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Chapter 1: Plain
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Aragorn sighed. There was no way denying it any longer: they were lost.
He pulled his cloak as tightly around him as possible to fend off the cold, and peered up to the grey sky again: it was too cloudy to offer any orientation.
The sun had disappeared altogether and only left a dull late afternoon light. Everything was thoroughly covered by snow and looked the same, so no clues there either.
The Ranger turned around and spotted his companion a few feet away, having climbed onto one of the boulders and looking for a way out of this endless maze of rocks.
Aragorn wondered how Legolas could have gotten up there at all, as the snow made the smooth surface as slippery as ice.
But then, the elf never ceased to astound him; even though he had grown up amongst elves and should not be surprised by their abilities anymore, Legolas managed to render him speechless sometimes.
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He made his way over to the boulder now: "Anything?", he asked hopefully, not being prepared to admit defeat yet.
Legolas looked down at him, an inscrutable smile on his face: "I wish I could say yes", he replied. "But as it would be untrue, I fear I have to disappoint you."
Aragorn subconsciously squared his shoulders: "We should find shelter for the night then", he murmured, looking around uneasily.
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They were headed for Mirkwood and had been travelling through the Misty Mountains for some days now. An early and unusually fierce onset of winter had taken them by surprise and slowed their progress down considerably, so they had strayed from their path in order to find an easier one, vainly hoping that the passages further south might be free of yet .
Aragorn reprimanded himself for such a foolish idea now, but there was no turning back. The clouds seemed to follow them, blocking the path in their backs.
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Legolas swiftly jumped down off the boulder and landed next to Aragorn, but did not even break the white surface.
"I wish I could do that", Aragorn murmured.
Legolas laughed, and he did sound so cheerful that Aragorn forgot his gloom for a while when he set off after his friend.
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They sought shelter under some boulders which were jutting out at the top so that they had formed something like a roof.
It did not protect them from the cold wind, but at least they were able to build a small fire. They boiled some water for tea and ate a frugal meal, then Aragorn settled down to sleep while Legolas took the first watch.
Although the cold did not really affect him, he felt uncomfortable, thus shrinking back into his hood; he would have preferred trees instead of stones, and the wind tugged at his cloak as if mocking him.
It increased during the night, blowing snow into their sheltered place, and filled the air with unearthly howling.
It annoyed the elf, and he was glad when his watch was over.
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Aragorn watched the dark sky turn pale. He had huddled himself in his cloak and got to his feet now, his breath producing white clouds in the crisp air.
The wind had not lessened yet, but at least it had stopped to snow for a while.
He decided to wake Legolas before time; they would do good to get going as long as it did not snow, because it made orientation a lot easier.
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To his surprise, the elf was awake already, looking alert: "Aragorn", he said quietly, "there is a sound behind the howling of the wind, I can hear it."
Aragorn knew how superior his friend´s hearing was, so he nodded: "Can you make out from where it is coming?"
Legolas shook his head. Silently, he got to his feet as well, and they started to pack up quickly.
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"If we move, we will leave tracks, but if we stay here, we can be cornered easily", Aragorn murmured, trying to decide which would be the lesser evil.
Legolas nodded vaguely, as he was listening intently. "We cannot linger", he then said, his voice calm but urgent.
"It sounds like wargs, and they might be carrying Mordor´s foul spawn..."
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So they set off; the snow had piled up high, making it even harder for Aragorn to proceed. Legolas continued to listen, his fair face was taut with apprehension.
He knew that his friend was putting all his efforts in walking as fast as possible, but the snow reached up to his hip, slowing him down tremendously.
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The noise became louder, and now Legolas thought he could definitely hear Orcs as well. He did not say anything until he was sure, though.
"Wargs and Orcs", he finally stated, "They are coming this way."
Aragorn cursed under his breath,as there was nowhere to hide.
The boulders had even receded, and now they were facing a flat plain. On the far side, the boulders piled up higher, but until they had reached them, they would be exposed to hostile looks.
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"Do you think we will be able to make it in time?", Aragorn asked now, because he knew he could rely on the elf´s excellent hearing, "or do you suppose we should go back to find a hiding place?"
Legolas slowly shook his head: "Let us hurry to get over there", he said. "The thought of going back troubles me."
A threat had been growing in his mind, but he could not put his finger on it.
So they went on in order to cross the plain.
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They had not come far though, when Aragorn suddenly felt a strange shift underneath his feet.
Before he could say anything or even warn Legolas, the ground underneath them trembled and started to break away.
Taking the two helpless friends with it, the snow proceeded to cave in with tremendous speed and noise, taking down rocks and blocks of ice as well; the echo of it reverberated through the now revealed crevice for some time.
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When a party of Orcs on wargs arrived there a few minutes later, however, everything was silent again.
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TBC
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Author´s Note: Okay, tell me what you think! ;)