The white fog rolled against the dark magic of Sauron and pressed further, revealing soon enough the shadowy leader of the Enemy's forces.

The Witch-King stood tall and menacing, his black armor absorbing the light coming out of Lorien. His cold piercing gaze settled on her as she walked closer, sword held high and a firebrand at her side. Her sword glowed with an ethereal light, which seemed to make the sorcerer king frown at her. Frown if she could actually see his face!

"You dare face me, Elf-witch?" his voice echoed, dripping with contempt.

Her grip tightened around her blade, Hadhafang, as she faced the towering figure. "I dare," she replied, her voice steady, "for the sake of those I love and the world we seek to protect."

With a swift motion, the sorcerer king lunged at her, his sword swinging through the air.

She evaded the blow with a nimble twist, her elven reflexes saving her from the crushing force. She countered with a precise strike aimed at his exposed side, but his dark armor deflected her blade, sending sparks flying.

They circled each other, the air thick with tension. Her movements were fluid and calculated, each strike and parry a testament to her skill and training. The Witch-King, however, was relentless, his attacks brutal and unyielding. The clash of their weapons rang out, a symphony of war that echoed across the battlefield.

With a sudden surge of power, Arwen drove the Witch-King back, her blade slicing through the air with blinding speed. She aimed for the gaps in his armor, her strikes finding purchase.

The Witch-King staggered, his anger palpable.

"You'll pay for your insolence," he snarled, his voice a chilling whisper that sent shivers down her spine.

She pressed her advantage, her heart pounding with a mixture of fear and determination. The white fog strengthened her resolve. With a final desperate effort, she thrust her sword at the Witch-King's heart, her eyes blazing with the hope of victory.

For a moment, time seemed to stand still.

Her blade pierced the darkness, and the Witch-King let out a guttural cry of pain. His form wavered, flickering like a dying flame. But before she could land the final blow, a surge of dark energy erupted from him, throwing her back with immense force.

She landed hard on the ground and took a shuddering breath.

"Arwen!" she could hear Aragorn call out.

Her body trembled from the exertion.

She had come so close, closer than anyone before.

But it was not over yet.

The Witch-King, though stumbling and screeching in pain, stood up, his burning sword held aloft high in the air, ready to strike one more time.

She stood up too, though all wind had been knocked out of her. She was gasping for breath, yet she held her blade aloft, elven magic protecting its steel from the disintegrating powers of the wraith world.

Even as she moved forward to strike, lightning flashed from the sky above and smote the ground in between. The gray lightning doused the fire on the Witch-King's sword, and together with the white fog, drove the darkness away.

The Nine screeched aloud, and one by one, they vanished into thin air. The shadowy form of the sorcerer-king retreated last. "This isn't over yet, Elf-witch!" he hissed, his voice a promise of future torment.

She stepped forward to answer, but a voice hailed her from behind.

"Let him go, Lady of the Evening," an old man's voice said.

She turned behind and bowed.

"Gandalf!" Aragorn called out to him.

Mithrandir stepped down from the heavy boulder and approached them both.

"Far off yet is his doom still, and the prophecy won't be fulfilled here. Not now. Not yet."

"I could have ended him," she said, anger raging inside her.

"Perhaps, Lady Evenstar," the wizard said. "Perhaps... but your blade couldn't really harm him. He lives on in the Unseen World, and only those blades spelled for such a purpose can rip apart his sinew. Your elven blade might have injured him, but alas! Such powers are beyond your sword."

"Well, I wish someone finds them quickly," she muttered.

Mithrandir laughed and leaned on his ashen gray staff. "When the right time comes... I fear the Lord of the Nazgul cannot meet his end until such a time as Isildur's Bane is found. Neither by man or elf alone shall he fall, I foretell this."

She nodded and leaned against the boulder. "Well, done is done," she said. "And now we have yet to deal with Sauron's forces in the east."

"They have been dealt with, Arwen," Mithrandir said. "The fog confused them and convinced them that they had come here to kill themselves. The orcs did battle against their own and dropped down. Few who had the nerve to withstand soon fell to elven bows, praise to the Galadhrim. No news of their demise shall reach the eyes and ears of Mordor. Dol Guldur has retreated as well. Haldir and his elves pursue them northward. They'll do so for a distance... at least as far as the Gladden, I think. Although..." he let out a gasp of air that came out as a soft whistle.

"Although what, Gandalf?" Aragorn asked even as the twins joined them.

"A small force sneaked past the guard southward and, I think, they have gone towards Moria. Perhaps Sauron seeks to reoccupy the mines with the orcs."

She cursed along with her twin brothers.

"So this attack... it was a diversion?" she asked.

The wizard nodded. "The goal was three-fold. To allow the orcs to pass by without notice of our patrols towards Moria. Second, if possible, to test the strength of the Golden Wood and perhaps destroy the threat altogether, which had once been Sauron's plan when he first set up in the dark fortress of Dol Guldur, and third, to take revenge on the man who had dared set fire to the Morgul Vale and was a thorn to Sauron's plan to conquer the south of Middle Earth." His eyes went to Aragorn as he spoke the words. "And still Sauron doesn't suspect who you are, Aragorn, and that's a good thing. He simply believes you to be one of the Dunedain who has somehow learned the ways of the elves. His eye will now remain fixed on Rivendell and Lothlorien, eager to know the secrets of these realms. He's close, I hear, but he shall never get to know the truth as long as Isildur's Bane remains hidden from him."

Aragorn grunted but said no word.

"I think it is time I left north then," he said. "I wouldn't wish to bring more danger to the Golden Wood."

"You'll leave nowhere, Estel," Arwen said. "Your exchange of words with Lord Silwin is well-known. And the truth has been laid bare to my grandparents. They understand everything you did was in self-defense, and there's no wrongdoing on your part. They wish you back in Caras Galadhon, Estel. Surely, you wouldn't disappoint me in this."

"Er... no... not at all," he stuttered.

She laughed. "Then we should make our journey eastward again. Still a long journey yet."