Ramben's POV

Ramben sat quietly with his hands folded on his lap, waiting patiently for Amarth to return. The older Elf has told him to wait in this spot until he returned, he'd been gone for awhile now but Ramben had no doubt in his mind that Amarth would be back soon. They'd come to a place that Amarth called "Rohan" to borrow some horses. However who he was going to borrow horses from was a mystery to Ramben.

To pass the time he concentrated on trying to get through the fog that kept his memories hidden from him. He closed his eyes and found himself standing before the grey fog that blanketed his mind, he struggled to push his way through it, but it was easier said than done. It felt as if he was trying to walk through a wall at times, and the more Ramben concentrated the more exhausting it became for him.

He had tried after the first night of his travels and had ended up with a tremendous amount of head pain afterwards. Now he was pushing himself beyond what he knew were his limits. His palms started to sweat and his head was beginning to pound. 

I should stop, Ramben was about to pull out when something flashed in the corner of his eye. He saw something! There was something in the fog! Concentrating on that spot Ramben forced himself onward. He'd never seen anything in the fog before! This was his chance to get a memory back! The closer Ramben came to the spot the more painful it became, but he couldn't give up, not when he was so close.

His body was shaking from the effort, his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth, pounding like that of a drum resounded in his head. 

Almost there...

Peering through the fog an image appeared, Ramben's spirit soared. This was it! He was finally going to remember something about his past! Suddenly his eyes shot open, gasping he grabbed his head between his hands, trembling. A tree! All he had gotten was a tree! What good would that do him?

Ramben lifted his head up and quickly wiped a tear from his eye. He wasn't mad or frustrated, only upset that after all that searching, all he had found was a tree. There had been no people, no familiar place, just a tree covered in green leaves.

Sighing, Ramben lowered his head into his hands again.

I'll try again another day, maybe it will be different next time...

/\\//\\/

Amarth's POV

I hate horses!

Do you hear me?!

I hate, HATE horses!

I've nearly been trampled five times trying to get at least one horse, but the stubborn beasts refuse to cooperate! I'd left Ramben in a place where he shouldn't get into trouble, planning on returning shortly with a couple of horses for us, but for some reason animals seem to loathe me. This horse that I've been trying to "tame" has murder in its eyes. I would have gone to some village or farm where there were already tame horses, perfect for borrowing, but that would involve going near men.

So when I found a herd of wild horses I'd figured that it would be easier to take one from there; wrong. The grey horse stamps its hoof on the ground, ears laid flat against its skull, it threatens me to come closer. You know what? This isn't worth the trouble. I turn away from the horse and storm over to where I laid my weapons, gathering them in my hands I head back to where I left Ramben.

It's been strange having him around, he's mostly quiet which I'm grateful for, but when he does open his mouth it's nothing but questions.

Questions after questions after questions about the silliest things. The poor elfling hardly remembers anything about, well, anything. I've had to explain to him what an Elf is, what my weapons are called, I even had to tell him that the world we are in is called Middle Earth. At least; that's what it used to be called.

I hate all this change, I doubt that I'll ever be able to cope with this new earth I'm stuck in. Sighing I force my thoughts elsewhere, and they wander towards my current mission. I'm still worried about Pallando, and I'm hoping against hope that he's alright. Another thing that has been plaguing me are the beasts that came after us. How long would it be before they caught up to me? And it's not just me anymore either, now I have Ramben to worry about as well.

This is why I prefer to be alone, having no one to care for but yourself saves me a lot of stress. Yet despite those thoughts I constantly find myself becoming attached to people! Why was I given emotions? I kick at a small stone and send it flying in front of me, I see it land in the midst of the tall grass, gone. Eventually, I arrive where Ramben is waiting, I wish that I didn't have to tell him that we would be walking even longer, although I don't think he will mind.

Nothing seems to get his spirits down; except for his lack of memories or identity. I know what it's like to have your memories taken from you; after I left Anna behind I allowed the darkness from the dagger to steal my memories from me. Then years later, Sauron brought them back. The guilt and shame I felt after seeing who I was before I entered the darkness, was only made worse by the horror of what I had become. Then I was given a choice: refuse the darkness and keep my memories, or embrace it and forget.

I couldn't live with the memories, so I chose to leave them behind. I became a slave to darkness, doing whatever evil I could until Alatar died. Then the memories returned once again, only this time there was no forgetting. 

A sound stops me in my tracks and my body immediately tenses at what I see. I cannot believe this...

"Ramben! What are you doing?!"

The elfling looks over at me and smiles (of course) while stroking the nose of the grey horse I'd been trying to tame for hours. The horse is completely calm, with no sign of anger to be seen.

"Look Amarth! I found a horse! At least I think it's a horse." Ramben laughs as the horse (who is apparently a "he") gently nudges him in the chest with its head. Why do animals love Ramben but hate me?

"How are you- never mind." I approach the horse who immediately stamps his hoof the moment I step forward. Valar what did I ever do to this animal? Ramben strokes the horse's neck and whispers something along the lines of: "What's troubling you?"

Please don't tell me that the horse is going to respond...

"He said that he sees you as a threat." Ramben furrows his brow and I'm mentally kicking myself in the leg. 

"Smart horse," I mutter through gritted teeth, "perhaps you could ask your new friend why I'm a threat?"

Ramben doesn't seem to get that I'm being sarcastic and is once again talking to the horse. "He said that you attacked his herd and himself." Ramben still seems confused, as if the idea of me harming anything is absurd. 

"I was just trying to get a horse to ride! I'm on a tight schedule and I don't have time for walking!" The words are hardly out of my mouth before Ramben is speaking to the horse again. I know that some Elves used to have close bonds with nature and the like, but seeing it with my own eyes is beyond uncanny. 

There seems to be some debate going on between elfling and horse, finally, Ramben turns to me with a smile.

"He's agreed to let us ride him, I assured him that you weren't a threat." 

Am I supposed to thank him? The horse, not Ramben. I don't say anything and walk cautiously towards the horse, despite what Ramben said I still don't trust the thing. The horse lays his ears back but he doesn't show any other sign of wanting to trample me into the earth. Gingerly I pet his neck, trying to make good on Ramben's words. Looking down at Ramben I offer him a slight grin.

"Well done."

His face lights up again, and I notice for the first time that whenever he is happy, he seems to glow. I don't know if it's just a trick or lack of sleep, but it instead of being unsettled by it I find myself smiling back. 

No!

What am I doing? I don't have time for feelings!

Clapping my hands together (causing both Ramben and the horse to be startled) I announce in a loud voice that it's time to get going. I walk up to the horse with Ramben following me closely, I don't have to ask to know that he has no idea how to mount a horse. Also, I don't think he's tall enough. I glance down at him from where we stand beside the horse and he looks up at me.

"Do you mind if I pick you up?" I ask and before I even give him a chance to answer I place my hands around his waist and lift him onto the horse. I use a little too much force and I almost throw the poor elfling clear over the horse. He's lighter than he looks...

"Sorry," I mutter helping him sit up straight."

Ramben nods and waits for me to mount behind him. I haven't ridden a horse in years, but I still remember how to do it. 

I think...

Just when I'm about to kick the horse into a run it suddenly breaks into a wild canter. Without thinking my arms go around Ramben, making sure he doesn't fall off.

"What did you tell him?!" I try not to shout but when you're stuck on a wild horse, it's kind of impossible not to.

"I told him that you wanted to go south!" Ramben replies sounding quite pleased with himself before adding, "That is where you wanted to go, right?"

"For now yes! But when I say we need to change directions make sure he does it! I don't want to end up somewhere I don't want to be!"

And where we're headed, there are a lot of places that I don't want to be at.

/\\//\\/

A lot of people enjoy Spring, they say it brings healing and the promise of new life.

Well, those people obviously haven't experienced the storms that come with all the "healing" and "promises of new life." 

For three weeks we traveled towards Gondor without and trouble, but then the storm clouds rolled in, and soon Ramben and I were completely soaked through with rain. Earlier in our travels, I had borrowed some clothes from a small village Ramben. What he wore when I first found him was unsuitable for travel. He was now dressed in a loose, brown, shirt, pants, and boots. I also found an old grey cloak for him to cover himself from the rain. Unfortunately, neither of our cloaks are doing their job of keeping us dry.

This cloak may be fire resistant, but it absorbs water like a sponge. I've been hoping that the rain would stop, yet whenever I look up at the clouds it seems that more water gets poured down on us. To make matters worse it's starting to flood, and our pace has slowed greatly. Ramben is pressed as close to me as he can get which is both uncomfortable and awkward. But what else is he supposed to do? He's never been in a storm before so of course he's scared! 

Our horse is struggling through the mud, I can just about hear his labored breath over the wind and rain. Lightning flashes overhead immediately followed by a loud, peal of thunder. Ramben yelped and two hands latched onto my right arm in a death grip.

"What was that?!" He shouts over the storm.

"It's just thunder! It can't hurt you!"

"Are you sure!?"

"Of course!"

I won't tell him that there's a chance we could get struck by lighting, or possibly drown if we happen to come by a river. I wince as Ramben's death grip on my arm tightens.

"I don't want to be here Amarth!" His voice sounds so terrified it almost moves me to pity him.

"Well then where do you want to be?!" Again he doesn't catch my sarcasm or my annoyance.

"Somewhere that's not outside! Please Amarth, I don't like this!"

And here comes the pity, right on schedule. I'd love to get out of this storm just as much as he does, but to do that we'd have to go to where men are. I don't know if I've mentioned this before: but I want nothing to do with the race of men. Besides, the closest place with shelter is-

Another crash of thunder sends the horse rearing. Thinking fast I wrap my arms around Ramben and cover him as much as I can with my body, twisting to make sure I'll land on my back, we fall off the horse and into the muck below. My breath is knocked out of me and for a moment I lay there on the ground, dazed. I hear the horse bolt, and see Ramben's face in front of me.

"Amarth! Are you alright?!" If Ramben sounded scared before it's nothing compared to how he sounds now. 

"Trust me Ramben," I groan as I push myself into a sitting position, "I've been through much, much worse than this." 

Ramben looks relieved and helps me stand, which isn't easy to do when there's thick mud clinging to every part of you. I look around and mutter a curse. The horse has vanished, and I'm stranded with an elfling in the middle of a storm.

"What do we do Amarth?" Ramben grabs my hand and I look down at him, he managed to escape getting covered in too much mud. 

Me? I look like an orc.

"Well, it seems we have no choice now." I'm talking partially to myself and to Ramben. I shake his hand off and start trudging forward, the elfling is right by my side. "We can't stay out here until the storm passes, so we'll have to go to the nearest place with shelter."

"Where?" Ramben asks holding onto his hood to keep it from being blown off his head.

Without looking at him I say, "Minas Tirith."

/\\//\\/

We made it into the city just before just before the gates closed. Fortunately for us, there was a flood of people moving in and out through the gates so we went by unnoticed. I ordered Ramben to keep his hood over his head no matter what, he didn't ask any questions and did so without complaining. 

The fact that he trusts me so much is unsettling. 

Why?

I don't know.

The rain has turned the streets of Minas Tirith into a river, I manage to keep my footing but Ramben slips more than once. It gets to the point where I have to keep a constant grip on his arm lest he be swept away. I've never been inside this city before, so I don't exactly know my way around. My plan is to find an inn where we can stay for the night, then leave the city as soon as the gates open in the morning.

In the dim light I can just make out the worn and crumbling buildings that make up Minas Tirith; this city is not the way it was back when Aragorn ruled. I know for a fact that things began to go downhill for this country after Eldarion died, corrupt men seized power, and the "City of Kings" is now the "Den of Thieves."

I wonder what Aragorn would say if he saw what this place had become. I didn't know him that well but I certainly know that he wouldn't be pleased with what Gondor is today. The storm has kept most people off the streets which is just fine with me, fewer men means less chance of discovery. Of course, there's the matter of going into an inn that will be filled with drunken men, but it's nothing I haven't dealt with before.

Except for this time I have a child with me...

I glance down at Ramben who is trying not to slip in the water, I hope he manages to stay out of trouble. We search the city until we come across a small inn, we approach the door and I pray that it isn't full. Upon entering it seems as though every man in Minas Tirith has decided to cram themselves into this one inn.

It really is small and I can barely take one step without bumping into someone. It's so loud in here my ears hurt, and I won't even mention the terrible smell. I wanted to back out by then everyone had noticed Ramben and I enter. For a moment it was silent while everyone stares at us. I, however, ignore them and act as if I'm a regular visitor to this place. 

I stomp my feet to try and dislodge some of the mud from my boots and notice that Ramben is doing the same. Once that is done I grab his arm and lead him forward, remembering to keep him close at all times. Most of the men have lost interest and have returned to their own business.

As usual, though, there are a few people who continue to stare as we walk up to the counter. The innkeeper doesn't seem to notice us at first as he lazily washes out a mug with a filthy rag. I will not be drinking anything from here. I pull my hood back slightly just to reveal my face; my ears and long hair are kept hidden.

"Ahem." I've managed to catch the innkeeper's attention. He's a short, round man covered in sweat and dirt. He smiles revealing that most of his teeth are missing and I have to resist the urge to stare. 

"Welcome to The Red Flagon! What can I do for you, fine sir?"

I reach into my pocket and pull out a small bag of coins that I stole.

Of course, I didn't borrow them, who borrows money? If you borrow money you have to pay the person you borrowed from back; if you steal it, it's yours.

"I need a room for one night." I place a small stack of coins on the counter, waiting impatiently while the innkeeper inspects each one to make sure they're real. I scan the inn slowly taking in those gathered. Most are no longer paying attention to us for which I'm grateful, I can't take any more trouble tonight.

"One room eh?" The innkeeper slides the coins off the counter with one grubby hand into his other. "You're in luck my friend, I have one room left for you and your friend here. Now, what did you say your name was?"

"Arder, and that's all you need to know." I slip the innkeeper a few more coins, the price I pay for silence. The innkeeper greedily accepts the coins and reaches down for something behind the counter. 

"Here's your key Mr. Arder. Enjoy your stay, your room is in the last door down the hall to your left."

I nod quickly and grab Ramben's arm, the sooner we get to our room the better. I push my way past the crowded inn,  ignoring the offended voices of those I move aside. To this day I don't know whether it was done by accident, or on purpose, but somehow just before we cleared the crowd of men; Ramben's hood fell off.

Then everyone froze, except for me, that is.

In an instant, I grabbed Ramben's hood and yanked it back over his head. I pulled him close and urged him onward, hoping against hope that no one was able to get a close look at him. I was wrong, again.

Suddenly three men block our path. I put myself in front of Ramben and stand at my full height. "Excuse me," I say with forced politeness, "but we're trying to get to our room. So if you wouldn't mind, could you step aside and let us through?" 

The man directly in front of me, who has shoulder-length grey hair and green eyes, laughs before placing a calloused hand on my shoulder.

"What's your hurry son? I've never seen you around here before, how's about me and my boys treat you to a drink?"

I shrug his hand off and reply sharply, "No. We are tired and we want to rest now. Now if you please-"

I gasp in surprise as I'm shoved backwards and onto the floor. I mutter a curse as I stand up, I should have known that was coming. At least I managed to keep my hood on.

A frightened scream immediately captures my attention. I whirl around to find a man holding Ramben, pinning his arms to his sides, his back against his captor and his frightened face looking at me. But what angers and scares me the most is the fact that his hood is off, revealing his elven features for all to see.

"See Thilan? I told you there were such things as Elves! Look at his pointy ears!" The tall, obviously thickheaded man who is holding Ramben, looks very pleased with himself after voicing his discovery aloud.

The grey haired man, Thilan, groans in annoyance.

"Yes Hames, I know what it is. Now stop running your big mouth and keep the brat from escaping."

"Actually Hames," I say taking a step forward, "if I were you I'd let him go; unless of course, you'd like to have your innards spilt onto the floor."

"And if I were you I wouldn't take another step forward."' Thilan says from behind me.

Before I can speak a whimper of pain comes from Ramben, my eyes shoot daggers at Hames who is smiling in glee. What kind of monster enjoys seeing children in pain? It only makes me want to kill him even more.

"What do you want from me?" I growl forcing myself to face Thilan.

"Nothing." He replies walking past me and towards Ramben, whose entire body is trembling in Hamel's grasp. We shouldn't have come here, I knew we shouldn't have come here but I did anyway. I'm about to move forward when Thilan pulls out a knife and holds the blade under Ramben's chin, forcing his head up.

"I've only heard tales of Elves," he murmurs, "but I never thought I'd live to see one with my own eyes." I tense as he reaches a hand up and strokes Ramben's face, it takes whatever small amount of self-control I have to keep myself from attacking.

"Such beauty Elves posses," he continues proceeding to brush his fingers over Ramben's ear, "it is a shame that there are hardly any of you left."

"Your kind is the reason they left." I growl catching Thilan's attention. I don't care what happens to me I just want this spawn of an orc to keep his hands off Ramben.

"And what would you know about Elves?" He asks keeping the knife pressed against Ramben's neck. 

"More than you know." I wish he'd move away from him, but Thilan isn't taking the bait I'm offering, of course, he isn't. His attention is focused on Ramben.

"Well, I am sorry but I'm afraid that I'm going to have to take your little Elf with me." At this six men appear, surrounding me and cutting me off from Ramben, who's staring at me wide eyed. He's scared, he's waiting for me to save him. Which is what I was about to do when suddenly the six men attacked. 

I duck just in time to avoid a fist but don't have enough time to dodge a kick in the back. I stumble forward a few steps but quickly regain my balance.

"Amarth!"

I turn towards the voice just in time to see Hames carrying Ramben out of the inn, Thilan and four men trailing behind them. Two men have been left behind to make sure I don't follow, the last mistake they'll ever make. I have my sword out in a flash and thrust it forward into the closest man's stomach, the other man flees as his companion collapses lifelessly on the floor. 

I yank my sword out and quickly run after the man, but the inn is so crowded I get slowed down, and it's not as if I can just kill everyone who's in my way. I see the man race out the door, I can't let him get away! He knows where Thilan is taking Ramben. I burst out the door and into the streets, the rain has lessened but I don't care.

"Ramben!" I shout his name and listen desperately for a response.

"Amarth!" I whip my head to the right and run as fast as I can down the street. The road is slick from the rain, and my movements are slowed.

"Ramben!" I wait for another response, but there is none. "Ramben!" No, no this can't be happening. He can't be gone...

This is all my fault, I shouldn't have brought him here! I curse and return my sword to its sheath before continuing my mad dash through the streets. Thilan just made the biggest mistake of his life: He got on my bad side.

And the price for that is death.