Chapter Two submitted 5-26-07.
I saw Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End last night. I nearly cried, it was so bittersweet. (sniffle, sniffle)
I was going to update this on Thursday the 24th, I swear. But I shall give no excuses. And so without further ado, here is chapter two of Pillar of Strength.
Summary: When disaster strikes, Legolas is saved by an ancient warrior who is supposed to be long dead. Rated PG-13 for violence, blood, and action.
Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings, the Silmarillion, or any related characters or works. They belong to Mister J.R.R. Tolkien.
PILLAR OF STRENGTH.
Book One in the IAUR MIN (Old One) Series.
By GundamWingFanatic90.
CHAPTER 2.
He was floating in a black abyss, something that he was familiar with. However, that abyss was slowly becoming grey, and before long he noticed a pounding sensation in the frontal regions of his head. He gave a mental sigh as he realized that he was waking up.
The ache in his head intensified greatly as he wearily cracked his eyes open, and he closed them tightly again with a mild groan. His keen ears started to pick up the sounds around him: the crackling of a fire, the rustling of leaves, the burble of water, and a quiet chuckle.
"It is a good thing to see you waking, penneth." The voice was baritone, a rich, warming sound, and it held a lightly amused ring to it. Now Legolas heard who he assumed was its owner shuffling around, and then a pair of hands was gently lifting him up into a sitting position. In very little time at all, he was propped up against a strongly muscled chest, and something was being held to his lips.
"Drink, penneth. It shall help with the headache," said the soothing voice once more. It vaguely reminded him of Lord Elrond. He obeyed with a gentle hesitance, figuring that if the owner of the voice had helped him this far, he was not about to kill him now. The liquid that flowed between his lips was bitter, but he did not complain, knowing that most of the best medicines tasted the worst. Surely enough, within moments he felt his headache lessening, and he was able to open his eyes without a spear shooting through his cranium.
The first thing he saw was a blur of gold and midnight-blue, with a tinge of green in it. Then he blinked, and more distinct shapes came into view. It was nighttime, and light from a fire was flickering against the trunks and leaves of the trees above him.
"Better?" asked the voice. Legolas nodded faintly, and the chest behind him rumbled as its owner chuckled. "Good. I shall allow you to lie back down again." Some shifting, and then Legolas' back was flat against the bedroll once more. A face swam into view, framed by a fall of russet hair. Strong cheekbones and a delicate-but-powerful jaw line surrounded a pair of silver-grey eyes the likes of which Legolas had only seen in his best friends and their kin. His lips were quirked in an amused smile. Legolas blinked sluggishly.
"Who…? What…?" he asked, still somewhat disoriented. A copper-red eyebrow bent upward.
"My name is Halrana Ruinion," the one who had rescued Legolas supplied. "And if it wasn't for my intervention, you would have drowned in that river. You took a nasty blow to the head, and if my reckoning is correct, you might possibly have a concussion or the like. If you feel nauseated or dizzy, be sure to let me know." He tipped Legolas' head up once more, and then Halrana lifted a cup to the prince's lips. "Drink, penneth."
"'M not… that young…" Legolas managed. Halrana chuckled a bit, but Legolas drank, anyway. Almost instantly, he realized his mistake, feeling his eyelids begin to droop again.
"Sleep, penneth," came the command. And Legolas did.
Halrana gently laid the prince back down onto the ground, setting the cup aside as his grin faded into a more thoughtful and sad expression. After staring into the Silvan elf's face for a moment longer, the red-haired one shook his head. His russet hair fell away from his shoulders with the motion, exposing pointed ears.
"Ai, penneth… Man le carel sí, Ernil Legolas?" But he received no answer.
Alright, I know that I said that I would post a glossary at the end of the fic. I will still do that, but I shall also post the Elvish terms used in each chapter at the end of each chapter. So here are the terms for this chapter and the last.
Peredhelion – Rough translation 'Son of the Half-Elven'; Literally 'Half-Elf Son'. Used here to denote the parentage of Elladan and Elrohir. The twins are sometimes referred to as one unit, since you almost never have one without the other, and I am doing so here.
Mellyn-nin – Literally 'My friends'
Yrch – Literally 'orcs!'
Halrana – Literally 'Tall Wanderer'
Ruinion – Rough translation 'Son of the Red Flame'; Literally 'Red Flame Son'
Penneth – young one
Ai – an all-purpose exclamation, the equivalent of 'Ah!' or 'Oh!', usually used in surprise, exasperation, lament, or frustration
Man le carel sí? – What are you doing here?
Thank you to all of you who reviewed. This includes: mayberry63, and someone. Your feedback was much-appreciated.
Comments: To someone, on the note that Elrond's sons would be called 'Elrondion' or 'Elrondionnath'. In the Silmarillion, Tolkien says that Elrond and his twin brother, Elros, were called the Peredhel, or Half-Elven. I think that it makes sense that Elladan and Elrohir might be called 'Sons of the Half-Elven', Peredhelion or Peredhelionnath (though that is quite a mouthful to say...). Thank you very much for your critique, however. It is much appreciated.
As always, feedback is welcome in any form, though any flames I receive may be fed to Legolas' horse. I shall attempt to update in one week's time, on 5-31-07. Until then, navaer!
-Fanatic
