Alright, here it is: the last chapter of The Two Towers!
Hope you like it!
Disclaimer: I only own Kayden, Peyton, and Robin.
Chapter 24: Nature's Wrath and Aftermath
All that was left of the Rohirric army was crammed into the keep, desperately trying to barricade the door with anything they could find. The Uruk-Hai were pounding on the gates with their huge battering ram, and they were slowly breaking through.
"They fortress is taken," Théoden stated, a hopeless tone in his voice. "It is over."
"You said this fortress would never fall while your men defend it!" Aragorn cried, grabbing a bench alongside Peyton and throwing it up against the doors. "They still defend it! They have died defending it!"
Kayden looked up from the table she was dragging alongside Legolas. "Listen!" she whispered urgently. The faint, distressed cries of the women and children could just be heard over the din of the soldiers and Uruk-Hai.
Aragorn had apparently noticed this too. "Is there no other way for the women and children to get out of the caves?" he asked.
When neither Théoden nor Gamling answered, Kayden hurriedly shoved the table against the doors and ran over. "Is there no other way?" she repeated desperately.
"There is one passage," Gamling informed them. "It leads into the mountains. But they will not get far. The Uruk-Hai are too many."
"It's better than nothing!" Peyton exclaimed, dashing over to join Kayden.
Aragorn nodded. "Tell the women and children to make for the mountain pass, and barricade the entrance!"
"So much death," Théoden suddenly remarked, earning him puzzled looks from Aragorn, Gamling, Kayden, and Peyton. "What can Men do against such reckless hate?"
"You can fight!" Peyton exclaimed.
"We can't just give up!" Kayden added. I did not drag myself out of that river for this! she thought angrily.
Aragorn was quiet for a moment, his brow creased in thought. "Ride out with me," he finally stated, turning to face Théoden. "Ride out and meet them."
A small smile grew on Théoden's face. "For death and glory."
"For Rohan," Aragorn corrected. "For your people."
Peyton looked up at the small windows. "Hey, the sun is rising," she remarked. Have we really been fighting that long? she mused.
Kayden turned to Legolas. "How many days has it been since we left Edoras?"
"Five," Legolas replied.
The elleth's eyes widened as Gandalf's words rang through her head. Look to my coming at light on the fifth day. At dawn, look to the east.
The sun seemed to bring new life into Théoden. "Yes," the king stated. "The horn of Helm Hammerhand shall sound in the deep, one last time!" Théoden stepped towards Aragorn, clasping the Ranger's shoulder. "Let this be the hour that we draw swords together."
"Yes!" Kayden and Peyton cheered, giving each other a high-five before rushing off to mount their horses. Kayden sprang upon Déor, unsheathing Veryan. Peyton mounted Greystorm and whipped out her bow, notching an arrow.
"Fell deeds awake!" Théoden cried. "Now for wrath! Now for ruin and a red dawn!" The king put on his helm, a new strength burning inside of him. With a loud boom, the doors crashed down, and Uruk-Hai swarmed into the keep.
"FORTH EORLINGLAS!" Théoden bellowed, hefting his sword high and charging into the Uruks. The rest of his troops soon followed, hollering war cries as a deep horn call sounded throughout the fortress.
They rode through the stronghold, firing arrows and slashing at any Uruks that came within reach. The horses tore through the mass of Uruk-Hai that had swarmed into Helm's Deep, eventually galloping down the causeway. The forces swept the Uruk-Hai off the bridge, stabbing mercilessly at the foul creatures.
As she fought, a white light caught Kayden's eye. The elleth looked up to see a rider, all white, standing upon the crest of a nearby hill. "Gandalf," she breathed. Another figure emerged from behind the wizard, dressed in the garb of Rohan. He raised his sword high in the air, and his cry echoed through the entire valley.
"ROHIRRIM!"
Suddenly, a mass of Rohirric riders rallied behind him. Hundreds of horsemen, all ready to fight for their king. "Ėomer!" Peyton cheered.
The riders charged down the steep incline, seeming to glow with energy (though that might have been the work of Gandalf). The Uruks turned towards the oncoming threat, pikes raised. However, as the riders approached them, Gandalf emitted a blinding white light, sending the Uruk-Hai into a frenzied panic. Théoden then rallied his troops behind him, and they continued to fell Uruks left and right.
The Uruk-Hai, now absolutely terrified, fled Helm's Deep, running into the forest just beyond the end of the valley.
Wait. Forest? That hadn't been there last night!
"Stay out of the forest!" Ėomer shouted. "Keep away from the trees!"
The Uruk-Hai charged headfirst into the trees, and not a moment after the last creature had entered the forest, large stomping and slapping noises were heard, accompanied by orcish screams. The trees were moving, killing the creatures in a wrath only found in nature.
"What is that?" Kayden asked, half terrified, half amazed.
"Whatever it is," Peyton replied, "I do not want to get on its bad side."
~o*o*o*o~
Meanwhile, at Isengard, the rage of the earth was also being released upon the creatures that inhabited the black fortress. Merry, Robin, and Pippin rode upon Treebeard as the Ents waged war. And it was ugly.
Several Ents stood upon the stone walls, tearing them to pieces with surprising ease. They hurled humongous boulders at the orcs, crushing them. Others swatted or stomped on the foul creatures, the orcs too frightened to give much resistance. The Ents tore down scaffolding with such ferocity it was hard to believe that they were usually slow, patient creatures. Merry, Pippin, and Robin slung rocks at the orcs, knocking them into the pits below.
"A hit! A fine hit!" Treebeard cheered when Robin scored a direct shot to an orc, sending it tumbling into the depth of the pits surrounding the spindly black tower in the middle of it all.
Merry seized a good-sized rock and chucked it at an orc, the rock colliding right into the orc's skull. "Good shot!" Robin cried, lightly kissing Merry's cheek, much to his surprise and pleasure.
"Break the dam!" Treebeard shouted. "Release the river!"
Several Ents climbed up to the cliff, throwing down the supports of the dam. The river roared through, throwing up an array of orcs, stone, and wood. "Merry! Robin!" Pippin cried as the raging waters approached them. "Hold on!" The Ents braced themselves against the flood, and the water rushed past them, causing them to rock back and forth as if in a storm. The river flowed into the pits, creating a rather large moat around the black tower of Orthanc.
Once the flooding had subsided, Treebeard placed the hobbits down into a shallow area. Here, the water was only up to their waists. Robin stared up at the white figure standing on the balcony of Orthanc, staring around at the debris in shock. "He doesn't look to happy, does he?" she asked.
"Not happy at all, Robin," Pippin replied.
"Still, I suppose the view would be quite nice from up there," Merry reasoned jokingly.
"Ah, yes," Pippin laughed. "It's a quality establishment."
"I hear the staff is very good," Robin remarked. She giggled as Merry began silently comparing his height to Pippin's.
"What are you doing?" Pippin asked, turning around and raising his eyebrows.
Merry immediately began playing with his hair, trying to look innocent. "Nothing. The world's back to normal, that's all."
"No it isn't," Pippin replied. "I'm starving."
"You're always starving, Pip!" Robin exclaimed, laughing. Pippin, however, was too interested in the apple he had found floating in the water to care. The hobbit soon found more apples, and all three of them followed the trail. Pippin found a roast chicken, and Merry and Robin both found flagons of wine. Finally, they reached a massive stone room stocked to the roof with delicious-looking food.
"Saruman's storeroom!" Merry gasped, scrambling onto a pile of crates to reach a couple of barrels.
"I don't believe it!" Pippin stated as they opened one of the barrels, revealing a bunch of brown dried leaves.
Merry smiled as he viewed the contents of the barrel. "It is!"
"What?" Robin asked, confused.
"Longbottom Leaf," Merry explained. "The finest pipeweed in South Farthing."
Pippin quickly grabbed some and put it in his pipe. "Wait," he stated, pausing. "Do you think we should share it with Treebeard?"
Robin and Merry stopped for a minute, thinking. "No," Merry answered. "Dead plant and all that. Might be a distant relative."
"Plus," Robin added, "I don't think trees smoke. You know, fire and all."
"Ah, I get it," Pippin replied, tapping his nose. "Don't be hasty."
The three sat atop the crates, happily eating, laughing, and smoking. And for just those few moments, all their cares were swept away, along with the filth Saruman had created in Isengard.
~o*o*o*o~
At Helm's Deep, spirits were high as well. Both Kayden and Peyton's injuries had been tended to, and now both were helping clean up the battle-stained fortress.
Legolas approached Gimli, Peyton, and Kayden, stroking his bow proudly. "Final count," he drawled. "Forty-two."
"Forty-two? That's not bad for a pointy-eared Elvish princeling!" Gimli commented. "I myself am sitting pretty on forty-three."
In a flash, Legolas notched an arrow in his bow and fired it with deadly precision into the Uruk Gimli was sitting on, the arrow striking right between the Dwarf's legs. "Forty-three," Legolas smirked.
"He was already dead," Gimli stated.
"He was twitching," Legolas reasoned.
"He was twitching," Gimli retorted, "because he's got my axe embedded in his nervous system!" The Dwarf seized his axe, which was implanted into the dead Uruk's skull, and moved it violently, causing the Uruk's limbs to flail around.
Both Peyton and Kayden giggled. "I think I've seen enough Gimli," Kayden chuckled.
"And how many did you lassies get?" Gimli asked.
Kayden and Peyton glanced at each other, smiling, before answering in unison. "Forty-four!" The two strolled cheerfully away, almost able to feel the disbelieving stares of Elf and Dwarf upon their backs.
~o*o*o*o~
Later Kayden left to help Legolas and Aragorn tend to the wounded, so Peyton decided to visit the stables. Greystorm was there, happily munching on some hay. Peyton went over to him, and the gray stallion affectionately nuzzled her as she patted his neck.
"Do you mind?" a voice asked. Peyton whirled around to see Ėomer standing in the doorway.
"Not at all," Peyton replied. Ėomer strode to her side, gazing at Greystorm, who was now happily eating Peyton's hair.
"This stallion was ridden by a good friend of mine who fell in battle," he commented. "It is good to see that he has found another rider whom he loves dearly."
Peyton smiled and turned to face Ėomer. "Greystorm has been quite the companion," she stated. "He's an amazing horse."
It was quiet for a moment, save for the soft whinnies of the horses. "I saw you earlier in battle," Ėomer remarked. "You have much skill with the bow."
"Thanks."
The two stood in silence, staring at Greystorm, who had gone back to eating his hay. Finally, Ėomer spoke. "Will you ride with me to Isengard, Peyton?" he asked.
Peyton paused for a moment, thinking. "Sure," she finally replied.
A small smile broke out on the horse-lord's face. "We leave tomorrow."
The next day, true to Ėomer's word, Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Théoden, Ėomer, Kayden, and Peyton set out for Isengard. As they crested a hill, all could clearly see a great fiery red glow in the east. "Mordor," Kayden breathed.
"Sauron's wrath will be terrible, his retribution swift," Gandalf stated grimly. "The battle for Helm's Deep is over. The battle for Middle-earth is about to begin."
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