It had been a hard-fought battle to cross Eriador. Kiriaz had battled enemies of all kinds: orcs, goblins, trolls, even drakes and wight-lords. When the dwarves sought to reclaim Moria, he battled his deadliest enemies yet; creatures of shadow and flame, remnants of a dark age long forgotten.
Then Kiriaz saw light. He marched through the Redhorn Gates and saw the beauty of his homeland, heard the gurgle of Nimrodel and smelled the freshness of mallorn trees.
He was home.
But all was not as he had left it. Orcs now patrolled the western borders of Lorien and his people had closed their borders, forcing all, even their kin, to prove their friendship to the Golden Wood. Kiriaz spent many days running errands for his people; transporting supplies and patrolling the borders. Those days were a blur of clashes with orcs and goblins.
When he had proven his good intentions to his kinsmen, he was finally allowed to enter Caras Galadhon and to speak with the White Lady. She instructed him to join the first crossing into Mirkwood, where he would add his sword to the fray and help their woodland kin from Mirkwood.
Upon the landing, the company was forced to battle up the banks. Each step forward seemed to take hours, as they waded through battle and across the bodies of orcs. An orc war-leader strode toward Kiriaz, his foul blade held high. This fight could turn the battle.
The two traded blows. The orc shrugging off many of Kiriaz's strikes, but failing to hit the warden. Kiriaz deflected a deadly strike, then kicked the orc. His boot connected with the orc's head and stunned it. That was all that Kiriaz needed and he drove his sword home, hilt deep in the orc's chest.
As the war-leader fell, the orcs let out a shriek and began to fall back. The crossing had ended in a victory.
It was a victory short-lived, however, as the orcs were strongly entrenched in the Mirk-eaves. Kiriaz was sent forth to aid in capturing the orc encampments and harrying their support lines. It took time, but again the elves forced back the orcs. They even managed to defeat the orcish commander of the Mirk-eaves battalions.
Pulling out his map, Kiriaz marked the lands controlled by his people. As he lowered it he hoped that Thranduil's elves weren't delayed. It was going to be a long, hard fight to reach Dol Guldur.
