Be My Voice in This Present Darkness (Legolas x OC)

~Chapter XXXVI~

"Hurry, men!" Gandalf continued to call out orders, riding to the outer defences on Shadowfax. "To the wall! Defend the wall!"

Many people rushed around in confusion and fear, some trying to do as he told them to do, and other trying to run.

"Return to your posts!" Gandalf called, reaching the outer wall. Vana joined him as soon as she could, but she wasn't on Shadowfax so it took a little longer. Pippin followed her carefully, holding onto her hand when they saw the army encamping around Minas Tirith. It was huge. "Send these foul beasts into the abyss."

The Gondorian soldiers began hurling large rocks and pieces of buildings towards the Orcs with trebuchets.

Many shouts came from all directions as they fortified the battlements and made ready to defend their city. "We need more rubble!"

"Watch out!" A rock flew towards the outer wall, flinging several people off and causing some fairly major damage to that portion of the wall.

"Down to the lower level!" somebody yelled. "Quick!"

Then everything grew a hundred times worse when the Nazgûl all started to circle in the sky, swooping down and carrying people off—soldiers and remaining civilians alike—only to drop them from a height. Pippin tightly squeezed Vana's hand and then held his hands up to his ears, trying to block out the terrible screeches that rebounded all around the walls. No one would ever forget a sound like that.

Then they started to throw more rocks—no, not rocks, what were they? One rolled up to Vana's feet. It was the head of a man. She covered Pippin's eyes out instinct and turned him around. He tried to pull her hands off of his face.

"Hold them back!" Gandalf shouted, riding around and trying to rally up the men. "Do not give into fear! Stay at your posts! Fight!"

The siege towers of the orcs were almost at the outer walls. The archers started to fire down upon them, but failed due to the protective armour over the monstrous contraptions.

"Not at the towers!" Gandalf yelled, walking up to the archers. "Aim for the trolls!" He pointed down to the beasts pushing the towers. "Kill the trolls! Bring them down!"

The siege towers connected with the walls and orcs swarmed out of them like bees. Loud crashes came from the gates. Looking down, there were several orcs and trolls with a battering ram. Vana instinctively drew Pippin back from the edge of the walls, where he was standing and staring, his eyes wide with fascinated horror.

"Fight them back!" The orcs were getting closer by the second and there seemed to be no end to their numbers.

Vana continued to lead Pippin back, but he started to resist her efforts. Even though she could easily overpower him as a much taller being, she was still very tired and didn't want to upset him.

Gandalf caught sight of the two. "Peregrin Took! Go back to the Citadel!"

"They'd called us out to fight," Pippin said, although he stopped trying to get back to the wall.

At that moment an orc made its way to Pippin, and the wizard killed it. "This is no place for a Hobbit!" he said to the scared Took. Vana nodded and started to lead him away.

Gandalf continued to fight the forever advancing orcs as they made their way over the walls. The once-peaceful city was a mess of running people, fighting guards, and snarling orcs. Suddenly, Pippin wrenched his way out of Vana's grasp and ran at Gandalf. She went after him immediately, but then she saw him stab an orc that was just behind Gandalf with his knife, saving the wizard from imminent death. Well, probably not death, but from a seriously unpleasant injury that would stop him from fighting.