"Let me pass." He demanded. The guards exchanged a confused look and it was clear to see, that his demand made them feel uncomfortable.
"Forgive us, my prince. But we cannot let you pass. The king was very strict about that. No one enters his chamber. Not even you, " said one of the guards.
'Not even me?', Legolas thought bewildered. Did his father give a specific order to make sure that not even his son would be allowed to his room?
"He could die in there and you wouldn't even notice! Let me pass!", Legolas tried again. Anger welled up in him.
"The king is alive", said the other guard, but it was scarcely audible.
Legolas frowned: "How do you know that?"
Again, the guards exchanged nervous glances before one of them said: "We can hear him now and then."
"What did you hear?", Legolas wanted to know.
Unsure if he should talk about these things, the guard hesitated but the pleading in the prince's eyes made him finally forget his professional discretion for once.
"Sometimes we can hear him scream in anger. He shouts at someone, but we know he's alone in there. He's crying and pleading, asking for forgiveness, for someone to help him. But minutes later, he's furious again. We heard glass shatter multiple times. Then there's silence for a long period, before it all starts again. We tried to persuade him more than once, to let us come inside and help him, to get a healer, to see what was going on, to get you, my prince. But he wouldn't let us. He even threaten to kill us, if we'd do anything."
Legolas couldn't believe what he just heard. That didn't sound at all like his father's usual behavior.
He had to see for himself. He had to enter the chamber, come what may.
"All right. This has to end now. I'll walk through that door and you won't stop me. I promise you that the king won't kill you for that. Now step aside, please."
Although the guards were relieved to see that the prince was about to do something, it made them very nervous. To go against the kings order was madness!
Legolas took a deep breath before he opened the door to his father's room. He was probably as nervous as the guards but for a different reason. He tried to prepare himself for what he would encounter but had to abandon the attempt when he saw the chaos and destruction in the chamber in front of him. Legolas quickly closed the door behind him and gave the room a closer examination. It was almost too much to take in and with everything new he discovered, his worry grew.
The floor was covered with empty wine bottles, some whole, some smashed to pieces. Glass shards of battered mirrors where lying on the floor as well. Chairs, the table, the dresser, even the wardrobe, all were broken, shattered, completely destroyed. The sheets and pillows on the bed were torn to shreds. But what really unsettled Legolas was the blood everywhere. There were stains on the floor, on the bed, even on the walls. And it wasn't wine, although there were quite a few wine stains on the floor as well. No, this was undoubtedly blood. Legolas suddenly realized that he had been holding his breath until now. Because as he breathed in, he became aware of the stench in the room. It was a mixture of wine, blood, sweat and the staleness that fills a room, when you haven't opened a window for weeks. But there was something else as well. Legolas couldn't name it, though it made him feel desolate.
His father was nowhere to be seen but as the prince carefully maneuvered himself through the mess that had once been a beautiful room, he saw him lying on his stomach on the floor next to the bed. At least he guessed that this was his father, because the elf in front of him hadn't much in common with the proud and imposing king of Mirkwood anymore. His clothes were torn and covered with wine and bloodstains. There were deep cuts on his bare feet, as were on his hands, arms and torso. His usually smooth and shiny blond hair was now a tangled mess and dirty as well. His head was turned to the left side, revealing the old wound caused by dragon fire. Either he wasn't aware that the magic which normally concealed his injury was gone, or he just didn't care. It was frightening to see him that way. In fact everything in this room was just downright wrong.
Legolas shoved some broken pieces of glass out of the way, before he knelt down next to his father.
"Ada?", he asked hesitantly. Although the king's eyes were open, he didn't respond.