Title: The Fall of Erid'Lor
Author: HMS Dreadnought
Rating: T
Summary: The tale of the Fall of the High Elven. Legolas and Aragorn try to keep Sauron and his minions at bay. This is in a darker Middle Earth than Tolkien's, and bad guys have more powers. Happy ending? No promises.
Warning: Some violence, minor coarse language
Disclaimer: All recognisable characters and quotes are the property of Tolkien Enterprises and New Line Cinema.
Chapter 1: The Council of Elrond
The guests seated themselves on stone benches around the Council Circle. The Half-Elven, Lord Elrond, stood in the center of the ring.
Lord Elrond began, "Welcome friends, strangers, leaders from distant lands, to Rivendell. The Council of Elrond has been called together for one purpose: the destruction of Sauron of Mordor and the Black Land's downfall. We have here Aragorn Elessar, heir to the throne of Gondor." A man in plated armour gave a start at that. "Legolas Greenleaf, Prince of Wood-Elves. Gimli, Son of Gloin, of the Mountain Erebor. Boromir, Son of Denethor, who is Steward of Gondor." The man who had given a start at Aragorn's title sat up a little straighter. Obviously he was Boromir. "Gandalf Mithrandir, the Grey Wizard. Frodo Baggins, of the Shire, the Ring-bearer. Cirdan, of the Grey Havens. Myself, Elrond Half-Elven. Glorfindel Elf-Lord, Elladan Half-Elven, Elrohir Half-Elven. And finally Haldir of Lothlorien.
'First of all, there is urgent news to give all of you, from Gandalf, Legolas and Haldir. Gandalf."
The tall, old wizard stood up, and walked to the circle centre, while Elrond retired, using his staff as a support. "There is terrible news to tell you, my friends. Sauron grows in power. The sky grows darker. And betrayals are rife. The Ring of Power has been found. What shall we do with it? Ponder this, as I tell you of the betrayal of Saruman Curunir, head of the White Council.
'Saruman has long been searching for the Ring. I knew it from the beginning. What I did not now was that he had sworn allegiance to Sauron, then at Dol Guldur. That was why he constantly tried to block us from attacking that dark place deep within Mirkwood. But Lord Elrond overrode him and we attacked. The place is not yet cleansed, however. The Naz'gul have taken the area. Even now they are poisoning Mirkwood. And it has fallen. But Legolas will tell you of this after I tell you of Curunir's betrayal.
'Why did I not stop him? Why? It was folly to think that he could easily be stopped. But I believed it nonetheless. And the hour is late. I had delayed far too long in blocking him.
'I rode to Isengard, Saruman's abode, seeking to forestall him. I knew that Frodo had set forth from the Shire, Gwaihir Windlord, Lord of the Eagles had spied that from afar and told me of this ere I rode to Isengard.
'Saruman received me on the stairs of Orthanc. His eyes were cold, and glittered with a strange light. I perceived that his clothes were no longer white, which he wore before turning to evil, and for long after. They were of all colours, each thread changing within the blink of an eye. Hailing him, I spoke, "Greetings, Saruman. What news of the enemy?"
'But I did not anticipate his next movement. He suddenly thrust forth his staff at me, throwing me backwards, before using it to suspend me in the air.
'Curunir spoke with all the malice of the Dark Lord. "You once were my friend, Gandalf. We can ally again. But Mordor cannot be escaped. It will swallow up all Middle-earth. The Wood-Elves, the Water-Elves and the High-Elves or Erid'Lor- they will fall. It is, as I said, inescapable. Now, I say, I have sworn fealty to Sauron the Great. Under him we can be strong. Join me to destroy the elves and help Sauron to construct a new Middle-earth. See sense, Gandalf. Or, I swear, you shall be put on the pinnacle of Orthanc, starving, with no food or water and little air, for me to torture you forever as payment for your disobedience and refusal. You can watch as your friends fall around you. With Sauron's secrets, I am grown immensely powerful, unable to rival he but still very powerful. You can share that great power."
'With barely a pause between the end of his speech, I said, "Sauron does not share power. It is folly to follow him."
'Saruman instantly imprisoned me on the top of Orthanc. Luckily I managed to escape. Gwaihir noticed me and bore me away from Isengard. Saruman for all his power could not catch me. I managed to arrive at Rivendell."
Gandalf sat down, and Legolas, stood up and entered the circle to speak in a distressed tone.
"Greenwood is beset and will soon fall, friends. We received word of this Council from Elrohir as he rode through Mirkwood to Erebor. Gimli passed through and I followed him several days later. But in those days the Wood-elves fell.
'Orcs, uruks from Dol Guldur, attacked without warning. Their black arrows were sharp and many. We were hard put to it. Thranduil and the remainder of our people managed to escape towards the land of the Beornings. Even now they are passing through the Misty Mountains to reach Eriador. I came here much faster however on my horse. And so Greenwood is fallen. Dol Guldur poisons the trees and giant spiders to great evil."
And so Legolas's tale was told. Now Haldir came forth, his alabaster skin reflecting the leaping flames of the wood-fire in the fireplace close by. "As Saruman betrayed us so did the Lady Galadriel. She has fallen under Sauron as Curunir has done but only recently. Our people are enslaved by her, unable to fight the power of her Ring. Some of us manage to escape as I have done. But not many can.
'How this plight came on us and when Galadriel turned to evil, and why, we do not know yet. It was too sudden. Yet I deem that she looked in the Mirror too many times. And Sauron's malice and cunning are massive indeed.
'The Mirror of Galadriel has the power to transmit telepathic messages and the power to see distant lands. It has other powers but they are for now irrelevant. I fancy that the Lady must have been taken in by Sauron through the Mirror. In any case, it has happened. Never before has an Elf betrayed an Elf, save in the First Age. This event is calamitous indeed."
Haldir retired to his chair.
P.S. From the author: This is my first fan-fiction, so don't expect too much. But please review, whatever your tone is or your comments.