Disclaimer: The Lord of the Rings is property of Tolkien and there are many references throughout to Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. I only own what you do not recognize. The character Chinky is not meant to cause offence and is named after a real horse whose name has been shortened from a Fiat Cinquecento (Chinky – Chento).
Authors Note: Well I'm back at home now, basking in the lovely sun. Sorry if the chapter seemed a bit delayed its just that its written on my laptop which isn't connected to the internet here so I have to save it and take it down stairs and I'm just lazy! Anyway I've just written the battle at the black gates so we are nearly done. There is a bit of dialogue that I snagged from the film in this chapter along with a song the Èowyn originally sings in The Two Towers. Artistic licence and all! Happy reading.
Chapter 43: The last debate
A strong wind blew across the war trodden fields and wiped Amy's hair around her face. Grimacing she spat out the strands that had entered her mouth and pulled her long tresses behind her and tied them up with a short leather thong. The once green pastures before her were now brown and red, blood and mud mixing together creating a mire effect and her feet squelched as she walked.
She stopped at the elegant body of a woodland elf and placed her hand to her heart and whispered a short prayer for the fallen Elder before her, raising her hand she shot gold sparks into the air. They fell and then hovered five meters above him, identifying him to the body collectors. Many similar sparks hung in the air, gold for elves, red for dwarves and purple for men. Their respective races collected the bodies and lay them side by side in front of the shining walls and dressed them for burial.
Amy took a final look at the elf before walking on, her face screwed up in disgust as she realised she had been standing still too long and started to sink into the churned up muck. There were many doing the same job as her, most carrying flags to indicate the race or scraps of material, none of them were mounted. All the horses were being used to haul the bodies back to the city, Moridin and Shadowfax included. Much to Moridin's displeasure; he was no common carthorse. His grandsire Shadowfax had calmed him, Amy was not quite sure how, yet she had thanked the silver stallion all the same.
She had made up with the large horse after the battle, apologising for the joke against his mane. Yet she was not going to forgive him for putting himself in the way of her fire ball, fear had lanced through her and she had managed to redirect the ball at the last second. She could not have lost another mount, not one she had bonded so closely with.
Sighing she carried on slugging through the mire, being of elven descendent not helping her in the slightest. A small smile lit her features as she saw a ring of Orc's on the ground surrounding one dwarf, he must have known he was going down and decided to take as many down with him. Red sparks floated over his body as she carried on walking.
BREAK
Darkness settled over the land of Gondor. True dark, not the dark of Mordor. The battle had been won, the Great Plains theirs again, yet for how long they did not know. A silence fell with the night, the battle still rang in people's ears yet the night was silent for mourning. Many had died and no rain had come to cleanse the land, no rain would come, not until the great eye of Mordor had been felled.
Large graves had been dug earlier; the bodies of elves, men and dwarves lay side by side, for discrimination of race should not pass to the grave. The boundaries had been crossed and elves worked side by side with dwarves to get the job done, not one fight had emerged. Once all the bodies had been buried great pillars of golden colour had lit the sky as Amy cremated them. Grave diggers were rife and no one wanted to destroy the memories of the victorious dead. The masses of Orc's and other fell creatures had been burnt unceremoniously, yet it took along time for the fire to catch hold, even in death they were reluctant to go back to the hell that spawned them. Mass graves had been dug for the remains of the Easterlings and Southrons. For although they were perceived as the enemy, they were still only human and had just made a wrong choice. They were fighting for what they believed in, and whether it was right nor wrong did not matter.
Now the remains of the soldiers looked to the east as the pyre containing King Théoden of Rohan made its slow way back to Meduseld. He was a King of the Horse Lords and it would not do him justice to bury him in a foreign land. Next to him lay the lordly Snowmane his coat still gleaming in the moonlight. Four black horses pulled the pyre into the distance.
The company watching sighed as they heard the strong voice of Èomer start to sing in his native tongue.
"Lim-strang wæs geboren (Strong-limbed he was born)
Bearn léod-cyninga (This son of Kings;)
Magorinc Mearces. (This warrior of Rohan.)
Bunden in byrde Tó laedenne (Bound by birth to lead.)
Bunden in lufe Tó thegnunge (Bound by love to serve.)
Lang beadugear cyythath (Long years of war begin to show.)
Líc onginneth búgan. (The body has begun to bend.)
Swift déadlic géar Stieppath geond willan. (Swift mortal years outpace the will.)
Ac éagan gíet lóciath Beorhtre gesihthe. (But the eyes still watch clear-sighted.)
Heorte gíet béateth. (The great heart is still beating still.)"
Before the first line was through another strong voice filled the air joining with Èomer's perfectly. The second deep voice sung the song in the more common Westron so that the rest of the people watching could understand. It was halfway through before people realised that the second voice came from the black warhorse standing next to the new King of Rohan. One singing for a lost Uncle and the other for a lost father.
Finally the song died down as the carriage and pyre became too far for the mortal eyes to see. Tears blurred the vision of every person who heard the song, whether they knew the king or not. For it summed up every death in the battle, and every lost life.
BREAK
Amy sat in the throne room of Gondor, she watched two dwarves, two elves, two humans and one human with elven blood and an istari walk into the room. She chuckled to herself, 'what strange company.' She nodded to each of them and gestured that they should take a seat. Standing up she introduced everyone, as she knew they probably were not all acquainted.
"Thranduil; this is Èomer the new King of Rohan, Aragorn son of Arathron. Imrahil of Dol Amroth, you know your son, and Throd. I'd worry if you did not know Gandalf and there is Gimli son of Glòin." Amy smiled at the choking noises she got from the Elvan king as she mentioned he son of the dwarf that had escaped him.
"Nice to meet the person who imprisoned my father too Laddie." Gimli said before planting himself down in the steward's seat and taking out his pipe.
"Right now that we are all acquainted we need know what our next move is?" Amy said. "Gandalf, can you see Frodo and Sam?"
"Frodo has passed beyond my sight, I can only see as far as the pass of Cirith Ungol. I can see no further." Gandalf said lowering his head.
"What does your heart tell you?" Aragorn asked.
"That he is alive. Yet he is in grave danger." The White Wizard replied.
The group went silent; all knew the peril that the hobbits were in, for no mortal or immortal being of light had passed through that pass alive since the beginning of time.
"We would know for sure if Sauron had the ring." The Elder elf said.
"For one we would not be standing here." Legolas said.
Amy smiled as she saw Thranduil look at his son and mumble under his breath something that sounded like 'you should not be here anyway.'
"It is only a matter of time before he realises that we do not have it. He will be able to feel it creeping closer to him with every second passing." Gandalf said looking beyond the walls and towards the great tower of Barad-dûr.
Gimli grumbled something about letting Sauron rot as he filled his pipe and lit it. The smell of pipe weed filled the hall quickly. Amy wrinkled her nose at the smell and created a little barrier of Air before her so that she could still breathe easy. "Ten thousand or more Orcs stand between Frodo and Sam and Oronduin. Mount Doom will not move closer to them, they will need all the help they can get in crossing those plains."
"The Halflings have been sent to their deaths. No help can get to them now." Throd said.
"No, they need safe passage across the Plains of Gorgoroth." Imrahil said as he looked at Aragorn.
Aragorn sighed and looked up at the throne on the dais. He knew he would not have peace until Sauron was destroyed. Only then would Elrond allow him to wed his daughter. He knew what Imrahil was hinting at yet he did not know if he had the strength. Amy smiled at him and seemed to pick up what he was thinking.
"I am with you till the very end. We are your friends; we are with you till the very end." Amy said.
Making up his mind Aragorn turned from the throne and looked at the rest of the company again. "Frodo and Sam need time and safe passage across the Plains of Gorgoroth, as Imrahil said. We can give them that."
"How?" Throd asked.
"Draw out Sauron's armies, empty the Orcs from his land. Then we gather our full army and march on the Black Gates."
"I think the smell of pipe weed has gone to your head." Thranduil said looking at the Ranger curiously. "Is this your mighty plan?"
"We cannot achieve victory with strength of arms." Èomer said crossing his arms yet smiling slightly.
"We do not need to. We only need to give Frodo and Sam enough time to get to Mount Doom. Keep the great eye fixed on us, and blind to what is happening around him." Aragorn said looking more and more sure of himself.
"A diversion." Legolas said, stating the obvious.
"Sauron will expect a trap, he is not easily fooled." Gandalf said walking up to Aragon.
"Yes he will, for he thinks I have the ring." Aragorn said.
"Are we agreed this is our plan?" Amy asked. "If so we march mid morning tomorrow."
"Certainty of death, small chance of success. What are we waiting for?" Gimli said standing up and coughing on his pipe.
Legolas slapped him hard on the back. "Smoking is bad for your health."
"So are elves." The dwarf grumbled half heartedly.
Legolas smiled and walked towards Amy.
BREAK
Thranduil watched his son sweep the small dark elf into his arms and kiss her gently. A smile lit his face as he watched them hold hands and walk out the room. Mindless chatter filling his ears. He remembered a time when he was like that with his beautiful wife. In that moment he knew that he would have to tell Legolas about Wing. And the boy will have to be brought into the main palace caves, he might one day be king. And if both he and Legolas got killed in the up coming battle, Mirkwood needed a King. It was time he lived up to his role as a father.
BREAK
Legolas sat in shock on the large bed, his elbows resting on his knees and his soft head resting on his hands. He had a brother. One that he had not known about! He knew Wing of course, everyone knew the little Elfling. He did not notice as Amy came in through the door and shut it lightly behind her. He did not even notice as she knelt down in front of him and took his hands in hers.
"Your father spoke to you didn't he." Amy said.
It was not a question yet Legolas still nodded dumbly. "Wing, there was always something familiar about him, yet I never looked into it. I always thought it curious that he used to hang around the palace so often and the guards never used to like him. I always though it was because he annoyed them by trying to get in. Now I realise that he should have been let in. He had every right, a prince of Mirkwood living in the main city, it is not heard of!"
"Your father was writhe with grief, he told me on the ride here, he did what he thought was best. He has now seen the error of his ways and a messenger is going at full speed even as we speak to Mirkwood. Little Wing and his mother, and the yearling Asca will soon be in the palace where they belong." Amy said pulling her boots and tunic off.
Legolas smiled before getting undressed himself. He pulled back the soft covers and slipped below them, pulling Amy down with him. He smiled at her soft giggles as he nuzzled the back of her neck.
Turning her round so she faced him he kissed her gently and ran his hand up her cheek and to the tip of her ear. He smiled against her lips as she moaned and pulled herself closer to him.
Pulling back she smiled at him and placed an arm around his waist, leaning over she kissed his chest lightly. She let out a small yelp as she felt herself get moved onto her back and pinned. A slow smile crossed Legolas' face before he kissed her.
They knew no more as they sank together. The only indication of their activities was the bruising of several stable hands and one very annoyed horse.
