@RuByMoOn17 : You are a Malaysian too? Cool!
@purplesmackers : Not just Kel and Leggy, mellon. I need a therapy session with Sigmund Freud considering how crazy I've been lately!
@namarie2legoals : I didn't know the dudes in CSI Miami freak you out! Ha! Ha! Ha! Oh, I bet you like Thranduil in this one! I made him this way especially for you! So I believe you're going to like the last chapter even more!
@Karina : I can't wait for the new page! You didn't see Billy? Oh well, I'll go and kiss his pin-up then.
@Gerri : The cliffies is good for your health. It keeps your adrenaline on check!
@Terrenis-sama : Wait and see, mellon. The story about Legolas jumping off the roof will come out. We all just love little Leggy and his antics, don't we?
@Menthol : You need to have a coronary bypass to avoid having heart attack while reading my fics, mate!
@MysticalWoodElf : I hope I'm not too late to wish you good luck in your archery contest!
@Kayo : Yes. Batman will come. He is so angry that Dior used his Batcave without paying a rent!
@Hp-Azn : You are forgiven, o my loyal subject. But don't ever stop freaking out. I love it!
@szhismine : Have fun hangin' by the cliff? Ha ha ha…
@Young Storyteller : The Petronas station in Kuala Klawang belongs to your father? Cool! We always go there for gas whenever we get there. In fact, we stopped there on the second day of Hari Raya! (I even went into the station looking for you! LOL!) My granny's house is in Kg. Tembun by the way. And, yes, nogoodevilhorridirritatingiwannakickhisass Dior will have his butt kicked to kingdom come!
@Roper : Interesting suggestion, mellon! I can't promise you anything but I'll be thinking about it! Just wait n see!
I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I know I'm late! Forgive me for keeping you all hanging there! I know I've told you I'll return on Thursday but something else came up. We had to go to other parts of Malaysia to visit our relatives, and I'm still dead tired for driving too long and eating so much! And please forgive me for only replying to half of all those wonderful reviews. Thank you. You guys have been awesome!
Here's the next chappie!
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The troop of Mirkwood warriors easily found Keldarion's tracks, just as the prince had intended.
Thranduil himself was the first person who had noticed it. He knew his children's tread marks very well and would recognize them anywhere. Legolas had impatient yet graceful strides, while Keldarion's were steady and refined. The king was sure that the tracks they were looking at belonged to his eldest son.
"Prince Keldarion has left these signs for us to follow," Linden observed, touching a snapped twig of a small tree along the trail.
"Indeed he has," Thranduil said softly. He then ordered Linden to accompany him. "The rest of you stay here and secure the area. If we do not return in half an hour, come and get us."
With that, the Mirkwood king turned and moved swiftly on foot to follow his son's tread with Linden hot on his heels.
***************************
Dior watched from afar as the king of Mirkwood stepped into the cavern with a fierce looking elven warrior alongside him. He cursed, vile and long. His plan had gone awry with their sudden appearance.
How the blazes do they know?! Dior's eyes then narrowed in great wrath. That sneaky prince did this! He had led them here! Stupid of me for not expecting this!
If Thranduil was alone, Dior would be more than happy to carry on with his plan. But the strong elf with him, Linden was his name, would never allowed such things to happen. And Dior was not well prepared to go against the both of them, those two veteran warriors of the Great War.
After making sure that no one noticed his presence, Dior retreated from his hiding place and merged himself with the woods. He will certainly return with another plan.
Sooner or later, Thranduil and his sons will fall…one by one.
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The sight that met him in the cavern nearly brought Thranduil to his knees. His two sons were lying against each other on the ground. Both were unconscious and covered with blood.
"Keldarion! Legolas!" The king immediately rushed in panic towards the two princes, afraid that he was already too late upon reaching them. Thranduil grabbed both his sons into his arms, hugging them tight as tears fell freely form his eyes.
"Ai Mandos! Please, not my sons! Don't take them, please! They are all I have!" Thranduil cried out, losing control on the rein of his emotions.
Linden was still busy looking around the cave for any hidden threats. Finding none, he reached down and gripped his king's shoulder. "My lord…"
"Elbereth! Linden, look at them!" Thranduil said in anguish. "Look what the killer did to my sons!"
The commander already saw the terrible state that both princes were in and couldn't stop himself from choking with tears of sorrow and fury. He also noticed something else that Thranduil obviously did not due to his great distress. The two brothers were still breathing.
"My lord…they are still alive," Linden said, sighing heavily in relief.
Thranduil blinked as he gradually regained his composure. He was feeling quite foolish for losing control so easily like that. "Right. I've sensed them yet I…" He took a deep breath before continuing, "Quickly. Let's take them home!"
But the king looked totally undecided on which son he would carry. The father in him truly wanted to take both of them into his arms and fled from the dreadful place. Linden saw the distress appearing once more on Thranduil's face so he suggested, "I'll take Prince Legolas, my lord. You take Prince Keldarion." As he said that, Linden gently took Legolas' limp form from Thranduil's protective embrace and wrapped the younger prince with his warm cloak.
Thranduil nodded and gazed back and forth between his two sons. "Do you think they are going to make it, Linden? Their injuries are so grave."
"They are strong lads, my lord, just like you," Linden replied. "I believe they would not let the killer defeat them so easily. Fight him they will."
The bats were still watching as the two Mirkwood elves walked out of the cave with their precious burden. There will be no more free meal for the flying mammals that day.
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It had been three days since Keldarion and Legolas were brought home. And both princes still had not regained consciousness.
Thranduil gently swiped a strand of hair off Keldarion's forehead, kissed the prince's brow, and got to his feet. After gazing down at his son for another long moment, the king exited the chamber with a sigh. The guards at the door snapped to attention as Thranduil emerged, but he didn't see it. His heart was too heavy with worry to notice anything else except for his sons' troubling conditions. The healers had come and go but the princes remained unchanged. The two brothers had lost too much blood that it was a miracle they still hang on to their lives.
Thranduil then walked towards Legolas' chamber down the hallway. It had become a daily routine for the king now. He commuted between the princes' chambers at least three times a day to sit with them, calling and begging them to return to him. So far, the only responses his sons had given him were moans and groans of agony.
Thranduil nodded at the guards that flanked Legolas' door before entering. To his great surprise, he found his youngest son struggling by himself to get out of his bed. "Legolas!" the king cried out and hastily rushed forward to stop the prince. "When did you wake up? And what do think you are doing?"
"Kel," Legolas rasped. "Where is Kel?"
Amid Legolas' weak struggles, Thranduil pushed his son back onto the pillows. "In his room. He is resting. And so should you."
"I want to see him," said Legolas, clutching desperately at Thranduil's sleeves. "Please, father. I want to see Kel."
"Legolas," Thranduil started, pulling his son into his embrace. "You are not well yourself. Your wounds are serious and you need some more healing to do."
"I'm sorry, father. I dragged us all into this mess," Legolas sobbed. "I've been such and idiot, causing everyone else to get hurt. I'm so sorry."
"Shhh…stop that." Thranduil rubbed his son's back. "I will yell at you later for abandoning your guardians, but right now I want you to lie down and rest. I'll tell the servants to get you something to eat."
"I don't want to eat! I want to see Kel!" Legolas stubbornly replied, pushing feebly against his father for release. He was incredibly scared that his father was hiding Keldarion's truthful condition from his knowledge.
"All right! All right!" Thranduil hugged his son tighter. He sighed as he said next, "I'll take you to him."
Concerned with the deep injuries under Legolas' feet, Thranduil didn't even allow his son to stand. Instead, the king placed and arm under Legolas' knees and carried him off to Keldarion's chamber.
As his father placed him on the bed beside Keldarion, Legolas' eyes lingered over his brother's pale face. "Kel?"
Keldarion remained still. His chest rose and fell steadily as he breathed but his eyes were closed.
Legolas lifted his hand to touch his brother's cheek. But Thranduil stopped him, grabbing his hand. "No, Legolas. Don't. You are not fit to heal anyone right now."
"But he is badly hurt," Legolas whimpered.
"Unfortunately, so are you, son."
"I can't see him like this. He came to be this way because of me. It's my fault that Dior returned to kill us all."
Thranduil narrowed his eyes in ire. "Dior? It was really him?"
"It is true, father. Dior has returned. He did this to us." Resting his head on the pillow beside his brother, Legolas kept his gaze on the elder prince's face, wishing that Keldarion would open his eyes and smile back at him. "If Kel dies…"
"Hush, Legolas. Kel is not going to die. Trust me." Thranduil pulled at the coverlet and covered Legolas to his shoulders. "Now, get some rest."
Under the covers, Legolas reached for Keldarion's hand and squeezed. He discreetly channeled his healing energy onto his brother, praying that his still weakened ability could bring Keldarion quickly back to health. Then the manyan prince drifted into sleep while doing so.
Thranduil gazed forlornly at his sons, knowing exactly what Legolas was doing underneath the covers. Stubborn child, he thought, shaking his head. The king lifted the coverlet and, true as he had expected, his sons' hands were intertwined together. But Thranduil had not the heart to separate the both of them.
He kissed both the princes' foreheads, and went to open the door to the balcony to let the fresh morning breeze from outside come rushing in. His sons had been cooped up in their closed and tightly guarded chambers for three long days. Thranduil had ordered the balcony doors to be closed at all time, afraid that the killer would get in the same way he had broken into the king's chamber that day.
It's time we end this, once and for all, Thranduil thought as he stared at the surrounding woods. I know you are out there somewhere, Dior. Show yourself if you have the guts! I challenge you!
Letting the door stay open, Thranduil whirled and called out for the guards. "Get Linden here," he told them.
As the guards rushed away to do their king's bidding, Thranduil glanced once more towards the woods. If you want us, Dior, then I challenge you to come and get us!
TBC…
P/S : My friend, Shawna, has just created another wonderful site for the Manyan Series. Check out the URL in my bio-page! She even constructed a fanlisting so you guys can log in! Thank you, Shawna! You are incredible!