Chapter four: A father's nightmare.

The room they had gotten was rather large, and very nice. Rick whistled and looked around with an expression of awe in his eyes. The forest theme was obvious everywhere, the walls carved into the likeness of grand trees with branches that covered the ceiling, you could see every leaf and every detail of the bark. The furniture was carved from wood too, and smelled of old lacquer and forest and the floor was covered with thick rugs in many colors. There was a small bath with a wooden tub that had been filled and towels were laid out together with soap and some dressing robes. The bedroom was rather dark with a hearth and some candles as the only source of light. The bed huge with a wooden frame and forest scenes carved into the headboard, the matrass looked as if it was stuffed with straw, dried moss and feathers and everything was both clean and smelled very good.

Shoroya sighed and sat down, she felt tired and her head was spinning. Rick had already started to pull his clothes off, the water was hot and she took a deep breath and got back up again. They would have to make the most of it while they could. She undressed too and got into the rather large tub, the water was very hot and some sort of floral oil had to have been added for it smelled of lavender and rosemary. Rick let out a small yelp when he sat down. "Darn, that is hot!"

Shoroya nodded. "Yes, but we do need it, hand me the soap please."

He obliged and she started scrubbing herself vigorously, Rick grinned, her expression of slight disgust was rather enjoyable. "Don't you dare laugh, I smell like a rancid old garbage dump."

He shook his head. "Well, so do I, spider blood is not exactly perfume. It is rather disgusting."

Shoroya dunked her head and started washing her long dark hair and she found that the shampoo they had there was exquisite. It made her hair so soft and silky and she just relaxed and allowed herself to feel pampered for a while. Rick got out of the water and dried off in front of the hearth, he stretched and yawned and she had to admire the sight. He was really a perfect physical specimen and she had seen that a few of the elves had stared at him in that specific way that told her they probably favored males and that they found him attractive in spite of being a shape shifter.

She got out when the water got cold and sat down too, she felt drowsy but also alert, she had no idea of why. She had felt like that since they arrived at the palace and she couldn't quite shake the feeling of having forgotten something, that something had passed her by somehow. Rick stared at the flames. "So, now we are in some underground palace, in the realm of an elven king of all things. Is it just coincidental or do you feel as I do? That there are some greater forces at work here?"

Shoroya tilted her head, sighed. "There is something behind it, I am rather sure of it. We can just wait and see what the future brings."

Rick got out of the couch and yawned again. "The imminent future does hold some hours of sleep, at least I hope so."

Shoroya nodded and they got in bed, it was soft but not too soft and the covers warm and cozy and she went out like a candle in the wind and didn't even dream anything.

She was awakened by Rick who shook her impatiently. "Wake up, rise and shine. Some servant has left us clothes and there are food being served in the hall."

Shoroya felt her stomach growl, she was getting hungry now and she got out of bed and stared at the clothes that had been laid out. They had apparently been able to understand that she wasn't the one to wear dresses for she had gotten a pair of leggings and a very long tunic with a split in the sides plus a belt and a sort of undershirt. She liked the colors though, deep dark blue with silver linings and she got the garments on and braided her hair quickly. Rick had gotten some clothes that looked rather similar to her own but they were bigger and in a deep green color. Probably some warriors outfit of some kind.

They got their boots on and left the room, a servant stood there to show them the way and he stared at them with wide eyes and a peculiar expression. Shoroya sensed that he was both intrigued and frightened by them both. The palace was huge, Shoroya knew she would get lost if she was to wander around on her own, and it was wonderful. Waterfalls fell through the rock here and there, and ended up in pools or riverbeds and there were bridges and stairways and corridors everywhere. And elves, she felt a bit intimidated by the sight of so many picture perfect faces and amazing bodies. Every darn female they met looked like some supermodel and she felt like a ragdoll compared with them.

Rick on the other hand did look a bit like the elves, and he did get some long glances from some of the females, Shoroya felt like baring her teeth and snarling at them. A sort of keep off, he's mine type of reaction. The servant did lead them to a rather huge hall with tables and chairs and it looked very nice although a bit chaotic at the moment. There was obviously something going on for there were warriors everywhere wearing the same uniform and they were armed. Everybody was talking and the sound level was earsplitting. Some tall elf with two long dark braids down his back tried desperately to calm everybody down and Shoroya saw that the king stood at the end of the room, next to him was a young elf with pale golden hair and blue eyes and it was rather obvious that this was the king's son. She saw that Thranduil held a hand on the youth's still narrow shoulders and the prince stared at the warriors with a sort of intense longing. He said something and the king shook his head, his eyes rather soft but his expression stern. Rick sat down and nodded. "I bet the young one wants to join the warriors but his father won't let him. "

Shoroya nodded. "Looks like it yes. "

Finally the dark haired one managed to get some peace and he shouted something with a surprisingly strong and rough voice and the warriors started leaving the hall, leaving used plates and bowls and a few very angry looking servant maids. Thranduil saw them and he took his son by his shoulder and lead him over to where the two were sitting. He stared at them with wide eyes and there was something in the gaze that told Shoroya that he probably hadn't encountered that many humans before. And absolutely not shape shifters. There was a silent plea in the kings blue eyes. "Shoroya, Rick, this is my son Legolas. He wanted to meet you, I hope that you may tell him something about your world? He has looked at the books, and found them fascinating."

Shoroya understood the king as if by instinct, he wanted them to create a distraction, to give his mourning child something else to think about than his lost wife. She smiled as gently as she could and moved aside, let him get room next to her. "Of course your majesty, it will be a pleasure."

The young elf stared at Rick with wide eyes and Rick grinned. "Worry not young one, I do not bite."

Legolas sat down, a bit hesitantly and the king left, he looked as if he was in a hurry. Shoroya saw that the prince had to be very young indeed, there was a softness in his eyes, a sort of childlike innocence people usually lose rather fast. "I am very pleased to meet you my prince, so, what do you want us to tell you about first?"

Legolas bit his lower lip, his eyes flickering a bit and she did see that the young elf looked thin and he had dark shadows underneath his eyes. He probably lacked both sleep and real rest and a real appetite too. "The forests? Do you have giant spiders where you come from too?"

Shoroya sat down and started to tell the young elf of her world and after a while he sort of thawed and showed real interest. He told them that the warriors were going to hunt down some orc packs someone had spotted and that he very much would have liked to join them, just as Shoroya and Rick had guessed. They also understood that the prince was a bit overprotected, perhaps not so strange, and he was maybe even a bit immature for his age. He was thirty nine and by the looks of him that had to be the equivalent of a human in his mid-teens. Rick entertained him with stories of places he had been and Shoroya with tales of different cultures and the elf sat there with huge eyes and was listening the whole time. She sort of suspected that he was a bit bored, that he wanted something challenging to happen and that he wanted to prove himself just as every young person does. It was really sad that the situation was as it was there. He told them of the threat of Dol Guldur, of the shadow creeping north from the old fortress and then he started telling them of the history of this world.

Rick and Shoroya did listen and saw that it actually did a world of good for the young elf to have someone who actually cared about what he said. He did speak with authority and Shoroya saw the same power in him as in his father, it just wasn't developed yet. He got very enthusiastic and his face almost glowed when he told of great battles and mighty warriors of old and his family history.

Rick did see where it was heading and before the young elf could start thinking about his missing mother he got up and grinned. "I think I have an idea, I bet you saw the magazine with the food right? How about this, you show us the kitchens and we try to make something from our world? "

Legolas sent the tall man a shy grin. "Something like the strange brown things ada gave me? I tasted one of them, it was wonderful!"

Shoroya smiled. "I do not know what you have here but we'll see what we can come up with right?"

The elf was on his feet and he looked eager once more. "Yes, that would be fun."

Before long they were in the kitchens and she discovered that they did have a lot of the ingredients she was used to using in her cooking. She started making some simple cookies her own mother had taught her how to bake and suddenly she was surrounded by the cooks, eager and curious and more than ready to learn some new skills. Rick sat down on a chair and just looked very pleased and relaxed and Legolas was asking questions all the time. Rick was trying to explain what a hamburger was when the cakes finally were finished. The result was rather good, and the cooks immediately wanted the recipe. Shoroya had to sit there and dictate a few of her favorite recipes while an elf wrote them down upon a piece of parchment. Legolas was munching away at the cookies with glee and the cook took Shoroya aside and whispered with teary eyes that it was the first thing the dear lad had shown any appetite for in a long time.

Shoroya then knew her mission, she asked if they had eggs and sugar and so they had but sugar was expensive and they didn't have lots of it but Shoroya knew the chief cook was on her team now, she started making meringue and added some berry juice and shaped it into animals and figures before it was baked. It tasted sweet and good and the elves were suddenly in a very good mood. There had to be something in their physiology that made them very susceptible for sugar.

Legolas did eat some of it and he also drank some cups of milk and the cook was giving Shoroya thumbs up behind his back. A servant had left the room and he carried a few cookies and some of the meringue and he was heading to the kings office.

He entered and placed the small bowl with baked goods on the desk and the king lifted an eyebrow in a grimace. "What is this?"

The servant bowed. "Some cookies the weird adeneth has baked, they are very tasty. The prince has been eating many already, and he drank two cups of milk."

Thranduil gasped and blinked a few times, Legolas had lost all appetite after his mother disappeared and hearing that he had eaten something without being threatened into it was wonderful. "Then for goodness sake, let her make whatever she likes as long as he eats it!"

They spent the entire first half of the day in the kitchens and Legolas did actually enjoy himself, he had never met people like these two and he liked the way they treated him, with respect yes, but more so as if he was an adult, as if his words and opinions were just as valuable as everybody else's. Shoroya saw the sadness in his eyes though and sat down next to him, patted his hand. "You do miss her right?"

He nodded. "Yes, all the time. We do not know what happened and it is so awful. "

Shoroya nodded. "I know it must be terrible, but I must say that you are most brave!"

He stared down, blinked. "You think so?"

Shoroya nodded and Rick came and sat down too. "Yes, and we are not lying!"

He blushed ever so slightly. "Thank you"

Shoroya sent him her most compassionate smile. "You are welcome."

The young elf got a strange expression upon his face. "Can you keep a secret?"

Shoroya nodded and frowned. "Of course? What secret is that?"

Legolas bit his lower lip and leaned towards her. "I haven't told anyone because I am afraid that they will think I am mad, but I hear her at night! It is not a dream, or, I wake up from dreams and then I hear her, and it is so real."

Shoroya remembered the feeling she had had and for a second the hairs on the back of her neck stood up again. "So, what is it that you hear?"

Legolas swallowed and she saw tears in his eyes. "Her voice, it is so distant and faint but she is begging me to find her, telling me she still is out there, somewhere, alone and scared. But I do not know where!"

Rick sighed. "Are you sure the voice is real and not just your own grief talking?"

Legolas closed his eyes and his hands were shivering. "I am not sure, that is the bad thing. "

Shoroya didn't really know how to reply to that comment, Rick smiled but the smile was a bit sad. "We do not know that much about your race I am afraid, and to be honest I have never believed in ghosts, but nothing is impossible."

Legolas just sighed. "Guess you are right about that. I just wish I knew for sure."

Shoroya wished that she could have given the kid a real hug but that would have been inappropriate. Rick smiled gently. "So, are there any interesting places here in this palace?"

Legolas nodded, suddenly enthusiastic again. "Oh yes there are, lots of them."

Rick got up. "Then let's go, I am curious!"

Legolas got up too and they got the tour of the palace and Shoroya was soon more than impressed, Legolas told her that they had used almost an entire century carving out the place from a network of natural caves and it was impossible to see from the outside and very well protected. He hadn't been born yet then but he had heard the stories of huge caves filled with bats and their droppings and the awful job of getting rid of it all.

Rick then told of the great caves back home and of fairytales and stories of old and the elf listened in wide eyed wonderment. He really was pretty much like a child in some ways and yet not, Shoroya wondered of how this race matured. They went to the stables and Rick was impressed by the long row of neat stalls and the well groomed and lovely horses. Most were white or brown but there were a few black ones too and at the far end of the stable they spotted a huge animal that wasn't a horse at all. Shoroya saw that it in fact was a giant elk of some sort and Rick whistled and blinked. "Those were extinct back home ten thousand years ago."

Legolas looked puzzled. "You have had such elks where you come from?"

Rick nodded. "Yes, but they are long gone. Alongside lots of other creatures I am sorry to say."

Legolas tilted his head. "Such as?"

Rick shrugged. "Giant sloths, sabre toothed tigers, cave lions and mammoths. And many other animals too."

Legolas sat down on a bale of hay and they joined him. "Your world must be huge?"

Rick started telling and Shoroya drew a sort of world map in the dust on the floor. It was hard for the young prince to understand the scale but he did understand that it was a large world indeed.

They then went to see the gardens and the ballroom and the public baths and when they had taken the entire tour they were tired and Rick got them back to the kitchens where he explained how a good hamburger is made. They had bread so they used slices of that instead of real hamburger breads but the result was nice indeed and Shoroya saw that the young prince was stuffing himself. The chef was writing down the ingredients and method with glee and Shoroya feared that they would start the first fast food craze in this world. But she did seriously doubt that there ever had been such a thing as an obese elf, it was probably impossible.

Rick did describe how sausages were made and that made some of the servants present cringe and caused a few rather green faces. The chef and cooks on the other hand got very inspired and started discussing whether smoked meat and walnuts could be used for such food and Shoroya felt that they had started a minor revolution there. They would all become the victims of the kitchen staffs new creativity, or rather, guinea pigs.

A servant came bringing the message that there would be a feast the day after, they were celebrating something Shoroya didn't catch the name of but it had to be rather important. Rick frowned, they had met many elves already but if the whole palace was to be filled with them then he would feel a bit trapped. He had never liked crowds and neither had Shoroya. Legolas saw their expressions and laughed. "Worry not, it will be fun. Everybody will be polite and respect that you don't like getting too much attention."

Shoroya sighed. "Well, at least I get a chance to use that darn dress."

Rick just rolled his eyes and didn't look as though the prince's words had calmed him at all. Shoroya was getting a bit tired and she felt stuffed after having tasted a lot of very eager attempts at making some of the pastries she had suggested for the cooks. Not all the results were all that appetizing but one of the cooks did proclaim with a loud and joyous shout that he had discovered a new glue!

Rick and Shoroya returned to the room to rest. There would be some entertainment later that evening, as it usually was but they were not so sure that they would participate in the merry making. Rick hugged Shoroya when they were alone in the rooms, he sniffed her hair and grinned widely. "I have never seen anybody so eager to learn something new as those elves."

Shoroya nodded and shivered slightly, he was kissing the back of her neck and she knew that dark flame in his eyes so very well. "Yes, I guess that living forever can do that to you, bet it does get a bit boring after a while. So new things are probably greatly valued."

He turned her around and kissed her, his hands sliding over her skin and there was a silent question in his eyes. She sighed inwardly, she was a bit tired and wasn't really in the mood but she did want to please him and they were after all alone and had a comfortable cozy room all to themselves. She grinned and started opening his pants, he backed until he reached the bed and sat down, leaning back and she knew he needed this now, to release stress and uncertainty. They could not have intercourse but she was rather good at satisfying him in other ways and before long he was gasping and shivering. Shoroya knew that he would return the favor as soon as he had recovered, he always did and she was indeed a very fortunate woman to have someone like him.

They fell asleep afterwards, both sweaty and sated and grinning. Shoroya did rarely dream, it was something rather typical for her kin and when she did dream she usually had short and very confusing dreams. This night however she had a real dream, or perhaps a vision. She was out in the woods again, walking through an area with huge trees covered with cobwebs and they were dead, black rotten branches covered the ground and there were a silent whisper in the air, a lament of lives lost and joy that had been banished. It stank, of death and decay and behind it all was another smell far worse, it was the scent of pure evil. Shoroya moaned in her sleep but she didn't wake up. She saw the forest open up in front of her and she saw a hole in the ground, it was not natural, sometime a long time ago someone had been digging there, it had to be an old mine or something like that. She saw the remains of rotten wooden support beams and what had to be the remains of wheel barrels lay scattered around the opening. The stench came from that opening and she didn't see anything but she felt something moving inside of that deep darkness. Something massive and terrible and it was so very cynical and scheming. There was an intelligence down there, cunning and wicked and very patient and it had plans, she just knew it. Whatever it was, it was working on a plan.

She woke up with a start, it was almost completely dark in the room and for a second she was sure she heard someone whispering her name with a very sore voice but it had to be her imagination talking to her. She saw that Rick slept like a log and she didn't want to wake him up, he needed his sleep and so she put on some clothes and managed to find her way down to the public baths. She was glad to see that she was alone there and took a rather quick bath before she got some clean clothes on. She was on her way back to the rooms when she suddenly met the king and his son, they were walking with two elves who had to be counsellors or something like that and Legolas looked bored.

Thranduil was talking in a very calm and almost hypnotic manner and Shoroya didn't doubt that he probably could keep others completely mesmerized for hours. The young prince on the other hand was almost rolling his eyes and Shoroya did bow respectfully before them. Thranduil stared at her with a genuine smile and she saw gratitude in his eyes. She didn't know why she said it but it just dropped out of her. "My lords, have there ever been anyone mining for gold or anything within the forest?"

The king tilted his head, his eyes showed some curiosity. "Why do you ask such a peculiar question my lady?"

She blushed. "Ah, I just had a strange dream, of a sort of mine in the forest, and the trees were completely dead around it. It was a terrible place, it reeked of evil."

Thranduil looked fascinated and Legolas raised an eyebrow and there was a glimpse of curiosity in his eyes. "Ada, has there ever been anyone mining here?"

Thranduil turned to the two elves and said something that sounded like a question, one of the two shrugged and looked clueless but the other one looked as if he suddenly had seen the light and spoke rather rapidly and he was beaming with pride. The king nodded. "There has been mines here indeed, some dwarves did dig here early in the second age, before my father settled here and the great greenwood became a kingdom of its own."

Shoroya frowned. "Really? It did indeed look very old though. What were they digging after?"

Thranduil turned to the counsellor again and the ellon spoke yet again, very enthusiastically. "Apparently they sought some sort of jewels someone with magical skills had foreseen would be found there. But they found nothing at all, it is believed that they thought they could find something to rival the silmarils in beauty and power."

Shoroya had heard that word being mentioned, Legolas had just said a few words about the fëanorians and the things they had done and she looked a bit confused. Thranduil smiled. "The silmarils were three jewels forged by Fëanor, he was the most skilled of all the elven artisans and very talented, but the silmarils were his masterpiece. Because of them much evil was unleashed and the world became a very changed place indeed."

Shoroya had an uneasy feeling in the bottom of her guts, why she could not explain. "But if they wanted something to match those jewels they would have to be just as clever as their creator was? Are the dwarves so smart?"

Thranduil smirked. "Oh, they are skilled indeed but their talents are different than those of the noldor smiths. They are masters at forging and shaping metals but they are also impatient and their temper is infamous. They would never managed to create something as powerful as the silmarils."

Shoroya tilted her head. "So they were digging to see if they could find something of equal value, made by nature itself?"

Thranduil made a grimace. "Yes, they always are, dwarves do dig, and they dig deep too. I fear that this unfortunate trait within their race one day may unleash unknown terrors."

Shoroya bit her lower lip. "Really?"

He nodded and his face was suddenly stern and his eyes cold, the face of a monarch. "Indeed, dwarves do treasure wealth my lady, and they love to flaunt it too, and they hoard most of it like a mouse fills its lair with grain before the winter cold. "

Shoroya remembered old fairytales she had heard as a child. "Where I am from we have many old tales of heroes who fight and slay dragons guarding huge treasures."

Thranduil turned his head and there was a hint of a smile on his lips. "My lady, our minds do think alike I fear."

He didn't say anything more and Legolas had stood there just listening. Shoroya did see something peculiar in his beautiful blue eyes, a sort of question and confusion. She returned to the room and found Rick asleep, he was snoring and she smiled and decided that it was so late now they could just sleep for the rest of the night. She went to bed and before long she too slept well and didn't have any more dreams.

The next day started with a lot of commotion out in the maze of corridors and walkways, Shoroya did wake up when she heard shouting and running and she dressed and braided her hair in record time. Rick was a bit grumpy for having been awakened thus and he had slept a little too long too and felt dizzy. She ran out to be met by not one but two goats that were running through the hallway with half a dozen masked and armed guards hot at their heels. Shoroya just stopped and glared at the spectacle and she saw that Galion came running too, the butler didn't look happy at all. He stopped and bowed his head before her, a bit short of breath and his eyes were flaring with both rage and a bit of mirth too.

"Goats? Are we gonna have roast goat for dinner tonight?"

The elf shook his head violently. "No my lady, absolutely not, these are being kept for their milk, we make cheese from it and some elflings need some extra milk too"

"Only two?"

He shook his head. "No, we have more like two hundred and these two spawns of Morgoth are the last ones, we have managed to catch the rest of the herd but by Morgoths…ah…never mind, they have made a terrible mess everywhere."

Shoroya knew that no animal is as destructive nor as filled with mischief as the goat and she chuckled as she followed the distraught butler through the palace. The evidence of their presence was obvious, some servants were running around with brooms to get rid of the sticky black beads they left everywhere and she saw that something had gnawed upon some of the priceless hangings and tapestries that adorned the walls. Some furniture had suffered the same misfortune and things were scattered everywhere. Galion rolled his eyes. "This was just what we didn't need right now, with the preparations for the feast and everything."

Shoroya had to ask. "How on earth did they manage to get in here?"

Galion made a grimace and the handsome elf did look a bit as if he was ready to transform the pesky critters into stew right there and then. "Some moron had managed to forget to close the main gate and the one herding the goats had no chance to stop them once they saw the open doors, it was like stopping the entire army of Morgoth with a fork and a spoon."

Shoroya giggled and turned her head as Legolas came running with a terrified expression in his eyes. "Galion?! There are goats in the library?"

The butler turned pale and for a second Shoroya was dead sure that he would pass out. "The library? Oh Sauron's rotten teeth!"

Shoroya had gotten the expression that the butler did favor a very flourishing language to say the least and Legolas looked both shocked and terrified."What were you doing down there anyway?"

Galion were trying to find his composure again and the prince blushed. "Ah, I was just going to look at some maps, but there were three goats there?"

Galion sighed and rolled his eyes. "Eru have mercy upon my soul, this is like trying to govern a madhouse. They didn't catch all of them after all, right, we will have to search each and every room, this will take most of the day"

Shoroya frowned. "But I can imagine that goats in a library can cause quite a lot of damage?"

Galion was about to answer when they heard a roar and then Thranduil came running looking like a thundercloud. He was wearing a beautiful green robe with embroidered vines along the edges and it was probably very expensive but now it looked as if it had suffered an attack from oversized moths. There were holes everywhere and it looked damp too, probably from saliva. Two goats were following the king, one tried to chew some more on his robe and the king looked as if he was ready to draw his sword and behead the naughty animal there and then.

Shoroya didn't laugh, she just looked with her jaw dropped down onto her chest and Galion was pale as a sheet of paper. "My lord?!"

Legolas turned around, his face bright red and he was shivering, he had never seen his father looking like that. Thranduil gave the goat a discrete kick to fend it off and it looked at him with an expression that promised vengeance and lots of it too. "Could someone please get rid of these…little devils?"

Galion waved his hand at two guards who came running by and they grasped the goats by the horns and dragged them out. Legolas was giggling and Thranduil almost growled at his son. Galion was stepping on the spot. "My lord, the library…."

Thranduil spun around, now he too was getting pale. "Don't tell me there are goats there too?!"

Legolas made an apologetic grimace. "Yes, yes there are!"

Thranduil pulled his robe off and tossed it over a chair, he was only wearing a long tunic over his pants and high boots and looked rather menacing. "Then let's go and salvage what we can! Eru's wrath, what a day!"

They got to the library and the king had ordered several servants go accompany them, it was needed. Ten goats had managed to get into the room and Shoroya had to help them get rid of the beasts which had eaten several priceless books and scrolls already. Thranduil held a scroll in his hands and his face was sad. "My father copied this from scrolls once kept within the library of Doriath, it was valuable beyond measure, but now it is chewed up. Valar!"

Legolas did run around and tried to put things back where they were supposed to be and Shoroya did notice that he had something hidden underneath his shirt, it looked like a scroll of some kind? Why would he hide it? Galion and the servants tried to rescue as much of the damaged books and scrolls as they could and the king left, mumbling something about changing robes, roast goat and the end of the world. Shoroya returned to Rick and he had to hear it all two times, he as laughing so hard he almost fell on his ass.

They went for breakfast and the dining hall too bore the marks of the goats, the nice flowers which adorned the room had been eaten and there were droppings all over the floor. The cooks were fuming with rage and the servant maidens looked truly pissed off. The palace of the last king of elves was not some barn but now it did look a bit like one. And it reeked of goat everywhere.

Shoroya spent most of the first half of the day helping out in the herbal garden which had seen its fair share of destruction. It looked as if a tornado had gone through it. Rick helped checking the rest of the palace for more goats and when the job was done it was time to prepare for the feast. Shoroya went to the bath and washed the sweat and the stench off her and Rick went to, he was still chuckling and regretted that he hadn't followed her, cause he really would have liked to see it for himself.

Shoroya got the red dress on and her shoes and she also wore some of her jewelry and Rick jiust wore a pair of black pants he had gotten from a servants and a dark green shirt. He did look handsome enough with his long black hair unbound and Shoroya felt a bit proud of him. The servants had been working their asses off, the great hall didn't look like it had been under siege by a hoard of goats at all and the decorations and everything was as splendid as planned. There were a lot of elves there already when they arrived and Shoroya did in fact bless the goat invasion for it did break the ice. Suddenly there was something she could chat with everybody about and before long she stood there with a glass of wine in her hands and a huge group of ellith around her dying to get the seamstress to copy her dress.

Rick was enjoying himself talking to the hunters and warriors and he explained some hunting techniques from back home. Then there was a lot of food being served and Shoroya saw that many elves looked at the dishes with narrow eyes and shock written all over their faces. The chef had decided to test out some of the new recipes and the elves had never seen hamburgers or pizza or hot dogs before. Shoroya had to admit that they had managed to lift the food to new heights of culinary finesse and it was really delicious. Before long the elves had discovered this too and Shoroya saw that even the king enjoyed a huge slice of the pizza the chef had made.

Rick had brought the bottle of whiskey and offered the king a taste which he gracefully accepted and Rick poured a very generous drink into a wineglass. The elf sniffed the liquid carefully before he sipped at it and he gasped for breath and had to blink away tears. "Sweet Eru, this is indeed liquid fire!"

Rick just grinned and took a sip of his own glass. "Yes, and it burns away every worry and fear known to man"

Thranduil stared at the glass with reluctant respect. "This beats Dorwinion wine when it comes to potency, I have never tasted anything this strong. How is it made?"

Rick leaned forth and whispered. "That is a well-kept secret, but I happen to know a trick or two, I could possibly try to create the equipment needed to make some, if you have some skilled smiths here?"

Thranduil grinned, widely. "Indeed I have, go ahead, you'll get whatever you need."

Rick beamed and Shoroya cringed a bit. She didn't doubt that he knew how to make real whiskey but it would take a lot of testing and failing before they had anything that even resembled that old bottle, but on the other hand, to elves time is just a word.

There was dancing and singing and the mood became very festive and Shoroya had a really good time. She danced with Rick and also with quite a few ellyn and even Galion asked her for a dance. The butler told her that they had prioritized cleaning up the grand hall, there was still quite a mess in some places. The goats were back in their pen but that had required the entire royal guard and some volunteers too.

Shoroya suddenly discovered that she felt at home there, and she didn't feel intimidated by the elves at all. She did also dance once with the king himself and he was extremely graceful and a good dancer. She understood that the people needed this to vent their feelings and forget the darkness gathering around their realm, letting their hair down was a thing they needed to do every now and then.

When the party ended the sun was already rising and some were asleep at the tables while others were partying on. Shoroya saw that the king had retired hours ago and so had Legolas, he wasn't old enough to stay up that long anyhow. She and Rick were among the last ones to leave the room and they went to bed immediately. Shoroya was a bit drunk but she did fall asleep rather fast in spite of it and again she had a strange dream. She stood in some sort of room, it was almost completely dark and it looked a bit like a cave and she felt something move around her, saw red glowing eyes and heard some terrible clattering sounds, they gave her the shivers. Then her eyes got used to the darkness and she saw shapes attached to the walls, wrapped in cobwebs and she did see that some of them had a humanoid shape. There was some movement in some of them and she felt sick to the core. This was a larder, a pantry.

The things she saw moving and heard were spiders and she felt cold sweat running down her body. There was something shiny laying in the mud on the floor, she got closer and stared down at it. It was a circlet, made from something that resembled silver and it was very beautiful and could not belong to anyone of lesser stature. She started to realize the truth and gasped. She opened her eyes with a yell and Rick stared at her with wide eyes. "What is wrong love?"

She sat up in the bed, shivering. "The queen, I know what happened to her, the spiders got her!"

Rick frowned. "What are you talking about?"

She got out of bed and pulled her clothes on, very fast. "I saw it, the mine I dreamed about, it is a place where the spiders keep their victims, alive but subdued until it is time to feed them to their offspring. "

Rick got out of bed too, got his pants on. "Damn it Shoroya, I hope you are wrong!"

She almost panted as she ran out of the door. "So do I"

They ran down the corridor as Rick tried to put on a shirt while moving, they almost collided with Thranduil and Galion. Both were pale and Shoroya could see that something was seriously wrong. Galion gasped for air. "Have any of you seen the prince? His bed haven't been slept in this night and his travelling clothes are gone and so is his horse."

Shoroya gasped and felt as though her legs were about to give in. Thranduil looked terrified and she managed to gather her senses. "Your majesty, yesterday I saw him carrying off a scroll of some kind, I think I know where he is"

The king stared at her, the terror in his eyes all too apparent. He had lost his wife, he would not survive losing his son too. "Where?"

Shoroya swallowed hard. "The old mine, he thinks his mother is there, and I do believe that he might be right about that."

Thranduil swayed, his face so pale he looked like a ghost and Rick and Galion grasped him and sat him down into a chair. "That area is absolutely lethal, and we do not know exactly where the mine was."

Rick had a terrible expression in his face. "But I can track him, as a wolf I can track anything, and there is no time to waste my lord. Your son may be in danger already, you have to make a move now!"

Thranduil just stared, the beautiful blue eyes unfocused and Galion actually slapped him across his cheek, the king jerked and blinked, looked confused. "Thran, we have to act now!"

The king nodded slowly, the dread in his eyes was terrible to behold, the fear one feels for a beloved child that might be in danger is so much worse than the fear one might feel on one owns behalf.

"Yes, gather the best of my guards and saddle our horses, everybody be ready in twenty minutes."

Rick bared his teeth in a snarl. "We will be ready too my lord."

The king just nodded. "I appreciate that my friends. Oh my dear son, how can he be so foolish?"

Shoroya tried to smile. "He has never abandoned hope, and he is young. Do not blame him"

Thranduil got back onto his feet, he swayed but there was strength returning to him. "I won't, ever."

Galion bowed his head. "Thran, do you need your armor?"

The king nodded. The royal expression had returned to his face. "Yes, and my blades. Will you ride with me?"

Galion just nodded. "Always my liege."

Rick grasped Shoroya and they ran back to their rooms, gathered everything they possibly could need. Then they ran to the main entrance, if the prince had left during the night he could have reached the mine already and Shoroya knew it was a death trap. She clenched her teeth together and prayed that they wouldn't be too late.