The wargs' noses twitched as saliva dripped from their gaping maws. A rich scent of blood hung heavy in the air from the direction the Uruk-hai had indicated, metallic and fresh with the unmistakable aroma of recent slaughter.
"Roar!"
The pack leader's ears perked forward, anticipating fresh meat. But before they could surge forward to feast, something rolled across the blood-soaked ground toward them.
Thud.
A severed Uruk-hai head came to rest at their feet, its dead eyes staring blankly at the star-filled sky. The wargs couldn't help but lower their massive heads, sniffing cautiously at the grisly trophy.
Indeed, it was an Uruk-hai head, and undeniably fresh. Steam still rose from the torn flesh where neck met skull.
Looking up from their grim discovery, the pack spotted a figure emerging from the darkness ahead. His armor gleamed black as their own midnight fur, but the longsword in his grip pulsed with an ethereal azure light that cut through the shadows.
"ROAR!!!"
The wargs erupted in furious howls, but their rage wasn't directed at the warrior before them. Those treacherous, lying Uruk-hai! They had deliberately sent the pack into a trap, knowing full well what awaited in the darkness.
Speaking of Uruk-hai, they were indeed a species far superior to common orcs in physical prowess, cunning intelligence, and tactical obedience. To accomplish their master's commands, they could suppress their innate bloodlust and murderous urges, maintaining remarkable unity with rarely any internal conflicts.
Sometimes their methods grew ruthlessly pragmatic. If enemies blocked their path, they eliminated the enemies. And if their own allies proved inconvenient...
"You stinking orcs, get out of our way!"
Having just misdirected the warg pack to deal with that terrifyingly efficient killer behind them, another group of orcs came running at the sounds of battle, clustering directly in the Uruk-hai's escape route.
The orc squad leader stepped forward, his scarred face twisted with suspicion. "I smell blood thick in the air. What happened back there?"
"The wargs are hunting their prey. You arrived too late to join them."
"So there's fresh meat to be had?" The orcs grew visibly excited, their crude weapons rattling.
"Of course, quite substantial amounts too. Fresh blood and warm flesh are probably being spilled every second as we speak."
The lead Uruk-hai spoke with carefully chosen words, his meaning deliberately ambiguous.
"Looks like we're feasting tonight!" the orc squad leader shouted to his followers.
Just as the orcs prepared to rush forward and compete with the wargs for their share of the spoils, their leader suddenly paused, scratching his scarred scalp in confusion.
"Wait just a moment. What about you? Why are you retreating if there's food ahead?"
"Ha! We're already completely satiated. The scraps are yours to claim."
The Uruk-hai captain threw back his head in forced laughter, waving dismissively as he led his subordinates in hasty retreat.
"Bah!"
The orc squad leader spat toward their departing figures, reasoning that even leftover meat was better than no meat at all. Food remained scarce in these disputed lands.
He raised his weapon enthusiastically. "Everyone follow me toward the..."
His words died in his throat as if invisible hands had crushed his windpipe. A human figure gradually materialized from the shadows ahead, dragging a massive warg corpse that appeared freshly slain.
Thud.
The completely lifeless warg was casually discarded beside the road like discarded refuse. The entire warg pack had been systematically annihilated.
"Those damned, treacherous bastards!"
The orc leader shrieked in fury as his subordinates scattered behind him, fleeing in every conceivable direction like startled rats.
But no matter their desperate speed, they were destined never to outrun someone with seemingly endless stamina and supernatural reflexes.
When orc and warg corpses lay scattered across the bloodstained ground like broken dolls, the surviving Uruk-hai found themselves without allies to provide cover or distraction. They could only continue their panicked flight toward the distant fortress.
"Just a little farther, just a little more distance..."
The towers of Minas Morgul loomed ahead through the poisonous mists!
"Quickly, increase your pace! Once we retreat within Minas Morgul's walls, Lord Witch-king can provide protection!"
The Uruk-hai captain desperately encouraged his exhausted subordinates.
"Just reach that sanctuary, just reach that blessed place..."
The survivors ran forward with everything they possessed until they finally reached the ancient crossroads. Beyond that junction and a short march further lay the safety of Minas Morgul's corrupted embrace.
Originally, Isildur, the High King of Gondor who severed Sauron's finger and claimed the One Ring, had constructed this sister city to complement the royal capital. One of Gondor's most strategically vital cities, 'Minas Ithil,' had been built right at the kingdom's border, standing defiantly at Mordor's very doorstep like a stone sentinel.
During those golden days, Gondor's sacred White Tree had even been planted within its walls. The fortress held nearly equal importance to the capital itself.
But as time passed and Sauron returned to reclaim Mordor, this blessed land gradually fell under creeping shadow. At that time, Sauron wielded his full power, undiminished by the loss of his Ring. Naturally, Minas Ithil was swiftly captured by Nazgûl-led armies and transformed into one of Mordor's most formidable strongholds.
The White Tree planted there was brutally destroyed, though fortunately Isildur had preserved a precious seed and replanted it within the White City's walls.
Later, following Sauron's temporary defeat, Gondor reclaimed this strategic position. But in subsequent years, with the High King's death and various crises, both great and small, plaguing the kingdom, national power gradually declined. This vital fortress was eventually reoccupied by the Nazgûl.
When the Dark Lord finally returned, he granted this tainted land to the Witch-king as his personal domain. Upon the Witch-king's arrival, he wove terrible dark sorcery into the very stones, rendering the soil barren, filling the air with poisonous vapors, and contaminating all water sources with deadly toxins.
From that cursed day forward, Minas Ithil was renamed Minas Morgul, meaning "Tower of Sorcery." Except for evil creatures like orcs and their twisted kin, all living beings who set foot on this corrupted ground would suffer continuous poisoning and wasting disease. In such a hostile environment, even if Gondor could muster a hundred thousand soldiers, they would struggle desperately to breach this nightmare fortress.
Due to these supernatural defenses, Minas Morgul had earned its fearsome reputation across all the lands of Middle-earth.
Even Levi found it necessary to consume honey periodically for detoxification when venturing into this accursed realm...
"The crossroads lies directly ahead."
The Uruk-hai captain spotted the ruins of an ancient Gondorian king's statue appearing at the edge of his vision and felt overwhelming relief flood through his exhausted body.
"Hurry! Beyond those crossroads lies Lord Witch-king's protected domain. That monster wouldn't dare pursue us there!"
"The Witch-king shields us from all harm."
"Are you certain?"
Clang!
The azure-glowing longsword struck out like lightning, sending sparks cascading as it met the armor of the frontmost Uruk-hai. The metal proved harder than expected, but only marginally so.
Levi delivered a second precise strike to finish his stunned opponent, then kicked another to the ground for a swift execution.
"Cannot escape, cannot escape..."
The Uruk-hai captain stumbled backward, his composure finally cracking as he watched his remaining subordinates systematically slaughtered by that ghost-like figure in black armor.
Just as he roared in desperation and prepared to make one final, suicidal charge, Levi suddenly halted his advance. With contemptuous ease, he deflected the incoming cleaver with his blade and seized the Uruk-hai captain by the throat, slamming him against the blood-soaked ground.
That terrifying, implacable face slowly approached the trembling Uruk-hai as a voice like grinding stone spoke:
"Go tell your kind that this territory belongs to me now. Return only if you wish to join your companion."
"Should anything disturb my work again, I'll take it upon myself to visit every camp, every den, every hole you creatures call home between here and the Morgul Vale."
"Now get lost."
The crushing pressure around his neck suddenly vanished. The weight pinning his chest disappeared. The Uruk-hai captain gasped desperately, scrambling to his feet without daring to meet those cold eyes as he fled back toward his distant fortress.
Much blood was spilled that dark night.
A crimson sun rose slowly above the eastern horizon, its light filtering through the lingering smoke of battle.
"Blood sun..." one of two Rangers whispered as they observed the ominous dawn. "There must have been a significant massacre during the night hours."
In the wasteland stretching between the crossroads and Minas Morgul, among fields of withered trees and sickly gray-yellow weeds, the two scouts exchanged meaningful glances. Both recognized the gravity reflected in each other's weathered faces.
"Do we have any major military operations scheduled recently?"
"I've heard nothing of such plans."
"Then where did this slaughter originate?"
Huff... huff...
The sound of labored breathing and scraping armor approached from the roadside. Both Rangers immediately dropped low into the concealing grass, using their cloaks' natural camouflage to blend with their surroundings.
"Single Uruk-hai, no companions visible."
After confirming the tactical situation, they exchanged another silent look of understanding.
"Execute!"
Swoosh.
A dagger flashed in the morning light. As the exhausted Uruk-hai stumbled past their position, one Ranger burst from the bushes, instantly pressing his blade against the creature's throat. The Uruk-hai immediately froze, not daring to move a muscle.
"Speak! What operations are you conducting in this region?"
Realizing he'd been captured yet again, the Uruk-hai captain felt familiar anger surge through his weary body, though he didn't dare act upon such dangerous impulses.
What should I do now? What can I do... Should he invoke Lord Witch-king's name to intimidate these enemies? No, that approach wouldn't succeed. Given the Rangers' reputation and temperament, such threats would likely result in his throat being slit immediately.
Then he had only one remaining option...
"Operations? Ha! There is indeed a major operation in progress!"
"Stinking Rangers, I strongly advise against harming me. I carry an urgent message for a particular lord. If you delay his vital business, the consequences will be severe for everyone involved!"
"Who is this mysterious lord you claim to serve? Tell us immediately!"
The two Rangers continued their interrogation with professional intensity.
"Of course it's your own legend, the great Lord Levi himself."
The unexpected answer caught both Rangers completely off guard.
"This is genuinely educational. A despicable creature spawned in Mordor's depths actually believes he can threaten us using our own hero's name?"
"So will you release me or not?"
Somehow, the Uruk-hai captain maintained unusual calm during this critical moment. He could distinctly feel the hand gripping his neck loosen slightly as uncertainty crept into his captors' minds.
Silence stretched between them as the two Rangers found themselves genuinely conflicted by this unexpected development.
Release him or execute him on the spot?
"How can we possibly confirm whether your words contain truth or merely desperate lies?"
"I can swear a binding oath if required."
"Filthy creature, your oath carries no weight or value."
"Heh heh heh... Believing my words or dismissing them remains entirely your choice. But I must ask, do you possess eyes merely for decoration? Whether this is truth or fiction, can't you simply investigate for yourselves?"
The large hand around his neck suddenly tightened threateningly. The Uruk-hai captain struggled to continue speaking:
"All the military forces we dispatched were systematically eliminated by that legendary lord. He deliberately spared only my worthless life. Isn't this proof sufficient? Or do you actually believe that someone with Lord Levi's renowned abilities could somehow accidentally fail to kill one miserable Uruk-hai?"
The Ranger narrowed his eyes, studying this unexpectedly cunning creature with growing unease. Though this Uruk-hai's life remained entirely within his power, he now experienced an uncomfortable sense of tactical helplessness.
He exchanged another meaningful look with his patrol companion. Both warriors reached identical conclusions through their shared military experience.
If the creature's claims proved accurate, then this situation held far greater importance than one Uruk-hai's meaningless life.
Slap.
The Uruk-hai captain found himself abruptly released from the death grip.
"Get lost and attend to your supposed business!"
"If we discover you lied about any detail, you'd better never venture beyond Mordor's borders again. The first moment your feet touch free soil will mark the instant of your death."
"Cough cough..."
The Uruk-hai captain drew several deep, grateful breaths and displayed a triumphant smile of pure cunning satisfaction.
"Of course, heh heh. I'm genuinely pleased you made the correct decision and chose not to interfere with the lord's critical business."
It actually worked! Invoking that legendary figure's name had proven remarkably effective!
The Uruk-hai captain resumed his journey toward his home fortress, secretly delighted by this unexpected diplomatic victory.
This approach proves far more useful than Lord Witch-king's threats and curses, perhaps even more effective than invoking the master's name... no, no, I serve the master faithfully, even unto death itself...
Dark influence reasserted its dominance over his thoughts, shrouding his mind in familiar shadows. His will had shown brief wavering, but the moment that dangerous crack appeared, the encompassing darkness intensified its assault, sealing that tiny fissure.
However, the crack had undeniably manifested. It lay hidden beneath that vast, oppressive dark will, or perhaps existed only in the spaces between absolute shadow.