Chapter 12 - Deepening Fears
Legolas could have sworn that his heart stopped at that moment. He was definitely holding his breath, trying with all of his might to not show the shock and fear that he was feeling. How did this man know who he was?
"Do not look so shocked your highness, I would be a foolish leader, would I not, if I did not learn everything about the lands surrounding mine?" Kalen said enthusiastically. "I suppose that we should be expecting a company of men from Gondor to retrieve you. Hmm, I will have to prepare a warm welcome for them."
Legolas’ eyes did not leave the Lord of Marek. Kalen was far too pleased with his most recent acquisition and that did little to settle Legolas’ nerves. It had always been a rather likely assumption that there were spies from Harad living in Gondor, Rohan and Ithilien. Many meetings were held consisting of Aragorn, Faramir, Eomer and himself regarding the likelihood of such a thing. Legolas always knew that they were present, Gondor, itself, had sent their own spies into Harad to gather information, but to have such an open admittance of these suspected beliefs was unnerving.
Kalen was pacing up and down the line of the four elves looking each of them over as he spoke, a smug little smile on his face. "Nolir" Kalen paused in his inspections long enough to call to the Captain of his guard. A tall, dark haired, muscular man with narrow eyes stepped forward and bowed to Kalen. "Show Medero to the door and give him twice the prearranged price. Then double the guards on the walls, we may have visitors coming from the North. When you have finished return and help me with our new guests."
Nolir gave a quick nod of his head to Kalen and turned in Medero’s direction. Medero hadn’t taken his eyes off of Legolas and the prince noticed that he now carried himself somewhat differently. It seemed, to Legolas, that Medero walked a little bit taller, as though a huge weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. He seemed proud of the job he had just completed and wore a pleased smile on his face. As Medero quickly walked out of sight, Legolas saw him cast one more glance over his shoulder at the four captive elves.
"Well your highness," Legolas’ attention was quickly brought back to the large man in front of him, "I think that someone of your stature would best be served working as my personal servant, would you not agree?"
Legolas lifted his chin and looked down his nose at the man. He would not humor this man with his words. He held his tongue and steeled his gaze against his captor. He knew that the only power he held in this current situation was the power over his own words and actions and he would do everything in his capacity to retain that power.
Kalen began to laugh, he tossed his head back and let out a great guffaw which bounced amongst the tall pillars strewn about the entryway. Legolas could feel his anger intensify and he clenched his fists before him causing the ropes to bite even further into his wrists. He wished for his hands to be free, at that moment, for if they were, he would have reached right out and wrapped them around this man’s thick neck and squeezed with everything he had in him. This haughty, poor excuse for a man, was the reason that the four of them had been ripped away from their families and friends and Legolas fumed because of his arrogance.
Kalen’s laughter stopped abruptly and he wiped tears from his eyes as took a deep breath. "I must admit that I had not planned on getting a new personal servant today, but the appeal is just too great." He paused for a moment forcing the smile from his face and replacing it with a much more sinister expression, "It is your duty to keep your people safe, is it not?"
Legolas could feel hot breath brush his cheek as Kalen spoke and was repulsed at the closeness of this man, but he would not allow the Lord of Marek to gain ground by stepping away. Staring directly into the large man’s eyes, Legolas could feel an anger he had never experienced before blazing within him. His palms burned as he dug the nails of his fingers into them in frustration. The muscles in his neck tightened in anger. Had he not felt it would give Kalen satisfaction, Legolas would have screamed his fury.
Caught up in his own displeasure, Legolas was caught off guard when the back of Kalen’s hand connected with his right cheek. His head was snapped to the side and a long crimson cut appeared as a result of one of the large man’s many rings.
A soft movement to his right forced Legolas to recover quickly and sent a sharp glare in Lómëdil’s direction when he noticed the other elf step forward to come to his Lord’s aid. The two exchanged brief glances in which Legolas conveyed his desire to not have anyone come to harm because of him. Kalen was right, it was his duty as a Prince and as Lord of Ithilien to keep his people safe and it was a duty that Legolas had taken very seriously his entire life.
"I asked you a question elf." Kalen was still standing far too close for Legolas’ comfort and he could make out the smell of smoke on the man.
Hesitating once again, Legolas swallowed hard and forced himself to answer. "Yes." That one word was thick with disdain, and the venom it held caused several of the men around the entryway to shift on their feet.
"Well then, let us make a little bargain shall we?" Kalen stepped back slightly as he spoke and looked to the other elves lined up beside Legolas. "You behave yourself and do as I tell you and your subjects here will be just fine. But, you put one foot out of line and the penalty will be swift and harsh. Is that understood?" It wasn’t a question, there was no room for negotiation, Legolas knew that these three, who had come to Ithilien to help with the work that he had begun, would suffer for his actions.
They were suffering now because they had come to Ithilien in the first place. If they had just taken the ships to the Undying Lands, they wouldn’t be here with him now, in this horrible place. For them to be punished for Legolas’ actions was far more than the elf prince could bear.
Once again Legolas’ lack of response resulted in a sharp backhand. Kalen’s ring connected once again with the elf’s cheek, opening the cut deeper. Blood was now trickling down his face and dripping onto his tunic.
"Your bargain is understood." Legolas hissed at the large man. The smug smile returned to Kalen’s face and Legolas could see the other three elves shifting uncomfortably.
Legolas lifted his eyes and looked to the small patch sky that could be seen between the pillars. The visible stars shone extraordinarily bright and their presence comforted him. The other three elves, who had been watching their liege closely, followed his gaze to the stars and the four of them had a moment of peace, gaining strength from one another’s presence and beauty of the night sky. This small speck of nature warmed the coldness that had been growing within each of them, albeit slightly, and they clung to the radiance as though is were a lifeline.
Their respite was cut short with the reappearance of Nolir. Kalen’s Captain was not a pleasant looking man and he watched the elves with contempt. There was a hatred in the captain’s eyes that Legolas could see was fueled by fear and ignorance. The two were a deadly combination in a man with Nolir’s authority.
"Ah, Nolir, we have had a slight change of plans for one of our elves." Kalen glanced from Nolir to Legolas as he spoke. "The Prince here has agreed to be my personal servant."
He lifted his hand to his mouth and sucked the blood off of his rings and he surveyed the elves. "You may do with the others as we discussed."
Nolir stepped forward, grabbing Nienna roughly by the arm, startling the elf-maiden with the harsh treatment. Reflexively, she jerked her arm out of the captain’s grip and moved closer to Lómëdil, searching for protection from her beloved. The abrupt movement of Nienna’s arm threw Nolir slightly off balance and with a growl he swung around and grasped a handful of her thick, brown hair, yanking her toward him then throwing her to the ground.
With a cry of anger, Lómëdil dove at the man attacking his love, his shoulder connecting with Nolir’s stomach, knocking the man back several feet with a grunt. Lómëdil scurried to Nienna’s side, falling to his knees next to her. Whispered words of comfort were passed between the two as Lómëdil attempted to help Nienna to her feet.
Legolas watched in horror as Nolir collected himself up and strode toward the couple. With a ring that seemed to scream at the elf prince to move, the captain pulled his sword from its scabbard and raised it above the unsuspecting elves heads. Before he could even contemplate the repercussions of his actions, Legolas dove for the Marek Captain, his shoulder slamming into the man’s side in much the same way that Lómëdil’s had.
Nolir was knocked, forcibly to the ground, barely catching himself on his hands. His sword flew from his grasp, skidding across the stone ground and coming to a halt just out of reach to the captain. Nolir let out another growl, this one much louder than the first, and jumped to his feet once more. He spun around to find the four elves standing in a circle with their backs to one another.
Legolas wasn’t sure what they were doing, he wondered if all rational thought had fled the foursome. All four were still bound tightly at the wrist and they were vastly outnumbered. He could see Kalen standing just beyond a group of guards watching with interest and curious expression painted the large man’s face. Dozens of guards moved quickly to surround the four and Nolir stepped to the front of the group, directly in front of Legolas, his eyes burning with anger.
"What do you think is going to happen here elf?" Nolir sneered. "Surely you do not believe that the four of you, bound and unarmed as you are, can kill an army of men and make it out of this city. You would be better off just giving up now and cooperating with my men."
Legolas narrowed his eyes and looked skeptically at the captain, "Either way we will not end this night unscathed. We would do better to die fighting then to submit ourselves to your mercy." Captain and elf stared hostilely at one another while the group of guards inched their way closer.
"Come Legolas," Kalen was shouting from outside the circle. "My men can take you unharmed quite easily. I cannot make the same promise for your three companions. If you do not stop this irrational behavior, I will order my archers to shoot them forthwith."
Legolas scanned around the group surrounding them. Mixed in amongst the guards were several men with bows, their weapons trained directly at the elves. His mind spun trying to think of the best way out. He scanned the entryway about him looking for an exit. His heart was pounding as adrenaline surged through him. His options were limited and as he played the scenarios for escape out in his mind he was disconcerted by the outcome of each. There was no escape.
As this dispiriting realization hit him the guards rushed the four helpless elves. Legolas did his best to fight with his limited abilities and he could hear the other elves doing the same near by. He struck out with his bound hands, his fists connecting with jaws, stomachs and temples. The cries of the guards mixed with those of the three elves and one by one Legolas could hear the other captives falling around him.
A cry of pain from one of the elf-maidens caused Legolas to flinch. He looked toward the source and his brief loss of focus gave the guards the advantage they needed. Legolas was quickly overpowered and pushed to the ground, face first. He could see the other three elves being subdued in much the same way and he cursed under his breath for what would befall them for his rash actions.
His eyes connected with those of Adaria and his stomach lurched at the tears that he saw shining within. Legolas watched as the auburn haired maiden looked to him in despair. She closed he eyes tightly against the press of the restraining hands upon her as the laughs of the guards echoed in his ears.
The rough sole of a booted foot came to rest on the back of his neck and began to push down slowly, cutting off his oxygen. Legolas could not fight against the confining hold, the number of guards upon him was too great and his head began to swim at the lack of air.
"It would be so easy your highness." Kalen was talking through clenched teeth, a mixture of power and anger evident in his voice. "All I have to do is shift my weight, ever so slightly, and it would all be over for you. But then, I would not get my moneys worth from you, now would I?"
Legolas struggled against the men, trying to get air as Kalen continued to taunt him. "Take the others, get them out of my sight. Fifty lashings to the male for his Prince’s insubordination."
There was the sound of scuffling and soft grunting as the other three elves were yanked up and removed forcibly from the courtyard.
The edges of Legolas’ vision began to cloud as his struggle for breath intensified. Kalen leaned into his step a little more. "You should take into consideration the power I hold over you little elf. You belong to me now and you will serve me or you, and your companions, will die. Either way you will never see your home again so you may as well give up that petty, little dream. I can make it so much easier for you. All you have to do is cooperate."
Kalen lifted his foot off of Legolas’ neck and the elf took in a huge, gasping breath. The air burned his throat and his vision swam as oxygen rushed into his lungs. He was pushed over onto his back by the assaulting foot and looked up just in time to see the hilt of a sword coming toward him.
"Welcome to Marek," Kalen sneered. The sword connected sharply with Legolas’ temple, reopening the barely healed wound received during his abduction, and darkness immediately enveloped his consciousness.