PART 6
Elrond set the ledger aside. For the last hour he had tried unsuccessfully to concentrate on his work. His mind was firmly fixed on the image of his sons riding away this morning accompanied by Imladris' finest guards. Finally conceding defeat, the half-elf stretched and then decided that a walk in the gardens might soothe his mind.
He had just made it to his balcony when a panicked cry reached his ear. "My lord," a guard called, coming to a halt before the half-elf. The dirty elf bowed. "A messenger has just arrived at our borders from one of the local human villages. He says a plague has suddenly taken hold there and begs that aid be given."
"Which direction is this village? Is it near the mountains?" Elrond asked, a sudden feeling of dread washing over him.
"No, my lord. It lies to the west."
"Very well. Gather a small guard to come with me. I shall meet you in the courtyard." The elf bowed and left. "Erestor," Elrond called, and immediately his advisor stood before him. The half-elf blinked in surprise at his sudden arrival. "Did you hear?"
"Enough, my lord. I have already contacted the healers to ready your supplies." Elrond nodded, leading them down to the Healing Halls.
"Good. You will be in charge until my return. We cannot spare any more warriors, so I shall take only a handful. This shouldn't take too long, but if it is very serious, I will send word for my other healers." Erestor nodded at this information, watching as Elrond took his bag from the head healer. They continued on their way. In the courtyard, they were greeted by ten heavily armed guards.
"If the twins should get back before me, don't let them worry," Elrond said as he swung up on his horse. With a quick wave goodbye, they were on their way.
~~~
Elrohir and Elladan glanced around each other nervously. The mountainside seemed absolutely barren where just a few days ago, they had seen swarms of orcs. The twins watched as Glorfindel dismounted. The golden-haired captain sat on his haunches, reading several deep footsteps sunk into the mud.
"These tracks make no sense," he said after a moment. "It seems as though the orcs were pacing in circles." Before he could wonder about this, a shout came up from the rear.
"My lord," Captain Huandil said, reining his horse to a stop. "I took my scouts to the north as directed and we found the encampment of orcs."
"Then we should move!" Elladan said, moving his horse to go north.
"No, my lord, they are taken care of."
"What?" Glorfindel asked. "I only sent you out with thirty men. Surely that was not enough to attack the main encampment."
"That is what we thought too, but though the encampment was made to house some few thousand orcs, less than a hundred greeted us. When we searched the camp afterwards, we found dummies dressed up in orc armor."
"Dummies?" the twins questioned. They turned at hearing Glorfindel's sharp intake of breath. The elder elf was suddenly very pale.
"Quickly, back to Imladris!" he ordered, jumping back onto his horse.
"Why?" Elladan asked as he gently kicked his horse into motion.
"Orcs using dummies and walking in circles where they can be seen. It's a diversion," Glorfindel spat, urging his horse forward.
"Father," the twins breathed, sudden worry twisting their guts. They glanced at each other, seeing the same fear mirrored in each other's eyes. Gritting their teeth, they urged their horses faster, praying that they were not too late.
~~~
Erestor quickly ran down the stairs, having been informed that the troops had arrived. He frowned in worry. It was much too early for them to return. Waiting impatiently in the main court, he was almost run over when Elladan raced his horse right to the main steps.
"Where is father?" the twin demanded. Behind him the rest of the troops filed in, led by a grim-faced Glorfindel.
"He was called away. A village to the west suffers plague." His words caused Glorfindel and Elrohir to go sheet white, while Elladan let loose an angry growl.
"How could you let him leave!" he demanded, his eyes glittering in anger. Frightened, Erestor took a step back.
"He left well guarded. They would not let anything happen to him." Glorfindel was shaking his head.
"Too few," he muttered, gazing into the west.
"Why?" Erestor asked, his insides suddenly icy in the presence of their worry. "What has happened?" Glorfindel straightened and looked resolutely at the advisor.
"Where is this village?" he demanded.
"I can show you, my lord," a guard said, already leading a horse into the courtyard. "I was on watch when our lord left. They followed the man who came asking for help. It was a little south of west."
"Then lead on. Hurry, we haven't a moment to lose." The guard nodded, swung up on his horse and quickly sprinted away. The other guards turned to follow. Glorfindel urged Asfaloth near Erestor. "Don't let anyone else leave, and call all off-duty guards back to the borders."
"But Glorfindel-," Erestor began, but Glorfindel had already turned his horse and was speeding away. "Glorfindel, what has happened!" the advisor shouted and then scowled in frustration when no answer was forthcoming. Huffing in irritation, Erestor turned to follow Glorfindel's 'request'.
~~~
The rapid beating of his heart sounded like a drum in his ears. Glorfindel twisted the reins in his hands as he strained his eyes into the distance. His every nightmare seemed to be playing out. If anything happened to his lord, he would never forgive himself.
"My lord," the forward scout called. "The village is in sight." Glorfindel nodded, urging Asfaloth to the front of the group. What he saw there made his heart clench. In the distance, he could see smoke rising from the burnt out remnants of houses. Gritting his teeth, he motioned for his troops to enter the village with caution. On his signal, his guards dispersed. The stench of rotting flesh made Glorfindel queasy. Everywhere there were signs of torture, broken and bleeding bodies covered in burns and scars, but thankfully, no sign of Elrond among the dead.
"Lord Glorfindel," another scout called. "I've found our guards." Rushing to the scout, Glorfindel found his troops helping several elves to sit up so they could tend their wounds. The Balrog-slayer hurried to the nearest elf.
"Findin! Tell me what happened!" Glorfindel demanded, kneeling next to the injured elf. The guard took a ragged breath before looking into his captain's eyes.
"They came out of nowhere, my lord. We saw the village was burning and halted, not willing to take Lord Elrond into something dangerous. As soon as we stopped, we were barraged with arrows. I called for my guards to form a circle around our lord, but before we could get into place, a troop of orcs appeared. They rushed us and pulled Lord Elrond from his horse. I saw one hit him over the head and swing him over its shoulder before disappearing into the forest. We tried to follow, but the orcs stayed long enough to ensure our horses were dead and we were too wounded to either go after our lord or go for aid. Forgive me, my lord. I could not protect him."
Glorfindel's hands turned into fists, but he spoke calmly. "No, Findin. You could not have known, and you did exactly what you should have. I have no fault with you. Nostarion, see to the wounded." Glorfindel stood up, gesturing for Huandil to join him.
"It was planned. A lightening attack without ensuring that witnesses are killed; they must have intended to kidnap Elrond all along," Glorfindel growled, slamming his fist into a nearby tree. Before Huandil could comfort his lord, shouts drew their attention. Moving to the edge of the village, the two captains saw some guards trying to restrain the twins.
"What are you two doing?" Glorfindel barked, his nerves frayed with worry for his lord. The twins glared at their friend.
"You heard what the guards said; our father was captured. He's probably still alive out there and in the hands of orcs. We need to search!" Elladan yelled.
"The two of you running around like headless chickens will not help your father. We need to be organized. Our enemy has shown a high degree of intelligence and planning. They will likely be ready for you and would love for you to walk into their trap," Glorfindel responded, trying to be patient.
"Every moment we delay, those beasts get further away. We don't have time to wait," Elladan insisted.
"You are right that we don't have time to bicker, so stop arguing with me!" Glorfindel yelled back. Elladan was about to give a nasty retort when his brother stopped him.
"Glorfindel," Elrohir said seriously. "We cannot let father suffer our mother's fate." Glorfindel studied the twins for a long moment before sighing and nodding tensely.
"You will go with Huandil and his company. If you cannot pick up the tracks or they lead too far into the mountains, you will return to Imladris, and if Huandil says it's time to go home, you will listen to him. He is in charge."
Elladan looked rebellious but finally nodded. He mounted quickly, waiting impatiently for Huandil to do the same. The captain looked to Glorfindel, nodding that he understood what the Balrog-slayer wanted. Glorfindel watched them disappear into the forest. Sighing, he turned back to his troops.
"Search for survivors and construct litters for the wounded. We leave as soon as possible."
~~~
Unable to sit still any longer, Elladan began to pace the small hall while his brother and Erestor watched helplessly.
"Glorfindel will find our lord," Erestor said. Elladan glanced at the advisor, ready to yell at him, but one look at his red-rimmed eyes stilled his tongue. Growling, he continued to pace without commenting. Erestor began to fidget with his sleeves. It had been nearly a week since Elrond's abduction. The twins had returned home reluctantly, having tracked the orcs to the foot of the mountains before losing their trail completely.
While they had been gone, Glorfindel had organized search parties and had doubled the border guards. Retired guards now joined their children guarding Imladris and Erestor watched with a sinking heart as the elves in the house began to train for war. He had never felt so helpless.
Standing up, he moved to the door when someone knocked. The advisor took the proffered meal from the servant, thanking her for her thoughtfulness. The sight of food made him ill, but Erestor knew they had to keep their strength up and he hoped to get the twins to eat. Sighing, the dark-haired elf turned to observe the twins.
Elladan was still pacing, mumbling under his breath and every now and then hitting an object in his way. His brother sat on the edge of the bench, looking like he would shoot up and shake his brother at any moment. A heavy depression hung about the room. Not for the first time, Erestor prayed to the Valar for Elrond's safe return.
"The Valar," he breathed.
Suddenly, the tray dropped with a clatter as Erestor's eyes grew big and he inhaled sharply. Both twins looked at him with concern.
"Erestor?" Elrohir questioned, getting up and approaching the stunned advisor. Shaken from his shocked state, Erestor turned and ran down the hallway. Confused, the twins quickly followed. "What is it?" Elrohir insisted, managing to catch up with the quick elf.
"The Valar, Tauron! He would be able to find his husband," Erestor said excitedly, half-jogging through the halls. Elladan snorted.
"You don't really expect us to believe that, do you?" Erestor ignored him.
"When Tauron left, he gave Elrond a necklace, saying that if Elrond were ever in danger, he need only call for him and he would come."
"Then why hasn't he come? Why hasn't he brought father home?" Elrohir demanded, following Erestor into his father's private rooms.
"The day before he left, your father went swimming prior to his morning council. When I went to fetch him, I noticed he wasn't wearing his necklace. It is the first time in almost six thousand years that I have seen him without it. I don't know why he stopped wearing it, but as your father is not here, I can only assume he took it off before going out. It must be here," Erestor said, beginning to open drawers and search through them.
The twins regarded the councilor with some curiosity before shrugging and helping him look. Anything to keep their minds off their father's disappearance was desirable. Fifteen minutes later, Elrohir stumbled upon the secret compartment where his father kept his most secret treasures.
The younger twin easily spotted the golden pendant and drew it out in wonder. Vaguely remembering having seen the necklace on occasion, he now studied it closely, admiring its unearthly beauty.
"Ah, you've found it," Erestor said, joining Elrohir and his brother in looking at the jewelry. After a long moment, Elrohir mentally shook himself.
"So, now what do we do?" he asked. Erestor looked at him with surprise before pursing his lips and thinking.
"I don't know," he finally admitted.
"Well, you were there when Tauron gave it to father. What did the Vala say?" Elladan said, though he obviously still did not believe his father was truly married to a Vala.
"He must have told Elrond through their bond, but I don't think he would have made it hard to do. You share your father's blood. Perhaps just hearing you call for him while holding it will be enough," Erestor said hopefully. The twins exchanged a dubious look, but obediently both held the golden pendant, Elrohir's thumb caressing the golden horn. Both closed their eyes and concentrated, praying to be heard.
~~~
Oromë's head snapped up, hearing the call like a shout into his ear. If he was surprised to hear voices he did not know, he did not stop to ponder it. Instead, he called to Nahar. Mounting quickly, he urged his horse into motion.
"I need all your speed this day, my friend. Do not fail me." The white horse snorted, his hoofs flashing with lightening as he sped forward faster than elven eyes could see.
~~~
Thunder cracked overhead, shaking the house. The twins opened their eyes in surprise, almost letting the necklace drop. Erestor quickly took the pendant from them before running out the door. Confused, Elrond's sons ran after him once more. They followed him to the courtyard, where the normally staid advisor was almost bouncing on the balls of his feet as he waited anxiously. Glancing around, they looked for whatever it was the advisor waited for.
Finally, they sat on the steps just watching the councilor. Twenty minutes later, they felt the ground begin to shake followed by the rhythmic sound of thunder. The twins stood, looking about uneasily. The sound lasted for no more than five minutes before the courtyard was flooded with white light.
A thunderous neigh caused the earth to tremble. After a tense moment, the light lessened to the point that the twins could see. Before them stood a glowing horse, so brilliantly white that they could not look on it directly. Glancing up, their breath caught, seeing the full strength of a Vala revealed. Oromë glanced about, his jaw set grimly, his eyes glittering in anger.
Wheeling Nahar around, he watched as Erestor approached. The elf placed his hands on the white horse, feeling intense relief flood through him now that he could feel his lord's saviors were here.
"What has happened?" Oromë demanded, and though his voice was like the deep rumble of thunder, Erestor knew he was being restrained.
"My lord, Elrond has been abducted," Erestor cried, quickly relating all that had happened and handing the Vala Elrond's necklace. Oromë's eyes darkened.
"You did well to call for me," he said, turning Nahar around once more. "I will bring Elrond back to you," he vowed.
"Wait," two voices called. Oromë looked up to see two identical faces watching him with a mixture of awe and disbelief, but their eyes glittered with the same anger and worry that shone from his own. "We will come with you," they said together.
Oromë took a moment to admire his husband's sons, seeing much of his beloved in their features. "No, you would only be in the way," he said, trying to keep his voice soothing. "You will stay here. I will not bring my husband home only to have him worry over the fate of his sons." The Vala turned and Nahar leaped away.
Erestor watched him happily until he was out of sight. Then, he turned to see the shocked expressions on the twins' faces. Smirking, Erestor couldn't keep his next comment to himself.
"Now you know how we feel when we try to talk sense to you." His words were met with scowls, but the twins obediently went inside with the advisor.