Chapter Twenty Four

Mordraug glared up at the blond elf, sitting straight and proud atop his gray stallion. "Why are you here?" he demanded with a snarl. A scowl graced his face, and it was easy to believe it belonged there.

"I came to settle matters with you once and for all," Legolas replied, pretending that he hadn‘t noticed the emphasis on the word ‘you’. He had been planning this confrontation since the attack he had suffered in Rivendell, yet now that he was actually face to face with this evil elf again, he found he had to work at keeping his composure, and that included forcing the memories of what had happened in this place back into the recesses of his mind. How well that was going to work would not take long to discover.

Mordraug's irritated voice instantly brought Legolas back from his thoughts to full awareness. "Thranduil is supposed to be here, not you." The dark elf's attitude, as he spoke the last two words, was more than just anger. It was almost dismissive of the elf before him.

"There was no need for my father to come," Legolas answered more calmly than he felt. "He is not going to give you what you want. Mirkwood will never be yours,” he declared emphatically. “I should think that you would know that by now." There was no mistaking the defiance in Legolas's words and condescending tone.

"So, the great king of the wood elves sends his youngest son to face death in his place. I am not surprised. I have always known that he is a coward at heart, also being descended from cowards." A sneer crossed Mordraug's face. He wanted to aggravate this young elf, and he was sure that insulting his father and his heritage was the easiest way to do it. He was wrong.

Legolas remembered declaring in his previous encounter with Mordraug that his father was no coward. It was a waste of time to declare it again. Defending his heritage was also a waste of time. He knew Mordraug was trying to provoke him into perhaps revealing some secret information or making some kind of mistake, and he was not going to fall into that trap. "No one sent me,” he said finally. “This is between you and me now. I am the one that you attacked. Therefore, it is logical that I am the one to face you now."

The sneer on Mordraug's face broadened, as another thought struck him. He wondered if Legolas had been told that the poison in his body could not be removed or neutralized. If not, it would give him a great deal of pleasure to reveal it. With that in mind, he said, "Do you know that the venom that is running through your veins is irreversible---and fatal?"

Legolas looked straight into Mordraug’s dark eyes. "I am well aware of that fact. I know what awaits me."

Mordraug frowned. *Elrond,* he thought with a bitter growl. *That insufferable, meddling....* He was too angry to finish the thought. The elf believed that no one else held the knowledge about the venom, and so it was likely that Elrond was the one who revealed his impending death to this prince. Mordraug wasn't sure which he hated more, at that moment, Thranduil or Elrond. Still, there was a definite positive to Elrond‘s meddling. Knowing that this wood elf had surely spent time pondering the inevitable loss of his immortality and the painful manner by which it would occur was a good thing, a very good thing.

Now, Mordraug was smiling. He bent his left arm at the elbow and held it up in front of him.

Despite his best efforts, Legolas could not keep his eyes from moving down to the slender black snake that was wrapped around the extended arm. The memories could not be held at bay any longer, and a tingling sensation made its way down his spine, ending in a shiver.

Feeling the elf's intense stare, the snake, who had been still and quiet until then, slowly lifted its head almost a foot above the arm it curled around. With a mesmerizing seductiveness it began to undulate slowly side to side in the same way it had done the first time Legolas had seen it. The elf’s' blue-gray eyes followed every move, unable to turn away. His heart began to pound harder, sounding like thunder in his ears. His breathing became quick and shallow.

The memory of the snake's needle-sharp fangs sinking into the soft flesh inside his mouth and injecting its venom made him visibly shudder. His mouth began to ache. Or, was it just those memories in his mind making him think so? He felt his fear rising, and he swallowed hard. He then chided himself for his weakness. It didn't occur to him that even the bravest warrior in Middle-earth, who found himself in that same situation, would have been equally as fearful. To him this fear was a flaw, and he hated acknowledging that fact to himself.

He believed that being bitten again would do him no more damage than had already been done. Yet, his fear continued unabated. Legolas's face reflected his grim determination not to appear helpless in front of this evil being, vowing to keep his courage strong. He had betrayed his best friend, likely broken his father’s heart and come too far to let these emotions cripple him now. He knew he needed to do something before his fear turned to panic and immobilized him.

Without warning, Legolas drew the twin knives that he had put in his belt. His bow and quiver were strapped on Elenblaith. He had known that, even as swift as he was with a bow, he would probably only have had one shot at Mordraug, and he felt there would have been little chance of hitting his target. Mordraug was also a swift elf, after all. and Legolas had never, in all his long life, fired an arrow at another elf. So, more than likely, if he had even attempted to shoot Mordraug, the elf would have simply avoided the arrow and disappeared back into the trees.

Legolas swung his right leg over Elenblaith’s neck and slid down from the horse's back, all the while facing forward and keeping his eyes on the Avari before him. "Now, it is time to finish it," he declared.

Mordraug stared at the half-crouching elf, whose blades were now moving back and forth in front of him. The dark elf laughed. "You seem very eager to engage in combat with me. Why do you wish to hasten your death?"

Legolas wasn't about to answer that question. Mordraug could not find out that Thranduil, Estel, and possibly others, were not only on their way there but would be arriving before long. Instead, he said, "Why are you not in a hurry to see that happen? I would think that watching me die would be a distinct pleasure for you."

"Indeed, it will be. But, I do not want it to happen too quickly. I wish to savor your fear first," Mordraug replied, stating the last sentence with the same relish he would have done, if referring to the enjoyment of a juicy piece of meat.

However, Mordraug's own questions had begun to make him suspicious. Why, he wasn't sure, since it was actually logical for the silvan elf to want to try and kill him and his pet as soon as possible. Or was it? Wouldn't he want to play this scene out as long as possible to try and find a weakness in the dark elf's defenses? Wouldn't he want to question and probe until he found something he could try and exploit? No, there was a definite reason the prince was trying to finish this quickly, even if he knew his own death was at the end of it.

Mordraug decided that he needed to get away and give himself more time to figure out what this clever young elf was up to. There was too much at risk to rush into anything. He had to stall. A smile came to Mordraug’s face, as he thought of the perfect place to go to think. It was also the perfect place for his eventual revenge.

He knew that as soon as he turned his back, Legolas would take that opportunity to try and drive both long knives into his retreating back. That, of course, would never do. Mordraug held his left arm straight out to the side, as he turned his back on Legolas and started walking away.

The snake looked toward Legolas, and then his eyes flashed with that same inner red glow it had displayed before it had bitten the archer previously. A searing pain exploded through Legolas's body. It wasn't quite as bad as the attack at Rivendell, but it was bad enough to knock him to his knees and stop him from using his knives, which was all that Mordraug wanted for now.

Mordraug didn't have to turn around to see what had happened. He laughed when he heard the involuntary cry of pain that escaped Legolas's lips. *Another weakness,* the woodland elf thought unhappily, as he panted for breath.

When Legolas was finally able, he looked up and saw that Mordraug was no where in sight. It took a few moments for the pain to subside enough for the elf to get to his feet. He swayed precariously but didn't lose his balance. It took several attempts to make his muscles obey his commands. His whole body hurt, but the fire that had swept through him was gone. His head felt a little woozy, yet his vision remained focused.

"Who is the coward now?" he managed to shout, although the sound was not as harsh as he intended nor as strong as he wanted. Still, he was sure it was heard quite clearly.

Legolas realized that he still clutched both of his knives in his hands. He put them back in his belt and started off, rather unsteadily at first, after the dark elf.

Elenblaith began to follow. The archer turned and held his hand up, stopping the horse’s advance. He rubbed the stallion's forehead and told him to go into the trees but to stay near the trail. He believed that when the final confrontation was over, the horse would be found. He would be taken home, possibly bearing his master's body. Legolas sighed. There was no time to think about that now.

He watched as the horse disappeared into the trees to the right of the path before he turned and headed once again toward where his keen senses told him Mordraug had gone. The evil that the Avari and the snake radiated was as easy for an elf to follow as a physical trail left by clumsy, heavy-footed orcs.

Orcs. Legolas suddenly remembered that two orcs had held him while the snake bit him. He shivered again at the memory of their rough hands holding him immobile. He also remembered their laughter at his fears. A surge of hatred swept through him. He despised those foul creatures. Legolas forced his mind to calm itself.

Where were the orcs now? The elf nodded in sudden understanding. The overly thick canopy of trees made the forest naturally a little gloomy, and it was easy to forget that there was bright sunshine outside of these woods. However, the low light did not quite make the forest dark enough for orcs to be comfortable. Wherever they were, they would be hiding until nightfall. That, at least, was an advantage for Legolas, though Mordraug evidently didn't think he needed their help. *Ego precedes a fall,* Legolas thought, remembering the phrase from one of his school masters, during a warrior training lesson on teamwork. *Perhaps, I can take advantage of Mordraug’s monumental ego.*

A good hundred yards farther down the trail, Legolas saw that Mordraug had moved into the trees. He had no idea where the dark elf was going, but it didn’t matter. Legolas was going to keep following him until he stopped. And, stop he would, because the blond warrior knew that Mordraug was leading him somewhere in particular.

A few moments later, Legolas began to feel a tugging on the edges of his mind. His body had now recovered, but there was definitely something nagging at him that he couldn’t quite grasp. He looked around him but didn’t detect anything that might be the source of his mental discomfort.

Then suddenly, he knew what the feeling was trying to tell him, as he realized that his surroundings were becoming familiar. Legolas now knew where Mordraug was leading him, so he picked up his pace.

~*~*~

Mordraug had been thinking hard during his walk through the forest. He kept asking why the Mirkwood prince would want to hasten his own death. The obvious thought kept coming back to him that the young elf had come here alone to face him. Why? Was there more to it than his declaration that it should be him, because he was the one who had been attacked. There had to be more.

Over and over he mulled the puzzle until, all at once, it hit him. Alone. Of course. The wood elf had seemingly come alone. But, had he really?

Mordraug may have been in virtual exile for almost two millennia, but he had not been totally unaware of events in the world outside of this forest. He had often sent his orc slaves out to spy on the goings on in Mirkwood. Many had been killed by the elven warriors of that realm, but enough had made it back to keep him informed of current events. He knew for instance, about the close friendship that Mirkwood’s youngest prince had formed with the human ranger. He also knew of his close ties with Elrond’s twin sons. Then, of course, there was his father, Thranduil.

Mordraug realized that none of them would have let this young archer make this journey by himself. So, he was now sure that those others were also coming. That had to be it. Perhaps, they were planning on entering from the other end of the valley. Perhaps, they were already in the forest, and Legolas was just a diversion until they reached their intended target---him.

Mordraug found it hard to believe that anyone could enter this forest, and he wouldn’t be aware of it. Mordraug was convinced that they hadn’t arrived quite yet, and that this silvan elf was, at present, truly alone. That still did not explain why Legolas was in such a hurry to combat Mordraug before his ‘help’ arrived.

Well, whatever they had planned wasn’t going to work. He and his pet had faced the Lords of Mirkwood, Rivendell and Lothlorien along with almost a dozen elven warriors all those years ago---and won. He didn’t think that there would be any warrior guards with them now. He believed that they, with their own egos, would want to defeat him without any outside help. He found himself eagerly awaiting their arrival. The prince he could easily control until they showed up.

Legolas stopped when he saw Mordraug standing in the center of the same clearing where he had been attacked and bitten by the snake. He had been right about where Mordraug had been heading.

The Avari had his back to Legolas, who was just about to make his presence known, when he heard Mordraug say challengingly, “Come, Thranduil. I cannot wait until you arrive to try and save your son. I hope you are coming, too, Elrond. And, I welcome whoever else you are bringing with you. None of you will escape. This time, you will all die.”

Legolas froze, and a knot formed in his stomach. *He knows!* he thought in dismay. *He knows they are coming.*

TBC