TPOL: C20-C21
Chapter Twenty: Set the Scene
Nero looked up as Mornië fluttered into the room.
"What are you doing here, my pet," he asked, tenderly stroking the bird.
"Nero!"
The dark elf looked up, at Leonard McCoy, standing in the doorway.
"How did you get free?" Nero demanded, one hand reaching for the knife on his belt.
"A little bird helped me," Leonard boldly shot back.
"Mornië? Never."
Leonard unsheathed James' shortsword from its scabbard. Nero cocked an eyebrow at the healer.
"Are you serious?" he demanded.
"Deadly," Leonard replied.
"Very well then," Nero declared, "prepare to die, Healer."
~*~
James felt the ropes suddenly slacken, then drop from his wrists.
"The moment has come," Varda announced, "go to your healer, James, before it is too late."
James did not need to be told a second time. He raced out of Nero's ready room in search of Leonard.
~*~
"According to Scotty, our best chance of getting through the shields is right next to the main gate," Hikaru informed the security officer accompanying him, "right about here."
The security officer, whose named was Mijan, scowled up at the main gate to their right.
"Something's wrong, sir," Mijan informed Hikaru.
"What?" the pilot asked, "what's wrong?"
"No guards," Mijan replied.
"They couldn't have possibly known we were coming," Hikaru objected.
A dog bayed somewhere in the city. Several other dogs answered it.
"Wargs?" Hikaru wondered.
Mijan, who had originally come from the Riddermark(1), shook his head.
"Not wargs," he said, "those are hunting dogs."
~*~
Nero lazily tossed his knife at Leonard, who effortlessly dodged it, buying himself extra time to grab his sword. Leonard took one look at the dark elf's sword and fled the room. Nero followed close behind the hobbit.
"Why are you running, Little Halfling?" the dark elf demanded.
"I'm not a fool, Nero," Leonard shot back.
"Only a fool would dare challenge me to a fight," Nero observed.
"Just because my actions seem foolish does not make me a fool, Nero," Leonard shot back as he disappeared around a corner.
Nero raced after him, but once he got around the corner, Leonard was no where to be seen. The dark elf swore angrily. Leonard was amazed that the dark elf couldn't hear his heart pounding against his rib cage. He was also equally amazed that this trick was actually working.
Maybe that's why Shirefolk make such good heroes? the healer wondered to himself, we think so differently from everyone else that we can do things that others can't.
~*~
James raced down the hallway, not caring how noisy he was being--until he ran headlong into a stern-looking dark elf.
"Ayel," James breathed, recognizing the dark elf.
"James Kirk," purred the elf, grabbing the hobbit around his neck and holding him up to eye level, "if you're hoping to save your little friend from a painful death, then you're too late."
"No," breathed James.
"No, he's not yet dead," Ayel acknowledged, "but he will be shortly."
"You're wrong!" James stubbornly insisted, "Leonard is the Chosen One, he won't die!"
Ayel chuckled.
"You don't even know your own Prophecy, do you?" he asked.
"I know Leonard," James replied, "that's all I need to know."
"Then know this," Ayel declared, "your dear Leonard must die to defeat Nero."
"You're wrong," James insisted, lashing out at the dark elf, "Leonard doesn't have to die!"
Ayel chuckled again.
"You are blinded by love, James," he informed the captive hobbit, "you can not see the uselessness of your struggles, your denials of reality."
~*~
"Lord Béma(2), the dogs are eager to be set loose on the city," Erkenbrand informed the man whom he served--though "man" was a term Erkenbrand used loosely to describe Béma, for Béma was not actually of Middle-earth.
"I am aware of this, Erkenbrand," Béma remarked in his deep basso voice, "but we must wait for Lady Varda's signal."
It had been ages since the Valar had last directly meddled in the affairs of Middle-earth, entrusting such tasks in the capable hands of the Maiar(3). However, Nero's quest for control of Middle-earth had forced the Valar to get personally involved.
~*~
Ninniach and Arciryas rode at the head of a great army.
"How much longer until we reach Minas Morgul, Ninniach?" the king asked.
"Two hours, sire," the Captain of the City Guard said, "and you still haven't answered my question."
Arciryas sighed.
"You have a sharp military mind, Ninniach," he replied, "your talents are wasted in the City Guard."
"Women aren't allowed to fight in combat, sire," Ninniach reminded him, "we tend to lack the upper body strength needed to wage war."
"You know as well as I do that that's not true of every woman in Gondor, Ninniach."
"Halt!" ordered a strong male voice.
Arciryas cocked an eyebrow at the lone man who would stop an army.
"I am King Arciryas," he informed the man, "identify yourself."
"I am Manwë(4)," the man replied.
Ninniach frowned at the man.
"That is quite a bold claim to make, sir," she remarked, clearly doubtful of the man's claim.
"Lady Ninniach, it is not a claim, but the truth," Manwë replied.
"I'm not a lady," Ninniach corrected him, "I'm the Captain of the City Guard of Minas Tirith."
"Regardless, you must time your attack carefully," Manwë continued.
"Of course," Arciryas agreed.
"Follow the eagles," Manwë advised, then he was gone.
"Okay, now I think I believe him," Ninniach declared.
"What did he mean by that?" Arciryas wondered, ignoring Ninniach, "there are no eagles this far south."
"There are now, sire!" called a soldier, pointing to a great golden eagle soaring above their heads.
"Follow that eagle!" Arciryas ordered.
1. Another name for Rohan.
2. The name in Rohan for the Vala Oromë (whose name means "Sound of Horns", "Hornblowing" in Elvish).
3. The Maiar are the lesser beings who serve the Valar, and several of them played key roles in the history of Middle-earth, including the wizards Gandalf and Sarumon, as well the evil Sauron.
4. Manwë is the eldest of the Valar, and the husband of Varda.
Chapter Twenty-One: Death's Bitter Sting
James bit down on Ayel's arm, hard enough that the dark elf released the hobbit out of reflex. As soon as his feet touched the floor, James was out of there. He raced through the corridors, changing directions at random--but it wasn't enough to shake Ayel.
Suddenly, a blood-curdling shriek rent the air, startling James (and Ayel). Mornië attacked Ayel, going for the dark elf's eyes.
James was torn between helping Mornië and continuing on his way to help Leonard.
Don't worry about Mornië, James, Varda called out in James' head, go save Leonard!
The Captain raced onwards and it was not long after that he found Leonard, hiding under a side table, with Nero standing right next to him, completely oblivious to how close he was to the healer.
Nero narrowed his eyes at the sound of hobbit feet pounding against the floor, coming towards him.
"Leonard?" the dark elf called, "is that you?"
"No, it's me, James Kirk!"
"Excellent, I can kill you now," Nero declared.
"No!" shouted Leonard, leaving his hiding place to lunge for Nero.
James was too far away to stop the horror he was forced to witness--the death of Leonard McCoy. Nero ran his sword through Leonard's chest as the hobbit lunged at him, the healer's own momentum pushing the dark elf's blade deep into his body.
With his dying breath, Leonard called out to Varda.
"A Elbereth Gilthoniel,
o menel palan-díriel,
le nallon sí di'nguruthos!
Atíro nin, Fanuilos!"(1) he cried, then lay still.
James immediately lunged at the now unarmed Nero.
~*~
As Leonard's words rang out in that corridor, a rainbow arc'd across the sky above Minas Morgul. Spock scowled at it from where he sat in the captain's chair on the Bridge of the Enterprise.
"What new devilry is this?" the half-elf wondered softly.
"Commander!" called Pavel from his station, "Sensors report that ze shields are down!"
"Can you get a lock on them now?" Spock asked.
The curly-haired hobbit opened his mouth to reply, when something on the sensors caught his eye.
"Chekov?" the half-elf called.
"Sair, there's a huge army marching on Minas Morgul," Pavel announced.
"On screen," Spock ordered.
The main viewscreen on the Bridge switched from displaying the city of Minas Morgul to a much wider view, one which included much more of the surrounding countryside.
Sure enough, a great army was indeed marching on Minas Morgul, just as Pavel had said. The curly-haired hobbit had neglected to mention that the army included three huge eagles, however.
"Ze rainbow," Pavel breathed, "it's a signal."
"A signal for what?" Spock wondered aloud.
"Spock we're being hailed!" Uhura called, "it's Hikaru and Mijan! They've found them!"
The half-elf strode over to his wife's station.
~*~
Ninniach narrowed her eyes as she saw the rainbow soar across the sky above Minas Morgul, a colorful contrast to the black clouds that cast the region in darkness.
"The signal!" called Manwë from where ever he was, "the time has come!"
"Ninniach, signal the troops," Arciryas directed, "now we march on the city."
~*~
"Is that the signal, my lord?" Erkenbrand asked Béma, indicating the rainbow above their heads.
Béma nodded.
"Release the hounds," he ordered, "it's time to hunt."
~*~
When Hikaru and Mijan stepped out of the shield control room, they found a gruff pair of dark elves waiting for them. Mijan groaned.
"I told you we took a wrong turn after the Gap of Rohan, Hikaru," he declared.
Fortunately, Hikaru was quick on the uptake.
"I guess you're right, Mijan," he acknowledged, "but perhaps the locals will be kind enough to point us in the right direction."
"You are trespassing," one of the dark elves observed.
"You must die," the other one proclaimed, "immediately."
"I guess they aren't going to be helpful, Hikaru," Mijan remarked.
The dark elves unsheathed their swords. Hikaru looked at Mijan, who wordlessly nodded. Then they drew their own swords.
~*~
"Now that your 'Chosen One' is dead, James Kirk," Nero asked, "what are you going to do?"
"I am going to finish what Leonard started, Nero," the hobbit boldly answered, "that's what I'm going to do."
Then he lunged headlong at the dark elf, rolling to the side at the last possible second, narrowly missing being knocked out by an elven fist.
"You will fail, just like your 'Chosen One'," Nero warned James.
"His name is Leonard!" snarled James as he ducked under Nero's arms to land a solid punch to the dark elf's stomach.
Unfortunately, that left him open to having his legs struck aside by a single kick. James' head struck the stone floor of the corridor with a loud crack. Ignoring the rising nausea of the concussion he most certainly now had, James jumped right back to his feet. Nero yelled in pain as James bit down on his forearm. He tried to fling the hobbit off his arm, but James held on with all his might, determined to not let go.
Unnoticed by the combatants, Leonard's lifeless body twitched.
~*~
Hikaru and Mijan carefully cleaned their swords of elven blood before they moved onwards, searching for their Captain and the Chosen One. It wasn't long before the sound of fighting reached their ears.
Mijan swore under his breath as the pair stepped around the corner to find James locked in combat with Nero, a lifeless body behind them.
"The healer," Mijan breathed mournfully, "he's dead."
Hikaru shook his head.
"But the Prophecy," he objected.
Suddenly James was thrown towards them, away from Nero (and Leonard's body). To their shared horror, James did not stir.
"Is he dead too?" Hikaru whispered.
Mijan's sharp eyes spotted the faint rising and falling of the hobbit's chest.
"He's still breathing," he informed Hikaru, "but if Nero has his way, that will change."
Nero stepped towards James, the murder in his heart clearly evident in his eyes. But before Hikaru and Mijan could act to stop the dark elf, the impossible happened.
1. This is actually the same cry that Samwise Gamgee made to Elbereth Gilthoniel (Varda) as he attacked Shelob.
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Nero looked up as Mornië fluttered into the room.
"What are you doing here, my pet," he asked, tenderly stroking the bird.
"Nero!"
The dark elf looked up, at Leonard McCoy, standing in the doorway.
"How did you get free?" Nero demanded, one hand reaching for the knife on his belt.
"A little bird helped me," Leonard boldly shot back.
"Mornië? Never."
Leonard unsheathed James' shortsword from its scabbard. Nero cocked an eyebrow at the healer.
"Are you serious?" he demanded.
"Deadly," Leonard replied.
"Very well then," Nero declared, "prepare to die, Healer."
~*~
James felt the ropes suddenly slacken, then drop from his wrists.
"The moment has come," Varda announced, "go to your healer, James, before it is too late."
James did not need to be told a second time. He raced out of Nero's ready room in search of Leonard.
~*~
"According to Scotty, our best chance of getting through the shields is right next to the main gate," Hikaru informed the security officer accompanying him, "right about here."
The security officer, whose named was Mijan, scowled up at the main gate to their right.
"Something's wrong, sir," Mijan informed Hikaru.
"What?" the pilot asked, "what's wrong?"
"No guards," Mijan replied.
"They couldn't have possibly known we were coming," Hikaru objected.
A dog bayed somewhere in the city. Several other dogs answered it.
"Wargs?" Hikaru wondered.
Mijan, who had originally come from the Riddermark(1), shook his head.
"Not wargs," he said, "those are hunting dogs."
~*~
Nero lazily tossed his knife at Leonard, who effortlessly dodged it, buying himself extra time to grab his sword. Leonard took one look at the dark elf's sword and fled the room. Nero followed close behind the hobbit.
"Why are you running, Little Halfling?" the dark elf demanded.
"I'm not a fool, Nero," Leonard shot back.
"Only a fool would dare challenge me to a fight," Nero observed.
"Just because my actions seem foolish does not make me a fool, Nero," Leonard shot back as he disappeared around a corner.
Nero raced after him, but once he got around the corner, Leonard was no where to be seen. The dark elf swore angrily. Leonard was amazed that the dark elf couldn't hear his heart pounding against his rib cage. He was also equally amazed that this trick was actually working.
Maybe that's why Shirefolk make such good heroes? the healer wondered to himself, we think so differently from everyone else that we can do things that others can't.
~*~
James raced down the hallway, not caring how noisy he was being--until he ran headlong into a stern-looking dark elf.
"Ayel," James breathed, recognizing the dark elf.
"James Kirk," purred the elf, grabbing the hobbit around his neck and holding him up to eye level, "if you're hoping to save your little friend from a painful death, then you're too late."
"No," breathed James.
"No, he's not yet dead," Ayel acknowledged, "but he will be shortly."
"You're wrong!" James stubbornly insisted, "Leonard is the Chosen One, he won't die!"
Ayel chuckled.
"You don't even know your own Prophecy, do you?" he asked.
"I know Leonard," James replied, "that's all I need to know."
"Then know this," Ayel declared, "your dear Leonard must die to defeat Nero."
"You're wrong," James insisted, lashing out at the dark elf, "Leonard doesn't have to die!"
Ayel chuckled again.
"You are blinded by love, James," he informed the captive hobbit, "you can not see the uselessness of your struggles, your denials of reality."
~*~
"Lord Béma(2), the dogs are eager to be set loose on the city," Erkenbrand informed the man whom he served--though "man" was a term Erkenbrand used loosely to describe Béma, for Béma was not actually of Middle-earth.
"I am aware of this, Erkenbrand," Béma remarked in his deep basso voice, "but we must wait for Lady Varda's signal."
It had been ages since the Valar had last directly meddled in the affairs of Middle-earth, entrusting such tasks in the capable hands of the Maiar(3). However, Nero's quest for control of Middle-earth had forced the Valar to get personally involved.
~*~
Ninniach and Arciryas rode at the head of a great army.
"How much longer until we reach Minas Morgul, Ninniach?" the king asked.
"Two hours, sire," the Captain of the City Guard said, "and you still haven't answered my question."
Arciryas sighed.
"You have a sharp military mind, Ninniach," he replied, "your talents are wasted in the City Guard."
"Women aren't allowed to fight in combat, sire," Ninniach reminded him, "we tend to lack the upper body strength needed to wage war."
"You know as well as I do that that's not true of every woman in Gondor, Ninniach."
"Halt!" ordered a strong male voice.
Arciryas cocked an eyebrow at the lone man who would stop an army.
"I am King Arciryas," he informed the man, "identify yourself."
"I am Manwë(4)," the man replied.
Ninniach frowned at the man.
"That is quite a bold claim to make, sir," she remarked, clearly doubtful of the man's claim.
"Lady Ninniach, it is not a claim, but the truth," Manwë replied.
"I'm not a lady," Ninniach corrected him, "I'm the Captain of the City Guard of Minas Tirith."
"Regardless, you must time your attack carefully," Manwë continued.
"Of course," Arciryas agreed.
"Follow the eagles," Manwë advised, then he was gone.
"Okay, now I think I believe him," Ninniach declared.
"What did he mean by that?" Arciryas wondered, ignoring Ninniach, "there are no eagles this far south."
"There are now, sire!" called a soldier, pointing to a great golden eagle soaring above their heads.
"Follow that eagle!" Arciryas ordered.
1. Another name for Rohan.
2. The name in Rohan for the Vala Oromë (whose name means "Sound of Horns", "Hornblowing" in Elvish).
3. The Maiar are the lesser beings who serve the Valar, and several of them played key roles in the history of Middle-earth, including the wizards Gandalf and Sarumon, as well the evil Sauron.
4. Manwë is the eldest of the Valar, and the husband of Varda.
Chapter Twenty-One: Death's Bitter Sting
James bit down on Ayel's arm, hard enough that the dark elf released the hobbit out of reflex. As soon as his feet touched the floor, James was out of there. He raced through the corridors, changing directions at random--but it wasn't enough to shake Ayel.
Suddenly, a blood-curdling shriek rent the air, startling James (and Ayel). Mornië attacked Ayel, going for the dark elf's eyes.
James was torn between helping Mornië and continuing on his way to help Leonard.
Don't worry about Mornië, James, Varda called out in James' head, go save Leonard!
The Captain raced onwards and it was not long after that he found Leonard, hiding under a side table, with Nero standing right next to him, completely oblivious to how close he was to the healer.
Nero narrowed his eyes at the sound of hobbit feet pounding against the floor, coming towards him.
"Leonard?" the dark elf called, "is that you?"
"No, it's me, James Kirk!"
"Excellent, I can kill you now," Nero declared.
"No!" shouted Leonard, leaving his hiding place to lunge for Nero.
James was too far away to stop the horror he was forced to witness--the death of Leonard McCoy. Nero ran his sword through Leonard's chest as the hobbit lunged at him, the healer's own momentum pushing the dark elf's blade deep into his body.
With his dying breath, Leonard called out to Varda.
"A Elbereth Gilthoniel,
o menel palan-díriel,
le nallon sí di'nguruthos!
Atíro nin, Fanuilos!"(1) he cried, then lay still.
James immediately lunged at the now unarmed Nero.
~*~
As Leonard's words rang out in that corridor, a rainbow arc'd across the sky above Minas Morgul. Spock scowled at it from where he sat in the captain's chair on the Bridge of the Enterprise.
"What new devilry is this?" the half-elf wondered softly.
"Commander!" called Pavel from his station, "Sensors report that ze shields are down!"
"Can you get a lock on them now?" Spock asked.
The curly-haired hobbit opened his mouth to reply, when something on the sensors caught his eye.
"Chekov?" the half-elf called.
"Sair, there's a huge army marching on Minas Morgul," Pavel announced.
"On screen," Spock ordered.
The main viewscreen on the Bridge switched from displaying the city of Minas Morgul to a much wider view, one which included much more of the surrounding countryside.
Sure enough, a great army was indeed marching on Minas Morgul, just as Pavel had said. The curly-haired hobbit had neglected to mention that the army included three huge eagles, however.
"Ze rainbow," Pavel breathed, "it's a signal."
"A signal for what?" Spock wondered aloud.
"Spock we're being hailed!" Uhura called, "it's Hikaru and Mijan! They've found them!"
The half-elf strode over to his wife's station.
~*~
Ninniach narrowed her eyes as she saw the rainbow soar across the sky above Minas Morgul, a colorful contrast to the black clouds that cast the region in darkness.
"The signal!" called Manwë from where ever he was, "the time has come!"
"Ninniach, signal the troops," Arciryas directed, "now we march on the city."
~*~
"Is that the signal, my lord?" Erkenbrand asked Béma, indicating the rainbow above their heads.
Béma nodded.
"Release the hounds," he ordered, "it's time to hunt."
~*~
When Hikaru and Mijan stepped out of the shield control room, they found a gruff pair of dark elves waiting for them. Mijan groaned.
"I told you we took a wrong turn after the Gap of Rohan, Hikaru," he declared.
Fortunately, Hikaru was quick on the uptake.
"I guess you're right, Mijan," he acknowledged, "but perhaps the locals will be kind enough to point us in the right direction."
"You are trespassing," one of the dark elves observed.
"You must die," the other one proclaimed, "immediately."
"I guess they aren't going to be helpful, Hikaru," Mijan remarked.
The dark elves unsheathed their swords. Hikaru looked at Mijan, who wordlessly nodded. Then they drew their own swords.
~*~
"Now that your 'Chosen One' is dead, James Kirk," Nero asked, "what are you going to do?"
"I am going to finish what Leonard started, Nero," the hobbit boldly answered, "that's what I'm going to do."
Then he lunged headlong at the dark elf, rolling to the side at the last possible second, narrowly missing being knocked out by an elven fist.
"You will fail, just like your 'Chosen One'," Nero warned James.
"His name is Leonard!" snarled James as he ducked under Nero's arms to land a solid punch to the dark elf's stomach.
Unfortunately, that left him open to having his legs struck aside by a single kick. James' head struck the stone floor of the corridor with a loud crack. Ignoring the rising nausea of the concussion he most certainly now had, James jumped right back to his feet. Nero yelled in pain as James bit down on his forearm. He tried to fling the hobbit off his arm, but James held on with all his might, determined to not let go.
Unnoticed by the combatants, Leonard's lifeless body twitched.
~*~
Hikaru and Mijan carefully cleaned their swords of elven blood before they moved onwards, searching for their Captain and the Chosen One. It wasn't long before the sound of fighting reached their ears.
Mijan swore under his breath as the pair stepped around the corner to find James locked in combat with Nero, a lifeless body behind them.
"The healer," Mijan breathed mournfully, "he's dead."
Hikaru shook his head.
"But the Prophecy," he objected.
Suddenly James was thrown towards them, away from Nero (and Leonard's body). To their shared horror, James did not stir.
"Is he dead too?" Hikaru whispered.
Mijan's sharp eyes spotted the faint rising and falling of the hobbit's chest.
"He's still breathing," he informed Hikaru, "but if Nero has his way, that will change."
Nero stepped towards James, the murder in his heart clearly evident in his eyes. But before Hikaru and Mijan could act to stop the dark elf, the impossible happened.
1. This is actually the same cry that Samwise Gamgee made to Elbereth Gilthoniel (Varda) as he attacked Shelob.
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