Exodus
By: Alilacia
Rating: PG13
Feedback: Here :-) and yes please
Spoilers: None that I can think of. In fact, this story is pretty much entirely AU, so I doubt it. I shall let you know if there is.
Beta reader: Ying
Disclaimer:
I do not own Lord of the Rings, or anything to do with the film or books. That honour goes to Peter Jackson (et all) and J.R.R Tolkien. I have no permission what so ever to use these characters, will not receive any money for this, and I am doing this for my own enjoyment. And to pass the time between working during the day.
Note: The Characters (and concept of) Dehlfalhen and Glamferaen were created by Cassia and Siobhan and they were kind enough to let me borrow them for this story.
The story in which they were first introduced was called Siege of Dread and is posted at their Mellon Chronicles Website (go to Cassia's profile, and you'll find the link).
Again, these characters (and concept) are not mine, and if one wishes to use this (or any of the characters or concepts from the Mellon Chronicles series) email Cassia at or Siobhan.
Edit: Have also just been informed (thanks Cassia :D) that Saelons are indeed another invention of Cassia and Sio. So all the above wording applies to them as well.
Summary:
"Strider, you have to understand a lot of things. There is much that I cannot tell you, much that only they can tell you. If you can find them. Only know that there was a darkness within them that they had been fighting with for so long, and when they found his body lying there..."
Events put into motion, the beginning of the end started long before it could be stopped. In all his years he had never considered what the loss of one life could have on the world, none of them had. It should have come to no surprise to him really, that when a pivotal figure was lost forever that his life was turned upside down, and nothing was the same again.
And do you know what the worst part was... it really was all his fault.
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Exodus
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Part Four - Walking through this world alone
Gradually, awareness returned to him and he noticed a few things. One was that he was not in his room. Two was that he was not in his own bed. Briefly, he had a sudden rush of panic as he tried to remember what he had done the night before when realisation number three made itself know. And that was that his human friend Aragorn was slumped in a position that could serve as the definition of uncomfortable in the armchair by the fire.
Shaking his head, Legolas slowly rose to his feet and padded across the floor.
Stopping just before his friend, he thought about moving him to a more comfortable position, but decided against it. Even in his sleep, the exhaustion lines still lingered about the human's eyes. Legolas resolved to let the human sleep a little longer today, even though he knew fully well that Aragorn liked to be up as the sun was rising.
Legolas shut the door slowly behind him, wincing slightly with every creak. He stopped several times and listened for any sign that his actions had woken his young friend. It appeared as though Aragorn still slept.
A slight sigh of relief spilled over the prince's lips as he gently turned the handle and let go. The door settled silently into the frame and Legolas turned to find Glorfindel standing just behind him.
There was a gentle smile on the Eldar elf's face which Legolas returned, nodding. Together they moved down to the lower level of the Last Homely House and entered Glorfindel's study.
Before the door was even shut, Glorfindel breezed into the room and immediately began sorting out some papers. Legolas turned to catch the door before it could slam. Folding his arms across his chest and leaning back against the wall, he waited Glorfindel out.
A murmur of pleasure passed Glorfindel's lips as he found what he was looking for. He brushed all the papers on the top of the desk to one side and laid the parchment on the now clutter-free desk. Legolas moved forwards quickly, catching some of the errant papers that lingered too close to the edge and almost fell.
Arranging them quickly but neatly in his hands, he turned to place them on a small chair next to the window. When he turned back to face Glorfindel, the elf was frowning down at the paper before him.
"What do you have to show me?" Legolas asked softly, peering over Glorfindel's right arm. Glorfindel glanced up at him for a moment; his eyes troubled, and then returned his gaze to the parchment.
One piece was a map.
Legolas recognised it as a basic map of the lands surrounding Imladris. It appeared to be centuries old with many of the places Legolas remembered seeing for himself absent. He was about to ask Glorfindel about it when another, smaller piece of paper caught his eye.
While Glorfindel was frowning over the map, Legolas picked up the parchment.
This one looked to be much more recent. Perhaps only days, but no more than a few weeks, old. Legolas' fingers traced over the flowing script, a frown creasing his brow as he read.
He vaguely registered Glorfindel gaze on him now, but his mind was preoccupied with what he was reading.
"My Lord, what is this?"
Glorfindel leaned in a little closer and they both stared at the parchment. "This arrived with the young human. From the looks of it, this exchanged hands several times. Perhaps even left somewhere for someone to find."
And it was true. Small stains of something, it looked a little like food stains, decorated the edges. Even more disturbingly were the faint smatterings of blood dotted over the message itself. Legolas wondered how many people had died to see this message passed on. His fingers touched the jagged hole in the top. At one point, this note had been attached to something by an arrow. He knew that immediately. He had done it himself enough times.
"But what does it say?"
To Legolas' eyes, the language made no sense to him. He considered himself to be learned, especially for his age, but he could not decipher the message before him.
"This is a language which has almost died out. It is used almost exclusively by the rangers of the north. No doubt the rangers of the south have their own style." Glorfindel took the message from Legolas' hands and placed it on the table. They both leaned forwards slightly, peering at the letter.
"Is Estel aware of this? Would he be better suited to translate?"
"I have no doubt that Estel is as fluent in this language as he is in most others he has encountered over the years. But..." And here a small smile played at the edge's of Glorfindel's lips. "What makes you think that I am not fluent, mellon nín?"
"I was not aware that you were a ranger."
"I did say almost exclusively, Legolas." Glorfindel smiled softly. "It is not hard to pick up a language when its creators walked in and out of these walls frequently. For safety, and secrecies, sake most of the messages that exchanged hands here in Imladris were written in this code. That way, only a true ranger of the north, or one of the elves living here would understand it. Although times have changed, the need for secrecy and deception is the one constant I fear."
Legolas nodded, his expression grave. He knew from hard earned experience just how vital secrecy was.
Glorfindel carried on talking, indicating at the message. "It was long agreed that any letters written in this language would be kept a secret." Glorfindel stared hard at Legolas who nodded. "Only five, including myself, were aware that these messages existed, as well as the language it was written in."
"The secret of the dúnadain, hidden in plain sight." Remarked Legolas softly.
"Yes." Glorfindel nodded once, his eyes flicking back to the letter. "With the dúnadain spread as thinly as they were, it was a necessity as well as a sense of protection for them. The dúnadain would die than reveal their secrets."
Although Legolas' experience with the dúnadain was infrequent at best, he knew all too well their self-sacrificing nature.
"But..." a sudden thought occurred to the younger elf. "Why was it placed in a map that is centuries old? I can see the need for keeping it, but for storing a letter..." his words trailed off with a frown.
Glorfindel smiled sadly at him. "Secrecy again, my young prince. Trustworthy people are few and far between."
Legolas' eyes darkened as Glorfindel told him what the letter contained. The news was dire indeed and he reflected on the chance he now had to leave Estel in the dark. To keep him blind to all that had been revealed. To not shatter the last hopes the young human held for his brothers returning home.
With the letter tucked away again where no-one would find it, Legolas left in search of his friend. He was not sure if Aragorn would be awake by now and headed straight for the stairs that would take him to the higher levels.
As he opened up the doorway to Estel's room, he found the bed empty. Quickly scanning the room, he found Estel absorbed in a book, unaware of his entrance into the room.
He coughed slightly and Estel's eyes met his over the worn pages. "Legolas." The human smiled brightly, marking his page and setting the book aside. "I did not expect you back for a while."
"And just where did you expect me to be?" Legolas sat down on the edge of the bed, his fingers teasing lightly at the edge of the fabric.
"Actually, I just assumed you would be with Glorfindel. My first thought," Estel turned his head slightly and indicated at the window, "was the archery courts, but I could not see you there."
Legolas smiled but said nothing. Aragorn returned the smile and eventually his gaze was drawn to the view outside the window.
With Aragorn's gaze away from his, Legolas' expression darkened. He knew that Aragorn's thoughts would occasionally drift to his brothers. He knew that Aragorn thought about his father, and wondered where he was. He knew that even though Aragorn did not say a word, his heart was bleeding slightly inside.
And Legolas had the knowledge that would enlighten Estel, but tear his heart to pieces.
Legolas forced a smile to his lips as Aragorn turned to face him. Aragorn frowned slightly, his eyes tracking the elf as he stood, and he allowed Legolas to pull him to his feet.
"Come, mellon nín. I wish to get some air, will you join me?"
Deep into the grounds they wandered, passing by statues and gently flowing rivers.
The unlikely pair stopped for a moment in front of one particular statue. Aragorn's hands ran reverently over the carved surface, clearing leaves and dirt away. Legolas remained motionless behind him. Both mourned different things as they looked upon the finely carved statue.
One mourned the extinguishing of a bright flame, of a life and a soul cut down too early. And the other mourned a face he could not recall, while he clung to shadowy memories of a person that existed only in the darkened twilight of his mind and the faint feeling of love in his heart.
Arathorn, Legolas knew, had been given the burial of a warrior. His body was touched by fire, and his ashes spread over the ground at his wife's feet. Somehow, he knew that they were reunited in a place free of all the blood and tears that stained the land.
Although he dared not allow himself to think of it often, he hoped that Aragorn would one day join them. Even though every cell in his being wished to fight to keep Estel here with him.
The bright spark of Aragorn' soul, nothing more substantial than the wind that passed through his hair, was something that Legolas did not wish to be extinguished. Controlled by something that not even Legolas could command. Time.
Legolas wished to call out to it, to bend it to his will. To cast away the smothering shadow that mortality wrapped around his friend.
As Legolas looked into his friends bright eyes, he knew what he had to do. His heart ached terribly and he wished there was another way, but there wasn't. Softly, he called out to Estel. The sudden change in Legolas' mood must have been clear for Estel turned straight to him and enquired if he was alright.
Nodding gently, Legolas asked Estel to come inside with him. With the unspoken request that they had to talk lingering in the air between them. Aragorn was confused, but followed Legolas without word.
Taking a deep breath, Legolas felt tears form in his eyes. He hated the sight of the doors before them, but he hated himself more for what he was about to do.
Unfortunately, the hour at which they entered the house meant that the entire household was up.
Legolas gritted his teeth in frustration. He did not want an audience for this.
The soft touch on his arm directed his thoughts and he felt himself being led gently along a corridor and pushed through a doorway.
He looked around at the room, realising that they were in the room that housed the Shards of Narsil. Listening for noises, he relaxed slightly. The nearest person was just down the adjoining corridor, busy with their duties and too far away to hear.
He turned back to the human before him and grasped Aragorn's arm. The gentle touch telling him that although not everything was well, he himself was fine.
Aragorn squeezed the hand in return.
He did not release it, pulling Legolas to sit down next to him. He settled down into the cushions, anticipating having to wait Legolas out.
Legolas however wanted this over with as quickly as possible.
"You remember when I told you about your brothers, when they ventured deep into the darks of the forest?" When Aragorn nodded, Legolas continued. "What I said was true, they did leave, but whether they truly left to seek you out was pure speculation on my part. They could also have left to seek out any orc they could find, and destroy it."
"Why?" Aragorn breathed softly, his eyes fixed on Legolas' troubled ones. Not much of what Legolas was saying was making sense to him. To him, it was a strange notion that his brothers would go out to destroy any orc they could find. Hunt them yes, and only if the situation called for it, but outright bloodshed...
He was pulled out of his thoughts as Legolas stood suddenly. Legolas would not meet his eyes.
"I doubt I can tell you nothing more than you have been told by all the others here. All the events were set into motion, all the pieces placed on the board." He paused. There was a moment of silence, and his blue eyes fixed themselves on a faded painting. A weary sadness swept over them for an instant, and then vanished.
He turned his head slightly, watching the motionless human from the corner of his eye. "There was a single moment where everything changed, where two struggling souls witnessed something that tapped into hidden emotions. Emotions that had been lying dormant for centuries." He turned his head away, tapping into his own strength and willpower for what was to come. His face became blank, masked behind the years of diplomatic training he had undertaken as an elfling. He never thought the endless councils and meetings that he had attended held any worth, until now.
Aragorn shifted uncomfortably as he turned to see his friend's face better. A rush of uncertainty, a certain dread that he was not going to like what was to come, and the first tendrils of overwhelming emotion snaked their way into his heart. What little of Legolas' face he could see from his vantage point set his heart racing and nervous sweat bead on his palms. Legolas' face was devoid of any emotion, Aragorn knew that whatever was coming had to be bad if Legolas was hiding behind the blank mask that up until now Aragorn had only seen his friend employ at difficult council meetings. Despite the mask of neutrality on his face, Legolas' voice was gentle as he continued. "I am sorry, Estel. But..."
"But...?" Estel questioned softly, trying to look Legolas in the eyes.
"I am sorry." Legolas repeated again, his eyes fixed on the ground. Often, it was Legolas' eyes that gave him away and he found himself unwilling to witness the moment he broke his friend's heart. "Your father, he..."
Aragorn's eyes widened with Legolas' words and his fingers clenched into fists. He could not think of anything to say.
The elf turned to face him fully now, his blue eyes piercing into his own. "And they..." Aragorn could see that the placid front his friend was trying to maintain was cracking. "Strider, you have to understand a lot of things. There is much that I cannot tell you, much that only they can tell you. If you can find them. Only know that there was a darkness within them that they had been fighting with for so long, and when they found his body lying there..." the elf's voice trailed off again, "the control that they had over those feelings broke, and like the waters of the Bruinen was something that could not be stopped once it was unleashed. At least, not by me." Silence once more settled over the room, lasting a brief moment as the elf started speaking again. "You know where they will be. And you know what they will do." The blue eyes were once again veiled by sadness, showing that he too knew what they would, and could do. "Without Lord Elrond... they believed; and still believe; that they had nothing to hang onto any longer..."
A veil of numbness had spread over him, growing larger with each word that Legolas had spoken. Shocked, glazed, eyes stared at his hands. A million thoughts were running through his head and the knowledge that his father was gone from him hurt like a barbed dagger in his heart.
He vaguely registered Legolas' words.
"Edhored nín. Forgive me; oh please forgive me, mellon nín." Legolas sounded miserable, his voice shaking like he was holding back tears. "I had wanted more than anything to shelter you from this. To do anything but reveal to you all that happened on that dark day. I know how much you loved him."
Aragorn did not answer.
A single tear tracked down Legolas' cheek, followed by another and another. He drew in a ragged breath. "I... saes, please..." he reached out for Estel with a trembling hand, "do not forsake me now, Estel. I am sorry for hurting you, so sorry, but I wish to help you. Ú-car dartha trî sen erui.Do not suffer through this alone."
Silence was his only answer and his hand dropped back to his side. Legolas looked once more at his human friend with abject misery written on his face, and fled the room alone.
TBC...
Partheon – Oh my god! I'm so honoured to see your name up on the review list You are one of the best LOTR authors I've ever read. Here's where I apologise for not reviewing any of your work to date, but know that I have been waiting with baited breath for any new update. My favourite at the moment is definitely Flowers Die in Summer.
To start off, I love your writing style. Thank you :-)
There were a few places where the rhythm didn't flow and sentences were meshed together confusingly (is that a word?) but overall, it was highly enjoyable. Sometimes, your punctuation was a little shabby (you were missing a few commas and semi-colons) but nothing extremely noticeable; and nothing that a second reading wouldn't fix.
On that front, I'm still learning. I hate grammar, I really do. I enjoyed English and writing when I was in school, but it was the grammar that was the worst in my opinion. I'm getting better, but there's still so much that I need to learn about grammar and such. Thank you for pointing it out, it is such a help when people point out a stories good points as well as the faults.
Not that I really know how to fix it. Hmm, this might be a good time to find all my old English books. Hopefully there's something on grammar in one of them.
As for 'confusingly', I'm not sure if it is a word, but the spell checker in word didn't pick it up as a spelling error, so it must be :-)
As for the AU element, Arwen sailed?
I'm really trying for quite a few different things in this one, and it's so unlike anything I've ever written before.
I am sorry if I sounded a little harsh in different parts of this review - I'm not one to gush over anything.
You didn't sound harsh, not at all. It's such a refreshing change for someone to offer the faults and shortcomings (either in the case of the story, or some fault with the writing – or spelling, grammar etc – itself) of a piece of writing, than to just talk about how fantastic a story is. Even if it is good, I'm still of the opinion that there is always something that can be done to improve it. Nothing is ever perfect.
Hope you had a nice time at class. Thank you for the review (you should have seen the grin on my face when I saw it ) and thank you for taking the time to sit down and write this review. I hope that you enjoyed these last two chapters.
And are you going to get writing the next chapters of your stories -grins- please?
Ceana – Okay, here's the next chapter :-D Some more questions are answered here. You might wish now that you never wished for me to tell you ;-)
Okay then, where's Chapter 4? Move it missy! LOL.
I'm hurrying, I'm hurrying. LOL. -starts typing faster- Is two days quick enough ;-)
Hmm, you say 'move it' and then 'take your time'. Make up your mind ;-)
Thanks so much for the review, and here's hoping you enjoyed this chapter :-)
Edit: Just found your email. Thank you, it's nice to know that I'm not alone. And I'm posting chapter four now -grins-
I'll reply in full to your email as soon as I can.
Beling - Maybe now, at least, I can read without my heart being in my throat the whole time. Hmmm… -glances at what's written in future chapters- Maybe I should just stop posting now ;-)
Kidding.
Thank you for the review, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.
Thank you so much to everyone that took the time to review. It really brightened up my day.