Tears of the Valar

Disclaimer/Author's Notes: I own nothing but the Original Characters and their adventures. Everything else belongs to JRR Tolkien, the Tolkien Estate, New Line Cinema/Peter Jackson, et. al. This was done purely for entertainment and as an exercise in creativity.
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“We have found the way out,” Legolas told Sarendir as he and Alexandra arrived back at the encampment. “It is but a short swim under the lake.”

The Rhunian Elf nodded and turned to some of the men who had been dividing up the meager weapons and other items the survivors had managed to bring with them.

“We must take only the essentials for survival. We will have to swim,” he told them. “See that those among the people who cannot swim or are weak, injured or ill are partnered with those who are strong enough to help them.” The men bowed at his orders and went to carry them out.

“It seems you have taken command of the mortals quite nicely,” Legolas told him.

“They need leadership and none of them were certain who should take charge. I am simply keeping them focused until they can choose their new leader.”

Vanurion and Saelbeth joined them and Legolas explained what they had discovered including the underwater city described by Helcarin.

Alexandra, in the meantime, sat on the ground, leaning against a rock as she tried to catch her breath. She was so tired lately. At least, she seemed to be tiring out quicker than usual.

“Great,” she muttered to herself. “I’m already getting old.” Letting her head rest against the rock she soon fell asleep without realizing it.

“Is she alright?” Vanurion asked, nodding to where Legolas’ wife sat sleeping.

“She was ill earlier,” the prince replied. “She denies anything is wrong and it seemed to pass as quickly as it came.”

“She should see a healer,” Saelbeth recommended. Indeed, the lady looked pale.

“I will ask Allase to examine her when we are out of here,” Legolas said. “You know there will be much resistance on her part

The people were quickly rounded up and prepared for the trek back to the exit. Legolas allowed Alexandra to sleep as long as possible before awakening her with a gentle kiss.

“It is time to return to the exit,” he told her when she opened her eyes.

She nodded sleepily. “I’ll be along in a bit. Just a few more minutes.”

Knowing how difficult it was to drag his wife from sleep, Legolas was firm.

“No. You must get on your feet now and move.”

She muttered another curse and struggled to stand. Glaring at him she finally broke into soft laughter.

“I can’t stay mad at you. But, Legolas, I am so tired.” She leaned heavily against him and he frowned in concern.

“Is it your leg? Did it become infected?” It was not like Alex to be ill and every time it happened he was terrified. What if this was the end? He held her close as his heart sought hers and he tried to feel what she felt.

And feel it, he did, his eyes opening wide. It could not be—could it? How did he not see it earlier? He kept his arms around her protectively as they began to walk along the shore of the lake with the others. The sun had risen while they had been preparing for the journey and shone through openings in the stone ceiling and walls, illuminating their path. For Legolas, each beam of light was like a kiss from the Valar as his happiness knew no bounds.

***

Helcarin broke the surface of the lake around midday two days after they had established mortals could make the swim and Haldir, who had been watching, swam out to meet him, the others following.

“We will bring the ones through who are not strong swimmers first,” the northern ellon told them. “If any need care, then we will have time to see to them.”

The others nodded their understanding and he dove back under the water.

Inside the cavern, the Elves were organizing the survivors so that several at a time could make the swim with at least two strong swimmers for each weak or non-swimmer.

“You should go in one of the early groups,” Legolas told Saelbeth.

His kinsman shook his head. “It is more important to get them out first. I can wait.”

Knowing it was useless to argue, the prince went back to shepherding the survivors through. Some were terrified of going into the water and the Elves found themselves having to swim as escorts with some of the mortals. Legolas refused to allow Alexandra to take that duty, insisting she simply keep people organized.

“But I’m a strong swimmer,” she insisted.

“No, I wish you to remain on the shore. Once we are done, we will go together. You need to rest.”

She frowned. “I’m not old and decrepit yet.”

“No, indeed you are not,” Legolas replied with a smile and a soft kiss. “But you have been ill and it is best you do not tire yourself to the point of being useless.”

She sighed, knowing she wasn’t going to win this argument and with another kiss, went back to keeping the people in line.

The people were evacuated until the light had vanished. Once the sun rose the next day, the mass departure continued. After the ill, injured and poor swimmers made it through the opening, the rest could move along quickly and by the time the sun began to sink, only the Elves and Alexandra remained in the cave.

Sarendir and Helcarin accompanied Vanurion and Saelbeth. Glorfindel waited until Legolas and Alexandra had entered the water before following.

Taking a deep breath, Alex slipped beneath the water, following the rope. Glorfindel would untie it from its anchor inside the cavern and gather it once he reached the other side. Legolas swam beside her and she found herself grateful for his presence.

She felt unusually tired and the longer she remained underwater, the more exhausted she became. This couldn’t be right. She was an excellent swimmer and could easily remain underwater for over three minutes. She shouldn’t be having this much trouble.

But her lungs were screaming for air and she didn’t have the strength to move any faster. The little bit of light from the underwater sun was fading and she felt the stirrings of panic. Her brain told her to remain calm, that she would use up her energy and her air if she did not retain her self-control. Her lungs, however, demanded she inhale air quickly.

Legolas sensed her rising fear and reached over, grasping her arm and speeding up. Glorfindel saw the woman beginning to struggle and sped to their location, taking her other arm and joining her husband in propelling her toward the surface.

Instead of taking comfort in their presence, Alex grew more agitated. Glorfindel reached over and pinched her nose closed, while Legolas covered her mouth with his hand as they tried to get her out of the water as quickly as possible without letting her inhale.

She struggled, surprised to find she had no strength to break their holds on her. As darkness closed around her, suddenly their hands moved from over her mouth and nose and she took a deep breath of cool evening air.

Gasping, she looked around. They had broken the surface and were in the middle of a lake. Fires all along the distant shores were beacons and she shivered, glad to be out of that place.

“What happened?” Glorfindel asked her, concerned.

“I-I don’t know,” she answered, letting him and Legolas carry her to the shore. “I couldn’t breathe and couldn’t hold my breath.”

“We will find Allase and Elladan or Elrohir and have them look at you,” Legolas said in a firm voice. When she opened her mouth to protest, he cut her off. “Do not argue with me, my wife. You are not well and I would have you examined by a healer.”

“I was going to say,” Alex replied with a touch of irritation, “not to bother Elladan or Allase. They have their own business to tend to.”

They made it to the shore and waded the rest of the way. Haldir was waiting with a blanket for Alexandra.

“Take off your wet clothes,” he ordered and she gave him a look that would have intimidated a lesser Elf or Man. “I have no desire to strip and warm your body again,” the Lorien Marchwarden continued. “Now off with your clothes.”

She sighed and complied as he covered her with the blanket, blocking any other eyes with his body. Tucking it around her so she was modestly covered, Haldir picked up her clothes and weapons, taking the garments to a tree to dry and the weapons to where Legolas was already stripped and wrapped in his own blanket.

“Where did we get all these dry blankets?” the prince asked.

“The Khandun army,” Haldir replied.

“What?”

His friend gestured toward the top of the rock hills and Legolas, Glorfindel and Alex followed him up. Once they crested the hill, they saw a vast encampment. Turning to Haldir, Legolas raised a brow.

“It seems the leadership has undergone a change of heart,” Haldir informed them.

“What happened?”

“Come and meet the other generals.” Haldir started back along the ridge until he reached a tent backed against a large cave. The mortal guards opened the tent flaps for them and Legolas could not help smiling mentally. Haldir could take charge of any situation. He would not have been surprised to find his friend had assumed command of the Khandun army.

Inside the tent three mortals stood talking with Vanurion, Sarendir and Elrohir. All looked up when Haldir entered with Legolas, Alexandra and Glorfindel.

“You certainly took your time,” Elrohir told them drily.

“We waited until the last of the mortals had made it through,” Legolas retorted.

Vetoran and Peferio studied the newcomers. The woman did not look like the female Elf they had found in the ruins of Naraketh. Though she was tall and fair, her hair was wavy and tangled, and her ears were not pointed.

“These are the generals of the Khandun army,” Haldir said. “Peferio, Vetoran and Crasthion. Gentlemen, these are the last of our comrades to make this journey from Naraketh: Glorfindel, Legolas, and his wife, Alexandra.”

The three mortals gave respectful nods as the Elves bowed. Alex could see them staring at her though they tried not to do so.

“I’m not an Elf,” she told them with a smile.

“We saw one of the female Elves when we entered the city after the Dark Force retreated,” Vetoran told them. “She did not look like you.”

“What happened to their bodies?” Sarendir asked.

“We buried them. Is that what your kind does?” Peferio was afraid they might have committed an error.

“Yes,” Vanurion replied with a sad smile. “Thank you. We did not have time to do so before we were forced to make our untimely departure.”

Peferio had the good grace to redden slightly. Crasthion and Vetoran, however, covered their unease with impeccable calm.

“The Dark Force is under control at the moment but I do not know how long that will last,” Vetoran told them. “They grow weary of so much ‘peace’ and are hungry.”

“They should be sated,” Crasthion said tiredly, leaning back against a table, his hand rubbing over his face.

“What do they eat?” Alex asked.

The three mortals were silent for a moment. “They hunt when in the field,” Peferio hedged.

“What do they eat when not in the field?” she pressed.

“The slaves, prisoners, the dead whose families could not afford the pyre for the funeral.” Vetoran’s calm tone made his words that much more disgusting.

“What do you feed them when you take them with you?” Elrohir asked, not bothering to hide his revulsion.

“They do not normally travel with the army,” Peferio told them. “They have been seeking their own food for the most part. They do not need to feed often, perhaps only once a week or so.”

“And you just let them kill at random?” Alex asked, her voice tight.

Legolas put a warning hand on her arm. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself but part of her wanted to scream at these people, take a dagger and slice them to ribbons for what they had done. They had brought those creatures; they were responsible for Pomea’s death, Cunion’s death, the deaths of so many innocent mortals, Erestor’s abduction, Naveradir’s possible capture, Orophin’s –.

At the thought of her friend willingly following Erestor into Lastharos’ clutches, Alex felt her heart catch. Not trusting herself, she turned away, unable to look at the men. If one exquisite hair on Orophin’s head was even so much as out of place she would rip out Lastharos’ heart with her bare hands and eat it.

“The Dark Force is used to subjugate and clear the way for the armies when we are expanding our territorial boundaries,” Vetoran replied calmly. “They do not accompany the army on domestic missions and though their keepers have some modicum of control over them, they are autonomous and take orders only from Lastharos. Normally the vampires hunt for the rest of the beasts and do not take the lives of our people unless ordered so. Our leader has ordered the destruction of every life between Fwaban and into Rhun and beyond in the northeast. They follow his instructions completely.”

“How long before they will need to eat again?” Glorfindel asked the generals. Even naked, wet and wrapped in a blanket, he was magnificent and exuded an air of dignity and command.

“They are beginning to hunger but we dare not loose the vampires with these people here. We did not expect to find anyone.” Peferio’s tone was almost accusing, as if the others had deliberately gotten in their way.

“But there is nothing to feed them,” Elrohir reasoned. “There are no slaves, no prisoners, no dead bodies; no livestock even.”

“Kill them,” Alexandra interjected.

The Khandun generals looked at her, aghast.

“We cannot kill the entire Dark Force,” Peferio said when he finally found his voice.

“Why?”

None of the mortals had an answer.

“How do you control the Shadow-figures?” Glorfindel was curious since the creatures were incorporeal at times.

“They are brought forth by the vampires through the summoning-stones,” Vetoran replied. At the questioning looks from the Elves, he elaborated. “The Shadow-figures are drawn back into the shadow-realm when not needed and so are kept in place by charms that can release them when one with sufficient power and knowledge calls them forth. The summoning-stones are used to channel the power and one must possess one in order to draw them out of other summoning-stones.”

“The Great Leader possesses such power and has given one of the vampires in the Dark Force that is with us such permission. It will not do to have too many able to do so; the Dark Force is dangerous enough as it is and will turn on us if given the chance.” Vetoran smiled grimly. “The Leader controls his pets, and only he has their loyalty. They simply tolerate the rest of us.”

“Then perhaps we should take the summoning stones from the vampire who controls them and kill it,” Haldir mused.

“Easy to say, virtually impossible to do,” Crasthion replied.

“Which one is it?” Legolas asked when Haldir looked to him with a slight smile.

“You could not get close enough to kill it,” Peferio said.

“I do not need to be particularly close to it,” the prince countered.

“Let us find a way to shelter these people in the surrounding caves so they cannot become easy prey for the creatures,” Glorfindel told the others. “Then we will see about eliminating the threat of this Dark Force. Without the Shadow-figures, the rest of the entities are troublesome but not impossible to kill.”

“How do you plan to ‘eliminate’ them?” Crasthion asked.

The Elves simply smiled.

***

The Khandun guards paid no attention as the visitor from Rhun took the used-up body of a slave to the warg pit. They were quite accustomed to such comings and goings.

Vanurion carried Sui’s bloodied, naked body over one shoulder. He made his way down through the labyrinth described by Dehlina, Kidur leading the way. The dog moved at a lazy trot and the guards thought nothing strange about the little procession.

Pausing at a niche just before the pit, Kidur looked up at the Elf with a soft whine. Vanurion slid his hand over the rough surface of the stone until he felt something catch, then pressed. A small portion of the wall moved slightly and he pushed it open just enough to slip inside, Kidur remaining to stand guard. The catch on the inside closed the opening and for a moment he was in utter blackness.

“Would you like to stand?” he asked the slave in a quiet voice.

Sui could see nothing but trusted this strange, beautiful man. He had been gentle with her and shown her great kindness as had his wife and the Elf. She nodded then remembered he could not see her.

“Yes, thank you.” Her voice was hoarse from the abuse her throat had taken from the ropes Lastharos used around her neck as well as his using her mouth as he did the rest of her body for his pleasure.

Naveradir eased her to the ground and held onto her as she gained her bearings. Slipping his cloak around her, he kept an arm around her waist.

“Someone will be here soon to help guide you to freedom,” he told her.

“I-I have never been free,” she whispered.

“You are now,” he responded with a smile though he knew she could not see it.

“Why are you helping me? I am simply a slave.”

Naveradir’s mind conjured images of all the slaves his father had killed, abused, tortured, raped, forced to breed—things he had joined Goroth in doing for long centuries.

“Because no one should be enslaved against his or her will and none should be at the mercy of such a madman.” He could not tell her of the many sins he had to wipe out. She would not understand such horror.

“Thank you. I know words are useless, but it is all I have.” She reached out to touch him and felt his strong body beneath the robes he wore. “Is there anything I could do for you to show my gratitude?” she asked, her hand sliding over his belly to caress his leggings.

Sweet Eru! The dark desires that had been buried over the centuries of his limbo bubbled just below the surface. The scent of her blood, the memory of her bruises, cuts and other signs of her torture, her complete vulnerability to whatever he wished to do to her—all were tormenting him, urging him to give in, take her, use her as she was meant to be used. She was willing.

He caught her wrist, forcing his touch to be gentle, then brought her hand up to where he could press his lips against the bruised flesh.

“No, Sui. You have thanked me and in truth, I need no thanks. You are no longer a slave and need not join with anyone you do not desire.”

The touch of his lips caused a strange tingle in her body. She had never known such tenderness. No, Crasthion had been gentle with her for the most part. He did not try to hurt her deliberately. Unlike Lastharos …

“Naveradir?” a voice called out of the darkness.

“Here,” he responded as a faint light seeped into the darkness surrounding them.

Sui inhaled sharply as another man appeared. He was as beautiful as this one with dark hair, tall, a powerful body. He looked at her with a gentle smile.

“My lady, I am Maglor. Come; let us get you to safety.” He held out a hand and she reached out tentatively as if afraid he would vanish.

“I hope to see you again soon,” Naveradir told her. “If not, then may the Valar keep you safe.” He bowed then vanished back into the darkness.

Maglor wished they had time to talk but knew Naveradir could not risk suspicion and it would not take that long to dump a dead slave into the warg pit. He focused his attention on the young woman. She looked to have been terribly used and he wished he could kill Lastharos immediately. Still, he trusted Orophin and Naveradir to do the right thing. They would kill the man—and protect Dehlina.

“Can you walk?” he asked Sui, who was still staring at him.

“I-I do not know. I am very tired but I will try.”

In response, Maglor scooped her into his arms.

“We will take no chances,” he told her, extinguishing the light and heading out through the winding, treacherous passageway.