Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Agent Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. has seen things that no one can comprehend, has discovered the secrets that are to keep hidden, but by this point, he is tired of it. Closing the door behind him with the sound of a click, he grabs a chair and slides it towards him, sitting down. The dark blue hexagonal pattern walls of the plane’s cell surround the two sitting across from each other. Coulson adjusts himself in his seat to make himself comfortable, and clasps his hands together, laying them on his lap.
“Now tell me,” he gives the person across from him a look of interest and amusement, “how many more of you are out there?”

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Chapter 1

Run
Breathe
Run
Breathe
The two thoughts run through the blonde’s mind as he makes his way through the cold desert of ice. Snow sticks to his long locks and his nose is turning a rosey red from the cold. He stops abruptly at the sound of an aircraft in front of him, and his stomach drops. He just wanted to leave and be free of their grasp. He didn’t say a word during his interrogation with the men that captured him, but that came with great consequences, much of which is pain. Several punches to the face made for a fractured jaw and a deep cut under his right eye. A cut runs down the right of his throat, blood dripping onto his green woodland tunic. For how modern the world he is staying in is, he never thought about fitting in it. From his time deep in the woods, he thought no one would find him.
The aircraft in front of him whirls around, its bright lights blinding the blonde as well as a gust of wind coming from the plane. He doesn’t hesitate to run to the left, away from the plane or anyone else who is after him. He has to get away. The sound of a voice makes his blood turn to ice.

“Here elf boy! Where are ya ?” The voice taunts the elf. He recognizes the voice and keeps on running. He hears gunshots behind him and ignores his screaming lungs as they tell him to stop and take a break. He loses his footing and falls into the icy earth. Blood drips from his nostril as he smacks his face against the hard surface, staining the snow a crimson red. The elf curls himself into a ball and wishes for everything to stop. The torment, the tauntings, everything. He wishes for the warmth and coverage of the forests, and the sound of his friend’s voice or his father’s. The sound of footsteps approach the elf, stepping in front of his face. The elf looks up and gives a weary glare to his former captor. The man sighs.

“Thought you could get away, did ya?” The man kneels down in front of the blonde, lifting the elf’s chin with his fingers.

“You are aware of how...special you are, do you not?” the man continues, “we need ya, Legolas. You can help us. You can have anything you want.” The man pauses to let the words sink into Legolas. No I don’t want this, the elf thought. Legolas stayed there, still as he could, not letting his gaze drop from the man’s cold, grey eyes. The man felt slightly intimidated under the elf’s icy blue glare, but shook the feeling off. He was the leader. He was the one who will train the worthless alien being in front of him and turn him into a weapon of his own against S.H.I.E.L.D.
“What I want, is for you to leave me alone.” Legolas replies, his voice on edge giving the man a warning, who laughed.

“It speaks!” throwing his hands in the air he continues, “That’s not happening Princess,” The man says, chuckling and grabbing the elf’s long tress, “Now stand up and get your elven ass back into the plane before I end up pulling your hair out.” Legolas stiffens and his face scrunches in pain as the man has a steady and tight grip on his hair. With the force, Legolas stands up and is violently shoved to the ramp leading into the plane. Being back inside the chrome-colored modernized walls made Legolas’ head spin. He is lead to the main lounge area and is shoved onto the floor with a grunt.

“Good job gettin’ him back John.” Another voice spoke. The captor smirked, showing his crooked teeth.

“Well Ward we need him to stay with us. He can be a help with his inhuman strength and skills. You saw how he fought. He is the reason why you have a black eye.” Ward sighed inwardly at the mention of his blackened eye. From all the people he has battled against, Legolas was one of the toughest.

“Yes, sir. He is going to pay for that later on. Where do you want to put him?” Ward asks with some unenthusiasm, his gaze clouded with boredom. John puts his hand on his temple and then gestures towards an area of the plane.

“Just take him to the interrogation room again. I’m tired of dealing with his shit.” Legolas groans as John steps over him, kicking him in the ribs before leaving the room with the rest of Hydra, leaving Legolas and Ward alone. The unshaven man squats down in Legolas’ view, his dark eyes looking at every inch of the elf.

“You wanna do this the easy way or the hard way?” Ward says, a smirk playing on his lips. Legolas stood up slowly, but to his dismay, Ward kicks Legolas’s legs from under him. The elf was able to catch his balance before colliding with the ground once again.

“I don’t really have a choice, do I?” Legolas mumbles loud enough for the bastard in front of him to hear. Ward’s smirk only widens.

“Ah looks like you are beginning to finally talk. Maybe you can answer the questions we ask you this time, is that clear?” His voice is laced with turmoil and malice, which made Legolas unsettled. Oh how he wishes he was at home fighting off spiders and orcs instead of greedy men that want him for his strength and quick mind. Ward goes behind Legolas with a gun pointed at the elf’s back, and starts to push the blonde forward down a hall. The dim white lights and grey walls only caused the young prince to be more tense. The surroundings are far too foreign for his liking. Ward opens a door after entering a code, which Legolas tries to remember what it is, though Ward’s fingers fly across the code panel. The door opens with a click and Legolas is shoved in, and before Legolas can say anything, he is shot with an electrocutor and his world starts to disappear under his vision. Darkness takes the elf, leading him to unconsciousness.
Satisfied with his work, Ward drags the blonde to a chair, seated in front of a table that is covered in dried blood from the previous beatings. He laches metal cuffs over the prince’s wrists and ankles, making it harder for the elf to escape this time.

“You elven shit aren’t going anywhere.” Ward snarls at the sleeping elf as he finishes secruing Legolas. It will be a few hours until he wakes, so Ward takes his advantage to raid the elf even more, as well as let his corrupted mind take over. He searches Legolas for any weapons that the prince may be hiding, though he found none. Ward glances over the elf’s fair but yet bruised face. His eyes then linger over Legolas’ body which is still dressed in fine elven clothing. A smile appears on his lips at the thought of what horrid things he could do to make the elf’s stay even more uncomfortable. He has already done it with May once, why not try it with an elf? Ward unhooks the brooch that is holding the elf’s cloak together and he throws the cloak into a nearby corner. His fingers slide down to the first clasp that is holding Legolas’ tunic together. Before he can unclasp it, John’s voice interrupts him through the intercom in his ear.

“Ward I got another job for you to do.” With a sigh, the agent stands up and glares at the sleeping creature, then heads out of the cell, leaving Legolas in the dim light, the sound of his light breathing only heard.

Chapter Text

Chapter 2

Legolas awoke the said few hours later, and he was confused as to what happened and where he was. His mind was still groggy from getting shocked, and nothing was lining up. The elf squints through the bright but yet dim light of the room. Legolas tried to move his hands, but realizes with fear that they were stuck with some heavy material, most likely metal. He opens his eyes completely to see that they are clamped down along with his ankles. Panic arises within him as he strains his memories to think of what events occurred. Then it hit him. He was in another universe of some sort with men who are part of a Kingdom or legion called Hydra who want the elf for their own doing. Sighing impatiently, the blonde tries again to move, but it was no use. Cursing, he purses his lips together and glances around the room, the familiar sights of the cell reminding him of what happened when he escaped the first time.

“Ai, Elbereth, what am I going to do.” Legolas frowns to himself. He looks around, trying to get used to his boring yet absurd surroundings.

“Only the Iluvatar know of what destiny lies within this flying fortress.” It strikes the elf of how strange and technical this place is. It never crossed his mind of how a building could be flying several thousand feet above the ground. Everything about this journey is strange, considering he is in a whole other universe. The elf feels as if his time is behind, and this is the future that he is supposed to live in. No. He is living in the future, but his future is more subtle and less advanced. His heart aches at the thought of home. The green leaves, the soft touch of grass, the sound of his bow creaking every time he pulls it back to notch an arrow. Sighing, Legolas starts to move his wrists in an attempt to get himself free, which does not work. He waits for another several minutes of silence until the door starts to open again. This time it wasn’t just Ward, but John, several guards in bulletproof vests, and a woman with a flower dress. The woman interested Legolas more than the others. What authority does she have here and why would she want to work for those who hurt others?
After everyone has filed into the room, John takes a seat across from Legolas, eyeing the elf with interest.

“So. I heard that you are going to answer our questions now.” John asks, leaning forward with his hands together laying on the table. Legolas stares ahead, passed John and past the others. He doesn’t move as John speaks or acknowledges that he was speaking. John impatiently snaps his fingers.

“Hey can you hear me? Pay attention dammit.” Legolas’ eyes are distant as he goes into his own mind, thinking of his journeys through Middle Earth. He doesn’t even care nor notice the slap against his face.

“Is it broken?” John asks, his frustration becoming noticeable. Ward steps up beside Legolas, bending down and keep eye level with the elf. He waves his hand in front of the blonde’s eyes, who doesn’t notice Ward’s gesture.

“Huh...maybe this will make him talk.” A scream erupted from Legolas’ throat as a shocker was placed against his chest, a burning sensation coursing through the elf’s entire body. Ward takes away the device and looks at the blonde, satisfied at his doing. After a few short moments of Legolas gasping in pain, John spoke again.

“Now, elf, answer these questions, will ya?” Legolas looks up and meets the man’s gaze. Legolas made sure that he seemed intimidating in front of these idiots, though fear was creeping into the young prince. The elf doesn’t say a word nor move.

“Whose orders are you following?” John asks, his eyeing the elf with suspicion.

“No one.” Legolas replies shortly after the question was asked. This didn’t satisfy anyone else in the room.

“Everyone follows someone, do they not? Especially in a circumstance such as this.” John slowly rises in his seat and starts to circle around Legolas, who can do nothing but answer their pathetic questions.

“I don’t follow anyone.” Legolas says again, emphasizing the last word in his sentence to make it clear to the mortal’s mind.

“I call bullshit.” John hisses and smacks the side of the elf’s head, making blood starting to ooze from Legolas’ ear. John sees the blood and then traces his fingers over the elf’s pointed ears. Legolas shutters over the man’s touch, and wishes for John to not touch him.

“Don’t touch me.” Legolas snarls, his anger rising. This only made John to smile more. The man’s fingers linger over to the blonde hair, and the neatly made braids that were among the many strands of hair. Legolas tensed and swallowed hard. What do these bastards want from him? This time, Ward spoke.

“Who gave you orders to our location?”

“No one.”

“Don’t lie.”

“I am not lying.”

“Oh but you are, and I am not asking again.”

“I did not know of your location—!” Another smack to Legolas’ face. Pain sears in every part of his face, and his nose begins to bleed once more. For the next twenty minutes, this is what the elf prince went through. A cycle of torment and anger towards Legolas. The guards and the lady just watched, not moving or speaking, though the lady had sympathy in her eyes. She flinched at the first two smacks, but then sighed and just accepted the fact that the beatings were going to worsen as the questions get deeper. Why they must get specific answers from the elf and waste their time on him is beyond her. By the end of the questioning, the elf was passed out yet again. His face is unrecognizable under the blood and cuts from the beatings. His neck bloodied a bruised from where they did other attempts at getting the answers the men wanted. Unsatisfied and irritated, John starts to leave. He looks back at Ward before exiting the chamber.

“Make him comply.” John finally says as he exits.

“Yes sir.” Ward smirks and then follows John out of the room to gather the right materials needed to make the elf one of them. The lady watches them leave and then walks over to the beat up creature. She strokes the blood matted hair and purses her lips. This is not how a new specimen should be treated, but she wasn’t the boss. Hydra has its way of doing things, most of which is violent. She glances around the room before pulling a small test tube of liquid out of the pocket of her dress, injecting it into the soft flesh of the slumbering elf. Legolas stirs slightly and then his bright blue eyes are met with brown. The young prince looks at the lady with a look of confusion, and his eyes rested on the empty syringe in her hand.

“I know you probably weren’t expecting to be woken up so soon, but I have you know that Hydra is planning something for you. Something that should only be happening with one individual, but now you.” Legolas stares at the woman, unable to comprehend what she is trying to say, the injection still coursing through his veins.

“What are they going to do?” He asks, his voice rough. The lady shakes her head.

“I cannot tell you, I just wanted to warn you. I am not your ally, but I am not towards Hydra either.” Legolas had many questions, but one he needed to know for now.

“May I ask your name?” He asks, stopping the lady from leaving the room. She turns and has a small but sweet smile on her lips, lighting up her face.

“Raina.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 3 

The door opening violently startles Legolas as John storms in, anger written all over his face. 

“It’s your turn to show us what you can do, elf.” He walks over to Legolas and starts to unclamp the metal restraints from the prince’s wrists and ankles. John then forcefully grabs Legolas’ arm and yanks him out of the chair, a small gasp escaping the young elf. 

“If you try to do any funny business,” John warns, getting out a pistol and holding it towards the woodland prince, “you’re dead.” Legolas doesn’t say a word as he is pushed out of the chamber and into the hallway. Alarms are blaring and the sound of people shouting and gunshots can be heard from somewhere nearby. Legolas’ vision is cut short as a blindfold is placed over his head, blocking any sight for any ways of escape. John drags Legolas through many hallways, until the ground starts to slope downward. We must be getting out of the flying fort, Legolas thinks to himself. The elf can feel snow below his feet as they step out of the plane. A breeze makes Legolas shutter, the cold chilling him to the bone. Then the temperature is warmer as they enter yet another building. Another hallway here, another there. By this point, Legolas has given up on where they were going or what the way back was. 

A voice is heard shouting behind them. “Wait, John, I didn’t comply him yet!” Legolas notices that it is Ward speaking. “Why do you think I have a gun to his head? If he does anything that goes against us, I’ll kill ‘im!” John shouts back. A sharp and aggravated sigh is heard from Ward, and then the sounds of footsteps of him walking away. The elf is led into a small room, which to his surprise starts moving downward like a shaft. He stays still and tense, not knowing what will happen next. John takes off the blindfold and is met with two ice-blue eyes. “This should be fun.” John says enthusiastically, patting Legolas’ shoulder. The prince narrows his eyes at the man and doesn’t say anything. He wishes he could just smack him senseless, but he knew it would do him no good considering his current circumstances. He was weaponless and weak from the drugs and beatings. Not to mention the amount of guards that surround them in the elevator. The soft sound of a bell rings for a short moment and the metal, chrome doors slide open, revealing a high-tech lab. Two guards in front of Legolas move forward, and soon all of them are out of the elevator. The men raise their guns, and Legolas looks up, knowing why. In front of them are a small group of people. “I see you have gained a new friend, huh John?” One of them speaks. He seems older than the rest, but is as intimidating as the others. He holds a machine of some sort, a gun, as Legolas concluded. Legolas tries to step forward, but John’s tight grip on his arm stopped him from doing so. “Don’t move would ya?” John hisses. He quickly thinks of a next move. If he were to use Legolas to fight, there could be a chance that S.H.I.E.L.D. would take him. He pushes Legolas into the hands of another Hydra guard. “Take ‘im away for now. I don’t want S.H.I.E.L.D. or Coulson to get his hands on him—.” “John you realize you have an unknown individual from what seems like another world. Really I think best if he were in our hands.” Coulson interrupts. John narrowed his eyes and rounded on a guard. “You know where to take him.” The guard nodded slowly, biting his lip to remember who he was directly talking about. John sighs impatient and whispers slowly. “To comply.” The guard nods and holds a gunpoint at Legolas’ back as the elf and guard head out of the lab. He brings Legolas to another room, this one a lot bigger than the last one with an airplane set inside. Legolas side glances at the guard, and took this as a chance to escape, but his plans were shortened as an injector was stabbed into his soft flesh. The room starts tilting sideways in his vision, and he stumbled to the right, trying to find his balance. He struggled to not let oblivion take him once again, for that has happened far too often. He reaches his arm out to lean on something, but air is all he grasps. He falls and lands on arm, unable to move or block his fall with his hands. His eyes become heavier and heavier as he tries to focus on his surroundings, and soon his eyes close and don’t open for a long time. The guard, satisfied with his work, picks up the limp elf and throws him over their shoulder. He then heads over to a small jet and with a key, opens the hatch to get inside. He secures Legolas in the backseat of the jet, tying down the elf’s wrists and ankles if the being were to wake from the drugs wearing off. The guard then secures himself into the pilot’s seat and starts the engine. It was a long several hour flight over seas and back to the Hydra work building in America. The man lands on the roof of the building and he is met with several Hydra officials in suits, two of which have waited for their prize out of John’s grasp for a long time. “Well done transporting it safely.” One man says, a smirk plays on his lips. The guard nods. “It was my duty, sir, and I make sure to do it as well as I can.” This time the other man smiles. “Hail Hydra.” He whispers. The others nod, repeating the same phrase. Two other men gently grab the elf, wary of the existence of such a creature. “Is it ready, Mr. Whitehall?” One says. The first man nods, smiling darkly. “Yes.”

Chapter Text

Word spread around quickly in the Hydra field of Legolas’ arrival. Two men in suits carry Legolas to a small room. Trinkets and tools of all sorts scatter neatly on the tables, and cabinets filled with test tubes and syringes of drugs and poisons. On one wall holds a television, the screen showing illusional images and patterns, enough to drive a person mad. In front of the screen is a stand with handcuffs and other latches. The men dragged the poor elf to the stand, ripping off his vambraces and strapping the steel cuffs onto his already bloodied wrists. The drug in the elf’s veins was wearing off, but only slightly. The men force his head up, tilting his chin back against the metal headboard. They adjust the headboard so it was tightly holding Legolas’ head forward towards the screen. Whitehall stands in front of the elf, looking up and down the creature’s body. He gingerly strokes the blonde hair and tilts his head to look at the elf from a new angle.
“Such a shame that someone so fair and innocent is going to be transformed into a whole other person,” Whitehall mumbles to himself, looking at Legolas's bloodied face. Legolas’ eyes flutter open, his head pounding and vision unclear. His eyes focus on the person in front of him, and with his dull vision, he still glares. He knew that he was still in the hands of the enemy, for he could feel the cold metal cuffs on his blood-rotted wrists. His vision clears and he sees his captor in front of him. He makes sure that his icy stare intimidates the man, though, to his disappointment, it doesn’t work. The man wears a suit and tie, glasses upon his small eyes and face.
“My...what bright eyes you have. Perfect for being opened for a long period of time.” Legolas ignores the man’s words and looks away. He tenses as the man plays with one of his braids, the man examining the elf’s fair hair, and then steps back.
“Such grace that you hold, but sadly we have to throw that all away, at least if you don’t cooperate.” Legolas would not let the man get to him, and he kept his head held high.
“You think your words sting, but they only make you look pathetic,” Legolas says proudly, showing his dominance towards his captor. Whitehall just laughs.
“Do not think that words will intimidate me, or your glare that you try to bear into my soul.” Legolas furrows his brows at the man’s words, sighing irritably.
“Shall we begin the evaluation?” Whitehall says, stepping closer to Legolas, their faces inches apart. The elf struggles against the restraints, attempting to free his head and hands, his heartbeat racing faster.
“The more you struggle, the more time you are dragging on. This could already for over with.” Whitehall says, a smirk playing on his lips. Legolas is scared to ask the question that is going through his head, but he takes the risk.
“What are you going to do to me?” Whitehall pauses as he slowly touches small metal sticks, one on each side of Legolas’ head, aligned with his eyes.
“You’ll find out soon enough. Now, let me see those bright blue eyes you have.”

“Are you sure it was an elf?”
“No, it was a unicorn. Yes, an elf!
“Fitz, just saying, that is not likely unless they were just dressed as one.”
“Then why do you think Hydra has him, Jemma?” The two argue back and forth, running around and trying to get S.H.I.E.L.D. back in place again.
“I don’t know…” Simmons finally concludes, sighing.
“We have had so much weird stuff happen to us in the past year. I honestly believe anything now.” Fitz argues.
“Yes, but that is where we have to be careful! Someone could say that they are from an ultimate universe of Earth, dressed as Iron Man and Thor combined, and use hallucinations of battles to gain trust!” Simmons says as she roughly takes off her safety glasses. Fitz pauses.
“And where did you get that idea from?”
“I don’t know Fitz I was just talking gibberish. It’s not like I was reciting the future.” Simmons shrugs, typing data into a computer. Fitz rolls his eyes and looks up as Colson enters their lab. He seems like he is in a daze, his usual smile now replaced with a frown of concern, grief, and anger.
“John has died, which has left us with Ward, but also with a creature out of our reach. See if you can somehow track Hydra and where they could have taken him. I don’t want him in the wrong hands.” The two scientists nod.
“Is Sky doing the same?” Simmons asks, looking back and forth from her notes to the computer.
“She is doing further research and seeing not only where they have him but also to see if she can get into their security camera footage as well as nearby local areas with cameras,” Coulson pauses, a hint of enthusiasm laced in his voice, “By the way, is it an elf we are tracking or something alien? To me, he looks like someone out of D&D, but that’s just my observation.” Simmons shrugs, smiling slightly.
“If I am being honest, I don’t quite mind…he’s kinda handsome for an unknown being.” Fitz looks at Simmons with a dull look, a bit of jealousy rising within him. Simmons looks up, noticing this, and smiles more.
“What? You can’t deny that he does look quite handsome. She says, shrugging. Fits rolls his eyes, looking back at his notes in front of him. Coulson gives a half smile, turning around to be jump scared by Agent May.
“That is the first time in a while I have seen you jump like that.” May teases, her voice monotone.
“Stress will do that to you,” Coulson replies, May giving him a look.
“Don’t stress yourself out too much, we need you to have a clear mind for this situation. We don’t know exactly what we are dealing with.”

Legolas feels tears running down his face as his eyes are forced open, watching the screen in front of him, making his mind feel like nothing. His eyes twitch slightly as he attempts to close them, but it is no use as the clips hold his eyes open. His body shakes as his eyes burn and beg to be closed. His fingers fidget and he tries to free his wrists from the metal restraints that hold him back. He grunts as he attempts to stay sane and not worry about the pain surging through his eyes. This has been going on for only half an hour now. The man still talks behind him about joining Hydra, trying to brainwash the elf into joining them. Legolas knew that they weren’t some simple-minded men. If he were to agree to be a part of their organization, it would mean risking losing who he is as a person. If he were to agree and then disobey them later on or try to escape, he could be killed. His weapons are hidden somewhere either on the aircraft or deep in the facility, and he wasn’t seeing himself trying to use a gun.

An hour passes and now he whimpers quietly, the pain unbearable but able to stay strong. His eyes feel as if all of Mordor’s flames were set ablaze on them. The images he is forced to see seep through his brain, making him not think straight. Sweat beads along his head and in his palms.

Two hours, and his body trembling and his eyes watering more. Whitehall comes around him to face him, a wine glass in his hands.
“This doesn’t have to be complicated,” he whispers, “ Surrender...and you will find meaning. Surrender, and you will find release. Take a deep breath. Calm your mind. You know what’s best,” His eyes are dark and meaningful, but Legolas knew what the right answer was, and that was to ignore every damn word that comes out of the man’s mouth, “What’s best, is you comply. Compliance will be rewarded. Are you ready to comply, Legolas?” Legolas stares straight ahead, the patterns and images on the screen creating a headache.
“I will never work for Hydra,” Legolas says through clenched teeth. He breathes heavily and swallows. The man looks amused.
“I expected it would be a long night.” He takes a sip from his wine, “Why I decided to treat myself.” Legolas sighs inwardly and tries his best to glare. Whitehall walks away from Legolas and starts to talk to his friend, who takes little interest in the elf.
“Mr. Bakshi, let’s go again.”

Three hours and Legolas feels as if his eyes are going to fall out any minute. Though common sense is the only thing telling him that that will not happen, he still can’t help but just assume with all the pain that indeed is what will be the fate of his keen eyes.

Seven hours, and he is screaming for release. Repeating “Lethio nin!” over and over. His thoughts were all just a jumble of nothing, his eyes burning so much that he might as well be stabbed with a flaming sword ten times over in the face.

Fifteen hours, and he gives in.
“Say the words, and I will set you free from this torment,” Whitehall mutters softly, facing the elf with a smug smile. Legolas was barely audible as he says the words that will decide his future.
“Hail...Hydra…” He whispers through clenched teeth.
“There...was that so hard?” The man chuckles, and Legolas looks at him, his eyes burning but pleading that he sets him free. Whitehall releases the clips that hold the crystal blue eyes open for so long, though now the rim of the eyes is red from the burning and irritation. Whitehall releases the grips around Legolas’ writs and the headboard. Legolas falls to the ground and closes his eyes tightly, holding his hands to his face. He can’t control the tears that stream down his face from all the pain that he has endured. His body shakes from the pain and a small whimper escapes his lips that he tried to hold back.
“Pitiful.” The man mutters to himself. With his keen hearing, he was able to hear Whitehall’s insult, but he doesn’t care. He was pitiful. The strong and mighty Prince of Mirkwood, son of the incredible King Thranduil, was on the ground crying from the torture that only lasted for less than a day. He has heard stories and tales of others who endured much more pain for longer. Maybe he did make a good decision of swearing into Hydra. He wasn’t cut out to be a leader, nonetheless a Prince. Legolas shakes his head and looks up, squinting his eyes to not irritate them anymore. He has never felt so vulnerable and weak in his life, and he admits it to himself. He can see it now, his friends at home calling him weak for not fighting back this whole time. For not taking the higher ground, but how could he? He was in a more advanced world with tricks everywhere he looks, traps of all sorts that end up beating him.
His eyes are met with Whitehall’s, and he can’t help but feel small under the man’s gaze.
“Now, shall we get you ready?” Legolas says nothing as he continues to blink his eyes and get moisture back into them.
“You will be using more advanced versions of your weapons, such as a machine bow with explosive arrows, unless you want to learn how to use a gun.” The elf stays silent. He didn’t want to use any weapons that were given to him by Hydra. He wanted his own handmade, wooden and carved, smooth and comfortable bow with his sharp and light daggers. Whitehall sighed with impatience.
“Don’t want to talk? Fine then.” He slowly takes out a phone from his inside coat pocket and dials a number.
“It’s time. He complied.”

Legolas was brought out of the room and was led to an office area. All eyes are gazed upon him as he walks by several rows of people working on computers. He didn't know what to expect or what he was going to be doing while working for Hydra, but at least he was getting to see more of the facility as a chance to find a way to escape. The blonde elf is led to a room in the back of a hallway. Inside, there was a bed and a chair sat next to it, a black uniform placed neatly on the bed. Legolas glances around and notices that there are no windows in the room, just a door.
“I assume you will like it here. We will update your quarters if you cooperate with Hydra, and maybe gain respect for you. At any time you wish, put on your uniform and then report back to me.” Whitehall says, closing the door behind Legolas, leaving the confused elf to himself. He stands there for a few long moments, feeling defeated and tired, his eyes still hurting from being held open for so long. He rubs his face and then goes over to the chair, sitting on it and examining his beaten wrists. He sighs and can’t help but feel hopeless and scared. Soon, he will be someone else that he is not, forgetting Middle Earth and all about his home. He stands and moves the uniform to the chair, sitting down on the surprisingly comfortable bed. He lays down and closes his eyes. Sleep is all he wants right now since for the past two days he has been running from Hydra and trying to get out of this mess. Soon, oblivion takes him into a dreamless slumber.

Legolas wakes up a few hours later, but he still feels as tired and exhausted as he felt before he fell asleep, though something else feels off. He sits up, sore from the beatings he received, and glances around. He looks over himself and still sees he is in his elven attire, though some of it is torn from when he got scratched, stabbed, or fell. He brushes back his blonde hair with his fingers, undoing the already falling apart and tangled braids. He stops at his neck and his eyes widen in surprise and shock. He closes his eyes and clenches his fists. Upon his neck was a metal collar.
“So I’m your pet now, Hydra?” Legolas huffs, staring angrily at the wall in front of him. His attention is drawn to the door as it opens and a person he least expected to see walks in.
“So you complied?” Legolas relaxes a bit at seeing her again. The prince looks away, ashamed.
“Yes, but no. I am loyal to my homeland and no one else, Raina.” Raina smiles and then closes the door. She folds her hands together in front of her.
“Try to tell them that. They’d make you comply again.” She says rolling her eyes and sitting at the end of the bed. Legolas nods slowly.
“What are you doing here?” The elf asks, adjusting himself on the bed and taking out the last of his braids. Raina shrugs, playing with her own hair.
“I wanted to check up on how my favorite Hydran is doing.” Legolas cocks an eyebrow, tilting his head.
“Favorite? Surely there are others that you have known for a while to become your favorite.” Raina laughs lightly, placing a hair behind her ear and looking down at her hands.
“Because you don’t deserve any of this...and you are so admirable to look at,” She inches closer to Legolas, placing a hand on his, “you...are going to be the next greatest hero.” Legolas tenses at her touch, but recovers quickly.
“I don’t believe that I will be a great hero if I am stuck here.” Legolas stares at Raina, his face expressionless but his eyes pleading. He needs out of here. He wants to be back home. Raina looks up, her brown eyes filled with sympathy towards the elf.
“I will help you.” Her voice is quiet as she strokes Legolas’ hand. The prince smiles slightly and looks down at her hand on his. Could he trust her? I mean, she has been the nicest to him out of everyone else, but something tells him that he shouldn’t believe a word she says. He shakes his head and pulls away.
“How can I trust you? If you really wanted to help me, you could have freed me from this nightmare when we were on that…”
“Plane?”
“If that is what you call it, then yes.” Raina sighs, but continues the argument, her voice more stern.
“Look. I couldn’t then, but I can now.” Her big brown eyes stare at Legolas’ sharp blue ones, her begging making Legolas feels as if he wants to say yes. He takes a deep breath, adjusting himself on the bed.
Both jump as someone knocks on the door. Raina quickly gets up, adjusting her dress and standing tall. Whitehall walks in and notices Raina standing there.
“Don’t you have somewhere else to be?” He smirks, sizing her up. She raises a brow and with her chin raised and she leaves, brushing past Whitehall. The man closes the door and then looks at the uniform on the chair.
“I believe the arrangements will do you nicely, especially the one around your neck.” Legolas takes every word and burns it in his mind. He doesn’t want to deal with this. Any of it. He keeps his glare steady, making sure to show no weakness.
“I hope you are aware that I can kill you at any moment I wish, and only this collar is stopping me.” Whitehall steps closer.
“Ah, and that is why we applied you with it. We don’t want any more trouble to happen,” he kneels down in front of Legolas, maintaining eye contact, “do we?” Legolas says nothing as he keeps his gaze, pursing his lips and clenching his fists. He is well aware that the collar will stop him, from all the previous technology that he has experienced. Whitehall stands.
“Well, get ready and wash up. We are training you in twenty minutes,” Whitehall walks to the door and pauses before opening it, “and if you think about escaping, or turning against Hydra, you can wish your life goodbye.” He opens the door and closes it, the sound bouncing off the walls. Legolas sits alone and stays on the bed for a long moment before looking over at the uniform. He closes his eyes and sighs slowly, calming himself and trying to get rid of any worries that he was afraid would happen. He will get out eventually.
“I hope,” Legolas mutters half-heartedly to himself. He goes to the bathroom located on the left of his bed and washes his face and hair. He makes sure to clean the cuts and bruises that he has received as well as to wash his mangled hair. He takes off his old clothing and puts on the uniform: black T-Shirt, black pants, boots, and a jacket with the Hydra logo pasted on the front over the heart. Legolas looks at himself in the mirror, and can’t help but immediately look down. This isn’t him. This will never be him.
He ties a section of his hair back and does a single braid, not willing to make his hair pleasurable towards Hydra, for they wouldn’t care anyways. He lets the rest of his hair fall onto his shoulders and he sets his old clothes down on the chair. He still is the same Legolas, but to him, he is a whole other person…