The Endless Summer

Chapter 3: The Long Road

After departing their home town, Elwe and Rorien felt a sense of freedom they never felt before. They laughed and joked, and raced each other just for the sake of being free to do so. They reached the old elven bridge around noon, and stopped to eat and rest a bit.

"Ok Elwe..." Rorien started. "I'll admit. In my mind, your ideas up until this point have been pretty foolish, but this one....this one isn't bad at all so far. Remind me about this conversation when I'm eventually going to be knee deep in ancient elven sewer muck, and I'll even try smiling for you." Elwe stood, and pointed a finger at him. "Hey! That shield was almost ours! A couple days more of digging, and we would have had it. Imagine...the Shield of Gil-Galad himself...If we had that, nobody would ever laugh at us again or ever dare to call us young fools. Now the sewers are locked up tight, and our fortune lost....and if I recall correctly, it was your whining that the guard heard when he caught us." "Then why take me on this trip, Elwe? Why not go at it alone?" Elwe look at Rorien, clearly stung by his words. "Rori....you're my friend. I would gladly have you with me. I would follow you if you wanted me to. Like remember your cousin's wedding? You were all afraid because your whole family was getting together, and they all usually picked on you. Sure, I may have....embellished...some of those stories a bit, but in the long run, they started to respect you finally." Rori laughed. "Embellished? You flat-out made that story about the abandoned goblin cave up....but I see your point. Thank you Elwe." Elwe was packing up his bag already. "Don't thank me yet... We haven't found any sewers or ruins yet, but there's still time." His smile left Rori dreading the inevitability of that fate, but he did enjoy his company. Packing his own gear once more, they continued.

A couple hours later, they arrived at a spot they both knew well, but rarely ventured to; the Elven Guard barracks. It was here in this wide clearing men and women learned the ways of the sword, spear, and bow. Elwe knew they had to keep a wide distance to not draw attention, but a sudden horn blow took that idea away like frost melting in the summer sun. As they slowed to a stop on the dusty road, the sound of hoof beats could be heard, and soon a line of Guardsmen Calvary came filing in ranks out of the large wooden gates. Rorien became alarmed at all of this, while Elwe simply sat on a fence rail along the roadside and waited. "Don't even think about touching your knife, Rori." Elwe commanded. Rori moved his hand away from where it had been unconsciously sliding to. "What do they want, Elwe? We've done no wrong this time!"  Elwe sighed before answering. "It's not US they're coming to get. It's me... My sister is stationed here. Probably wants to say hello to her brother." The horsemen drew near, and in coordinated fashion, surrounded the pair. Rorien stood his ground, trying to see their faces through the afternoon sunlight glinting off their armor. Elwe had no such troubles. "Afternoon, gentlemen... I trust my beautiful sister blew that horn and said we were a pair of Orc spies, and sent you all to greet us?" The sound of shifting armor plates was all the answer he got. "Well? Where is she? Might as well see her. You can come out, Inwe!"

A helmet was removed and locks of golden hair spilled forth. A young female elf looked at the par with stern green eyes before speaking. "Where do you think you are headed, Elwe? Mom and Dad are going to kill you..." Elwe wasted no time responding. "Relax. We are going on a small camping excursion. Three days, at most." he lied. "Yes, mom and dad know. No, this gear isn't stolen, and finally, yes, I did borrow your cloak. Why not send these guys back into the fort for a cool drink of water, as I'm sure that sun is turning that armor into a small oven." Inwe nodded to the rest of the group, and they took off back into the fort. Inwe dismounted and walked to Elwe, jabbing him in the chest with her finger. "How dare you speak that way to me in front of my troops!" Elwe backed up, not wanting to start anything with her. She continued to scold him: "I absolutely hate when you rattle off a list of "yes and no's" like that, and you know it." Elwe sat back down on his fence rail. "Good to see you too, sister. It's been... What? 2 months now? I could have taken the old mill road, and went right around this place, but I figured my dear sister might want to say hello to her poor, weak brother once a season." Inwe's expression softened a bit. Elwe kicked a small stone at the roadside. Rorien simply felt like a third wheel standing there. A light breeze blew, and a cicada made its call somewhere nearby.
Elwe broke the silence. "So they gave you a unit, huh? That's pretty awesome." Inwe's voice had lowered in aggression tenfold. "Yeah... It's pretty fun, I guess. I'm sorry, Elwe. It's just.. Sometimes you get going with razzing me, and it makes me feel so small." Elwe stood and walked towards his sister. He raised his arms and wrapped them around her. "It's like grandfather used to say, we all receive gifts when we are born. With you, Inwe, your physical prowess is awe-inspiring. I have no doubt you'll be a commander someday." Inwe raised her own arms and embraced her brother. "And for you, dear brother, your mind is your weapon, and you wield it as strongly as any seasoned warrior uses a familiar sword. Thank you for coming to see me, Elwe."

Suddenly, a rogue pair of arms wrapped around both of them. "I LOVE YOU GUYS, TOO!" Rorien yelled as he bear-hugged both of them. In unison, the twins yelled back "RORI!" and he let them go. Elwe straightened out his outfit, and Inwe looked at the fort entrance. "They'll be wanting me back soon, I wager. So spill it, Elwe... Why in Earendils grace are you all the way out here?" He could see he couldn't fool her, so he pulled his maps out, and rolled them out to show her. "Remember grandfathers map? Turns out he had kept something secret this whole time. It's covered in moonletters, but I copied it entirely." A rustle of paper, and Elwe produced the second map. Inwe looked them over briefly. "So what is it? Some cave system? At this scale, it would span Arda. There's no way..." Rori jumped in. "Let me say I agree wholeheartedly in the belief that Elwe is undeniably insane. That said, I came along to verify his insanity myself. When we return from this no doubt fruitless venture, I shall have him placed in a home for the feeble-minded, with your permission, of course Inwe." Inwe and Rori laughed together as Elwe scowled and rolled up his maps. He yelled at them both "I just want to see for myself! Is that so wrong?!" Inwe tried to console him. "Oh, Elwe... He's joking, and you know it. I'm sure that whatever it is you think these maps show, that big head of yours will figure it out. I remember a time not too long ago when you saved my life when that tree limb fell on top of me. Grabbing that rope and using it like a hoist in that span of time... Pure genius. Anybody else would have run to get help, and I would have died out in that forest." She came up behind him and put her arms around his neck and settled all her weight on him. "Elwe... Save me... I'm... DYING." He smiled at last as he was pulled to the ground. "You're probably right, though. This may end up being just a false lead to something that never existed." Inwe countered, trying to bolster his confidence. "Then at least you'll know something that wasn't known before." She stood up, brushed the dust off of her silvery armour, and helped Elwe up. "How long do you REALLY think you'll be gone? I don't want mom and dad to think you're dead. I swear I'll only tell them if they ask me directly." "Thanks Inwe... I hadn't thought about it much, but maybe a month? Based on the distance, and what we might find at our destination, a month sounds reasonable." Inwe suddenly hugged her brother. "Be careful, dear brother... Don't do anything stupid and get yourselves killed..."

Elwe simply hugged her back, slung his pack on his back again, said his goodbyes and Rorien and himself went on their way again. He couldn't tell her what he truly expected with this journey. She would have stopped him. He couldn't even tell Rorien his thoughts. Nobody would believe the concept of a world beneath their own world, and seeing where the two maps converged, maybe nobody would ever see them again...