Greenleaf (Legolas x Aragorn)

Chapter XV

The shining ring laid calmly in the middle of the wooden table. It was resting as quietly as the rest of the leaders gathered in Rivendell. After how the last meeting ended, it was no surprise that less kings, rulers and sovereigns had answered to Aragorn's call for a fourth gathering. But it was not hurting the king to notice it. Maybe their army had decreased but at least it was devoted and loyal to their cause.

Now that Aragorn had finally something to promise them, he was not scared to speak. He had spent a lot of time considering the right words to explain what he had in mind. They had just gained a huge and crucial advantage and he would not let it aside. The men, elves and dwarfs united around the table listened to his careful words and let him speak for longer than anyone had expected. Their minds had suddenly been hit by a violent wind full of new hopes for Middle-Earth.

Nothing seems to be vain anymore. They all had been talking with their counsel about possible solutions for too long and, for the first time in months, an idea had been found.

Great powers had ruled over Middle-Earth for ages but men were not the most clever when it came to understanding them. Thanks to his elvish education, Aragorn was not one of the reasons Gandalf took extra time to explain what they were doing next. But the wizard did it for the ones seated at the table that did not have that chance. With the simplest words, Gandalf illustrated how Saruman's powers had become his weakness on the battlefield. Saruman had defeated himself when he surrendered to his own ambition.

The noble wizard also expressed the relief it was to see that the powerful ring was lying before them and not Therlos or any of Saruman's allies. If Saruman was so desperate to host a new envelope then the shining ring could be his next and last one. "I will be the one to face him. Once again. This time with the power that had been granted to us, I will finally stop his malice and cage him where there is no exit. His body was not his best asset but now that it is gone, nothing stops us from getting to his soul."

Each spoken word brought more confidence in every soldier's heart. Gandalf and the king had announced their next move and everyone had seen it as the last phase of the war.

But it was not what one specific person believed. This person was standing in the room and silently listening to what was being said. Despite his usual lack of participation, his influence was no less. And if Elrond was indeed against the idea, they all were aware that he could stop it with no one's help. "A dear hope may be shining in all of your hearts but it does not in mine." All men, elves and dwarfs had suddenly reacted to the unexpected voice of the elvish leader. He had stepped out of his dark corner to make a strong entrance in the light. "There are many things that are worth risking but this war has hurt us too much already. I am scared we would not get up if we miss our chance once more. I have never doubted the king's intuition, and even less Gandalf's. But there is a constant risk in what you plan on doing that I can not allow. As all the fighters we have lost in Rivora have been able to witness, I have seen what Saruman's malice can do. I trust our strength but it has weaknesses too and as we talk about Saruman's, he surely is talking about ours."

"Are you scared?" What the man that had just spoken had dared to say could have been heard as an act of superiority. But no one in the room, including whom it was addressed to, heard it that way. The words sounded like a request to know what was the right thing to do. The simple idea of Elrond being scared of something was enough for the whole courage to vanish.

"No. I trust our fate. Bad is never a winner and we are entirely rightful. I hope history will remember what I actually wished to express. Only because it would mean that I was wrong and that it survived the events. If, despite my doubts, the king and his army decide to walk on Rivora once more, Rivendell will not be part of the battle. Confronting Saruman with the simple difference the ring makes is not a madness I believe in and I will not lose friends to it."