Chapter 13
The Making of Fellowships
Author's note: I'm really proud of myself right now. I've managed to update this story quickly this month. I think that has a lot to do with the fact that I want to get my characters out of Rivendell. I did a chapter count. It's beem about six chapters of Rivendell and I'm still not done with it! Ugh! So much Rivendell! But it's important! You'll see why at the end of the chapter! Enjoy!
Brianna vaguely listened to Gandalf's tale soon after that particular revelation. It made sense for their enemies to know where the ring was. Gollum, whatever sort of sad being he was, likely told enough to cause harm; especially if the enemy orchestrated his escape from Mirkwood as the elf Legolas elaborated on such a short time ago. Stiff as a board Brianna listened gravely at each grim detail. She wanted to scream. Hades? Here? How? He was supposed to be locked away in the seventh gate of hell where her great grandmother put him! Who released him from this prison and why? What did he have to gain in this?
"Word came to me from a Radagast the Brown That Saruman offered his aid, but only if I hastened to his presence at once. I did so, hoping he could help me in regaining some semblance of hope in these troubling times. Oh how wrong I was! Saruman spent a good time declaiming Radagast as a foolish idiot! Then he stood before me to give a choice. Do I join the powers, do I completely deny them, or do I join Saruman in taking the One Ring for ourselves. I chose the second and in came a terrible queen of wild beauty such as none have seen on Middle Earth. Saruman named her Queen Mab of the Faerie Court," Gandalf looked at her and Brianna felt her blood run cold again.
Mab was in Arda with Hades. She could guess, very accurately, how that turn of events happened. She nodded for him to continue.
"The Queen wished to perform fell magicks to turn me to their cause," Gandalf continued, "but Saruman wished me to suffer and see, so they took me and set me on the pinnacle of Orthanc. I was there for a long time. Now, they did not expect Radagast to do as I asked - send out his animal friends and have them spy on the enemy for us - and as the summer waned so did Gwaihir come unbidden to Orthanc seeming mine and Sauruman's Council. Those strange creatures of Mab's attempted to attack him, but the great eagle is far more cunning than they and soon I was born away from Orthanc to safety - such as what is now considered safe. He set me down in Rohan and it was from there I journeyed here to arrive two days before the little party from Bree and their surprise visitor."
Brianna shifted in her chair but couldn't find it in her heart to contribute anything. Erebus. Hades. Queen Mab. Their names cycled through her thoughts like a turning wheel. All the evils of old gathered in Arda, so it seemed, to do what? Help Sauron find his ring? There had to be something more to the story than that!
As she thought on this the subject of a Bombadil came up as the males argued whether it was best to send the ring to him for safe-keeping. Brianna listened as they spoke of this man with Glorfindel coming to the staunch position that this Bombadil couldn't resist Sauron if all else failed.
"Could we send the Ring to the elven queen's world?" Asked an elf named Galdor.
This proposal started Brianna out of her thoughts and she glanced sharply at the elf. He was thousands of years old with knowledge limited to Arda. He was ignorant, but not foolish.
Best to crush their hope early, she thought.
"No," she replied shortly, "not counting humans, I can think of several elves, fae, angels, and dragons would would absolutely love getting their hands on it. And a few would have no trouble conquering the will of the ring and setting its power against us. I could fight it, I could probably decimate them if the need arose, but I would die and destroy everything in my way in the process. Even the great elven Queen has checks on her powers and mine come from a place higher authority than myself."
They stared at her. Some seemed alarmed while others only disappointed at her refusal. She wouldn't move on that decision; however and stared straight ahead before settling her gaze on Aragorn. He inclined his head to communicate agreement.
"The Ring is our affair," he said, "it would be cowardly of us to inflict its blight upon others even if Dark fiends of their world have gotten it into their heads to inflict themselves upon us," he said.
"If they are all here, then maybe we can use this as a way to break the powers of Sauron and this Hades?" Suggested Gloin.
Brianna but the inside of her cheek. She didn't want to censure them on this one. There had been days in her youth when she said the exact same thing. Her great-grandmother hadn't been able to fully break the power of Hades. She hadn't been allowed and all she could do was lock him into whatever cage in Hell she's wrought. Brianna wasn't sure how she'd done it. Loth Galine had not been her most dire element to learn at the time. The other four took precedence.
Maybe I'll burn the bastard. Athena was never the best at fire. Her best element was always Earth and water, she considered.
"That could work if we prepare," she replied. "But if there is anyone here who will deal with Hades and Mab it will be me. Maybe one of you who are older and Gandalf as well could stop him, perhaps even kill him, but as all of you are vital to this affair of the ring I don't think it's best to tempt fate."
Glorfindel stood and bowed, "As a matter of course, your grace, I am not as instrumental in this task as you may think. I have a duty to protect this realm from all evil. This Hades and Mab are an evil that has invaded our world. I cannot overlook their presence. If you require aid then I will gladly give it."
Brianna looked at him with a renewed opinion. There were, it appeared, some who knew of, or remembered, the purpose of their existence. She nodded to him feeling more like she was acting the queen than actually being one.
I'm a huntress, an archaeologist, and an elleth. I have yet to discover this queen I'm supposed to be, she thought sadly.
"I will consider it further, but let us decide what to do about this ridiculous trinket first, shall we?" She asked.
Brianna looked at Gloin once more, "In answer to your question, Gloin, I intend to do just that. Hades has a target on his head. I'll be sure to hit it."
She sounded more bloodthirsty than she meant to, but Hades has been a blight on her family for so long that she was more than ready to get rid of him. Gloin seemed pleased with the idea and laughed.
"Well, I certainly look forward to hearing that tale once it's told, Miss," he said cheerfully.
Brianna smiled; especially at the scandalized looks on the elves when Gloin referred to her as a "miss". It was always good to give them a bit of a shock just to keep their long lives interesting.
Glorfindel took this moment to bring the conversation back to the subject of the ring. He cleared is throat which made Brianna and Bilbo glanced at him incredulously and stood again. This time he turned to address Lord Elrond.
"What of the sea? Surely we could hide it in the great deeps?" Glorfindel asked.
Brianna snorted in a most unqueenly manner. If only Matt were present! He'd explain tides in a most confusing manner to them.
Erestor, one of the elves from the Grey Havens, seemed to agree, "The sea would still only be a temporary solution. Even so the road is likely watched for the elves flee for the west daily. They would expect it to be sent this way. Another road must be considered."
"As we cannot take it west, nor can we hide it in another world entirely, there is only one option that remains open to us. We must unmake the ring. It must go east to be cast into the fire into Mordor," said Lord Elrond.
Silence met his proclamation. Most seemed too stunned and dismayed to wish to consider the prospect. For Brianna it seemed more like a chance to solve a particularly interesting riddle. She crossed her arms casually and leaned into the back of her chair. Such a feat would be difficult, but not impossible. There were probably ways into Mordor that wouldn't involve everyone dying.
Next to her the traveler Boromir stirred and fingered his great horn. A frown marred his clearly handsome features and Brianna found herself studying him closely. He was handsome for a human, but there was a boldness to his self that struck Brianna a little too close to home. He was foolhardy and willing to cast aside caution in favor of the quickest way to defeat an opponent. She knew his type. She'd been his type until her mistakes cost the deaths of others close to her.
"This is folly! I understand Saruman to be a traitor to our cause, but I suspect he had the right mind. Why not use this ring against the Dark Lord and all those who give him aid?" He asked.
Brianna frowned and considered the question. She knew it was foolish, but did he? What did humans know about magical artifacts made from the essences of their creators. With every Dark thought and fell deed pressed into it the ring was created to have a mind of its own. A cursed object made to curse others and cause them to turn to darkness and greed. The concept wasn't new to her. She was a Huntress. She sought these things out purposefully so she could destroy them. Had this Boromir ever done so? Had anyone in the council done so? Probably not.
"Nay, it is folly. The ring obeys Sauron alone and will answer to no other master. As such it will corrupt the hearts of those who wield it. I would not take the ring to hide it, young steward, and I am afraid to take the ring to wield it," Lord Elrond admonished gently.
Boromir turned to her, "And you?"
Brianna shrugged, "I don't need it to stop Sauron, but my magic would not respond to it. What would happen more than likely is that I would try to use it and destroy it and myself as I did. I am not the best to wield it, carry it, or hide it. In light of the last two I am more like this Bombadil and would lose it or throw it away. It must be destroyed."
He bowed his head and conceded their arguments, "Then let us hope that the sword that was broken will ride in and restore morale."
"We shall put it to the test one day," Aragorn promised.
"Let us hope we do not delay too long," Boromir grumbled.
They spoke more at length about ring lore that Brianna only half listened to. The conundrum of Hades, Erebus, and Queen Mab refused to leave the forefront of her mind. It was too pressing of a matter to ignore.
They speak of rings, but my task will spell the fate of their world, she thought sadly. Such is the fate of the elven queen - keeper of all realms.
Bilbo stood clearly irate by the talk and in need of action, "Very well, Very well! It is clear to me what must be done and that I am the one to do it! I shall take the ring to Mordor! I started this mess, it is only fitting that I should finish it."
Gandalf smiled, "Think not of it, Master Bilbo! The ring has passed on and you need not complete this task. I fear it may be beyond you. I advise you remain here, in Imladris, and finish your book and write a sequel for when they come back."
Bilbo seemed caught between relief and surprise, "Well this is certainly an interesting turn of events. Never once have I had the pleasure of you giving me pleasant advice before! I don't suppose I have the strength or will to deal with the ring, but who are this they you speak of?"
Brianna looked at Gandalf with a frown. It seemed the fate of the ring had already been decided between him and Elrond. Just as her fate had been decided on in that early morning before the council.
This was a formality to bring the thoughts of the others into a like mind. Gandalf and Elrond already knew what had to be done! Sneaky bastards, she thought.
"The they I speak of are the messengers who will be sent to Mordor," Gandalf said.
"Oh, good, now shall we begin naming names or am I to miss the noon meal?" Bilbo asked.
No one answered. Brianna watched each of them grimly. She couldn't volunteer for a number of reasons with the primary one being that she needed to go on a different quest. Finally, it was Frodo who stood and turned to them all. He met Brianna's eyes and she nodded to him.
"I will take the ring to Mordor," Frodo said, "but I do not know the way."
Elrond raised his eyes and looked at him, "If I understand aright all that I have heard I think that this task is appointed for you, Frodo; and that if you do not find a way, no one will. This is the hour of the Shire-folk, when they arise from their quiet fields to shake the towers and counsels of the Great. Who of all the Wise could have foreseen it? Or, if they are wise, why should they expect to know it, until the hour has struck? But it is a heavy burden. So heavy that none could lay it on another. I do not lay it on you. But if you take it freely, I will say that your choice is right; and though all the mighty Elf-friends of old, Hador, and Húrin, and Túrin, and Beren himself were assembled together, your seat should be among them."
Lord Elrond the wind-bag, Brianna thought, that is what he should be called for talk he certainly does and manages to take forever to get to the bloody point.
A scuffle was heard and to everyone's surprise Sam jumped up from a corner he'd sequestered himself in and hurried over to Frodo. Brianna raised a brow. How on earth had he stayed so well concealed?
"But you won't send him off alone surely, Master?" Cried Sam.
"No indeed!" said Elrond, turning towards him with a smile. "You at least shall go with him. It is hardly possible to separate you from him, even when he is summoned to a secret council and you are not."
Sam sat down, blushing and muttering. "A nice pickle we have landed ourselves in, Mr. Frodo!"
Brianna smiled and refrained from snickering as she normally would have among her team. She was supposed to at least act like a queen, after all. Once the muttering died down Elrond stood once more.
"Now That the date of the ring is decided we must consider Brianna. I received word from the Lady Galadriel of Lorien yesterday. She has an understanding of the elven Queen's coming and also understands the plight that has effected our world. Further, she has suggested that the best way to solve this conundrum is to journey to Lorien. There the Lady if the Wood will be able to help right this wrong so that stability can return to Arda," Elrond said. "Such knowledge is beyond anything I understand, but the Lady of the Wood knows more. Together, she and the elven queen can at the least repair the damage to the veil between our worlds."
Brianna nodded, "It was decided that I would go to Lorien, but as I do not know the way a guide would be most welcome."
Glorfindel stood and stepped forward. He kneeled before her and Brianna had to keep herself from blushing an embarrassed shade of crimson. Technically they were her subjects, but it always made her uneasy when one of the older elves showed her any sort of reverence.
"Allow me to be your guide, your grace, and I shall be certain to bring you safely to Lorien," he swore.
From the corner of her eye she saw Lord Elrond frown at this. Brianna looked at the Elder elf and observed his sincere eyes. If this was his inclination then what did it mean for Arwen? Glorfindel was close to swearing himself into her service and if he did that then Arwen would follow him wherever Brianna ended up going.
Fifteen hundred years is a long time for a father to have the presence of a daughter, she thought sadly.
"You will guide me then, Lord Glorfindel. I accept your offer of aid," she said.
"And two others will accompany you I should think," Gandalf added, "there are dangers on the road that will make it dangerous for two elves to travel safely even if they are two of the most powerful people in the room."
Glorfindel rose with a chuckle, "I will accept it if her grace does."
"I do," Brianna said, "if I don't have to sleep with my eye open half the time I won't complain."
"Then we are settled," Lord Elrond said. "This concludes our council."
Erebus stood before Queen Mab and Saruman as the two of them circled the Palantir. It was a strange little globe that was supposed to enable them to communicate with Lord Sauron and, consequently, Prince Hades and Prince Aries. He glanced to Persephone who stood next to him looking just as frail and embittered as ever. She never took well to the conversion as the others had. All traces of beauty, charm and innocence had been leeched from her mind and body. Hades had certainly done his work.
What did he say to convince her to go the path of the crone? Erebus wondered.
"We do not know who has the ring," Queen Mab said.
"No we do not," Saruman confirmed.
"And the elven queen is still in Imladris?" Queen Mab asked and looked to him.
Erebus inclined his head. The faerie Queen was a demanding person. It was best to give her what she wanted until something interesting could be done about her.
"According to the Nine," he confirmed. "She road into Rivendell with that hobbit the Witch King stabbed, but we have been unable to confirm anything else. One of the Rangers - I believe they call him Strider - hunted down our agents around the land and exterminated them."
Saruman grunted and Mab raised a delicate white brow. She stepped toward him. Erebus didn't move. In the thousands of years of his existence none of the Dark Faye or the Raiphahim had ever intimidated him. He met her gaze with his own steady one and waited for her to attempt to rage at him.
She did not disappoint.
"And where were you, Lord of Darkness?" She asked in a low husky tone that could be easily mistaken for a seductive lilt.
Erebus has to give it to her. She was very good at establishing a verbal hierarchy. He smirked and leaned towards her ever so slightly.
"I was helping the Nine regroup. They weren't expecting the attack. When I returned to Imladris' borders any progress we made against the elf lord's protective line was erased completely. The Queen has added whatever protection she could think of. We will not get through any time soon," Erebus wondered if any of them would take his report to heart.
Queen Mab sneered and turned from him in a rush. On the other side of the room Persephone cackled to herself. The Faye Queen whirled on her, face contorted with rage, and allowed an only darkness to crawl across her hands. The misshapen elf began to cackle in earnest. Erebus shook his head and glanced to Saruman who sidled next to him with a frown on his face.
"Tell me, what should we do in this stage?" The wizard asked.
"Planning, regrouping, and striking. Queen Aracasse is the only adversary in Arda so far. If we don't prepare our forces and begin taking out the leaders of the lands she will find a way to destroy all of our plans. She likely already knows about the breaks we made in the space/time plane separating your galaxy from ours. It will be the first thing she goes after," Erebus said.
"Can she repair it?" Saruman asked.
There was a sense of dread and awe in his voice. Erebus frowned at it though he couldn't blame the wizard for holding an interest in what the elven queen could do. Even when she was just Brianna Davis with little magic to her name she was formidable. That kind of hers alone has foiled more than one attempt to raise Aries though she hadn't known it at the time. To know so little, yet guess so well… it was attractive.
"If she figures out how magic works here in Arda then yes she will," Erebus said bluntly.
"Good, then we have a goodly amount of time to decide which portal we will reinforce," Saruman said and returned to his palantir.
Erebus chuckled to himself as the old man left. Saruman proved to be more useful than he originally had been. By this point Mab had finished her argument with a smug Persephone and returned to the wizard's side. They began to converse in hushed tones. Erebus didn't care to attempt to overhear them. He had better things to occupy his mind with. The valiant attempt to separate himself from the quiet mutterings was foiled by Persephone's approach. She sent him a toothy grin. Erebus' eye drew to her missing, fouled, teeth. The gigantic warts on her face looked near bursting and one that had smelled sickly sweet. He wrinkled his nose. The pungent odor invaded his elven senses. How could she, who was also an elf, stand it?
"You should look for her in a month," she told him in a broken voice.
Erebus bows rose, "A month?"
"She will be in the road again. I have seen it. Look for her in a month once she crosses the mountains. It will be easier then," Persephone told him and limped away.
Well, I'm certainly not going to begrudge her help, he thought and then resigned himself to the presence of Mab and Saruman for the rest of the day.
Brianna hadn't prepared herself to deal with a person wracked with nerves. After the council she had left alone and wandered into the gardens to keep her own council. She had much to think about and plan and get over. The baring of her personal past was hard. It wasn't much, she hadn't been completely specific, but it still had been difficult. Unfortunately she hadn't much time to her thoughts when Arwen rushed down the path looking incredibly high strung.
Stunned all Brianna could do was remove herself from her inner dialogue and listen to what the elf lady had to say. Arwen fell to her knees and grasped Brianna's hands. To say she was stunned by the move would have been putting it mildly, but the plea from her a moment later pushed her beyond even that.
"Please let me come with you!" Arwen breathed. "He and I cannot he parted! I can't see him go from me again in these times! I will not remain in seclusion any longer so that the men may fight my battle! I must come with you!"
Oh, Glorfindel! Right! Good god how do I answer this? Brianna wondered.
She looked at Arwen. The elf maiden was typically tall, composed, and beautiful. It seemed that the task Glorfindel had volunteered himself for had unsettled.
"Arwen, I think you might need to bring this to the attention of your father," she said in an attempt to calm her.
It didn't work. Arwen just shook her head and went on. "No! If he does not think you wish for me to come then he will not give his permission. I heard he and my brothers speaking earlier and they will go. I can't let my beloved go on this quest without me! I have remained idle too long in my father and grandmother's house far too long! I told him I would go where he went. If he is to Lorien then so am I."
Brianna sighed. She understood. Glorfindel and Arwen's engagement was new. Lord Elrond has likely given his blessing reluctantly with a condition for Glorfindel to prove himself. To Arwen this could seem too much like her ancestors Beren and Luthien.
And I couldn't bear being parted from Alyan or Judah and then came the day when I was. I hadn't even known about Alyan until they brought back his mutilated body with Ba'al disgusting message to accompany it. Arwen fears this, or something like it, and I understand, she thought.
There was no other choice she could make. Arwen was going to come whether she wanted the elf to or not. Brianna couldn't come up with a good enough explanation as to why she shouldn't. Arwen was coming and that was that.
"Speak with you father, tell him you wish to volunteer and I will speak with him on the objections," Brianna conceded. "But you and I are going to meet in the training grounds so we can test your skill. I know Glorfindel's, Aragorn can vouch for Elrohir and Elladen's, but I haven't heard about yours. We will begin at dawn."
Arwen thanked her profusely and stood. The discomfort was there, but Brianna saw the elf maid fight to resume control over herself. Then she walked away. Once Arwen was out of sight Brianna slumped against the back of her bench and released a long, drawn out, sigh. Like it or not it looked as if she would have look after two love birds. It would make the trip awkward if they didn't control themselves physically and mentally, but maybe they would be fine?
"That was courteous."
She glanced to the left where Aragorn tread down a thin path obscured by arches and hanging vines. Brianna didn't move from her completely relaxed state. Even though she knew he liked her and she, him, there was a basic need to feel comforted by him as well as relaxed. Aragorn sat next to her with a careful distance kept between them. She smiled and sat up from the bench's back.
"I know how she feels. I've had the misfortune of being parted from two men that I loved for an extended period of time. The result of that separation…" she paused and looked into his eyes. "They are no longer alive."
He took her hand in his gaze never once breaking. His eyes reflected a fear, a small fear, within that nearly melted her heart.
"They should be together. You can give them what you never had. Arwen is not as skilled as her brothers, but she is well-versed in the martial arts enough," he reassured.
Brianna squeezed his hand and resisted the urge to lean into him. This reminded her of Judah, the same urge and need to be near him, think of him, and protect him. Yet it wasn't. It was magnified to something beyond her comprehension as if every emotion she once felt for others was magnified for him.
"I hope it will be an uneventful journey for us, but I know it likely won't be. I need to prepare all of them for it," she said.
"And you will, of that I have no doubt," he said. "As for myself, I have been called north for a scouting party. I know not if I will return before you leave."
Her mouth went dry. Aragorn was leaving? She realized her hands suddenly clutched his own in a hard grip and Brianna released it to allow her fingers and palms to rest lightly in his. For a moment Brianna hoped Aragorn hadn't felt her spasm of fear, but the softening of his gaze told her that he had.
"I leave on the last day of November. It is still October. You might return by then and I will hope for it if it pleases you," she admitted.
Aragorn's eyes lit brightly and his hands began to shake. A smile played on his lips and he brought her hands to his lips to leave light kisses on her knuckles. Her lips parted as awe overcame her. This man felt deeply, more deeply than she first thought, and he did actually show moments of passion. To her no less!
What am I doing? We are from two different worlds! I can't allow this to continue! She thought.
Maybe it was why? There was attraction and genuine like between the two of them. One day she would be gone whether it be three months or many years from then. She swallowed.
"It pleases me, very much, Aracasse," he breathed.
Her name, his use of her true name, unsettled her further. It was a deliberate use, a promise, of something greater that would be discussed one day should they be allowed. They wouldn't be. There was no possible way for it to happen! Unless it did and then what?
Aragorn stood, but looked at her as if drinking in her very image. Brianna felt the same. It could be the last time they ever saw each other. He might not return before she left for Lorien. She very well could be parted from him forever in order to fight back Mab and Hades then to later return to Earth to formally take the elven throne - again - and rule her people.
"I will take my leave. I will depart for the north in the early morning," he said.
And it appears that I will be there to send you off, she thought, resigned.
"Be safe, Estel," she said softly.
He seemed surprised for a moment, but a true smile broke across his face a moment later. To see it sent a wave of feeling pulse through her body in violent waves. Aragorn didn't say anything else and departed with a bow. Once she was certain he was gone and she was alone Brianna stood from the bench and ran out of the gardens for a more private location.
There was a good deal much to think on.