Hello again! I know it has been awhile since I last updated, and it is because I just had a baby! I hope you enjoy the next chatper!

Chapter 135

When I looked at the map, the journey was truly not very far, but I chafed at the slow pace Eowyn had set. I kept looking nervously to the West as we moved South, and I thought I could spot Uruk-hai on black horses riding in the distance, but none as of yet had come close. My bow was strung, ready to be used at a moment's notice, and the handful of soldiers were clearly on the lookout for any threats. I had an uneasy, foreboding feeling churning in my stomach, but could not pinpoint why. Candaith kept giving me worried looks, and I tried to reassure him, but he clearly knew I was just trying to hide my worries from him. Thankfully he didn't push, but I also noted his hand straying to his sword more and more frequently. Golodir also looked worried, in his grim sort of way. I knew the Dunedain and Elves tended to be more sensitive to feelings of doom, which was the best words I could think of to describe what I was experiencing.

The sun was shining brightly, and the people were in good spirits, if still watchful and wary. Conversations were quiet but I could see children smiling and playing games in the carts, and if was as if some of the weight was lifted from their shoulders, now that we were on the move. Eowyn, for her part, kept up light conversation with those around her, making sure everyone had what they needed. I admired her leadership, but could clearly see her desire to ride off into battle as she frequently scanned the horizon for enemies to slay, her hand on her sword hilt.

"Gwin, I have an ill feeling," Nona murmured, having fallen back beside me, her brow furrowed. "Something is not right."

My eyes were drawn down the road, and I squinted as I spotted what looked like a broken wagon. No one else seemed to have noticed it yet, so I rode forward with Eowyn's permission, the other Dunedain by my side.

The scene I came upon had me stumbling off my horse and vomiting into the grass alongside the road, unable to contain my horror at the sight.

The bodies of slain Rohirrim littered the road. Throats were torn open and limbs missing due to what were clearly wargs, and sword wounds numerous and crudely done by orcs. The blood was not fresh, and flies and other horrid things were crawling all over them. I dimly heard Golodir shouting as he waved away the carrion birds, and Candaith rode back to Eowyn to warn her of what they were about to come upon. Men, women, and children were all victims of this brutal attack, and I wiped my mouth and tried to pull myself together. Calenglad slipped an arm around my shoulders and helped me slow my breathing. I was embarrassed at my inability to handle this, for I had seen much worse in my time in Mirkwood due to the spiders and other foul creatures massacring their victims.

Clearly, these were citizens trying to make it to Dunharrow or Aldburg on their own, and their small number provided no challenge to a group of wargs and orcs. Suddenly Nona was by my side, staring at the carnage with disgust, "What horror...all of them, the old and young cut down. They were innocent, Gwin, and unable to defend themselves, and still the enemy slew them all." Horn stumbled over as well, and I noticed with some confusion that he seemed to want to reach out to Nona in comfort, but I had no time to ponder this further.

Eowyn had reached us, and her sharp intake of breath was all the warning I had before she gave an anguished cry and said something clearly foul in Rohirric, considering the raised eyebrows of Horn. "How dare they slaughter my people with such reckless hate," she growled. I eyed the citizens of Rohan she had left behind us, still possibly out of sight of the victims. "They will pay for this."

"Lady Eowyn, if I may," I began, thankful my voice was at least somewhat even. "We cannot let your people come upon them like this. Something must be done."

Eowyn glared at me for a moment before she sighed heavily. "You are right, of course. I shall not allow the Wargs of the White Hand to strip what remains of their dignity. Come then, let us see if we can identify them, and then bury them. Perhaps then they shall find the peace they so hoped for." I nodded in agreement, and this was done in short order, with the help of a few soldiers. Unfortunately we were only able to identify a few of them, and I grieved in knowing they might have family elsewhere who would never know what happened to them. However, we needed to keep moving as well, or we might meet a similar fate.

After this unforeseen delay, the journey continued on at a more hurried pace. The relaxed atmosphere was gone, replaced with tension and fear. According to Eowyn, we would reach the village of Underharrow by evening. "If it was just a few of us, we could have perhaps made it all the way to Dunharrow, but sunset is not far off, and I have no intention of staying out in the open like this in the dark."

"Is the Thane of Underharrow aware of your plan to stop?" I asked curiously.

Eowyn nodded, "I sent a messenger to inform her. I do not think she is happy about it, but agreed to help. The city is not a small one, so we should be able to squeeze in. There will also be those from there who would like to join us on our journey." I could tell she wasn't one to accept charity, but she would put the safety of her people above any personal feelings.

As dusk approached, we came to the gates of Underharrow, where Thane Ellen Fremedon was awaiting our arrival. Her face was pinched, and it seemed she was unable to muster a smile as she gave Eowyn a shallow curtsey. I narrowed my eyes at this, able to discern that the woman was not happy with being charged to house so many people. Yet, Eowyn was currently the regent, and must be obeyed.

"Westu hal, Lady Eowyn," she murmured hoarsely. Eowyn returned the greeting after dismounting, and I tuned out their conversation as they spoke about housing arrangements. Soon enough, all the refugees and my group of people were inside the gates, and they were swung shut and barred. The sound of the iron locking into place in the brackets clanged loudly, and it made me shiver. Were they protection enough against the servants of the enemy? We only needed to outlast the night before continuing on, but it was under the cover of darkness that foul things emerged. Archers lined the walls, and torches burned brightly in the towers. Hopefully this would deter any sort of attack.

My ears perked up as I overheard a hushed conversation between two of the townsfolk. If their frowns didn't give away the subject, their words did.

"Underharrow is playing host to far too many," an elderly woman crowed, deep wrinkles creasing her disgruntled face. "Worse still, little has been done to ensure our safety since the men rode away." She leaned in closer, perhaps aware of how her words could come across negatively. "As I see it, to house so many here with no means to defend them is lacking in even the most basic strategy."

"Well Eowyn will not hear of it, foolish girl," another woman interjected, shaking her head. "Being thrust into leadership does not mean you are a wise leader." I frowned; their lack of respect for Eowyn's station and authority was concerning. She needed the trust and loyalty of her people to get through these difficult times. "We have enough to worry about here without adding all of her troubles to it. She should have put someone more experienced in charge-"

"Yet you are stuck with me," a voice interrupted, and the ladies gasped before hurriedly dropping into a curtsey as it became apparent Eowyn was the speaker. I held in a smirk, despite being relatively out of sight, I did not want to come across as being amused about something so serious. "Serves them right," I muttered, watching as Eowyn quietly rebuked them for their words.

"Serves who right?" Candaith whispered in my ear, and I barely suppressed a startled flinch at his sudden appearance. Instead I playfully whacked him on the shoulder and replied, "You really should not sneak up on people like that, meleth."

"What can I say, I cannot help myself around you," he said with a smirk. "Now, what were you referring to with your words?"

I sighed, "There is clearly a number of people who do not believe Eowyn has what is required to be a good leader in these dark times." I noted Eowyn's gentle rebuke of the rude women. "Yet I can understand it. They are afraid, and wish to look to an experienced person to lead them. Eowyn is young, and I sense she is out to prove to everyone that she can do a good job at the helm." I also knew she did not wish to be this person, craving the glories of battle alongside her kinsmen. "This may not have been her first choice of roles, but so far, she has performed admirably. I hope the others will return victorious from battle when they meet us in Dunharrow, and Eowyn can pass the mantle back to the King."

"Mother! Mother, come help!" A child cried, as she ran to Thane Ellen Fremedon.

"What is it Dunburg?" she asked, automatically wrapping her arms around the near hysterical girl.

"Th-there are dead in the valley," she stammered. "The Dead haunt the trees, I saw them!"

My heart filled with dread; were the hateful spirits lurking under the dark boughs? I had seen and defeated enough of them to last a lifetime; ancient evil who had been in the service of Morgoth in the Elder days. "Why would they venture here?" I muttered, mostly to myself.

"Perhaps things are not as they seem," Candaith stated, brow furrowed. "Let us get closer and listen."

Surprisingly, Ellen sighed and shook her head, "There are no dead men in the forests, child. We have discussed this!"

"I saw them, I swear it!" Dunburg replied stubbornly. "I ran before they could see me, but they were carrying weapons and stomping around!" She waved a wooden sword around. "I wished to fight them, but there were too many."

I frowned, "Stomping? That does not sound like the Dead," I said to Candaith. He shook his head in agreement.

Despite Ellen's doubt, the child's story made me pause. "We should investigate," I said firmly.

"Not without the Thane's permission," Candaith interjected. "These are not our lands to roam freely, especially during such dangerous times." Yet I was paying more attention to the Thane's eyes on me. Perhaps she wished me to pursue this?

Sure enough, she made her way towards me, dragging her daughter along. "I hear you are experienced in battle," she stated. I nodded, and she continued, "I doubt Dunburg truly saw anything, but may I ask you to scout the southern forest? Put these nonsensical rumors to rest." Despite her dismissive words, I sensed an undercurrent of genuine worry over whether there truly were enemies so close to her town.

"Of course," I answered, inclining my head respectfully. "I will take a few of my party with me as well." I knew Candaith would refuse to stay behind, and the Dunedain who were with me would certainly wish to help.

After gathering a small group, including Calenglad and Golodir, among others, we set off into the trees at the southern border of Underharrow. My bow was strung and ready as I scanned the woods around us; my vision was superior to my fellows, and I knew I would be able to see the enemy easier than they. My eyes narrowed; I saw movement far ahead, and the moonlight revealed a skeletal form…yet it was more solid than the undead I had encountered.

Taking a chance, I let an arrow fly and heard a guttural grunt before a heavy body hit the ground. Soundlessly I made my way over to the body, and nodded grimly at what I had hypothesized. "Orcs," I breathed. I crouched down to examine what it had been wearing; there was a mask made out of the skull of some animal, and a crude type of armor made of bones. I could see how they would resemble skeletons in the dark.

My eyes flew to my right when I heard the metallic sound of weapons clashing. Golodir was skillfully disarming and then defeating another orc, and before I could move, orcs started pouring out of the trees. "Ambush!" Candaith shouted, and all of us grouped together and fought as one unit experienced in war. Despite the large number of orcs, they were poor fighters, and we suffered little injury and no casualties.

I made my way around the sight of the skirmish, collecting arrows, all the while remaining alert for further enemy presence. "Clearly, these orcs were meant to eventually assail the town, which would have been little equipped to fight such a large force with the majority of the men gone to war," I murmured.

"They were also meant to keep an eye on the comings and goings from the town, perhaps reporting their findings to Saruman," Golodir suggested grimly. "With luck, we have destroyed most if not all of them." It would be ill news to hear that Saruman was now aware of our presence here, but likely he was busy dealing with King Theoden and the others in battle. "We should bring back evidence of their presence to the Thane."

After collecting one of the masks and sets of armor, we quickly returned to the town. We were greeted by a running Dunburg, eyes wide as she noted what I was carrying. "You found the ghosts!" she said breathlessly.

"They were not ghosts, penneth," I said gently. "They were orcs attempting to scare you and the other villagers with their armor. I must report to your mother, can you help me find her?"

"No need to look further, I am here," the Thane said, looking curiously at what I held before a grim frown creased her face. "I see I was both right and wrong. I knew there mustn't be any ghosts or spirits, but I did not believe I would find orcs just outside the walls. Perhaps it was foolish of me to assume the enemy would stay clear of an unremarkable village, instead joining against the King and our soldiers in battle."

"Saruman directs his forces hither and thither, with their sole purpose to create havoc and destruction," I replied sadly. I believed the wizard meant to try and eliminate the Rohirrim altogether, making them little threat against him and his grab for total domination of all the lands. "Which is why the citizens of your lands are encouraged to flee to Dunharrow, until your King and his men are victorious." I had some doubts over whether they could actually defeat Saruman's vast armies, but it caused me distress to think of my friends and family being cut down in the fighting. I tried to picture where they were located now, but I was not familiar enough with the region to determine where they might be at this moment.

"While it pains me to send my people away, it is for the best," Thane Fremedon said with a heavy sigh. "I will stay behind with the handful of soldiers who remain, to watch over my city."

Eowyn was made aware of this decision, and I tried to rest while preparations continued to be made through the night, but my mind was whirring with 'what if' situations.

"Meleth, you cannot control everything," Candaith said gently, wrapping an arm around my waist securely as we sat side by side around the fire. Despite it crackling merrily, it brought me little warmth.

"I know," I huffed, "But I certainly wish I could."

"We can only do our part to stand against this evil," he replied. Staring into the fire, he huffed a laugh. "When I sit by the fire with you, it brings back memories of us doing the same at my little campsite in the Lone Lands." A smile curled on his lips, "They seem so long ago, almost like another life."

"To me it is both as if only a blink of an eye has passed, and an Age ago," I said, returning his smile with one of my own. "How far we have come since then." I settled in against him and let my eyes go cloudy as I fell into reverie.

Thanks for reading!