Hello, there. Miss me? Yep. I'm late again, but I have good reason. I just returned from working outstation in Penang. Boy, that was fun!

Now back to the story…..

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"Stay here and watch the prison," Keldarion told Gallard, not long after they had seen Movrak storming back into the great house.

"I beg your pardon?"

"I said, wait here. I'll return shortly."

"You are leaving?" The draq frowned in disbelief. "Where do you think you're going?"

The elf responded with a grim smile, "To follow Movrak."

"But that means entering the house!"

"Exactly." Keldarion nodded. "He is returning to his bed, I believe. If I'm lucky, I might be able to catch him alone as he sleeps."

Gallard didn't look too happy about it. "Do you think that's wise? I mean, you could get caught."

"I'll try not to," Keldarion promised. "Look, we won't accomplish anything if we just sit here and wait. After I've confronted Movrak face to face, I might find out what's going on with Legolas and Eldarion down in the prison. Only then can we act to get them both out of there."

"All right. If that's your so-called back-up plan, I understand it perfectly. But the house has guards, Kel. How do you get past them?"

"It won't be too hard. I'll find a way." As he talked, Keldarion patted his sword, making sure that it was still securely strapped to his belt. "Besides, I've been in the house before. Once. I can still remember its layout, and I know where Movrak's room is."

The draq sighed. "I fear to know what you were doing there."

"I was a mercenary then, hired by Movrak to find and kill his runaway slaves."

Gallard could only stare in disbelief, his mouth dropping open. He had guessed that Keldarion had met Movrak before, but its reason had never crossed his mind. "Did…did you find them?"

"The slaves?" The elf nonchalantly shrugged. "Yes, I found them."

"And?" Gallard prodded.

"It's a long story. I'll tell you all about it later, after we've left this entire mess behind us," Keldarion replied. "Now stay here. And keep your eyes on the prison. Give me a sign if anything happens."

"Fine," Gallard agreed, albeit reluctantly. "Be careful, though."

"I'm always careful," Keldarion curtly responded, as if insulted. "I'm not Legolas."

"Oh, right! I completely forgot." Gallard slapped his forehead in mock dismay. "Your brother is one loony elf, but it is you who possesses the mother of all madness!"

Keldarion glared. "You know, one of these days I might cut off your bothersome beak to keep as trophy."

"Try it, elf," the draq shot back. "And this bothersome beak will chew on your pointed ears!"

Keldarion wasted no time in replying. With a parting smirk at Gallard, he whisked himself off, running swiftly on silent feet along the rampart towards the direction of Movrak's big house.

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"Now, are you ready to talk?"

The voice sounded too loud to Legolas' ringing ears. He tried to ignore it, willing himself to fade into oblivion. But the fast throbbing in his head denied him the luxury. He was kept awake by the incessant pain, although just barely.

Ai. He hurt everywhere. He bet that he looked black and blue already. He knew that that his arms were still chained above him, but he couldn't feel them anymore. Hanging like a marionette, his weakening body felt damp and sticky with his own blood and sweat, or maybe some of his urine. To his utter chagrin, he realized that he might have wet himself sometime during the harsh beatings.

"Hey, elf, are you awake?"

That annoying voice came again. Legolas sighed.

Why can't they just leave me alone to my peaceful slumber…?

Someone roughly jerked his chin up, cutting off his thoughts abruptly.

"Wake up, elf! Cease your lollygagging!" Red was yelling, spittle flying. "Good. You have awakened. Now gather your brain and try to understand what I'm saying."

Dizzy and disoriented, Legolas blinked as if to clear his muddled mind. "Unlike yours, my brain is fully intact. Go ahead, human. What do you want?"

"I want you to start answering all my questions," Red said with a sneer. "So, are you ready to talk? Or do you need some more pain to loosen up your tongue?"

Legolas' vision was still fuzzy, but he could recognize the cudgel the man was holding up as a warning. He gulped, and ran his tongue over his dry and cracked lips. "I'd rather have some water, if you don't mind."

"I'll give you water. But first, tell me who you are," Red attempted to bargain.

The elf merely shrugged. "Sorry. No water, no talk."

Red shoved the end of the cudgel into Legolas' belly. "Don't play with me, elf! I've had enough of your stubbornness! Talk now or I'll shove this stick down your throat!"

Between painful coughs, Legolas managed to chuckle. "Go shove that stick up your ass, human. Then I'll talk."

"Why you…!" Red looked murderous. He threw down the cudgel and reached both hands for the elf's neck. "Start talking now, you filthy creature! Or I'll feed your gut to the gutters!"

Legolas could do nothing but squirm and twitch like a drowned fish on dry land as the furious man squeezed his throat. As if from a mile away, he heard someone frantically cried out, "Stop! You're killing him! Stop it!"

One of the other guards rushed forward and pulled Red back. "The slave boy is right. Release him. Movrak won't be happy if you killed the elf before we find out what he is after."

With a frustrated growl, Red swiveled around. His furious gaze clashed with Eldarion's determined one.

"You dare to speak against me?" the man demanded as he strode closer to the cell. He gave the boy a suspicious look. "What matters to you if the elf lives or dies?"

Too late, Eldarion began to realize his mistake. He knew he should have kept his mouth shut. Still, he couldn't just let the man strangle Legolas to death!

Bracing himself against Red's sharp glare, the young prince tried hard not to show his fear. "It…it matters not to me."

"You lie!" Red yelled. "You know the elf, don't you?"

Eldarion bit his lips and shook his head. He refused to look at Legolas lest he gave their secret away.

"Answer me, boy!"

"I don't know him."

Red was not satisfied with the boy's bland answer. He reached for the lock to the cell, remembered that the keys were missing, and went berserk with rage. With a snarl, he banged his massive arm against the bars.

"Where the heck is Jon the smith?" he demanded, turning to his fellow guardsmen. "He should have been down here hours ago and tend to these damn locks!"

"The last time we checked, he was sprawled on his bunk—dead drunk," one of the men responded with a sheepish shrug. "The burning of his shed upset him so much. It would take us a full day to get him sober."

As expected, Red was far from happy in hearing that. He banged at the bars again, cursing fluently at no one in particular. He could already imagined Movrak's displeasure at him for his lack of success in the elf's interrogation. And now they told him the cells couldn't be unlocked until their blacksmith was able to pull himself together after burying his sorrow in the cups?

Damnation!

"You humans are so pathetic," the elf suddenly said with a cynical laughter. "Drunkards, bullies, thieves, braggarts—that's what you are. No better than animals."

All the men stiffened. As one, they turned to glare at the chained prisoner. Red slowly approached the elf.

"What did you say?" the man hissed in dangerous tone.

"You heard me." Legolas chuckled. "You have to agree, you are pathetic. Look at yourself in the mirror and what will you see? A hideous bulbous creature with a pockmarked face that could scare away the fiercest orc on Middle-earth."

Eldarion felt the blood drain off his face. He knew exactly what Legolas was doing. The elf was trying to repair the young prince's mistake, shifting the men's entire attention back to him by deliberately provoking them.

"Of all the ugliest things I've ever seen," Legolas happily added, "you top the list."

Red exploded. His fist flew, hitting the elf square in the jaw. Ignoring the cries of alarm of his fellow colleagues, the man swung again and again until his fists cracked and bled.

"How dare you insult me!" he growled, yanking out a dagger from his boot. He held it up so Legolas could see it. "Recognize this? Yes, it's yours. Now, I'm going to pick at your eyeballs with it unless you start telling me about who you are and what you're doing here!"

His head lolling, blood dribbling from his nose and mouth, Legolas forced himself to mumble, "Screw…you…"

As if waiting for such a response, Red grimly smiled and placed the tip of the dagger dangerously close to Legolas' left eye. "Those silver orbs look nice for amulet. Shall I have the honor…?"

Legolas had a fierce resolve. Yet, resilient as he was, he couldn't help but feel deeply terrified. He could not let these humans damage his eyes. He had been blinded once, and it was not a pleasant experience to repeat.

"No, wait. I…I'll talk," Legolas said, trembling slightly as he felt the sharp tip of the blade against the corner of his eye. He knew how sharp the dagger was. He whetted it himself every day!

"I'll tell you everything. Just get the blade out of my face," the elf added, praying that Red would do as he was told.

"Fine, then." Red grinned with pleasure and lowered the dagger. "Now, talk!"

Glancing left and right, as if looking for any eavesdroppers, Legolas leaned over—as close as he could—towards Red. He then softly whispered, "It's not a good idea to let these men hear us."

Red instantly jerked away. He gave the elf a suspicious gaze. "What are you implying at, you stupid beast? Just cut the nonsense and out with your name!"

"My name is for Movrak's ears only," Legolas hissed back. "And so is the nature of my mission here."

"I don't trust you."

"Feel what you like. But if Movrak's personal secret leaks out…"

"What secret are you talking about?"

With a phony sigh, Legolas explained, "I have news…about his young son."

"You're lying!" Red yelled incredulously. "Movrak doesn't have a son!'

Legolas snorted. "You're sure about that?"

For once, the man lost all bluster. He blinked in confusion, as his comrades behind him whispered excitedly among themselves. None of them knew Movrak enough to determine whether the elf was lying or speaking the truth.

"I'm ready to talk, but only to Movrak. So go find him and bring him down here!" the elf spoke again, curtly this time. All trace of submissive was gone from his voice and manner, showing the humans that this was no ordinary elf they were dealing with.

Clearly taken aback by Legolas' bold demand, the men glanced uncertainly at one another.

"Are you going to do what he says?" one of them asked Red.

"Absolutely not! I take no orders from an elf!" the head guardsman snarled at his colleague. Turning back to Legolas, he said, "You are Lord Movrak's prisoner. He won't enjoy coming down here to bow to your request. Instead, you will go up to the house to see him."

The man was smiling, as if proud to come out with a smart solution.

"I don't think I can stand, let alone make my way up the stairs. I'll be rendered senseless before I even reach the house," Legolas complained of his frailty.

"That's your problem," Red said with a sneer. "If seeing Lord Movrak will make you talk, we will drag you by the hair to him if we have to!"

At Red's next command, the men released the elf from his chains. The moment he was free from his bounds, Legolas dropped to the floor with a low moan. He thought of attacking his jailers, but he just couldn't make his limbs to move. His legs felt too weak to hold him up, while pinpoint needles burst in his arms as blood rushed through them once more. Ignoring the pounding of his brain and the slicing pain in his tummy, he pushed himself onto all fours in his attempt to rise, but instantly froze as violent nausea swept all over him in one big rush.

Don't get sick, don't get sick, don't get sick…

Legolas repeated the words in his head like a mantra, refusing to suffer another disgrace on top of everything else. Being caught and kept by the humans was humiliated enough. Puking in front of them would be an absolute disaster.

"Move it, elf!" Red demanded with a savage swipe to the back of Legolas' head. "You have tarried long enough. Come on, start walking!"

"I'm trying! Now stop hitting me or I'll throw up all over your precious boots!" Legolas shouted back in warning, sending the man a killing glare. Red hastily took a step back as he eyed the elf with disgust. Legolas would have laughed out loud at the man's expression if his strength permitted it.

Slowly, he managed to stand on his feet, albeit wobbly. The guardsmen quickly flanked the elf, clutching firmly at his arms and shoulders to keep him restrained, while another guard leveled a loaded crossbow at his spine. To struggle would only prove suicidal.

"Don't try anything stupid," Red warned him as they started moving.

"Like I know what that word means," Legolas muttered, concentrating hard on his feet as he limped forward. He leaned heavily against the two men for support. The floor felt terribly uneven, and his injured calf only made things worse. The arrow wound still throbbed although it had already ceased bleeding. He would have a grand fun time tugging out the arrowhead afterwards.

If he was still alive by then.

As they ambled past Eldarion's cell, Legolas didn't even spare the young prince a glance. But after several yards before he disappeared through the doorway, the elf suddenly cried out to the ceiling, "Use the keys, Darion! Find Kel and Gallard! USE THE KEYS AND RUN FOR IT!"

"Shut up, elf!" Red roared and clouted Legolas' head. He hated it when the elf spoke in that elven tongue that nobody there understood. "Are you mad? What were you saying? Who were you yelling at?"

Legolas emitted a wobbled grin. "Now which is it, human? Do you really want me to answer that, or do you want me to shut up?"

Red didn't answer. But he looked as if he might kill the elf there and then!

Back at the cell, Eldarion was gripping the bars in his fists as the guardsmen went off with his beloved friend between them. He stared stupidly at the empty doorway, completely speechless. Stunned.

Use the keys?

Find Kel and Gallard? What did he mean…?

Eldarion's eyes widened when comprehension dawned

KEL AND GALLARD! Are they here? Of course, they are! Legolas would not act alone! He can be crazy sometimes, but not that crazy. Oh, Valar. What should I do? Should I wait? But Legolas told me to find them. Ai Elbereth give me wisdom…

Eldarion's brain ran a mile a minute as he took stock of the situation. His entire body trembled with excitement as flare of hope began to burn in his chest. He realized that Legolas had just provided him the means to escape, to leave this dreadful place, to return home to his family, to resume his duty as prince and heir. This was his only chance for freedom.

But what exactly am I supposed to do now?

He then recalled Legolas' words. Use the keys, the elf had said.

Giving no heed to his cellmate's curious gaze, Eldarion retreated into a corner before he slipped his hand down the back of his pants and fished out the heavy set of keys.

"What are you going to do with those?" the other boy timidly asked.

Eldarion flashed him an annoyed look. "Keep your voice down! Do you want to leave this place or don't you?"

"I do," the little boy nodded vehemently.

"Then help me."

"I will. How can I help?"

Eldarion bit his lower lip as he pondered. He looked down at the keys, wondering if one of them could unlock the hated manacles around his wrists and ankles.

"I want you to be my eyes and ears," Eldarion said, already jamming the keys randomly into the small hole on his wrists-manacle. "Watch the doorway and warn me if any of the guards return."

The slave boy blinked, and then stared in amazement when Eldarion's manacle popped open. "What…what do you intend to do?"

The crown prince of Gondor looked up, grinning with barely suppressed joy and triumph. "I'm going to set us all free."

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Keldarion was cursing his luck—or rather, the lack of it. He couldn't possibly get into Movrak's private chamber without alerting—or killing—anyone because two guardsmen stood flanking the doorway.

Indeed, the elf was already inside the merchant's great home. At present, the elven prince was hiding—clinging to the rafters like a giant spider, more accurately—in a niche just below a large onion-shaped dome that overlooked Movrak's door. He had been there for what seemed like hours, and his patience was quickly growing thin.

Earlier, Keldarion had had no trouble entering the house. From the rampart, he had leaped across and onto the roof before scaling down the wall and slipping through a window. Easily done, like he had done a hundred times before during his mercenary days.

Searching for Movrak's room cost him some time, though. The merchant had changed some of the house structure, which caused Keldarion to retrace his steps after he had gotten confused in the maze of rafters and beams. Guardsmen and servants occasionally walked below him through the hallways but none of them noticed the lone elf, for he moved swiftly and silently, always keeping himself glued to the shadows. Besides, the humans fixed their eyes straight forward. They never bothered looking up.

Then everything came to a hitch when he finally found Movrak's room.

"Come on. Move away from there!" Keldarion hissed through gritted teeth in frustration, but the two men still dutifully guarded their master's closed door. The excitement earlier in the evening might have provoked Movrak to install extra security inside his house, for these guardsmen were armed with loaded crossbows. They looked very alert, as if expecting any intruder. Each man also carried a small horn tied to his belt. A short blow on it would bring the rest of the household to come running. It was definitely not a scene Keldarion wished to stir and encounter.

"Son of a warg! Don't these two need to go piss or something?" he muttered to himself as he rubbed a hand down his face. In other circumstances, he would have had no qualm to just leap down and slay the two guardsmen with his sword. But two important things were at stake here—silly Eldarion and sillier Legolas. As long as those two brats' fate was unknown, Keldarion had to stay invisible.

Keldarion sighed for the umpteenth time when two more guardsmen appeared. But he sat still when he saw them stopped to converse with the first two guards, their voices rising in their excitement.

It didn't need a smart person to figure out that something was amiss.

Now what is going on?

Keldarion watched, bewildered, when one of the men pounded hastily on the door. "Lord Movrak! Awake! The elf is ready to talk!"

This is definitely not good, Keldarion thought, his own heart racing like mad inside his breast. The elf? That would mean Legolas, and he is ready to talk. Talk about what, exactly? And what had they done to him that he has agreed to do so?

It took another round of door-pounding a full minute later when Movrak finally flung open his door. Wrapped in his night shift with his night cap askew, he glowered at his guardsmen in pure displeasure. "This had better be good, or else…"

"The elf, my lord," one of the men explained, "he is ready to talk."

"So you have found out who he is?"

"No. He hasn't talked yet, but he will, my lord."

Movrak's frown grew darker. "You disturb my sleep just to tell me this?"

"Uh…forgive me, my lord. We came to inform you this b…because the elf only wants to speak with you."

The merchant looked puzzled. "He only wants to speak with me?"

"That's what he said." The guardsman looked uneasily at his colleagues before continuing, "The elf said he…uh…he knows about…er…"

"Out with it, man! I don't have all night to listen to you blubbering like an idiot!" Movrak snapped with impatience.

"The elf knows about your son, my lord!" the guardsman blurted, and quickly looked away from the awful expression that rapidly appeared on the merchant's face.

Movrak's mouth was hanging opened. His eyes were huge.

"He knows about WHAT!" he shrieked, turning red and white and then red again. "But I don't have a…!"

Taking a deep lungful of breath, Movrak gathered his wits before asking, "Where is the lying creature? Still down in the prison?"

"We have brought him here, my lord. He now waits for you in the common hall."

Movrak nodded. He vanished swiftly into his chamber before re-appearing, this time wearing a night robe and sans the night cap. "Take me to him."

Up in the rafters, Keldarion was struck dumb with amazement. Movrak's son? Where in Arda did Legolas come out with that idea? What is the brat up to?

Shaking his head in wonder, the elf made a move to follow as the men hurriedly walked away.

TBC…

A/N : By the way, if some of you are wondering why I'm not responding to any of the reviews lately, please be assured that I never intended to ignore them all. I cherish them greatly and feel honored to receive such a huge support. I truly want to answer all the questions, but I think I'd better e-mail them to you directly. The ffnet board has put up some rules, which include the one where the authors should not put other content except for the story itself. I've also found out that some of the authors have already been punished for doing so (e.g replying to reviewers' question and such).

If you have any questions for me, just give me you e-mail address and I'll try to make a quick reply.

See ya next chapta!