I won't be here till Monday so I left you with the 2nd chapter for today. Like it?
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"Oh, brother," Keldarion moaned with a roll of his eyes, while Elladan and Elrohir groaned out loud next to him.
Great. Here comes trouble.
The entire crowd was taken aback by Legolas' sudden intrusion. They stared in surprise at the tall hooded stranger, gaping and blinking at him like a pack of dumbstruck owls.
Shakmi was the first to recover from the shock. His eyes as hard as steel, the medicine man glared at the elf. "And who are you to make such a bold demand?"
"Someone who finds overreacted humans annoying," Legolas glibly responded, striding closer towards the pyre.
Keldarion tried to grab the back of his brother's tunic but missed. Cursing fluently under his breath, he watched anxiously as Legolas placed a hand against the forehead of one ailing boy.
"They have Red Pox, not an unusual fatal disease among men," Legolas said with a frown. "Their condition is grave indeed, but there's no need for you to burn them alive."
"They will spread the plague if we let them live," Shakmi retorted, his voice as cold as mountain ice. "They bring death to us all, a horrible curse upon our heads! There is no cure for this sickness. I've tried everything to make them well again but nothing works…"
"So you give up and take the easiest way." Legolas' silver eyes were blazing as he returned Shakmis's glare. "You've not try hard enough, and now these children are paying the price for your incompetence. And you call yourself a medicine man?"
By then, after a chorus of shocked gasps and stunned cries, the crowd had gone eerily quiet. They stared in silence at the heated exchange, wondering at the identity of the tall stranger who dared to contradict Shakmi's conduct.
"Legolas!" Keldarion hissed in warning, tugging desperately at his brother's sleeve. "I don't think it is wise for you to interfere in their affair. Just leave them be."
The younger prince turned to his brother, his gaze intent. "You know I can't do that."
Indeed, Keldarion knew, though he wished differently, considering the current situation that grew tenser by the minute. He of all people knew he could not change the fact that Legolas was a manyan, a mystical healer that could heal all kinds of illnesses and injuries just by the simple touch of his hand. He carried such powerful ability within him, yet he was free to choose between using and not using it. There was no decree that demanded him to heal every malady that he stumbled upon, much less humans'.
But Legolas always choose to heal. He hated to see anyone suffer, be it elves or animals or humans, especially innocent children like those three boys and two girls lying helplessly on the pyre. As his brother was fond to say, "Legolas' heart is bigger than his brain". Always impetuous, he would follow what his heart told him, ignoring what his brain warned him.
"Typical Legolas", Thranduil would have said if he was around to witness this. "He jumps happily into a fray and be damned the consequences."
Clutching his staff in his fist, Shakmi walked several steps closer towards the elves. "I don't know who you are, stranger, but I advise you not to meddle in our business. If you have nothing better to say other than impugning me and my duty, I suggest you leave."
"Duty?" Legolas scoffed without humor. "Does your duty include murdering little children? Who do you think you are? Some kind of a god or something to take innocent lives at your whim so you can hide your flaws? Of all the most cowardice and irresponsible things I've ever heard…"
"Enough, little brother. You are inviting trouble," Keldarion whispered into his brother's ear even though he knew it was pointless. They were in trouble already. The crowd had grown larger, while Shakmi and some of the men were glowering back at the four companions as if they also carried the Red Pox.
"If you know so much," Shakmi said sarcastically. "Then what do you suggest we do? Bath these poor children in sesame oil and feed them bran porridge? Or should I bleed them to let out the demon's soul from their bodies? I've tried those and as you can see, that didn't work."
"You should have been more patient and diligent, not too quick to lose hope. That's what a medicine man should be," Legolas muttered as he shrugged off Keldarion's hands. And then, to everyone's surprise, he nimbly leaped onto the pyre and knelt between the ailing children.
At Shakmi's silent signal, Mordred—the man who held the lit torch—made a move as if to light the fire. With a quick glance from Keldarion, Elladan stepped forward and yanked the torch out of the man's hands.
"There is no need for this, don't you think?" Elrohir asked with a smile as he took the torch from his twin and jammed its burning head into the ground to put out the flame.
Shakmi grew angrier. At a flick of his hand, several men broke away from the crowd and advanced towards the four strangers.
That was the time when Keldarion thought they should abandon their disguise. Nodding to the twins, he pulled down the hood of his cloak, revealing his fair face and delicately pointed ears to the people. Elladan and Elrohir followed suit, grinning with pleasure.
"Elves!" The crowd gasped, pointing and murmuring excitedly among themselves. "They are elves!"
The advancing men froze in their tracks, staring stupidly at Keldarion and the twins. They had noticed that the strangers were not completely unarmed after all. Deadly looking daggers were seen strapped to the elves' belt, while their well-muscled and lithe frames clearly spoke of their prowess in hand-to-hand combat. These were ageless warriors not to be reckoned with.
Shakmi's eyes bulged as if they were about to pop out of their sockets. "What in tarnation are you elves doing here?" he spat, throwing venom glares at Legolas who was still bending over the children.
"We didn't mean to intrude," Keldarion said quietly in a placating manner. "We are not here to cause any troubles."
"Then what the blazes is he doing?" The man pointed at Legolas.
"Just watch and learn," Elrohir crisply told him, putting end to the man's tirade.
The younger prince had placed his hands on the two girls' foreheads, his own head bent in concentration to the healing procedure. The energy was flowing smoothly through his fingertips down onto his patients' skin, and it would not be long before they were completely cured of their sickness.
The surrounding crowd was actually holding their breath, their high hopes and disbelief rolled into one. The humans still did not fully understand what was going on, but they expected to see a miracle. Wasn't that what elves do, these mysterious ethereal beings that possessed so many secrets and magic?
"Mama?"
Several moments later, the girls began to stir. Their eyes fluttered open as they called for their mothers. Red spots no longer marred their bodies.
The girls' parent cried out with joy as they rushed towards their daughters, hugging them like they didn't want to let go. Legolas was now healing the three boys, ignoring the high sound of din around him as the crowd cheered and applauded as if they were watching a blasted carnival.
"All right. Things are quickly getting pretty hectic here," Elladan mumbled to Keldarion as more parents came to collect the now healed little boys.
The crowd was indeed growing more excited by the minute as they inspected the five children's glowing faces and healthy skin, amazed to see no trace of the Red Pox. A woman had fainted from shock on the spot, while several men were shouting obscenities at Shakmi, condemning him for his earlier intention to burn the children. The medicine man said nothing, just stood there in stoic silence as he took the abuse. But his eyes didn't waver as he keenly stared at Legolas who had jumped off the pyre to stand next to Keldarion.
"Congratulations. You have just gained yourself a bitter enemy," the elder prince dryly told his brother, slightly unease to see the peculiar expression on Shakmi's face.
"So, what else is new?" Legolas easily responded with a shrug as he tugged down his hood.
And that nearly caused a riot because several young women practically swooned when they caught sight of Legolas' magnificent features. They thought that Keldarion and the twins were exceptionally handsome, but Legolas was totally beyond compare.
"Err…" Legolas watched anxiously as the young women started to swarm him, tugging at his hands and touching his hair, muttering and whispering among themselves in admiration of his beauty.
"Um, Kel? Ell? Ro? Help me here. Please?" Legolas looked chagrin, Shakmi already forgotten. As the manyanstood unmoving in the centre of the excitement, Keldarion and the twins exchanged amused glances.
"Should we help him?" Elladan asked, tongue in his cheek.
"Nah. Let him sweat," Keldarion replied with a grin for Legolas was indeed sweating.
"Right. This is even better than the surprise we have for him," Elrohir piped in.
"Our earlier plan is still on, right?" Elladan stated with a raised eyebrow.
"Yes." Keldarion nodded in agreement. "The 'surprise' is the main reason we came here. So let's get his butt out of this bedlam and into the tavern before these women start ripping at his clothes for souvenirs."
The elves efficiently wormed through the crowd, grabbed Legolas' arms, and herded him away. Still a bit dazed, Legolas went with them without protest—sighing in relief, in fact. He didn't even notice that Shakmi the medicine man had quickly made himself scarce, disappearing through the pandemonium.
But Keldarion had noticed. He had seen the last vile look that Shakmi sent their way, which was focused mainly on Legolas. Keldarion believed that the matter would not end there. Knowing humans, he was sure the medicine man was feeling greatly insulted and would seek revenge. And knowing his brother and his penchant for troubles, Keldarion supposed he needed to keep a watchful eye on Legolas so that Shakmi won't get anywhere near him.
This was the second time Legolas had used his healing skill on humans. The first time had ended in disaster when a large troop of Norsemen had abducted Legolas afterwards and kept him slave in their camp. He had been forced to heal all the wounded Norsemen soldiers, nonstop. They even pushed him to bring a dead body back to life, which was totally impossible because Legolas' ability only worked on breathing life form, not corpses. That episode nearly claimed his life, and Keldarion had been more protective of him than ever before, afraid that the same thing would repeat itself once more.
But now Legolas had done it again, healing those human children without a care for the consequences.
Keldarion was smiling as they stepped into the tavern, but he was actually hiding a sudden shiver of dread.
Something bad will happen, came the grim thought to his mind as a sliver of foreboding ran up and down his spine.
TBC…
See you on Monday!