Chapter Nineteen - The Unmanned Fortress

The sky had long since turned its twilight colors, the deep blue punctured by the brightly shining stars and the full moon. The small glow of a fire deep within the thick forest barely managed to reach the canopy of leaves, those around the fire silent. They had been waiting for some time. All had solemn faces, some glanced at each other in worry every so often.

One had not moved from his place since the sun had first started to fall, seated near the edge of their makeshift campsite, his eyes trained directly in front of him. The only movement he made was his fist tightening its hold on a knife now and then. Several times one of his companions would call his name only to be greeted by stony silence, sigh, and return to the fire, clasping the hand of the white-haired Elf. He would squeeze her hand in assurance, though his eyes as well flickered to the same place as the other, fear flashing in them.

Denya was the only one who moved constantly. She sat up in a tree, Tan a few branches higher than her as he was keeping a lookout, taking turns glaring at Legolas' form, in the direction they had come from, to the Mountain looming ominously just ahead of them, then to whatever bottle she had in her hand. She drank almost violently as she snarled, muttering to herself. One leg swung in agitation off the branch as the other kept her balance. Her hand that was not holding a bottle twirled a dagger in her hand just to keep busy.

Below the tree, Clad sat, hand loose on his sheathed sword. Though none of the others could see it, he periodically turned his head within his hood and looked up at Denya. He made no other movements.

Auron glanced upwards to the sky that the branches could not block and let out a soft sigh. His calm demeanor had long since been replaced by his own concern, showing the others how serious this situation was.

They had seen no sign of Caled or Rynno.

Mornie had been the first to become anxious when dusk had started to fall and nothing had happened. He had said nothing but everyone sensed that he knew something was wrong, more so than they thought. His bond with Caled was reason enough to have grown worried when the creature did. Yet it had been his startled, half-whispered words that caused the silent atmosphere, "Not now. Please, no." He was now sitting by Legolas in his cat-like form, still as a statue.

And so they had waited, not bothering to count the hours, until they found some clue of what was going on.

After probably the twelfth time Aurora had attempted in talking to Legolas, Denya rolled her eyes, surprising the others by jumping off her perch and walking off. They did not follow her, certain she had her own reason for wanting to be alone.

Denya continued to push her way through the foliage, knowing due to her hearing that there was a stream nearby. She knew none of the others would be listening, too concerned to keep an ear out for signs of Caled, and therefore her muttering grew a bit louder and harsher. The only time she broke off was to breathe or drink from the bottle. She reached the stream as the last of the liquid found its way down her throat. She tossed it into the bag at her side and crouched by the water. Denya leaned over and looked into the stream.

Staring back at her was her own reflection. Her eyes narrowed as they studied themselves in the clear water. The blue and green hues in her irises were blurred together, slowly coming sharper again at an alarming rate.

Denya swore blackly, ripping her bag open and searching for another full bottle. She opened it with some difficulty as her hands were shaking. Leaning her head back and gulping down a large sum of it, she was barely able to hear the footsteps coming from behind her. She lowered the bottle with a loud exhaling breath and snarled, "What do you want, Anex?"

The Avari merely smiled slightly at her back, leaning against a tree. "To make sure you don't fall over and drown yourself," he said. He chuckled when she growled at him. "You've taken enough alcohol to kill a man. It would only be natural that one would be worried for your health."

"Save me your worry," Denya snapped, taking another drink as she stood. "You're not my father."

"No, but I am concerned about you," Anex said, a firm tone in his usually calm voice. "Avari have a higher tolerance than some Elves, but even so, most would have become unconscious if they took as much as you have. Why the sudden urge?"

Denya did not answer. She stared at a point just over the stream.

Anex studied her carefully, noting the stiffness in her posture and the way she continually fiddled with her dagger. "If I didn't know better I'd say you were hiding something," he said slowly, watching for her reaction.

The liquid in the bottle shifted suddenly, caused by a slight twitch from her hand. It was only thanks to his keen eye that he had caught it.

Anex groaned, a look of apprehension on his face as he said, "Denya, please tell me I'm imagining things again. Tell me you're not doing what it is I think you're doing."

"Once we start fighting I'll be fine," Denya muttered. "The alcohol will break up if enough adrenaline is pumping through my system. I'll be fine," she repeated when he did not reply.

"No, you won't," Anex said. "What is it? What happened? Why are you hiding it?"

"...I don't want to see that look on his face again," Denya said quietly, managing to cover the catch in her voice as she took another drink.

"So, you did talk to him last night," Anex said, sitting down.

"Of course," Denya huffed. "How could I not? All of you were ready to incapacitate me in that room when I confronted her."

"You were saying things you had no place to say."

"I wanted the truth," Denya shot back.

"You know more than we do, more than Legolas does," Anex pointed out. "She trusted you enough to tell what happened to her."

"She didn't say everything," Denya roared. "She conveniently left out the part about there being more like her. She said nothing about being a Shadow Elf. Nothing about a whole community wanting her found no matter what the cost. All she told me was why she hates Elves!" Swearing, Denya finally looked at Anex. "That was enough for me to want to kill something in rage! She had no right to go through something like that! But she said nothing else! That was it!"

Anex stared at her. During her rambling she had not taken any more of the drink and the reaction was already taking place: her eyes were glowing brightly enough to illuminate the night air around them.

Denya stopped, catching the sudden change in his expression. Her eyes widened and she cursed again, immediately downing the rest of the bottle. The glow subsided. "Don't-don't tell Auron," she whispered hoarsely, her throat burning in protest at the harsh liquid.

"Denya, what is going on? Why are you doing this to yourself?" Anex pressed. It had become clear why she was consuming so much alcohol; the harsh percentage within the drink was enough to numb her senses, allowing her eyes to cloud over and the glow to stop. Yet it would only worked if she continued with the drinking and that was very dangerous.

The apprehension in his voice had not been lost to the younger Elf yet her hands shook. "Don't tell him," Denya repeated thickly, keeping her eyes on the ground. Her hand tightened on the bottle. "Please," she pleaded when she received no response.

Slowly, Anex nodded though his mind was still asking questions. He knew, as well as everyone else, that she was very attracted to Legolas. And, though he never admitted it out loud, he had thought that what it was that attracted her was merely his good looks or just of the sex appeal-though he did not really think that was the case. Now her actions and the lasting glow from her eyes made him doubt that.

Something had happened, something that had felt an emotional wound too deep for Denya to simply forget it. But why was it happening? Why now of all times? What happened the night before that was doing this to her?

A rustle caught their attention before Darin appeared. A relieved look was on his face. "She's back," he said, motioning for them to come.

Caled was sitting by the fire, half-heartedly protesting as Aurora tended to several wounds she had. According to what she told them, she and Rynno had just gotten out of the city when they ran into Kurra and about ten or so Fire-Guards. Nothing had been said yet they all attacked. It had taken almost all of their strength to break away, trying to put as much distance between them and the city before Kurra called for more of her guards. Rynno had stayed behind, keeping them back as Caled went on.

"He might still be back there," she was saying when Darin returned with Denya and Anex. "If we hurry, we can-"

"No," Auron cut in. "He understood what could happen to him and still agreed to help us. We will go back once our business is done here." He glanced up at Mount Gundabad. A silence blanketed the group as they all thought the same thing: it would soon be over.

"When do we leave?" Legolas asked, appearing to be in a better mood now that Caled was back. When Denya had noticed this, she emptied another bottle, causing Anex to look at her in concern.

"Whenever we're prepared," Auron said simply.

It was barely an hour later when they set off, grim faced, in the direction of the mountain.

Out of all of them, Legolas was the most anxious. He could not shake the thought out of his head that this was the end of his journey with Caled. Depending on what they found, they could very well part company before daybreak. His mind was working furiously, trying to think of something that could give him a legitimate reason to stay with her.

So preoccupied was his mind that he almost ran into Dias when the white-haired Elf stopped in front of him. Everyone had stopped just inside the end of the forest. Towering before them was Mount Gundabad.

Legolas heard Denya give a soft grunt, shifting the bottle in her hands so she could remove several bracelets from her left arm. She tossed them haphazardly around to everyone then said after gulping down the rest of the bottle's contents, "Activate them now. Place them on your right wrist, cover with your left hand and said clearly 'Ko'Lea.' They should glow." When they did so, she glanced around, her eyes rolling slightly in what looked like annoyance towards Anex, and sighed, flipping her black and silver daggers into her hands, "Okay. Let's go."

Stooping low to the ground, everyone rushed over the uneven stone ground, easily avoiding loose rocks and gravel. It was only a matter of time before they reached the base of the mountain. Darin sped ahead along with Tan as the others paused under the shelter of a large boulder. This was part of the initial plan: Darin and Tan would find a way inside the mountain as everyone waited. Supposedly, Darin knew of a trick door somewhere near the eastern part of the mount's base. They would find it and open it before sending Tan back to the others. If too many of them had gone it would more than likely have alerted any guards.

Yet so far there had been none.

Once Tan returned, they slowly followed him, senses alert to anything out of the ordinary. Darin was waiting beside a large, dark opening in the ground, looking very anxious. He motioned silently towards the opening, nodding. One by one, they dropped down through the gap and were swallowed into the blackness.

As he jumped in, the first thing Legolas noticed was that the area he had dropped into was vast. Even though it was pitch black, he could feel the floor was far below him and that the walls were well beyond reach of human eyesight. His fall continued and he tensed, readying himself for contact with the floor whenever it would come. It had suddenly become very cold, his breath fogging before him as he took slow, even breathes. How deep did this hole go?

Following what seemed like several minutes, his feet made contact with solid ground. He heard breathing coming from in front of him and hurried towards it, knowing it was the others. Dias had lit a small blue flame that he held in his hand, holding it above his head so the others could see. Legolas saw with surprise that they were standing by a pair of doors. What surprised him was that there was no wall the doors were set into, just empty space. He glanced over at Dias, who had seen his questioning look at the doors, and shrugged.

Caled was sitting by the doors, hugging her knees to her chest and shivering slightly from the cold. Her red eyes were staring fixedly at the door, a strange expression gleaming in them from the light Dias' flame cast. As if sensing his gaze on her, Caled looked up at Legolas. He smiled encouragingly at her, wanting to say something that could calm her worries about Rynno but staying silent, as everyone had agreed they should. She blinked, obviously confused, but did not look away as she had done in the past. This time, she smiled tentatively back before returning her eyes to the doors.

When everyone had joined them, they looked to Darin for explanation but he shrugged. Caled stepped forward and motioned for Dias to extinguish his flame. Once he did, they heard her walking over to the doors. A flash of light told them she had created a fireball and in an instant it was gone, replaced by a warm glow issuing from the opened doors, leading to a flight of stairs that lead upwards. Caled rubbed her neck sheepishly, then jerked her head toward the stairs.

As they climbed the stairs, Legolas noticed the walls seemed to be tinting a blue hue from behind him. At first he thought Dias had conjured another flame but he noticed that the sorcerer was beside him. Before he could investigate the matter, the stairs abruptly ended into a large room that appeared as if it had been cut from black stone. More startling was the fact that the room was crawling with Reapers.

Before anyone could initiate battle, one Reaper separated itself from the rest and came forward. They instantly recognized it as one of the Reaper Elite by the stripe of sea green hair falling into its matching eyes. Denya growled when seeing him, clearly remembering their interrupted fight from the last time they met.

The Reaper smirked towards her and bowed. "Welcome," it said in a mock polite tone. "We've been expecting you. Moreover," it straightened and laughed, "I have been given a message to you all. My master wishes to extend his invitation to all of you. He is in the topmost chamber of the tower. Do not worry; it is not very far because the mountain is made to look bigger than the tower itself. He will only greet those that have reached the room within half an hour. Best of luck to you all." He stopped, his large eyes glancing towards the back at Caled. He grinned maliciously at her. "Additional, to Lady Caled-Veleg: An answer to the question you seek awaits, regardless of your timing."

Legolas felt rather than saw Caled stiffen at his side. Mornie let out a low growl, his teeth bared as he shifted into his wolf form.

"Timing starts now," the Reaper Elite said, snapping his arm out to the side. The other Reapers behind him hissed and shrieked in expectation. "Again, good luck." The Reaper Elite vanished into thin air.

They were swarmed from all sides.

"Don't concentrate on them!" Legolas heard Auron shout as everyone separated. "Just get to the top!"

It was hard but for the most part they seemed to be able to avoid most of the Reapers. A few choice spells from Dias helped eliminate a good chunk of the mass and managed to clear a path for everyone to rush through.

Racing on, Legolas kept one eye on Caled as they tore through Reaper after Reaper. It seemed that the Reaper Elite's words had spurred her out of the worried state she had been in, forcing her to focus on the task at hand. Slicing the neck of a scarlet eyed Reaper that had been aiming for her back as she threw a violet striped on down for Mornie to sink his fangs into, Legolas said, "Glad to see your back to your fiery self!"

Caled scoffed, snapping her whip forward and catching a Reaper around the waist, flipping it over her head and driving her dagger into its heart. "Save it for later, Elf!" she said to him, though he thought he saw her smile again.

As he focused on defending himself, the Wood Elf saw that the Reapers were coming from a large doorway not far to their right. Guessing that was the way to the top of the tower, Legolas alerted his directions toward the door, making sure that Caled noticed it as well. Slowly, the rest caught on and sliced or tore their way to the doors. Sure enough, a set of stone steps spiraling upwards met them, packed with Reapers.

"Does it ever end?" Aurora exclaimed, shooting an arrow through a Reaper's eyes that had jumped from the stairs in hopes of catching them from above.

"Doesn't look like it!" Darin said, pushing the sharp metal tips of his Bo into the side of a Reaper's head. "Dias! Ready for another?" he called over his shoulder.

Dias nodded, catching his breath and grasping his staff with both hands. Darin flipped overhead and landing behind Dias, daring the Reapers to come at him with a grin. Aurora quickly got rid of those foolish enough to come within reach of her bow as Dias cast the spell. Thunder boomed a second before the spell fired, a streak of lightning racing around the others and exploding on the stairway, the carcasses of the Reapers caught by the blast falling to the floor.

"Let's go!" Auron said, starting to the stairs.

"Wait!"

Eyes turned to Clad, who was facing the doorway where several Reapers stood as if debating whether or not to attack them.

"What's wrong?" Tan said.

"Denya."

Legolas looked around, noticing for the first time that Denya was not with them. "Did she fall behind?" he said.

"We'll come back for her," Anex said harshly before anyone else could speak. "Let's go. Now!" he roared when no one moved. Though everything in his countenance said that he was indifferent to what had happened to Denya, Legolas saw as the Avari paused before following them up the steps and looked back at the doors that there was a painfully disquieted expression on his face.

Dias' spell had rid the stairs of Reapers but another landing full of the cursed beings were there to greet them. Through the chaos, Legolas' mind noted that if this kept up then they would not reach the chamber before their time was up. In addition to that, he became aware of the fact that a section of his bracelet was blinking slightly. An overzealous Reaper interrupted his thoughts before he could ponder about that. He quickly flipped his dagger and stabbed the Reaper in the forehead, catching it in the side and throwing it somewhere behind him.

After what seemed like hours, the Reapers currently attacking them were gone. They were the only ones left in a large, circular room, two doors set into the wall on the far right.

"At last!" Aurora sighed with relief. "They're gone!"

"Strange, isn't it?" Darin muttered but Aurora did not seem to hear him as she was looking over her shoulder in the direction they had left Denya.

"She's fine," Anex said with a meaningful motion to the bracelet around his own wrist, though one could barely see it for the thick, black blood that coated the majority of his body now. "Let's just find out what's going on."

"Which door?" Darin said, looking at first one then the other.

"You don't know?" Dias said to the Bo-wielding Elf.

Darin glared at him. "All I ever heard about this blasted tower was that it was a temporary housing for the Shadow Elves! The Old Hermit never went into detail about its inner workings! It's amazing he even knew about the trapdoor outside!"

As Darin finished yelling, he had kicked the nearest door to him. Flames erupted around the door's frame, flaring outwards and catching the hem of Darin's cloak. He cursed in surprise, stomping it out. "What was that?" he said as a few of the others burst into laughter.

"A defense spell, obviously," Dias chuckled, wincing at the pain a slash along his neck made. Shockingly enough, even with the immense number of Reaper they had to fight off, their injuries were few and far between and nothing more serious than a few broken ribs. Aurora looked at him in distress, obviously thinking of a way to force her medical 'concern' without having him protest.

"What about the other door?" Darin said, glancing at it with open hostility.

"Probably the same."

"Or is it?" Auron said, a thoughtful look on his face. "Think about it: this is a tower constructed by Shadow Elves. They must have made sure that any secrets they had would be well protected, including any rooms housing their secrets. Something about the top room must have been worth protecting from outsiders. From people who are not Shadow Elves…." he trailed off, his brown eyes settling on Caled.

Caled blinked, puzzled, then her eyes widened when she understood. "I'll see, but don't get your hopes up," she said with a slight sigh. Sheathing her dagger and winding her whip around her arm, she approached the door that had been enflamed moments before. She bit her lip, thinking, and then raised her hand, forming a small ball of green fire.

The fireball was sucked into the door as if there had been a vacuum there. The door glowed ominously.

Fortified by this, Caled went to the other door, swiftly looking around it before finding at the bottom a small crack where a tiny plant had sprouted. Stepping back, she once again raised a hand. The plant shot up, tendril shooting out and grasping along the doorframe. When the plant had formed its way around the entire door, it glowed.

The light issuing from both doors grew brighter, forcing everyone to shield their eyes. It slowly died away, leaving behind only one door.

Caled, her hand trembling, reached out and turned the knob. The door opened easily, allowing them access to the room.

The floor was coated in blood and body parts. Eyes that once glowed shades of red and purple were now blank and motionless, many torn and damaged. From one of the many shadows in the room, Na'Tath watched the form of Kaha'Dak towards the center of the corpses. White eyes wide in fear at being caught, Na'Tath breathed low and evenly, not wanting to alert Kaha'Dak to her presence. She had been sent to make sure the Guild at least made it past this room, then to make sure no straggling Reapers when after them in hopes of killing one of the members.

Little did the Reaper know she would see her kind's most feared enemy.

Kaha'Dak growled something low and garbled, tearing off one of her long sleeves as she sat on the ground. She quickly bound the cloth around her head, covering her eyes. She was mumbling to herself in words that Na'Tath did not understand.

The Reaper began to ease her way back into the shadows and out of the room to continue watching the Guild's progress.

/THUNK

A dagger sunk into the stone floor by Na'Tath's hand. It had landed so close to her that a thin cut was left on her black skin. Na'Tath looked up to see Kaha'Dak slowly lower her arm, a frown on her face. The Reaper could not tell what expression it was since her eyes were covered.

"What are you?" Kaha'Dak spoke clearly; slightly out of breath from the energy she had spent slaying the other Reapers.

Na'Tath glanced around, trying to think of a way to distract Kaha'Dak so she could escape.

"I know you're there," Kaha'Dak continued, another dagger in her hand now. "Answer me: what are you? I know you're not a Reaper."

These words caused Na'Tath to stop. "What?" The word slipped before she could prevent it.

"I can smell your blood," Kaha'Dak said, almost lazily, "and it's not the same as Reaper blood. So, what are you?"

"Not….not the same?" Na'Tath whispered. What was Kaha'Dak talking about?

"Slow, aren't you?" Kaha'Dak snorted. "I won't ask again: what are you?"

Though her mind was numb at Kaha'Dak's words, Na'Tath felt something grab her from behind, ripping her into the shadows. She heard Kaha'Dak swear and felt a searing pain in her cheek. None of that mattered.

Kaha'Dak, the Reaper of Shadows, had said she was not a Reaper.

"Is this a joke?"

Darin's words echoed in the room, causing some of them to jump as the silence was broken.

The room they were in looked like a study of some kind, shelves of books covering the walls, desks pushed against the spaces that were vacant, papers scattered about as if they had been thrown in haste around the place. The entire surface area of the room was covered in a thick layer of dust, evidence that it had not been used in years.

"What is going on?" Aurora said, looking around the room. "There's nothing here? What was all that about then?" she said, motioning somewhere behind her to indicate the way they had come.

"Did we not make it in time?" Dias said, also looking around.

Legolas could not help but feel frustrated. Were the Reapers just playing a game with them? Why tell them to meet with this so-called 'master' when nothing was there? And what about answering Caled's question? Legolas was sure the question was what they were originally sent here to do: find out why and how the Orcs were going around Middle-Earth. But what answers could they find in a dusty, unused room like this?

As he was thinking, Caled was standing rooted to her place just inside the room. For the longest time, she seemed to neither blink nor breathe. Then she strode across the room, dust billowing from the floor as she disrupted it. She roughly pushed aside a fallen chair and became still. In the space of seconds, all eyes turned to her, Dias watching in what looked like stunned surprised. Legolas could have sworn the white-haired Elf whispered, "De'ja vu."

Caled reached out and picked something up off the floor. It was a dusty bundle, several others lying on the floor. Slowly, Caled removed the dirty cloth. It was a short sword; the silver hilt glinted, as did the diamonds encrusted in it. She turned, tossing the cloth aside and drawing the sword out of the sheath. A strange light dawned on her face as she gazed up the length of the blade. "Is it….." Caled whispered, eyes widening. She shoved the sword back in the sheath. She knelt on the ground, pulling out the other bundles one by one and laying them on the floor behind her. She quickly removed the clothes as well and sat back, staring at the objects.

In total there were six weapons lying on the dusty floor: a bow, a pair of sai, the short sword, a bladed Bo, a matching set of daggers, and a broadsword. Everyone gathered closer to see the weapons clearly. All of them were made with silver and imbedded with different jewels.

"I can't believe they survived," Caled breathed.

"What are they?" Darin asked, looking at the Bo with sapphires adorning its bladed tips in interest.

"Shadow Elf weapons," Caled said. Without another word, she rose, moving to the nearest shelf and glancing over the many books placed there.

Knowing sooner or later she would explain why these weapons intrigued her and the reasoning for looking at the old books, everyone took this as a break, many sitting on the floor and relaxing. Aurora immediately went to everyone and began treating the few wounds they had. Dias put up a futile fight when she applied the dark paste to his slashed neck, muttering a few choice words after she was done.

Mornie, shifting to his cat form, seated himself by Legolas, who was watching Caled from his place on the floor. i see you're the silent vigil as ever, Mornie said, a smile in his mental voice.

Legolas merely glanced at Mornie, knowing the black creature could understand from his current emotions what his reply was.

Mornie chuckled quietly. yes, I know of your surveillance of CALED, LEGOLAS. don't worry, she's as clueless as ever. in some aspects, Mornie added.

Legolas raised an eyebrow.

Mornie's golden eyes turned to the weapons still lying on the floor. strange, isn't it? he said, echoing Darin's earlier words. we scarcely miss the time limit yet there is no evidence that the room has had any occupants for decades. We find several weapons in excellent condition, weapons we can use to our advantage…..and plenty of clues for the answer.

"What was the question to begin with?" Legolas said, wanting to know.

Mornie sighed, laying his head on his crossed legs. what i could sense from the REAPER ELITE-which was not much, for some reason i am not able to probe their minds as easily as others-the answer CALED seeks is most certainly in this room. the only problem is, what question was the REAPER ELITE speaking of. yes, Mornie went on before Legolas could ask. CALED has more than one reason for coming here. it is quite possible that the answer is what we were originally here for: how the ORCS are appearing and disappearing around MIDDLE-EARTH. yet it is also possible that it is not what the REAPER ELITE was referring to.

They rested as Caled poured over the books in the room, several times flinging one over her shoulder in frustration. Several times Aurora would try to get some answer out of her, but she was ignored every time. During this time, Anex wordlessly left the room. No one had to ask where he had gone for it was quite obvious that he was going to check on Denya. When he returned, he was alone but did not say anything pertaining to their comrades whereabouts. About that time, Darin and Dias were arguing loudly.

"I say it was a trick to begin with," Darin said, angrily thumping the end of his Bo against the bookshelf he was leaning against. "They just wanted to try and kill us so they lured us here with the promise of finding what we want to know."

"So then why did they give us a time limit and all the Reapers disappear after the time limit passed?" Dias pressed, shifting as Aurora laid her head on his shoulder, yawning. "If it was to confuse us, they would have sent more after the time limit was over, not stop altogether."

"More trickery."

"Darin," Aurora said in a warning tone, "don't make me shove a sedative down your throat."

Darin glared in reply.

"Just because nothing's here does not mean that the answer's not here," Dias went on.

"As if there's gonna be an answer about how Orcs are being transported across the face of Middle-Earth in a room centuries old!"

"There are plenty of answers here."

Everyone stopped what they were doing and eyes went to Caled.

With a sigh, Caled shut the cover to a particularly large book she had been reading for over twenty minutes. Turning around, she finally addressed everyone. "Darin is right," she said. "This was planned. But," she continued when Darin opened his mouth to speak, "Dias is also right. There is an answer here." She raised the book in her hands and wiped the dust off the cover. Faded, almost nonexistent letters were there, written in a language none of them recognized.

"This is a journal," Caled said, "written by the original owners of this room. The first leaders of the Shadow Elves. It was started just after the construction of this tower. In it, they speak of their search for land they can claim as their own as well as their discoveries of their abilities, back when they were first created. The last entry," she opened the book, flipping quickly to a page in the back, "says that they found a suitable bit of land. They were planning to seal all the documents they had in this room so that their enemies, which they say were many in number, could never get hold of it and use it against them. It also says they will leave the remainders of the Jui-Pahl here, for whoever has great need of them. It ends with the mention of the Gry-Kah."

Closing the book, Caled raised her eyes, looking up to the ceiling. Following her gaze everyone saw, nearly hidden under the massive cobwebs and dust, a dome shaped structure. Through the mass of filth, a low, pulsating gray light could be seen. "That is the Gry-Kah," Caled said, drawing their attention back. "Their first successful transportation device. It magnifies whatever is sent through it, enabling the one using it to sent things further than they would have been able to alone."

Sighing again, Caled dropped to the floor, bowing her head in her hands. "I had it all wrong," she said quietly, almost to herself. "It was so obvious, I should have seen it. They've been playing games this whole time. They're not here. They've never been here."

Silent glances were exchanged, no one sure of what to say. "Everyone makes mistakes, Caled," Aurora said soothingly.

Caled did not reply.

Shifting nervously, Legolas said in hopes of redirecting her thoughts, "What is the Jui-Pahl they wrote of? What is that?"

Raising her head, Caled motioned to the weapons lying on the ground. "Their only weapon against the Reapers," she said with a sigh. "I don't know how they work but supposedly they have a very strong magic in them that attacks the core of the Reaper, killing it from within, but I don't know…." She reached to her side and withdrew her red-jeweled dagger from the sheath. "This is one of them." She made a face, counting each of the Jui-Pahl. She stood, brushing herself off. "We should get going, we've been here too long," she said curtly.

Everyone began to gather their things, Aurora, Darin, Dias and Tan helping Caled carry the Jui-Pahl, which she said she would give to the Shadow Elves since the weapons belonged to them anyway. It was a somewhat somber trek back down the way they had come, each stewing over what Caled had said. On the one hand, part of Legolas was relieved. Perhaps this meant that they would be able to stay together, at least for a while longer as they figure out who was sending the Orcs through the Gry-Kah.

Perhaps…

"Denya!" Aurora gasped, bringing Legolas back to the present. They had entered the room where they had last seen the blue-haired Elf. Amid the bloody mess in the room sat Denya, a thoughtful frown on her face. "What happened? Are you all right?"

At first Legolas did not see what made Aurora so worried, but as Denya turned towards them the cloth tied securely around her eyes became more apparent.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Denya said with a slight laugh. "I just…got some stuff in my eyes and the light hurt them. I'm fine," she said again, hearing Aurora beginning to fumble through her bag while still holding onto the Jui-Pahl bow, the emeralds flashing in the light from Dias' fire.

As Aurora, and even Darin, berated Denya for her reckless abandonment, Anex was staring at Denya, a cross between an angry and a troubled expression on his face.

Once she had convinced Aurora that she was fine, Denya inquired what had happened after they parted ways. They told her of the room, the old journals, the Jui-Pahl and the Gry-Kah as they continued their way back, managing to find another way out that did not involve climbing out of the hole through which they had come in. For the most part, they were tired and looking forward to nothing more than just rest, even if it was in the Shadow Elf community. It was understandable when they did not see him at first.

As they emerged from the mountain, stepping carefully on the loose rocks and gravel, a man was waiting for them. He was seated atop a large boulder close to the exit they were using, watching them with interest. It was not until Tan glanced back to make sure the door was secured and camouflaged as it was supposed to be that the man was seen.

"Who are you?" Tan shouted, hands twirling his sai into place. His shout caught the others' attention.

The man chuckled, jumping down to the ground and leaning casually against the boulder. He was tall and very skinny. His hair was black with the exception of the front half, which was a blood red color. His eyes were large with strangely small slits for eyes, the irises a shimmering gold. If it had not been for his pale, almost white skin they would have taken him for a Reaper.

"Calm down," the man said, in a surprisingly deep voice. "I am not here to harm you."

"Then what are you doing here?" Auron demanded.

"Wait!" Caled gasped, pushing forward so she could see the man clearly. Her eyes widened. "You-You're a Sprite!" she said, more a statement than a question.

The man nodded then his face grew serious. "I'm afraid I am the bringer of bad news," he said. He sighed, looking as if he was wondering how to say what he had to say. Shrugging, he raised a thin arm and pointed to the sky behind them. They turned, wondering what was going on.

Great clouds of black smoke obscured the sunrise. There was an instant when no one breathed, for they all knew what the smoke was coming from.

"The Reapers have attacked us," the Sprite said heavily.