NOTE: For the guest who left me a comment at Ch12: I couldn't reply as you are a guest, so here's the answer: It is not what he feels, but what he does that will define him (borrowed from Batman movie :P). Also, this week, I won't be able to update until Thursday (hectic week). Enjoy and thank you all for your comments/reviews. They keep me going.
White City. April 10, Second Age 144
ELROND surveyed the cadets around him. With Spring, all three training fields were filled with warriors doing drills, practicing new skills or testing out new arms.
Now that there was no Dark Lord and his minions scattered, more Elves were having children. But this year was the first time in this Age that they were able to recruit enough youth who were old enough. Despite the peace of the times, the king wanted a well-trained army.
"Elrond, did you hear about the Lord Commander?" Belegor asked. Excitement rose from his companion like ocean waves.
Belegor and the many of the cadets here were those born at the beginning of the Age and Elrond had been training with them for several decades now.
From this group, top three will be given a choice to join any division such as the coveted position within the royal guards, even a chance to train with the elite group of warriors known as Silmacil. Although all of them will be given a command of their own squad after the training, there was also a rumor that Lord Gilmagor, the Lord Commander of the King's Army, will train the cadets himself.
"Do you think it is true that Lord Gilmagor will train us?" Belegor asked.
"I do not know, but the king believes so. But, I don't think Lord Gilmagor will instruct all of us from the beginning. Only the top cadets will have that honor," Elrond said, his eyes scanning the entrance to the practice field. Where was this Sinda? Elrond glanced at the brightening sky.
"Perfect. That would mean we will be among the chosen," Belegor said, lifting his chin as he, too, looked about him. "You and I are the best."
"Perhaps," Elrond said.
I should have visited Lord Cirdan's mansion in the woods. Elrond sighed. He knew the king expected him to befriend Thranduil during the Sinda's stay in Lindon, but Elrond had talked himself out of the visit. At the Grey Havens, Thranduil made it clear that he wanted to be left alone. It was never said aloud, but the message had been unmistakable.
Elrond looked at the sky again. The sun was rising. The Sinda should have been here already.
"Do you know what will they be testing us on? I heard they will test us today to see how much we know," Belegor said.
Elrond shook his head.
They have not been given a detail as to what the officer training entailed. Elrond heard many different versions, though. Gil-galad's army consisted of old warriors from different realms of First Age and they all had their own way of training their recruits.
Elrond looked at Belegor and shrugged. "We'll have to wait until the drill masters are here. They should tell us."
As if on cue, three warriors in golden leather armor over blue tunic approached the group. Even just by looking at the way they walked, no one could mistake them for anyone other than soldiers. There was power in their confident strides. All three of them wore their warrior braids with pleats on them showing that they are officers.
The sun rose out of the mountains and the sky was bright.
The three officers were not the same officers who had trained him and many of the cadets, but Elrond recognized the tallest of the three. He was a lieutenant in the Royal Guards responsible for the protection of the king and highly respected among the warriors.
"Gather up!" the lieutenant said. "Six columns."
Immediately cadets separated into equal numbers to form six columns in front of the officers.
"First, I am Lieutenant Gwendir. To my left is Officer Bellion and to my right, Officer Malthorn. We will be your instructors as well as judges. I understand most of you have been training here for some time, but we do have someone new joining us," Officer Gwendir said looking at Officer Bellion.
"Sir! We are missing one. There are only twenty-three of them," Officer Bellion said.
A murmur went through those gathered.
"I guess we will start with a name call then…" Gwindir said with a frown.
"Is it true that Lord Gilmagor will be training us?" Someone spoke up.
"It seems some of you have forgotten the basic rules. What is Rule 3, cadet?"
"Sir! Do not speak until spoken to. Sir!"
"If you know the rule, I suggest you follow it," Gwendir said then looked around at the rest. "Once the training starts, any disobedience will not be tolerated. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!" Cadets said in unison.
"Now then, who is the new face. Let us see him," said Lieutenant Gwendir as he looked around the cadets.
No one moved forward and a murmur ran through the cadets as they looked around themselves. Elrond grimaced when he saw, behind the shoulder of the lieutenant, someone coming down from the top of the staircase that connected King's Tower to the training fields.
There was no mistaking who it was. None now lived that Elrond had seen who had the glittering gold hair like Thranduil other than Lady Galadriel although his hair was much paler in shade.
And there Thranduil was, his waist long hair loose without any warrior braids, shimmering like a spray of water all about him. Elrond thought Thranduil did not want to be noticed. That was the feeling Elrond got when he first met the Sinda, but if the fool truly did not want to be noticed, he certainly wasn't doing a good job avoiding attention.
As Thranduil walked down the stairs, Elrond felt the waves of curiosity rising in other cadets as they, too, caught the sight of the Sinda. Once at the bottom of the stairs, Thranduil stood at the edge of the training ground, obviously unsure as to where he needed to go. The blond Sinda scanned the crowd. When his cool eyes fell on Elrond, Thranduil squared his shoulders and walked toward the lieutenant who stood in front of the cadets.
It was then that the feelings of excitement suddenly shot up all around him bombarding Elrond with a flurry of emotions. Even when he was trying his best to control his senses, not wishing to intrude on others, it was hard to ignore such explosion of excitement. Elrond looked up at Thranduil as the tall Sinda approached, then bit down a groan when he saw another figure far behind the blond Sinda.
It was Lord Gilmagor, the master swordsman and Lord Commander of the King's Army.
Because this was the first day of the officer training, Elrond had not expected the Lord Commander to be here. Known as the greatest swordmaster of the known world, it is said that while Feanor first invented armor and weapons, Lord Gilmagor developed the Way of the Sword and what is now known as the Noldorin Style. It is believed that all the best swordsmen among Noldor and all those from House of Finwe were instructed by him.
Lord Gilmagor was also the king's teacher and Gil-galad respectfully deferred to him in all military matters. Elrond knew that Gil-galad had wanted Lord Gilmagor to train him. But even the king did not command the swordmaster. Elrond understood that if he wanted to learn from the swordmaster, he had to earn that honor.
And now Lord Gilmagor was here. Elrond could understand the tenseness mixed with excitement from those cadets around him. He knew that every one of them wanted to have Lord Gilmagor as their instructor.
Thranduil approached the lieutenant, oblivious of the figure behind him. Lord Gilmagor stopped far back.
Lieutenant Gwendir whirled around to face Thranduil when the blond Sinda cleared his throat.
"Yes?" Gwendir said to Thranduil.
The blond Sinda looked taken back at first. For a brief moment, a strong wave of unease emanated from Thranduil, but before Elrond could grasp the emotion, Thranduil seemed to have regained composure and took control, blocking Elrond's senses from reading any further.
"I am here to train," Thranduil said after clearing his throat once again.
"Have you been informed that the line-up was at sunrise."
"Yes."
"Did your sun rise later than theirs?" Gwendir said, tilting his head towards the cadets in front of him.
A laughter swept through the cadets. Thranduil's face flushed, but he did not look away.
"No, it did not," Thranduil said.
Gwendir waited but Thranduil said no more.
"No excuse for being late?" Lord Gilmagor who had stood far back from them was suddenly in front of them. Gwendir straightened, thumped his heart twice with his fist and stepped back, giving his spot to Lord Gilmagor.
"None," Thranduil said as he faced the elder Elf.
Elrond frowned when Thranduil seemed to shrink back from the swordmaster. The Sinda stood back, his body tense and rigid, so different from the confident and cold youth Elrond saw at the Grey Haven.
"Good. Because there is no excuse for being late." Gilmagor turned to the group. "Am I clear?" Lord Commander's voice was filled with steel. It was a powerful voice yet with the resonance of a river flowing peacefully under sunlight.
"Yes, sir!" Everyone shouted out.
"Name." Gilmagor turned to Thranduil.
Thranduil swallowed hard, but said, "Thranduil Oropherion."
"Son of Oropher? You are a Sinda?" Gilmagor frowned.
As soon as Gilmagor said the word "Sinda", Elrond felt the curiosity and interest of the cadets for Thranduil deflate immediately like a ball that just got knifed.
Elrond swallowed the bitterness in his mouth. He had expected such reaction, but he was disappointed at the immediate cooling of the interests of the warriors around him based on the knowledge that the newcomer is a Sinda.
Most of the cadets chosen to become officers are the offspring of Noldorin nobles although many of the incoming soldiers are Sindar and the number of Sindar that lived in Lindon far outnumbered that of the Noldor.
It is true that most Noldor are superior when it comes to warfare and handling of weapons. Even so, Elrond knew there was a definite tendency among the Noldor to look down at Sindar, especially Nandor, as inferior. It was never said or spoken outright, but Elrond felt it as surely as a winter wind that chilled his skin even when it could not be seen.
"Well, Thranduil Oropherion. Lateness does not exist among my soldiers. That is immediate disqualification…" Gilmagor's voice rang out.
Elrond wished he had taken the time to talk to the blond Sinda. Had he reminded Thranduil, maybe this would not have happened. Although Elrond had no love for Thranduil, he also disliked the snicker that rippled through the cadets. The moment Gilmagor let it known that Thranduil is a Sinda, he was labeled inferior by the Noldorin cadets.
"My lord," Elrond stepped out of the line where he was standing. "Thranduil is new to—" But his words were cut off.
"Did I tell you to speak, Earendilion?" Gilmagor turned his cool gray eyes toward Elrond. Elrond felt his body heat up. The Lord Commander's steel gray eyes bore into Elrond and he felt ice slid down his spine.
"Lieutenant Gwendir!" Gilmagor called.
"Sir!" Officer Gwendir stepped in next to the swordmaster.
"It seems to me, your cadets do not know the rules. Why don't you enlighten them."
"Sir!" Gwendir brought his fist to his heart, then turned to those lined up.
"There are only four simple rules: One, do not question the order given. Two, do not place your fellow soldiers in peril. Three, do not speak until spoken to. Four, the last goes without.
The Lord Commander turned to the cadets once the lieutenant was done with the reciting of the rules.
"You are here to become an officer, a leader, an example among others. What you do will reflect on all who follow you. A muddy water upstream will cloud all the waters downstream. Never forget that."
Then, he turned to Thranduil and Elrond. He gestured them to come closer.
"I would think both of you know duty and obligation better than most. It seems you need to be reminded what it means to carry a burden," Gilmagor said and his eyes bored into Elrond then Thranduil. The Sinda seemed more flustered than Elrond thought possible. "At the end of the Sun Field is a pillar," Gilmagor continued. "And by that pillar are the white stones that were used to build the King's Tower. Grab a piece of rock from there and bring it up to here," Gilmagor pointed to a stone pillar at the edge of the field nearest to where the cadets were lined up. "And, be quick. Until you return, your brothers at arms here will be doing the push-ups."
Gilmagor gestured toward Gwendir.
"Feet up!" Gwendir commanded.
Cadets flashed daggers at Thranduil and Elrond as they did a headstand with their feet straight up in the air, their entire body supported by their arms.
"Count!" Gilmagor ordered and the cadets shouted out "one!" as they flexed their arms to lower themselves to touch their chin to the ground, then back up again.
"How big?" Thranduil asked.
"Make that two. And, for the rest, double up!" Gilmagor shouted.
The cadets flexed their arms touched their chin to the ground, then pushed themselves off the ground to clap before landing back on their hands to touch their chin again, their feet still up in the air to straighten their arms.
"Two!"
Thranduil cursed under his breath but ran toward the edge of the field leading to the stone bridge that connected the upper field to the lower. Elrond followed.
I should not have said anything, Elrond regretted, but he had not expected this.
The king had introduced Elrond to Lord Gilmagor some decades ago, but Gilmagor stayed away from the palace and the politics. It was only two decades ago that Lord Gilmagor finally succumbed to the king's request and accepted the command of the army. During that time, Gilmagor had corrected Elrond on his form, explained intricacies of swordsmanship, but did not officially train Elrond. Gil-galad had warned Elrond that Gilmagor was fastidious with people and extremely careful about who he took on as his students. After completing the training of the king, Gilmagor had not accepted any new students so it was a surprise that he had agreed to train the cadets himself.
Elrond caught up to Thranduil.
"Why were you late?" Elrond asked. "Was the time unclear to you?"
"No," Thranduil said.
Elrond waited but realized that Thranduil had no intention of explaining.
"If you were aware of the correct time, why were you late?" Elrond frowned up at Thranduil whose face was impassive and devoid of expression that Elrond could read.
Thranduil glanced at him briefly with a frown but remained silent.
"Had you been on time, we wouldn't be in this mess—"
"I did not ask you to defend me." Thranduil stopped, then glared at Elrond before speeding up ahead.
They ran past the bridge that connected the second field to the third. Although Elrond had trained in these fields, this was the first time he had to lug up a rock. But he knew that while it was easy going down, it will be another matter to go back up carrying a load.
"How big are these fields?" Thranduil asked when Elrond reached his side.
"From Edalan to Ithilan to Anoran…Down then go all the way back up, little over a league and half, I believe."
Thranduil turned to Elrond. "Those are the names of the fields?"
"Yes, the smallest field on top is Edalan (Star Field), the middle one is Ithilan (Moon Field) and the largest is Anoran (Sun Field)."
"Interesting. Well, a league and half. That isn't so bad."
"You think so? Wait until we have to go back up with the load," Elrond said dryly, biting down the desire to roll his eyes.
The slopes that connected the training grounds were rather steep and in no time, they arrived at the end of the Sun Field where there were piles of rocks just outside the boundary of the field. Thranduil stood at the edge of the training ground as Elrond took a breath.
"Did he mean these rocks? They are big," Thranduil mumbled.
Elrond looked down at a large formation of rocks just at the edge of the field. There were boulders as large as one of the houses, but even smaller ones were twice the size of their head.
Thranduil jumped down among the rocks and started to look through them.
"What are you doing?"
"Looking for the smallest one. He did not say how big."
"I don't think we have the time," Elrond said. "It will take us much longer to go up if you didn't notice. We have uphill as well as the weight to drag us down."
Thranduil scoffed aloud at that, but he took up a rock slightly smaller than half his torso. He threw it at Elrond who caught it with a grunt, then picked up another.
"Let's go," he said and scrambled up the edge onto the field.
"But, he said two."
"We have two," Thranduil said. "One," he held up the one in his hand. "Two," he gestured toward the one Elrond held.
"I do not believe that is what he meant."
"I do not care what he meant. He said two and we have two." Thranduil turned and ran toward the bridge connecting the Sun Field to the Moon Field.
Why in the Valar's names did I bother to speak up! Elrond looked up toward the west, then he picked up another rock with his other hand. Carrying one more added significantly more weight. He looked up at the Star Field from where he stood. The way up seemed far indeed. Elrond weighted the rocks in his hands. Extra rock will slow him down. Elrond thought of the cadets up on the Star Field then dropped one and followed after Thranduil. If he were to show up with two when Thranduil only had one, there will be no way for the Sinda to defend his action.
By the time they ran up the ramp onto the Star Field, both were panting. The rock which hadn't felt that heavy in the beginning had begun to weigh like a dragon hoard.
"We better get moving," Elrond said, noticing the condition of the cadets.
The cadets on the ground were in a bad shape. Barely any of them were maintaining their legs high up toward the sky. Their faces were red and their arms shook, young trees caught in a storm.
Elrond ran toward the pillar Gilmagor had mentioned and dropped his rock, followed by Thranduil.
Lord Gilmagor motioned to Gwendir and the cadets tumbled into a heap where they were. Muffled groans and curses flew out from the cadets.
Lord Gilmagor glanced at the rocks under the pillar, then tilted his head as both Elrond and Thranduil stood at attention.
"Why are there only two rocks?" The lord commander looked at Elrond then at Thranduil.
"You said 'make that two', sir!" Thranduil said. "We brought up two. Sir!"
Gilmagor's eyes flashed. His lips curved, but the smile did not reach his eyes. "Well, Thranduil Oropherion. So, I did." Gilmagor's voice was soft as a bird feather.
He turned to Elrond, "Go join others, Earendilion."
Elrond hesitated. He certainly didn't want to get into further trouble, but at the same time, he did not want to leave Thranduil. He felt responsible for the Sinda and although the sword master kept his emotion hidden as well as Thranduil did, Elrond could feel a storm rising in the sword master.
Thranduil was in trouble.
_
Silmacil (Sindarin, White Sword)—an elite group of warriors charged with special missions (my creation)
Nandor (Quenya, Those who turned back)—part of Teleri who followed Elwe (King Thingol) but turned back at Misty Mountains and remained in the great forest. They are also known as Silvan Elves or Wood Elves. Portion of Nandor who traveled to Beleriand and joined Sindar later is called Laiquendi (Quenya, Green Elves)
Edalan (Star Field), Ithilan (Moon Field) and Anoran (Sun Field) –the names of the three training grounds (in my story only) will be in English. As Elvish is not my forte, I will stick to what I know. :)
League—equals about 3 miles; so a league and half = 4.5 miles.