Hi all!

I´m so sorry for the long wait, RL can be such a bother! I hope you are still with me and enjoy this chapter.

Sadly, I have been alerted to the fact that review responses are not allowed (and that storied might even be taken down for them). I LOVE your reviews and I adore responding to them, but as long as I don´t know for sure please excuse my lack of response for now. You can be sure that I read each and every review and they make my days. PLEASE keep them coming.

A big thank you to all my readers, also to those who so generously commented on "Shadowplay". I was more than happy that story was enjoed so much

Now have fun with this chapter.

Alinah

Rating: PG 13

Disclaimer: Not mine

Howls of Darkness

Legolas could feel the child's even breaths against his chest as he sat silently, watching the bare branches of the trees around him sway ever so lightly. The naked wooden arms stood out darkly against the grey skies, and the elf felt a sudden pain spear his heart. How he wished to see green again. How he wished to smell the soothing odours of spring flowers, coming to chase away the stillness that weighed down the winter-air.

The trees seemed to turn to him as his thoughts darkened, and their branches halted as if to defy the cold winds. With the sudden stillness, a sweet smell began to rise, and under Legolas´ wide gaze a single white flower pushed its head through the blanket of snow that had covered it. The tiny leaves stretched upwards, catching the gentle rays of the sun that began to glimmer in the air. Glittering spots of ice slipped off the new-born flower and turned to water as they fell to the ground. Looking upwards, the elf saw a cover of blue that melted across the dark clouds, and all around him, transparent wisps of green sprouted from the branches.

Within mere heartbeats, a layer of spring had covered the gloomy landscape. It was thin, allowing cold and death to shimmer through, but the longer Legolas watched, the stronger the colors grew. More flowers materialised all around him, and towards his left, a glittering tinge of blue announced the presence of a small lake.

Legolas knew this place, and a warm smile spread across his face. He realized that in the real world, his eyes were glazing over instead of gazing about for danger. He realized he should turn away from his dreamscape, that his tired mind was inviting him to wander his home in his dreams to finally find rest, yet he did not find the strength to chase away his comfort. He could feel a soft touch against his knee and looked down to find that grass had grown upon the snow that by now had completely swallowed the icy ground in swaying green leaves.

Reaching out a hand, he touched the ghost of a blade that turned solid beneath his fingers. Warmth flooding his senses, he passed his outstretched palm over the sea of green and smiled when the tiny tips tickled his skin.

Suddenly, a weight lifted off his right thigh. Startled, he saw a black shape rise. He could barely make out the dog, for it was hidden beneath a rapidly thickening wall of spring air. Butterflies drifted through the dark bulk, yet when the strong animal shook himself, Legolas could feel small drops of ice hit his cheeks. Once more the dog shook his fur, and the icy rain he created shimmered in a dimming sun.

It was with regret that the elf saw his dream escape, green once more fading into white, sweet fragrances dissolving into the crisp, empty smell of winter. Trees stood naked once more, the halo of green that still engulfed them disappearing into the grey clouds. A fresh bout of wind rattled their branches together like the bones of a discarded carcass. As if they wanted to announce that death was on the prowl. As if they wanted to warn him...

What had been left of the dream fled when Legolas´ heart began to race, pulling him fully back into the present. He rose to his feet swiftly, the sleeping child shifting against his shoulder but then the young one stilled again. Shouldering his bow and quiver, he turned towards the intrusion.

The elf cursed his weakness. The sharp pain from his injury when it was so suddenly jostled felt like a welcome punishment. How could he have allowed himself to miss the thick sense of approaching danger! Both of the animals had felt it before him, for Beakon and the mare stood side by side, facing south.

A growl escaped the dog, coming from the bowls of his being, and the horse danced backwards, throwing up her head in fear. The white showed within her eyes as she snorted and turned, ready to run. Beakon´s muscles tensed beneath his still damp fur as he prepared to attack.

From within the dense trees, the sounds of crunching snow mixed with small yelps of excitement.

Legolas knew that the animals by his side foreshadowed the only two courses of action open to him, and as much as his pride wanted to be redeemed in a fight, he was aware that the only wisdom lay with flight, at least for now. Clutching the boy closer to him, he mounted the frightened horse in one smooth jump. There was no need to urge her on, for he was barely seated when she shot away.

The elf turned, seeing Beakon follow at a surprising speed. Behind the dog however, dark bulks that far surpassed him in size and ferocity broke from the trees. Red eyes brimmed, bearing down on the elf, and Legolas could not suppress a gasp escaping his lips. These were no mere wolves. These were no wargs. These were worse by far.

Intelligence burned sharply within them, more than any brute would have possessed, and the elf would have sworn that the ghost of a smile had formed upon the snout of the leading beast. The pack slowed and then stopped, collecting. There were ten of them that Legolas could see, and they were in no hurry to chase them.

There was no need. The creatures were big and well-muscled, and the elf realized with a sinking heart that they would hunt them down easily. Tearing his gaze away from his foes for now, Legolas looked ahead, trying to asses their chances. He would have preferred to ride for the place where he had left Elrohir and Glorfindel. He could have followed their tracks to finally find protection and help, but his foes blocked his passage there.

There had to be another way. He did not know these woods at all, but he could tell that they were upon a wide, human-made path. Beneath the mare´s drumming hooves he could still make out the tracks of a whole group of humans on horseback.

An idea formed within his mind; a thought that he was slightly ashamed of but that might still carry the key to their survival. A plan swiftly formed, but he needed help to carry it out.

Behind him, a howl rose. Sudden cold made the elf shiver and when he turned, he saw that the beasts were on the move again. They ran with easy, wide strides, thick fur rippling in the wind, and a wave of darkness seemed to travel before them like a harbinger of death.

"Not our death!" the elf growled to himself and sharply turned the mare to the right, forcing her to leave the path. The horse snorted in protest and slowed, but at Legolas´ whispered encouragement she carried on as fast as the thicket allowed. Beakon was not far behind, and thus the small group made for the darker parts of the forest, leaving the human path behind them.

Legolas sighed when he gazed down at the small face that still lay nestled against his chest. He worried that the boy had not yet woken from the commotion, even though the child's brow was furrowed, showing his irritation. The elf was loathe to scare his young charge, but he could not endanger their lives for the sake of the child´s peace of mind.

Giving the slender frame a gentle shake, he said: "Awake, little one, your aid is needed."

The only response he received was that the child turned and buried his head against his chest. Behind them, the cracking of breaking branches announced that their pursuers had followed them into the woods. So soon, the elf thought, his despair rising, they must run on Mordor´s wings to be so fast...

"Wake now!" he ordered with all the command he could muster, accentuating his words with another shake, "or - the dream horse shall not come to bring you home!"

With a small sound of disapproval escaping the boy´s lips, his blurred silver eyes opened.

A howl rose behind them as if in response, and the mare stumbled in her sudden fright. Legolas barely caught himself against the horse's neck as he was pushed forward by the ragged movement, but he was relieved to feel the boy react, also. Small hands grabbed the mane, fingers curling tightly into the coarse hair.

Turning his head, the child gazed up at the elf with dulled fear and surprise. Legolas tried to smile while swiftly retrieving his bow and securing the quiver that he had held over his shoulder. "I need to practice archery for a small while", the elf announced, nocking an arrow to the string, "and I need you to lean low and steer the horse."

The boy obediently leaned upon the steed's neck, but when he answered there was rising panic in his voice. "There are no reins!" Legolas had already turned, sharp eyes seeking a target, and the first arrow sang even as he answered: "Use words, little one, use words."

There was a clattering sound when the arrow got entangled within the branches of some underbrush, missing the dark blur that the elf had aimed for. Swallowing a curse, Legolas aimed anew, at the same time trying to remember how many arrows he had left. Six, he guessed. Maybe seven, but no more.

He dimly registered that he could no longer see Beakon, but he was glad, for the dog would have only obscured his target. Squinting, the elf caught sight of the wolf-like shape again but did not yet shoot. He could hear the beast growling, and it came closer steadily. When the grey form appeared from beneath the bushes once more, Legolas allowed his arrow to fly. At the same moment he could hear the boy cry out: " Crom!" /Left/

Adjusting his seating to the horse's movements, the elf watched as his arrow flew true and sank into the beast's fur and flesh. There was a tiny yelp that might haveshown either pain or anger, but the beast did not slow in the least.

Red eyes glowed, easily made out, and Legolas drew his bow once more. His foe was close now. He would not get another chance. He could see the muscles in the great animal tense as it prepared to jump. The arrow left the string with an angry hiss just as the beast took to the air, and this time the steal tip of the weapon found its mark directly in the red glow of one of the eyes.

With a scream, the animal twisted in the air. Its paws shot out as if trying to remove the arrow, but instead they caught the mare against one hind leg. The horse whinnied in pain and stumbled once more. "Taer"/ Steady/ he could hear the boy call, "taer!" Preparing himself for a fall, Legolas was surprised when the beast caught her balance once more before coming to a shaking stop.

"Dartho ennas!" /Stay there/ Legolas ordered, meaning both the horse and the boy. He did not even look back to make sure he was being obeyed, for he could still make out movement in the beast that had fallen where its leap had sent it to the ground. Slipping off the heaving mare, he once again pulled forth an arrow and carefully stalked closer. His ears strained to make sure no further foe was near, and a wave of relief flooded him when he found nothing.

So he had been right. The beasts had come upon them by chance, when they really had been headed for the humans instead. Legolas felt a bolt of pity shoot through him even as he approached his own enemy, for he doubted humans would be able to withstand this pack of unearthly creatures.

The wolf-like being lay in its blood, writhing in pain. Even so, the remaining eye was fixed upon the elf as he moved closer. A snarl rose even as Legolas aimed for the second eye and calmly released. A shock went through the hairy frame; then it lay still. The elf waited. Behind him, he could hear the boy making soothing sounds to calm the horse. Close-by, an animal approached, but Legolas sensed no danger from it.

And still, the beast before him breathed. Its stout hard was hammering away as if in defiance of death. A grim expression crossing his features, Legolas lay down his bow and drew his knife. He turned swiftly, finding the child standing by the horse with his back to him. The elf nodded in satisfaction and closed in on the beast. He would not allow it to draw one more breath.

Very carefully, he moved towards the slightly twitching bulk, approaching slowly. Moving quickly all of a sudden, he knelt, grabbed a hand-full of fur and slit the beast's throat. A growl began to rise, cut short by death, but even though the elf was fast, so was his foe. The front paws shot out for him at a speed that made them blur in the air. Legolas sensed the danger at the same moment that he saw, from the corner of his eye, that another dark frame jumped out from behind one of the trees.

The elf twisted away with a grunt of surprise, almost avoiding the first paw, but not before it had left streaks of parallel gashes upon his chest. Legolas was pushed backwards by the movement and the second paw would have caught him fully, but it was halted by a pair of strong fangs. Beakon let out a growl of his own as he bit down hard enough to make bones crunch. He shook the huge front-leg a few times, making sure it was dead, before dropping it to the ground. Cocking his head to the side, blood leaking from his teeth into the dark fur, the dog regarded Legolas expectantly.

The elf took a few shaky breaths before he managed to gasp: "Mae hû, Beakon. Mae hû." /Good dog, Beakon. Good dog./

Apparently satisfied by this praise, the animal turned and trotted towards Estel who had stepped closer, eyes wide. Legolas was thankful once again, for he did not want the child to see the gruesome carcass. "Stay with the animals, child", he called out to make sure, "take care of them for a moment."

With some effort, Legolas rose to his knees. He picked up the knife he had dropped and prepared to wipe it off on the wolf´s fur, when suddenly the form before him began to shimmer. Looking on in awe, the elf saw the animal's bulk melt away. Almost like his dream of Mirkwood had been chased away by reality only a short time ago, now death robbed the creature before him of its false frame.

Bloody fangs shrank to teeth, fur dissolved to skin and wolf slowly melted to human.

Legolas could feel his heart miss a beat before it began to race wildly in his chest. Only one word ruled his thoughts now, a name that he had thus far only heard in old tales and songs.

Draugluindur.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Draugluindur!" Glorfindel´s eyes widened. Never had he expected this Evil of Old to rise again. "The servants of Draugluin the great, slain by Huan. I considered this evil breed long dead!"

Elrond watched the same disbelief on his friend's face that he had felt himself not long ago. A small smile tugged at his lips. "The same has been said about you, my friend", he jested mildly; "you should know better than any of us that the realms of death have many paths, some of which might lead back to life."

While Glorfindel still shook his head, Erestor stepped forth. "Much has been said about the creatures that are called Werewolves in the human tongue", he said thoughtfully, "and even the old tales are not precise on their nature. We do know that Sauron favoured this form of demon; we do know that he himself took this guise before."

He nodded towards Glorfindel. "We do know the tale of Huan and his mighty deeds, slaying the evil hounds, including their master Draugluin. But there are more tales, younger ones that speak of humans falling under an evil spell that could only have been cast by the mighty werewolf himself."

"Or one like him", Elrond cut in, leaning on the table as he spoke. "There was an evil in those creatures that was strong, strong enough to test even Vilya´s power. It was only with effort that I was able to expel this darkness from our lands."

He felt his friends look at him and straightened. "Here, outside of Imladris, we must rely on other forces to defeat this evil. And defeat it we shall, for else it will prowl on us again."

"I am sorry to have brought this danger onto you", one of the rangers spoke up, "but we did not know where else to turn when some among us fell to this force while hunting for orcs not far away..."

Erlond held up a hand. "Do not excuse your actions, for they were wisely chosen. When evil calls, we need to stand together to face it. It seems that the raiders that haunt these parts and the servants of Draugluin´s line have formed an alliance of darkness."

He turned, his sharp grey eyes roaming those that surrounded him in the simple room.

"Here and now", he spoke, "let us become the alliance of light."

TBC