Title: "Revenge"
Author: LegolasLover2003 aka Ashley
Category: Book - "The Lord of the Rings"
Genre: Angst/Adventure
Rating: M
Disclaimer: I do not own any right to "The Lord of the Rings" or "The Hobbit". I just adore them to pieces! Legede, Tileng, Morlan, and Morfind are characters of my own invention however. You may use them, but please ask permission to do so first.

NOTE: This story takes place after "Savior & Destroyer". You MUST read that story first for this one to make sense. If might also help to read "The Breaking Point" first as well as both "Secrets or A Six Year Old's Wisdom" and the Thranduil-centric story, "I Know It's Wrath".


REVENGE


How had it come to this?
How had a once noble and great king been brought low by mere mortals?
He had fought Orcs and Trolls, Wargs and Goblins, Men and Spiders and even Dragons… he had seen, with his one remaining eye, the might and power of the Dark Lord himself…
But never had his enemies held his very life in their hands.
Never had Thranduil, the great Elvenking, been at the mercy of those whom he had sworn death upon.
The only comfort to his soul, had been the most glorious news upon his waking within the chains of his torment… had been four tiny words.
'The Elf has escaped.'


Chapter V:
Thranduil's Secret Revealed


"You've someone else to keep you company now, Ranger." Spoke Tileng as light filled the underground cell and a limp form dragged in by the arms and long blond hair.

At first, Aragorn started, thinking that the mad human had returned with Legolas in tow, no doubt tortured into unconsciousness. But there was something different here… and it was not just the being's clothing. The hair was lighter… the ears distinctly holding a different point to their tips… the form thinner but no less imposing. Or rather, it would have been imposing… sitting upon a throne.

Estel drew in a quick breath as one of Tileng's men shackled the Elvenking to the wall opposite the ranger. He was breathing, thankfully, and unconscious… but there was something seriously wrong.

Tileng wasted no time in grabbing a fistful of blond hair and jerking Thranduil's head up, gazing at the Elf's unmarred face. "They knocked him out, right?"

"Aye." Spoke one of his men. "Orcs said they clocked him hard enough to snap a goblin's neck."

There was obvious annoyance in Tileng's voice. "Then why isn't he bleeding? Bruising? Anything?" his hand released the hair and instead jerked open Thranduil's robes. "Was there anything unnatural when you stripped him of his armor and weapons?" the man asked, finding nothing that his eyes could see. Annoyed with the gaudy fabric, Tileng drew the knife at his own belt and cut the Elvenking's robes so they fell about his hips and legs.

"Nothin' unnatural…" said the man, backing up as he sensed Tileng's boiling rage.

The older man flicked his eyes to Aragorn. "What sort of Elven trick is this?"

Estel shook his head, "I do not understand… he seems unconscious to me, Tileng. If he were not, his eyes would be open."
Anger at the ranger's snarky response boiled inside of the older man, but instead of taking it out on the youngster, Tileng grabbed a fistful of Thranduil's hair and pulled hard. "No matter… when this one wakes I will have some fun…" he hissed, dropping the Elf's head and ordering his men out the door.

Long moments of silence passed, and then, without moving a muscle, there was a voice that spoke the Elven tongue. "You have my thanks, Elf-friend…" Thranduil spoke, his words accented in a manner that was common amongst the Sinda and yet giving it a difference from those of the Noldo.

"I knew you did not sleep… but Tileng is right, Lord Thranduil… you bear no…"

"I bear marks you do not see, young one." The Elvenking replied, lifting his head enough to look across the cell at the human. "It is good to see you… well, Estel. As they brought me within, I heard… panic. Legolas, it seems, has escaped their hands… and I have an army marching here at this very moment. Fear not…"

But Aragorn shook his head, "My lord, it is not for me I fear but for you. I was the bait to draw your son… and he the bait to draw you. I know it in my heart. But I know also that Tileng can not penetrate your Halls, and for that I am glad."

Taking a deeper breath, Thranduil pulled on his chains, standing now under his own power. One eyebrow quirked at the human and the king moved his head to the left slightly, placing Aragorn on the right side of his face. "Legolas has told you then. He should not have but… the secret he bears for you is just as grave. You are in this predicament because of us… because we could not keep our boarders as secure as I wish them to be. We are too few in these dark days and the forest is vast. Would that my kin in Lothlorien would lend their aid below the mountains but… they have Moria to deal with. The spiders withdrew from our lands after Smaug's defeat, but many still remain and the forest sometimes runs thick with Orcs. Your brothers should have accompanied you, Estel. It is dangerous, even for a Ranger, to travel the wilds alone these days."

Aragorn smirked slightly, "No less dangerous than for an Elf to foolishly rush to the aid of a captive in many hands."

Nodding, Thranduil glanced toward the door then. "Whatever happens, Estel… do not speak of what you see here to any… save Legolas of course. For now I bear no visible scars… but my magic will be stretched thin I fear."

"Magic?"

"Shhh… They return." The Elvenking whispered, never once switching to the common speech, deciding instead to speak only in the Elven tongue.

Of course Thranduil had heard the approach of the men before the Ranger, though it was not many seconds later that Aragorn heard them himself. While normally he would have feared that their approach signaled they had returned with their captive in tow... something about the footfalls was clearly more agitated than anything.

The cell door opened with an almost ear piercing squeak and Tileng strode forward, passing Estel completely and coming to a stop in front of Thranduil. "Awake I see... Seems the guard was not as stupid as I thought..." Mockingly, the man bowed at the waist. "An honor to meet the great Elvenking of the Woodland Realm. I had thought you to be... a bit more terrifying than this. You're hardly but skin and bone, aren't you?" Tileng joked as he walked closer, inspecting the king's form for the second time. "Still no bruises... no cuts... no blood... Neat little trick that. How's it work?"

Thranduil's blue gaze was calm and steady as he stared back at the human before him. "Ego mibo orch." ~[(Go kiss a orc.)]~

Across the cell, Aragorn's eyes widened slightly. He never would have thought to hear such words come from Legolas' father. And yet...

Tileng however was obviously quiet annoyed. "You'll speak common here, Elf. I had to teach that whelp of yours the same thing once long ago. I don't take kindly to the speech of your kind."

"A fuio i lam lín." Thranduil replied, his voice never wavering nor consenting to do anything this wretch asked or demanded of him. ~[(And I do not take kindly to your language.)]~

The echoing crack of flesh striking flesh reverberated off the rock walls. A soft gasp came from the Elvenking's lips, blue eyes closing in a grimace of agony as his head had snapped to the side. It took all his focus to keep the magic... to not let it slip... Tileng drew his hand back, gazing over the Elf's fair cheek.

It was not even red... no change in color whatsoever.

"I will make you bleed." the man hissed, grabbing a dagger from his belt. He twirled the blade in his fingers before pointing the tip just below Thranduil's left eye. "Give me a reason to blind you, Elf."

Thranduil however, began to laugh softly. This pathetic excuse for a mortal could have ripped that eye from his head and nothing would have changed. Sight would still be lost to him... for sight had been lost there since before Legolas had walked the world.

Tileng's free hand grabbed the king by his chin, forcing those blue eyes to stare back at him. "What is so funny?"

But instead of speaking in common... once more the regal Elf refused to abide by this man's commands. "Hairhenen pen cennen anann." ~[(My left eye has been without sight for a long time.)]~

Enraged by the king's continued stubbornness, Tileng twirled the dagger in his hand before plunging it deep into Thranduil's shoulder. No sound came from the blond's lips... and so the man twisted it slowly, ripping through flesh and muscle and scrapping against bone. But still, the Elvenking made no sound. It was then that Tileng's dark gaze caught the sight of that dagger. A light line of blood seeped from the wound, hardly as much as should be however.

"How are you doing this?" the man hissed, pushing the dagger in deeper.

From his spot on the other side of the cell, Aragorn stared at the pair, completely dumbfounded. Thranduil was blind?! Since when?! How?! Surely Legolas knew... didn't he? Was this a horrible secret that the young man had stumbled upon? No wonder the Elvenking told him to hold his tongue in check. If Thranduil's enemies knew such a thing... But then, the more the Ranger thought about it, the more he realized that Legolas's father did many things that seemed physically odd. Things that Aragorn had noticed but never really put much thought into. The way he tilted his head... how he tended to keep those he spoke with on his right side more often than not if he was not staring directly at them. How he pointedly looked at a decanter before picking it up...

Suddenly however, the door to the cell flew open and one of the guards ran in. "The Orcs saw the Elf! They said he went south east down the mountains! They're in pursuit now."

Tileng smirked, jerking his knife out of the cut... and watching in wonder as the wound simply faded from his gaze. "Send word to our spy that the prince might soon be among them. I want him to personally bring me Legolas in chains before the night's end." the man spoke, turning from his two captives and following the guard. He stopped however just at the door. "When I get your son again, Elvenking... I shall make him watch as I learn just why you show no marks on that pale body of yours. If I cut off a hand... do you think it would disappear the same as that wound?" Tileng asked before laughing at the image such an experiment brought to mind.

Both men left then, allowing for Thranduil and Aragorn to be alone in the cell lit by but a single torch. For a time, neither spoke. The Elvenking's eyes were closed as the pain of his injuries washed over his body in waves.

"Forgive me, hir nin... I never knew." the Ranger whispered, his words spoken in Sindarin alone. "I... Legolas never told me..."

"And he never would have." Thranduil replied as he let out a shuddering breath.

The Elf groaned softly, his expression contorting in agony as the magic fell away. It began low upon the king's chin, a stretching mark that continued up along his jaw. The flesh seemed to melt from his very skin, revealing tendons and muscle, bone and jaw. It crept upward, Thranduil's left eye discoloring and turning grey. Once the mark stopped at the bridge of his nose and the top left of the eyebrow, stains of blood became visible in his pristine hair. A gash, made by the Orcs who took him, was slashed across his temple. The magic continued to disperse, whip lashes and cuts crisscrossing his bare chest and arms and sides... and a hole from Tileng's knife bleed freely upon the Elvenking's shoulder.

"Aran Thranduil..." Aragorn spoke softly, his eyes taking in each and every wound like a healer should. "If I were free..."

"But you are not." Thranduil replied, the Elf appearing pained and exhausted. "And my magic can not hold out long against these hurts. I will return the spell upon my flesh... but only when our captors draw near." Blue eyes opened then as the king tilted his head back against the rock wall behind him and stared at the human. "Do I repulse you, human?"

Aragorn shook his head, "Nay. You hold my awe still... for to think you have taken such hurt..."

"He whom you call 'adar', long ago saved my life upon a battlefield far from home. Without Elrond's healing, I would not be here today. The dragon which took my sight and disfigured my face, murdered Oropher during the Last Alliance. Few amongst my own people have see such a sight as this. I trust you to keep it secret, Estel."

This time, Aragorn nodded. "A secret I shall take to my grave, hir nin. You keep my own... and so I shall keep yours." he smiled slightly at that. "Do not worry for Legolas. He's... troublesome yes but he'll find help."

"That is what I fear..." Thranduil replied, his gaze turning to the man once more. "Morfind betrayed me to the enemy. If Legede does not figure out his deception... I fear that Legolas may not reach the army before Morfind can strike again."

This name was unknown to Estel and he shook his head, "Forgive me but I don't know who..."

"He is the brother of Morlan. And Morlan, I feel, I need not speak of to you for it is Legolas's story to tell and..."

"And he has told me." Aragorn replied, his grey eyes turning downcast. "I know of Morlan and the tale of his death. Now we must hope Legolas does not run into him before finding Legede first." the man replied with a sigh, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the stone. "And this was supposed to be a simple visit to the woods."


TBC...


TRANSLATIONS:

Ego mibo orch. = Be gone kiss a orc.
A fuio i lam lín. = And I do not take kindly to your language. (And I feel disgust at the language of you. / And I abhor the language of you.)
Hairhenen pen cennen anann. = My left eye has been without sight for a long time. (My left eye having been without seeing for a long time.)

hir nin = my lord
aran = king
adar = father


SINDARIN SENTENCE BREAKDOWNS:

Ego = Be off! = I tried to break this one down and couldn't figure it out BUT if my ears do not deceive, Thranduil said "Ego!" to Tauriel in his throne room in DoS so... least I know Thranduil WOULD say this word.
mibo = kiss = "Mib" is the original verb and this is the imperative form. I assume "ego" is conjugated in a similar fashion from "eg" (but I could be wrong).
orch = orc (singular)

A = and
fuio = I feel disgust at / I abhor = The original verb is "fuia" and by changing the "a" to an "o" you end up with "I abhor" rather than just "abhor".
i lam = the language
lín = of you = "lín" is basically a means of saying "your". In this instance, Thranduil is stating that the language (i lam) is "your language" (Tileng's language aka common).

Hairhenen = my left eye = The "-en" ending on "hairhen" shows possession. "Hairhen" can be broken down further into "left" (hair) and "eye" (hen).
pen = without
cennen = having been seeing = The root of this word is "cen" (to see) and it's been conjugated as a past passive participle singular, thus the "-nen" ending. I was going for the idea of "has been without sight" and "cennen" fit that better than anything else I could come up with. This is one of those moments where I was severely unsure.
anann = for a long time


SINDARIN NOTES:

- Anything I use for Elvish comes directly from "The Lord of the Rings" by J.R.R. Tolkien or from one of the following sources; David Salo's book "A Gateway to Sindarin" (ISBN #0874808006), the online dictionary "Parf Edhellen", the downloaded dictionary "Dragonflame", Ruth S. Noel's book "The Languages of Tolkien's Middle-earth" (ISBN #0395291305), the extended edition trilogy movie dialogues cataloged online by "The Elvish Linguistic Fellowship", and the LOTR complete recordings lyrics cataloged online by "A Magpie's Nest".

- I'm really uneasy about the "cennen" use in one of Thranduil's sentences. Originally I had it written as "garnen cened" and then changed it to "garnen cennen" but then I felt that I was repeating myself (which I might not have been) so I ended up leaving it as just "cennen" and dropping "garnen" (having been held) entirely. It would have sounded more like "My left eye having been held without sight for a long time." in that sense and it just didn't seem right.

- I totally stole Thranduil's use of "ego" in "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" when he is talking to Tauriel. Least that was what it sounded like to me. I later double-checked sources and it seemed right so I used it.


AUTHOR'S NOTES:

- So... a lot of stuff in this chapter deals with past stories of mine. As you can see I added "I Know It's Wrath" to the list of shorts I've written that you should read for this chapter, haha. We've got Thranduil's face (which was not a construct of mine, I assure you, but a brilliant move by PJ) and we've also go Estel's knowledge of Morlan's fate, which is the reference to "Secrets Or A Six Year Old's Wisdom".

- I wanted to play with the idea that as long as Thranduil could keep his magic in place... he can not appear injured. That's not to say he doesn't feel the pain or actually get hurt and he can choose where to lift the enchantment if he wishes as well. BUT for the sake of appeasing something Aragorn and Legolas said at the end of "Hiro Hyn Hidh Ab'Wanath", Aragorn needed to know about the dragonfire face and thus Thranduil just completely dropped his illusions. Of course Thranduil's snake ring also helps with his magic, or at least with the focus of that magic, but right now Tileng has taken it from him. I just haven't really talked about that yet in this story. The importance of the snake ring is discussed in "I Know It's Wrath", "The Jewel of the Heart", and in "Hiro Hyn Hidh Ab'Wanath", just in case you're interested.


MUSE MOMENTS:

"I... updated... o... m... g..." Nil said as she stared at her computer.
Paris tilted his head to the side, biting into an apple. "I blame "Guardians of the Galaxy"." he replied honestly. "You have certainly gotten your mojo back."
"Really? I blame me."
Blinking, Nil looked up to find a new muse standing there. She jumped to her feet, literally tackling the new muse.
"JOE!"
Paris smirked, "That is two people named Joe you like now. Joe Byrne from "Ned Kelly" and now Joe MacMillan from "Halt & Catch Fire". Nice one, Nil."
Nil is a bit too busy hugging Joe to respond... until a strong Elven hand unceremoniously grasps her by the back of her shirt and hauls her off the man. "Quite sorry about that." spoke Thranduil, arching an eyebrow at Nil. "She gets a bit... overwhelmed by emotion when it comes to certain muses."
Joe laughed, "As long as I do not end up like you or your son, I think I'll be fine." he replied with a coy smirk, hands in his pants pockets.
Nil giggled. "That makes me think of Ned..."
Rolling his eyes, Thranduil deposited Nil on the bed. "Get it out then. How many more Lee Pace characters are you going to think of in this conversation?"
"Oh I don't know, Fernando..." she teased, rolling off the bed and running to the door to avoid an angry swipe from the Elvenking. "At least working on this got the mental image of you with boobs out of my head!" Nil laughed before dashing out said door.
Thranduil blinked, looking to Paris for an explanation.
"She was looking up Michael, well Lee, singing in "Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day" and ended up seeing Lee as a transsexual performer from "Soldier's Girl" on YouTube." Paris replied, taking another bite out of the apple. "Was perfectly fine ignoring the fake boobs and fake hips until Lee was wearing a wig that looked just like your hair." he said, pointing to the Elvenking's head.
Thranduil sighed, rolling his eyes. "She is hopeless."
"No, she's got potential..." Joe replied with a smirk. Until suddenly a rather surprised "OW!" issued from him.
Legolas pointed a rolled up magazine that he had just used to hit Joe over the head with at the man. "Do not even think about it. Start giving her ideas and we are all in trouble."
"At least she put Ronan in the Evil Muse closet..." Paris replied, tossing his apple core in the trash before he stood up from the bed and headed for the door.
"And where are you going?" Joe asked, rocking back on his heels.
Turning Paris pointed out the door. "Nil has got Ned making pie. Where do you THINK I am going?"
"I could go for pie." Joe replied.
Legolas nodded, "Me too."
Thranduil however, just rolled his eyes.


MUSE MOMENT NOTES:

- For those of you who don't know... Lee Pace is like everywhere right now. The following characters of his were referenced above; Thranduil ("The Hobbit" Trilogy), Ronan the Accuser ("Guardians of the Galaxy"), Fernando Wood ("Lincoln"), Ned ("Pushing Daisies"), Joe MacMillan ("Halt & Catch Fire"), Michael ("Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day"), and Calpernia Addams ("Soldier's Girl"). I would have referenced his roles in "The Fall" and "Marmaduke" but I haven't seen them yet... and I would reference his role in "Twilight" but I hate "Twilight" and I don't even think Lee Pace could get me to watch it. Well no he himself could... if he watched it with me. ;) Seriously though, I want to see "The Fall" because Peter Jackson says that role is why he picked him for Thranduil.

- So, "Guardians of the Galaxy" came out last weekend. ADORED IT. Wrote a mini-blog about what I thought of the character here: marvelcinematicuniverse . wikia wiki / User_blog : Legolaslover2003 / Thoughts_on_Ronan (just take out the spaces in the URL) I kind of went in depth of how I viewed Lee's performance of Ronan and how awesome Ronan was (so beware of spoilers).

- Also, the season finale of "Halt & Catch Fire" was last Sunday so... yeah expect something about that from me. I can't get the end out of my head because it was both open ended and closed in my opinion and there's no news on if it gets a second season. It tied with "Vikings" for my favorite tv series of the year and I really hope it comes back. It's one of those shows that makes you just grab a pillow and scream into it at the end. Lee was AWESOME in it. I'm talking Emmy-nomination awesome.