Chapter 4: The Great Spiders

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Chapter 4:
The Great Spiders

Thinking it over, the group decided to go into the path within Mirkwood, being reluctant to go through the hordes of Orcs waiting for them by the vales of the Anduin, with one of them injured. By next morning, they prepared themselves again for their journey to Mirkwood, unaware that the wizard Convocare had been watching them from the start and had made plans for their demise.

Meanwhile, the group had arrived at the edge of Mirkwood where the old road starts into the dark forest.

J.R.R. Tolkien -- Mirkwood

In the road leading deeper into the dark forest they rode as quickly as they can, but:

Slowly the conversation died out, as if the heaviness of the air on the forest floor put a damper on all other sounds aside from the occasional screeches of birds or the sound of their horses' hooves shuffling on the dried leaves on the old rutted road. Theomer guessed that it might be mid afternoon, judging from the pale light that managed to filter in the forest canopy.

Suddenly the horses stopped and neighed nervously. Looking up, Theomer gasped. And the group quickly noticed what had made the horses nervous.

There are large spider webs on the trees on each side of the road.

The Great Spiders of Mirkwood had ambushed them! Before they had barely prepared themselves, they were besieged by spiders from all sides. But their leader and sire, Kaskarut was not with her children as they attack the group. In fact, the Great One was at first annoyed, not having intended to "meet" with the ones that Convocare had been talking about that soon. But thinking that sooner or later, her children will feed on the group anyway, she allowed them to continue their attack.

During the course of the battle, Theomer noticed something far ahead the road. Upon investigation, he saw a ruined wagon with two mutilated bodies near it, travelers by his estimate. Suddenly a child's scream was heard. Running towards it, he saw a girl hiding from a great spider. After rescuing her and taking her to the rest of the group, they learn that her name is Idra and that she is the daughter of the two dead travelers.

The spiders by then had retreated. The group had some time to rest their aching body but only for a very brief moment. Suddenly Enuvian sensed something foul in the air. Kaskarut herself had come to confront the group with a new troops of her spiders.

Despite their tiredness from the previous battle, they defended themselves from the marauding spiders. Karla had then used the hidden power of pendant. Though it was successful in killing many of the spiders, it left her weak, needing a few moment of rest to restore her strength. Meanwhile, Elenluin had not included himself in the battle. The elf had been preparing himself his mind as well as psyche for a tougher fight ahead.

Kaskarut had focused her attention to the elves of the group, particularly the older one who had intrigued her. Somehow his scent seemed familiar to her. Then suddenly she understood the recognition of the elf's aura. She had killed Elenluin's father. She spoke to him telephatically:

<Now I know why I am intrigued with you, Elf. I've smelled of your family before. Your...father, isn't it?>

The spider smiled when Elenluin's eyes grew large with shock.

<Ahh, then I got your full attention, then. Do you wish to know what happened to your father?>

Kaskarut did not give the elf a chance to reply. Suddenly, before Elenluin can deny her, Kaskarut opened her evil mind unto him, and the memories of the murder of his father flooded into his brain.

A group of elves traveling in the forest...his father on horseback, laughing as another elf talked with him...nighttime...the spiders struck in the dark, toying with the elves, snatching one by one and murdering and torturing them slowly in the dark...the sound of laughter, Kaskarut's laughter combined with the horrible screams of the dying...a single elf is left, Elenluin's father, who had continued fighting, until an amused Kaskarut have to confront him herself... the light in the elf's eyes dying out as finally he died...

The great spider laughed as Elenluin fell on his knees from the the horrible things that he saw.