Disclaimers: I don't own any of the characters or settings from Lord of the Rings or Xena the Warrior Princess

Author's Note:

This is a LegoRomance (slow-burn)

~ II: Prologue ~

~ Part Two ~

~ Xena: The Warrior Princess ~

Bring me home in a blinding dream.

Through the secrets that I have seen.

Wash the sorrow off my skin.

And show me how to be whole again.

Outskirt of Imladris, 3018 TA, September 30

She reached out longingly, but it was to no avail. She could sense that Gabrielle was finally free of her. In the world where Xena was born, lived, and died. Gabrielle continued living in that world, and Xena faded from this world; moving on in Tuataras or worse in the Elysian Fields.

The enchanted forest beckoned her into its pulsing heart. How could she resist such a lush of light lost in darkness? The deep, haunting ballad of its ancient song called out to her. With a light heart, she plunged into the overarching vault of leaf and limb. The smell of the forest was pulped, awaking more of her senses. It was not what she had expected. Coils of vaporous mist enwrapped the fuzzy heads of the oak trees. They writhed around them like a conjurer's milky smoke, sensuous and illusory.

Xena woke and found herself lying in a leafy bed paradise. At first, she thought she had slept late, after a long, unpleasant dream that still hovered on the edge of memory. But the trees looked like the towers of the forest, that unfamiliar forest that somehow was heartwarming. She lay a little while longer looking at the sunlight that was escaping through the creaking branches. "Where am I?" she said out loud, realizing she should be long gone ... vanished.

She was not.

She sat up. Her eyes dropped on her body, and her hand touched her arms and legs. Everything on her body was solid; she was alive. "Alive?" she scoffed at the irony. She felt comfortable and peaceful to be back in her own body. She recalled now saying goodbye to Gabrielle and vanishing. But here she was now, alive and well.

But where was here?

The moss-veiled trail snaked through the careworn forest. That trail was lying in front of her; she could see it now, as she had sat up and leaned against an old tree. Her mind was still spinning, and it took her a moment to refocus. Then she searched for her armour and weapons, but she was only wearing her short cotton garments. Her upper-body armour, black leather bodysuit, boots, swords, and Chakram; all gone.

She was wearing her short garments, grey and clean, covering her main body. This situation only irritated her. She finally stood up, taking note of her surroundings, and every scene was unfamiliar. She felt it to her bone; she was in an alien world. The forest that surrounded her was primordial. Centuries-old trees with sprawling limbs guarded the darkness, blotting out any sunlight.

That was not all; now she had focused, she could hear sounds. Everything around her was now brought into silence. She could hear the creaking sounds coming from the trail in front of her. It did not take long, and she watched creatures run towards her. Those were not human alike; they looked like monsters. "Maybe I am Tuataras after all," she scoffed to herself as she stepped back. Xena turned facing those hideous monsters taking a fighting position.

The atmosphere had suddenly changed from nice and calm to noisy and dangerous. She had seen it before. The hate and evilness that was orbiting around those monsters. However, that was a different kind of evil. One she had never seen or faced before. These creatures were only interested to destroy and kill. And for the time being their only target was Xena.

'People are too quick to go for their sword. It should always be the last resort.' She used to say that too often, but at this moment, she wished she would have her sword, as those horrid ugly creatures surrounded her. Time ticked by as time does, neither accelerating nor flinching, for the allotted moment when combat would commence.

The attack started brutally and direct, There were no wind-ups, no wasted motion; each movement was designed to roll naturally into the next, with only one purpose to kill her. The Orcs used their weapons, they were not following any code, their only mission was to kill. Her body jerked from one direction to the other, in rhythm to the apposite lines of each attack. To an outside observer, it would appear to be one simultaneous tornado of movement, of blinding speed, a blur too fast for the eye to follow.

Xena stepped forward and leapt into the air, spinning around as her opponents' guard went up, opening up to attack her. She waited for a split second while gravity took over once more, and then, when she was level, shot her foot out, catching one of the orcs in the chest. Dead centre. She dodged the first few attacks and kicked and punched hard a few of those creatures.

The fight went on for several minutes, a few lay dead against the rocky ground fallen by her hands. Her knee turned purple, and there were a few cuts and bruises covering her body. She discovered the extent of the damage. Luckily it has been just a flesh wound. "A flesh wound! What in Hades is going on?" She questioned, holding her defence, "I can bleed?"

The warrior turned her attention to the remaining dark creatures that were now cycling her. She never avoided a fight in her life, neither would she now. She repositioned her body, and without a sword, she would find her way out. She did not hold back and the attack came fast, she had already grabbed in an arm lock her attacker, and he brought him to his death. She managed to hold his blade away. And after that, chaos was unleashed.

Battle cries faded into distant echoes as the enemy forces retreated from the battlefield. She had seen the last of the attackers retreating. Xena lost her balance and dropped motionlessly. Around her lay twenty corpses of the creatures that had attacked her. Her body had bathed in black blood as she fought them off. The battle lasted longer than she thought, and she ended up injured and dirty.

But again, alive.

Darkness had already pushed the light from its domain as she was still lying on the ground wounded, dirty, and spacing out. The warrior was exhausted, injured, and lost. She was unsure why she was brought to that world only to face her death again. Why would not the gods leave her dead?

A quiet peacefulness settled over the valley of Imladris, as the sun dipped beneath the horizon, as the twins returned home. They were only a few yards in Imladris when they came face to face with a group of orcs. They seemed to be running away from a fight; both leapt from their horses. Their attack was solid, and moments later, they left not an orc standing.

Elladan gathered his arrows to clean and use them again when Elrohir called him, "Brother, you should come over here and see this!"

The Elf cast a glance over where his twin brother was standing. He was unsure why he would be so interested in a dead orc, but his curiosity won him over, and he walked over. "What is that you have found..." Elladan held his movement as his eyes dropped against the body that was lying on the ground. "This is no orc!" he said clearly and knelt next to the motionless body. He placed his fingers against the neck, finding a pulse. "She is alive."

Elladan softly lifted her off the ground and brought her away from the dead orcs and towards an opening close to the bank of the river. He placed her down and walked over to his horse to collect his healing material as Elrohir followed them. Soon the Elf was back dressing her wounds and cleaning most of the black dark of her cuts. "Elrohir, we have to ride to Imladris her injuries are severe, I cannot heal her," Elladan said and his brother agreed.

As decided the twin sons of Elrond had already reached the healing Chambers of Rivendell the same day, waiting for their Father to join them. Their knowledge about the strange woman they have found was limited. However, they had figured out that those 20 corpses of orcs fell by her hand.

"How did this woman suddenly appear in this part of Imladris. Did she walk here? Where are her belongings? Did she fight alone?" Elrohir quizzed while his father and the healers started treating the woman. One of the swords that cut her skin was poisoned and her leg was broken. She was lucky that the twins found her and brought her to Imladris. Because Lord Elrond was one of the best healers on middle Earth.

Elladan observed her for a short time before he spoke "These are strange times, Brother. Alas, If we haven't found her she could end up dead. How she came into our realm and why I cannot answer. But I believe the strange leather armour, the boots, swords, and the round weapon we found belong to her."

Elrohir gazed at his brother and then back at the woman that was lying in the healing bed, and nodded. "It seems that way, I will then place her belongings to the guest chambers on the north parts. You can have the healers bring her there."

"They will," Elladan ensured him "After all, it will take days for her to heal fully and regain all her senses back."

Xena's wounds were treated and an antidote was given to her, she was cleaned, dressed and brought to her chambers to rest. It would take time for the antidote to react, and for now, the only thing she could do was to sleep and rest. Lord Elrond wanted to speak to the alien woman after his sons explained to him all the details. There was something strange about that woman, from the way she fought, and even the way she was dressed. But for now, he would let her rest until she would feel ready to face him.

((Upcoming Chapter Three))

Thank you for taking the time to read this! Feel free to Review - Follow - Favorite!