I would have updated earlier, but school got in the way…again. Plus, I procrastinated. Thanks are given to chelleyangel for beta-ing the previous chapter. This hasn't been beta'ed, because I just wanted to get it posted, so I apologize for the quality.
Disclaimer: I don't own LoTR or Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicle. If I did, I would have a better computer than the one I have now.
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The Wilds around Weathertop
Aragorn huddled at the base of Weather top, expertly lighting the dry branch. He seized it as soon as the flames began crackling merrily, & rushed to the summit of Weathertop.
Five Wraiths materialized in the darkness, with slender deadly-looking rapiers grasped by unseen hands shrouded in ragged, bloodstained silk. Kurogane launched himself forward as soon as he had a clear view of them, engaging two at once with his massive blade. Syaoran followed him, crossing blades with another. The remaining two held back, before darting towards the hobbits.
In a sudden burst of courage backed by panic, Merry and Pippin unsheathed their swords and ran towards the first Wraith. They were swatted away as if they were no more than irritating flies. Sam followed suit, only to be thrown against a crumbling pillar.
"Sam!" Frodo cried out as he ran to him, "Sam, are you all right-" Frodo looked up. The last Wraith, who had held back, was looming over him. "No – no…no, no," Frodo whispered frantically as he darted away from Sam, and from everyone else. A quick glance behind him promised a long and tortuous fall should he jump. Pressed for time, and already out of feasible ideas, Frodo slipped his hand in his pocket and drew out the ring. With no hesitation, he jammed it onto his finger.
Instantly, the world shifted. Everythin was in shades of grey. Frodo looked around wildly. The Wraiths were pure black, but they were mere spots in the face of the light emanating from the noble girl. Fai was shrouded in a white sheath of some icy substance, while something darker roiled underneath. The other man, Kurogane, was the opposite with a fiery white core smothered in a dark cloak of ink. The other boy was erratic, flicking from white to black in an instant, as well as mixing the two to create a multitude of grey hues.
A snarl drew his attention back to the problem at hand. The Wraith came in closer, and Frodo could see its face now, a wizened old king with bitter lines of anger and hate lining his face. The king beckoned, reaching out for the ring. Almost of its own will, Frodo's hand started to stretch towards the Wraith. What am I doing? He thought furiously, snatching the hand back and pulling off the ring. The Wraith drew back, now clearly incensed. It brandished its sword, and aimed directly at Frodo's heart.
"Frodo-san, move!"
Frodo felt himself being jerked to the side. A sudden icy pain bloomed in his shoulder. The Wraith had missed. Frodo screamed, writhing. The Wraith prepared to strike again, only to have its rapier deflected by the dull gleam of a dagger. Strider drove the Wraith back, burning its robes. It was all too much for Frodo the take. The world turned white, then black as he sunk into unconciousness.
Sakura breathed heavily, looking down at the anguished hobbit. She had been able to pull him free from the apparent stupor he was in, but she had no idea what to do next. Should she bandage the wound? Or wait for help? She had no idea.
"Princess Sakura!"
Sakura felt Syaoran's reassuring prescence at her side, and relaxed a little. Syaoran-san would know what to do; he had traveled all his life, so he must have been in a situation like this before. But still…Sakura crawled over to where the Wraith had dropped its blade. Gingerly picking it up by the pommel, she gasped when the blade crumbled into ashes and blew away.
"It's a Morgul blade. Probably poisoned too, if it was being wielded by one of the Nazgul.," a voice muttered from behind her. Whirling around, she saw the tall, dark haired torch-bearer kneel down. He studied the hilt, hissing an oath, before turning to the hobbit. Syaoran had torn a piece of cloth from his shirt and wetted it, before dabbing at the wound as he cleaned away the blood. He looked to Strider, before shaking his head. He could do no more.
Sakura stood by, wringing her hands anxiously. Behind her, Fai laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Sakura-chan," he said encouragingly, "I'm sure he'll be all right. Whoever he is." Still, Sakura could hear the faint doubt in his voice. She looked to the wounded hobbit again, who was being hoisted onto the tall man's back. He spoke briefly to one of the hobbits before turning to them. "Do you know what athelas looks like? Kingsfoil?" he asked, sighing as Sakura and Fai shook their heads.
"Well, whoever you are, you should come with us. The Nazgul did not earn their reputation by being lax and careless."
Glorfindel murmured soothingly to Asfaloth as he guided the horse through the forest. An unearthly cry resounded through the forest, causing Glorfindel to unsheath his sword without thinking. He jumped off Asfaloth lightly, treading silently through the bracken. A twig snapped to his right, and the elf crept forward slowly. A tired and hunched over man was cutting off several sprigs of some plant, not bothering to hide his movements and the noise he made. Glorfindel frowned. Few things, if any, would cause Aragorn of the Rangers to drop his guard.
"Suilad, Aragorn e Dunedain," Glorfindel called out, walking forward. Aragorn started, dropping the Athelas, before relaxing. "Greetings, Lord Glorfindel," he called out, "I thought for a moment that you were a Ringwraith." Glorfindel raised an eyebrow, before picking up the sprig. "What need do you have for Athelas, Aragorn? You seem well enough," the elf commented as he handed it back to Aragorn. Aragorn pressed his lips into a thin line.
"It is a good thing that you were here. I need your help desperately."
This was just not Glorfindel's day. Not that he could actually blame it on anyone. He had been following the movements of a sole Nazgul for the past month, which had led to endless days on the saddle, following the Wraith and its demonic, non-dying horse. The previous days had been particularly annoying as the elven lord's exhaustion finally began to catch up to him.
And of course the tables would have to be turned at the worse time possible. Glorfindel had finally gotten close enough to be able to finally confront the thing and banish it from the lands of Imladris. Figures that would be the precise time when he needed to flee from it the most.
He and Aragorn burst in upon a clearing, where a motely group of travelers met their eyes. Glorfindel let his eyes linger on the two warriors for a moment, before going to the aide of the injured hobbit. He narrowed his eyes as he examined the wound, which was already starting to swell. Frodo's entire arm had turned a bluish hue, and the area around the cut was a deep purple.
The elf turned to Aragorn. "My lord Elrond has the skill to heal him, but with Nazgul on your trail, it will not be easy getting to Imladris while evading them. I would take Frodo, but then you have to divert the Nazgul somehow…" Glorfindel trailed off, biting his lip. Aragorn nodded. "I will find a way to distract them, Glorfindel. Just make sure that Frodo is safe," he said determindly. "Aragorn, is that wise, with these…friends of yours?" Glorfindel asked, his eyes lingering on the odd travelers that stood several paces away.
"They helped us with the Nazgul – they're trustworthy. Please, Glorfindel. If we don't get him to Imladris in time, he will die…and then Gandalf will kill me for letting it happen," Aragorn ended with a grim smile on his face. Glorfindel sighed. "Very well Aragorn, I will take the halfling. Take care," Glorfindel said as he mounted up. The elf galloped away, quickly disappearing in the mist.
"Eh…Aragorn-san?"
Aragorn turned to see the young girl look up at him curiously. "How will we distract them?" she asked, cocking her head. Aragorn couldn't suppress the smile that spread across his face at her innocent question. "We use fire. As much as we can get," he told her, as Kurogane let loose a short bark of laughter at Aragorn's answer
Fai and Syaoran crawled through the underbrush near the river, clutching unlit torches close to them, so that they wouldn't turn damp in the fog that had accumulated as the night passed by. While Glorfindel was forced to take the long way around to evade the Ringwraiths as long he could, Aragorn had led them straight to the border of the Elf haven named Rivendell, of Imladris as the Ranger had called it reverently.
There, they had gathered as much dry wood as they could, and Aragorn had given them all, even Sakura, a small piece of flint and a pile of twigs. Kurogane had stayed behind to guard Sakura and Mokona (much to the ninja's annoyance) while the others hid by the riverbank to surprise the RingWraiths, which hopefully would give Glorfindel enough time to invoke a spell that would catch the Riders off guard and weaken them severely.
Syaoran crouched down underneath the roots of a tree that was halfway on its way to falling into the river and being washed away. Fai had settled down on one of the taller branches in an adjacent tree, and for all appearances seemed to be asleep. Syaoran couldn't help shaking his head. The wizard had the ability to feel at ease in any situation, it seemed.
The clatter of heavy hooves filled the air, as Glorfindel sped through the forest, with the Wraiths in hot pursuit. As soon as the elf hit the river, Syaoran lit his torch and charged forward out of his hiding place. For a moment, as the Wraiths were bearing down on him, the flame almost flickered and died, freezing Syaoran in his tracks. The irrational terror felt kept from thinking as clearly as he had before in similar situations. The wraiths slowed their pace, almost as if they were feeding off his fear.
The flame burst forth, scattering the black and bloody horses that they Wraiths rode, as well as agitating the specters. From above, fiery leaves rained down, lit by Fai. The Wraiths milled about in a panic, before bringing their mounts under control and riding around Syaoran, rather than facing the torch he held.
From across the river, the two travelers could hear Glorfindel shouting out spiel of words that made no sense to either, but carried a weight to them that seemed to enchant everything around them. The trees seemed to bend back, and the stream seemed to go from a merry bubbling to a subdued roar in a matter of seconds. Everything felt more bright, more real. Syaoran stood in wonder, absorbing the sheer life that flowed around him.
"Boy, get back!"
Syaoran snapped out of his stupor at Glorfindel's authoritative call. He backpedaled immediately, falling back until his back pressed the mossy trunk of the tree that Fai was currently sitting in. Syaoran glanced up at Fai. The blonde was gazing with interest at the river, a thoughtful look in his eyes. "This is ancient, powerful magic," Fai commented, "I'm surprised they're using it." He brightened and said cheerfully, "There really must be something at stake here! I wonder what it is?"
A wall of water roared around the bend, its spume covered head formed into the shape of stampeding horses. The flood engulfed everything in its path, overwhelming the Wraiths and their mounts in a split second. Syaoran shuddered. He would've died if Glorfindel hadn't warned him, no question.
The wall of water slowly died down, leaving the banks strangely bare of any debris. Glorfindel had already galloped away, taking full advantage of the extra time he had received. Aragorn joined them a moment later, done with his part in the ruse. Soon after, Sakura and Kurogane appeared as well. "Are you all right Syaoran-san?" Sakura asked anxiously at the disturbed look on the boy's face. Syaoran turned to her and smiled reassuringly. "Yes, all thanks to Glorfindel-san," he replied, turning to gaze across the river. Everyone lapsed into silence, wondering whether Glorfindel could save Frodo.
"Well? What are we doing now?"
Kurogane's gruff question snapped everyone out of their reminisces. Aragorn shrugged. "You can do whatever you want – you've been very helpful, and if you have some more pressing business, then I see no reason why I should keep you here. However, should you be in need of rest, you will find it at Imladris. A hearty meal and a good night's sleep is always found there, no matter what circumstances you're under. I'll show you the way, if you like," he offered.
Once again, Kurogane was the first to respond. "Well, I'm not about to turn down a free meal," he snorted, "I'm going to get the rest of my stuff. You four do whatever you want."
"Thank you, Aragorn-san," Syaoran said, bowing. Aragorn returned the gesture.
"You're more than welcome."
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Well, that's the end of chapter two. In case anyone was wondering, Aragorn was making sure that none of the riders were going to sneak up of Glorfindel. I actuallyREALLY don't like this chapter, since currently it's un-betaed, but I just wanted to get the darn thing up and get it over with. I was going to finish it earlier, but things got in the way, like a particularly hectic but fun week at school, and various other activities that have been gnawing away at my time. So to anyone who was hoping for something a little sooner, or something written with more quality, I apologize. Hm...this chapter has a lot of breaks in it. I hope no one minds.
Sadly, I'm going to get even more stuff on my plate for the rest of the year, so updates are probably going to be even more sparse. But this fic SHALL NOT DIE. Because I hate people who do that. Especially when they're really, really good. strangles air