Oromë stared silently at the now flaming Lower City. The alarm was sounded and soon chaos ensued. It was so sudden, one moment the barrier was holding back the cloud and the next moment breaches were forming all over the dome and his connection to his Maiar was severed, which could only mean one thing, their death. Sadness wanted to take hold of him but this was not the time for tears.
He had felt them, the Nazgul. Those beings with a fëa so corrupted and so destroyed that he didn't know if Namo could even heal them in Mandos. Not that they can go. Men went to a place unknown to all when they died, to all but Ilúvatar. It was the gift of men, which Sauron took away from them. He sealed their fëa after having enslaved them condemning them to serve him until he wanted to get rid of them.
When the survivors of Middle-earth told them of those immortal beings in black robes who let out screams that pierced the eardrums and struck terror into the hearts of his enemies, and all thanks to those damn rings, all were horrified among the Valar. Especially Nienna who had cried many tears the fate of the men condemned to the service of dark Maia.
Yes, the defeat of the Last Alliance had wreaked havoc on Arda, for the Valar had let it go unflinchingly. Not anymore. Oromë swore that he would have no rest as long as Sauron walked freely on Eä, to hell with Manwë's orders.
Snapping back to reality, Oromë fired another golden arrow at the breaches where the cloud was infiltrating causing the smoke to disintegrate. He couldn't go deal with the Nazgul until the barrier was repaired or the cloud would enter the city, and who knows what would happen if that happened. Finwë and his Maiar had already gone in the direction of the battle to repel the enemies.
" My lord! »Oromë turned around at the call of his Maia, he saw Alatar accompanied by Pallando and two elves he did not recognize.
" I manage to keep the cloud out of the dome for now, but I can't do it forever. How is the situation with the Nine?»
" Yes, about that.." began Pallando slowly, not sure of his lord's reaction " They areno longernine.."
Oromë abruptly turned his attention to his Maia as he stopped firing. " No longer nine?»
" More than fifteen Nazgul have been reported across the city my lord. Alatar continued. Several of them have been described as being short in stature, and having the build of dwarves "
Oromë said nothing, deep in thought. He picked up his bow and started shooting again. Finally he whispered " Aulë won't be happy when he hears about it... "
" My lord?»
" If my idea is correct, there are at least sixteen Nazgul in the city. The Original Nine and the Dwarf Lords who received the Seven Rings. »Oromë bit his lip considering how to react upon realizing that Sauron had also managed to corrupt the dwarves. In the back of his mind the Vala hoped that the two elven rings had not also been used to create elven Nazgul, which would be an untold catastrophe. He was about to give his orders when we heard a whistle coming from beyond the walls. Everyone looked away where a faint red light could be seen in the shadows.
Aerir stared in complete misunderstanding of what he was seeing. "Wha..."
But he couldn't finish his sentence when the hissing stopped and soon after red flashes hit the barrier with ferocity. The entire city was shaking from the onslaught of raw power and everyone had stopped what they were doing to watch the barrier agonize. After a few seconds, it ends up disintegrating at the gates creating a chain reaction all around the city that ends up leaving it bare, the remnants of the barrier orbiting in the sky and gradually disappearing.
The cloud suddenly rumbled and Oromë watched it fall over the city with unprecedented speed. In only a few seconds the city was engulfed with all its inhabitants.
Esstel opened her eyes again and to her horror saw absolutely nothing, not even her hands.
"Aerir? » She called uncertain. She felt a hand land on her shoulder.
"I'm here" he said. She relaxed hearing his voice and then a light appeared. She shielded her eyes and after getting used to the light realized it came from Lord Oromë, her spear shone with a white glow and lit up the room. She hadn't actually moved from the palace as she had thought, only the room had gone black as night. She peeked out the balcony and couldn't see a thing outside. Even Mindon Eldaliova's large silver lamp could not be seen from the palace courtyard.
Everyone watched their surroundings trying to get used to this darkness.
Pallando spoke first, softly "Now what? "
" Is the cloud really just a kind of black wall intended to blur our senses?»
" No " Oromë said looking into the darkness. " Listen "
All listened trying to hear what had caught their lord's attention.
Aerir finally heard something " I hear the fighting. But there are fewer than before. »
Orome nodded. " Exactly, the fighting continues but in less quantity. Looks like the town was almost empty. I think the elves have been affected but the Maiar are still fighting in the dark"
" So what do we do ? »Alatar asked.
" You are going to look for the citizens in the shelters and you are going to have them evacuated. »Oromë began to walk towards the exit, his bow at his back and his shining spear in hand. " I'm going to settle his account with a certain Maia.»
"You are going to attack them alone!? » Esstel stepped forward and stood in front of the momentarily confused Vala at her boldness, with Aerir silently swearing at her partner's disrespect.
"Are you going out alone? In this cloud? » she said, pointing outside. "While the Nazgul are surely still out there waiting for you by their master's side?" She asked fervently.
Oromë thought she saw Vána on her bad days when she yelled at him.
Alatar and Pallando on their side could only watch with fascination this elf scolding their lord like a child.
" And you are? " Oromë finally asked, as he realized he hadn't paid attention to them when they entered.
Pallando answered for them " My lord, I present to you Aerir and Esstel. Esstel is a survivor of Lothlorien and I thought her knowledge of the enemy would be useful to us so I brought her with us.»
Oromë nodded slowly before answering the elf. " And what do you want me to do young elf? I am the only one who can defeat Sauron here. And there's no way I'm retreating. »he declared harshly.
Esstel, despite Vala's harsh tone, was not the least bit unsettled.
"I wasn't going to advise him. But let's try to outsmart him for once. What do we know? Sauron arrives in front of Tirion and does not move for several days, why? » she asked. "From my point of view he wanted you or another Vala to come as reinforcements, then he had the cloud attack instead of launching the assault himself and engulfed Tirion, cutting us off from the rest of Valinor ». She paced as she spoke.
"Then come the Nazgul, who have apparently gained seven new members and are wreaking havoc on the town. Excuse me for doubting my lord, but I have the impression that he wants you to come out and confront him to lay a trap for you. I don't doubt you can beat him up but can you do it when sixteen Nazgul and who knows what else accompanies him? »
Alatar put his hand to his chin and took a pensive pose "You think it's a trap? Mmm… if so, he played well. If Lord Oromë goes to confront him, he will fall into a trap. But if he doesn't go, I'm sure Sauron will go get him himself. "
" So what do we do? »Aerir asked.
" Arǭmêz" From the shadows a voice cried in Valarin, the language of the Valar, the echo of the name echoing in the great court of the palace. Oromë tensed upon hearing his original name being called out in such a tone, Valarin was never meant to be spoken with such darkness.
" Your precious elves are under my thumb as I speak to you. And your dear Maiars won't last long either. Come confront me or I'll make sure none of them reach Mandos. »Oromë clenched his fist upon hearing the threat.
" And to motivate you. » Sauron 's dark voice continued. " Each time I hit the ground, an elf will die. So I advise you to hurry. »And to prove his point, a bang echoed through the city, then began again in a steady beat.
Esstel's face paled as she heard the knocks hitting the ground.
" The swelling! »Pallando swore as the beatings continued. "What are we doing ?»
Oromë thought quickly and found only one solution. He ran to the balcony and shouted "Come meet me at Mindon Eldaliova, the highest tower in the palace! I will wait for you there!»
The blows stopped. Oromë took this as an agreement and turned to the two elves
"Esstel and Aerir I have a mission for you " the two nodded. "Go to the stables and take Nahar, ride to Valimar and report the situation to Manwë. Tell him about the Nazgul and the fight that will take place between Sauron and me. » His tone left no room for complaint. It was an order. He turned to his two Maiar
"Your orders have not changed, go to the shelters and evacuate the city" He held out his hand and two shiny vials appeared. " Take this, they will guide you in darkness.»
Aerir and Alatar each took a vial and thanked him. Esstel looked sad, Oromë saw her and knelt at her level " Don't be quick to grief young Esstel, I promise I'll be back." Esstel managed a smile at the Vala.
"You have an interest! Otherwise, you won't have finished hearing about me!" Oromë laughs a little. He stood up and with a solemn face motioned for them to go. They all left the room Esstel and Aerir towards the stables and the two blue mages towards the refuges the vials guiding their steps in the darkness.
After they left Oromë went to Mindon Eldaliova to wait for his opponent there.
" How are they ? » Finwë asked the Maia who accompanied him and who was staring sharply in the dark. They were located on one of the upper floors above the main square.
"I feel it, Sauron has stopped the executions, he is heading for the palace. He goes to meet Lord Oromë. The rest of the elves are still unconscious. »
Finwë nodded slowly "Do you feel Nazgul?" »
" I don't feel any. Damn that cloud, it ruins our view. But either way , either Sauron made them retreat or ..."
"Either they hide. " Finwë in turn tried to feel what was happening on the large square where several dozen elves had fallen unconscious when the cloud touched them "They are probably waiting for us to show up, they want to set a trap for us . »
" Allow me my elf lord. »a Maia woman approached them. " Being Oromë hunters, we are good at tracking. We can try to locate the Nazgul and see if they are around. "
Finwë accepted the idea "Do so, if they are far away we can see what has happened to my people and how to free them from the grip of Sauron. »
Several Maiar gathered and began to feel the surroundings, one of them put his ear to the ground to listen to the vibrations of the city while others sniffed the air.
Finwë watched in silence surveying the surroundings.
The she-Maia frowned. " It's strange, I don't smell any of them "
" Yet they are there " Said the one who was lying on the ground " It's light but I hear their footsteps.»
"Can you locate them? »
The Maia shook his head. "I'm afraid not, all I know is that they haven't left town. » He turned to his sister. " Do you smell any odor?»
The concerned one shook her head " Nothing, it's as if they don't have a smell. It's really strange. »
"The Nazgul are no longer mortal beings," Finwë reminded them. "They no longer have anything to do with your prey, they are empty of everything, of free will, of life, of death. And apparently, smell too. »
The Maia struck a pensive pose. "How to spot them then? If we go there blind, our blood will cover their blades» Finwë's face lit up at this sentence.
" The blood. » He said drawing the attention of the others "If you can't smell them, then smell the blood on their outfits and their swords." They should all have it on them now."
The Maiars looked at each other and accepted the idea. " We can try, but you're asking us to find moving blood in a city where now everywhere we go there is blood. It's going to be long and we're running out of time. "
"I understand but it's our best option right now. »
The Maiars nodded and went back to smelling the air. Finwë for his part listened to the sounds of the city, but there was only silence. It saddened him and filled him with anger towards Sauron for bringing such misfortune to his people. Since emerging from the Halls of Mandos after his death by Melkor, he has done everything to atone for the unsavory deeds of his descendants and his people, especially his son Fëanor still imprisoned in Lord Namo's care. The Valar seeing that his repentance was sincere soon allowed him to return to Tirion.
He had over the ages seen many of his descendants come to Mandos.
Celebrimbor had hurt him more than the others. His only sin had been to want to be worthy of his ancestors by creating works worthy of the greatest goldsmithing. Then Sauron the Deceiver came to his door in the form of Annatar and used this desire to create the great rings of power and then destroy the entire life of his ancestor. He had spoken to Celebrimbor and had seen the shame of believing the Maia's lies.
And now to see Sauron coming and slaughtering his people without any mercy, made him very angry. But he still managed to contain his emotions inside. Something Fëanor never managed to do in life or death.
They stayed like that for several long minutes in this tense silence, only the whistle of an icy wind being felt.
" I have something. »The Maia finally said. " It's faint but I can feel blood moving around. Several even.»
" Where ? »
She concentrated before answering " One scent to the North, two to the East, and four to the city gates"
Finwë nodded "Seven" he said "It's missing but it's better than nothing"
" Wait " Said the other Maia "I feel another one, it's very weak, but it's there "
" Where ? »
The Maia frowned " That's strange, it looks like he's... " Her eyes widened in alarm
" Watch out! » She turned with her staff and blocked a sword swing that aimed at his mate Maia.
A Nazgul stood at the end of the weapon with both hands pressing. He wore the same black robes and a helmet so the front curved upwards in a point.
The Maia pushed back the opposing weapon and made his staff light up while spinning. He swung his weapon at the specter and a faint burst of light erupted sending the Nazgul waltzing away screaming into the shadows.
Finwë drew his two swords and shouted to the others
"Assemble! Back to back. Try to locate it »
All of them looked as the elven king said and expanded their senses in an effort to locate the specter.
The Maia sniffed the air " Oh no.. "
" What is it this time?" asked one of the Maias who had remained silent throughout.
" The other smells are heading towards us "
Finwë frowned as he thought
"The cloud must be used by them to locate us" he theorized. "They wanted to take us by surprise but now they are heading straight for us, they knew we were there. »
" So they can know where we are at all times... " A shiver ran down his spine " And surely Sauron knew we were there too. "
"Sure, but he's definitely headed for the palace, he just let the Nazgul take care of us." They heard a noise and tensed ready to attack, the dim light from Maiar's staffs barely illuminating a few yards away .
They made out a shape and one of the Maiar was about to cast a spell ready to strike down the enemy.
"No wait! » Finwë stopped the movement of the Maia who looked at him confusedly.
"Lord Finwë, is that you? » The shape came to the edge of the light and they saw that it was an elf. He had blood pouring from one arm and could barely walk.
Finwë's face relaxed at the sight of one of his own.
"Yes it's me my friend, come and join us quickly" The elf nodded and started to approach.
" No stop! » cried the Maia " Stay where you are!" The elf stopped in fear.
" Where do you come from? » She asked
The elf thought with a frown "I..I was fighting these..those things with others and..."
" And what?» Insisted the Maia
"And the barrier broke. The cloud fell over us and my senses were clouded. I just woke up and heard your voices and your light. What... what's going on? Why is everyone unconscious? »
She turned to her companions "Why did he in particular wake up?" she asked "And right as the Nazgul attack us? Strange coincidence, don't you think. »
A shout was heard, and the same Nazgul who had attacked them appeared preparing to shoot down the elf, now petrified by fear.
Finwë leapt forward and deflected the sword strike, he pushed the Nazgul back and pulled the elf towards Maia's circle, putting it in the center.
" This cloud annoys me " said the Maia "Let's all shed some light on this " She planted her stick on the ground took out a vial from her tunic. She muttered a few words and held it above her head. The vial lit up illuminating more than twenty meters away and they saw the Nazgul appear who covered his face to protect himself from the light.
Two of the Maiar without wasting time took their swords and ran at the Nazgul who was forced to parry. They engaged in combat with the firm intention of getting rid of the specter.
Finwë was about to join them when he heard someone fall. He turned to see the elf writhing in pain.
" It burns ! Turn it off! » He shouted holding his head.
" What happens to you ? » Finwë crouched beside him trying to hold him in place.
" The light ! It hurts ! »
The Maia holding the glowing vial eyed the event with a frown.
' The light of Oromë hurts him? It's not normal. ' Then something caught her eye.
' His shadow…it shouldn't be that dark, not with my light on. It's black as nothingness '
Her eyes widened as she realized what was happening.
" Finwë get away from him! »She cried out and the elf lord in turn saw what happened to the elf.
The elf's shadow began to emerge from the ground and take shape. Finwë hurriedly backed away as another Nazgul emerged. This one wore a helmet with only a thin line where the eyes were and a spear whose three points twisted like snakes. He slashed the elf in the back who gasped, he breathed one last time and the life left his eyes. The Nazgul tossed him carelessly to the side before running at Finwë.
Finwë stood on guard with his two swords and also ran on ringwraith.
Esstel and Aerir after several minutes of searching arrived at the stables guided by the vial of Oromë. When they entered they saw that all the horses were all asleep, surely the effect of the cloud, but they still heard a horse trying to free itself from its bonds. They were not surprised to find that it was Nahar, Oromë's horse. Nahar was as bright as new snow in the light of day and as shimmering as silver in the moonlight. He was twice the height of the tallest horse and had the power of ten trolls. They approached cautiously so as not to surprise him and receive a kick. And knowing that Nahar was the tallest horse ever seen on Arda, it was better to avoid getting hit.
As soon as he saw them, Nahar calmed down and looked at them. Esstel swallowed under his watchful gaze.
" What is he doing ? » she asked her companion.
"He has to try to see if he can trust us. »
Finally Nahar lowered his head and they took that as a sign of agreement. They removed his bonds and led him to the exit.
Aerir turned to Nahar and began to speak.
"Lord Oromë has asked us to travel to Valimar to warn the Valar of the situation. Can you take us there? »
Nahar in response bent down to allow him to climb onto his back. Esstel climbed first with a smile. "I'm the one driving. »
Aerir raised an unimpressed eyebrow. " Ah yes ? And how do you plan to do it without a saddle? » He asked innocently.
Esstel looked under her and indeed saw that there was no saddle. She looked disappointed. "Oooow.. I wish I could guide him."
"First, only Lord Oromë has the right to command Nahar," he began to explain as he went to open the doors. "And secondly, even if you had the right to, I doubt you are strong enough to lead it." He opened the lock and started to push open the door.
Nahar suddenly stiffened and began whinnying at Aerir.
"Whoa..whoa calm down! » Esstel struggled to hold on as Nahar kept moving.
Aerir felt a cold air enter from the gap and only instinct managed to avoid an ax blow that went through the door and would have cracked his skull. He walked away and returned to Esstel and Nahar, drawing his blade. The ax retreated from the door and nothing followed.
Silence returned with only the sound of Nahar scraping his hoof against the ground clearly indicating that it was far from over.
An unseen force slammed into the doors, sending them crashing to the floor with a thud. A freezing cold penetrated the stable and the vial of light flickered a little before becoming bright again.
Two Nazgul stood behind the doors each holding an ax and a hammer. The one carrying the hammer was smaller than the other and also wore a dwarven helmet although this one had fangs at the level of the mouth. The other carried him a large flayed ax with a bent handle, his helmet was damaged and full of scratches and only three spikes hid his face. The two's armor pieces blended with the torn robes and the sound of their metal boots echoed through the room as they approached.
'It's bad, they must be here for Nahar' Aerir thought to himself as he stood guard in front of the Nazgul.
"Can we know what you are doing Aerir!? » cried Esstel whose expression was stained with fear as soon as the ghosts arrived. "Hurry up and let's go!"
"You go. » He said imperturbably staring at his enemies "Take the vial and go away. I will hold them. »
" Do not say nonsense ! I'm not leaving you here, you have no chance against them! »
Aerir stepped back, took Esstel's hand and put the vial in it. "The priority is to warn the Valar of what we know, everything else is secondary. »
" Out of the question ! I've already lost my family to the Nazgul! I wouldn't lose you too!"
It was the first time he had heard her talk about her family since they were put together. And he understood why she was so terrified when she saw the specters. He closed his eyes and spoke softly.
"I wish we had more time, thank you Esstel. » And before she could answer he turned to Nahar. "Take her away from here Nahar, make her safe"
Nahar having understood the request very well and galloped off with Esstel having a look of horror « Aerir! »
Nahar's hooves left marks of lights on the ground. Nahar having an extraordinary speed, rushed on the specters who could barely dodge before being thrown against the walls. Nahar left the stable with Esstel clinging for her life to her mane. The Nazgul got up and ran after Nahar.
"You're not going anywhere!" Aerir blocked their way out and stood ready to fight. The lights left by the hoofprints illuminated the room as effectively as Oromë's vial but gradually faded. The Nazgul stared at each other for a second before the one with the great ax soared through the air in a mass of black smoke and green flame and passed Aerir soaring through the cloud in pursuit of Nahar.
Aerir swore under his breath and focused again on the Nazgul dwarf who also warned.
'Good luck Esstel, may the grace of the Valar protect you.'
They will need it.
Oromë looked at Galathilion, the white tree of the Eldar created in the image of Telperion, the silver tree created by Yavanna. It was the fruit and in turn this tree gave birth to the Nimloth tree of Numenor. Sauron had convinced the Numenoreans to burn the tree thanks to the Morgoth cult he passed on to them. A fruit has been saved and grown to become the White Tree of Gondor. Did Sauron destroy it after his victory? Surely.
He was currently waiting in Mindon Eldaliova for the Dark Lord to arrive for their confrontation. It was the best chance they had to get rid of him in a thousand years. And this time he would not remain inactive, he was going to redo his portrait and drag him to the Mahanaxar to be judged there.
" I never understood Morgoth's aversion to light. »Oromë turned to see Sauron standing at the entrance to the courtyard. He looked at the silver lamp in the tower that illuminated them both.
" He was always limited in his thoughts. I can understand that he had to destroy the Trees so that the orcs could move without the constraint of the light but really he complicated the task. I have succeeded in creating a race of orcs that can move in broad daylight, a race that is both stronger and more destructive than normal orcs. I called it Uruk-hai. Really I think Morgoth could have won the War of Wrath if he had enough of it.»
" And let me guess." the Vala began with a tone of disgust. "You are so proud of your work that you brought them to Aman for all of us to enjoy ?"
" Uruk-hai, orcs, goblins and trolls no longer exist. »he said in a flat tone that echoed around the yard.
" What? How come they no longer exist? »
" Well I always have a few hundred of each in case my armies get destroyed and I need to build new forces. But apart from them, Morgoth's creations no longer exist.»
" Why would you do that?»
" For the same reasons as you, orcs are disgusting. They are the product of evil and hatred. But I eradicated the evil. Now only the discord persists. »He looked away from the tower to stare at Oromë. " You. »
" It wasn't us who wreaked havoc on Arda, it was you and Melkor. »
" And who allowed Morgoth to come out of Mandos? » he ask. « Who allowed the Noldors to burn the Teleris ships without doing anything? You let Fëanor create the Silmarills from the light of the Trees but allow him to say no to you when he has the chance to revive them and save countless newborns. »He walked in a circle around Oromë as he spoke.
" Your decisions, though not intended, have only created more chaos.»
Oromë remained silent and just stared at Sauron.
" You said you don't understand Melkor's aversion to light, are you implying that you like it? "
" I don't earn a cult following, but I have no problem being exposed to it.»
" Then why cover Middle-earth with this cloud? You blocked out all the light by doing that. "
Sauron chuckled in his dark voice. " As always you only understand what you see. Although I was the same back then. Let me explain to you. Ages ago when I resided in Numenor, I walked into one of those shops that sell anything and everything. I went there from time to time when I lacked inspiration and see what nonsense men could have invented. »Oromë remained silent trying to see the report.
" Inside there was a mirror, interested, I approached it but I didn't understand why it was displayed like this, it was just a mirror without any particularity. I asked the seller and he showed me what I had missed.»
" He flipped it over, and actually it wasn't just a mirror, the other side you could see through. The seller called it 'tinted glass', one side opaque and the other transparent.»
Oromë realized where this conversation was leading. "The cloud works the same way?»
" Ingenious, isn't it? From outside you all see a dark cloud as black as night, but from inside it's just a faint fog. The light of Tilion and… " He paused for a second as if he didn't dare say the name before continuing, "and…of Arien…have never ceased to illuminate Middle-earth. »
Sauron raised his hand and suddenly the court became illuminated. Oromë looked up at the sky to see the sun shining above them. He looked at Sauron who was also staring at the light of Arien but Oromë couldn't tell what he was thinking.
" Why this shape? »the Vala asked, " Why this dark, cold steel shell. " »
" In your opinion? Being a dark lord requires looking like a dark lord.»
" But since Numenor you can no longer change your form, only the ring allowed you to rebuild one. Were you ready to spend the rest of your life in this dark form without ever being able to change it?»
" For a time I should have not. But it was this attachment to my fitness that made me lose Tol-Sirion to Luthien. Never again will I be stopped by this emotion, attachment. Over the ages I left parts of myself there that I no longer had use for. This is how I changed. One cannot become a new being without giving up a part of oneself. This form was perfect to symbolize it. I took the form of a machine, an empty being.»
Sauron averted his gaze and rested it on the white tree. " The last white tree, once destroyed the lineage will be extinct.»
"I won't let you do this Sauron " Oromë took his bow and brandished it aiming at the Maia.
Oromë felt the cold penetrate the courtyard and he saw several Nazgul coming out of each entrance. Six in all.
" Let me do the introductions " Sauron said as he approached the first Nazgul, he was wearing a helmet with a kind of heart in front of it hiding his face. With two eye holes, it had a spear with a curved blade.
"Here is the Tawted " He passed to the next one with a helmet covering the entire face and donning the top mounted in spades. He too with a spear " The Immortal "
" Here we have Khamûl the Oriental " This Nazgul stands out from the others with his Rhûn helmet having large horns like rams going backwards and a large mass full of spikes at the end of a long handle.
Oromë remained silent, paying attention to any movement that did not lend real intention to the presentation of the wraith. " But I think it's those two that will interest you."
Oromë looked at the two Nazgul Sauron was going towards and indeed, there was something strange about them. One had the same build as his counterparts but the other was thinner, their armor was more refined, less jagged by spikes. They only wore a hood with only a metal ornament whose style Oromë recognized very well.
" Here are the Half-elf and the White Lady. »He turned to Oromë " Or if you prefer, Elrond of Imladris and the Lady Galadriel. "
Oromë didn't show any emotions but inside his mind was racing.
' So Sauron did indeed succeed in corrupting the elves. Elrond and Galadriel moreover.'
" You can't imagine the time it took to make them give in. They had a will of steel. But in the end they were no different from Dwarves and Men. I'm sure I could bring a Maia under my control given enough time.»
Seeing that Orome just stared at him blankly. Sauron stopped talking and walked towards the last Nazgul.
" I discovered something that even today I don't fully understand. »He stared at the last Nazgul who held a large sword. " When I get stronger, the Witch-King gets stronger too. It's like he's connected to my power, yet I haven't done anything wrong with him. Maybe his greed for power unconsciously allowed him to grow stronger through me. »The Witch-King unlike the others who focused on the Vala stared at his master, as if he was still free to think. "Now he's as strong as I was in the Battle of the Last Alliance. Maybe even more.»
Sauron turned and approached the Vala. " I offered surrender to the other Valar, I would do the same to you. Surrender and I will spare Tirion. The other Valar preferred war, how about you?»
Oromë closed his eyes and lowered his head. He took a deep breath and looked at Sauron defiantly. " You brought the war. Then we will go to war. Your reign ends today. »
Sauron looked at him in silence and all the Nazgul were on guard. "So be it. »Sauron unsheathed Eönwë's sword with his own black sword and took up position.
This fight would decide the fate of Tirion.
Ok Ok
So to summarize: 18 Nazgul
-2 Nazgul Men against Finwë and the 5 join them.
- 1 Dwarf Nazgul against Aerir and 1 Men hunting Esstel and Nahar.
-4 Nazgul Men and the 2 Nazgul Elves against Oromë.
-3 Nazgul somewhere in town.
Frankly I want to write Sauron well but I have doubts about the personality I want to give him.
Surely a lot of inconsistencies with the canon and the characters, let me know if you see any. That I adapt the story accordingly.
Bye.