Chapter Nineteen
When the sun set, Ilmare walked out to the wall, strolling along it to find a place to stand when they came. As she walked, someone said from behind her, "Hiril nin," (My lady). She turned to see Haldir give her a respectful bow.
"Mae govannen, Haldir," (Hello) she acknowledged, turning to face him.
"Dagoruvalye?" (Will you fight) he asked, worry showing on his elven face.
"Nai," (Yes) she answered simply.
The elf nodded in resignation before askng whilst tilting his head, "Venal hivarlye er cu?" (Where di you get the bow)
"Legolas."
"Ar i megil?" (And the sword)
"Varda Valimaresse." (from Elbereth in Valimar)
"Er beretha anna," (A Kingly gift) Haldir commented honestly.
"Radyes na thalion nin." (Its power is my strength)
"Ar vel Mithrandiro?" (And what of Gandalf)
"…Te na ore nin," (He is my heart) Ilmare said, controlling her voice firmly.
Haldir saw the anguish in her through her shift from one foot to the other and the clenching of her hands, which only just showed from under her cloak. In a bold move, he reached out and took one of her hands in both his own. Her eyes snapped up to meet his, confusion and wariness apparent in their silvery depths.
"Lye ugolodh omentielvathlye Mithrandir ena," (You fear you will never see him again) he whispered.
Though her unseen face showed no emotion, her eyes filled with tears. The only outward sign of her inward pain was the sudden clenching of her hand in his.
"Lye omentiar tee na," (You will see him again) he assured her.
"Vanwa met dagor, im uomentielvath tee na. Im marath moruva tenn' I met I kemeneva," (If we lose this battle, I will never see him again. I will be trapped in darkness until the ending of the world) she said regretfully, hesitating before uttering that loathsome alternative, "an im gurthuva." (Or I will die.)
"Unayes ambar nin," (That will not be your fate) Haldir assured her.
"Ilya pdayes, ne im ugolodhyes." (You all say that, but none of us know)
"Met dagoruva lyesse ar Rohanesse ar ilye edainesse," (We will fight for you, for Rohan, and for all men) he said, looking over to his troops who now lined the battlements in motionless rows. "Na thalion." (Do not be afraid)
In the midst of their conversation, a great roar sounded in the distance. It was quickly followed by the thunder of thousands of feet marching toward them. Isengard had arrived.
To worsen matters, the clouds chose this moment to pelt them all with rain. Ilmare drew her hood farther over her face to protect her from the rain. For the others, there was no escape. With luck, their bows would not snap from being wet.
For what seemed to be hours, the waited as the orcs approached. All of the elves beside them had their bows ready. Each held an arrow against the string, ready to pull it back and let it fly against their enemies. The orcs began to yell and pound their weapons on the ground. Ilmare and Haldir exchanged glances at this. They both knew these were merely scare tactics to destroy the morale of the men.
In the midst of this, a single arrow shot out from the wall, coming down to pierce an orc's neck. It fell dead with a grunt. At this, the orcs began to yell. They attacked.
From farther along the wall, they heard Aragorn call, "Prepare to fire!" Every elven warrior plus Ilmare quickly drew back their string. On his command, they fired, sending a rain of deadly arrows into the ranks of their enemies.
The orcs fired back with crossbows. They also used large ballistas to fire grappling hooks at the wall. They used these to haul up ladders. Elves and men alike fell to the berserkers who rode these ladders up, preventing them from being dislodged immediately.
A ladder came up near them. The orc on it hopped off and swung its large sword in an arc which the elves just barely managed to escape. Without a second thought, Ilmare ran to it and blocked two of its blows before stabbing it in the stomach and cutting off its head. She quickly pushed the ladder away, preventing any more from following it.
Quickly, she turned to look for more ladders. Haldir was already ahead of her, attacking the one to their right. She raced to his aid. Together, they took down three more ladders and many orcs coming up them. They could take down no more. There were too many orcs already on the wall. So they fought.