Suilad. I am Glorfindel of Gondolin.
The lore masters say that I died after killing a Balrog when my White City fell. They teach that I was reborn to protect the line of Turgon; but they do not know the truth. I want the truth to be known, 'ere I return to Valinor at the beginning of the Fourth Age, The Age of Man. As I prepare to board the great white ship, I reflect upon my life, death, rebirth, and both my life and purpose in Arda.
My story begins as I leave Valinor and cross the Helcarax. I am not a kinslayer, but I must suffer their punishment, indeed, their exile because I chose to follow my cousin in loyalty. I can not say exactly why I chose to follow him, except that I felt deep within my fea that he had noble purpose. As we crossed the ice, the Lord Manwe warned us of the exile that would be imposed should we go further; but what is not known is that he mind spoke with me and told me that I needed to follow this destiny to correct the dischord in the Great Song.
He warned me of my death by telling me that if I was loyal to the truth, I would be held blameless in the great circle. My destiny was committed by this private knowledge and I followed Turgon over the frozen wasteland. We both lost much as we crossed the bleak ice – he, his wife, and me, my family. The queen waits in Mandos' halls for such a time as Turgon is forgiven, but for me, my family was lost the moment I chose to leave. Someday, they would learn the truth.
Gondolin
You know from the lore masters that Turgon created a great stronghold in the mountains. It was isolated from the other elven realms and once people settled there, they could not leave. This is partially true, but what you did not know was that Gondolin's residents could leave at length for hunting and farming; however, any citizens who passed the gates without a purpose must be back before nightfall. It was here, in this sanctuary, that many of us had found peace and prospered. So peaceful was our respite that romances blossomed, several elflings were born, and we finally had time to excel in the arts that many of our people were famous for.
Contrary to rumor, Turgon was an excellent host for the rare visitor. He was not angered when people came to our city, cautious perhaps, but not the one to arbitrarily throw a newcomer from the battlements (as has been rumored). Our king was kind and just, benevolent to all; moreover his fondness was for the elflings was well-known. He would invite the elflings into the palace to visit and play every week. It was here that he learned about his new young citizens and taught them about their heritage.
When his nephew, Maeglin came to Gondolin, I saw a different side to Turgon. Maeglin's father was not accepted amongst our people, indeed he tried to create a rebellion (he was the only one in our history to be sentenced to be thrown from the battlements) against our King. My cousin once confided that this elfling was peculiar, probably an off-effect of his father's heritage. As the elfling approached his majority, Turgon became more reserved around him. He would not openly share certain conversations, nor would he take the youth on the normal excursions. Ihdril later confided that this youth had an unnatural fondness for her and her foresight showed a great calamity to befall the city. She would not elaborate, she only said that this child alone carried the responsibility for what would happen.
Life became increasingly tense as Turgon's nephew grew to adulthood. One of the Secondborn (Hador's kin) had come to the city, and over time, fell in love with Ihdril. Soon, they had wed and she bore Turgon's first and only grandson, Earendil. Maeglin seemed to accept that he would not be able to claim Ihdril, and he was not overly friendly to her new husband, Tuor, or the new elfling. As you can imagine, this created strife within the royal household. In another private conversation, Turgon related that Ihdril had seen terrible visions, thus my cousin (not as a king) asked me to pledge my protection to Earendil and his line. Knowing of Ihdril's powers, and being fond of this young elfling, I willingly agreed.
One day, Maeglin was out in the fields practicing his archery. He did not come into the city at dusk and my king was very worried about this youngling being outside the gates alone. We found him two days later, in the fields – nary a scratch or bruise on him; but his memory was gone. The healers agree that he must have fallen and hit his head; but Ihdril now avoids him.
After Maeglin came back, Turgon invited me into private council with both Ihdril and Tuor. It seemed that Ihdril's visions grew more frequent. She detailed a great attack on our city and was convinced that it would fall to evil – what kind, she did not know; nor did she know when it would happen. Tuor presented plans to create a secret tunnel to save the elflings and ellith. I am to be responsible for their safe evacuation if ever the need arose. My king, my cousin, has sworn me to secrecy in this matter.
The Fall of Gondolin
I remember that we were celebrating the midsummer festival and our artists' newest creations. The public square around the great fountain was milling with all of our citizens and excitement abounded as each new work was exposéd. Normally, I chose not to attend such events, but this year was different. I had been courting a beautiful and gentile elleth named Lauriel. She was very reserved to those that didn't know her, but once she became comfortable, she would entertain for hours with the sharpest wit and driest humor. Over the past few months I had fallen in love with her, and this was the night that I would ask her to be my wife.
The attack came without warning just after darkness fell. We felt the air change and a putrid sulfur smell settled around us first. The guards on the battlements sounded the alarm that called all warriors to arms; and the chaos that ensued was the diversion that the enemy needed to gain entrance into the city. Soon volleys of flaming black arrows pierced the sky and were backlit by an oppressive orange glow. They had no discernable target, yet the sheer volume guaranteed that they would randomly hit the elves within our walls. My watch scrambled to defensive positions as we kissed our ellyth quickly before sending them into Ihdril's care in the palace.
Ecthelion's watch was the first to face the fallen Maiar. These beings were large terrible monsters who walked upright on two legs or flew in over the walls. They had great horns coming out of their heads and hands that were gnarled with sharp claws. We had never seen such creatures of fire, and were overwhelmed when they easily broke down our gates and crashed through the first lines.
My watch handled Morgoth's orcs – tortured elves that had been twisted to evil. At first, we hesitated to fight our own kind, but we quickly realized that their elven feär had been stripped from their hroär. We had no desire to kill, but we had to protect our ellyth and elflings. These creatures took particular delight in hearing our children scream as they cut them down slowly, methodically, and without mercy. They delighted in torture and we lost all cognizant thought at the sight of that horror.