Chapter 29
In a room high above the gardens of the palace, Grien Whitesun sat in the middle of the floor, his legs crossed and his back slumped. He hummed softly as his fingers deftly worked the piece of charcoal over a sheet of parchment, concentrating on the lines and shadows that he drew. Every now and again he would stop for a moment, looking down at his sketch with an expert eye, then resume with his artistic talent.
The door to the room suddenly opened, allowing a tall and willowy she-elf to step into the room. Her doe-like hazel eyes glanced at Grien sitting on the floor, happily absorbed in one of his sketches, then refused the guard's offer to accompany her inside. She waited until the guard closed the door to step forward.
"Grien," she called softly to him, "Grien, please look at me." She kneeled down next to him, placing her hand on his shoulder.
It was then that he did so, his eyes confused for a moment as he focused on her. A bright smile appeared a moment later. "Arden!" he exclaimed, happily, reaching over to give her a hug, "How nice to see you! Do you not think this room beautiful?" He gestured to the eloquently decorated room that now served as his prison cell. Despite the wonderful warmth that permeated from the room's interior, it was slightly marred by the presence of the two guards stationed at the door and two more at the window.
Arden Whitesun smiled sadly at her brother. She knew what he was doing now, for she had witnessed the same thing many times during their childhood. Grien was retreating into his mind, into his own world where everything and everyone was perfectly and blissfully happy. It was a defense mechanism her brother had developed when he experienced an unsettling moment in life and she had not worried about him in the past.
Until now.
Word had reached her quickly about Grien's imprisonment, which had puzzled her greatly. She knew her brother to be a kind and gentle soul, with no indication towards the criminality. When questioned, the guard had merely cited the offense as an accomplice to a crime, which further confused her.
That is, until she saw the object of her brother's sketch. She leaned closer to him, watching as his fingers lovingly outline the slender cheek of an Elf-maiden, softly shaded in the light of her silken strands of hair. She watched for a moment longer, feeling her anger beginning to rise as the face of the maiden finally came into view.
Adrianna! She thought angrily to herself. Her thoughts went back to the sight she had stumbled upon a few days ago while looking for her brother. She had entered his bedchambers after knocking, expecting to see him sitting at his desk, his sketches strewn all about him. Instead, the room had been empty, but his walls were not. Three walls of the room were plastered with sketches, all of an Elf-maiden. Upon closer inspection she had been quite surprised to see that it was the face of Adrianna Roseleaf staring back at her.
At first she had been amused at her brother's obvious fancy for the young lady, but that had turned to suspicion when Adrianna had begun to come around, looking for Grien. Always demanding to see him at the most inopportune moments, always talking his ear off. And Arden did not like the fact that Grien always accommodated her, the smile on his face telling all of his willingness to do so.
From what the king had told her, Adrianna had somehow convinced her brother to kidnap and hide three ladies, all of whom were well known to her. To know that someone had taken advantage of the trusting and loyal nature of her brother infuriated her; she was truly convinced that Adrianna Roseleaf was an Elven sorceress.
"Arden?" Grien was now saying, staring curiously at his sister. She broke away from her thoughts and refocused on him with a small smile.
"All is well, Grien," she told him, patting his shoulder, "Or it will be when all is said and done." She slowly got to her feet and gave him one more smile before adding, "You stay here and finish your sketches, brother. I will return soon." She gently kissed his forehead as one would a child.
"Alright," Grien replied, smiling. He returned to his drawings, humming once again.
Arden looked down at him, shaking her head slightly, then turned and walked towards the door. As she stepped out of the room, she thought how horrible it was that Adrianna had done this to her brother, absolutely horrible! She knew that in her heart, Adrianna was the one to blame for everything that her brother was now going through and she was going to make sure that the little witch paid for it!
Tiri stumbled as she quickly made her way up the steps to the front hall of the palace, her breathing coming in short pants. With great difficult, she reached the top of the stairs and immediately staggered into the front hall, her eyes wildly searching the nearly empty corridor.
Her eyes fell upon one of the chambermaids as she exited the staircase and quickly ran to her. "The prince!" she gasped, "Where is he?"
The other servant, a girl by the name of Rose, stared at her strangely. "I do not know," she answered, then winced as Tiri's grasp on her arm tightened. "Tiri, are you alright?" she asked.
At this, the young servant's eyes filled with tears and she began to openly sob. "NO!" she screamed, stilling all movement and sound near her, "I need to speak with the prince; she's going to kill her!" She hiccupped throughout the last sentence, her body violently jerking as she did so.
"What is all the commotion about?" Erom, the head valet demanded as he walked over to the pair. His eyes widened when he saw Tiri violently sobbing into the shoulder of another servant. With a snap of his fingers, he signaled two guards stationed nearby and ordered them to take Tiri into the throne room. He sent Rose to the House of Healing to fetch the prince.
Tiri sat on the bottom steps of the dais, crying her heart out. She was in so much trouble, she was sure she would be banished from the land. She cried harder at the thought of being separated from her mother and father and her duties that she loved so much. But, a life hung in the balance and she knew that she needed help.
A few moments later, the prince came stomping into the throne room, a look of dark anger clouding his handsome face. Although frightened by him, Tiri nonetheless ran and threw herself at his feet and his mercy.
"Please, milord!" she begged, keeping her face to the floor, hysteria rising in her voice, "She's going to kill her! You have to stop her! She's going to kill her!"
Legolas stared down at the pitiful creature before him, trying to comprehend what she was rambling on a bout. He bent down and roughly grabbed her by her upper arms and forced her to look at him. "What is this that you speak of?" he demanded, shaking her slightly, "You make no sense!" He roughly released her, causing her to tumble back to the floor.
Tiri glance up at him, the tears coursing down her cheeks. "You have to stop Mistress Adrianna!" she exclaimed, hiccupping every so often, "She's going to kill Lady Ziendriel!" She noisily sniffed and brushed her eyes with the back of her hand.
At this, Legolas stiffened. "What?!" he demanded, startling everyone around him. He swooped down to her and once again grasped her by the arms. "What is this you speak of? How do you know this?"
In a great rush of breath, Tiri relayed all the events of the last hour or so, telling them of how Adrianna had been convinced that killing Ziendriel was the only way to keep everything secret. She then told them of the state the two ladies had been in when she had fled, seeking help.
"Mistress Adrianna is no longer herself," Tiri continued, once her tale was done and she had considerably calmed down, "She wielded that dagger with the hands of a madman!"
Legolas and the rest of them had listened quietly to her tale, their fears growing as each detail was revealed. They could sense no subterfuge in the servant's voice or tale, only sincere worry. The realization of what Tiri had just told them hit him hard in the stomach: there was a good possibility that Ziendriel lay dead or wounded in one of the underground caves of the land.
He felt the bile rise in his throat and his knees buckle. His hand shot out to grab onto the nearest arm, which belonged to Gragoc and steadied himself. His head was slightly spinning and his heart was beating painfully in his ears.
"We must go now and find out for ourselves," Gragoc was telling him, reading the look of despair on his face. He gripped his friends shoulders and shook him slightly.
Legolas shook his head. "What chance does Ziendriel have against that of a crazed mind?" he whispered, the haunted look in his eyes returning, He shook his head again, feeling his already down-trodden heart breaking.
Lorith stalked up to him and slapped him hard across his cheek. He stared angrily at his friend, his breathing short and rapid. He tired of seeing the despair on his friend's face, which had been quite often and it angered him. "Have you no faith in our Ziendriel?" he demanded, "How can you claim to love her when your heart gives up so easily? A true heart would never give into despair over its loved one. Look at you! We have come this far, why would it be for naught?"
Legolas stood there, staring at him at first in shock, then anger. He roughly pushed Lorith away, his teeth bared back like a warg. "Do not speak of things that you have no knowledge of!" he yelled, his hands curling into fists, "What know ye of love or of my heart? Nothing! For the past several days my heart has survived on nothing but hope! Ziendriel has never been out of my heart and she never will be. So do not speak to me of not being worthy of her love!"
Jhad stepped in between the two angry Elf-lords and calmly placed his hands on Legolas' shoulders. "No one is accusing you of it, my friend," he told him softly, "We are all strung with high emotions; these outbursts must be forgiven." He looked pointedly at Lorith who immediately looked abashed and bowed his head. "We must concentrate now on finding Ziendriel and bringing her home," he added.
Legolas nodded, feeling his anger dissipate. Jhad had always had a way of defusing his anger, even as a young boy. He knew he would always marvel at his friend's level-headedness. He walked over to Lorith and clasped his arm. "Forgive me, my friend," he murmured.
Lorith looked gratefully at him. "And I," he murmured back. The two shared a small smile before Lorith added, "Come, let us find your lady." He turned to Tiri, who had by now been helped to her feet by Gragoc. "Show us where they are," he commanded, "And do not think to test our wrath for you will not come out the better!" There was a definite warning in his voice.
Tiri, who had been so moved by the prince's speech that fresh tears were now falling, simply nodded. "Of course, milord," she replied with a curtsey. She allowed herself to be led to the stables where she was fitted with a horse. She knew of the gravity of her part in her mistress' plan and therefore did not flinch when Gragoc hopped up behind her. When everyone else had mounted their horses, she pointed south.
Without a word, Gragoc nudged the horse forward, then hold on to both the horse and the servant tightly as the animal broke out into a furious run. He heard the steeds behind him do the same.
They traveled like that for quite awhile, until Tiri motioned him to turn right. He did so and the others followed suit. They went tramping through the forest, scaring birds from their nests and animals out of their paths. Gragoc did not know where they were headed, but hoped that they were not too far off from their destination.
His hope was answered when Tiri told him to slow down and head over into a specific cluster of trees. Gragoc did so, then stopped short of one of them. He dismounted first, then helped Tiri down. He turned at the sound of the others catching up, then told Tiri to lead them on.
She stepped between two large oak trees that served as the opening to a large clearing within the forest and quickly glanced around. All before them great formations of rock rose from the ground, all covered with a mixture of moss and grass and several types of foliage.
Legolas glanced around, then to the ground. They had found a trap door leading to the other cave; would it be the same with this one. Turning to the servant girl, he noticed her staring at the rocks and understood immediately. He demanded, "Well, which one is it?"
Tiri stood there, her eyes darting between the rock formations before her, the blood draining from her face. "I-I don't know!" she suddenly exclaimed, much to everyone's disbelief. "Mistress Adrianna was always the one to open the secret entrance," she explained, "And she usually visited Lady Ziendriel alone. I do not know how or which rock formation is opened."
Legolas let out a steady stream of curses, his eyes blazing with anger. He wanted to hit something, hit it hard, but knew that at the moment it was not possible. Instead, he slowly took a breath and cleared his head. He concentrated on his breathing until he felt his anger lessen, then turned to his friends. "Check all of the rocks," he commanded, "There must be some kind of lever or switch to open the door."
The others quickly obeyed, each flying to one formation of their choosing. Legolas stepped towards the nearest one and began to tap on it with the blade of one of his white knives. The knives that he carried had seen much battle and had always brought him victory. He just hoped that that luck would hold out.
Ziendriel did not know how long she had been sitting there crying, but once her tears had started to dry, she could feel the numbness in her legs start to spread to her backside. Wiping away her tears with her grimy hands, she sniffled noisily, then struggled to her feet. She felt foolish for crying over her predicament, but the outburst had been a much needed release. She felt better, her shoulders lighter, her head clearer. She struggled to her feet, for she was still weak and stared at the fork in her path before her.
She honestly had no idea which way to go and could not think of way to determine her path. She knew she did not want to go further into the cave, but had no sense of direction within its confines.
She stood there, deep in thought, trying to think of something, anything, to help her on her way. She was not thinking very long when a sound suddenly reached her ears, causing her to jump a little. She strained her ears towards the sound, which was coming from back within in the cave. She listened for a moment, then was rewarded for her efforts with a low groan and a loud curse.
Adrianna is awake! She thought, still listening, No doubt she is very unhappy with the turn of events! She chuckled to herself, then slowly made her way back towards the cave. If she was going to get out of this cave, she knew Adrianna was her best hope of doing so. But, Ziendriel also knew that she shouldn't hold her breath..
"Ha!" Adrianna screeched, as Ziendriel rounded the corner, "I knew you would still be here!" She grinned hatefully, then taunted, "What's the matter, dear? Can't find your way out?" She burst into laughter, as if it was the funnies thing she had ever heard.
"If you wish to live, then I urge you to tell me the way out," Ziendriel pleaded, stepping closer to her, "Please, Adrianna! I know you do not desire to spend a minute longer in this dreary place!" She held her breath.
Adrianna stared darkly at her, her sneer returning. "It does not matter now, you idiot!" she yelled, "If I stay or if I leave, I will die! By now that fool of a servant Tiri has no doubt confessed to everything, branding me a marked woman! I will not die nor suffer exile because of you!" She spit at her, her entire face contorted with anger. "If my fate is to perish in this cave, then I will take you with me!" she screamed, then laughed once more.
Ziendriel stared at her, the pity clear in her eyes. The poor maiden had evidently lost her mind and Ziendriel knew there was no sense in trying to talk to her. She was on her own.
Leaving Adrianna in her world of madness, Ziendriel slowly made her way back down the corridor, then stopped once again at the fork in the tunnel. She stood there, glancing at the three passageways in turn, pushing aside the hopelessness she felt. The cold of the tunnel slowly seeped back into her bones, the worn and torn material of her dress not doing much to warm her. She shivered as she felt a small wind swirl around her feet, then returned her eyes to her dilemma.
She was contemplating going for the tunnel straight ahead, for its path slightly climbed up, when the thought suddenly hit her.
The wind.
She was shivering because there had been a wind. The caves were underground, but Adrianna had told her that they had once been used as safe havens for the first inhabitants of Mirkwood. Would they have built air shafts to allow the wind in? She wondered. She stepped out into the middle of the junction and waited patiently for another small gust. She was almost immediately rewarded as one blew around her and she immediately turned her face towards the source. It seemed to be coming from the path just off to her right.
She turned towards that path and slowly inched her way down. She placed her good hand against the wall, hoping to brace herself against any unseen obstacles. For a moment she silently cursed herself for not taking a torch with her, but pushed the thought aside. She was getting closer to her freedom and she would not turn back now.
She continued her way, inch by inch, slowly and carefully, resting every so often. She was growing weaker by the moment and she could feel her body slowly surrendering itself to it. She could only pray now that her strength would hold until she was released from this tomb.
She could only guess how long she had been traveling along her path when her hands finally felt the wall connect with the end of the tunnel. It surprised her for a moment, then she eagerly felt along it for the door to her freedom. She moved along the end wall, her fingers running over the smooth, hard stone, looking for anything that resembled a door: wood, hinges, etc.
After a moment, her heart dropped straight to her feet when she realized there wasn't one. She pushed against the wall, thinking it to be a secret door, but did not feel it move. She leaned against the wall, sighing. How could I have been wrong? She asked herself, The wind was coming from this direction; I feel it now. How could I have been wrong?
She slightly slumped down, sighing again. She supposed she would need to travel back town the tunnel to start over, but the thought of-
What was that? The thought broke through, causing her to straighten up. She had felt another gust of wind, but something was different. She stood still for a moment, then smiled when she felt it rush over her skin. It was rushing down upon her, not across her!
Instinctively, she glanced up and nearly screamed when she saw a small circle of light just above her head. She looked down to the floor and saw an exact duplicate sitting there. She did not know why she hadn't noticed the small sliver of light filtering into the dimly lit tunnel, but there it was.
I was right! She thought to herself, ecstatic. The roof of the tunnel was not much higher than her head, but she nonetheless needed to tip toe to touch the hole. She stuck her finger through it, delighting in the sudden warmth she felt. The sun! She thought, excitedly. She wiggled her finger, then slowly pulled it out.
Some dirt and rock fell away as he finger was taken away, trickling down on her. Ziendriel looked at the hole and was surprised to see that it had become slightly bigger. She stared at it for a moment longer, and then suddenly remembered the table back in the cave.
Adrianna said these caves are centuries old, She thought, Perhaps like the table, everything else built during that time is deteriorating. To test her theory, she stuck her finger back into the hole and violently wiggled it. She nearly screamed in delight when more dirt trickled down on her head, followed by a few small chunks of rock. The hole was now the size of a man's fist, allowing a lot more sunlight in. She smiled despite the dirt that now covered her face and hair, then glanced around for something to assist in her excavation.
She found an old and discarded torch that lay near the end wall of the tunnel and tested its strength. It held when she attempted to bend it. She began to hit the hole she had formed, ducking out of the way when a large clump of dirt and rocks came falling. She smiled once again and continued to hit the roof of the tunnel above her, blinking at the sunlight that openly fell on her.
She was so engrossed in her task, that she almost did notice the slight rumble that came from the rocks. She paused for a moment, straining her ears. The rumble sounded again, coming from both above and in back of her, causing her to turn towards the end of the tunnel. She could see a steady trickle of dirt coming from the corners and above the end wall, accompanied by the rumble. She stared at it for a moment before realizing what was happening.
She jumped back and retreated further down the tunnel just as the end of it came crashing down before her. The rush of wind, dirt and rocks roared within her ears, shaking the ground so violently that she fell down hard on her backside. She crawled away from the debris that continued to fall, fearing that the whole tunnel would collapse.
After an agonizing moment, the rubble finally ceased, allowing Ziendriel to inspect the damage. She found herself further down the tunnel, almost back to its junction, but gratefully untouched. She glanced up, waving her hands in front of her, hoping to clear the dust cloud that enveloped her. She coughed as she felt some of the dirt coating her throat, then alternatively gasping for fresh air.
When she was finally able to see the damage, she stared in surprise. The entire end of the tunnel that had stood above ground level had collapsed, leaving only a pile of dirt and rocks. From where she stood she could see the sunlight streaming through the debris that partially blocked her way out.
Without a thought, Ziendriel began to dig her way out.
Legolas was just walking away from yet another rock formation when he heard the rumbling. He turned back and pressed an ear to the rocks he had just inspected, but was dismayed when he heard nothing. He turned back to his companions and saw that they, too, were trying to find the rumbling source. They all looked wildly from one rock cluster to another, unsure.
Then suddenly, the rocks just to the right of them crumbled, causing everyone to involuntarily jump back. They watched as the entire cluster disappeared just below ground level, a large dust cloud appearing in its place.
"What just happened?" Lorith asked, as they all approached the now leveled ground. He peered at the pile, frowning in puzzlement.
"Obviously, these rocks collapsed," Gragoc replied, sarcastically. He walked around to the opposite end and smiled smugly at his friend.
Lorith opened his mouth to say something, but was stopped when Jhad, who was standing next to him, suddenly grabbed his arm. Everyone turned to him, but he said nothing. He merely pointed to a spot just off to the side of Gragoc's feet.
Everyone looked and was surprised to see something dart out between the dirt and rocks, only to retreat back in, taking some of the debris with it. They watched as the action was repeated time and time again, until the hole had grown to the size of accommodating the torso of a man.
It was only when a long and slender arm shot out that Legolas felt his feet move into action. He kneeled beside the hole and plunged both arms inside. He felt his hands come in contact with the flesh of a body and immediately clamped around it. He braced himself as he pulled firmly.
He watched as Ziendriel's head emerged from the hole, dirty but still intact and definitely breathing. He saw her blink violently in the direct sunlight, noticing the streaks of dirt that ran down her face.
Gragoc moved over to help Legolas pull Ziendriel free, then stood back when he immediately pulled the confused maiden into his arms. This seemed to frighten her, for in the next moment she struggled against the prince.
"Ziendriel!" Legolas exclaimed, grabbing her flailing arms, "Ziendriel, it is me! Legolas!" He watched as she stilled, trying to turn towards him, but turned away when her eyes came into contact with the sun.
"L-Legolas?" she repeated, softly, shielding her eyes. She blinked again, trying to adjust her eyes to the light after being deprived from it for so long. She felt her vision begin to swim, but fought hard to keep her eyes steady.
He smiled, although she could not see it. "Yes," he told her, softly. He held her at arms length, reveling in the fact that he was touching her. It was then that he noticed the dark red stain on one sleeve of her dress and the hastily bandaged hand, not to mention the bleeding raw wrists. He frowned, taking it all in, cursing Adrianna Roseleaf silently.
She was silent again, then suddenly jerked. "Ariel!" she suddenly exclaimed, beginning to squirm again, although exhaustedly, "I must go to her!" She tried to stand, but only succeeded in tumbling straight into Legolas. She tiredly struggled against him, her eyes already beginning to drop. "Adrianna…" she murmured, "…behind it…Ariel… must…find…her…"
Legolas saw her eyes start to roll to the back of her head and gently shook her. "Ziendriel!" he called, "Melamin, listen! Ariel and Elyse are fine! Do you understand me? We found them and they are fine!"
Zindriel knew that Legolas was trying to tell her more, but she did not need to hear it. Ariel was fine, Elyse was fine, and now she was going to be fine. She allowed her body to relax and slump within his arms and felt her eye lids began to once again droop. The last thing she heard was Legolas calling her name, then felt her head begin to spin.
Then everything went black.