Disclaimer: Nothing is mine, save the plot.
Rating: PG 13 for scenes of battle violence and adolescent angst.
Summary: To all, the prince of Mirkwood was Beloved. But to the lone Warden of Lorien, he was a nightmare incarnate.
Author's Note: Finally, a story of Legolas and Haldir – a standalone, yes, but a backdrop to my ongoing Road to Redemption series. Thank you in advance for reviews. Wink.
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By Kasmi Kassim
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Golden Sun, Silver Moon
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Chapter 7: Abandonment
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"Where is Sis going, Haldir?"
Haldir shifted the baby in his arms. "Back to Greenwood."
Rumil's fingers squirmed inside Haldir's hand. "Why?"
"The war is over, Rumil." Haldir said tiredly. "Greenwood's king and troops are back to take their people home."
"Then why was she here?"
Rumil skipped over a rock, and Haldir tightened his grip. Trees were unearthed, roots torn, branches broken in their path. "Women and children from King Oropher's court were staying under Lorien's protection, because the king marched with all of his able-bodied men to war and Greenwood is empty save a handful of warriors."
Rumil stopped. "Can we go with her?"
Haldir also stopped, and looked down at Rumil. The child's face fell. "We can't?"
Haldir pulled his brother's hand. "Let's go, Rumil." He trudged forward. "They'll be leaving soon."
Rumil snatched his hand away. "But I want Sis to stay!"
"Stop it!" Haldir whispered fiercely, snatching the younger child's hand. Rumil pulled away, stepped back, and let loose a bawl. The babe in Haldir's arm woke, and began to wail.
"Hush, Orophin, hush…" Haldir fell to his knees, laying the infant down onto the leaves. Stretching his sore arm, he turned to Rumil, and narrowed his eyes. "If you're not quiet and well-behaved in an instant, Rumil, I will not even take you to say goodbye."
"I don't want to say good bye!" the child wailed, and the bawling rose a pitch.
"It doesn't matter!" hissed the older boy. "What you want doesn't matter, Rumil! She belongs in Greenwood, and we belong here! She's leaving us whether we like it or not!"
The child cried harder, blinking tears, coughing and heaving under the empty sky.
Haldir covered his eyes with his hands. With a few quavering breaths, he squared his shoulders, and pulled Rumil's hand harshly forward. "Come now," he snapped. "Don't make a scene and embarrass her. Do you want her to be ashamed of us in front of her lord prince? Do you want her to regret having known us?"
The child's cries weakened. Haldir pulled him harshly forward again, and the child reluctantly straggled along. Haldir gathered up the infant and walked again. Rumil, red-eyed, hiccupped as he trudged.
There was silence only broken by Rumil's occasional whimper.
"You're not gonna cry, Haldir?"
"No."
"But Sis is leaving!" Rumil's plump face scrunched up again. "She's gonna go far away!"
"We'd been fine before we knew her." Haldir gritted his teeth, struggling to hold onto the infant sliding down his grip.
"But Nana and Ada were here then," Rumil's voice trembled. Haldir shot him a look, and he hiccupped again. "Now we'll be all alone!"
"That's right, Rumil. We are all alone." Haldir heaved the baby upward. "You and Orophin and I only have each other now, and we have to help Orophin grow up into a healthy, happy baby. No more whining. No more fighting. No more prattling. You and I are going to be big brothers, and be adults for Orophin."
Rumil hiccupped loudly.
The clearing on the hill overlooked a path below, where Greenwood warriors were helping women and children onto horses. Under a morose green flag, the prince stood watching one last elleth pace frantically back and forth among the refugees. She looked wildly about, despair darkening her eyes as she saw the entourage align.
At last she stopped, and let loose a wrenching cry: "Haldir! Rumil! Orophin!"
Rumil cried out softly, and glanced at his silent brother. Haldir was sinking to his knees onto the dirt, small hands clamped over his mouth. His glassy eyes were riveted on the wild-eyed maiden, trembling with a soundless wail.
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Dust rained from above, and a rumbling began to pound above them. Logs cracked, ropes swung. Haldir dragged Legolas along, eyes narrowed toward the light.
The creator of the destruction lever planned a narrow escape. The reinforcements on the ceiling grew stronger toward the entrance, and cracks raced overhead as they ran, the cave roaring behind them, a wave of destruction chasing them in darkness.
Haldir pulled Legolas closer as an avalanche of dust rushed ahead of them from behind. The mouth of the tunnel was intact, its blades of grass serene, as he burst out unto it with an unscathed Legolas in tow.
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It all happened so fast.
One moment there was a babbling brook, and next – the ground tumbled down, the earth collapsed, carving a trench that snaked toward the city, and out emerged bodies, writhing like maggots.
In the shadow of the trees, Rumil watched in silence. The guards behind him fidgeted, weapons drawn.
"Vice Warden?" ventured one.
"Orophin," Rumil called. Orophin was instantly at his side. "Follow the trench and find out where it originated. Report back immediately. Stay out of sight."
Orophin disappeared without a sound. Rumil watched him reappear below the hill, sprinting parallel to the trench, just far enough from it to stay unseen by the orcs. The confused mass of battered orcs were amassing, withdrawing from the city.
The guards shot questioning glances. "Vice Warden," a guard called. "The captain and Orophin had gone in the same direction. Why do we not go with Orophin and rescue the captain before the orcs reach him?"
"Because we are the border patrol, Salmas." Rumil remained unmoving. "Because our duty is to make sure as little of them escape as possible from our grasp."
"We will abandon them," another guard gasped.
"Orophin will take care of it."
"But there is only one of him!"
"That's right." Rumil turned around, and looked at the guards aligned before him. "Orophin will do his part and track down our fellows. We will do our part and fight the enemy. The captain is out of our hands."
Silence.
"But," whispered another guard, "he is your brother."
Rumil's eyes flickered like glass. He turned his back to the guard, and raised his bow.
"Formation."
The guards aligned, raising their bows.
The stampede of orcs continued below, thunderous and terrible. Crouched in the trees above, Rumil thought of Orophin, and his orders to return immediately. He held his breath, and let an arrow fly.
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Legolas and Haldir glanced at each other. In the quiet marsh stood orcs, surrounding them, a low snarl in the air. Bloodied, bruised, and emanating hate.
Haldir held up his hands. "Peace, orcs of Lorien. I have an offer."
The orcs exploded into a nightmarish screech.
Haldir raised his voice. "Your trench is bared. Your numbers have dwindled. An elf army will come tracking you down, I promise you – unless one of us goes free and quiets the alarm."
"Kill them! Kill them both!"
"Die, elves! You will die!"
Legolas swallowed.
Haldir reached into the folds of his outer jerkin. The orcs jumped back, a forest of blades pointed in their direction.
"This is the crest of a Warden." He held up a gleaming plate. "I speak with honor. I have the authority to move the army away from you. Without me, you will not survive this night."
The cries became a horrifying din. Legolas stared at Haldir's back, wishing that he would give him a reassuring glance.
"I offer you my companion hostage, as proof of my word, if you let me go."
The noise died down into silence.
Haldir did glance back then, and his face was smooth and unreadable. "This is a wanderer from foreign lands, as you can tell from his garb, and was on his way out. If he goes missing, no one will suspect." He looked back at the orcs. "I, however, am scheduled to return to my squadron soon. If I go missing, they will come searching."
"He is going to lead the army here!" an orc shouted. "Kill him!"
Haldir narrowed his eyes. "With all due respect I have for my woodland kin, I am not going to endanger my squadron if I can avoid it."
Legolas swallowed.
"I suggest you consider quickly." Haldir glanced toward the cavernous mouth of the tunnel, precariously held up by half-broken ceiling logs. "Agree to my proposal, and I suffer no more loss of my fellow guards, and you can have an elf and a safe retreat."
The orcs began to quiet.
"I don't trust him," said an orc.
"He is too willing the leave this one," said another.
Haldir crossed his arms. "I wouldn't waste time debating."
"Why take our chances?" shrieked one orc. "He'll just bring back more elves!"
Haldir tapped a foot impatiently. "If you don't trust me to send them all away, the elves will find you sooner or later. You had a trench collapse on top of you, but the elves are fresh as grass."
"Lies," croaked another orc. "Why should we trust you?"
Haldir slowly turned, and finally looked at Legolas. Legolas held his breath. The glow in those eyes made his stomach twist.
"This elf," Haldir said hoarsely, "killed someone who was dear to me."
Ice wrapped around Legolas' heart.
Suddenly Haldir looked away, and moved past. Cleaving the sea of reluctant orcs, he stopped, his back turned.
"You were right, little leaf." He took a deep breath. "I do blame you for her death."
The orcs went silent. Daylight was fading. Haldir turned, his eyes a glassy blue in the dark.
"I want you dead." A low, scathing whisper. "I want your father in despair. I want your kingdom ruined. Everything that took her from me and my brothers. Thank you, Legolas; I never thought I would be given such a chance without doing the dirty work."
The world was beginning to darken, narrowed down to the one figure that was Haldir. In the whispering dusk, Haldir moved away, and disappeared into the forest.
"Well," an orc broke the silence. "Tie this one up. Arms only. We need him to keep up with us."
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To Be Continued