They walked slowly yet surely and soon, the darkness completely consumed them. There was nothing to see but the vague path in front of them, which only the eyes of the Elves could see and was wide, so all five of them could easily walk side by side down it. Thranduil and Idhrenion led the way, the other walking behind.

As they walked, Anié stopped temporarily and looked behind her. To her surprise, the room in which they were once standing was no longer there, or if it was there, the thick darkness was obscuring it from view, for there was no light behind her. She stood there, transfixed and confused, staring into the abyss from which they had just come.

Something compelled her to walk back. She began walking slowly back up the pathway until Legolas noticed she was missing, saw her leaving and swiftly called her name. Maeglin suddenly turned to watch her also. Anié made no answer to her lover's call, for she was so baffled by this enigma, she was almost taken away from reality.

Legolas began making his way swiftly to her to bring her back, until he suddenly stopped as Maeglin ran past him with a speed equal to a stag fleeing from some sudden terrifying danger. Legolas watched as Maeglin ran up to Anié and gently held her arms to stop her.

As he touched her arm, she suddenly winced and took a sharp, short intake of breath. Maeglin immediately let go and as their eyes met, she looked as though she wished nothing had happened.

"Did I hurt you?" he asked gently, concern in his voice.

"No, I'm fine" she replied almost immediately.

Changing the conversation, her eyes were drawn back to the darkness she had been walking towards. Maeglin began carefully persuading her to come back and join the group.

"Forgive me" she said after a while.

"I … I just … I don't know what came over me …"

"Not at all" said Maeglin in a soft, soothing voice that did not make itself heard often.

He gently led her back down the path. When she lifted her eyes and saw Legolas, she immediately went over to him and found comfort in his strong warm embrace. Legolas' eyes met Maeglin's and he saw a look in those eyes that he had never seen before, a look he could not name.

"Come, gentlemen" called the strong, commanding voice of King Thranduil.

"And my lady" he added on the end.

Anié released herself from Legolas' arms, looked to her King and father-in-law and nodded once, understanding her orders perfectly. They moved on down the pathway. No-one knew for exactly how long they walked, having no idea where they were going, but after a while, the darkness became less thick and an ominous glow began to form somewhere in the distance. Idhrenion placed his arm across the chest of Thranduil as a sort of barrier.

"Allow me, my Lord" he said defensively.

Thranduil nodded his head after a moment's thought and the group halted. Idhrenion drew his sword and moved slowly towards the glow. As he walked closer, he noticed it had a tinge of blue and it looked beautiful to the eye. However, Idhrenion was no fool and knew perfectly well this could be a deadly trap, so he remained on his guard.

He continued on forward until the path began to turn slightly. Idhrenion turned the corner towards the glow and the group watched as a mixed look of awe and confusion come over his face.

"What do you see, Idhrenion?" asked Thranduil, not a hint of fear in his voice.

Idhrenion seemed lost for words.

"I do not believe I can describe it, my Lord" he finally answered, "for I have never seen anything like this in my life".

"Is it safe to approach?" Thranduil asked.

Idhrenion thought for a moment and then suddenly struck the glow with his sword. Nothing happened. Not even a mark remained.

"I believe so" Idhrenion finally replied.

The group made their way forward and stared in disbelief at the glow. The glow came from a wall, smooth and flat, which stood before them. No-one could understand what the source of the light was, only the fact that the wall was indeed glowing. It looked almost like water and was very tempting to touch. But no-one dared to do such a thing – one knows it is never wise to stick your hands into mysterious and potentially dangerous objects.

Anié asked the question that was filling the minds and hearts of every person present.

"What is it?"

"I've never seen anything like it before" Maeglin remarked, staring in awe and wonder at what they had found.

"Could this have something to do with our missing soldiers?" questioned Legolas.

"Perhaps our men touched it and disappeared into … into it" wondered Idhrenion aloud, shrinking away slightly from the glowing wall.

Thranduil scanned it carefully with his sharp, keen eyes. He too had never seen anything of its kind, nor could he answer any questions in the group's minds and in his own. But before he had a chance to think, his thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a cry from his son.

"Ada, look!" Legolas cried, pointing behind them.

They all turned to see what Legolas was pointing at. Behind them was a plain, ordinary wall, except for the fact that, as if by magic, writing was appearing on it. It appeared in the written language of the Elves, but a translation runs something like this:

Welcome my friends, welcome one and all,

Peace! you need not fear me or the wall.

The writing stayed for a little while and then disappeared in the same manner in which it had first appeared. Shortly afterwards, a verse took its place. Thranduil read it aloud:

Secrets that from you, long since have been hidden,

Terrible tales and fruits forbidden.

This place brings forth secrets from where they reside.

A blessing or a curse? You decide.

The writing, this time, remained. Silence fell over them.

"What does that mean?" Maeglin said, a confused expression on his face.

"Whatever it means, this is foolishness!" stated Idhrenion suddenly.

He approached Thranduil.

"My Lord, in all due respect, we do not have time to be standing around here contemplating riddles. We must discover the fate of our men with all haste!"

"I am well aware of that, Idhrenion" Thranduil immediately stated almost before Idhrenion had finished.

No-one needed to say that there was no way back – they all knew it. Their only possible escape route was to continue on down the tunnel, even though no-one knew where it went.

"Follow me" he commanded.

Thranduil began to walk down the dark, slightly foreboding path, Idhrenion constantly by his side, the group slowly but surely following behind. Maeglin followed behind the group, allowing Anié to walk by the side of her beloved. He was just about to leave the small chamber they were just in when he saw in the corner of his eye, the blue glow rippled. It kind of jolted suddenly. Then, before his eyes, he saw other colours within it – a picture was forming.

"My lord!" he called suddenly.

The group turned all turned and saw the urgent look in Maeglin's eyes as he stared at the glow. They all rushed back and they too gasped in awe as they saw colours swirling amongst the blue and a picture beginning to form. As a figure of great authority, Thranduil stood in the middle of the group, a fixed, stern expression on his face, showing no fear or indeed any emotion at all, watching what was unfolding before him.

It was some time before anyone could make out anything that was been unravelled before them. They were, however, able to hear distant cries of pain and anguish. The noises seemed to be coming from all around them, but they may well have been merely the sound bouncing off the sides of the walls. The cries were desperate and disturbing to listen to. They were not constant, but came in quick, loud bursts. There were a couple of other voices audible too – a male and some females, talking quietly amongst themselves and giving orders and commands. The cries grew louder and eventually, it became obvious to them that the cries were coming from a woman, as she begged and pleaded in desperation for help in-between screams.

Throughout all these, only vague shadows were visible before the group, who were all transfixed on the glow. Eventually, after much tense waiting, a picture became clear before them. They saw a large bed stained with water and blood and on it was a woman. By looking at the scene and remembering her cries, it was clear to them that this woman had just given birth. She looked exhausted and frighteningly pale. Around her was a doctor and a couple of nurses, one of which was holding a tiny infant, crying in her arms. The doctor had a grave look on his face and hurried the nurses away before walking over to the woman, placing two fingers on her wrist. No-one else noticed, but Thranduil's face had changed dramatically. Before, it was stern, hard, fixed and emotionless. Now, his mouth was open in disbelief, his eyes wide with shock and his face paler. It was a face of absolute horror and secretly grief-ridden as memories flooded back to him.

As the doctor briefly saw to the woman, not uttering a word, another voice became present. It began barely audible but grew dramatically in volume and soon, the person to whom the voice belonged to burst into room.

"Let me through!" the man cried.

"Let me through! Let me see her!"

It seemed that some of the other doctors did not want him in the room, but that wasn't going to stop him. The door flew open and the man ran in. He was frantic, eyes wide and full of fear. He saw the woman on the bed and stopped dead, mouth agape and his eyes even wider.

Legolas looked carefully at the man's face. Something stirred within him – where had he seen that face before? As he swiftly studied the surroundings of the room, a sudden realisation dawned on him. The room was ornately decorated with carvings of trees and leaves on the walls – even the bedposts are expertly and beautifully carved. The woman herself was beautiful beyond reckoning and wore very fine clothes. Royal clothes. Clothes fit for a queen, despite the fact that there were now stained and slightly-ragged looking after having given birth in them.

Legolas thought for a moment and then turned to his father. He did not need to see a word; the look on his father's face said it all. Thranduil's eyes were transfixed on the woman and his eyes never left her face, both in the memory and in reality.

"Tariel!" cried the frantic man, moving swiftly to the woman's side and taking her hand delicately in his own.

"Tariel …" Thranduil whispered under his breath in the tunnel.

This was Legolas' mother, wife of Thranduil. Legolas had never known his mother, nor had he ever known where she had gone. He had asked a few times in his youth, but Thranduil had never answered him, always changing the conversation or remaining silent, scolding Legolas for speaking of inappropriate and unnecessary things. He presumed she had sailed to the West, though for what reason, he did not know.

Inside, Legolas was delighted to see this memory – he had finally seen his mother for the first time, this was wonderful! A small smile even crept onto his face. Legolas was suddenly drawn back to the memory as the doctor suddenly spoke.

"It's a boy. What is the child's name?" he asked.

Thranduil turned to his wife who faintly managed to force out the word:

"Legolas".

Legolas' jaw dropped and he gasped in disbelief. Not only was he seeing his mother for the first time, but he had now actually witnessed his birth! Maybe this tunnel wasn't going to be so bad after all.

Legolas watched with anticipation as Thranduil and Tariel gazed into each other's eyes. His eyes were still wide with concern and fear, whereas hers were barely open at all. Her breaths came in deep gasps, soon becoming barely audible slithers. She was so beautiful and so, very strong…

She gripped Thranduil's soldiers, desperate to force the words out of her mouth.

"Look after him…" she begged weakly, tears appearing in her eyes.

Thranduil nodded vigorously.

"I will" he said, tears also forming in his eyes.

"And so will you. We have a son…"

He placed his palm on the side of her face, which she gently clutched, never wanting to let him go.

"Eleyond will have a brother. We'll live together …as a family … and we'll be happy together!"

Her face was becoming more and more vacant as he spoke.

"Be strong…" she pleaded with her last few breaths.

"Thranduil..."

"Tariel …" Thranduil pleaded in return, desperate not to break down in tears.

For the first time in his life, Legolas saw his father beg.

"Don't leave me".

She opened her mouth as if to speak, but then she froze, mouth open, tears in her eyes. Her eyelids fell shut as her head fell softly to the side and her final breath sailed through her partially open lips.

Thranduil stared down in disbelief at his wife. He began to shake his head, muttering to himself. As the shock took him over, he gripped his wife and screamed, desperate for this to be some terrible nightmare that he could soon awaken and recover from. He looked over his shoulder to the doctor in desperation.

"There must be something you can do!" he cried.

There was heart-breaking urgency in his eyes, but the doctor ignored it. He simply looked to the ground and turned away from the scene, starting to clear away his things. Heartless though he may appear, he knew in his heart there was nothing he could do. He knew there was this risk and so did she – she had now passed beyond his care, she was gone. The doctor spoke quiet orders to some nurses entering the room to clear up the mess and then himself left.

Thranduil refused to believe that the doctor was leaving him, leaving her. His face has turned red with his building anger and hysteria and the tears in his eyes grew too heavy to rest on his eyelids and fell silently down his cheek. When the truth slowly began to sink in, he turned back to his wife, holding her shoulders and never turning away from her face. He began to shake – he couldn't hold it in much longer.

Eventually, in a sudden fit of hysteria, cheeks now soaked in cold, wet streaks, he screamed at the top of his lungs, every inch of muscle in his body shaking, every emotion known to Elf and Man echoing loudly in that truly heart-felt cry. As Thranduil finished screaming, he bent his head and wept openly on his beloved Tariel.

Legolas watched in horror and utter grief as he watched his younger father completely break down before him. He had never seen his father in any state like this before – his father had been such a pillar of rock in his life, never breaking or bending to anyone's will apart from his own. Now nature had taken away his most valuable treasure, one that no satchel of gold could ever buy, and his father was totally broken, his heart shattered, soul crushed, life as he knew it destroyed, dreams erased … and it was all because of him. She had wanted to bring him into the world, give him life and she had sacrificed her life to give him that. Legolas wondered whether such an exchange was truly fair.

Before them all, the picture began to fade until soon, only Thranduil's dying cries and weeping could be heard, which then too faded away. The tunnel was silent - no-one dared make a sound. They were all too shocked to say anything.

Slowly, he turned around once again to face his father. His face was still fixed like stone, but he was clearly fighting hard to hold himself together and tears were present in his eyes that made Legolas' heart crack. Eventually, Thranduil's eyes left where the memory had been (which was now nothing more than a vague glow on a wall) and lowered themselves to the floor. The silence continued undisturbed until eventually, Legolas broke it.

"Ada?" he almost whispered.

Thranduil's eyes met Legolas'. Legolas' were filled with concern and grief after what he had just seen. Sharp contrast to Thranduil's, which were hard, cold and stern, almost angry.

"Let's move on!" he commanded, ever the leader.

He turned and made his way down the tunnel into the darkness. Idhrenion, a little taken off guard by the King's sudden departure, quickly ran after his King. Just before Legolas followed Idhrenion and moved swiftly after his father, he saw his father lift his sleeve to his eye in a wiping motion, yet he still walked at a strong, steady pace, remaining totally on task.

Legolas ran up beside him, abandoning his friends and over-taking Idhrenion easily.

"Ada…" he started in his mother tongue, speaking only so Thranduil would be listening.

"Ada, speak to me. What happened, what … what was that?"

"That was your mother giving birth to you, Legolas, I thought you were quicker than that" Thranduil snapped back immediately, no humour in his voice.

Legolas paused temporarily, no longer keeping pace with his father.

"So I killed her?" he asked.

Thranduil stopped dead in his tracks. All the others stopped too, slightly behind the two elves, cautiously watching the scene playing out in front of them.

"Eleyond mentioned something like that before…it is my fault she is dead?"

Eleyond was Legolas' older brother who was killed by enemies (though no-one ever knew exactly who) many years ago. Anié moved slowly forwards and touched Legolas' arm, speaking to him words of comfort without the use of speech.

"Legolas, do not say such things".

Silence enshrouded them once again.

"Did you love her?" Thranduil spoke, his voice dark, deep and low, gripped by the iron claws of grief and anger.

He turned and began to advance towards Legolas in a threatening manner, anger turning to fury and over-flowing out of his eyes.

"Did you stay with her every waking moment? Did you guard her with your life? And in doing so, did you take her, make love to her and bring forth two children from her womb? DID YOU?"

Their noses were almost touching. Legolas had seen his father in his rages before, but this was different: this one was tinged with emotion deeper than that which the eye can see, tinged with guilt…

Legolas did not cower away from his father but stared him in the eyes, not uttering a word – until a question aroused itself in his mind that he could not help but ask, for he too was filled to the brim with emotions he had not felt in many a year.

"Why did you never tell me of her? Of her fate?"

Thranduil's face became one of sudden fury. Thranduil smacked his son across the face with one terrible blow that nearly broke his son's jaw and almost threw him to the floor. This did not come as too much of a surprise to Legolas, as he should have known better – he knew his father better than anyone. Thranduil turned away from the group once again and walked off into the darkness.

Idhrenion, once again, swiftly followed his King, not daring to say a word to him. Anié, on the other hand, could not believe the violence she had just witnessed (although she too knew Thranduil well) and immediately went to Legolas' side. Without saying a word, she looked him in the eyes, begging to know if he was alright or not. Legolas gave only a simple nod of his head and showed no other emotion save deep sadness.

"We should keep moving" the cautious voice of reason from Maeglin said.

Anié agreed, as did Legolas. No-one said it (in fact, no-one said anything) but they were all thinking the same thing: the sooner they were out of this terrible place, the better.