We'd been riding for three days and when we finally arrived at Mirkwood it was just like the songs and tales described it. Mirkwood was a forest as big as the eye could see, filled with dense, leafy green trees and if what the tales said was true we weren't going to see the moon or the sun for a while. It was intimidating really; the way the huge trees loomed over you, the way the sun began to disappear behind the thick foliage and how the air became much cooler once you approached the entrance.
I took in a deep breath and looked over to Anira who had decided to acompany me and stay with me at Mirkwood. "How can elves live here? It looks so dangerous, so empty." I whispered as I looked into her chocolaty brown eyes.
"It will be alright my lady. Woodland elves aren't as dangerous as they seem; at least not with their own kin. We'll be fine." Something in her voice showed me that she wasn't convinced by her words, but I had to relax in order to get through the day.
"How long until we reach the palace?" I asked.
"If we stay on the path we'll be there a little pass sundown." One of the guards escorting me said. He was nice, tall and muscular; he had reddish long hair and cat-like green eyes. He was one of the guards I liked best but I never bothered in learning his name.
"The path?" I asked. "I thought this place was safe"
"It was." The guard replied dryly.
"What do you mean?" I pressed.
The guard looked at me clearly annoyed but he inhaled deeply and his face seemed to lighten. "I'll tell you the story of this place on the way, it might make it more bearable."
The way he said that made me nervous. Was I about to live in a place so dark, so sad? I thought this was one of the greatest elven settlements, if so why did the other elves dreaded it so much? We rode to the entrance and once we stepped inside the thick forest sunlight disapeared and we were surrounded by shadows.
The guard began his tale by telling us this was the realm of the Sindarin Elves; known for their skill in battle but also for their lack of wiseness. This place used to be called Greenwood, before a dark shadow took hold of the elven fortress of Dol Guldur. The Sindarin Elves now lived in the Northwest corner of Mirkwood, the only place they were safe from the dark creatures that crawled within. At the mention of evil forces so clearly present in this place my heart thumped with such ferocity I was affraid it might give us away.
"That's why the Sindarin created this path, to get back home and stay somewhat safe." He concluded.
Anira and I looked at each other with fear clear in our eyes. I swallowed hard and kept riding not asking any further questions.
It felt like days since we'd entered Mirkwood, we could only see a limited amount of sunlight, the trees grew tall with twisted and abnormaly big roots making it even harder to ride. The ground was covered with fallen leaves making it hard to see the path. I rode in silence until I noticed my horse started to lag behind.
"What's wrong with you?" I asked my horse even though I knew it wasn't going to answer. He just walked slower and slower until I could no longer see my companions. "Hey, hey wait for me!" I shouted. The only response I got was my own echo.
I looked in all directions and then towards the ground. I couldn't see the path. I dismounted my horse and tried to clear out the leaves from the ground, but I saw nothing but dirty brown earth. I took a hold of my horse's reigns and led him in the direction we were going. I tried to look for some sort of sign that I was going the right way, but all of the trees looked the same. My breath became heavy and my hands started shaking with fear. Elrond had given me a sword which I wasn't very good at using but that was better than nothing.
All of a sudden I heard a shrieking sound which pierced right through my ears. I shut my eyes and took deep breaths and when I opened them up again I saw something that made my blood chill. Spiders, big, monstrous looking spiders and they were out for blood. I saw them looming in the trees above me; which meant they hadn't spotted me yet. I walked below their nests as quietly as I could when a twig snapped from under me. I shot my head upwards and the inevitable happened; the bigger spider shrieked as if commanding her sisters to come down to the ground and hunt me. My horse neighed and stood on its two legs; then it bolted as fast as lightning. I was alone and at the mercy of the horrendous spiders.
One by one they came on to the ground each one bigger than the last. My heart was thumping so hard it was the only thing I heard; making me dizzy and unable to stand my ground. I was being surrounded and with each step of their furry legs I could smell death in their breaths. With shaky hands I took a firm grip of my sword and wielded it. I started swinging it back and forth unskillfully; I wasn't used to such close combat, my weapon of choice was always the spear which meant I didn't have the need to get too close to the enemy or I'd use the bow but never the sword.
The biggest spider lunged towards me and pinned me to the ground. With an unsteady movement of my hand I wielded the sword upwards impaling the spider's body. The creature shrieked and thrashed violently until it finally died. The other spiders where now mad, I'd killed one of their sisters and I was as good as dead. As one of the smaller spiders approached me I tried to retrieve my sword but it was stuck inside the dead spider. I pulled with all of my strength but I wasn't able to get it out. The smaller spider was closer and then just as it was prepared to strike a sword flew directly between her eyes finishing with her life.
I whirled around and a flash of silver blond hair appeared before my eyes. I turned back around and before me stood an elf like no other I'd ever seen. He was tall, well built, with strong arms, defined broad shoulders and a poise and way of carrying himself like no other. His face remained cold as stone, when his piercing blue eyes landed upon me I stood still and a chill ran through my body.
"Are you just going to stand there or will you help me fight this menace?" His voice was deep and filled with irony. I tried to look for words to respond but I was unable. I tried pulling out my sword once more and miraculously it came out swiftly.
I started fighting off the rest of the spiders but compared to this elf I was making a fool of myself. He was using two swords and moved them so fast it was imposible for my eyes to catch his movements. The only thing I did notice was that every time he swiftly moved his arm a spider fell dead at his feet.
After he intervened the fight didn't last much longer. I'd managed to kill one spider and harm half a spider while he'd finished all of them off. I felt like an idiot and that was an unusual feeling.
"Where you mad?" He asked as he drew away his swords and walked towards me, with his face stern. His voice was calm yet I could sense he wanted to smile.
"I got lost." I replied looking down at the floor.
"Is it really that hard to follow a path?" The irony in his voice made me feel much more like a fool.
"My horse began to lag behind then all of a sudden I was by myself!" I screamed. I took a deep breath and looked up at my savior; a smirk played on his lips making his mysterious yet alluring face even more mysterious and alluring. "I'm sorry." I whispered.
"Don't be." He responded. "I'm guessing you're headed to the palace, I'll take you."
I shot him a little smile and huffed. "I can manage on my own." I answered proudly.
"Sure you can, that's why you were about to be eaten by those harmless spiders." His smirk became a smile and he started walking forward. "It's almost sundown, this forest gets filled with all sorts of nasty creatures." He teased.
I inmediatelly started walking behind him, not daring to say a word.
We walked in silence for a few minutes and I took my time to study him. He wasn't wearing and armor, but a golden cape, pants, tall boots and a normal shirt, his head was adorned by a silver tiara, his hair was silver blond and dropped straight to the middle of his back, his face was serious and his piercing blue eyes seemed troubled.
"What's your name?" I finally asked.
"What's yours?" He replied.
"I'm Caladhiel elven princess of the North." I responded proudly.
He looked at me seeming unmoved by my title. In fact he seemed bored. "Good for you." Was all he said.
"Aren't you going to tell me your name?" I pressed and smiled at him playfully to see if I could get but a smirk out of him.
"You'll learn soon enough." His face remained hard as stone and I decided to drop the subject.
"Is the king of Mirkwood as cruel and ambitious like everybody says?" I asked.
"What does everybody say?" He replied.
I rolled my eyes at him and tried not to look at him for too long. "Well that he didn't help the dwarves when Erebor was attacked. That to me seems like a heartless thing to do and I'm scared to meet him. I had enough troubles with Elrond, but Thranduil seems like he's a cruel man uncapable of any sort of empathy." The words slipped out of my mouth carelessly and I inmediately covered it with my hands.
"Is that so?" He asked.
"I shouldn't have said that, you probably like your king." I tried to make things right but the damage was already done, even though this mysterious man seemed amussed.
*
We walked in silence until we reached an enormous oak illuminated by the setting sun. Its magnificent green doors opened as soon as they saw us. In a matter of seconds we were surrounded by people but I didn't recognize anyone. Then I turned around and saw Anira who rushed my way and embraced me tight,
"We were so worried my lady!" She exclaimed and hugged me tightly.
"If it weren't for him I'd be dead." I pointed out towards my savior who was surrounded by guards and servants.
"Did the king save you?" She asked.
My stomach dropped and I felt my cheeks turn scarlet. "What? You're not telling me..." I was suddenly interrupted by a deep, irony filled voice.
"King Thranduil at your service." He said from behind me.
I turned around and met his eyes; they were filled with amusment yet they looked hurt. I'd just told the King of the Woodland Realm he was a souless man incapable of loving or feeling any empathy what so ever.