The White Wizard and The Marchwarden

[Saruman]

The White Wizard and The Marchwarden

Five Days Ago....

It was after the industry was well under way that Saruman consulted the council of Sauron once more. The White Wizard bid his servants away and locked himself inside Orthanc, intent on fulfilling Sauron's will. He revealed the Palantir with a swoosh if his hand, lifting the cloth from the stone. Immediately the eye was present, looking at Saruman, looking into his soul. It was displeased, Saruman could see--to his utter dismay.

"My lord!" he started, "The industry is almost complete, the Uruk-Hai army will be marvelous!" Saruman exclaimed, falling to his knees, why was Sauron so displeased with such progress?

The eye spoke to him through the Palantir, but it was not a human voice, it was guttural sounding, mad and angry. The Palantir showed him an image of an elf, and instantly Saruman knew who it was: Haldir, the Marchwarden of Lorien. He was in battle with a troop of goblins.

"He... is a NUISANCE." Sauron said, though the image of Haldir combating goblins was still displayed on the Palantir; annoyance, anger and dread in his voice. Saruman rose and studied the images, Haldir was indeed formidable, but could he handle the Uruk-Hai?

"You want me to kill the Marchwarden... but what of Celeborn and Galadriel? They shall be quick to intervene." Saruman stated, he was not afraid of the elf lords--for they remained hidden within their realms for centuries, but when they did fight, they were considerable foes.

"I shall blind their judgement, now go Saruman the White, and open the passage for Moria!" As soon as Sauron's voice stopped, the Palantir was blank, and Saruman knew what he had to do.

Present

The march to Lorien was tedious, and that was it. The Uruk-hai did not eat, they did not need sustenance, unlike the armies of men, which marched on their stomachs. The Uruk-Hai were once elves, and they did not require food. The Uruks-Hai also had even better stamina than the Orcs that the elves were so used to fighting, in every sense, the Uruk-Hai were more formidable opponents than the elves were used to. Saruman knew that in their confrontation, there would be casualties on both sides. It would shock the Elves, and although Saruman expected not to burn down the entire Lorien forest, it would distract the Marchwarden, and bring his troops from the North.

And because of this, the passage to Moria would remain open for Lord Sauron.

The Plantir lead him all the way. The Uruk-Hai, unlike the orcs, traveled by day and night. The forest of Lorien was large and thick, magical, Saruman knew, but that did not bother him. The Elf scouts would've seen his army approaching now. Three-hundred Uruk-Hai accompanied him, no Lorien scout would dare approach the Uruk-Hai in those numbers. Saruman knew only a few scouts patrolled the borders, and if an army were spotted, then the Marchwarden would be dispatched.

But Saruman was different, he was no ordinary foe. The scouts would never reach Celeborn and The Lady of the Forest. Saruman's magic would overwhelm the scouts, and they would be disoriented, confused, they would wander about the forest for days, thinking that they were making good progress--only to see that they were utterly lost in their own homeland. Saruman understood that Celeborn and Galadriel would sense the disturbance, but whether they acted on it was a different matter.

And besides that, Lord Sauron had promised to blind their judgement, power that Saruman did not possess.

Indeed, Saruman was no ordinary foe, the Palantir had led him to the most northern borders of Lorien, right to Haldir's camp. The Marchwarden was no fool however, his own scouts would've seen the Uruk-Hai on their approach. But the Uruk-Hai were fast, not as fast as elves, but would give Haldir's camp mere minutes of preparation.

"Haldir, the Marchwarden! Where are you!" Saruman said in a loud voice, magically imbued, so that the entire forest could hear.

The Uruk-Hai bursts from the trees and even through the volley of elven bow fire, they charged into Haldir's camp en masse. Saruman glowed atop his white charger, wearing no armor, arrows glanced off his magical barrier.

[Haldir]

::A Bump In The Night::

Rai Amdir had been on scouting duty, there was something amiss, but his mind could not conquer what it was. It was like something was in his head, jumbling his thoughts. That was until he saw something below him. The figure of what looked like a man walked forcefully through the woods. Then he caught sight of another, and another. Soon he saw an entire battalion. Two ambushes in a week? A great war was coming...

He started to speak a warning, but his voice was silenced by another. The sound was so powerful it knocked him from the branc he sat upon. Thankfully his natural elven reflexes caught the branch below him, saving him from falling into a pit of death. At closer glance these men were not men at all, they looked orcish, but they were taller and far more muscular. They bore the white hand. Rai's heart stopped.

The voice brought elves awake all over the camp, but the Uruk-hai were already upon them. Archers retreated quickly to the trees. They were dying as they moved, but it would be safter getting the height advantage over the Urks. Haldir on the other hand rose with the warriors, with his summons. Dawnstar came from its sheath with a sharp whistled and in the same fluid motion ended an Uruk-Hai's life. He'd heard tales of these beasts before. His father spoke of them like fallen brothers. They looked like no bother he held love for.

Warriors did their best to defend themselves. It was skill against brute strength, Uruk-hai's meant to over-power while elves meant to fluidly and systematically slay. They would be at a sore disadvantage until the archers started thinning their numbers. Haldir on the other hand was a seasoned elf warrior who had lived and breathed a soldier's life for centuries, the Uruk-hai would not find him an opponent they could fell easily.

The Marchwarden had known the voice that had called him. He'd never truly heard it before, but he knew it somehow. The white wizard of Isengard had come to Lothlorien. Elrond had not foretold of this. Perhaps no one knew of Saruman's evil ways yet. This was his pre-emptive strike. But how had he found this camp so easily? Was his magic that advanced compared to The Lady of the Forest? This moment of contemplation had made him lose his defense. An Urk brought its distorted blade towards his back. The blade inched closer and closer. Then it halted. A trio of arrows laid imbedded in its chest. Rai smirked from a branch above.

"I expect a promotion, Marchwarden." he joked as he sent two more Uruk-hai to a shallow grave. Haldir just shook his head at his own inability.

"Wizard! I am here!" bellowed Haldir as he looked around from Saruman. Throughout all the carnage he'd not noticed the mounted man till now. With a quick few steps the Marchwarde had turned his body to the wizard and brought his blade up the ready. If ever the Marchwarden had to prove himself a compitent warrior and leader, now was the time. He was facing down a white wizard. He wasn't out numbered, he had been outwitted and outplayed. This was his chance to turn that all around...

[Saruman]

You Don't Want My Eye On You

There it was. The fear, the dread, the death. The Uruk-Hai had caught Haldir's camp completely off guard, and it was gratifying. Saruman lived for devious plots and this one was no different. The White Wizard glowed there atop his position, the camp was a downward slope away, yet he remained, he was no fighter, he was there to instill fear and destroy from afar. The Uruk-Hai made quick work of those unprepared, inexperienced elves, as few as they were. Swords dug deep into elven skin, tore limb from limb, the war cry of the berserkers roared deep into the heart of Lorien. Truly this was a tragedy for the Elves of the forest.

Suffice to say, Galadriel was going to be pissed. Saruman was happy with that. Sauron would prove time and time again that his reach was far and filled with malice. Saruman was a tool for that, whether he knew it or not. He was here to kill Haldir, or at least bring his attention south to Isengard from Moria. After this, Haldir would pray for more goblin attacks.

The elf archers died rather tragically as they ran from their tents, trying to gain position in the trees. Saruman's own Uruk-Hai crossbowmen took their aim at the running archers, they were easy targets, an elf could try his best to avoid an arrow he did not see--but only the lucky would survive. The ones that did make it to the trees spotted Saruman immediately as the Uruk-Hai commander, they fired at him, and Saruman was glad he was the priority target--none of the arrows would reach their mark. Istari magic was incredibly useful for deflecting arrows. A large light blue barrier was apparent, and pulsed every time an arrow attempted to strike down Saruman. They instead fell harmlessly to the ground, at the feet of Saruman's white charger.

"Fools!" Saruman boasted as he raised his right hand, in it was the black staff, his source of power. He pointed it to a large tree that housed three elf archers. From the crystal globe inside pulsed lighting magic, and a bolt of electricity propelled itself from the globe, striking the tree bark and instantly lighting the entire tree aflame. Saruman laughed maniacally, using his own magic to enhance the flames, soon the entire tree line around them formed a circle of fire, black smoke rose as a beacon of the attack. Soon the elf's high ground would be useless ash, Saruman thought triumphantly.

It was then that Haldir sprung into action, Saruman saw the elf contemplating hard, knowing that Haldir was utterly confused and worried. Wondering why hadn't he seen the attack coming. His look was bliss. And Saruman saw as a Uruk-Hai almost cleaved him in half, only to be saved by his elf deputy, who shot three arrows into the Uruk-Hai's back.

"There you are! Marchwarden! You are marked for death!" Saruman's voice once again beamed through the forest. From within a bag strapped to Saruman's white charger the White Wizard revealed the Palantir. The seeing-stone that allows Saruman to track Haldir's every move, it led Saruman straight to him.

Right now, the Eye of Sauron was displayed strongly on the Palantir, every elf would feel it's presence. Saruman raised the Palantir in his left hand, and the Eye scoured the camp, until it finally found it's target:

Haldir, the Marchwarden.

Suddenly the very skies themselves went dark, a dark cloud hovered over the forest. It started to rain slightly, which Saruman preferred had not happen, for it would put out the fires he had just started. But he would not interfere with Sauron's work.

The dark lord, very loudly, and in his guttural voice pronounced through the Palantir:

"HALDIR!"

[Haldir]

::Marked By The Dark Lord::

Crossbowmen were skewering his archers along with bolts of lightning. Warriors were starting to gain ground, but they were a long way from a victory or even a chance to retreat successfully. It was times like these that Rai wished he had magic. Even if it was a small something that he could do to aid his kin, but he didn't. He was the magicless elf of Middle Earth. In it's place he had a bow and curved blade that were matched only by the Marchwarden himself, but after every arrow at the white wizard had just magically stopped or bounced away, his heart felt heavy. How could Lothlorien survive the power of this wizard? He looked to Haldir for strength, and for the moment found it. Then...

The white wizard produced a Palantir. The Eye of Sauron was raging inside it's globe-like cage. Then it spoke. If hearing the white wizard's voice in his head countless times wasn't enough, The Dark Lord broke him. His spirit faded. Goblins and Uruk-hai were one thing, even a white wizard could be managed, but The Dark Lord was a being that was surviving on old magic and fear. The Eye felt like it was piercing to Haldir's very soul. His blade hung lifelessly in his hand. The elven warriors around him froze, sending them to their deaths instantly. In a moment he was surrounded by Uruk-hai. His head flashed back to The Great War. His father slain after a Dol Guldur invasion, his brothers along side Elrond. They'd all fallen to this Dark Lord. An other-worldly hate swelled in his chest, but with this Eye felt stronger upon him. To his knees he fell.

An epiphany. The hate that grew with each heart beat, started to change. He wanted vengeance, yes, this was true, but he wanted something more. He wanted safety in The Golden Blossom. He wanted to be the Marchwarden his father was so many years ago. This ideal brought him back to reality just in time. An Urk moved to slice from his side. In a fluid motion the marchwarden brought his blade up, through the enemy's stomach and out the other side. He was standing now, defiantly. If he was going to die, he was going to die in defense of Lothlorien, not fearing this remenant of past wars and its wizardly puppet. Another Urk came in quick. Dawnstar spun divinely about the elf's body and beheaded the enemy.

"Ranger-Captin! Back to Lothlorien! Elves, move with haste!" commanded the Marchwarden. Another Urk came and another fell. Rai on the other hand finally listened to his Marchwarden. He turned and moved a few trees back while firing two of his remaining five arrows into Uruk-hai.

"Brothers! This way!" bellowed Rai as he sent another arrow into an Urk, saving an elf warrior. In moments the spectres of the forest were fleeing as fast as they had came. Haldir stood his ground, blade glimmering with Urk blood. He whispered elvish words as he sent another to it's doom. A crossbowmen took aim at him, the elf dipped quickly and the bolt committed treason into another Urk's chest. The whispers began to echo against the trees. This Marchwarden had one final trick up his sleeve to survive.

"Shyraste vi salyn" echoed the words and the with it the wind began to rise in strength. It blew hard towards the white wizard. The elves seem to flow through it, but the Urks nearly stopped in movement. Bolts would leave crossbows and nearly blow backwards. The Marchwarden stood, his garments and hair ripping in the wind.

"The Dark Lord has marked me for death? What an honor." he stated cooly as his curved blade twirled in the wind, before he took hold of it firmly and brought it up to his right side, gripped with both hands.

[Saruman]

The Warning

The elves still had some fight in them, Saruman mused as the battle quickly evened. The elven rangers were immensely skilled and it seemed for every fifth Uruk-Hai that fell only one ranger was either maimed, injured or killed. Saruman cared little, the Uruk-Hai were easily replaceable. It was Saruman's ace in the hole that turned the tide once more, the Palantir, Sauron's eye. Almost instantly numerous elfs froze in shock and fear; Uruk-Hai disposed of them immediately.

Haldir saw his position desperate and used the forest against the Uruk-Hai. "So, the forest still has some surprises in store..." Saruman whimsically said, he was aware of elven magic. Haldir made a gust of wind so strong, yet graceful, that the Uruk-Hai fell to the ground, and many of the elves made a hasty escape to higher ground.

"Halt!" Saruman said in his loud voice, the battle was now pointless, the elves would have the upper hand. Haldir appeared defiant, holding his sword with elven determination, the Marchwarden would've died defending his forest. Not today though. Saruman placed the Palantir back into his bag.

"You are indeed a formidable foe, Marchwarden!" Saruman started, as his white charger marched slowly forward. His Uruk-Hai had stopped pursuing the fleeing elves. "Go back to Lothlorien! Tell your lords Celeborn and Galadriel that the White Wizard of Isengard, Saruman, is going to burn down your precious forest!"

With a maniacal laugh, Saruman retreated back into the ranks of the Uruk-Hai. Saruman disappeared back into the forest, he was going back to Isengard.

"Kill them!" Was his last command before disappearing completely. The remaining Uruk-Hai let out one more war cry before charging and crashing into the reformed elven ranks. It would be a bloodbath.

(Saruman has retreated, you may finish off the rest of the Uruk-Hai as heroically as you like.)

[Haldir]

::Defiant Till The End::

What the point of this then? He's retreating, thought the Marchwarden as the white wizard began pulling back, that was of course until the final command came through. Urk's roared and began rampaging through the forest towards the, now defiant, elven ranks. Arrows whistled in the wind, their velocity enhanced by the still ripping wind. Haldir was the lone melee unit on the forest floor. He made slow cut into the earth below him as the Urks drew closer and closer. The world around him seemed to slow. Finally the enemy reached him.

Dawnstar glimmered in the moonlight as the first Urk swung high. The curved blade went through stomach and out the other side. Another Urk swung from the opposing side and a hanging parry sent its blade wide. The curved blade come over head and into an Urk's shoulder. A wide sweep afterwards made two more legless. The elf rolled forward, lithly dodging another cleave. Popping up from the roll, the marchwarden distanced himself away from an enemy with a strong kick to the midsection. Spinning to the side, Dawnstar pierced the side of an Urk's head.

The Marchwarden was a sight to behold. He flowed between the Uruk-hai defying blades and strikes alike, ending lives with the utmost ease. At any time one would say the Marchwarden was open, an arrow would stop the attacking Urk. In the distant elves stopped their retreated and turned to see the display. A Marchwarden swore an oath to fight and die in the defense of Lothlorien, King Celeborn, and Lady Galadriel. Haldir was living up to that oath. He was going above and beyond the call of duty. His blade was no longer that beautiful silvered color, but now it was nearly black with Uruk-hai blood. His armor, once a gold trimmed, silver metal, now looked to be flowing with black blood. His hair dripped with the black blood. The numbers of the Uruk-hai were thinning though. He'd succeeded where his father had failed. Even Rai Amdir turned and watched with an awe-stricken set of eyes.