Brothers In Arms: A Middle Earth Story

Chapter 11: A Wraith in the Shadows

Feeling that despair in my heart, I turned to her mournfully. "What hope have we left? If the city falls and the White Tree burns, surely there is nothing left that can stay the tide of the Enemy."

Eradan, watching our exchange in silence, furrowed his brows at my grim words.

"Look at us," I continued, an urgency filling my voice. "We set out as six, and now only half of our number remains. And how many of us left only survived by some unusual stroke of luck or blind chance? Soon we shall be as chaff in the wind, divided and crushed by the boots of our enemy. And none will answer our call, frantic as it may be. None will ride to our aid as we languish in fear and doubt. No help will come from the fiefs, for they will be as fuel for Sauron's fire. What can we possibly do to stop him??" My voice had raised almost to a shout, and I began to panic as I imagined what would happen to us when the Enemy had prevailed.

"Do you not see? It burns as we speak! Soon it will be as Osgiliath, cold and bereft of life!"

Aerel grabbed my arm, spinning me to face her. "Take control of yourself, captain! The despair of the Nazgul fills you! Did you not hear its cry?"

As her words churned through my mind, it was as if a veil had been lifted from my eyes. She was right. In all my years of serving Gondor, through war and famine, terrible loss and heart-rending grief, I had never fallen to such a level of hopelessness. Not only would it harm me and cause me to be filled with fear and doubt, it would also harm the wellbeing of those in my charge.

And then, as if revealed from beneath a veil of shadow, a voice seeped into my thoughts. Soft and deadly, like the pointed blade of a stiletto against my mind, it spoke words of fear, terrible things that one would never dare utter in the light of day.

As if sensing it as well, Aerel drew closer, her palm coming to rest against my temple. She whispered hurried words in a language unknown to me, and immediately I heard the dark voice reply with a hissing laugh. Once more she murmured the words, and at this the laugh came to an abrupt halt, grinding into silence like the gears of a broken machine. A third time she spoke, and suddenly an ear-piercing scream rang out through the empty buildings and through the depths of my mind. The voice fled from me then, and nevermore would I hear its taunting.

"I am sorry," I said, shaking my head as I regained my composure. "Thank you for whatever you did to banish them from my mind, Aerel."

Aerel nodded slightly, her hand lingering a moment longer before she withdrew. "I merely prayed to Eru."

Eradan's reassuring smile chased away any lingering doubts in my heart. "No need to apologize. Few can resist the call of the Ringwraiths."

"They draw near even as we speak," Aerel said, casting her gaze towards the sky above. "We should hasten on."

We continued on, the sounds of battle rising and growing more intense with each passing moment, the ring of sharpened steel mixed with the screams of dying men. The ruined city loomed large all around us, each toppled stone and each collapsed home the potential haunt of some Mordor demon. The sun climbed to its zenith and dipped down below the skeletal ruins again before we made it to the outskirts. Each step seemed haunted by a nameless fear, a shadow in the corner of my eye that disappeared whenever I tried to look in its direction. Even now, as the light began to fade into a hazy horizon, something seemed to be trailing us, a shapeless, formless phantom that shrunk from the light and stuck close to the walls of the buildings.

I was unsure if I was the only one who noticed it, but I was loathe to mention it to the others for fear of it leaping from the darkness to strike.

Ahead of us was a bridge which was, surprisingly, mostly intact. It spanned the river, connecting the main city from the residential areas, which slowly grew further and further apart until they opened up completely to the Pelennor Fields beyond. We would have to traverse these houses, which were now likely infested with orcs and evil men who had commandeered these buildings for a forward operating base.