Chapter 10

They met Aragorn on the north edge of town. He was very happy to see Legolas, and was curios about the dark-haired female elf that followed him. "Legolas, has Thranduil finally tied you down? Who is this lovely maiden?" Aragorn was confident that his men could take on any size army of goblins and orcs, so he was in good spirits. "Not Thranduil, dear friend, I found her, or she found me, when I ran from him." Legolas laughed and put his arm around Terrico. "I am Terrico, from Greenhorn. I was an apprentice to Gandalf. I heard that he is looking for me. Do you know where he is now? If he is looking for me, then I should go to him." Terrico glanced at Legolas. "He did not tell me where he was going. He stayed with us for a few days, and left just before I did. I did not see where he headed off to." Aragorn looked toward the south, where the foothills just barely showed over the treetops. Gimli stood next to Legolas, noting that the elf was spending a lot of time with Terrico. Sealeaf wandered around the area, trying to stay hidden in the bushes. It didn't work. Aragorn spotted him prowling around near his horse. He stabbed his spear into the ground in front of the dragon, which screeched in surprise. "And who's this little dragon? It is too small to be a threat. Have you seen him before, Legolas?" Sealeaf quickly got over his surprise and bit the spear, snapping it. "Sealeaf! Bad dragon!" Legolas scolded him and picked him up. "He's my dragon, still only a week old. He's quite a troublemaker, but harmless." Sealeaf chewed on a bit of shaft from the spear. "He's got a good set of jaws on him. If he can do that to strengthened wood, imagine what he'll do to bone and metal when he's grown." Aragorn examined what remained of his spear. "I'm glad this wasn't my favorite spear. I left that at home with Arwen." Sealeaf swallowed the wood, and to their surprise, grew a bit in Legolas's arms. "I think that if we feed him enough, he'll be full grown in size within the week. Gladias Dragons get to be about a foot or two taller than your horse, Aragorn." Sealeaf hissed. It focused its attention to something hiding in the bushes a few yards away. "What is it, Sealeaf?" Legolas was surprised, he'd never seen the little dragon hiss and snarl like this before. Before anyone could move, Sealeaf used his very first magic spell, Fire Shot. A thin arrow-like shot of fire flew from his mouth and flashed into the bushes. A goblin leapt out, trying desperately to put out the fire on his arm. Legolas grabbed the goblin and pinned him to a tree. The fire went out and the goblin struggled to get out of Legolas's grasp. Terrico lifted up her staff and said a few magic words. Vines grew out of the ground at the foot of the tree and bound the goblin to the trunk. Legolas released his grip and backed away. The vines completely covered the goblin, with the exception of his head. "Why were you spying on us? Who sent you?" Terrico asked in a harsh voice. "You'll never know. Not till Sauron comes back!" The goblin laughed until Terrico ordered the vines to tighten. "We can do this easily or the hard way. I ask again, who sent you?" The goblin again refused to speak, so Terrico decided to use a new approach. She pulled out a tiny, smoky marble-sized orb from one of her pouches. She held it up for the goblin to see. "You know what this is. Don't make me use it." The goblin's smile faded, and he began to tremble. "No! No! Not that! I'll talk! I'll talk!" Terrico lowered the orb and again asked, "Who sent you?" "Driikk" The name made Terrico cringe. "I thought he was dead." The goblin laughed. "He is not dead! He's going to come for you, dark one! He'll get your magic, and he'll bring back the Dark Lord!" The goblin continued laughing, until Terrico threw the orb she held at him. The orb hit him on the head and exploded. The goblin disappeared in a puff of smoke. The vines fell empty. The orb reformed in the smoke and fell into Terrico's hand. "I warned you." She set the orb on top of her staff. Speaking again in a magic language, Terrico made the orb glow, until it looked as though it was only light. The orb sank into the ruby on her staff. Terrico smiled. The others stared in shock. "What did you do?" Legolas asked, as Sealeaf hid behind him. "I used a Soul Orb on him. It catches whomever it touches that is the foe of its bearer inside of it. I then used a Soul Claim spell on the orb to convert the goblin into a servant. You never wondered where my little flame-dragons came from, Legolas?" Terrico smiled. She held up her staff. The ruby glowed, and a new flame dragon came out. It had fins on the side of its head that reminded them of the bat-like ears of the goblin. "Go find Gandalf the wizard. Tell him that his apprentice awaits him at Bag End. Tell him that there is much danger near. Go!" The flame dragon took off. Terrico sighed and sat down on a rock. Legolas looked worried. "That just took more out of me than I thought it would," she said, "it has been a while since I have used those spells. My stamina is improving, but it is still weak." She laid her staff across her lap. Aragorn told his men to go and make camp in the empty field nearby. As they left, he spoke to Terrico. "Why did you cringe at the name of the goblin?" Terrico lowered her head and shook it. "Please do not ask me that. It is a part of my past that I wish to forget." Legolas sat next to her and put his arms around her. "If it troubles you, do not speak of it. Although we are curious, I think that Gandalf will be able to cure that when he arrives. Do not worry, I'm here. I won't let anything or anyone hurt you." Terrico gave him a weak smile. "My dear Legolas, I'm afraid that this is a foe that is too strong for any of us." She laid her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes. "Let me forget about it for now. I am tired."