Life Sucks
By: Honolulu
Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli rode hard and swift to the pile of smoke. The smell of burnt skin started to fill the air as they approached. Gimli's nostrils flared as the foul air reached his senses. They halted as they reached the sight. Legolas roamed the area with his eyes. Old fires were still ignited, most put out. The front of Fangorn forest were marked by deep scars in the trunks of many trees. He sneered at the sight of all the dead orcs, some still burning.
They dismounted the horses, Legolas helping Gimli. Gimli rushed to the pile of carcasses having no problem searching through the bodies. Aragorn and Legolas ran to him as he cried out. " What is it Gimli? What did you find?" Aragorn asked.
" One of their wee lil belts but nothing more." He leaned on his axe heavily. Aragorn's jaw clenched. He cried out and kicked a nearby helmet in frustration/anger/grief. He dropped to his knees and placed his face in his hands. Legolas turned away from the sight as his eyes glazed with tears. He looked at the soil beneath his feet and gave a prayer in elvish.
" What do we do now?" Gimli asked.
" Haile said that Maria's body lies in the woods. I must see her!" Legolas told him. Rubbing his face, Aragorn opened his eyes.
" We will find her and say our final farewells." Something on the ground seemed to catch his eye. Aragorn moved forward getting a better look. He placed his hand on the ground for a measurement and then smiled. " Gimli! Legolas! Come look!"
" What have you found?" Gimli grunted.
" Look! A footprint! Too small for a man's print and two small for an orcs foot but small enough for a…"
" Hobbit!" Gimli finished for him.
" Look! More prints! Farther back it shows some struggle as if…they were binded!" Aragorn shouted as he found splintered rope. " There are two sets of hobbit prints but they turn back. Here lied someone. This one was binded as well. The hobbits ran into the forest but this set moves away to the left. It must be Maria's!" He told them as he tried to follow the footprints through the muddled ground.
" She ran all over the area, it seems she blocked and ran from many, this all leads back into the forest. The hobbits may still be alive and the only way we can find them is exploring inside."
" I do not know which daunts me more: Fangorn or the thought of the long road through Rohan on the blasted horse!" said Gimli.
" Then let us go to the forest." said Aragorn. With that, the three of them plunged into the woods.
" These trees are old." Legolas spoke. " So old that it makes me feel young again. It is filled with memory. If I had visited during the times in peace, I may have enjoyed it here."
" Ha! I daresay you would! You elves are strange folk but yet you comfort me but do be swift with your bow as I will my axe." Gimli said.
Legolas and Gimli left the tracking to Aragorn yet he was having difficulty. The ground was covered with heavy brush and managed to cover some tracks. He moved towards the stream that ran though the trees, the wet soil carried the hobbits mark. Following the stream, it led them to a small pond where the hobbits had ate/drank/and cleaned their feet.
" These tracks are over two days old." He explained to them.
" Come Aragorn, sit with us and eat. We will be no use to them if we starve." Gimli handed him a piece of lembas bread.
" I'm certain that they have been here but there are marks…very strange marks that I cannot identify."
" Rest awhile, maybe you will be able to look better with a clearer eye if you took a rest." said Legolas. Not long did he speak up again. " Look!"
" Look at what?" cried Gimli.
" There in the trees."
" I don't have elf eyes."
" Hush, look between the branches and down the path that we came. Can you not see him?"
" I see! I see now! Look Aragorn, it looks like an old man." It indeed did. The figure was bent in old dirty rags, walking wearily leaning on a staff. " It must be Saruman, fire your bow Legolas." Legolas slowly drew an arrow from his back, putting it in place on his bow. " Why don't you fire?"
" We don't know if it is Saruman."
" He is right, be patient Gimli. We watch and wait." said Aragorn as the figure started to approach them. The figure walked on top of a hill looking down on the companions. The glare of the sun blocking their view of the man's face.
" What is a man, elf and a dwarf doing in Fangorn Forest?"
" Fire Legolas!"
" Quiet Master Dwarf! I wish to speak with you, please lower your hand from your axe. You as well Master Elf, lower your bow." Feeling as if they were under a spell the three of them lowered their hands. " Now I ask again…what is a man, elf and a dwarf doing in Fangorn Forest? All clad in elvish garb? That sounds like an interesting tale indeed."
" You sound as if you been well acquainted with Fangorn Forest. Is this true?" asked Aragorn.
" Not well." said the old man. " I have heard from the trees and friends."
" May we learn your name? Time is passing and we have errands that mustn't wait."
" My name! Hahahahah!" The laughter caused a cold chill to run down Aragorn's spine. " Have you not guessed it yet? Pray, tell me why are your errands so important that you don't wish to speak with me?" None of them even moved. " No worries. I have heard that you search for two hobbits. Have no fear, they are with an old friend, does that comfort you? Now that you know where your friends are, you are no longer in a rush. I can tell you where they are, who they're with but let us sit and talk." The old man sat down on the hill.
The movement seemed to break the trance they were in, they relaxed and stirred. All three reached for their weapons. The old man took no notice but stooped and drew apart the rags to reveal bright white robes. Gimli jumped forward, axe in hand. " Saruman! Where have you hidden our friends? Speak now or I will leave a heavy dent in your head!"
The old man who seemed at first very fragile moved to quick for them. He stood and flew back his rags; he stood in gleaming white robes, staff in hand. Gimli's axe clanged to the ground, Aragorn's sword stiff in his hand blazed red. With a shout, Legolas shot off an arrow. The old man, blocking it with his staff, the arrow busted into flames.
"Who are you?" Aragorn whispered to himself. As the light seemed to fade, it revealed a familiar face. " It cannot be…"
" Gandalf!" cried Gimli.
" Mithrandir! Mithrandir!"
" Gandalf?" He said to himself, as if never hearing the name before. Recognition formed in his eyes. " Yes, that is what they called me. I am now Gandalf the White."
" How is it that you have returned to us?" asked Aragorn.
" I have passed through fire and ice since we parted. I have forgotten much and learned again much that I had forgotten. Tell me of yourselves!"
" What is it that you wish to know? Much has past since you departed with us in Moria. Before I begin, will you not tell us what happen to Merry and Pippin? Did you see them?"
" Nay, I did not encounter with them but I know that they are with an old friend of mine. His name is Treebeard, one of the eldest ent there is and guardian of Fangorn. They are in good company. Now! Sit by me and tell me the tale of your journey."
The companions sat on the ground at his feet, and Aragorn took up the tale. For quite awhile Gandalf said nothing and asked no questions. As the story started to turn darker, Gandalf placed his hands on his knees and closed his eyes yet was silent.
As Aragorn told him the death of Boromir and Maria, Gandalf began to slouch more and more. At the end of the news, Gandalf sighed then spoke. " Lady Galadriel had told me Boromir was in peril but I did not see his death. And Maria… had I known that this quest was going to ask for her life I would've protested to her coming." He stood, walked to Legolas and placed a hand on his shoulder.
" I'm sorry for your loss, I know that out of the fellowship you were closest to her." Gandalf whispered. Legolas, who had turned around doing the conversation with his back to them, had listened to whole thing. As Aragorn recalled the unfortunate death of Maria, Legolas' grip on his bow tightened immensely, his knuckles turning white. He choked down the tears that were ready to be released.
He nearly jumped at Gandalf's contact. He knew that now was not the time to mourn her but to be done in private, away from wondering eyes. Despite the grief that was ready to consume him, he knew that duty came first. With his free hand, Legolas gripped Gandalf's hand in comfort. After a few minutes, Legolas finally released him. " What do we do now?" Gimli asked, breaking the silence.
" The morning is wearing away, we must go soon." Gandalf said. " One part of our journey has ended but a new one has been placed before us. We must go to Edoras and seek out Theoden in his hall. You are needed there Aragorn. There is war in Rohan and worse evil: it goes ill with Theoden."
" Yes, we will go with you but will you not tell us how you retuned?" asked Legolas.
" No, now is not the time and we have stayed too long."
" Then tell us what you will and time allows!" demanded Gimli.
For a moment it seemed Gandalf would not tell them anything, a cloud of pain passed over his face. " Long I fell and with me the Balrog. His fire burning me. We plunged deep into water, cold was the water, nearly freezing my heart. I came conscious on rock, the Balrog no longer burning brightly but resembled a thing of slime and stronger than a strangling snake."
" We fought, as time passed the fight started to balance into my favor. The Balrog turned and fled into the tunnels, me running after him. We twisted and turned in the dark, the being seemed familiar with the area. It seemed that he was leading up. Finally we escaped the angry tunnels and onto the peak of a mountain. Once more, the Balrog was ignited. As we fought, ice fell like rain. I threw down my enemy; he fell, lying broken on the ground."
" Then darkness took me. I was out of thought and time; I wandered on roads that I will not speak off. Naked, I was sent back so I could finish my task. I lay on the ground, unmoving when a sound broke the sky. It was my friend Gwaihir the Windlord. He took me and asked him to lead me to Lothlorien. As I arrived I had learned that you had already left."
" I met council with Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel, I was presented with my robes and warning for you Aragorn and you Legolas." Gandalf spoke with them. Aragorn, a warning that the dead watch the sea and Legolas, a warning that the sea would tempt his heart to leave the woods. " Now come, we have been in here far too long. If we are to reach Edoras with the sun still in the sky we must leave now." Placing his tattered cloak back on his shoulders, Gandalf guided them out of Fangorn.
Not going back the way he came or going the way Legolas, Aragorn and Gimli entered, Gandalf led them on a different path. As they continued walking, a nasty smell hit their noses. " Argh! We cannot be near the entrance already, we haven't walked that long." Said Gimli.
" You are correct but isn't there something else you wanted to see before we left?" As they moved on, black goo started to appear on some of the leaves. Reaching out, Gimli took a swipe of the goo and tasted it. Then spit it out.
" Orc blood, ick!"
" What reason would an orc come deep inside Fangorn?" asked Aragorn.
One word left Legolas' lip as they looked at the site in front of them. " Maria…" On the ground laid five dead orcs, most of them were in the right shape but one had its head cut off. The bodies were piled up and were placed by a tree. In the corner of another tree laid a body, a cloak covering the body. Lying outside the cloak was an arm with a familiar looking bracelet on its wrist.
Following Legolas, they all moved quickly to the still body. Legolas knelt by it and moved to pull away the fabric, hesitating at first. Grabbing the cloak, he slowly pulled it back. Behind him, he could hear their gasp. Aragorn looked at the site and swallowed down the bile rising in his throat.
Aragorn had seen death and brutality in his life. But never did he see such a crime done to someone he truly cherished in his heart. Gimli cried out to the sky, cursing the heavens for the lost of the lass. Gandalf watched their reactions with a harden mask, his eyes pensive. He looked down at Maria's body and just closed his eyes.
It was the last straw for Legolas. His mask broke and the tears just cascaded down his cheeks. He wanted to move his eyes from her body but not for the life of him could he look away. He took in a ragged breath as he gripped her lifeless hand. He cried at the iciness and how ridged it was. His vision blurred as he looked at her.
Maria's body was cold, her limbs stiff, eyes closed. Around her mouth laid dirt and dried blood. The blood that spilled from her throat and the stabbing wound completely covered her tunic. Legolas tightened his grip on her hand. The blood on her hand smearing onto his. Noticing something bright in the corner of his eye, he looked at Maria's wrist.
Legolas' eyes widened at the sight of the friendship bracelet she made. He stifled a sob. With a shaky hand, he pulled the bracelet off her and placed it next to his own.
Fed up with my destiny
And this place of no return
Think I'll take another day
And slowly watch it burn
It doesn't really matter
How the time goes by
Cause I still remember you and I
And that beautiful good-bye
Legolas looked upon her face. Brushing away a lock of hair from her forehead, he gave a prayer in elvish.
We staggered through these empty
Streets, laughing arm in arm
The night had made a mess of me
Your confession kept me warm
And I don't really miss you,
I just need to know
Do you ever think of you and I
And that beautiful goodbye
With the help from Aragorn and Gimli, he staggered to his feet. Gimli grabbed the material and placed it over her once more.
When I see you now
I wonder how
I could've watched you walk away
If I let you down
Please forgive me now
For that beautiful goodbye
Gandalf gave him a piece of his tattered cloak to wipe the blood off his hands. Scrubbing the drying blood off, his hands turned raw. Still scrubbing, Aragorn took noticed and stopped him before Legolas made his own hands bleed.
In these days of no regrets
I keep mine to myself
and all the things we never said
I can say for someone else
Cause nothing lasts forever,
but we always try
And I just can't help but wonder why
We let it pass us by
Shutting his eyes from the world, he listened to Gimli speaking in dwarf, Aragorn in common tongue, both giving a eulogy. Gandalf just placed his arm around his shoulder, giving him a squeeze.
When I see you now
I wonder how
I could've watched you walk away
If I let you down
Please forgive me now
For that beautiful goodbye
" Do you wish to stay longer? We have all the time in the world." Said Aragorn.
Legolas gave a bitter laugh/sob. " We all know that we can't afford to wait any longer. The day passes us and we have battles to face. Let us go."
" Are you sure?"
" Sure? No, but we all knew the consequences of coming on this quest. Maria…she knew as well. I cannot deter our duties any longer. When we are finish, I will find a moment to myself." Legolas turned around and walked towards the entrance of Fangorn, the others following after.
Baby, what can I do
Oh that'll get through to you
And sometimes I cry
It's a fool's lullaby
And sometimes I cry
It's just a fool's lullaby
Oh why
I'm dying inside
As they left the forest, Legolas was distracted momentarily when Mithrandir had surprised him. Gandalf would be riding one of the Mearas, Shadowfax. Legolas mounted his horse, Gimli decided that he would ride with Gandalf. Taking one last look at Fangorn Forest, he trotted his horse next to the others and started to gallop towards Théoden's hall.
Deep in the woods of Fangorn laid a prone figure on the brush of the ground. The hand of the being twitched, just a mere second before becoming still once more. The leaves underneath the body crunched as it started to move. A familiar looking white glow descended upon the being.
The body started to move, limbs grew longer/wider, and features on the face changed, clothes changed and hair grew longer. As the glow dissipated, the 'person' struggled to sit up. Using their hand, they removed the material covering their face. Maria blinked at sunlight streaming thru the trees right into her eyes. She lifted her hand to block the sun.
" What the hell?!?" Maria said as she realized that her hand was covered in blood. Raising her other hand, she started to question herself as how she got to wherever she was. Maria rose to her feet and looked down to check herself out. She noticed the differences.
Her blouse was covered in dry blood. She lifted her shirt to see where she was bleeding from but found no wound. Trying to calm herself, she took deep breaths. Maria turned her head to look at her surroundings when she felt a strange sensation on her neck.
Bringing her hand to her jugular, she felt something liquidity on her fingers. She swallowed, fearing the worst. Maria squeaked at the image of her own DNA on her hand. She felt around her neck to make sure she still wasn't drawing any more blood. Feeling satisfied and extremely confused about the whole situation, Maria racked her brains to figure out what happened.
As her eyes took in the forest, her eyes caught the bodies of the orcs. Realization dawned on her. Her throat convulsed as she bent forward and vomited. After a few minutes, she grabbed a tissue from her pocket and wiped her mouth. Grabbing her breath spray as well, she squeezed in three mouthfuls of it. Feeling better, her mind whirled over the events and it all came down to one answer.
" I'm back." Maria whispered to herself. Going back into her mind, she pulled out her memories of when she was last in Middle Earth. " It just can't be possible!" Recognizing part of the woods, picking up her cloak, she headed north out of Fangorn. As she walked, she tripped on the occasional root from the heel of her boot catching it.
When Maria finally walked out of the forest, she started to gag on the smell that reached her nose. Covering her nose and mouth, she looked around and saw piles of dead orcs, some still smoldering. Feeling the chilly air, she brought her cloak around her shoulders and clasped it at the neck.
Maria searched around but found no one. Sitting down, far away from the corpses, she tried to clean her hands. Finding it unsuccessful, she tried to come up with a plan. Her thoughts coming up short, she tried to figure out her bearings. " What the hell am I suppose to do?"
Her answer came into view, a brown steed trotted up to her. The horse walked up to her and shook its head at her. Maria stood up and petted his mane. Looking around to see if anyone came with the horse, she found no one. " Are you going to help me become…well…un-lost?" The horse nodded. " Figures." She walked to his side.
" Now, mind you. I haven't ridden a horse in a long time, not even bareback, so…try to go easy on me." Gathering up her momentum, she hopped onto the horse after a few unsuccessful tries. " Okay, take me to wherever I'm suppose to go." Listening to the command, he took off.
To be continued…
Authors Note: I know! It's been a long time since I last updated and I apologize. Its summer now and school has been let out so hopefully I will update more. Here's the new chapter! Hope you liked it! Let me know by reviewing.