The morning dawned bleak and humid, in no small part because of how tight Legolas had held me all night. Before the muted sun had even risen, a single, clear note from a horn had awoken the entire massive army. Now, Legolas and I strapped on what we needed for battle, not speaking. All around, thousands of people did the same, only murmuring when absolutely necessary.

Long before the morning sun could completely dissipate the inky colors of night, the army began dividing itself, people finding their captain and waiting for the order to march. With a sword at one hip and my dagger at the other, all that was left to do was go find Èowyn. Afraid to face this farewell, I turned to Legolas. "I guess this is goodbye," I murmured, already fighting tears.

A heavy moment passed. He wanted to reassure me, I could feel it in my bones, but what was there to really say? 'See you later, maybe'?

Finally, Legolas closed the space between us and wrapped me in a hug. "Whatever befalls us today, do not doubt my never-ending love for you," he whispered, voice cracking. "Even if we're both to die today...these last few days have been the best of my life." Placing his long, smooth fingers on my cheek, he kissed me, tasting of saltwater.

I kissed him back, doing nothing to stop myself from crying.

Legolas ended the kiss and stepped back, tears shining in his eyes. "Go to Èowyn," he said. "Our fate is in Eru's hands."

The longer I stayed, the harder it would be to leave, so naturally I launched forward for one more hug. "I love you too...please don't die..."

"I'll do my best to stay alive," he whispered into my hair. "Now go, Eda...we have to march."

Nodding miserably, I let him go, turned, and trudged away. Saying goodbye hurt so badly—if this day ended without Legolas at my side, I wasn't sure I could cope.

* * *

I marched with Èowyn, Kèolyn, and seventy-one other women that, for some reason or another, had picked up the sword in favor of attacking Mordor rather than hiding from it.

We each led a horse of Rohan, saddled and bearing supplies—arrows, full canteens, bandages, needles and thread, and the like. Though Èowyn wasn't thrilled about it, she concurred with Thranduil—if the battle got too heated, we would leave.

Personally, I'd rather die killing orcs than running from them.

The army being the size that it was, it took us hours to reach the Black Gate, especially since we had horses pulling the creaky catapults instead of trolls. By the time we reached the wall separating Mordor from Gondor, the sun was fully up and well on its way to cooking the lot of us.

Dwalin's gruff voice rose above the din of clanking armor and people muttering to each other. The Angle began forming in front of the wide gate. Horses grunted as they struggled to pull the catapults up the nearest hill, behind us and off to the side a bit. At the front of the slow procession, Legolas walked with a couple dozen elven archers. His blue eyes pierced the space between us, and he gave me a brief, tight smile.

Ahead of us, the mass army formed ranks, and half of the horsemen clustered together beside us, and on the opposite side of the army, the second half of horsemen did the same, except for a single rider with dark hair. Aragorn.

He cantered out before us, sword drawn and raised. "Today is a day many have foreseen and feared," he called, eyes glinting. "A day of destruction, of ruin...of death." He reined his horse to a stop, taking the stage and demanding our attention. "Blood will be shed today. But not all of it will be ours."

The Rohirrim roared, beating the flats of their swords against their shields. The Dwarves soon joined, adding a deeper note to the cacophony.

Aragorn's shoulders squared, and he held his head high. "Let Middle Earth never forget the day when all races came together as one against evil!"

I joined the battle cry. Many others did, too. Until we were a roaring mass, hooting and yelling for Mordor to open its gates. Our request was soon granted.

As the massive stone gate slowly opened, snarling orcs poured out. Mere moments passed before swords clashed.

Having neither a good vantage point nor any semblance of height, I got up onto my horse's back. This allowed me a grissly view of the Angle slaughting dozens of orcs. Inky blood sprayed left and right.

"Catapult one, fire!" Legolas's voice rang over the din. The catapult's arm rotated, flinging a package of dynamite over our army, over the wall, and out of sight. A moment passed. Then, BOOM.

The orcs all stopped to look behind them. A moment of deadly silence. They realized: we weren't just here to kill orcs. We were here to lay waste to Mordor with no intent of letting it recover. We'd come to end them, end their way of life, and purge darkness from this corner of Middle Earth. They screeched and attacked with a new vigor.

"Catapult two, fire!" The dynamite landed farther back. The explosion shook the ground.

Amariel...

I blinked and glanced around. No one had spoken to me. A tremor raced through my bones.

We could do great things together.

"Who are you?" I muttered. The blaring noise of war masked my small voice.

You know who I am. And you also know that you can never rule Erebor without my help. Not really.

"You don't know what you're talking about." But doubt writhed in my mind—could I truly rule well?

You know deep in your heart that I am right. But I can help you.

I glanced at Legolas. He hated politics. The fact that he would marry anyone anywhere near political happenings was a miracle. If I couldn't keep Erebor under control, would he stay? "What do you suggest?"

Call forth my servant. She will take you to MountDoom. Retrieve the Ring, and it will be yours.

"The R..." My throat tightened. "It's evil. I dare not go near it."

No.

I scoffed. "No?"

The Ring is not evil. It is powerful beyond measure, and power brings to the surface what evil resides in whoever holds it. Frodo is not evil, is he?

I swallowed hard. "He's above us all in that way."

Indeed not. I can feel it in you...a strength wishing to be freed. But you are afraid of yourself Amariel. You cripple yourself, when you could be an unparalleled ruler.

My hands grew clammy. I wiped them on my pants. "I don't want to be an unparalleled—"

Yes you do.

"Catapult one, fire!"

BOOM!

I lifted my eyes to my husband, standing tall. Could I really do this to him?

Do what? Subject him to a lifetime of disorganized politics? Force him to leave his wife—or Eru forbid, his family, just for a little much-needed freedom?

"Catapult two, fire!"

The second catapult arm swung, but it wobbled. The dynamite released early, arched too high. Landed just outside the wall, a hundred feet to the right of the gate.

Exploded.

The mass army yelled and ducked as debris flew off the wall. When the smoke cleared, a gaping, blackened hole stood just behind a crater half-filled with bricks.

Orcs poured through the new entry like blood from a mortal wound. Charged the Angle from the side. Blood sprayed—red blood.

"Retreat!" Dwalin bellowed, dragging a smaller Dwarf backwards, toward the safety of the mass army.

A shout went up from Èomer. "Rohirrim, first wave forward!"

Horsemen charged the oncoming orcs, collided with them. Horses went down with pained whinnies. Men screamed. Orcs roared.

"Eda!" Dwalin yelled. He staggered through the crowd toward me and the other women, still dragging the Dwarf, whose stump of a left leg left a stream of blood in the sand. "Eda, she wasn't supposed to come, she wasn't supposed to be here..." He laid her down on the ground.

My maid stared up at me with wide, teary eyes. "My lady..."

"Larika!" I shrieked, yanking a wad of bandages from my saddle bag and pressing it to her gory stump. My stomach heaved, but I kept my mouth clamped shut.

"I'm so sorry...I had to...I couldn't just stay behind," she babbled, snivelling between phrases.

She would bleed a lot more than necessary if I couldn't calm her down. "Shh, what's done is done. Don't talk, just rest."

Èowyn crowded in and took the soaked wad without hesitation. She turned it over to use a fresh section. "We need to get her back to Gondor immediately," she said.

You can end this.

What do you mean? I snapped back.

If you take the Ring, the orcs will be at your command. You could tell them to stop fighting. You could tell them to march into MountDoom, and they would be powerless to disobey.

"Rohirrim, second wave forward!"

I located Èomer charging with the second wave. Watched as his horse went down before a unified front of orcs. Lost sight of him.

But the longer you wait, the more of your friends...and family...will die.

My eyes snapped to Legolas. He and his sharpshooters marched down the hill, rhythmically firing arrows into the mass of orcs.

My breath shuddered. I turned to Èowyn. "Care for her. I have to fight." To Larika, I said, "You are very brave. Stay strong for me...I'm going to end this war." Ignoring Èowyn's protests, I checked to make sure my dagger sat in place at my hip, then grabbed the broadsword I'd hidden under the saddle blanket.

Then I knelt. Buried my hand in the hot, gritty sand. Give back what I send into your depths. Let me end this madness.

The earth trembled, its refusal searing into my palm.

"You refuse?" I snarled. "I am the Queen Under the Mountain. I am the Daughter of the Earth. I am the Shadow Walker. You may not refuse me. Give back the dragon—now!"

The ground ripped in front of my fingertips, all the way to the wall. Sand showered into the massive divide, and a few men fell in with pathetic screams.

They never made it to the chasm beneath. Dragonfire burst from the opening. Creatures from both armies fled, oblivious of who they ran alongside of.

Dark wingclaws hooked onto the ground just before me. Then a long, angular head emerged, coming eye to eye with me. "Hello again, Queen," Imrid hissed with a sneer.

I stood. Squared my shoulders. "You are my subject, creature."

Imrid pulled herself higher so that she could look down at me with serpentine eyes. "Why shouldn't I kill you? I have dreamt of it. As your precious little mountain crushed my cage, I had to melt the stone around my head just to survive. And a facefull of lava isn't the most pleasant experience, as you can imagine."

"Hear me, dragon," I growled. "If you kill me, you're standing between two armies that both want you dead. But if you obey me, I will release you. We can be allies rather than enemies."

Imrid said nothing for a moment. "What would I gain from an alliance with you?"

"Gold. A steady supply of gold that you could not acquire by pillaging any one place at one time."

A long pause. Finally, "What do you require of me?"

A dark smile of victory stretched across my lips. "Take me to MountDoom."

An equally dark smile unveiled twin rows of razor-sharp teeth. "Get on my back."

"Eda!?"

I ignored Legolas and got onto Imrid's back behind her wings. I grasped the mainstays as she launched into the sky—and tottered.

Women screamed as Imrid came crashing back to earth, regained her balance, and took off again. The flapping of her wings was off-beat, and we barely made it off the ground, but she did fly. Once she settled into something of a rhythm, she glanced over her shoulder at the mass army and blew a stream of fire in their direction. Her golden eye flicked onto me, and she sneered.

Then she screeched. We dropped, nearly colliding with the ground before she levelled. "Get off, get off!"

Someone grunted behind me. I twisted to look, to find Legolas climbing up Imrid's tail. He shot me an annoyed glance and settled onto Imrid's back behind me. "I don't know what you're playing at, Eda. But wherever you go, I go. Even on the back of a dragon."

Remain focused, Amariel. Do not let your affection for the Elf prince waver your determination.

"Where are we going?" Legolas demanded.

"MountDoom," I answered, staring straight ahead.

"Why?"

Do not tell him.

"To rescue Frodo." More or less.

"With a dragon?" Legolas snapped. "We were going to MountDoom already."

I turned to glare at him. "Until one of your catapults blew a hole in the wall...I'm improvising to keep everyone from dying!"

Legolas opened his mouth to retort, then he scowled and looked away. His eyebrows shot up and he looked at me again. "Keep everyone from dying? How?" Before I could formulate another lie, he added, "And did you happen to notice the streak of smoking soldier bodies? My Ada is down there somewhere, Eda!"

My shoulders tensed. "Take it up with the dragon. That was not part of our agreement."

Imrid gave something suspiciously close to a snicker. "Whoops."

Legolas snarled and drew one of his swords. "If you need to get to MountDoom, Eda, never ask assistance from a dragon." He began to stand, balancing on her back.

"Legolas!" I grabbed his shirt. "Do not harm Imrid. I have made an alliance with her."

His eyes glinted. "An alliance?"

"T'is true, little Princeling. Not that it would matter. Your little knife would do nothing against my scales."

Legolas's jaw flexed, but he sat down again.

We said nothing more until Imrid drew close to MountDoom. She landed—hard—and we both tumbled off her back. "Farewell, fools. I considered decimating your army, but my heart is in the north. Find your own way home." She flapped her wings and turned north.

Legolas sighed and placed a hand on my shoulder, pulling me around to face him. "This is about the Ring, isn't it? You can tell me the truth."

Don't.

"Of course it is." I crossed my arms. "Everything is, these days."

Legolas looked deep into my eyes, then he shook his head. "I'm very sorry for this, but it's for your own good." He drew back one fist and punched me in the cheek, hard.

I frowned. Then my eyes widened. "What was that for?"

He blinked and backed a step, shaking his hand. "Valar," he swore. "Dwarves and their thick skulls..."

"You were trying to knock me out?" I stepped toward him, clenching my fists.

Legolas backed another step and held his hands up. "Eda, this is wrong. This isn't you. I feel it too, but you have to resist."

Tears brimmed my eyes. "You know nothing, melleth." I turned and ran up the jagged path into the heart of MountDoom.

Hot air blasted across my skin, but I trembled. It was here. Hanging over a cliff on the end of a chain.

"Just let it go!" Samwise screamed.

"No!" I launched at Frodo, shoving Samwise aside on the way.

Frodo turned to glare at me, darkness hanging over him like a shroud. "The Ring is mine." He ripped the Ring off its chain and slid it onto his finger. Disappeared.

A stench assaulted my nostrils a moment before a rock assaulted the back of my head. Furious, I spun to face Gollum. "You!"

The pallid creature sneered at me.

Legolas staggered up the steps and paused at the entrance. "Friend of yours?"

I lean down to snarl in Gollum's face. "It bit me...I'll have you know I have teeth too!"

Gollum snapped his attention to a pair of footprints in the stone dust. Aha...Gollum launched at Invisible Frodo a moment before I did.

We tumbled, rolled, grappled at invisible limbs. Just when I felt a brush of something coldly comforting, Gollum snatched it out of my hands. He opened his mouth and stuck something invisible between his rotting molars. With a satisfying crunch, he bit off Frodo's finger.

Frodo screamed and crumpled, cradling his hand.

I launched at Gollum.

Something massive rushed over us. "My precious!" Imrid knocked Gollum onto his back and clawed at his hands.

"No! No, it is ours!" Gollum screamed.

I scrambled to my feet and launched at the dragon. "Treacherous traitor!" I collided with her and grappled at the Ring, clutched in one scaly hand.

Imrid screeched and slipped over the edge. Clutching the Ring as she fell.

"Mine!" I grabbed her bulky wrist, refusing to let go. But her massive weight dragged me to the edge. Over.

A powerful grip wrapped around my opposite wrist. Hovering over the roiling lava in the belly of MountDoom, I stared at Imrid's fist, mere inches from my grip. The grip on my wrist slipped half an inch. But I couldn't let go. I had to get the Ring...

"Eda!" Legolas screamed, distant. "Let go!"

No...

Lava sprayed upwards, coating Imrid's lower body. The dragon screamed. Streams of fire arched wildly.

Intense heat struck my face, seared into my eyes. All went dark as it burned, melted my flesh. I screamed. I sensed movement, but I didn't care. My throat rasped with every scream. My lungs ached for air. The pain drowned me, smothered me, until I could no longer fight.

My cry quieted, and my breath slipped out of my lungs as everything faded.

***Author's Note***

I FINALLY UPDATED...yeah so my excuse this time is that I got a job. Keeping me SUPER busy...but I got some other stuff dealt with and out of my life, so *hopefully* (my favorite word) I'll be able to write more.

In other news, it's THAT time of year again. No, I don't mean school. I mean that registration has opened for the writers' conference I attend every spring!! I mentioned it a few months ago, how there were three of us wattpaddies and how much trouble we made...and now I'm shotgunning this out to you! If a writers' conference is something you're interested in, and if you want more info about this one, just shoot me a PM and I'll answer whatever questions I can.

I should be uploading again soon, so don't go far. ;)