Hello, I am back! Here is a new chapter for you!
Italics represent thoughts
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Chapter 17- Battle Wounds
The sun rose, shining its bright light on the travelers. They marched on in an unorganized line, the younger ones playfully shouting and running, cutting the tranquility of the plains. The horses were given the liberty to walk free, so long as they stayed with the group. The arrival of this new woman, Turwaithiel, had seemed to have lifted their spirits quite a bit. She and Mithrandir walked together in front of everyone else, keeping an eye out for any unwanted company.
"Come, Legolas! Do it again!" Elrohir urged his friend.
"Yes, we need some entertainment!" Elladan agreed with his twin. The youngest prince of Mirkwood rolled his eyes in annoyance. Legolas had decided to show them all a trick he and Espenshade could perform. He would fire an arrow from his bow, pulling it back as far as he could, and Espenshade would fly with amazing speed towards it and was able to snatch it in midair in her talons, and then return it back to the elf. The twins had gotten such a thrill out of this, they made the prince do it over and over again.
"I have done it far too many times already, and you should be able to entertain yourselves! It is not my responsibility!" Legolas shouted at them, not even looking the two in the eye.
"It is now, Legolas! You were appointed the entertainer of the group." Elrohir said this time. The prince furrowed his brow and turned to look at them.
"Since when?" He asked.
"Since we said so." The younger twin informed him. Legolas growled and continued on, hoping to end the conversation, but he knew the twins well enough to know that they would not stop until they got what they wanted.
"Please, Legolas? We really want to see it again!"
"No!"
"Please?! Just one more time?" They begged. Norui chuckled.
'They sound just like elflings.' He thought 'And if they are not careful, they are going to have to deal with Legolas's short temper, inherited from Ada!'
After a few more moments of begging and pleaded to the young prince, Legolas finally stopped suddenly, his fists clenched tight. Reaching behind his back, he unhooked his bow from his quiver and took an arrow from it as well. The twins watched on in glee, expecting their wish to be fulfilled, but the prince had other thoughts in mind.
He notched the arrow to his bow and drew it back, preparing to shoot it in the sky. Just as he was about to release the arrow, he swiftly spun on his heel and let the arrow fly towards the two. Before they knew what had happened, the arrow had whizzed past them, missing them each by only an inch.
Lowering his bow, Legolas gave a smirk, and then faced forward again and continued on his way. Norui gave a cry of laugher as Elladan and Elrohir tried to grasp what had just happened, their mouths hanging ajar in awe.
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The companions continued on for much of the day. Nothing unexpected had happened, and all seemed to be going smoothly. They stopped a few times for a rest, but then continued on. Turwaithiel had decided to scout ahead to look for a good resting spot for the night. After much arguing and persuading, they all let her go out by herself, though they did not agree to it at all.
Turwaithiel ran speedily over the grassy plains, easily dodging the many rocks jutting from the ground. Finally, she came upon what she was searching for. Before her was a large mound of dirt, rocks and grass. There was a hole right in the center of it, like a burrow, and she quietly made her way into it.
She walked for only a few moments until she came upon a larger area littered with yet more rocks and the occasional bone. She continued on down another tunnel and this one also opened up. She stopped at the opening on the tunnel and looked into the room. Suddenly, sounds could be heard coming from other winding holes in the area and she smirked.
'Ah, here we are. This will do wonderfully.'
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"What is taking her so long?" Arwen asked. "You'd think she would be back by now."
"Do not fret. She will return before you know it. She probably just had to work hard to find a decent shelter for the night." Estel said, trying to comfort her. She curled her knees up to her chest.
"I hope she is alright." She said.
"Listen to him, Lady Arwen, Lady Turwaithiel can take care of herself, I imagine." Mithrandir said.
As if on cue, the sound of heavy breathing and footsteps could be heard. They all waited and sighed in relief when they saw Turwaithiel emerge over the hill. Mithrandir smiled.
"Ah, there you are, milady, we were beginning to worry about you." Without saying anything, the woman suddenly collapsed to her knees on the ground. They all rushed over to her.
"Milady, what is the matter?" Melyanna asked, worriedly. Moments past before Turwaithiel had the breath to speak.
"They are coming!" She breathed.
"Who? Who is coming?" The princess asked. The woman looked up at her slowly.
"They are! The wargs!" She shouted. Almost as soon as the last word had slipped from her mouth, all of the males jumped into action. Estel gave a shrill whistle, and soon all of the company's horses had galloped over the hill to their respecting owner. They began readying their swords, bows or any other weapons they might have hidden on them, and then leapt upon their steeds. The women, excluding Turwaithiel, all huddled together.
"What are we to do?! We cannot fight!" Lothron protested. Her older brother looked down upon her from his stallion.
"Oh yes, you can, Lothron. I have seen both you and Melyanna make Mirkwood's head guard yield to you." He reminded them. Melyanna then tossed her hair over her shoulder, and then placed her hands on her hips.
"Yes, that is because we are so beautiful and we could make any ellon yield to us." She said with a mischievous smile. Norui just sighed.
"If you two don't prepare, then I will tie you both to my horse and drag you across the ground, letting the wargs bite at your necks!" He threatened, quite annoyed with their stubbornness. With a huff, the two princesses stomped off to their horses and doing as their brother had told them to do.
Elladan and Elrohir rushed over to their sister.
"Arwen, you will stay here." Elladan commanded.
"Yes, we will not let you risk your life." Elrohir added, but she just rolled her eyes and pushed through them.
"I can fight. I will not be left alone, awaiting your return, fearing the worst." She said. The twins followed behind her.
"No, Arwen, you will stay here and wait. We will have it no other way." Elladan said, but she just glared.
"You are not Ada, nor will I respect you as I do Ada. I will make my own decisions." She replied, and then went off to tend to her horse.
Soon, all were prepared and on their horses. Turwaithiel had recovered from what they all thought was a strenuous run and was prepared to charge into battle with them. They could hear the barks and howls coming towards them in the distance, and a small dust cloud rose up into the darkening sky. They slowly started walking up over the hill so they waited on top of it for their enemy. It was then that Legolas approached the young elleth, Jaimea.
"Jaimea, will you be alright? Can you fight?" He asked worriedly. She sat upon her horse, her long elvish blade in hand. She looked over at him and nodded.
"Yes, I will be fine." She said quietly. Legolas nodded once.
"If you need any help, call for one of us, like Norui or Estel. They will come to your aid." He told her.
"Alright, thank you, Legolas." She said. With one last glance, the prince trotted off to be beside his brother.
Jaimea watched him leave, and then faced back out in front. She saw Espenshade soar through the air and perch herself on her master's shoulder. She sighed.
'Please, Elbereth, watch over me.' She prayed silently. The sound of the approaching wargs grew steadily louder, until the horrible beasts could be seen galloping at full speed over the plain. Jaimea's eyes widened and she gulped as her hands shook with utmost fear. 'Watch over all of us.' She turned her attention back onto the Peregrine falcon and frowned. 'The bird is braver then I am.'
The rest seemed like a blur to her. She heard one of the others give a battle cry and the others followed suit. She couldn't tell who it was, for her hearing was muffled by the pounding in her ears. Soon, they were all charging down this huge hill, the horses crying madly with anxiousness. The others continued to shout and holler, but the elleth could only barely manage the strength to hold on to her mount.
Turwaithiel shouted to her midnight black mare and it pumped its legs harder and harder until it pulled away from the group. The wargs saw the woman charging forward and they licked their lips, expecting an easy meal. As she neared though, something happened that the ones following behind her wondered at, but they soon forgot, being wrapped up in the moment of battle.
The two foes collided with each other, the wargs jumping madly, trying to swipe the riders from their horses. The riders countered with their own attacks, slashing and occasionally mortally wounding the horrible animals. Mithrandir would create fire from his gnarled staff and sending them hurling towards the wargs. As the flames made contact with their dirty fur and spread over their body, they howled in pain, but they still kept fighting.
Despite the fact that the wargs seemed to be more determined then they normally would be, the cohort had the upper edge in the battle. A few of the wargs lay slain on the now blood stained grass and those still standing fought with amazing ferocity.
The glowing blade of Norui imbedded itself in the abdomen of one of the foul beasts when suddenly a bloodcurdling scream was heard. The group turned their heads to see what had happened, giving the wargs a chance to take advantage. They attacked harder, slashing and biting at the riders' legs and horses.
When Legolas saw who had screamed, all of the blood in his fair face suddenly left and he went pale.
'No…' It was Jaimea.
The elleth had been tackled off of her horse and was pinned under a large, black warg, unconscious. Its teeth were showing and it stared down at her, saliva dripping down its hideous mouth and onto her face.
The warg snarled and prepared to give the finishing blow to her when suddenly an arrow pierced into its hindquarters. It howled in pain and then turned to the one who shot. The elf prince sat proudly upon his steed, ready to fire once more. The beast growled and charged for him. As it neared, Legolas's horse suddenly spooked and reared. The warg slashed up at the mare's underside, causing mount and rider to topple over.
Legolas rolled out of the way before he was crushed and drew his two white knives. He watched as Cuilpantiel stood back up and cantered off, neighing frantically, and then turned his sights back on the threat before him.
The warg pounced. The elf ducked down, slicing its underside, but it didn't seem effective. It pounced yet again. Legolas tried to slice its neck this time, but the warg swatted its mighty paw against his ribcage. There was a loud crack and the prince was sent flying through the air. He fell with a thud, his head landing on a large boulder. Blood then began to trickle down the stone. The warg grunted and went back to his original prey, but Legolas wasn't going to give up that easily.
As the warg placed its paw on Jaimea's neck, Legolas quickly brought himself up again. Ignoring the pain, he sprinted forward. He leapt into the air and brought his sword down deep into the beast's hindquarters. It gave a pain filled cry and swatted at him with more strength, this time sending the prince into a tree. Forgetting its prey, the warg darted off into a clump of trees.
The travelers drove the few remaining wargs away and gave a cheer. They gave together to check for wounds. Estel then spoke.
"Where are Legolas and Lady Jaimea?" Norui and his sisters sat up at this, searching around with wide eyes.
"Legolas!" Norui called out, but he didn't get a response. It was then that the mare, Cuilpantiel, galloped over the hill with a gash on her belly. The mare of Jaimea followed behind her.
"Oh no…" Lothron gasped, "Legolas?!" She cried frantically. They all split up and searched for their comrades. It was Elrohir that stumbled upon Jaimea. He checked for her pulse, only finding a small one. Without saying anything, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her away.
Not long after, Turwaithiel had appeared again and stumbled upon the prince. He lay on his side against a tree, a pool of blood beneath him. Espenshade sat at his head, pulling on his ears and hair. The falcon looked up at her and glared. Turwaithiel returned it with her own. She then knelt down beside him, checking for a pulse.
"Mithrandir!" She called out. The whole group was beside her quickly. Elrohir still held the other maiden. The two princesses gasped and fell down on their knees beside their brother.
"Oh, Legolas!" They cried and they pulled him towards their chests, crying heavily.
"Lady Turwaithiel, what happened to you? Where did you go?" Elladan asked.
"Never mind that, young one, we must find a place to camp quickly!" Turwaithiel whistled and the company's horse quickly gathered.
Norui took Legolas in front of him and Estel took Jaimea. The horses of the two wounded elves followed obediently behind them with Espenshade flying high above, but no one noticed Turwaithiel's limp and the blood that trickled slowly down her thigh and onto the ground.
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The group rode on well into the night. The horses became restless and jumpy, forcing them to stop where they were. They dismounted in a group of trees, leaving Arwen behind to keep watch for a little while, and took the injured to be healed. Unfortunately though, they had been followed.
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There you go! I think it was a little bit shorter then the others, but I think the action makes up for it (I hope…). Anyways…
--IMPORTANT PLEASE READ--
If you are interested in the ABC TV show, 'Lost', then do me and my beta, Sotui, a favor by reading her story called 'Lessons Learned Too Late'! Thank you!
F.O.L.O.T.R- Thank you! I am glad you enjoy this and I am more then happy to beta your story! :)
NIshelle- Thank you! Mucho appreciated!
Sotui- YAY! You like it! Thankies! Here's more of your character!
Storteller- Thank you so much! I am glad you like it!
Well, that's about it!
Until Next Time,
Manwathiel
