An Eye For An Eye

by Nili

When someone from the past resurfaces and threatens Rivendell and its inhabitants, can Elrond with the help of Legolas protect his sons and especially Aragorn from falling victim to his plans? Or will they all get caught in a blaze of revenge and pain?

21. Endgame

Disclaimer: For full disclaimer, please see chapter 1.


A/N:

Ok, first things first: DIE, FF.net, DIE!! It took me two days to convince FF.net to let me update. We hatesss it, yes we doess, preciousss.... *coughs* Uhm, okay, sorry for the delay. I didn't do it on purpose, no, really, I did not. Honestly. Okay, on to the A/N...

It's too long!! *wails* It's long enough for two chapters, for crying out loud!!

*sniffs* Sorry about that, but it is _far_ too long. I hate it when that happens, it just proves that I have no control whatsoever over the plot...

But okay, since I want it to be 22 chapters, not 23, this chapter is even longer than the last. Hey, it's not my fault! I had no idea it takes so long to kill people - right now I feel very much like a mass murderer! And to kill them in believable ways (I'm sorry, but all the people who wanted Legolas to squash Donyc to jelly or marshmallows or similar things will be disappointed, I'm afraid *g*) takes even longer!

Very well, I know you are really _not_ interested in this right now, so I'll shut up. Oh, and thanks for all your good wishes, the knee's better. Still hurts though, I have to think of a way to do that to Estel... *evil grin*


Here is chapter 21 folks, so there's only one left!
But don't cry, we have lots of death and destruction, lots of pain, lots of fussing over each other and a little bit of angst, too! *g*

Have fun and review, please!

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Chapter 21


Legolas stared at the body of Gwaer, desperately trying to figure out what was going on here. One moment he had been watching the man approach his human friend with mounting horror, the next Donyc's lieutenant had been lying on the wet grass, an arrow imbedded between his ribs.

Time seemed to stretch as the whole camp was too surprised and shocked to react, and Legolas noticed with detached amusement that the men all around him were looking very much like fish on dry land, their mouths open as they gaped at their fallen comrade.

His mind still trying to come to terms with the sudden change in events, the elven prince realized that he knew that arrow. It was a beautifully carved dark shaft, decorated with small wreathing flowers that were inlaid with a different, pale golden wood. It was a design Legolas knew only too well, having used those arrows quite a few times himself, even thought they were usually not used for hunting and that sort of thing.

'The twins,' he thought with an inward sigh of relief and a small smile, 'And just in time for a dramatic entrance, as usual.'

Considering the fact that the younger twin's collarbone was broken, even thought he tried to deny it, it had probably been Elladan who had fired that well aimed arrow. Besides, the fletchings were just a tiny bit too long, something that Legolas had been telling the older twin for centuries, but Elladan stubbornly refused to listen to him, claiming that Rivendell arrows were supposed to look like that.

The man next to him blinked slowly, clearly tearing himself out of the trance. Legolas realized that this was probably the only and best chance he would get, and it was a chance he was unwilling to let pass by. Using his elven speed that was far superior to that of his two guards, he slammed his bound hands into the face of the human to his right, before spinning on his heel to face the other man.

His quick actions were all the humans needed to shake off their short-lived paralysis, and the camp exploded into confused action as humans ran for cover to escape the arrows that began to rain down on them. Legolas crouched down and, with a swift kick, took the feet out from under his other guard, throwing him hard to the ground where he remained, eyes closed and motionless. The fair haired elf hastily grabbed the man's knife and began to saw away at the bonds that bound his wrists, contemplating shortly if he had killed the human by throwing him that hard onto the ground, and, just as the ropes fell away, he came to the conclusion that he didn't really care.

As quickly as his hurting body would allow Legolas sprang to his feet, side-stepping a human that almost knocked him over as he scrambled for cover, and assessed the situation. Since Elladan's arrow had killed Gwaer, no more than a minute had gone by, but that had been enough to throw Donyc's men into complete chaos. The humans tried to defend themselves against the rain of projectiles that seemed to come from every direction, aiming blindly at the trees that surrounded the small glade.

Quickly retrieving his former guard's second knife, Legolas searched the scene in front of him and soon found Lord Elrond, who just let the hilt of a dagger crack down onto a man's head, a grim expression on his ageless features the prince had never before seen on the older elf's face. Satisfied that the Lord of Rivendell was more than capable of defending himself, he frantically searched the chaotic camp for signs of Aragorn or his captors.

Flattening himself against the tall tree as an arrow missed his face by inches, Legolas cursed angrily, trying to stay calm. Neither his human friend nor Donyc could be seen. As he tried to decide which way Donyc would have taken, the humans' actions grew more frantic, and Legolas looked up to see several elves materialise seemingly out of thin air at the edge of the small wood that enclosed the clearing, a Mirkwood habit that never ceased to annoy Aragorn.

The prince smiled grimly; his men had arrived at last. His head swivelled to the right when he heard a familiar voice cry an elven command.

"N'lava sen usin!"

Legolas' eyes came to rest on Celylith's face, and he was surprised himself how fierce his silver haired friend looked. One could easily forget that the elf's dark blue eyes could turn the colour of coals when angered and that his playful antics belied his strength in battle.

Celylith ducked a stray arrow as he moved in to intercept the first humans that came rushing up to him.
"Don't let them escape!" he repeated, eyes flashing angrily. "Try not to kill them, but, by Elbereth's stars, make sure none of them gets away!"

His heart lighter than it had been in days, Legolas moved to the side as a human came running at him, causing the man to rush past. Before he could stop his momentum, the elf's hand shot out and grabbed him by the arm, slamming the man into the tree easily. He let go of the limp human, raising an eyebrow.
'Handy things, trees,' he mused, 'Especially for things like these.'

Out of the corner of his eyes he noticed a flash of activity to the left of the scattered ashes of the campfire, and, frowning, he turned his head just in time to watch Cornallar walk up to Elrond, the still scorching hot sword in hand and a indescribable look on his face. His features seemed to have frozen into a mask of pure hatred, and his burning eyes did not leave the elf lord's face for a second. He pushed through the humans that were scattering in all directions in their attempt to repel the elvish attack, concentrated only on the goal of getting to the other elf.

Elrond clearly saw his approach, which would've been impossible to miss since Cornallar seemed to be the only being that didn't run around in confusion but who moved purposefully and stealthily, like a predator finally moving in for the kill. The dark haired elf lord's attention seemed to be diverted though, for he kept staring right past the approaching elf, his eyes fixed on something behind Legolas' back.

Turning quickly, the elven prince surveyed the woods behind him, and soon he found what had caught Lord Elrond's eye: A few hundred yards up the sloping mountain path his sharp elven eyes spied five figures, hurrying into the direction of the caves. Four of them seemed to pull the fifth with them that was weakly trying to resist. Legolas scowled deeply, unconsciously taking a step into their direction. Even from this distance, he could clearly identify Aragorn, and Donyc's face wasn't something he would forget anytime soon either.
He clenched his teeth tightly; there was no way Lord Elrond could get to the humans before they would have reached the rock face. And he would be damned if he let them take his friend back into those accursed caves.

The fair haired prince turned back to Lord Elrond quickly, locking eyes with the older elf.
"It's alright," he yelled over the noises of the battle, "I will follow them. Don't worry, I will not let them get away with Estel."

Elrond nodded and averted his gaze to fix it on his former advisor's face that was twisted with hatred now. No, he didn't worry, he thought as he watched Cornallar close the distance between them, he knew Legolas would do everything in his power to save his human son.

'But, considering his condition, there is the question whether it will be enough to save either of them.'




As he listened to the curses Donyc muttered incessantly under his breath, Aragorn decided that all of this had happened much too fast for him. The images of Nólad, defying his lord, something Aragorn would have thought impossible, mixed with those of Gwaer's confused face as he fell to the ground, and after that with the blurred images of confused humans that ran into all directions while Donyc had been dragging him away from the camp.
He still wasn't sure what exactly was going on, and he doubted that his fuzzy brain would find an answer to that question soon. The only thing he was sure of was that he had somehow escaped the fate of ending his life as a teaching aid for Cornallar's favourite torture methods, but, considering the way things were going, that had been only a temporary delay.

'Yes,' he thought as he was roughly hauled up the stony mountain path, the sounds of battle quieting down behind them, 'Donyc seems more than willing to make up for that.'

The young ranger shook his head and tried to shake off the humans' hands, but his efforts were about as effective as to try and hide an injury from his father. Somehow Elrond seemed to be able to look right through you, and sometimes Aragorn was sure he could smell it when you were injured, no matter how normal you acted. It was quite uncanny, really.

'Then why are you still trying?' a soft voice inside his head whispered. 'How effective is that?'

A few moments later they stopped, and Addramyr turned to his friend, struggling for breath.
"There's no point, Donyc," he gasped, "We won't escape with him slowing us down. Them elves are too fast."

Donyc shook his head, clearly unwilling to leave the ranger behind.
"If we can make it to the caves, we can easily hold the entrance."

"And then what?" his second-in-command questioned tensely. "They have all the time they need to starve us out. In the end we will be forced to surrender and will have to give him up anyway. I for my part will not be taken captive by one of his friends."

He shot a quick glance over his shoulder.
"See? They're already here."

Aragorn looked past Addramyr's head, and really, still a long way away but steadily coming closer, there were about eight or nine men slowly moving up the path, engaged in a heated fight with three elves he had never seen before, although he identified them instantly as Mirkwood warriors by their attire.

For a second he asked himself in confusion what they were doing here, before his tired brain reminded him of what Legolas had told him in the cave.
Yes, of course, that must be Celylith's men, the ones Legolas had met on his way to Mirkwood. Legolas … where was Legolas? And his father? Were they still in the camp, or had at least they managed to escape?
He needed to make sure that they were alright, that they had not been harmed…

Trying to twist out of the grasp of the two humans that had followed Donyc in the first confusion, he missed the conflicting emotions that flashed across the human commander's face.

The dark haired human stood rooted to the spot, his jaw clenched tightly as a vein throbbed at his temple in obvious agitation.
He should have known it would end like this, Donyc thought furiously, it had been just too easy. Elves! That was what you got for dealing with that accursed race, they were nothing but trouble, the whole lot of them…

The thought of elves, of troublesome elves, of elves that would be very angry indeed once they found out what had happened to the ranger, brought him back to the present. Risking a glance over his shoulder, he made sure that the group of fighting men and elves was still too far away to pose any real danger and turned his attention back to the younger man in front of him.
His eyes didn't leave Aragorn's face as he slowly drew one of his daggers, but if he was looking for signs of fear in the other man's gaze, he was sorely disappointed. The young ranger didn't even blink when the sparse daylight made the steel blade gleam, he was either too far-gone to care or had got used to being threatened with knives, swords and such.

'Still,' Donyc thought, grinning at his captive as he beckoned the two men to step to the side, 'I will enjoy this. Oh yes, I will enjoy this very much.'

"Well, ranger," he said pleasantly, moving a step closer to the young man and taking one of his arms, "All good things must come to an end, I fear. Even though this is not quite the end I envisioned; I have to admit I had a ... lengthier 'conversation' in mind. But, unfortunately, my dear friend Addramyr is right: We cannot take you with us, no matter how much I'd like to, believe me, and we cannot leave you here. So, that leaves room for only one solution, wouldn't you agree?"

He placed the dagger under his captive's chin, forcing him to lift his head and look him in the eye. Aragorn met the man's gaze steadily, his silver eyes boring into Donyc's dark ones. He had not begged him for mercy, the human commander had not succeeded in breaking him, and he would make sure the other man remembered that, even if it was the last thing he ever did.

Donyc's expression darkened at Aragorn's act of defiance, and he stepped closer, narrowing his eyes.
"Don't look so cocky, boy. The end is just the same: You die today, by my hand. And, Eru, I will enjoy killing you!"

The words had barely left his lips when he heard an alarmed shout to his right, followed by two muffled thuds, and while he was still turning his head to see what had caused this disturbance, he felt himself lifted slightly off his feet and bodily thrown away from the ranger.

Donyc looked up, and felt his heart freeze in sudden fear when he realized who his attacker was, something he had instinctively known before even laying eyes on him. In front of him stood the blonde elf, his blue eyes flashing dangerously.

"I don't think so."

The elf's voice was dark with barely suppressed fury, his long fingers tightening around the hilt of the knife he held in his hand. The motionless bodies of the two humans lay to the left of him, whether they were dead or only unconscious, the human couldn't tell. And, right now, he couldn't care less.
Donyc felt Addramyr tense next to him, and he said, still baffled by the speed with which the elf had knocked his men out,

"Well, Master Elf, what a pleasant surprise! How very nice to see you again, I was beginning to wonder if you were going to turn up at all! But, I have to admit, you are beginning to get on my nerves almost as much as that ranger friend of yours."

Legolas stiffened at that, resisting the urge to turn around to make sure his friend was alright. He wouldn't turn his back to this human, if his encounters with him had taught him anything, it was that he had not a bit of honour and would not hesitate to stab him in the back.

"I keep my promises, Donyc," he said coldly, piercing the human commander with his gaze. "I swore something to you, something which I fully intend to carry out."

The elven prince watched the two men closely, his words causing them to hesitate just the tiniest bit. That was, however, enough for him, and just as Donyc and his second-in-command were beginning to move towards them, he moved forwards, his booted foot connecting solidly with Addramyr's midsection. The dark blonde human was thrown backward by the sheer force of the blow and tumbled down the path a few yards in a heap of flailing arms and legs.

Avoiding Donyc's rushed attack, he quickly jumped behind Aragorn and cut the ropes that bound his hands behind his back. Grabbing his friend's arm shortly, he winced as the man moaned in pain at the touch and looked urgently in the young ranger's still surprised face.

"Go, Strider. Don't worry about me, get down into the valley, Celylith and the others will protect you. Go!"

Before he could say more, Donyc was back, aiming a vicious slash at the elven prince's face. Pushing Aragorn out of the way and trying not to think of what Lord Elrond would say when he heard that he had actually pushed Estel in the condition he was in at the moment, Legolas blocked the attack with his own knife and pressed the dark haired human back.

He started an attack of his own, and just when he was bringing down his knife in an elegant arch, he heard a startled yelp behind him, closely followed by the ominous sound of rumbling stones. His blow went astray, and he turned just in time to see Aragorn and Addramyr disappear from view, tumbling over the side of the mountain path.

"No! Aragorn!!" he screamed horrified and was about to make his way over to the spot his friend had occupied only moments earlier, when he felt a heavy body slam into him, throwing him to the ground. The fair haired elf landed hard on his side, gasping as hot pain flared to life inside his chest, reminding him painfully just why fighting with broken ribs wasn't considered a good idea.

He forced himself up quickly, rolling to his feet to stand on shaky legs. Donyc had risen as well, grinning at the pale elf in front of him.

"Oh, don't worry, Master Elf," the human said, drawing a second knife with his left, "It's not too deep down, they will undoubtedly survive the fall."

Legolas gave an inward sigh of relief, his left arm protectively wrapped around his ribcage. How much weighted that accursed human? Right now the young elf could have sworn the man was part troll, judging by his weight.

"The fall, that is," Donyc added gleefully, taking a step closer to the wounded elf, "But right there your friend's luck will run out, I fear."
Giving Legolas a malicious smile, he added, "It doesn't matter whether you have cut his bonds or not. The ranger hasn't moved his arms in a week, he will not be able to do anything with them, let alone fight. And Addramyr is a rather skilful fighter, more than capable of dealing with him. You have only put off the inevitable. He will die, and so will you."

While he was still speaking the last words, the human commander rushed forwards and quickly closed the distance between them. Legolas found himself hard-pressed to block the attack, and while he was dodging and spinning to avoid getting caught by one of Donyc's blades, he prayed fervently that Aragorn would somehow manage to escape the other human and find safety in the glade below.




Ducking a blow aimed at his head, Elrond decided that either he himself had spent far too little time training his sword fighting abilities in the past couple of hundred years, or that Cornallar had done nothing else since he had left Rivendell three millennia ago. His former advisor had always been a good fighter, and before the days of the War of the Last Alliance they had spent quite a lot of time duelling, but never before had the dark haired elf managed to corner him so quickly and effectively.

'That might be connected to the fact that he has a sword, my sword by the way, and I have nothing but a dagger,' he thought sarcastically, dodging a swipe aimed at his right arm. Moving backwards slowly, the Lord of Rivendell instinctively rounded a fallen log on the ground. Risking a quick glance around, he noticed that they had become separated from the main battle that still raged in the small camp a few hundred feet behind them.

Elrond had acted quickly when he had seen Gwaer fall, jumping into action at almost the exact same time as Legolas. In the ensuing chaos it had been relatively easy to overwhelm his guards, whose fighting spirit had seemed to dissipate as soon as they had looked into the elf lord's irate face.

When the first Mirkwood warriors had started to appear, his whole being had been overcome with relief, and he had vowed to forgive Legolas every injury the younger elf had suffered this far and to patch him up for the next few decades without even giving him the look. Somehow the fair haired prince had managed to get some of his men to help, and the timely arrival of the warriors that had saved his human son was a debt he could never fully repay.

Pushing aside the worry for Aragorn's and Legolas' safety, he brought the knife he had taken from one of his now unconscious guards up just in time to block a blow that would have taken his head off otherwise.
'No,' he thought as his back touched the bark of a tree at the far side of the clearing, 'This is really not good. If I don't get some space to manoeuvre soon, this is going to...'

A second, even more powerful blow knocked his hand that was holding the dagger against the tree, and before Elrond could even blink, he felt a fist close around his wrist in an iron grip, and he stared into the dead, burning eyes of his adversary.

"Giving up so soon, Peredhil?" Cornallar hissed, his face contorted into an insane grimace, "That's a shame, really, I had so hoped you could watch your last pieces get taken. I have to admit, that last development was something I hadn't reckoned with, but rest assured, my lord, that Donyc will make sure your precious little edan doesn't escape his fate, and nothing you or the dear prince can do will change that."

"Fate! Who are you to decide anyone's fate?" Elrond retorted angrily, trying to free his sword arm from the firm grip it was being held in. "It is not your place to determine Aragorn's destiny, nor mine or anyone else's! You are not one of the Valar, and you certainly are not Ilúvatar!"

"I don't need to be," Elrond's former councillor replied, tightening his grip on the other elf's wrist. "I merely voice some well-founded facts, and neither you nor the others will be able to thwart my plans. And now I will put an end to an episode of my life that should have ended nearly three thousand years ago."

Holding the other elf firmly in place, Cornallar prepared to plunge the blade into Elrond's chest, but before he had even raised his arm halfway, he felt someone push him to the side, making him release the elf lord's wrist. The dark haired elf whirled to around, prepared to meet the renewed assault – only to let his sword sink down a bit when he realized whom he faced.

"Nólad?" he whispered unbelievingly.

His face darkened slowly, his eyes fixed on the fair haired elf that had placed himself between Elrond and him.
"So you have truly chosen. You betray me."

His friend shook his head, his eyes pleading, but he made no move to step out of the way, one of his hands brushing nervously over the bruise that formed on his chin.
"Please, my friend, don't! Let it be enough! This is not the way! Look at you! Your hatred has consumed you, you turn against your own kind now! We are the eldar, the fact that we don't fight each other is what sets us apart from lower races! You should at least give him a real chance to defend himself! But please, Cornallar, let us just leave and disappear. No one will stop us."

The dark haired elf shook his head impatiently, taking a step forwards, his eyes filled with rage that knew no reason.
"Step aside, Nólad. How can you say such a thing? Don't you remember Tinánd? Or your brothers? They died, they all died, because of him!"

Cornallar pointed at Elrond who was watching the exchange warily, catching his breath.

"Because of him and his love for these accursed humans! He deserves death, as does that whelp of a ranger! Just because of who and what they are do they deserve death tenfold."

Nólad's face contorted with grief, his light grey eyes filling with moisture.
"Of course I remember them, how could I not?! It was I who found them, them and so many others, slaughtered by the foul things! By orcs, mellonamin, orcs, no one else. Sauron's evil destroyed them, and there was nothing anyone could have done to prevent it."

The elf gave his friend a sad smile and, for the first time since that dreadful day on which both of them had lost what they had treasured most, he quietly said the words he always had wished to utter to comfort his friend.
"It was not your fault."

The other elf's eyes seemed to gleam with an unearthly light at that, but if one looked closely enough, one could see the pain and doubt linger in the background. He stepped closer and grasped Nólad by the shirt, his sword still in hand and oblivious to the fact that the hot blade slowly began to scorch the fabric of the other elf's tunic.

"My fault? My fault? Traitor!! How dare you even think such a thing, I swear I will kill you for this…"

Cornallar tightened his fingers on the shirt, and he swung around to slam the fair haired elf against the tree, switching positions with him. Nólad opened his mouth to reason with his friend, but before he could articulate a single word, his body was slammed forwards, impacting hard with the one who still gripped him.

The dark haired elf stared at his friend in surprise, and both their eyes travelled simultaneously to the arrowhead that protruded from Nólad's side.
Cornallar's gaze moved quickly down the path they had come, and came to rest on a small group of humans who were slowly being cornered by several elven warriors. The men put up a fierce resistance, for none of them wanted to be captured by the elves. In their eyes it was better to die now than in a dark prison or on a scaffold, for surely the fair folk would seek retribution for what they had done.

No one would ever know if it had been a stray arrow or if someone had actually aimed at Cornallar and had only missed because he and Nólad had switched places, but somehow one of the projectiles had swiftly crossed the distance that lay between the two groups and hit the fair haired elf squarely in the back.

Nólad blinked slowly, his mind not yet fully grasping what had happened to him. He sagged against the dark haired elf, a slightly puzzled expression on his fair features as he slowly sank to the ground.

"I am sorry, my lord," he whispered, pain beginning to creep into his voice, "I never meant … I'm no traitor, I would never turn … against you, never …"

Elrond and Cornallar watched in shock as his eyes slowly closed, consciousness fleeing his body as shock set in. The Lord of Rivendell took a step closer, about to put his knife into his belt, the animosity between them forgotten as his instincts as a healer took over.

"Let me tend him, Cornallar," he told the dark haired elf insistently who kneeled over the body of his fallen friend, an unbelieving look on his face. "He is not dead yet, but he soon will be if naught is done!"

At his words the other elf looked up, emotions so fierce burning in his eyes that Elrond stopped in mid-step. This, he realized calmly as his former advisor stood to his feet, had been the last straw. This was what had pushed Cornallar over the edge, the fine line between hate and madness had finally been crossed, and, he decided, looking into the other elf's dark eyes, there was no going back.

Cornallar gripped Elrond's sword tightly, an insane gleam lightening his face.
"You will pay, Peredhil, for him and so many others."

Elrond had just enough time to throw himself to the side as the other lunged at him with an almost feral snarl, all traces of reason and logic gone from his face. While Cornallar wheeled round for another attack, he quickly moved over to Nólad's side, checking if he was still alive and at the same time pulling the blonde elf's dagger from its sheath. He wouldn't be able to help him, or anyone else for that matter, if he let his former councillor kill him now.

With a fluent move he rolled to his feet and faced the dark haired elf, remembering once again how much suffering this single being had brought upon his sons, Legolas and so many other people…
The Lord of Imladris gripped the two daggers firmly, wondering briefly how different they felt, one of human, one of elven make.

It was time to end this, one way or the other.




Aragorn was losing the fight, and he was losing badly.

It wasn't even a real fight, he decided as he stumbled to the side, narrowly avoiding Addramyr's descending blade, all he did was try to avoid the other human, with only limited success. Since Donyc's second-in-command had lunged at him on the path, causing them to skid down the mountainside, things had gone downhill for him rapidly. Quite literally.

After a surprisingly short amount of time their descent had been stopped as they landed in the bushes near the path, and somehow Aragorn had managed not to lose consciousness and struggle to his feet.

The ability to stand didn't help him much though, for Addramyr had immediately attacked him, clearly intending to rid himself of the ranger once and for all. All the weakened human could do was back away from the other man and try not to fall down or to let him get too close, and both things were giving him more and more trouble with every second that passed.

As he ducked another blow, adrenaline surging through his veins, Aragorn tried once again to ball one of his hands to a fist, once more without success. He had taken only one look at his stiff, unbending, purple and thoroughly useless arms to know that he could do effectively nothing to defend himself.

The world started to darken as unconsciousness once again tugged at the edges of his awareness, and the young ranger decided grimly that he needed to end this, now, or he would pass out and make this even easier for the other man. By now they had doubled back to the beginning of the clearing, if he was lucky, someone would see them and come to his aid…

He waited for Addramyr to step forwards in a renewed attempt to skewer him, and, just as the man was moving towards him, Aragorn gathered all his remaining speed and strength and, avoiding the man, slammed his uninjured shoulder into the blonde human's side, causing him to drop his sword. Addramyr was thrown to the ground, surprised by this sudden attack, giving the young ranger just enough time to kick the blade out of his reach into the undergrowth to their left, where it came to rest with a small clatter.

Both humans looked up in surprise, Addramyr slowly standing to his feet. Swords were not supposed to clatter when meeting wood or grass. Aragorn shook his head slightly and blinked until his eyes reluctantly focused on the small, huddled figure of Seobryn, who sat under a large oak, staring at both of them with wide eyes, Addramyr's sword laying to his feet.
If he had had the strength to do so, the ranger would even have smiled. So the boy had listened to him after all and was avoiding the fighting as best as he could…

Addramyr shot his adversary a triumphant look.
"Give me the sword, boy," he said, his eyes turning to Seobryn now. "I just need to finish this, then we can leave."

Seobryn lifted his head, his face pale against the dark bark of the tree as he slowly got up.
"No," he said slowly. "No, I will not do that."

The older human raised an eyebrow in question, rage building in his eyes.
"What did you say, Seobryn? Think carefully, boy, I think you know better than to defy me, and because of a ranger, no less."

The boy shook his head, flicking a strand of light brown hair out of his eyes.
"No, I will not give you the sword. Every man for himself, did you not say that, uncle? You fight your battles, and I fight mine. I am leaving, right now, and I never want to see you again."

Addramyr took several steps into his nephew's direction, the anger that emanated from him seemingly filling the whole space between the two of them.
"You will regret this, boy, I promise you that! Is this the way you thank me for taking you in and caring for you for seven years?? You owe me, Seobryn! We are kin, that isn't something you can so easily put aside! I am your uncle!!"

Seobryn swallowed nervously, but he didn't back down in face of Addramyr's anger.
"Yes," he nodded quietly, locking eyes with the other man. "Yes, I know. But that's not my fault, is it?"

The older man's eyes narrowed at that, and with an unarticulated shout of rage he hurled himself at the boy, knocking him to the ground easily. Addramyr gave his stunned nephew a furious kick, and, with speed born out of rage, he whirled around to face Aragorn, Seobryn's sword in hand.

"I don't know what you have told him, ranger, but all you have achieved is that he will die with you now," he told the younger man as he slowly approached him.

Aragorn sighed inwardly and tried to concentrate, but the world began to blur once more and his whole body seemed to be on fire. There was no way he would escape Donyc's second-in-command now, and he was sure, although the sounds of the battle were drawing closer, that nobody would reach him in time.
'But still,' he thought stubbornly, 'I can at least try to stall as long as possible.'

"You would kill your own nephew?" he asked incredulously, eyeing the man for a sign that he was about to attack.

Addramyr gave him a humourless smile.
"I have no use for him anymore, have I?" he asked sarcastically and rushed forwards. He had had enough of that annoying ranger, it was time to finally shut him up.

Aragorn managed to avoid the first few blows, but as he was about twenty yards away from the tree under which Seobryn was still lying motionlessly, Addramyr finally got a hold of him, and, grabbing the ranger's dark hair, he smashed his head against a low hanging branch with all his might.

Countless stars exploded in his field of vision, and as Aragorn slowly sank to the ground, he decided over the roaring in his ears that this had been one time too many. He had lost count of how many times he had got hit on the head in the past week, seven, eight, nine times? He really couldn't tell. Dark shapes loomed at the corner of his vision, and as his head hit the grass with a dull thud that seemed to even increase the blinding pain inside his skull, he mused dryly that he wouldn't get up again for quite a long time. In fact, he doubted that he'd ever get up again at all.

While his body seemed numb and uncooperative and his sight grew even dimmer with every laboured breath he took, his hearing seemed to be doing its best to make up for that, and so he was able to hear Addramyr approach him, even if all he could see was a blurry shadow that seemed to come closer.

The human grinned down at the ranger, taking the sword hilt in both hands.
"Well, boy, that was fun, but I really don't have time to play around any more."

He noticed that the younger man's eyes were closing despite his valiant efforts to keep them open, and gave an indifferent shrug. He might as well put him out of his misery, he decided, and prepared to bury his blade in the ranger's chest.

Just as he was about to bring the blade down onto the defenceless body of the other man, several things seemed to happen at once, and a second later Addramyr found himself slumped against a tree trunk, sinking slowly to the ground and staring at the dark wooden shaft that had hit him just above the heart.
'How did it get there?' he asked himself confused. All he could remember was a blur of movements too fast for the human eye to follow, and a hard slap against his chest that threw him back and away from the young ranger.

He lifted his head, and through the dark spots that clouded his vision and that seemed to grow larger by the second, he thought he saw a figure make its way towards him, or was it a hallucination?
When he shifted his gaze slightly and saw a second person, an elf, he noted detachedly, that looked exactly like the first and held a bow in his hands, he knew that it had to be an apparition or something similar, he was starting to see double. The world grew darker, and the human just kept staring at the deadly, bruised face of the elf that had reached him now and looked at him with the coldest pair of eyes he had ever seen in his life. The elf stopped just in front of him and looked at him, and Addramyr decided that he could barely remember seeing anyone this angry before.

The dark haired being's lips began to move, and as his vision grew dark and his hearing started to fail him, the human heard what he was saying.

"That was for my little brother."

The words seemed to echo inside his head as his eyes closed and he fell into the beckoning darkness, and he knew no more.

Elrohir stared a second longer at the dead human, disgust on his face. He didn't feel sorry for this one at all, what he had just done to Estel…

"Estel!" he exclaimed worriedly and rushed over to his foster brother's side, trusting Elladan to cover them with the bow he had 'received' – in fact, taken - from Glónduil. Glónduil…
He gritted his teeth as he turned the young human over onto his back, he was far from finished with the other elf. It had probably been a good thing that Celylith had stopped them from killing the dark haired elf, and it had been an equally wise decision to send him back to the palace to inform King Thranduil of what was going on here instead of letting him come with them, but he still had a few things to discuss with him, and he was sure his twin felt the same.

The younger twin took a deep breath when he saw Aragorn's cut, bruised and far too pale face, blood from a head wound plastering his hair to his head on one side. Placing a slightly shaking hand under the human's chin, he closed his eyes and prayed with all his heart to find a pulse there. After a few seconds he gave a short sigh of relief, there it was, a heartbeat, fast and weak, but definitely there. His keen eyes wandered quickly over the human's body, taking in the numerous injuries, but dismissing them when he noticed the swiftly growing swelling at the side of Aragorn's head. This pointed to a head injury, probably a skull fracture, and a serious one by the looks of it.

Elrohir blocked out his surroundings, his entire being focused on his little brother. Taking the unresponsive ranger's face in his hands, he ignored his aching shoulder and desperately tried to rouse him.

"Estel!! Estel, brother, wake up, please! We are here, Elladan and I … I am sorry, I am so sorry, we couldn't make it any sooner … open your eyes! Please Estel, you have to wake up for me! Aragorn! Open your eyes, you stubborn, reckless human, now!!"

Hot tears of relief streamed over his face as Aragorn slowly opened his eyes, silver eyes glazed with pain and confusion.
"Elrohir? You … really alive …"

The younger twin nodded grinning, quickly wiping away his tears with his shirtsleeve.
"Of course I am, Estel. Elladan is here as well."

Aragorn studied his elven brother's blurry face in confusion, why was Elrohir crying? His brothers never cried, well, not very often anyway. Pushing back the agony that was threatening to split his skull, he smiled at the younger twin.

"About time," he whispered tiredly.

Elrohir laughed shakily, noting the way the noises of the battling elves and humans were coming closer, but ignoring it for the time being.
"Aye, brother, we are very sorry for letting you wait. We had an appointment with about half the goblin population between here and the Redhorn Gate."

He shook the human gently when his eyes began to close once more.
"No, Estel, stay awake. You mustn't go to sleep. Stay with me!"

Aragorn pried his lids open once more. He wanted nothing more than go to sleep and escape the pain that wrecked his hurting body, couldn't Elrohir see that? But his brother's voice had sounded so worried, almost panicked, so there had to be something wrong with him. Elrohir usually knew such things.
"Sorry … so tired … I will … try …"

The younger twin smiled at his human brother and took one of his chafed, cold hands in his, trying to hide his increasing concern.
He knew from experience that Estel had a very hard head for a human, but for everything there were limits, and, as he saw it, Aragorn's had been reached some time ago. The dark haired elf reached out and carefully felt the human's forehead, biting his lip when he felt the unnatural heat there. A fever, no doubt caused by his untreated wounds, Ilúvatar, that was exactly what his little brother didn't need right now…

The battle noises grew so loud that not even Elrohir could ignore them anymore, and he could ignore almost anything, that was something one learned very early when one had the good fortune to have been born the brother of Elladan. Something one had to learn if one wanted to retain some semblance of sanity.
He cursed softly, frowning when he noticed the way Estel's eyes glazed over even more. They needed to get him away from here, and…

Before he could think of a way to transport his human brother within the next few seconds without moving him too much, Elladan's voice ripped through the peaceful cocoon, drawing him back to his surroundings.

"Elrohir! Move!!"

Without even thinking he let go of Estel's hand and rolled to the side, his body instinctively obeying his elven brother's urgent command. The twin groaned in pain as his body weight shortly came to rest on his cracked – and it was only cracked, of that he was sure, and he should know, after all! – shoulder, but ignored his body's discomfort and rolled to his feet, only to see a wooden club crash down onto the space he had occupied only a second earlier, wielded by a man that blinked perplexed, obviously trying to figure out where his victim had disappeared to.
The "victim" scowled annoyed, for the first time noticing that the battle had apparently shifted from the camp to the outskirts of the woods.

'And they just had to pick this spot, of course,' Elrohir sighed inwardly, taking a step forwards and punching the man straight in the face, throwing him to the ground.

His eyes scanning the melee, he decided that his brother needed some help; it was to put down only to the older twin's burning fury that he hadn't been overwhelmed already. The remaining humans had obviously decided to make their stand here, and since some of the Mirkwood warriors were still busy with smaller groups, there was only a handful of elves engaging the men.

Elrohir drew his long hunting knife and quickly moved over to his twin's side, who was standing a few feet from his foster brother's motionless body, making sure that no human crossed an invisible line he had drawn to protect his brothers. The younger twin stole a glance at Elladan's face and unconsciously pitied their attackers. Rarely since their mother's capture had he seen his brother this angry, whose eyes shone brightly with the promise of instant death should anyone dare to try and harm his little brother any further.

Elrohir squared his shoulders and glared at their attackers. There were few who actually dared to fight the sons of Elrond when infuriated, but if these humans wanted to try, then that was just fine with him.




Legolas drew in a sharp breath when his back impacted with the rock wall, almost causing him to loosen his grip on his daggers. His ribs screaming in pain, he brought his left hand up in front of his face and smashed his fist that still grasped his second dagger into the grinning face of his attacker. Donyc reeled back in shock and pain, giving the elven prince time to move away from the wall, back into the middle of the room.

His head spinning, Legolas tried to get his breathing under control, wondering for a moment how it was possible that he was already back in these accursed caverns. The fight had moved into the main cave that overlooked the valley, much to the elf's dismay.

'It is just my kind of luck,' he thought, watching the human lift his head again, blood trickling from his nose. It had actually felt very good to wipe that annoying grin off his face, Legolas decided a little shamefully. A lot better than it should have. But after what that … man had done to Aragorn…
Once again steadily increasing worry wrapped itself around his heart, if only his friend managed to escape Addramyr…

Overcome with a sudden wave of fury, the elven prince moved forward and attacked once again; he would teach that arrogant human that there were some things that had serious consequences, consequences that one couldn't escape so easily. He had sworn something, and there was no one that would stop him from fulfilling that oath.

Donyc blocked the blow just in time and tried to slam his shoulder into Legolas' side. The human had quickly realized that this was one of the fair haired elf's weak spots, and was seizing every chance to exploit it. The elven prince danced quickly out of his reach, bringing down one of his knives and catching the human commander just below the collarbone, adding another bleeding wound to those that already adorned the man's body. Both of them had managed to hit the other more than a few times, but the elf had got him a lot more often than the other way round, and Donyc knew that he would already be dead had the elf not been injured.

Painfully the human straightened up again, and, snatching a torch from one of the roughly hewn halters on the wall, he moved, thrusting the flaming wood forwards like a spear and catching the elf on the thigh.

Legolas stumbled back, unable to stifle a small cry of pain. His chest heaving as he struggled to get enough air, he carefully tried to balance on the leg that threatened to give out from under him, a burning pain spreading and intensifying with the second. Valar, he should have known that that human would fight dirty!

Donyc, sensing his chance, rushed up to him, but, this time, Legolas was prepared. Waiting until the last possible moment, he side-stepped the human, and, grimacing in pain and letting go of one of his knives, he grabbed the dark haired man by the shirt and threw him across the room, sending him crashing into a table and a few benches that stood piled up at the one side of the room and causing him to let go of his daggers.

After a few seconds the human commander struggled to his feet with an obvious effort, his left arm dangling limply by his side.

'Broken,' the elven prince commented inwardly, 'Too bad for him.'

Donyc eyed the slowly approaching elf closely, suppressing the sudden panic that threatened to overcome him. Backing away, he gave Legolas a grin and taunted,

"Not bad, Master Elf, not bad. You are much more of a challenge than your little ranger friend. I'm impressed."

Legolas ignored the man, if he thought he could distract him by making him angry, he was mistaken. He gritted his teeth as a new wave of pain swept through him, from his head through his chest all the way down to his thigh. He had had enough of that human.

Donyc however was not prepared to give up that easily.
"You know, I always wondered what kind of elf would mix with one of us," Donyc said, not taking his eyes off the prince, "And just why that ranger was so convinced that you would come to rescue him. The way I see it, it was nothing but a coincidence that you found us, but he, he was so sure that you, his precious elven friend, would come back for him. Nothing could convince him otherwise, and, believe me, I tried."

Legolas' breathing quickened as he tried not to listen to the man's lies, but against his will he found himself paying close attention.

That fact was not lost on Donyc, and he continued, a nasty smile on his bloodied face.

"Oh, I tried. That evening the elf allowed us to have a little fun with him, I came really close to making him beg, did he tell you that? I could see it in his eyes, but something made him keep quiet. And do you know what I think? I think it was you, Master Elf. He called for you in the end, called for you until he lost consciousness. It was rather amusing actually, the way he begged someone to help him that had left him behind in the first place…"

The elf prince stared at the dark haired human, fury and pain darkening his bright eyes. Elbereth, Aragorn had called for him, he had needed him, and where had he been? Donyc was right, he had failed his friend, had left him behind…

The small moment of distraction was all Donyc needed. Falling to his knees, he pulled a small, hidden dagger from his boot, and, with a fluent movement, threw it at his momentary distracted adversary with his right.
That was it, the human commander thought with an inward sigh of relief, nobody would be able to escape that knife.

He was right, Legolas did indeed not escape the dagger. At the sound of Donyc's body hitting the floor he had looked up, startled, and in the split second before the knife left the man's hand, he had realized that it was too late to avoid the blade. With all the speed he still possessed, he threw himself forwards, twisting his body to the side so that instead of hitting him in the heart the knife imbedded itself in his right shoulder. Their bodies collided, and they rolled over several times, both of them trying to get to the knife Legolas had held in his hand when he had lunged at the man.

With strength born out of fury, the elven prince slowly gained the upper hand, trying to ignore the pain that started to claim his entire attention, but Donyc wasn't willing to give up just yet. They rolled over the cold stone floor until they met – hard and unexpectedly – with the rock wall. That was something the human had obviously not taken into account, and they impacted with the rock, both of them getting knocked hard against it. The man went suddenly limp, and Legolas looked up, surprised, to see the dagger imbedded deeply in the human's chest, their hands still wrapped around the hilt.

Letting go of the knife and drawing himself painfully up into a sitting position, the fair haired elf looked at the human commander, who was leaning against the wall, staring with failing eyes at the blade that protruded from his chest.

"I keep my promises," Legolas repeated quietly, fixing emotionless eyes on the dark haired man.

And so it came that Donyc died as he had feared, alone and abandoned by his men, and the last thing he ever saw was the lithe figure of the blonde elf, looking at him with those cold, cold blue eyes that held no pity at all.




Elrond parried a blow with both of his knives, and while he launched a counterattack, he wondered briefly how one could possibly choose daggers instead of a sword as weapons of choice. In his opinion, a sword was a lot more practical, especially when you were fighting an elven maniac that had one.

The one thing that aided the Lord of Rivendell was the state of wild, uncontrolled rage in which Cornallar seemed to be in, a rage that caused him to rush thoughtlessly at his adversary and lash out at him without looking after himself or conserving his strength.

Elrond looked around him, using a brief respite owned to the fact that his former advisor needed some time too free himself from the tangle of a wild bush in which the elf lord's last attack had pushed him.
They were now about five hundred yards away from the camp, but his elven eyes had no trouble seeing that the humans were in the process of losing. He didn't know what had become of Legolas or Estel, he could only pray with all his heart that they were alright, but the men he could see from here were beginning to surrender, the few that were still alive, that was. The elven warriors were beginning to disarm the survivors and gather them in the one corner of the camp.

Elrond turned his eyes back on the other elf who was paying absolutely no attention to his surroundings, his dark eyes fixed on the elf lord's face as he came closer.

"It is over, Cornallar," he tried to reason with him. "Your men are giving themselves up. It has not to end this way! You cannot escape, stop this now, it is not too late!"

The dark haired elf laughed, his eyes flickering unsteadily.
"Oh, it is too late, Peredhil, it is far too late! It has been too late for a long time now. And who says that I even want to escape!? There is one last move I have to make, and escaping is no part of it!"

He moved forwards, aiming a wild swing at the other elf. Elrond ducked out of the way, but while Cornallar was rushing past him, he grabbed the elf lord's sleeve with an astonishing speed and pulled him with him, which resulted in both of them falling to the ground, tumbling down the path that led southwards into the direction of the High Pass.
At the bottom of the path there lay several large boulders, and both elves smacked right into them, knocking the breath out of them and causing them to drop their weapons. After a few seconds they struggled breathlessly to their knees, and scrambled quickly to their feet, trying to get hold of a blade. Both of them lunged at the knives that had been knocked out of Elrond's grip, but Cornallar reached them first, sweeping them up with a triumphant shout.

Reacting quickly, Elrond threw himself to the side, looking desperately around him for his sword. After what felt like an eternity he finally spied it behind one of the larger boulders, and with desperate speed he really managed to grasp it just in time to whirl round and block the knives that Cornallar had aimed at his back.

Looking at the scowling face of his former advisor, the Lord of Imladris gave a small sigh of relief. This was much better, he thought, eyeing the other elf warily, he really didn't like knives too much.

Shifting his grip on the pommel, he brought the gleaming mithril blade up in front of him.
"I don't want to kill you, Cornallar," he said quietly. "But I will, by the Valar, I will, if you don't give up your weapons now."

The dark haired elf grinned at him, his body tensing for action.
"Too bad, Lord Elrond," he mocked, his dark eyes hard and lifeless, "That doesn't really matter, because I want to kill you!"

Once again Cornallar attacked Elrond, who took a deep breath, setting his jaw. If Cornallar had decided that this would only end when one of them was dead, and if that was the way he wanted it, then he would see it done.
The elf lord lost himself in the familiar rhythm of a sword fight, and, watching the other elf fight with an unnatural ferocity, he soon found that, even if his old councillor had trained his abilities during these past 3000 years, he had obviously not gone to any lengths to come up with new moves. He still strongly favoured his right side, leaving his left open to attack, something that Elrond and several others had told him many times, before the war in Imladris. But even then Cornallar wouldn't listen, he had never listened to the counsel of others, not if it concerned him personally…

Elrond blocked a stroke, and as he pushed the other elf back, he saw what he had been looking for: An opening in Cornallar's defence, an opening that was as clearly visible to his eyes as the trail of chaos the twins left behind every time they had been "researching" something in his library.

Without even thinking about what he was doing, he moved forwards, and after feinting to his left, he thrust his blade to the right and upwards, watching with something akin to horror as the bluish metal disappeared between the dark haired elf's ribs with a sickening noise.

Both elves stared in shock at the sword that protruded from Cornallar's chest, and Elrond pulled it out quickly as the other started to collapse. He stared at the bloodstained sword in his hands, and while it had been not the first time he had killed someone and, as much as he tried to deny it, it would probably not be the last, he still never got used to the initial shock that always seized him when he had to take a life.
And this time it had even been an elf, an elf that, once, a long time ago, had even been something like a friend to him…

He fell to his knees next to his former advisor, checking if there was anything he could do to save him, and quickly finding that there wasn't. No healer would be able to help Cornallar now.
At Elrond's touch the dark haired elf opened his eyes slowly, giving him a blank stare.

"You … win after all, Peredhil," he whispered, his eyes slowly breaking. He drew a laboured, shuddering breath and slowly closed his eyes. "That was … a … good move."

Elrond remained next to him for a few moments, staring emotionlessly at the elf's dead body.
Finally he got to his feet, giving the fallen elf one last, unreadable look as he shook his head sadly.

"I never wanted this to happen," he said quietly. "You brought this upon yourself, Cornallar, and now I have to bear the responsibility for what happened. We have all lost, and far more than just your 'game'. Go in peace, and may you find forgiveness and comfort with your son."

He turned and walked swiftly back the way they had come. He was about to choose the main path that led to the camp to join the warriors and search for his son and Legolas, when he remembered something that made him dash down the smaller path he and Cornallar had taken, quickly reaching the place where Nólad had fallen.

He arrived just in time to see some Mirkwood warriors take three very dejected looking humans away, gazing at them grimly, while another one made his way quickly over to the fallen elf. Elrond stepped closer, taking the medicine pouch the younger elf carried, and dismissing him with a nod of his head. The warrior made no objections, knowing full well that his healing abilities were nothing in comparison to those of the Lord of Rivendell.

The elf lord quickly began to examine the injury, carefully feeling where the arrow had entered the fair haired elf's back. Elrond's lips thinned as he took in the extent of the damage the projectile had done, it was far too close to the heart, and the younger elf had lost much blood, too much blood.

'Still,' he thought, rummaging through the small leather pack and making a mental note to have a talk with the palace healers once they got to Mirkwood. What kind of useless herbs did they give to their warriors? 'Still, there is a chance that he may survive, and I will not just let another elf die today!'

As he was just pulling out some of the herbs he wanted, Nólad slowly opened his eyes that were clouded with pain.
"Lord Elrond?" he asked in a whisper, his gaze wandering over the other elf's face. "Where … is he?"

Elrond stopped in mid-motion, turning his head to look into Nólad's eyes. He closed his eyes and shook his head sadly.
"I am sorry. He is dead."

The blonde elf stared at the grey sky for a second, not surprised in the slightest.
"I knew it would end … like this … perhaps … it's better …"

The Lord of Imladris pressed the younger elf back, shaking his head.
"Don't talk. You have taken grievous hurt, save your strength."

Nólad smiled slightly, coughing weakly.
"I am dying, my lord," he said in a surprisingly strong tone of voice.

As Elrond started to once again turn his attention to his wound, he tried to push his hands away and shook his head, catching the elf lord's eye.
"No, Lord Elrond, please don't. I do not wish to remain here as the last of my friends. It is too late anyway. I … I am ready to go. All those I ever loved are gone … my brothers … my friends … they are … waiting for me, all of them. They will be beginning to wonder what kept me."

Elrond looked down at the dying elf, shaking his head sadly and wondering how many more lives this horrible day would yet claim.
"You don't have to. Stay with us, come back to Rivendell! Fight this darkness, you don't have to share his fate, Nólad."

Nólad coughed again, bright red blood appearing at the corners of his mouth. So it was as he had thought, Elrond thought helplessly, at least one lung was punctured.

"I … I have followed Cornallar my whole life, my lord … wh-what kind of friend … would I be if … if I changed that now? Let me go, please. He will need s-someone that … makes him see reason… He was never p-particularly good … at that, you know…"

The dark haired elf smiled gently, nodding his head. Noting the way the other's breaths became increasingly rasping and laboured, he quickly took one of his hands, knowing that there was no time to spare.

"Thank you," he said seriously, gazing at the rapidly paling face in front of him. "Thank you for looking after my son. Thank you for keeping his identity a secret, you saved his life that way."

The other elf grimaced and, with on obvious effort, smiled again.
"'Twas nothing … t-take good care of him, he's not … not like them."

Elrond inclined his head slightly, and the fair haired elf continued, the light in his eyes growing dim.
"Sorry … I am sorry … tell your sons and the prince …"

The Lord of Imladris squeezed the cold hand he held gently, shaking his head.
"There is nothing to be sorry about Nólad, you redeemed yourself the moment you stood up to Cornallar. It was a brave thing to do, and we are deeply in your debt for it."

The other elf's eyes slowly drifted shut, and he added softly,

"Go, Nólad. Join your people, let them wait no longer."

Nólad exhaled slowly, and a peaceful smile spread over his features as his spirit fled his body to join his family and friends, in Valinor far across the Sea.

Elrond bowed his head in grief; this was so pointless, another death that made no sense at all…

"Á-manuelle utua seere e' oromarderim en Mandos," he whispered softly, opening his eyes and folding the dead elf's arms across his chest.

Slowly he stood to his feet and looked down at Nólad, who looked more at peace now than he could remember him in life.
"May your journey be a swift one, and may you be welcomed by all those who have already gone before you."

He turned and left the little glade, heading towards the main camp, leaving the bodies of the two elves behind and fervently hoping that those two would be the only pair of friends that would be reunited today only in death.




Legolas stumbled down the stony path, wondering idly how it came that Aragorn and he always managed to get themselves into these situations. This one topped all of them though, he thought fuzzily, the encounter with the hill trolls was nothing in comparison to this. Neither was the mess Estel had got them into when they had first met, or the one with…

His confused thoughts were interrupted when he reached the camp to find a dozen longbows pointed unwaveringly at him. He blinked slowly, his tired brain trying to figure out what was going on here, until he noticed that the beings pointing their weapons at him were elves. Mirkwood elves, in fact, the patrol he had ordered to come here…

He quickly searched the crowd of familiar faces in front of him, where were Aragorn, Lord Elrond or the twins? They had to be here somewhere, he needed to find them…

"Legolas! You live, thank the Valar!"

The elven prince raised his head to look into Celylith's concerned face, whose eyes hardened when he looked at his swaying prince.
"Elbereth, Legolas, what happened to you? Come, sit down before you fall over…"

Legolas shook his head carefully, looking at the silver haired elf imploringly.
"No, I need to find Strider and Lord Elrond. Where are they?" He brushed off his friend's hands that were trying to steady him. "Stop it, I am fine."

The other elf looked at him incredulously and ignored his friend's attempts to escape his grasp.
"Fine? Legolas, you look battered enough to come straight from the fields of Dagorlad, you are limping heavily, and there is a knife sticking out of your shoulder in case you hadn't noticed!"

The elven prince looked down his body perplexed. Celylith was right, there was a dagger in his shoulder. It took him a moment to remember how it had got there, he had indeed forgotten about it. His whole body hurt so much that one injury more or less hardly made a difference anymore.

He gritted his teeth, eyes flashing determinedly. He was not sitting down before he had found out where his friends were. Celylith sighed tiredly, Legolas could be so incredibly stubborn at times.

"The twins are alright, mellonamin, don't worry. We met with them as you ordered. How Lord Elrond is, I do not know, but one of the warriors saw him caring for the wounded just a few minutes ago. He is alive as well."

Legolas sighed with relief, but frowned when he realized Celylith had omitted someone from his enumeration.
"What about Strider?" he asked, pushing back the pain and exhaustion that seemed to have taken up permanent residence in his body and scanning the other elf closely. "Did you find him?"

Celylith sighed and lowered his eyes. Legolas wouldn't like this.
"Let me get my supplies from my horse and then I will take you to him. Elladan sent me to get him some more bandages."

Not waiting for Legolas to reply, he pulled him into the direction the elven horses were grazing, grabbing a bag from his horse's back and turning to leave again. Suddenly another bag the size of a small boulder moved and hissed, straining against the ropes that secured it on the nervous animal. The prince's eyes grew wide while Celylith hastily grabbed his lord's shoulder and dragged him off into the other direction, mumbling about how the bag shouldn't have woken up already.

The fair haired prince was sure he was in a pretty bad shape, but even in his condition he knew that bags were not supposed to move on their own, and they usually didn't hiss either.
He was too exhausted and in too much pain to figure out what was going on, and so he decided to let the matter rest until he could think straight again. Just then they reached a smaller glade, and every thought of moving or hissing supply bags was driven from the prince's mind.

Pulling his arm out of his friend's steadying grasp, he rushed across the clearing and fell heavily down to his knees next to the twins who were crouching at the side of the motionless body of his human friend.
Elladan had bedded the ranger's head into his lap and didn't even glance up when Legolas plopped down next to him, he just continued to threaten his little brother with the most interesting things should he dare to lose consciousness. Elrohir looked up shortly from where he was bandaging Aragorn's chest, taking in his friend's condition and wincing openly when his eyes came to rest on the dagger that still protruded from Legolas' shoulder.

They were dead, all of them, and if their father didn't kill them, King Thranduil would.

Legolas shot him a worried look before redirecting his gaze to the ranger's face, who struggled to keep his eyes open. He looked even worse than the last time he had seen him, and his eyes were unfocused and glazed with pain.
"Aragorn? Aragorn!"

The young human slowly focused his eyes on the person that seemed so intent on preventing him from getting some rest. His face broke into a painful smile when he saw who the speaker was.

"Legolas…" he whispered so softly that their elven ears could understand him only with difficulty, "You … hurt…"

The elf laughed softly, instantly regretting it as intense pain shot through his chest and head.
"As are you, mellonamin," he stated wryly.

He brushed an errant strand of dark hair away from his friend's face, his eyes hardening when he saw the blood that covered the side of the human's head. He scanned the clearing quickly, nodding in grim satisfaction when he saw the dead body of Donyc's second-in-command that still lay where he had fallen, slumped against a tree trunk, an arrow sticking out of his chest. So Elladan had got him as well; he didn't feel sorry for that one either.

"D-Donyc?" Aragorn asked in a whisper, his eyes glued to the prince's face.

Legolas shook his head, his eyes growing cold when he heard the human commander's name.
"Don't worry, Estel. He is dead. He will never hurt you again."

The young ranger closed his eyes at that, breathing out softly.
"Good," he whispered tiredly.

At this moment the three elves heard someone enter the clearing, and they looked up, only to freeze instantly when they saw who it was. Legolas swallowed nervously. Where was an orc horde when you needed one? That would at least give them enough time to escape…
Elrohir got up slowly, trying not to let his own injuries show, which was futile of course, considering the fact that one side of his face was covered in the biggest and most colourful bruise any of them had ever seen.

The younger twin cleared his throat nervously.
"Uhm, we can explain it?! There were goblins and…" he trailed off and quickly changed his strategy. "But, please, ada, before you strangle us as we all deserve, help Estel. He needs you, urgently!"

Elrond stepped closer, and before Elrohir could say another word, he quickly enveloped his younger elven son in a firm hug, which the younger elf returned after a few second, leaning contentedly into his father's embrace.

After a few seconds the Lord of Rivendell let go of his son and put a finger under the younger elf's chin, looking him in the eye.
"Don't you – ever – do that again, Elrohir!" he said, his voice trembling. "I thought I had lost all three of you. By all the Valar, if you do such a thing ever again, I will strangle you!"

"We won't," Elladan assured him from his position on the ground, smiling brilliantly at his father, eyes shining with relief upon seeing him again, and in one piece at that.

At the sound of his oldest son's voice Elrond looked down at Legolas and Elladan who clustered around Estel's motionless body, doing a double-take when he saw the dagger imbedded in the prince's shoulder.
'Don't ask,' a tiny voice inside his head chuckled as he fell to his knees next to the two, practised eyes wandering over his foster son. 'O Elbereth, no…'

He ran his hands over the human's skull, trying to determine if it was cracked or not.
"Estel! My son, open your eyes for me! Estel!!" he repeated, fighting down the panic that rose inside of him, "I do not wish to repeat myself! Please, look at me!"

Aragorn groaned softly, thoroughly annoyed now. He was tired, he was cold and he hurt so much that he couldn't think clearly, the sensation of blood returning to his numb arms being one of the most painful things he had ever experienced. And, to be honest, he had experienced quite a few painful things in the past week, so that meant a lot. His head was spinning faster with every second that passed, and he knew that he wouldn't be able to stay conscious for much longer, no matter what the voices said.
But that had sounded like his father, and he would be damned if he went to sleep before making sure the elf lord was alright.

Slowly he forced his lids open again, his silver eyes seemingly lighting up when they fixed on Elrond's relieved face.
"Ada," he mumbled exhaustedly, not having the strength to say more.

Elrond smiled at the young human, resting one hand on his much too warm forehead.
"Yes, I am here, Estel, we are all here. Please, stay awake."

Aragorn fought to comply, but it was a fight he couldn't win, and soon his eyes slid shut again.
"Sorry … can't …"

The voices started pleading with him again, but he knew that the choice was no longer his to make.
As the darkness around him grew and intensified, he gave an inward smile of relief and let unconsciousness carry him away, safe in the knowledge that his father, brothers and best friend were with him, watching over him, and that they would still be there when he awoke.





TBC...




N'lava sen usin - Don't allow them to escape!
edan - human, man
eldar - 'People of the Stars', elves
mellonamin - my friend
Á-manuelle utua seere e' oromarderim en Mandos - May your spirit find peace in the Halls of Mandos
ada - father (daddy)




I'm sorry, okay? I liked him as well, but there was no other way ... the plot demanded it ... uhm, my alter ego made me do it? *nervous look at VERY angry readers* Come on, I cried when I wrote it, doesn't that count? Apparently not... Okay guys, only one chapter left, which will be here on Saturday or Sunday, I think.
Don't hesitate to review to let me know how much you hate me for killing him, okay? But really, please review, I would very much like to know what you think about this chapter. It was very hard to write. So: Review? Please??

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Additional A/N:

E - Tsk tsk tsk, not so impatient! A little bit of waiting never hurt, did it? And, see, here it is: A whole chapter dedicated to killing off the bad guys... *raises eyebrow* So you'd have stabbed him? Well, I thought he had been through enough, besides, I think a stab wound would have killed our favourite ranger, considering his condition. And I still need him to twist his knee, so... *g* Uhm, and about the willpower and not adding to the torture: Read on, dear friend... *evil cackle*
Cestari - *shakes with anger* Yes, I have indeed noticed that C&S have stolen his name! I have no idea how that could happen, because I put my cat's name into the name generator, and he hasn't even got an English name. So, I have NO idea. *g* They shall all kill Donyc? Well, that's an interesting idea, but well, a bit too late now. But I hope you will not be disappointed by my version of events... LOL, I like the bean paste! It's disgusting I think, so that would work just fine for Donyc... Thanks so much for the review! Glad you like it so much!
Imbefaniel - *writes down instructions* Got it! Perhaps I'll try it as well one day... *blushes* So, yes, perhaps the chapter WAS a tiny bit evil, but what can I say - I love being evil? Mhahahaha!!
TrinityTheSheDevil - What is it with you people? You are even more blood-thirsty than me, and I had thought that to be impossible! Well, I thought he had had enough for a bit, but it's not over yet, is it? *evil grin* Hmm, if you shot me in the foot, I could still read ... or watch TV ... or ... *hastily* Oh, okay, I see what you mean, give Elladan back his bow, he will need it! The next chapter's here, see?
Mouse - *grins proudly* So you liked it? Thanks so much! *huggles her* And see, this one isn't a cliffy, well, not really... Yeah, it took good ol' Nólad long enough to figure out that Cornallar is really, well, let's say, three sandwiches short of a picnic, shall we? *g* One nice, long elf-evil human discussion coming up as ordered!
Ciria - Oh, I'm glad if I could make your day a little bit better, that's nice to hear. I'm sure Chemistry wasn't that bad, and you did well in English and French as well. I'm sure of it. (Yeah, that's an Elrond prediction! *g*) Uhm, okay ... *shoots looks at Zam and Ciria* I'm sure Zam didn't mean what she said, she says a lot of things, you know... Please put down that pineapple, 'k? Huh? Yes, what incident? *g* So you think Nólad is a mother and Cornallar is his/her child, yes? Well, THAT'S an interesting thought for sure... Nólad's face when Cornallar found the ring? Well, I guess it would have been something like "Oh, Holy S***" *shrugs* Just guessing here! Don't worry, there's more of your fav elf in this chapter, but well ... Let's just say, I am sorry, okay? I really, truly am.
JoX5 - I am not being evil to readers ... (Readers: *raise eyebrows* Excuse me?) Well, okay, then maybe I am. I don't want you to go insane here, but there just were so many great - okay then, evil - places to break things off, so, sorry? I just can't help myself... Thanks a lot for reviewing!
Darkphoenix - Yeah well, loving me - hating me - loving me - hating me ... That's something I haven't figured out for myself yet... *g* Hey, it would be unfair if I only tortured my characters, no? Besides, it's not torture, just a litle suspense, nothing more...Yeah well, the next story might take some time, but we'll see... Estel taking off his coat? Uhm, let's just say he won't be doing that - or anything else than lie on the ground ... *evil cackle* Oh, brutal and nasty deaths? Well, I did my best, but they are still humane, in a way... *shrugs* Hope you still like it.
Asha Dreamweaver - Thank you! I am so happy there are a few people out there who like this weird little story! Thanks a lot for the review!
Arlessiar - *rot werd* Na ja, so gut ist sie nun wirklich nicht... Aber danke! *g* Tja, ich glaube ich mag Cornallar am liebsten. Der hat ja nun wirklich einen an der Waffel, nech? Ah, noch ein Aragorn-Fan? Nun ja, ich glaube, man kann dem ganzen hier entnehmen, dass der knuddelige Ranger auch mein Lieblingscharakter ist, so frei nach dem Motto "Denn jeder toetet, was er liebt". Nun ja, nicht gerade toeten, man kann ja auch alles uebertreiben... *g* LOL, Papa Elrond? Irgendwie erinnert mich das an Papa Baer... Keine Angst, ein bisschen Comfort ist schon noch drin... Spaeter... *fieses Grinsen* Danke fuer die review, lieber spaet als nie!!
Miss Undastood - Sure I have tried Marmite crisps! Ack! Horrible stuff! But hey, if you like them, please, feel free to eat as many as you possibly can... Yes, your darling will be in this chappie as well, don't worry, and, well, the ELVES won't harm him, let's put it that way... I know I know, I couldn't believe my eyes either when I saw that name! But I THOUGHT OF IT FIRST - I think... Well, I don't know if I'm popular (would be the first time in my life, LOL), but if you guys want, I can try and write another one. Might take me some time, but I'd definitely try.
Lievre - Lievre!! *huggles her* Nice to see you again! I know, RL can be a pain sometimes... *g* Yes, "The Chapter In Which Everything Goes Straight To Hell" would have been appropriate! But it's an awfully long name, so I reluctantly decided to change it... *wide eyes* Well, no problem, and don't worry, they will die! This chapter! I dedicated the whole chapter to killing off the baddies! And I agree, Estel's been through enough pain, well, not yet, but at the end of the chapter it will be over. And, uhm, nervous breakdowns aren't all Legolas is having, poor soul... Thanks so much for reviewing again, I missed you!
Nikeie - *smug grin* Of course I won't tell you! You'll have to read on to find out... Hm, about Legolas' age: Nothing against Orlando Bloom, but he's an actor, so what does he know about Tolkien? Most of them haven't even read the books, so what d'you expect? I know that the movie people have figured it out somehow, but until they present me with their reasoning, I will not believe what they say. In Tolkien's main works there's nothing about Legolas' age, full stop. *coughs* Sorry, I am a bit fanatic about facts and ages and stuff. Well, let's say your fav elf won't get hurt - much. *evil grin*
Ana - I'm not telling! You'll have to read it to find out whether he's going to die or not... Great you like it so much, I hope you'll like this bit as well!
Kandice - *innocent expression* You don't like cliffies?Why? I like them a lot! Mhahahaha!! Well, I have updated, so does that mean you won't strangle me? Huh? Think about it! *g*
Alilacia - *pats her back in sympathy* Poor you - sometimes I think FF.net is out there to get us... (1-3) Yupp, they're dead. Both of them. (4) Yeah well, Nólad ... I'm not telling. (5) *grins back* Nothing like a bit of male bonding, right you are, mate! (6) *shrugs* You are right, he didn't leave. Stupid boy. (7) Well, he had had 3000 years to come up with some courage, for crying out loud! *g* No, you're right, it took a lot of guts to do that. (8-9) *evil grin* Oh no, _he_ didn't do any damage. (10) *blushes* Why, thank you! (11) You'll have to read on to find out! (12) You can say that again! Horrible, stupid weather, at least today. Yesterday was great. (13) Yes, you can have him. There's not much left of him I'm afraid, Legolas was quite - let me put it this way - upset. *g* Read on, my friend! Thanks a lot for the long review! I loooooooove long reviews! *g*
Belle - That's good, there's nothing worse than a boring life! Oh, come on, the cliffy wasn't that bad! *thinks about it* Well, okay, sp perhaps it was. But it's fun writing them, so don't expect me to stop any time soon! Yupp, I am from Germany, but right now I'm in the UK. So you'd have to swim here. Oh, and don't worry, I am not exactly what you would define as polite company, so tell me! I'd love to hear what the Amish taught you! Amish? Arent't those the ones that practise polygamy? Or are they the ones that are stuck in the 19th century? The latter, I think?! Oh, no offence, btw. And I will read your story once I'm back home and have a bit more time, okay? Promise! And, hey: I wasn't MY fault!!
Analia - What kind of evil ideas? *narrows eyes* Ah well, nothing unusual is going to happen, just the usual, you know: Death, pain, destruction... *g* Great you like it, and I'm still thinking about the sequel...
Wakoocarolyn - Thank you! And I have indeed decided to let Legolas and Donyc have a little conversation, the dear prince has got to keep his promise, hasn't he? Thanks a lot for reviewing!
CrazyLOTRFan - Huh? *confused look* Somebody actually LIKED the cliffy? I'm either losing my touch or you are really odd... But hey, I agree: It _was _ a good place to end the chapter! Update's here, hope it was soon enough!
ThE iNsAnE oNe - YOU want Nólad? Well, there's a little problem, Ciria _really_ wants him, as does Zam...But if you want to, I can give you a Nólad plushie once this is over. Deal? *reads Elrohir's prediction about said elf* *blanches* *hastily* NO! It won't happen like that, really! *watches TiO cry* Jeez, perhaps I SHOULD give him to you... Okay, so I may clone him and you can all have a copy. How's that? *nods* Yupp. Poor Estel, his life is certainly not an easy one... (Estel: Tell me about it!) *jumps up and down* Yay! Please, write faster! Faster! I want to read it!! Now!! Please?? *wails*
Alisha - Awww, such a nice thing to say - thank you! But that happens to me all the time with Ancient Greek and Latin grammar, they are so similar sometimes... *coughs* Ah well, okay... Well, about the concealed weapons: That's just what I thought! I mean, orcs may be stupid enough not to search their prisoners, but humans aren't! *proudly* We may be not as clever as elves, but we're not THAT stupid! *hurt look* Why is everybody assuming that all I want to do is hurt Aragorn? Really, boys and girls, I'm not _that_ bad, am I? Am I? On second thoughts, DON'T answer that.... *g* *singing* I'll never tell ... You'll have to read on and find out! Yes, the knee still hurts a bit, but it's better now. Still, it's something I could do to our favourite ranger, I'll have to remember it... *evil grin* ACK! Nagging Alert, Nagging Alert!!! Well, as I said, it's not my fault!! *shakes fist at FF.net* The elf and ranger didn't escape after all, although I have to admit that they tried once or twice...
MidnightLoner - Yeah well, I think you could say that, right now, Elladan and Elrohir are not exactly happy. Nor are Legolas and Elrond, mind you... They are all quite upset at the moment... And don't worry, most of them are going to be okay. Most. *g*
Marbienl - Don't you just hate FF.net sometimes? It's doing its best to make your life miserable... *grrrr* Hmm, okay, maybe you are right. Both Gríma and Glónduil are too stupid to consider the consequences of their actions... Well, about Celylith and the spider: He doesn't have to keep it for long, does he? Only for a little while, long enough to wreak some havoc... *g* Yupp, poor Estel, the hands will be quite painful. But, mind you, he has other problems right now... *evil grin* Yeah, I also think the singing scene is sweet, there's nothing like a bit of male bonding! Okies, a fainting scene, I'll see what I can do... *g*
ManuKu - Oh, du warst krank? Armes Wurm... Tja, es war wirklich lang, und das hier ist noch laenger! Ich hasse es, wenn das passiert, irgendwie geraet die Handlung immer ausser Kontrolle... *grrr* Yupp, man kann ueber Donyc sagen, was man will, aber er ist kein Feigling. Vielleicht dumm und ein Sadist (und, nach Zam's Ansicht, schwul! *g*), aber nicht feige! Tja, zu allem weiteren kann ich keine Angaben machen, da musst du schon weiterlesen! Danke fuer die review, hat mich sehr gefreut!
Sabercrazy - This is not a torture fic, is it? I mean, really, there is one little chapter, and that's it? Yeah, maybe a little more, but not much more... *thinks* Okay, so maybe it IS a torture fic after all... *g* Yeah well, I have to agree, the last cliffy WAS quite evil, I am rather proud of it... Thanks a lot for reviewing! I love review, in case you hadn't noticed...
Acacia - *g* I don't know either. Just a random hobbit, I guess... *g* LOL, a kingdom to rule, down south? That's one way of putting it... Don't worry, he WILL be fine, in the end. Uhm, maybe not right now, but, eventually, he will be alright. *whispers* Later. LOL, you are right! Enid Blyton always did that, and I loved it! I could just imagine all the great food - and, surprise, surprise, she never - ever - mentioned Marmite. I wonder why.... *g*
Alexa - *sympathetic smile* I know, I know, school can be hell... Poor you. Then again, poor me, my college starts again in a week... *shudders* Poor me indeed. Don't worry, I will not kill Legolas, even though I can make no promises about not hurting him... *evil cackle* Thanks for reviewing!
Lavender of the Shire - Two days? Wow! I didn't know it took so long to read it, but you're right, twenty chapters is quite long... You are complaining about the cliffy? Really, the others had had it much worse than you! They had had about, let's say, eight or nine cliffies! But you are right, this one is quite evil. *shrugs* I love being evil...
Nikara - Well, the torture-scenes were the hardest thing I have ever written! I couldn't look at the screen because I couldn't watch was I were doing to my poor ranger... I'm weird, I know. I'm glad you like it, thanks for the review!
Saige - Well, with the knee it's my fault, I guess. I should have strectched a bit before running.... Stupid me. Ah well, it's too late now. See? Next chapter's here! And it's no cliffy! Well, not a real one, anyway...
Elladan - Cool screenname, btw, did I ever tell you that? *watches twitching face* Uhm, well, I take it you liked the cliffy? Oh, and don't worry, you are not going insane! The next bit is here already, see.... *grimaces* You _broke_ your knee? Jeez, _that's_ gotta hurt! Poor you!
Mommints - Uhm, what can I say? I like cliffies?! Aiee! Don't send the Med-jai after me, even though you send me a scimitar - nice weapons... *dreamy sigh* OR you could send me Ardeth Bey (or whatever his name's spelt! *g*)... *huge dreamy sigh* Great you like this so much, I hope you'll enjoy the rest as well!
Aurienia - Calm down, calm down ... yes, that's it ... this one isn't a cliffy, see? Well, _I_ think it's not a cliffy...Oh Yay!! I got an Oscar! Thanks so much! *clears throat* Thank you all so much! I would like to thank my family, my readers, my cat, The Coca Cola Company for inventing Diet Coke with lemon.... *g* Thanks a lot! That's something different for a change... Thanks a lot for asking, my knee is indeed better. LOL, I hadn't expected anyone to notice! That's correct, Donyc did the exact same thing to Aragorn in ch 8 and 9... Well done! Thanks a lot for the review!
Froggy - Oh, uhm thank you? Pleasey-squeezy with sugar, sprinkles and a cherry on top? Well, who could say no to THAT? I hope you woke up in time to read this! *winks*
Tbiris - LOL, you can threaten Donyc all you want. He deserves it. Sorry, but you mustn't kill him, otherwise Legolas will be very disappointed, and we can't have that, can we? *g* Indeed, Mirkwood to the rescue! Well, I'm still thinking about the sequel, but if you all want me to write one, I probably will...
Lina - *g* You like it every time somebody is "forceful", Lina.... Is there something you want to tell us?? *g* Oh, sweet Jesus... *sighs in exasperation* He is not gay!! NOT! GAY!! It's not so hard to understand, is it?? LOL, Elrond's The-Eyebrows-of-Doom-Glare? You are right, that one IS very scary. *hits Legolas on the head* He is not morbid, for crying out loud! He's a bit depressed right now, and can you blame him? *shakes head* That elf... LOL, let's just hope they don't pursue you and the Rohirrim ... would ruin the whole story, again.... *g*
Xanthia Morgan - Aww, thanks! It's always great to hear that people like what you're writing. *eyes grow wide* You are even worse than me! I mean, let's see: Poor Estel has: Broken ribs, newly ripped open tears in his back, more bruises, cuts and lacerations than one can count, an arrow wound, an old side wound, a bad concussion and you want me to BURN him as well?? You want to kill him or what? But don't worry, Elrond will have plenty of time to worry about him ... next chapter... Thanks a lot for the feedback!!
Reginabean - Uhm, so you liked it? Don't worry, this one doesn't end with a cliffy - at least I don't think so. But hey, you never know, do you? Some poeple say it's a cliffy, some say it isn't... *shrugs* That's life. I'm rambling, huh? Again...
Zam - Wohoo! Just in time!! I was just about to update... Well, of course Lego-baby can sing! They all do, all the time... Actually, that was something I really hated about the books: They sing! ALL THE TIME!! Something good happens: Sing. Something bad happens: Sing. Someone dies: No problem: Sing. You cook your meal: Sing. You see the stars: Sing. That is soooo annoying!! *shakes fist* Uhm, okay... Okay - Elrond as the Emperor, that is soo something I don't want to imagine... *g* Indeed, who fired that arrow!? Read on, dear friend, and ye shall see!
Xsilicax - *grins evilly* When did I say that things would get better once Legolas arrived? I'm positive that I NEVER said that... *g* Hmm, you're right, he should have hidden it somewhere, but I think he was quite busy being tortured and all that... *shrugs* Poor Estel. LOL. No, of course, they are not from Mirkwood bows. They are from an orc horde, which just decided to drop by and say Hi. They got along great, and so they decided to have a little fun, and they and the evil elves/men killed Aragorn, Legolas and Elrond together. Sorry, end of story. Hey! The update thing was not my fault! Really!!
Carrie - *wide-eyed* Carrie? You? Carrie!! *huggles her* Great to see you, mate! I had thought you were gone for good... *sniff* I'm okay now, don't worry, now that you're back... Well, I always find it kind of sad when people could grow up bi-lingual but don't. My cousin is half-Italian, has an Italian passport, and she can say only two sentences or something! A real shame... Mhahaha!! No! It's never enough, there's always something more we can do to poor Aragorn... *rubs hand in glee* (Estel: Now that's scary.) *pulls Estel back* Oh no you don't! Once she's finished her story, you can so whatever you want, but until then, mister, you are going to do exactly as I say! Understood?? *pats Nólad on head* He's cute, isn't he? Took him quite some time to figure it out, but hey... *hands her cookie* Indeed, 'Dan and 'Ro to the rescue! Well, I'm thinking about a sequel, but since I have just killed off most of the characters, it might take some time to come up with new ones... *g* Thanks a lot for reviewing *huggles her again* and I am looking forward to that update! Do not disappoint me! *evil smile*
Yasmine - *defensively* Hey, I tried, okay? Really, I've been trying since 10 pm sunday evening, and have only a few hours ago managed to really upload a chapter. It was most frustrating, you can believe me! Thanks a lot for the review though this is really as fast as I could!
LUce - Aragorn kill Donyc, huh? Well, what can I say ... no? Sorry, but really, no way. There are three reasons: 1. He is too weak to kill him. 2. Legolas would be soooo disappointed, and we can't have that, can we? I mean, really, he has sworn that oath and all that... 3. I don't want to. *g* That's the most important reason! *g* I've always wanted to let Legolas kill Donyc, sorry... *shrugs* Great you still like it, I hope you'll enjoy the rest as well! Thanks for reviewing!
Salara - *knuddelt sie* Hah! Und ich dachte schon, du waerest fuer immer und ewig in der Kanalisation verschwunden, so wie Angel... *peinlich beruehrt* Wo kam _das_ denn auf einmal her? Armes Wesen, ein eingeklemmter Nerv? Wie koennen du und ManuKu denn dann schoene Stories schreiben, wenn ihr beide angeschlagen seid? Geht zum Arzt und lasst euch Drogen geben, die helfen! Jetzt!! *g* Nólad-Fans also, huh? Davon gibt es mittlerweile relativ viele, haett' ich nie so gedacht... Nun denn, ich gebe zu, dass ich nicht nur review-, sondern auch cliffysuechtig bin. Zufrieden?? *g* Danke fuer's reviewen, ich dachte schon, ich haette es mit der Elrond-Angst uebertrieben und du waerest in ein Koma gefallen oder so...
Shandrial - *grins evilly* Well, yes, it was a lot of fun to write all the Legolas-avenges-his-friend-on-Donyc-scenes, believe me! Thanks a lot for the review, I hope you'll enjoy the rest as well!

Once again, a huge Thank You to all my reviewers! You always make me laugh and because of you I try a bit harder to update sooner - which, of course, doesn't help if FF.net goes bonkers...