotion. He let go of the quivering string, and the graceful arc of the arrow was followed by the rest of the guards. Unfortunately for Kaladram, her reflexes were not what they could be in the morning, and the weapon caught her dead in the right shoulder. Her teeth clenched, and she stopped walking, calling out to the gatekeepers.

"Gate keepers! Hold your fire! I be not foe, nor friend, either." She stepped out of the shrub she had been walking in, and pulled out the bloody arrow, tossing it to the ground. One of the guards lifted his hand, and the others dropped their bows.

"And how do we know that you are not a slave of Saruman? Do you bear the white hand?" He questioned, and received a laugh. "Do I look like an Uruk-Hai to you? I have traveled through these gates more than your heart has beaten. Do not take me for a trespasser." The man who shot her gulped, and stepped aside, motioning to the men below to open the gate. Kaladram smiled, and stepped though the now less foreboding gate, and into Gordamir. At once, everyone cleared the streets, deserting food stands, trades, all manner of things. She raised an eyebrow in surprise, but said nothing more, stepping further into the Fog City. She walked all through it, glaring back at the people who looked at her from their windows, angry for some reason. At last, she reached the great horn of Hagdur, one of the former kings, and sighed, leaning against it, and holding her still bleeding shoulder. "People of Gordamir! Why do you flee me? Have I not been in your service for a number of years? Have I not nearly died to save you?" She shouted, making the people recoil. "Have I not given everything I have to you? Speak now if I have not!" Silence. And then the peculiar sound of clanking armor. Kaladram tilted her head, and climbed the great horn, hoping to see what was going on. At once, she saw the ground, no longer gray-ish green and brown, but tarnished silver, and darker gray, the flesh of the Orc. She cursed slightly, jumping from the horn, and running back through the gate, shouting behind her: "Do not close the gate! I am coming back with others!" She stopped, and looked at those who were on the gate. "Get all the archers in a line! Get all men able to bear a bow and sword to fight!" She yelled, then turned, and sprinted to the cottages.

Legolas was in the hammock, nearly asleep. Gimli was leaning against the ground cottage, sharpening his axe. And Aragorn was leaning against the tree, deeply engrossed in a book. They all looked up as Kaladram ran into the middle of the yard, gasping for breath. "What stirs?" Legolas questioned, for he had felt the disturbance long before. Kaladram shook her head, and held her shoulder for a moment, trying to dull the aching pain. "You are wounded--" She cut him short, and ran into the shack behind the cottage, reappearing with three bows, one was Legolas's, which he had stored that morning, and the other was hers. It was much like that of Elves, but ribbons had been tied around it's ends, red ribbon, and it's shape was slightly bent. She tossed the last bow to Aragorn, and ran back in the shed, motioning for them to follow.
As they reached the shack, articles of unused clothing began flying out, and Kaladram stepped out, clad in battle armor. "I have checked….there is armor for all of you." She smiled ever so slightly, and ran to the tree, climbing it quickly, and entering it. Aragorn looked at Legolas and Gimli, and shrugged, walking into the shack. Inside was all manner of spears, swords, daggers, and arrows. The amount of weapons was unimaginable. Then they heard a thump. "No time to dress here, we have to get to the city!" She said hurriedly, carrying the box that held all their weapons, and grabbed some from the wall, and stuffing them into the box. "What is the meaning of all this? Why have you dressed in armor?" Gimli questioned, as they sprinted to the gate, arms laden with armor and a small amount of weapons. "We are very organized. After all, Gordamir was overlooked by Gondor and Rohan, we had no other defenses in our time of need. Since then, women have been allowed the small option of fighting alongside men. As for what's happening…you shall see soon enough." They reached the gate, rather out of breath, and ran into the city. "We are ready, my captain." A man bowed to Kaladram, then looked at the number of forces. It surprised her every time, how small Gordamir was, and yet, they nearly had two thousand men ready to battle every time. "And the others?" She questioned, looking around for the other captains. They rushed to her, and bowed as well. "These men are ready to fight?" One asked, looking at Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli with distaste. "In that case, you shall take them down to the armory, and have them ready for battle." The man looked down, then motioned for the three to follow him. Kaladram smirked, then turned back towards the gate, drawing her bow and taking an arrow from her quiver, and glanced at the men on the gate. "Close it!" She yelled, then waved behind her to her men, and made the way up the stairs, positioning them in 'safe spots', where the design of the gate helped shield them better. "Now! You all have courage enough to shoot down five Orcs at once! Harness that courage, and battle with no mercy!" She nodded for the next battalion to position itself, and turned back to the marching Orcs and Uruk-Hai.

The sound of clanking metal was nearly deafening, when they finally stopped near the gate, snarling at the archers above them. It looked as if the city of Gordamir was defenseless, given the amount of warriors they had on the wall. "You are weak! Stand and fight, and everyone will be killed. Surrender, and you may not be our feast tonight." The lead Uruk-Hai stated, spitting furiously, and raising his sword. Kaladram raised her head from the charts she was looking at, and glared back down at him. "I'm afraid it is you who will surrender, my dear Uruk-Hai." She stood, and grabbed her helmet, and placed it on her head. "Ready to fire!" She yelled, and every bow was risen, some from the gate, others inside the city, and still more rising from 'safe spots' in the ground, at the Uruk-Hai's feet.

Kaladram looked back as Legolas ran towards her, and the other two made for the ground safe spots. "What are they doing?" She questioned softly, watching as they disappeared down the steps. "The captain ordered us to be where we are. And…I am to replace you in battle." She looked at him, both astonished and furious. "No man will ever replace me in my battalion! Have you learned nothing of me?" She stopped, and pointed to a safe spot next to her. "No, I will not send you away. Fight with me." he nodded, and moved next to her. "How many are there?" He questioned, looking at the numbers. "Nearly five thousand. And they move on their own accord. Apparently The Dark Lord has forgotten about them." She whispered, then stopped talking. Everything had gone quiet, eerily so. She raised her bow, and set the arrow, aiming for the leader of the Uruk-Hai. "You get the Orc leader." She whispered to Legolas, who nodded, and drew an arrow. At once, they shot the leaders, with nearly everyone, Orc, Uruk-Hai, Man, and Elf, watching the arrows' paths. The two beasts screamed, and raised their arms as if to dislodge the arrows, and dropped down, dead. A massive cry came from both miserable species, and they began to charge, firing arrows and heaving spears. Two men fell from the gate, having started to run from battle. "Do not run! It is not as big of an number as the Great Battle! Stay at your posts!" She yelled, getting up, and running to others who were running away from battle. "Do you wish to run like cowards in the face of guests? What will they think of you? You and the city of Gordamir!" She hissed, shaking the two men, then throwing them back into position, and running back to her own, firing arrows as she did. When she reached Legolas, he was shouting something.
"Gimli! How many!"
A far voice yelled back, "Twenty nine!" He answered. "Thirty, now!"
"I've got Thirty One!"

Gimli mumbled something, and Aragorn laughed, clapping him on the back.

"Legolas! We must fall back!" Kaladram yelled, some hours later. "We cannot! I will not leave until every orc is dead!" He yelled back, rapid-firing five arrows into the skulls of Orcs. "We've been fighting for too long! Pull them back!" She was referring to the men on Legolas's side of the wall. He nodded, and half-stood from his position. "Fall back! Fall back!" He yelled, and the men ran down the stairs, glad to escape from the fight. Though, Legolas still remained, still shooting at the orcs. "Legolas! I said fall back!" She commanded, growing anxious and furious. "I will not have you die under my command!" He ignored her, killing several with one arrow. Kaladram started to run towards him, dodging flying arrows, but one hit it's mark. She stopped, and collapsed, landing on her knees. The arrow had sunk through the armor, at the side where there was just simple mesh, and she closed her eyes. At that moment, everyone of the men started to run to the haven in the city, where the others had gone. The orcs had breached the walls, shrieking in their own tongue, and laughing harshly as they streamed into the city like dirty water. Kaladram continued to sit there, and her hand crept to the arrow, fingering it's wide shaft an black feathers, calculating what it would take to snap it in half.

An Orc came up to her, foaming slightly, as he had nearly four arrows sunk into his gut, probably piercing many organs in it's path. "You'd make a tasty meal, love." He smirked, and tilted her chin. "Yes, very nice and lean, but with meat on your bones. Tasty." He drew his sword, creeping it closer to her neck, laughing as others came to his side, sinking more arrows into the metal. Kaladram screamed, and drew her sword, blindly slashed orcs left and right. "I am nobody's dinner." She growled, then collapsed against the wall, trying to break the shafts of the arrows on her back. Legolas jumped over her, slashing at the orcs, and killing the rest of them. He bent down, and picked her up, much to her protests, and started to run down the stairs. "I'm fine! Put me down!" She yelled softly, the dull aching pain getting worse at each footstep. "Let me die here! For these people!"

"I cannot let you do that. You have done much for us, and I will return the favor." He ran between orcs, catching sight of Aragorn and Gimli as they made for the haven. "It will close soon, the orcs are spreading." She mumbled, clenching her teeth as she bumped along. "Aragorn! Gimli!" Legolas shouted, running towards them. "I guess elves do get dirty." Gimli said, smiling. Legolas had blood all over him, and a fine gash running across his cheek. "But not for very long."