Chapter Eight

The creature’s rage increased with each blow it sustained from the flailing trees.  And, those blows brought about more thrashing, creating a vicious cycle of destruction.

The trees that were dying, cried out to those around them.  There was pain in their voices, but there was also pleas for their neighbors to stop the serpentine monster.  Their concern was not for themselves, for they knew their doom was near, but for the elf and the human, who were the beast’s intended victims.

Legolas heard it all.  The horrendous sounds that reached him tore at his heart and brought unshamed tears to his eyes.  He could not ignore what he heard, nor could he filter out the sounds.  All he could do was make sure that he and Aragorn reached safety.  It was what the trees were sacrificing themselves for, and the wood-elf was not going to let their deaths be in vain.

“So, do you think we can reach the mountains beyond the forest before that snake reaches us?” Aragorn asked, as he and Legolas made their way through the small forest.  He knew they would soon arrive at the end of it.

Legolas shook his head.  “I do not believe so.  The trees are trying to stop the snake, but they are losing the battle.  The creature is just too large and powerful, even for them to handle.”  The elf had to work to keep his voice from breaking.

The mountains the ranger had referred to were a good three miles from where the pair were now.  The land between here and there was rolling hills, similar to what they had just traveled through after leaving the tower.  It was highly unlikely they would find a safe place before...

Legolas and Aragorn were once again thinking the same thing.  They were in big trouble, but they were reluctant to say the words out loud.  There was really no need to speak of what they both knew to be true.

The trees were beginning to thin out, indicating that the edge of the forest was near.   

Aragorn pulled them to a halt.  “I have an idea,” the man said suddenly.

Legolas looked at Aragorn with a mixture of mild surprise and hope.  “Please share,” the elf told his friend.

“That snake can’t see us right now.  Right?”

The archer looked behind them.  He could still hear the carnage clearly, but he couldn’t see it.  He nodded.  “It has not caught up to us enough to see or be seen.”  

“Then why don’t we go that way.”  Aragorn pointed to their right.  “We could sneak around behind it and head back out the way we came.  Then we could get the horses and be gone from this place.”  He studied Legolas’s face for a hint of whether or not the elf would agree with his plan.

The elven prince took only a moment to think about the man’s plan.  “There is only one possible problem.  The trees are fairly sparse on either side of us, so if we go back around, we will be very close to the snake.  If it spots us...”  There was no need to finish this thought, either.  “Also if it is a heat seeker, as we both suspect, it would easily distinguish us among the trees in the dark.”

“That’s two problems,” the ranger grumbled.

Aragorn was rubbing his leg again, but he looked up at Legolas with raised eyebrows.  “We have nothing to lose.  You know we won’t make the mountains on foot ahead of that monster.”

Shrugging an obvious ‘Why not?’, Legolas reached over to take hold of Aragorn, prepared to once again aid the man, as they traveled.

“No need.  My leg is no longer cramping.  It’s fine.  I can make it on my own.”  When he spotted the elf’s look of reservation, he grinned.  “All right.  It’s sore, but I can honestly say I can walk and even run on it.  We have to be able to move separately.”

“Then I suggest we leave now,” Legolas said by way of acquiescence.   “The snake is moving ever closer.”  His last sentence was a clear warning that the time for speculation had run out.

Without another word, the pair turned to their right and began moving stealthily between the trees, back the way they had just come.  As they went, the sounds of the thrashing and crashing of splintering wood, the hissing of the snake and the furious rustling of leaves became louder.  

They had to dart from tree to tree, pausing behind each one until they were sure they wouldn’t be detected, and then rushing to the next one.

Before long, Legolas and Aragorn were drawing close to even with the snake, and the risk of moving was too great.  

The two friends stopped at a particularly large oak tree and crouched down behind it, each carefully peering out from different sides.  What they saw filled their hearts with dread.

The snake was continuing to ravage the trees, as it came into view, throwing its body from side to side.  More than once, it reached up and grabbed an offending branch with its mouth and tore it loose, spitting it out and continuing on.  

This was the first time Legolas was able to see the destruction first hand.  Even the darkness within the forest could not hide such a sight from his keen eyes.  If hearing the battle, for battle it truly was, was hard on the wood-elf, seeing it was far worse.  

He was proud that the trees were fighting back, but he felt guilty that it was because of him.  He had brought the creature here among them, knowing what would happen, knowing that they would protect him at the cost of their lives, knowing...  The elf sighed.  Another thought too painful to finish.

What had attracted It’s attention was a faint glow near one of the larger forms.  It knew from experience that such a glow meant heat, and heat meant that a warm being was there.  

It was not able to figure out that It’s prey may have circled back.  Such a concept was beyond It’s reasoning ability.  However, It was able to wonder if the beings it sought were responsible for the heat, as It suspected.

It’s anger subsided somewhat at the thought that it would soon be able to end this frustrating pursuit, not to mention the forms‘ assault.  

It turned and began to move toward the glow.  

It had to fend off a more concentrated attack from the forms in It‘s new path, though there were fewer of them.  It had no idea that the renewed assault was the trees’ attempts to protect the elf and human and keep them from being caught, now that it was obvious they had been discovered.

It approached the large form, sure now that the beings were indeed on the other side of it.  

With undeniable power and a speed that belied It’s size, It moved close before slamming into the large form with a tremendous crash.  

“I think it has discovered us,” Legolas noted.  “It is coming this way.”

“I see it,” the ranger replied.  No darkness short of Mordor could hide that sight from even mortal eyes.  “If it hits this tree while we’re behind it, we may not survive the impact.”

Seeing that the snake was approaching from a position slightly ahead of where they were, continuing to go back was not a viable option.  The snake might well alter its course and intercept them.

Just before the creature reached the oak tree, Legolas and Aragorn made a dash back the way the had just come, abandoning all attempts at trying to make it   back to the horses.  

Legolas was not willing to just go in circles, hoping the snake would give up.  It had already demonstrated that it had no intention of doing that.  He and Aragorn would probably tire before the snake did.  In addition to that, it was apparent that circling around would only cause the forest to be entirely destroyed.  Legolas would never allow himself to be the reason an entire forest, even as small as it was, to be wiped out.

“If we can reach the hills between here and the mountains,” Legolas said, “we can hide between them and perhaps force the snake to spend extra time searching for us.”

There was only the briefest pause before the ranger agreed.  To his great relief, his leg  was holding up.  

So, knowing that the trees would continue to give the snake among them grief, the elf and the ranger headed for the far edge of the forest.  They weren’t fooled into thinking that the beast had missed their escape, so they made a mad dash to the edge of the forest.

When the pair burst out of the trees, they increased their speed, running headlong for the first hill.

Aragorn labored slightly, as he ran uphill.  Looking behind him and seeing that the disturbance in inside the forest was near the edge, he was spurred on.

Legolas glanced back briefly, as they reached the top of the hill.  He wasn’t able to see the snake yet.  Once on the downside of the rise, they would be out of sight of their pursuer should it appear in the open.  Even the heat of their bodies would be hidden from the creature.

After crossing up and over three more knolls, Legolas and Aragorn began to move along the base between two hills.

“Do you think it can smell us down here?” the ranger asked.

The elf looked up.  “The wind is blowing over our heads.  Hopefully, it will not pick up our scent.  What we left on top of the hills is another matter.”  Legolas grinned to let his friend know that he was well aware that Aragorn was thinking he was being pessimistic again.  So, there was no reason not to say, “I suppose you know we are traveling parallel to the mountains, not heading toward them.”

“Yes, I do know that, but looking on the bright side,” Aragorn remarked with a grin, “we’re in the shadows and not exposing ourselves in the moonlight on the hilltops.”

It took another ten minutes of quick travel for Legolas and Aragorn to find that the shallow valley they were in was beginning to curve to their left toward the mountains.  Good luck, it appeared, was with them - for now, at least.

The smiles on the two faces was short-lived, when Legolas suddenly stopped and cocked his head, obviously listening intently.

“What is it?” Aragorn asked before realizing there was only one thing the elf could be listening to.  He shook his head.  “No.  Please tell me that snake is not coming.”

“I wish I could, but it is near, perhaps behind the hill next to us.”

Aragorn groaned.  “How did that thing find us so quick?”

“I guess our scent was not hidden so well, after all,” the elf replied.

Elf and ranger began to run even faster, hoping that there was nothing in the shadows ahead that would cause either of them to fall.

TBC