My Sword Trembles
by Agape4Rivendell
Chapter 26: Pain Abated
Listöwel, Gondor's Captain-General, had returned
to Osgiliath empty-handed, the night before. Though she and her men had
ridden out and scoured the banks of the Anduin for the hundredth time
it seemed, no sign of Faramir had been found. She discovered Indis had
arrived and was waiting to begin the search herself. Night was nigh
though, and Listöwel was able to persuade her Regent to wait till morn
before they began again the search.
Now, as they rode side by side, neither woman spoke, for the
turmoil and the fear of the last few days had strained even their
relationship. At last, Listöwel could endure it no longer. “Your men
have scoured all of Ithilien. The boats are now dragging the river,”
she choked on that piece of information. “Boats have been sent from the
Harlond further south. No matter what we have done, Indis, I fear we
will not find the boy, will probably not even find his body.”
Tears ran down Indis’ face, but she said not a word. In her heart, she kept chanting, ‘He is alive. He is alive.’
They camped that night by the Anduin. From her days as a child, she
had loved the River. Learning to swim with Morwen and Denethor from one
of Ecthelion's servants had been joy-filled. Of course, their father
had not the time to teach them. Once her brother had mastered the
rudiments of it, he sent the servant away and spent his summers
teaching his sisters. She clenched her jaw. She would not go down that
path again, the path of grief and sorrow over Denethor’s death. Alas,
before this the River had been her friend; it had now turned into her
bitterest enemy. She did not sleep and she sensed Listöwel did not
either. ‘How many nights now,’ she wondered, ‘since I have slept?’
Morning came and with it a dull rain; low, gray clouds filled the
sky; the only sound was the clop of Listöwel's and her horses' hooves
as they approached Emyn Arnen. Slowly they marched into the forest.
Within an hour, they approached the site where Listöwel and she had
fought the Orcs, when they were searching for her sister. She choked
back a sob at the thought. That search had ended in despair and horror.
Morwen had been found, head severed by the Haradrim; her body set in
mockery, as if alive, against the family's burial chamber. She had not
seen it herself; Denethor had kept her from the sight. But she had seen
it, in her mind's eye, and never forgotten the revulsion and nausea
that had filled her very being at the thought of the horrors Morwen had
endured before the end. If they found Faramir in like manner, she would
die, she would certainly die.
The Knights of Gondor fanned out in a long line, from the shores of the
Anduin all the way east to the Harad Road. Not an inch of ground would
be missed. The men had long spears that they gently pushed at the
vegetation and poked into the ground, in case the child had been
buried.
Listöwel finally called a halt for nuncheon. The men wearily sat; they
had been up since before dawn the day before and searched until Anor
set completely, and this day again, up at dawn. Though each hoped
fervently that Faramir would be found alive, the prospect was growing
dimmer by the hour. None moved from where they had stopped their
search. They pulled out the dried meat, apples, and water that had been
provided the day before. After a half hour's rest, Listöwel called and
the company began again its desperate search.
“He will be found, Listöwel. He must.” Indis choked as they rode behind the men. Her Captain-General only nodded.
Anor began its slow descent. Its light would soon be too low to see
anything. Indis began humming the lullaby that Aragorn had been found
humming to Faramir. The same one that had brought her beloved nephew
back from the near-death state he had been in. Listöwel shuddered as
she listened and wondered as to the state of her Regent's mind.
A shout interrupted her grim thoughts and her stomach fell; one of the
search party had found his body. But it was the voice of Valanestel!
Joy-filled!
The man rode forward and pulled up next to Indis. “Regent!” he saluted
once he dismounted. “The Lord Faramir has been found – alive and well.
He is right behind me. We heard the calls of your men and I rode
forward in hopes you were here.”
Indis held her arms tight to her side, her hands clenched. “We will
wait here until you bring him forth,” she said through clenched teeth.
She could hardly believe her ears. Some small part of her had succumbed
and thought Faramir was dead. She dismounted in stunned silence.
Even as she waited, the vanguard broke through into the little clearing
where she stood. She saw the litter and almost fainted then and there.
Her resolve to present a dignified front was slowing being crushed. A
small head peeked out from around the horse pulling the litter, and she
could contain herself no longer. She ran forward, arms held out, and
reached him in a moment. She pulled Faramir from Borondir's arms and
held him in her own, falling onto her knees next to the litter and
covering the boy's head, neck and hands with kisses. His name flew a
hundred times from her mouth as she tried to speak between her sobs.
Faramir was at first frightened when he saw his aunt. A small niggling
fear had been with him the last few miles the cortege had traveled. She
would be furious, he thought, and would surely reprimand him. What
punishment would she devise? His little heart fluttered wildly as he
peeked around the captain. As he was swept into her arms, and felt her
gentle lips upon his face, and the tears that ran down her cheeks, and
the sobs that shook against his body, he wept at the depths of her
love. “I am so sorry, Amma, I did not mean to leave the camp.”
“Nay, nay,” she whispered words of comfort. “All is well. You are
with me again. Nothing else matters, Faramir. Nothing. Please do not
speak; just allow me to hold you. I never want you away from these arms
of mine.”
The boy succumbed to the fears that had assailed him these past many days. He wept quietly and clung to her.
None spoke, though she heard a sniffle here and there behind her.
She smiled after a few moments. “Your people wait for you, my Lord
Steward. Come, Listöwel, beloved friend, and welcome back your charge.”
Listöwel ran forward and held Faramir to her. “My Steward, forgive
the undignified welcome, but you were sorely missed. I cannot tell you
the fear that dwelt in my heart for you. Are you truly well?”
“I am, Captain-General.” Faramir pulled himself away from her and
stood. “I am well, except for a slight turned ankle. I am grateful to
be with my men again.”
She smiled and heard a few coughs of appreciation and laughter
behind her. “Your men have worked diligently to find you, my Lord.
Might we camp for the night? Give them some respite?”
“Of course,” the lad said. “Valanestel’s men need rest too.” He walked
back into Indis’ arms and smiled. She took him to a fallen branch and
they sat and talked quietly while the rest of the company set about
putting up their camp.
Listöwel nodded to Captain Valanestel, then looked at Borondir on the litter. “You are wounded?”
“We ran into a band of Orcs before the Steward was found. I caught a blade.”
“You look well. Which healer attended you?”
Borondir’s face turned red. “None of ours, my Captain. Ours were killed
in the attack.” He motioned and she drew closer. “It was Elves,” he
whispered.
Listöwel looked up at Valanestel in shock. “He is fevered!”
“Nay. He speaks truly. Two Elves saved our hides and then ministered to
the wounded. They took us to where they had hid Faramir.”
“They kidnapped him?”
“Nay,” Valanestel laughed. “They found him and cared for him. They
were on their way back to Osgiliath when they heard the attack. They
hid Faramir and came to our aid. The Steward vouched for them.”
“Thank you. I would have you and Borondir return to Minas Tirith
with us. He will be tended in the Houses and you will give the Regent a
full report.”
“I will, Captain-General. May I say, I am most grateful the boy was found.”
