Chapter Four

Since the snake was showing no signs of retreat, it took several strong thrusts of the torch for Legolas just to keep the giant reptile at bay.  He had no idea how fast this creature was capable of moving, but he did know that having to make his way through an unfamiliar tunnel in the dark was going to slow Aragorn down.  Legolas didn’t want to come upon his friend with the snake right behind them.  They’d end up right back in the same situation they had just been in.

The elf was determined that this snake, no matter its size, was not going to get past him,  go after and then attack the fleeing ranger.  Thinking about it, he almost laughed.  If anyone was going to get attacked, it would be the one standing right in front of the huge serpent -  and that was him!

The delaying tactic was going to be good for only a few more moments. However, Legolas felt that the time to make his move had not yet arrived.  He just had to keep doing what he was doing and hope it would be enough until he judged the time was right to make a run for it.

Even when Legolas could no longer hear Aragorn’s footsteps echoing dully in the tunnel, he continued to wait in hopes of giving the ranger that little bit of extra time.  It would be tragic if they failed in their efforts to escape, because he got too anxious.

It was becoming more and more obvious that the snake was getting impatient, hissing repeatedly and moving its head from side to side as much as the rock walls would allow.  It was hard for Legolas to keep his eyes off of those very large, very long fangs.  Thinking that they might be ready to inject venom  into him was a frightening prospect.

Each time Legolas jabbed the torch at It, the creature lunged right back, hissing and snapping its jaws shut, only to open it‘s mouth again, ready for the elf’s next move.  And each time, the snake got closer. 

At a distinct disadvantage, Legolas was being driven backwards in this deadly dance with each exchange of lunges.  It wouldn’t be long before serpent fang would meet elven flesh.  There was no doubt which would be the winner, and it would not be the elf.  This was not happening the way he had planned, and he shook his head in frustration. 

On the last lunge he made with the torch, Legolas didn’t wait to see how close the snake would come to reaching him.  It was no longer feasible to hold his ground, so the elven archer turned and began running. 

Silent as the reptile was, Legolas, with his keen hearing, was still able to pick up the subtle sound of scales moving across smooth stone, even above the guttering sounds of the torch flame rushing through the air. 

The creature was keeping pace with the wood-elf’s pumping legs.  In fact, It was gaining on him.  Now Legolas knew the speed the creature was capable of, and that knowledge was not comforting.

He was attempting to use all of his acute senses to navigate his way down the tunnel.  They weren’t all as useful as was usually the case. 

His sense of smell told him that every inch of this place was the same - it stank.  Not one spot was any fresher than any other.

His night vision was very close to that of night-roaming animals.  Normally, he could pull in and magnify any speck of light in the distance to see what lay there.  Unfortunately, there was no speck of light in the distance here, so he was unable to see beyond the area provided by the torchlight.

Moving quickly, Legolas was expecting to run into Aragorn at any moment, but he continued on with no idea where his friend was. 

Then the torch sputtered and went out.  As frightening as that was, the elf could not stop, for he knew that the snake would not.  Tossing the torch aside, Legolas kept running, trying hard not to let the inky blackness slow him down. 

It was now time to rely on the archer’s intuition.  Legolas was forced to use it to intuitively ‘feel’ the way ahead.  It wasn’t always the best way to navigate, but he had no choice.  He was more than a little surprised that it was working now, as he was able to keep up his pace and not hit the walls to either side of him.

As the elf sped along, he suddenly sensed an opening in the rock wall.  Luckily, he had sensed it before he passed it, and was thus able to veer into it.  He had realized, as Aragorn had earlier, that the bend was made to accommodate the snake’s huge body. What the elf did not realize, though, was that Aragorn had turned into a right-bending tunnel.

The two friends were now becoming separated farther and farther apart as Legolas continued down the left tunnel, while Aragorn was stationary - waiting.

It was angry.  Having fire jammed toward It’s face and then flung at It was enough to make anyone angry, and this serpent was no different. 

It was hard on the heels of the fleeing creature.  Had It been capable of laughing, there was no doubt It would have done so now.  It was a laughable idea that the creature running ahead believed he could escape.  These tunnels were endless, winding around on themselves over and over.  They combined to make a true labyrinth.

It started to just stop, thinking that the two beings would end up coming right back to It.  However, the chase was amusing, especially since it had been so long since anything out of the ordinary had happened down here.

Peace and quiet in the dark was It’s normal way of spending It’s time, and that was preferable, but there was no denying that this chase was proving to be an enjoyable distraction.  It could drag out the game It now engaged in, knowing that sooner or later It would have what It sought - both creatures at It’s mercy.

It only remained to decide which being It was going to actively go after.  They were very different creatures, despite the fact that they were similar in form. 

When all three had been together, It had sensed that one was superior in physical prowess.  The other, though, was by far no weakling.  Either choice would be interesting, but It decided to go after the one who It believed would offer the greatest challenge. 

It turned into the left tunnel.

Aragorn was straining his ears to try and hear even the tiniest of sounds.  If only Legolas, with his keen hearing, could be here to listen for the snake’s possible approach. 

Legolas should have shown up before now.  Even given that the elf would have given the ranger as much time as possible to get away, his ability to navigate the dark tunnel should have brought him here by now.

There were three things that could have happened: Legolas had gone into another tunnel and was possibly heading away from him; Legolas had gotten a late start but was now on his way; Legolas had met with disaster.  The vision that the last notion conjured up was too horrific to contemplate for more than a few seconds, but even that brief thought made him shudder. 

The ranger clung to one of the first two choices being the case.  It wasn’t easy.  His nerves were growing so edgy that he wasn’t sure how much longer he could hold out before he would be forced to leave and go in search for his missing friend.

The only thing that stayed him was the idea that he and Legolas could end up moving through the tunnels, continually missing each other.  They had long ago decided that situations like this called for one of them to stay in one spot and wait for the other.  But, Legolas had been the one to say he would follow, so Aragorn had to be the one to stay where he was.  Easier said than done.

Fifteen very tense moments later, Aragorn could stand it no longer.  If Legolas had been able to get to him, the elf would have.  Something had gone wrong, and again, the ranger had to push away the vision that entered his mind unbidden.

The giant snake was out there, but so was Legolas, and the man was going to find the elf, even knowing that he might well find the snake first.

With a deep breath to calm his nerves, a maneuver that in this case, did not work, Aragorn began to make his way back the way he had come.

When he came to another tunnel, he tried to remember which way he had turned when he first came this way.  To his chagrin, he realized he couldn’t recall which was the right way to go.  Again he thought about staying put, wanting desperately to believe that Legolas was coming, and if he went the wrong way, the two would indeed miss each other.

After a few moments, he feeling of dread overcame him again, and he decided to make a choice and keep going.

In the end, the man realized that he had made so many turns, he no longer had the faintest idea of where he was going and certainly had no idea where he was.

Each time he had come to a turn, he had listened intently for any sound that might tell him if Legolas or the snake was close by.  He was met by the same maddening silence that had engulfed him since he and Legolas had parted.  It was so all-encompassing that it pressed down on the ranger in an almost physical manner.  He was beginning to think the tunnel was actually shrinking and barely avoided putting his arms up to ward off the perceived encroachment.

His frustration at not being able to see anything was mounting.  The only thing that was in any way a good thing was the fact that the rocky floor of the tunnels was smooth and offered no obstacles that would cause him to stumble.  Even so, the man’s mind was beginning to turn in on itself, as the suffocating feeling of claustrophobia, intensified by the dark silence, began to grip him.

Tight places, even dim, gloomy ones, had never bothered him very much before.  It had been Legolas who had always been the one who hated being in dark, underground places.  But this tunnel, or rather maze of tunnels, was different.  He wanted to laugh at the overwhelming unbelievably of the entire situation.  But, he was afraid that if he did laugh, he would sound maniacal and confirm his fears of growing madness.

Aragorn drew himself up short and gave himself a mental slap.  He was not going to lose his sense of reality, which would not only leave himself open to an easy attack from the snake but would also leave Legolas alone.  The elf may be in worse shape than he was in.  No way was he going to abandon them both to madness and death.

Taking another deep breath of the stale air, this time with resolute determination, the ranger moved forward.

The ranger’s eyes were searching desperately for the flicker of torchlight.  There was no sigh of any kind of flame, however small, anywhere in any of the tunnels he moved down.

Then, he tripped over something and fell headlong onto the rocky floor.  Both knees and the heels of both hands were screaming in pain.  He turned his body around and sat up.  He knew from past experience that all four points of contact would be scraped and bleeding.  He also knew that the wounds felt far more painful than they were serious. 

Ignoring the injuries, Aragorn ran his hands along to floor in all directions around him to find what it had been that had caused him to fall.  He both hoped and dreaded that it would turn out to be Legolas.

TBC