Elladan and Elrohir rode with their eyes on the ground, following their quarry. This was their second night in the North Downs. Already they had caught up with one small band of orcs and slain them, but they knew there were many more, including the larger band which had been responsible for the death of Elboron's guard.

"Ah, they split up here," Elladan said, pointing at the tracks. "Half of them went southwest—"

"—And half northeast," Elrohir agreed. "Shall we split up?"

Elladan deliberated for a moment, then nodded. "I will meet you back here in three hours, quarry found or no."

He and Elrohir shook hands. "Agreed," Elrohir responded with a grin. "And you said it yourself, muindor-nín—Quarry found or no!"

Elladan put on a hurt expression. "What are you suggesting?"

"That you will lose track of time and continue to hunt those orcs until the sun goes down in the sky! And I will be sitting here wondering where you are! You are notoriously bad about keeping our meetings when you are on the scent."

Elladan laughed. "You make me sound like a bloodhound!" He held up his hands in a gesture of surrender when Elrohir opened his mouth. "But I will meet you here on time; I promise!"

They both turned their horses and headed in opposite directions. "Don't you be late!" he tossed over his shoulder, and just heard Elrohir's snort of indignation before his brother was lost to sight.

Elladan grinned and shook his head. Elrohir would never miss a rendezvous if it was at all possible. He was rational and collected. Elladan was more demonstrably passionate, more likely to follow his heart than his head. That was why they complimented one another so well.

It was also why Elladan was so puzzled over his twin's behavior a few days before, when Elrohir had insisted on riding off against the orcs rather than remaining in Lake Evendim with Katie. Elladan knew where Elrohir's heart lay, and it was with that young woman. So why had he chosen to hunt the orcs rather than comfort her?

The two brothers had been riding against the orcs together for centuries—to avenge their mother and to make safe their lands. But the lands were nearly safe, now. The orcs still existed, as this little outing proved, but their time was over and their numbers were dwindling fast. They all hoped to see the end of them within Aragorn's lifetime, or at least the lifetime of his heir. Was the thirst for revenge just so strong in Elrohir that he would not rest until he saw this destruction of their foe completed? Or did he seek revenge for the trauma Katie had gone through? Somehow, Elladan felt neither explanation seemed to fit his rational, cool-headed brother.

He shrugged. He had put the question off on their journey, but when these few bands of orcs were destroyed in the Downs and they headed home with their mission accomplished, he would pose the question to his twin and get an answer.

Elladan turned his attention back to the trail he was following. These were really very few orcs; the troop that had split up had been small to begin with. It would be no problem dispatching them. Their trail was easily followed, as well. Elladan put on a little more speed. He would finish off this troop, and reach the meeting place well ahead of his brother—just to surprise him!

000

Elladan tracked his quarry to a slightly more overgrown hollow in the Downs. He heard orc voices ahead, and whispered a command for silence to his horse, who bobbed her head as if she understood and were nodding. Elladan grinned and urged her forward with his knees, fitting an arrow to his bow.

He burst into the clearing and shot three orcs dead before they knew what had happened. He was aware that there were more orcs here than he had expected. They had met up with another troop, then. Good. He dispassionately shot an orc who was aiming at him; the orc's arrow flew wide as the creature fell with a screech.

Suddenly, more orcs poured into the clearing. That was when it happened. Elladan ducked sideways to avoid an orc-bolt. At that very instant, one of the creatures spooked his horse, who reared in fright. Caught off-balance, Elladan was thrown to the ground. He came down hands first, and landed on his right arm. There was a loud crack, and Elladan knew even before the pain hit that he had broken it.

But he had no time to succumb to the pain, which made it feel as if flames were licking his arm. He was in a dangerous situation. Surrounded by foes, he had lost his bow (not that he could draw it now, anyway), and his horse had bolted. Holding his broken arm close to his body, he dragged himself upright and drew the long knife he wore by his side. He engaged the orcs nearest him and dispatched a few quickly, but there were far too many now. Making a feint and chopping off a head, Elladan suddenly turned and fled into the forest before the orcs could gather themselves enough to follow. Drawing on his elven skills, he made himself blend into his surroundings and made as few tracks as he could.

He soon put good distance between himself and his pursuers, and began to take stock of his situation as he ran. If he turned around in a big circle and headed northeast, he might be able to catch up with Elrohir. But it was a big if. He didn't know exactly where his brother was heading, nor did he know the Downs well enough to follow him without undue uncertainly, which would cause delay. He could not afford delay. He had managed to get a head-start on these orcs, but it would not last.

Then an answer came to him: Deadmens Dike. It would be a long run, and his arm was complaining loudly from the jostling it had gotten already, but there was nothing for it. In Deadmens Dike he might be able to hide out and elude the orcs for some time. He had been there before; there were a very few pieces of architecture which were still basically intact, and might provide hiding places. He only hoped Elrohir would know where to look for him.

It seems I am going to be late for a rendezvous again, Brother, he thought ironically.

000

By the time Elladan reached the ruined city it was nearly dawn, and the strange shapes of Deadmens Dike rose against a gray sky. His broken arm sent waves of agony through him with every jolt, but he didn't dare slow his pace—the orcs were catching up. A little comfort lay in the thought that they would soon leave him alone as they sought shelter from the sun. He only hoped they didn't intend to shelter the same place he did.

Elladan ran into the ruined city without pausing, and careered down street after street, scanning the ruins with keen eyes for any possible hiding place. There seemed to be none. He was sure he was almost starting to run in circles now, and his arm was on fire. Skidding around a corner, he slid on a loose stone and fell, landing on his arm. For a moment, he couldn't breathe, he couldn't think, he couldn't make a single sound. It was only through sheer willpower and terror of the orcs that he managed to hold back the cry that would bring them running to him. Tears of agony and panic pouring down his cheeks, he raised his head—only to see, just before him, a small gap in some stones. It would be a cramped space to hide in, but it was big enough and secure enough. Automatically, Elladan hauled himself to his feet, using the wall next to him for support. Then he ran a few more steps past the tiny cave to make misleading tracks for the orcs, then doubled back and slipped into the crevice.

It was not a moment too soon. The instant he was settled and silent in the cave, he could hear the sound of orc feet pounding past his hiding place. To his immense relief, they followed his fake trail. And the sun would be rising soon; they would give up the hunt to seek shelter from the Yellow Eye.

000

Elladan waited in complete stillness for a very long time, making sure that the orcs wouldn't return and find him unprepared. Now that he had stopped running, he realized exactly how exhausted he was—not from the exercise, which alone would not have normally bothered him, but from the combination of pain and fear which had driven him so hard the past several hours.

His respite also gave him the leisure to notice exactly how much his broken arm was throbbing. When all was still and he had decided that the sun must be up and his pursuers retired, Elladan began the slow and excruciating process of dealing with his arm.

With careful movements, he was eventually able to remove his outer and inner tunics and take a good look at his injury. To his immense relief, he saw that the bone was in place and would not need set. But how was he to immobilize it? There was nothing here that he could use to make a splint—not a single stick of wood within easy reach of his hiding place. Though he had lost his bow, there were still arrows in his quiver, but he might very well need those later on.

His vambrace would make a good enough splint itself, he decided. He usually only wore on his left arm, to protect his forearm from the use of his bow and arrow. After gingerly shrugging on his outer tunic, Elladan laced his vambrace tightly over his broken forearm. The pressure hurt a little, but his arm felt much more secure. Once that was done, he used his good arm and his teeth to rip his under-tunic up and make a sling to further immobilize his injured limb. When Elladan was at last satisfied with his work, he set his mind to deciding what to do next.

His most pressing need right now was to escape this little cave and his pursuers. Elladan took a few deep breaths to steady himself, said a prayer to Elbereth, and slipped out of the cave.

It did not take him long to find the orcs. There were a few of them in every shaded spot he found. They knew that he had entered the Dike, and were determined not to let him escape it alive. There were more orcs than he could imagine being able to take on single-handedly in this condition. Elladan crept back to his cave. There was no escape from Deadmens Dike.

TBC

AN: I'm home for Christmas break! Took my last final this morning, then drove home in the snow.

crazycatluver: I'm aware of that awful rule. Unfortunately, many people (likeyourselfahem) either don't have an account or don't sign in, and then there's no reply button for me to use to reply to them! So the replies have to go here.

For DarkenedDreams and anybody else who wants to know: Pirates of the Caribbean II: Dead Man's Chest (sounds like Deadmens Dike, don't it? Three cheers to Tolkien for coming up with such a freaking awesome place name!) is coming out in July 7th (my pirates-obsessed friend tells me that's in about 205 days!) And… Are you sitting down?... They are currently filming Pirates of the Caribbean Three! That's right, folks, you heard it here first. Don't believe me? Check imdb dot com!

Lady Dragon, Jammchra: I don't know much about tracking, so I couldn't add a whole lot of interest to that part of the chapter, unfortunately. You will find Fornost on any map of Middle-earth. The story of its fall is in the appendices to Return of the King, and is fascinating. The term 'downs' refers to the rolling hills—they should actually be treeless hills, which I didn't think about as I was writing this! They're sparsely populated because all of Arnor is sparsely populated at this point—ever since its fall at the hands of the Witch-king of Angmar. Thanks!

Madd Hatter: Good luck on finals!

Erasuithiel: Poison, hm? You're giving me ideas… lol Manders sounds like a blast!

Huge thanks to all who reviewed! You're what's keeping me going in tough spots!

Please review!