Author: Mirrordance

Title: For Every Evil

Summary: Legolas is a policeman in 2004. His colleagues start to wonder why the 10-yr veteran doesn't age & more trouble ahead after he runs across the Fellowship & some friends in modern incarnations, resurrected along with a new world-threatening peril.

15: Constructive Affairs

Imladris, Mid-2004

If he had wings, he'd be flying over Milan right now.

But blessed though he was, Elladan could not soar, and he settled simply for his tri-band cell phone. He stood in a corner of the room, looking cool and calm except for the fact that Elrohir knew him better, and he kept watch over his twin protectively from a distance, giving him the space he needed to think and to calm himself.

"That's a kind of dubious name for a guy," Adrian commented, glancing at Elladan's corner worriedly.

Elrohir took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, shaking his head in disbelief. "I did not even know who he was when I saw the photograph. We've never crossed paths."

"Who is that person?" Fred asked.

"He once poisoned the mind of a great king," said Gandalf gravely, "a traitor to his own people. He was very nearly their great downfall. But it is too soon to be alarmed," Gandalf said to Legolas soothingly, "He might need awakening, as they all do. He might also never even know of his past, and live the rest of his life as a good man."

"If that is so," Legolas retorted, "Then we can also deduce the converse to be true. Those who were once good could now be bad."

Adrian looked at him pointedly, and recalled yesterday's heated conversation. He wondered if the elf was simply stating an observation, or taking a jab at him.

Elrohir shook his head. "The situation is already convoluted enough without everybody switching places!"

"Ana!" Elladan suddenly exclaimed, and everyone fell silent and turned to him. "Oh thank the Valar…" the elf breathed, pausing to listen to the other end before saying, "The Valar? They're like your god—" he cut himself off in irritation, "You're distracting me! Are you all right? I leave you alone for a night and…"

Legolas exhaled in relief, tuning the rest of the personal conversation out. He was still gripping the tabloid, and he flipped past the table of contents and looked at the rest of the article (in page 11…) more closely, and looking at the other pictures.

Last night, Chairman Emeritus of Fortress Defense Systems International Teodoro Rigare, celebrated his sixty-fifth birthday with a glorious bang. High society flocked from all across Europe in their couture best, crowding the halls of the ballroom in such brilliant shine and numbers that rivaled the starry evening sky.

The grand evening began with a speech in honor of Teddy, from his lovely and beloved niece Eunice, who is also the chairperson of the Fortress Children's Foundation. This was quickly followed by a sumptuous eleven-course meal of two kinds of soup, two kinds of salad, four entrees and three desserts. The very memory of Chef Arandi of the Ricciardone Group's masterpieces makes me wish to rewind the glorious evening…

Legolas skimmed through the litany of a menu, and the name-dropping of stars and starlets, politicians and big businessmen. He was beginning to have a greater idea of what he was looking to see.

Teddy looked mightily happy, despite the noticeable and glaring absence of his nephew and successor Emmett, Eunice's brother, who is said to be feeling a bit under the weather. But Teddy's right hand side was not bare, however, and was more than covered by his dashing Vice President Grissom Warrington, who gave our honoree a touching toast.

Legolas' eyes drifted to a photograph of 'Teddy,' 'Eunice' and 'Grissom.' Sure enough, his eyes fell upon the photograph of Theoden of Rohan, Grima Wormtongue, and a demurely smiling, uncomfortable-seeming Eowyn between them.

That would make the missing 'Emmett' Eomer of Rohan too, Legolas reflected, And this gives us a fresh slant to investigate: Fortress Defense Systems International.

"It almost makes sense," said Fred, "In a distorted kind of way."

Legolas frowned at him. "What do you mean?"

"For old empires and kingdoms," replied Fred, "To have modern incarnations in a big business empire. More than the old monarchies, these are the new kings."

"Well where's my business empire?" said Adrian wryly.

"You're not of the line of the first sons," Elrohir pointed out, "And though you're now the last male left, times have changed and business empires can now be inherited by women too."

The six friends sat about the widest of the tables; Elladan was packing in a mad rush toward Italy, not heeding Elrohir's teases that Anatalia's stayed alive this long, she likely did not need him. The basket of bread was practically emptied before them, as the two remaining elves and the wizard began an engaging conversation the three tentatively-believing humans found hard to resist.

It was Fred who was intrigued first, and gave his clever insights comfortably, without heeding the fact that he was beginning to sound as crazy as the other three. Brad kept silent, but hung about expectantly, just as Adrian did. To consider all these things, the doctor thought, would likely be laughable in the future. In the meantime, his curiosity, as it always did, triumphed over him and he remained in the strange group having a strange and otherworldly conversation.

Besides, he reasoned, each of the three of them found compelling reasons to stay— Elrohir's observations about Brad and Fred's family life came too close for one who was not supposed to know anything about them at all. The photographs of Adrian's murdered relatives certainly gave the 'elves' some credence too. He was also beginning to find some remarkable similarities between the story of The War of the Ring he was told some days ago, to the familiar names of himself, Fred, Brad, even those Romans Teodoro, Eunice, Emmett and Grissom from the tabloids just this morning.

Ride with it, the clever Italian woman had said, If it yields nothing, then you had an interesting vacation. If it yields something, then you did something right.

"So what do we know about these guys?" Adrian asked.

Legolas, who had brought his computer from Los Angeles, hooked it up to the Internet and was browsing through some files and news on Fortress International.

"They make weapons," Legolas said with a slight wince, thinking that could not be good at all.

"Head office in Rome," Legolas continued, "some manufacturing facilities all over the world… Big innovators, they often just sell their designs to arms manufacturers although lately, they've also been taking contracts to mass produce some weapons for the world's best-equipped first-world armies."

"I can't believe they have a Children's Foundation," said Brad.

"Well the organization is perfectly legitimate," Legolas pointed out, "Clean records, no links to terrorists or things like that. It's also very important to keep up a good public image. But there really isn't anything particularly off about them, just… this little skirmish with the Union. Pretty standard. A lockout in one of its facilities."

"It's too clean," Elrohir said, "I mean, no black market arms dealing, no suits or cases… Nothing remarkable, nothing different… Fate cannot possibly lead us here and show us absolutely nothing."

"But if this Teodoro is even just slightly like Theoden," said Legolas, "There should be no complaints from the employees."
"Similarly," said Elrohir, "If Grissom Warrington is anything like Grima Wormtongue… there's a big problem hidden in there somewhere."
"Well if this is all we have…" said Fred, "What else can we do?"

Elrohir grinned at him smugly. "You know the guys I get to fix our papers, secure my computer files, stuff like that? Little company, very much consistently reliable. I have hackers in the payroll, my friends. It's time to turn to the underground. Is that fine with you, Detective Greene or are you going to arrest me?"
"I have a group that takes care of my papers too, remember?" Legolas said wryly, "I feel it's a bit of a service, actually. You know, someone really ought to get those incredible minds into more constructive affairs."

TO BE CONTINUED…

HEY GUYS!!! Thank you once again for the super encouraging reviews. You're really the best and I'm glad to betting feedback since this fic is such a leap in experimentation for me. keep them coming if you can, but more than anything, I'm just thankful for your reading time. I know we're all very busy.

Well as I forgot I made this out to be a real short chapter so surprise… you get two chapters this post :) chapter 17 will welcome Eeomer into the slowly forming team :) 'til then!!!