Chapter Two
From the Ashes
They appeared within seconds. Once their cover was blown, they showed their true selves. Her fathers' sword met the enemy before her screaming became breathless. She covered her eyes, but that only magnified the sounds. The swords hitting flesh and bone crackled around her. The flow of unrestricted blood and the sound of it dripping along the rocky ground. Her hands shook violently as she continued to scream. Her eyes still being hidden to the horrors around her was the only comfort she had. Although they had no heartbeats, the enemy did not lack sound. Growls and grumbles from their mouths cried out. She could hear their pain-filled grunts. The enemy called and cried like a stray cat's hiss from the village, mixed with the deep throaty growl of a tiger.
"Take the children inside! Now!" Her father's voice broke through the clinking of swords and grunts of man.
"Adar!" she cried, at least she thought she did. She felt no sound come from her, nor the movement in her legs to escape. Her body was too frightened to move.
"Come to me. Come to the sound of my voice!" Her father yelled to her. She heard his heart. The beating was fast but steady. He is not afraid. She thought.
If her father had no fear, she could not either. She released the tight pinch of her eyes and slowly peaked out. Her once peaceful playground was now a field of black blood and death. A scream rumbled in her throat again while her knees shook her towards the ground. Her father was just there, on the other side of the naked tree. Her brother and Elboron were safely beside him already. They clung to each other tightly and were now waving for her to follow. If she ran, she could make it. She had to go. She had to go now. With her trembling left foot, she advanced forward. Just then she felt a breeze of cool wind slide down her back, the sound of metal meeting earth made her jump. The end of a sword now stood where she was just a moment ago. It was dull but deep in the soil. She followed the hand that bore the sword, and the scream escaped her lips freely. What is that? Her mind raced for the stories Mother and Father would tell them. Though none had ever described such a beast. This was no elf, orc, or troll. This was something she had not heard of before and never wanted to see again. Its eyes were black as the night without stars while its skin was scribbled with colors of gray and white. Like the cracks of cobblestone, its skin was in patches that fit together. Gray stone-like patches. Its color reminded her of the clouds before a storm, but it was the eyes that bothered her most. A chill shivered up her spine making the hairs on her back stand. It was staring at her, unmoving and speechless. Suddenly it curled its head back while its lips wrinkled up on the sides. It pulled its head back down to face her and let out a roaring hiss. Its patchy stone skin began glowing between the cracks. The color of yellow, orange, and red. Fire. The heat slammed into her face like a flood and she took a jolting step back. The monster lifted its sword from the earth and towered it above her head.
"RUN TO ME!" Her father's voice screamed. She was gone.
Her feet flew under her without her control just as she heard the sword meet the earth again. She ran full speed towards her father and brother, the enemy around her falling in numbers. By the time she reached her father he was sheathing his sword and lifting her off the ground. Nothing else had ever felt so safe than being right there in her father's arms. No harm could find her, and no night black eyes could see her. She felt him run up into the keep with what was left of the guards behind him.
"The stories were true." One was breathless as he spoke.
"Yes" her father said, while she buried her face in the crook of his neck.
"They, they killed the elves then. They killed the elves!" Another began to panic.
"Yes." Her father continued to speak calmly.
"Are there going to be more?" Eldarion asked pulling on the sleeve of his shirt.
"Yes." He sighed as he answered, and she tightened her grip at his words.
Her father's heart was beginning to calm, and she felt the security of the great hall surround her. The echoing whimpers of Eldarion and Elboron sounded through the hall.
"I do not mean to cry." Eldarion said, "I do not mean to be afraid."
She felt the ground touch her feet as her father placed her on the ground. Her own tears beginning to overwhelm her. The light-colored eyes of the king stared at the three children. His face calm and careful. Even though his lips were slightly hidden by the gray speckled beard, she could see the smile clearly.
"Do not be ashamed to feel fear. You are allowed to be scared. You are safe now, and to show true courage is to not let that fear control you. Will you be strong?" He placed a hand on Eldarion's shoulder, while she nodded up and down and wiped the tears from her eyes. His voice and words always warmed her in the most fearsome of places.
"Elboron!" Lady Eowyn cried as she wrapped her arms around the boy.
Her father stood from his kneeling position and looked at the tired bloodstained men before him.
"The rumors are true, and are worse than I feared. A fortnight ago I received word that a fire had been seen in the ashes of Gorgoroth. We now see the fire is part of our new enemy. I will ask you to fight like I did years ago. We do not know the enemy we face, but we will not fear them. We will defend our land from the new evil that beckons us. Gather only the strongest men, we leave when the next sun rises."
The way he spoke sent warmth in her veins. He had taken the fear she had once felt so strongly and turned it into a passion to fight. She wanted to fight alongside him, even if she only came up to the belt on his waist. The sound of her mother coming down the hall turned her from his speech. The water swelled in her eyes once again as she ran towards the arms of more comfort. She had to say her goodbye's as well, as she was going to leave with them.