The Darkness Deepens (LOTR- Book Two)

Chapter 8: Battle on the Plains

Chapter 8: Battle on the Plains

My shoulders dropped as Legolas stared at me, I shook my head quickly and spun my horse around, charging back to the King.

"Wargs! We are under attack!" I announced, the villagers looked around frantically, their eyes flicking up to their King for guidance.

"All the riders to the head of the column!" Theoden bellowed, unsheathing his sword and holding it in the air.

I watched as Theoden and Eowyn exchanged words, she wanted to fight and I couldn't blame her. But she needed to guide the people and keep them calm.

Aragorn charged up the hill, his horse spun around and he and Eowyn exchanged looks for a quick second before he joined with the rest of the riders.

I spurred my horse, I was beside Theoden who was holding his sword in front of him as the line charged. Legolas was standing alone on a hill overlooking a small dip in the land, shooting arrows into massive, dog-like creatures that were being rode by orcs.

Legolas glanced over his shoulder and latched onto the bridle of my horse, swinging himself onto it's back. I scooted back quickly so that I was behind him as I grabbed an arrow out of my quiver and cocked it in my bow, loosing it into the skull of a warg.

Everything seemed to go silent when the groups smacked into each other, the only sounds were growls and screams as men were torn apart by the massive creatures.

I jumped off my horse and rolled along the ground, unsheathing my daggers and slicing through the stomach of a warg as I dodged it's jaws.

I ran across the field, quickly taking down several orcs that had fallen off their rides or deserted them. 

A growl from behind caused me to spin around, gasping as the foot of a warg collided with my skull. I groaned as a writhed on the ground, I could feel the warm dripping of blood down my cheek where the claws of the creature had torn into my face.

I flung one of my daggers through the air, trying to distract it as I struggled to get to my feet. Everything seemed blurry, I shook my head and rolled quickly as I dodged the snap of it's jaws. I clutched my other dagger tight in my hand as I hopped off the ground, facing off with the creature.

With a snarl it charged at me, I moved briskly to the right and jabbed my dagger into the warg's ribcage; a growl of agony escaped as I plunged the dagger deeper and it finally collapsed.

I rested on my knees, panting heavily as I scanned the body littered field. Patches of black and crimson blood stained the brown grasses and a slight wind blew over the plains, everything seemed to slow as I took in the massive loss of life that had just occured.

"Aragorn?" Legolas's voice brought me back, my eyes widened as I noticed that Aragorn was no where to be found. 

"Aragorn!" I called and followed Legolas who was scanning the ground, trying to track where he might've gone.

A cackled made my insides squirm, it was weak and gravelly. An orc was laying a few feet away close to a sharp cliff, laughing heartily even in the face of death.

"Tell me what happened and I will ease your passing." Gimli hissed, holding his ax to the neck of the orc. 

"He's... Dead." The orc struggled, laughing wickedly. "He took a little tumble off the cliff." He jerked his head slightly, gesturing to the cliff. My stomach dropped into my feet. 

Aragorn couldn't be dead, I just got Gandalf back. I couldn't lose him.

The orc gasped as Legolas grabbed the orc by his armor and pulled him close, "You lie." He snarled, the orc chuckled and coughed as it struggled for air and died.

I rolled my eyes and ran up the hill, peering over the edge. A rapidly flowing river lay far below us, Legolas was staring at the water silently, he was holding the pendant the Arwen had given Aragorn before we left on the journey. Theoden had now walked up beside us.

"Put the wounded on horses!" Theoden called and then looked at us, "Leave the dead." He said quieter and patted Legolas on the shoulder before walking away quickly.