Wild Monster

by Matthew Harrington

  "Mine next!" Maethien declared and pointed at the marking she'd found on her left arm. Elle searched the pages again, committing many of the markings to memory as she went.

  When they found Mae's mark she quickly began to read. "Ooohhh!" Elle drew out the sound. "It means bravery and courage, it is bestowed by the Valar, Tulkas." Mae felt a smile spread across her lips. It felt nice to be considered brave, to be noticed for it. She couldn't help but smile and feel happy that she had been worthy of the marking.

  "Now me." Elle was eager to learn more. If she could she would have taken the book with her, but she doubted she would be permitted. "Here it is!"

  "What does it mean?" Ann asked.

  "It means resolute." Saeleth beamed brightly and touched the marking on her right temple. The girls were hooked. They flipped through every page, studying each marking and its meaning. Time flew and before they knew it it an elleth walked in on their study session, having been sent to retrieve them for dinner.

  "Who knew studying could be fun?" Ann teased quietly as they followed the young elleth, Elle elbowed her causing her to giggle. They were taken to Lord Eronds table, he was not there but the sisters got a shock when Arwen joined them. Ann all but squealed when the beautiful elleth glided into the room.

  "It's Arwen." She whispered eagerly. "This is awesome! We get to see her and Aragorn's love up close!" Anoreth stared intently at the pair as they drifted closer.

  "Here it is!" The girls watched closely as Arwen approached Aragorn. The beautiful elleth bowed her head politely to Aragorn in greeting, then she walked around him and went on to completely ignore him as she greeted the hobbits with a warm smile on her face.

  "Could they have had a fight?" Ann asked quietly. They were confused. Weren't Arwen and Aragorn supposed to be deeply in love?

  "I don't know." Mae said and looked at Aragorn, he had returned the polite greeting but other then that he too had completely ignored her. What was happening?

  "They don't look very in love to me." Ann said, stating the obvious.

  Do not fret, children. This is how it should have been.

  The sisters looked to each other. With just a gaze they managed to convey a silent question to each other. They did not get the opportunity to converse on the subject though. Arwen approached them with a kind smile and whatever questions they had were put on hold, but Varda's words echoed in their thoughts.

  Saeleth awoke the next morning hugging a wonderfully soft pillow, the bed below her feeling even softer, like a warm fluffy cloud. Not that she knew what a cloud felt like, in fact she was fairly sure one couldn't touch a cloud... but all that didn't matter in the slightest as she rolled over and curled herself into a ball. After sleeping three nights on the cold, hard ground she was most definitely going to take advantage of every minute she had with her bed.

  As if on cue, Ann burst into the room very wide-eyed and excited. "Elle! Wake up! They'll be here soon!" Elle groaned very loudly and tossed the covers over her head.

  "No! Go away! I'm never leaving this bed. Ever!"

  "Oh, come on you lazy-butt don't you want to-"

  Suddenly, Ann let out a piercing squeal that made Elle jump up straight in bed, her eyes wide, her mind alert, and her earlier sleepiness completely, and selfishly, ripped away.

  "Ann!" Elle looked toward the balcony of her room where Maethien was covering Ann's mouth with her hand and holding her as far away from the balcony as she had managed to get her. Meanwhile Ann was still babbling like a crazy person, all of her words muffled by Mae's hand.

  "What was that?!" Elle all but shouted at her sisters.

  "Legolas just rode into the courtyard." She explained. At the mention of his name Anoreth let out a muffled string of words and began to jump up and down, forcing Mae to let go of her. Elle's mouth formed an O and she nodded understandingly, they both knew that Ann had always been a huge Legolas lover. Of course she was yet to realize that the Legolas from their world was most likely not the same as the real Middle-Earth Legolas.

  "It's him! Oh my god! We have to go meet them." Ann was about to run straight out the door, but both her sisters caught hold of her gown and dragged her to the bed, forcing her to sit when she really just wanted to run to the courtyard.

  "My God, have some dignity Ann." Elle teased as she stretched her arms high above her head, groaning with pleasure at the feeling.

  "You can't just go up to him and say 'Hello, Legolas! You don't know me but we're in love and we're gonna be married!', he'd think you were insane!" Mae said, obviously quite exasperated with her younger sister.

  "Oh, come on," Ann stood up and set her hands on her hips, an indignant look on her face. "I wouldn't do that! I just got kind of excited that's all." Now that she was over the sudden shock of seeing the Legoas, Anoreth could feel herself blushing bright red. She'd actually screamed! How classy.

  "Do you think he heard?" The thought horrified her. Elle laughed at her sisters embarrassment and went over to the balcony. She watched and listened carefully as Gimli made his entrance into the courtyard. She could definitely hear the sound of the horses hooves... but then again, she was an elf, her hearing was very heightened... And Legolas, well, he was obviously also an elf.

  "I wouldn't be surprised if Lord Elrond heard you scream." Saeleth called out, Mae laughed out loud when her little sister's eyes nearly bulged out of her head. She looked positively horrified.

  "Alright, come on, we need to get ready." Mae said and pulled Ann off of the bed.

  "Yes, Gimli just arrived. We'll be the last ones there if we do not hurry." There was no need to say it twice. Anoreth shot out of the room before Mae could even begin to head towards the door. Her earlier excitement returned as she eagerly rummaged through her many options of gowns, maybe it was silly of her but she wanted to look good. In the end, she decided to take a beautiful pale green gown with gold flowers embroidered all along the bodice, it hugged her torso then flowed elegantly down to her feet. She felt radiant as she walked out of her room.

  "Wow." Mae wolf-whistled when Ann came into her room. She was dressed to impress a certain long-haired elf, she had no doubt.

  "Thank you." Ann grinned and twirled in a circle. Elle and Mae had also taken advantage of their supply of gorgeous gowns, the silky smooth fabric feeling like absolute heaven against their skin. Mae had chosen a simple long and loose-fitting deep blue gown with a high collar and a jeweled belt across her waist. While Elle had donned a frame hugging gown in deep purple that flowed to the ground and pooled about her feet, intricate golden designs embroidered into the long angel wing sleeves.

  The sisters looked at each other and laughed aloud. Was it, well, crazy that they were being all girly and elegant when they were about to join the Fellowship of the Ring, and go an epically dangerous quest that could possibly bring them to the edge of their sanity, or worse, kill them?

  Probably. Yeah.

  They were the last to join the council. Mae looked for Frodo and went over to where he was sitting. "Frodo, how are you feeling?" She asked and smiled gently down at the halfling.

  "Much better." Frodo responded and smiled brightly up at her. "Thank you, for everything you have done for me."

  "Thank you is not necessary little friend. It was our pleasure." Maethien smiled and winked at him before taking her seat beside him. Anoreth, who was now feeling oddly nervous, had avoided looking toward where Legolas sat, looking anywhere but at him. Once she sat beside Elle, she moved so that she was slightly hidden and sneaked a few glances toward the handsome elf.

  "Strangers from distant lands, friends of old." Elrond began his speech, everyone going silent. Breathing deep, the girls leaned closer toward each other untill their arms were touching." You have been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor. Middle-Earth stands upon the brink of destruction. None can escape it. You will unite of you will fall. Each race is bound to this fate, this one doom. Bring forth the Ring, Frodo."

  Slowly, Frodo stood from where he sat an
d walked to the stone plinth. Everyone stared intently at the Ring as Frodo removed it from his finger. There was an impossibly loud thud when he placed it upon the plinth. Maethien noted that almost instantly after releasing the ring, Frodo's shoulders sagged with relief, as if a burden had been literally lifted from his shoulders. He returned to his seat and instantly after low murmurs came to life all around.

  "So its true," Boromir spoke. The girls turned their gaze toward the man, their eyes narrowed and harsh. He rose slowly from his seat and began to near the plinth, beginning his speech as he strode forward. "In a dream, I saw the Eastern sky grow dark. In the West a pale light lingered. A voice was crying, your doom in near at hand for Isildur's Bane." Unable to keep still, Maethien crossed over to where Boromir stood, faster than she believed possible and grabbed his wrist before his finger could touch the ring. At the same instant, Elrond has stood and called out Boromir's name sternly and Gandalf had begun the Black Speech.

  "Ash nazg durbatulûk, ash nazg gimbatul,

  ash nazg thrakatulûk, agh burzum-ishi krimpatul."

  Everything grew dark, the sky formed a funnel of darkness above them, the ground below began to tremble. A frightening darkness threatened to consume the elves. Mae gasped and staggered away from Boromir, pain stabbing into her chest, darkness overcoming her vision. For a moment she felt as if she was completely enveloped by darkness. Were it not for Frodo, who had darted forward to steady her, she might have fallen. Behind her Saeleth had sucked in a breath and dug her nails into the arms of her chair, fear gripped at her heart when her vision darkened and Ann felt her body begin to quiver from the icy cold darkness that had drowned her body and mind.

  When the speech ended, everyone stood in shock, obviously staggered by the darkness that had overcome them. "Never before has any voice uttered the words of that tongue here in Imladris!" Elrond reprimanded the wizard coldly, a rough glare in his eyes.

  "I do not ask for pardon, Master Elrond, for the Black Speech of Mordor may yet be heard in every corner of the West! The Ring is all together evil." Gandalf said roughly, his voice still holding a certain raspy sound.

  "It is a gift!" Boromir argued stubbornly, he rose again and spoke. "A gift to the foes of Mordor. Why not use this Ring? Long has my father, the Steward of Gondor, kept the forces of Mordor at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands kept safe! Give Gondor the weapon of the enemy. Let us use it against him!" He spoke strongly. Well, he was certainly determined.

  "You cannot wield it, none of us can." Aragorn voice rang out clearly, the authority in his tone unmistakable. "The Ring answers to Sauron alone, it has no other master."

  "And what would a Ranger know about this matter?" Boromir sneered, tossing a cold gaze toward Aragorn.

  "He's no mere Ranger." Elle tried not to smile when Ann rose from her seat at the same time that Legolas did, they had spoken the words in complete sync. A confused Legolas glanced at her, Ann kept a serene expression on her face and bowed her head to him before slowly sitting back down. She hid her wide smile fairly well behind her curtain of hair.

  "I'm sorry. I couldn't resist. I've always loved that line." She whispered, causing both Mae and Elle to giggle quietly. Their little sister was a lunatic.

  "He is Aragorn, son of Arathorn. You owe him your allegiance." Aragorn looked quite uncomfortable as Boromir turned to look at him, the shock clear on his face. "And heir to the throne of Gondor." Legolas' voice rang with pride. Boromir turned to fix Legolas with harsh eyes. Frodo looked positively shocked, he couldn't seem to remove his gaze from where Aragorn sat.

  "Havo dad, Legolas." Aragorn said to softly, gesturing at him to sit. Legolas hesitated briefly before slowly sitting back down. When he did his eyes wandered over to where Ann was sitting and she just so happened to be glancing at him herself at that exact same moment. Ann's heart jolted in her chest and she felt heat rise to her cheeks as she looked away from his blue eyes.

  "Gondor has no king." Boromir lifted his chin ad spoke defiantly. "Gondor needs no king." He spat coldly.

  "Aragorn is right, we cannot use it." Gandalf nodded solemnly.

  "You only have one choice, the Ring must be destroyed." There was a moment of icy silence, together the sisters all turned to look at Gimli expectantly, their muscles tensing.

  "Then what are we waiting for?" The dwarf spoke gruffly, then proceeded to strike the ring with his axe, bellowing as he brought it down upon the plinth. The axe exploded right before his eyes and he was thrown backward with overwhelming and massive force, the shards of his axe scattering everywhere. Maethien spotted a shard of the axe heading straight toward Gandalf and, without a second thought, reached out and caught it just before it could land it's blow upon Gandalf's nose. The wizard stared at the shard inches from his nose for a moment, then his eyes moved to look at Maethien, a small smile on his face.

  "I'm glad I sat near you." He commented simply, a giggle escaped Mae's lips as she winked at the old man then threw the shard over her shoulder. Turning back to face the plinth she realized that Aragorn had seen everything, she was pleasantly surprised to find that he was smiling softy at her with amusement sparkling in his eyes.

  "The Ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli, son of Glóin, by any craft that we here possess. The Ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. It must be taken deep into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came." Elrond looked down at the dwarf as he brought himself back onto his feet, then he scanned the faces of those around him solemnly. "One of you must do this." The silence that followed was grave and tense but shortly lived.

  "One does not simply walk into Mordor. It's black gates are guarded by more than just Orcs. There is evil there that does not sleep. And the great Eye is ver watchful. It is a barren wasteland. Riddled with fire and sh and dust. The very air you breathe is a poisonous fume. Not with ten thousand men could you do this. It is folly." Boromir spoke desolately. Ann shivered fearfully after he finished speaking while Mae couldn't help but glare at the man, what he said was true of course but terribly unhelpful and depressing... frightening as well.

  "Why, thank you, Boromir. That was very encouraging." Maethien spoke sarcastically, making those closest to her chuckle quietly.

  "Have you heard nothing Elrond has said? The Ring must be destroyed!" An angry Legolas shot to his feet once again. He was closely followed by Gimli who shot to his feet and snarled at the elf.

  "And I suppose you think you're the one to do it?" Yet another rose to his feet. Boromir, and his very pessimistic comments, rose and approached the two arguing figures.

  "And if we fail, what then? What happens when Sauron takes back what is his?"

  "I will be dead before I see the Ring in the hands of an elf!" Gimli announced brusquely, stepping toward Legolas threateningly. It had been one thing to watch this arguing through a screen, now that the girl's were sitting right in front of it... well, it was difficult not to get emotionally involved. Mae, whose temper had flared, rose to her feet and stepped closer to the group her eyes looking sternly at Gimli.

  "Better an elf than Sauron." She snapped sharply at the dwarf and set her hands on her hips defiantly.

  "Never trust an elf!" Gimli shouted at Legolas which then made Elle stand up and snap at the dwarf, completely forgetting her earlier decision to keep calm when the bickering started. Gandalf also rose and joined the growing argument, walking stiffly to Boromir and shouting deeply.

  "Do you not understand that while we bicker among ourselves, Sauron's power grows? None can escape it! You'll all be destroyed!" Ann grimaced as she watched the argument grow even further, she could feel the anger and frustration radiating from the group in waves. Perhaps it was because she was an elf but she was suddenly very aware of the emotions and atmosphere around her, she was surprised at how quickly the darkness of the ring managed to capture her sister's tempers. They both knew how much more its darkness would affect them than most and they had allowed their tempers to get the b
est of them. Heck, she had been close to getting out of her chair as well, but before she could move to the group she had looked upon the sadness in Frodo's eyes and had stopped herself from rising. Reaching out, she clasped his hand gently and smiled at him softly when he turned to face her. She knew the decision he was about to make and tried to look as encouraging as she possibly could... but it didn't happen.

  "Frodo?" Anoreth was at a loss, Frodo had risen from his seat but instead of declaring that he would take the Ring to Mordor... he turned in the opposite direction and walked away from the council. Ann looked back to where the others were arguing for a second before rushing after Frodo. "Frodo, where are you going?"

  "To the Shire. To my home. This is no place for me." He paused and looked up to Anoreth with sad and fearful blue eyes. "The Ring will be safe here." He said, though he did not sound too convinced.

  "Frodo." Ann whispered and knelt in front of him. Oh, dear. Ann prayed for the right words. In her eyes, Mae and Elle were usually the one's who knew what to say and when to say it. Words of wisdom or words of encouragement... She took a breath to calm her nerves and set her hands gently upon Frodo's shoulders. "My dear little friend, why do you run when you know what is right?"

  Frodo looked at Ann with wide eyes for a long moment before looking down at the ground, avoiding her gaze as he spoke the next words. "What can someone like me do to change anything? I'm small compared to this grand world." Ann felt her heart-break for her little friend, he did not yet know how great of a heart he held.

  "Strength comes in many forms, Frodo. The biggest people are not always the strongest." Ann set a hand on Frodo's cheek and gently raised his chin so that he could see her smile. "Do not underestimate yourself, my friend, for you are stronger than most of us here. You are brave, braver than you realize." Despite her words Anoreth could still see the doubt in his eyes. She searched her mind for something to say, something that would help Frodo see his true strength.