Author's Note: Okay, okay, I know a lot of you are confused, it's okay!
All I have to ask is that you trust me. The confusion will be cleared up
in time, and I'm sorry if it is frustrating to some of you that I'm taking
so long to provide information. Just trust that there is an actual plot in
this and I'm not simply torturing out poor elf randomly. If some of you
still feel confused by the end of the story, feel free to completely chew
me out as I did not do my job as a writer. Besides all that, thanks once
again for the reviews and no I don't own Tolkien's stuff. Alright then,
here's another chapter for ya'll.
Chapter 14
Now Legolas felt he had more pieces to the puzzle and some very important ones at that. Yet before he could think anything through, he became aware of the pain signals his body was giving him. He had been on the cold hard floor for far too long.
Reaching first one hand up to the top of the bed and then the other, Legolas pulled himself up so that the upper half of his body was laying on the bed. He tried to be careful of his still fresh wounds, but inevitably disturbed more than a few of them and he hissed at the pain. Once he had his upper body on the bed, he crawled the rest of the way until he was laying down fully on his back. He found it amazing that he had to catch his breath after the brief exertion. He should be healing faster than this.
Legolas had intended to lay quietly and think over his conversation with Glorfindel, but he underestimated the tired state of his body and he felt himself drifting off into the promising realms of sleep. He thought briefly of the injury to his head and the fact that he should not sleep, but then gave up. He no longer cared whether he was in danger of waking or not.
Sleep took him immediately and he once again found himself back in Mirkwood. He recalled vaguely the last time this had happened and the encounter between his father and the spiders. But his father was before him, sitting alone in the great hall on his throne. He held his head in his hands and simply sat.
"Even in times like these he still sits in the one spot where he feels most powerful."
Legolas stiffened as soon as he heard the voice. He knew without even turning that it was Eirien at his side, as she had been in many of his dreams since being captured. "Times like what?" Legolas asked bitterly.
Eirien stepped so that she was in front of him. "Times where he knows he has sold his kingdom into darkness, bartered for his own pride. He even gave up on his only heir without a second thought."
Legolas looked past Eirien at his father where he sat in the throne, doing nothing about what was happening around him. That was unlike him. Legolas fully knew that his father was a very active ruler, leading armies into battle and seeing to problems first hand. Whether the throne was truly important or not was not an issue to Legolas, he knew his father would never give up like this. He would fight with the last of his people until he was dead.
"He needs to be stopped," Eirien whispered to Legolas, "and only you can do that."
Realization suddenly flashed through Legolas. It felt like it was almost a tangible hit, and it was enough to jerk him out of his sleep. Legolas sat up in his bed and reached out blindly into the darkness. His suspicions were confirmed when he felt his hand lock around something.
Legolas pulled on the she-elf roughly and brought her down underneath him until he was towering over her, both of his hands locked around her throat. Although he still was not up to full strength, the little sleep he had had was enough to get his muscles cooperating again.
"So you have been poisoning me in my sleep. Affecting my dreams to convince me that my father is the villain." Legolas shook her to let her know that the bite in his voice and his anger was serious, "You are going to answer all of my questions and tell me exactly what is going on around here, understand?" When Eirien did nothing except glare up at him hatefully, Legolas shook her again. "Understand?"
Eirien still said nothing, but Legolas decided to start with his questions anyway. "Why am I here?"
Legolas was slightly surprised when she actually answered him. "Because my lord wishes it to be so. Nobody else wants you here, least of all me."
"Why is Glorfindel here?" Legolas pushed on with his next question.
"Because my lord asked for him to come, said that there was an important matter concerning Mirkwood falling completely into shadow." Eirien sounded as though she was explaining something to a slow child.
Legolas thought for a moment before continuing, "Why have you been influencing my dreams to turn me against my father? What is your concern over the throne?"
Eirien smirked. "I care nothing over your throne or your people for that matter. I only do what my lord tells me to do."
"Who is your lord? What is his name?" Legolas asked the main questions that had been plaguing him the most, the fact that he had no idea who these elves were and that they even existed.
"Think back to the earliest legends you have been told and you will find my lord. He is above you and all other elves that live on this world." Eirien's voice held a definite note of pride as she said this.
Legolas leaned down close to her, "What is your lord planning for Mirkwood?"
Instead of answering, Eirien pushed up and her forehead collided with Legolas' before he could pull himself back. His grip on her throat loosened and the she-elf kicked up with all of her strength, sending Legolas toppling off of the bed and onto the floor. Before he could get up, Eirien had leapt to her feet and then down to the ground next to him. Legolas anticipated that she would merely run to the door and out of the room, but he had forgotten her fury.
Eirien reached down and grabbed Legolas by the shoulders, hauling him up a few feet from the ground before slamming him forcefully back down into it. Legolas saw orbs before his eyes as the back of his skull connected with the stone floor. For good measure, Eirien reached down again, but this time chose to rake her nails over Legolas' chest. The immediate sensation to the elf prince was one of absolute fire as his welts were ripped anew. Legolas gasped with the pain and gripped the floor hard.
Satisfied, Eirien then calmly walked to the door and opened it. "Try to use me again for information elf and I will give you more for your troubles," she said coldly as Legolas writhed in pain. She then left him alone to his misery.
Even as Legolas' body screamed in pain, his mind was working to put all the information together. He now knew that the dark elf lord wanted to do something to Mirkwood and Thranduil but could not do it on his own. Obviously, he had more intricate plans than Legolas had originally thought concerning his own capture. As for Glorfindel, he was a powerful elf lord in his own right, and the dark elf lord had poisoned him with some type of lie. One that would turn him against the elves of Mirkwood.
Legolas thought back to what the she-elf had told him about the dark elf lord. He was in the old legends? Had he played a major part or a minor part? As much as Legolas tried to think, all the old elf lords he could come up with did not include this unknown one. Briefly, Legolas thought if he had any connections with Lord Elrond of Rivendell as he had similar coloring. But the Rivendell elves were a part of nature, the atmosphere in which these elves dwelled was only similar to the dwarves.
The thought of dwarves induced a glimmer in the back of Legolas' mind. He had heard something when he was very young about a certain elf that had lived solitarily and had befriended the dwarves, living close to their mines and using their technology. He had only chosen to give up his solitary life in order to take a bride, but that had turned out to be a disaster.
As much as Legolas tried to think, he could not come up with the rest of the legend, he was too tired to think straight. For the second time that night he crawled into the bed. Thankfully, his sleep was not disturbed by dreams this time.
Chapter 14
Now Legolas felt he had more pieces to the puzzle and some very important ones at that. Yet before he could think anything through, he became aware of the pain signals his body was giving him. He had been on the cold hard floor for far too long.
Reaching first one hand up to the top of the bed and then the other, Legolas pulled himself up so that the upper half of his body was laying on the bed. He tried to be careful of his still fresh wounds, but inevitably disturbed more than a few of them and he hissed at the pain. Once he had his upper body on the bed, he crawled the rest of the way until he was laying down fully on his back. He found it amazing that he had to catch his breath after the brief exertion. He should be healing faster than this.
Legolas had intended to lay quietly and think over his conversation with Glorfindel, but he underestimated the tired state of his body and he felt himself drifting off into the promising realms of sleep. He thought briefly of the injury to his head and the fact that he should not sleep, but then gave up. He no longer cared whether he was in danger of waking or not.
Sleep took him immediately and he once again found himself back in Mirkwood. He recalled vaguely the last time this had happened and the encounter between his father and the spiders. But his father was before him, sitting alone in the great hall on his throne. He held his head in his hands and simply sat.
"Even in times like these he still sits in the one spot where he feels most powerful."
Legolas stiffened as soon as he heard the voice. He knew without even turning that it was Eirien at his side, as she had been in many of his dreams since being captured. "Times like what?" Legolas asked bitterly.
Eirien stepped so that she was in front of him. "Times where he knows he has sold his kingdom into darkness, bartered for his own pride. He even gave up on his only heir without a second thought."
Legolas looked past Eirien at his father where he sat in the throne, doing nothing about what was happening around him. That was unlike him. Legolas fully knew that his father was a very active ruler, leading armies into battle and seeing to problems first hand. Whether the throne was truly important or not was not an issue to Legolas, he knew his father would never give up like this. He would fight with the last of his people until he was dead.
"He needs to be stopped," Eirien whispered to Legolas, "and only you can do that."
Realization suddenly flashed through Legolas. It felt like it was almost a tangible hit, and it was enough to jerk him out of his sleep. Legolas sat up in his bed and reached out blindly into the darkness. His suspicions were confirmed when he felt his hand lock around something.
Legolas pulled on the she-elf roughly and brought her down underneath him until he was towering over her, both of his hands locked around her throat. Although he still was not up to full strength, the little sleep he had had was enough to get his muscles cooperating again.
"So you have been poisoning me in my sleep. Affecting my dreams to convince me that my father is the villain." Legolas shook her to let her know that the bite in his voice and his anger was serious, "You are going to answer all of my questions and tell me exactly what is going on around here, understand?" When Eirien did nothing except glare up at him hatefully, Legolas shook her again. "Understand?"
Eirien still said nothing, but Legolas decided to start with his questions anyway. "Why am I here?"
Legolas was slightly surprised when she actually answered him. "Because my lord wishes it to be so. Nobody else wants you here, least of all me."
"Why is Glorfindel here?" Legolas pushed on with his next question.
"Because my lord asked for him to come, said that there was an important matter concerning Mirkwood falling completely into shadow." Eirien sounded as though she was explaining something to a slow child.
Legolas thought for a moment before continuing, "Why have you been influencing my dreams to turn me against my father? What is your concern over the throne?"
Eirien smirked. "I care nothing over your throne or your people for that matter. I only do what my lord tells me to do."
"Who is your lord? What is his name?" Legolas asked the main questions that had been plaguing him the most, the fact that he had no idea who these elves were and that they even existed.
"Think back to the earliest legends you have been told and you will find my lord. He is above you and all other elves that live on this world." Eirien's voice held a definite note of pride as she said this.
Legolas leaned down close to her, "What is your lord planning for Mirkwood?"
Instead of answering, Eirien pushed up and her forehead collided with Legolas' before he could pull himself back. His grip on her throat loosened and the she-elf kicked up with all of her strength, sending Legolas toppling off of the bed and onto the floor. Before he could get up, Eirien had leapt to her feet and then down to the ground next to him. Legolas anticipated that she would merely run to the door and out of the room, but he had forgotten her fury.
Eirien reached down and grabbed Legolas by the shoulders, hauling him up a few feet from the ground before slamming him forcefully back down into it. Legolas saw orbs before his eyes as the back of his skull connected with the stone floor. For good measure, Eirien reached down again, but this time chose to rake her nails over Legolas' chest. The immediate sensation to the elf prince was one of absolute fire as his welts were ripped anew. Legolas gasped with the pain and gripped the floor hard.
Satisfied, Eirien then calmly walked to the door and opened it. "Try to use me again for information elf and I will give you more for your troubles," she said coldly as Legolas writhed in pain. She then left him alone to his misery.
Even as Legolas' body screamed in pain, his mind was working to put all the information together. He now knew that the dark elf lord wanted to do something to Mirkwood and Thranduil but could not do it on his own. Obviously, he had more intricate plans than Legolas had originally thought concerning his own capture. As for Glorfindel, he was a powerful elf lord in his own right, and the dark elf lord had poisoned him with some type of lie. One that would turn him against the elves of Mirkwood.
Legolas thought back to what the she-elf had told him about the dark elf lord. He was in the old legends? Had he played a major part or a minor part? As much as Legolas tried to think, all the old elf lords he could come up with did not include this unknown one. Briefly, Legolas thought if he had any connections with Lord Elrond of Rivendell as he had similar coloring. But the Rivendell elves were a part of nature, the atmosphere in which these elves dwelled was only similar to the dwarves.
The thought of dwarves induced a glimmer in the back of Legolas' mind. He had heard something when he was very young about a certain elf that had lived solitarily and had befriended the dwarves, living close to their mines and using their technology. He had only chosen to give up his solitary life in order to take a bride, but that had turned out to be a disaster.
As much as Legolas tried to think, he could not come up with the rest of the legend, he was too tired to think straight. For the second time that night he crawled into the bed. Thankfully, his sleep was not disturbed by dreams this time.