Room 217 at 'Siro's Pub & Inn' was unusually quiet. Raen half-sat, half-layed on the bed in the room. Shift sat in an armchair, hunched over, his arms resting on his knees. Each had a glass of wine in their hands, but neither drank. The open window allowed into the room a slight, refreshing breeze. Both Shift and Raen had removed their cloaks and hoods now. Neither was wearing anything too fancy, just a standard Mirkwood Guard's tunic. Raen took a moment and brushes her bangs out of her fair Elvish face, and then took a sip of wine.
"Shouldn't we be searching for Menel?" she said after a very long silence.
"Menel wouldn't try anything tonight...there are far too many witnesses. I am guessing she is waiting for the real festivities to begin if she is going to make a move at all." Shift replied, looking to the window. The day had gone, and night had fallen upon Minas Tirith. It was a New Moon that night, giving little to no natural light on the street outside the inn. Raen stood, letting her leather belt which held the sheathes to her long knives fall to the bed. She walked slowly to the window, gazing out at the starts. Then suddenly, there was a sound. A sound so quiet that it could barely be heard. It sounded like...like bending wood.
"Raen get away from the window!" Shift cried as he dove forward to push her out of the way, just as an arrow ripped into her shoulder. Raen shut her eyes tight and tried not to cry out in pain. Shift took quick action, flipping the bed up on it's side, blocking most of the window and jamming the armchair up against the door in the room. After he had done this, he grabbed his small crossbow and loaded a bolt into it, firing one shot blindy into the dark. As he ran to Raen's side, he grabbed her satchel, taking several herbs from it. He tore up one leaf and put the small pieces in Raen's mouth, rubbing her throat to get her to swallow. Raen tried to speak but he put his hands up to her lips.
"That will help the pain, because this is going to hurt like hell..." he said, grabbing the arrow and pulling hard, dislodging it from the she-elf's body, and opening a rather large hole in her shoulder, which immediately began to gush blood. Raen tried to supress a scream of pain but only half-succeeded. Shift grabbed several more herbs and rubbed them on the wound, then wrapped a bandage very tightly around her shoulder. He could hear arrows slamming into the matress that he had flipped up, but as quickly as the arrows had starting flying, they stopped. He grabbed the nightstand by the bed and knocked it over, dragging it toward him and Raen, trying to create some kind of cover. He loaded his crossbow and aimed it at the door as he heard a banging outside his room.
"Open the door, and you both will be left unharmed!" A female voice called from the other side of the door. Shift froze, and goosebumps rose on his skin. He would know that voice anywhere. Menel was here after all. "Fine, if you refuse to be cooperative, then I shall have to take what I want by force." Not a second later, the door burst off its hinges and two men, each carrying large tower-shields entered the room. Shift fired his crossbow and felled one of them, then reloaded his crossbow, but when he went to aim, he found a bow aimed at him...and two blades at his throat. Menel spoke before Shift could even react.
"Drop the crossbow. Now." She commanded, and Shift complied. The twin swords at his throat began to rise, forcing him upward to his feet. In a flash, he felt a blow connect to his stomach and he doubled over, winded. The last thing he remembered was a sharp pain on the back of his head before everything went black.