Long Lost Leaves

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

The dwarf tuned around to see more spiders coming at him. He swung his axe at all of them but missed and fell to the ground while the spiders surrounded him. "Not again!!!" he screamed and immeadiatly got to his feet and took out four of the six attacking spiders.

[Acalewia]

Aelfwine let loose a few more arrows before resorting to her belt knife. Two of the arrows hit one of the spiders around the elf in the rear and the back leg. She then turned her attention to the other spiders.
"I'm gonna regret this later," she went after the spider trying to ensnare her. It fell and she went after the next. Aelfwine was determined not to let the spiders get the best of her, so she let them have it.

[orithil]

Hedrim was standing in a small pile of spider carcasses when four more launched themselves at him.
He grabbed one by the leg and used it as a bat to hit the other, those spiders flew into the spiders giving hedrim the vital seconds he needed to retreat and steady himself. He charged foward at the attacking spiders and divided them into pieces.

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

The dwarf looked at Radagast. "Maybye we should be going now master wizard?! Many thanks for freeing me! If my brother Balin caught me in that nest......."

[Curufin]

Abasi cried out again, as a spider's tooth caught him, creating a long puncture wound and causing blood to cascade down his forearm. He clenched his teeth, switching his dagger to his other, uninjured hand, and thrust it into the spider's ghastly thorax, feeling a bit of morbid satisfaction as it staggered back a few steps, then fell.

Three to go...he thought...and only one arm...

The blood was flowing freely, and he felt himself weakening by the minute as the other three spiders neared, closing the place of their fallen comrade...

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

"Allow me to introduce myself!" yelled the dwarf as he jumped at the spiders surrounding Abasi. "The name is Borin! Borin the Emerald-Crusher!!!!" He swung at the spiders and scared them away. "You guys helped me. I figured it was time to return the favor!"

[Curufin]

Although Abasi was thankful for the dwarf's timely intervention, he held no love in his heart for the short and awkward race. When the spiders were gone, he clutched his bleeding arm, his vision swimming a bit from the loss of blood, and returned his dagger to his boot.

'Thank you,' he said a bit tersely. 'Although none of my people has ever needed assistance from one of yours. I assure you that I would have had no trouble defeating them on my own.'

And with that, he swooned, falling heavily to the ground.

[Willow Oran]

With the population of the spiders being steadily decimated the main camp was soon cleared and under guard. Haldis was laying out the supplies they would surely need in case anyone had got bitten or burned; and sure enough, no sooner had she begun to prepare counters to the spiders' venom a strange dwarf came stomping into the camp... with a heavily bleeding elf over his shoulder. You didn't see that often.

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

"Hey." said Borin cooly "This one needs attention. Even though he doesn't want me to say this- he's in pretty bad shape. Is there anything else you need? I should get back to the battle." he said as he started to walk away. "By the way, I'm Borin brother of Balin. And this is Abasi son of....... I don't realy know."

[Curufin]

Abasi grunted, slipping in and out of consciousness. Strange dream images were becoming interspersed with reality, and he was becoming less and less aware of which was which.

It is the spider's poison... he told himself, struggling to keep a grasp on his sanity. Do not let it conquer you.

In his own tongue, which he dimly realized nobody but he would understand, he called out a prayer for mercy and succor to Hashanwi, as his people called the Lady of the Stars.

[Earniel]

The sun finally rose above the forest and its light, although diffused by the thick leaf cover, at last reached the battlefield on the forest ground. The few remaining spiders retreated with reluctance to their nests, in deep groves where their thickly-woven webs held out the light. They left with grumbling, muttered cursing and angry promises of everlasting vengeance, but left they did so that the adventurers found themselves alone again. Alone, except for the numerous spider-corpses that littered their camp-site.

Radagast retrieved his -now slightly singed- scrolls and put them back into his pack, while casting disapproving glances at Haldis. He never liked her looking into his spell-scrolls, whether she had some talent for it or not.

Haldis, no doubt knowing this also, cheerfully ignored the wizard and continued to tend the wounded.

"Well, we've got lucky," Radagast said at last. "If the sun hadn't come up, we'd probably still be knee-deep into spiders. We better not stick around too long. How did everybody fare? Is everyone accounted for?" he asked to get an idea of how many wounded and dead they might have.

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

"As far as I know" said Borin walking over a dead spider- "That Abasi character is being healed. I am very greatful for being saved, Master wizard. Tell me- what is your name?"

[Ingwe]

The last spider was moving slowly along to avoid the sunlight. Ingwionis wanted to have a kill count of 10 so he shot an arrow at it...and another, and another. The arrows just bounced off the spider because he had been hitting the spider on its strongest area.

"This is great, my arrows can't go through it. They must have some kind of protective armor or something", Ingwionis said. Ingwionis could have sworn that he heard the spider laugh at him.

A'mael shoots two arrows into one of the spiders and looks at her husband. "Protective armor!?" she says to Ingwionis while giving him a confused stare.

"How did you do that?!" Ingwionis inquired to his wife.

"Aim for the head or the belly," she said to him.

"Thanks, I'll try to remember that the next time we run into spiders," Ingwionis said back to his wife. "How many injured are there!!!? We still haven't everyone accounted for!"

"Abasi is wounded but he'll be alright," said Radagast. "I council you to stick more tightly to the group next time around. You had a few close-calls yourself."

"I thought I'd never say this, but let's get out of these woods," Ingwionis proclaimed as a dead spider fell out of a tree.

"ARGHH!!!" yelled A'mael.

"Relax relax, it's just a dead one. But I'll make sure," Ingwionis said.

Ingwionis stabs the spider a few times.

"I think that should more than suffice, master Elf," said Radagast to Ingwionis after he had stabbed the spider several times.

"Sorry, got a little carried away, and besides, some of them are quite hard to kill. Just glad we didn't run into the grandmother of all of those spiders."

"Grandmother?" A'mael inquired.

"Yes, much before my time and thus ages before you, a great spider named Ungoliant spread destruction through the lands of Aman and consumed everything in sight, including the poisoning of the two trees for which we owe our plight in the past few ages. These spiders are the personification of what those dark ages have left behind."

Ingwionis thought back to the sight he beheld at Valinor during his youth. Some sparse remnants of the destruction of the Two Trees had remained though almost unrecognizable by that point.

"It is fortunate that Ungoliant consumed herself before she could unleash more destruction; however it is unfortunate that we still have her heirs flooding Mirkwood and most of these lands at large. Even one so great as Shelob was hopefully will never be seen again. We must hurry out of here and heal the sick, lest we risk the remainder of us. Neither Elves nor Wizards can fully resist the poison even of these lesser spiders...as we have found."

It was at that moment that A'mael noticed a bite on her husband's hand. "Oh no!!!"

"Don't worry, it wasn't bad. It will heal." Ingwionis was obviously in pain from the bite as his words had sounded course for the last several minutes.

"You're wounded! Get to safe ground, now!" Radagast urged.

"I must have been bit by these things a hundred times before. It'll be okay. Besides..." Ingwionis pauses as he holds up his wounded hand. "...it's only a flesh wound."

[Acalewia]

Aelfwine snorted.
"Flesh wound? Ha! Even the smallest wound can turn out to be the killing wound," The young woman took Ingwionis' wrist. "And you saw how fast the Spider's poison took out Abasi," Ingwionis gave Aelfwine an asking look. "The other Elf," She dropped his hand. "The bite's not deep, but the poison will affect you," Aelfwine gave the Elf a smile. "If you believe you are stronger than the Elf that lives here in resisting the poison, stay here. If not, then go to those that have the power to heal,"

[Curufin]

After several moments of the healer's ministrations, Abasi felt his head clearing and his strength returning. He had lost a great deal of blood, and he knew he would be a bit unsteady on his feet for a little while, but nonetheless, he stood, pressing the bandage tightly to his shredded arm, and nodding a terse word of thanks to the healer.

With that, he returned to the battlefield, collecting what was left of his weapons. His bow was utterly destroyed - he would have to make a new one, and it appeared as if he would have to make new arrows as well. At least the flint had not been damaged - he wouldn't have to find more of that.

Standing a bit away from the group, he surveyed them with a strange expression on his face. The comradeship between them stirred something deep within him; memories from long ago.

He shook his head, as a familiar voice in his head repeated its mantra.

Your place is here, in these woods, not with them. You are not Ñoldor, or even Sindar, they will not understand your ways. Return to what you know...

He took several steps back into his woods, but stopped again, and turned around, his vision of them slightly obscured by trees.

I am a warrior, am I not? Perhaps they might need me...

He took a few steps forward, hesitating.

But they likely won't want me...

Two steps back.

What was there for him in the forest? Loneliness, darkness, solitude, constantly fighting for food and safety, and for what? So that he could keep the h'brani, the ancient ways. But could he not do that helping them as well?

[Mari]

Though Ellysa was not a natural inhabitant of forests, she was quite adapt at blending in with her surroundings. It had helped her during the fight with the spiders, for a bo simply isn't the kind of weapon that kills with ease. She had stayed at the periphery of the fighting and had observed the things that were going on afterwards.
Now she was looking with interest at the elf Abasi from her spot amidst the trees. A pained look came over her face as she watched him hesitating. She thought she understood what was going through his mind, for she knew all too well what being alone felt like and the elf must have been alone in this forest for quite a while.

From Abasi, her gaze shifted towards the group.
I was an outcast and afraid of people, but this group, strange as its members may be, took me in. Is there something I can do to help him?

She looked back at Abasi and when a thought hit her, the sad look on her face changed into an understanding smile. I cannot make his decision for him, but perhaps a hand reaching out to him is all he needs.

With that thought Ellysa walked over to where Abasi was still hesitating and said as she passed him: "You are welcome, if you want to come."
Ellysa continued towards the group and didn't look back, leaving the elf to make his decision.

[Earniel]

"My name is Radagast the Brown, at your service." Radagast introduced himself to Borin with a bow. "The spiders will be back here this evening, and we wish to be far away by then. May I suggest you travel with us for a while, Master Borin? At least until we have left the spider hunting grounds. There is safety in numbers as we saw tonight and travelling alone right now may be dangerous."

"I'd like to extend that invitation to you to, Master Elf." Radagast said as he had seen the brief interaction between Ellysa and Abasi from the corner of his eye. Smart girl, Radagast thought, she's right, that Elf looks like he's in need of a bit of company.

"At least until that wound is better," Radagast added to allow the Elf a good excuse to stay. "You've been wounded helping us, it would be very discourteous of us if we did nothing to repay the favour."

[Curufin]

Abasi hesitated, watching Ellysa walk away, and then listening to Radagast's words.

'I...' he paused. 'I thank you,' he said finally, clutching his dagger in his uninjured hand as if he were afraid of danger.

'But I must warn you,' he said a bit harshly, 'I am Avari, not Sindar or Noldor. We are not the same.'

He said this almost defensively, staring into Radagast's eyes, almost in challenge.

[The Sasquatch of Fangorn]

"Aye! I think I'll do that! Many thanks to you master Radagast. And you pointy ear!" said Borin glancing at Abasi, "I don't care that you are Avari! In the great halls of Moria, before it was overtaken, when you saved someone's life that ment you were vertually family! So therefore that means that you and whoever you saved are pretty much realated! So, I guess that means..." he said steching out his hand to shake Abasi's. "We're brothers!"

[Curufin]

Abasi pulled back, looking at his hand scornfully.

He didn't know very much about dwarves, but what he did know, he didn't like.

Clutching his hands tightly behind him so as not to have to touch the Dwarf, he looked at him for a long moment before addressing the group.

'I shall come,' he said, 'but I am not your family.'