The King's Hope

Chapter 15

Annoneth

"Thranduil! Thranduil!" Where could he be? I've been searching for him for an hour and I know this forest just as well as he does.

"Captain, we cannot find him anywhere," Fornor pants. I sent half the kingdom on the search after I checked all his usual spots.

"Take half of the guard and go north, send the other half west. I'll go east to the hills. Meet at the gates in an hour, whether you find him or not."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

These hills are the most serene part of the forest. Young trees provide a broken shade and many small animals can be seen sprinting through the patchy sunlight. Being at the base of the mountains, there is a system of caves and creeks hidden nearby. I wonder if Thranduil may have chosen to clear his mind by the water, where he always feels calmer.

The trees seem more alive here than they do deeper in the forest. Almost as alive as the trees on the hill above the cavern. Something makes me think that Thranduil radiates life when he is happy, it just seems to brighten the forest.

"Thranduil! Thranduil!"

"Oh he will not be around for some time, is there something I could do to help?" asks a small voice from above. Before I can even look around for the source of the voice, a petite elleth lands in a crouch at my feet. When she stands, I immediately notice that she is very short for an elf, but more dazzling than most. Her dark brown hair contrasts nicely with her pale skin, her eyes are only a few shades lighter than her hair and her features are as dainty as elvish tableware. She is wearing a thin, light-blue dress that shows off her wide hips and tiny waist. The last thing I notice is her fingernails, how they look like tiny daggers on each finger.

"If you have seen the King of Greenwood, and you do not tell me where he is, I will retain you in the dungeons of the ElvenKing's realm and rip out your hair one piece at a time until you tell me where he is," I snarl, looking past her small body to the weapons hidden under her skirts. This elleth is not who she seems to be.

"No need for threats, Annoneth of Greenwood. I can give you what you desire," she muses with a slight smile. Tauriel steps out from behind a tree with a happy smile on her face. The other elleth has disappeared, gone with a roaring gust of wind. Tauriel smiles again and runs toward me. I feel my arms move instinctively out to her, but then there is a moment when her eyes are not forest green like her father's, but black and alien.

I pull the daggers Rhovanel made from my belt and shift into a defensive stance. The demon in front of me stops and grins maliciously, like she's been waiting for a fight.

"Female can always tell. Men are so much easier," she muses before shifting shape in front of me. A moment later, a silver-haired wolf stands in front of me with blindingly white teeth as long as my fingers. The paws are at least as big as my head without including the claws. The eyes are the same black as they had been when this demon impersonated my daughter.

The wolf growls and starts stalking toward me, licking her lips. I twirl my daggers in anticipation and muse. This wolf knows where Thranduil is, and I will cut the answer out of her if need be. She leaps, aiming for my throat. I sink to my knees and take the daggers along her inner haunches. Howling in pain, the shifter rolls to a shaky stand.

"All I need to know is where my friend is, you don't need to die, but I can inflict much deeper pain than a small scratch on your legs." The wolf looks at me, contemplating her odd of winning or if I'm bluffing. The change in her eyes suggests she doesn't want to lose any more blood.

The shifter morphs back into the shape I first saw and glares at me with only slightly lighter brown eyes than the black holes they used to be. There is blood welling on her inner thighs, eventually dripping down to her ankles, though she does not seem to notice.

"Alright, Annoneth, I will show you where your king is," she consents, turning further westwards into the forest. The landscape becomes rockier as we near the base of the mountains where the cliffs are laden with caves. The shifter stops outside one and points me inside.

"He is in there. Be careful, he is an unpredictable one," she exclaims before shifting into a bird and flying away. I snort in annoyance and begin my trek though the cave in near-darkness.

"Thranduil?!" I call repeatedly, always without an answer. I continue stumbling through the rocky terrain until my foot drops into water. It was not very deep where my foot landed, so at least I did not fall in. While I am trying to come up with a way across, a light flares up and a tall, broad elf leaps at me with a sword raised. He takes me by surprise and pins me against the slippery rocks with the steel against my neck.

"Who are you, and what are you doing in my home?" he growls. With the light behind his head, I can only see the outline of his face, but that is still enough to identify him.

Silently, I edge my dagger under the hilt of his sword and twist, jerking it out of his strong grasp. He scrambles after the falling blade while I twist away from the water and onto my feet. He manages to retrieve the sword before it falls into the water, then turns to me and I can see the easily distinguishable features of the King.

"My lord, Rhovanel is awake and asking for you," I say, hoping can see me as clearly as I can see him.

"Who is Rhovanel?"