There Is No Time For Fear (Aragorn x oc)

twenty

Aragorn POV

I look around for Iston, wanting more than anything for him to just be standing next to me...

"He's not here." Legolas says softly. The moment of joy we had over the destruction of Mordor is suddenly replaced by a wave of despair over the loss of Sam, Frodo, and Elvion.

The men behind us stare at the crumbling mountain of fire. Somehow, I know we are safe here, the fire and lava will not reach us here. There's nothing to do besides wait and watch Mordor fall in on itself. It feels as if I don't move from this spot, then nothing that has happened will be real. If I turn away, then it is gone.

There is nothing else to say. We watch Mordor burn and try to hold out some kind of hope for Sam, Frodo, and Iston. Without any warning, a blue light shoots into the air above Mordor. My eyes widen. I am sure it's Elvions magic. Legolas seems to agree because the same look is on his face.

A scream fills the air., the kind of scream that is only made when something is dying. I look at Gandalf. His eyes are filled with tears.

"They've done it." He says quietly but clearly. "Sauron is gone."

No one knows what to say to that.

"Look, on the horizon." Eomer says suddenly. He points near where the mountain of mordor once stood. I stare and see, ever so slightly, a dot of blue light. It comes closer rapidly. And I see what I had hoped for. Iston comes careening out of the sky. He's holding tightly to two forms.

"Frodo and Sam!" Merry says with excitement.

It seems that Iston has very little control over the speed of his flight. They hit the ground and skid across it for a few feet. Iston lies curled around Frodo and Sam, his body protecting them from the fall.

It's Gimli who rushes forward first. He pulls the hobbits from Istons grasp, shaking them as if to test if they're alive. Merry and Pippin run to them.

"They're alive! Both of them." Pippin yells.

"Yes." Gandalf says. I run to Iston's side. His body is so burned and blackened by soot that if I didn't know him well, it would be almost impossible to recognize him. Gandalf kneels next to him. He puts two fingers against the side of Iston's neck and I realize he is checking for a pulse. Elladan and Elrohir come over and hover over their brother. Legolas picks up Elvion's staff from where it has rolled away.

"We have to get them all back, quickly." Gandalf declares.

Legolas lifts Sam onto his horse with Gimli and I place Frodo in front of me.

"Back to Minas Tirith!" I shout at the soldiers who are still standing. They look shocked. "Back to Gondor!"

Elladan picks up his brother gently and Elrohir helps him set him on his horse. They mount their horses and take off. We all follow them, racing our way back to the white city.

When we reach the city, we bring Frodo, Sam, and Elvion to the healers. They take care of the wounds of the hobbits but, luckily, they seem physically unharmed. They need rest.

No one seems to know what to do with Elvion. The Gondorian healers have no remedy for burns that bad. Like their father, Elladan and Elrohir are trained in the art of healing but it seems that, as with morgul blades, dark magic is not easily healed. All we can do is clean the soot from him and wrap his burns the best we can. He breaths so lightly that I am afraid it will stop at any second.

Not wanting to take up room in the healer's tents, we move him to a room off the hall of Gondor. Frodo and Sam lay in the room next to his. The people celebrate outside in the streets. As they should, this is the biggest victory we could have hoped for.