Shadow of Mordor - The Novel

Prologue - Banished From Death

Talion gasped as he sat up sharply. The pain that had previously dominated his mind had dissipated, and he was no longer covered in blood. He looked around wildly,  searching for  something, when he realized that this was not his world. Blue and swirling, it looked like The Gate, but was eerily different. "Ioreth!" He cried. "Dirhael!" He looked around once more, his gaze finally resting on the prone form of his son, Dirhael.

Blood caked his face and clothes, so much so that the Uruk blood was indistinguishable from his own. The only semblance of his past life was his hand, outstretched towards his sword, which lay broken in shards a few feet away. It seemed only yesterday that Dirhael and his father were training on the ramparts of the Black Gate. Talion thought back to the last day he had sparred with his son.

"That is a perfect swing... for killing chickens," Talion laughed, tossing his son's sword to him with a laugh.

"Wouldn't wanna hurt you." Dirhael caught the blade with a smile. Talion drew his sword, Urfael, and said with a chuckle, "You'll have to hit harder than that! Ha ha! Dirhael, the mighty chicken killer, come on. Come on, show your father what you have."

The two swung at each other, countering and blocking each other's strikes. "Parry son, don't forget to block!" "Perhaps you should not forget to hit!" The banter between father and son ended when Dirhael swung with all his might, blade clanging against his fathers. "Easy son, you're not a soldier yet." The memory changed, and day turned to night, clear skies turned to a storm, and the placid gate turned to a battlefield.

"I'll have your guts!" A large Orc snarled at Talion, the pair in a sword lock. Talion shoved the Orc back, elbowed him in the jaw, stunning him, then jammed his sword into the Uruk's gut. He withdrew the blade, then called out, "Dirhael!" His son replied, "I'm all right! But they charge faster than I can strike!" Talion charged towards his son, who deftly dispatched two Uruks with a cross slash that impressed even his father.

"These Orcs are far stronger than any I've seen..." Dirhael murmured, still on his guard. "They're not Orcs, they're Uruks. They're far worse and there's too many." Talion panted. "Go find your mother," Dirhael made to protest, but Talion held up a hand and repeated, " Go find your mother, keep her safe... I'll be right behind you. Go!" He pushed his son through the heavy wooden doors, then the memory ended. The tears of a father filled Talions eyes, and he stood from his son's corpse, holding the broken blade. "Am I dead?" Talion whispered, his consciousness returned to the strange blue, swirling world. "You are banished from death..." A strange voice echoed from the darkness.  Talion whipped around, only to see a faint white flash dissipate into the darkness.

He turned and his eyes landed on the still form of his wife, Ioreth. He knelt and stroked her cold face, remembering all the times they had spent together. Another memory flooded his mind, and as he stood, his world shifted to the past.

"On winds and waters may you cross,

See mountains white and blue.

But on your road, let's not forget,

The love I have for you,

Dance on beaches in Anfalas,

Sleep in moonlit fields of view,

May you cross another golden age,

With preciousness free-flowing,

With Halflings, Elves, and Dwarves engage,

Their wisdom on you bestowing."

Ioreth sang softly as she walked to the Gate's market, basket of cloth in hand. Talion watched her walk by, not noticing her husband standing nearby, and as he snuck up on her, he wrapped his arms around her, holding a white Niphredil flower.

"Happy anniversary my love..." Ioreth gasped and said, "Talion! This is beautiful, where did you find it?" "I still have a few friends left in Gondor..." Ioreth shook her head and said, "Did you talk to my father?" "Yes I did, and he's still very stubborn." Ioreth whispered, "I say we go anyway," "Dirhael will not come willingly..." Talion said. "There MUST be a better life than this!" Ioreth huffed. Talion sighed and said softly, "not now..." and in unison the two said, "but soon." Ioreth sighed, and said, "I'm just so tired of hiding here Talion." She looked down, then the memory cut away again. Ioreth yelped, then Talion covered her mouth with his hand. "Hush, we must hide now, or we are both dead." The pair snuck through the Gates interior, coming to a wrecked dining room. Three Uruks wandered around, looting and ransacking the place. I'm outnumbered, stealth is my only advantage... Talion thought to himself. Using an overturned table as cover, Talion slowly crept towards the first Uruk. Drawing his dagger, he put a hand over the Uruk's mouth and buried the dagger in his throat. The Uruk was dead in seconds. Talion silently dispatched the other two that were in the room, when he heard a cry of fear and pain. He turned, only to see a looming monstrosity with armor embedded in its flesh, holding Ioreth hostage with a wicked scimitar.

"Put. The sword. Down, Ranger," it said calmly.

Talion, no choice but to comply, dropped his blade, just for another massive being to beat him down with a massive mace. One blow to Talion's spine sent him crashing down to the ground. Ioreth cried out for her husband, but the Tower simply handed her off to an Uruk lieutenant with a rough, "Take her!" Talion reached out towards his wife, but as the Hammer went in for another swing, the Tower stopped the blow with his scimitar.

"Enough! The Black Hand wants him alive!" The Hammer used the spiked side of the mace to stab a hole in Talions left hand, garnering a yell of pain from the broken Ranger. "He will live..." The Hammer said gruffly, slamming Talion in the head, knocking him unconscious.

When Talion woke he and his family were held on the top of the Black Gate, rain fell in sheets, making the stone slick and wet. Talion was forced to his knees, as were Ioreth, and Dirhael, who had been captured by the Uruk-Hai.

"Father!" Dirhael cried out, hands held behind his back by a snarling Uruk.

"It's all right son, look at me! I'm right here, I'm right here!" As Talion watched, a tall being in a black cloak walked into the center of the triangle Talion and his family made, holding a large longsword. He turned to Dirhael, walking around him, and began to chant, "Ghurarmu shirkush' agh azgushu. (A sacrifice of blood and bone,) Zant ya apakurizak. (A bridge for you to follow,)  Gûl-n' anakhizak. (You will emerge a shadow.) As he spoke these words, he drew the blade across Dirhael's throat, causing the boy to bleed out in seconds.

"NOOOO!" Ioreth and Talion screamed.

"We will be together, my love, soon! Forever..." Ioreth cried, tears streaming down her face.

The black cloaked figure repeated the chant in Black Speech, "Ghurarmu shirkush' agh azgushu. Zant ya apakurizak. Gûl-n' anakhizak." As he pulled the sword across Ioreth's neck, snuffing out her life, silent tears flowed down Talions face as he witnessed the brutal murder of his wife and only son. Next, the dark cloaked figure stalked towards Talion, whispering those dreaded words. "Ghurarmu shirkush' agh azgushu. Zant ya apakurizak. Gûl-n' anakhizak." He drew his sword across Talion's neck, and as the Ranger took his last breath, the figure stared off into the rain and said, "Come back to me, Elf-Lord..." The memory ended with a flash. A white figure, wreathed in blue flame, stood, a bright wraith, that was gone as fast as it had appeared. Talion stood, then whispered, "What is this place?" "See for yourself..." The Wraith appeared in front of Talion, gesturing out at the barren land of Mordor from atop a glowing tower of light. "Mordor...!" Talion whispered in a mix of awe and terror.

The Wraith cocked his head and said, "Now do you believe me Ranger?" "What has happened to me?" Talion stumbled away from the edge of the tower, and the Wraith replied with a simple, "You are banished from death. Cast adrift between the worlds of light and dark. A curse binds us together within the walls of Arda." Talion stared in disbelief, then said shakily, "If what you say is true, then how do we break this curse?" The Wraith replied with, "We find the one who cast it on us... The Black Hand of Sauron."