Regarding the matters of men, any found east of Gondor are barbarians. Vicious tribes, who have no qualms about killing one another, have no idea of civility. As for the women, all are 'loose' at best, although most are whoresome and not feminine at all. Little was ever documented about them, as they themselves were not intelligent to have a written language. Full of sorcerer's and murderers, the eastern and southern lands were filled with despicable human beings.
Or at least, that was all the Gondorians saw. But, that, of course, is naturally not the whole truth. They were not one race, but many smaller factions, who fought, yes, but were also greatly diverse in their tongue's and cultures. The Khands, Hildoriens and Rhunish of the east, and the people of Harad from the south. Of these, and many more, it was the Khand's which gave them a bad name. So close to the land of Mordor, they were allies of Orc's and other, fouler things. But these men were not only a hindrance to the west, their terror was inflicted mainly upon other Easterlings.
One such assault came upon the people of the Rhun. As these people had no one leader, instead a council of chiefs, they were particularly vulnerable. At first the council hoped it was a one-off attack, and did nothing. But as more villages were burned, and the attacks came closer, people fled to the city beside the sea. This last stand of the Rhun occurred near the end of the third age (not that the people of the east were concerned with such things) and is where this story begins:
An out-of-breath scout was the first sign that their worst fears had come true. The man was hunched over on his horse, and the wooden gates lifted, allowing him into the guarded city. "Cousin!" A young man yelled, running up to the rider. He helped the exhausted man off his horse, and then threw his cousin's arm around his shoulder supporting his weight. "What happened Mutta?" He asked.
"Many things, Velir. I must speak to the council. An attack is coming." The man spoke, through haggard breaths. Velir pointed up the street, to where a great stone building towered over the small shacks, indicating where the leaders were. Together they walked up the street in the midday heat. More people were gathering on the sides now, most eager for news about what was going on. Several however were simply staring at Velir, because he was a very peculiar man.
Whilst the people of the east were diverse, some similarities could be found between everyone. They had dark skin, often decorated with black markings and piece of metal. Hair was kept short, as it got knotted in the wind. Females tended to have it longer, but tied up in bizarre ways to keep it clean and tidy. But most importantly, none of them had pointed ears, which Velir did. Velir was also very pale, and had a kind of feminine beauty that had earned many snide remarks. He was also determined to keep his hair long, but it only reached his bottom of his ears because every year or so, he would get drunk and someone would shave it all off. He was a very peculiar man indeed, so staring was something he was accustomed to.
They burst into the hall, and a group of men and women looked up at them. Velir sat his cousin down, and let the man speak. "An army is coming, several thousand or more, all on horses. I've never seen anything like this. I could barely outrun them, they'll be here within the hour." After this proclamation, the council fell into panicked shouts. People rushed out of the room, and Velir was shoved this way and that.
He saw his cousin try to get up. "Mutta stop! You are in no condition to fight." He yelled at the man. He muttered something about defending his house's honour, but Velir sent him a pointed look. "I will defend our house, the one thing it does not need on its shoulders is your death." Velir said, before sending one last look at Mutta. He raced out of the house and into the streets, where people were beginning to panic. He saw a group of women arguing, but he had more pressing things to worry about. He climbed on top of a home, and he could see the enemy in the distance. He heard the warning bells, and the people below started to run in panic.
"Get to the ships, you'll be safe in the water." He yelled, but very few people listened, most were trying to gather their belongings, or their weapons. Soon about five other men, all armed with bows, joined him in his position. Velir drew his own, and counted his arrows. As the army reached the edge of the city, he was the first to let an arrow fly. He killed one, but its place was taken by another. But that didn't concern him, as a ball of fire was hurled towards his position. It landed a few streets away, and the sounds of screams intensified.
Chaos was ensuing around him. Shelters were burning, smoke obscuring his sight and he coughed loudly. He could see better than most, and his was the only true aim. He cocked another arrow at a horse's leg, and smirked when the beast cried out in pain. Sending its rider flying. And yet, the battle was not going in their favour. As Mutta had said, the army was nothing like he'd ever seen before. Orcs had joined the Khands, and they were torching the lower city. Most of the vulnerable were escaping onto the water, but it was too little too late.
He could see friends fighting in the streets below, and he prayed to Eru that they would be fine. He saw a young boy facing off a tall woman, and he aimed once more. But a sharp, piercing scream broke his concentration, and it fell short. He covered his ears in agony. Fear seized his heart like an icy chain, and he looked around for what could be causing such a noise.
A black, winged beast soared over his head. He heard cries of dragon, but he could not move for fear. He watched, paralysed, as the beast swooped down and snatched up people. Its cry faded as it disappeared into the sky, but it was replaced by the mortal cries of anger and fear. He jumped off the building, and looked to the sky again. He ducked a swipe of a passing Khand, and rand trough the street. He came into the main path, and horror filled him as he saw the burning Hall. He raced to the building. He burst through the door, and gagged as he smelt burning flesh.
"Mutta!" He yelled through the smoke. He forced his way through a burning door, and heard a faint call in return. He yelled his cousin's name once more, finding the central room. His cousin lay crumpled on the floor. "I'm here. Take my arm." Velir cried, trying to rouse his family. Inside he knew the burn, along with the arrow wound from earlier, were mortal wounds.
"Save yourself. But, tell Summayah" He coughed, a violent hacking cough. "Tell her that, I love her, and that you are ready to know." He said cryptically. Questions welled up inside Velir's brain, but they faded as Mutta's body went still. Velir let out a wall-shaking cry, for his cousin, and for Mutta's wife. Going to the front of the building, he became determined to kill all the enemy.
Several bodies, both orc and Khand, were soon dead by Velir's hand, anger had replaced the grief, ad he found a new source of blood lust. He appeared like an elegant whirlwind, dancing through the enemy. So obsessed by his own victories, he even started to believe that they were winning. The dragon's cry brought him crashing back down to reality. He let out a gasp as the screeching returned, but this time it did not fade. The beats drew closer and closer, until at last it landed in the middle of the street.
Velir could now see that a cloaked figure was riding it. A sense of doom overcame him, and he sunk to floor as he looked at the figure. The best opened its mouth, and in it there were the heads of 6 of the 9 chiefs. There were weeps from his people at this sight, and wretched cheers from the attackers.
"Surrender." The creature hissed, and its voice was so terrible, that they did.
Well don't I feel evil? This is a prologue, and a bit of a cliff hanger for my new fic. This is my first LOTR fanfiction, and I need to admit a few things first. I'm not a complete Tolkien nerd. I've read the books, attempted the Silmarillion, but it's been a few years. This means that in addition to the books, I'll also be basing things off the movie's, Wikipedia, and my own imagination. It will follow canon events, but I may not cover some things, as Velir may not be a part of them.
I do realise Velir may seem to be a Mary Sue in this chapter, but that is that you haven't seen a lot of his character, so I implore you to give me a chance. Please review, as it will encourage me to continue this. As I have other fics going on, if this doesn't get a huge response I may open it up for adoption.
Disclaimer: I don't own the universe. This one or Arda, or are they the same?
