Chapter Ten
AN: Thanks to Vermillion Lynn, for her help with this chapter.
Elrond's mood was still melancholy as he returned to Balar. He rode into the courtyard, dismounted and handed his horse to the stablehand without speaking, lost in his own thoughts. He walked inside without heed, almost colliding with Erestor and his friend Lindir.
"Careful, Elrond!" Erestor smiled cheerfully at the sight of his fellow scholar. "You've been gone all afternoon. Did you enjoy your visit with Elros?"
"Sorry, what? Oh, I'm fine, thank you..." Elrond said glumly, not even looking up from the floor as he walked past the other two young elves. Erestor and Lindir looked at one another in confusion. Visits to Elros usually left Elrond in a cheerful mood for days! Now he was acting as though he had just lost a patient he had been tending. They watched him, speechless, as he ascended the stairs slowly, with his head down and shoulders hunched. He went to his room and closed and locked the door behind him. He didn't emerge again that evening.
The next morning, Elrond rose as normal, and went to break his fast with Ereinion as he usually did before beginning his lessons for the day. He entered the dining room silently, to find Ereinion already there. His King and dear friend looked at him with concern.
"Is all well, Elrond?" Ereinion frowned. He noted that Elrond's eyes were red, and that the young Peredhel appeared not to have slept much. "I missed you at supper yestereve, and you do not seem yourself today. Is all well with your brother?"
It took Elrond a few minutes to realise he was being spoken to, and then he responded as if he were in a daze. "Yes, everything is fine. Elros and I had...a slight disagreement. It is nothing to be concerned about." Elrond looked at his plate, only then realising that there was food upon it, and began eating, seemingly taking no notice of what he was eating. He did not speak again.
Ereinion sighed. He was well aware that Elrond had not told him all, but he knew his young cousin's stubborness, and knew that he would get no further information from him about this matter. He resolved to send a missive to Elros, in the hope that he might know what troubled Elrond. In the meantime, however...
"You are meant to be attending the Council meeting today, are you not, Elrond?"
"Yes." Elrond replied softly, not meeting Ereinion's eyes.
"I look forward to hearing your views on what is decided. We are meant to be discussing if and how we could incorporate the Edain warriors into our forces." And this way, Ereinion mused, he could keep a closer eye on Elrond, and try to discern what was bothering him.
Elrond's head shot up, almost in alarm. "Will E- the Edain's leader be present today?" he asked quickly. Ereinion shook his head.
"I had planned to invite representatives from the village, but Lord Oropher has been asking why we are trusting Mortals at all. Some of my councillors agree with him. That issue needs to be laid to rest before we actually include the Edain in the meetings." Ereinion grimaced to himself at the thought. Oropher was one of the lords of the Sindar, hailing from Doriath, and he had little fondness for Mortals. Persuading him to fight alongside them would be no easy task. The two elves finished their meal silently, each deep in thought.
After they had finished their breakfast, Ereinion headed straight to the council chamber. Elrond followed, silent as a shadow. Each took their place, Ereinion at his usual place, near the centre of the room, and Elrond to the right, where all the junior councillors were seated. Shortly after they arrived, other members of the council began taking their places. Celeborn, Galadriel, Cirdan and of course Oropher among them. Erestor slipped in just before the meeting commenced, accompanied by Oropher's son Thranduil. They both took places beside Elrond. Erestor, noticing that his friend still seemed out of sorts, quickly whispered.
"Is something troubling you, Elrond? You seemed...well, not like yourself yesterday. Will you talk to-"
Elrond swiftly raised his hand to silence Erestor, as Ereinion had risen to begin the meeting. Erestor frowned, but held his tongue, vowing to himself that he would talk to Elrond later that day.
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Gildor stood at his guard-post near the bay, enjoying the salty sea breeze. The wind was blowing from the West, and Arien was climbing the sky, so it was a good time to be outdoors. Gildor in fact was glad to have avoided another Council meeting. He had no patience for such things, though his young friend Erestor seemed to find it enjoyable. Elrond Peredhel was of the same mind, though Gildor would never understand why. He much preferred standing guard or patrolling to ensure the safety of his King and his people. Young Lindir and several other guards were positioned at other points along the bay, and they all carried horns, so they could sound the alarm and summon help if an enemy was sighted. Today had proven to be relatively quiet so far, though...
Of course, as soon as Gildor had let that thought form in his mind, a loud note from someone's horn travelled to his ears. It was coming from the guard- Gildor could not remember his name- posted at the station furthest west. He concentrated, but surprisingly, could hear no sounds of battle. He quickly glanced around, ensuring there was no approaching danger near to his position, then, grasping the hilt of his sword, raced towards the horn's blower, to see what the trouble was.
He reached the Sinda within a few mnutes, and was somewhat put out to see that he was alone and unharmed, with no danger in sight.
"What do you mean by this?" Gildor demanded harshly. "You know full well not to sound the alarm unless you are truly in danger!"
The Sinda faltered under Gildor's fierce gaze. "My apologies, my Lord," he began shakily, "but I felt it the quickest way to draw attention."
"And why, pray tell, did you require attention so urgently?"
In response, the Sinda raised his hand and pointed out to sea. Gildor stared in disbelief. There were ships approaching from the West! Gildor gasped as the implications of this struck him. He turned to the elf beside him immediately.
"Return to Gil-Galad's dwelling as swiftly as you can." he instructed. "The king and his council are in a meeting at present. Inform them of what has happened, and lead whoever Ereinion sends to investigate here!"
The young Sinda nodded, and swiftly raced back to Balar proper. Gildor watched the fleet of approaching ships with wonder in his eyes. There had to be at least two score of them!
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.
The meeting was not going as Ereinion had hoped. Oropher had spent the last half hour detailing reasons why they should not enter into an alliance with the Edain. Deliberately ignoring the Sinda Lord for a few minutes, Ereinion's gaze drifted to Elrond. His young cousin was still exhibiting unusual behaviour. Although Elrond sat in the council as requested, his mind was clearly on other matters. He would have to try and question him again later...
"My Lord?"
Ereinion almost jumped as he realised that Oropher had asked him a question. He had not even heard him!
"Your pardon, Oropher." he replied politely. "My mind wandered. May I trouble you to repeat yourself?"
"What I said, Your Highness," Oropher almost sneered the young King's title- " was that it would be a needless drain on our resources, if we not only have to provide food, water and healing supplies to our own warriors, but to a disorganized band of Men as well. They cannot fight as well as the Eldar do, and doubtless their greater numbers would require more of our supplies than we can spare. Do we allow our own people to starve that we may provide for the Secondborn? Who, frankly, are inferior fighters, and would be of little use to us in battle?"
Elrond snapped out of his melancholy mood at Oropher's insulting words, and he stood up in anger, preparing to speak. Lady Galadriel, who had remained silent in the meeting until now, spoke first.
"You speak rashly, Oropher." she stated coolly. " Do not forget that it is largely due to members of the Secondborn Children that we have lasted so long in this war. The Edain have never denied aid to the Eldar if it is required, yet you would have us deny them?" Her tone was one of rebuke, and Oropher flushed at her words.
"I apologise, my Lady." he said in a low voice.
Galadriel raised one eyebrow. "You need not apologise to me, it is not my heritage you have just given insult to." She looked over at Elrond, and Oropher, following her gaze, reddened further. He prepared to respond, when a sharp knocking was heard on the chamber doors. Ereinion was surprised- interruptions were rare- but nodded to the guards near the doors to admit the visitor.
The out-of-breath Sinda guard staggered into the room, trying to gather enough air to speak. He looked up... and almost lost his courage when he saw that every member of the council was staring at him. He swallowed hard, then managed to speak, addressing Gil-Galad.
"Lord Gildor sent me here, your Highness. I was bidden to tell you that ships are approaching Middle-Earth...from the West."
As he finished speaking, the whole council began speaking at once, speculating over what this might portend.
"SILENCE!" Ereinion projected his voice. To his surprise, it worked. "I am dismissing this council for today. We will resume these talks after we have learned what tidings the Valar have seen fit to send. This meeting is adjourned." He stood and left the room, beckoning Cirdan to follow him. They made their way to the shore, followed by almost everyone who had been in the meeting. Elrond, Erestor and Thranduil were among the last to leave, for they were all discussing who or what might be coming from Valinor.
"I wonder if the Valar themselves have come to help us?" Erestor asked musingly.
Thranduil snorted. "I doubt it. More likely, it's just another army of elves. Helpful, but not what we need to win the war!"
"What do you think, Elrond?" Erestor asked. "You always have an opinion!"
"I think it will be help of some sort, though I do not presume to know what." Elrond stated simply, though his eyes were thoughtful. If these ships really were coming from Valinor, could he receive tidings of his parents? Or perhaps even...He shook his head minutely. He could not let himself hope for their return.
They reached the bay, and found that almost every elf in Balar had gathered there, to see the ships for themselves. Elrond made his way to the front of the crowd, and stood near Ereinion and Cirdan. The first ship was almost near enough to dock. A rapid muttering started, as an ellon who had been on the ship seemed to be actually walking upon the water to reach the shore! More shocking, Elrond noticed, was that the figure seemed to give off a bright glow.
He gasped as the being stepped onto the beach, looking none the worse for wear. He was taller than any elf, muscular, and mail-clad. His long hair was bound back from his face, and he was far more beautiful than any Child of Illuvatar! The sword belted to his waist grazed the sand as the being walked, leaving no footprints. He also carried a banner, made of sky-blue silk, emblazoned with a golden eagle. Elrond realised that this was no elf. The being spoke.
"Hail, Elves of Middle-Earth. I come with tidings in this dark hour, and I bring additional forces to aid you in the war against the Fallen One." The being's eyes swept the crowd, pausing on Ereinion, who felt frozen under the being's intense gaze. He stepped forward bravely however.
"Greetings, emissary from the West. We welcome your arrival. I am Ereinion Gil-Galad, High King of the Noldor in Exile." He swallowed after introducing himself, feeling self-conscious as the being held his gaze. Finally, the new arrival smiled brilliantly.
"Well met. I am Eonwe, Herald of Manwe."
To be continued...