Dreams of Power [ Lord of the Rings x Silmarillion ]

Smarter

Adira yawned deeply as they dismounted their horses for the night. She smoothed her loose pants down and stretched, thankful they had a place to stay the night. A farmstead had offered them shelter in return for coin as they made their way through the more fertile lands in Harad. Two weeks had passed since they began their journey north. They were three quarters of the way to Harondor, the lands separating old Gondor from Near Harad. The Riven Harnen was the southern border. They hoped to reach it in a week's time.

As Adira walked her horse over to the trees they were to be tied to, she watched her young sister chatting with Elboron. Malika loved to talk, and she was grateful that this man was gracious enough to humor her.

"Malika!" She shouted to her sister, beckoning for her to come over. "Come here a moment please."

Malika made a face but obeyed. She skipped over to Adira. "What?"

"I just wanted to give Lord Elboron a break from your talking," she smirked, turning away and patting her horse on the snout.

Malika was not amused. She crossed her arms and stuck out her tongue, her face flushed with annoyance.

Adira continued. "But really, Malika, you should talk to the others too if you must chit chatter all the time.. Give Elboron a break."

Her sister glared. "You're just mad they like me more than they like you!"

Adira's face burned with anger at her little sister's teasing accusation. "No, Malika. I am just smarter than you."

Malika growled and released a small scream of anger. She tried to hit her sister but Adira grabbed her hand and pushed her away a bit more gently. Malika's eyes narrowed. She turned tail and fled.

Fëalas walked over to Adira from the shadows of the house. She watched Malika angrily start kicking rocks around the area.

"She's a feisty one." Fëalas folded her arms and raised an eyebrow as she watched the young girl.

Adira shook her head. "You have no idea."

After another moment of watching the ten year old girl have a fit, Fëalas turned to Adira. "I've sent half my men ahead to secure the area. According to my scouts, there's been some bandit activity north of here."

Adira nodded. "We appreciate the thoughtful planning, Lady Fëalas."

"Drop the title," insisted the redhead, gesturing with her hand. "I never liked it anyways."

They walked back to the small grain barn. Adira, Elboron, and Fëalas laid out blankets on the hay in an effort to make it slightly more comfortable. The five remaining rangers that had not traveled north remained on guard outside.

"I apologize for my sister's talkativeness," Adira told Elboron as they sat down and ate apples and cheese. "She has yet to learn control."

Elboron shook her head. "It is fine! But speaking of Malika, where is she?"

"Outside," Adira murmured.

Elboron looked out a window. "She should probably come in. It's growing dark out."

They heard a scream right at that moment and Adira's blood ran cold. She knew who it belonged to.

"Malika!" Adira cried out, grabbing her scimitar swords from her bag and tearing out the barn door.

Elboron and Fëalas followed soon after, both with swords in hand. They ran around back to find a set of six bandits, the leader holding Malika at sword point. He shouted something in Southron that only Adira understood. Her face grew grave.

"They say to hand over the valuables or they will kill Malika." Adira explained their demands, hardening her grip on her scimitars. "They are rough riders from the city of Bozisha-Dar east and north of here. They are not allied to the Reunited Kingdom."

"Tell them to stand down and we'll hand over what we have," Fëalas instructed.

But even as Adira explained their intentions to the ruffians and she sheathed her sword, she pretended to take off her bow and lay it on the ground. Her rangers, a few hidden in the dark shadows of the barn, knew this trick well. Often their captain used it in tough situations.

In a split second, Fëalas raised her bow and fired a silver arrow named Pilinel. It struck the leader straight in the head, killing him instantly. Her rangers weren't far behind, picking off the other five ruffians quickly as Elboron and Adira ran to cover Malika. In seconds, the ordeal was over. Malika was no worse for wear, though her pride was sorely bruised.

"Come on," Adira said angrily, dragging her sister inside with them. "You should know better than to wander around on your own at night in the vicinity of Bozisha-Dar!"

Malika gritted her teeth and growled. "You certainly didn't try to stop me!"

"I thought you were smart," Adira bit back. "But apparently not."

Their bickering stopped as Elboron quieted them down. He wanted to get some sleep that night and knew that would be impossible with the sisters screaming at each other.

Once Fëalas and Elboron were asleep, Adira rolled over and looked at Malika. At first Adira thought her sister was asleep, but moments later Malika's eyes popped open.

"I am glad you are safe," Adira sighed. "I do not want to face the North without you."

Malika glared momentarily before her gaze softened. "Neither do I."

They slept soundly that night. No more commotion to keep them up, just quiet rest. At dawn, they paid the farmers the rest of what was owed, looted the corpses from the night before for valuables, and continued on their way. The land changed from arid to semi-fertile over the next week. Small homesteads and decent sized settlements began cropping up along the Great North Road. They came across a great statue to four warriors, one female, two identical males, and one taller male, on top of a hillock. Fëalas was convinced this must've been the settlement where Miril, the Twins, and Maglor managed to defeat the Blue Wizards. But they didn't have time to stop as it was midday when the settlement came and went. She was saddened by this, but they had a job to do.