For Introduction :)
Ash nazg durbatuluk, ash nazg gimbatul,
ash nazg thrakatuluk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul
Author's Note: Second chapter guys :D I did this faster than I expected, but I'm glad I did it so fast. I wrote the start of this chapter right after I completed the first, but then I forgot about this story for some time and yesterday I finally finished the second chapter. As always have fun reading, leave a favourite/ review if you liked it and follow the story to always be updated :)
Disclaimer: I don't own Lord of the Rings, the Hobbit or the Silmarillion. If I would, Sauron would have won!
"Ukhat-ra!"= Common language speech
'Ukhat-ra!'= Common language thoughts/ telepathy
"Ukhat-ra!"= Common language speech (When an Orc, troll etc. speaks)
'Ukhat-ra!'= Common language thoughts/ telepathy (When an Orc, troll etc. thinks)
"Ukhat-ra!"= Other languages speech
'Ukhat-ra!'= Other language thoughts/ telepathy
"Ukhat-ra!"= Common/ Other language powerful speech (Inhuman, screams, demonic voices, etc.)
'Ukhat-ra!'= Common/ Other language powerful thoughts/ telepathy (Inhuman, demonic voices etc.)
Ukhat-ra! = Locations, time, dates
Ukhat-ra!= Sound Effects
(Ukhat-ra = Let's go)
Chapter 2: Cruelty of the Dark Lord
(Previously on The Dark Age:)
Wednesday, 17th January 3019, Third Age, 2:45 P.M, North Itilien, A few hundred meters before the Ranger Camp outside of Osgiliath:
"Zaarsh throqut krur shara-aapsuuk!"(13), Nagrot roared loudly and in response the other orcs roared, too, and without wasting time rushed forward, eager to fight and having not tasted human flesh for a long time. Hundreds from the evil monsters now ran through the forest in direction of the Ranger Camp, whose inhabitants didn't knew the danger they were in.
"Thor-nut!"(14), another orc roared in blood lust "Spare no one!"
"Fog Shakhburzk!"(15), all orcs screamed in unison.
A bloodbath was about to begin...
Wednesday, 17th January 3019, Third Age, 2:46 P.M, North Itilien, Ranger Camp:
"They're coming!", Amav shouted the moment he spotted the orcs between the trees of the forest "Everyone get ready! Archers in position! Knights before them! Don't let a single one of those scum survive!"
The camp was in turmoil, with soldiers running around everywhere, but fortunately, due to Amav's command, soon every position was taken and every soldier was ready for the upcoming fight. Due to the earlier efforts of the ranger Moran and a few fellow rangers, a wooden barricade, covered with spikes, had previously been sucessfully build around the camp. The Knights stood behind the barricades in stooping position, so that the Ranger archers with their bows had a free path for their arrows.
"Hold your position!", the second-in-command ranger Akjalan ordered "Let them come to you!", Moran added. Both were trying to keep the soldiers, who were already trembling a bit in sight of the attacking and screaming orcs, from retreating and falling back to Osgiliath. They had to hold the position here, there was no other way, if they would fall now, the complete northern land around Osgiliath would belong to the enemies forces.
The amount of orcs that were closing in grew bigger and bigger by the moment. It already were nearly thirty of them roaming the part of the forest before the camp, which was located at the edge of the forest.
"Archers! Ready!", Amav ordered the rangers, who already had their bows stretched, prepared for battle. "Aim!", Amam continued with a loud voice, as the orcs came nearer. There were now only around 30 meters between the two sides, the orcs running at the barricades like berserker, desperate for battle and blood.
"Matkruz!"(1), the orc at the front screamed "For the Dar-"
"Fire!", Amav ordered with a loud voice and instantly the rangers released their arrows.
Before the poor orc at the front could finish whatever he wanted to say, his head was pierced by a sharp arrow through his right eye. To his right and left, around a dozen other orcs fell dead, shot in the deadly regions of the body. Just as fast as the first, another hail of arrows soon came crashing down on the warriors of Mordor, resulting in the forest to be splashed with black orc blood and the bodies of the fallen to pile one above the other.
"Arghh!", another orc roared as he was hit in the leg by a arrow and fell down, while holding his leg in pain.
"Sur mul gulmuz krus? Diisum!"(2), growled Kragan in rage, as he saw how easily his fellow orcs fell because of the rangers attack. He had expected the ranger to prove a formidable foe, but he definetely didn't expected them to fight his forces with such a strong resistance. He just hoped that the second attack, led by his superior Nagrot, would prove too much for the rangers to handle, when they would have to fight the orcs from the north and east at the same time. It almost sounded impossible to believe that orcs could come up with such strategy in battle, but unlike the other orcs around, he and Nagrot both were Black Uruks, specifically cultured by the Dark Lord himself.
They were stronger than the normal orcs, easily matching up with even the though Gundabad Orcs from the north. Their use of weapon could even match that of an Gondorian Knight, whereas Nagrot even was a special prodigy when it came to sword usage and the handling of most other weapons the Uruks were given to fight. Furthermore Black Uruks, unlike the Moria and Mordor Orcs, weren't weakened in the sunlight, giving them an extreme advantage when it came to fighting during the day. They also had more stamina and could easily run long distances without problems, something the other orc races with their crippled legs couldn't accomplish.
All in all, it was only understandable that Sauron used the Black Uruks as generals or lieutnants when it came to commanding the weaker, standard orcs, who represented the majority of Sauron's forces. Without comman, the wild orcs would be out of control and hard to command.
'All of those humans are dead when the second wave strikes...', thought Kragan with a malicious smirk on his face, before joining the battle himself.
Wednesday, 17th January 3019, Third Age, 2:50 P.M, Mordor, Minas Morgul:
"Soon the one ring will be united with it's master. Then the whole of Middle Earth will fall!"
Skrakaz, current ruler of Minas Morgul and represantive of the currently absent Witch King of Angmar, was studying the map of Middle Earth, which was located in the top of the tower of Minas Morgul. Just minutes ago he was planning the attack on Minas Tirith, current capital of Gondor, after the fall of Osgiliath years ago. The attack on Minas Tirith would be one of the most important events of the coming war, as once it was conquered, the entirety of Gondor would easily fall under the Dark Lord's rule within a few days at best. He could not afford to lose this battle.
After a few minutes passed, the man rolled the map up and left the room. He wandered through the corridors of the citadel for some time until he arrived at a room with big double doors. He instantly opened the doors and swiftly entered the room, but not before telling two castellans, dark creatures created by Sauron's magic (Yes they really exist), to guard the doors and to not let anyone below his own rank in.
Once he was in he used his magic to summon a telepathic link between him and his master, who was no one else but the Lord of the Nazgul himself:
'Master, I have planned the attack on Minas Tirith as you wished. Furthermore I have sent Nagrot and his troop to aid the orcs of Isengard in finding the ring, so that Saruman, should they find the our Lord's master ring, won't claim the ring for himself!'
'You have done well, Skrakaz. It looks like my teachings have paid off at last. Your first task is complete!', the evil voice of the Witch King answered.
'The first, my master?', Skrakaz answered suprised.
"Yes my apprentice. Sauron wants me to go to the north of Middle Earth, to the mountain of Gundabad, to be precise. He wants to get the orcs of Gundabad under control, as they would prove to be a useful ally. Moreover Sauron decided to recruit the dragons of the Withered Heath. They are under the command of Drogoth (AN: If you played BFME2 you will know ;D) and are, according to our information, the last dragon's in Middle Earth alive. But since I am going to be in charge of the attack on Minas Tirith, I want you to travel there and complete the mission, understand?", the Witch King ordered.
"Yes my master. Your will shall be done, though I might need help completing the task. Getting the orcs of Gundabad under control will be easy, since they have already served our master once and I'm sinferiorure they would gladly do it again. But the dragons are much more powerful beings and their fire melts away everything that crosses them. How should I convince them to join us?"
"Tell me Skrakaz, have you ever heard of the name Ancalagon the Black?!, the Witch King asked, suprising Skrakaz immensly.
"Yes, I've heard tales that he was one of the great fire dragons, that were bred by our lord's master. But wasn't he slain during the War of Wrath at the end of the First Age?"
"Indeed, he was. But his remains are still buried in the sea, western of Forodwaith, where the land of Beleriand has sunken in the sea. After you have recruited the the orcs of Gundabad, go to the Weathered Heath and convince Drogoth and his dragons to serve you. As a reward for their service to Sauron, the greatest of their kind shall return to them!"
"But how master? Ancalagon is dead!"
"Quiet worm! After you have offered the dragons this treaty, you are to travel back to the havens of Umbar. There, a fleet will be prepared for you. Sail to the northwest of Middle Earth, where Angband was located once. Even though Beleriand has sunken, the highest point of the destroyed mountain Thangorodim is still visible above the sea level. That is where Ancalagon crashed when he was killed by the damned man Earendil. Use the powers that will be given to you by Sauron to find the remains of the dragon and to transport them back to Umbar. Then you will bring them to Barad-Dur, where Sauron himself will take care of Ancalagon's ressurection, once he has regained the master ring! Do not fail me Skrakaz!"
"Of course my master! Grus asko arak-krat naan!"(3)
With that, Skrakaz ended the conversation and left the room again, but not before turning to the castellans:
"Prepare a fell beast and inform the people of Umbar about the situation. They are to prepare a fleet for me in the next two weeks!", Skrakaz ordered them and immediately one of the castellans nodded and walked away, while the other remained still, until Skrakaz spoke up again in an commanding voice:
"You are to accompany me! We travel to Gundabad at evening. Now go!"
Wednesday, 17th January 3019, Third Age, 3:00 P.M, North Itilien, Ranger Camp:
It didn't looked good. It certainly didn't looked good.
Just minutes ago, he could have sworn they had victory on their side, with all the dead orcs roaming the place already. But just after he thougt they had defeated the orcs, a second wave, much bigger than even the first, had totally suprised them by attacking from the east side of the camp. Within two minuted the barricades were broken and the orcs inside of the camp. Was this their plan from the beginning? To distract them by sending small fries from the north and then attack with a full force attack from the east? A plan that looked to good for an orc...
But then he had decided to simply not care. Whatever their god damned plan was, it was a good plan for an orc and unfortunately it had worked. Amav cursed himself for falling for this kind of trick, but now he couldn't do anymore about it than fight against the orcs invading the camp.
He swung his blade with deathly precision, each strike breaking slashing through a orc's kneck, arm or whatever limb it could hit. Though he and his allies were greatly outnumbered, it didn't meant they couldn't pick up a good fight. In his long career as a ranger, he had fought countless other orcs, men of the south, wargs and even a troll once. He knew how to defend himself and his compaions knew, too.
Atop the hill he had been previously standing on, he could make out the form of Moran, fighting his enemies with nothing but a short orc sword, which he, most likely, had taken from an dead orc's corpse. His quiver was empty and his bow cut in half, but still the young ranger kept on fighting. A true warrior indeed, was what instantly came to Amav's mind, before he dodged another attack delievered by an big orc with a mace. Soon the orc found himself dead on the floor, with a gondorian sword pierced through his ugly and bald head.
The longer the battle was delayed, the longer Amav lost track of the time. After another quarter hour, only he, Moran and two other Gondorian Knights were still alive. Moran looked at his right arm. A orc had nearly cut it off with his crooked sword, but luckily he was able to dodge and counter the attack in time, so that only a small, 2 centimeter deep cut remained where the orc intended to hit.
By now, the entire camp was covered in both, red human blood and black orc blood. This gave the place a disgusting and rotten smell, something the orcs, unlilke the humans, couldn't help but enjoy.
All four human fighters were surrounded by the orcs and the man ratio was one to twelve, meaning that around fifty orcs were still alive. With a loud growl all of them charged at Amav and his man and the so the last stand of the Ranger began...
Wednesday, 17th January 3019, Third Age, 8:15 P.M, Lothlorien, Calas Galadhon:
It had been only a few hours, since the fellowship arrived at Calas Galadhon, the heart of the elven realm of Lothlorien. Galadriel, mistress of Lorien, had beem thinking about Middle Earth's fate, ever since. For long now, she had been feeling the dark presence of Sauron growing in the east, getting stronger each day. She knew that it was stronger than it should have been. If he were to get the One Ring know, his power might even be greater than in the Second Age.
She know deep down, that the elves shouldn't even be here anymore. The should have been at the other side of the sea now, safe in the immortal lands of Valinor. But something about Middle Earth didn't let her go, she couldn't just abandon it to it's fate, or could she? If the elves were to leave now and the quest of the fellowship would fail, Middle Earth would undoubtly be doomed, for none could stand against Sauron. It would be similiar to the First Age during the time of Melkor, but this time it would be the Sauron and all other people of Middle Earth, except for the elves.
On the other side, she also wanted to sail over the sea. The rest of her family was there, most likely waiting for her to join them. Added to that, her people had suffered under the rule and the cruelty of the two Dark Lord's long enough and so many elves had already died meaningless. The time of elves was over, the time of humans had come.
"Mana na-yes, mime heri?"(4), the voice of her husband, Celeborn, suddenly asked from behind her, making the queen of light turn around in suprise before retorting:
"It's the enemy. He's growing stronger than ever in those past years. Dark Armies from all over Middle Earth are gathering in his name. I'm concerned there is something going on that we don't know about.", she softly answered with a sad look in her eyes.
"Yes, I've been feeling it as well and I too am concerned about the current situation. Sauron is more powerful than ever. Our scouts have reported that the Ringwraith Kamul has been gathering an army in the depths of Sauron's old fortress Dol Goldur. Should this rumor be true, the entirety of Lorien is in serious danger, for our defences against such an attack aren't great.", Celeborn sighed.
Galadriel looked at Celeborn for a moment, before looking back at her mirror, a tool she could use to partly see the future. But recently all she could see was darkness, thick and covering darkness engulfing Middle Earth and then there was a great fire originating from the east and burning away everything on it's way west. She needed to find out what that meant.
She took a step forward so she could look directly into the mirror. As she touched the surface, the water began to change and slowly pictures could be seen. At first there were peaceful pictures, of the people of Rohan and Gondor living happily, of the dwarfes of Erebor searching for gold and drinking, as usual, and even pictures of the elves travelling to the western lands on ships. But suddenly the pictures faded and they were replaced by a big fire, covering the entire mirror. Soon, a malicious laughter could be heard from the mirror and the image of a great black, lidless eye began to show in it.
"Paashnaraz kros nos fauthaz!" (5), a dark voice, belonging to no one else than Sauron himself, laughed out before continueing: "Kro sankab nos!"(6)
She took a step back in fear of the evil presence corrupting the mirror right now. But then the Dark Lord of Mordor, now the dominant force over the mirror, spoke up again:
"Gak troat nar kaaluk, tra amirz zabrakat! Nak matum!"(7)
With that, the eye vanished in an explosion of fire and the mirror broke with a loud Cling!, leaving both Galadriel and Celeborn astonished and shocked at the events that had just unfolded before them. The final images of the world faded and soon the water began to ran down the steps and soon sunk into the ground, leaving nothing but wet dirt behind.
"My lady, what in the name of Manwe was that?", Celeborn asked, the fear evident in his voice.
Galadriel, having come to her senses again, now stood firmly above what was once her beloved mirror. A shadowed look was across her face, as she had realized the true depths of the evil that was threatening Middle Earth now. The situation was even worse than she had imagined, for if the dark lord himself could already enter her mirror, his power has already grown to it's peak, without the ring of course. She turned around to face Celeborn once more and whispered in a low tone:
"Dark times are about to come. N-i Valaina as us."(8)
Wednesday, 17th January 3019, Third Age, 8:30 P.M, Mordor, Tower of Minas Morgul:
"Has everything been prepared just like I ordered?", Skrakaz asked the castellan kneeling before him with an dark look on his face.
"Yes my master, the corsares are informed of your task and the fell beast ready for flight", the raspy and dark voice of the castellan answered the ruler of Minas Morgul "We are ready for the flight!"
This brought a small smirk to Skrakaz lips and he stood up from his throne. He always enjoyed it when others would treat him as an superior being, minus his master, the Witch King of Angmar, and the Dark Lord himself, of course. However such a simple minded, but still powerful and loyal servant as a castellan, made him feel powerful, made him feel great. He enjoyed being strong and mighty and he enjoyed commanding others. Perhaps, this was one of the main reasons why he, back when he was still a young and naive Gondorian boy, had openly joined Sauron and had worked himself up from the most inferior place in all of Mordor, to the Witch King's personal represantive.
While he walked up the stairs of Minas Morgul's tower, he thought about his previous life as a young boy, about what would have happened to him if he had not joined the Dark Lord's campaign. He had, at some point, asked the Witch King what he should do about those feelings and back then, the Lord of the Nazgul had simply told him to get rid of them, as every part, every memory of his early life could affect his power negatively. Back then he had come to an conclusion:
He would absolutely love power and absolutely detest feelings.
He never had any regrets for this decision, but still he sometimes speculated what else could have happened. But now, as he ascended the tower of HIS fortress, he once again began to push away these thoughts as there were much more important things to be taken care of. He had a mission and there was no way he would fail his master.
He never had.
He never will.
End for Second Chapter here! :)
Explaination:
For those of you who don't know who Ancalagon the Black is, either read the Silmarillion or read this short descrisption:
Ancalagon the Black was the greatest and strongest dragon to have ever existed in history. He was as big as a mountain and his breath could melt away almost everything. Like all other dragons he was created by Morgoth in the First Age and thus was under his command. He was later slain by Earendil in the War of Wrath, which was the final war against Morgoth. He was, together with Gothmog, the Lord of the Balrogs, and Sauron, Morgoth's top lieutnant, the strongest servant of the fallen Vala. In terms of power hirarchy in Morgoths forces, only those two were stronger than him, with Sauron being the strongest, followed by Gothmog and then Ancalagon. Now you're probably asking how Sauron wants to control such a strong monster. The answer is relatively simple. Sauron at the peak of his power (With the ring) during the second age, was said to be more powerful than his master Morgoth at the end of the First Age (Morgoth lost the majority of his power by creating the orcs, dragons, trolls and spiders etc. + corrupting Arda itself). But still Ancalagon obeyed Morgoth, meaning he was most likely weaker than him by logic. So Sauron with the ring, being a bit stronger than Morgoth during the War of Wrath, could very well command Ancalagon. And for those of you wondering if this scenario wouldn't make Ancalagon Sauron's strongest servant. Yes it would, for he is stronger than even the Witch King of Angmar, but the power of the ringwraiths depends on Sauron's power. So if Sauron would have the ring and still get stronger, maybe by taking back the Elven rings or something else, it is possible that someday the Witch King will become as powerful as Ancalagon himself :)
Translations for Black Speech:
(1): "Die!"
(2): "What are you waiting for? Attack!"
(3): "Your will shall happen!"
(4): "What is it my lady?" (Elvish language: Quenya)
(5): "You cannot hide!"
(6): "I see you!"
(7): "There is no light, in the void! Only death!"
(8): "Be the Valar with us." (Elvish language: Quenya)
And that's it, the second chapter ends here. As always I hope you enjoyed it for I have taken my time writing this. i hope you are eager for the next chapter's as it will get more tense as the story progresses. Furthermore I have decided to make each chapter around 4,000-4,500 words long, so when I reach chapter 5 it will be around 20,000-22,500 words. How long this story goes is unclear now, but I'm that depends on two things.
1: My motivation and ideas for the story
2: Your feedback, if i'm writing a story fine, but it's better if you tell me what you think of the story so far, to help me make it better :)
Well that's everything I wanted to tell ya. See you in 2 weeks!