I do not own Lord of the Rings nor do I make any money from this story. All rights apply.
Author's Note: The creatures that the Nazgûl ride are referred to as Winged Beasts in my book (A Tolkein Bestiary by David Day), the movie however, refers to them as Fell Beasts.
DARK WINGS
SIX
Legolas heard an eagle cry, looking up he saw two eagles circling the sky above him. As he turned his attention back to the task at hand, a flash of light caught the corner of his eye. Further down the slope something reflected the sunlight. Curious, Legolas made his way down towards it as he got closer he saw it was a piece of metal. He bent down to pick it up, it was a bit of a horse harness. Legolas studied it for a few seconds but did not recognise the make.
Giving the ground closer inspection he discovered other bits of leather and a few scrapes of cloth of a course weave. Legolas inspected the ground as he walked in circles looking for anything else but found nothing. He looked again at the bits in his hands and on the ground, there had been a rider here but from where. Legolas scanned the sky, the sun was high and a light breeze blew along the side of the mountain. Again he looked at the ground but found nothing new, walking a little way along he found a distinct hoof print in the ground – leading away from the cave. Legolas crouched down and inspected the print. He did not have Aragorn's skill in tracking over barren land but he was fairly sure that the print could not be more than three days old. Glancing round, he saw no other prints of any sort. After a moment of thought, Legolas started off in the direction of the horse print, constantly scanning the ground.
XxX
"What was that you were saying, Gimli?" asked Èomer.
"What? About Elves in general or one in particular?" questioned Gimli gruffly, walking further out the cave.
Aragorn and Èomer followed him, looking round for the Elf. The sun's rays were bright and made sight difficult, not to mention the fact that the Elf could blend into almost any surrounding. A movement caught Èomer's eye.
"There he is," said Èomer pointing down the side of the mountain, as Legolas stood up.
Aragorn turned his attention to the direction Èomer indicated. He was Legolas staring at the ground, he then looked up and seemed to be contemplating something before he started off down the slope. His eyes never left the ground.
"Legolas," called Gimli.
The Elf stopped and looked up at them, he glanced back in the direction that he had been going, before he started back up the mountainside.
"I think we have success," said Èomer as Legolas joined them.
"We found some large prints further in the cave along with some dark patches that could be blood," added Aragorn.
"Èomer, would you be able to recognise tack from any horse of Rohan?" asked Legolas suddenly.
"I would hope so," answered Èomer confused.
Legolas showed them what he had found.
"This is not from any horse of Rohan, it is too roughly worked," said Èomer after a second.
"The cloth is also strange," said Aragorn.
"There is also a hoof print lower down," added Legolas.
"Is that what you were following?" asked Aragorn.
Legolas nodded.
"Perhaps we should go and take a look at it?" suggested Èomer, wanting to go to see the print.
"Good idea," nodded Gimli.
Aragorn was still studying the cloth but looked up suddenly and nodded,
"Legolas, lead the way."
They had gone half way down to the area when, Legolas suddenly yelled,
"I hear battle," and took off down the slope drawing his bow, the others were quick to follow.
Legolas ran for a few minutes then stopped the battle had ceased, he started again quickly picking up speed. Aragorn saw Legolas stop then take off again moving a lot faster, Aragorn glanced behind him and saw Èomer and Gimli following. He too started to move faster even though he knew he would never catch up to Legolas at the speed he was going but he sensed that something was amiss. Not just with the sounds of battled but with the whole search. He saw Legolas standing still in the distance. 'Too late,' he thought.
The sight that greeted Aragorn was not good, a horse lay still on the ground surrounded by four men. Riders of Rohan. Aragorn heard Èomer come up behind him and felt him stiffen at the sight before him. Legolas walked from man to man to see if any lived. Slowly Èomer walked forward and starting checking his men as well. Aragorn knew none did when Legolas moved to the horse. Glancing round Legolas picked up an arrow that lay on the ground.
"Haradrim," he said aloud recognising the arrow and now the bits of tack. Turning he jogged to where Aragorn was crouched studying the ground.
"There were many horses here," said Aragorn as Èomer came up next to Legolas.
"Men from Harad," Legolas said giving Èomer the arrow.
"This is ill news. Harad and a Winged Beast," said Aragorn.
"A choice lies before me," said Èomer. "To continue with this search or begin another?"
"I believe them to be the same search," said Aragorn.
"What are they doing in Rohan?" asked Èomer.
"That is what I wonder as well," said Aragorn.
"Unless they plan an attack on Gondor from Rohan but I do not see how," said Gimli.
"To pass Gondor they would have go round Mordor through Hildorien and Rhûn," said Legolas.
"And pass Mirkwood where King Thranduil will have received news of an army passing," said Aragorn.
Legolas nodded,
"Unless an army did not pass but a few men," he said.
"A few men could pass though Gondor," said Gimli.
"They could also use rivers and the sea," said Èomer.
Legolas briefly closed his eyes and sighed before opening them again. Èomer winced,
"My apologies, Legolas," he said.
Legolas waved it aside and said,
"The horse is one of the Haradrim, we all left our horses at the camp. The tack is the same that was found earlier."
"That is how they got away so quickly," said Aragorn regretfully. "This ground yields no clues as to where they went only that there are quite a few of them."
"What do we do now?" asked Gimli.
"We should continue, we can do nothing for them now but try and prevent this from happening again," said Èomer.
With heavy hearts they moved the dead men out of sight from predators.
"Hiro hyn hîdh ab'wanth," whispered Legolas as Èomer and Aragorn placed branches over the dead men.
( Let them find peace after death.)
"There are still two hours of light left this day, I want to explore a little further along," said Èomer.
Aragorn nodded,
"We might find more clues."
They started making their way back to the cave, marking in their minds where the men were hidden. They walked along the side of the slope looking for signs of both the creature and the Haradrim.
"We should be making our way back to the cave," said Èomer stopping.
"It has been worrying me about the cave, we were searching during the day. Should it have not been in the cave?" asked Legolas as they started back.
"Unless it was further down, the cave did continue," said Gimli.
"What if we were to block the entrance and prevent it from coming out," said Aragorn.
"Or going in," added Èomer.
"Either way I think it would be to our advantage," said Aragorn.
"What do we block it with?" asked Gimli.
There was silence as they thought about it.
"Rope," said Aragorn, "It won't hold the creature long but long enough for us to kill it."
"Then we continue our search for the Haradrim," said Èomer.
"I had almost forgot about them. Their being here is not by accident, too long have Gondor and Harad been against each other for this to be a minor thing," said Aragorn.
"And they sided with Sauron," said Èomer.
"And Sauron used the Winged Beasts," added Gimli.
"The Haradrim had a Winged Beast of their own," mused Legolas. "It was not destroyed with the ring and it managed to free itself."
"They could have let it lose," said Èomer.
"True," said Aragorn. "But if they did they would not have risked coming here."
"Why would it still be alive and the others destroyed?" asked Gimli.
"The others had Nazgûl on their backs," said Legolas.
They walked in silence for a few minutes.
"The Haradrim would keep it for an attack on Gondor and Rohan," said Èomer. "If it got free, they must have been readying an attack."
"I was thinking about that also," admitted Aragorn.
"Unless they were trying to train it. Nazgûl would have some power over them but essentially they are wild," said Legolas.
"Fearing it being found they came to fetch it," said Gimli.
"I think they came to kill it," said Aragorn.
"It is too big to capture and drag back, through Gondor, to Harad. Better to kill and not have anyone know about it," agreed Èomer.
They had made it back to the cave.
"What if they have already killed it?" asked Gimli.
"Then we go and find them," answered Èomer as they pulled rope from their packs.
"I was referring to making this trap," said Gimli.
"It is a possibility that it is already dead but it could also not be. It is a chance we take," said Aragorn.
Securing the entrance was not as easy as it seems for there was very little to attach the rope to. The breeze that had been playing with them the whole day died as the sun started setting. The sun had gone and darkness had set in by the time they finished, the moon was past full but still bright as they found suitable hiding spots and waited for the creature to appear.