Aragorn didn't want to do this. Glaring down the dark steps, he started walking down the steps and rubbed the back of his neck. He was sent to find one of the head 'breakers', as Jasper called them. If left up to him he would have stayed above ground and not even look down the steps. He knew very well what went on down there but he would rather not face it. All of the slaves that departed the town were intercepted by the Rangers and set free. But it still plagued him during the night when his dreams and fears haunted him endlessly.
The memory of the night before came back to him along with the memory of the mysterious young man. After he leaped out the window and disappeared, Aragorn had searched him room and found everything in its original place. None of the guards had seen or even knew of the intruder. Aragorn decided to pass it off for a time until he knew more.
He stopped at the door that had a guard outside it and opened the door a bit.
"Taltos! Jasper wants to talk to you and your cronies, now!" he snapped as Taltos glanced towards the other side of the room.
"Very well Valimer. Will you watch the slave?"
"If I must, but hurry back."
Aragorn moved aside to let them pass and stepped into the room. He stayed in the shadows and kept his gaze away from the 'slave.' He didn't want to look at what Taltos and his men did in their free time. The raspy breaths of the poor fool echoed in the small cell. Aragorn slowly looked around the stone floor and caught sight of the fool's tunic on the floor. His eyes narrowed slightly at the dark colored tunic and against his better judgment he slowly raised his gaze to the person.
"Lle quena I'lambe tel' Eldalie?" he asked almost in fear.
The elvish felt foreign on his tongue after not speaking it in five years. The person stiffened and slowly raised his head. Elladan looked into the shadows but couldn't see the person; the mixture in his bloodstream was wrecking havoc on all his senses.
Aragorn stepped back in fear and horror until the rough stone dug into his back. He couldn't believe what his eyes were seeing before him. Elladan, his brother, hung from his wrists and beaten until his entire torso was bloody. His flesh was shredded raggedly and some pieces hung from his body. His eyes glinted in pain and the possible beginnings of a fever. If it wasn't in this type of circumstances, he might have cried in relief at seeing his brother. He didn't know why he was in this town or why he was here. If he was here then his twin must be near somewhere close.
"Mani uma lle merna?" Elladan asked weakly and dropped his head onto his chest.
Aragorn's throat clamped shut as he tried to say something. "Toro?"
Aragorn stepped forward and stopped after a step as Elladan slowly looked up at him. Moving slowly, he stepped closer and reached out to verify what he was seeing was actually real. His eyes widened as his hand brushed across Elladan's cheek and came back stained with blood.
Elladan couldn't believe that Aragorn was standing in front of him, in the flesh. He changed in the five years since Elladan had last seen him. Not only was his physical body older but his eyes were old. They witnessed death and hardships, more than any person should. And it was slowly eating him up inside, Elladan noted sadly as he looked into his little brother's eyes.
"Is it really you Estel?" Elladan whispered, worried that he might be imagining it.
It had to be that moment that the spike in his shoulder decided to start to act. A burning sensation ripped across his shoulder blades and tore down his spine. He cried out as he arched his back against the pain. The sudden movement only caused more agony as his muscles clenched mercilessly. Every gasp was painful as his exposed flesh became ultra sensitive. He heard Aragorn talking to him but it all became muddled in his pain-wracked brain. Whimpering softly, he cracked open his eyes and saw the horror filled face of Aragorn as he reached out to Elladan. Just as Aragorn's hand touched him, he jerked away and gasped at the fresh pain.
"Please…please, do not touch me," he whimpered softly.
Aragorn clenched his eyes shut to hold in the tears before turning to look towards the door. Footsteps echoed down the hall as he struggled to form a plan. Loath to cause his brother more pain but knew it necessary, he held Elladan's head in his hands and moved closer to his brother.
"Elladan, look at me…please look at me brother," he pleaded softly, noticing the lines of pain etched in his brother's face.
Elladan mentally groaned, hearing his brother plead with him. He finally understood why most elves were wary of humans and their ways. Maybe Sauros had been right when he decided to become a recluse and hide from humans. He certainly thought it was a viable solution at the moment.
"Brother, where is Elrohir? I promise that I will get you out of here as soon as I possibly can but I need to know who else may be down here. Where is Elrohir?" he whispered frantically as the footsteps came closer.
"Ro…safe with…with Gandalf," Elladan muttered feeling his grasp on consciousness slip. "But…Legolas…somewhere…here…heard him…scream."
Aragorn gasped and stepped back as he released his brother's face. Elladan slumped over as the pain over rode everything else and he passed into blissful unconsciousness. Slowly, Aragorn moved back to his comforting shadows and looked at the clothing that must have been Elladan's. Snatching them from the ground, he stuffed the clothes under his overcoat and slipped the Valimer mask on.
The door opened and Taltos walked in to glance over at the suspended elf. He almost looked disappointed that his current 'toy' was unconscious.
"I think he is ready to go to a normal cell now," Aragorn said dully with a bored expression.
Taltos was about to object but decided against it seeing Valimer's eyes. If the town people were scared of Valimer then the soldiers and guards were terrified of him. No one knew where he had come from but most men had a dark past. Valimer probably had the darkest of all.
"How many did you bring in with him?" Aragorn asked as Elladan was carried out and down the stone hall.
"About six humans and another elf. They really put up a fight, killed five of my men they did."
"Really? Where is the other one?"
"Five doors down, I think. It took them a while to break him from what I heard."
Aragorn gritted his teeth and tried to keep his hand from straying to his sword or the closest dagger. He knew he had to get his friends out as quick as possible. If there was one thing the men under Jasper knew how to do was break a person and they did it well. If Elladan had actually heard Legolas scream then it must be bad.
He waited until the men disappeared after putting Elladan in a different cell before he hurried down the dark and empty hall. Reaching the fifth door, he carefully unlocked it and slowly opened the heavy door. At first glance it seemed as if the room was empty but Aragorn knew that I wasn't so. Closing the door silently, he moved around the room and ran his hands along the stone wall. Towards the center of the back wall he stopped and pressed his ear against the stone. In surprise, the rock look alike bent under the slight pressure of his hand. Tracing the edge of the rock, it fell away from the wall to reveal a dark, damp hole from where Aragorn heard a soft whimper of fear and pain. Suppressing his fear, he reached in and latched onto the first thing his hand came in touch with and pulled it out. Metal scraped against stone as he pulled it out and knelt next to the object.
The image before him would forever be burned into his mind. The metal cage was only big enough to allow a full grown man to curl into a ball and still barely fit. The occupant was curled tightly in fetal position with his hands tied tightly behind his back. His eyes were clenched shut and he trembled slightly. Aragorn tentatively reached out and touched the body through the bars. Upon the contact, the occupant curled tighter and pressed himself into the corner and whimpered softly.
"Oh Valar…Legolas," Aragorn breathed in despair.
Remembering his intentions, he set about getting the elf out of the cage. Pulling out a dagger, he quickly picked at the lock until it popped open. Opening the door, he reached in and gently pulled Legolas out of the cage despite the whimpers. Quickly cutting the bindings, he held Legolas in his lap and gently held his friend's face and bent to look in his face.
"Legolas? Mellon, please look at me. Open your eyes and look at me," he pleaded softly.
Getting no response, he looked around and reached out to collect the scattered clothing. As gently as he could, he pulled the tunic over his friend's body and constantly talked to him soothingly. The elf was beaten, bloody, and bruised but Aragorn didn't dare see to them here. The mystery man had to be around somewhere; he knew that this would happen. He would help somehow.
"Legolas…Legolas, listen to me. I need to go and get help and I need to leave you here. So stay quiet for me and I will be back as soon as I can," he said and quickly kissed the elf's forehead before slipping him off his lap.
Quickly pulling off his outer coat, he wrapped it around the elf before standing up. Checking the hall, he jogged down the hall and quickly navigated through the winding hallways. Jogging up a set of stairs he reached the door he wanted and had to calm himself before pushing open the door. Looking up at the watch tower, he waved at the guard and started to walk towards the town. He would look around the inns and ask about the mysterious man that had been in his room the night before.
The day's activities were at its height as he moved between the people towards the first inn on the street. Describing the young man's features to the inn keepers, he gathered negative answers and started to despair. Soon, he reached the edge of the town and the last inn of the town. If this also proved negative, he didn't know what he would do then. Finding the inn's owner, he once again described the mystery man and prepared himself to receive a negative answer.
"Aye, I think I know tha man ya lookin fur. He's sittin over there," the owner said and pointed towards the corner of the room.
Aragorn turned slowly and locked gazes with the man he was looking for. Quietly thanking the man he walked towards the man warily. The man pushed out a chair with his foot and motioned for Aragorn to sit down.
"Such a pleasure to see you again Estel."
Aragorn flinched at the name and glared at the other man with burning silver eyes. He didn't know or care to know how the man knew of him or what part he played in all of this.
"You know why I am here. You know what was to happen."
"I know why you are here, yes. But I did not know what was to happen, even I could not foresee it and for that I am grievously saddened by," Sauros replied and glanced towards the steps to the second floor. "Let us go somewhere more private."
Without waiting for Aragorn's consent, Sauros stood and weaved between the tables and up the stairs. Knowing that the other man was behind him, Sauros walked quickly to the room where Gandalf and Elrohir waited. Opening the door, he ushered Aragorn into the room and closed the door behind him.
Elrohir quickly walked to Aragorn and moved to hug him. Instead of hugging his brother, Estel stepped away and looked blankly at his elven brother. Elrohir looked confused as he glanced to Sauros and Gandalf. He didn't know why his brother was acting like this.
"Why are you here? You should not be here," Aragorn murmured and glanced at Gandalf before dropping his gaze to the ground.
"We came to find you. You have not written in five years, we became worried," Elrohir said softly.
"You need to leave. It is not safe for you to be here," he said and looked at Sauros.
"We need Elladan and Legolas," Gandalf said and locked gazes with Aragorn.
"Be at the east wall of the castle within thirty minutes. I will bring them out and hand them over to you once I create a distraction."
"Estel, you are coming with us. I am not leaving you here in this town."
"I have been in this town for four years, it is all I have. And please do not call me Estel."
Aragorn didn't know hoe much more of this he could take. His emotional psyche had taken too many blows in the past two days and it was wearing on him. He was being torn in both directions and in his heart was a pain unlike any other. He wished he could believe his brother that they forgave him and that Legolas forgave him also but he couldn't believe it. He heard the shame in his brother's voice; he couldn't see the shame in his eyes. Everything was happening because of him; why did they have to come here?
"What are you talking about Estel?"
"I am not Estel! I never was the hope of men! I failed Legolas, father, Elladan and you! I can hear the shame in your voice because of what I did to Legolas! How can you call me brother when I have shamed you?" Aragorn cried at a shocked Elrohir.
"I think it would be best if we retrieved Elladan and Legolas before getting into this," Gandalf suggested and Sauros nodded.
"I agree. We can not leave them in there for long at the hands of those men," Sauros said and looked pointedly at Elrohir. "I will take Estel back to the castle."
Sauros followed Aragorn out of the room and out of the inn into the bright sun. They both were silent as they walked down the street until Sauros grabbed Aragorn's arm and pulled him aside.
"Listen to me and listen well, human. Your brothers and I came here with one intention and that was to find you. So, why do you not get your head out of your ass and see how much they care for you," Sauros sneered in the other man's ear.
"Who are you to call me a human as if to degrade me? You are one yourself."
"I may be a human at the moment but it is not who I really am. Listen to me, you could not have prevented Legolas from losing his voice, it was inevitable. It was either that or allowing him to die. You are not responsible for it," he said and shook Aragorn slightly.
"Who are you? How do you know all of this?"
"I was there when you saved him. I was correct in saying that Elrond trained you well."
Aragorn's brow furrowed slightly in confusion. He remembered that day distinctively, there were no other humans near. The only other alive being had been the dragon. His mind connected the two facts and looked closer at the other man. His eyes looked old, ancient, and wise as he gazed back at the Ranger.
"I can see in your eyes that you realize who and what I am. We shall talk about it later. Go and get Elladan and Legolas, I will provide a distraction."
Sauros turned and left Aragorn alone at the side of the street. The distraction he had in mind was very simple; he would change into a dragon and torch the town. Well maybe not torch the entire town, just a few buildings. It would make a nice little bonfire he thought and pulled off his weapons to hide them. Stripping down to just his leggings, he stepped away from the buildings and closed his eyes as he slowly breathed out. Slowly releasing the mental control he had on his body, he felt his body start to change.
Falling forward on his hands and knees, he curled slightly as his body started to quadruple in size. Hands sprouted scales and razor sharp claws as his body molded into a grotesque figure of half man and half dragon. A woman screamed when she walked out of her home to see a creature before her. Sauros looked up at her with blood red eyes as his tail grew to its full length. The scales were turning blood red as horns grew from his spine. The sinister dragon face emerged and five inch long fangs snapped together as his nostrils flared. The powerful muscles quivered under the thick skin as he threw his head back and roared. From his sides sprang his leathery wings and stretched to the full wing span. More screams joined the first as Sauros grew to his full size and looked down at the stunned woman. Sulfur smoke wafted from his nostrils as his tongue tasted the wind slightly and smiled as the woman passed out in a dead faint. Turning his head to the side, he shot a fireball at a cart full of hay. Squeezing between the buildings he stepped onto the main street and watched as the humans ran away screaming.
"Oh, hello," he murmured, seeing the castle guards running towards him and his lips curled into a dragon smile.
Elladan groaned softly to himself as his senses slowly came back to him, they came back painfully but at least they were coming back to him. He felt a pressure against the side of his head and it took him a few more moment to realize that the pressure was a folded clothe pressing against the side of his head. He was lying on his stomach and his arms were positioned down by his side and his head was turned facing the stone wall beside him. His eyes looked around slowly and tried to focus on something other than the stars of pain circling his head. Some thing cool was carefully being dabbed on his back and he sensed another person in the cell with him. Ever so carefully, he turned his head and heard a slight shuffle of movement next to him before he could focus on the figure more clearly.
"Lina?" he murmured, not sure he was seeing things correctly.
"Elladan Sir, you are awake! I worried you would never wake up after those mean men threw you in here with me," the young girl whispered excitedly and shifted closer to Elladan's head.
"Slow down for me please Lina. I need to get myself in order before I try to think," he said and closed his eyes again to evaluate himself.
Starting from the head, he slowly started to check everything to be sure it still worked. His shoulders were still and a little achy but nothing that would not be gone in a day or two. The condition of his back was not looking to good he thought as he carefully moved his hands under him and slowly pushed his upper body up. To his surprise, his back didn't hurt as bad as he thought it did and his entire torso was wrapped with a long strand of cloth. He looked up at the quiet Lina and the confusion must have shown on his face for she smiled before answering.
"I was wearing my cloak when the bad men kidnapped me. When they threw you in here I used a small corner of my dress to clean your wounds as best as I could and tore my cloak in a long stripe to wrap the majority of the wounds. I used a small puddle of water in the corner of the cell and it is clean or as clean as it can be. But I fear that I do not have any ointment to rub onto your wounds and make them feel better," she said in one big breath and actually looked disappointed in herself.
"You did all this?" he asked shocked and motioned towards his bandaged torso.
"Yes, I did. I thought elves were not supposed to weight much? You are very hard to move."
Elladan couldn't help himself, he just had to chuckle at the young girl and admired her intelligence and bravery. "Well, elves are normally very light weight but for a young girl like you we are probably very heavy. I am in your debt young Lina for tending to my wounds."
The young girl blushed slightly and proceeded to snuggle up to Elladan's side and carefully wound her arms around his waist to press her face into the side of his chest. He sucked in a breath quickly and slowly let it out as the pain eased.
"How did you get here Danny? I was very surprised when I recognized it was you."
"My brother and I were looking for our little brother and our camp was ambushed. Legolas and I were taken and the others escaped," he said keeping it simple.
"Why were you looking for your little brother? Is he lost?"
"In a sense, he is a little lost. I have not seen him in five years and I have missed him much so Elrohir, Legolas, and I came to find him."
"What is his name?"
"At our home he is called Estel but he is also called many names."
Lina was silent for a moment until she turned her head to look up at him. "Do you love your brother?"
Elladan glanced down at the dark haired young girl and smiled slightly.
"Yes, I love him very much. I love him more than there is water, than there is air, and I would do anything for him if he asked me to. I have saved him many times and he has saved me many times."
"Will he save you now?"
Elladan sighed as his hand came up slowly and gently caressed her silky hair. "I hope he will."
Lle quena I'lambe tel' Eldalie?-Do you speak Elvish?
Mani uma lle merna?-What do you want?
Toro?-Brother?
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HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!! Yeah, it is my second favorite holiday of all and I am so excited about tonight's party. I decided to work really hard and get this chapter posted for a Halloween present to everyone out there in reader land. And I am so ashamed of some of you; I only had two people review for Chapter 8. If it keeps up this way it might be a month until I update and after this slight cliff-hanger I do not think that people will like Spades. So everyone please review or else the next chapter is going to be held ransom.
Star-Stallion-Yeah, I think that I did a good job on Legolas. *Shrugs shoulders* I have read too many angst stories and too many torture stories. I have one in the process that he is buried alive but I do not think that one will get off the draft board. But anyway, this chapter would have been out quicker but I completely forgot to write out the scene between Elladan and Lina; I was thinking about it and then just forgot it when I was writing it. Hope you enjoyed the little heart felt moment.
Jamie-I TAKE SO LONG TO UPDATE! You have got to be kidding me! I update like every three bloody days! Eh gads, my poor little fingers can only write and type so much without falling off or cramping up terribly. *Comforts poor little fingers*