My Immortal
The High Pass

The closer they got to the Misty Mountains, the further away became their worries of this dangerous hunt. Riding hard offered little time for talking, but their small breaks to rest the horses over the few days it took were animated with plans of what they would do and the recounting of old fights they had won over the fell servants of Sauron. The idea of cleaning out the Misty Mountains seemed better and more easily carried out with each league they traveled. They were, of course, not without a prudent sense of caution. They knew enough not to rush right in. When the time came they would stop, leaving the horses somewhere safe, and travel further on by foot so as to remain unseen by their quarry until it was too late.

By now the mountain loomed ahead of them, a goal that held for each more fury than fear. Down the worn and time-battered path they could see the trail leading up into the High Pass, a vision only an Elf could see at this distance. At the lead, Elladan halted his mount and held up his hand, signaling the others to stop. Dismounting, he gave his horse a reassuring pet and whispered, "Easy, Giliond. Stay here and keep the other two out of trouble, okay?"

The horse nickered and shook his head, digging his hoof into the dirt in discontent. His ears were pinned and he even went so far as to give his master a warning nip. Elrohir looked at the horse speculatively. "He seems nervous."

Elladan looked away, a token sign he was not going to be honest with himself. "Nonsense. He's playing. Aren't you, boy?" He rubbed Giliond's nose gently.

"I think we should at least be cautious, Muindor." The younger twin gave the trees and road a keen sweep with his eyes. "I do not like the feel of these woods."

"You said that when last we had come through, Elrohir. We will not charge into battle thoughtlessly." He eyed his brother critically. "You're not backing out, are you? After all we talked about? After seeing our mother suffer as she has?"

Elrohir's eyes hardened a bit. "Of course not, Elladan. But neither do I believe we should abandon the signs of caution in favor of hot blooded blindness."

They purpose of their trading words was not born out of ire, Legolas perceived as he watched them, but out of the need to strengthen their resolve, for here within these woods he felt his own weakening. He felt a kind of unspoken nervousness in the way the trees creaked in the wind and the forest choked out the starlight. Nature was silent here as if afraid of something and he knew they were close to their targets. Carefully dismounting the mare he had borrowed so as not to injure his shoulder, Legolas scanned the surrounding woods, then ended his friends' quarrel. "If you wish to go on, then let us go. The cover of night is fading with each moment we tarry." His night-blue eyes encompassed the twins, awaiting their reply.

Elladan nodded, giving his horse a final pet. "We'll be back, Giliond. Take cover, mellon nin."

The horses left the road and entered the dark woods, leaving the three Elves to their task. Once again Elladan took the lead, his brother and friend quick to follow. They entered the forest, but stayed near to the road, their eyes and ears sharply waiting for any sign of danger as they moved like shadows towards the High Pass. Walking beneath the tall trees, Legolas peered around him, seeing scant sign of the starlight he was so accustomed to.

It was not long before Legolas saw the first of what they were hunting. He stopped and whispered so low he could barely hear himself, "Wait!" The twins needed no more than that, halting in their tracks and doing as he bid. The Prince of Mirkwood moved slowly ahead of them, drawing his bow both silently and quickly. He notched an arrow and pulled back easily, ignoring the pain of his healing shoulder. At his side Elrohir noticed his struggle and drew his own bow, but did not fire, waiting to see if Legolas's arrow would fly true.

It did. Legolas let go once he had the goblin in his sights, exhaling his own held breath in relief. The arrow sailed through the air and burrowed into his target's throat, causing him to wince at having missed his forehead. With a gurgle the goblin collapsed to the earth, clutching his throat, and for a long moment the three Elves searched for any sign anyone had heard that. No one came to check on the fallen creature.

Elladan turned with a sigh, shaking his head. "That was very foolish, my friend. You should stick to the sword until your shoulder is whole again."

Rubbing his tender flesh, Legolas nodded, looking again at his fallen foe. "Aye, I think you're right. I wanted to test myself."

"You wanted to show off, you mean," Elladan quipped, pushing the prince's good shoulder. "I am impressed, now please leave the marksmanship to my brother and I."

"Right, right." The Mirkwood Elf smiled as they started off again.

The mouth of the pass was only mere minutes away, beckoning them on to their mission. Their advantage was a clear night, devoid of rain or mist, making the task seem that much more tangible. Under cover of trees they continued on, not even stopping to examine the goblin as they passed. His glittery eyes were open, but there was no breath of life in him. The arrow had severed his breathing passage.

When they approached the sloping entrance to the pass they lost the seclusion the forest offered, for the trees were sparse here, little more than stumps as if someone had chopped them down. "Keep an eye out for any openings," Elladan warned, creeping up onto the rocky terrain. "We know of one that we passed when first coming to find Nana, but the shallow end of it was empty at the time. We should probably start there."

The mountain pass seemed innocuous enough as they walked on, saying nothing and keeping their eyes on the rocks. From the placing of the lookout Legolas guessed that the goblin lair would not be far from the entrance to the Misty Mountains. Some ways up the path Elladan halted them and pointed up a rocky incline. It was barely visible behind the large rock formation before it, but upon closer examination Legolas saw that there was indeed an opening.

Nodding, Elrohir pointed and said, "Come then. Let us finish this."

The three of them exchanged grave glances, then drew their weapons, creeping towards the opening. Gravel moved beneath their feet, but so agile where they that it did not make a telltale sound. The closer they got, the more they could hear. There were indeed servants of the darkness in there, speaking the guttural black speech. The proceeded carefully and once at the top where the wan light bled free of the chiseled threshold, they stopped.

The doorway opened up into an earthen landing with a curving path leading further down. The three Elves crept inside, careful to make no sound and to hide themselves from any vision. Peering over the edge they saw a fireplace on the wall opposite them and a crude table where four goblins sat in blissful unawareness. But what drew the attention of the Prince of Mirkwood was not the scene of his enemy, but a passageway to the right of the fireplace. There would be more of them somewhere inside the darkness beyond. They could be sure of it.

Elrohir stepped out of the cave, motioning them on and they followed. He took a breath. "There are more of them to be certain. They may burrow deep, but a fight will draw their attention. We could use our bows, you and I, Elladan."

The elder nodded and Legolas shook his head. "That would leave a third if I stayed back. I could handle him with my bow. Then we might have a chance at taking the rest of them by surprise."

"But your shoulder," Elrohir began in a dismissive tone. "Not only do I not wish you to waste your strength on such a thing, but if it does fail you it could alert all of them."

"I am not a weakling," Legolas protested, reaching for his bow.

Elladan put his hand on his arm. "He is right. You could hurt yourself and then you would have no fun later when the real fighting begins." He nodded towards the prince's back. "Take out your swords and prepare to run down there and take out the remaining one."

For a moment Legolas hesitated, but relented, knowing they were right. If he shot before the other two, altering the goblins, then they could escape into the passage, awakening others to the fray. He drew his twin swords and waited as his friends removed their long bows from their backs. When the weapons were ready the three of them crept back into the darkness, looking down to the lower level where their foes awaited. Legolas crept down the curve as far as he dared, then gave the twins a nod. Together they raised their bows, arrows drawn and simultaneously let them go. The arrows sailed, burying within their targets, causing near immediate death. Seeing them keel over, Legolas darted towards the third one relentlessly.

The attack on the remaining goblin was nothing more than what he expected, a struggle that ended with his enemy at his feet despite his disadvantage, but with unforeseen consequences. After the goblin had fallen he still heard raspy breathing that bordered on the edge of laughter. Turning towards the curve he saw three other enemies that had been hidden by the depth of the cave, sitting at a table near the wall where meters above his friends had shot from. They stood up, drawing daggers, smug grins on their faces at having taken him by surprise. "There are more of them!" he shouted, already hearing the twins rushing to join him.

Not waiting for the Elves to make it down the curve, the three of them rushed Legolas. He held himself in the defensive, dodging a blow that would have taken him in the stomach had he allowed it. He twisted to his left, then turned, gripping one of his foes by the arms and dragging him away from the other two. It snarled at him, stringy black hair hanging in front of its face and eyes shining in the lust of blood. It fought back with a vengeance, shoving him to the wall with hands on his shoulders. He groaned out at the pain on his injury, then took on an angry visage as he threw himself forward, knocking the goblin off balance and into Elladan's waiting sword. The Elf grunted and shoved the body off his blade as his brother sidestepped him, heading towards the other two.

"All right?" he asked, looking at the Mirkwood Elf's shoulder.

Rubbing near the raw skin, Legolas nodded. "Not too bad."

A groan from nearby drew their attention to Elrohir being punched. He stumbled back, then regained his balance, thrusting his sword and clipping the offending goblin's arm. It howled and dropped its weapon, gripping a now bleeding wrist. "Would you two mind?" he hissed, struggling with his other enemy.

A sudden hiss from the blackened entrance announced the presence of four more goblins joining the fight. Elladan exhaled and shook his head in a long-suffering manner, holding himself in the defensive as Legolas moved to aid him. Elrohir managed well enough on his own, taking out one of his enemies, then moving on to the next. Legolas kept an open ear as he focused on the new fight before him. Two of them approached him at once, one with wooden club and the other carrying a morning star. The one with the morning star swung out and Legolas ducked the spiked ball, then rolled away just in time to avoid being taken by the falling club that sought to end his life. He hastily sent one of his swords into the thigh of the goblin bearing the club, eliciting a pained growl.

The other one kicked and his heavy boot hit Legolas in the hip as he turned to avoid it. He groaned, but could afford no time to do anything else. He had to get up and away, so he ignored the dull aching that began and pulled himself up. None too soon, for within seconds the morning star fell, hitting the rocky floor and creating a small crater. Legolas thrust his sword out, but his enemy managed to evade it and grab onto his shirt, pulling him up close. He stood face to face with the dark servant of Sauron as it growled and glared him down, trying to intimidate him. When it saw he would not falter, he was shoved away.

Having been prepared for that, Legolas did not lose balance and was quick to steady himself, holding his swords with an expression of schooled patience. He darted his eyes around, watching for his friends and saw similar struggles going on between the other two Elves and their beastly foes. His sweep won him the insight of his other enemy that had fallen to the floor. He had waited for the Elf to become distracted, then raised his club to strike him down. As soon as he swung Legolas darted forward, dragging the standing goblin forward to accept the blow for him. The beast was so surprised by his audacity that it did not recognize the tactic until it was too late. Legolas whipped him around, trading spaces, and the club slammed into its legs with crushing force, sending it to its knees.

Taking advantage of the fallen goblin's pain, Legolas plunged his swords into each side of the neckline of the beat-up, leather cuirass that the beast wore, driving it down its neck through its chest, ending the struggle.

He looked up, seeing another body fall from Elladan's care to the floor and Elrohir finished off his remaining foe just in time for another two goblins to race from the dark hallway.

Author: Ruse

Disclaimer: Lord of the Rings isn't mine and nor is Elrond, unfortunately, nor Legolas or Aragorn. No infringement intended.

Thanks for the reviews! Here you go, as promised! Next chapter soon! :)

A/N: