Author: Sam

Story: Leather-bound: 1 of ?

Series: n/a

Setting: Mordor as related in The Red Book of Westmarch.

Song Note: 2000 Years by Billy Joel. This song was released at the Millennium Concert performed by Billy Joel.

Feedback: Yes, please? Especially constructive. samwise_baggins@yahoo.co.uk

Webpage: http://www.oocities.org/samwise_baggins/index.html

With the building evil of Sauron, no one was safe. Orcs and goblins came out of the dark recesses of Middle Earth to gnaw away at the very lives of the free peoples. Skirmishes turned to battles and eventually grew to wars. No one was safe, and no one was willing to let that stand.

Elves consulted with Men, trying to find a solution to their mutual danger. They knew that if Sauron were to gain the power over the free peoples, no child would be safe. The entirety of Middle Earth would be consumed by his evil. And, thus, the Last Alliance of Elves and Men was formed. The companies rode out to meet Sauron's forces at Mount Doom itself, an evil, festering land which drained any who dwelt there long.

The Elves were led by Gil-galad and Elrond, two wise, well-trained warriors. The Men were led by Elendil and his son, Isildur; these were kings of Men and equally trained for battle. The soldiers took heart from the courage of their leaders. They fought the foul forces of Sauron with vigor and determination. Many thousands fell before the combined forces, though many were lost as well.

As life is unpredictable, such was the war. The Elves and Men were indeed winning their fight. They saw hope light their future. They could finish this, could end the threat of Sauron. But this was not to be.

Sauron emerged with his might, a simple golden ring prominently glowing on his finger. There he stood, tall, proud, magnificent. His armor was as hard and terrifying as the wearer beneath, and it struck fear in the hearts of those who saw him. The leaders knew that this was their last stand and must be fought soon or they would risk the changing hearts of their troops.

With defiance, they advanced, but with merely a mighty swipe of his weapon, Sauron sent many soldiers to their deaths, their bodies flung away. He did not pause but continued to strike down his enemies, Elves and Men crumpling beneath his might, his strength. No one in his path was spared. Sauron was fighting for the right to rule.

Gil-galad had no chance to retaliate. The Elven leader was among the first to fall, a crushing loss for the supposedly immortal Elves. Elrond didn't pause; he couldn't. He had to keep his Elves fighting for the freedom of Middle Earth.

A mighty yell ripped across the air and Elendil charged the larger being. The king of Men hesitated not as he threw himself wholeheartedly into defeating this slave master. He was intent on sparing his people the evil he foresaw. Elendil never got to see the end of his war. He was struck down with one mighty blow from Sauron; crumpling to the rocks at the base of Mount Doom.

Isildur screamed in his horror and shock. His beloved father lay dead. Without thought to what might occur, the prince flung himself at his father's corpse, weeping in vicious grief. He was not given a chance to release his emotions, however, as Sauron stepped towards the Man. Taking up Narsil, his father's sword, the young prince attempted to raise the weapon only to have it shattered under the boot of his enemy.

Sauron raised his own weapon to strike the now helpless Man. He swung the pole-axe downwards in a heavy arch. The power behind such a move would be a deathblow for the lightly armored man. Defiantly, much as his father before him, Isildur let out a mighty yell, swinging the broken bladed weapon up in an instinctively defensive move.

Despite the fighting still raging around them, all sound seemed to cease for the pair of combatants. Time seemed to slow down as the jagged blade hissed through the air. Neither appeared to move as metal cleaved through metal and flesh. No blood was visible as the pair still stared at one another for a heartbeat... two... three...

A scream rent the air.

In a sudden blast of heat and smoke, Sauron writhed, his fingerless hand clutched to his armored chest. The wave of light and heat knocked troops of both sides to their knees, Orcs and Goblins crumpling as they were overcome by one of the forces which could defeat them: extreme bright light. Sauron had lost.