Disclaimer: LOTR belongs to the creative genius of JRR Tolkien, not me.
Chapter 7. A Shining Light
Haldir had sent the elves in his group back to Lothlorien bearing the sad tidings and it was with heavy hearts that the Rivendell elves also prepared to return home. They had grown to know and respect Legolas as they journeyed and fought together and they feared what the orcs would do to him. The twins could not believe that their friend was lost and refused to leave him to such a fate,
"If orcs took Legolas, there must be a trail to follow, we intend to stay until we find him, dead or alive" said Elrohir.
"You are letting grief cloud your judgement. It is much too dangerous to stay here," said Haldir. Elladan smiled sadly and commented wryly,
"It would be just as dangerous for us to return to Mirkwood without Legolas."
"True, Thranduil will likely blame you two for his loss" Haldir agreed
"He is our friend, our fellow warrior, we will risk the danger to find him." Elrohir said defiantly. "He would do the same for us."
"Of that I have no doubt." Haldir sighed, accepting their determination "so be it, we will continue the search. I have been hunting orcs since before you two were born." he reminded them when he noticed the startled look on their faces. "After all, if something was to befall either of you, I would have to answer to Elrond." Once the others had gone their separate ways, Haldir and the twins began the search for an orc trail and the lost prince.
******
The messenger from Lothlorien watched nervously as King Thranduil read the letter from Lord Celeborn; he knew of the sad news he carried and hoped that the volatile king would not choose to direct any outburst at him. Thranduil clenched his jaw in an effort to control his anger and there was a hardness born of grief in his eyes. He screwed the letter into a ball and threw it onto the floor. His worst nightmare had been realised and his beloved son was missing, assumed to have been captured by orcs. Overwhelmed with sadness, he dismissed the messenger and stumbled backwards into his armchair and wept. The steward entered the King's chamber quietly and waited for Thranduil to acknowledge him,
"It is a sad day for Mirkwood, my lord" he said, reluctant to disturb the king at this moment, even though he had been summoned to the throne room.
"Yes" Thranduil managed to say, "please ask everyone to leave the audience chamber, I wish to be alone. Also inform my guards to make ready to travel to Rivendell as soon as possible, I have much to discuss with Elrond."
The journey was a solemn one, all the elves of Mirkwood grieved for Legolas. As the king's entourage rode through the arched gates, Elrond was there to meet them. The hunters had returned a few days before, bringing with them the sad message.
"Greetings Thranduil," he said."these are sad times for us all." Thranduil gave a small nod and said,
"Have you heard anything more?" he asked, afraid to hear the worst but needing to know.
"Yes, but I think we should discuss this somewhere more private than the hallway" he suggested as he ushered Thranduil into his library. "Perhaps you would like a glass of wine?" Thranduil raised his eyebrow in surprise at the unexpected hospitality and accepted the offered glass.
"Thank you." He said with a polite bow. It was a good wine and he found that it helped deaden the pain of his grief. He pulled the letter he had received from Celeborn out of his belt and handed it to Elrond. "This arrived several days ago." Elrond read the letter; it only confirmed his fears,
"It is just as Mithrandir suspected. He thought that there was a vast orc army near Moria and he was worried because he had no word of the Dwarves there for some time."
"That is disturbing news," Thranduil said. "The shadow grows ever longer over Mirkwood and it appears as if the Dark Lord's forces are mounting, history is being repeated."
"I see that Celeborn reports the army of orcs is large, perhaps thousands strong and they appear to be more adventurous, even raiding in the Lady Galadriel's woods." Elrond noted the worried look on Thranduil's face, and whilst he knew his sons to still be alive, he was nonetheless concerned about the danger they were facing. He understood the elf's grief, for they were both fathers, the one thing they could claim to have in common.
"My son's hunting party reports that they had spent the next day looking for Legolas, to no avail, I am sorry to say. Haldir remains with Elladan and Elrohir to help them continue the search. Apparently they refuse to give up hope."
"That is good to hear," said Thranduil as he watched the fire flickering. "Even though there is no love lost between you and I, Elrond, I have admit that I have a great deal of respect for your sons, and for their friendship with mine" he commented.
"And I am pleased my sons call him friend, for Legolas is such a delightful soul, he is one who commands the respect of his title." He smiled as he thought to himself that Galadriel would be pleased (and very surprised) to hear us speaking like this. "I will send for the hunters who have returned and you may question them if you wish."
*********
As he fell down the slope, Legolas berated himself for losing his footing, such a stupid error, made worse when his head struck the edge of a rock ledge, sending him into unconsciousness. When he awoke, Legolas found that he had fallen into a deep but narrow crevasse, his head was spinning and he could feel that he had broken some of his ribs. It was still dark, and far in the distance he could just make out the sounds of the battle. Haldir must have ordered them away from the area, possibly to Lothlorien, they would not be searching for him tonight. Straining to listen had not improved his headache and he decided to try to rest until dawn, hoping that his injuries would have begun to heal.
When he awoke his body felt very stiff and sore from the cramped position he was lying in but he felt only a slight headache. Although his ribs were still quite painful, he managed to stand and looked around for a way out. He knew he did not have the strength to scale the crevasse, but he noticed that there was an opening on the ledge just above his head, possibly the mouth of one of the many caves he knew to be in this area. With great difficulty and much pain he climbed the short distance and saw that indeed it was a cave, and as he entered he could feel the slight waft of a breeze indicating a tunnel. Legolas did not really wish to venture into the dark underground, but since it was his only means of reaching the surface, he had no choice. The natural glow of his own elven light was very dim as he walked, and he thought of his mother's jewel that he wore under his shirt. To his amazement, it shone brightly, as if it had an inner source of energy, illuminating the pathway which he hoped lead to the surface.
The tunnel had sloped up at a slight angle and when he reached the exit, Legolas realised he was back in the foothills; his senses telling him that there were orcs not too far away. Although he had lost his bow in the fall, he still had his knives, for which he was grateful. Looking around to get his bearings, he saw the golden glow of the woods of Lothlorien to the east. He wondered if Greenwood the Great had shone so before the shadow had began encompassing it, whenever he looked over his home now all there was to be seen was an ever-increasing darkness and shadow. Mirkwood was a very appropriate name for it now. After resting for a short while to allow the pain in his ribs to settle, Legolas turned east and headed for the safety of Lothlorien.
Chapter 7. A Shining Light
Haldir had sent the elves in his group back to Lothlorien bearing the sad tidings and it was with heavy hearts that the Rivendell elves also prepared to return home. They had grown to know and respect Legolas as they journeyed and fought together and they feared what the orcs would do to him. The twins could not believe that their friend was lost and refused to leave him to such a fate,
"If orcs took Legolas, there must be a trail to follow, we intend to stay until we find him, dead or alive" said Elrohir.
"You are letting grief cloud your judgement. It is much too dangerous to stay here," said Haldir. Elladan smiled sadly and commented wryly,
"It would be just as dangerous for us to return to Mirkwood without Legolas."
"True, Thranduil will likely blame you two for his loss" Haldir agreed
"He is our friend, our fellow warrior, we will risk the danger to find him." Elrohir said defiantly. "He would do the same for us."
"Of that I have no doubt." Haldir sighed, accepting their determination "so be it, we will continue the search. I have been hunting orcs since before you two were born." he reminded them when he noticed the startled look on their faces. "After all, if something was to befall either of you, I would have to answer to Elrond." Once the others had gone their separate ways, Haldir and the twins began the search for an orc trail and the lost prince.
******
The messenger from Lothlorien watched nervously as King Thranduil read the letter from Lord Celeborn; he knew of the sad news he carried and hoped that the volatile king would not choose to direct any outburst at him. Thranduil clenched his jaw in an effort to control his anger and there was a hardness born of grief in his eyes. He screwed the letter into a ball and threw it onto the floor. His worst nightmare had been realised and his beloved son was missing, assumed to have been captured by orcs. Overwhelmed with sadness, he dismissed the messenger and stumbled backwards into his armchair and wept. The steward entered the King's chamber quietly and waited for Thranduil to acknowledge him,
"It is a sad day for Mirkwood, my lord" he said, reluctant to disturb the king at this moment, even though he had been summoned to the throne room.
"Yes" Thranduil managed to say, "please ask everyone to leave the audience chamber, I wish to be alone. Also inform my guards to make ready to travel to Rivendell as soon as possible, I have much to discuss with Elrond."
The journey was a solemn one, all the elves of Mirkwood grieved for Legolas. As the king's entourage rode through the arched gates, Elrond was there to meet them. The hunters had returned a few days before, bringing with them the sad message.
"Greetings Thranduil," he said."these are sad times for us all." Thranduil gave a small nod and said,
"Have you heard anything more?" he asked, afraid to hear the worst but needing to know.
"Yes, but I think we should discuss this somewhere more private than the hallway" he suggested as he ushered Thranduil into his library. "Perhaps you would like a glass of wine?" Thranduil raised his eyebrow in surprise at the unexpected hospitality and accepted the offered glass.
"Thank you." He said with a polite bow. It was a good wine and he found that it helped deaden the pain of his grief. He pulled the letter he had received from Celeborn out of his belt and handed it to Elrond. "This arrived several days ago." Elrond read the letter; it only confirmed his fears,
"It is just as Mithrandir suspected. He thought that there was a vast orc army near Moria and he was worried because he had no word of the Dwarves there for some time."
"That is disturbing news," Thranduil said. "The shadow grows ever longer over Mirkwood and it appears as if the Dark Lord's forces are mounting, history is being repeated."
"I see that Celeborn reports the army of orcs is large, perhaps thousands strong and they appear to be more adventurous, even raiding in the Lady Galadriel's woods." Elrond noted the worried look on Thranduil's face, and whilst he knew his sons to still be alive, he was nonetheless concerned about the danger they were facing. He understood the elf's grief, for they were both fathers, the one thing they could claim to have in common.
"My son's hunting party reports that they had spent the next day looking for Legolas, to no avail, I am sorry to say. Haldir remains with Elladan and Elrohir to help them continue the search. Apparently they refuse to give up hope."
"That is good to hear," said Thranduil as he watched the fire flickering. "Even though there is no love lost between you and I, Elrond, I have admit that I have a great deal of respect for your sons, and for their friendship with mine" he commented.
"And I am pleased my sons call him friend, for Legolas is such a delightful soul, he is one who commands the respect of his title." He smiled as he thought to himself that Galadriel would be pleased (and very surprised) to hear us speaking like this. "I will send for the hunters who have returned and you may question them if you wish."
*********
As he fell down the slope, Legolas berated himself for losing his footing, such a stupid error, made worse when his head struck the edge of a rock ledge, sending him into unconsciousness. When he awoke, Legolas found that he had fallen into a deep but narrow crevasse, his head was spinning and he could feel that he had broken some of his ribs. It was still dark, and far in the distance he could just make out the sounds of the battle. Haldir must have ordered them away from the area, possibly to Lothlorien, they would not be searching for him tonight. Straining to listen had not improved his headache and he decided to try to rest until dawn, hoping that his injuries would have begun to heal.
When he awoke his body felt very stiff and sore from the cramped position he was lying in but he felt only a slight headache. Although his ribs were still quite painful, he managed to stand and looked around for a way out. He knew he did not have the strength to scale the crevasse, but he noticed that there was an opening on the ledge just above his head, possibly the mouth of one of the many caves he knew to be in this area. With great difficulty and much pain he climbed the short distance and saw that indeed it was a cave, and as he entered he could feel the slight waft of a breeze indicating a tunnel. Legolas did not really wish to venture into the dark underground, but since it was his only means of reaching the surface, he had no choice. The natural glow of his own elven light was very dim as he walked, and he thought of his mother's jewel that he wore under his shirt. To his amazement, it shone brightly, as if it had an inner source of energy, illuminating the pathway which he hoped lead to the surface.
The tunnel had sloped up at a slight angle and when he reached the exit, Legolas realised he was back in the foothills; his senses telling him that there were orcs not too far away. Although he had lost his bow in the fall, he still had his knives, for which he was grateful. Looking around to get his bearings, he saw the golden glow of the woods of Lothlorien to the east. He wondered if Greenwood the Great had shone so before the shadow had began encompassing it, whenever he looked over his home now all there was to be seen was an ever-increasing darkness and shadow. Mirkwood was a very appropriate name for it now. After resting for a short while to allow the pain in his ribs to settle, Legolas turned east and headed for the safety of Lothlorien.