A flash of silver swung over my head, and Haldir's sword beheaded the orc. I turned to face him, surprised. Another orc swung from behind.

"Haldir!" I screamed.

He turned a moment too late. The blade sank deep in his upper arm. With a pained yell, he swung his own sword and killed the orc.

Movement caught my eye. Another orc. Swinging at Haldir's neck.

In a crazy burst of adrenalin, I drew an arrow and fired. It struck the orc between the eyes, knocking it to the ground. Its sword harmlessly clattered to the stone.

"Come on!" I yelled to Haldir. He blinked at me, his expression shocked. I grabbed his arm and dragged him down the stairs. Together, we ran pell-mell for the Keep, dodging orcs. As we ascended the stairs, we passed bodies—too many of them human. I slipped in a pool of blood, Haldir barely catching me before I could fall.

I recognized the human boy it belonged to.

Feeling a little bit sick, I kept going, Haldir and I supporting each other. We finally reached the Keep, where a couple dozen men feverishly worked to brace the front gate. King Thèoden leaned against the wall, his arm in a sling, his expression devastated.

Haldir shakily sat down on the floor. His skin was clammy, and blood trickled over his broken armor. He needed medical assistence.

"King Thèoden," I said, "where is Èowyn?"

He looked at me for a long moment. Dread crawled up my spine. Had Èowyn fallen? But finally, he said, "She is there." He pointed over my shoulder.

I turned. Lady Èowyn strode toward us, her expression strained, but apparently unhurt. "Eda," she said, "have you seen Kèolyn?"

I shook my head. "I haven't seen her. Could you help Haldir? He's wounded."

She knelt beside Haldir and began removing the armguard. Haldir winced, but didn't resist.

A man parted from the group bracing the gate, and when he turned, I recognized it as Boromir. "Kèolyn is missing, you say?"

Èowyn's hands stilled, and she looked up at him. "Yes...she was well and at my side less than an hour ago, and now I cannot find her."

Boromir laid a hand on her shoulder. "I will find her, and I will bring her here."

Èowyn caught his hand. "Thank you," she whispered.

He nodded once, then strode away.

Èowyn gazed after him, and I shifted uncomfortably. "Um...no rush or anything...but Haldir's bleeding out."

"Oh...of course. I'm sorry." Èowyn returned to her work, baring his wounded arm. The gash was a nasty one, and bleeding too quickly to be safe. Èowyn sucked in a sharp breath, confirming my thoughts. "Do we have anything that could be used for a tournaquet?"

I pulled my braid over my shoulder and yanked out the leather string tying off the ends. "Here, will this work?"

"It'll have to," she answered, taking the string. She looped it around Haldir's arm, over the wound, and cinched it tight. Haldir grimaced, closing his eyes.

"Pull everyone back," Thèoden said in a defeated voice. His aide frowned worriedly, but Thèoden snapped, "Pull them back!"

The aide reluctantly turned to the others. "Fall back!"

A blow to the door makes the entire wall rumble.

I grabbed Haldir's good hand and pulled him up. "Come on, we're leaving."

"What about Boromir?" Èowyn cried, looking to me for support.

"He should not have left," Thèoden replied coldly.

I pulled her to her feet. "He'll be okay," I said, though I wasn't sure myself.

Another hit to the gate shook the structure, and splinters began to show in the wood. The aide urgently motioned for the men to pull back. "Retreat to the throne room!"

Haldir, Èowyn, and I got swept up in a wave of men retreating from the compromised gate. A sick thought occurred to me: was this all that was left of our army? But where was Aragorn, Gimli...Legolas?

I shoved that thought to the back of my mind as we kept running. Haldir stumbled, and I held tight to his arm. "Hang on," I murmured. "We're going to make it, okay?"

Haldir nodded, but his expression wasn't convinced.

Finally, we reached the throne room. Just as the men started to close the door, a familiar voice yelled, "Wait!"

Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas came in. Boromir brought up the back of the procession, dragging Kèolyn along. She was bent over double, screaming incoherently, tears streaming down her face.

Legolas crossed the distance between us and wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight. I closed my eyes, hugging him back and taking in his scent. "Legolas...I thought I'd lost you," I whimpered.

He rubbed my back, not saying anything. He didn't need to. We were about to lose each other anyway. And to be in the same room when it happened...I glanced at Kèolyn. It was too obvious what had happened to her.

"Why am I not surprised ye run to a pointy-ears for comfort at the end of all things?" came Dwalin's voice. The Dwarf parted from the crowd a moment later and clomped over to us. Glaring up at me, he added, "As the last of Durin's line, ye could at least die with a bit of dignity."

"As the last of Durin's line, I think I'll die how I please, thank you very much," I retorted bitterly. "Besides, no one said you had to stay and make the end of all things so miserable for the rest of us."

An orc's yell echoed outside the doors, and the men began feverishly grabbing at anything to brace the doors. Legolas gently pulled away from me. "I am going to help," he said softly.

I nodded, and he strode over to a chest, dumping its contents and dragging it over to the door.

"The fortress is taken," Thèoden snapped, sinking into a chair and burying his face in his hands. "It is over."

"You said this fortress would never fall while your men defend it," Aragorn challenged, walking over to him. "They still defend it! They have died defending it!"

I looked around for Haldir, and found him sitting on the floor by the wall, Èowyn looking at his injured arm. I went over to him and sat beside him, and he gave me a despondent smile.

"Haldir," I said seriously, taking his hand. It was cold. "You have to hang on. You can make it through this, okay?"

He nodded, looking away. I caught Èowyn's gaze, and she gave me a grieved look. Haldir was dying, and we all knew it.

Something heavy struck the doors, and the room shuddered.

"Is there no other way for the women and children to get out of the caves?" Aragorn demanded of Thèoden. When the king doesn't reply, Aragorn yells, "Is there no other way!?"

Thèoden's aide approaches Aragorn. "There is one passage...it leads into the mountains. But they will not get far; the Uruk-hai are too many."

Another blow rattled the door.

"Send word for the women and children to make for the mountain pass," Aragorn said. "And barracade the entrance."

"So much death," Thèoden murmured hopelessly. "What can Men do against such reckless hate?"

The aide hesitated, looking at his king. Aragorn gave him a push. "Go." Then he turned to the king. A dangerous light glinted in his eyes, and he said, "Ride out with me."

I frowned, confused.

"For death and glory," Thèoden said, a new hope lighting in his voice.

"For Rohan," Aragorn corrected. "For your people."

What were they riding out on, again?

"Yes!" Theoden exclaimed. "Yes! The horn of Helm Hammerhand shall sound in the Deep, one last time."

"Pause!" I yelled, holding up a hand. "The vibe here is awesome and everything, but exactly what are you planning to ride out on?"

Bwoop! Twenty horses appeared in the corner of the room. Boromir gave an ungraceful yell and half-dragged Kèolyn away from the horses. "H-how did they get here?"

Legolas dropped what he was doing and cautiously walked over to the animals. He caught the rein of one and disconnected a folded paper tied to it. Opening it, he read, "'Whoops...you'll need these. Don't judge me; I was working under a time constraint. Love, The Princess.'" Legolas looked up, a confused expression on his face. "Who is The Princess?"

"Does it matter?" Aragorn asked. "We have horses now, let's go."

Legolas led a horse over to me. "Mount up, Eda."

I looked at Haldir. He was paler than ever, and struggling to keep his eyes open. "Haldir!" I exclaimed, squeezing his icy hand. "Hold on. Please."

"Amariel," he said gently. "I am fading. You should ride with Legolas."

"Haldir, I'm not leaving you here to be..." Oh good Eru, what would they do to him?

"That's not your choice," he answered firmly.

Legolas gripped my arms. "Come on, Eda."

I stayed rooted in place. "No. I'm not leaving."

Haldir squeezed my hand, then pulled his fingers out of mine. "Yes you are, Eda." Shocked, I looked into his eyes. Dimmed with pain, but still vibrant. And stubborn as ever. "Remember what I told you."

Legolas pulled me to my feet and helped me into the saddle. As he swung up behind me, I looked back at Haldir. He gave me a wan smile, which I returned, suddenly having to blink back tears.

Everyone else was mounted by now, except Gimli, who trotted into a side corridor. Another shuddering hit slammed into the doors, the tip of the rammer showing through the wood at the center.

Thèoden looked across the gap between their horses to Aragorn, and laid his hand on the Man's shoulder. "Let this be the hour when we draw swords together."

Another hit to the door.

"Fell deeds, awake," Thèoden called, drawing his sword. "Now for wrath...now for ruin...and a red dawn!"

A horn blew, rattling the entire Keep.

A final hit to the doors, and they flew open.

As the column of horses charged, I glanced back. Sword in hand, Haldir struggled to his feet, grimacing.

Legolas's arm reached around me to hold the reins, while his other hand held a sword, slashing at orcs. We made it out of the throne room, and looking back, I saw dozens of orcs we'd missed pour inside.

"Haldir!" I screamed.

We galloped through the Keep, plowing through herds of orcs. Tears streamed down my face as we charged out the front gate and down the causeway.

Haldir was gone.

Just off the causeway, our horse was cut out from beneath us, and Legolas and I flopped off. We both jumped up and began fighting the masses of orcs, standing back to back. But no amount of effort would drive them back for long. Nearby, Èowyn and Boromir were facing the same predicament. With an unspoken agreement, Legolas and I began fighting our way toward the other two, and they began fighting their way toward us. We met in the middle, and made a circle.

It wasn't long before others joined our little group. Aragorn, Thèoden, Kèolyn. Even Dwalin couldn't deny the comparative safety of fighting in a group.

The sun had been up for a couple of hours, and all of us were nearly spent. But Aragorn kept shouting encouragement, telling us not to give up, begging us to hold on. And then...a single rider appeared on the ridge. Followed by two thousand more.

We'd been saved.