Black Eyes
Chapter Sixteen: Master of Mazes
by Capella
A/N: Good GOD this took a long time. Only one chapter left after this.
"Wrath is shaped with a sword."
-- Beowulf
It had taken a day and a half to reach where Lolindir had told them to go. None of them had eaten, but midway through their journey, Legolas's horse had scented out a small stream for them to drink.
Now Harry stared up at the towering mountain in front of him, reaching high into the heavens, the peak disappearing into a puffy, dark cloud. His mind was whirling. He didn't know which thoughts were his, anymore.
He climbed off of his horse and smacked its rump smartly; the mare nipped at his knuckles lazily and wandered off to graze on the admittedly unhealthy, withered grass that grew between the mountain and the edge of the sea.
Legolas, get off your horse. Get Lolindir off, too.
He swayed for a moment with the power that it took to send those words; Harry had never heard of anyone in the Wizarding world holding a spell actively on someone for as long a period of time as he had.
He twisted to look at Legolas's blank, beautiful blue eyes as he helped the trembling Lolindir off the horse, and turned back to face his goal.
There was a door in the mountainside.
It was a normal-sized door, made out of dark wood, so dark it was almost black, with a shining silver doorknob. Harry stared at it as if transfixed. He heard Legolas breathing heavily behind him and knew that Legolas was attempting to break the spell.
"Harry, please -- do not open it --"
Harry did not bother to answer, instead stepping forward with his hand outstretched.
He touched the doorknob.
A flood of agony/ecstasy flew down his spine and to the tips of his fingers and toes, and he flung his head back, his mouth open and panting, eyes squeezed shut. Tears ran down his cheeks.
"Harry, do not open it!"
Harry managed to turn the knob. He felt Legolas lay a hand on his arm and it burned fiercely along with the raw pain/pleasure running along his nerves.
Grimacing with pain, he pushed with all of his strength at Legolas's mind as he pushed at the same time at the heavy door.
"Le nallon si di-nguruthos," he whispered, and heard Legolas cry out behind him. To thee I cry now in the shadow of death.
Legolas -- bring Lolindir and come.
The door creaked open into a dark abyss.
He stepped through.
You know what he has done, Maiar.
Yes. His voice was calm. What would you have me do?
It is the appointed time.
It was believed by my order that the appointed time has yet to come --
It is the appointed time.
As you wish.
He is the vessel by which Morgoth has chosen to achieve his goal. Once it is finished, you must remove him quickly. Three of his companions travel here even now; Ulmo, Uinen shall speed their passage, and I shall lead the winds. Go to the door with haste, and bring him back to the city. His companions will wait for him there.
And if he does not succeed?
He will succeed. There a slight pause. But there will be death.
Harry had not know where his own thoughts came from, anymore, but it had ceased to frighten him.
Now, as he found himself stepping from the doorway -- which disappeared as soon as Legolas and Lolindir stepped through -- a searing pain went through his head, and suddenly it was as if his thoughts were separated into two. His vision flickered to black for a moment. He fell to his knees, crying out as he tried to figure out the two streams of thought running through his mind. He wanted to hurt Legolas. He wanted to kiss him. He wanted to snap Lolindir's skinny neck. He wanted to fall on his knees and beg for Lolindir's forgiveness. He wanted to make the proud race of elves and the traitorous race of men fall to their knees in worship, begging forgiveness. He wanted to run home into Legolas's arms and pretend as if nothing had happened.
He slowly stood even as the sibilant thoughts of death circled round his mind. Looking back at Legolas, he saw the that elf's eyes were still blank, and for two seconds struggled between lifting the curse. He began to speak the words to end the spell.
do not lift it
His mouth closed. Legolas continued to stare at him blankly.
come here
He took a step forward, and then another. The black mist surrounding him only allowed sight for two feet; beyond that, everything was an impenetrable fog of black and gray.
"Please," he heard Legolas say from behind him, but he tightened his hold on Legolas's mind almost without a thought.
And then the fog parted around a figure as dark as the mist around it; the figure knelt on one knee, its wrists shackled and bolted to the ground to either side of its legs. It was robed and hooded, and the folds of fabric covered all parts of its body but its graceful hands, which were white as paper. The figure's head was bowed.
Harry stopped. The voices in his head were increasing in pitch and frenzy; orders to kill contrasted with desires for peace.
The figure raised its head. Harry heard Lolindir whimpering in fear, and a cold sweat had broken out on his own body.
Two slitted, black eyes stared back at him. A pair of chapped lips stretched over white, white teeth in a horrible grin, the lips cracking and bleeding, sending ribbons of black blood over the figure's chin. Delicate eyebrows slanted over the black eyes. It's -- his -- face was white, the bleeding lips black. The hair -- which looked inexplicably soft -- hung out from the edges of the robe and onto the figure's chest, and was black as night.
"Morgoth," he heard Legolas whisper in agony behind him. Harry felt as if there were a whirlwind in his mind; he could neither think nor breathe correctly, and tiny stabs of pain pricked him all over his body.
Morgoth's hideous grin never wavered.
YOU HAVE COME
Someone was screaming. It took Harry a few moments to realize it was him.
The voice seemed to swirl around him, stabbing into his mind and his body like knives until he was driven to his knees, clutching at his ears in a futile attempt to get the voice -- out. Something warm and wet trickled through his fingers from where they were pressed over his ears; he took a hand away from his ear. It was covered in blood. Tears streamed down his face from the pain, and when he reached up to wipe them away, his fingers came away stained red as well.
"God." The words left his lips in a pained whisper, and Morgoth laughed, a sound somehow more horrible than Harry could have imagined. "God," he said again, squeezing his eyes shut. He felt, rather than saw, his vision flicker -- interestingly enough, this time as it flickered, so did the dark voice in his mind.
STOP FIGHTING ME, LITTLE ONE.
"What --" he whispered, but could not continue. The presence of Morgoth had robbed him of his ability to speak for the moment; the black eyes of the Valar kept him on his knees. He winced in pain as Morgoth laughed. God -- he was in his mind.
"Why -- am I here?"
STUPID BOY. Melkor sounded amused. HAVE YOU NOT REALIZED WHAT HAS BEEN AFFLICTING YOU THESE PAST DAYS? HAVE YOU NOT REALIZED WHY YOU HAVE COME HERE, TO THIS PLACE, NOT KNOWING WHERE IT WAS OR EVEN WHAT IT CONTAINED? HAVE YOU NOT REALIZED WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR DRIVING FORCE SINCE YOU LOST YOUR SIGHT?
"It was you," he breathed. "You. You made me do this."
Melkor smiled, his coal-black eyes glinting. OH, YES. YES, BOY. HOW THOUGHTFUL OF YOU TO COME HERE -- YOU, WHO COULD BE INDWELT BY A VALAR'S SPIRIT AND NOT DIE. YOU, WHO ARE POWERLESS ON YOUR OWN, I COULD GIVE TO YOU MY POWER AND MY SPIRIT, LEAD YOU TO THIS PLACE SO YOU COULD SET ME FREE.
"What --"
LET ME SHOW YOU.
Suddenly Harry was hit by a deluge of images, so strong that he dropped forward onto his hands, scraping his palms on the gray, rocky ground. He saw what Morgoth -- Melkor -- had been, before he had sinned. He saw the great spider, he saw the shining lamps and felt Melkor's lust; he felt Melkor's fiery passion for the Silmarils; he saw as Melkor transformed from a shining being into a black creature of the dark. And he saw as Melkor was dragged to Valinor and sentenced to a life in this dark, lonely place. He felt Melkor's hatred as he was thrown and chained here.
He felt Morgoth's glee when he felt Harry's presence.
Harry was finally released from the memory, and he panted for air -- air that felt black in his lungs. His arms trembled as he pushed himself to his feet.
"You --" he hissed, but Morgoth cut him off.
I AM NOT DONE YET, MY LITTLE ONE. ALTHOUGH YOU ARE PATHETICALLY WEAK, IN MY STATE, IT WAS HARD FOR ME TO POSSESS YOU. YOU HAD TO BE WEAKENED FURTHER. I PUSHED MY SPIRIT INTO YOUR BODY, BUT YOU DID NOT ACCEPT IT AT FIRST.
Morgoth grinned, showing long, sharp canines. Harry shuddered convulsively.
I DID THE ONLY THING I COULD DO. I COVERED YOUR SIGHT, MAKING YOU VULNERABLE AND WEAK. AS YOUR MIND DETERIORATED, I SNUCK INTO THE CRACKS, INFLUENCING YOU, GUIDING YOU. AS I SEATED MYSELF SUITABLY, I RELEASED MY HOLD ON YOUR SIGHT. IT WAS EASIER FOR ME TO SEE OUT OF YOUR EYES.
BUT SOMETIMES YOUR MIND REBELLED WITHOUT YOUR OWN KNOWLEDGE. IN THOSE TIMES, I WAS NEARLY FORCED OUT, BUT I KEPT MY TENUOUS GRASP ON YOUR SIGHT. IN TIME, I WAS ABLE TO TIGHTEN MY GRIP AGAIN AND AGAIN, UNTIL YOU STOPPED FIGHTING.
"Stop it." Harry hardly realized he was crying until he felt the warm droplets splash onto his shirt, soaking through to his chest. "Stop it. I never stopped fighting you."
BUT YOU WILL WANT TO HEAR THIS, YOUNGLING. ALTHOUGH I WAS IN YOUR MIND, I NEVER CONTROLLED YOU. I SIMPLY INFLUENCED YOU. SO LONG AS I COULD PUSH YOU ENOUGH SO THAT YOUR DESIRES MIRRORED MY OWN, IT WAS EASY TO STAY IN YOUR MIND. SUCH AS WHEN YOU TOOK YOUR DIRTY ELVEN LOVER AGAINST HIS WILL.
"No. That -- that wasn't me!"
NO? Morgoth laughed. PERHAPS YOU TRIED TO FORCE ME OUT AT FIRST -- BUT YOU DID IT, DID YOU NOT?
"Shut up!" Harry cried, tears leaking from his eyes; the tears felt sandy, and they hurt as they escaped. "You made me do that!" He heard Legolas whimper softly.
DO YOU HATE ME? Melkor hissed keenly, a gleaming evil light in his eyes. WHY SHOULD YOU HATE ME? I HAVE ONLY GIVEN YOU WHAT YOU HAVE ALWAYS LONGED FOR. YOU WANTED THE DARK POWER, AND EVERY TIME YOU FELT MY PRESENCE YOU REVELED IN IT, ELSE YOU WOULD HAVE OVERCOME ME.
Harry's eyes widened. "No, I --"
YOU WANTED IT, DID YOU NOT? YOU WANTED AN EXCUSE TO DESTROY, RAPE, KILL, AND YOU WERE GIVEN IT.
"No!"
WHY DID YOU NOT THROW ME OUT?
"God, stop," Harry whispered desperately, pressing his hands over his bleeding ears, trying to block out Melkor's insidious voice weaving into his consciousness.
LOOK AT HIM, Melkor whispered, and the low, caressing tone was soft as the pillow that smothers a babe. Against his will Harry turned his head and looked at Legolas, who was staring at him in a horrified sort of revulsion. The two conflicting desires, to hurt and to comfort, warred so strongly within him that he had to clench his fists at his side to keep from doing one or the other. Blood from a cut stood out achingly sharp on the pale skin of Legolas's neck. WILL HE EVER FORGIVE YOU? WILL IT MATTER IF HE DOES?
"What?" Harry said, his eyes still riveted on Legolas's terrified gaze.
IT IS NOT HIS LOVE YOU WANTED, AS IT IS NOT HIS FORGIVENESS YOU WANT NOW. YOU WANTED HIS BODY. YOU WANTED TO TAKE HIM AGAINST HIS WILL. YOU WANTED TO, AND I ALLOWED YOU THE OPPORTUNITY. DO YOU HATE ME?
"But I didn't mean to! I didn't want to!"
BUT YOU DID. Melkor whispered, eyes flashing. YOU TOOK HIM AND YOU ENJOYED IT. YOU WISH YOU COULD DO IT AGAIN.
Legolas's eyes pleaded with him, red-rimmed from tears; Lolindir lay unconscious beside him. When Harry did not answer, Melkor's lips drew back in a smile.
YES, HE IS BEAUTIFUL. BEAUTIFUL AS THE ELVES WHO SAILED TO THE GRAY HAVENS, LONG AGO. I KNOW OF A WAY YOU MAY HAVE HIM.
"What?" Harry asked softly, his eyes still on Legolas. Legolas jerked when Harry spoke, his blue eyes wide, and at that moment Harry realized that Legolas heard everything Morgoth sent to him.
"Harry, no --"
SURRENDER TO ME, Morgoth said softly, seductively. OPEN YOUR MIND FOR ME. SURRENDER IT. CARRY MY SPIRIT BEYOND THESE WEAK WALLS INTO THE WORLD. I WILL FIND A DIFFERENT VESSEL THERE, AND ONCE I HAVE MADE THE VALAR MY SLAVES, YOU WILL TAKE YOUR PLACE BY MY SIDE. AND YOU MAY KEEP YOUR BEAUTIFUL LITTLE ELF.
"No!" Harry said immediately, his voice surprisingly strong; he turned to face Morgoth, his lips drawn back in a snarl. The dark voice in his mind was silent, and Harry wondered if Morgoth had to concentrate on their conversation too much to keep Harry under thrall. "I won't do that. I won't help you take over."
I WILL NOT LET YOU LEAVE ALIVE. IF I MUST, I WILL SUCK THE MAGIC OUT OF YOU UNTIL YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A WITHERED HUSK, AND THEN I WILL BREAK FREE OF THIS PLACE MYSELF.
And then suddenly something was pushing against his mind, demanding entrance, shoving so forcefully that Harry felt himself caving under the pressure. It was a dark, hurtful presence. Harry felt a barrier in his mind break.
All of the strength suddenly left his body; he collapsed onto the ground, his face bouncing off the rocks, slashing the skin of his cheeks; he could not find the strength to lift a limb. He heard Legolas cry out behind him, and knew the curse was broken; he could no longer hold on to the spell. Arms were on his shoulders, rolling him onto his back. Blue eyes stared into his own.
Harry arched his back in pain. It was if a tube had been pushed into his body and someone was slowly drawing out his strength.
He breathed.
And suddenly he felt a fraction of his strength returning, and he felt Morgoth's startled anger over their -- bond? connection?
He breathed in again and pulled on their link, urging the magic back into his body. But as it rushed back into him, giving him strength, he felt a tiny thread of hatred with it and realized that he could take Morgoth's power from his body, just as Morgoth could take his.
He found Legolas's hand with his own and squeezed, pulling again on the link, breathing in the magic that danced along that link back to his body. Morgoth was roaring angrily in his head, and for a moment, he felt the balance of power tip against him.
But then Legolas was whispering in his ear, and he couldn't understand the words but the voice was so sweet -- he found a final reserve of strength and pulled with all his might, and suddenly it was easy to pull in the magic, as if Morgoth's hold had simply released.
He could not stop.
Panicking as he felt evil flowing into his body along with Morgoth's power, he tried to cut the connection -- but it would not be severed. He panted as the rush of power threatened to knock him unconscious. Unable to contain himself, he flew to his feet; it felt as if his whole being was on fire.
He looked to his left, and Morgoth was crumpled on the ground, his robes covering his face. A black pool of blood surrounded the body.
And then the power stopped. Harry looked at Legolas. The elf suddenly seemed twisted and wretched to him, an outlet for his lust only. He looked with disdain upon the weak elf on the ground who was just stirring to consciousness.
He looked Legolas in the eyes and saw Legolas's mouth part in surprise and fear. Somehow, he knew the words of the Imperius curse were not needed to bend Legolas to his will.
"Kill the spare," he whispered, and heard without shock that his voice was cold and full of power. His darkened vision caught Legolas's fine trembling. The elf's mouth was open as he sought breath.
Do it, he thought.
Legolas cried out in pain and drew the knife from his belt; he slashed it quickly across Lolindir's throat, blood splattering onto his face. Then Legolas dropped the knife in horror.
"Harry," he whispered, falling to his knees. "Harry."
Harry watched in amazement as a fine black mist seeped through his pores into the air. As if a gate had been lifted, he realized what he had just done.
Kill the spare.
Kill the spare.
Kill.
"Oh, God --" Harry screamed, and fell to the ground as the blackness of unconsciousness took him.