Lord of the Rings
Taking the Place of a King
Chapter 1
All I can hear is the thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. The Uruk-hai are marching. These troll-like creatures are a mass of metal clumped together by the thousands. It is depressing and I see the worried look on all the faces of the Men of Rohan, hopelessly defending Helm's Deep. There are some warriors that are only seven years old, and some Men that are at least 70. Everyone is doing all they can and risking their lives to save their families. I have just arrived from Lothlorien and this has lifted up the spirits of some, but most can see that this will not be a day of victory. I stare with wonder as the skies fill up with clouds, probably conjured up by Saruman to aid his army and create a picture of gloom and a feeling of dread.
"Are you ready, Haldir?" Aragorn asks with sudden determination.
"Yes I am, but I can see that the hearts of the Men have been taken by the Uruk-hai. It will be a long night and morning before the aid of Gandalf shall come."
"Well, we can hold, old friend," says Aragorn.
"Good luck to you," I boldly say, knowing this battle will require much strength from all.
I cannot tell what will become of the battle, but I can see that the many thousands of Uruk-hai will prove to be a strong factor against our measly 500 soldiers, including 200 of us Elves.
Chapter 2
A short time passes until I hear the sudden stop of the thumping. The Uruk-hai have halted at only 100 paces from the wall, and they are frighteningly close.
Then they start a pounding of their pikes and a stomping of their feet that is nerve-wracking. Many who saw a flicker of hope on the battlefield look at this and realize the enemy is mighty. The Mens' hearts are full of fear. Aragorn gives his Men the order to hold their weapons up but not to fire them.
Suddenly, an old man named Aldor can't hold his arrow in position any longer and sets it loose. The arrow whistles through the night air, striking an Uruk-hai. The Uruk-hai falls over, dead from the shot in his neck. This unexpected event starts the battle off with a roar. The Uruks charge the wall. Our soldiers release their arrows and reload their bows as fast as possible. I shoot arrow after arrow and give many orders to my fellow Elves to keep firing. Right when we think we have a chance at this the Uruks return the volley with their crossbow bolts. These arrows with very thick bodies and huge metal tips are deadly. They can punch through armor and shields very easily and I see many of my comrades go down in the onslaught.
Now The Uruk-hai bring out more deadly tools of combat. Siege ladders meant to let the Uruks climb over the Deeping Wall are being raised up by the Uruk pikesmen. There are at least 30 ladders propped against the wall. On each and every one of them is a massive beserker. These warriors are 7 feet tall and carry no armor. The only weapon they use is a 5-foot long double-sided sword with a prong on each end of the top of the blade. The only task of the beserker is to clear the space at the top of the ladder for the smaller and more heavily armored Uruks to climb up and storm the fortress.
As the battle progresses, I move closer to the ladders. A beserker jumps right in front of me, and everyone steps back in fear. We pull out our two handed swords and prepare to strike. I don't step back, the beserker lunges at me, and I chop off its head in one large motion with my long, curved blade. Aragorn and I try to stem the tide of Uruks coming up two different ladders near us, and we do so heroically because we are still alive and fighting. I have no idea how much trouble the other Elves are having with the beserkers, but I can tell by the screams that they are not doing so well.
Chapter 3
Aragorn stays up on the wall and holds his position. He watches from the left as a beserker carries a flame towards a drain hole in the Wall. The Uruks have planted two bombs for the destruction of the Deeping Wall. These bombs are a new form of warfare and it's the first time anyone has used one device to kill large numbers of people.
Legolas, a loyal fighter to Aragorn, shoots the flame carrier, but the beserker doesn't quit. Legolas shoots him again and he still refuses to fall. Another arrow is shot and the suicide warrior still lives. This determined beserker jumps into the culvert where the bombs are.
A moment of silence, just a moment.
The Deeping Wall, built by giants of old, blows up in a thundering blast and a deep boom that echoes through the Deeping Coomb for miles. The pieces of the wall that have been blown up are crashing down on the Uruks and many are flattened, but the heavier losses are on us. Our middle and most crucial defensive point has been destroyed, and already Uruks are pouring through it.
I look for Aragorn to aid us Elves in the charge to secure the hole in the wall. I don't see him among the dead bodies strewn on the ground. I turn my attention to the battlefield. A hoard of Uruks is charging through the demolished wall. I yell to my fellow Elves to fire, and a couple lines of Uruks are mowed down. We fire one more volley of arrows and then take out our swords and charge.
Our charge is valiant and we kill many more Uruks than we lose Elves, but we aren't good enough to plug the raging stream of Uruks forcing themselves through the narrow hole.
Chapter 4
I hear a retreat call because the Men of Rohan cannot hold the main gate much longer, so I call out for the fighters to fall back. They obediently do so, but the Elves on top of the Deeping Wall cannot get down. Aragorn bravely clears a path of Uruks away and the rest of the Elves hop off, weightlessly. Gimli, the trusted dwarf, chops off a few more Uruk heads and Aragorn helps him down. The Elves hurry back into the mountain and inside the fortress, but I stay to get everyone inside the shelter.
I'm waiting and waiting. Aragorn has not come yet, and the Uruks have broken into the gates. I fear that they are now probably rushing to the inner gate to ram it down. I urgently call out, "Aragorn!" Still he doesn't respond. I finally hear his desperate calls for help. This is not a good sign from a future king. I rush to where he was fighting, and find it is overrun by Uruks. I look left and right, and see Aragorn running for the break in the fortress.
An Uruk is amazingly overtaking Aragorn's fast pace and as he pursues him, Aragorn isn't going to get to the stairs fast enough. He turns around and hacks at the chasing Uruk with his long sword, but the inhuman being won't go down. It is some kind of super Orc and even a master fighter like Aragorn can't match the superior brute strength and the merciless fighting of the Uruk.
I scramble to help Aragorn defeat the Uruk, but in a spilt second I see that it is too late. Aragorn crouches down in severe pain after being struck by the spike in the Uruk's sword. The sword remains lodged in his back. The Orc takes out a dagger and with one quick motion, stabs Aragorn in the back of the neck, mortally wounding him. The Uruk growls proudly.
I scream and fire and kill the Uruk with one deadly arrow to the center of the heart. I rush over to where Aragorn lies. I can tell that he is about to die. I crouch down to hear his dying words. He barely whispers, "I died to save Frodo. He has left on a journey to his death to save us all. Aid him in whatever way you can."
Aragorn's head rolls back in my arms and he hangs, limp and lifeless. "There is nothing I can do for him, now," I think. I quickly find a way back up to the fortress, carrying his body with me. My fellow Elves shoot the angry Uruks chasing me up the stairs. I safely get inside and the other Elves bar the gate at the top of the stairs. I lay my dear friend Aragorn down. "Haldir, what happened to him?" Eowyn asks in a worried tone. My heart is lonely and I feel a pang of pity for her as I tell her, "He died trying to save all the people of Rohan. We will remember him for keeping the race of Men alive." Eowyn goes back to the cave, trying to hold back tears.
Chapter 5
I hear a call of help from my Elves. They can't hold the fort much longer. Theoden calls to me and says they need help. I say, "We have to do something better, because we will lose this if something doesn't change." Gimli appears and says, "The sun rises in the east now." We all look up at the skylight and the sunlight fills up the room.
"We have to do something. Something for glory." Theoden states.
"Let us charge out on a last sortie!" I yell. "Let us avenge the death of Aragorn so he will not have died in vain!"
Theoden adds, "For honor!"
I follow, "For Rohan!"
Theoden says, "Let this be the hour that we draw swords together and honor the old alliance of Men and Elves! Let us ride out now and meet the death we have built for us with fury!"
We all hop on horses provided for us - Theoden on one, Gimli and Legolas on another, two royal guards on two other horses, and me with my one handed sword on another. We tell the Men of Rohan to stop barring the gate and we crash through. The death of Aragorn has given us all a new reason to fight. We are all filled with revenge and renewed energy.
The ride has a great feeling to it and we kill all the Uruks in our way. Others try to block our path, but our great height over them on the horses gives us an easy advantage. We plow our way to the gate and off the bridge. As Uruks are streaming up the bridge, we push them off and they fall to their deaths.
Just then, I see a bright light in the distance. All the fighting stops. "Gandalf!" I yell at the top of my lungs. "Aragorn was right!" Gandalf smiles down at us and calls Eomer. Eomer then calls to the Rohirrim and they ride up to his side.
"CHARGE!" I hear Gandalf order and all the Rohirrim come crashing down into the valley toward the trapped Uruks. Two thousand Rohirrim are present and they force all the Uruks to flee. The valley is covered in forest with living vines and trees. None of the Uruks survive the fleeing path through the forest. While the loss of Aragorn is devastating, the Uruks have been defeated, there will be a new king that all will learn to honor. His name is Sam Gamgee and he will restore the path of kingship.