Chapter 08
Disgusting Trouble
Arcastar was running frantically and its rider fought for balance. It winded through any corner available, the distant howls came closer and closer as they advanced. The cold winds blew, chilling the rider down to her bones, and she wished her cloak was there with her. Again, the howls sounded. In fear, she looked around, eyes in desperate search of the pursuers. Her clutch on the reins became tighter, her knuckles paled. Then, Arcastar jumped over an overgrown root, and Erynlith almost slipped off the saddle.
"Easy!" she said, soothing the horse by its muzzle. It would be hard to get the horse to turn back now. The horse neighed in understanding. For a moment, she praised Erestor for training this horse well.
Arcastar's hooves thundered across the grassy pathways of Greenwood. Suddenly, it stopped, and Erynlith rejoiced. They had reached the forest clearing and the Great River Anduin was up ahead. A smile came across her lips, and she patted the horse's neck in thanks. Now, all she had to do was to find the wooden bridge that connected Greenwood to Lórinand. She narrowed her eyes and looked around. The moonlight was enough to show her the raging waters of the river, but there was no sign of the bridge. Was it possible they had taken the wrong way?
Behind her, the howls sounded and lengthened. Arcastar jolted up in fear, standing on its hind legs and neighed loudly. As it landed on its front legs, two wargs had already come up to them, fangs baring, throats releasing growls. Erynlith gulped and sat frozen upon the horse's back, and the wargs slowly approached them, careful and predatory. Sensing its rider's passiveness, Arcastar neighed again and sprinted pass through the wargs, and back into the forest. The branch that hit her face snapped her back to reality, and it was when Erynlith realized that the previous two wargs were now joined by three more.
"Faster, Arcastar!" she cried. She looked back and a warg almost pounced on her if not for the protruding tree branch. "Faster!"
The marchwardens of Lórinand were roused. From their outpost, they could hear wild neighs and angry howls coming beyond the river. Some of the wardens, who were on patrol, reported that they had seen glimpse of a black horse and a lady confronted by wargs. And it was not all; the whole pack which temporarily stayed near the Gladden Fields. This pack had been there for a while, and the Elven-guard of Greenwood was yet to exterminate them.
"Do you not think we should see into it?" a warden said, his eyes searching around for the grey horse.
"Whatever it is, Greenwood's guards could handle it," said the other and went back to his work.
Whispers in the outpost reached the heart of the forest, and soon the Prince.
"Someone is in Greenwood this late at night?" Amroth asked incredulously, ascending the outpost of the marchwardens. His gaze was focused on the river up ahead and beyond it. His hearing could pick up faint growls and struggles. Quickly, he grabbed a bow and said, "Come. Let us hunt ourselves some wargs." Then, he smiled to encourage his companions. "A little sport at night shouldn't hurt."
Erynlith bit her lip in panic. She could almost taste the copper of her blood. Arcastar was getting exhausted; the wargs were leading them around in circles, such was the way of predators: tiring their prey before taking them out. Even for an Elven-horse, the chase was too tiring and engaging. Erynlith had not fought back. There was nothing on except for the saddle. Arcastar neighed eagerly again, and then reared. A brown-furred warg with yellow eyes pounced in front of the horse. Arcastar backed away instantly, only to be blocked by the oncoming wargs. In other words, they were cornered; some six or more wargs were already stalking their prey. The one in the front plunged in, claws first.
Erynlith swiftly slipped back from the saddle, took a broken tree branch, and attacked the warg with it. The warg was thrown aside by the impact.
Her face brightened. "Did you see that?" she asked enthusiastically to Arcastar. Oh, Erestor would have been proud of her. But there was no answer, only threatening growls from the warg's companions. Following her previous suit, Erynlith swung the heavy branch, taking out another warg. She felt more confident, but the horse beside her, disagreed.
Arcastar was caught by a warg which pounced onto its rear. The warg sunk its fangs onto the meaty flesh, and the horse cried in agony. It reared once more and sprinted off into the forest, followed by two wargs. Erynltih watched in horror as she was left behind with three more wargs to deal with. Her grip on the branch loosened; she suddenly felt discouraged. Where was the Elven-guard when you needed them?
I am getting punished, she thought gravely. I promise not to annoy Erestor anymore, she prayed.
But her prayer was not answered. One warg pounced toward her again, a silver one with brown streaks on its fur. Droplets of saliva dripped down from its hungry mouth, bloodshot eyes darkening in anticipation. Another two came up behind the first one, cornering her between the thick trunks of oak trees. Erynlith helplessly clutched the branch in her hand.
The first warg sprinted towards her. Erynltih dived onto the ground; her face hitting the earth. Then, she desperately scrambled back onto her feet and ran past through the other two wargs. Her attackers growled and ran after her. She looked back for a fraction of second and saw the wargs already catching up to her. One came up behind her and closed in. She swung the branch and knocked the warg's head with it. The warg winced and drew back as the branch vibrated in her touch.
"I think I'm getting the hang of this," Erynlith panted.
Suddenly, the chase between her and the wargs are interrupted. From the direction she was heading, a couple of arrows rained down, aiming behind her. In her surprise she abruptly looked behind; the wargs cried in pain as they fell on the ground. Turning around again, a second group arrived, gliding through the trees, skillfully and rapidly. Next, a loud neigh greeted her. It was Arcastar! Erynlith sighed in relief and ran to meet her dark friend, but realized that Arcastar was still followed by the two wargs from before.
The elves above the trees drew out their bows and fired. Arcastar was luckily missed from the assault and all wargs fell dead. The horse automatically went to Erynlith and rubbed its muzzle against her shoulder. She smiled and patted the muzzle gently.
The next thing that happened was not so gentle anymore. She was grabbed by the waist, a strong arm coiling around her all of a sudden. She fought to protest, the face of her assailant still unseen. Then, she realized that she was pushed back to join a group of the Woodland guard. A familiar face smiled at her, and Erynlith studied his face carefully as the Elven-guard circled around her. The dark-haired Captain of the Guards smiled warmly and waved a hand at her.
"Are you alright, my lady?" Raithon asked.
She could only nod. The overwhelming fear and relief still coursed through her veins. Her eyes searched for the one who grabbed her; his back turned against her. In his right hand he held a wooden recurve bow; on the other was a slender sword. She looked ahead; an unfamiliar group of elves were also present. She tried to see who they were, but the Greenwood guards were starting to take her away from the scene.
Thranduil confronted the newly-arrived Elves. Their fair hair and bright eyes were easy to place. These were the Nandor of Lórinand, of King Amdír's people. The Silvan of Greenwood had great relationship with them, and there was great alliance between the two forests. At the sight of these elves, Thranduil's anger toned down; his chest was not heaving anymore, and his grip on his bow and sword loosened.
"Prince Amroth," he acknowledged cordially. The said elf prince turned to him and Thranduil held out his palm in greeting. "Mae govannen, mellonin nin. Gwannas lû and."
Amroth smiled and shook his hand. "'Quel undome, Tharanduil," he said. "Lle ume quel."
"Please," said Thranduil, slightly laughing. "I am delighted to see you again. What prompted you to cross the Great River?"
"We heard the wargs," said the other prince. "We thought we should help one of our Silvan kindred."
Thranduil glanced back to Erynlith, who was still attended by Raithon and his guards, and then turned again to Amroth. "Well, I am indebted with your help. It would make me feel better if you and your companions come with us back to the palace. The King will receive you well."
"Of course," Amroth agreed without hesitation. "I will feel honored to be in the King's halls again."
"Come with us, then," said Thranduil and turned to walk away. "But first, please excuse me; I have to attend to my friend."
The Greenwood Prince nodded a little, and went back to his group of Silvan elves. The Elven-guard gathered around him, whispered incoherent Silvan dialect, and Thranduil answered them in the same language. Amroth's grey eyes followed Thranduil's trail, slightly shifting his head to have a better view of the maiden they had just saved. But she was huddled closely to the guards, between the leader and the elf prince. Her dark hair shrouded her face, and the moonlight was not enough light.
Amroth felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. Turning about, his lieutenant marchwarden stepped forward and whispered: "What shall we do now, my lord?"
The elf prince in question also leaned close; his voice came in a careful whisper. "We will be admitted into King Oropher's palace. Send a messenger for King Amdír; tell him to follow us there. My intuition is tingling."
The marchwarden nodded and stealthily ran back towards the forest clearing, followed by few other wardens. Amroth turned again to see Thranduil and his guards, but to his surprise, he was kneeling in front of the maiden.
Thranduil passed through his guards and knelt quietly beside Erynlith. She snuggled under the dark cloak Raithon had offered her earlier, and on her hand was a brown waterskin. She looked up when he came, and there was neither glare nor smirk that was present. Thranduil's icy gaze pierced her, and she instantly looked down. How could she face him now?
"Disgusting trouble," Thranduil muttered angrily under his breath.
It was then that she realized that he was already kneeling in front, his eyes gazing directly into hers. Erynlith looked away. "Hey," she whispered rather weakly.
"You alright? Are you hurt anywhere?" he said, scanning her face. His sour mood suddenly turned worried.
She shook her head. "I'm good. Just a bit tired, I guess. How did you find us?"
Thranduil smiled. "I have my ways. Besides, you did not leave very stealthily either. What do you expect?" He did not expect to see her smile; even it was a just little smile. He would have returned the gesture if not for the reddening scratches on her left cheek. His eyes narrowed and his hands immediately reached out for it. "What happened here?" he asked, shifting her cheek a little so he could have a better view. But he did not give her time to answer. "Stay here," he ordered sternly and stood up.
Erynlith waited. She had no idea what Thranduil had in his mind, and she could care less. He returned shortly, another waterskin on hand. He knelt again and pulled out a white handkerchief from his pocket, and drenched the cloth in water. Without words, Thranduil pressed the cloth against her cheek and she flinched at the coldness.
"Let me," Erynlith said, trying to take the cloth from him. She winced when the cold cloth touched her cheek.
Thranduil pulled it out of her reach and said, "No."
She groaned and rolled her eyes. Thranduil smiled; there it was! The Thranduil she knew, was it Lascalen? "Really, now…" she said exasperatedly, her hand still reaching out for the wet handkerchief. "Give that to me. I can manage on my own."
"I don't think so," he countered. He was somehow disappointment not to hear her sing. "You can't even save yourself from few wargs, tra-la-la."
Her eyebrow twitched. "I could have handled them perfectly," she snorted. "Give me that and leave me alone!"
"Does it hurt?" Thranduil asked in a concerned voice, but she did not answer. Just then, he pressed the cold cloth against her scratched cheek, too rigid for Erynlith's liking. She yelped at the sudden contact and slight pain. "Does it hurt?" Thranduil asked again, his voice now laced with sarcasm.
"It did not until you started acting like a jerk again!" Erynlith shouted and slapped his probing hand away.
"Alright, forgive me." Thranduil's demeanor then turned silent and somewhat serious. His hand continued to soothe her cheek, now gentle and with care, and Erynlith finally relaxed into it. "I can't believe you," Thranduil whispered nonchalantly. "You always argue with me and then all of sudden, I rescue you from trouble. Very unbelievable."
Erynlith sighed in relief; the stinging sensation on her cheek had already faded. Then, she smiled as thank for his so-called rescue. "Thank you for coming. I'm very grateful, tra-la-lay."
Thranduil smiled warmly. It had been a while since he heard that. His irritation finally dissipated and he could do this for the rest of the night. He already felt that she was warming up to him, and it was good enough for him.
Soon after, Raithon called back the Elven-guard. The Silvan elves marched back neatly in two lines, with Thranduil and Erynlith walking between them. The host of Lórinand, led by Prince Amroth, marched behind the Silvan elves. Amroth's eyes were still on the maiden whose face he still did not see. It seemed that Thranduil did not even give him a chance to introduce himself to her. Thranduil's arms were behind her back, guiding her carefully as if she would suddenly collapse. His back and pale golden hair obscured most of the maiden, and Amroth could only see her arms. When Erynlith tried looking back, Thranduil would quickly turn her look ahead on the road or on him.
"Who is it?" she asked, trying hard to see who it was, but Thranduil would still block her view.
He shrugged. "No one, really. You'll meet him once you feel better."
"I do feel better," she countered. Again, she looked behind her, only to be pulled away by the wrist. She groaned. "What is your problem?"
"Nothing!" he said in his defense. "You know what? Let's just return to the palace. It's way past your bedtime."
Then, Erynlith remembered something important. She bit her lip and tugged on Thranduil's tunic sleeve, prompting him to look down at her once again. She looked worried about something. "Lascalen," she whispered, and his ears perked up almost in a cat-like manner upon hearing that name. She had never called him by that, even when Lascalen was just a phony name he invented before. It felt different to be called by someone else's name.
"Yes?" he asked thoughtfully.
She gripped his sleeve tighter; Thranduil could swear he could hear ripping noises. She bit her lip even more. She tiptoed to whisper in his ear and he leaned down closer. "Please, don't tell Erestor."
He chuckled but nodded. He leaned closer to whisper back. "Sure thing. But the name is Thranduil, tra-la-lay."
*"Mae govannen, mellonin nin. Gwannas lû and." (Well met, my friend. It has been too long.)
*"'Quel undome, Tharanduil. Lle ume quel." (Good evening, Thranduil. You did well.)
Next Chapter: The spotlight goes to Prince Amroth!
Author's Notes: Yeah, I couldn't stop myself from creating another battle scene. I just can't stop doing them! I'm sorry! (-_-;) But yay for some action elves, and the Amroth and Thranduil confrontation, I guess?
*dreams-in-the-dirt - Welcome and enjoy the story! Thank you very much for the review!
*xSiriuslyPadfoot - Yep, the Haldir/OC story still needs to be "polished" before I write it down. But thanks for the support and the review! I hope you liked the chapter! :)
*DeLacus - Thanks! Erestor was always portrayed as the "scholar" type so I wanted to see him in action, more like Glorfindel! And about #LorienDoubleA, I can already picture Amroth and Amdir in black tuxedos and shades, and Daddy Oropher swings in his desk chair like a boss! XDDD The next three or more chapters will heavily feature them, so hurray for their team!
And the cheesecakes!
*Rousdower - Everyone is in hot water! This chapter cools the water down a bit, no? And I meant that to be the Battle of Five Armies trailer. LOL, my bad. Hopefully, we'll get it this week. Thanks for the review!
P.S. Reviews are always welcomed! I love reading reviews! You can tell me your expectations in the story, some advice or opinions, and we can get it done! Thank you for reading and have a wonderful day ahead! Adios!