Authors notes: - I am so sorry for the delay in this posting. Exams have
taken up most of my time but now thankfully they are over, plus it wouldn't
let me upload this. I hope you enjoy this and please review. Thank you for
all the comments so far, so please please review
**
Urguth kicked his skittish horse hard as it danced across the path refusing to go forward.
"Move you dumb beast." The man snarled. The horse haltingly obeyed but a few paces later it dug its hooves in and stopped. Urguth muttered a few curses and climbed off.
As soon as he was off the horse reared and took off back down the path.
Urguth looked around the clearing he had stopped in. He knew his master was here, he had been summoned. It was late, well very early, a few hours before dawn. The feast had ended about two hours ago and he had waited for a time before leaving. A smile crossed his face as he remembered watching the elf during the meal. To his trained eye, knowing what to look for, he could tell that the drug was beginning to have an affect on Legolas. His eyes had a slightly glazed look, his skin was paler than the norm and his hands had a slight shake. Normally his friends would have noticed but the dwarf and the King had been so easy to manipulate. Legolas would die before they even realised something was wrong.
"Your obsession with the elf is beginning to affect your judgement. If it continues to do so I will have to re-evaluate your use and worthiness."
Urguth's smile faded to be replaced with an expression of terror. He fell to his knees.
"I am sorry Master." He cried.
A cloaked figure moved forward.
"You are embarrassing yourself Urguth. Do not beg. I require your services still and in return when the elf dies I will bring him back as a gift for you."
"A gift?" Urguth questioned slightly confused.
"Yes. I know you like to torture pure creatures, creatures of the light. An immortal can survive horrendous amounts of pain."
Urguth shivered in anticipation. "Thank you Master."
"Hmm. I hope that all is going as planned?"
Urguth nodded.
"The elf is weakening. The minds of the King and dwarf have been easy to manipulate. Everything is going according to plan Master. You will not be disappointed."
The cloaked figure moved closer to the knelt man.
"You are not telling me something."
"I would not lie to you." Urguth said but his voice began to waver.
Urguth gasped as he felt a presence in his mind.
"The elf has tried to contact Mithrandir. You did not feel that this was important enough to inform me?"
"It is taken care of." Urguth assured him hurriedly.
"I do not like information being withheld from me."
Urguth screamed as the pain in his head intensified until it was agonising. As quickly as it came it was gone, leaving Urguth panting on the ground.
"Remember that. Take care of the elf but do it in a way that he or his people cannot interfere with Gondor again."
"Yes Master."
"That will be all." The cloaked figure disappeared back into the shadows. "Do not fail me," Its voice hissed merging with the wind.
Urguth quickly regained his feet. Cursing the world in general he began walking back to Gondor, his mood brightening at each step as he thought of plans for the elf.
** Legolas sat in the stall of his horse. Aure was munching on some hay watching the curled up elf with gentle brown eyes. He knew that something was wrong with his master and that Legolas required some peace and quiet, so Aure continued to eat, carefully keeping an eye on his master.
Legolas's hands shook gently as he plaited a few strands of straw together. He had come to the stables because he could not sleep, sleeping was becoming harder to do, as his mind could not focus on anything, it was just a jumble of random thoughts. Plaiting the straw made him focus on a task and his headache began to recede. He could not sit in the stall forever but at the moment it helped him relax. The letter had hopefully reached Gandalf and that help was coming. He could not do it alone.
There was something wrong with him. Ever since the attack in his room his health had deteriorated. A poison maybe or the Darak still had an influence on him. He was finding it harder and harder to keep his symptoms hidden from his friends, although to be honest they were not acting themselves recently. Gimli had hardly spoken to him during the feast and Aragorn was too concerned with the treaty. Eomer had noticed something so Legolas had quickly distanced himself from the man. He did not wish anything to happen to his friend. He spent many hours deep in the library of Gondor searching for anything to aid him. The Darak were here for a reason and he needed to find out what that was. If he knew the reason then maybe he could formulate a plan to prevent it.
Aure snorted softly and Legolas froze. He heard someone approaching the stall.
"Legolas?" a soft voice enquired. Eomer's head appeared in the entrance of the stall.
"Eomer." Legolas said not knowing what else to say. It must appear strange for the elf to be sat in a stall in the early hours of the morning. Eomer stepped into the stall and sat down silently. He began to plait straw. After a few minutes of silence the man spoke.
"Tell me." He said simply. Legolas froze. *He knows or at least suspects. What should I do? Deny everything?* His mind frantically tried to think.
Warm hands covering his own made him jump. Again he berated himself for not hearing Eomer moving towards him.
"You are ill." The man gently lifted up one of Legolas's pale hands by the wrist and pointedly looked at the shaking he observed. Legolas snatched his hand back.
"It is nothing." He replied.
"Nay. Tell me the truth. You are ill but that is not all that is going on. Tell me." Eomer said firmly trying to make eye contact with the elf.
"No" Legolas moved to stand up but the sudden movement caused a wave of nausea to flow over him and he staggered. Eomer quickly steadied him. Legolas began to panic. He could not appear weak, he could not let his symptoms show but it was too late. Eomer knew. He could deny it no longer, if he did than Eomer would ask questions of others putting others in danger. He had to tell Eomer.
Sitting down heavily.
"If I tell you then I put you in grave danger."
Eomer did not look surprised. "I thought as much. You have been threatened?"
Legolas nodded.
"Who?"
Legolas sighed and shook his head.
"Legolas we can face this together. Defeat it."
"NO" Legolas snapped angrily. "You do not understand the danger we are all in. It is not something I can easily defeat or you."
"A problem shared is a problem halved my friend. Trust me like I trust you."
"They will kill you and the others. I am already dying. Therefore what I do can have little affect on me but they have threatened my friends. I do not wish to endanger them."
"You are dying?" Eomer said shocked. Legolas nodded and sighed heavily.
"How? Why?" Eomer was at a loss. This was not what he had expected, granted he thought the elf was ill, but dying, the thought had not crossed his mind. Things were much more serious than he first realised.
"I do not know what it is, only that I am too much of a liability to keep around as I can see them."
"Who?" Eomer asked. Legolas again lowered his head and shook it.
"Do not protect me Legolas. I may not be an elf but I can defend myself. Besides the very fact that I knew something was wrong is going to make me a target. I would rather face it knowing exactly what it is than be ignorant but still in danger."
Legolas pondered this and then nodded.
"There are Darak within Gondor. Ancient creatures of great evil that were thought to have been destroyed many years ago. They are in league with the delegation from Thera."
Eomer rocked back on his heels as he tried to take all the information in.
"The treaty?" he asked. Legolas shrugged. "I think the Emperor is aware of something but not everything. I think he is a pawn in Urguth's game."
"Urguth? The advisor? He works for the Darak?"
"He is not a man. I can see him for what he truly is."
"When we first them at the introductions you saw his true form then didn't you?" Eomer questioned.
"Yes. He knew I saw him and came to my room that night. That is when the Darak first appeared to me and the threats were made."
"Did they hurt you?" Eomer questioned hoping that his friend had not suffered.
"Yes" Legolas answered but refused to elaborate. Eomer changed the subject.
"What is there purpose here?" the man questioned.
"I know not, I am trying to discover this but the threats that have been made to you and Aragorn and Gimli and the others have prevented me from doing so."
"I shall endeavour to do the same."
Legolas leaned forward and grabbed the forearms of Eomer.
"Do not endanger yourself. Darak can manipulate your mind and it is not pleasant." Legolas's pale face twisted as he remembered the experience.
"I will be discreet. Legolas I will find something to help you, you will not die."
"You cannot make that kind of promise but thank you." Both the elf and man rose to their feet. Suddenly Aure threw up his head and whinnied softly. Someone was approaching but not who they wanted to see.
"Go" Legolas demanded. "If anyone sees you with me then you will be in trouble. Do not mention anything to Aragorn or anyone. We cannot trust them, the Darak are everywhere. They may have got to them already."
"Fine, I will go. Be careful my friend" Eomer hurried away and Legolas turned to face the darkness that has descended on the stables and the purpose behind it.
**
**
Urguth kicked his skittish horse hard as it danced across the path refusing to go forward.
"Move you dumb beast." The man snarled. The horse haltingly obeyed but a few paces later it dug its hooves in and stopped. Urguth muttered a few curses and climbed off.
As soon as he was off the horse reared and took off back down the path.
Urguth looked around the clearing he had stopped in. He knew his master was here, he had been summoned. It was late, well very early, a few hours before dawn. The feast had ended about two hours ago and he had waited for a time before leaving. A smile crossed his face as he remembered watching the elf during the meal. To his trained eye, knowing what to look for, he could tell that the drug was beginning to have an affect on Legolas. His eyes had a slightly glazed look, his skin was paler than the norm and his hands had a slight shake. Normally his friends would have noticed but the dwarf and the King had been so easy to manipulate. Legolas would die before they even realised something was wrong.
"Your obsession with the elf is beginning to affect your judgement. If it continues to do so I will have to re-evaluate your use and worthiness."
Urguth's smile faded to be replaced with an expression of terror. He fell to his knees.
"I am sorry Master." He cried.
A cloaked figure moved forward.
"You are embarrassing yourself Urguth. Do not beg. I require your services still and in return when the elf dies I will bring him back as a gift for you."
"A gift?" Urguth questioned slightly confused.
"Yes. I know you like to torture pure creatures, creatures of the light. An immortal can survive horrendous amounts of pain."
Urguth shivered in anticipation. "Thank you Master."
"Hmm. I hope that all is going as planned?"
Urguth nodded.
"The elf is weakening. The minds of the King and dwarf have been easy to manipulate. Everything is going according to plan Master. You will not be disappointed."
The cloaked figure moved closer to the knelt man.
"You are not telling me something."
"I would not lie to you." Urguth said but his voice began to waver.
Urguth gasped as he felt a presence in his mind.
"The elf has tried to contact Mithrandir. You did not feel that this was important enough to inform me?"
"It is taken care of." Urguth assured him hurriedly.
"I do not like information being withheld from me."
Urguth screamed as the pain in his head intensified until it was agonising. As quickly as it came it was gone, leaving Urguth panting on the ground.
"Remember that. Take care of the elf but do it in a way that he or his people cannot interfere with Gondor again."
"Yes Master."
"That will be all." The cloaked figure disappeared back into the shadows. "Do not fail me," Its voice hissed merging with the wind.
Urguth quickly regained his feet. Cursing the world in general he began walking back to Gondor, his mood brightening at each step as he thought of plans for the elf.
** Legolas sat in the stall of his horse. Aure was munching on some hay watching the curled up elf with gentle brown eyes. He knew that something was wrong with his master and that Legolas required some peace and quiet, so Aure continued to eat, carefully keeping an eye on his master.
Legolas's hands shook gently as he plaited a few strands of straw together. He had come to the stables because he could not sleep, sleeping was becoming harder to do, as his mind could not focus on anything, it was just a jumble of random thoughts. Plaiting the straw made him focus on a task and his headache began to recede. He could not sit in the stall forever but at the moment it helped him relax. The letter had hopefully reached Gandalf and that help was coming. He could not do it alone.
There was something wrong with him. Ever since the attack in his room his health had deteriorated. A poison maybe or the Darak still had an influence on him. He was finding it harder and harder to keep his symptoms hidden from his friends, although to be honest they were not acting themselves recently. Gimli had hardly spoken to him during the feast and Aragorn was too concerned with the treaty. Eomer had noticed something so Legolas had quickly distanced himself from the man. He did not wish anything to happen to his friend. He spent many hours deep in the library of Gondor searching for anything to aid him. The Darak were here for a reason and he needed to find out what that was. If he knew the reason then maybe he could formulate a plan to prevent it.
Aure snorted softly and Legolas froze. He heard someone approaching the stall.
"Legolas?" a soft voice enquired. Eomer's head appeared in the entrance of the stall.
"Eomer." Legolas said not knowing what else to say. It must appear strange for the elf to be sat in a stall in the early hours of the morning. Eomer stepped into the stall and sat down silently. He began to plait straw. After a few minutes of silence the man spoke.
"Tell me." He said simply. Legolas froze. *He knows or at least suspects. What should I do? Deny everything?* His mind frantically tried to think.
Warm hands covering his own made him jump. Again he berated himself for not hearing Eomer moving towards him.
"You are ill." The man gently lifted up one of Legolas's pale hands by the wrist and pointedly looked at the shaking he observed. Legolas snatched his hand back.
"It is nothing." He replied.
"Nay. Tell me the truth. You are ill but that is not all that is going on. Tell me." Eomer said firmly trying to make eye contact with the elf.
"No" Legolas moved to stand up but the sudden movement caused a wave of nausea to flow over him and he staggered. Eomer quickly steadied him. Legolas began to panic. He could not appear weak, he could not let his symptoms show but it was too late. Eomer knew. He could deny it no longer, if he did than Eomer would ask questions of others putting others in danger. He had to tell Eomer.
Sitting down heavily.
"If I tell you then I put you in grave danger."
Eomer did not look surprised. "I thought as much. You have been threatened?"
Legolas nodded.
"Who?"
Legolas sighed and shook his head.
"Legolas we can face this together. Defeat it."
"NO" Legolas snapped angrily. "You do not understand the danger we are all in. It is not something I can easily defeat or you."
"A problem shared is a problem halved my friend. Trust me like I trust you."
"They will kill you and the others. I am already dying. Therefore what I do can have little affect on me but they have threatened my friends. I do not wish to endanger them."
"You are dying?" Eomer said shocked. Legolas nodded and sighed heavily.
"How? Why?" Eomer was at a loss. This was not what he had expected, granted he thought the elf was ill, but dying, the thought had not crossed his mind. Things were much more serious than he first realised.
"I do not know what it is, only that I am too much of a liability to keep around as I can see them."
"Who?" Eomer asked. Legolas again lowered his head and shook it.
"Do not protect me Legolas. I may not be an elf but I can defend myself. Besides the very fact that I knew something was wrong is going to make me a target. I would rather face it knowing exactly what it is than be ignorant but still in danger."
Legolas pondered this and then nodded.
"There are Darak within Gondor. Ancient creatures of great evil that were thought to have been destroyed many years ago. They are in league with the delegation from Thera."
Eomer rocked back on his heels as he tried to take all the information in.
"The treaty?" he asked. Legolas shrugged. "I think the Emperor is aware of something but not everything. I think he is a pawn in Urguth's game."
"Urguth? The advisor? He works for the Darak?"
"He is not a man. I can see him for what he truly is."
"When we first them at the introductions you saw his true form then didn't you?" Eomer questioned.
"Yes. He knew I saw him and came to my room that night. That is when the Darak first appeared to me and the threats were made."
"Did they hurt you?" Eomer questioned hoping that his friend had not suffered.
"Yes" Legolas answered but refused to elaborate. Eomer changed the subject.
"What is there purpose here?" the man questioned.
"I know not, I am trying to discover this but the threats that have been made to you and Aragorn and Gimli and the others have prevented me from doing so."
"I shall endeavour to do the same."
Legolas leaned forward and grabbed the forearms of Eomer.
"Do not endanger yourself. Darak can manipulate your mind and it is not pleasant." Legolas's pale face twisted as he remembered the experience.
"I will be discreet. Legolas I will find something to help you, you will not die."
"You cannot make that kind of promise but thank you." Both the elf and man rose to their feet. Suddenly Aure threw up his head and whinnied softly. Someone was approaching but not who they wanted to see.
"Go" Legolas demanded. "If anyone sees you with me then you will be in trouble. Do not mention anything to Aragorn or anyone. We cannot trust them, the Darak are everywhere. They may have got to them already."
"Fine, I will go. Be careful my friend" Eomer hurried away and Legolas turned to face the darkness that has descended on the stables and the purpose behind it.
**