Chapter Twenty-three: The Council of Gil-celeb
Legolas left King Gil-celeb and his advisor to elaborate on their plans. From what little he had heard and seen, he knew Falathar was a threat to southern Eryn Lasgalen at the least. He still wanted to know who Falathar really was and the story behind him. But he sensed that if he asked, Gil-celeb would come to find out, and no doubt be angry. The very last thing he wanted was for Gil-celeb to be upset with him.
'I will perform my duty to the utmost perfection.' he thought, as he went back to the dining hall and stood beside Aerandir and Míriel.
They turned to him.
"Where did you go? We looked all over for you?" Aerandir asked.
"I stepped out of the hall just for a bit." Legolas said.
"Where is my sire?" Míriel inquired.
"I know not."
He was relieved when the Princess did not excuse herself to find her sire. He knew the King was busy now, preparing to defend his kingdom, his life, and the lives of Aerandir and Míriel.
For the remainder of the day, Legolas spent his time with the Princess and her husband. When they slipped away to have some time for themselves, he looked after Celoneth. She was not fussy, and he felt rather attached to her and reluctantly returned her to her parents.
The King did not reappear all that day.
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King Gil-celeb did not have a moment's peace after he questioned Legolas. He knew without doubt that Avathar was indeed Falathar, and that he was coming to take revenge on Aerandir. For how many ages did he bide his time, waiting patiently for the opportune moment to strike. The King would not be surprised if spies were feeding him information. Falathar was not to be taken lightly. Who knew what he learned from the Dark Lord? Any who dealt with him were completely corrupted and evil.
He gathered all of his advisors, councilors, and courtiers and held a secret council with them. He told them everything the messengers of the Woodmen and Beornings had told him, as well as Legolas' first letter to Míriel and what the Prince himself had told the King. The atmosphere was very tense and grave. No one smiled or laughed. Everything spoken was whispered. All of the Elves had grave, grim, and somber faces. Their worst fears were coming true: Falathar was returning for revenge.
"What shall we do? Shall we alert Thranduil?" the advisors said.
"Thranduil already knows. I sent him a letter after I began to receive the first strange reports from the Woodmen and Beornings. You see, they are not the first messengers I have received. And from what they told me, Falathar has already left Thranduil's palace." the King said.
"But we must not let him come here!"
"We cannot stop him, but we can try. He has a horse; we know that. He killed for it. He must be at least three days away from us. We know not what powers or sorcery he has learned from Sauron. We will do our very best to stop him, but I cannot promise anything."
One of the councilors rose heatedly to his feet.
"Aerandir is my friend! I will not let him die!" he cried.
There was an immediate uproar among the council.
"Calm down, calm down! Do you think I will allow Falathar to simply walk into my kingdom and kill Aerandir? Aerandir is the father of my only grandchild, currently, and my best captain. I love him dearly and will do everything in my power to save him. Falathar is a traitor, and he knows that if he comes here, anyone who sees him is obligated to kill him immediately without question. But he does not care. I believe he has a carefully laid out plan ready to initiate. Falathar is not careless. He does everything with utmost precision. Additionally, I believe that Aerandir is not the only one he plans to kill…" Gil-celeb said.
"What do you mean?" the advisors asked.
"Think carefully about it. Who else does Falathar loathe?"
"Míriel?"
"He loves her. He wants her back. That was the whole purpose of him imprisoning her. If she did not escape…"
There was an uncomfortable silence among the gathered Elves. All knew Falathar was after their beloved King. None wished to utter it.
"Very well, I can see it in your eyes. I will relieve you of the answer that lies so heavily on your mind. Falathar wishes to kill me as well."
The Elves lowered their gaze.
"It cannot be denied. You all heard the message he sent to me when he joined Sauron. He promised me, in due time, that he would rid the world of me. I know it, you know it, Aerandir and Míriel know it. And the Lady Galadriel knows it, too. She foresaw it." Gil-celeb said quietly.
There was a collective gasp.
"And she foresaw Aerandir's death as well. He knows this. In fact, he asked her to tell him his future." the King continued sadly.
There was silence around the room. No one looked at anyone else. No one spoke. They hardly seemed alive. Only the occasional flitting of the eyes proved that they were still alive. The King smiled and sighed sadly. His time, and Aerandir's time as well, was slowly slipping away.
"What are we to do? There must be something we can do!" an advisor cried. "We cannot sit here and await whatever doom comes!"
King Gil-celeb stirred and raised his silver head majestically.
"Prince Legolas, our guest, is an important factor. He suspects something, but he must not know anything. We must make sure no one tells him anything. As for what must be done, there are some protective measures we can take. First and foremost, Aerandir and Míriel must not be informed. If they do, then I fear that Míriel will panic and Aerandir will do something rash, or they both will do something rash. I will appoint guards to watch them, hopefully unnoticed. We must warn the border-wardens not to admit anyone, or at least try not to. Be alert and on your guard. Any suspicious activity should be reported. No chances are to be taken. Furthermore, no one is allowed to venture outside the palace. Make sure that whomever desires to stroll does so within the confines of the palace gardens. The people must not go about their affairs except if accompanied by at least four others to assure their safety. And, alert the army. If Falathar is seen, he is to be killed." he told his advisors.
They rose noiselessly to their feet.
"Perhaps a guard of four should be appointed to watch me as well. I do not want them to be known, even by me. Let them dress like the others and act casual. And, do not tell anyone of what we have spoken here. Go about your lives as usual. We never gathered, we never spoke." he added, as they reached the throne room door. "May Eru protect us."
They all bowed deeply to him and left quickly.
Alone with his thoughts, Gil-celeb sank back into his throne. He looked about him dazedly, as if in a dream. He knew that this day was coming. He tried to prepare himself for it. He was not a cowardly man, but even the strongest quaver in the face of death.
"Where are you, Falathar?" he whispered.
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Many leagues away, in the land of the Woodmen and Beornings, Falathar stood in front of the ruins of his old castle. His winged beast was dead. He did not need the stench of its body for proof. He wondered who found out about his hideout.
He did not remain long. He knew better than to cause interest among the local inhabitants. Already he had caused a commotion by killing a farmer just for his horse. If the farmer had only cooperated, Falathar would not have resorted to killing him. Apparently, word was out that a stranger was abroad. The paths were quite empty, and when Falathar did come across people, they were travelling in large, heavily armed groups. They passed him wordlessly, yet their eyes followed him. After trying unsuccessfully to dine and lodge in a village, he took to hunting small animals for food and sleeping astride his horse.
It was five days since he had left Thranduil's palace. Falathar had decided to leave after Legolas departed. He did not like the idea of the Prince's sire speaking with him. He knew the King was suspicious. He felt that an escape would be better than being thrown out, and the probability of Thranduil notifying Gil-celeb. He knew they were very close friends. He wondered if Thranduil knew the truth about him. Perhaps that was the reason he had prohibited him from going with Legolas.
But that did not matter now. Four days were left before he would reach Gil-celeb's palace. He knew every Elf of southern Eryn Lasgalen would kill him if they saw him. He also knew southern Eryn Lasgalen very well. He would slip in through the border by way of a little used secret path. Once inside the border, Falathar was all set for action.