Chapter Six: The Fall of Saruman

*Continuing on her path on foot, Serein was sure she was moving more slowly than ever. Then she also took into account the thought that she might have been spoiled into riding ponies when she had been with the hobbits and their friends. Well however, whatever she thought, she simply decided to pick up her pace.

Instead of walking from dawn until dusk, she began walking from dawn until midnight, and even then she sometimes did not stop. Orcs littered the forest and roads, snorting and squealing as they stood guard over the road to the Dark Tower. Careful to avoid being seen or caught, Serein soon took to the trees and rarely left their safety. Too afraid to make a fire, she slept in the trees often cold. Food was never cooked- even her meat had to be eaten raw from here on out. Survival was the trick to her quest. She needed to survive the forest to get to Saruman, and she needed to survive Saruman to get home. And that meant taking no chances, no matter how much they would have been welcomed.

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“So this is the way we are going?” Frodo asked in awe. The six remnants of the original nine Fellowship of the Ring sat atop their ponies on a high hill. Around them, in which ever direction they chose to look, a black smoggy cloud encircled the valley. Directly ahead of them lay the Dark Tower. It looked to be quite far off, but with the ponies, they would reach it in four days, plus any extra time they would lose hiding from orcs, fighting orcs, and in general playing it safe. There was no turning back now, they could only press on.

“Yes, that is the way our path leads. Straight to Saruman in the Dark Tower.” Gandalf nodded, a grim look across his features.

“Do we have any chance of making it out alive?” Sam whispered, deathly afraid of what lay ahead.

“You must have faith, dear hobbit. Faith will get us through the dark. It has before, and it will now.” Aragon did not falter in answering the hobbit’s bitter question.

“Right then.” Gimli nodded.

“Well then!” Legolas wheeled his horse around. “What do we await? A band of orcs to spot us? Enough with the sightseeing, let us continue our journey.” He smiled darkly. The company began after his lead, and soon they become nothing more than insignificant specks upon the horizon… though they were not insignificant, in fact, they were the most significant of all.

For the next four days they traveled on. After they had cleared the open terrain, they had realized how unhelpful their once prized ponies were. Once again they were forced to give them up to the wild. They were also constantly forced into hiding, sometimes for hours on end, while orcs roamed the forest, combing it in hopes of finding them. Still, the Fellowship made their way carefully through towards the Dark Tower.

They were so close, only a few miles away. They could hear the dull metal clinking of a large forge, and the snorts of the dirty orcs as they broke their backs laboring under the influence of pure and vile evil. A few noises had sent them into a tree for hiding a hour earlier, and now all they could do was sit and wait.

Soon a band of large orcs came trampling through the woods and directly towards them. Holding their breaths, each of the Fellowship tried not to move so as to give their position away to the creatures of the dark. But these orcs acted strangely. They did not search as others did. Instead they simply stood in the center of the forest, as if listening to some imaginary force. Then the orcs made an abrupt movement. Wielding giant metal saws, they began to slice through the tree that held the Fellowship. Their secret was no secret any longer.

“How did they know we were here?” Gimli yelled.

“Saruman has most likely been watching us since we left the mountain.” Gandalf yelled back.

“Then why does he attack now?” Sam asked.

“Because we have gotten too close for his liking.” Legolas grimly readied an arrow. Of the whole Fellowship, his was the only weapon helpful in their situation. But even after firing so many arrows, he realized it was in vain. The orcs were simply too numerous for him to kill on his own. But he would not go down without a fight, he owed Frodo that much, for taking the ring.. “The ring!” He yelled suddenly.

Frodo looked down at the ring that dangled from the chain around his neck. Saruman would get the ring and give it to Sauron if he got a hold of it!

“What should I do with it? He is expecting a hobbit to be carrying it!” Frodo worried.

“Pass it to Aragon!” Sam suggested.

“Yes, give it to Aragon!” Gandalf nodded.

“No, keep the ring! I may not have the will power. I may follow in my father’s footsteps after all.” Aragon denied the ring.

“Aragon! I can help keep your mind clear if you take the ring!” Legolas yelled back. Time was running out.

“Please Aragon, keep the ring safe!” Frodo called, holding the ring out to him.

“No. You are to keep it hobbit. It is your quest.” Aragon stubbornly refused. But by then it was too late. The tree fell on its’ side, shaking it’s occupants to the ground. Orcs picked them each up and began carrying them in the direction of the tower. They were going to have an audience with the vile wizard, Saruman of Mordor, the right hand man to the Dark Lord himself.

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From the out-cropping in the black rock, Serein watched as the orcs dug deep into the ground of Middle-Earth, ripping it to pieces bit by bit and bringing their evil brothers back from the dead. So many of them, and only one of her. This could lead to complication, unless she played her cards right. The tower was so close, only a few yards ahead of her. She was so close… yet so far.

Using her elfin grace and balance to her advantage, she managed to sneak by the sentries and to a wall of the tower. But this was not like the mountain wall she had had to scale to reach the cave when it had rained. This wall was made of smooth gray stone, without any footholds or places to grab onto to pull herself up. The only window in the wall was some thirty feet above her head. How would she accomplish her goal? From behind she heard a noise.

Whipping around, she slashed at whatever creature had slunk up behind her. The orc fell dead, without having time to warn it’s fellow orcs there was an intruder in their midst. Serein looked at the dead orc. What a waste… or had it been? She looked over the orc skeptically, for any rope or useful tool that could aid her in her problem. She spied the solution. The orc had tied to his shoulders pads made of spikes. Ripping them from the bloody and dirty mass of orc that lay lifeless in the mud, she put the pads over her hands, spiked side palm up. Digging her hands into the soft stone of the wall, she was able to begin pulling herself up.

Each pull up seemed to last an eternity, in which she only knew the burning sensation that flooded her arms and invaded her brain. She wished she could cry out to alleviate some of the pain, but if she did that, orcs would have her pegged within mere seconds. So she climbed on, towards her goal.

The window was in reach. Almost there. There! She grabbed for the window sill and with one last heave, pulled herself into the window. Resting for a moment, she ripped the pads off of her hands. Trying to stay as inconspicuous as possible, she crouched low in the window and surveyed the grand but empty room below her.

On one end stood giant mahogany doors. Opposite the doors was a large chair, draped over in deep crimson and royal blue velvet runs of cloth. Orcs milled about the room, doing what she could not tell. But seated up in the grand throne was the man she had sought for so long, Saruman, thief to her kingdom. She scowled and readied her bow. She would kill him first, then make her way to wherever the Gemstone of Haze was being kept.

Just as she was about to let the arrow fly, the mahogany doors were violently thrown open to reveal an envoy of those whom she had never thought she would see again. Orcs dragged her comrades in one by one, then dropped them before Saruman and stepped away. From her perch, Serein listened to Saruman as he began to speak.

“Gandalf. I thought you were dead, long gone in the mines of Moria with that balrog. And I must say. For the rest of you to have gotten this far, you have quite amused me. I thought I would have you beat with my snowstorm, but you merely found another was through. I thought my orcs would capture the halflings who carried Lord Sauron’s ring, instead they came back with the wrong ones.” He paused, smirking briefly. “Bring to me the other two halflings.” He ordered an orc.

“Saruman, release us at once.” Gandalf commanded.

“You, Gandalf the Gray, are becoming tiresome quickly. Do not play with me, or I may end up killing you before we have any fun. Now then. Hobbits. One of you carries something I value greatly. Return to me the ring, the ring of power!” Saruman commanded. Frodo and Sam huddled together behind Gandalf and Aragon. Legolas and Gimli rose from the ground to take position behind the hobbits, forming a circle of protection around them with Gandalf and Aragon. Weapons were ready to be drawn at any given time, but they dare not do so yet, for to enrage the orcs too soon would be more than fool-hardy.

Once again the doors flung open to reveal more orcs. This time the orcs carried to smaller figures- Serein saw their feet and knew they must be hobbits as well. The little hobbits were dropped harshly to the floor. They stayed laying down for a moment, then each slowly looked up.

“Frodo?” One called softly.

“Pippin? Merry?” Frodo could be heard answering their call. The two hobbits sat up and hobbled quickly over to the bunch. Legolas and Gimli moved to make room for the other two hobbits in the center of the circle- there would be time for welcomings later. They hoped.

“Enough. The ring.” What ring? The words rang through Serein’s pointed ears. The one ring of power… no! Surely Saruman did not mean the ring had been found? And that one of the hobbits was carrying it? But it logically fit. The reasons the orcs had attacked them. The reason Frodo and Sam needed to cross into Mordor- to destroy the ring. Even the company matched up now. It was an assembly of the finest of each race working as a coalition.

“We will never give you the ring, Saruman!” Gandalf’s voice echoed through the silent hall.

“Very well.” Saruman picked up a sword and took a few practice swings. “I was hoping I would get the chance to strike you down once and for all!” He lunged.

“No!” Serein cried from her vantage point. She let the arrow she had had readied for so long fly. It landed straight and true, burying itself deep in the right shoulder of Saruman. His scream pierced the air in an unholy sound of pain. He glared up at the window and looked at the figure, whose face he could not make out. The figure gracefully scaled the wall like a cat might, jumping and landing on her feet, sword drawn, fighting stance ready.

“If you lay so much as a hand on them, I will not hesitate to murder you.” She stated coldly and calmly.

“Serein!” Legolas cried from his point on the protective circle. Was she insane? What was she doing here, of all places? And challenging Saruman no less. Still, she was beautiful in her rugged stance, passionate fixed stare, and confidence. His heart did something it had never done before- it skipped a beat. But he shoved the feeling down, back to pit of his stomach. His oath was to the protection of the hobbits; he had no right to ignore his vows for something so trivial and vain. Legolas narrowed his eyes and tensed more so than before. A battle was brewing; he could feel it in his bones.

“Serein, step back!” Gandalf roared at her. He knew not why she was here, but it was a foolish thing, diving into a challenge as she was without knowing her enemy’s power.

“How dare you! Who are you?” Saruman roared in anger at the petite form in front of him.

“I am Serein. I have a bone to pick with you Saruman.”

“Oh?” He sneered, pulling the arrow out from his shoulder. But it was bleeding profusely.

“You sent orcs and invaded my home. You and Sauron both thought you could get away with ransacking my home. But you were wrong. You stole from me something, and I wish it back, immediately.” She demanded.

“A high wish for someone who probably owns nothing more than the clothes on your back. What would I have stolen from you? It makes no matter. Attack them! Kill them all!” He yelled. The orcs inside of the room quickly spread out, closing in on the small bunch of warriors trapped in the center of the room. Serein joined the circle around the hobbits and began slicing at whatever came close to her.

“Serein, why are you here?” Legolas yelled to her over the clanging of the swords and cries of pain.

“I told you, I had my own business. It seems, however, that our goals were one in the same: take out Saruman!” She answered him. Soon they had no time left to chat. Orcs everywhere. Gandalf had left their circle to deal with Saruman personally.

“Saruman, you have gone to far!”

“Never! I will have the ring!” Blasts of magical power blinded the fighters as the two wizards vied for power on the other side of the room. Finally, Gandalf hit a weak spot in the shield Saruman had placed around himself, and got a hit through. One last blow would do it, but he wanted to more than just kill Saruman. He wanted to bring down the entire Dark Tower.

“Aragon! Take the hobbits and run! This place is going to come down around your heads!” He warned them.

“Right!” The heir to Gondor nodded as he finished slicing through the heart of an orc. Dark black blood pooled in puddles onto the already stained floor. But he paid no heed. Grabbing Frodo and Pippin, he began to make a run for it. Merry and Sam quickly followed after them, Gimli fending off anyone who dared attack them as they made their escape. Gandalf sent his last attack flying and as Saruman cried out in his last breath, he damned them all.

“You will die before this war is over! And I will see you rot in hell!” Then his heart burst and the red liquid that had once kept him alive dribbled from his mouth and down his chin. He gurgled, trying to breath, but it was too late. He fell, trapped forever in death as a lost soul to the side of evil.

Gandalf stood in silence for a moment in the crumbling building. Then he too, turned and began to flee. “Legolas! Serein! This place is going to fall! Let’s go!”

“Right!” Legolas acknowledge him.

“No! Not without it!” Serein cried in desperation. She was going to get the Gemstone of Haze if it killed her. She owed it to her kingdom. Racing towards the stone stairs at the back of the throne room, she began to climb them.

“Serein! Fool! You’ll be killed!” Gandalf cried after her, trying to deter her from her delusional and greedy want for something that would end up killing her.

“I’ll get her!” Legolas narrowed his eyes. Gandalf grabbed his sleeve.

“Fool! You’ll both be killed then! She is none of our concern! Let’s go!”

“She is one of us as much as you are a wizard and I an elf. I will not leave her behind!” He ripped away from Gandalf’s hold and raced after her, hoping his speed would be enough to catch the swift woman’s. He wasn’t going to let her die now, in this battle. No, not now…Up and up he climbed until finally he came to a door which had bee broken in. He found Serein pacing in the corridor.

“Serein! This place is about to collapse! We need to go! Now!” He told her forcefully.

“No! Not without what he stole from me!” She snapped. Then with a look of despair, she looked Legolas in his eyes. “Please Legolas.” Stucco and plaster began to fall around them. “I can’t leave without it.” He sighed.

“What am I looking for?” He asked, turning to the doors and kicking them in.

“A treasure room, or a room that looks as if it holds important trinkets.”

“Like this one?” He grunted as he kicked open a door to reveal piles of gold. A stack of rubies lay in one corner, and in another emeralds. In the center stood a platform encased in glass. Serein pushed her way past Legolas and into the room. As he was busy staring at the wealth in the room, she broke the glass casing in the center and carefully took the miniature Gemstone from it’s pillow. Placing it carefully into a small leather bag she wore at her waist, she turned to face Legolas.

“Let’s go!”

“Go? You found it?” He asked, coming back to reality.

“Yes! Hurry!” She urged them on. Out of the room and down the corridor they flew towards the stairs. Down only a few flights, a huge piece of the wall, which the stones were carved out of, caved in. Legolas, who was leading, was not effected by the breakage in the stairs. He looked back to see Serein slipping off the side. Making a dive for her hand, he grabbed it just has she slipped. She looked up and her eyes met his for split second. Tension between their intense glares rose ten fold.

“Please don’t drop me.” She spoke softly as she hung, slipping from his grasp. He could see the fear in her eyes. *

~~~Oh! Cliffie! REVIEW and I might consider putting out the next ch! It’s already written after all…~~~