Unlikely Hero
Chapter One: The Change
The usual screams and growls woke Ugrunt from restless sleep, and he sighed and turned over in an attempt to get back to sleep. For several nights, he'd been awakened by unusual dreams; dreams that had to do with light, and sweet voices singing in tongues he had never heard before.
"What does it mean? Why would I, an Orc, dream about light? It just doesn't make sense!" Ugrunt thought, as he then sat up and looked around. There wasn't much to see in the dark, deserted Mines of Moria; the Dwarves that had been living there had long since been killed, and their bodies lay scattered and rotting on the rough-hewn floors and stairways. Of course, then there had been the strangers, two men, an elf, a dwarf, a wizard, and four halflings. He'd been watching from one of the higher stairways when the wizard and the dreaded balrog faced off, but, for some reason, he never once fired an arrow at the rest of the strange group.
"Very strange. Why didn't I loose an arrow? Orcs are not supposed to have compassion!" Ugrunt thought, as he went to his favorite spot in the Mine, the great Halls of Moria. He went to the place to think and be away from his own kind. He was an unusual Orc, as many of his kind would say. Many of them even shuddered when they looked his way, as though there was something about him that unnerved them. He wasn't a very old Orc, but there was something about him that almost seemed…..pure. Something that hearkened back to the origins of the Orkish race.
"But what is it? What is it that sets me apart from the rest?" Ugrunt muttered, as he listened to his peers go about their daily business, ignoring him completely.
"Maybe it is something your blood remembers, Ugrunt." A soft, feminine voice whispered, as a soft glow appeared before him.
"W-what the………..?!" Ugrunt yelped, backing away and shielding his eyes as the light became stronger, and a figure appeared before him. The woman appeared to be Elvish in nature, but there was something different and entirely un-Elvish about her.
"Do not be afraid, Ugrunt. I will not harm you. In fact, I am here to help you on your way. The Valar have great plans for you." The figure said, gently.
"What would the Valar want with me? I'm an Orc, in case you haven't noticed." Ugrunt said, obstinately. The Elvish figure smiled slightly.
"I am here to help change that. Already, there is a strong light in you, and that will make the change easier. But you must be willing to change." The maiden said, as her glowing blue eyes met Ugrunt's garnet-colored ones.
"Change? Change into what? What're you going to change me into?" Ugrunt asked, suspiciously.
"Ugrunt, you will be the first and only Orc to ever return to what your forefathers once were. And you will be able to cross over to the Undying Lands after your task is through." The Elvish maiden said. Ugrunt gave her a look heavily laden with skepticism.
"You're crazy. But I guess I don't have much to lose if I refuse, now, do I?" Ugrunt asked, not believing what he was hearing.
"Believe what you will, Ugrunt. But you have what it takes to return to the race of the Eldar. There is no other Orc that has what you have. Are you willing to try?" the Elvish maiden asked. Ugrunt shrugged.
"I guess so. Just don't change me into somethin' defenseless and leave me here to get out of the Mines on my own. Half of the Bridge of Kazaad-dum is gone, and the only other exit that my kind know of has been blocked." Ugrunt said, bracing himself for the inevitable pain he knew was coming.
"Don't worry. I will not abandon you. Not only have I been charged with changing you, but I have also been charged with your protection." The Elvish maiden said, comfortingly. Ugrunt sighed and allowed his shoulders to slump.
"Fine. You win. Go ahead and get started." Ugrunt muttered, as the Elvish maiden giggled softly, then sobered and began to chant. At first, nothing appeared to be happening, then the same light that had surrounded the maiden, now surrounded and sank into him. He grimaced as the light burned through him, searing and purifying him to the very core of his being.
"So this is the holy light of the Valar………….." Ugrunt thought, and he let out a blood-curdling yell as his bones snapped and reformed in the intense light. By the time the transformation was complete, he was totally exhausted.
"Sleep. I will watch over you." The Elvish maiden said, as Ugrunt started to lose consciousness.
"But if I'm an………" Ugrunt started to say, but was interrupted by the maiden putting a finger to his lips.
"Do not fear. By the time you wake, you will be beyond the reach of Moria. Until then, sleep. I will do the rest." The maiden said, as Ugrunt drifted into exhausted slumber.
