53: Rendevous at Wild Lake

"You’re bringing swords?" Alex asked in disbelief as he and Derek watched Elrohir and Elladan pull out several swords from their scabbards to examine them.

"Loren wishes us to be fully armed," Elladan replied in a distracted voice as he bent over one of the blades, running a practiced finger down its length as he checked for nicks and rust, though to the Mortals’ eyes, the sword looked pristine and beautiful in a deadly sort of way. Alex wondered idly how old these swords were and decided he really didn’t want to know.

"But swords?" he persisted.

Elrohir gave him an amused glance. "Too anachronistic?"

"Well, duh!"

The Twins laughed and went back to their examination, and the two Mortals were left to fend for themselves. All around them the Elves were busy with their preparations. There was no hurry or even a sense of excitement among them; their pace was deliberate and their voices low. Alex and Derek had offered to help, but in truth, there was very little either of them could do; the Elves had everything under control. Finally, Alex decided he and Derek should make their own preparations and bid the Elves farewell.

"We’ll come back tomorrow around five-thirty," Alex told Glorfindel, "after we’ve had an early dinner. I’m not bothering with archery tomorrow even though Dr. Harris says it’s okay. I’ll be busy with other stuff."

"And what other stuff would that be?" Glorfindel asked.

"Stuff personal to me," Alex said and Glorfindel had the grace to blush and utter an apology.

"We’ll see you tomorrow then," he said as he saw them out the door. "If there are any changes to our plans, Gil or Ron will let you know."

The two Mortals nodded and headed for Alex’s car and drove off.

****

"What’s all this?" Derek asked.

It was Monday after lunch and he’d returned from using the bathroom to find Alex hooking up what looked to be a printer to his laptop.

"You’ll see in a moment," Alex said as he finished with the connections and then turned on the computer. "Here, come over here and clear a space on your desk and then sit. I want to take your picture."

"Huh?"

"Just do it," Alex said, giving him a grin. "You’re about to enter the seamy world of spies, my boy."

Derek shrugged and did as he was bid and sat as Alex directed him. Alex, meanwhile, was plugging in a mini-camera that he had mounted on the top of his laptop, then he sat and fiddled with the keyboard. "Okay. Hold still and don’t smile."

There was a flash that set Derek blinking and Alex nodded. "Good. All set."

"What exactly are you doing, and why?"

"I’m giving you a new identity," Alex said, giving him a smile over the laptop. "Something tells me we shouldn’t go on this little jaunt with the Elves as ourselves."

"Well, you won’t be going as yourself anyway," Derek shot back. "How many fake IDs do you have?"

"None," Alex said somewhat distractedly as he manipulated a software program that allowed him to create credible identification papers. "Every one of my personae is absolutely legitimate. If anyone ever did a search for Alex Grant they would have a whole ton of information about him with all the appropriate records, like birth certificates, school records and the like."

"So what are you doing here?"

"I’m creating a couple of IDs for one use only," Alex said. "When this is over with, you are to discard these, burn them if you can. Do not, under any circumstances, keep them, even as souvenirs." There was no levity in his voice and Derek nodded, suitably impressed.

"Okay, now for a name. Any ideas and make it reasonable and unmemorable."

"Well, I always liked Sam," Derek said. "I had a best friend in school named Sam."

"Fine. Samuel what?"

"Hmmm.... does it really matter? Just pick a last name."

"Samuel Donne."

"Who?"

"Donne, the English poet. He’s one of my mom’s favorites."

"Never heard of him."

"Figures."

"Who are you going as?"

"Gary Martin."

"Any particular reason why?"

"No. I usually choose names that use the same initials as my real name."

"Speaking of which...."

"Not now, Sam," Alex said. "If you value your life, you will forget you ever heard the name Artemus, and I’m not being funny. I mean it truly. That name is dangerous and knowing it puts you in danger. So, forget it."

"Okay, it’s forgotten... Gary."

Alex looked up from what he was doing and gave his roommate a smile.

****

When they got to Edhellond, they found every vehicle owned by the Elves out front being loaded up with supplies. As they climbed out of the car, Gilvegil greeted them. "You have room in your trunk for a couple of coolers?"

"Yeah, no problem. I’ll open it up," Alex said and did just that. Gilvegil brought a small cooler over and glanced into the trunk.

"Fishing gear?" he asked.

"Hey! We’re going to a lake," Alex retorted. "Freshly caught fish for breakfast... nothing like it."

Gilvegil chuckled, nodding in agreement as Cennanion came over with another cooler.

"Why all the cars?" Derek asked as Alex closed the trunk.

"We have no idea who is coming or how many, so we’re bringing all the cars just in case."

"Let’s hope we can fit everyone, then, or we’ll have to tie some down on the roof," Alex quipped and the two Elves laughed.

"You’re to follow behind Ron’s car, that one over there," Gilvegil said, pointing. "We’ll be leaving in about fifteen minutes so if you need to use the bathroom, now’s the time. We won’t stop until we reach the lake. Loren estimates that it’ll take us about five hours."

"That’s cutting it close," Derek said.

"Yes, however, we have the feeling that tonight will not be the night, but it’s best to be there just in case."

"And if it is tonight, then all of this will go to waste." Alex said, pointing to the supplies being loaded into the various cars.

"No. Loren’s decided we’ll camp out for a time even after whoever we’re meeting shows up. So, plan on camping out for at least one night and more likely two."

"Or three," Alex said. "Okay. We brought enough changes of clothes and all so there’re no worries there. I’m going to use the bathroom. I’ll be right out."

****

They didn’t all leave at once. Glorfindel left in his van accompanied by Daeron, then after a minute, another car pulled out driven by Elladan with his brother next to him. Alex noted that Elladan turned left instead of right as Glorfindel had. Vorondur came over to their car and Alex opened the window on his side.

"Follow me but don’t make it obvious," the Elf said.

"Hey! This is me, remember?" Alex said with feigned affront and Vorondur smiled before heading for his own car where Cennanion waited for him. Gilvegil and Barahir would be driving together. Standing at the front door of the mansion was Amroth with his arm around Nimrodel while the other ellith stood on either side of them. They all waved and Alex and Derek waved back as Alex pulled up behind Vorondur’s car, noting that the Elf turned right instead of left as Vorondur drove away.

"They’re taking different routes," he muttered, more to himself than to Derek. He waited for a count of five before putting the car in gear and following Vorondur, who was driving slowly enough so they could see that he was turning right three blocks ahead of them. Looking into the rearview mirror, Alex saw the last car pulling out and heading away from them and nodded.

"Well, we’re on our way," he said unnecessarily and Derek just nodded.

The route Vorondur took was somewhat serpentine but eventually Alex saw that they were now making their way north and then west, eventually reaching the road, more of a dirt track than anything, that would lead to Wild Lake, unsurprised to find some of the other vehicles waiting for them, parked on the side of the road. Just as they came abreast of the parked cars, Alex saw the car driven by Gilvegil coming up behind them and Glorfindel set off. Alex stayed directly behind Vorondur as they wound their way through the mountains towards the lake. They did not go fast, for the road twisted and turned and there was a great deal of jostling as they headed further and further into the Brooks Mountain range.

The two Mortals drove in silence, Alex concentrating on avoiding the ruts on the road. Derek just stared out the window, softly humming to himself as the miles and the hours crept by. "Are we going to have enough gas to get back?" Derek asked after they’d been driving for nearly three hours.

"Hopefully," Alex said as he kept his eyes on the road. "I get pretty good mileage from this car, but even so...."

"Not that we can do anything about it now," Derek said. Alex grunted in agreement and they lapsed back into silence.

It was nearly 11:15 by the time they made it to the lake. The road, which had wound its way past dark pine trees looking ghostly and alien in the light of the headlights, suddenly disappeared and they were in an open field with the lake directly before them. Glorfindel made a right turn, hugging the border of the woods and then stopped about fifty feet from where they’d entered and killed the lights and the engine. Alex brought his car close to Vorondur’s and did the same. The two Men undid their safety belts and opened the doors, climbing out with groans at the stiffness of their muscles. Alex noted sourly that the Elves seemed unaffected by the long drive and were moving about with alacrity. Glorfindel was issuing orders in rapid-fire Sindarin. None of the Elves bothered with flashlights, but Alex reached in the back of the car and pulled out a couple for himself and Derek. Barahir came up to them.

"If you’re up to it, you can help me set up your tent," he said and the two Men nodded and in a short while they had the tent up.

"So where are the other tents?" Derek asked, looking around.

"This is the only one," Barahir replied.

"So where are you guys going to sleep? In the cars?"

Barahir grinned. "We’re Elves, Derek. We’ll sleep, if we even bother to, under the stars. I think Gil and Conan have already staked out their trees."

"You’re sleeping in the trees?" Alex asked. "Isn’t that uncomfortable?"

"Not to mention cold," Derek added.

Barahir just shrugged. "I guess you have to be an Elf to appreciate it."

"Apparently," Alex said and they left it at that.

Someone had constructed a fire pit as they were setting up the tent and a bright fire was blazing in the darkness. They sat around the fire warming themselves against the night. Gilvegil had heated some water in a kettle and they all had mugs of instant coffee or tea in their hands.

"We’ll move the cars tomorrow so they are out of sight," Glorfindel told them, taking a sip from his mug. "There’s a cut-off about a half-mile back the way we came, an old logger’s road. We can put the cars there until we need them. They’ll be invisible from the air."

"Do you think they’ll come tonight?" Derek asked but Glorfindel shook his head.

"I doubt it, but given that it’s Halloween and this time of year is traditionally when the wall between the worlds is supposed to be thin, I felt it wise to be here just in case. My guess is that whoever is coming will be here tomorrow night, but that’s only a guess."

"So what do we do in the meantime?" Alex asked.

"In the meantime, we enjoy a day or two of camping," Glorfindel replied. "Well it’s past midnight and it was a long drive. You two should get some sleep. We’ll take watches for what’s left of the night."

"Watches?" Derek asked. "What do you think is going to attack us out here, ninja squirrels?"

The Elves chuckled. "No, but we’re taking no chances," Glorfindel said. "That’s why we brought weapons."

"Yeah, swords," Alex said with a disdainful sniff. "Give me a .45 automatic any day of the week."

"Somehow the image of gun-toting Elves really doesn’t do it for me," Derek said.

The Elves all laughed and bid the Mortals a good night. In minutes, they were nestled in their sleeping bags falling asleep to the sound of Daeron softly singing.

****

As early as Alex woke in the morning, the Elves were already up and about, assuming they’d even slept. He mumbled a good morning to Glorfindel and Elrohir as he stumbled towards the line of trees that had been designated as the latrines and was pleasantly surprised to see that someone had even set up a portable washstand with a mirror so he was able to clean himself afterwards. By the time he stumbled back to the fire, Derek was awake.

"Did you guys sleep at all?" Alex asked the Elves as Elrohir handed him a mug of coffee.

"We all slept well over the weekend," Elrohir answered. "We can go for days without true sleep."

"Lucky you," Alex mumbled as he accepted some bread that Glorfindel had toasted over the fire. "So, what’s the plan for the day?"

"How about you and I have our next session?"

Alex turned to see Vorondur approaching them.

"Here? Now?"

Vorondur shrugged. "Why not? We’ll take a walk along the lake. No one will disturb us."

"I guess, but after breakfast," Alex said.

"Take your time; we have all day," Vorondur said.

Half an hour later, he and Alex left the camp to walk along the lakeshore. Derek sat beside the fire feeling a bit abandoned, for most of the Elves had disappeared into the woods once all the cars had been moved out of sight. He looked up when Elladan came towards him, carrying a bow with a quiver.

"Roy and I are going hunting," the Elf told him. "Care to come along?"

Derek nodded gratefully and in minutes the campsite was deserted except for Daeron, who sat before the fire strumming one of his harps.

****

The day passed slowly. Alex ended up actually taking a nap in the afternoon, feeling emotionally wrung out after his session with Vorondur which had lasted far longer than either had anticipated. Derek came back with the Twins flushed with excitement at having seen a bald eagle and a herd of deer. He and the Twins returned with several hares they had caught and they spent part of the afternoon skinning them and readying them for the pot as Daeron said he would make rabbit stew for dinner.

As the night drew on, the other Elves returned to the camp, quietly eating the stew, most of them not in the mood for talking. The two Mortals took their cue from them and ate in silence as well. After everyone had eaten, Glorfindel ordered the Elves to spread out along the lake, taking up certain positions that allowed them to see in all directions, for none knew from which quarter the help would arrive. He had Alex and Derek stay by the fire to keep it going, for the night was chill and there was the feeling of snow in the air.

"It’ll snow by morning," Glorfindel said to them.

Yet, for now, the sky was clear of clouds and the stars sparkled brilliantly above them. Time seemed to creep along and the Mortals occupied themselves with playing twenty questions or practicing their Sindarin with one another. At one point Derek happened to look up into the heavens and frowned, pointing to the northwest.

"Is that a satellite?"

"Where?" Alex asked, craning his neck.

"There at about eleven o’clock. It’s too high up to be a plane and it’s moving at a good clip."

Alex stood up, shading his eyes against the fire glow so he had a better view and nodded. "Yeah, it must be a satellite, but...." He paused, unsure as to what he was seeing. "I think it’s falling."

"What?" Derek exclaimed, rising to stand next to him.

"Yeah, look. It’s getting larger and it’s.... it’s heading straight for us. Loren! Loren!" Alex started running south to where Glorfindel had stationed himself. Derek was right behind him.

"Easy now," they heard Glorfindel say in a calm voice as the two Men stumbled towards him. "There’s no need to panic. Come. We’ll return to the fire."

"What is it?" Alex asked. "What’s coming?"

"We’ll see soon enough," Glorfindel said as he headed back to the camp with the Mortals trailing him. Others were also returning from where they’d been stationed, looking up at the object approaching. It was still nothing more than a very bright looking star that was slowly drawing closer but in a matter of minutes, even Alex and Derek could see what it was.

"Lord above! It’s a ship," Derek exclaimed.

"It’s Vingilot," Glorfindel said calmly. Then he turned to the Twins with a smile. "I think you’re about to meet your Grandfather."

"Is that singing?" Alex asked, not paying attention to what Glorfindel was saying, his gaze fixed on the approaching ship.

For a moment, they listened to the sound of voices singing high above them, becoming louder and more distinct as the ship came nearer. Alex realized he was hearing Sindarin but only caught a word or two. Then, to the Mortals’ utter astonishment, all the Elves around them broke into song and the night was filled with their ethereal voices even as Vingilot sailed before them, shining brightly.