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Date Posted: 13:14:46 03/27/03 Thu
Author: The Challerain Defense
Subject: And so it begins...
In reply to: No post. 's message, "War of the Everdark" on 12:38:20 03/27/03 Thu

December 21

Leila reached the barracks and entered through the door, removing her cloak instantly and taking it to her bed where it was tossed down. The sheet to give her privacy had been flipped up to Talar's bed while she was in such a rush this morning to find warm clothing for she had walked back through the snow in only her costume that morning. The tunic was then pulled off and tossed on the bed, leaving her in the black pants and shirt. She turned and sat down upon the bed, resting her forearms on her knees, her hands hanging limply between them. Dressing could wait. Leila stood from the bed then and rested her forearms on Talar's bed, her forehead against the back of her hand. "I love him, but every day I'm learning. All my life I've only been pretending. Without me, his world would go on turning..." she pushed away from the bed then and gave a frustrated cry before she sank down to her cot once more, still wearing only black pants and the black under shirt from her tunic. The suit of mail beside her rolled into her with a soft chink, reminding her of why she'd come back to the barracks in the first place.

Talar had heard the familiar song bird voice while he were still outside the barracks. Upon entering was when he heard the cry of frustration. Quickly he jogged to their bunk beds to see his friend upon her bed. One hand lifted to rest at the foot of his bed, his brow furrowing. "What is it, Leila?"

"A better question would be 'what is it not?' I fear." Green-gold eyes looked up to him then. "I can not compete for his affection with Lord Mallorn's daughter. There is no way to win against someone so fair as she. Am I a fool for not seeing this before?"

Talar clambered up to his bed and laid down upon it on his stomach. Arms were folded over the edge of his bed as he gazed down to her below him. "A fool for not seeing her affection for him? No. I do not believe so. Until today I had not seen it."

"I have seen it before, but perhaps it is because I am a woman. I could always see it in the way she looked at him, and I thought..." she shook her head. "I do not know what I thought. I thought perhaps that he would not have such feelings toward her. I have greatly disillusioned myself, but it is no matter. No more. Elves are not the only ones so adept at hiding emotions. Perhaps after a while I will begin to believe that I feel naught for him if I lie to myself long enough?"

His brow knitted again, his head tipping to the side. Confusion etching his youthful, fresh, features. "Elendil...Adaron does not care for her as she does him. This I know to be true." A shake of is head as he continued. "Lying to yourself is not a solution...that would prevail."

She lay back on the bed then and stared at the bottom of his cot. "I do not know what to do. My life span is uncertain. I have to tell him before my last breath is taken, for I cannot go into eternity without him ever knowing. Does that make sense? Of course it will be no time soon, although so badly the words ache to be spoken." A pause. "Have you ever been in love, Talarin?"

"It dose make sense." He was then a bit startled by her question. His gaze lifted as he thought back and a light smile touched upon his lips before his gaze dropped back down. He scooted more off of his mat to see her fully. "Yes, once"

"Where is she?" she asked, looking up at him upside down from her new position, her head on the edge of the side of her cot. Not hard for her to do, her legs were easily curled above her.

His lips split to flash pearly whites in a wide smile. "Tel'Oira Eldamar. Why is it that you ask?" He made a mental note of the time, though he did not look out the window. Always did Elven kind know where stood the sun, moon, and stars. Even in the deepest and darkest of caves.

"Have you told her?" she asked, rolling out of bed and then beginning to dress herself for their watch, donning another shirt, the padded jerkin which she thoroughly hated, and then the mail corselet atop, the belt fastened around her waist.

"She knows." He too rolled off his bed, yet to the other side so that he stood on the one side of the beds and she the other. Out from under the bed leather plated armor was pulled. Now that the Everdark drew near, he knew he would certainly need this in the days ahead and perhaps would not be given the chance to run back here for it.

A nod was given softly. "Does she love you?" Sitting back down on the bed and tucking her pants back into her boots more comfortably. Then once more she stood and picked up her sword, fastening the sheathe to her belt, and then the cloak around her neck. Quiver and bow went next, and now that she was done she glanced to him, awaiting a response. She truly hated the armor with a passion.

"No, not anymore in the sense that you mean. I must clarify with you, elendil, you asked if I had ever been in love. Not if I was at this moment in time." He was half a pace behind her in dressed. He placed his cloak and then came the quiver and bow. Two Elven blades were place on his back as well, their handles sticking up a bit to be seen.

She tried to lean over again but to no avail. Another frustrated grunt before she stripped herself of her quiver, cloak, and mail, resting them on the bed while she fought with the padded jerkin until her body was free of it. "Blasted thing," she mumbled before she pulled her tunic back on, then the mail over it, cloak, and quiver and bow. Much better. Leila raised an eyebrow. "I apologize. I forget that you are so old."

Talarin mirrored her expression with a raised eyebrow of his own. "Old." He stated, a grin slipping over his lips as he chuckled slightly. "Where you were you last night, Leila? You seem yet well rested."

Color instantly rushed into her cheeks when he asked the question, but her facial expression did not change. "I was in bed. Where were you?"

Both brows immediately arched. Around the beds he moved to come to her side, eyeing her playfully suspiciously. "I was here. You were not in this bed. Pray tell, Leila, what bed were you in?"

She tipped her chin in a very Adaronesque sort of way. "I was in a very warm and comfortable bed," she informed him, although a grin tugged at the corners of her mouth and she had to look away before she gave herself up. "Besides, I said I was in bed, I did not say who--" she stopped and tried that again "--which bed I was in."

That little slip did it all. His eyes bulged wide his jaw dropping. He just stared at her as he slowly recovered from her slip of the tongue. "Manke nae lee?? Mani marte?" His voice lowered, for he could hear others approaching the barracks.

Leila held up a hand. She had understood the questions but knew not how to answer them in his tongue. "I was in Adaron's room. When I ran from you I got trapped in a corridor and it led to the door there. When I heard you leave I thought that he had left as well and I was just going to sneak through, but he caught me..." she then burst out laughing. "And I caught him as well." Was that all she was going to say about it? Surely not!

Talar was not laughing, mostly because he had no clue what she was talking about. She was speaking gibberish. "I am not sure that I understand you correctly. You each were captured by each other?" His brow was tense, his weight a bit forward centered, a nonverbal communication for her to explain.

"It is time for our watch. Walk with me and I will tell you everything you wish to know." She pushed herself off the bed then and motioned for him to come along. They exited the barracks and exchanged greetings with elves that were entering, but once they were away from them she began to talk once more. "Apparently he had not left and he walked out of...I suppose a closet and found me there and thought he would...have a little fun. So he sneaked up behind me and put a knife to my throat. I knew not who it was, although I should have," she paused then and stopped him, resting her back against him to give him a re-enactment, though she didn't actually hit Talar. "So I hit him here, here, here and then here," middle, foot, nose, and groin. "Then he preceded to pin me against the wall and tell me to never ever do that again before he sat down on the bed to recover..." she would let him react so far before she continued.

Upon her showing the last place of contact his eyes fluttered close and a deep breath was taken. "Elendil...." He just shook his head, his eyes opening once more. "I do not pity the spawn that will come against you in this war." He walked with her still. "If I am correct, that would have happened just after I left his room. Is that correct?"

"Yes, not long after. Perhaps a few minutes. I wanted to make sure there was no one in the room, unfortunately I still mis-guessed it."

"Why would you wish such a thing? What if the door had been locked and you would not have been able to get out?" He then slowed in his stride to come to a halt to face her. His gaze latched onto hers. and he held it for a moment. "Leila...were you listening to us?"

"You were speaking in elfish, I could not have understood what you said even if I could have heard clearly, but I could not simply waltz in there with both of you standing there," she said and then winced. She hoped he would not be angry with her.

Of course he wasn't angry with her. Any trace of anger didn't even show in his face. "You could." He stated simply, a light smile upon his lips telling in itself that he was not upset with her. "Neither Adaron or I would have been upset. And he would have been saved a few choice pains." He added quickly.

"Yes, but I would not have got to see him half naked," she teased and then bit her lower lip.

Up the steps to the ramparts he led them, feet moving quickly from step to step, shaking his head. "Why does that not surprise me?"

"Because you know me well, my friend. And I renounce every statement I ever made about him being chubby," she said, clearing her throat. "But you did not let me finish my story!"

As now they walked along the ramparts his hand circled indicating for her to continue.

"Well, in a nutshell, he told me to warm myself by the fire before I left, so I did, and I ended up taking off my shoes and he hung them over the fire and before they could dry I fell asleep right there in the chair, and when I woke up, the room was dark, and I was curled up right beside him in the bed. When morning came I did not wake until he was already up and dressing, which is when I ran back to the barracks to get dressed as well so I could bid everyone good bye. I did not mean to sleep in, but everything was so warm and...safe."

The rest of the Elves had arrived and were taking the positions, one for every other Man. A glance and yet another smile was offered to Leila. Talar had opened his mouth to speak when a Man came running towards them.

"There you are, Lord Talarin. I've found you at last." He nodded quickly to the female. "You are to come to the north rampart and look at Drego's Black Wall. It's growing."

Leila frowned upon hearing the man speak. The battle approached. "Talarin...I shall take my post and speak with you later," she said with a soft bow of her head to both men.

The soldier piped up to the leaving woman. "No, Captain Leila. Lord Adaron requests that you come as well."

"Growing?" Talar questioned skeptically. "This we must see." Swiftly he followed the soldier along the castellated bulwark, coming soon to the north wall. Climbing upon the weapon shelf he reached Adaron. He stood next to the Emissary, looking through crenels northward. Color fled from the soldiers face, though he had already seen the Black Wall before, it still made his heart lurch and the blood pound in his temples, for Drego's foreboding wall of Everdark now seemed half again as high as it had been the day before.

She stopped and turned then, jogging a few paces to catch up with the departing elf and soldier. She looked at the shelf for a moment appraisingly, not quite sure if it would hold her weight. She was short enough that she could see absolutely nothing from her current position, though the soldier beside her could. So she stood with her feet shoulder width apart and hands on her hips assuming they would describe it to her or get her a box...

It was Adaron who spoke. "Summon Marshal Vidron." He said, not taking his eyes from the growing darkness.

"It's been done, Lord Adaron." Replied the soldier. "He's at the mid-wall gorge."

"Come then." Adaron bade Talarin and Leila, stepping down from the shelf to march toward the mid of the bulwark.

And of course, she followed because she had no other choice. Shoulders back, head up, it was hard to be imposing when you so obviously weren't.

As they went to Vidron, King Aurion also came, striding up the nearby bastion ramp. They came to the gorge, and again all looked out at the far Black Wall. Aurion spoke. "Like a great dark tide, it comes, drawning all before it. How much time do you deem we have, Marshal Vidron?"

"Two days, perhaps, but no more." Answered the Kingsgeneral, his hand stroking his silver beard. "Drego comes apace."

"No." Sounded Adaron. "Not Drego: just his minions come, his Horde, but not him."

Leila had glanced at the wall but once before she turned her eyes, not wanting to see it. The dread would be worse than the battle. At least when the horde arrived there would be something to fight instead of just imagining. Two days was too long...One more glanced spared to the growing wall before they rested once more on the stones below her feet.

All that morning, Captains and warriors came to the north rampart to watch the advance of the Everdark, and faces blenched to see the dreadful blackness stretching from horizon to horizon and stalking toward them. Out on the plains, seemingly but a short distance beyond the foothills of Mont Challerain, the caravan clearly could be seen, pulling up a long rise. They had been creeping like that all day. They were making good time, but it did not seem that way.

Talar had returned to the southern wall to stand with those he Captained over. He watched the wagons as they crept. A soft sigh escaped through his nose. "Were the wagons filled with strangers, mayhap the pace would seem right. Or if the Everdark came not this way, we would believe the caravan swift. Yet I think we see it move at a snail's pace because there are those that we care for in the wagons."

Leila stood with her arms crossed over her belly, keeping here fists close to her trunk so her fingers remained warm. Dark eyes narrowed for a moment. "You worry too much. They are in good hands. I am confidant for their safety. It is for the lives here that you should worry for."

Talarin said nothing is response but turned to go seek out Adaron to speak with him. He did not need her telling him what he should do. He wasn't upset with here per say, but the way she had said it bothered him.

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