Allo everybody. I don't like the number 19 so I'm posting chapter 19 and 20 today. Happy reading!
Chapter nineteen
Out of the Water
Gwen awoke next morning to the sound of a light rain tapping against the windows. She opened her eyes, yawned, and stretched and sat up. She looked around and saw that nobody was in the living room. She swung her legs over the side of the couch and grabbed her crutches. She made her way outside and saw that it was not a light rain but a heavy rain and most of the staff members were placing bags of sand on the edges of camp next to the water. Gwen limped out outside.
"What's going on?" she asked Nimrodel who was filling bags of sand with a group of people on the porch.
"Kisha woke us all up saying that this storm is not going to go away and we need to take flood preparations. Kisha's in town right now buying supplies," Nimrodel explained.
"Anything I can do to help?" Gwen asked.
Nimrodel nodded.
"Yes, go back inside and check the TV or internet. That's what Kisha told me to tell you to do," Nimrodel answered.
Gwen nodded.
"Okay."
Gwen hobbled back inside and turned the TV on. She then went to the computer and logged on. While she waited for the internet to connect, the weather girl appeared on screen.
"A severe weather storm warning has been issued for the area of Putter, Fonstand, Laby, and Middy. The storm system that has just arrived in Laby has already caused massive flooding and severe thunder and lighting with golf ball size hail in the Donner region. Residences of these areas should evacuate immediately and head for higher ground…"
Gwen's jaw dropped. They had never gotten weather like this at Camp Glingal and they thought they never would. In this region they were more apt to get a snow storm then a flood. Gwen heard the sound of Kisha's shouting and she hobbled back outside. The rain had picked up and it didn't look like the sandbags would hold the water out.
Kisha started giving out orders the second she got back. Most of the town had evacuated and the only store open was Wiff and Wal's five and dime store. There she had picked up extra batteries, gallons of water, non-perishable food, extra blankets, sandbags, and miscellaneous other items. She saw Gwen standing on the porch.
"Head back inside and watch the campers! There's nothing for you to do outside!" Kisha yelled.
"Kisha! The weather channel is saying this is not going to go away and we should head for higher ground!" Gwen yelled through the rain.
Kisha shook her head.
"Not possible! The wind just knocked down twenty huge trees as I was coming back in! We're stuck here until the storm passes!"
"You can't be serious!"
Kisha shrugged.
"We'll be alright! Now get back inside and watch the campers!" Kisha ordered.
--
Three hours later the storm intensified and trees were falling around the camp every thirty seconds or so. One tree landed on the arts and crafts building and another on the dining hall. The staff had already moved all the valuable items from Lammoth and so that building had been completely abandoned, so nobody had to worry about putting sandbags around it. All of the campers had been instructed to remain in their dorm room and wait for further instruction. The thunder and lighting outside strengthened ten-fold and the rain turned into hail the size of golf balls. The Staff members were still outside placing sandbags around the beach areas and around the dorms.
"We're out of sandbags!" Gloin called out.
"Merde," exclaimed Kisha.
They had barley made a difference against the dorms and the theatre when they ran out. Lighting hit another tree and this one landed in the lake. The thunder rolled overhead and out on the lake a water spout began to form. Kisha's eyes went wide with fright.
"Everyone inside now!" she screamed through the rain.
A few were caught in the beauty of the deadly water spout but were quickly shaken from it when it began moving towards the camp. They made a run for it and arrived in the camper dorms. Kisha had thought it would be wise for everyone to be in the same dorm building and so Mordor was elected 'house during storm'.
The wet staff members changed out of their soggy clothes. Most campers who had rooms in Mordor allowed their friends from the other dorm to stay with them. The campers from Numenor dorm brought along their possessions in case Numenor washed away in the storm.
--
Eowyn sneezed for the twentieth time in the span of an hour. Faramir had found her a blanket and he wrapped it around her. Kisha told Eowyn it was nothing serious, just a cold, but Faramir was still worried.
The storm raged on outside and Gwen continued to watch for updates on the TV when, at around five that night, the power cut out. Gwen then staggered over to the computer and put in the battery pack. She checked the internet and saw that it still worked. The National Weather Service said that the storm looked like it would not be letting up for another two or three days.
Lighting flashed ahead and the group watched as a strike hit the dining hall. It burst into flames and Kisha let out a curse. She stood up and headed for the door.
"Come on, I need about fifteen to twenty staffers to help me put the flames out," she said.
Aragorn, Gandalf, Boromir, Faramir, Fëanor and his sons, Manwë, Aulë, Tulkas, Morgoth, Sauron, Ulmo, Celeborn, and Araglas followed Kisha outside to put the fire out. The rain had picked up and it now felt like a million tiny daggers were falling from the sky. They followed Kisha to the garage and she pulled out hoses and buckets. She gave everyone a bucket and handed Manwë the hose.
--
From inside Mordor, the campers and remaining staffers could hear the group attempting to put the fire out. The reason it took so long was the fact that the fire hydrant that had been installed a few years ago would not open and so everyone had to run to the beach, dip a five gallon bucket in the water, run back to the burning dining hall, and dump it on the fire in hopes it would put it out. It wasn't working very well.
"We've got to do something," Gwen said.
Nimrodel shrugged.
"What can we do?"
Gwen closed her eyes and sighed. She thought for a moment. It was one of the hobbits who finally had an idea.
"Wait! Isn't Treebeard here? Fangorn? Whatever his name is?" Merry asked.
Gwen's eyes fluttered open.
"You're right! I'll be right back!" she exclaimed dashing from Mordor.
"Wait Gwen! Your crutches!"
"I don't need them! It's only a sprain!"
--
Gwen ran through the woods as fast as her sprained ankle would carry her. Gwen knew it was pretty stupid to run with a sprained ankle but at the moment she didn't care. She felt the wind and rain pelt against her face.
"Treebeard! Treebeard!" she called out.
She passed her hideaway tree and continued calling out his name.
"Treebeard, we need your help!" she called out.
She continued running and then felt as if something just picked her up. She looked at the ground and saw it shrink. She looked up and was face to face with the Ent.
"What do you need?" he asked.
"There's a fire in the dining hall and we can't put it out. Can you help us?" she asked.
Treebeard nodded.
"Of course."
--
A soggy Kisha ran into Mordor looking for more buckets and objects to use in the attempt of putting out the fire. She grabbed baskets from the shelves and emptied them out.
"Gwen! Help me over here! We need more buckets!" Kisha called out.
Thirty seconds later Gwen had not yet arrived and so Kisha called her name out again.
"Gwen's not here," Estë said.
Kisha looked around.
"Where is she?" Kisha demanded.
"She ran out into the woods after Merry said that Treebeard was here," Celebrian answered.
"Bloody hell! She's never learned to stay put!"
Outside they could hear shouting and Kisha looked out the window. Treebeard had scooped up the water from the lake and poured it onto the dining hall. The fire smouldered until finally it ceased to be. The group began walking back to Mordor when the rain picked up again and the wind seemed to be blowing over seventy miles per hour. Gwen held onto Treebeard for dear life and she watched the wind pick up. Gandalf and Aragorn and shoot then across the lake. The wind then grabbed hold of Amras and Curufin and they launched in the air and landed in Lammoth. The rest of the staffers grabbed hold of Treebeard and he continued to walk forward towards Mordor. They watched as another water spout formed in the lake and they hoped that Aragorn and Gandalf were not caught in it. Ulmo and Manwë took it upon themselves to jump in the water and go after them. Treebeard reached Mordor and they ran inside the building. Gwen hobbled in and prayed to Ilúvatar that her ankle wasn't broken.
"Oh man what are we going to do," Kisha said.
"Well we can only wait for the time being so how about we play a game?" offered Gwen.
"What kind of game?" one of the campers asked.
"How about someone tells me where Aragorn is?" Arwen demanded.
"Yes and where are Amras and Curufin?" Nerdanel asked.
"Or Manwë and Ulmo?" Varda said.
Gwen gulped.
"Aragorn and Gandalf are in the lake at the moment and Manwë and Ulmo went after them. Amras and Curufin are in Lammoth. Any other questions?"
"How did that happen?" Finrod asked.
"The wind."
"Oh."
--
An hour later mostly everyone had themselves occupied with something. A group of people were engaged in a Tolkien book study led by Varda while another group of people were reading The Lord of the Rings for the first time ever. There were board games scattered about the living rooms with people playing everything from checkers to cribbage. At around seven thirty, Manwë, Ulmo, Aragorn, Gandalf, Amras, and Curufin returned. Amras and Curufin looked a bit perturbed and Aragorn and Gandalf were soaked from head to toe. Arwen wasted no time in hugging her lover. She had been so scared that he wasn't going to make it back. At around ten the campers started to drift off to sleep and the living rooms were void of campers. All of the staff members joined together in the first floor living room.
"Well Kisha, we can call the National Guard and they can air lift us out of here," Gwen suggested.
Kisha shook her head.
"How are we going to explain them then? We're going to have to wait the storm out. Besides, it's not that bad," she replied trying to look on the bright side.
It was at that moment when another tree got struck by lighting and came crashing down.
"We've done the best we can," Rosie Gamgee said trying to comfort Kisha.
"But what are we going to do when the storm ends? We're going to have to repair the camp," Kisha said.
"Yes, and we'll help," Manwë offered.
"Really?"
"I'm sure we'll be able to fix it up in a few days," Aragorn commented.
With this Kisha smiled.
"Thanks."
There was silence for a few moments until Gwen broke it.
"I don't know about you but I'm pretty damn tired so good night y'all. See ya in the morning," Gwen said as she crutched her way out of the downstairs living room.
"Good night Gwen. We'll wake you up if anything happens during the night," Kisha offered.
Gwen shook her head.
"No don't bother. I haven't had a good night sleep since I got here and I'll be damned if I don't get one tonight."
Kisha smiled.
"Okay, okay."