Chapter 1
A forest at night, 30 years before the Fellowship
"Help!" cried the voice of a man, his feet crashing through the dense forest, stumbling in the dark.
A figure sat atop a tree garbed in all black. A shroud covered her long raven coloured hair and her delicately pointed ears. A silken scarf was tied around her face, just covering the fullest part of her nose and most of her fair facial features. The figure's vibrant deep sea-blue eyes narrowed into slits as she saw the small band of orcs crashing through the forest, chasing the adan (human). Suddenly, one of the orcs fell, an arrow through his heart. His four companions stopped momentarily, stunned. Another fell, an arrow between his eyes. The orcs looked in the direction the arrow had come from, but saw no one. The figure in the tree smiled thinly and leapt quietly to the next tree, getting ever closer to the last three orcs. She jumped down into the view of the orcs and stood strong as they snarled. Quickly and soundlessly, she unsheathed the twin daggers at her back, their handles a sleek midnight blue inlayed with thin silver patterns, their blades gleaming in the night.
"Be gone, yrchs (orcs)," the figure said in Common, her voice beautiful, but low and threatening. The orcs laughed a laugh that sounded like a snarl and growl combined. Suddenly, one of the orcs lunged at her, but she had heard him before he even came near her. She turned just as the orc reached her and watched him go right past her as she brought up one of her blades and slit his throat. He fell to the ground, staining the forest floor a crimson colour. The other two orcs rushed her, but faster than human eyes could see the orcs were on the ground, dead. One had been beheaded, and the other's blood seeped through a wound in his chest. The figure cleaned her blades and sheathed them again. Turning in the direction the man ran, she leapt into the trees in pursuit.
"Please, don't hurt me," cried the man. He had just gotten away from the orcs but was now facing a mysterious man blocking his path. "I will not hurt you, thief, if you give me back what belongs to my people," said the man in all white, dressed in the same manner as our mysterious elven lady. Indeed, this "man" was also an elf with hair so blond it was almost a sliver-white, and piercing sapphire blue eyes. "I'm sorry," cried the man, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a beautiful and priceless silver amulet, the pendant a blood red. "Please, I just want to go home." "You may go, adan, I will not harm you," said the figure quietly, taking the amulet and putting it into his pocket. He watched as the man scampered away, not noticing the figure in the trees. The elven lady in black jumped from the trees and took the amulet out of the pocket of the elf before he knew what happened. The elf in white unsheathed his twin daggers, the handles a silver-white, with gold inlay tracing through. "Who are you, and why do you take what does not belong to you?" "You may call me Aduial (evening)," the elven lady said, in Sindarian. "I only want to borrow the amulet, I will return it to you." "Aduial?" said the figure in white, his eyes twinkling slightly in the dark. "Then you may call me Calim (light)," the elf said. "Why should I trust you?" "I never asked you to trust me," Aduial said simply. "But if you do not believe that I will return the amulet, then come with me." With that, she turned and started to walk out of the forest as Calim followed her reluctantly.
A forest at night, 30 years before the Fellowship
"Help!" cried the voice of a man, his feet crashing through the dense forest, stumbling in the dark.
A figure sat atop a tree garbed in all black. A shroud covered her long raven coloured hair and her delicately pointed ears. A silken scarf was tied around her face, just covering the fullest part of her nose and most of her fair facial features. The figure's vibrant deep sea-blue eyes narrowed into slits as she saw the small band of orcs crashing through the forest, chasing the adan (human). Suddenly, one of the orcs fell, an arrow through his heart. His four companions stopped momentarily, stunned. Another fell, an arrow between his eyes. The orcs looked in the direction the arrow had come from, but saw no one. The figure in the tree smiled thinly and leapt quietly to the next tree, getting ever closer to the last three orcs. She jumped down into the view of the orcs and stood strong as they snarled. Quickly and soundlessly, she unsheathed the twin daggers at her back, their handles a sleek midnight blue inlayed with thin silver patterns, their blades gleaming in the night.
"Be gone, yrchs (orcs)," the figure said in Common, her voice beautiful, but low and threatening. The orcs laughed a laugh that sounded like a snarl and growl combined. Suddenly, one of the orcs lunged at her, but she had heard him before he even came near her. She turned just as the orc reached her and watched him go right past her as she brought up one of her blades and slit his throat. He fell to the ground, staining the forest floor a crimson colour. The other two orcs rushed her, but faster than human eyes could see the orcs were on the ground, dead. One had been beheaded, and the other's blood seeped through a wound in his chest. The figure cleaned her blades and sheathed them again. Turning in the direction the man ran, she leapt into the trees in pursuit.
"Please, don't hurt me," cried the man. He had just gotten away from the orcs but was now facing a mysterious man blocking his path. "I will not hurt you, thief, if you give me back what belongs to my people," said the man in all white, dressed in the same manner as our mysterious elven lady. Indeed, this "man" was also an elf with hair so blond it was almost a sliver-white, and piercing sapphire blue eyes. "I'm sorry," cried the man, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a beautiful and priceless silver amulet, the pendant a blood red. "Please, I just want to go home." "You may go, adan, I will not harm you," said the figure quietly, taking the amulet and putting it into his pocket. He watched as the man scampered away, not noticing the figure in the trees. The elven lady in black jumped from the trees and took the amulet out of the pocket of the elf before he knew what happened. The elf in white unsheathed his twin daggers, the handles a silver-white, with gold inlay tracing through. "Who are you, and why do you take what does not belong to you?" "You may call me Aduial (evening)," the elven lady said, in Sindarian. "I only want to borrow the amulet, I will return it to you." "Aduial?" said the figure in white, his eyes twinkling slightly in the dark. "Then you may call me Calim (light)," the elf said. "Why should I trust you?" "I never asked you to trust me," Aduial said simply. "But if you do not believe that I will return the amulet, then come with me." With that, she turned and started to walk out of the forest as Calim followed her reluctantly.