Day 2 of my final finale! This chapter entails the beginning of the Battle of Helms Deep, and here for the first time Estel and Eldarion will begin to work bigger differences in this battle.

Chapter Thirty-Three

~ Eldarion ~
My sister was already waiting on the battlements when I arrived. She was speaking in a low voice to Legolas, and both of their faces were grim. Aragorn was pacing behind the Elvish troops, obviously deciding on what to say. Haldir had positioned himself in the front as well, but he would be fighting among the Elves despite his higher rank. The Elves were silent and steady compared to the jittery and nervous men.

"How are you?" I asked my sister.

She glanced briefly at me before replying carefully in a low voice. "~The Men are nervous. They don't know the true amount of the numbers arrayed against them. And I think it unwise to tell them.~"

"~Ah. . . And this is why we speak thusly?~" I asked, making the switch to Elvish.

Legolas nodded. "~I do not wish to deceive them, but we do not need anyone deserting at this time. . . We need all the men we can get.~"

"What is with you all talking in Elvish all the time?" Gimli complained, tramping over. Then he glared at the wall that was in front of us. "Argh. You could have picked a better spot."

I managed a faint smile, and Estel laughed lightly. Legolas merely raised an eyebrow.

Aragorn came over then, and he seemed nervous and jumpy and agitated. I really couldn't blame him, though. We were about to enter into one of the biggest battles yet that Aragorn had fought in, and our survival rode on the slim hope that Mithrandir would find the others and bring reinforcements.

"Well, lad, the luck you live by – let's hope it lasts the night," Gimli said immediately.

I could see it didn't help; Aragorn only got even tenser.

Estel took one look and placed her hand on his, where it rested on the wall. "~You'll be fine, Elessar,~" she murmured, using his official title. "~And you will lead us to victory.~"

"Your friends are with you, Aragorn," Legolas added quietly.

Gimli only retorted somberly, "Let's hope they last the night."

Aragorn moved away, his face white and determined. He seemed a bit more resigned as well, as though fearing the worst. But at least as he was leaving he clasped Estel's shoulder briefly and gently as he passed her.

Estel sighed and whirled to face Gimli. "You're not being helpful, you know," she said seriously.

Legolas put his hand on her shoulder. "~Calm yourself, little one,~" he chided gently. "~It ill becomes you to be so uptight in the face of trouble.~"

She sighed. "~War brings out the worst in all of us,~" was all she said grimly.

Just then, a crack of thunder split the tension of the night, slicing through the silence as an arrow slices through the air. Thankfully, lightning did not yet follow, but rain did. Buckets and buckets of it, falling upon our heads as though this was the last time the clouds would yield their burden upon the earth.

Behind us came Aragorn's raised voice.

"~Show them no mercy! For you shall receive none!~" he shouted, letting his voice carry over the regiments of Elves.

Similar shouts echoed over different regiments as other captains bellowed out orders to their own troops, although in actual common language instead of Elvish, for none of the Men but Estel and I understood Elvish here.

Gimli grunted as I came to stand beside Estel. "What's happening out there?"

Legolas turned his head to face the Dwarf." Shall I describe it to you?" he asked calmly. "Or would you like me to find you a box?"

Estel sighed, and I hid a smile behind my hand.

Gimli merely laughed.

And then Legolas suddenly started, a frown erasing his smile as he looked up sharply. At the same time, the constant banging of the Uruk-hai suddenly ceased.

"What happened?" Estel asked anxiously, leaning forward.

Legolas pulled her back. "Don't look," he warned.

But of course she did. Then she pulled back, a disgusted expression on her face. "~One of the Uruk-hai have been shot,~" she said softly.

"~Hold!~" came the shout from Aragorn.

Unfortunately, the Uruk-hai did not follow that same order even if we did. A thunderous roar sounded from the leader, who was perched on a rock or something in the middle. The angry roar was echoed by the downed Uruk-hai's companions as they let loose their anger and bloodlust. Moments later, they charged, and the Battle of Helm's Deep . . . began.

~ Legolas ~
"I don't understand – how you – can think this – a game!" Estel shouted as she slammed her bow into an Uruk-hai before kicking the creature over the wall.

"Quite easily, I assure you!" I replied, sending an arrow into the next.

"Men!"

"Males," I corrected, surprised that she of all people had forgotten the difference between Men and Elves. But then again, this was the middle of a heated battle, so I supposed I could forgive her momentary lapse. After all, Estel had never fought in a full-fledged battle like this.

"Oh, stow – "

A scream interrupted her sentence, and I whirled just in time to see her slam into a wall and slump to the floor. As she scrambled to recover, an Uruk-hai blocked her way, leering and raising a huge ax above her.

Without thinking, I unsheathed my knives and plunged them into the beast. It howled, and I silenced it . . . permanently.

"Are you okay?" I asked, pulling Estel up.

"I'm fine," she said breathlessly. "Just . . . He caught me off guard."

I glanced behind me. I was pretty much out of arrows, and she wasn't in a much better condition. And she was exhausted from the constant fighting, which dulled her reflexes and lessened her strength.

I was about to order her to leave when I noticed a bright light moving through the crowd of Uruk-hai.

That can't be good, I thought, hurrying to the wall. A torch-bearer was running through a gauntlet – well, actually, through a crowd of other Uruk-hai – with a large torch burning with flickering fire that looked almost silver in the rain.

"They must have a bomb somewhere!" Estel shouted, looking around frantically.

Aragorn noticed it too, and then he added his voice to the shouts of fear and surprise. "~Legolas, stop him!~"

I strung my bow with an arrow and let it fly. It buried into the torch-bearer's shoulder, but the Uruk-hai only winced momentarily before continuing to run. It was going to take more than a few arrows, then. . .

"~Kill him!~" Aragon shouted, racing over with his sword in hand. "~Legolas, kill him!~"

I let another arrow fly at the same time that Estel did, and this time the torch-bearer stumbled. Estel's arrow had sliced through the muscle of its arm, and it was losing its grip on the torch; and my arrow was now causing its glorifying run to turn into a pitifully slowing trot with a limp. But then the creature rallied – and threw itself forward on to the bombs.

The castle wall exploded, and we were all thrown off of our feet.

~ Estel ~
I, unfortunately, was standing on the part of the wall that blew up. When the bomb went off, I went flying into the air like a messenger dove thrown into the air with a note bound to her leg – and then slammed into the ground, so stunned that for the longest time I couldn't move or blink or even breathe.

Then rough yet gentle hands hastily helped me up, and I found myself face-to-face with Aragorn. His face was streaked with dirt and sweat, and I knew that he had been thrown off the wall with me.

"Are you okay?" he asked anxiously.

I nodded, slowly at first and then with more confidence as senses started returning to me.

Aragorn breathed a short sigh of relief. Then he drew his sword while I leaned down and snatched up my bow again.

"The wall is breached; this won't go well for us now," I said, standing next to him.

"We'll find a way."

"Hopefully."

He cast me a gentle smile. "Weren't you the one who told me never to give up hope, Estel?" he asked, emphasizing my name – and through that, its Elvish meaning.

"You were Estel first."

Then there was a wild shout, and Gimli landed in the huge pool of water where the wall had been.

"Gimli!" Aragorn shouted, starting forward helplessly.

I seized his arm. "Aragorn, don't! If you go to help him, you'll be overwhelmed!" He pulled against my grip, so I yanked him around and grabbed his shoulders, forcing him to look at me. "~Elessar, think!" I hissed. "~You have a whole army down at your command – use it! Don't charge blindly in!~"

His shoulders slumped as the logic of my words sunk in. Then he pulled away and raised his sword.

"~Fire the arrows!~" he commanded.

Arrows whistled by us as the regiment of Elves responded in perfect union, felling the majority of the first wave of Uruk-hai to come through. Gimli fought as well, but then I saw him get knocked down, outmatched by the greater height of his foes.

I could see that that was the last straw for Aragorn.

"~Charge!~" he shouted.

This time, I didn't bother trying to stop him. Instead, I used my bow along with the other Elves. Some ran forward with Aragorn, though, brandishing their own swords. But I stayed back; I knew it was Aragorn's command that I stay out of the way. And besides – I wasn't that handy with a sword. I could do much more good back here, guarding Aragorn with another set of eyes.

But there were just too many Uruk-hai for us to fight. We couldn't hold them off.

And then – "Aragorn, fall back to the Keep! Get your men out of there!"

Théoden's voice lingered in the air, but I could already see our fighters on the wall backing off. We would have to retreat; there was nothing else we could do right now. We just didn't have the resources to hold the Uruk-hai off now that the wall – our weak spot – was breached.

I looked at Aragorn, and he nodded.

"~Fall back!~" he shouted, repeated Théoden's order. "~Fall back to the Keep!~"

The Elves listened too, but the archers like me stayed behind for a few seconds more, giving as much cover as we could for the retreating fighters in the front.

When Aragorn ran up to me, I knew it was time to leave. Together we began to run back, until he suddenly stopped. I skidded to a stop as well, wondering what was wrong with him.

Then he raised his sword and shouted, "~Haldir!~"

It took a moment, but then I saw the Marchwarden; he was in the middle of a battle, but he somehow found the time to look at us.

Aragorn gestured with his sword. "~Fall back to the Keep!~"

Haldir nodded briefly before beginning to repeat the message to his own troops.

Aragorn turned to me. "~Keep going, Estel! I'll catch up later.~"

"But – "

"~Go, Estel!~"

I didn't want to leave him alone, but I could see the look in his eyes warning me not to disobey him. So I ran, meeting up with Gimli and some other Elves along the way as we retreated. But it was only when I was already halfway to the Keep before I remembered that I had forgotten to warn Haldir, as I'd sworn to do.

I closed my eyes and bit my lip.

That would be the last time I – or anyone, for that matter – would see or speak or Haldir, the last Marchwarden of Lothlórien.