Color of Distress
Disclaimer: Lord of the Rings, it's characters, and practically everything associated with it does not belong to me. (How unfortunate.) In any case, this was written for enjoyment's sake, so don't sue me for it.
A/N – I thought that this was one disturbing chapter. This is kind of where the horror category kicks in again. It's not terrifyingly horrible, but a bit gory. I don't know what your comfort level with this stuff is, so tread carefully, and you have been warned. Enjoy.
Chapter 10 : " … like a land of death"
There was a slight rustling in the bush, and Aragorn, who heard it first, whipped around warily. "Who's there?" He called out.
There was no reply.
"Come out of hiding." Aragorn commanded.
Gimli looked at him worriedly. "What if it is an orc?" he whispered as quietly as possible.
Aragorn shrugged and gripped his sword, and moved silently into the bushes. He quickly brought the flat side of the blade down into the center of the bush.
There was an indigent shout of pain, and Boromir popped out. Aragorn sheathed his sword, irritated.
"Why are you here?" Gimli demanded, rolling his eyes in disgust.
Boromir rubbed the top of his head, blinking. "You had all wandered away from the fire and have not been back for awhile. I just came looking for you."
"And you left the hobbits alone?" Aragorn asked, glancing sideways at Legolas' lifeless figure on the ground. Boromir hadn't noticed yet. "You had better go back. If an orcs show up they will have trouble."
"I cannot defend them against an army." Boromir pointed out.
"Just go back!" Gimli said in annoyance.
Boromir did not appear to be listening. "What is wrong with the elf?" he asked instead.
Gimli threw a panicked look at Aragorn.
"Orcs." Aragorn said smoothly. "We were patrolling the area, not wandering off, as you put it. We found orc scouts and Legolas was knocked in the head."
Boromir raised his eyebrows. "Really? How unusual. He would be the last one here I'd expect to be knocked out cold. Where are the bodies? Is something wrong with Legolas?"
"Buried them." Gimli interjected. "Smelly, filthy things. Now go back to camp and watch the hobbits in case there are more."
"What about Legolas?" Boromir persisted. "What was he doing getting knocked in the head, fighting with both eyes closed?"
"I would not know. I was not watching the battle while Legolas fought." Aragorn said shortly.
"I see. I guess I'll go back, then." Boromir said. "And you should come back too. It will not be safe if there are orc scouts." With that, he marched back into the direction of the camp, swinging his dagger.
Gimli snorted. "Fine man."
"There would have been trouble if he had found out." Aragorn stated bluntly. "Help me lift Legolas." He bent over and lifted his friend under the arms.
Gimli moved forward and picked Legolas up by the ankles. "I will watch him for the rest of the night."
Aragorn shook his head, and smiled a little. "You have done enough tonight. I will watch him. If he cries out, it will be in elvish, and you do not understand any of it."
"No need to mock me about it." Gimli muttered, but he nodded. "Although, I truly hope he will not cry out." His eyes held a look of the haunted. "To hear what he is going through is terrible, but I can only imagine how he suffers."
It was different.
Before he only heard in the blackness, unable to move or defend himself.
But now he could stand and move around.
The change was not comforting.
Legolas felt for his bow and arrow and kept them ready, trembling. He looked around, turning in a slow circle as he did. There was nothing to see. He stood on dead grass, and around him stretched a misty plain that did not end as far as his eyes could tell.
Elbereth, tirith-or nin… (Elbereth, watch over me…)
Sen a na talath o guruth... (This is like a land of death…)
"Aragorn….?" Legolas called softly, searching for his friends. "Gimli…?"
Even though he was alone, Legolas was hit with a sudden sense of pride, and his straightened his back, feeling ashamed that he had to call to his friends because of his fear.
I am an elven warrior prince.
Galadriel believes in me.
I will fight.
Legolas decided to begin walking. They were no sun or stars, but it did not matter; he could not tell if it was day or night. So he picked a direction and went, walking purposefully, although unsure of what he had to do.
He had been walking for some distance when he saw a shadowy figure up ahead, clouded by the thick mist. Legolas drew his arrow until the bowstring was taut and approached the figure carefully. He breathed in sharply and his icy fingers dropped the bow to the ground.
He tried to speak, but his voiced cracked. "Estel?" he whispered hoarsely. Legolas dropped to his knees beside the man. There was blood everywhere, and his sword rose from the middle of the Aragorn's chest. Legolas numbly placed his fingers onto the side of Aragorn's throat. Aragorn's eyes opened and he grabbed Legolas' hand.
"Who did this to you?" Legolas asked, close to tears. A vision of them swimming in blood entered his mind suddenly, and he shook it off quickly, shuddering.
Aragorn coughed and laughed bitterly. "You play the fool." He said, breathing heavily. "It is your own sword that pierces me." Hatred flashed in his eyes. "I want you to get away from me."
"It was not I!" Legolas cried. "Let me help you."
"You have killed me." Aragorn dropped the elf's hand to wipe a trail of blood coming from his mouth.
"No!" Legolas stood up and backed away quickly. "I was walking in this field when I came upon you."
"What field?" Aragorn asked harshly. "I see no field from where you came. I may be dying, but I can still see!"
Legolas turned around. His heart began pounding and his head spun. There no longer was a field, but an endless sea spread out before him. His feet sunk slightly into the sand, and gentle waves lapped mockingly at him.
"That was not there!" Legolas stammered. "Believe me, it was a field!"
"If you were still my friend, I would have believed you, regardless of what you might have said. But how do I believe someone who has just run me through?" Aragorn spat. He still lay upon the ground, his face lined with anger and weariness.
"Upon my word, I did not kill you!"
Aragorn coughed again. "Liar." He whispered, his eyes narrowed. "I hate you. When I pass on, beware. I will follow and hunt you until you die a miserable death, as I am."
"Be quiet!" Legolas shouted, not wanting to hear it.
"You cannot silence me."
Legolas found his bow and arrow and drew it in a flash. "I wish for silence. I did not kill you, as you believe."
Aragorn laughed cruelly, his eyes wide with pain.
Legolas could not listen to it. He could not look at his dying friend anymore. "I do not know why you choose to believe what you do." He whispered with sorrow. "But you are still my friend, and I will help you. You will suffer no more." Swallowing tears, his released the arrow.
"No!"
Legolas whipped around at the familiar voice. "Gimli!" he said in relief.
The dwarf raised his axe threateningly. "Stay away from me." He growled.
"But - "
"I saw everything!" Gimli shouted furiously, his face red. "You stabbed him, and then shot him! How could you? You beastly murderer!"
"Gimli, listen to me!" Legolas said frantically. "I found him with my sword in him, and I shot him only to release him from this suffering!"
"So you believed there was no hope to save him?" Gimli demanded. His axe was still raised in defense.
"You did not see him." Legolas said, looking at his bloodied hands. "You did not hear him. He accused me of killing him."
"Well, you just have." Gimli stood like a statue, glowering fiercely. "He still breathed when you say you found him. Is that not killing?"
"Would you rather have him suffer?" Legolas cried. "Would you have him lay there, saying terrible things to me, dying slowly?"
"You shot the last breath out of Aragorn." Gimli said icily. "Did he ask for the quick death?"
Legolas stood mutely in shock.
Gimli is right.
I shot him because I did not want to listen.
"I see I am right." Gimli said, staring at him in disgust. "You are a murderer."
Legolas dropped his weapon and spread his arms out, worn out. He did not care what happened to him anymore. "Then kill me as well."
"No." Gimli said coldly. "I want you to suffer in eternity." He began walking away.
"No, please, Gimli … help me." Legolas pleaded. "Don't leave me alone." He followed the dwarf.
Gimli stopped and turned to face Legolas, and began laughing, his face contorted with anger. It was the same cruel laugh as Aragorn's. "Get away from me." Before Legolas could open his mouth, Gimli swung the handle of his axe at Legolas, who fell and sunk into a consuming blackness.
"Oh no, what has happened to Master Legolas?" Merry asked, standing up and stretching.
"I though elves are almost never hurt." Pippin mused, scratching his nose. "Oh well. It has to happen sometime, doesn't it?"
Aragorn and Gimli gently laid Legolas on the ground.
"There was a small number of orc scouts further into the forest. Legolas was knocked out while we fought." Aragorn said. He and Gimli agreed that this was the story they would tell since it was what they said to Boromir.
"Orcs?" Frodo said, with a worried expression.
"They were only scouts. The rest are at least a day behind them." Gimli said reassuringly.
"Then we are leaving in the morning?" Sam asked.
"I hope to, if Legolas awakens by then." Aragorn said heavily. Celeborn had warned him about being tracked by the orcs, and that they would catch up if they delayed even slightly. The fellowship needed to reach the Falls of Rauros quickly, and a sense of urgency began to rise within him with these thoughts.
"Legolas will wake by then." Gimli said firmly.
"I truly hope so." Boromir said.
Gimli sidled up to Aragorn. "Will he? It took nearly two days in Lothlorien." his whispered so no one else would overhear.
"We cannot spare even half a day." Aragorn said softly back. "But it took longer because he was already injured." He was silent for a moment, recalling the trees. "We still have half the night to wait."
"But when he does wake up, what condition will he be in?" Gimli asked in an undertone.
"That is what I do not want to think about now."
To be continued…
*peers at readers from behind a chair* The trip to Legolas' mind in the 'dead land' wasn't too disturbing, was it? I really don't want to scare people off, but if it is getting waaay out of hand, I can start writing about a happy, un-tortured Legolas who frolics in sunshine, butterflies, and pretty flowers all day.
Okay, to all my reviewers:
Cheysuli – I've just noticed that you're practically always the first to read new chapters! I hereby award you with the … um…. "First Person to Read the New Chapter Award!"
Houki – 6th?? Uh –oh…. Here goes the sunshine, butterflies, and pretty flowers….
Click – AHHHHH!!! No wrath, please. I update on a regular basis!!! *on my knees* Pleas don't hurt me. ^_^
Judy – What life besides writing??? Oh wait. You been the Orlando Bloom ogling life I have as well. ^_^ Just thinking about it, I could make the chapters longer, but it would take more time to come out. I write on Microsoft Word, and every chapter ends up being 3-4 pages long, which always seems pretty long to me. But I guess when I convert it to web page format, it gets shorter.
Erhothwen - *in a cheerleader outfit* Yaaaaaay , Legolas!!!! I just had the lovely mental image of Aragorn and Gimli in little cheerleader skirts, hairy legs and all.
Nobody's Fool – It'll soon be more than an evil voice!! *laughs evilly* Maybe in the next chapter or two.
SiHansonWeasleyGamgee – I couldn't possible kill of my main characters. Wait, they're not my characters, they are JRR Tolkien's. Ah, heck. I wouldn't have killed them.
RainyDayz – Well, it's not necessarily a demon….. but a duplicate evil elf??? Ohhh… I can picture the evil side of Legolas separating from the good side… black hair… emerald eyes… *shudders* And far-fetched ideas are good. I sometimes take suggestion from reviews and use it as a basis for certain aspects of the story. And Aragorn and Gimli will see soon enough. But they have to wait for Gandalf to come first. Er…. I need to stop.
Soulsearcher - arbariel – Whenever I read reviews like this, I have to move away from the computer, grin and blush like hell, and come back when I've calmed down. Thank you.
Anrion: Another one who's crying. Butterflies, here I come. (I'm joking. I wouldn't do it unless I had serious complaints.)
Kaimelieamin – All messed up and bloodied solved by the fake orc skirmish!! Yay!
Merrylyn – No way, you actually LIKE the cliffhangers?? They are fun to do in a sadistic sort of way, but I hardly do it intentionally. I originally wanted Gimli and Legolas to fight, but then I though that Legolas and Aragorn fighting would feel cooler.
Silent Angel – Funny you should like chapter 9 so much, because I had a tough time doing the fight. I can't figure out which is my own favourite chapter… for me, they all blur into one big one.
Fantasia – Deadlines can be bad. For instance, this chapter was five days ahead of time, finished on Saturday. But because of the Wednesday thing I set, I didn't want to put it on Fanfiction just yet, because I've said that Wednesdays is when people should check for updates. Oh well. I can get started on chapter 11.
Lady-Daine – I want Legolas to slap the voice too. Well, we'll see it's physical form soon enough. In a few chapter's time, hopefully)
Valerie - *in tears* I don't intentionally write cliffhangers….. oh well.
And more thanks to those I could not mention. My fingers hurt so much from typing they are falling off!
Oh, just a question, since you're the readers. Would you prefer longer chapters that would take more time to come out, or should I continue with the length and time I'm working at now?
And another question. I've got it in my head to start another fic, but I need a little push to get started. So if you have some ideas for me, let me know, and I'd love to write it. ('It' preferably being anything to do with Legolas.)
And if you want the update e-mail, just let me know. Until next time!