A/N

Ok, Chapter 8! Yes, Aragorn is back in this chapter, (a little bit) Elrond fully figures out what is going on here, and Elrohir has a mysterious injury. I honestly have no idea how many chapters this story is going to have, but I am pretty sure it is over halfway! Hope you enjoy it…

Chapter 8

Elrond slowly worked his bound wrists, hoping to loosen the tight cords that were cutting off his circulation. He had recovered quite a bit from his head injury, but he carefully kept that fact hidden from the men around him. He wasn't about to give them any more power over him than they already did.

Only one fact kept him from trying to escape, and that was the assumption that he was being taken to Estel. It had been several days since his foster son had gone missing, and Elrond was severely worried about what state he might find him in, but all the same, desperate to see him. He wasn't going to take any chances, and he would be damned if he ruined the one chance he had of finding his son.

Even without anyone holding the reins, the horse Elrond was sitting on trotted dutifully forward, keeping pace with the other steeds. Elrond experimentally nudged the horse with his boots, seeing if he had any control over the horse whatsoever. Nothing. The horse just snorted at him and continued following the man up ahead.

The man that had captured him earlier, Commander Donngal, rode past him. The Lord of Imladris hastily tried to look nonchalant, with an dazed expression on his face and vacant, staring eyes, keeping his quick recovery hidden from him.

Keeping his appearance indifferent, he offhandedly tried to eavesdrop on the heated exchange between the men in front of him.

"I assume you have removed all trace of our little battle here, Captain Lucien. If those three elves from earlier catch up with us, or cause any trouble, I can assure you that Morcion will be the first to know. If we lose this elf, I will see to it personally that your family is dead before the end of the season. Am I clear, Captain?" Donngal drawled.

Captain Lucien clenched his jaw in silent fury. "Yes, Commander," he said bitterly, averting his eyes and keeping his true feelings concealed.

Lucien closed his eyes in anguish. His family, his wife and son, were still in Rhûn. As far as he knew, Commander Donngal had only accepted Lord Morcion's request for help for some sort of payment in return. And he, Lucien, had only travelled to Rivendell out of duty for his role of Captain. He had only known the dark-haired elf, Morcion, for a month, but he disliked him immensely.

Rhûn was a harsh land. The strong and fearless were respected, and unfortunately so were the heartless. People like Donngal, like Morcion, who relished the pain of others, were accepted by the king. Those who were weak were diminished, and those who failed the King were executed without a second chance. Lucien endured his homeland, and what tasks his title brought him, but only for the sake of his family. For the people who were worth something in that unforgiving land, who meant something.

Feeling eyes on the back of his head, Lucien swivelled in his saddle. The elf they had captured, Lord Elrond, was looking right at him, a dazed expression on his bruised face. But the Captain saw through this façade. The elf's grey eyes were sharp and intent, and their intelligent focus was directed straight at him and Commander Donngal.

Lucien stared back at Elrond, and harsh blue eyes met a smouldering grey. The Captain wondered if the elf's piercing gaze had a deeper meaning, or a motive behind it. Tales and rumours of elves circled Rhûn, but those creatures were described as demons in disguise and reckless souls. He shook those thoughts away. They were not truthful. The elf only glared at him to make him uncomfortable, and nothing else.

Despite this, the Captain felt a slight pang of sympathy for the elf. Elrond was only here because they had captured the boy, and the fact that the young man was not his real son did not seem to matter. Lucien could relate to that. He wondered if it would be worth it to help Elrond.

Pushing these feelings aside, he shook his head. He was here for one reason and one reason only; for his family. He would only have to tolerate Commander Donngal and the King for a little while longer, and then he was going to take his family and flee. To where, he did not know, but he doubted that even Mordor would be worse than Rhûn.

Catching Elrond's intense gaze once more, the Captain turned away and spurred his horse, edging away from the men for some time to consider his situation.

"Elrohir!" Elladan called desperately. He couldn't focus. Panic whirled through his mind, pushing all reasonable feelings away. Only one thought remained. Valar, it was happening, again, someone was taking his family away from him. And that thought left him with his hands shaking in terror.

He couldn't lose Elrohir, his twin was his other half! He couldn't live without his brother, and he never could. Elladan breathed in deeply, attempting futilely to calm himself. In a way, it was comforting to know that he would never have to live in this world without Elrohir for long, that if his younger twin died, he would almost immediately follow him to the Halls of Mandos.

It had been nearly an hour since Elrohir had left to scout the clearing, and Elladan and Legolas were going out of their minds with worry.

"Elrohir!" Legolas shouted, mirroring the older twin's actions. A rustle from the shrubbery around them caused them both to flinch, and reach for their weapons.

"Maybe…" Legolas paused uncertainly, "maybe it is not a good idea to call for Elrohir. If someone harmed him, it would be best not to attract their attention."

Elladan wasn't listening. His heart skipped a beat. He could sense that his twin was here, but he couldn't explain it. It was like a dull thumping inside him, as if his twin's heart were beating alongside his own, letting him know Elrohir was alive, and that he was nearby.

The older twin broke into a run.

"Elladan! Where are you going?" Legolas called alarmed by his sudden burst of speed.

Elladan didn't offer an explanation. Crashing through the undergrowth, he ran faster and faster, only one thought on his mind. Elrohir…

He caught sight of his twin, and his throat tightened in dread. Elrohir was lying face down on the leaves, unmoving. Coming to an abrupt halt, he crumpled to his knees. He heard a soft crunching sound as Legolas caught up to him, and the young prince knelt beside him.

The two friends looked at each other in despair, and without exchanging a single word, they both reached out and rolled Elrohir gently onto his back. The younger twin let out a pained moan, but he remained unconscious.

"He's alive" Legolas whispered in relief. Tears burned the corners of Elladan's eyes. His twin was alive, but he wouldn't be for long if they didn't tend to him now. A thick black arrow protruded from his brother's stomach, and blood stained the leaves around them.

Elladan cleared his head. Turning to Legolas, he said shakily but firmly, "We need boiling water, and athelas."

Legolas tore his eyes from the injured Elrohir. Nodding resolutely, he rose to his knees and rushed back to Rochiril to retrieve the healing herbs from Elrond's saddlebags.

Elladan hurriedly gathered a pile of dry wood, and started a small fire, feeding the flames dead leaves to heat it up.

By the time Legolas had returned, Elrohir was lying on Elladan's coat, and the older twin was tending to a roaring flame. Kneeling down, Legolas placed a large bowl of water from the lake over the fire and waited for it to boil.

Elladan and Legolas sat by the fire for what seemed like an eternity, their glances flickering between Elrohir and watching the hungry flames lick at the edges of the stone bowl. Finally, the bowl's contents began to boil, and Legolas carefully shredded dried athelas leaves into the water. Bringing it over to Elladan and Elrohir, he watched as the elder twin prepared to pull out the arrow.

Elladan's hands shook in fear. He was a healer, and had repeated this procedure countless times. But on his own brother, it felt too real. Legolas's eyes softened in sympathy. "You can do this, mellon-nin, I know you can."

Elladan gave a small smile. Breathing deeply, he slid the arrow from Elrohir's torso. The point came out smoothly, without tearing any more skin. As soon as the arrow slipped free, blood began pouring from the open wound. Tensing his jaw worriedly, Elladan began ripping his coat into long shreds, soaking them in the athelas water and pressing them against the wound in his brother's side. The elder twin leant forward, whispering encouraging words to his twin in Sindarin.

Crouching next to Elladan, Legolas picked up the arrow that had been embedded in Elrohir's side. Scrunching his eyebrows in concentration, the elder twin pressed more soaked cloths against his brother's torso, trying to staunch the bleeding. It shouldn't have been bleeding this much. Why wasn't it stopping?

"Elladan?"

Elladan didn't turn around. "Legolas, I need to focus now-"

"Elladan." Legolas said more forcibly. "Is this poison?"

The son of Elrond's heart skipped a beat. He turned immediately, and saw Legolas kneeling behind him, holding the arrow that had been embedded in Elrohir's side. The fair-haired elf was gesturing to a thick black substance that was coating the tip.

"What?"

Aragorn twisted furiously in his bonds. He could feel his strength fading. The wound in his shoulder was infected, and the sickness was increasing gradually throughout his body. He knew if he was not treated soon, he would become fatally ill.

Squaring his shoulders, he tried to ignore the slow burning feeling that was spreading steadily outward from his shoulder. Where was Elrond? The man that had brought him out of the cave, Fergal, had mentioned that Elrond was about to walk right into a trap. Maybe they hadn't been able to catch him, he thought anxiously. But he didn't want to get his hopes up. That would only cause it to be all the more painful if it was not true.

Suddenly, he heard the low drum of hoof beats. Craning his neck around the tree he was sitting against, he narrowed his eyes in concentration. A group of horses was crashing through the trees towards him, but they were slightly blurry.

Estel tried to clear his eyes. "Ada?" He whispered to himself in dismay.

Something was happening. Waves of nausea and dizziness were surging through him. Leaning back against the tree, he squeezed his silver eyes shut and waited for the pain to pass. His shoulder felt as if it were on fire.

Instead of decreasing, the pain only amplified. Aragorn lifted his neck off of his chest. When had his head dropped? He couldn't control it anymore, it was too much…

He lifted his gaze desperately, and last thing he remembered seeing was Donngal and his men staring down at him. His father was calling to him, but it was so far away…

Then everything went black.

Elrond could have screamed in frustration. "He is my son! If you do not let me tend to him, he will die! And I swear to you that if he does die, I will never even consider bartering with the likes of you." The Lord of Imladris spat bitterly.

Morcion laughed. "Don't worry My Lord. I can assure you that while Donngal likes to use his club, he knows better than to harm the boy too seriously."

"Too seriously?" Elrond writhed against the tree he was tied to, directly opposite his son, no more than five footsteps away from him. "He is dying, Morcion, and if we do not do something soon, he will never wake up."

Lord Morcion raised a brow. "I suppose we should come to terms on some form of agreement then, Elrond."

Elrond tensed his jaw. "I will not help you, not until you let me help my son."

Morcion tilted his head. "Then it appears we are at a standstill, Elrond. Alert me when you have a change of heart."

Elrond shot Morcion an icy glare, not moving his gaze until the outlawed elf had strode off.

The elf-lord shook his head. The hit he had taken from the flat of a sword had dazed him immensely, but he had forgotten in it his worry for Estel. He leant forward warily, toward his unconscious son.

"Estel," he whispered, shooting cautious glances at the men patrolling around the clearing. "Estel."

The young ranger twisted in his sleep, muttering incoherent rambling. Elrond sighed. Aragorn looked terrible. His shirt was bloody and torn, and the area around his left shoulder was covered in blood, both dried and fresh. His temple was mottled with bruises, and his eyelids were almost swollen shut. His wrists were turning purple from the lack of blood circulation, and the ropes had chafed his wrists, leaving them torn and raw.

Elrond winced in sympathy. He still couldn't believe that Morcion had done this. He had outlawed Morcion and his sons yenì ago, several hundred years before Aragorn had even been born. The young ranger had no part in this. Elrond almost smiled as he recalled how Aragorn would react to being called young. But the truth was, he was too young. Too young to experience something like this. But the Lord of Imladris wished this was the first time Estel had been in such a dire situation.

Estel seemed to bring disasters upon himself wherever he went, especially when he was Legolas. Every elf in Rivendell seemed to think Elladan and Elrohir were the most troublemaking pair in Middle Earth, but Elrond believed Aragorn and Legolas could give the twins a run for their money. Not to say that twins weren't trouble…

Elrond hadn't lost hope yet, but he didn't see how they were going to get out of this. He looked back at Estel, his foster son's bloody brown hair cascading over his face. Studying the towering trees around them, he wondered where Elladan, Elrohir and Legolas were now. Because he didn't believe for one second that they had obeyed him and stayed in Rivendell…

Turning his gaze towards the starry heavens, he sent a silent prayer to the Valar. They had to get out of this… saes."

TBC…

Athelas – A healing herb that grows throughout Middle Earth, also known as Kingsfoil

Mellon-nin – My friend

Sindarin – A commonly used language among the elves, also called the Grey Tongue

Ada – Father

Yenì – Elvish equivalent to 144 years

Saes – Please

Another chapter done! It wasn't really a late update, only a week and a couple of days since the last one. If you want a certain character in the next chapter scenes, please review or PM me :) I hope everyone who read it enjoyed it!