***Chapter 14***

**Saffy's POV**

Anxiety rolled through me like a wave. I sat astride my horse, feeling the subtle shift beneath my legs. The Black Gate grew with every shift, looming against the horizon blocking out the sun. As the edifice neared, I felt a shiver pass through my spine. The old saying "Goose walking over your grave" struck me. What a morbid thought.

"Saffy, you alright?" Nimiwen's voice cut through the fog that was filling my mind.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I responded, looking over at her.

It was strange riding into battle once more with her at my side. Before, there was little fear other than for injury. But today there was a lingering worry, knotted in my stomach; the anticipation that something about this wasn't quite right. Deirdre's face sprung up to my mind. Over the past few weeks, I had been attempting to crush the fear that radiated from the thought that she might have betrayed us. But with each passing day it was harder and harder to keep the thought from consuming my mind.

The army came to a standstill, breaking me from my morbid thoughts once more. We had reached the Black Gate. The gate itself was intimidating, the walls of the keep jagged, the thought that shoving someone against it would impale them crossed my mind. There were also stains on the ground, near the walls, the ground darkened by blood. While the stench of death stayed stagnant in the air.

It was quiet, a deathly silence over the plains. The anticipation of the battle brewing. Yet the gate remained firmly shut. No horn sounding the call to battle. The silence was unnerving.

"Where are they?" Pippin's voice came out concerned.

Instead of a response to his query, Aragorn rode forward; drawing nearer to the Black Gate so that he could be heard.

"Let the Lord of the Black Land come forth. Let justice be done upon him." Aragorn declared to the Gates.

This was the first response that was received by our army, the Gates began to grindingly open. Causing Aragorn to draw back to the front line of our force. As the opening widened further and further, the sound of thundering footsteps grew while a single figure emerged from the gate, sitting astride a black horse.

It's mouth was stretched over shark-like teeth, more than there should have been. The lips which were pulled to the point that expression was nearly impossible, were cracked and bleeding and tinted by bruising from the force of speaking. A massive black helm covered the top half of the being's face, leaving not even the bottom of the nose visible. It's armor was as jagged as the walls of the keep, cold and dark.

"My master Sauron the Great bids thee welcome." The voice coming from the monstrosity sounded harsh and slightly accented. But perhaps that was simply the effect of such a massive maw. "Is there any in this rout with the authority to treat with me?"

"We do not come to treat with Sauron, faithless and accursed. Tell your master this. The armies of Mordor must disband. He is to depart these lands, never to return." Gandalf responded, disgust at the creature dripping from his words.

"Aha! Old Greybeard! I have a token I was bidden to show thee." The Mouth declared, his words giddy.

Then he tossed a silvery object so that it Gandalf could catch it. I was amazed that Gandalf could even react quickly enough to snatch the object in his hands, yet once he did so it splayed out. The silvery material reflected in the sun, unlike it had in the Mines, where we last saw it protecting Frodo. Horror invaded my mind as the chain shirt glinted in the light.

"Frodo!" Pippin cried out, aghast.

"Silence." Gandalf commanded, his voice lacking authority as his grief seeped through it.

"No!" Merry sobbed, tears streamed down his face, clearing a pathway through the dirt on his face.

"Silence!" Gandalf ordered, his emotions strained slightly more this time. Though I could spy a few tears forming in his eyes.

"The Halfling was dear to thee I see. Know that he suffered greatly at the hands of his captors. Who would've thought that someone so small could endure so much pain? And he did, Gandalf. He did. My mistress made sure of that." The Mouth cruelly uttered. A horrific smile forming on his face as the sound of wing beats grew steadily louder.

My eyes were drawn to the sky, one of the Nazgul beasts was slowly descending in a seemingly lazy circle. Upon the seat was a figure garbed in black. With pale hair following behind the head. Finally, the beast landed upon the top of the gate, it's neck craning downward and the figure slid down the neck, catching upon a small platform at the jaw of the beast, seemingly meant solely for this purpose. The mouth rode over to where the creature had landed, giving his hand to the dismounting rider.

Then I realized. It was her. Di stepped off the beast, hand clasped by the Mouth. Her hair had reflected the light better in the sky than here on the ground, so it was more like her normal brown with blonde. Armor plated her body, a veritable corset rising up above her collar bones. The black plates sucked in the light leaving little shine as they slid down her arms and sides. There was a split skirt to her dress, covering only the front and back of her legs, but this lay over leather pants. Overall, she was garbed entirely in black making her skin look paler than I was used to seeing her. But what shocked me the most was her eyes, the warmth which had been portrayed over the years that I had known her was gone, leaving a hard glint in its' place.

I heard a gasp escape Legolas, pain evident in his voice. I understood his pain, it was shocking to see her. This person who looked like my best friend but couldn't possibly be, it was too much comprehend.

"Are you surprised to see me?" A cold female voice asked, it was astounding that the speaker was Di. It didn't sound like her. It was sharp like a knife.

"Deirdre?" Legolas whispered, seemingly not to realize that the word had escaped his mouth.

"Why?" Pippin voiced, desperate and appalled.

"Because Pip, there's no sense remaining with the losing side, leaving it for the winning side, is just good business." She replied, a twisted smile forming on her lips.

"Deirdre, if you rejoin us now you may yet be forgiven when the tables turn." Gandalf stated, attempting to offer her a deal.

"Silly Greybeard, you think that you have tools with which to bargain. In this you are wrong." She began, her voice taunting. "So I will offer you a counter offer. You can surrender now, and many of your lives will be spared. Or you may choose to fight, and your corpses will feed our beasts. May every man make this choice for themselves, let it not simply be the choice of an old weathered wizard or a ranger king."

There was no cry from the crowd saying that they wanted to yield. And the smug smile which had rested upon Deirdre's face slightened a little. I glanced behind me at the men who had ridden to war with us, determination was still on their faces. Though fear was obvious for many of them.

"So be it." Deirdre said, turning her back on our army, the Mouth moving to her side.

I saw a few whispered words pass between the two of them, the Mouth seemed to want to disagree with her for a moment as his massive mouth turned down in a frown, but he gave a nod and she flashed a harsh smile before striding back to the Nazgul beast that was waiting for her. The tail of the creature lashed around and she stepped upon the tail, grasping onto a spike on either side. Amazingly enough, the creature lifted its tail to its shoulders, allowing Deirdre to step from the tail right into the saddle. Then it shot into the air.

My attention swung back to the grinning Mouth, smug satisfaction on it's maw.

"You should have taken the offer that my lady so graciously offered you." The mouth declared. "It would have granted you life rather than a slow painful death."

As he spoke Aragorn rode forward toward the Mouth, anger flaring on his face. He pulled Anduril from its sheath and struck the neck of the Mouth. Causing its armored head to drop to the ground.

"Well, I guess that concludes negotiations." Gimli said grimly.

Aragorn turned back around, fury was still burning in his eyes. He raised his voice to the army that faced him, the men that we had brought to the edge of doom.

"Sons of Gondor, of Rohan, my brothers." He began, a commanding power in his voice. "I see it in your eyes, the same fear that would take the heart of me. A day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship, but it is not this day. An hour of wolves and shattered shields when the age of men comes crashing down. But it is not this day. This day we fight!"

A cheer rose from our army, the gate groaned open, and the screams of Nazgul filled the sky. And it began.

**End Chapter**

AN: So there is a quote in there from POTC, slightly changed. I also don't own POTC, though that would be awesome.

Im sorry that this took so long for me to get up. I was contemplating making it a little longer because I know a stopping point that I want to hit. But I really wanted to get this part up. So sadly you will have to wait a little longer before finding out about Frodo. But it should be soon. Thank you to everyone who is still reading. Please review and let me know what you think.