A World of Danger: Part One

[Irid al'Menie]

*OOC: oh come on, get a life Tesser. That was a beautiful post. Little question: was that the big or the small wolf that is alive...*

[Lief Erikson]

*Whichever one you didn't kill. Flyer, I think.*

[Selwythe]

Arcon watched in the failing light as the old man and young woman embraced in tearful reunion, his hatred for Shelina temporarily sated. He knew, too well, the agony of separation, yet never the reunion which sweetens the longest wait.

His heart hardened as he turned around. He could watch no more without pondering his wretched fate.

He stood up as blinding pain filled his chest. He gritted his teeth and fell back, feeling the vitality of life slipping from him with the passing of every long second. He crawled towards the trees, his strength having failed him. Perhaps it was to end here, he thought, after avenging his mother. His eyes closed in pain as he recalled his childhood of time long past. To savour loveliness and to lose it all.

He snapped out of his trance. He had still his father in the wilderness, he whom he never saw, only heard. Heard of his disillusionment. Heard of his thralldom. Heard of his escape, and too many times clearly heard of his recall, and misery.

With a surge of energy, he stood up in a flash and bounded into the forest, before finally stumbling and hurtling into a bush. He lurched and put his hand to his mouth and was dismayed to find it covered in blood. He turned his eyes upward and saw in the distance the Sun's first rays, as it scarred his wounds. He clutched desperately onto life, and opened his mouth in a silent scream when he lost his grasp.

--------------------------------------

"Come, my child," Orpholin patted Shelina on the back, his mouth choking in his happiness. "Meet my godson, he whose father was my friend once when the sky was clear and all was merry. He whom I have not seen for twenty and more years."

Orpholin turned and was surprised to see a blank space where Arcon was. A trail of blood led into the forest.

***Shelina does not know that Arcon attacked the Nightrider.***

[Lief Erikson]

*Hmmm, I see you've suddenly jumped another plot element on me. Perhaps in the discussion forum you could at least tell me what my relationship is to this wolfkiller? Even if he is the godson of Orpholin, so far he's hardly shown himself someone worthy of their concern. You know, Irid isn't going to forgive you so easily and I hardly think she should. Even if Arcon does need someone to care for him. Unless of course we simply never made him meet them again.*

Flyer led the way for Orpholin and Shelina as they hurried through the forest. Neither completely needed the wolf, but it helped their speed to follow it, for it could see . . . or smell the trail more easily than they.

The undergrowth was smashed down as if the person had been moving recklessly and incredibly fast.

"Here he is," Orpholin said as they reached the place of Arcon's fall.

"Him!" Shelina cried, her hands going to her mouth as she stared wide eyed from the body on the ground to Orpholin's serious gaze. "Surely not!"

"He may be ruthless and a villain, but I owe it to his father to help him now."

Shelina stared at him for a long moment. "You realize how this could end? When we revive him, he could kill us both."

"His heart is not wholly black. And this could be the turning point that brings him back to the light. We are not completely helpless anyway, and Shelina, I have to help him."

She grimaced and shook her head. "Then I'll have to go back for the horses so we can bring him to some place which is more safe, and where we can better bring him back to health." She turned her back and started back towards the glade.

"The main problem in his heart Shelina, which goes beyond his physical wounds," Orpholin said as he crouched over the figure, his face wrinkled in concern, "Is that he is loved by none. You know what that is like, Shelina, and surely can sympathize with it."

She hesitated a moment longer before continuing, as Orpholin disarmed the fallen man of all his weapons, secret or not.






Vardor stared out the window at the forest. It should have been done by now. Orpholin could have put up no resistance, and the Nightrider should be returning already with its charge. To begin the tiresome work of turning him over to their side. A long and arduous task, but one they could succeed in. The difficulty was rebuilding him in the necessary image once he was broken.

But apparently, that would never be a problem. He'd only seen the battle going on in the distance when it was too late. He'd even twisted the shadows and gone there, but it was already over. There was a blood trail in one direction and a dead bat. Nothing else.

His castle was under attack, so there was no time to follow the trail and see where its end lay. But if he couldn't get Orpholin now, he had all the years ahead to continue that. Morgoth's gift already was working to prolong his life, his only limit would be his brother's death by old age. Something he could not allow.

The battle still raged, but he had many more orcs to send. And orcs weren't the worst he had here.

He glanced behind him at his other Nightrider. It was a void simply waiting there for his command.

"They're after the prisoners," Vardor stated.

The Nightrider nodded.

"See that they don't reach them."

It nodded a second time, and vanished out the door, closing it behind.






"Come on, it's all clear!" an elf at the far doorway called.

"Why?" El'nela asked in surprise as she hurried up to join him. "I thought that group would be the group we ended up fighting our last fight with, if they closed in from that side. The only other option for us is retreat. We have too few here to have put up any substantial resistance to that kind of . . ."

"I think there's an attack from outside," the elf interrupted.

She frowned. "What makes you think that?"

"Can't you here it? Be quiet for a moment and listen."

And she did. And off in the distance, she could indeed vaguely make out the sounds of clashing weapons and orcish cries.

"Neat coincidence," she smiled.

"Very helpful," her comrade agreed. "And if we hit them from behind, we might just have a chance of actually pulling off this insane escape attempt."

An elf ran lightly up from the back door. "And you'd better hurry. Some creature just went back the way we came from. If it finds out whats happened, it'll sound the alarm. If it needs to do that."

"What do you mean? Why didn't you just kill it?" El'nela asked with a frown. "Nickbatar is certainly good enough with his knives."

"It's not an orc. I don't know what it was, but it was like a hole in the sky. Like a void, a black nothingness in human shape."

"Sounds like Vardor's doing," she agreed. "And we probably couldn't have fought it. Let's hurry then and try to join this new company."

And out they sped across the courtyard. And from behind, coming from the dungeons came a bellow that resounded through the air, echoing and bouncing off the walls, the shriek of the Nightrider that had failed in its task. And the creature lunged back up the dungeon steps after them, as angry as something like a Nightrider could possibly be.

[Irid al'Menie]

Irid had just stabbed another orc,, and she was covered in blood, hers and orcish. It was a big group and she didn't know how much longer she could hold on. Then she heard something strange. Sounds of battle, but from the other side of the orcs. She shouted to Tal, who was fighting besides her.

"Tal, there are others fighting the orcs. I think we should fight towards them!"

She saw Tal nod, and started to fight her way through. At some point she was just surrounded by orcs, but judging from the sound of the battle she was near the other fighters. Then she stabbed the last orc and she was through. In front of the fighters was an elf that looked surprisingly a lot like Tal. She turned around and started fighting next to the girl.

*ooc: long time since i have posted, but here i am again *

[Tessar]

Tessar was walking down a dimmly lit hallway when he felt a strong magic something coming twards him.

"halt!" he said using his magic powers to try to paralise the whatever it was.

It paused for a moment as if waundering if the little elf was worth the time and trouble that it might be to kill it.

Tessars stomach did a flip as the thing drew a long back sword and charged him.

(If you get too it first you can have my guy beet/get beeten by the guy. I need to leve for church in a sec. but if you dont get to it first then I will do the fight)

[Lief Erikson]

*The Nightrider doesn't have a sword, Tessar. It doesn't need one .*

Tessar flung his magic at the creature, but it deadened and deflected before getting too close. And the Nightrider raised a hand, a casual guesture.

And Tessar was flung backwards, head over heels into the wall behind him.

He was not the target, here. It had reached the slaves.

And the Nightrider opened its mouth and yelled, a primevil shriek that echoed in the chamber. The orcs and elves quailed in fear at the approach of the creature, but it was too late already.

The Nightrider flung itself into the slaves.

[Irid al'Menie]

*OOC: hey Lief, could you mail me back? I want to read a mail . I don't really have inspiration for a post right now *

[Lief Erikson]

"Here is the place," Orpholin said as he motioned to the small wood hut in front of them. "This is where he will remain while I help in the battle out there."

He glanced around the bare conditions for a moment. "I stayed here in hiding once before. Found it by chance, but it's well hidden and stood me in good stead. As it will keep you, now, Shelina."

She frowned, then grabbed his arm. "What do you mean? I'm coming with you!"

"There is nothing you could do there, Shelina. And he needs medical attention. Immediate medical attention I mean, and you can deliver that as well as I can. I took shelter in this company for my own safety, but now I have discovered the extent of my powers and they need my help. Vardor cannot possibly be dealt with by any of them."

"Of course," she said, letting go and taking several steps away, towards the hut. She stared, but she wasn't really looking.

He took a couple steps away, pausing by Arcon's unconscious form. He turned around then. "I will come back, Shelina. I promise."

She didn't respond, so he turned and hurried into the forest, stopping a moment later. He closed his eyes and concentrated, standing there in complete silence.

"Your name is Flyer," he stated.

The wolf stepped out from the trees, its tongue hanging out of its mouth as it stared up at him through its bright yellow eyes. "Shelina may need protection, Flyer. Look after her for me."

The wolf stared at him for a moment longer, but then suddenly pricked up its ears, as if recieving instruction from far away, another place. Orpholin smiled in understanding.

And the wolf darted off back to the hut.

And Orpholin wrapped himself in magic, brilliant white light, the power of an Istari. "The curse on my family," he muttered. "I will gain control, and I will abstain from using this. But after this there will be no need. But there is a duty now that I have gained some measure of control of this power, the duty of the Istari."

And the figure in faded gray robes flitted through the forest in perfect silence and stealth, approaching the castle with all possible speed.



*Selwyth, Shelina's not going to kill Arcon or anything; she is going to help him recover.*

[Mathron]

*Gah, sorry for my absence, but I am home for break with slow and rare internet access...
By the way, Lief - just recall that the Istari, persay (Gandalf and other such wizards) don't exist in middle earth yet, or for quite a time to come. Anyway, all is looking rather cool in the meantime.*


IC:


Dain rushed through the hallways. Fell magic was in the air, and though he realized his actions here would have no true effect on the greater things at work, he could at least do his best to aid his friends.

He ran through a cluster of orcs, slicing them down before they noticed his presence. The orcs, and other normal guardians of the castle, were confused and disorganized, attacked on all sides and without leadership. They were not the true threat anymore.

The sound of fighting drew him, and he nearly stumbled over Tessar lying, injured, on the ground.

"Rest easy, lad, ye've done well," said Dain, and passed the young elf a flask. "This will heal you, and return strength to your limbs. Drink it slowly, whilst I battle."

Jumping up, Dain charged forward, seeing the distance the enemy that even now leapt upon fleeing slaves. He knew not what it was, save it was a monster of dark magic and dark power.

He gripped his axe tight. He might annoy the thing, even injure it, but he knew he was outmatched. Even should the others arrive, it might be beyond their power. But he had to do what he could, and buy time. With a smile, and eyes shining with determination, he lifted his weapon and charged.

---

Malagar looked out of the alcove and down on the room below. A score of orcs - fierce ones, armed with the finest armor of Melkor's forces, and all high ranking in his dark hordes - guarded the lever to the gateway. Hundreds more roamed the dark mountain fortress of Angband, about and nearby, and would come at a moment's call.

Elenia glanced at him, smiling. "We will succeed," she whispered. "You know my plan. All we must do is strike at the right moment, and all will be taken care of."

Malagar smiled back. "Then let us sit, and await victory."

[Tessar]

OOC* Hey leif, don't you think its funny that the only time you said ANYTHING about my guy was to almost kill him?

[Lief Erikson]

>) Funny indeed. :lol


Actually, I only bumped him against a wall. He'll live.

[Tessar]

Yes, he will live.... but you may not. :starts to throtle Leif:

lol Marry Christmass all.

[Mathron]

Tal dodged back from the attacks of two orcs, and lifted his weapon to strike back - but before he could, they fell to the strikes of Erenfor and Angar.

"Well done," said Erenfor, "But many more orcs prowl this castle then we can finish off easily. We are closer now, to the prisons, let us-"

He was cut off as more sounds of combat rang throughout the corridor. The party exchanged glances, and then charged towards the sound of battle.


----

Sandor clutched his head as he ran away from the plains of Angband. He had barely been able to resist the compulsion to enter, and the pain that flooded through him was nearly unbearable. But he was strong, and drove himself away, towards the woods to the South. Something still, he knew, hunted him, but perhaps he could find safety before it caught him...

[Selwythe]

The door slammed shut as the flimsy hut shook slightly. Shelina stared at the door, disbelieving that her father would leave her upon their reunion with a man who had tried to take her life on too many occasions. She looked at Arcon's limp form in distate, then confusion. She had never heard of her father having a godson, and if so, would never dream of him trying to murder her. Perhaps he too knew nothing about this.

She stared gravely as she remembered the past; when he took her captive, when he pursuited her numerous times and narrowly escaped death on each occasion, and on the final leg, when she was trapped in a blazing inferno as he finally caught up with her.

She shook her head and closed her eyes in horror as she recounted the struggle Arcon's dragon, as she attempted wildly to escape, eventually succeeding as she stabbed the dragon with her dagger and grounded it, before fleeing into the woods. All she knew later was that the forest lit in a blaze as flames shot in the sky and the dragon flew into the sky, without a rider.

She stirred from her trance when a trickle of blood dribbled from her patient's mouth. Her father had instructed her to nurse him. As much as the possibility of it sickened her, she would carry out her responsibility until he returned.

She inspected his blood-stained garments and recoiled in horror when she uncovered a deep gash inscribed into his chest. She averted her eyes and cautiously dabbed at the gash with a piece of cloth, but froze when Arcon stirred and murmured in a panicked slur.

No, no, quickly! Run, run!

Shelina shook her head as she took a bowl and a bundle of herbs from her waist.

Here! Out of this place! Hurry!

She started listening more intently, for it wakened something buried deep within her mind.

Step on my shoulder. Quick! Quick! They are coming!

Shelina dropped the bowl in shock and gaped, the sound of metal echoing throughout the house in a noisy din. There was a long silence before he stirred again.

Help me! Pull me up! Please! They are coming!

Her eyes filled with tears as she listened.

Please!

She closed her eyes and whispered shakingly the exact response, to that request for life twenty years ago.

Go away, Gorthang, you unhappy boy! Nobody likes you! Go home to where you belong!

She cupped her hand over Arcon's mouth before he could scream in agony, for that scream haunted her for years. He fell limp, his body cold and pale.


-----------------------------------------------

Sandor entered the woods, his mind freed again from the long reach of Vardor and Morgoth, but he knew not how long he would savour his liberty. He forayed quickly: the full moon was high, and this was the night of doom, the prophet said.

He crept cautiously upon hearing a strange rustle of the trees, and there in front of him, stood a wizened old man, his staff pointed against him.

"Tell me, Sandor, that you have defeated it in your heart."

"Only a temporary conquest."

The old man lowered his staff before coming forward and hugging Sandor.

"It's been a long time."

"Too true, Orpholin," Sandor choked. "Abel the Seer said it would be tonight."

"And part is fulfilled, for I have finally found your son. He is alive, barely."

"And Nore, my doomed love?"

"That too has been fulfilled."

Sandor smiled sadly.

[Mathron]

"It is best," whispers Sandor, "that he not see me, nor know of me. My own doom, I feel, is close behind me, and I know not what terrible form it takes."

Orpholin nodded, gravely, and said, "You may not have another chance to undo your decision. His life has been hard, especially without a father. If you deprive him of that now, it may be set in stone forever."

"So be it. I will regret it, I know, but I will not have him - nor you, any longer, endangered by what hunts me. Nor by me... I feel myself losing control, as I seem to be losing control of everything, of late. I have only held on long enough to see this part of my life ended."

"And is that," said Orpholin softly, "your final decision?"

Sandor nodded. "It is the only one I can make. If you get the chance, tell him I did care for him, despite all of our history. And that I am sorry."

Turning away, he whispered to himself, "And for my crimes, I shall surely pay..."

As he turned and ran off, into the woods, he heard Orpholin's words floating after him, "Fare well, old friend, and let your heart be strong and pure despite all that comes against you."

[Lief Erikson]

*Selwyth, would you mind explaining to me this personal relationship you're developing between Arcon, Shelina and Orpholin? I don't particularly like having the main characters in a scenario I don't know a thing about, you see .*

[Irid al'Menie]

Irid looked at the girl fighting besides her. She was dressed in rags, and her face was dirty, but neverthe less she was obviously related to Tal. Then her attention was drawn back to the orc. They kept fighting, and eventually the line of orcs grew thin. Her daggers were slipping from her hands, from her blood and orcish blood. Another orc died with a throat cut. She was getting tired...

Then, finally, after what seemed like an eternity, there were no more orcs to fight. Irid sat down, leaning against a wall, and watched the others. Tal and the girl came eye to eye. Slowly, both of them reached out a hand and grabbed each other.

But they couldn't enjoy eachothers company for long, as the Nightrider came along, killing prisoners.

"Oh great... What's that???"

Then she had a vision...

A glade in a forest... Runner coming out of the bushes... Some people, of which one was the old man of their company... And with them a creature like this one. Runner jumping to it... Both of them flying... And runner dies.

Irid startles. Then she looks at the creature. A red shimmer comes across her eyes. Anger is taking over, Rage comes out. Arcon killing some of her friends was bad, but this creature had killed her best friend, the one she never wanted to lose. She takes her daggers, looks at them... They seem to be glowing with a redish light. She opens her mouth and starts to scream... A scream of pure rage, and none with any wits left should come across her path now. She stands up, and starts to walk towards the creature. It raises it's sword to strike at her... But she doesn't retreat... She doesn't care anymore whether she lives or dies...

This is something that surprises the creature, who isn't used to someone who isn't scared of it. Irid raises her daggers, and stabs the creature. It steps back, Irid follows. She puts all the Rage she feels into her weapons. For all the Wolves killed, by this one or another person. She keeps stabbing it, ignores the cold spreading in her arms. It fights back, but is weakened already. Blood streams down her arms, she gets a cut in her face, but ignores all. Eventually the creature falls. As the subject of her Rage is taken away, she faints. Her daggers fall next to her body....

[Tessar]

uh oh, leif is gona be mad at you now for being able to kill his night rider

that and for messing with one of his guys, infact KILLING one of his guys!

[Irid al'Menie]

*i didn't say i killed it, I said it fell down... Besides, i didn't exactly mess with his guy... We were fighting, and i posted a copple of times that i was tired and that this creature was fighting back.*