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Faeirex, Aragorn and Aralias
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Date Posted: 13:07:31 07/24/02 Wed
The person inside Aragorn who had been Strider started to rebel against the situation. Sauron back? that couldn't be right. It was impossible. This part melted away and allowed the part that was Elessar to rise to the surface; the part able to handle this with diplomacy. "My dear lady, I'm afraid you must be mistaken. Sauron's power was bound up with that of the one ring. When it was cast into the fires of Mount Doom by the halfling Frodo Baggins the Dark Lord perished with it. It is simply impossible for him to have risen again."
"Because a mortal is such a judge of what is impossible and what is not? Would you have said it was possible for a living tree to grow from dead wood? Would you have said it was possible for rain to fall from stone? Yet here you stand, and you see that they are."
"You misunderstand me lady," Elessar spoke bristling with supressed anger. "I have seen miracles before; usually by the hand of Gandalf the White. He taught me long ago to never question the impossible becoming possible. Yet Sauron's doom was fortold long ago. With the one ring destroyed he has nothing to hold him to this world. Do you doubt the wisdom of Mithrandir of that of the Lord Elrond?"
"Nay, but nor do I doubt my own. Sauron's life force was tied to the ring yes, and while it existed he could not be killed. The destruction of the One Ring did not take away his life, only his immortality. And now he is strong again, and seeks vengeance upon his enemies."
Whatever answer he had been expecting this was not it. "So all the time I have been seeing to the irrigation of my fields and arranging balls the Dark Lord has been growing in power again?" The concept that had been so alien to him just moments ago suddenly became all to solid and real. "How are we to defeat him?" he asked more to himself than any other. "We barely defeated him during the War of the Rings; the war to end all wars. Then we had the strength of Mithrandir and the elven people. Now they have departed I fear our final hours are not far away. How long have you known?" he said turning on the fragile creature in front of him. "If I had known our armies could've been readied by now. Why was I not told?"
"Because it was not the time for you to know." she said unemotionally.
"Not the time for me to know? Not the time? And now is the time? I've just spent 10 hours of my life in the darkness of one of my own prison cells listening to all the ideals I believed in 5 years churned out by some youth who was locked up for stealing an apple. Do you know what the worst part was? Knowing that I no longer believed in anything he talked of. But if now is is the time I shall not argue with fickle fate. All I would ask of her is that she give me more warning if in future I am once again called to protect the free peoples from their sincerest enemy with an army of untrained boys"
Be as ice She raised her head and concentrated her gaze at a point somewhere behind his head. "That is not my problem. I have delivered my message. What more would you ask of me?" Gathering her skirts she glided forwards towards the door.
"So you've delivered your message and now you're done with us?" He felt rage boiling inside his veins but allowed it to do so prefering it to the overwhelming sense of fear her previous words had induced. He strode forward and seized her arm; swinging her around to face him. "You can't just waltz in here, tell me something like that and run away. What more can I ask of you? Everything. Anything." He paused the anger subsiding. "You told me this concerns all the peoples of Middle Earth. Does that not also include yourself? There must be something you can do avert this disaster I have caused through my carelessness and arrogance." He forced her to meet his gaze; forced her to see the desparation that dwelt there. "Help me. Or if you will not," he gestured round the room, "help them. I cannot alone."
She stood caught by his gaze, meeting his eyes for the first time. One of the line of Númenor, asking her for help! If he had known... "Please," she managed to mouth, "please let me go."
She began to shiver under his touch, unable to hold off the memories which invaded her mind. The guilt was terrible, crushing. She shook her head, still unable to put voice to the words.
"I'm sorry...I'm so sorry."
He had to strain his ears to hear her. He grabbed her other arm with his free hand to stop her escaping. "You're sorry? You mean you won't stay?"
That wasn't what she was sorry for, but it was better he should think that than know why she was indebted to him. "It's not my choice to make" she whispered.
"She's right; it's not her choice. So why don't you just let her go, your majesty." Aralias' voice was calm and low as he gracefully descended the stairs from the upper balcony. It still managed to reach the king's befuddled ears.
He turned releasing one of the lady's arms in the process yet keeping a tight hold on the other. "And who in Mordor's name are you?"
"Someone not to be trifled with. She has told you that she can do nothing more. All you are doing is wasting valuable time you should be preparing your armies."
Faeirex wrenched her trembling arm from his grip. In a breath meant only for his ears she told him, "I can't." Raising her voice so every soul in the room could hear she added, more certainly, "I won't". Ripping her eyes away from his face, she fled from the room.
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