Shadow of Mordor - The Novel

Chapter 4 - Shattered Memories

Gollum knelt over a dirt mound, fiddling with bones, looking for meat to consume. 

"Sweet little ratsies... Where does it hide?"

 A human skull lay nearby, half buried under the coarse dirt of Mordor, cemented into the ground by the rain. Before he knew it, a silver blade was held near Gollum's face, held by the Ranger behind him.

"Desecrate one more body, and your corpse will join them."

 Gollum hissed under his breath and scampered under a nearby wagon, holding onto one of the wheels as a newborn holds a favorite toy.

The Wraith appeared to the wretched creature, then knelt down and said, "Show me another treasure. From your dreams."

Gollum smiled a hideous smile, baring his few remaining teeth, and said, "Yes, we will prove ourselves, Bright Master. We will prove we are friends!"

The Wraith stood and said softly, "Take us to it."

 Gollum, still smiling his rotten smile, said, "Yes, come... This way... Come on," and began to scamper off.

Talion stepped forward, and as he and the Wraith looked at each other, the Wraith dissipated into thin air, leaving Talion alone with Gollum in the rain. Talion looked around, noticing that Gollum had disappeared, but when he looked up he saw Gollum climbing up a short cliff. Once Gollum made it to the top, he paused, looking back at the Ranger of Gondor, who was just making it to the top behind Gollum.

"Come... This way."

Talion pulled himself up, taking a deep breath, then continued on, following Gollum on towards the treasure.

 "Must follow us Bright Master! To the treasures we go."

Gollum and Talion snuck into a large conglomeration of ruins that were seemingly unoccupied, but within the span of a few seconds, an Uruk patrol stomped on by, not seeing Talion or his crawling guide.

"Last we sneaks here, no Orcses. They spread like poison." Gollum spoke quietly so as not to draw the attention of the patrol.

Talion darted behind the last of the Uruks and into a large bush with a faint rustling sound, which caused one of the Uruks to turn and place a hand on the hilt of his sword. Talion dared not breathe, hoping that the large Orc hadn't seen him. The Uruk grunted, then turned and jogged to catch up with the rest of his party. Talion let out a sigh of relief, when he heard a voice whisper from behind him,

"Nasties above, kills them!"

Talion whirled around to see Gollum peeking out from behind a nearby wall, pointing with one long finger upwards. Talion followed the finger with his eyes until he saw what it was pointing at. Standing atop a nearby outcropping was an Uruk archer, armed with a spiked crossbow and snarling wickedly. Talion nodded, then snuck over to the base of the outcropping, where he jumped up and began to climb. Utilizing the inhuman strength of the Wraith, he climbed up the small cliff like it was nothing, until he reached the top. Instead of pulling himself up, he unsheathed Acharn and whispered in the elvish tongue to attract the archer closer. The archer's ears pricked up and he stalked over towards the cliff edge, readying a bolt in his crossbow. Once he was close enough, Talion reached up and shanked the Uruk in the ribs.

The Uruk's eyes widened in surprise, but the dagger blow had proven to be true, and had punctured a lung. Talion threw the Orc off of the cliff, landing with an audible *SNAP* as he hit the ground below with a broken neck. Another archer was nearby, perched atop an Uruk-made scout tower.