Disclaimer: Again I don't own the wonderful world of Toilken. I just own
the plot and some of the characters. Please don't be mad at me if I forget
to write this at the top of every chapter, just keep forgetting, sorry. I
don't own it all though, don't forget.
The Shadow Passes
Lexwen walked quietly up to the Great Hall where they would feast that night. She wore the pale yellow dress, headdress and her hair curled. The sweet aroma of the elvish food in the kitchen lured Lexwen. She walked into the Great Hall to see one long table set up.
At the heads sat King Elessar and Lord Elrond. To Aragorn's left sat his daughter Katowyn. To her left sat Nekolas then Faith from the council. To her left sat Sky Girolon and then Becwen. Next to her was Zachalf then Jiwen. To her left sat Candice then Haldir.
Elrond sat at the other head. To his left sat Tyolas then Charwen. Then came Rawen and Pawen. Maxomir sat next to Yurwen who sat next to an angry Lizwen. Lexwen's place was in between Lizwen and Legolas. Then Connie sat next to Lawen and Kyomir on King Elessar's right.
Taking her place in between Legolas and Lizwen she smiled. Lizwen just sat there frowning.
"What's wrong Lizwen?" Lexwen asked her in elvish. She just stared across the table and Lexwen followed her gaze. Nekolas sat between Katowyn and Faith. Faith sat flirting with him shamelessly giggling like a little girl and kept touching his arm. Katowyn sat staring at him mesmerized.
Lizwen rolled her eyes and looked as if she were about to be sick. Lexwen had to admit it was a pitiful sight.
To Faith's left Sky sat whispering into Becwen's ears and she smiled, giggling occasionally. Candice listened as Haldir told her all about Middle-Earth and it's history. Lexwen smiled at the peace of the company.
Then the cooks brought in the food. Plate after plate of food filtered into the room. The heavenly scent ventilating around made everyone's mouth water. Everyone talked and laughed merrily as the night wore on.
After seconds and some thirds were served everyone has their fill and sat enjoying the night. Then Charwen and Tyolas's voices carried across the room in angry yells.
"Don't blame me because we came back for war Tyolas!" Charwen said in elvish.
"I'm not but ever since we got back here things are different. You don't seem to notice me. It's like you don't care anymore," Tyolas yelled.
"Tyolas, we're going to war. I can't be worried about you right now" Charwen yelled back.
"But we never do anything together anymore" he said.
"I'm sorry Tyolas, I just don't think it'll work out" Charwen said. He glared at her and stormed out of the room. Charwen bowed to both Aragorn and Elrond then left. Everyone shook their head whispering.
Lexwen felt a little uncomfortable. She had yelled at Legolas the same way a few days back. Except their fight was so much more hard core. Plus he kissed Liz hours after that so, she didn't know what to say. A particularly obnoxious giggle from Faith brought her out of her thoughts. Lizwen rolled her eyes and rolled up her napkin again. Lexwen smiled and turned back to her thoughts.
Soon people began excusing themselves. Becwen and Sky got up together and hurried away to the gardens laughing. Lexwen looked around realizing almost everyone was with someone else. Lawen and Kyomir were engaged, she had a beautiful ring. Yurwen and Max were together happily and Lexwen could see there was a little something between Candice and Haldir. Poor Charwen and Tyolas looked like they were at the end of their journeys. Zachalf was sadly, still single like Lizwen and Connie. Jiwen's heard seemed to be somewhere else in West-Earth. Nekolas was on the verge of being taken by the looks of the two next to him. Lexwen and Legolas were, well they were in the middle of nowhere. They weren't together but she just didn't know. She was still a little sore there.
Lexwen bowed to Aragorn and Elrond and left too. She wandered aimlessly through the gardens, nothing right at the moment. She was back in Middle- Earth and that was enough. Everything about it was perfect, she loved it there. There were so many reasons why she could want to come back and away from West-Earth. What she really wanted to do was go back and see Lorien again. But the beginning of war tomorrow wouldn't permit it.
She wondered how many they would be up against, how many could they take? Rivendell wasn't mean for war, it wasn't supposed to be. Mirkwood had good warriors but fire would burn down the forest. Rohan would probably do fine if they get enough help. Last time they were 300 against 10,000. That was nothing compared to this war. That's what frightened Lexwen.
She continued to walk in silent thought, the wind catching her dress. She looked up at the sky. It was a dark midnight blue and bright twinkling stars lit the sky like little lights. It was so breath taking and beautiful in every way. Nothing about it changed, no great wars seemed to be coming to destroy the peaceful sky. Then a shooting star shot across the sky.
"Make a wish." Lexwen gasped and turned around. Zachalf was walking towards her slowly. His black hair blew around in the wind. "Make a wish" Zachalf repeated.
Lexwen closed her eyes for a second then opened them. "Was it was good wish?" Zachalf asked.
"Very" she said.
"Good because all good wishes come true in the end" Zachalf said. Lexwen smiled and they walked together. "Beautiful sky tonight" he said.
"Yes, it is. I was just admiring it" Lexwen said. He nodded and they continued to walk. Suddenly Zachalf bent over retching. "Oh my god, Zachalf!" she said and a giant burn was felt on her hand. She looked at it to see 3 shapes on her hand: Zachalf, Nekolas and Legolas. She cursed. Lexwen was supposed to be with Legolas but was closer to Zachalf. She just shook her head. "Zachalf! Zachalf looked at me!" Lexwen ordered. He turned to her weakly then bent over retching up red liquid. "Blood" she muttered. "What is going on here?" Lexwen asked.
She tried hopelessly for several minutes to get him to stop but failed. Then she put her hands on his shoulders and whispered softly to him. His retching slowed to a stop.
"Thank you," he gasped wiping the blood away from his mouth with his sleeve. "What happened?" he asked.
"I don't know" Lexwen said then felt another burn. Legolas was getting slowly darker turning to hurt. Lexwen cursed again and hurried away. She tired to think of where he would be. "The gardens of peace" Lexwen said out loud and ran to it.
On the bench sat Legolas bent over retching and coughing up blood too. She ran to him. "Legolas, Legolas look at me!" she ordered realizing he had been retching for almost 10 minutes. He just shook his head and bent over even more.
"No, no Legolas, you've got to stop!" Lexwen said. "Legolas, Legolas stop!" she cried.
He just kept coughing up blood. "What grace has given me, spare him again. He's done too much to die," she whispered in elvish and sat on the bench next to him. He stopped coughing up blood but kept retching. She rubbed his back whispering to him in elvish. Several minutes later he stopped but stayed bent over. "Legolas! Look at me Legolas. It's going to be okay, it's going to be okay" she soothed. He nodded his head but stayed bent over.
Lexwen slid off the bench and sat in front of him. He lifted his sad eyes up to her, pain shining in his eyes. Then he began to shiver violently. Lexwen looked around hoping to find a blanket somewhere. She didn't have any robes. Lexwen then gently pulled him off the bench and pulled him close. She rubbed his arms and back trying to warm him up as he shivered. His body was tense and alert. Slowly he began to relax and stop shivering. A few minutes later he sat against Lexwen silently.
"Legolas" she whispered.
"Yes?" he croaked. Lexwen smiled.
"What happened?" she asked.
"I don't know. I just remember suddenly coughing up blood and I began to retch. I don't know why or how long. I prayed that someone would come and help me. I knew something had happened to Zachalf and Nekolas too. I hoped someone would make it stop because it went on for so long," he said slowly.
"I'm sorry. I was just talking with Zachalf and he bent over retching and coughing up blood too. Eventually I told him to stop in elvish and it slowed. I was going to come to your aid but I was closer to Zachalf at the time. Then I came and it didn't work when I said it to you. There was already a pool of blood at your feet. I'm sorry" Lexwen said and hugged him. He just nodded and leaned back against her feeling like he'd just had a long run with the flu and was still a little queasy.
There came the rushing of feet and the other 13 elves came running in. Both Legolas and Lexwen looked over to see them all.
Rawen smiled at seeing the picture. Lexwen sat holding Legolas close, they both looking over at them.
"Legolas, are you alright?" Kyomir asked him. Legolas nodded and buried his head in Lexwen's neck. He was exhausted and just wanted to rest after what he just went through.
Near the elves Nekolas was leaning his head on Pawen's shoulder and sleeping. Next to Tyolas Zachalf collapsed.
"Oh my gosh, Zachalf!" Lawen gasped and knelt down next to him. Kyomir followed her.
"He's breathing!" he announced. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"They're exhausted. Some evil witchcraft is at work. At the same time the 3 of them had been attacked by some curse that made them retch and cough up blood. It went on for some time and took a lot of their energy. They need rest. Bring Nekolas and Zachalf to the hospital ward and see that Elrond sees to them. I'll bring Legolas in a few minutes" Lexwen ordered. The elves nodded and filed out leading Zachalf and Nekolas.
Lexwen gently shook Legolas. "Legolas, are you awake?" she asked him. He yawned and looked at her.
"Yes, but I need to sleep. I'm shaky and tired," he whispered. Lexwen laughed softly and stood up. He stood up after her slowly. She offered him a hand to help him walk but he rejected it and tried to stand up tall. He had been kind of bent over since he fell in the Black Water. Lexwen smiled knowingly and they walked side by side to the hospital ward.
She pulled open the doors and walked in followed by Legolas. She led him over to a bed next to Nekolas. He lowed himself down and slipped into the warm, fluffy bed. He snuggled far under the covered and fell asleep right away. She walked over to where the other elves and Elrond stood.
"So you don't know why it happened to them?" Yurwen asked. Elrond shook his head.
"Did anyone see what happened?" Elrond asked.
"I only saw Nekolas being held by Aragorn's daughter Katowyn" Lizwen said.
"I did" Lexwen said speaking up.
"I'll keep it short for you guys because I seem to be leaning towards long, boring answers" Lexwen said and the other elves laughed quietly.
"Basically I was talking with Zachalf then he bent over retching and coughing up blood. I didn't know what to do until I told him just to stop in elvish. Then I realized Legolas was hurt too and ran to his aid. There was already a puddle of blood on the ground below him. He sat retching violently. I tried to stop him and the blood did slow but he kept retching for who knows how long. When he finally stopped he began to shiver and the others found us just after he stopped" Lexwen summed up.
Elrond nodded. "Well there seems to be no lasting damage. Just make sure they drink plenty of water so they can regenerate the blood level" Elrond instructed.
"But what about Legolas? He has had the worst of it all," said Becwen.
"Yes Legolas will need plenty of water. It was most unfortunate that he was caught the worst off. He has lost a lot of blood. I need to think about what to do about him. This shivering problem does seem to be bad," Elrond said softly. "I will think on it and you head upstairs to bed," Elrond said and they turned to leave.
Lizwen walked over to Lexwen smiling sadly. "Lexwen are you alright?" she asked in elvish.
"I'm fine. I'm just sad. 3 of my best friends are hurt" Lexwen replied.
"Yeah well I know what you mean. I just can't believe that Nekolas is ignoring me so much. Every since he met Katowyn and Faith they've stuck to him like glue. I just want to spend time with my best friend again" Lizwen whispered.
"Well I'm one of your best friends and I've been ignoring you all. So can we spend time together tomorrow?" Lexwen asked. Lizwen smiled and flung her arm around Lexwen's neck. "Buddies?" she asked. Lexwen nodded and they skipped down the hall singing quietly in elvish "Max is a hobbit"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Lexwen stole down to the stables quietly. She wore a light purple dress made of sturdy material that flowed out at the waste. On the front was a strip of white on top of the purple that started at the top and thinned out at the top of the ribcage to her waste then a tall thin triangle formed on the skirt. The sleeves were long and billowed out.
Lexwen reached the stable and slid into the second on in the stall all the way to the left. Snowdance's head hung out the door. She smiled and walked over to him. "Rest up nin mellon. Today you will ride again with all speed to the sea. We are going to war, you must rest up whenever you can" Lexwen said in elvish stroking his head. Snowdance nudged her arm and Lexwen left.
She walked mindlessly through the gardens again. All of a sudden she saw Elarbrad running towards her.
"My lady" he said bowing. Lexwen smiled to him. "I bring back news. It's about Legolas Greenleaf of Mirkwood. He is ill and Lord Elrond sends for your help. He says it's the Black Waters again" Elarbrad rushed. Lexwen thanked him and hurried away. She ran to the hospital ward.
Skidding to a stop she ran into the room. Elrond stood looking over Legolas with a frown on his face. King Elessar leaned against the wall in the corner smoking a pipe deep in thought.
"Yes, yes I am here" Lexwen panted. Elrond looked up slowly. "What is it?" she asked out of breath.
"The Black Waters I think. I don't understand it. Any normal elf or man fallen into the waters would have died. Even if they didn't they'd have to have help from the cities of old" Elrond said.
"I don't' know what to say. I just dove in to help him," Lexwen said.
"Yes indeed and you both lived" Elrond said. Lexwen really didn't see the connection but what did she know?
"Well that will have to remain unknown for know. At the present I don't know how to help him. He's shivering violently even when wrapped in all these warm blankets" Elrond explained.
Lexwen knelt down beside the bed and looked at Legolas. "So how do we help him? I am not a healer. I have some background but not enough to help something like his" Lexwen asked Elrond.
"I've tried everything I can. I have him the potion and tried a few different remedies but none seem to be working. Lord Aragorn and I have put our heads together but found nothing" Elrond explained further.
Lexwen frowned trying to think of something. She watched as he gave a great shuddered and thrashed around. Lexwen nodded her head and stood up.
"I have but one guess. I don't think he suffers from a sickness or a wound. I never told in detail what happened during the battle but I think now I should. I went up to the captain asking how much time we had left. Something had been drawing near and I became nervous." Lexwen started. "He told me 4 hours and I left. The other elves and I have a system. When someone in our group is in danger, hurt, or dying we can know. The necklaces and rings we wear sense it and then the ring color or necklace design becomes etched on our hands. The darker it gets the worse off they are. When they die their sign becomes imprinted on our upper arm. Well I felt a burn on my hand and it showed Legolas in trouble." Lexwen explained. "I ran down the stairs and saw the main deck filled with orcs. I fought my way towards Legolas as the others came out to help. He was battling on the edge of the ship with 3 orcs. I yelled at Lizwen to shoot them but she could only get 2 of the 3. Then the 3rd one pushed him over. I cut off his head and looked to see if Legolas was there. When he didn't turn up I dove in. I saw him dropping towards the bottom and went after him. Since he wasn't breathing I helped him to. But when he both reached the surface he didn't breathe. I pulled him on deck still breathing for him too but he was fading. Finally I asked what grace I had to help him and he slowly became better but shivered like this" Lexwen finished.
Elrond nodded understanding now. "I think something happened as he dropped to the bottom dying. That thing still haunts him now. After last night he began to shiver too" Lexwen added. Elrond nodded grimly.
"Well everything makes sense but I still don't know how to help him. All you did was try and warm him up and he stopped" Elrond said. Lexwen knelt down by him again.
"Legolas" she whispered. He opened his eyes slowly. "Legolas, what's wrong?" she asked wanting to know what happened. He shook his head.
"Just make it stop," he croaked.
"Make what stop?" Lexwen pressed.
"Darkness, voices. Evil voices trying to take everything away. Make them stop" he gasped and shivered more.
Lexwen took his hand and covered it with both her hands. She could feel he was tense again and everything shook. She made small circles in his palm trying to get him to stop. Slowly he relaxed but still shivered. Lexwen grabbed his hand in her again.
"Can I have just one more blanket?" Lexwen whispered to Elrond. He nodded and handed her another. She took it and covered Legolas in it. The shivering slowed to a stop and she felt warmth back in his hand. She tucked his hand under the covers and stood up.
Elrond looked at her totally perplexed by what she did. "How did you do that?" Elrond asked.
"I don't know. I just took in the fact that he was shivering, thrashing and tense. Then I tried to make him relax and warm up," Lexwen said.
"But what about the voices?" Elrond pressed.
"That's probably what's haunting him. I can't make the voices go away. He will have to suffer with them," Lexwen said. "If that is all I'm going to have a little to eat, I'm famished" Lexwen said and bowed herself out of the room. Elrond turned to Aragorn and Lord Aragorn nodded gravely.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A great amount of 25 horses stood in the pasture saddled and waiting for their owners. Lexwen walked to the hospital ward quickly. She turned the corner and walked in.
"Lexwen, good you're here. Do you think Legolas is fit for this long journey?" Elrond asked and Legolas stared pleading at her.
"Well, seeing as he can stand, walk, talk and even argue then if he feels fit then I would say so," Lexwen said. Legolas smiled and Elrond sighed.
"Legolas, just be careful. I can't do everything alone" Lexwen smiled. He nodded and together they left, each other's arms around their shoulders. Elrond shook his head.
"Softie" he said referring to Lexwen.
When the two of them reached the pasture they let go and went to their horses. Legolas jumped on his horse and rode over to Nekolas and Kyomir.
Lexwen mounted Snowdance and Lizwen came trotting over. "Hello Lexwen" she said.
"Hi Lizwen" Lexwen smiled.
"You ready for the trip?" she asked.
"I think so, I've got the lists so lets get this over with," Lexwen said.
"How's Legolas? I heard about what happened this morning," Lizwen whispered.
"He's fine. Just had a replase" Lexwen said. Lizwen nodded and they began to chat like nothing bad was about to happen. Aragorn rode up to Lexwen and stopped.
"Lexwen, I will be accompanying you until we reach the outskirts of Gondor. Then me and Katowyn will head home," Aragorn said. Lexwen nodded and he rode away.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Nekolas tell me, are you one of the 15 elves?" Katowyn demanded. Nekolas looked away and nodded.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked angrily.
"Katowyn, I'm sorry. You and Faith are great, but I'm going to war! The biggest war ever in fact. I didn't want you to get your hopes up thinking we can just stay friends forever. I might not even return," he said.
"I want to fight too. I can't just stay in the mountains of Gondor cowering while war comes. I want to help!" said Katowyn tears rolling down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry you just can't. Who will watch over the people in the mountains? They can't go leaderless like that. You must stay with them," Nekolas said.
"Please" Katowyn whispered tears shining in her eyes.
"No" he said and rode away.
"We ride until we reach the sea! The warriors will be waiting for us there" Lexwen yelled ahead of them and they started off galloping in to the sun.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
They rode with speed and skill; need to get there quickly present in their minds. The 17 rode in the same diamond formations and the other 8 making a V off the rear. Soon Gondor came into view and Aragorn and Katowyn broke away. Katowyn looked back at Nekolas but he just looked forward.
Max who was next to him could tell it hurt him to leave but he had to. She was the shield maiden of Gondor and couldn't be sacrificed. Lexwen urged them on without break and finally the sea came into view.
Legolas seemed to be reluctant to ride forward but kept going. Lexwen then stopped abruptly and jumped off her horse. The others followed in pursuit and then looked forward. Standing silently stood a great army beyond any of the ones they had seen one the light side.
Eomer's mouth dropped. He had seen the great army of 10,000 and the assault on Minas Tirith but this was amazing.
"Don't be so sure of yourselves! Take this times 5 and you'll get your number that we know of. Hope is still low" Lexwen said to the crowd. Everyone's hearts sank as they saw the number. "But do not lose hope, we will prevail!" Lexwen reassured the crowd. Then she nodded and Legolas stepped forward. "Today we will sort out the ones going to Rivendell and Mirkwood. Tomorrow will be Rohan and Gondor. If we're lucky, we'll have the 3rd day to relax. That's only if we're lucky. After that suiting up and every extra minute is used wisely." Legolas bellowed. Lexwen moved through the crowd of 23 and handed out papers to help get everyone sorted out.
"Walk through the crowd and sort them. Let us hope that before dusk Rivendell and Mirkwood will have help" Legolas said. Lexwen came back to him as everyone went to his or her jobs. His head was bowed down and his hands clasped together.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"It's so close. The sea is so close. I want everything to keep the distance between me and the sea yet it's calling to me and I want to go to it" Legolas said. Lexwen smiled sadly.
"Legolas, do no worry about the sea. Forget the distance and forget it's calling. You can't stay away from it forever" Lexwen said in elvish.
"But to keep it away from thought is so hard" Legolas replied.
"Shhh" Lexwen soothed. Then she slipped off a beautiful ring off her finger. Delicate and beautiful yet dark and powerful it was. Then she put it in his hand. "What Grace has given me, shall it ever protect you" Lexwen said.
"You can not give me this. Everything that's fair and you is grace, everything that protects you is grace" Legolas said holding it out for her. She curled his hands around it and pushed it towards him.
"It will protect you, keep it" Lexwen said and walked away. Legolas watched as she got lost in the sea of people and sighed pocketing the ring.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"You sirs from Greenich, you're for Rivendell" Lexwen said.
"And you are for Mirkwood" Lizwen said next to her. Lexwen turned to see a great amount of humans mounted on horses standing tall and silent. She walked up to the head of the group.
"You, how many horsemen have you brought?" she asked and Lizwen turned around to see them.
"At least 1,000 strong. But we are skilled and can wield a fair sword and an occasional bow and arrow.
"What's your name?" Lexwen asked.
"Ishita" the woman said. She had long brown hair and dark beautiful skin.
"Well, you most certainly will be working for King Eomer of Rohan. They are the horse-lords of this earth and prefer to have war on horseback. They will be very pleased to have an army such as yourselves on their side" Lexwen explained.
"Very well" Ishita said.
"You see if Rohan wins they may ride on to help another country as it falls for only if we are untied shall we stand. If Rohan falls, all hope shall be lost for they have a strong king with good men and fair horses. If Sauron is destroyed we'll forever thrive as long as greater evil does not stir. If we fall all will be lost." Lexwen finished. Ishita nodded and turned to her men explained to them what was happening her own very rushed tongue.
"Rohan shall be pleased. But what of Rivendell? They are not meant for war and can only find so much help for themselves" Lizwen asked Lexwen in elvish as they walked through the crowds.
"Rivendell's list is the longest. Rohan needed more help too. Mirkwood has plenty of warriors. I've decided to leave for Lothlorien tonight. We need their help that they've got left. Lord Aragorn is sending out help for the Dunadan. Other than that we must depend on the humans" Lexwen replied.
"But Lexwen, your people are fading. Truly their last war was Sauramon's against the Rohan. They don't' have the strength. Your people are wonderful but they are fading into the west. You will not find much help" Lizwen counteracted.
"You know nothing of my people!" Lexwen said.
"No, you don't either. They will never truly be your people! You path is not to lead them," Lizwen yelled and her hand flew to her mouth. "I shouldn't have said that" she gasped.
"What do you mean? I am the heir to Lothlorien" Lexwen raged in a whisper.
"Yes but Galadriel will never die to pass it on. And your people are already failing. They are dying away and will leave. Besides I feel that your path just doesn't lie with your people" Lizwen said in a strange voice. Lexwen glared forcefully at her.
Then Nekolas came bounding out and knocked Lizwen to the ground in a puff of brown and blond hair and navy dress material. "Lizwen" he yelled smiling like a fool.
Lexwen smiled and slowly moved away. She walked talking to an occasional person then bumped into Zachalf.
"Hello" Lexwen said. He just nodded. "You feeling okay?" she asked. He nodded again. "Then what's wrong? You've been quite laid back since we reached Middle-Earth." Lexwen said.
"I'm fine, I'm just nervous. I have this shadow growing in my mind about war. Something bad is going to happen. I have a feeling it's to one of us," Zach said in a quiet voice.
Lexwen nodded "Oh. So that's the reason for all the" Lexwen made a movement like she was cowering back in fear, her eyes wide and staring. Zachalf chuckled softly. Lexwen gasped. "Was that a laugh?" she asked. Zachalf shook his head swiftly. "Aw, you sure?' Lexwen asked getting closer.
Zachalf could feel her breath. Then Lexwen smiled and poked him in the stomach. Zachalf bent over his stomach as a reflex. He looked up to see her smiling. He straightened up and smiled at her evilly. Lexwen's smiled changed to a frown, and then she turned and ran away.
Zachalf was at her heels quick as a flash. Lexwen risked a quick glance back to see him hot on her tail and laughing. Lexwen smiled then made a quick turn around a group of men. Zachalf stumbled around then tripped. Lexwen had fell to the ground and Zachalf had run right into her. Lexwen laughed as he stared bewildered at the ground.
"You just fell, don't worry about it" Lexwen said. Zachalf then spontaneously laughed along with her. All sad emotions that had been building up inside him were set free and he was at ease.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Legolas, Legolas!" Lawen called. She had noticed she didn't see him anywhere. She whistled for her chestnut horse Shoshani. He came trotting over happily. Lawen sprang up upon his back and called again. "Legolas!" She looked around wildly. She found she didn't see his long blond hair anywhere.
She saw Zachalf and Lexwen laughing and Tyolas talking with a pretty black haired girl from West-Earth. Lawen trotted away from the group a bit. She circled slowly around the large group speeding up more and more.
Then she reached the dockside and saw him. Lawen galloped towards him, as he stood motionless before the raging black water. "Legolas no!" Lawen screamed at him. He just stared into the water taking no notice of him. She reached the middle of the dock and jumped off Shoshani. Lawen ran quickly towards Legolas yelling at him. She knew something was drawing him towards the black waters; something called him. "Legolas, Legolas" whispered a sinister voice. It sent a chill down Legolas' spine. Icy cold wrath filled the voice calling him with bitter anger. It was like drowning in freezing cold water making his teeth chatter and giving him goose bumps. "Legolas, fall," ordered the voice with a twist of searing hot fire.
"No Legolas" Lawen yelled and pushed him down onto the dark dock. Legolas' train of thought was lost and he shook his head. "Legolas what were you doing?" whispered Lawen.
"Did you hear it, the voice? Like ice that kills by the touch?" Legolas asked not even looking at her.
"No, what are you talking about?" Lawen asked a little scared.
"I heard a dark voice calling me," Legolas explained finally turning on her. Lawen just nodded.
"Are you okay??" she asked.
"Yes, yes of course. Let's go back," Legolas said laughing slightly. Lawen smiled and mounted Shoshani.
"You don't mind if I ride beside you?" Lawen asked. Legolas laughed.
"Of course not. Please do so "he said and they walked together.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Alright Zachalf, I hate to say it but we must get back to work. We have much to do and not enough time to do it. I must finish up here then ride to Lothlorien. I will probably return by the 1st day of assigning people. Do you want to stay here or accompany me?" Lexwen asked. Zachalf though for a moment then nodded.
"So, to Lothlorien we go tonight. I am afraid Snowdance cannot take running as fast as he has recently" Lexwen said. Zachalf just nodded again.
"Are we the only two leaving?" Zachalf asked.
"I don't know. I might take Yurwen and Maxomir because they are from Lorien. I also might bring Legolas because he says he misses the fair woods of Mirkwood and Lorien" Lexwen suggested.
"Whom will you leave in charge?" he asked.
"Lawen, Kyomir, Lizwen and Nekolas I think" she explained and disappeared into the crowd. Zachalf stood in thought then went to find Tyolas to talk to him.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I will make this short for you all. I must gather up the last of my city in an effort to help us. As Lizwen has pointed out, they are leaving. That is the problem with the elf cities, they are beautiful but empty and fading away. Sauron just despises the elves, hates us. So we must show him what we can still down even though we are fading," Lexwen said.
"I leave for Lothlorien as soon as the sun starts to set. I ask Zachalf, Yurwen, Maxomir and Legolas to join me," Lexwen asked. The four of them nodded in consent.
"Who will lead the assigning?" Becwen asked.
"I will leave Lizwen, Nekolas, Lawen and Kyomir in charge. We will return at the earliest the first day of suiting up. Those who are coming with me make sure you can blend in a little and bring a weapon. It's been 4 days since we arrived and word can travel fast. Be wary all of you. I bid you be careful as you sleep on the boats and leave guards around them." Everyone listened in rapt silence.
"I'm sorry this is such short notice but that's the way it has to be" Lexwen said.
"How are you to pack?" Candice asked.
"We will bring a little off the boat. Only Legolas and Zachalf don't have provisions in Lorien but we will be fine" Lexwen said. The others nodded and got off the ship.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Samwise!" Lexwen called.
He came running into view leading 5 horses. "My lady, here are your horses. I have all bay horses besides Master Maxomir who has his black stallion Cataladriel. Yours is Eoywenbrian. Yurwen has Haku. I brought Legolas Fursueth and Zachalf Dust. That is what you wanted right?" asked Samwise.
Lexwen smiled. "Yes thank you Samwise. See to it that our other horses are brought back home. Good bye Samwise" Lexwen said as she mounted Eoywenbrian. The others mounted their horses and nodded farewell to Samwise. Lexwen urged Eoywenbrian forward with a burst of speed.
They rode far into the night, their horses barely visible in the dark night against their bay coats. After a few hours Lexwen made them stop to give the horses a break. They hid in a covering of trees just inside the Fangorn Forest.
"I do not like the feeling of this forest. I entered here with Gimli once, long ago. Then it was much lighter. Yes it would seem a cursed forest if you don't understand the trees. But the Fangorn was great. Now real evil seems to lay in these lands and the smell of foul orc blood lingers," said Legolas.
Lexwen looked over at him as she stood towards the inside of the forest. "Let us forget about it Legolas. Ors may have dwelt here but are not present now, come get some rest" Lexwen said.
"No he is right, I smell it too" Maxomir said standing up. "Zachalf come with us. We shall go see if we can find anything. Yurwen and Lexwen watch the horses" Maxomir said and Zachalf ran away with Legolas and Maxomir.
Shortly after they left Yurwen heard the rustle of leaves and saw a clump of bushes move. "Lexwen, did you hear that?" Yurwen asked Lexwen quietly. She nodded and silently stood up.
Her hand ran along the tail of her arrow as Yurwen loosened her sword in her belt. A louder rustle was heard to the left of Yurwen. The horses became nervous and began pawing the ground. Yurwen nodded her head understanding that something drew near. Then to Lexwen's right a loud rustle and the sound of an arrow whistling through the air was heard. Lexwen turned swiftly and shot the creature in the bushes.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Zachalf looked up from the path they had found. "Legolas, Maxomir, did you hear that?" he asked. They nodded.
'What was it?" Maxomir asked.
"I am not certain but it sounded like the twang of a bow, and a foul one. But how far away I cannot tell" Legolas said. Then they heard a lighter sounding one.
"It's coming from near Yurwen and Lexwen, we must go" Zachalf said at once and they sprang away like deer. The sound of an arrow being shot and the clang of metal grew closer and they ran faster.
Then they burst through some trees to see a group of orcs peering through some bushes occasionally shooting an arrow. Then the 3 elves grabbed their bows and shot down some orcs in the back. They fell dead with a shrill cry and the others turned their attention to Legolas, Maxomir and Zachalf. Zachalf and Legolas kept shooting orcs while Maxomir put away his bow and unsheathed his sword. He ran forwards and began slaying orcs in rapid motions.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Lexwen and Yurwen continued killing orcs until no more came. But behind the bushes they could hear the cries of more orcs and the sound of metal and arrows. Lexwen and Yurwen looked at each other bewildered and they ran through the bushes. On the other side she could vaguely make out a group of orcs fighting 3 tall creatures.
"Zachalf behind you!" Maxomir cried in elvish. Zachalf turned quickly and shot more orcs. Yurwen breathed a sigh of relief. Then they ran forward and began making a dent in the orcs surrounding Maxomir, Zachalf and Legolas.
Legolas looked up to see Lexwen and Yurwen fighting. Then a burn on his palm scared him. To his left Maxomir took a deep breath in pain and switched his sword to his left hand. Legolas saw a rip in his sleeve and dark blood trickling from a somewhat deep gash. Yurwen looked over at him to make sure he wasn't badly hurt. He smiled at her and kept fighting a little more awkward thought.
They kept fighting until a little over 10 were left and the rest ran away. "They'll be back," Legolas said. Lexwen nodded and disappeared through the trees to get the horses. She grabbed the reins of Maxomir's horse Cataladriel and Eoywenbrian and the other 3 horses followed her through the bushes. She came back to see Zachalf and Yurwen looking over Maxomir's arm.
"Zachalf, Yurwen, I'm fine. Don't worry about me. It's just a cut. We'll never make it through this war if you worry over a cut even this small" Maxomir said. Lexwen grabbed some cloth from her bag and walked over to Maxomir.
"He's right. I'll just wrap it up and we must get going. The sun is coming up and we can't hide anymore. Let's not stop until noon at least!" Lexwen said as she bandaged his arm and tied the ends together.
Maxomir moved his arm and flexed his fingers. "Thank you" he said and grabbed Cataladriel's reins. The others followed mounting their horses.
"Maxomir, did you find anything when you first left?" Lexwen asked him as they rode their horses to the entrance.
"No but I noticed something strange. On the armor of the orcs there was a foreign sign. It was a bright, emerald green eye. I don't' know who it stands for. Sauron has a red eyes so who could this be?" Maxomir said. Lexwen just shook her head and urged Eoywenbrian away.
They gathered speed as they rode on the outskirts of Fangorn. For many hours they rode only taking a few short breaks. Then a little after noon they stopped. They rested again in Fangorn but on the other side. Yurwen brought the horses some water and sat down to rest.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Forward Symbidian" Katowyn whispered to her horse in elvish. Nekolas had taught her a bit of elvish and through research she learned even more.
She had been riding for 2 days trying to catch up to Lexwen, Legolas, Zachalf, Yurwen and Maxomir as she learned they were called, and as they rode to Lorien.
A day and a half ago she had rode off to go see Isenguard. She had come across the story about Frodo and the ring. She wanted to go and see Isenguard as it fascinated her much.
When she reached it though, it was he opposite of what she dreamed. A thick gray smoke rose from pits in the ground. Foul orcs roamed the area cutting down trees and building a sculpture. It was a bright, emerald green eye lifted up high next to the Orthanc. It could be seen for miles around. A tall ugly black wall had been built around Isenguard. Imprinted on the gate was the emerald eye and tall broad orcs patrolled it day and night. A dam made of rough rocks had blocked Isen. Paths had been built leading to Isenguard all around. The very sky seemed to be made of ash.
After inspecting as much of the city as she could Katowyn rode away heading for Lorien after the others. It had been over a day ago and Katowyn was hot on their trail. She had reached the outskirts of Fangorn. She gave Symbidian a short rest then a few hours after noon she reached the end of Fangorn. A small fire burned low and horse print hooves were imprinted in the ground. "There must be a least 3 hours old" Katowyn though a loud. She sprang upon Symbidian again and rode away following their trail. She figured by nightfall she would reach of the next night she would reach Lorien and urged Symbidian on further.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
From then on the small company just had open plains full of rocks and stumps. Everything seemed dead and alone. The grass was a crunchy yellow and brown. Dust sat in it and each step the horses took a small puff of dust would form. The boulders were a little less than twice the size of Lexwen and her horse, which were fairly tall together. The sky was a pale blue and cloudless.
"From here most the horses don't know the lands so well. The rocks are sharp and dangerous. Stay at a fast trot unless we are assailed," Maxomir advised and slowed Cataladriel down. They rode in a small clump, talking only when needing too. They rode until late nightfall.
Legolas signaled for them to stop. "We should give them a rest then ride hard. We are closer to Lorien and everything seems pretty safe" he said and dismounted Fursueth. The others silently agreed with him and dismounted.
Zachalf grabbed his water bottle and began pouring some in his hand hear Dust's muzzle. He silently lapped up the water as Zachalf stroked Dust's muzzle. "If you were to die tomorrow who would you leave your horses too?" Zachalf asked suddenly.
Legolas turned to look at him suddenly as he smoked his pipe. "Why do you ask?" Legolas asked him.
"I don't know. If I were to die tomorrow I wouldn't just leave my horses Lily and Dust. I would probably give Lily to Lexwen and Dust to Maxomir who is without a bay" Zachalf said half to himself.
"Well, if you were to die tomorrow, which you are not, we will keep that him mind" Legolas said. He took a deep breath and let out a giant ring of smoke. Zachalf wiped his hands and went over to the others.
"Where's Maxomir?" he asked. Yurwen and Lexwen looked around but found naught. Lexwen sprang to her feet off the rock she had been sitting on. She looked towards Lorien hoping to see Maxomir's blond hair appearing behind a rock. In stead she saw a party of orcs walking up towards their spot. There must have been at least 100 against 5.
"Yrch!" Lexwen yelled in her own tongue to the others. They came rushing over to look. Even as they watched some of the orcs began to fall. "Maxomir" she whispered again in elvish.
"Quick mount the horses and ride down to them. Attack from the sides and back!" Zachalf ordered the others in the common tongue. Lexwen ran to Eoywenbrian and mounted him. She looked at Maxomir's horse Cataladriel and he followed Lexwen.
They galloped soundlessly to the orcs while readying their bows. Legolas and Yurwen began attacking from opposite Maxomir as Lexwen joined Maxomir and Zachalf took the back.
"Tangado a chadad! Leithio i philinn!" Zachalf signaled. (Ready the arrows! Fire the arrows.) A bunch of orcs fell that time.
Legolas restrung his bow with two arrows this time. Zachalf gave the signal and Legolas let go. The two arrows flew in opposite directions and hit the front and back.
Lexwen and Maxomir quickly strung their bows one last time before the orcs would notice the attack. As they awaited Zachalf's signal they talked. "Maxomir did you know they were coming or something?" Lexwen asked him as he situated himself on Cataladriel.
"I was just scouting ahead and saw them coming and hid."
"Leithio i philinn!" Zachalf yelled and they let go. Then the head orc halted them.
"Attack!" he growled in his own foul language. The elves cantered out of short bowing rang and began firing at will. They shot down more and more until the number was down to 25 to 30.
Maxomir, Legolas and Yurwen ran forward with swords and began fighting up close. Lexwen aw an orc trying to sneak past her and with a silent motion shot him down. "Maxomir, where were they coming from?" Lexwen yelled at him.
"Northeast, from the looks of it the Iron Hills" Maxomir said and cut off another orc head. The number thinned down to 5. Lexwen shot down one, as did the others. They began celebrating as Lexwen looked out.
A creeping shadow was seen. He was tall but hunched over. She noticed no one had shot down the leaded of the party. She urged Eoywenbrian forward into a canter. Lexwen readied her bow and tried to shoot the orc. He just dodged and missed the arrows. Lexwen sighed in frustration and unsheathed her sharp sword.
She galloped up to the orc and took a swipe at him. He just dodged the blow and ran forward. Lexwen galloped far ahead of him and dismounted. As he came up upon her she tried to hit him again. He pulled out his own sword and began fighting her back. Lexwen cut off his arm and he made a gash in her own. Lexwen growled and cut off his other arm. He just growled back at her and stepped closer to her. Then she pulled her sword up and cut off his head. He fell to the ground forever silent.
Lexwen took a deep breath as her work was finished. Lexwen and the others had killed 100 orcs pretty much unharmed except for her gash. She grabbed the other half of the cloth she had and wrapped it around her arm. Then she sheathed her sword and called for Eoywenbrian. He trotted up to her and she mounted him slowly. Then she galloped back to the others.
They had been talking merrily about their victory. Then Legolas came over to her and tried to check out her arm. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yes, lets just get going. I want to investigate more about these attacks in Lorien. She should be there by noon today" Lexwen said and they rode away in clouds of dust.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The 5 rode until 3 hours after the sun went up. Yurwen had noticed Maxomir rode with an uneven form. He seemed to be leaning to one side. Yurwen called for a break. Legolas nodded and slowed Fursueth to a walk.
Yurwen rode Haku up next to Cataladriel and walked with him. "Maxomir are you alright? You seem to be riding leaning to the side" Yurwen whispered to him in elvish. Maxomir just nodded his head. "Maxomir, the system doesn't lie" she said and held out her hand. Lexwen's sign had faded but Maxomir teetered between danger and hurt.
"Curse Lexwen!" Maxomir said. Yurwen smiled.
"Are you sure?"
"Yurwen, Maxomir, get some rest! Once we reach Lorien we will most likely get no rest until nightfall" Legolas called at them and they broke apart.
"I hear you Legolas!" Maxomir called back at him in the common tongue. Legolas laughed as he closed the bottle to his water for Fursueth. Zachalf was munching on a piece of bread and Lexwen stood looking south.
"What's wrong?" Legolas asked coming up behind her.
"Something stirs in the south, and it isn't Mordor" Lexwen said with her eyes close and her hair rippling in the wind.
"Let us hope we may find something out from Lorien's people" Legolas said. Lexwen just kept staring south.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Come one! We're at most an hour away!" Maxomir yelled. Lexwen urged Eoywenbrian forward farther. Yet again the 5 of them rode in a clump. Riding in secrecy was no longer an option. They needed speed. Already having been ambushed twice it didn't matter.
Lexwen wondered how soon something else would come up. Word seemed to be able to travel faster than she thought. Eoywenbrian just galloped on. Time traveled in a blur of green grass and blue skies. The ground became steadily flatter and the grass more lively.
After more than Lexwen could take the woods of Lothlorien appeared in close view. Lexwen stared in awe at the place she had been waiting to see for 3 years. She rode forward and straight into the woods. The others galloped after her trying to keep up.
Once under the woods Lexwen thought she'd see a group of elves waiting for her return. Instead the woods were dead silent. A soft mist lay heavy on the ground. The trees were bright green and the grass sparkled with dewdrops. She looked up in the trees expecting to see the guards looking down at her. Walking farther in she met nothing. She walked with Eoywenbrian for sometime.
"Where is everyone?" Legolas whispered to her. She shrugged her shoulders and looked a head and stopped dead.
In front of her was a sharp arrow pointed right at her in a set bow. All around the 5 were guards and the head elf walked through.
"Who are you and what are you doing in these woods?" he asked.
"Haldir, I need to get into the city," Lexwen said.
"And who are you?" he asked.
Legolas stared at him in disbelief. "Haldir, are you alright? She's Lexwen Goldenleaf, Princess of Lorien" Legolas exclaimed.
"Legolas! I'm so sorry. I didn't even recognize you! And what is this? Lady Lexwen I am dearly sorry! Yurwen Maxomir, and who is this?" Haldir asked looking at Zachalf.
"Haldir, this is Zachalf Elmwood of Mirkwood" Lexwen said. Haldir nodded and ordered the guards to lower their weapons. The arrows were slowly lowered. Lexwen took the lead as she talked with Haldir.
"It's so quiet! Where are all the elves? They haven't all gone have they?" Lexwen said.
"Most of them have. Half of them have left including Galadriel" Haldir said.
"So who is in charge? The elves need guidance somehow" Lexwen exclaimed.
"You will soon see someone you will not expect" Haldir said and he fell silent. Lexwen sighed and just watched the scenery.
Soon they had passed through to the city. The great buildings in the trees stood glowing. Once in a while a fair elf could appear but would quickly disappear. Zachalf stared up in awe at the fair city. It seemed not to show time or age. The trees seemed to glow and the water made of glass.
"Welcome to Lothlorien Zachalf" Yurwen said to him. He just kept looking around at everything.
"Haldir, as much as I'd like to take my time here but we are in need of haste. I must see the lord of the city," Lexwen said.
"He is not really the lord of this city but that is fair enough" Haldir said. He called for the stable boy to take their horses. Then he led them up the winding stairs around the trees to the main hall.
Lexwen ran through the door and to the man clothed in gray and brown sitting near the royal thrones.
"Who are you? You look much like Gandalf the white but I know you are not him" Lexwen demanded. The glare disappeared and there stood Brandal the Brown.
"Brandal!" Legolas cried out.
"Yes Legolas, it is I. I have taken over the ruling of this city as it fades" Brandal said.
"Brandal, this is wonderful news. I am afraid I must ask you something. War comes to the 4 cities Rivendell, Mirkwood, Rohan and Gondor. We know of 500,000 half orcs and half something else. They come to destroy Rivendell, Mirkwood, Edoras, Osgiliath and Minas Tirith. We need to empty out the city of your army" Lexwen said stepping forward. Brandal nodded his head. His long white hair and beard moved with him.
"I have seen something like this. I will send the armies but not yet. Let us not get to hasty. Lorien will come when the time is right" Brandal said.
"Still speaking in riddles I see" Lexwen laughed. Brandal smiled.
"Well do as you wish. I advise you set out for your war stations by tomorrow after lunch. But do not worry, your journey has not been in vain" Brandal said and dismissed them.
The 5 went their separate ways to spend the day. Lexwen insisted on showing Zachalf his room first off.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Lexwen led Zachalf down the stairs and ran through the city. Zachalf hurried to catch up with her, as he didn't know the city well. After a few minutes of a chase Lexwen turned and began climbing more stairs. Zachalf sighed and hurried after her.
At the stop of the stairs she waited for him. After climbing the last step he looked around. He found that he was very high up in the tree. Lexwen was talking with two guards.
"Can I just get two rooms in this hall for Zachalf and Legolas?" Lexwen asked.
"Legolas Greenleaf? The great elf who fought with the nine companions to save the ring from Sauron?" suddenly asked one of the guards.
"Yes that Legolas. He nor Zachalf know the woods very well" Lexwen said.
"Legolas may stay but who is this Zachalf?" asked the second guard.
"Why is there so much questioning? I am Princess of this city, does my authority count for nothing?" Lexwen claimed.
"Of course it does. But you really haven't been anywhere or done anything like Legolas" the first said.
"Listen, I spent three years in West-Earth" Lexwen said.
"So did Legolas" said the first.
Lexwen glared at him. "I figured out that war was coming to Middle-Earth, how to save it and began rounding up people. I dove into the black waters to save Legolas, counseled Elrond, helped Zachalf and Legolas from bleeding to death, and killed one hundred orcs with just four helpers. Plus I formally fell in love with Legolas" Lexwen said. Both guards just stared at her. "So I'll take that room for Zachalf here" Lexwen said motioning to Zachalf and squeezed through the two guards.
Zachalf ran after her down the hall. Lexwen opened a door to his right and walked in. It has high ceilings made of white wood that glowed. Gold material draped both sides of the window and led to the balcony. The bedding was a periwinkle blue. The pillows had the initials ZE in fancy, elegant script.
"How did my initials get there?" Zachalf wondered aloud.
Lexwen turned. "This city is a very magical place and those from it poses certain powers," Lexwen said in a mysterious way. Zachalf just shook his head.
"My room is the one with a guard outside it all the way down the hall. I will be in there if you need me" Lexwen said and left.
She turned down the hall and headed to her room. Granfal, her guard, stood outside her doorway. "Granfal, how good to see you again!" Lexwen said. Granfal nodded to her and let her pass.
Her doorway was made of layers of sheer gold material. Her ceilings were high and had the gold material draped from them in fluttering panels. Her bed sat in the far corner with a canopy of gold around it. Her bedding was a pale pink with he initials LG on her pillow. In the other corner were a bunch of low chairs with the same pale pink pillows to cushion them. On the other wall was a desk with engravings in a lost language. Then on the other side of the room was a walk in closet with the gold for the doorway. Opposite it was an open doorway with the same gold material over the front that led to the large balcony she had.
Lexwen walked through the doorway. She looked around the room she had missed. She pushed aside some material and looked at her chairs. Walking back through she peaked in on her bed through the canopy. She glanced into her closet then walked over to her desk. She traced the familiar markings. Then she walked out to her balcony.
Lexwen had always felt she had the best balcony view. She could see much of the city and the treetops of Mirkwood. A light breeze picked up and caught her dress and hair. Below her tree she saw a woman with red hair rush up the stairs followed by Legolas. Lexwen waited a few minutes for them to get up the stairs. Then she turned and walked back through the doorway.
She heard Granfal murmur a few things then the two walked in. "Lexwen, I'm so pleased you got here safely!" said the red haired woman with a twisted smile. Lexwen realized this must have been Faith from the city of Carn Dum.
"Faith, what brings you to my fair city?" Lexwen asked. Legolas crossed the room and went over to Lexwen. He took her hand and squeezed it. "Your, your city?" Faith stuttered.
"Yes, I am the Princess of this city. If I choose to I can take up the ruling of it. But Brandal seems to be doing a fine job and I have other things to do" Lexwen said.
"Oh okay well, Legolas, why have you followed me here?" Faith asked turning to him.
"I need to speak to Lexwen" Legolas said.
"Oh really?" Faith said staring directly at him.
"But know that I think about it I'm going to go talk to Zachalf" Legolas said suddenly.
"Good, now me and Lexwen can talk" Faith said and Legolas abruptly left.
"So, how was your trip?" Faith asked.
"Good but we were ambushed a few times. Once in Fangorn. It was a small group and a few got away. Then last night a group of at least 100 orcs came heading south from what it seemed the Iron Hills. Worried the five of us slew them all" Lexwen said. Faith stared at her in shock, he green eyes open wide.
"You slew100 orcs with just 5 elves?" Faith stuttered.
"Yes well, we are no ordinary elves," Lexwen said.
Faith took a deep breath. "So no orcs got further south?" Faith asked.
"None" Lexwen said. Faith nodded.
"Well, I just wanted to see how your trip went, I will see you later" Faith said and left. Lexwen stared at the doorway as the material fluttered. Something was definitely up.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Katowyn rode Symbidian right up to the entrance of Lorien. She rode slowly through the woods awing at its beauty and grace. Everything was silent and peaceful. Once she was through half of the woods she was stopped by a group of arrows and a tall stocky elf with blond hair stood in front of her.
"Who are you and what business do you have in the woods of Lorien," he asked.
"I am Katowyn daughter of Aragorn. I am here to speak to Yurwen, Maxomir, Zachalf, Princess Lexwen and Prince Legolas!" rushed Katowyn.
"Well, I'm Haldir leader of the guard elves. Did you say daughter of Aragorn?" Haldir asked.
"Yes" Katowyn said blushing slightly.
"Well we haven't had him in these woods since before his rein as king" said Haldir in a far away voice.
"Excuse he Haldir, I am in dire need to speak with them, are they here?" frantically asked Katowyn.
"Yes of course, follow me," Haldir said. Katowyn nodded and followed him pressuring him to go faster.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Lexwen looked around the common room. The high ceiling was glowing in the night-light. Chairs made of white wood and gold cushions lined the walls and floor of the room. Elegant twisted lights like accordion tubes gave off a low glow so it was just enough to properly light the room. The five elves and Faith sat conversing in a friendly manor. Suddenly Haldir appeared in the arched doorway.
"My Lords, Ladies, Prince, and Princess, you have a visitor from the south. She brings more grievous news and tidings," he said. Katowyn slowly walked into the room, her pink dress trailing behind her.
"Lady Lexwen, Prince Legolas, Lady Yurwen, Lord Maxomir and Zachalf, I bring great news," she said.
Legolas motioned for her to come in a take a seat. "What news have you brought?" he asked.
"Four days ago I rode to Isenguard to see it's beauty. But when I reached it Isenguard was destroyed and turned into an evil orc pit. Black walls had been built around it and a tall emerald eye has been lifted high into the sky. Horrible orcs patrol the areas and the rive Isen is blocked. Great evil stirs there and must be stopped!" rushed Katowyn.
Legolas looked around at the other alarmed. Faith just stared at Katowyn thinking. "It's simple, we must investigate Isenguard on our way out. Then we must deal with it at the end after the war if it ever comes" Zachalf explained. Faith turned to the elves listening carefully to them.
"Good idea Zachalf. We leave at noon tomorrow and ride 'til dusk, we can not waste time" Lexwen said.
Faith stood up and backed away, her green eyes flashing. "I must go now! It was good seeing you all and we shall meet again, farewell," Faith said. Then she ran out of the room, her white dress rushing around her.
Zachalf went over to the window and watched as Faith galloped away on a jet black horse. She wore a black cloak with her hood up. Zachalf watched as she faded into the dark trees and spoke, "And so the shadow passes."
The Shadow Passes
Lexwen walked quietly up to the Great Hall where they would feast that night. She wore the pale yellow dress, headdress and her hair curled. The sweet aroma of the elvish food in the kitchen lured Lexwen. She walked into the Great Hall to see one long table set up.
At the heads sat King Elessar and Lord Elrond. To Aragorn's left sat his daughter Katowyn. To her left sat Nekolas then Faith from the council. To her left sat Sky Girolon and then Becwen. Next to her was Zachalf then Jiwen. To her left sat Candice then Haldir.
Elrond sat at the other head. To his left sat Tyolas then Charwen. Then came Rawen and Pawen. Maxomir sat next to Yurwen who sat next to an angry Lizwen. Lexwen's place was in between Lizwen and Legolas. Then Connie sat next to Lawen and Kyomir on King Elessar's right.
Taking her place in between Legolas and Lizwen she smiled. Lizwen just sat there frowning.
"What's wrong Lizwen?" Lexwen asked her in elvish. She just stared across the table and Lexwen followed her gaze. Nekolas sat between Katowyn and Faith. Faith sat flirting with him shamelessly giggling like a little girl and kept touching his arm. Katowyn sat staring at him mesmerized.
Lizwen rolled her eyes and looked as if she were about to be sick. Lexwen had to admit it was a pitiful sight.
To Faith's left Sky sat whispering into Becwen's ears and she smiled, giggling occasionally. Candice listened as Haldir told her all about Middle-Earth and it's history. Lexwen smiled at the peace of the company.
Then the cooks brought in the food. Plate after plate of food filtered into the room. The heavenly scent ventilating around made everyone's mouth water. Everyone talked and laughed merrily as the night wore on.
After seconds and some thirds were served everyone has their fill and sat enjoying the night. Then Charwen and Tyolas's voices carried across the room in angry yells.
"Don't blame me because we came back for war Tyolas!" Charwen said in elvish.
"I'm not but ever since we got back here things are different. You don't seem to notice me. It's like you don't care anymore," Tyolas yelled.
"Tyolas, we're going to war. I can't be worried about you right now" Charwen yelled back.
"But we never do anything together anymore" he said.
"I'm sorry Tyolas, I just don't think it'll work out" Charwen said. He glared at her and stormed out of the room. Charwen bowed to both Aragorn and Elrond then left. Everyone shook their head whispering.
Lexwen felt a little uncomfortable. She had yelled at Legolas the same way a few days back. Except their fight was so much more hard core. Plus he kissed Liz hours after that so, she didn't know what to say. A particularly obnoxious giggle from Faith brought her out of her thoughts. Lizwen rolled her eyes and rolled up her napkin again. Lexwen smiled and turned back to her thoughts.
Soon people began excusing themselves. Becwen and Sky got up together and hurried away to the gardens laughing. Lexwen looked around realizing almost everyone was with someone else. Lawen and Kyomir were engaged, she had a beautiful ring. Yurwen and Max were together happily and Lexwen could see there was a little something between Candice and Haldir. Poor Charwen and Tyolas looked like they were at the end of their journeys. Zachalf was sadly, still single like Lizwen and Connie. Jiwen's heard seemed to be somewhere else in West-Earth. Nekolas was on the verge of being taken by the looks of the two next to him. Lexwen and Legolas were, well they were in the middle of nowhere. They weren't together but she just didn't know. She was still a little sore there.
Lexwen bowed to Aragorn and Elrond and left too. She wandered aimlessly through the gardens, nothing right at the moment. She was back in Middle- Earth and that was enough. Everything about it was perfect, she loved it there. There were so many reasons why she could want to come back and away from West-Earth. What she really wanted to do was go back and see Lorien again. But the beginning of war tomorrow wouldn't permit it.
She wondered how many they would be up against, how many could they take? Rivendell wasn't mean for war, it wasn't supposed to be. Mirkwood had good warriors but fire would burn down the forest. Rohan would probably do fine if they get enough help. Last time they were 300 against 10,000. That was nothing compared to this war. That's what frightened Lexwen.
She continued to walk in silent thought, the wind catching her dress. She looked up at the sky. It was a dark midnight blue and bright twinkling stars lit the sky like little lights. It was so breath taking and beautiful in every way. Nothing about it changed, no great wars seemed to be coming to destroy the peaceful sky. Then a shooting star shot across the sky.
"Make a wish." Lexwen gasped and turned around. Zachalf was walking towards her slowly. His black hair blew around in the wind. "Make a wish" Zachalf repeated.
Lexwen closed her eyes for a second then opened them. "Was it was good wish?" Zachalf asked.
"Very" she said.
"Good because all good wishes come true in the end" Zachalf said. Lexwen smiled and they walked together. "Beautiful sky tonight" he said.
"Yes, it is. I was just admiring it" Lexwen said. He nodded and they continued to walk. Suddenly Zachalf bent over retching. "Oh my god, Zachalf!" she said and a giant burn was felt on her hand. She looked at it to see 3 shapes on her hand: Zachalf, Nekolas and Legolas. She cursed. Lexwen was supposed to be with Legolas but was closer to Zachalf. She just shook her head. "Zachalf! Zachalf looked at me!" Lexwen ordered. He turned to her weakly then bent over retching up red liquid. "Blood" she muttered. "What is going on here?" Lexwen asked.
She tried hopelessly for several minutes to get him to stop but failed. Then she put her hands on his shoulders and whispered softly to him. His retching slowed to a stop.
"Thank you," he gasped wiping the blood away from his mouth with his sleeve. "What happened?" he asked.
"I don't know" Lexwen said then felt another burn. Legolas was getting slowly darker turning to hurt. Lexwen cursed again and hurried away. She tired to think of where he would be. "The gardens of peace" Lexwen said out loud and ran to it.
On the bench sat Legolas bent over retching and coughing up blood too. She ran to him. "Legolas, Legolas look at me!" she ordered realizing he had been retching for almost 10 minutes. He just shook his head and bent over even more.
"No, no Legolas, you've got to stop!" Lexwen said. "Legolas, Legolas stop!" she cried.
He just kept coughing up blood. "What grace has given me, spare him again. He's done too much to die," she whispered in elvish and sat on the bench next to him. He stopped coughing up blood but kept retching. She rubbed his back whispering to him in elvish. Several minutes later he stopped but stayed bent over. "Legolas! Look at me Legolas. It's going to be okay, it's going to be okay" she soothed. He nodded his head but stayed bent over.
Lexwen slid off the bench and sat in front of him. He lifted his sad eyes up to her, pain shining in his eyes. Then he began to shiver violently. Lexwen looked around hoping to find a blanket somewhere. She didn't have any robes. Lexwen then gently pulled him off the bench and pulled him close. She rubbed his arms and back trying to warm him up as he shivered. His body was tense and alert. Slowly he began to relax and stop shivering. A few minutes later he sat against Lexwen silently.
"Legolas" she whispered.
"Yes?" he croaked. Lexwen smiled.
"What happened?" she asked.
"I don't know. I just remember suddenly coughing up blood and I began to retch. I don't know why or how long. I prayed that someone would come and help me. I knew something had happened to Zachalf and Nekolas too. I hoped someone would make it stop because it went on for so long," he said slowly.
"I'm sorry. I was just talking with Zachalf and he bent over retching and coughing up blood too. Eventually I told him to stop in elvish and it slowed. I was going to come to your aid but I was closer to Zachalf at the time. Then I came and it didn't work when I said it to you. There was already a pool of blood at your feet. I'm sorry" Lexwen said and hugged him. He just nodded and leaned back against her feeling like he'd just had a long run with the flu and was still a little queasy.
There came the rushing of feet and the other 13 elves came running in. Both Legolas and Lexwen looked over to see them all.
Rawen smiled at seeing the picture. Lexwen sat holding Legolas close, they both looking over at them.
"Legolas, are you alright?" Kyomir asked him. Legolas nodded and buried his head in Lexwen's neck. He was exhausted and just wanted to rest after what he just went through.
Near the elves Nekolas was leaning his head on Pawen's shoulder and sleeping. Next to Tyolas Zachalf collapsed.
"Oh my gosh, Zachalf!" Lawen gasped and knelt down next to him. Kyomir followed her.
"He's breathing!" he announced. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"They're exhausted. Some evil witchcraft is at work. At the same time the 3 of them had been attacked by some curse that made them retch and cough up blood. It went on for some time and took a lot of their energy. They need rest. Bring Nekolas and Zachalf to the hospital ward and see that Elrond sees to them. I'll bring Legolas in a few minutes" Lexwen ordered. The elves nodded and filed out leading Zachalf and Nekolas.
Lexwen gently shook Legolas. "Legolas, are you awake?" she asked him. He yawned and looked at her.
"Yes, but I need to sleep. I'm shaky and tired," he whispered. Lexwen laughed softly and stood up. He stood up after her slowly. She offered him a hand to help him walk but he rejected it and tried to stand up tall. He had been kind of bent over since he fell in the Black Water. Lexwen smiled knowingly and they walked side by side to the hospital ward.
She pulled open the doors and walked in followed by Legolas. She led him over to a bed next to Nekolas. He lowed himself down and slipped into the warm, fluffy bed. He snuggled far under the covered and fell asleep right away. She walked over to where the other elves and Elrond stood.
"So you don't know why it happened to them?" Yurwen asked. Elrond shook his head.
"Did anyone see what happened?" Elrond asked.
"I only saw Nekolas being held by Aragorn's daughter Katowyn" Lizwen said.
"I did" Lexwen said speaking up.
"I'll keep it short for you guys because I seem to be leaning towards long, boring answers" Lexwen said and the other elves laughed quietly.
"Basically I was talking with Zachalf then he bent over retching and coughing up blood. I didn't know what to do until I told him just to stop in elvish. Then I realized Legolas was hurt too and ran to his aid. There was already a puddle of blood on the ground below him. He sat retching violently. I tried to stop him and the blood did slow but he kept retching for who knows how long. When he finally stopped he began to shiver and the others found us just after he stopped" Lexwen summed up.
Elrond nodded. "Well there seems to be no lasting damage. Just make sure they drink plenty of water so they can regenerate the blood level" Elrond instructed.
"But what about Legolas? He has had the worst of it all," said Becwen.
"Yes Legolas will need plenty of water. It was most unfortunate that he was caught the worst off. He has lost a lot of blood. I need to think about what to do about him. This shivering problem does seem to be bad," Elrond said softly. "I will think on it and you head upstairs to bed," Elrond said and they turned to leave.
Lizwen walked over to Lexwen smiling sadly. "Lexwen are you alright?" she asked in elvish.
"I'm fine. I'm just sad. 3 of my best friends are hurt" Lexwen replied.
"Yeah well I know what you mean. I just can't believe that Nekolas is ignoring me so much. Every since he met Katowyn and Faith they've stuck to him like glue. I just want to spend time with my best friend again" Lizwen whispered.
"Well I'm one of your best friends and I've been ignoring you all. So can we spend time together tomorrow?" Lexwen asked. Lizwen smiled and flung her arm around Lexwen's neck. "Buddies?" she asked. Lexwen nodded and they skipped down the hall singing quietly in elvish "Max is a hobbit"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Lexwen stole down to the stables quietly. She wore a light purple dress made of sturdy material that flowed out at the waste. On the front was a strip of white on top of the purple that started at the top and thinned out at the top of the ribcage to her waste then a tall thin triangle formed on the skirt. The sleeves were long and billowed out.
Lexwen reached the stable and slid into the second on in the stall all the way to the left. Snowdance's head hung out the door. She smiled and walked over to him. "Rest up nin mellon. Today you will ride again with all speed to the sea. We are going to war, you must rest up whenever you can" Lexwen said in elvish stroking his head. Snowdance nudged her arm and Lexwen left.
She walked mindlessly through the gardens again. All of a sudden she saw Elarbrad running towards her.
"My lady" he said bowing. Lexwen smiled to him. "I bring back news. It's about Legolas Greenleaf of Mirkwood. He is ill and Lord Elrond sends for your help. He says it's the Black Waters again" Elarbrad rushed. Lexwen thanked him and hurried away. She ran to the hospital ward.
Skidding to a stop she ran into the room. Elrond stood looking over Legolas with a frown on his face. King Elessar leaned against the wall in the corner smoking a pipe deep in thought.
"Yes, yes I am here" Lexwen panted. Elrond looked up slowly. "What is it?" she asked out of breath.
"The Black Waters I think. I don't understand it. Any normal elf or man fallen into the waters would have died. Even if they didn't they'd have to have help from the cities of old" Elrond said.
"I don't' know what to say. I just dove in to help him," Lexwen said.
"Yes indeed and you both lived" Elrond said. Lexwen really didn't see the connection but what did she know?
"Well that will have to remain unknown for know. At the present I don't know how to help him. He's shivering violently even when wrapped in all these warm blankets" Elrond explained.
Lexwen knelt down beside the bed and looked at Legolas. "So how do we help him? I am not a healer. I have some background but not enough to help something like his" Lexwen asked Elrond.
"I've tried everything I can. I have him the potion and tried a few different remedies but none seem to be working. Lord Aragorn and I have put our heads together but found nothing" Elrond explained further.
Lexwen frowned trying to think of something. She watched as he gave a great shuddered and thrashed around. Lexwen nodded her head and stood up.
"I have but one guess. I don't think he suffers from a sickness or a wound. I never told in detail what happened during the battle but I think now I should. I went up to the captain asking how much time we had left. Something had been drawing near and I became nervous." Lexwen started. "He told me 4 hours and I left. The other elves and I have a system. When someone in our group is in danger, hurt, or dying we can know. The necklaces and rings we wear sense it and then the ring color or necklace design becomes etched on our hands. The darker it gets the worse off they are. When they die their sign becomes imprinted on our upper arm. Well I felt a burn on my hand and it showed Legolas in trouble." Lexwen explained. "I ran down the stairs and saw the main deck filled with orcs. I fought my way towards Legolas as the others came out to help. He was battling on the edge of the ship with 3 orcs. I yelled at Lizwen to shoot them but she could only get 2 of the 3. Then the 3rd one pushed him over. I cut off his head and looked to see if Legolas was there. When he didn't turn up I dove in. I saw him dropping towards the bottom and went after him. Since he wasn't breathing I helped him to. But when he both reached the surface he didn't breathe. I pulled him on deck still breathing for him too but he was fading. Finally I asked what grace I had to help him and he slowly became better but shivered like this" Lexwen finished.
Elrond nodded understanding now. "I think something happened as he dropped to the bottom dying. That thing still haunts him now. After last night he began to shiver too" Lexwen added. Elrond nodded grimly.
"Well everything makes sense but I still don't know how to help him. All you did was try and warm him up and he stopped" Elrond said. Lexwen knelt down by him again.
"Legolas" she whispered. He opened his eyes slowly. "Legolas, what's wrong?" she asked wanting to know what happened. He shook his head.
"Just make it stop," he croaked.
"Make what stop?" Lexwen pressed.
"Darkness, voices. Evil voices trying to take everything away. Make them stop" he gasped and shivered more.
Lexwen took his hand and covered it with both her hands. She could feel he was tense again and everything shook. She made small circles in his palm trying to get him to stop. Slowly he relaxed but still shivered. Lexwen grabbed his hand in her again.
"Can I have just one more blanket?" Lexwen whispered to Elrond. He nodded and handed her another. She took it and covered Legolas in it. The shivering slowed to a stop and she felt warmth back in his hand. She tucked his hand under the covers and stood up.
Elrond looked at her totally perplexed by what she did. "How did you do that?" Elrond asked.
"I don't know. I just took in the fact that he was shivering, thrashing and tense. Then I tried to make him relax and warm up," Lexwen said.
"But what about the voices?" Elrond pressed.
"That's probably what's haunting him. I can't make the voices go away. He will have to suffer with them," Lexwen said. "If that is all I'm going to have a little to eat, I'm famished" Lexwen said and bowed herself out of the room. Elrond turned to Aragorn and Lord Aragorn nodded gravely.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A great amount of 25 horses stood in the pasture saddled and waiting for their owners. Lexwen walked to the hospital ward quickly. She turned the corner and walked in.
"Lexwen, good you're here. Do you think Legolas is fit for this long journey?" Elrond asked and Legolas stared pleading at her.
"Well, seeing as he can stand, walk, talk and even argue then if he feels fit then I would say so," Lexwen said. Legolas smiled and Elrond sighed.
"Legolas, just be careful. I can't do everything alone" Lexwen smiled. He nodded and together they left, each other's arms around their shoulders. Elrond shook his head.
"Softie" he said referring to Lexwen.
When the two of them reached the pasture they let go and went to their horses. Legolas jumped on his horse and rode over to Nekolas and Kyomir.
Lexwen mounted Snowdance and Lizwen came trotting over. "Hello Lexwen" she said.
"Hi Lizwen" Lexwen smiled.
"You ready for the trip?" she asked.
"I think so, I've got the lists so lets get this over with," Lexwen said.
"How's Legolas? I heard about what happened this morning," Lizwen whispered.
"He's fine. Just had a replase" Lexwen said. Lizwen nodded and they began to chat like nothing bad was about to happen. Aragorn rode up to Lexwen and stopped.
"Lexwen, I will be accompanying you until we reach the outskirts of Gondor. Then me and Katowyn will head home," Aragorn said. Lexwen nodded and he rode away.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Nekolas tell me, are you one of the 15 elves?" Katowyn demanded. Nekolas looked away and nodded.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked angrily.
"Katowyn, I'm sorry. You and Faith are great, but I'm going to war! The biggest war ever in fact. I didn't want you to get your hopes up thinking we can just stay friends forever. I might not even return," he said.
"I want to fight too. I can't just stay in the mountains of Gondor cowering while war comes. I want to help!" said Katowyn tears rolling down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry you just can't. Who will watch over the people in the mountains? They can't go leaderless like that. You must stay with them," Nekolas said.
"Please" Katowyn whispered tears shining in her eyes.
"No" he said and rode away.
"We ride until we reach the sea! The warriors will be waiting for us there" Lexwen yelled ahead of them and they started off galloping in to the sun.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
They rode with speed and skill; need to get there quickly present in their minds. The 17 rode in the same diamond formations and the other 8 making a V off the rear. Soon Gondor came into view and Aragorn and Katowyn broke away. Katowyn looked back at Nekolas but he just looked forward.
Max who was next to him could tell it hurt him to leave but he had to. She was the shield maiden of Gondor and couldn't be sacrificed. Lexwen urged them on without break and finally the sea came into view.
Legolas seemed to be reluctant to ride forward but kept going. Lexwen then stopped abruptly and jumped off her horse. The others followed in pursuit and then looked forward. Standing silently stood a great army beyond any of the ones they had seen one the light side.
Eomer's mouth dropped. He had seen the great army of 10,000 and the assault on Minas Tirith but this was amazing.
"Don't be so sure of yourselves! Take this times 5 and you'll get your number that we know of. Hope is still low" Lexwen said to the crowd. Everyone's hearts sank as they saw the number. "But do not lose hope, we will prevail!" Lexwen reassured the crowd. Then she nodded and Legolas stepped forward. "Today we will sort out the ones going to Rivendell and Mirkwood. Tomorrow will be Rohan and Gondor. If we're lucky, we'll have the 3rd day to relax. That's only if we're lucky. After that suiting up and every extra minute is used wisely." Legolas bellowed. Lexwen moved through the crowd of 23 and handed out papers to help get everyone sorted out.
"Walk through the crowd and sort them. Let us hope that before dusk Rivendell and Mirkwood will have help" Legolas said. Lexwen came back to him as everyone went to his or her jobs. His head was bowed down and his hands clasped together.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"It's so close. The sea is so close. I want everything to keep the distance between me and the sea yet it's calling to me and I want to go to it" Legolas said. Lexwen smiled sadly.
"Legolas, do no worry about the sea. Forget the distance and forget it's calling. You can't stay away from it forever" Lexwen said in elvish.
"But to keep it away from thought is so hard" Legolas replied.
"Shhh" Lexwen soothed. Then she slipped off a beautiful ring off her finger. Delicate and beautiful yet dark and powerful it was. Then she put it in his hand. "What Grace has given me, shall it ever protect you" Lexwen said.
"You can not give me this. Everything that's fair and you is grace, everything that protects you is grace" Legolas said holding it out for her. She curled his hands around it and pushed it towards him.
"It will protect you, keep it" Lexwen said and walked away. Legolas watched as she got lost in the sea of people and sighed pocketing the ring.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"You sirs from Greenich, you're for Rivendell" Lexwen said.
"And you are for Mirkwood" Lizwen said next to her. Lexwen turned to see a great amount of humans mounted on horses standing tall and silent. She walked up to the head of the group.
"You, how many horsemen have you brought?" she asked and Lizwen turned around to see them.
"At least 1,000 strong. But we are skilled and can wield a fair sword and an occasional bow and arrow.
"What's your name?" Lexwen asked.
"Ishita" the woman said. She had long brown hair and dark beautiful skin.
"Well, you most certainly will be working for King Eomer of Rohan. They are the horse-lords of this earth and prefer to have war on horseback. They will be very pleased to have an army such as yourselves on their side" Lexwen explained.
"Very well" Ishita said.
"You see if Rohan wins they may ride on to help another country as it falls for only if we are untied shall we stand. If Rohan falls, all hope shall be lost for they have a strong king with good men and fair horses. If Sauron is destroyed we'll forever thrive as long as greater evil does not stir. If we fall all will be lost." Lexwen finished. Ishita nodded and turned to her men explained to them what was happening her own very rushed tongue.
"Rohan shall be pleased. But what of Rivendell? They are not meant for war and can only find so much help for themselves" Lizwen asked Lexwen in elvish as they walked through the crowds.
"Rivendell's list is the longest. Rohan needed more help too. Mirkwood has plenty of warriors. I've decided to leave for Lothlorien tonight. We need their help that they've got left. Lord Aragorn is sending out help for the Dunadan. Other than that we must depend on the humans" Lexwen replied.
"But Lexwen, your people are fading. Truly their last war was Sauramon's against the Rohan. They don't' have the strength. Your people are wonderful but they are fading into the west. You will not find much help" Lizwen counteracted.
"You know nothing of my people!" Lexwen said.
"No, you don't either. They will never truly be your people! You path is not to lead them," Lizwen yelled and her hand flew to her mouth. "I shouldn't have said that" she gasped.
"What do you mean? I am the heir to Lothlorien" Lexwen raged in a whisper.
"Yes but Galadriel will never die to pass it on. And your people are already failing. They are dying away and will leave. Besides I feel that your path just doesn't lie with your people" Lizwen said in a strange voice. Lexwen glared forcefully at her.
Then Nekolas came bounding out and knocked Lizwen to the ground in a puff of brown and blond hair and navy dress material. "Lizwen" he yelled smiling like a fool.
Lexwen smiled and slowly moved away. She walked talking to an occasional person then bumped into Zachalf.
"Hello" Lexwen said. He just nodded. "You feeling okay?" she asked. He nodded again. "Then what's wrong? You've been quite laid back since we reached Middle-Earth." Lexwen said.
"I'm fine, I'm just nervous. I have this shadow growing in my mind about war. Something bad is going to happen. I have a feeling it's to one of us," Zach said in a quiet voice.
Lexwen nodded "Oh. So that's the reason for all the" Lexwen made a movement like she was cowering back in fear, her eyes wide and staring. Zachalf chuckled softly. Lexwen gasped. "Was that a laugh?" she asked. Zachalf shook his head swiftly. "Aw, you sure?' Lexwen asked getting closer.
Zachalf could feel her breath. Then Lexwen smiled and poked him in the stomach. Zachalf bent over his stomach as a reflex. He looked up to see her smiling. He straightened up and smiled at her evilly. Lexwen's smiled changed to a frown, and then she turned and ran away.
Zachalf was at her heels quick as a flash. Lexwen risked a quick glance back to see him hot on her tail and laughing. Lexwen smiled then made a quick turn around a group of men. Zachalf stumbled around then tripped. Lexwen had fell to the ground and Zachalf had run right into her. Lexwen laughed as he stared bewildered at the ground.
"You just fell, don't worry about it" Lexwen said. Zachalf then spontaneously laughed along with her. All sad emotions that had been building up inside him were set free and he was at ease.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Legolas, Legolas!" Lawen called. She had noticed she didn't see him anywhere. She whistled for her chestnut horse Shoshani. He came trotting over happily. Lawen sprang up upon his back and called again. "Legolas!" She looked around wildly. She found she didn't see his long blond hair anywhere.
She saw Zachalf and Lexwen laughing and Tyolas talking with a pretty black haired girl from West-Earth. Lawen trotted away from the group a bit. She circled slowly around the large group speeding up more and more.
Then she reached the dockside and saw him. Lawen galloped towards him, as he stood motionless before the raging black water. "Legolas no!" Lawen screamed at him. He just stared into the water taking no notice of him. She reached the middle of the dock and jumped off Shoshani. Lawen ran quickly towards Legolas yelling at him. She knew something was drawing him towards the black waters; something called him. "Legolas, Legolas" whispered a sinister voice. It sent a chill down Legolas' spine. Icy cold wrath filled the voice calling him with bitter anger. It was like drowning in freezing cold water making his teeth chatter and giving him goose bumps. "Legolas, fall," ordered the voice with a twist of searing hot fire.
"No Legolas" Lawen yelled and pushed him down onto the dark dock. Legolas' train of thought was lost and he shook his head. "Legolas what were you doing?" whispered Lawen.
"Did you hear it, the voice? Like ice that kills by the touch?" Legolas asked not even looking at her.
"No, what are you talking about?" Lawen asked a little scared.
"I heard a dark voice calling me," Legolas explained finally turning on her. Lawen just nodded.
"Are you okay??" she asked.
"Yes, yes of course. Let's go back," Legolas said laughing slightly. Lawen smiled and mounted Shoshani.
"You don't mind if I ride beside you?" Lawen asked. Legolas laughed.
"Of course not. Please do so "he said and they walked together.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Alright Zachalf, I hate to say it but we must get back to work. We have much to do and not enough time to do it. I must finish up here then ride to Lothlorien. I will probably return by the 1st day of assigning people. Do you want to stay here or accompany me?" Lexwen asked. Zachalf though for a moment then nodded.
"So, to Lothlorien we go tonight. I am afraid Snowdance cannot take running as fast as he has recently" Lexwen said. Zachalf just nodded again.
"Are we the only two leaving?" Zachalf asked.
"I don't know. I might take Yurwen and Maxomir because they are from Lorien. I also might bring Legolas because he says he misses the fair woods of Mirkwood and Lorien" Lexwen suggested.
"Whom will you leave in charge?" he asked.
"Lawen, Kyomir, Lizwen and Nekolas I think" she explained and disappeared into the crowd. Zachalf stood in thought then went to find Tyolas to talk to him.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"I will make this short for you all. I must gather up the last of my city in an effort to help us. As Lizwen has pointed out, they are leaving. That is the problem with the elf cities, they are beautiful but empty and fading away. Sauron just despises the elves, hates us. So we must show him what we can still down even though we are fading," Lexwen said.
"I leave for Lothlorien as soon as the sun starts to set. I ask Zachalf, Yurwen, Maxomir and Legolas to join me," Lexwen asked. The four of them nodded in consent.
"Who will lead the assigning?" Becwen asked.
"I will leave Lizwen, Nekolas, Lawen and Kyomir in charge. We will return at the earliest the first day of suiting up. Those who are coming with me make sure you can blend in a little and bring a weapon. It's been 4 days since we arrived and word can travel fast. Be wary all of you. I bid you be careful as you sleep on the boats and leave guards around them." Everyone listened in rapt silence.
"I'm sorry this is such short notice but that's the way it has to be" Lexwen said.
"How are you to pack?" Candice asked.
"We will bring a little off the boat. Only Legolas and Zachalf don't have provisions in Lorien but we will be fine" Lexwen said. The others nodded and got off the ship.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Samwise!" Lexwen called.
He came running into view leading 5 horses. "My lady, here are your horses. I have all bay horses besides Master Maxomir who has his black stallion Cataladriel. Yours is Eoywenbrian. Yurwen has Haku. I brought Legolas Fursueth and Zachalf Dust. That is what you wanted right?" asked Samwise.
Lexwen smiled. "Yes thank you Samwise. See to it that our other horses are brought back home. Good bye Samwise" Lexwen said as she mounted Eoywenbrian. The others mounted their horses and nodded farewell to Samwise. Lexwen urged Eoywenbrian forward with a burst of speed.
They rode far into the night, their horses barely visible in the dark night against their bay coats. After a few hours Lexwen made them stop to give the horses a break. They hid in a covering of trees just inside the Fangorn Forest.
"I do not like the feeling of this forest. I entered here with Gimli once, long ago. Then it was much lighter. Yes it would seem a cursed forest if you don't understand the trees. But the Fangorn was great. Now real evil seems to lay in these lands and the smell of foul orc blood lingers," said Legolas.
Lexwen looked over at him as she stood towards the inside of the forest. "Let us forget about it Legolas. Ors may have dwelt here but are not present now, come get some rest" Lexwen said.
"No he is right, I smell it too" Maxomir said standing up. "Zachalf come with us. We shall go see if we can find anything. Yurwen and Lexwen watch the horses" Maxomir said and Zachalf ran away with Legolas and Maxomir.
Shortly after they left Yurwen heard the rustle of leaves and saw a clump of bushes move. "Lexwen, did you hear that?" Yurwen asked Lexwen quietly. She nodded and silently stood up.
Her hand ran along the tail of her arrow as Yurwen loosened her sword in her belt. A louder rustle was heard to the left of Yurwen. The horses became nervous and began pawing the ground. Yurwen nodded her head understanding that something drew near. Then to Lexwen's right a loud rustle and the sound of an arrow whistling through the air was heard. Lexwen turned swiftly and shot the creature in the bushes.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Zachalf looked up from the path they had found. "Legolas, Maxomir, did you hear that?" he asked. They nodded.
'What was it?" Maxomir asked.
"I am not certain but it sounded like the twang of a bow, and a foul one. But how far away I cannot tell" Legolas said. Then they heard a lighter sounding one.
"It's coming from near Yurwen and Lexwen, we must go" Zachalf said at once and they sprang away like deer. The sound of an arrow being shot and the clang of metal grew closer and they ran faster.
Then they burst through some trees to see a group of orcs peering through some bushes occasionally shooting an arrow. Then the 3 elves grabbed their bows and shot down some orcs in the back. They fell dead with a shrill cry and the others turned their attention to Legolas, Maxomir and Zachalf. Zachalf and Legolas kept shooting orcs while Maxomir put away his bow and unsheathed his sword. He ran forwards and began slaying orcs in rapid motions.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Lexwen and Yurwen continued killing orcs until no more came. But behind the bushes they could hear the cries of more orcs and the sound of metal and arrows. Lexwen and Yurwen looked at each other bewildered and they ran through the bushes. On the other side she could vaguely make out a group of orcs fighting 3 tall creatures.
"Zachalf behind you!" Maxomir cried in elvish. Zachalf turned quickly and shot more orcs. Yurwen breathed a sigh of relief. Then they ran forward and began making a dent in the orcs surrounding Maxomir, Zachalf and Legolas.
Legolas looked up to see Lexwen and Yurwen fighting. Then a burn on his palm scared him. To his left Maxomir took a deep breath in pain and switched his sword to his left hand. Legolas saw a rip in his sleeve and dark blood trickling from a somewhat deep gash. Yurwen looked over at him to make sure he wasn't badly hurt. He smiled at her and kept fighting a little more awkward thought.
They kept fighting until a little over 10 were left and the rest ran away. "They'll be back," Legolas said. Lexwen nodded and disappeared through the trees to get the horses. She grabbed the reins of Maxomir's horse Cataladriel and Eoywenbrian and the other 3 horses followed her through the bushes. She came back to see Zachalf and Yurwen looking over Maxomir's arm.
"Zachalf, Yurwen, I'm fine. Don't worry about me. It's just a cut. We'll never make it through this war if you worry over a cut even this small" Maxomir said. Lexwen grabbed some cloth from her bag and walked over to Maxomir.
"He's right. I'll just wrap it up and we must get going. The sun is coming up and we can't hide anymore. Let's not stop until noon at least!" Lexwen said as she bandaged his arm and tied the ends together.
Maxomir moved his arm and flexed his fingers. "Thank you" he said and grabbed Cataladriel's reins. The others followed mounting their horses.
"Maxomir, did you find anything when you first left?" Lexwen asked him as they rode their horses to the entrance.
"No but I noticed something strange. On the armor of the orcs there was a foreign sign. It was a bright, emerald green eye. I don't' know who it stands for. Sauron has a red eyes so who could this be?" Maxomir said. Lexwen just shook her head and urged Eoywenbrian away.
They gathered speed as they rode on the outskirts of Fangorn. For many hours they rode only taking a few short breaks. Then a little after noon they stopped. They rested again in Fangorn but on the other side. Yurwen brought the horses some water and sat down to rest.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ "Forward Symbidian" Katowyn whispered to her horse in elvish. Nekolas had taught her a bit of elvish and through research she learned even more.
She had been riding for 2 days trying to catch up to Lexwen, Legolas, Zachalf, Yurwen and Maxomir as she learned they were called, and as they rode to Lorien.
A day and a half ago she had rode off to go see Isenguard. She had come across the story about Frodo and the ring. She wanted to go and see Isenguard as it fascinated her much.
When she reached it though, it was he opposite of what she dreamed. A thick gray smoke rose from pits in the ground. Foul orcs roamed the area cutting down trees and building a sculpture. It was a bright, emerald green eye lifted up high next to the Orthanc. It could be seen for miles around. A tall ugly black wall had been built around Isenguard. Imprinted on the gate was the emerald eye and tall broad orcs patrolled it day and night. A dam made of rough rocks had blocked Isen. Paths had been built leading to Isenguard all around. The very sky seemed to be made of ash.
After inspecting as much of the city as she could Katowyn rode away heading for Lorien after the others. It had been over a day ago and Katowyn was hot on their trail. She had reached the outskirts of Fangorn. She gave Symbidian a short rest then a few hours after noon she reached the end of Fangorn. A small fire burned low and horse print hooves were imprinted in the ground. "There must be a least 3 hours old" Katowyn though a loud. She sprang upon Symbidian again and rode away following their trail. She figured by nightfall she would reach of the next night she would reach Lorien and urged Symbidian on further.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
From then on the small company just had open plains full of rocks and stumps. Everything seemed dead and alone. The grass was a crunchy yellow and brown. Dust sat in it and each step the horses took a small puff of dust would form. The boulders were a little less than twice the size of Lexwen and her horse, which were fairly tall together. The sky was a pale blue and cloudless.
"From here most the horses don't know the lands so well. The rocks are sharp and dangerous. Stay at a fast trot unless we are assailed," Maxomir advised and slowed Cataladriel down. They rode in a small clump, talking only when needing too. They rode until late nightfall.
Legolas signaled for them to stop. "We should give them a rest then ride hard. We are closer to Lorien and everything seems pretty safe" he said and dismounted Fursueth. The others silently agreed with him and dismounted.
Zachalf grabbed his water bottle and began pouring some in his hand hear Dust's muzzle. He silently lapped up the water as Zachalf stroked Dust's muzzle. "If you were to die tomorrow who would you leave your horses too?" Zachalf asked suddenly.
Legolas turned to look at him suddenly as he smoked his pipe. "Why do you ask?" Legolas asked him.
"I don't know. If I were to die tomorrow I wouldn't just leave my horses Lily and Dust. I would probably give Lily to Lexwen and Dust to Maxomir who is without a bay" Zachalf said half to himself.
"Well, if you were to die tomorrow, which you are not, we will keep that him mind" Legolas said. He took a deep breath and let out a giant ring of smoke. Zachalf wiped his hands and went over to the others.
"Where's Maxomir?" he asked. Yurwen and Lexwen looked around but found naught. Lexwen sprang to her feet off the rock she had been sitting on. She looked towards Lorien hoping to see Maxomir's blond hair appearing behind a rock. In stead she saw a party of orcs walking up towards their spot. There must have been at least 100 against 5.
"Yrch!" Lexwen yelled in her own tongue to the others. They came rushing over to look. Even as they watched some of the orcs began to fall. "Maxomir" she whispered again in elvish.
"Quick mount the horses and ride down to them. Attack from the sides and back!" Zachalf ordered the others in the common tongue. Lexwen ran to Eoywenbrian and mounted him. She looked at Maxomir's horse Cataladriel and he followed Lexwen.
They galloped soundlessly to the orcs while readying their bows. Legolas and Yurwen began attacking from opposite Maxomir as Lexwen joined Maxomir and Zachalf took the back.
"Tangado a chadad! Leithio i philinn!" Zachalf signaled. (Ready the arrows! Fire the arrows.) A bunch of orcs fell that time.
Legolas restrung his bow with two arrows this time. Zachalf gave the signal and Legolas let go. The two arrows flew in opposite directions and hit the front and back.
Lexwen and Maxomir quickly strung their bows one last time before the orcs would notice the attack. As they awaited Zachalf's signal they talked. "Maxomir did you know they were coming or something?" Lexwen asked him as he situated himself on Cataladriel.
"I was just scouting ahead and saw them coming and hid."
"Leithio i philinn!" Zachalf yelled and they let go. Then the head orc halted them.
"Attack!" he growled in his own foul language. The elves cantered out of short bowing rang and began firing at will. They shot down more and more until the number was down to 25 to 30.
Maxomir, Legolas and Yurwen ran forward with swords and began fighting up close. Lexwen aw an orc trying to sneak past her and with a silent motion shot him down. "Maxomir, where were they coming from?" Lexwen yelled at him.
"Northeast, from the looks of it the Iron Hills" Maxomir said and cut off another orc head. The number thinned down to 5. Lexwen shot down one, as did the others. They began celebrating as Lexwen looked out.
A creeping shadow was seen. He was tall but hunched over. She noticed no one had shot down the leaded of the party. She urged Eoywenbrian forward into a canter. Lexwen readied her bow and tried to shoot the orc. He just dodged and missed the arrows. Lexwen sighed in frustration and unsheathed her sharp sword.
She galloped up to the orc and took a swipe at him. He just dodged the blow and ran forward. Lexwen galloped far ahead of him and dismounted. As he came up upon her she tried to hit him again. He pulled out his own sword and began fighting her back. Lexwen cut off his arm and he made a gash in her own. Lexwen growled and cut off his other arm. He just growled back at her and stepped closer to her. Then she pulled her sword up and cut off his head. He fell to the ground forever silent.
Lexwen took a deep breath as her work was finished. Lexwen and the others had killed 100 orcs pretty much unharmed except for her gash. She grabbed the other half of the cloth she had and wrapped it around her arm. Then she sheathed her sword and called for Eoywenbrian. He trotted up to her and she mounted him slowly. Then she galloped back to the others.
They had been talking merrily about their victory. Then Legolas came over to her and tried to check out her arm. "Are you okay?" he asked.
"Yes, lets just get going. I want to investigate more about these attacks in Lorien. She should be there by noon today" Lexwen said and they rode away in clouds of dust.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The 5 rode until 3 hours after the sun went up. Yurwen had noticed Maxomir rode with an uneven form. He seemed to be leaning to one side. Yurwen called for a break. Legolas nodded and slowed Fursueth to a walk.
Yurwen rode Haku up next to Cataladriel and walked with him. "Maxomir are you alright? You seem to be riding leaning to the side" Yurwen whispered to him in elvish. Maxomir just nodded his head. "Maxomir, the system doesn't lie" she said and held out her hand. Lexwen's sign had faded but Maxomir teetered between danger and hurt.
"Curse Lexwen!" Maxomir said. Yurwen smiled.
"Are you sure?"
"Yurwen, Maxomir, get some rest! Once we reach Lorien we will most likely get no rest until nightfall" Legolas called at them and they broke apart.
"I hear you Legolas!" Maxomir called back at him in the common tongue. Legolas laughed as he closed the bottle to his water for Fursueth. Zachalf was munching on a piece of bread and Lexwen stood looking south.
"What's wrong?" Legolas asked coming up behind her.
"Something stirs in the south, and it isn't Mordor" Lexwen said with her eyes close and her hair rippling in the wind.
"Let us hope we may find something out from Lorien's people" Legolas said. Lexwen just kept staring south.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Come one! We're at most an hour away!" Maxomir yelled. Lexwen urged Eoywenbrian forward farther. Yet again the 5 of them rode in a clump. Riding in secrecy was no longer an option. They needed speed. Already having been ambushed twice it didn't matter.
Lexwen wondered how soon something else would come up. Word seemed to be able to travel faster than she thought. Eoywenbrian just galloped on. Time traveled in a blur of green grass and blue skies. The ground became steadily flatter and the grass more lively.
After more than Lexwen could take the woods of Lothlorien appeared in close view. Lexwen stared in awe at the place she had been waiting to see for 3 years. She rode forward and straight into the woods. The others galloped after her trying to keep up.
Once under the woods Lexwen thought she'd see a group of elves waiting for her return. Instead the woods were dead silent. A soft mist lay heavy on the ground. The trees were bright green and the grass sparkled with dewdrops. She looked up in the trees expecting to see the guards looking down at her. Walking farther in she met nothing. She walked with Eoywenbrian for sometime.
"Where is everyone?" Legolas whispered to her. She shrugged her shoulders and looked a head and stopped dead.
In front of her was a sharp arrow pointed right at her in a set bow. All around the 5 were guards and the head elf walked through.
"Who are you and what are you doing in these woods?" he asked.
"Haldir, I need to get into the city," Lexwen said.
"And who are you?" he asked.
Legolas stared at him in disbelief. "Haldir, are you alright? She's Lexwen Goldenleaf, Princess of Lorien" Legolas exclaimed.
"Legolas! I'm so sorry. I didn't even recognize you! And what is this? Lady Lexwen I am dearly sorry! Yurwen Maxomir, and who is this?" Haldir asked looking at Zachalf.
"Haldir, this is Zachalf Elmwood of Mirkwood" Lexwen said. Haldir nodded and ordered the guards to lower their weapons. The arrows were slowly lowered. Lexwen took the lead as she talked with Haldir.
"It's so quiet! Where are all the elves? They haven't all gone have they?" Lexwen said.
"Most of them have. Half of them have left including Galadriel" Haldir said.
"So who is in charge? The elves need guidance somehow" Lexwen exclaimed.
"You will soon see someone you will not expect" Haldir said and he fell silent. Lexwen sighed and just watched the scenery.
Soon they had passed through to the city. The great buildings in the trees stood glowing. Once in a while a fair elf could appear but would quickly disappear. Zachalf stared up in awe at the fair city. It seemed not to show time or age. The trees seemed to glow and the water made of glass.
"Welcome to Lothlorien Zachalf" Yurwen said to him. He just kept looking around at everything.
"Haldir, as much as I'd like to take my time here but we are in need of haste. I must see the lord of the city," Lexwen said.
"He is not really the lord of this city but that is fair enough" Haldir said. He called for the stable boy to take their horses. Then he led them up the winding stairs around the trees to the main hall.
Lexwen ran through the door and to the man clothed in gray and brown sitting near the royal thrones.
"Who are you? You look much like Gandalf the white but I know you are not him" Lexwen demanded. The glare disappeared and there stood Brandal the Brown.
"Brandal!" Legolas cried out.
"Yes Legolas, it is I. I have taken over the ruling of this city as it fades" Brandal said.
"Brandal, this is wonderful news. I am afraid I must ask you something. War comes to the 4 cities Rivendell, Mirkwood, Rohan and Gondor. We know of 500,000 half orcs and half something else. They come to destroy Rivendell, Mirkwood, Edoras, Osgiliath and Minas Tirith. We need to empty out the city of your army" Lexwen said stepping forward. Brandal nodded his head. His long white hair and beard moved with him.
"I have seen something like this. I will send the armies but not yet. Let us not get to hasty. Lorien will come when the time is right" Brandal said.
"Still speaking in riddles I see" Lexwen laughed. Brandal smiled.
"Well do as you wish. I advise you set out for your war stations by tomorrow after lunch. But do not worry, your journey has not been in vain" Brandal said and dismissed them.
The 5 went their separate ways to spend the day. Lexwen insisted on showing Zachalf his room first off.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Lexwen led Zachalf down the stairs and ran through the city. Zachalf hurried to catch up with her, as he didn't know the city well. After a few minutes of a chase Lexwen turned and began climbing more stairs. Zachalf sighed and hurried after her.
At the stop of the stairs she waited for him. After climbing the last step he looked around. He found that he was very high up in the tree. Lexwen was talking with two guards.
"Can I just get two rooms in this hall for Zachalf and Legolas?" Lexwen asked.
"Legolas Greenleaf? The great elf who fought with the nine companions to save the ring from Sauron?" suddenly asked one of the guards.
"Yes that Legolas. He nor Zachalf know the woods very well" Lexwen said.
"Legolas may stay but who is this Zachalf?" asked the second guard.
"Why is there so much questioning? I am Princess of this city, does my authority count for nothing?" Lexwen claimed.
"Of course it does. But you really haven't been anywhere or done anything like Legolas" the first said.
"Listen, I spent three years in West-Earth" Lexwen said.
"So did Legolas" said the first.
Lexwen glared at him. "I figured out that war was coming to Middle-Earth, how to save it and began rounding up people. I dove into the black waters to save Legolas, counseled Elrond, helped Zachalf and Legolas from bleeding to death, and killed one hundred orcs with just four helpers. Plus I formally fell in love with Legolas" Lexwen said. Both guards just stared at her. "So I'll take that room for Zachalf here" Lexwen said motioning to Zachalf and squeezed through the two guards.
Zachalf ran after her down the hall. Lexwen opened a door to his right and walked in. It has high ceilings made of white wood that glowed. Gold material draped both sides of the window and led to the balcony. The bedding was a periwinkle blue. The pillows had the initials ZE in fancy, elegant script.
"How did my initials get there?" Zachalf wondered aloud.
Lexwen turned. "This city is a very magical place and those from it poses certain powers," Lexwen said in a mysterious way. Zachalf just shook his head.
"My room is the one with a guard outside it all the way down the hall. I will be in there if you need me" Lexwen said and left.
She turned down the hall and headed to her room. Granfal, her guard, stood outside her doorway. "Granfal, how good to see you again!" Lexwen said. Granfal nodded to her and let her pass.
Her doorway was made of layers of sheer gold material. Her ceilings were high and had the gold material draped from them in fluttering panels. Her bed sat in the far corner with a canopy of gold around it. Her bedding was a pale pink with he initials LG on her pillow. In the other corner were a bunch of low chairs with the same pale pink pillows to cushion them. On the other wall was a desk with engravings in a lost language. Then on the other side of the room was a walk in closet with the gold for the doorway. Opposite it was an open doorway with the same gold material over the front that led to the large balcony she had.
Lexwen walked through the doorway. She looked around the room she had missed. She pushed aside some material and looked at her chairs. Walking back through she peaked in on her bed through the canopy. She glanced into her closet then walked over to her desk. She traced the familiar markings. Then she walked out to her balcony.
Lexwen had always felt she had the best balcony view. She could see much of the city and the treetops of Mirkwood. A light breeze picked up and caught her dress and hair. Below her tree she saw a woman with red hair rush up the stairs followed by Legolas. Lexwen waited a few minutes for them to get up the stairs. Then she turned and walked back through the doorway.
She heard Granfal murmur a few things then the two walked in. "Lexwen, I'm so pleased you got here safely!" said the red haired woman with a twisted smile. Lexwen realized this must have been Faith from the city of Carn Dum.
"Faith, what brings you to my fair city?" Lexwen asked. Legolas crossed the room and went over to Lexwen. He took her hand and squeezed it. "Your, your city?" Faith stuttered.
"Yes, I am the Princess of this city. If I choose to I can take up the ruling of it. But Brandal seems to be doing a fine job and I have other things to do" Lexwen said.
"Oh okay well, Legolas, why have you followed me here?" Faith asked turning to him.
"I need to speak to Lexwen" Legolas said.
"Oh really?" Faith said staring directly at him.
"But know that I think about it I'm going to go talk to Zachalf" Legolas said suddenly.
"Good, now me and Lexwen can talk" Faith said and Legolas abruptly left.
"So, how was your trip?" Faith asked.
"Good but we were ambushed a few times. Once in Fangorn. It was a small group and a few got away. Then last night a group of at least 100 orcs came heading south from what it seemed the Iron Hills. Worried the five of us slew them all" Lexwen said. Faith stared at her in shock, he green eyes open wide.
"You slew100 orcs with just 5 elves?" Faith stuttered.
"Yes well, we are no ordinary elves," Lexwen said.
Faith took a deep breath. "So no orcs got further south?" Faith asked.
"None" Lexwen said. Faith nodded.
"Well, I just wanted to see how your trip went, I will see you later" Faith said and left. Lexwen stared at the doorway as the material fluttered. Something was definitely up.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Katowyn rode Symbidian right up to the entrance of Lorien. She rode slowly through the woods awing at its beauty and grace. Everything was silent and peaceful. Once she was through half of the woods she was stopped by a group of arrows and a tall stocky elf with blond hair stood in front of her.
"Who are you and what business do you have in the woods of Lorien," he asked.
"I am Katowyn daughter of Aragorn. I am here to speak to Yurwen, Maxomir, Zachalf, Princess Lexwen and Prince Legolas!" rushed Katowyn.
"Well, I'm Haldir leader of the guard elves. Did you say daughter of Aragorn?" Haldir asked.
"Yes" Katowyn said blushing slightly.
"Well we haven't had him in these woods since before his rein as king" said Haldir in a far away voice.
"Excuse he Haldir, I am in dire need to speak with them, are they here?" frantically asked Katowyn.
"Yes of course, follow me," Haldir said. Katowyn nodded and followed him pressuring him to go faster.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Lexwen looked around the common room. The high ceiling was glowing in the night-light. Chairs made of white wood and gold cushions lined the walls and floor of the room. Elegant twisted lights like accordion tubes gave off a low glow so it was just enough to properly light the room. The five elves and Faith sat conversing in a friendly manor. Suddenly Haldir appeared in the arched doorway.
"My Lords, Ladies, Prince, and Princess, you have a visitor from the south. She brings more grievous news and tidings," he said. Katowyn slowly walked into the room, her pink dress trailing behind her.
"Lady Lexwen, Prince Legolas, Lady Yurwen, Lord Maxomir and Zachalf, I bring great news," she said.
Legolas motioned for her to come in a take a seat. "What news have you brought?" he asked.
"Four days ago I rode to Isenguard to see it's beauty. But when I reached it Isenguard was destroyed and turned into an evil orc pit. Black walls had been built around it and a tall emerald eye has been lifted high into the sky. Horrible orcs patrol the areas and the rive Isen is blocked. Great evil stirs there and must be stopped!" rushed Katowyn.
Legolas looked around at the other alarmed. Faith just stared at Katowyn thinking. "It's simple, we must investigate Isenguard on our way out. Then we must deal with it at the end after the war if it ever comes" Zachalf explained. Faith turned to the elves listening carefully to them.
"Good idea Zachalf. We leave at noon tomorrow and ride 'til dusk, we can not waste time" Lexwen said.
Faith stood up and backed away, her green eyes flashing. "I must go now! It was good seeing you all and we shall meet again, farewell," Faith said. Then she ran out of the room, her white dress rushing around her.
Zachalf went over to the window and watched as Faith galloped away on a jet black horse. She wore a black cloak with her hood up. Zachalf watched as she faded into the dark trees and spoke, "And so the shadow passes."