Reflections on battles and rings
For those who lived within the shelter of the Elven king's halls the evening meal was a communal one. In spring and summer fewer of their people lived here, even in the dangerous times, and meals were less likely to be eaten in doors or as formally. Feasts would be held beneath the stars during clement weather with his father riding out to share in the merry making of the various clans, meals often eaten by campfires beneath the trees. Or he would ride further afield to the villages scattered across the flat lands beside the river, north towards the Lonely Mountain and east towards the Lake. In these villages lived many of the wider kin of the Woodland elves who also called Thranduil their king.
But now in the depths of winter many from the flat lands and the settlements beside the forest river sought shelter here. It was the only time that this fortress palace felt fully populated, and feeding them all was a large undertaking tackled with an almost military precision. Come sundown fires would be lit in the raised niches set the length of each wall of the Great Hall, the smoke escaping through channels cut into the rock, and the scent of burning wood and herbs would perfume the air of the huge chamber. Here any elf who wished to do so would gather to chatter and tell stories and share the news of the day; and in the process eat and drink their fill. Seating was arranged at large refectory tables where platters of food and jugs of wine were provided as required. For a part of the eventime the King would be seated at the head of a large table on the dais at the top of the vast room surrounded by his advisors and personal guards, and any notables that might be visiting. To Thranduil's right was his son's chair, though when there was no one to entertain Legolas would often spend little time in it preferring to seat himself with those of the guard he had been out in the forest with that day. The king had long ago made it clear that he approved of such arrangements.
Once the king had eaten what he wished a platter of nuts would be placed in front of him as a signal that any elf in the hall could approach. This they did for many reasons from a request for formal audience to introducing a new child of the Realm. His father was always very patient with such encounters, though his servants were not always as forbearing. These claims upon his time only ended when he signalled for the music to begin. Harps and flutes would be played, and songs sung, sometimes dances would spring up, reels and rounds passed down across the centuries. It was usually then that the king would leave the hall and wend his way to his own quarters to read or study letters from the world beyond their boundary. The duties of the king of such a large realm as Mirkwood were often heavy and Thranduil allowed himself very few hours of leisure during the day. Only at starlight would he seek solitude or the company of those he counted as friend or family
But tonight the king's chair in the hall would be empty, instead he was breaking bread in his private quarters and his only company was to be his son. Elves are not so different from men or dwarves that they are above a little gossip when events justify it and rumour had already spread throughout the halls that Legolas had returned, and there wasn't an elf present that lacked an opinion on the matter. Many in the great hall that night were disappointed that they would not witness the encounter between the two for the stories about the king's reaction to his son's return had already encompassed threats of banishment and execution as well as tearful embraces and other things as unlikely, and as the wine flowed rumour reached for ever higher levels of improbable drama.
As for the two concerned, neither expected their meal to be a comfortable one for they knew there was much to say, including things that both hoped would never be broached again once the new dawn broke. The only witness to any part of their conversation was Galion, the king's butler, and he would repeat nothing of what he heard, little though that was.
Legolas had arrived first, having no need to change his clothes. He took his accustomed chair beside the fire and looked around him at familiar things he had feared never to see again. He knew this room well and loved it, for here Thranduil was only ever his father, never his king, and it had played host to many of his happiest memories. Here they celebrated family events, played games of strategy and chance, spoke of books and music, and shared news of the days' events and of those they knew. Here his father had taught him to play the lute, schooled him through the etiquette of banquets and other diplomatic hospitality and helped him though his first stumbling attempts at formal dance. On the balcony at the end of the room, looking out over the tops of the great wood they had shared their last words of accord before he had set out to find…. her.
But there was time enough to think of that later. Before the sun rose he must know how things stood, whether he could remain and what the price of him doing so might be. But for this brief moment he wanted only to lose himself in the comfort of the past and recall better times.
He rose and crossed to a small table beside the door where Galion had set a flagon and two drinking bowls, the wine within the flagon was deep red and headily scented, bringing with it the spirit of the far away place where the vines had grown. For a moment he rejoiced in its song for it filled the void left by the silence of his people and his forest, then he sighed and poured himself a glass, shunning the fire and taking it to the balcony. He stared out into the night, at the veil of snowflakes that now hovered above the trees, and listened to the song of the wind as it formed a duet with the fire. Legolas laid his head back against the pillar and let memory overtake him.
How long he stood there he could not say, nor what he thought about in that time. But he only returned to the present when he felt a hand upon his shoulder and he turned and looked up into his fathers face.
As was his custom here Thranduil had dispensed with his crown and was dressed as informally as his rank ever permitted. He had not resumed his coat and his white silken shirt was unlaced and visible beneath one of his favourite robes, on his feet he wore soft shoes much like Legolas's own. Rings were once again upon his fingers and in his right hand he held the oaken staff of his lordship, carved with the ancient runes of his Sindar line, sigils of his Silvan people and his oaths of kingship given at the time of his crowning. He passed beside Legolas and placed the staff in its accustomed place beneath the green and gold banner of the king that hung upon the far wall. Then he crossed to the wine table and poured himself a cup of wine before sinking into his chair beside the fire.
Legolas left his place beside the balcony and crossed to join him, resuming his own chair in silence. For a moment that silence stretched between them as both stared at the flames and sipped their wine. Finally Legolas broke the silence.
"It looks as if this winter has been a hard one, but the story on the road was that since the Councils cleansing of Dol Guldor the creatures of dark magic are withdrawing."~}
His father nodded.
"It has and they are. Though whether their disappearance is to be considered permanent is less clear, for I doubt that fortress has returned to the light. But it is true that none of the Necromancers creatures have been seen this side of the mountains for three circles of the seasons, and the scouts I have sent further south have encountered none."
"How far south have your scouts ventured?"
Thranduil sighed slightly.
"Not so far yet as to be sure that there are no nests close enough that they might send forth new colonies to plague us. We must remain cautious for it seems unlikely that the spirit of darkness would leave no watchers behind. Even if that were to prove the case the history of that fell place cannot be washed away in so brief a time. However there are some signs that forest is recovering, only time will tell how much of what was done can be undone."
Legolas stayed silent for a moment, knowing that to probe further would betray his loss of the forest's voice, but there was no point in trying to hide the silence that so distressed him for his father would soon discover it. Better he knew it now.
"What are your feelings on the matter?" Grief entered his voice despite his best efforts to prevent it." I can no longer hear the voice of the forest, nor know whether its pain has reduced."
A look of sorrow passed across Thranduil's face but it was fleeting and he responded without hesitation.
"The darkness weighs less heavily and the song of the wood grows clearer; and it speaks more of life and joy than in recent times. But as yet it remains muted and I cannot hear or see beyond the mountains. The lament of death and pain remains strong in the forest further south I think. When spring returns you may lead a company across the mountains and better judge the matter for me."
Legolas looked across at his father in surprise but Thranduil was still staring into the fire. He drew a deep breath and prepared to broach the matters that had occupied his thoughts every day since his leaving, but he was thwarted by the door opening and Galion's entrance with a tureen and a platter of bread.
Hearing his slight huff of disappointment Thranduil looked towards his son and smiled slightly at the frustration in his face. Legolas had never been one to cope with set backs easily and matters clearly weighed heavily on him; yet he must know that the die was cast many moons ago and that one more small delay would not change things nor alter events after he had left. How he would adjust to the consequences of those events remained to be seen. He leant back in his chair and looked down at the seal of the woodland king upon his finger as the butler bustled about setting the table and moving the jug of wine, knowing that it would be a kindness to distract his beleaguered son but unsure of what to say, at the moment it seemed there was no safe topic of conversation between them. Finally, as the butler made no move to hurry in his tasks, he settled on matters they were both already aware of.
"Lord Elrond's letters were most informative, did he discuss the contents with you at all?" he said calmly tracing the outline of his royal crest on the rings surface with one finger as he spoke.
Legolas shook his head making clear effort to curb his impatience.
"Only a very little. His concern was that you would consider the council to have been negligent in their dealing with matter of Dol Gulder, given what they found to be there. He seemed worried that you might feel some anger at the trouble our people have had to endure as a result of it."
Thranduil smiled slightly.
"Yes, so his letters say, and well he might! But I acquit him of any deliberate negligence or ill will towards us; we have known each other too long for such doubts. There are those amongst the Noldar who view the communion between Sindar and Silvan with disfavour, but they are few these days and I do not think they would find a haven in Rivendell. Yet it is clear that he fears tension between us, worse perhaps, something more than just my poor opinion."
He sipped his wine and stared towards the fire again as if seeing the letters there.
"Which suggests that he, too, does not think the matter to be ended; I cannot help but feel that we will all pay dearly for the council's views on the matter in the past, "he said eventually.
Legolas looked across at him with raised brows but his father continued to stare into the flames as if seeing something more than firelight, but it was clear from the tightness about his mouth and the frown between his eyes that the image he saw was not a pleasant one. Eventually his eyes flickered up and he cast a quick look toward the butler now laying bowls and spoons on the dining table.
"Do you agree?" Legolas asked quietly.
Thranduil sent his son a warning look and returned to his fire watching, the light of the flames set golden sparks flaring in the blue depths of his eyes, making the nature of his expression hard to read. When he spoke again his voice was low and expressionless.
"It is true that I have long wondered about the Necromancer and his dark arts. I have been concerned that he might in some way wake the dread spirits of that place from their sleep, though I never thought that it would be by intent or ability, more that chance or some other dark power would intervene. The spells that bind that evil place are old and terrible, and their power is such that it should not be disturbed if it can be avoided, on that I have always agreed with the council."
He shrugged slightly.
"Nor did his power seem so great; and the watch keep upon it from Lothlorien seemed precaution enough. The spiders and other foul things that turned Greenwood to Mirkwood were not the stuff of the darkness of old, but the chance that it might grow has never been far from the thoughts of any who knew that older darkness. While the evil showed little sign of growing and the Necromancer's creatures did not spread beyond the forest caution seemed best, only when the spiders skirted the mountains and followed us north did I begin to wonder if the councils' guidance was to be relied upon, or if they were deceived in their beliefs."
He fell silent as he sipped his wine again his thoughts still apparently somewhere other than this room.
"Did you not seek to pursue the matter further?" Legolas asked eventually.
His father stirred himself from his reverie and nodded to Galion who was placing the jug of wine upon the table, the butler bowed and left the room.
Now some of Thranduil's caution left him and he chose his words less carefully.
"No, as I said it was agreed that none would disturb the fortress at Dol Guldor and as far as I'm aware the pledge has been adhered to by all parties. Though sometimes I have thought them too unwilling to see the danger for what it was."
He frowned.
"I am still unsure as to what caused them to act when they did and Elrond has never been explicit as to the matter. Celeborn may have sent scouts to the edge of the southern wood, I had agreed to him doing as much when I moved our people north, for Lothlorien is much closer to the evil place than we these days. Perhaps he encountered something there or perhaps their watch revealed some change in the fortress. But why they acted then is still unclear to me, for the evil has not spread, neither west, south nor east, only north and we have borne the brunt of the darkness. But if Celeborn, or Elrond for that matter, learned something new neither have said anything of it."
Legolas felt a surge of surprise. How much had been happening within his realm that he had known nothing of?
"Are you in contact with him on the matter then?"
Thranduil looked at him in surprise.
"Celeborn? Yes of course, we have communication on many things, the Lady too on those matters closest to her. All those who have history in the fight against the darkness know that we must remain vigilant, and we share such information as we have. Not just the eleven lords, but the sons of men too. The dwarves have been less forthcoming but then they no longer have any Halls within the lands beside Dol Guldor and few cross the Brownlands so I doubt they have had reason to visit there."
Thranduil rose from his chair and crossed to the table indicating that his son should follow him. Removing the lid from the tureen he filled a bowl with thick soup and placed it in front of Legolas before filling his own.
"So the Necromancer is gone." Legolas broke bread noting with idle pleasure that it was as warn and soft as any he had eaten since he left these halls.
Thranduil swallowed a spoonful of soup and cast his son a serious look.\
"Within this room and between us two there needs to be no pretence or did Elrond not tell you what they found when they finally took action?"
Legolas nodded.
"I had already heard rumours and he confirmed what I judged to be the case. The Necromancer was the spirit of Sauron returned."
Thranduil's eyes skipped past his son to the darkness outside and the shadow of the great trees.
"Yes, the old darkness returned." He said softly. "But weak, as yet, and still wishing to hide."
"Elrond seemed to suggest that you were not surprised at this."
The king reached for the bread and continued to stare out to the forest as he broke it his eyes slightly narrowed as he replied.
"That Sauron was not destroyed? No, that does not surprise me I have long expected that it would be the case."
"Why?"
Thranduil smiled a slight and bitter smile.
"Such evil is hard to destroy; all of us who stood at the gates of Mordor know that for we lost much that was good and loved, thrown against the wall that is the love of power and darkness. It only takes a shard, a fragment, to remain in the heart of one and it will flower again like a blasted oak when spring returns. Making sure each shard is removed can be hard and may require harsh action, which those who have fought and suffered together are often unwilling to take. Kindness and the wish to give comfort can lead us to unwise acts and so grant the evil its chance to return."
Legolas frowned.
"Was it the case here?"
He nodded.
"Yes, Isildur should not have been permitted to take and keep the ring, it should have been destroyed then and all possibility of its malign influence removed. Elrond should have ensured that it was so, for without it even Sauron cannot regain what the evil lost that day. But…" he spooned more soup, "he did take it, and paid a high price for doing so. Yet the price may not be paid in full for Sauron knows that it remains and with it the possibility of him regaining the power he desires if he can but find it"
A sense of dread took hold of Legolas.
"You believe that the evil will flower again?"
His father nodded.
"Yes, I can see no other outcome of that seed sown before Mordor. Certainly not now for Sauron was not destroyed at Dol Guldor he merely departed the fortress and fled east and there he will wait and grow his strength. He will be patient; he will wait until the Ring emerges from its hiding place again."
Thranduil fell silent as the door opened and Galion returned to clear their plates and bring the next course. He sent Legolas another warning look and changed the course of their conversation.
"Bard has chosen to rebuild Dale, though I would have thought the new city on the lake was large enough for his people. But it their choice and with Dain now ensconced in the mountain more people may move there from further east."
Legolas felt the tension within him start to grow at the mention of the name and place but he drew a deep breath and turning his mind away from that day and towards some of the talk he had heard upon the road.
"I have heard that there are problems in the eastern lands, "
His father frowned slightly.
"So it seems but for the moment it is unclear whether it is anything more than the unrest that there has been ever since the defeat of Sauron. There were many men in the east that had allied with Sauron in the hope of being granted power by him. Their bitterness at his defeat has never truly passed, no more has their desire for wealth and power."
"The death of Smaug may make for change. As you say the people of Dale can rebuild and improve their defences."
Conversation had taken them to a question Legolas had long wished to ask his father, and he had spent many dark times on the road debating, if only to avoid other thoughts, never being satisfied with the possible answers. Now it seemed he might ask without offence, not even the butler's presence need by a constraint.
"I have wondered about that. Why did you take so large an army to the Lonely Mountain if you did not believe the Orc armies to be there?"
Thranduil leaned back slightly to allow Galion to set a plate of roast meats before him and the butlers shadow prevented Legolas from reading his fathers first reaction to the question. By the time the butler moved to collect a dish of roasted vegetables his father's face was as calm and expressionless as usual.
"Not in the anticipation of war, mare's the pity as events turned out. Had I believed that we would face the things we did that day I would have had the company more heavily armoured with more on horse and fewer on foot."
"Then why?"
His father smiled slightly.
"What was your first thought when you heard the dragon was dead?"
Legolas frowned as he struggled to recall, he had put much effort into not remembering and now some details were hazy. Then it came to him, a snippet of conversation with the man Bard beside the lake. Yes of course.
"What might come to the mountain with the dragon gone." He smiled down at the plate of meat his father handed to him. "What it might mean for our security."
Thranduil nodded and started to help himself to vegetables indicating that Galion might leave them again. He waited until he heard the door close before replying.
"Yes, and you were right to fear it. Dangerous though Smaug was his presence prevented other threats from stealing upon us, as did the King under the Mountain before Smaug came. If the dragon was dead then the rumours of the hoard would bring many dangers, those from the east that we just spoke of, as well as other nationless men and Orc. I would prefer to choose my neighbours in times such as this, if I may, or at least have some confidence in their ability, and so the situation required remedy. To occupy the mountain seemed the least dangerous option, provided it was done quickly."
Legolas cast his mind back to that time again, feeling the familiar sense of the black imp of despair stirring. He pushed it away and looked towards his father.
"You did not trust Oakenshield or think that he might have survived?"
"No I did not, on both counts. But my view of the dwarf mattered little at the time, for my informants told me that a man of Laketown had killed Smaug, which seemed to suggest that the dwarves were dead. If the dragon had left the mountain they must have woken it, which seemed to imply certain death given the temper of dragons. I did think that it might have been better for all if he had remained my prisoner, or if he had accepted my help in gaining his goal. But the dwarf had all the worst flaws of his grandfather, arrogance and a tendency to see and hear only what he wished. We spoke little but in what was said it was clear he had no understanding of anything other than his own desires,"
He poured himself more wine.
"But even had some survived, and I considered that most would have perished, how could they and the men of the lake hold the mountain? Such a beacon to evil and greed I could not allow so close to our borders."
Sorrow drifted across his face and shone in his eyes.
"But I did not consider an army of Orc to be likely to be at hand, and I went armed for a minor skirmish and for holding the mountain, not a battle on the open plain, or street fighting in Dale. Many died as a result. I swore I would never make my fathers mistake, and yet in the end the result was the same."
He looked across at his son, unshed tears softening the brilliance of his eyes,
"I can never explain even to you the horror I felt when I saw those creatures emerge and knew that some part of the past would be played out again. That once again I would have to take my dead home. Had I marched straight to the mountain as I had first intended, not turned aside to enter Dale and succour the people of the lake, would it have been different, would fewer have died or more? I do not know and never can. I did what seemed best for all but that is scant comfort to those who had to bury the loved ones they should have lived beside for centuries to come."
A sense of surprise held Legolas silent, in all the days of his wandering he had never wondered what wounds his father had brought away from the battle, other than those his son had inflicted. Now the familiar sense of shame bloomed again and he stared down at his plate.
"I would relieve you that burden if I could," he said very softly, "but you are right to say that I do not understand."
He saw his father's look of horror and the hand reached out in a mix of protest and reassurance and hurried on.
"I mean that as no criticism either of you or even myself. But it is the truth. That day in Dale I learned something I had never thought of before, that I am not a warrior as you are a warrior, or as your guard are, or as any of those who fought in the battles of the past can claim to be. I have defended our realm since I was old enough to so but I have never seen battle, nor death or responsibility on that scale. Our losses to the spiders have been very few for we can strike them from a distance. I am good with the bow and knife, fast and sure, and I can deal with most assailants hand to hand, but that was something I could never imagine. I cannot help but wonder if that is why I chose…"
His words tailed away as his father gripped his hand.
"Do not think that! It is not true. You risked your life against the evil and that is all I or any other could ask of you. This is a different age and the battles have been no less important for being the smaller. There is no glory in battle Legolas, whatever the songs and stories may say. There is no honour in pointless death. I laid a sword upon Oakenshield's tomb, it will be the stuff of legend, but it will not console his sister for the loss of her brother and children. Only the knowledge of an evil defeated may do that. Battle is something we must do when it is thrust upon us, but never think yourself the less for having not been forced to war. If I could spare you what I have known then I would spend all the gold in that mountain and more."
Legolas met his father's eyes with a rueful smile.
"But I may yet need to be such a warrior, for you do not think it is ended. I saw the armoury, the stockpiles you are storing up. It is clear that you believe that war is coming, but which war? With Sauron, with the easterlings or some other horror you have not mentioned?"
Thranduil sighed and rose from the table leaving his meal barely touched, he took his cup of wine and crossed once more to the fire and stared down into its yellow depths.
"Yes I believe that war is coming, "his voice was low and soft."I have felt the world turn towards the darkness again even as the shadow of Dol Gulder retreats, and I do not believe that turn can be frustrated. As for whom? I have little doubt that Sauron will be the hub of it, and that this will be the last and defining battle with that black spirit, but I fear that it will draw in many other shadows from past hurts and bitterness too."
He sighed then smiled.
"We have a little time yet, a small space of peace in which to regroup and prepare. A window of light and pleasure before what I fear may be a time of great pain and darkness."
"But if Sauron does not find the ring." Legolas protested.
His father nodded.
"I know, in that case we may have a longer time of peace. Yet I do not think that will prove to be the case."
"Why?"
Thranduil looked up and his blue eyes were wide and lost in memory.
"Because I have been close to the ring before; I have felt its presence and the way it twists the world, and I know that I have been close to it again far more recently. I am nearly sure that I have felt its calling within these halls and yet it makes no sense. But if what I fear is correct then it is no longer truly lost and it can only be a matter of time before Sauron, in his growing strength, senses its presence."
A surge of horror and foreboding spread though Legolas and he took a gulp of wine while he thought about that. Finally he drew a deep breath and asked.
"When? When did you think you felt it?"
Thranduil did not look at him and the far away light remained in his eyes.
"When Thorin Oakenshield and his company was brought here, then again at Dale. Though it is possible that I was mistaken."
Legolas felt a sinking in his stomach, common enough when he recalled those events but this time added to by the fear that more damage might yet be caused by his action.
"But you do not think you were mistaken. You think the dwarves had it, was it taken from them at Ravenhill?"
'Please don't let that be case' he thought.
"Or does Dain have it now?"
The shimmer of the king's pale gold hair betrayed the slight shake of his head.
"No. None of Oakenshield's company had it, of that I am certain. But I am nearly sure that it was here."
"Nearly?"
"Were it not for the unlikleyness of it I would be sure."
Legolas felt the tension leave him, the gap filled quickly by curiosity.
"If not a dwarf then whom?"
A slight smile drifted across Thranduil's face.
"By good fortune I think that it has acquired a most unusual holder, for none can own the ring, one unlike those that it has known before and that it may not be able to easily seduce to its will, at least not yet. But in time… who can say?"
Legolas felt a wave of frustration run through him.
"Why did you not take it from this ring carrier?"
Thranduil's eyes seemed to glow with an even deeper blue as he turned towards him.
"And do what with it? I have no desire to own it. I have seen how much a smaller evil could pollute our realm, would you have me bring a greater darkness upon it? Not even Mithrandir could hold that ring in safety, no elf who has seen its' power would want it near them."
He turned away and looked out towards the forest again.
"No, I let it pass beyond our lands unremarked. It may rest where it is in obscurity, at least while Sauron remains weak. But eventually no hiding place will be secure or remote enough to hide it and Sauron will realise where it must be. Then will war come."
"Does Lord Elrond agree with you on this?"
Thranduil's eyes turned back to his son and focussed on him for the first time since they spoke of the ring.
"We have not discussed it; such matters cannot be trusted to letters and there has been no reason for us to meet. Yet we must meet. Lord Celeborn and the Lady too. But we have a little time yet, we must contrive some reason that could attract no comment."
Another thrill of fear washed through Legolas.
"You think us watched then?"
His father smiled.
"I know we are. Orc do not harry our borders for no reason Legolas. The spiders wandered the forest with a purpose and Dol Guldor was not built for pleasure."
"Why?"
"The servants of the darkness watch their master's enemies, it has always been so, what else would you expect?"
"Lord Elrond spoke of the dwarves distrust of you because of your ability to raise an army, is that why you think us watched?"
Thranduil inclined his head.
"Yes, in part, just as Lothlorien and Gondor will be watched and the lands of the Riders. If the evil gains strength and returns it will be from the old enemies that he expects the opposition to come."
"So you build a new army with new weapons." Legolas said softly.
His father looked at him with pain in his eyes.
"If war comes and we must do battle once more I will not sacrifice their lives lightly Legolas. I will not ask they surrender the immortality that is their birthright carelessly. If I must send them to fight I will not send them poorly armoured or lightly armed. I will not bring home an army so destroyed again. This time I will be prepared."
