Ok, I'm back! It's been a bit long, but I promised I wouldn't give up, and have I?! NO!!! Personally, I'm enjoying this story; something about torturing Legolas, Gimli and Aragorn appeals to me... =D

I tried to buy LOTR from the Tolkien Estate... they told me to "Get Lost"... in the nicest way to put it! (Note to newbies; this is my idea of a disclaimer! Very weird, I know, but then again, so am I...)

Reviewer Replies!!!

ElizabethBlack4; Ok, here's more for you mellonamin! ^_^

Darcy Took; Why thank you! Don't worry, I get repetitive when leaving reviews; words used most- Good. Great. Update soon... shame I can't follow my own advice on that last one... =S

Gwyn; Right, you have Moose Tracks ice cream!!! ^_^ Thanks for the compliment, yeah, I know, everyone says my chapters are too short, but I really can't help it!!! And anyway... I like leaving cliffies... they're fun! In an insane, weird, sadistic kinda way... =D

Alida-Fruit; Woah! That's a hell of a lotta demands!!! So, don't let the Orcs find Gimli, get Aragorn to find them, and don't let Legolas die... well, I can let one of them happen, definitely, but the other two? Well, guess which 2 they are, and then you'll see why I may follow your demands... though I can't make any promises on them yet... =D

Anatis; Ok, I'll take your advice. Thanks for the tip!

MoroTheWolfGod; Here's more, just for you!

Sirithiliel; Thanks!

Chanra; Yeah, poor Leggy! I almost feel sorry for him too... almost... =D

Pat; Ok!

SailorGirl14; It's ok, I like novel sized reviews; it gives me something to read besides fanfics! Wow, rival to LAXgirl?! I love that story that is such a BIG compliment!!!

Estel Elven Enchantress; Spanking?! Even I think that sounds weird!!! Ah, poor Leggy, how we torture him so!!!

Oracle; Thank you!

Sparrow Greenleaf; I really like your name! ^_^ I might kill him... I may take pity... depends on what sort of mood I'm in!

So, a whole page of review replies!!! Cool! On with the story...

.:Chapter 5:.

Legolas lay on the bed in the Houses of Healing, Arwen by his side. She gripped his hand tightly, almost fearful to let go.

He was in a void, a nothingness in which inky blackness swirled around him, but for a few blurred images that wouldn't focus, no matter how hard he tried. Fire danced and twirled around his arm, delighting in his agony, and though he felt like he was burning, he had still never felt so cold.

Arwen looked into Legolas' eyes, once vivid and crystalline, now a pale blue like ice; fever bright, with pupils like pin pricks in the centre of his eyes. She saw his pain, and did her best to comfort him.

"Don't worry, Aragorn shall return soon, and then all will be right. Just stay with us." she whispered. The she-Elf laid a cool hand across his forehead; it raged with heat. 

"Hold on Legolas, please, for us... for me..."

~*~*~*~

The foul Orcs drew closer and closer to Gimli's hole. He held his breath, praying to Aulë that he would be spared. In the condition he was in, he would barely be able to stay on his feet, let alone fight.

"What is it Rugdish? What did you hear?" asked the first Orc, his voice harsh and guttural.

Rugdish sniffed the air for a moment, subsequently bending down upon the ground. His nose dipped into something warm and wet. Blood. He followed the sticky dark trail along the gravel and ash...

~*~*~*~

Aragorn sped across the plains, the wild wind that was created by his speed stinging his eyes, making them water. He didn't care; all his thoughts were concentrated on finding Gimli and hoping that Arwen could keep Legolas in this world until he got back.

His mind was racing. Had he done the right thing, rushing off like that and leaving his love to care for his best friend?

Surely he had.

The dark black mountains loomed up ahead like murky ghosts, beckoning him, mocking him to retrieve his friend from their evil icy grasp. Digging his ankles into Arod's soft side, he spurred the steed of Rohan to go faster...

~*~*~*~

Gimli watched as the shadow of Rugdish grew closer and closer. He lifted his axe silently; if this was to be his end, he refused to go down without a fight!

Rugdish found himself at the mouth of a small opening in the rock face into which the gory tracks led.

"Grarag, in there," he rasped to the first Orc. They both sneaked up to mouth and peered in...

~*~*~*~

The fire still burned all around him, engulfing his entire body. Legolas watched as a tiny ray of light, a small glimmer of hope slowly faded away, swamped by the inky blackness that surrounded him.

"Don't leave me..."

A new figure swam and rippled in front of his eyes.  A lady, dancing with the gracefulness of the Valar, pirouetted and twirled, her flowing garment wrapping around her like ivy wrapping around the trunk of a great majestic tree. She turned to him, and whispered.

"Come to me..."

She beckoned him towards her with a cold white finger, contrasting stunningly against the darkness. She was a light, a beacon in the gloom. He took a few tentative steps towards her...

~*~*~*~

Gimli felt a rough rotten hand grip around his collar and drag him out of his hiding place with the speed of an arrow. He cried out as his wound were ripped open, more blood spilling down his front. Grarag held a long glistening knife above him, poised to strike.

"Well well well, you've led us a merry dance, you have indeed. Shame your friend isn't here to enjoy the celebrations, now we've found you, but he's probably..." He paused, searching for a good word that would enrage the Dwarf, yet at the same time drive him to despair and fretting about that blasted Elf that had escaped. "...preoccupied..." he hissed, looking with large yellow eyes towards his companion. Rugdish laughed a coarse ear-splitting snigger.

"That's right. No doubt he's already dead, a fitting end for one of his disgusting kind; buried by the wind and sand in a shallow grave that no one will remember or mourn at. Perfect."

Gimli's eyes widened; Legolas... dead? No... no, somewhere in his heart he knew that his friend was still alive, something inside told him that if the Elf was gone, he would know...

"Not to worry," gurgled Grarag. "You'll be able to see him now... just hold still..."

The knife caught the rising sunlight as it fell down towards the Dwarf's chest, a fiery blood red in the morning mist...

~*~*~*~

Arwen watched in fear as Legolas' condition deteriorated rapidly. At first he had just moaned softly, giving her barely any indication at all of how much pain he was truly in. Then harsh coughs had exploded from him, gasping and wheezing as she rubbed his back gently, hoping to aid her friend. Yet now there was silence; cold, unnatural, eerie silence...

"Legolas?" she called, shaking his shoulder lightly. "Legolas?!" She then realised to her utter horror the reason why it was so terrifyingly silent. A noise that signalled the very basic form of life was missing...

"Legolas!!!"

The Elf was no longer breathing...

~*~*~*~

Wow, I surprised myself with that chapter! I enjoyed writing that, what do you think of that decidedly EEEVVVIIILLL cliffy, even for me?! ^_^ Oh yeah... SHAMELESS PLUG ALERT!!!

Ok, I've got my own account on Fictionpress now, I've got a couple of poems up and I've started writing a fantasy novel-length tale... and in case you'd like to know, I was inspired to write it by LOTR!!! So, go to my bio if you're interested and check it out for me! I accept anonymous reviews there too! ^_^ Laterz!

~*~ Star-Stallion ~*~