The beauty under water

Riders of Rohan

Days have now passed and they have spent the majority of them running. They continue theyr pursuit tracking the group of Uruk-hai that have Merry and Pippin, hoping they will lead them somewhere where thet could snatch them back from within their clutches.

Aragorn pauses as he moves to the ground, placing his head upon a rock to listen for the footsteps of the advancing Uruks.
"Their pace has quickened" Aragorn says.
"They must of caught our scent. Hurry!" He exaggerated as he began to run again. Adaliah followed quickly behind him as she was joined by Legolas. Every so often he would turn back to make sure Gimli was keeping up.

"Come on Gimli" he called back to the violently puffing dwarf behind them.
"Three days and nights pursuit. No food. No rest. And no sign of our quarry but what bare rock can tell." Gimli puffed, following after them.

Aragorn suddenly comes to a holt as he bends down to pick up an Elven brooch from the ground. Adaliah came to stand behind him where he puts the brooch into her hand.
"Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall" he said softly.  "They May yet be alive" Legolas piped from beside Adaliah.
"Less than a day ahead of us. Come!" Aragorn exclaimed as he grabs Adaliah's arm pulling her along with him. Gimli stumbles from behind some rocks and falls to the ground.

"Come Gimli, we are gaining on them" Legolas calls to him.  Gimli who is now panting, gets back on his feet.
" I am wasted on cross country! We dwarves are natural sprinters. Very dangerous over short distances." He yells.
"Rohan. Home of the horse-lords. There is something strange at work here. Some evil gives speed to these creatures, sets its will against us" Aragorn said as they came to a stop at last, for Gimli's sake anyway.

Adaliah felt the warmth of the sun hit her skin as she looked deeply into the plains that lie ahead.  Legolas moves onto a rock to get a view of the furthest distance.
"What do your elf eyes see" Aragorn questions. Adaliah observe Legolas as he stares sternly into the distance. Something about him truly fascinated her.

Suddenly a heavy panting is to be heard from beside Adaliah as she looked  down to find Gimli sweating and breathing loudly.
"Tell me..." Gimli begins to say
"What the hell is in you blood, that you run quicker than me?"
Adaliah just smiled at him as he begins to feel patronised.
"You should not be so quick to judge" she reply as both of them let out a small chuckle.
"The Uruks turn North East!" shouts Legolas. "They're taking the hobbits to Isengard!"
"Saruman" Adaliah heared Aragon whisper from under his breath. We all begin to run again across the plains of Rohan toward the direction of Isengard.

Gimli is beginning to struggle as he still continues to puff from behind Adaliah.
"Keep breathing, that's the key, breathe...ho!" He let's out a sigh. They continue to run throughout the night until the sun rises again the next day.

Legolas pauses to look up at the sky.
"A red sun rises. Blood has been spilled this night."He says wisely as Adaliah too now look up to observe the sky. As the sun climbed higher, a sound of horses began to bound from the distance behind them.  Aragorn runs to hide behind a rock, signalling us to follow.
Adaliah turned to grab Gimli pulling him along as shw throw him to the ground behind the large stone. 

A large group of horse-men appear, galloping quickly with their banners flying high throughout the air. Aragorn steps out as they pass, observing them as they go. Legolas, Gimil and Adaliah also all step out.
"Riders of Rohan, what news from the mark?" Aragorn called after the horse-men. The riders turn and head back our way. They make a circle, together in around the little fellowship as they point their spears closely to theyr faces.

A man begins to speak to us. His name is Eomér. Leader of the riders of Rohan.
"What business does elf, a man, a dwarf and a woman have in the Riddermark?" He questions, looking down at us.
"Speak quickly!" He adds.
"Give me your name horse-master and I shall give you mine! Gimli replies to him confidently.
"I would cut off your head, dwarf. If it stood but a little higher from the ground." Eomér remarked,  Legolas in a lightning quick move, pulls out an arrow and lifts it to his bow, pointing it toward Eomèr.  "You would die before your stroke fell." Legolas snapped.
"Enough of this!" Adaliah exclaim as she pulled down her hood to reveal her face completely.
"Lady Adaliah!..." he exclaims as he dismounts his horse and the weapons from the men begin to retreat.
"Forgive me for I did not know it was you." He says as he pulls Adaliah into a hug for it has been a long time since she last saw him.  As he let's go Adaliah introduce her companions.
"This is Aragon, son of Arathorn, Gimli son of Glóin and Legolas of the Woodland Realm. We are all friends of Rohan and to Theodén your king."  "Theodén no longer recognises friend from foe, not even his own kin." Eomér says gravely as he removes his helmet.
"Saruman has poisoned the mind of the king and claimed lordship over these lands. My company are those loyal to Rohan and for that we are banished. The white wizard is cunning, he walks here and there they say as an old man, hooded and cloaked. And everywhere his spies slip past our nets."
"We are not spies. We track a party of Uruk-hai westward across the plain. They've taken two of our friends captive". Aragorn retorted.
"The Uruks are destroyed, we slaughtered them in the night." Eomér replies.
"But there were two hobbits, did you see two hobbits with them?" Gimli asks.
"They would be small, only children to your eyes." Legolas stated.
"We left none alive, we piled the carcasses and burned them." he says as he points to a smoking pile in the distance.
"Dead?" Gimli inquired.  Eomér nods...
" I am sorry." They all hang theyr heads in the hope of what Eomér says isn't true as he begins to whistle to two horses.
"Hasufel! Arod! May these horses bear you to a better fortune than their former masters. Farewell!"  Eomér mounted his horse again.
"Look for your friends. But do not trust to hope, it has forsaken these lands."  He turns to address his fellow riders.
"We ride north!" He exclaims, as his men begun to leave us.
"Come on" Aragorn said as they mounted theyr horses.

Adaliah rode with Legolas who was tense and intalkative for the whole of the ride. Adaliah could sense a large amount of jealousy come forth from him and only now did she recognise why.

The rotten smell of orcs reached theyr noses yet again as they closed in toward the pile of burning corpses.  Although Legolas seemed mad at Adaliah, he still helped her off the horse nonetheless. Gimli begins to pick through the bodies with his axe, moving each one out of the way until he comes across a small strap of belt. Gimli turns to face Aragorn, Legolas and Adaliah with it in his hand.  "It's one of their wee belts." He says almost sobbing.  "Hiro îth...ab wanath" Legolas said. ( May they find peace in death). Adaliah bowed her head as he does too. As they stand there, Aragorn let's out a frustrated yell as he kicks a helmet and falls to his knees on the ground. Legolas moves next to him, placing a hand upon his shoulder to console him.

Adaliah begin to close her eyes as the others remain in silent.  Visions flash before her, Merry and Pippin running. Her eyes batter open as she looked to the ground where some tracks lay. She kneeled down to observe it.
"A hobbit layed here" Adaliah says as she brush her hand across the dirt.
"And the other"  Aragorn and Legolas come over to where she was.

Adaliah begin to move following the tracks... 
"Their bonds were cut" She said as she pulled two ropes up and out from the ground.
"They ran over here." Adaliah continued to follow each and every step as her vision becomes clearer.  "They were followed!" She exclaim as she break into a run, looking left to right until she came to a stop.

Adaliah slowly look upwards and there before her stood Fagorn forest. Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn stand beside her.
"Fangorn.." Gimli gasps.
"What madness drove them in there"  Without a word, Aragorn marches into the forest as they all continue to follow him.