Misplaced Trust

Written By: Legolas Fanatic
You can Read the Original here:
All Credit goes to the Original Author

Chapter 1: Distressing news

Legolas cursed under his breath as he turned yet another corner. It had become incredibly monotonous, jog down a corridor, turn, jog down another corridor, turn. At least there was not too far to go now.

“Amin hiraetha [I’m sorry]” Legolas muttered as he had to dodge yet another elf. He didn’t pause, only continued to make his way to the next corner.

The fair elf almost cried in joy as he finally laid eyes upon his father’s meeting room. He did not yet know why he had been summoned but by the urgency the messenger possessed he could summarize that his father was unnerved.

Legolas moved to the door and rapped his knuckles against the smooth wood twice. Within moments his father’s voice sounded on the other side of the door. “Enter.”

“Ada [Father]” Legolas said as he opened the door and strode into the room. He was greeted by the sight of his father sitting in a large high-backed chair. Across from the king, behind his desk, sat three elves.

Aluer, a fierce female warrior, was the one closest to the door. She was a fair-haired elf with pale blue eyes. Legolas recognized her from the training grounds; she was quite frequently honing her skills. She was clad in brown leggings and a dark green tunic with a khaki over-shirt. Her hair was tied in a long flowing braid down her back.

As Legolas entered she smiled at him comfortingly even though he could see the distress in her eyes. She was one of his father’s Lieutenants so for her to be here, the discussion would have to revolve around battle.

Next to her sat King Thranduil’s trusted Captain, Oliner, whom Legolas had associated with on few occasions. His light brown hair was held back with two warrior braids, very similar to Legolas’ own hair style. He wore a placid green tunic with black leggings. He inclined his head slightly at the prince’s presence before returning his gaze to Thranduil.

The last elf Legolas gazed at was unfamiliar. The elf had ebony hair and wore a white cloak. He didn’t appear as high-ranked as the other elves, holding himself in a submissive manner. The elf continued to gaze at the floor, avoiding eye contact with everyone.

“Ion nin [My son]” Thranduil greeted his son before gesturing to an empty seat beside the unknown elf.

“Now that Legolas is present, we can begin our discussion” Thranduil began, leaning forward. “As it so happens, I have been reported some uneasy news.”

“Hir nin [My Lord], I recommend that this discussion be kept confidential” Oliner suggested, shooting a quick glance at Legolas.

“Uma [Yes]” the king replied before continuing with his talk.

“I received news not more than three hours ago that an elf had been spotted communing with an Yrch [Orc], not too far from Mirkwood. A patrol was fortunate enough to spot this traitor but not subdue him.” Thranduil sighed and clasped his hands as the news sunk into his audience.

“But why would an elf communicate with an orc. An orc would not even tolerate one of the firstborn’s presence, let alone make a deal with one” Aluer shifted gracefully in her seat.

“We do not yet know if it was a deal that was being discussed” Thranduil said, “the elf was not caught so all we know is that for some unknown reason, orcs are within close range of Mirkwood and have a contact on the inside.”

“Was not a description of the traitorous elf cataloged?” Oliner asked confidently, as if that very question would stave off impending doom.

“No, they wore a cloak. We cannot even say whether they are male or female.” Thranduil turned to his son, raising his eyebrows in question of Legolas’ opinion.

Legolas felt unnerved by this information. He could think of no reason why an elf would willingly commune with an orc. He did not even want to think about how dangerous this could prove to be for Mirkwood. “We should keep a closer eye on the gates; make sure everyone who enters and leaves is properly recorded.”

“That could prove to be a painful mistake” Oliner objected.

“How so?” Legolas asked, annoyed at the captain for trying to prove him wrong.

“It is possible that the offender has another way of exiting Mirkwood and if we monitor the gates with more guards, we will be leaving other areas open and alerting the traitor to the fact that we are taking measures to catch them. They will be more careful. We can’t afford to expend all our resources.” Oliner sat back in his seat, smiling at the prince with only a hint of smugness.

“What do you suggest then?” Legolas did not even try to keep the impatience from his voice.

“We should mount a small military defense and hunt down the orcs before they have a chance to cause any trouble” Oliner drawled as if it were obvious.

“We have no idea where the orcs are situated, it could be days of searching” Legolas countered.

“But then the threat would be eliminated. I mean, we could always wait till the orcs come to us?” Oliner sneered at the prince.

“Or we could just go straight to them and save them the trouble” the elven prince replied icily.

“Dina [Be silent]” Thranduil stood, placing his hands on the table and halting the discussion almost immediately. “We are here to discuss this issue formerly. Now, can you please stop acting like a pair of elflings and be serious.”

“Of course” Oliner bowed his head respectfully.

“Uma, Ada [Yes, Father]” Legolas inclined his head slightly.

“Now, Aluer, do you have anything to add to this conversation?” Thranduil turned to the Lieutenant who had been ignored in the argument between Legolas and Oliner.

“No, my king.” The fair she-elf glanced at Legolas and Oliner with a tiny trace of amusement in her eyes.

“Very well” the king sighed, “I believe that Oliner is heading in the right direction with an idea.”

“Ada [Father], taking action against the orcs will expend our resources faster than if we were to increase security. Besides, we have no idea as to how many orcs are in the forest. There could be hundreds.” Legolas felt like shaking his father he was so frustrated.

“We could always check with the patrols when they return to see if orcs have been spotted” Thranduil looked at his son, “we must take the offensive, ion nin [my son].”

“Even if it means killing all of our elven warriors! We have no idea what is waiting for us, it could be a trap.” Legolas glowered at his father angrily.

“No!” Thranduil looked imploringly at his son, begging him to understand. “As Oliner said before, we could send out a small scout. If we only send a few, we won’t deplete our warriors and they have a higher chance of avoiding the attention of orcs.”

“And a higher chance of not returning” the prince muttered darkly.

“Ion nin, saes, [my son, please] why do you disagree with this plan of action so strongly?” The elven king asked his son, begging him silently to not be so stubborn.

“Ta naa neuma! [It is a trap!]” Legolas stood and shook his head disbelievingly at his father’s ignorance. “Lle rangwa amin? [Do you understand me?]”

“Uma, ion nin [Yes, my son]” Thranduil sighed and glanced at the other elves. “Legolas, I beg you to see reason. This way, we discover the number of orcs and keep most of our warriors within Mirkwood. We need to do something.”

Legolas shook his head, convinced they were doing the wrong thing. “Fine Ada [Father], I concede. King knows best.”

Thranduil smiled sadly at his son before turning to the other elves. “Tomorrow, a scout of thirty elves will be sent out into the forest to search for the orc party.”

“Ya auta yeste′? [Who is leading]” Aluer asked, satisfied that a decision had finally been reached.

Oliner spoke up before anyone else could answer, “Who better to lead a small army than the prince himself?”

“Me?” Legolas scowled at the captain. He was beginning to develop a deep contempt for his father’s trusted friend.

“Yes, my prince, with you there the warriors will be encouraged. Due to them being few in number, they will need something to boost their spirits.” Oliner smiled as the prince’s scowl deepened.

“Now you want me to lead this suicide mission?” Legolas eyed the captain disdainfully. He was really beginning to dislike the elf.

“You will both go” Thranduil ordered swiftly, before either elf could object. “Tomorrow afternoon you will head into the depths of Mirkwood with your escort of thirty and eliminate the threat.”

Legolas had no problem with giving his life for his people but he viewed this mission as unnecessary. He was even more irked by the fact that Captain Oliner would be there. He would try to build a friendship with the fellow elf but he was not sure Oliner even had any respect for him.

“Manka lle merna [If you wish]” Legolas said emotionlessly.

“What shall I do, my king?” Aluer asked.

“I shall need you here to help keep order amongst the other warriors. We will need to mount some sort of defense.” The king stood and gestured to the door for them to leave.

“Legolas, I wish for you to remain.” Thranduil said as he saw his son heading for the door. “You too, Aradul.”

Legolas’ curiousity was spiked as the ebony-haired elf returned to his seat. The elf had not spoken throughout the entire conversation regarding the orcs.

“Ada? [Father?]” Legolas raised an eyebrow in question.

“Legolas, I am sorry how that discussion went –” Thranduil began.

“No, Ada [Father], it is okay. I understand.” Legolas lied. He did not understand but he knew he wouldn’t be able to sway his father on the matter. “Ya naa Tanya? [Who is that?]” The prince gestured to the raven-haired elf.

Thranduil gazed at his son, trying to read his expression but failed. Legolas was too good at hiding his emotions. “That is Aradul. He is a messenger from Rivendell.”

At the mention of his name Aradul stood and bowed deeply to Legolas. “Saesa omentien lle, hir nin. [Pleasure meeting you, my lord].”

“Mae govannen, voronwer. [Well met, loyal one].” Legolas replied as the elf straightened.

“Aradul arrived before the meeting with a message for you. I decided that, since he is from Rivendell and therefore cannot be the traitor, he could stay throughout the discussion. Aradul, report what has transpired this evening to Lord Elrond upon your return to Rivendell but remember, it is confidential to everyone else.” Thranduil smiled at the messenger who flushed and nodded.

“A message for me?” Legolas asked as Aradul handed him an envelope. He broke the seal and read the note quickly as he recognized the handwriting:

Prince Legolas Greenleaf, Thranduilion [Son of Thranduil]

I am missing you dearly mellon nin [my friend] and it has been many moons since I last saw you. Therefore, I am traveling to Mirkwood and this letter is merely to let you know that I will arrive soon.

I look forward to seeing you again,

Aragorn

Legolas read the letter twice more to be sure that he hadn’t missed a word. Aragorn was coming! He was thrilled.

“Ada, Estel will be here soon. May he come with us on the scout?” The prince asked, almost singing with joy.

“If you want, ion nin [my son]. I will postpone the scout until he arrives” Thranduil replied, happy to see a smile lighting up his sons’ face. If it helped to boost the prince’s spirits, he would wait for as long as it took for the human ranger to arrive.

“Hannon lle Ada, Aradul [Thank you Father, Aradul]” Legolas called as he almost skipped from the room.

Even if he was depressed about the way the meeting had ended, Legolas felt more confidant that they would be able to succeed if they had some Hope.