43: Further Conversations

Amroth walked over to the campus to find some of the children (as he thought of them) outside playing ‘forts’, as they called it. He stood beside a pine tree, unobtrusively watching the game, smiling at the overblown antics as he saw one person clutching his chest and doing a fair imitation of someone dying Charlie Chaplin style, while everyone else pretty much ignored him, too intent on trying to make another ‘kill’ to care. There was yelling back and forth and Amroth was amused to hear the occasional cursing in Sindarin, especially Glorfindel’s favorite swear word, pui-en-orch.

He could see Alex and Derek fighting side-by-side and in a rare flash of foresight, he ‘saw’ them standing together elsewhere and elsewhen with strange weapons in their hands, calmly facing opponents whom he could not see in his vision, yet knew in his heart that they had to be of the Enemy. He did not think it was the Dagor Dagorath, but certainly it was an opening skirmish in the war that was coming. The vision faded almost as soon as it appeared and Amroth forced himself not to shiver at its implications. Yet, in a way, the vision had heartened him, knowing that these two would be staunch battle comrades, gwedyr and more than gwedyr: they would be allies.

He wondered if he should tell the others of this, but even as the idea reached him, he decided not to. Not yet. It is too soon. The time for such revelations is not yet. He frowned, wondering why he thought that, but the feeling of indecision passed and he put the vision from his mind as he sauntered over to the forts to get Alex’s and Derek’s attention, never realizing that someone had been standing beside him, willing him to forget the vision for a time.

Olórin, presently on watch at the Academy, nodded in satisfaction, smiling at the Children (all of them) as an errant snowball found its way into Amroth’s face, startling the Elf, while laughter rang across the campus. He watched in amusement as Amroth reached down to make his own snowball, the light of battle in his eyes, as he merrily joined the students, much to their delight.

*They never grow up, do they?*

Olórin’s orange-yellow aura brightened in laughter as his brother Fionwë joined him.

*For which we can be thankful,* he said, shifting his aura toward the blue spectrum, which, had he been incarnate, would have manifested itself as a wry look. *If they ever truly grow up, they would be impossible.*

Fionwë’s own blue-white aura deepened into indigo in laughter. *Very true.*

*How are things at Edhellond?*

*Quiet, for now. They await Amroth’s return.*

*Which, judging from his actions at the moment, may be awhile.*

Fionwë’s aura went incandescent with laughter, though none of the Incarnates noticed, or if they did, they put it down to sun-glare.

*Eönwë is sending reinforcements,* Fionwë said when he calmed down.

*Oh?* Olórin’s aura deepened to an orange-red. *Does he think we two incapable of handling any situation that arises here?*

*Here, no. He has every confidence that we can contain things here,* Fionwë replied, his normally blue-white aura shifting towards green with anger. *But the situation in Washington is turning critical. The Enemy is influencing certain people in the Agency to move against the Academy, using Artemus and the one calling himself Farrell as pawns. Atar, apparently, is putting certain game-pieces in play sooner than we were expecting.*

*I was unaware that the Enemy was making such a blatant move at this time,* Olórin said, his aura now almost in the infrared in dismay. *I thought we had more time.*

*Eönwë thinks that the Enemy is gathering its own forces among those whom young Artemus would call co-workers. Farrell may be one such. Certainly his actions of late make him a likely candidate. Yet, our lord is unsure that he is even full aware that he is playing into the Enemy’s hands.*

*I would not call him evil, myself,* Olórin said grimly, *yet, he is not entirely on the side of Light. Taking the lives of those two unfortunate Children as he did clearly puts him outside our purview.*

*Need I remind you that we are not to interfere with what must happen here?* Fionwë asked. *As difficult as it is to stand by and watch, some things must happen if we are not to lose all.*

*This I know,* Olórin replied with a tinge of sadness manifesting itself as streaks of red-violet mixed in with his normal orange-yellow aura. *There will be pain for them all soon enough, but it will be necessary if we are to forge the weapons that these Children must become in order for us to win against the Enemy. While it may be foretold that we will ultimately win, nothing is ever certain in this universe and free will rules all.*

Fionwë’s aura was shot with yellow in assent. *Only Atar’s love for us all is certain, though nothing else is.*

The two Maiar continued watching the game being played by the Children, making bets between themselves as to who would survive and who would not, smiling as Amroth joined forces with Alex and Derek, the three of them forming a formidable team. Both Maiar nodded in satisfaction, for they knew that, in some way known only to the One, these three would play an important role in the future, a role that would prove vital to the success of Elf Academy as the bastion of the Light.

****

The game was declared a tie when several of the players decided that it was too cold for them and everyone trooped inside to grab some hot drinks and warm up. Amroth joined Alex and Derek as they followed the others in. Amroth gave the two Mortals a smile.

"We make a pretty good team, wouldn’t you say?"

Both Mortals nodded. "You have a wicked throw and amazing accuracy," Derek commented. "I’m glad you were on our side."

Amroth laughed.

Alex gave him a shrewd look. "Was there a reason why you came over here, other than to join us in a silly snowball fight?"

"Yes, but let’s grab some coffee or something and go to my office where we’ll be more private."

The other two agreed and a short time later armed with coffee (Alex and Amroth) and hot chocolate (Derek), they made their way to Amroth’s office. Amroth sat behind his desk while the two Men sat before him, sipping their drinks.

"Dave Michaelson came by earlier," Amroth said without preamble and at the enquiring looks of the two Mortals, went on to explain, "You met him and his family at the picnic, Alex." Alex nodded, remembering where he’d heard the name before. "Besides being a good friend of ours, Dave is also chief of police for Wiseman." He paused for a moment and when he resumed his narrative, he spoke barely above a whisper, not looking at them, his eyes full of pain. "They found Ersck’s and Snyder’s bodies over at Big Lake. Someone broke through the ice and dumped them in the lake, apparently thinking that the ice would reform."

"But it didn’t," Alex said shrewdly.

Amroth shook his head. "No. It didn’t. The temperatures have warmed up enough that the ice isn’t forming immediately. Two early-morning fishermen found the hole and the bodies."

"The bloody fool!" Alex exclaimed. "Does he really think he can get away with that? He should have simply bought their silence, sent them out of the country, anything but...."

"How will Washington respond to this?" Amroth asked.

"That all depends on what they know," Alex replied. "If we can make it look as if these deaths have nothing to do with the Agency, we can buy time. How much, I can’t venture to guess, but if Washington learns that Farrell —"

"Assuming it was Farrell or one of the other agents you mentioned who actually killed them," Derek interjected.

"If there is any hint that these deaths can be linked to the Agency there will be hell to pay and too many innocent people could be hurt," Alex retorted angrily. "Why he recruited them in the first place is beyond me. He had three other highly trained agents who could’ve done the job."

"Perhaps, after losing the other five, he didn’t want to risk losing these, knowing he wasn’t going to get anymore," Amroth ventured.

Both Alex and Derek nodded at that assessment.

"The problem is," Amroth continued, sitting back in his chair and taking a sip of his coffee, "until now, we’ve been able to keep all of this in-house, so to speak. But now, the authorities, in the persons of the chief of police and the sheriff, are aware that there is trouble here and that there are outside forces that are proving inimical to our continuing existence. They’re going to start asking questions and we can’t give them any satisfactory answers without exposing your involvement in this, Alex, and, whether you realize it or not, you’re our ace in the hole."

"I know," Alex said with a nod, "and I agree. What Farrell did was not only against the rules but seriously compromises the standing of the Agency. His only hope is to prove somehow that Elf Academy, or at least, those who are running it, are a threat to the security of the United States and its government."

"Does he have proof?" Derek asked.

"I have no idea," Alex said. "He would have the same access to information as I, but whether he can make anything out of it is problematic. Even I couldn’t make any sense of the data given to me, you saw that."

Derek nodded. "It seems to me that what is needed is something that will send the police off on a tangent away from us and looking elsewhere."

"Any suggestions?" Amroth asked with a quirk of a smile.

"What explanation did you give for those men being here in the first place?" Alex asked.

"As far as the police are concerned, Ersck and Snyder were after Jack Whitman for the purpose of blackmailing his father for money. However, Jack’s family knows nothing of this and both Dave and Carl have agreed not to tell them. As far as the public is concerned, their motives for breaking into the Academy remain unknown."

"If we can... er... plant some evidence showing that those dudes were after Jack Whitman then that makes it a non-Academy affair," Derek offered. "Jack could’ve been kidnapped on the street or in his home, but he just happened to be at the Academy. I wonder why he’s living here instead of at home, though?"

"He prefers to live here. The Whitman household is rather crowded with three younger sisters," Amroth answered with a knowing smile and the two Men smiled back.

"And what kind of evidence are you thinking of planting and where would you plant it?" Alex asked, curious to see how his friend’s mind worked.

"Well, that’s the tricky part, I admit," Derek said ruefully. "It was just an idea and probably not a very good one."

"What if there were another attempt?" Alex asked. "Oh, not for real, but if we arranged for someone to try to take Jack, and we’ll need to let him in on it for his own safety, then maybe...."

Amroth shook his head. "If we were to stage such a thing, that poor boy will know no peace. His father will insist on him returning home and placing him under guard. Jack is trying to make it on his own. He’s here under the work-study program and isn’t taking a dime from his father for tuition and such."

"Well, I can certainly respect that," Derek said and Alex nodded.

"However, there is some merit in what you both have said about providing evidence that leads the eyes of the authorities away from this Academy and looking elsewhere for their answers as to how two criminals ended up in Big Lake. I’ll have to take it up with Loren and the others and see what we can come up with. In the meantime, I don’t need to remind you to stay alert."

Both Men shook their heads.

"Loren has decided to discontinue our night patrol, though, frankly, I’m a bit uneasy about that. I don’t think we will truly rest until we have Farrell and his friends contained and neutralized."

"I know," Alex said, "and I agree with you. To tell you the truth, I’ve only been able to sleep these past few nights simply because I knew you guys were on duty."

Amroth gave him a considering look. "Speaking of which, how are your dreams? Do you still have nightmares?"

Alex shook his head. "Nor am I dreaming about... er... well about things." He stole a glance at Derek, unwilling to speak about his dreams of Beren and Bregdal.

Derek just shrugged. "It’s none of my concern, and I won’t ask, but if you ever need to talk...."

"Thanks. I appreciate it, really, it’s just a bit hard right now," Alex said, giving him a grateful look.

Derek nodded and Amroth leaned forward, staring intently at Alex, who met his gaze with equanimity. "Remember what I told you about ignoring your dreams."

"I remember and, truly, ever since I recovered from that stomach flu I haven’t been bothered by dreams of any sort. I can’t even tell you if I actually have dreamt."

"I’ll let Ron know, if you don’t mind," Amroth said and Alex shook his head. The Elf stood and the other two followed. "I cannot advise you as to what to do about Farrell, except to be cautious. He tried to take you, Derek, and he may try again. I’m going to see if I can convince Loren to continue with the patrols until this is all cleared up. Not all will bother, but I know the Twins will join me and maybe Conan or Gil."

"Should I contact Maddy and let her know what’s happened?" Alex asked. "She’s already aware that Farrell brought outsiders into this, but she may not have learned about Ersck’s and Snyder’s deaths."

"I would hold off contacting her just yet," Amroth advised. "If she contacts you later asking why you didn’t forward the information to her, just tell her that you hadn’t made the connection. You said you mentioned no names when you reported to her."

"I just said that Farrell had hired two locals to make the snatch, but that they were foiled in their attempt and were placed in custody. I haven’t told her yet that Farrell apparently sprang them from jail."

"Then, I suggest you play dumb for now," Amroth said. "Let Maddy make the next move. But heed me well, both of you," and his voice deepened and the two Men straightened in response. "Under no circumstances are you to to go after Farrell yourself."

"Why not?" Alex demanded. "I would think you would want me to go after him and stop him."

"You’re too valuable to us alive to risk getting yourself killed and I have no doubt that Farrell is just ruthless enough that he wouldn’t hesitate to kill you to further his own ends, whatever they may be."

"What do you mean by that?" Derek asked, looking confused.

"I mean that Farrell is obviously playing his own game and until we can figure out what that is, we’re all in danger, but especially you, Alex. I have no doubt Farrell has it in for you. So please, no heroics. Continue playing the student and let me and the others handle this. After all, we’ve been at it a lot longer than you have."

"Oh?" Alex said. "I thought you were the only one who was involved in espionage."

Amroth grinned. "Someday, when this is all over, you should ask Glorfindel and Daeron about their time in fourteenth century Florence spying on the Ghibillines for the Guelphs. The tale makes for interesting hearing." With that, he ushered them out the door, bidding them good-bye, leaving them both standing there gaping in disbelief.

****

Gwedyr: (Sindarin) Plural of gwador: Sworn-brother.