Love in a Time of War
"Three rings to the Elven-kings under the sky,
Seven to the Dwarf-lords in their halls of stone,
Nine to the Mortal men doomed to die,
One to the Dark Lord on his Dark Throne
In the land of Mordor, where Shadows lie."
She hurried her steps under the night sky, wrapping her cloak tightly around her shoulders, and keeping her head down. It was not a night to be traveling, but she knew she had to reach some elven community before she took a rest. Her traveling companion, Cuilcassima, was the only one left of her group before illness took her. Alladrielle thought back on how she got into this predicament with a frown; it was never meant to be for an untrained woman to go out on an adventure.
Originally setting out with four people, five including herself, they were to make it to Lórien by this night, but they were attacked by a group of Uruk-Hai. Only Cuilcassima and Alladrielle survived, as they were down by the waters when the others were ambushed. Setting off quickly, Alladrielle did not know the sickness Cuilcassima had, and soon she fell too ill to continue. Apparently, the only reason for their visit to Lórien was to seek the Lady's aid for her dear friend. Alladrielle knew not of this.
After a night of restless sleep, she awoke to find her dearest friend not breathing and more pale than normal for an Elf. Alladrielle had tried many times to heal her, but she never improved. When her pulse was checked, she was unsurprised to find her lifeless. Alladrielle wept for hours as she burned her friend's body. She wept for the loss of her great friend, wept for her family, wept for all of Mirkwood, wept because she could not have the proper burial and wept because Alladrielle had no sense of direction and had no idea whether to go North or East or West or South. She had no idea where Lórien was from where she was currently.
She stood up from her crouching position at the edge of the blaze, and brought her dull eyes to where Cuilcassima's body should be. Tears dried themselves upon her cheeks as she ripped a piece of her cloak off and looked at the dark red fabric. Uncustomary for an Elf to wear red, but it was a gift of Men, and as Alladrielle stared at the dirty fabric, she felt a wave of grief overwhelm her once again. Casting her eyes from the fabric and the fire, she looked towards the night sky and saw star upon star appear. A sign from the Valar, she knew then. She took one last look at the fabric in her hand, brought it to her heart, whispered an ancient prayer, and then cast it away into the flames. It caught fire before it landed on her dear friend's charring body, but she did not see it. Alladrielle was walking away from the flames, never to look back.
It was a week later when I found her in the hands of a hoard of Orcs in the Misty Mountains. Just as I thought she could not stand the torture any longer, I rescued the poor elleth, my brother taking down the Orc leader. I was a son of a lord from the Last Homely House, which was in an elven village on the other side of where this elleth was held captive. I, Elrohir, and my twin brother Elladan, saved the elleth named Alladrielle in the midst of being whipped over a burning fire, to where the Orcs would, as they snarled at her many times, (I later found out) consume her blood and roast her body.
She took years to recover. Once her body showed hardly any sign of the lashes, as my father reported for I would never dare to look upon naked flesh without permission, her soul was slowly being healed. With the help of my father, Lord Elrond, my brother and my self, my sister Arwen, and the Bal-rog slayer Glorfindel and librarian Erestor, Alladrielle's soul was mended. But this was years ago; far too many to think upon, and her tale begins the day the Council of Elrond took place, where nine Middle Earth species decided to risk their lives for the sake of one hobbit. One hobbit who held in his possession the one thing that held the power to destroy all of Middle Earth; the One Ring.
"One Ring to rule them all,
One Ring to find them.
One Ring to bring them all
And in the Darkness bind them,
In the Land of Mordor, where Shadows lie."