Sorry this took so long guys! Life is crazy. I hope this chapter makes up for it because I really like the end of this one. Ok, I wont bore you with talk so read and review please! Don't own LOTR just Missy and Morsus!

Artemis stood beside Merry as they watched Pippin ride off. The poor little hobbit was scared for his friend; they had never been apart, not since they had begun their adventure.

"Gandalf will keep him safe." She promised and then glanced over at Aragorn. They had been given a task, wait for the beacons and then lead the army to Gondor. She knew Théoden was stubborn but surely when the fate of the entire world was at stake he would see reason.

"Aragorn, do you think Théoden will help Gondor?" She asked softly. He placed a hand on her shoulder and gave a slight nod.

"I have hope that he will." She nodded and turned to leave but his grip on her shoulder stayed firm.

"Artemis… I do not want you to believe that I do not care for you. I did not tell you because I did not want to be reminded of it myself." She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"What? But you're a great leader! You got us through so much! You kept searching for Merry, Pippin, and me even when you had every reason to give up! Leave no man behind!" Her fingers curled around his arm.

"There is a lot more to leading a nation than hunting down a single party of Urk-hai." Her eyes flared for a moment.

"I know what it takes to run a nation!" Her voice was different, more commanding than ever. A second after the words left her mouth she stumbled backwards and her hand came over her mouth. Aragorn caught her before she could fall.

"Oh god, Aragorn I'm sorry. That… that wasn't me." He nodded slowly.

"She is getting stronger." He said and she gave a shaky nod.

"Go rest." She bit her lip and stood, moving quickly towards the room she shared with Eowyn. Aragorn noted that as she walked people moved out of the way, their eyes staring at her in an unsettling manner. No one was at ease with Artemis after the things she had done, even if they were assured that she not a threat. His jaw clenched and then felt a hand on his leg.

"What will happen to her if we don't win?" Merry asked, and the man sighed. He had forgotten the hobbit was even there.

"Something terrible I imagine. I believe she will be our greatest enemy." Merry sighed.

"No wonder they haven't tried harder to take her away." Aragorn raised an eyebrow.

"We work so hard to protect her; we have all grown to love her, some of us more than others." He gave Aragorn a pointed look which the man ignored.

"If they win and she is no longer Artemis then how could we be expected to raise a hand against her? She will still look like our Artemis." Aragorn sighed deeply. The hobbit was right, killing her would be the hardest thing he would have to do and he wasn't sure he could convince himself that there was no hope of getting her back.

"We will do all we can to make sure we do not lose her then." He tried to reassure the hobbit but in his heart he knew that separation was imminent.

The beacons were lit, and now they would head off to Gondor. The men were saddling up and Eowyn had told her that it was customary for the women to ride out to the camp with them. The blonde wanted to fight. Missy couldn't help but wish their places were switched. What she wouldn't give to be able to just sit back and let someone else live out that nightmare. No. That wasn't true anymore. The night before, when the beautiful woman lay sleeping, Missy had taken her sword and stared at it for hours. It would have been easy; she could save them all the grief and worry and end it right then. She didn't want to die though; she wanted to be strong for once in her life. She wanted Aragorn to be proud of her, she wanted Legolas to look at her with something other than disdain, and she wanted Eomer to not be afraid of her. The three of them had shaped her journey in Middle Earth, and it was no longer about whom she had feelings for or getting home, no, it had become about being the person she was sure she was born to be.

"Artemis, it is time." Eowyn said and the dark haired girl stood up, staff in hand.

"I have an awful feeling that if I leave this room I'm gonna die." Eowyn moved to her and placed a hand on the outsider's shoulder.

"We all die Lady Artemis, it is up to you to decided if it shall be a death worthy of remembrance." Missy almost wanted to roll her eyes at the words but she smiled instead.

"I'm not worried about being remembered, I'm worried about what I'll be remembered for."

Morsus dismounted his horse and watched carefully as the caravan moved. He had to be precise with his moves, lucky for him humans were predictable. They would be guarding her, but he was counting on that. He waited till they were making camp and then he tore the sleeve of his shirt and began patting himself down with dirt. He mussed up his perfect hair and then took a deep breath before punching himself hard in the mouth. The blood he tasted was sweet, and he knew his plan would work. She would take one look at him and she would be lost to them forever.

Missy was sitting down beside Legolas, their lack of conversation was a comfort to her right then. Since he had made the promise they had stopped bickering but now it seemed that a painful emptiness had taken its place, and it was filling up with unspoken words. The elf would just watch her and she never questioned him. Aragorn had taken to doing this as well and she knew what they were waiting for. They were waiting for it to get worse. It always did get worse.

"Do you think we will win?" She asked suddenly. Legolas glanced over at her and then returned his eyes to the fire.

"I have faith that Frodo will complete his mission." She gave a small chuckle.

"But if he can't… and that guy gets the ring back. How long do you think I have before I'm not me anymore?" Legolas wished right then that Aragorn was there. The ranger was better at giving her comfort with simple stoic glances.

"I imagine that if he returns to full power it will be immediate." Missy nodded and bit her lip.

"Do you think Eomer will ever forgive me?"

"Of course." She ran her fingers up and down the cool wood of her staff.

"Would you forgive me? If I wasn't strong enough?" He met eyes with her finally, and his heart swelled. He reached out and took her hand, opening his mouth to pour out his heart but a loud shouting cut him off.

"Tell us who sent you spy?" Both the elf and girl stood up and started towards the crowd of people.

"No one sent me! I'm just looking for m-" Eomer's strong voice cut off the scared voice of a man.

"Look at the tattoo my lord, he is marked by darkness." Missy couldn't get through the crowd but Legolas had slipped in to see a man on his knees. He had on odd clothing, black pants with tiny stripes and though his white shirt had be ripped and was dirty he could see a row of buttons all the way up. A dark blue cloth was hanging loosely around his neck and his green eyes were darting back and forth.

"I got it in college." He said and Eomer grabbed his arm and looked down at the tattoo. It was a strange symbol and a word written in elvish. Eomer's eyes instantly went to Legolas, who glanced from the tattoo back to the man.

"Morsus." He said, the name rolling of his tongue easily.

"Should we kill him?" One of the men asked and Eomer looked to his King for the answer. Théoden had been sitting off the side, watching the encounter silently. He gave a small nod and Eomer pulled his sword form his sheath.

"No! Please! I'm jus-" Eomer back handed him and then placed the blade at Morsus' shoulder. He raised it high and then brought it down with as much force as he could, but instead of the satisfying feel of his blade slicing through flesh he was met with resistance. An Elvin staff to be exact. Missy pushed Eomer away as best she could and took a defensive position in front of Morsus.

"Artemis what are you doing?" Aragorn asked moving towards her.

"You aren't killing him!" Her eyes were switching between them all, desperation evident.

"He is a spy of the Dark lord!" Legolas growled but she stood her ground.

"He isn't a spy! He is my father!" Aragorn locked eyes with Morsus and the bastard smiled at him.