LEARNING THE ART OF WAR

Morning of March 28, 3019

Eowyn, under bewitchment, has volunteered to fight for Mordor against the forces of the West. She has requested to be taught the use of a sword and buckler (shield). At this point in history there was not yet the idea of fencing. It was a violent time and weapons were less refined. Weapons used were maces, long swords, axes, daggers, etc.

The mail served as a primary defense as did the buckler which would block thrusts by weapons. Some were good with axes, and it is said that a skilled axeman with a two bladed axe, could chop through horse and rider with one blow. However, if he did not fell his opponent in that one blow, he would be struck from above by a knight. Basically they chopped like cutting down a tree. Offense was the main thing.

Narrator: *Eowyn is presently in her room, but she will be soon summoned to go before Angmar. A set of mail has been left in her room and it is assumed now she knows how to put it on without assistance*
Maltriel: *maltriel has just finished putting on all of her armor. she yawns slightly, still feeling some afteraffects of the potion she was given the night before*
Narrator: *This time when the orcs go to get her, they attempt to knock politely on her door*
Maltriel: *she goes to the door and tells them to come in, and tells them that she is ready*
Quiet Wraith: *They unlock the door and motion for her to follow them*
Maltriel: *she follows the orcs. the halls of this place are becoming familiar to her now*
Quiet Wraith: *They reach Angmar's hall and the orc motions for her to go on*
Maltriel: *she goes in. upon seeing angmar she bows* good day my lord
Angmar: *He rises from his chair, goes to her and takes both her hands* Maltriel, you look well
Maltriel: *a slight rosy color appears on her pale cheeks. she smiles* thank you my lord. i slept well, after you gave me that sleeping draught
Angmar: *He bends over and kisses her lightly on the forehead and releases her hands* Today, we will have your first sword lesson
Angmar: Is that agreeable?
Maltriel: yes my lord *she thinks of the war... the enemies were regrouping. how much time would they have together before all was lost forever?*
Angmar: Then we shall begin *He backs away from her*
Angmar: *He holds his sword hilt with his left hand and draws his sword forth and holds it up in the air*
Angmar: First we want to talk about safety. This is not a toy
Angmar: Unless you are planning on using it, keep it either pointed in the air thus or pointed at the ground. *He moves his sword so it points downward*
Angmar: *He moves the sword up and lays the blade in his left hand, hilt extended towards her* Here, take it
Maltriel: *she listens to what he says with attentive ear... she takes his sword from his hand, her own hands trembling slightly*
Angmar: Hold it by the hilt and test its weight. Does it feel right for your hand?
Maltriel: *she does so* yes... *she stares at the sword*
Angmar: Just move it back and forth. Remember what it is used for
Angmar: Become comfortable with it
Maltriel: *she moves the sword around. strangely the weight of it does not pain her wrist as she swings it to and fro. but she thinks nothing of that concentrating on the blade as it reflects the dull light*
Angmar: *He looks at her and says* You are not even holding it right Maltriel. Let me show you how
Angmar: *He walks behind her, wrapping his arms around her and positioning her hand on the sword hilt*
Angmar: *He moves her hand* You should move it thus and thus
Angmar: Now, I shall stand back and see if you can hit me
Maltriel: *her heartbeat accelerates when his arms are around her.... but she must concentrate on what she is doing* yes my lord
Angmar: *He draws a wooden sword from out of his robe* See if you can hit this
Maltriel: *she slashes at the wooden sword in his hand trying to make contact*
Angmar: *He moves his foot out and trips her and she falls spralling to the floor*
Maltriel: *she lands on the floor but quickly gets back up facing him and holding her sword*
Angmar: Now you have learned a lesson. Watch everything your oponent does, and remember in a battle, you have to try to watch your back, your sides, your front, everything!
Angmar: Are you sure you want to continue with learning the art of war?
Maltriel: yes my lord i must.
Angmar: *He orders an orc to bring him a buckler shield. He shows Maltriel how to hold it*
Angmar: Now protect yourself with this. Try to defend yourself with your sword and your buckler
Script Aborted by User
Angmar: Now I will take this wooden sword and try to attack you. Defend yourself
Maltriel: *she holds the buckler preparing to use it to block his thrusts and watches his every move in anticipation*
Angmar: *he walks slowly around her with his sword pointing at her. He watches her every move, then suddenly he strikes his wooden sword against hers*
Angmar: Slow Maltriel, slow
Maltriel: *she struggles against his sword trying to turn it aside ever her buckler ready for use... and wonders if she is doing it right.... though as eowyn she had been skilled with the use of a blade, the spells of enchantment made her forget all she knew*
Angmar: *He easily knocks the sword aside and it flies to the side of the room* So you want to be a soldier?
Angmar: You must practice Maltriel, or you might hurt yourself sometime
Angmar: Now bring my sword to me
Maltriel: *bites her lip. she goes and brings his sword back to him*
Maltriel: i will practice, and learn it as best as can lord
Angmar: *He takes his sword and puts it back in his scabbard*
Angmar: Here, take this! *throws the wooden sword to her*
Maltriel: *she catches it*
Angmar: Now give me the buckler
Maltriel: *she hands him the buckler*
Angmar: *He puts the buckler on his left arm and draws it to his chest*
Angmar: Now take your sword and attempt to attack me
Maltriel: *she takes her sword and lunges forward, attempting to miss the buckler and come in contact with his armor*
Angmar: *He turns to the side and blocks her blow with the buckler*
Angmar: Try again
Maltriel: *stepping back she lunges forward quicker this time trying to strike beside the buckler*
Angmar: *Again her wooden sword meets the buckler*
Angmar: Maltriel, you are starting to perspire. You should stop now. Your health is still not good
Maltriel: *grits her teeth... cries* i am going to learn this! *lunges forward again attempting to strike a little lower below the buckler*
Angmar: *deftly he moves aside and again trips her*
Maltriel: *gets back up holding her sword tighter.... moves to face him*
Maltriel: *her eyes go to his shoulder*
Angmar: No, Maltriel, next time you might hurt yourself. We should stop now
Maltriel: *she stabs towards his stomach, again attempting to make contact* never my lord. i will learn this or die trying
Angmar: *Again, the buckler almost comes from nowhere and greets her sword*
Angmar: Give me the sword Maltriel
Angmar: Next you will hurt me *he laughs*
Maltriel: *gives the sword to him* never my lord! besides, it appears that i cant, does it not?
Angmar: *her question is met with a laugh*
Angmar: But, come, rest yourself *he holds out his hand*
Maltriel: *she sighs* well if the enemys skills in battle are as bad as mine, i daresay that you could beat them all singlehandedly! *takes his hand*
Angmar: Nay, Maltriel... They have fought for years. You could not last a minute on any battlefield
Angmar: Come now, we will go to my private quarters and talk
Angmar: *he leads her by the hand and motions for the orcs to open a large door to the room. He takes her down the hall to his room*
Maltriel: *she sighs.... cursing herself... and follows him... feeling dejected and frustrated*
Angmar: *They come to his quarters. He opens the door for her and they go through and he shuts it behind him*
Angmar: *He motions for her to sit at the table. He gets a bottle of wine, two glasses and a tray*
Angmar: *He pours a glass for himself and one for her*
Maltriel: *she sits at the table, her eyes looking around the dimly lit room*
Maltriel: thank you my lord
Angmar: *He takes a seat across from her, drinks a sip out of his wine and says* You will be on a battlefield, Maltriel. You are not at a ball
Angmar: You must attempt to defend yourself any way you can by your weapons, your feet, your wit, sometimes your hands
Angmar: When facing horsemen, your captain will tell you to form a circle with weapons pointing outward, and that way you can protect each others backs
Maltriel: *she takes a sip of wine... stares at him and sighs. she wished she could become as good as him in the art of war*
Maltriel: *now every country needed soldiers like him to protect the people, the women and children. but she wished she could have a part, and could do something herself*
Angmar: Ah but enough of this tonight. I want to tell you something
Maltriel: no my lord. i would like to learn more
Angmar: Dear lady, you have tried very hard to learn, but you need someone who has more time to give it. Tomorrow, there will be an expert in warfare to teach you. He comes from Nurn, an ally of Mordor, for many hundreds of years. He will train you.
Angmar: His wife and daughters shall be your handmaidens
Angmar: You are to tell them what you want done and discipline when they need it. Remember, you are royalty here, so show it
Maltriel: *feels flattered that he commended her efforts, pitiful though they may be* thank you angmar my lord. most greatly do i desire this, to be able to go to war and protect my people
Maltriel: yes my lord, i believe i am royalty. am i not engaged to a king? *she smiles*
Angmar: Yes, you are engaged to me, Angmar, a king
Angmar: *Wonders if she is lapsing back into forgetfulness again*
Angmar: Now I need to tell you something about the orcs. You should not be afraid of them. They are pathetic creatures
Angmar: Back long ago, through many hundreds of lifetimes of Men, the wicked god Manwe captured them and through torture and vile means, turned them and all their descendants into what we call "orcs"
Angmar: Mordor pitied them and now they willingly serve in its armies, but remember when you hear the name Manwe, it is a foul one and you should learn to curse the wicked valar
Maltriel: *takes another sip of wine* mordor is indeed a wonderful country, to have compassion on these poor creatures and give them a home... the sad unfortunate creatures.. what were they like before?
Angmar: They were elves
Angmar: *he drinks the rest of his wine in one swallow* Now you need to sleep. I trust you need no help with your mail now?
Maltriel: *vaguely wonders what elves are* no strangely mail is one thing that i do not need help with *smiles weakly*
Angmar: *He reaches across the table and takes her glass. Then he rises from his chair and walks to his cabinet and opens it*
Angmar: You will need something to help you rest and recover
Angmar: I will put something in your wine that will help you
Angmar: *He pour something she can't see into the goblet. Goes back to the table and sets the glass within reach of her hand*
Angmar: *he resumes his seat* Now drink this, dear Maltriel
Maltriel: thank you my lord, my protector and the overseer of my health. indeed your medicine is good *she drinks the remains of her wine*
Angmar: Then let me pour you another *he reaches across, taking her goblet and refilling it. Then he gives it back to her. He pours himself another*
Maltriel: *she takes a few sips of the goblet* thank you my lord. where would i ever be without you? *gazes at him dreamily*
Angmar: *He reaches across the table and puts his hand on hers*
Angmar: You tried so hard today, but I think that you did not do as well as you had hoped because you are still recovering
Angmar: Perhaps you need to rest more before you try again
Angmar: *he pats her hand and moves it back*
Maltriel: yes... i tried, but i failed. but i will try again, and again, and again and... *her body slumps towards the table. she props herself up with her arm and takes another gulp of wine*
Maltriel: i am sure all i really need is rest.... *her eyelids flutter*
Angmar: It is time for you to go to bed, dearest Maltriel *He summons the orcs outside guarding to come in and escort her to her room*
Angmar: *he rises from the table and goes to help her up*
Maltriel: *she rallies up and drinks the rest of her wine, slumping back into her chair. her head rolls to one side and she looks up at angmar and giggles* yes yes... i will be a shieldmaiden of mordor...
Angmar: You are so sleepy, Maltriel
Maltriel: no no no... just a little......tired... *she gets up swaying and then falls into a swoon*
Angmar: *He catches her as she falls and holds her in his arms. He walks past the orcs that hold the door open and then walks through many corridors taking her to her room*
Angmar: *He fumbles with the door fastener, kicks it upon with his foot, and lays her on the bed*
Maltriel: *she comes to... looks up at him groggily* my lord.... i did not know you had a twin? *she sees double* *places her hand upon his shoulder*
Angmar: *He bends over and kisses her* You must sleep Maltriel *He goes and gets the cover and lays it over her* Sleep, my dear, and dream
Maltriel: yes my lords... both of.... *she passes out again with a smile on her face*

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