Chapter Two: Gone Awry
The words hit Legolas like a stone. Castamir? He did not know the man had a son. And Aragorn seemed confident that his manner had changed after that night. That night. His mind went back to that night, the pain, and shame, and - come to think of it, this man's voice matched Castamir's voice that night almost perfectly. Legolas' eyes grew wide with astonished fear.
"But why do you care?" He asked; thrusting his arm forward, he slammed his fist into Legolas' head, forcefully knocking Legolas' head to the side and into the stone wall behind him. He laughed, as the elf looked back, his forehead decorated anew with a large red line. Quickly the two other men grabbed Legolas' arms, lifting them up, they locked his arms into a set of long unused chains that Legolas did not even know were there.
"Now, boys." The captain backed up, admiring their latest work. "What do you say; this one is lying, hmm? I think he needs a bit of encouragement. Cirth? Gilra? Bandir?" He asked each of his men by name.
"Aye, Carandir." Cirth answered, eyeing Legolas, he drew a small knife from his belt. "Encouragement." He said, using the small blade he cut through the toggles on Legolas' tunic, flaying his shirt open.
"Here." Gilra's only answer was to hand his captain a small lash. Carandir smiled at him, and then back at Legolas as the elf hardened his eyes. This was the last thing he prepared for upon his arrival in Gondor, but he would stay strong nonetheless. They would not see fear from him any longer, as he reapplied the age-old mask that had served him so many times in his life.
"Bandir?" The captain called again, turning back to find his third man missing. The torch was held now by a mount on the wall, and Bandir was nowhere to be seen.
"Find him." Carandir instructed. He knew that some of the young guards looked down upon what he was doing, but he would not have an alarm going up over so small a thing as this elf's pain. He had no love for elves, and did not understand how anyone could.
"Now... Elf. Legolas, is it? Hmm... Oddly familiar... but no matter. Tell me again... what were you doing on the seventh level, so late at night, fully armed, and unaccompanied?" He laughed, walking back towards his prisoner, who hung helplessly against the wall. Taking the lash in his hands, he held it up against the elf's cheek, his smile gleaming in a strange malice.
"I..." Legolas thought, for the first time, of how stupid the truth sounded in the face of the law. Nevertheless, the truth was what was required. "I am Aragorn's friend. We haven't seen each other since his coronation, I wished to pay him a visit. For the sake of old times, I thought I would surprise him, and wished to appear unannounced. My weapons were with me only because they are always with me, I did not mean anyone harm." He tried to explain calmly.
"Hmmm... you wish me believe that?" The captain laughed. "You'll have to do better then that, elf." He commented; arcing his arm out, he snapped his whip across Legolas' face and returned immediately with a return strike down across the elf's bare chest.
Caught completely off guard, Legolas' head was smashed to the side again, as the sharp tips of the lash cut into his cheek and made several red rips through his fine elven features; then they came down again, slicing the sensitive muscles of his chest. With both swipes, he let go an involuntary gasp of pain, begrudging every sound.
"I am a hard man, elf; I don't think you will like how I will deal with you. Tell me the truth, and I might go easy on you tonight. The king can deal with you in the morning." Carandir laughed; grabbing Legolas' shoulders, he turned the elf around so he faced the wall, the chains that held him specifically designed for such things. "Tell me the truth now." He commanded.
"I have!" Legolas shot back, within a moment he felt all nine prongs slam into his back for the first time in years. Ripping into Legolas' miraculously unscarred flesh, Carandir flogged his captive, the first five strokes one after the other, in a steady pattern, covering his whole back; he bared Legolas' shoulders and lower back, ripping easily through fabric and skin.
"I don't think you understand, elf. You give me proof that you are not an assassin, and I think about not hurting you." He laughed menacingly "Now... Who are you?" He asked, again receiving the same answer as before.
"I am Legola-" Legolas was cut off as the tips of the lash made contact with his back. His all too familiar rhythm of breathing returned to him naturally, allowing him to withstand the beating without so much as a gasp or moan. It was a tried method, all too well worn into the elf's life. Legolas' strength frustrated Carandir, spurring him to push harder; he laid into Legolas' back with full force, over and over again, until red blood flowed freely down his back. His shirt made to ribbons and his flesh not too much better, Legolas struggled to keep calm, closing his eyes, his world narrowed into a dark tunnel of pain, but he found in it a stronghold of his desire to keep strong. He would not allow this man to see weakness; it would not be the same with him as with his father. He would be strong, he would keep holding on. Aragorn knew nothing of this, he was sure, and when he found out, he would stop it. He panted for breath as the beating stopped for a moment, the door behind them grinding slowly open.
"No!" Legolas could hear the sound of a man being thrown to the ground. He looked over his shoulder to see Bandir, looking up in horror at his torn and bloodied back. "We have to tell the king!" He said, much quieter then before.
"Hah!" Carandir laughed. "I promise, he will like it better to sleep then have to deal with this whelp." He said, offhandedly slamming his whip into Legolas' back again. Caught off guard, the elf sucked in breath quickly, eliciting a small laugh from his captors.
"Your king..." Legolas spoke over his shoulder,"Would sooner hang all three of you then have you lay a hand on me." He said, not including the poor man who lay still on the ground with fear-filled eyes.
He found response in the body racking contact of a forceful lashing.
"You, elf, should hold your tongue. Lying little rat." Carandir told him. "But I grow bored of this game. I know something... A bit more persuasive... That we could use." He reached up and flipped a small toggle on the iron cuffs that held Legolas, causing both of them to release at once.
Legolas fell to the ground, his broken back making hard contact, he stifled a small scream as he quickly lifted his injuries off the ground. Bandir sat a small ways off, his eyes confused and scared; the man was horrified to see the lashings on Legolas' chest and face as well as his back. They had bound the man, destined to sit in the corner and merely watch, a cloth was stuffed roughly into his mouth, but his eyes did all the talking he needed.
The moment Legolas had pushed himself off the ground he was back down. The three men held his arms and legs, and before he knew what they were doing, they had begun to lift him off the ground.
"Let me GO!" He yelled, thrashing with both arms and legs, he struggled against them, but in the strange position of being carried, he had little success. They slammed him roughly onto a large wooden table, confirming Legolas' thoughts that they must really be in some kind of long forgotten torture chamber in the depths of his friend's city. He wondered what the ranger's reaction would be to knowledge of such a thing. Quickly, the three men locked his arms into two metal cuffs on the table above his head. His left leg was locked into place on the table, but for some reason his right was left free for a moment.
"Now. We can do this the easy way, or the hard way. You decide. You see this?" Carandir held up a strange metal contraption made of levers and strange, thick bars. "It fits like so." He continued, placing Legolas' lower leg inside the contraption, so two of the bars were on top of it, and one beneath. It was an odd, painful position, but not half as bad as what happened next. "And when I push this down." Carandir put slight pressure on the main lever of the odd machine. Forcefully, but slowly, the bars closed together, trapping his leg in between them; it felt as if any moment his bone would snap. Legolas clenched his jaw and eyes shut tightly, trying desperately to deal with the pain. Valar it hurt! He heard Carandir laugh as the man finally let up on his leg.
Legolas gasped for breath as the pressure was released. He could practically feel the metal bars cutting into his flesh, even though they, for the moment, left nothing but a large bruise.
"Yes..." Carandir said. "Now you tell me the truth, and I may not have to do this." He said, smiling at the knowledge that the elf had nothing else to offer, and that he would 'have' to do it in the end.
"I already have!" Legolas told them, at a loss for what these men wanted or would accept. He knew this was not an interrogation now, these men hated him, and were ready to show it.
"Fine, then." The captain said off handedly, suddenly applying more pressure to the machine that held Legolas' leg. The elf sucked in his breath quickly, closing his eyes again; his mouth opened, but he let no sound escape. As Carandir slowly increased the pressure on his leg, Legolas wondered when it did not snap as fast as a toothpick for all the pain it caused.
"That's it..." Carandir looked on in approval of the whole situation. He leaned closer to the elf, allowing his two friends to keep applying the pressure, ever so slowly increasing. "Now..." He smiled at the elf, leaning over, he moved his mouth until it almost touched Legolas' ear.
"Scream for me..." He whispered. Legolas' eyes shot open at the words, but he remained still, even in the immense pain. "Cry and beg me to stop and maybe I won't make you suffer through this pain all night... maybe. If you tell me what I want." The exact words of his father, so many years ago, came out of Carandir's mouth. Legolas could barely keep from crying out now, as the pain doubled every second he held silent.
Be strong. He told himself. Do not let weakness take hold. The lower metal bar dug into his leg now, its blunted metal still cutting through skin at this pressure. The point of tension was nearing. You will not scream, you will not cry. You can take this. He felt the pressure heighten until he was positive his leg would break in half in a moment. He braced himself. Do not scream. Do not-
SNAP
He screamed.
"Yes!" Carandir cheered at the sound he had elicited from the elf's lips. The sickening noise of breaking bone was accompanied by a miserable shout of pain. "Take it off." He instructed the others. Removing the metal was a difficult task as well. It let up with a jerk, and Legolas cried out again in pain as the extreme pressure was reversed, allowing blood flow to his foot once more, as the lower metal bar was drawn away from the bloody wound it had caused to his skin and muscle.
"Now..." Carandir said joyfully. "Again."
Tears streamed down Legolas' face. The second leg had hurt even more then the first, and no matter how hard he tried, the men still saw his pain. He sucked in his breath as they removed the instrument once more.
"I told you you'd cry," Carandir smiled, completing the strange likeness of his father; the words haunted Legolas, digging up the old unwanted memories of that horrid night. He had failed that night, and he had failed again.
That night. The pain was still all too fresh in his mind when he thought of it, no matter how long ago it had been, no matter how deep he had buried it. He had never felt such hot enduring pain as that which Castamir had inflicted upon him. He remembered the shame he felt, as he was forced to beg for his life. 'Please' his own voice echoed in his head. Choked with tears and edged with pain, it was the sound of utter despair; of being broken, giving up, of his strength failing him, his body betraying him, his own mouth revealing his utter weakness. He would not let it happen again, as long as he lived. He had withstood men, elves, orcs, and the Lord of the Nazgul, and he would do it again. Eru help him, he would do it again.
