Most have heard of the great kingdoms built by the people of Middle Earth. They have heard the songs that come from the halls of Gondor and Rohan, pride of the kingdoms of men. They have heard the stories of the shining towers of Imladris and Caras Galadhon, the elven cities that lie behind thick forest hidden from the eyes of man and orc. The tales are told in taverns of the great dwarf city Erabor and the great dragon Smaug; and of the great Mines of Moria and the goblin siege. There is, however, no mention in the great stories of Middle Earth of a small kingdom located somewhere between Mirkwood and The Misty Mountains.
It was called The Cross Roads, for it held the only smooth path through the mountains for 100 miles. Men, elves and even dwarves once used the pass to travel across the great cliffs safely. They would often stop in the city and trade with the locals and stay for spirits and the comforts of an inn; many even stayed in the city, giving it a variety of inhabitants.
This was long ago. Long before the Greenwood became known as Mirkwood; and before the fall of Erebor and the claiming of the Mines by orcs and goblins. It was long before the defeat of Sauron and his armies at Dagorlad and before the fall of Isildur.
When the Dark Years fell upon the land travel and trade ceased in The Cross Roads for the races chose to stay with their loved ones and build up reserves and train their armies for the upcoming battle. The Cross Roads became cut off from any kingdom and became a world of its own. The dwarves slowly left and went to help their kin in the kingdoms of Moria and Erabor. While some of the elves stayed, most fled back to their birth lands and prepared to sale across the seas to the Undying Lands.
The few elves that remained with men built high walls around the city, blocking them off from both the forest and the mountains. The residents kept to themselves, although, they stayed friendly with the elves that resided in the Greenwood. Trade was limited to a gate located in the center of the wall that faced the forest that was guarded by warriors.
As time passed, the people of The Cross Roads began to change. The elves and men bred with each other, creating a bastard race of mixed breeds. The elves turned their noses up at their new half-siblings and the world of men refused to accept them for they were too much like elves. The people of The Cross Roads kept to themselves and did as little trading with their elven neighbors as they could get away with.
While the other races thought them inferior, the people of the city thought they were better than both elves and men. They had the strengths of both and none of the weaknesses. They had the sturdiness of men with the long life and immunities of elves. While they were not immortal, they could easily outlive any man or dwarf that passed their way.
The outside world all but forgot about The Cross Roads as the city built and thrived under the shadows of Greenwood and the Misty Mountains. A half-elf that was born in the city took over the city and declared himself King of The Cross Roads and led the new race of people to a prosperous future. For 200 years the new race lived alongside the pure races of Middle Earth yet was never part of them.
The day the skies on the other side of Greenwood were darkening with the smoke of a great dragon and the great dwarf kingdom of Erebor was being lost to the world, the people of The Cross Roads could not have been happier. They had no knowledge of the plight of the dwarves or of the aid their elven neighbors had refused them, for this day their king had been given heirs to his throne; and not just one, but twins; a boy and a girl to keep his line alive. The king was never so proud in his life. The shrieks of the dragon echoed across the land but they could not be heard over the cheers of the people of The Cross Roads.
The twins grew strong and made their father proud. The boy was named after himself, Annodred and the girl was named after a great elven princess, Lothriel. They were skilled in the arts of combat at a very young age, as it was The Cross Roads custom. Ever sense the Dark Years they kept their youth trained and ready for battle at a moment's notice for one never knew when the kingdoms of elves or men would decide to rid the world of the mixed bloods.
Lothriel was just as skilled with a blade and bow as her brother. The king felt women were their greatest advantage, an attacking army would never expect the greatest danger in a town to be their women. The women of The Cross Roads were a deadly force. It is said that some were even more skilled than the men.
One fall day during the harvest, a bone chilling shriek filled the air. The residents of The Cross Roads looked to the sky to see a great black drake flying down from the Misty Mountains. He was on his way to challenge Smaug for the rights to the kingdom of Erebor. He set the fields alight with his fierce flame and sent the people running to the safety of the city walls.
The dragon, seeing a chance for an easy meal on his way to his battle, followed the villagers back to the city. The king's army led a brilliant resistance but the dragon proved to be more than they could handle. The army was about to run to shelter of the city walls and cower as the flames engulfed them when an armor clad warrior burst from the gates of the city wall.
They were mounted on a great black draft horse that was often used to pull the plows in the spring. They raised their bow high above their head and shot at the dragon as they circled around the great beast's legs. The dragon roared and shrieked in pain as the arrows pierced the flesh around his face. The warrior reached for the blades that were across their back and sliced at the dragon's legs, bringing the great beast down. The army cheered and, led by Prince Annodred, slayed the great beast and brought safety back to their homeland.
When the warriors returned to the hall of the king, the mystery warrior was asked to remove their helm. With much reluctance, they did to reveal the princess. The king could not have been more proud of his children that day. Word traveled far and wide that The Cross Roads held a warrior that could slay a dragon and they began calling it The Dragon Warrior. Word stayed quiet that it was the princess who had been the great warrior.
Lothriel was given a section of the army for her to lead alongside her brother and her name became changed to Fang for the piece of dragon's tooth she wore around her neck. Her armor and shield were crafted out of the scales of the great black drake and she adopted the sir name Dragonshield.
Fang Dragonshield became known far and wide as the greatest warrior the realm had to offer. The great Dragon Warrior became feared by the elven community that resided in Greenwood; they feared that if a battle were to break out, The Warrior would be able to eliminate them all.
King Thranduil beseeched the king of The Cross Roads to consider a marriage between his son Prince Legolas and Lothriel in hopes that the marriage would prevent any future battles between the two kingdoms. The king spoke to his daughter, whom had no interest in marriage at all, and came to the decision that if Legolas could defeat The Dragon Warrior in battle, he could have his daughter's hand in marriage.
And that is where our story begins….