A/N: This is just for those of you who have already read Chapter 28 when I first posted it. It was missing another part so I had to retype it because my computer (somehow) lost it. So I found the rest of the chapter and reposted it. Again, I'm sorry!
Addicted: I am so SORRY! Please don't die! Although, I must admit that your antics are very amusing, LOL! And, learn some patience, will ya? Just kidding!
Chapter 28
Legolas stood silently in the doorway to his father's library, observing the historians running back and forth among the vast number of shelves the room held. There were four historians in all, all of whom were older than his father. They had been serving the king for many years now and faithfully, too. The work of a royal historian was not easy at times. They were the ones responsible for recording such important events of the Elves of Mirkwood, whose history was so rich and full, it would cause those untrained to burst into tears at the sight of so many scrolls.
The library itself was well-kept and tidy for a kingdom with such history, and Legolas knew that it was all because of the four historians he now saw before him. All seemed to glow with pride for their station and it showed through the incredible organization of Mirkwood's documents.
Jhad came up behind him, also watching as the historians scurried about the room. Shortly after meeting with the king about their discoveries from Lady Adrianna's room, the chest and all its contents had been turned over to the historians. Jhad had thought that perhaps the mystery surrounding the curious map he had found would be revealed.
"Still afraid to come in here, I see," Jhad joked, softly. In their younger years they had always been afraid to enter the library for it was not exactly inviting. Although it was tidy and clean, it did not dispel the memories of dark and dreary shelves and stern, disapproving looks from the historians that the prince and his friends had of the place or its patrons.
Despite himself, Legolas smiled. "I do not think Mistress Mora has forgiven us for opening those windows," he returned, chuckling softly. The memory of four young elflings flinging open the windows of the library during a rainstorm flashed before his eyes. On that day, Thranduil had ordered Legolas to the library for his writing lessons. It had been during a rainstorm, which had made the library quite stuffy with its windows closed. His three friends had come to keep him company and that was when they had decided to let some air in, unaware that the wind had picked up. He remembered opening the windows, only to be knocked down by a furious wind. Mistress Mora had been screaming as she and the other historians had scrambled to shut the windows.
The library had been in shambles. Scrolls and scrolls of documents were strewn everywhere and a few shelves had been toppled over. Needless to say, Legolas and his friends had been the ones to clean up the mess.
"I do not doubt it," Jhad was now saying, poking him lightly with his elbow, "For she still throws us dark looks." They both looked in time to see the historian in question look up from her documents to give them her well-known frown.
Legolas smiled warmly at her, and chuckled when her frown deepened. She quickly returned to task at hand. "Despite the years, her frown has never changed," he said, "I am curious to know if she is of any relation to Velia the Dragon?"
Jhad sniggered into his hand, once again bringing Mora's eyes to them. He quickly turned it into a loud cough, turning his gaze from her. "Is she no longer pinning me with that death glare of hers?" he murmured, clearing his throat.
"Yes," Legolas answered, "She has gone back to the papers stacked before her, though Valar knows she's been sifting through them for the last eternity or so!"
Jhad frowned at the impatience in his friend's vice. "Something will be found, Legolas," he assured him, "Mistress Mora and the others have been trained in this station; we may take comfort in that knowledge."
Legolas sighed. "I cannot tell you of the frustrations I have felt since this whole ordeal, my friend," he admitted, "For it will take an entire lifetime, I fear. Many times have we been lead closer to finding Ziendriel and the others, only to have the opportunity snatched away from us. My heart begins to grow heavier with each passing moment."
"We will find her," Jhad told him, confidently, "We will. And then, I will have to tell Ziendriel that it was I who never gave up hope and that she will be better off bestowing her love upon me rather than you." He grinned cheekily.
Legolas growled. "If you desire to lose your head," he shot back, "Then by all means, do so." He eyes danced with the playful light that had been absent since his falling out with Ziendriel and Jhad was glad to see it return.
Before Jhad could reply, a sharp, "Milord!" ran through the room, snapping their attention back to the historians. All four were now assembled at the long table in the middle of the room, which was covered with parchments dating years back.
"Yes?" Legolas asked, walking towards them quickly. He stopped and stood opposite his elders and stood expectantly.
"We believe we have deciphered this mysterious map of yours," Master Tredir, the head historian, announced, "Will you have the explanation now or shall we wait for your father?"
Legolas turned to Jhad, who was already running out the door. "I will tell him!" he called over is shoulder. Moments later, he returned with the king in tow, Lorith and Gragoc behind him, followed by the captain of the guard, the captain's son and a few of the guards.
"Well?" Thranduil demanded, leaning over the table. Legolas smiled to himself; it was obvious where he received his impatience from.
"The map Lord Jhad has given us is most definitely of the kingdom," Master Tredir answered, unfazed by the irate monarch, "It is dated back to the first beginnings of the land, in fact."
"What of the red markings?" Jhad asked, pointing to the red circles.
Master Tredir cleared his throat, importantly. "During the birth of our great land," he began, "Our monarch thought it fit to create a safe haven for his people. The trees back then were not strong enough to hold flets, so it was decided that the earth itself would suffice."
Legolas looked puzzled, while his father looked surprise. "Ah, yes!" the king murmured, "How could I have forgotten?" He shook his head and mumbled something incoherent.
"I will not lie and say I understand," Legolas said, "I ask that you explain to me what my father obviously knows."
"There was still outside threats to our people, even as they settled peacefully in the land," Master Tredir continued, "So our monarch decided on a most uncharacteristic safe place for his people: underground caves." He laid Jhad's map atop everything else and pointed to one of the red markings. "This map tells of the location of all these underground caves dug centuries before, as well as their openings."
"We have also discovered a connection between this map and that of one of the documents found in this chest," Mistress Mora cut in, pulling out said document. She smoothed it down as she placed it next to the map. "This appears to be some sort of schedule," she explained, pointing to the list written upon the parchment.
Two columns were written upon the paper, divided by date and location number. Beside each date was a location number. The dates varied in days; there was at least two to three days in between each one and a different location to match. Several dates and locations at the top of the list had already been crossed off.
"She's been moving them," Legolas announced in surprise, peering closer at the schedule, "Adrianna has planned this all very well; she did not plan on getting caught." Only the historians, who had not been alerted to Lady Adrianna's involvement, were surprised at his comment.
He looked at the schedule once more and pointed to the date below the last one that had been crossed out. "The next move is not for another day," he announced, "Perhaps if we are quick enough, we will find the ladies here." He remembered Rwena speaking of the argument between her mistress and Tiri, explaining how Adrianna had refused to the idea of "moving something." His heart leapt into his throat. He knew that the two had quite the head start on them and wondered if catching them was possible.
Jhad seemed to read his mind. "We have Adrianna's plans now, Legolas," he told him, reassuringly, "There is no place she can hide."
Legolas nodded. "I suppose," he said, doubtfully. He grabbed both the schedule and the map and motioned for his three friends, as well as the captain and his son to follow him. As they headed down to the stables, Legolas studied the map. According to the two documents, the last location that the ladies were held was just east of the main hall, about half an hour's ride. This quickened his step as well as his heart and he urged his company to hasten.
Ziendriel stared down at the crumpled form that lay at her feet, her breath coming fast and ragged. She swiped her forehead with the back of her hand and wiped the sweat that collected there on the soiled skirt of her dress. She leaned heavily against the table in the cave, willing her heart to slow down.
She was exhausted and feared she would pass out if she did not get off her feet soon. She stumbled a bit as she tried to hop up on the table, her arms shaking violently as it struggled to support her weight. When she was finally able to set atop the table's surface, she exhaled loudly and slumped down.
Starvation and dehydration had zapped most of her energy, making her struggle with Adrianna most difficult. After Tiri had fled the cave, Adrianna had gone wild, and Ziendriel could still remember the haunted look the young lady had held in her eyes.
FLASHBACK
Ziendriel barely had time to press her hand to the wound on her arm before Adrianna was after her again. She dropped down to the floor and rolled beneath the table, hoping to put some distance between them. Adrianna was now steadily cursing her, spittle flying from her mouth. An occasional scream of fury escaped her lips as she sliced the air. She had lost all sense of reason and it seemed her only attempt was to bury the dagger in Ziendriel's heart.
Standing as quickly as her weakened body would allow, Ziendriel kicked away the remains of her bonds. She was pleased with her quick thinking of loosening the bonds as she rolled and hoped that she would have the opportunity to thank Gragoc for his lessons.
A second later, Adrianna charged her and Ziendriel saw that she was determined to kill her. Ziendriel braced herself and raised an arm to block off the attack. She grunted when her forearm came into contact with Adrianna's wrist, then yelped when she felt her body being slammed to the hard floor. Off in the distance, she heard the knife clatter to the floor, but did not have time to revel in it as Adrianna raked her nails down one side of Ziendriel's face.
Screaming at the pain, Ziendriel slapped her hand away, then bucked her body. Adrianna flew off of her, landing beside her, as she rolled away. Ziendriel exhaustedly got to her feet, holding her injured face, but keeping her eyes on her attacker. She was beginning to see flashes of light before her, indicating her body's struggle to stay conscious. She saw Adrianna also get to her feet, a look of pure hatred on her face.
Ziendriel frowned at her, not liking the emotions that raged inside her. Never before in her life had she held so much disdain for a person; it was a new sensation to her and she could feel its power surge through her weakened body. She did not like it, but felt that Adrianna was deserving of this emotion. The lady had tormented, tortured an starved her, a toll that was being taken heavily by her physical and emotional being. If she did not survive this, then she truly hoped that Adrianna's blade would give her the peace she needed.
Adrianna stood for a moment, staring hard at the woman before her. She felt her hands begin to shake from the hatred and anger she felt in her very being and began to growl lowly. She had worked so hard on her plan; it had been perfect! But now, it was all crumbling down around her and Adrianna knew that with Ziendriel's death, her secrets would remain quiet.
Ziendriel gasped as Adrianna once again charged her and turned to move away. However, in her exhausted state, she was not quick enough and felt Adrianna plow right into her back, shoving her against a wall of the cave. She was then turned around and slammed back into the wall, causing her vision to blur for just a moment. Hands squeezed encircled her neck, squeezing the air out of her, causing her to hoarsely cry out.
"Die, Ziendriel!" Adrianna told her, angrily, "Why won't you die?" She squeezed harder, pushing the other's body firmly against the wall.
With one hand, Ziendriel grasped Adrianna's arm, trying to get her to let go. It was a futile attempt, but she tried nonetheless. Adrianna, however, rewarded the action with a swift slam into the wall, causing Ziendriel to cry out. She then grabbed Ziendriel's arm and plunged it deeply into the low flame of the torch hanging nearby on the wall.
White light of pain exploded in Ziendriel's vision and she screamed in agony. But, Adrianna refused to cease her torment. With a deranged smile, she held Ziendriel's hand in the fire, relishing in the pain she was exacting. She began to laugh hysterically, smiling darkly at the tears that freely fell from her captive's eyes.
Desperate for relief, Ziendriel fought to keep her wits about her. She saw the delight at her pain in Adrianna's eyes and felt her anger rising. It did not matter that Adrianna's mind was no longer her own; Ziendriel would not allow herself to be the victim of someone who held such low regard for another living creature.
With what strength she had left, Ziendriel stomped hard on Adrianna's foot. The woman screamed in pain and released her prisoner, allowing Ziendriel to withdraw her hand from the fire. Without a second thought, she withdrew her good hand back and delivered a sound punch to Adrianna's nose. The girl screamed in fury and clutched her nose as she fell to her knees.
Ziendriel did not hesitate. She pulled back her leg and kicked Adrianna square in the stomach, causing her to double over. Then, she delivered a hard blow to the back of the lady's head with her curled fist, wincing as her fingers made contact. Only when Adrianna slumped unconsciously to the floor, did Ziendriel exhale.
END FLASHBLACK
Ziendriel shook her head, clearing her thoughts. Her eye lids felt heavy and she felt as if she could just drop down dead at any moment. But, the reality of her situation jarred her from doing so, bringing her eyes back to Adrianna.
She lay in a crumpled heap on the stone floor, obviously still unconscious. Ziendriel did not know how long she would remain so and took the liberty of tying her (as best she could) to one of the table legs. Favoring her injured hand, she tied the knot as best she could, thinking at the back of her mind, Best not tell Lorith of this not. He will be sorely disappointed that I obviously did not pay close attention to his knot tying lessons.
Once that was done, Ziendriel placed one of the bell-shaped sleeves of her drees between her teeth and with her good hand, ripped a piece off. She quickly bandaged her hand, noticing the blackened skin mixed with angry red welts. She would deal with it later, but for now, she needed to get out of the cave.
She slowly made her way towards the corridor, her steps slow and deliberate. Her head was once again beginning to spin, but she knew that she had to keep moving. There were other lowly burning torches along the wall, giving her little light, but she kept moving. The corridor was much colder than the cave had been and she could feel puddles of water soaking her bare feet as she stepped into them.
It seemed to take an eternity for her to reach the end of the passageway, stumbling as she did. As she saw the end coming upon her, she felt her heart lighten a bit at the anticipation of finally being free from the darkness that had held her for so long. With each step, she could imagine stepping out into the deliciously warm sunshine and being surrounded by the forest's smells of life.
With renewed hope, she urged her feet faster, her hand groping along the wall. She stumbled again and braced herself against the wall, then moved once again. She soon found herself at the end of the tunnel and felt her heart still.
Instead of the opening to the cave as she expected, the corridor broke off into three separate tunnels, each going in a different direction before her. She stared dumbly at them, then felt her knees buckle. She slumped down to the floor, staring at the floor.
Ziendriel felt her hope slipping once again as the taunts of Adrianna came floating back to her. "Do not even think of attempting to escape," she had told her, "These caves go on forever. One wrong move and you could be lost down here and no one would ever find you!"
The words sunk into her head and Ziendriel did the only thing her mind could think of: she burst into tears.
As they neared their destination, Legolas easily hopped off his horse and took off running. His three friends soon joined him as they searched the area, looking for any sign of an opening to the underground caves they had been told about. The four of them each took a different direction and peered into the forest before them.
Consulting the map in his hand, Legolas nodded to himself. They were in the vicinity of the cave, they just needed to find the opening. He glanced around him, taking in the trees and bushes. On an impulse, he began to knock on the trunks of the great trees, tuning his ears to the solid sounds that responded. He did this to several other trees nearby before finally abandoning the act all together.
He was just beginning to walk investigate a curious looking growth of bushes when Andalith and his son and men trotted up on their horses. Andalith dismounted his horse before speaking to the prince. "My son has something most important to say, milord." He motioned to the younger Elf, who nodded and also dismounted.
Adenlain stepped before Legolas and said, "This was the area we caught Grien Whitesun in. When he appeared, it was as if he had done so out of the mist. We do not know how or why he had come to be here."
"Do you suppose he had just come from the cave?" Legolas asked. When Adenlain nodded, he added, "Do you recall the area or direction in which he came from?"
Again, Adenlain nodded. "We captured him as he stepped out from that thick growth there," he answered, motioning to the close cluster of trees that Gragoc was standing near to.
Legolas let out a low whistle to his friend. "Check within those trees!" he called, already making his way over. He saw Gragoc hold up his hand in acknowledgement and step in between the wall that the trees formed.
When he stepped within the ring himself, Lorith and Jhad were doing the same. Legolas glanced around; there was nothing within the circle that remotely resembled a secret opening to a cave. There was just trees and dirt.
"What do we do know?" Andalith asked, concerned. He did not like the idea of three abducted maidens being held in a dark underground cave. He, himself had a daughter around the ages of the kidnapped ladies and could not think of the horror the girl's parents were going through.
Legolas began to pace. "I do not know," he answered, softly, "Perhaps the entrance is beyond these trees." He turned to address the rest of their group, but caught his foot on something in the ground. It sent him flying to the ground.
All the men rushed to him, but found the prince staring curiously at his foot. They watched as he got on his knees and began to brush the dirt away from the object that had tripped him.
"What is it?" Lorith asked, frowning, "A tree root?"
Legolas grabbed at the object and felt the cold hardness of metal. "No," he replied, tugging at it slightly. It did not budge, so Legolas began to dig around it. His heart began to pound with anticipation with each handful of dirt that was scooped away, watching as something emerged from below. He sat back on his haunches and smiled triumphantly when he had uncovered it.
A secret door sat between their semi circle of men, looking worse for wear. Legolas pulled at the metal loop that served as a latch and watched as the door opened, its ancient hinges groaning in protest. He let the door fall to the ground with a large thud and peered down into its opening.
"Stairs!" Gragoc murmured, unsure if his eyes were deceiving him or not.
Legolas straightened up and dusted his hands. He suddenly felt apprehensive about entering the cave, almost to the point where he could not move from his spot. He looked apologetically at Gragoc, who immediately said, "We will go and fetch the ladies." He smiled understandingly at the prince, who sheepishly smiled back.
As Legolas watched his three friends disappear beneath the ground, he felt foolish for not going. The truth was, he was afraid to face Ziendriel. He did not want to look at her and see the accusations in her eyes. Accusations of putting her and her sister in harm's way for he felt responsible for all of it. He also did not know if she had forgiven him yet for the silly wager and betraying her. At the moment, he did not want to know.
After what seemed like an eternity, he heard Gragoc's deep voice drift up through the opening. It was muffled and incoherent and Legolas found himself leaning over the trap door and yelling, "What?!" No answer came, except for footsteps coming closer.
Lorith came first, carefully climbing the steps with a curled up Ariel Yalith in his arms. She had her face buried in his neck as her arms were wrapped tightly around him and Legolas could see that she was sobbing. Lorith, however, had a silly grin on his face, which only puzzled the prince.
Gragoc came next with Elyse Silverstream. She was carefully draped in his arms, but her arms fell limply to her sides. She, too, had tears in her eyes as Gragoc brought her out into the fresh air, causing her to blink when the sunshine hit her.
Both girls were dirty and disheveled, but alright from what Legolas could tell. Probably terribly shaken, but they were safe now. Anxiously, he turned back to the opening just as Jhad came up. He took a deep breath and stepped closer to the prince, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"There was only one cave down there, Legolas," he told him softly, "Elyse and Ariel were the only ones held there."
Legolas stared at him, his mind not understanding.
"Ziendriel is not here." The statement came from Andalith, whispered from behind the prince.
Legolas whirled around to face him, then just as quickly turned his eyes to that of the trap door. For one insane moment, he considered tearing down those stairs to investigate for himself. But, the logical part of his mind prevailed and he remained rooted to the ground. He knew that what the captain said was true, knew that Jhad would have torn the cave apart in his search. He knew this, yet his heart did not want to.
He felt himself sink down to the ground, a lone tear slipping down his cheek. He took a deep breath and in the next instant, let out a soul-wrenching, heart-breaking howl.