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Chapter 4: Black Riders and Strider

Disclaimer: I don’t own jack.

Giles rode through the forest towards Isengard, the abode of the head of his order, Ethan Rayne the White. He rode through the archway of the wall encircling Isengard, through the gardens and up to the steps of Orthanc Tower.

“Smoke rises from the mountain of Doom, the hour grows late, and Giles the Grey rides to Isengard seeking my council. That’s why you’re here, isn’t it Ripper?” asked the white wizard, descending the stairs toward Giles.

“Good to see you Ethan, I have an urgent matter to discuss with you.” Giles said urgently.

“What can I do for you Ripper?” Ethan asked intrigued.

“Well, you can start by not calling me Ripper.”

“Oh come now Rupert, you earned that name. Even I couldn’t take down Eyghon.”

“Still, not my finest hour. But that’s beside the point; I have news about the Ring.” That got Ethan’s attention.

“I’m all ears, Rupert.” Ethan said. The two of them walked through the gardens as Giles told of his findings in the Shire.

“You’re sure about this?” Ethan asked as he finished the tale.

“Beyond any doubt.”

“So the Ring of Power has bee found.”

“All these years, it was in the Shire, right under my nose.”

“And yet you never had the brains to see it. Bloody hell Ripper, I told you that Hobbit weed would make you senile.”

“We still have time, if we work quickly we may still be able to stop Sauron from regaining the Ring.”

“Time? What time do you think we have?” Ethan said as he and Giles entered the tower. “Sauron has regained much of his former strength. He can’t take physical form yet, but his spirit is still as powerful as ever. In his fortress of Barad-Dur, the Dark Lord sees all. His gaze pierces cloud, shadow, earth, and flesh; sooner or later his sight will fall on the Ring.” Ethan noticed the worried look on Giles’ face. “You know what I’m talking about Ripper; a Great Eye, lidless, wreathed in flame.” Giles remembered the flash he had when he touched the Ring, that was he same image he had in his vision.

“The Eye of Sauron.” Giles said horrified.

“He has recalled most of his servants and allies, he has regained control of the areas where he held much sway in the past, and he is still gathering all evil in Middle Earth to him. Soon he will have assembled an army so great that no power in the world will be able to stop him from bringing an end to the world as we know it.” Ethan said gravely. Giles was a little unsettled by Ethan’s sudden knowledge of Sauron’s affairs.

“How do you know all this?” Giles asked.

“I’ve seen it.” Ethan said, pointing towards an object covered with a cloth.

“You’ve been using a palantir? Ethan, that’s a very dangerous tool.” Giles said uncertainly.

“What’s wrong with it?” Ethan asked walking towards the palantir and pulling the cover off it. “We’re here to run the first line of defense against evil, why shouldn’t we use whatever means necessary to keep tabs on the biggest evil there is?”

“Not all the Seeing Stones are accounted for Ethan, for all we know Sauron’s using it to spy on us!” Giles quickly put the cloth back on the palantir, suddenly getting a flash of the Eye of Sauron. Giles stared at the covered stone; unnerved at the vision he just received.

“Time’s already up Giles, Sauron’s forces are already on the move. And I’ve been told that the Nine have left Minas Morgul.”

“The Nine?!” Giles asked alarmed.

“They crossed the Isen River on Midsummer’s Eve.” Ethan said sitting in his throne. “They are searching for the Ring, and when they find it they’ll kill the one who carries it.”

“They’ve reached the Shire! I must warn Buffy! See you later Ethan.” Giles said turning to the exit. But as he reached the doors they snapped shut and locked. He tried for another door, but it shut and locked to. Suddenly all the exits were shut and locked.

“Did you honestly think a female Hobbit could stand against the power of Sauron? No one can stand against him and survive.” Ethan stated matter-of-factly. Realization hit Giles like a ton of bricks. Oh God, no! He’s the wisest man I’ve ever known, it can’t be. “There’s no hope in standing against the power of Mordor. The only hope is to join him, and that’s what we must do, Ripper. We must join Sauron. It’s the only option, my friend.”

“Tell me, my friend, when did Ethan Rayne, the wise and powerful, become a sniveling toady to that scum?!” Giles said, rage boiling over. He pointed his staff at Ethan and sent him flying with a blast of magicks. Ethan stood up and sent Giles flying onto the hard floor and then up on the wall.

“I gave you the chance to survive, Ripper. But, as usual, you have to do things the hard way.” Ethan knocked Giles unconscious with one more bolt of magic.

***A Farm On The Shire***

Buffy and Spike had been walking for hours, luckily they still had the map to Bree or they’d be lost by now. Spike looked up from the map to see that Buffy was nowhere in sight.

“Buffy? Buffy! BUFFY!” Spike called out, when Buffy suddenly stepped out from behind a cornstalk. “I thought I lost you.”

“Lost me? We’re still in the Shire.” Buffy replied nonchalantly.

“Yeah, I know, but with everything going on, I want to keep a close eye on you pet.”

“I heard, ‘till the end of the world, even if that’s tonight’. I know you mean it to, but what could possibly happen while we’re still in the Shire?” Buffy asked, as two figures crashed into her and they fell to the ground. “I had to ask.”

“Well, here you two are. I get a note from my sister that she and her unofficial boyfriend are leaving home and will be gone for a few weeks, and now you two are messing up our fun.” Dawn said glaring at her sister, trying to pick up the vegetables her and Andrew took.

“You two have been nicking Farmer Maggot’s crop again ‘aven’t you?” Spike asked smirking.

“It’s just a few carrots.” Dawn said innocently.

“And some cabbages. And the mushroom we took last week, and the 3 bags of potatoes we got the week before. And…I’ll be shutting up now.” Andrew babbled.

“Dawn, you and Andrew should go home.” Buffy said sternly.

“No. If you and Spike are going somewhere so am I.” Dawn said stubbornly.

“Niblet, Buffy and me aren’t going on a picnic. We’re going to be in real danger and we don’t know when we’ll be back, so…” Spike was cut off by the sound of shouting of one seriously pissed off Farmer Maggot.

“GET OUT OF MY FIELDS YOU LITTLE BASTARDS!”

“That’s our cue to run.” Andrew said dropping the stolen produce, running after Dawn, Spike and Buffy. “Don’t you think this guy’s overreacting just a little bit?”

“Why, just cause you two have been stealing half his harvest for they last zillion years?” Buffy asked sarcastically. They ran through the field, and came out on the side of a steep hill. Buffy, Spike and Dawn stopped in time, but Andrew slammed into them and all four of them went tumbling down the hill.

“Um Spike, get your hands off my chest.” Buffy said, buried under Spike, Dawn and Andrew.

“You know Andrew, it’s times like this that make me wonder why we keep you around.” Dawn said climbing off of Spike’s legs.

“I swear Bit, with that little bugger as your partner in crime, I’m surprised you don’t get caught more often.” Spike said helping Buffy up.

“Hey! It was just a short cut.” Andrew said in a huff.

“A short cut?” Buffy said glaring at Andrew. “To what, exactly?”

“Mushrooms.” Andrew said, pointing to a patch of mushrooms under a tree.

“Oh, mushrooms!” Dawn said, running over to pick some with Andrew. As her sister and her friend picked a few mushrooms, Buffy felt a cold shiver run down her spine. She looked down the road towards the trees, and felt something coming.

“I think we should get off the road.” Buffy whispered to Spike.

“All right luv. Hey Nibblet, Whelp, Buffy thinks we should get off he road!” Spike called over to the other hobbits.

“In a minute, Spike.” Andrew called back. Buffy looked back up the road, and heard the most earsplitting scream she ever heard. Her blood ran cold; she turned, ran to her friends and grabbed Dawn and Andrew by their shirts.

“GET OFF THE ROAD! NOW!!!” Buffy yelled, dragging Dawn and Andrew off the road and under a tree, closely followed by Spike.

“What’s your problem, Buffy?” asked Dawn, agitated.

“Shhhh! Don’t talk, any of you!” Buffy said as they huddled under the tree. They sat there and listened, becoming aware that the birds had suddenly stopped chirping and the sun hid behind a cloud. Suddenly they heard the clomping of a horse; they looked through the roots of the tree and saw a huge black horse, and the scariest rider they’d ever seen. He, or it, was dressed in a black cloak that reached down to the ground, a hood drawn over its head hiding its face. They looked as it turned and saw only darkness when they saw the opening of the hood, but they felt a cold pair of eyes staring back.

The Black Rider dismounted, its armor heavy clanging, it glided to the tree where the four hobbits were hiding and bent over it. They began to hear a swift intake of breath from the rider, like it was sniffing for something. They also began to notice that the presence of this creature was affecting the area; they watched as bugs began to crawl away from the thing as fast as they could, the tree was starting to rot and cover with frost. Buffy suddenly felt a strange urge to put on the Ring. She felt like she had to put it on and disappear, she felt like the thing could see her through the tree, she had to escape. But Spike suddenly grabbed her hand, and the feeling went away. She pocketed the Ring, but the thing was still there. Dawn took the sack of mushrooms and threw it hard into the bushes on the other side of the road. It got the attention of the Black Rider and it turned, got on its horse and rode away.

“What was that thing?” Dawn asked, petrified.

“That must’ve been one of ‘em.” Spike said to Buffy.

“We got to get going.” Buffy said running into the woods, followed by Spike.

“What was that thing, Buffy? And what was it looking for?” Dawn asked, running after them.

“Go home Dawn!” Buffy ordered, still running.

“No! What was that thing, and what did you mean ‘one of them’?” Dawn said catching up with them. “That Black Rider was looking for something, or someone. What’s gong on, Buffy?”

“Dawn, please just…” But the sight ahead cut off Buffy’s statement. “Get down!” They all fell to the ground, hiding behind the bushes. Up ahead, was the black rider, still looking around. They waited till it rode out of sight, and then started walking. “Dawn, you and Andrew have to go back home and stay there. Spike and me are in enough trouble and I don’t want you involved in this.”

“Bull, you’re my sister and I am not leaving you!” Dawn said stubbornly.

“Me neither. It’d be like Superman leaving the Justice League before a fight with the Legion of Doom.” Andrew said, receiving stares from the other Hobbits. “What?”

“Where do you come up with that stuff?” Spike asked.

“I have a lot of time to write.” Andrew said embarrassed.

“Right. Go home.” Buffy said finally. “ Come on Spike, we have to get to Bree. Bucklebury Ferry isn’t far; maybe we can loose those things on the river. We shoulda brought weapons ”

“ Little late to think about that, Slayer.” Spike said picking up the pace.

“Buffy, what the hell is…AAAAAAAHHHH!” Andrew screamed like a girl, as the Black Rider appeared in front of them. The four Hobbits ran like they never ran before, with the Black Rider right on their heels. They made it to the Ferry, but Buffy was still running from the Rider.

“BUFFY COME ON!” Spike yelled, undoing the rope. Buffy ran down the dock and leapt into the ferry, landing between Dawn and Spike. The Rider rode to a halt at the end of the dock, and screamed its blood-curdling scream.

“How far to the nearest crossing?” Buffy asked, still staring at the Black Rider.

“Brandywine Bridge, 20 miles down stream.” Dawn answered. The Rider turned and rode away, but after it galloped off two other Black Riders followed it. “There’s more then one of those thing?! Why are there more than one of these things?!”

“This is gonna be harder than we thought.” Spike muttered as they floated down he river.

***The Gates of Bree***

The four Hobbits stood in the pouring rain at the gates to the village of Bree, still watching for any signs of the Black Riders. Buffy looked around and saw the coast was clear.

“Come on.” They rushed towards the gates and knocked. “Hello?” Buffy called. A door opened and a gatekeeper looked out.

“Hobbits. What business brings you to Bree?” the Gatekeeper asked.

“We going to the Hyperion, our business is our own.” Buffy said, hurriedly.

“All right, young miss, I meant no offence. It’s my job to ask questions after dark. There’s talk of unsavory folk around. Can’t be to careful.” The Gatekeeper said, letting them in. The four hobbits walked nervously through the streets of Bree; they’d never seen so many big people before. The darkness and the rain made the whole thing feel like a bad dream. They wandered a little till they found a large building with a sign that said “HYPERION”. They entered the inn and walked to the counter.

“Excuse us.” Buffy called. A blonde woman looked over the counter and saw the Hobbits.

“Good evening, I’m Anne. If you’re looking for a place to stay, we’ve got some nice cozy, Hobbit sized rooms available. May I have your name please?” Anne asked.

“My name is Glory. We’re friends of Giles the Grey. Can you tell him we’ve arrived?” Buffy said quickly.

“Giles? Giles…Oh! I remember, he had glasses and a pointy hat.” Anne said remembering I haven’t seen him in months.” Buffy felt her heart sink.

“What do we do now?” Dawn asked.

“We wait for him.” Buffy said, getting them a table. For the next hour they sat there, hoping that Giles would turn up soon. “ Where is he?”

“He’ll be here, pet.” Spike said comfortingly, as Dawn sat down with, by Hobbit standards, a huge mug of ale. “What the bloody hell is that?!”

“This, my friend, is a pint.” Dawn said sipping from it.

“It comes in pints?!” Spike and Andrew said in unison “ I’m getting one.” Said Andrew excitedly.

“Get me one to.” Spike called after him. But then he saw something that had bothered him for a while now. “Buffy, see that guy in the corner?” he said indicating to a man on the other side of the room. “He’s done nothing but stare at you since we’ve been here.”

“Excuse me, who’s that guy in the corner?” Buffy asked Anne.

“He’s a ranger, he lives around here. I never heard his real name, but everyone calls him Strider.” Anne said. Buffy looked at “Strider”, he made her feel uneasy. Or maybe that was the Ring. But then she heard something that jolted her to reality.

“Summers? Sure I know a Summers. She’s over there, her name’s Buffy Summers.” Andrew babbled. Buffy launched from her seat and ran over to Andrew. As she grabbed at Andrew, she slipped and fell, sending the Ring flying. Buffy reached to grab it as it slid on her finger, making her disappear. She looked around; the world had suddenly gone dark, everything looked blurred and shadowy.

“You cannot hide.” Said a deep voice from behind her. She turned and looked into the gaze of a gigantic Eye, made entirely of fire.

“I see you!” The Eye said coldly as it came closer to her. “There is no life in the void. Only death.” Buffy backed away from the Eye, and wrenched the Ring from her finger. She looked around, relieved that she was back in the real world, but her relief was short lived. The strong hand of the man Strider grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and pulled her into a room.

“You draw to much attention to yourself, Miss ‘Glory’.” Said Strider. “You need to be more careful with that trinket.”

“What who-ket?” Buffy asked, “I don’t have anything.”

“Sure you don’t. I can avoid being seen if I wish. But to completely disappear, that’s a rare gift.” Said the ranger, as he removed his hood.

“Who are you?” Buffy asked backing away from him.

“Are you scared?” Strider asked. Buffy nodded. “Well, not nearly scared enough. I know what’s hunting you.” Strider started walking towards her, when suddenly something jumped out of the shadows and knocked him down. Strider looked up and saw a pissed off blonde hobbit pulling back to punch him and a two younger hobbits holding a bar stool and a candelabra.

“If you hurt her, I’ll kill you Peaches!” Spike said angrily. Strider held his hands up in surrender and they backed off.

“You’ve got courage, but I’m afraid that won’t save you. You can’t wait for Giles here anymore, Buffy. They’re coming.” Strider said getting up.

The Gatekeeper suddenly heard a snorting of horses outside; he went to the gates and opened a peephole. He looked wide-eyed as four Black Riders charged in over the gate, crushing the Gatekeeper. They four Riders rode to the Hyperion and dismounted. They swept into the in without a sound, Anne cowered under the counter as the dark figures glided towards the rooms. The Riders entered a room with four Hobbit-sized beds and drew their swords. They crept silently to each bed, swords raised. And they began stabbing and slashing the beds, and what lay in them, to pieces. After a few minutes they pulled the blankets off to reveal several shredded pillows. The horrible things screeched as they threw the beds against the wall. In Strider’s room, four Hobbits were awoken by the ungodly screaming of the Riders.

“What are those things?” Buffy asked.

“They were once Men, Great Kings of Men. Then the Dark Lord gave them nine rings of power. Blinded by their pride and greed, they took them without a second thought. One by one they fell into darkness. Now they are slaves to his will. They’re the Nazgul, the Ringwraiths. They aren’t alive or dead, they just exist by the will of Sauron. They feel the power of the Ring every second, and they will never stop searching for you till they get it. Get some rest; we have a long way to go tomorrow.”

The next day, the five of them set out.

“Where are you taking us?” Andrew asked.

“Into the wild.” Strider said shortly.

“How do we know Captain Forehead over there is a friend of Giles?” Spike asked Buffy. “For all we know, this guy’s one of the guys lookin’ for the Ring.”

“I don’t think so. I think we can trust him.” Buffy replied.

“You’re just sayin’ that cause you fancy him.” Spike said bitterly.

“I do not!” Buffy said, not entirely telling the truth.

“Where’s he taking us?” Andrew asked.

“To Caritas, Mister Wells, to the House of Lorne.”

“Caritas? We’re going to see the Elves!” Andrew said excitedly as everyone groaned





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