Now, they had travelled almost to Isengard where they would rest for a day or two. Strider and Defréndel told stories as they travelled, and Mal and Cat chatted gleefully when they could. Jacob had barely said a word since they had left Minas Tirith, and barely ate anything at meals. He seemed to always be thinking, focusing, or processing. Then one moment they all just stopped. Jacob knew what was about to happen, so he slid to the ground, rolling as the world around him stopped. He had to roll to his friends, because he knew what might happen after it. He felt his vision rising again, just like last time. This time he only flew a mile or so, which meant they were close to the object of the vision.

Again, the voice came, saying in its melodic tone, "A friend awaits you at the citadel. Before your quest continues, you must seek out this ally, or the elf star will never will never join you on this quest. You will know them, for they will know your companion, who you wisely accepted the aid of. Go now, find the greatest friend of the old ring-bearer." They flew back to themselves, though it was odd that this time he felt as though there was only three of them in the vision. Maybe the vision only went to the heroes this time, or maybe there was no Vince to receive it. That thought scared him more than anything. Vince had been his friend, and this world had turned him evil, so he chose to hope it was the former of the two options. Then, he noticed he could see clearly. He pushed through the dizziness, and looked at the others, Mal managed to stay on the horse, but Cat was slipping sideways. She must have been hit the hardest again, so Jacob ran to catch her. But he too wasn't the steadiest, so he tripped over his own feet. Of course, in his haste, he hadn't notice one fact. Cat was wearing all her gear. As she fell into him, his arms burned from the strain, but she hadn't been hurt. He would have a bruise or two, but she might have had a broken bone.

He decided to say something intelligent sounding at that moment, so he got out one word,"Ow." The other three looked at them, as they had simply stopped. Jacob explained what had happened to them after helping Cat back on her horse. They knew now where they had to go, and Strider said he might know who they needed to find. They all figured Strider was the companion that was mentioned, as he was the only one who might be recognized by someone of importance. Jacob asked Strider what the vision meant by ring-bearer, wondering why wearing a ring made anyone important.

Strider just laughed and told him, "I forgot to tell you the greatest story I know. The adventures of Frodo of the nine fingers." He told the story of the one ring and the courageous hobbits who carried the greatest strength and weakness of the dark lord right under his nose, only to destroy it. Jacob's mind was racked with connections, and the story seemed so familiar to him, but he couldn't put his finger on why. Now they neared the fortress of Isengard, and Strider finished his tale. They passed through the gates, and almost immediately a higher, older voice called out to them from their right.

"Well if it isn't the crown of all, Strider!" The voice said aloud. They turned to face the speaker, and Jacob saw he was a short man with silvery hair, and a round stomach. He was a hobbit. He found it odd that the hobbit knew his fake name, rather than his real one.

Strider replied to the hobbit in a tone only used when speaking to an old friend, "Ah, it is good to see you. Tell me, what brings you so far from the shire?"

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Cat felt like she recognized this little man, but she couldn't put her finger on why. She knew that Vince hadn't seen this message, though how she knew that, she wasn't sure. They followed the hobbit into a nearby building, and he began to talk to Strider.

"You know, I could ask you the same question? What brings you so far from Gondor? You are the king." The stranger asked. It would seem this was the one who they were meant to find, because he knew that Strider was the king. But, she still wondered who he was. It was clear that this hobbit had to have been significant in the story of Frodo, but which was he? Was he Sam, Merry, or Pippin? She decided that the first was the most likely, but there was one way to know for sure. Clearly Mal had made this connection as well, because she just came out and asked it.

"Are you Samwise Gamgee?" She asked. The hobbit looked at her and smiled. Strider left the room and went in search of essentials for them.

He answered her with his kind voice, "Of course. Who else would I be?" He laughed at his little joke, but his laughs turned to coughs as he recovered. This halfling was old, but not too aged from what Cat could tell. Now they had found what the vision had called them to, but how would Sam help them find an Elf-star? Cat mulled this over and resolved to just ask Sam.

"What do you know about the Elf-Star, Sam?" She asked him. He looked at her and smiled.

"Thank you for giving me a happy memory, young lady. My daughter is named Elanor, or Elf Star." Samwise told her. Her simply smiled and looked at them. Then, he tilted his head in a curious look, asking, "Why are you interested in finding my daughter?" Before any of them could answer a horn could be heard, cutting through the still air. Strider burst through the door with a concerned look on his face, and all of them knew what the horn had meant. The citadel was under attack, and they were probably the reason why.

Cat and the others rushed out the door, with Sam following behind them. Mal leapt to horseback, while Jacob strung his bow and she drew her sword and slung her shield around onto her arm. Strider reached for his sword but didn't draw it yet. Cat realized that a king probably had a recognizable sword. Defréndel was stringing his bow, and Mendon was mounting up next to Mal. They were readying for battle, again. The others were rushing to get ready, but memories of what happened the last time she charged to battle were flowing back to her. She had been injured, sure, but that didn't mean that it hadn't simply led to more death.

"Let's go, guys!" Mal called to everyone. She seemed to not fear battle, not dread the idea of a fight. She was brave, but she realized it was up to her to decide whether she was as well or not. For now, she didn't have time to consider it, she needed to help all the people that couldn't fight against the orcs. They rushed to the gate, ready to battle. They quickly dispatched most of the orc raiding party that had been attacking the fort, who expected to find its guards lazy and unready. Now, they returned to the small building that they had been talking to Sam in, and retrieved their provisions and travelling gear. Cat hefted her pack and was ready to continue their journey.

"You should come with us, Sam," Strider said to the hobbit, "It would seem that you are a part of this quest too." The hobbit stood and began to follow them, then stopped. A frown spread across his face and he looked right at Strider.

"How would we travel? I will only slow you down, because I can't ride a horse," Sam said. He turned to sit down again. Jacob took a step forward and looked the old man in the eyes.

He asked the hobbit the one question on all the friends' minds, "Did you give up this easily on Frodo when he destroyed the ring? Is your daughter worth less than him? Vince is probably on his way to the shire now, hunting her. He needs to be stopped, and we need your help." Sam stood once more, inspired by Jacob's words. Cat noticed that the old hobbit was moving faster now than he had before, he moved with a little more purpose. They went out of the old shack, when Jacob turned to her and said, "Do you feel like so many things here are familiar, or like we should recognize them? I keep getting this buzzing in my brain, because it is struggling to find the last bits of memory." She agreed with him, and he smiled. He turned away quickly, and went to ready his things again. Cat didn't notice anything odd about his behavior, but Mal gave her a questioning look. She reached down and felt the scar on her leg, wondering if it would ever fade away. Sam had come out, and they were ready to walk, because Sam couldn't ride a horse. Mal was still mounted on her horse, as they figured she could escape if they were ambushed again. Then, the gates opened, and they set out once more, on the road to the shire. They were on their way home.

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The road was smooth, and they hadn't run into trouble. Yet, Mal was always trying to look ahead and watch for ambushes. She didn't want Jacob or Cat to go through something like last time. Sam was quite the storyteller and made the time go by faster than any other trip she had been on. They camped at night, and travelled in the day, always taking turns on lookout duty. Their journey wasn't nearly complete, but their quest seemed to be coming to a close. They soon would reach the shire, find Elanor, and then go home. She felt like she was in a story book. The heroes were introduced, they found their reason to fight, they had their setbacks, but now they were winding down. Mal always had wanted to be a hero, but not like this. She wanted to be a hero that always saved the day, but she had been the hero that ran to fight another day and that would weigh on her for the rest of her life. She pondered these things during her turn for watch. She figured she had about another hour of time until the next person's turn to watch. She heard a rustling from behind her, and she turned to see Cat standing up, obviously having trouble sleeping.

"Hey, something wrong?" Mal asked her. Cat looked at her blankly for a while, then shook her head vigorously.

Sleepily, Cat replied, "Sorry, what was that? I'm not sure I was awake enough to tell what you said." Mal laughed at this and invited Cat to sit with her. They sat and talked until finally it was the end of Mal's watch. They moved to wake Jacob, but he was already standing up and stretching. Cat asked him, curious, "How'd you know you needed to get up?" Jacob just looked at her, obviously thinking.

Jacob looked at her and said with an odd expression, "Wait, I'm awake? I thought I was just dreaming. Sorry. Is it my turn to watch?" This made Mal and Cat laugh. He was obviously still half asleep. He grabbed his bow and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He seemed ready to watch now, so Mal laid down and tried to fall asleep, and then her vision slowly faded to a black dreamless sleep.

She woke the next morning to Mendon shaking her. They were readying the morning meal, and she needed to wake up. They would reach the shire if they made good time, which they could if they started early. They ate their breakfast and started off again, this time Sam told them stories of the shire. Some were of the peaceful times and wonderful beauty, and others were of right after the war, when there were battles fought right in the shire. Mal kept looking ahead, wanting to not walk right into a trap. Again. It was then that Sam said something that seemed to trigger a memory almost.

He stopped for a second and said, "We just crossed into my homeland. It feels good, doesn't it." She felt a rush of memories hit her like water released from a dam. She felt everything she knew was familiar occurring to her. She had regained her entire memory. The memories relating to this world. The memories relating to a book. That was when she realized that she didn't know how to ride a horse. She realized that with her memories returning, her ability was slipping away, and she was slipping off her horse.

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What was he thinking? He was becoming Sauron. He knew it now, and he had known it since he set foot in the shire. He didn't want this. It must have been the power corrupting him. He had to admit, it was super amazing and frightening to be in middle-earth. He realized that if he revealed that he no longer wished to dominate, Ryan would kill him, and take over what he had started. He needed to find his friends, then he would have a chance to abandon his evil intentions. He didn't know if he could still overpower Ryan, now that he knew his ability was gone. He continued to try to keep Ryan loyal to him by having him search for his friends with him. He had fallen off his warg when he had regained his memory, and he was sure Ryan was starting to doubt him. Suddenly, Ryan turned to him and opened his mouth to speak, but he was cut off.

"Don't interrupt me when I'm thinking, you idiot." Vince said, though it didn't come out as menacing as he wanted it to. Ryan clenched his teeth at the insult, but he still held his tongue. Vince finished processing, then turned to Ryan expecting him to give a report. Ryan realized that he was waiting for the information now and told him he had spotted the others. Together they charged down the way Ryan said he had seen the others, Vince ready for a barrage of insults and questions. Ryan noticed a small glimmer of peace in Vince's eyes and thought he knew what Vince was thinking, he was sure this was his moment. He fell back a little, ready to pounce on his warg. They burst onto the road, where Vince's friends were just recovering from what seemed to be an accident. They all looked up to see him, and the girls yelped in surprise. The elf drew an arrow to his cheek and fired it. Vince thought for sure he was dead, when suddenly his ear was cut, and he heard Ryan's warg drop dead. He quickly raised both his hands into the air and dropped to his knees. Ryan was yelling and cursing behind him, clearly pinned under his warg's dead weight.

Vince called to them, "Don't shoot! I wish you no harm!" They all looked perplexed by this, and they began to walk forward cautiously. The man Vince didn't recognize called to him, saying to drop his weapons. He drew both the daggers at his side out of their sheaths and dropped them to the ground. Shoving them forward, he knelt, not knowing whether his friend would forgive him or not. Jacob walked forward, and Vince looked up at him meeting his eyes. "It was this place. I'm sorry, because it made me something I'm not," He said to his friend. Jacob held out a hand to Vince helping him off his knees. Then, before Vince could thank him, Jacob punched him square in the jaw. Vince stumbled backwards, shocked.

"That's for threatening to kill my friends, whether it was you or not." Jacob said. Vince figured he did deserve that. He had threatened them, hurt them, and attacked them. But now, he just wanted to help them, and any trust or hope they once had for him was gone now. Vince turned around and looked right at Ryan who still was struggling to get the dead warg off his legs. When he noticed Vince's glare a worried look flashed across his face, because he was clearly at their mercy. Vince took a step toward him and raised his fist, but he was stopped by a hand gripping his shoulder tightly. He turned to see Jacob, staring him straight in the eyes with an intense stare. Vince lowered his fist as Jacob strode past him, squatting just outside of Ryan's reach.

Vince tried to listen in on what Jacob was saying to the traitor, but he simply couldn't hear him. Soon, Jacob stood and started to help lift the corpse off Ryan. He slid out from under the dead creature and stood. He glanced at each one of them in turn, shuddering when his gaze crossed over Vince, then finally reaching a look of pure panic as they landed on Jacob. With that last glance, he turned and ran as fast as he could away from his previous master and his old friends.