Gundam Wing Fan Fiction ❯ The Two Gundams ❯ Helm's Deep ( Chapter 4 )

Chapter 4: Helm's Deep

“Mommy,” Alexa asked worriedly, “are Daddy and the others going to be ok? That was a really big army we saw.”

“They'll be fine, sweetheart.” Zechs squinted over a low rise. Three horses grazed in the hollow below them. “Good job finding some horses, Jett.”

“I think they're hiding from the orcs, too, Uncle Zechs,” Jett said.

“Probably. Wait here.” Zechs slid over the rise and moved slowly into the hollow, clucking softly. The horses looked up and pricked their ears at him. One finally walked over and nuzzled his outstretched hand. Zechs beckoned to the girls. When they joined him, he lifted Jett and then Alexa onto the horse's back before leaping up behind them. “Ok, let's go find the hobbits.” He reached around the girls to grab a handful of mane and steered the horse out of the hollow.

Far away, in the hideout of Faramir's forces, Hadeya, Frodo and Sam were awakened by a soldier. “Come with me,” the man said. “Lord Faramir has something to show you.”

The soldier led them through narrow tunnels, whose bottoms gradually became slick with moisture. Eventually, they could hear the rushing sound of a large waterfall. He finally led them out onto a ledge, where Faramir stood with two men holding drawn bows, aiming at something down below.

“Come here,” Faramir whispered. He pointed down. “Would that creature be the guide you spoke of?”

Frodo and Hadeya peeked over the edge. Far below, at the base of the waterfall in a pool of clear water, Gollum could be seen munching on a fish.

Frodo groaned. “Yes.”

“That pool is sacred. It is forbidden to enter it,” Faramir said. “I should have him shot.”

Hadeya wrinkled his nose. “I can't give you much of an argument why you shouldn't, but it would be inconvenient.”

“Hadeya!” Frodo gasped.

“I bet we could manage without him,” Sam put in.

“Sam!” Frodo blinked at him in dismay.

“Are you certain you can trust this creature?” Faramir asked. “I assume he is leading you to the pass at Cirith Ungol. It is not safe even without the orcs occupying the fortress which guards it.”

“Sadly, we have few options,” Hadeya said. “Our quest requires us to enter Mordor undetected, and from what I understand, there aren't a whole lot of ways to do that.”

“That's true,” Faramir agreed. “Very well. I'll let the creature live, but he can't keep swimming in the sacred pool.” He signaled and men suddenly appeared around the pool, their bows trained on Gollum.

“Ah!” Gollum shrieked. He splashed through the pool and tried to escape on the far side, but more men appeared and he was quickly captured. They put a hood over his head and tied his hands behind his back.

“I will return him to you in the morning,” Faramir said. “It is almost dawn now. I will give you supplies for your journey that should last you across the border, but beyond that, I cannot help you.”

“Any assistance you provide is greatly appreciated, Lord Faramir,” Frodo said with a bow.

“Just have a care once you are in the pass. A great evil lurks there.”

“We'll keep that in mind.”

Back in the small chamber where they were sleeping, Frodo frowned at the other two. “You should have more sympathy toward Gollum,” he said defensively. “The Ring's influence has left him a very sorry creature. It's not his fault he is the way he is.”

“I can accept that,” Hadeya said. “But that doesn't mean I have to like him. And I completely don't trust him. That same influence I'm sure will drive him to betray us at the first opportunity.”

“You don't know that!”

“Perhaps not, but my father has taught me not to place my trust where it hasn't been earned.”

Sam nodded vigorously. “I agree!”

“Well, I'm in charge!” Frodo said sternly. “So I will decide if he can be trusted or not!”

Hadeya and Sam exchanged a look. “Sure, Frodo,” Hadeya said. He leaned closer to Sam. “Make sure to keep your knife where you can reach it quickly.”

“Will do,” Sam said.

Frodo glared at them, but he said nothing else.

At dawn, Faramir came for them. “We have received word of more Easterlings making their way north to the Black Gate. We will be moving out shortly to intercept them. I can guide you partway along your path. I will not be unbinding your companion until we part ways; so hopefully, he will be able to get his bearings quickly.”

“I'm sure it will be fine,” Hadeya said. “We appreciate your help.”

Before leaving the caves, Faramir saw their packs refilled with travel rations and gave them new canteens filled with fresh water. Then they were blindfolded so that they would not know exactly where the entrance to the caves was and Faramir's men guided them skillfully over the rough terrain until they were well down the slope. When their blindfolds were removed, only Faramir and a handful of his men were present, along with the still bound and hooded Gollum.

“Here is your companion, as promised,” Faramir said with distaste in his voice. “We haven't fed him.”

“Thanks,” Hadeya said. “We'll take care of it.”

“Good.” Faramir held out his hand. “Well, here we must part. I've sent my men ahead, but it's time for me to join them and do that for which I was posted here.”

“Of course.” Hadeya shook his hand. “Farewell and hopefully, we will meet again.”

“I hope so, too.” Faramir shook hands with Frodo and Sam. Then he signaled to his remaining men and they melted away into the trees.

Frodo immediately hurried to Gollum and pulled off his hood. “It's all right now, Gollum. You're safe with us.”

“Safe?!” Gollum whined. “Bad men were mean to us! They didn't feed us and kicked us with their nasty boots!”

“Probably because you were whining all night,” Hadeya said unsympathetically. He pulled out his belt knife and Gollum squealed in fear. Hadeya rolled his eyes. “Oh, shut up! While slitting your throat might be my first choice, I'm just going to cut you loose.” He proceeded to slit the rope holding Gollum's hands behind his back. “Anyway, Frodo saved your life by keeping those men from shooting you in the pool, so show some gratitude. Now on your feet and get moving.”

“What about food?!” Gollum wailed. “We're hungry!”

“You were stuffing your face with fish last night!” Sam declared. “You'll eat when we do, so quit whining and start walking.”

Gollum did start walking, but there was no stopping the whining part. He whined and moaned and groaned at every step, until Sam had to press his hands over his ears and Hadeya walked with his fist clenched tight around the knife sheathed at his waist. Finally, unable to stand it anymore, he whipped out the knife and rifled it at Gollum, where it plunged into the ground right where the annoying little man was about to put his hand.

“Eek!” Gollum shrieked. He skittered away from the knife and cowered against the ground. “Don't kill us! Don't kill us!”

“Then shut the fuck up!” Hadeya shouted. He snatched his knife out of the ground. “I have the patience of the gods, I might point out, but you're trying me sorely! Next time, I'm aiming for the base of your skull.” He waggled the knife with the point aimed toward Gollum.

Gollum swallowed. Silently, he started slinking down the trail, casting fearful glances over his shoulder.

Sam dropped his hands to his sides and smiled. “That's much better! Now we can enjoy the peace and quiet of the woods.” Then he glanced at Frodo and his smile faded. Frodo marched along beside them with a faint, unhappy frown on his face. “Are you all right, Mr. Frodo?”

“I'm fine, Sam,” Frodo said. He managed a weak smile.

When they took a break, Sam handed out bread and cheese to everyone, including Gollum. Gollum wolfed his down in silence, still throwing frightened glances at Hadeya. Frodo ate his food very slowly.

“Are you sure you're all right, Mr. Frodo?” Sam asked again. “You're not eating much.”

Frodo glanced at the uneaten food in his hand. “I'm just not that hungry.” He scratched at the front of his chest, where the Ring hung hidden behind his clothing. “The Ring gets heavier the closer we get to Mordor. It's tiring.”

“Oh.” Sam blinked, but he didn't say anything else. But as they prepared to resume walking, he surreptitiously moved several items from Frodo's pack to his.

Late in the afternoon, Gollum led them onto a narrow path that led up into the mountains. As they climbed, they could eventually see the plains behind them, where a wide paved road led to the ruins of an attractive stone city just visible in the distance.

“That road must lead to the lower pass and the big fortress that Faramir told us about,” Hadeya said. “I hope we don't get too close to it.”

“No, not close!” Gollum quickly assured him, swallowing several times. “We'll stay above it. But it's a steep climb. There are stairs and a path and a tunnel. But the orcses won't find us once we're in the tunnel. Yes, the tunnel is where we want to go.”

Hadeya glared at him suspiciously. “Is that so? Well, I don't want to get there after dark. With all the smoke and ash from the volcano, it's like night right now anyway.” He glanced around. “That clearing there is pretty flat. Let's camp there until morning and then try this tunnel.”

Frodo nodded in weary agreement, so the four of them settled down for the night.

As they munched on a cold dinner, Sam stared off toward the west. “I wonder how the others are getting on.”

Hadeya shrugged. “Last time I heard from Uncle Duo, they were about to start fighting an orc army at some place called Helm's Deep.” He sighed. “It sounds like fun. I wish I was there.”

In fact, back at Helm's Deep, the defenders were looking out at the massed orc army, barely visible in darkness and rain. The recently conscripted recruits wore looks of open dismay, but the seasoned fighters watched the opposing army with appraising eyes.

“This is going to be a tough fight,” Wu-Fei acknowledged.

“But it should be fun,” Duo said brightly. “For once, you and Heero won't be able to kill everything before the rest of us get a chance to join in.”

“What do you mean? We let you kill a bunch of enemies in that skirmish on the way here!”

“That's just because you were being all acrobatic and stuff.”

“Well, there's no artistry in just hacking stuff to bits.”

“What's wrong with hacking stuff to bits?” Heero grunted. “It's nice and dead afterward.”

“And you can always get a pretty blood spatter with just a little effort,” Roku put in.

“You've corrupted my child!” Quatre exclaimed. “Blood spatter is not artistic.”

“It can be,” Heero muttered.

“And they say you have no aesthetic sense,” Duo chuckled.

Heero lifted his chin. “I am very artistic! I've taken art classes at five different private schools.”

“Well, who knew?”

“Perhaps we should focus on the matter at hand,” Trowa remarked. “I think it's about to start.”

A big orc standing on a rock overlooking his forces let out a long roar and the massed orcs charged forward. The defending men and elves immediately loosed a flight of arrows, felling dozens of orcs with the first volley. It barely made a dent in their numbers, and the fallen quickly disappeared under the feet of their comrades.

“That was unimpressive,” Heero grunted.

Another volley took down more orcs and then the first wave was at the base of the wall, tipping up ladders.

“Here we go!” Gimli exclaimed gleefully. “Now we'll get some proper action!” An orc arrived at the top of a ladder directly in front of him and he cleaved the top of its skull open with his axe. “That's one!”

“Quit dawdling, Gimli!” Heero snapped. “Legolas over there is on his fifth or some such nonsense.” He used a knife to gut one orc while lopping off the head of another with his sword.

“What?!” Gimli scowled and began swinging his axe with grim efficiency, dispatching orcs as soon as they reached the top of the wall.

It was a savage battle, and it became clear quickly that much of the orcs' attack was intended to keep the defenders too busy to stop them from pushing their siege towers up against the fortress walls.

“I think,” Treize shouted at Aragorn, “that there are as many orcs on top of this wall as us.”

“That is a distinct possibility,” Aragorn replied breathlessly. He swiftly dispatched two orcs and peeked over the edge of the wall. “They're up to something, I fear.”

Treize finished his opponent and looked over the edge, too. “It's that damn drainage culvert!” he snapped. “I knew having a hole in the wall would be tempting. Look there!”

A single orc carrying a sparking torch raced through the orc forces, sprinting toward the drain.

“Legolas!” Aragorn shouted. He pointed at the running orc. “Kill him! Bring him down!”

Legolas began pumping arrows into the orc to no avail.

“We need to get off the wall!” Treize cried. “Duo! Clear this part of the wall! Now!”

Duo jammed his sword through an orc's midsection and closed his eyes. All along the wall above the drain, men and elves suddenly began fleeing along the top of the wall in both directions, clearing that section. Legolas tried one more arrow, but the running orc managed to keep his feet. He stumbled the remaining distance and leaped into the culvert. A massive explosion shook the ground and shattered the wall, sending huge chunks flying into the air and scattering bodies in all directions. But fortunately, because of Duo's mental command, most of the bodies were orcs.

And then the lake that had formed because of the plugged up culvert flooded out through the gap, washing orcs away.

“Follow me!” Aragorn cried out loudly, and he led the charge from the wall and into the gap, blocking it before the orcs could regroup and rush through.

“The lake was a good idea, Treize,” Quatre grumbled irritably, “but it sure is muddy now.”

“You usually like wrestling in the mud, Quatre,” Trowa teased.

“Do you mind?” Quatre replied archly. “No one needs to hear about what we like to do in private.”

“Quatre likes mud wrestling?” Duo piped up. “I didn't know his kinky streak was that wide!”

“I don't have a kinky streak!”

“Oh? But what about that time in your lab when we…”

“Shut up!”

“Wait a minute!” Trowa interrupted. “I want to hear about this!” He glared at Duo. “Just what were you and Quatre doing in his lab?”

“Nothing!” Quatre shouted. “Pay attention to the fight! We're supposed to be battling orcs, remember?”

“I can do both,” Trowa said. He promptly proved his point by severing the arm from his current opponent. “So, Duo, please elaborate.”

“Well, you remember back when I was a girl?”

“Duo!” Quatre growled warningly. “Don't say anything you may come to regret!”

“He asked!”

“You don't have to answer. Why don't you go kill that orc over there before Haldir gets knifed in the back?”

“Oh, shoot!” Duo dashed up to where Haldir, who had just dispatched an orc on a part of the wall that was still standing, was about to get skewered by an orc coming up behind him. “Haldir, break left!” Duo's command, issued out loud and mentally, made Haldir practically fling himself to the side. The orc missed and an instant later, Duo slit him up the middle. Then he held out a hand to Haldir. “Sorry to invade your head like that, man, but I don't want to have to explain to your queen how we let you get killed by a bunch of scummy orcs.”

Haldir blinked. “My thanks,” he managed weakly.

Duo grinned. “Back to work!” He whirled around to hack at an orc that was coming over the top of the wall.

Back in the gap, standing knee deep in a muddy pool that was as much blood and gore as it was water, Heero and Wu-Fei fought side-by-side.

“You know,” Heero said casually, “if this keeps up for a couple more hours, my arm may get tired.”

“I know what you mean,” Wu-Fei said. “It's a little monotonous, too, just standing here cutting them down as they swarm in.”

“Yeah.” Heero hacked up two orcs in quick succession. “It is kind of boring. Why don't we make this more of an exercise? I'll run to the right-hand side of the break and you run to the left. Then we both run back here. Whoever gets back first while killing more than ten orcs wins.”

Wu-Fei brightened. “That sounds like fun! Ready? Go!”

The pair split up, sprinting for their respective goals while engaging orcs along the way.

Treize stepped into the gap they left with a shake of his head. “Teenagers! Everything always has to be a game with them.”

Aragorn grinned. “I remember being young like that. Sometimes I miss the irrepressible joy of youth.”

“Yeah, you are a grizzled old man, as I recall,” Treize chuckled.

“Eighty-seven is not old!” Aragorn replied indignantly. “I am in the prime of life!”

“What?!” Legolas laughed as he raced by with a knife in each hand, slitting orc throats. “You're a baby! I should dandle you on my knee.”

“I suspect it's not his knee he wants to dandle him on,” Trowa chuckled.

“Behave yourself,” Quatre said.

“Mama!”

“Roku, where have you been?”

“Up on the fortress wall. They've got a battering ram. I came to get Papa Wu-Fei to set it on fire.”

“You could do that.”

“I know, but since everyone already knows Papa Wu-Fei is a dragon, I thought it would be better if they didn't know I can be one, too.”

“Good idea. He's over there playing with Heero.”

“Ok.” Roku galloped over to where Wu-Fei and Heero had just gotten back to the center of the muddy pond.

“Twelve!” Wu-Fei gasped out a little breathlessly.

“Me, too!” Heero replied with a harsh grin. “It's a tie. We'll have to do it again.”

“Papa Wu-Fei! We need you to come set fire to their battering ram!”

“Oh, yeah?” Wu-Fei grinned. “Sorry, Heero! I get to go do something fun.”

“No fair!” Irritated, Heero began swinging his sword in wide arcs, hacking through the midsections of two and three orcs at a time.

When Roku and Wu-Fei got back to the main gate, Théoden and his men were bracing it against the pounding force of the ram.

“We can't hold this much longer!” Théoden shouted.

“I'll buy you some time,” Wu-Fei said. He dashed up onto the battlements, leaned over, and blasted the enemy with his hottest fire. Instantly, their shields, which they were holding above them like a turtle's shell, burst into flames. Shouting in surprise, the orcs dropped their shields and were immediately peppered with arrows. Dozens fell off the ramp, including some holding the ram. But more quickly ran up to replace them, despite the arrows and repeated blasts of fire from Wu-Fei.

Wu-Fei finally bent over with his hands on his knees, breathing hard. “I can't keep that up any longer,” he wheezed. “It takes a lot of air. Maybe we should have Quatre blast it.”

Roku shook his head. “Can't. We'd blow the ramp, too, and we might need that later.” He tipped his head and listened. “They're retreating from the curtain wall.”

“That's gonna piss Heero off.”

“He's fighting the rearguard.”

“Siege engine!” Someone nearby cried. The huge wooden towers were as tall as the fortress walls, with heavy iron drop-gates to anchor them in place.

“Now this I can blast!” Roku said cheerfully. He stood up on his hind paws and tossed a giant fireball at the tower. It exploded with percussive force, splintering the tower and sending orcs raining down onto their companions below. “Cool!”

But a little farther down, another tower managed to drop its gate onto the wall, biting into the stone battlement. Orcs began pouring from the tower. Roku charged down the wall and barreled into their midst, disemboweling and hamstringing orcs to slow them down for other defenders to finish off.

Aragorn arrived with Legolas and Gimli on his heels. “We've had to pull back,” he reported to Théoden.

Théoden nodded, clutching a wound in his shoulder. “We'll have to pull back to the keep. We've managed to reinforce the gate for the moment, but it won't hold for long.”

“Very well.”

“Retreat! To the keep!”

Soldiers streamed from the battlements and hurried up the ramps into the keep. Heero, Wu-Fei and Aragorn were among the last in before the doors were closed and barricaded.

“I think we'd be better off taking them on in the open,” Heero said. “We're boxed in here. They'll just keep battering at the doors until they get in and then we'll be overrun.”

“We had our backs against the wall the moment we decided to come here,” Treize said.

“That's true.”

“Wasn't Gandalf supposed to be bringing us some help?” Quatre muttered. He was casually making light balls and tossing them around to supplement the guttering torches.

“Well, it's after midnight,” said Trowa. “He said he'd be here by dawn today. Can you tell where he is, Duo?”

Duo listened for a moment but finally shook his head. “Too many orcs. It's noisy as shit out there. I can barely hear us.”

“We'll just have to hold out then,” Treize said.

“I was definitely having more fun outside,” Heero grumbled.

“Me, too,” echoed Wu-Fei.

“Geez!” Treize rolled his eyes. “If you guys are that bored, why don't you go somewhere and snog for awhile?”

Duo brightened. “There's time for snogging? Count me in!”

“Could we focus on the battle, please?” Quatre snapped. “You can snog when there's no more danger of anyone getting his head lopped off.”

“Ok, but I get dibs on Haldir,” Duo said. “After all, I saved his life. I think that puts me first in line for banging his ass.”

“Did Haldir say he wanted his ass banged?”

“Well, no, but it's a great way to release tension. I'm sure he'd appreciate it.”

Quatre put a hand over his face. “Have you considered that he might rather relax with a nice glass of wine?”

“He can have a glass after I finish banging the stiffness out of him.”

“That's a terrible pun,” Trowa remarked casually.

“Thanks!”

Legolas had been listening to this conversation with a shocked expression that was growing increasingly flushed. Now he interrupted in a scandalized tone. “Haldir is one of the finest elves in the kingdom! The behavior you are suggesting is completely beneath a gentleman of his stature!”

“That hasn't stopped him from thinking about banging your ass,” Duo commented.

“What?!”

Duo eyed him. “Come to think of it, that might be fun. I'm sure I could manage both of you.”

Legolas put his hands over his butt and backed up. “I have no interest in engaging in such a… notorious act!”

“At least not with me,” Duo smirked.

Legolas blinked several times. “Excuse me! I think I'll go help reinforce the doors!” He fled in a panic.

“Legolas is usually much more self-possessed than that,” Trowa noted.

“He did seem a little flustered,” Treize agreed.

“But we still haven't resolved the issue of whether or not we have time for snogging,” Duo pointed out.

“True.”

“There will be no snogging!” Quatre ordered sternly. “I insist that everyone focus on fighting until after we have repelled the orcs.”

“Quatre is so strict,” Duo muttered. “Can't you do anything about that, Trowa?”

“Probably not, but I've thought of an interesting new position I can suspend him in for sex, so I'll punish him later.”

“What?!” Quatre paled. He took several steps back. “I'm sure we won't have time for that anytime soon.”

“A suspended position?” Treize asked curiously. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Is it something that a heavier person could endure comfortably?”

“Oh, definitely.”

“Hmm…”

“Help!” Quatre squeaked. He raced for the door and started ripping down the barricade.

“What are you doing?!” one of the Rohan soldiers shrieked in surprise.

“I'm going out where it's safer!” Quatre exclaimed. “Five thousand orcs cannot possibly be as dangerous as Trowa with ten feet of rope!”