CHAPTER 4

The men stared in disbelief at this unearthly vision. "She…she's breathing!" muttered Hamar incredulously under his breath, "She's alive!" They looked at each other and then back again at the beautiful elf resting peacefully on the ground in that black hole which was Gundabad.

She lay there, soft breaths barely visible, looking tranquil whilst enveloped in a deep sleep brought upon by an enchantment of some sort. "This is powerful elvish magic," cut off Odell, "the layer of shimmering light seems to be protecting her in some way. Look…not even dust dares fall on it. By all the gods in the heavens, she must have been resting here for years."

"Have you seen the remains of the soldiers in the other room? Years? I would say more than a thousand!" replied Tor. "A thousand years asleep in here! Protected yet imprisoned for eternity! This is unbelievable! I cannot imagine how…why…" Tor was at a loss for words. They all were for this was the last thing they had expected to discover there. "If it hadn't been for Arahad's stubbornness..." and his voice trailed away once again.

Arahad hadn't uttered a word the whole time. He had been too confused and mesmerised by what he was witnessing to speak and he had too many questions in his head which he wanted answered. It was the mention of his name that slowly brought him back to reality.

"We must wake her up," was all he said, and he slowly knelt down beside the delicate frame and stretched his hand forward until he brushed her cheek with his fingertips. No sooner had he done this than her eyes opened wide and she inhaled a deep breath, making the four men standing near take a step back. Fighting orcs was decidedly an easier task than witnessing these kind of enchantments.

The mysterious glow surrounding her slowly dissipated into the air as she continued taking deeper, more frequent breaths whilst blinking in succession. Turning slightly her head, she looked directly at Arahad with eyes that betrayed pain and confusion.

It was then that Arahad sprang into action. Ever so gently, he put his arms under her and lifted her up. Holding her like that he realised that she wasn't as small as he had at first thought. Lying next to her the men found an elvish sword which they had failed to notice before. Hamar picked it up and, without uttering another word, the four of them started on their way back out of that miserable place.

No wonder had the door been sealed by the orcs all those years ago. The men had heard of the great power of the magic wielded by the elves and now they had seen it with their own eyes. The orcs must have closed the entrance to protect themselves from it, believing all to be dead inside the room. As time went by it had been forgotten as if it had never existed.

Through the armoury, the corridor, the great hall and finally the entrance they went, moving on and never looking back, suddenly feeling the need to leave that forsaken place behind them as quickly as possible. Once outside, they breathed the fresh, crisp night air, and it was only then that Arahad handed over the sleeping maiden to Odell.

They quickened their step. If Gundabad wasn't a welcoming place during the day, it sure was eerie and frightening at dusk. Bats and crows circling the tall towers added to the overall aura of foreboding.

Through the gates and up the rocky slopes they hastened until they found the place where they had left their horses. Arahad wasted no time in getting on his horse and telling Odell to hand him gently the elf maiden. He felt the need to put as much distance between them and Gundabad as possible. He had had enough of that cursed place. By now all the others were on horseback and, holding her safely in his arms, he kicked the horse to a gallop through the barren land towards a more welcoming place.

The sun had long set by now and the full moon shone brightly in a sky decorated with stars. It was a clear night. Quite cold but not windy and the moon lit up the eastern path they were taking, in the direction of the Grey Mountains.

The rangers rode fast through most of the night, their minds set on putting as much distance as possible between them and that desolate kingdom. Although riding as a group, not one of them uttered a word, each of them pondering on his own thoughts. All were quiet as they dwelt on the same thing…who was the mysterious maiden they had just discovered? How had she been trapped in there? What had forced her to come to Gundabad in the first place? It was unbelievable how she had survived all these years deep inside such an orc stronghold.

The path became better as they rode further east. It was less rocky and bleak as more trees and greenery started growing on both sides. It was almost as if that same path was coming to life the further from Angmar they got. They could now hear birds in the branches above their heads and this was also a sign that dawn was approaching, bringing with it a new day, the first one after so many for the lady resting against Arahad's chest.

It was then that Arahad, who had been in the lead, came to a halt. They could see the Grey Mountains not far away to their left whilst to their right, far in the distance, they could discern the boarders of the forest of Mirkwood. "It would be better if we find a place where we could rest and eat something," he stated, to which all the others agreed wholeheartedly. They admitted that they were, in fact, exhausted and positively famished after the excitement and the discovery of the previous day.

Not far away from the road they found a stream which they guessed was coming all the way from the mountains. This also meant that it was on its way to join other streams as it rushed south to finally become one with the great River Anduin.

One by one the men got off their horses and Tor went to help Arahad. Although awake, the elf maiden had little strength to dismount on her own, so Arahad and Tor helped her and placed her on a blanket by the bank of the stream. She looked at them with a confused look on her face before observing her surroundings and then looking far away in the distance. All this she did in complete silence, causing Arahad and Tor to look at each other, not knowing what to say or do next until finally Arahad signalled to his friend to move away and give her some time alone.

"Don't leave!" Her voice was so soft that it was barely audible against the gurgling of the nearby stream. Arahad stopped in his tracks and signalled to Tor to go and help the others while he sat down slowly next to her. She must be frightened. So were Arahad's thoughts, yet he had no clue how he could make her feel more at ease. He was at a loss for words like never before.

Then he turned round and saw her blue grey eyes looking directly at him. She was sitting straight, wide awake now, completely revived from her long slumber. Her golden hair was done in braids and cascaded all the way down to her waist, almost touching the blanket on which she was resting. The first rays of the sun made their way across mountain, valley and stream to bathe her face in their warmth. She was breathtaking. But it wasn't just that. There was something about her which could only be described as some kind of inner strength.

"I…I…You…" He was actually working on the difficult task of putting a coherent sentence together when he was stopped short by the shouts of his comrades. "Wolves!" shouted Tor as he came running back from a clump of trees followed by three huge growling beasts.

"Wargs more likely!" uttered Arahad through gritted teeth as he stood up brandishing his sword and charging straight towards them. These were fierce, unearthly monsters, bred by orcs to serve their purpose in battle; for they weren't used just as a means of travel, as is usual with a horse, but they were trained to kill and feast upon the enemy, feeding solely on the flesh of the poor soul who dared cross their path. They had seen many of these beasts in battle and it was impossible to forget the cries of the unfortunate as they were torn limb from limb by their pointed fangs.

By now Odell and Hamar had come rushing back after hearing the shouts and hideous growls. It was difficult to contain them. The wargs were swift and strong, wanting desperately to quench their thirst for blood. Saliva dribbled from their jaws as their blood red eyes sought out the slightest movement made by the men in order to start their onslaught.

Chaos was unleashed in a split of a second. Hamar looked sideways at Odell as he let out a loud cry and rushed forward in a frontal attack of the first warg. Odell was at his heels and, as one jumped sideways the other slashed the beast' s legs, in an attempt to bring it down as quickly as possible. It was only thus that they could overpower it and finally give it a deadly blow. They worked together like clockwork for they had killed many during the battle a year ago.

Arahad too did not find it difficult to do away with the one he was facing. Trained and lithe, he ran forward as quick as lightening but when the creature's head was just a couple of metres away, Arahad ducked down just in time as he heard the warg's teeth snap away at the air where his head had been just a second ago. Sliding right underneath its belly the warrior struck his mighty sword in it and tore open the animal from neck to tail, making it collapse in agony and final death.

As he was scrambling to his feet, Arahad watched in horror as the third warg rushed towards Tor who was still bare handed, not having yet had the time to retrieve his sword. Deathly calm, Tor looked straight at it and aimed a huge blow using all the strength he possessed, right in between the animal's eyes. The warg halted in his tracks, gave a small whimper before shaking his massive body and knocking Tor sideways onto the ground. Instead of hindering its attack, this seemed to make it even more aggressive as it shook its head and looked straight ahead, for something else had caught its attention.

Forgetting Tor, the beast lunged forward towards the stream. It was then that they saw her, standing straight and tall, facing the charging animal, holding the sword that Hamar had found beside her. Her face was set in deep concentration and there was fire in her eyes as the warg let out a fiendish cry.

But barely had it time to open its mouth than she moved nimbly sideways and in one quick movement buried the full length of the sword in its brain. By the time the huge beast fell on the ground in a dying whimper, she had already slid it out again and moved to the side as if nothing had happened or this was the most natural thing to do.

The men were left completely amazed and at a loss for words as they saw this scene unravel in front of their eyes.

"Who…who are you?" It was Odell who managed to stammer the words. "What's your name?"

"I don't know," was her soft reply as her eyes once again filled with sadness.