Authors note there is a change in the name of Elwing to Elrin this is to prevent lots of confusion!
Asterin found the days painfully long, the highlights being her time spent training Merry and Eowyn in combat, and even that had to be kept secret. Or at least those times when the Lady of Rohan sparred with her, for her people would never allow such things. Her days passed mostly with the children who loved her stories and songs, but time still passed unbearably slowly. She waited each day for the beacon to light, for the call for action to be made, waiting for the war to come. Every day getting longer and each day her patience ran thinner with the men around her who still despite the battle at Helm's Deep still expected her to conform to their standards.
If she did not leave or find a way to channel her frustration, she very well might put an arrow between the eyes of one of the men of Rohan. In today's session she showed how to overpower larger, more powerful opponents, "you can end any battle before size matters with any number of well-placed strikes." She drew her sword the silver blade whining as she pulled it from the sheath, slashing it upward in a swift arc. Motioning for Eowyn to step forward she performed the move again, "Give it a go." Moving to keep watch for others while the Lady swung her sword in a powerful slash that would have easily decapitated any enemy. She saw out of the corner of her eye a figure come towards them, "Eowyn hand Merry your blade, and get out of here."
Racing back to Merry, she took the blade Eowyn had been training with, hiding the gleaming sword within the folds of her cloak. Shifting to face Merry she began showing him how to spin a sword in one hand to readjust his grip during battle as one of the men of Rohan came into the sparring ring. Her back turned to the man watching Merry flip his blade the steel reflecting the sunlight. "Ladies training, war is the province of men," she heard him murmur and she held up a hand for Merry to stop and move to the side.
"I'm sorry, did you say something, I thought I heard a statement that is false amongst all kindreds," moving to stand next to the sword rack and slipping the blade out of her cloak. Laying her hand on the hilt of her sword she strode into the marked ring for sparring, her muscles tense. "If you truly believe that combat is the art of men, then perhaps you should prove your statements." Gesturing to the ring, she kept her blade in its sheath, leaving the challenge open-ended and the man came towards her. Then she rushed forward and went on the offensive.
Her clenched fist slammed into the man's sword arm, sending his sword clattering to the ground. Lashing out with a powerful kick that sent the man flying out of the ring, she snapped, "War is the province of any who have something worth fighting for. That is who should fight, not just men, and should I hear such a statement again I will do that with my sword." Striding away from the man, she drew her blade and began showing Merry a two-step strike she'd found to be an effective attack against orcs. The knot of anger that had burned in her stomach flared, the grief flooding to the forefront of her mind as she moved away to face the King's Hall and began spinning her blade. Her sword spun around her hand the blade blurring, the sword easily fitting in her hand, left and right her mind sinking into her fighting trance as she fought herself. And her memories.
"Oh, I do hope this works," Elrin made her way around the citadel, waiting. Her nerves wearing thin while she glanced up at the beacon seeing the small green-cloaked figure clambering up the stone. Pacing the courtyard, she moved her gaze to the white tree and wondered if it would ever bloom again and if Gondor would ever be restored to its former glory. Estel had what it took to rise above his forefathers since the time of Elendil, but he, like all great kings before him, did not want to be king.
He did not want to be king. But she knew at some point he would have to don the mantle he would bear for the rest of his days. Her hand rested comfortably on her sword hilt, over the embossed star, the symbol of the house that had made the sword for her grandmother. The three-layered star is the symbol of the house of Feanor. The blade had been crafted by Celebrimbor son of Curufin Feanorian, his grandfather the greatest artifact smith of her kind. She saw the flame flash and turned, grinning. The beacon of Minas Tirith crackled and smoked, and the beacon was lit.
Sprinting away from the tree, her eyes locked on the mountaintop to the north, "the beacon of Amon De." Her heart leaped as the fire flared atop the mountain, the men around her turning to face Amon De, "the beacon, the beacon on Amon De, is lit." Smiling, she watched as the men gathered, looking at the mountain her mind going back to before her mother sailed, "hope is lit."
Asterin's heart nearly stopped, the fire blooming to life on the horizon, the beacons were lit. Racing for the Hall of the King's, she saw Aragorn in a dead sprint headed for the hall. She elongated her stride, catching up with him just after he threw open the doors to the hall, "The beacons of Minas Tirith, the beacons are lit." He came to a stop barely an arms-length from King Théoden, "Gondor calls for aid." Her gaze fell upon the king at which Asterin directed her stare, this was his choice, lead his people to war or stay here and be safe. "And Rohan shall answer, muster the Rohirim!"
Her face split into a grin as she raced out the double doors throwing them open, and headed for the stables. Reaching her horse, she swung onto her mount back in a single fluid movement. She rode out and back up to the hall, finding Eowyn amongst the men. "You ride with us, to Dunharrow?" Frankly, she was surprised Théoden was allowing his sister's daughter to leave the city of Edoras. "Just to the encampment, it is tradition for the Ladies of the court to farewell the men." The glint of sunlight on steel caught her eye, and she saw the slightest hint of a sword hilt underneath the saddlebags. Giving Eowyn a knowing look, she swung down from her horse, pulling the bag over the hilt. Behind her, she saw Merry race by towards a small pony with a massive grin a sword at his side. "It looks as though Merry is coming as well," she smiled as the young hobbit struggled over the pony's back, taking the reins. Swinging back onto her horse, she rode over to Merry, who was trying to get his horse to move forward.
Coming up beside him, she lightly patted the horse, which began trotting forward. She rode alongside him, looking around at the men and seeing Eomer atop his horse in the center, spear in hand, "Now is the hour, riders of Rohan. Oaths you have taken, now fulfill them all, to Lord and land, hyah!" Spurring his horse forward to ride at Théoden's side, Asterin smiled down at Merry, who grinned up at her. Alongside her on her other flank rode Eowyn, the sword still sheathed and hidden under her saddlebags. "So, we ride to Gondor and war."