The Sacrifice by Slina
Thanks to Jazzcat for helping me with details I might not have even noticed otherwise.
Disclaimer: The characters and locations mentioned are all Tolkien’s, and are certainly not mine.
The Sacrifice
It was a fight of survival. Legolas’ knives flashed as they attacked orc after orc. There seemed to be no end to the orcs and trolls, but he could not stop. The small army of men needed all the help it could get, and Legolas was not about to let them down.
The shriek of a Nazgul instantly drew him to halt. That’s when he saw the troll. It slowly made its way to Aragorn, viciously swinging a heavy sword with every step. With a sudden burst of strength, Legolas dashed toward it, but it wasn’t enough. The troll now stood behind Aragorn with its large sword suspended above its head. Legolas grabbed for his bow, strung an arrow, and released.
The arrow never reached its target. An orc was thrown into its path, and the arrow imbedded itself into the orc’s neck. Legolas reached for another arrow, but it was too late. “Aragorn!” he screamed. Aragorn looked up just as the sword fell, crushing him to the ground.
Legolas cried out and ran forward, pushing aside anything that stood in his way. As he came to Aragorn, he stopped and fell to his knees in horror. Aragorn’s head rested in a pool of dark blood, and he scarcely appeared alive. Legolas edged next to Aragorn and rested the death-like head on his knees. “Aragorn?” he whispered.
Aragorn’s eyes opened and he looked up into Legolas’ face. “I am here, mellon nin [my friend],” he said weakly.
Legolas broke into a smile. “Aragorn!”
Aragorn shook his head. “Legolas-”
“I am here for you, Aragorn. The men will need you…” He stopped at the look in Aragorn’s face. “Aragorn?”
“No,” said Aragorn. “There is nothing I can do now.”
“You cannot leave!”
Aragorn held out his hand to reveal the Evenstar. “Return this to Arwen,” he said. He struggled for another breath. “Farewell, mellon nin [my friend].”
“No, Aragorn! You will live! You-” But Aragorn was already gone. Legolas sank back in disbelief. How could this happen? So many times Aragorn had been close to death, but every time he had survived. And now…
There was still something he could do. He quickly put his hand on Aragorn’s head and closed his eyes.
Suddenly he heard a cry: “The eagles are coming! The eagles are coming!” He looked up just as an eagle swooped down on one of the Nazgul. The eagle let out a long cry, and immediately Legolas could hear the sea gulls calling him to the sea. The sea! The gulls had already woken his sea-longing, and the desire for the sea now burned in his heart. There could be no more peace for him until at last he could sail into the west. He grabbed the Evenstar from Aragorn’s lifeless hand. The calling of the sea was too strong. He slowly pulled out his knives as he watched the orcs around him. Suddenly he sprang up and whipped a knife into an orc. “Your evil kind stole the life of my friend,” he said fiercely. “You deserve to die, and die you shall!” He yanked the knife back out and charged into the battle.
Suddenly the fighting stopped. Legolas pulled his knife out of a final orc before following everyone else’s gaze into Mordor. A silence had fallen over the entire crowd, almost as though they were waiting. Legolas was not sure what they were waiting for, but he did notice that the Eye looked different, as if it was burning. He watched in stunned silence as the tower began to crumble and the Eye vanished. The dark lord was no more. He excitedly turned to find Aragorn, but quickly stopped as he remembered that Aragorn was no longer alive.
He did not notice as Gimli walked up beside him. “They did it!” exclaimed Gimli. “At last, that ring is destroyed!”
Legolas kept staring into the distance. “Yes, Gimli. But I have failed.” He walked over and knelt beside Aragorn. “Why have you left us?” he whispered. “Why now, when you are needed so much?”
Gimli walked up behind him. “There was nothing you could have done,” he said.
“But there was!” exclaimed Legolas. He pulled out the Evenstar pendant. “I could have done something. I can still do something!” He pressed his fingertips against his forehead and closed his eyes. He could give Aragorn his own life. He could give up his immortality and change it into a new life for Aragorn. But Legolas would never be able to become immortal again. He would never be able to see the sea, and someday… he would die. He let out a heavy breath. Death. In the past it had been nothing more than a foreign concept to him, one that he need not worry about. But if he gave up his immortal life… No, he could not bring himself to do it.
One of the men ran up to Legolas and looked down at Aragorn. “Over here!” he shouted. Several men, including Eomer, ran up and stood beside him.
Legolas stood up and looked at them with empty eyes. “He’s gone,” he said quietly.
The men stared back at him until at last Eomer removed his cloak. “Use this for Aragorn,” he said. Aragorn was laid on the cloak, and four men were assigned to carry him.
The company was soon ready to leave. They assembled themselves with Aragorn’s body in their midst. Eomer mounted his own horse and took the lead. “We ride to Gondor!” he shouted, and the company began to move.
Legolas and Gimli were riding together toward the front, but Legolas did not heed his surroundings. He had the Evenstar in one hand, and was absently running a finger along the polished edge. He would have the painful duty of giving it to Arwen, and telling her that Aragorn would not return. He could already see the pain in her eyes, the pain that he alone could prevent. He longed to give her happiness instead. But the sea was still calling to him, endlessly pleading with him to come and see its distant shores. And his family… would they understand if he could not go to Valinor with them?
He was brought back to reality as the group came to a sudden stop.
“Do you know this place?” asked Eomer.
“No,” replied one of the men. “This place is unfamiliar to me.”
Eomer stared into the dense trees that surrounded them. “We cannot stay here for long. We must get to Minas Tirith quickly.” He turned to face the rest of the men. “Does anyone here know the way?!” He was met with silence. “It is as I feared,” he said, turning back. “No one knows where we are, or where we should go.” He let out a heavy sigh. “If only Gandalf were still with us.”
One of the men nodded. “Or Aragorn,” he said. “He knows this land better than anyone I have ever met.”
Legolas had heard enough. They needed Aragorn, and not just to find their way to Minas Tirith. Legolas sprang off his horse and ran back to Aragorn, ignoring the men calling after him. He stopped beside Aragorn’s body and rested a hand on Aragorn’s head. He whispered some words in elvish, closed his eyes, and waited…
“Legolas.”
Legolas’ eyes flew open to see Aragorn sitting up and looking at him. “Aragorn!” he breathed.
Aragorn’s brows furrowed. “You look cold. What is wrong?”
Legolas took in a breath. “Nothing is wrong, Aragorn,” he replied. He slipped the Evenstar into Aragorn’s hand. “Not anymore.”
Aragorn nodded. “Hannon le, Legolas [thank you].” Suddenly hearing the voices of the lost men up ahead, Aragorn jumped up and ran to the front. Legolas smiled as he watched the reactions of the men. Aragorn knew immediately where the company was, and once he was supplied with a horse, he began leading the way.
Legolas shivered as he mounted again in front of Gimli. He would never be able to cross the sea now, and someday he would have to die, just like the mortal he now was. But the looks on the men’s faces was worth it. He had given his life to those who needed it. He had made the right choice.
44 Comments
Is this the end already? I hope it isn’t. I like it
~Meluiwen~
wow. thats really all there is to say.
WOW, WOW, WOW, WOW, WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What a great story!!! Legolas’ sacrifice is so beautiful and touching. Awesome work!!!!!
MORE MORE MORE MORE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
That was *so* good! Pleas write more! It’s so sweet! 😀
AH! How cute and nice of Legolas! I hope it´s not the end. It isn´t, right? Please write more.
I actually really liked it. Sweet, touching, interesting. Provides a good picture of how deeply elves are capable of loving their friends, on a completely un-romantic level (different than Arwen, which is more what the movie focuses on). I applaud you.
V. nice!! Hows about another chapter?
Very nice! Though I do think you could have embelished it more and made it more pleasing to read, I’m not saying it wasn’t, but the end was a bit rushed. I like it a lot though and please do not take this as a deragotory review becuase it isn’t! Keep writing more stories! Cheers, mellon!
I like the story! A good one. I do, however, wish it were a bit longer. Other than that, I loved it!
This is amazing! I mean, the drama of the story is wonderful!
You rock!
Way to go! Keep up the great work. I loved it!
wow. that’s all i can say. At first, i thought it was gonna be one of those really sad “Aragorn Dies” stories that always make me cry, but it was really, really good! i wish i could write half as well as you can. 🙂
Are you just going to leave it there! dont please its good! you must finish it!
its pretty good…cant wait to see what happens next 🙂
Very impressive story so far. The interplay of friendships is very good, and the charcters are written very realistically. Please write more chapters soon!
Wow! I thought this was just a “one-shot” story when I read the first chapter, but this looks like it’s going to make a great tale! I especially like the genuine concern of Legolas’ friends. Please write more!
Wait a minute! One second, Legolas is saving Aragorn’s life, and the other second Aragorn falls unconcious again??!? Great, just great…more worries for all of them. Wonder what Arwen would think if she had to marry a half dead guy…
Ignore the outburst, please. Got carried away, I suppose. My emotians are twisting and turning. Update soon!
Geez Legolas is being touchy! I mean, yeah he lost a lot, but he decided in the last chapter that feeling bad “wasn’t worth losing a friend over.” Now he’s not even glad that Gimli seems to have forgiven him for being so snappy! (By the way, that’s not an insult to your writing. This is a really good story and I’m waiting anxiously for the next chapter.)
I like it! Bring on the next chapter in the story!
My Review for Chapter One- I liked it. We have so many talented people here on this site. I can’t wait to read the rest. You did great.
LOVE IT!!! I hope you continue it! Please do!
i love it
AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!! PLEEEEEAAAAAASE let Aragorn be all right! Pleeeeeeeaaaaaaase!!!
Positively excellent! The Tolkien style writing was perfectly crafted. I was on the edge of my seat all the time I was reading it.
I thought the story was dead good but it ended kind of suddenly
Mae govannen, mellon nin.
I want more! This is a great idea!
Navaer,
Featari
interesting new plot twists…. please hurry and write the next chapter lest I die of anticipation!
Where is the rest of the story?
Moremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremoremore!!!
Keep going! It must be hard on Legolas like this… he made the right choice, but sometimes that’s so hard to deal with. Let Aragorn be all right or I will send evil pink fuzzies after you!!!
this is one great story…
This is a fascination story – can’t wait to see more. You’ve covered the details perfectly, from Legolas being constantly cold to his blurry vision. Very nice!
Er…to correct my previous review, this is a ::fascinating:: story. *sheepish grin*
Short chapter, but still good. Keep writing!
Wow!! Please update!!
Great new chapters, and nice work on the frinedship between Legolas and Gimli. Please post again soon!
Great chapter. I really hope nothing bad happens to Legolas. Please post the next chapter soon!
Please! Please! Please! Continue it! I´m dying to read it!!!!!!! It´s a very good fanfic!! Excelent work!! Congrats!
I love this story! Poor Legolas, though. That would be quite a shock, losing all those special powers and stuff. Keep going, I love this!! 🙂
Oh my God! You’re wonderful!!! Great fanfic!!^^ I was afraid Legolas would die, but I´m glad he´s not!! THANKS!!!
wow! i am amazed! that was amazing! thank you! i hope that i can call you my mellon nin even though i have never met you! thanks from eyowen the queen
O_o Ohhhh! Cool. I want a sequel, think you could write a sequel?
Oh and BTW I thought that I should let you know that Legolas’ mother died when he was real young, some people say she died in childbirth with Legolas others that she died in an orc attack, and different others say that she sailed because of what happened to her in an orc attack, she was never able to completely heal. That is what I have heard from some friends who have studied the books and history stuff. If I am wrong I would like to know, but if you were just assuming not really knowing about his mother then I am glad to let you know, just so you know for future fanfics.
~thoriel
I love this