Out of Mirkwood

Scribbles-on-Parchment

May 9, 2020

Chapter 40 – Demanding Answers

"You have many questions to answer young one."

The cold voice that came from behind him would have been enough to send a shiver of dread down the young elf's spine had it not been for the blade pressed against his neck. Any wrong move now and he would be dead before his body hit the earth.

Above them, on the hill, Legolas could still hear the sounds of yrch and elves as they engaged in furious combat. However even with his hate for the Noldor and his burning desire to return home he could not bring himself to wish victory on the evil creatures. The arrows that had been falling around the two elves had come to a sudden halt as soon as his capture had been evident and part of the Sinda wondered if the elves themselves had not been firing at him to prevent his escape.

The prince tightened his hands into fists, frustrated at the whole situation. He felt foolish sitting on his knees in the tall grass, a stranger's sword at his throat. Neither his adar nor Kélion would still be sitting here. They would have gotten themselves out of this situation or more likely never have been in it in the first place.

The young eldar looked hard at Gwa-sadron who stomped his feet impatiently at the cries from the battle above. Behind the great white steed, the sky was ever lightening as the sun prepared to grace the mountains with her light. There would be no escape when the rest of the Noldor returned and the sun was shining. Perhaps he could get out of this situation somehow. Perhaps there was a way for him to slip out from the deadly length of the sword before his throat was slashed.

Legolas moved his head slightly, experimenting with how far his captor would go to keep him in one piece. Yet instead of loosening his hold, as the prince had hoped, the elf growled and pressed the sword edge even further into the delicate skin. Legolas immediately froze as he felt a sharp sting on his neck,

"I would not do that if I were you mellon," the last word seemed to be dripping with venom, "I will not hesitate to slit your throat; for I know you not and therefore I care for you not."

Still, a part of the Sinda's mind still believed that his Noldo was lying.

"You would not kill me."

The elfling tried to force his voice to remain calm and strong but instead, it sounded weak and childish in his own ears.

"Oh, really? Is that what you think?"

A hand was suddenly fisting a large portion of his golden locks and with one swift jerk, the young prince's head was forced upward. The suddenness of this action caused Legolas to gasp out in surprise as he found himself staring up at the deep blue sky above him, a sharp pain running along the back of his skull. He closed his eyes as hot breath caressed his ear.

"And do you believe me now?"

Glorfindel watched as the body of the orch he had just beheaded fell to the ground, legs still twitching. A grim smile crossed his face; that was another of the accursed creatures that would never get the chance to kill again. While he did not enjoy the act of taking a life, the yrch were a special case. They were evil incarnate and it was honestly a mercy for both them and all of arda to put them out of their eternal misery.

The Noldo glanced around as his soldiers killed the last of the few remaining yrch. The group that had come upon them had not been large, probably no more than two dozen or so of the foul creatures. The battle that followed had been swift and virtually bloodless on their end. However what concerned the ellon at the moment, was how a band of yrch, no matter how small, had made it so close to them without being detected. Had they grown this relaxed as to not detect this evil?

"Commander."

Glorfindel glanced over at the eldar who had spoken and asked, "How many injuries?"

The soldier himself was sporting a thin cut to the side of his neck.

"Not many hîr nín. No casualties. However, it is of Êgon that I came to tell you of. He has caught the elf."

Immediately the image of the ellon on the white horse flashed across the elf lord's mind. His men were whole and relatively unscathed from their encounter with the yrch, he could now focus on discovering more about where this being came from and how he had ended up riding that particular horse.

Glorfindel nodded his thanks to the soldier who had delivered the message before spinning on his heel and making his way across the hilltop.

Êgon had done well.

As the elven commander came to the top of the hill and was given the vantage point of the captive and could not help but let a thin smile creep onto his face. There was his second in command restraining the strange elf with a knife to the poor being's throat. Glorfindel shook his head, his friend had always been one for the dramatic, and no doubt their new companion would not be pleased with his treatment.

The first rays of light began to filter across the pass in preparation for the day ahead, but as the pale beams landed on their captive, Glorfindel came to a sudden halt. The ellon being held in Êgon's tight grasp had golden blond hair that seemed to sparkle in the light. Had he overlooked this before or had he just assumed it to be a trick of the darkness? It was to his knowledge that no elves with such fair hair still existed on arda. What devilry was this?

Legolas forced himself to stay calm causing his inner light to dim dramatically. He could feel the very first of the early morning rays of sun on his face, but he was not comforted by this. For the first time in his life, he desperately wished for darkness, a veil to hide his face from view. He was sure that now he would be scrutinized by all around him as had been the case with Estel and the other Noldo and having so many prying eyes on him all at once was not something that he enjoyed.

Already the young Sinda could hear the sounds of elves talking softly amongst themselves as they made their way through the tall grass. It was too late to escape now; he would just have to wait and see what happened next.

"Open your eyes."

The stern command came from an unknown figure in front of him. The voice was deep and had a dangerous sound to it, like the sword edge that was still pressed against his neck. When Legolas did not respond, the harsh words came again.

"Open your eyes rauka. For you have much to answer for and my patience grows dangerously thin."

The muscles in the Sinda's jaw clenched at the words. Who was this elf that he would dare call a prince of the Greenwood such a foul name? Were his adar to ever hear of this, this ellon would not see the light of day again. He would not give this Noldo the satisfaction of obeying the command.

Slap

Legolas gasped in surprise as a powerful blow to his cheek sent his sprawling in the long grass. He lay there for a moment trying not to lash out in anger at this eldar. This ellon was a rauka not him.

There was the sound of laughter and voices around him causing the Sinda to clench his hands in frustration. He opened his eyes and lifted his head, blue eyes blazing with a fire that had never been in them before. A look of pure hatred so strong that it would have caused any elf in the Greenwood to tremble in fear.

All Legolas could see from his vantage point was the menacing figure of the Noldo in silver armor, yet he knew that all around him there were many other soldiers.

"At last! The blond rauka bears his fangs and prepares to fight. A pity you did not do so sooner or you might have been able to escape us!"

The taunts of the elf were pushing the young prince to his breaking point. They had obviously taken a liking to the horrible title that had been pressed upon him.

"Farn! Dîn!"

This time the command that came from the warrior's mouth was not for him and immediately the hillside went completely still.

Legolas did not take his gaze off of the Noldo as the ellon gave a sharp nod to someone behind him. Instantly, two pairs of hands looped under his arm and heaved him upright so that he was standing facing the silver elf. The hands did not let go but held him in place lest he do something foolish, which he felt dangerously close to doing. Never in his life had he felt so much anger and frustration coursing through his body.

As the young prince continued to glare daggers at the edar in front of him, he swore to himself that he would not give any of these ellyn the satisfaction of breaking him. They would come to learn the stubbornness of the Sindar.

Glorfindel was taken aback by the fierce fire that burned the elf's startlingly blue eyes. Yet even as the ellon's gaze bored into his own dark eyes, the Noldo could not look away from their captive.

The face of their captive was framed by soft golden locks pulled back from his face by intricate braids that still allowed the rest to flow free, down past his shoulders. The azure eyes were framed by delicate brows and the high cheekbones of an elf, but not just any elf. This one was young; younger than any he had seen in millennia. Their captive was a mere elfling who did not look to be over 600 years of age.

The commander ripped his gaze away from the eldar and to one of the soldiers holding the elf upright. Êgon stared back at him, brown eyes narrowed in confusion but also flickering in anger. How had this mere elfling come by Tamír's great steed?

"Who are you?" the Noldo commander stepped closer to the ellon ignoring the furious look that still lingered in their captive's eyes, "How did you come by this horse?"

But silence was all that greeted him. This elf was not going to give up any information willingly.

"Fine, have it your way elfling," Glorfindel growled in a low voice, "But know this, I will find out all there is to know about you whether you wish to tell me or not."

Elvish Translations:

adar – father

gwa-sadron – forever the loyal one (another translation is: together with one who is loyal)

mellon – friend

orch – orc

yrch – orcs

hîr nín – my lord

rauka – demon

farn - enough

dîn - silence