Disclaimer: Do I look like a genius Tolkien to you? Come on! You know
better than that!
Author's Note: Very, VERY sorry but I lied again! NOT the last chapter. I have to separate it into two cause it got way too long. But this time, I SWEAR that the next chapter will be the last. Ok? Sorry. ^-^U
We Are One
For the Love of Friends
Legolas felt a ripple of fear course through him as he drowned himself in the red depths of those murderous eyes of Sauron. They burned hotter than the hottest bonfire and filled with eternal hate and loathing for all of the First Borns, immortal, wisest, and fairest of all beings.
Sauron's dark skin blended in smoothly into the murky surroundings and his hair flowed out freely behind him. It was as beautiful as any of the First Borns but it lacked their pureness. It shone with dark beauty that was nonetheless enchanting. He was dressed in a simple robe made out of soft Elven hithlain dyed the red and black of Mordor. When he moved, it swirled around him and made him look like a flickering flame.
Sauron took a step towards the Elves and they all stepped back. He saw from the corner of his eye that Haldir shrank away in fear, his mouth open in a silent scream of terror. 'What did he do to you? Is he really that fearful?' Haldir was one of the bravest Elves on Middle-Earth. If he feared something, you would be smart to also fear it.
Legolas tensed his hands one his white knives, making his wound bleed harder but he didn't care. The pain was just a minor irritation. Nothing more. He felt Rumil tighten his grip around his waist and he leaned into the embrace. "Telu nambar," whispered Rumil again.
Legolas swallowed hard. "I am not afraid." It was a lie and it showed easily in his face no matter how he tried to hide it.
"Not afraid eh, Little Prince?" mocked the Dark Lord turning to Legolas. "Not afraid of the Big Bad Lord?" He started to walk towards the young Elf.
Legolas quivered but he forced himself to stand his ground. He raised his chin defiantly. "No," he said clearly.
Sauron raised a graceful eyebrow and leered down at the Prince until the tips of his ears turned red and looked away. "That's better. Now, I will offer you a choice, my little Prince. Stay with me forever more by my side in Mordor, and I shall let your friends have safe passage through the Black Lands and Barad-dur. Or, like Sayda said earlier," he nodded to the still unconscious, bleeding Elf on the floor, "you can all die here. You get to watch your friends die one by one. Slowly. And painfully. Your delicate hands shall be soiled by their blood. You murder your own friends. And yourself. There is nothing to be gained, but much to be lost. No friends. No family. No one left for you." Sauron paused to let the words sink in a bit. He saw the way Legolas shifted uncomfortably and darted glances at the blond Elf by his side. 'He must be special to him,' the Dark Lord mused. 'Perfect.'
"Take this young warrior for example," he said gesturing gracefully towards Rumil. Legolas's eyes widened. "How would you like to hear him scream as I rip the life from him? Deprive him from his otherwise immortal life because of you. Loose the peace of Valinor for the cold of Mandos Hall. What say you, my perfect little Prince?" The red eyes shimmered excitedly as he watched the Prince suffer in his internal struggle.
"Amu lasto le hin ciat, Legolas!" Rumil spoke to him in the musical language of Sindarin, hoping to break the train of dark thoughts in Legolas's head. [Do not listen to his lies, Legolas!]
Legolas seemed to not hear him and just stared straight ahead. Thoughts of Rumil lying dead and all his friends dead in the Black Lands just because of him. Because of him... Rumil will die because of him. Everyone will die because of his one puny life. Rumil... '...le hin ciat...'
Legolas was dimly aware of everything else going on. He was the cause for everyone's pains and suffering. He was the one that held everyone prisoner in the Black Lands. He was the bargain for all their lives. It was him the Dark Lord wanted.
Legolas knew what he must do. He was brought up and raised as a royalty and knew that the people came first. It was a hard thing to do and the hardest part would be leaving Rumil. He didn't even realize pearly crystal tears sliding down his pale cheeks until he felt Rumil brush them gently away.
He was forced to gaze into the sea green eyes of his one and only love. 'No...' it seemed to say. It begged for Legolas to say no but he couldn't risk everyone's life. Legolas felt his heart rip in two as he stared into those beautiful eyes begging for him to stay. He tried to smile at him but it probably looked closer to a grimace. "Coi fir firn esse Mordor," he whispered brokenly. [In Mordor will I live and die]
"No!" shouted all the Elves in one voice. Rumil grabbed Legolas tightly as if he were his lifeline. "No! I will not allow it! Do not leave me, I beg of you, Legolas! I cannot live without you! I don't know how!" Tears were now streaming steadily down Rumil's face too. "I will die if you go. I love you, Legolas! Don't go!"
Legolas nearly cried out when he heard that plea. For so many years he longed to hear those word from Rumil and now he had to go. Fate was too unkind. "Do not make it any harder for me, Rumil. It is hard enough already." He gently slid Rumil's arm off him. "I know you loved me and so do I. I have always loved you and always will, but I have made my choice. If I don't, you will all die. I cannot bear the responsibility of all your deaths. I cannot live through it."
"No... no, Legolas... please," whispered Rumil heartbrokenly.
"Go, Rumil. Save yourself and the others," said Legolas hoping it will be some comfort to the broken Elf. "Do not grieve for me. I shall die here like my brother. You cannot change my fate."
"I won't leave you behind!"
"You must! It is the only way!" cried Legolas desperately.
"Rumil is right," said Orophin cutting in. "We don't leave our kin behind. There must be another way!"
"There is no other way, you fools," said Sauron silkily watching the Elves carefully. "I am the Master of Barad-dur. I know everything here and you cannot escape. Ask that Guardian. He knows very well," he said with a grin flitting across his features as he recalled the attempted escape.
Haldir growled softly when he saw this but kept still. Rumil however answered Sauron. "There has to be another way. Name another price. I will not give up Legolas!"
"Leave me here," Legolas insisted. "I will die by my brother's side. Please! I will not let you all die because of me!"
"I'm afraid it is not your choice. And seeing that Legolas already made his choice, I think I shall claim what's mine now." He crooked his finger at the Prince who looked at Rumil one last time despairingly before taking a timid step towards the Lord. "That's right. Come to your master," he gloated.
Rumil's hands unknowingly clenched tightly around his sword as he watched Legolas walk slowly up to Sauron with his proud head bowed in shame. He forced himself to not run and grab Legolas and run, run, run far away from this dreaded place.
Legolas trembled from head to foot as he finally approached Sauron. The Dark Lord reached out a filthy hand and ran it over the waterfall of golden hair that cascaded down his strong back. Without warning, he grabbed a handful of that molten gold and wrenched it down towards the floor. Legolas cried out softly at the pain and was forced onto his knees.
The cry was painful to hear for Rumil and he stopped himself from beheading Sauron right then and there. It tore at his heart to know that Legolas was hurting and he was helpless to stop it. Rumil tried to look away from the heart-wrenching scene but his eyes did not obey his head.
One of Sauron's foot protruded out of his long swirling robe and he held it right in front of Legolas's terrified face. "Kiss it."
At that point, Rumil lost it. The rage that had building up since Sauron demanded his bargain erupted and he brandished his sword at Sauron, swinging it with skill and all his Elven fury. He leapt up high and brought the blade down hard and it would've crashed down upon the hated enemy's head and shattered his skull but it didn't. As if Sauron knew before hand it was going to happen, he pulled out his weapon, a chakram and the blow slid off it easily. (A/N: Chakram-A heavy steel ring-shaped weapon that can be wielded by one or both hands. It is sharpened on the edges with protruding daggers on either side of the handgrip. It can be thrown like a discus, or used in a slashing motion similar to the sword. Used in ancient China period of The Three Kingdoms.)
Rumil's blow was deflected and he was panting heavily but the Dark Lord seemed unaffected. His laughter echoed cruelly against his ears and he raised his sword for another strike. "Go ahead, warrior. You are nothing against the might of Lord Sauron."
Rumil leapt on his nimble feet and ran headlong towards Sauron with his sword in front of him. At the last moment, he feinted towards the left and brought his hunting knife out of his tunic and aimed a deadly blow towards his foe's right side. None of it made contact with the dark skinned Elf. The chakram came up and caught the Elven blade and Sauron spun out of the way of the knife gracefully.
Now Sauron made his move. His speed was astonishing and before Rumil knew what had happened, his left arm was bleeding from a deep cut. He loosened his grip on his sword, knowing that if the bleeding didn't stop, he would die. He cannot die here without Legolas. He couldn't! Now heaved the Elven blade in his right hand with slight difficultly because the blade was meant to be wielded with two hands. It was unbalanced and would cut the speed of the blade by a lot. He grimaced in pain and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sayda regain consciousness.
He didn't care. All his attention was upon Sauron. His green blue eyes watched every motion of his enemy carefully, determined not to let him slip past his guard. His sharp eyes caught every single movement, the black mantle that floated out behind him, the shifting of his stance, and the rippling of the fabric that hid the dark Elf's strength. The dark Elf encircled Rumil slowly like a cat stalking a mouse. There was a blue but this time, Rumil was ready. He brought his sword up just in time to stop it from beheading him. The shock of the blow coursed through his arm, making it tremble. With great effort, he flung the enjoined weapons high and tried to make a hit while Sauron was regaining his balance. No such luck.
Rumil sprang back as the chakram came down and was surprised when another three Elven blades came between him and Sauron. Sauron was just as surprised as he was and both their eyes traveled up the blades to the wielder. It was Orophin, Rumil's brother and Hithiel. He threw Rumil a cocky grin and started slashing at Sauron with such intensity that he didn't have enough time to strike his own attack. Just barely block the attacks from the fierce Elf. Both of the knives that Hithiel wielded flashed in the gloom and distracted the dark Elf so that Orophin could make a hit. He did and it struck deep. Sauron let out a moan of pain when the sword buried deep in his shoulder.
Orophin grinned and went for another blow but stopped when he saw Sauron's eyes. The fiery red that burned now seethed with hate and looked like it could kill. "Enough!" he roared. All the Elves' froze at the sound. It was terrible and even Sayda quivered uncontrollably. Taking advantage of this, he disarmed Orophin and kicked both of Hithiel's long knives high in the air. The knives fell back to earth and buried themselves deep into the stone floor.
He smirked and brought his knee up into Hithiel's stomach hard. A sickening crack was heard and everyone there knew that at least one of her ribs was broken. A cry of outrage was heard from the back and she crumpled down to the ground coughing, trying to regain her breath. Immediately, an booted foot came down on one of her hands. She looked up weakly into the smirking face of Sauron and wriggled her hand weakly to get it out from under.
He pressed his boot down harder and a spasm of pain shot through her arm. She gasped in pain but refused to show any more weakness. She felt her own blood trickle out from under it and looked away.
"No! Hithiel!" she looked up into the pain-filled expression of Legolas.
"Legolas! Go! Now!" she managed, her voice thick with pain. "I can--" but was cut off when he stomped harder. A small cry escaped her lips and glistening tears fell down her pale face. By now, a pool of her own blood had gathered around her hand. Another crack was heard. Her hand was broken. A shrill scream echoed around the chamber and she collapsed on the floor, barely moving at all.
"Hithiel!" Legolas cried and he rushed to her side. He looked up with his soft blue orbs and pleaded, "Please, let her go. It's me that you want. I-I will stay. Please, just let my friends go." He hung his head, trying to hide the tears that had gathered on his long lashes.
"No, Legolas," grunted Rumil looking at his Prince. "I will not allow it."
"You must!" said Legolas sharply. "You must live. You and all the others. One life in exchange for six. I must stay."
Sauron grinned wickedly and lifted his foot off the hand that was now limp and bloody. Legolas gently picked her up and Rumil quickly helped.
Legolas was just walking towards his friends when he felt a hand grab him by the nape of his neck. "No. Stay here," a silky voice hissed.
Legolas swallowed hard and tried not to tremble. His soft eyes locked onto Rumil's pleadingly but could not utter a word. Crystal tears streamed silently down his pale face as he watched them carry the limp Elf back to Haldir. Rumil stared back, his eyes revealing his grief and sadness. "Amin mela lle Rumil," he whispered so softly that it only reached his ears.
Author's Note: Sorry again that I left off there but you wouldn't believe the amount of homework/tests/essays I had this week. I was going to finish it. I swear I did! But then I got too tired so I just decided to split it again and post this one up first. Did you notice that I always update on Saturdays?
Author's Note: Very, VERY sorry but I lied again! NOT the last chapter. I have to separate it into two cause it got way too long. But this time, I SWEAR that the next chapter will be the last. Ok? Sorry. ^-^U
We Are One
For the Love of Friends
Legolas felt a ripple of fear course through him as he drowned himself in the red depths of those murderous eyes of Sauron. They burned hotter than the hottest bonfire and filled with eternal hate and loathing for all of the First Borns, immortal, wisest, and fairest of all beings.
Sauron's dark skin blended in smoothly into the murky surroundings and his hair flowed out freely behind him. It was as beautiful as any of the First Borns but it lacked their pureness. It shone with dark beauty that was nonetheless enchanting. He was dressed in a simple robe made out of soft Elven hithlain dyed the red and black of Mordor. When he moved, it swirled around him and made him look like a flickering flame.
Sauron took a step towards the Elves and they all stepped back. He saw from the corner of his eye that Haldir shrank away in fear, his mouth open in a silent scream of terror. 'What did he do to you? Is he really that fearful?' Haldir was one of the bravest Elves on Middle-Earth. If he feared something, you would be smart to also fear it.
Legolas tensed his hands one his white knives, making his wound bleed harder but he didn't care. The pain was just a minor irritation. Nothing more. He felt Rumil tighten his grip around his waist and he leaned into the embrace. "Telu nambar," whispered Rumil again.
Legolas swallowed hard. "I am not afraid." It was a lie and it showed easily in his face no matter how he tried to hide it.
"Not afraid eh, Little Prince?" mocked the Dark Lord turning to Legolas. "Not afraid of the Big Bad Lord?" He started to walk towards the young Elf.
Legolas quivered but he forced himself to stand his ground. He raised his chin defiantly. "No," he said clearly.
Sauron raised a graceful eyebrow and leered down at the Prince until the tips of his ears turned red and looked away. "That's better. Now, I will offer you a choice, my little Prince. Stay with me forever more by my side in Mordor, and I shall let your friends have safe passage through the Black Lands and Barad-dur. Or, like Sayda said earlier," he nodded to the still unconscious, bleeding Elf on the floor, "you can all die here. You get to watch your friends die one by one. Slowly. And painfully. Your delicate hands shall be soiled by their blood. You murder your own friends. And yourself. There is nothing to be gained, but much to be lost. No friends. No family. No one left for you." Sauron paused to let the words sink in a bit. He saw the way Legolas shifted uncomfortably and darted glances at the blond Elf by his side. 'He must be special to him,' the Dark Lord mused. 'Perfect.'
"Take this young warrior for example," he said gesturing gracefully towards Rumil. Legolas's eyes widened. "How would you like to hear him scream as I rip the life from him? Deprive him from his otherwise immortal life because of you. Loose the peace of Valinor for the cold of Mandos Hall. What say you, my perfect little Prince?" The red eyes shimmered excitedly as he watched the Prince suffer in his internal struggle.
"Amu lasto le hin ciat, Legolas!" Rumil spoke to him in the musical language of Sindarin, hoping to break the train of dark thoughts in Legolas's head. [Do not listen to his lies, Legolas!]
Legolas seemed to not hear him and just stared straight ahead. Thoughts of Rumil lying dead and all his friends dead in the Black Lands just because of him. Because of him... Rumil will die because of him. Everyone will die because of his one puny life. Rumil... '...le hin ciat...'
Legolas was dimly aware of everything else going on. He was the cause for everyone's pains and suffering. He was the one that held everyone prisoner in the Black Lands. He was the bargain for all their lives. It was him the Dark Lord wanted.
Legolas knew what he must do. He was brought up and raised as a royalty and knew that the people came first. It was a hard thing to do and the hardest part would be leaving Rumil. He didn't even realize pearly crystal tears sliding down his pale cheeks until he felt Rumil brush them gently away.
He was forced to gaze into the sea green eyes of his one and only love. 'No...' it seemed to say. It begged for Legolas to say no but he couldn't risk everyone's life. Legolas felt his heart rip in two as he stared into those beautiful eyes begging for him to stay. He tried to smile at him but it probably looked closer to a grimace. "Coi fir firn esse Mordor," he whispered brokenly. [In Mordor will I live and die]
"No!" shouted all the Elves in one voice. Rumil grabbed Legolas tightly as if he were his lifeline. "No! I will not allow it! Do not leave me, I beg of you, Legolas! I cannot live without you! I don't know how!" Tears were now streaming steadily down Rumil's face too. "I will die if you go. I love you, Legolas! Don't go!"
Legolas nearly cried out when he heard that plea. For so many years he longed to hear those word from Rumil and now he had to go. Fate was too unkind. "Do not make it any harder for me, Rumil. It is hard enough already." He gently slid Rumil's arm off him. "I know you loved me and so do I. I have always loved you and always will, but I have made my choice. If I don't, you will all die. I cannot bear the responsibility of all your deaths. I cannot live through it."
"No... no, Legolas... please," whispered Rumil heartbrokenly.
"Go, Rumil. Save yourself and the others," said Legolas hoping it will be some comfort to the broken Elf. "Do not grieve for me. I shall die here like my brother. You cannot change my fate."
"I won't leave you behind!"
"You must! It is the only way!" cried Legolas desperately.
"Rumil is right," said Orophin cutting in. "We don't leave our kin behind. There must be another way!"
"There is no other way, you fools," said Sauron silkily watching the Elves carefully. "I am the Master of Barad-dur. I know everything here and you cannot escape. Ask that Guardian. He knows very well," he said with a grin flitting across his features as he recalled the attempted escape.
Haldir growled softly when he saw this but kept still. Rumil however answered Sauron. "There has to be another way. Name another price. I will not give up Legolas!"
"Leave me here," Legolas insisted. "I will die by my brother's side. Please! I will not let you all die because of me!"
"I'm afraid it is not your choice. And seeing that Legolas already made his choice, I think I shall claim what's mine now." He crooked his finger at the Prince who looked at Rumil one last time despairingly before taking a timid step towards the Lord. "That's right. Come to your master," he gloated.
Rumil's hands unknowingly clenched tightly around his sword as he watched Legolas walk slowly up to Sauron with his proud head bowed in shame. He forced himself to not run and grab Legolas and run, run, run far away from this dreaded place.
Legolas trembled from head to foot as he finally approached Sauron. The Dark Lord reached out a filthy hand and ran it over the waterfall of golden hair that cascaded down his strong back. Without warning, he grabbed a handful of that molten gold and wrenched it down towards the floor. Legolas cried out softly at the pain and was forced onto his knees.
The cry was painful to hear for Rumil and he stopped himself from beheading Sauron right then and there. It tore at his heart to know that Legolas was hurting and he was helpless to stop it. Rumil tried to look away from the heart-wrenching scene but his eyes did not obey his head.
One of Sauron's foot protruded out of his long swirling robe and he held it right in front of Legolas's terrified face. "Kiss it."
At that point, Rumil lost it. The rage that had building up since Sauron demanded his bargain erupted and he brandished his sword at Sauron, swinging it with skill and all his Elven fury. He leapt up high and brought the blade down hard and it would've crashed down upon the hated enemy's head and shattered his skull but it didn't. As if Sauron knew before hand it was going to happen, he pulled out his weapon, a chakram and the blow slid off it easily. (A/N: Chakram-A heavy steel ring-shaped weapon that can be wielded by one or both hands. It is sharpened on the edges with protruding daggers on either side of the handgrip. It can be thrown like a discus, or used in a slashing motion similar to the sword. Used in ancient China period of The Three Kingdoms.)
Rumil's blow was deflected and he was panting heavily but the Dark Lord seemed unaffected. His laughter echoed cruelly against his ears and he raised his sword for another strike. "Go ahead, warrior. You are nothing against the might of Lord Sauron."
Rumil leapt on his nimble feet and ran headlong towards Sauron with his sword in front of him. At the last moment, he feinted towards the left and brought his hunting knife out of his tunic and aimed a deadly blow towards his foe's right side. None of it made contact with the dark skinned Elf. The chakram came up and caught the Elven blade and Sauron spun out of the way of the knife gracefully.
Now Sauron made his move. His speed was astonishing and before Rumil knew what had happened, his left arm was bleeding from a deep cut. He loosened his grip on his sword, knowing that if the bleeding didn't stop, he would die. He cannot die here without Legolas. He couldn't! Now heaved the Elven blade in his right hand with slight difficultly because the blade was meant to be wielded with two hands. It was unbalanced and would cut the speed of the blade by a lot. He grimaced in pain and out of the corner of his eye, he saw Sayda regain consciousness.
He didn't care. All his attention was upon Sauron. His green blue eyes watched every motion of his enemy carefully, determined not to let him slip past his guard. His sharp eyes caught every single movement, the black mantle that floated out behind him, the shifting of his stance, and the rippling of the fabric that hid the dark Elf's strength. The dark Elf encircled Rumil slowly like a cat stalking a mouse. There was a blue but this time, Rumil was ready. He brought his sword up just in time to stop it from beheading him. The shock of the blow coursed through his arm, making it tremble. With great effort, he flung the enjoined weapons high and tried to make a hit while Sauron was regaining his balance. No such luck.
Rumil sprang back as the chakram came down and was surprised when another three Elven blades came between him and Sauron. Sauron was just as surprised as he was and both their eyes traveled up the blades to the wielder. It was Orophin, Rumil's brother and Hithiel. He threw Rumil a cocky grin and started slashing at Sauron with such intensity that he didn't have enough time to strike his own attack. Just barely block the attacks from the fierce Elf. Both of the knives that Hithiel wielded flashed in the gloom and distracted the dark Elf so that Orophin could make a hit. He did and it struck deep. Sauron let out a moan of pain when the sword buried deep in his shoulder.
Orophin grinned and went for another blow but stopped when he saw Sauron's eyes. The fiery red that burned now seethed with hate and looked like it could kill. "Enough!" he roared. All the Elves' froze at the sound. It was terrible and even Sayda quivered uncontrollably. Taking advantage of this, he disarmed Orophin and kicked both of Hithiel's long knives high in the air. The knives fell back to earth and buried themselves deep into the stone floor.
He smirked and brought his knee up into Hithiel's stomach hard. A sickening crack was heard and everyone there knew that at least one of her ribs was broken. A cry of outrage was heard from the back and she crumpled down to the ground coughing, trying to regain her breath. Immediately, an booted foot came down on one of her hands. She looked up weakly into the smirking face of Sauron and wriggled her hand weakly to get it out from under.
He pressed his boot down harder and a spasm of pain shot through her arm. She gasped in pain but refused to show any more weakness. She felt her own blood trickle out from under it and looked away.
"No! Hithiel!" she looked up into the pain-filled expression of Legolas.
"Legolas! Go! Now!" she managed, her voice thick with pain. "I can--" but was cut off when he stomped harder. A small cry escaped her lips and glistening tears fell down her pale face. By now, a pool of her own blood had gathered around her hand. Another crack was heard. Her hand was broken. A shrill scream echoed around the chamber and she collapsed on the floor, barely moving at all.
"Hithiel!" Legolas cried and he rushed to her side. He looked up with his soft blue orbs and pleaded, "Please, let her go. It's me that you want. I-I will stay. Please, just let my friends go." He hung his head, trying to hide the tears that had gathered on his long lashes.
"No, Legolas," grunted Rumil looking at his Prince. "I will not allow it."
"You must!" said Legolas sharply. "You must live. You and all the others. One life in exchange for six. I must stay."
Sauron grinned wickedly and lifted his foot off the hand that was now limp and bloody. Legolas gently picked her up and Rumil quickly helped.
Legolas was just walking towards his friends when he felt a hand grab him by the nape of his neck. "No. Stay here," a silky voice hissed.
Legolas swallowed hard and tried not to tremble. His soft eyes locked onto Rumil's pleadingly but could not utter a word. Crystal tears streamed silently down his pale face as he watched them carry the limp Elf back to Haldir. Rumil stared back, his eyes revealing his grief and sadness. "Amin mela lle Rumil," he whispered so softly that it only reached his ears.
Author's Note: Sorry again that I left off there but you wouldn't believe the amount of homework/tests/essays I had this week. I was going to finish it. I swear I did! But then I got too tired so I just decided to split it again and post this one up first. Did you notice that I always update on Saturdays?