"The Return of the Light"
by AndromedaM13Titan

disclaimer: j.r.r tolkien is one of the best authors, his books are best, and all his characters are great. this fan fiction is about legolas, though i do not own him, anyo f the characters, or half of the places in this story. the only characters new to this tale is Adriel, also called Erimas, the daughter of the Elven-Warlord Eldroln; and the other is the Elvenprincess Halardrin, also called Aletia, daughter of Colodrin... and any other person they meet in Southeast Mirkwood (because i made up that kingdom); Sagorim son of Bafrog-Him; Bafrog-him and his council; and Deowar.

a/n: just incase you forgot, Temrbanil is the sword of Adriel and of Emanor, her predecessor. so far the Company and Adriel have only gotten as far as Mirkwood, and even then they were attacked by Orcs and Uruk-hais. in case you didn't know, haladrin is the betrothed of legolas, but only because it was called by her father and by thranduil, legolas' father. legolas really doesn't like her, and sometimes its funny when she begs him to actually love her. i mean come on? she has to BEG him? he doesn't give in, don't worry.

lord of the rings is NOT a trilogy, according to tolkien, it is ONE book with 6 books in it.

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Part III: The Passage to Orodruin

The Orcs and Urukhais drew closer with each breath Pippin took, and Temrbanil trembled in his hands. He heard Adriel constantly crying out to him: "Draw the sword, Master Peregrin! Temrbanil does not listen to the hearts clouded by fear and by sorrow, thus you must use it now! Forget about all right now, and let Temrbanil guide your hand!" So Pippin took a moment, though all the clashing and noise went about him, to close his eyes and hold Temrbanil tightly in both hands. It was a heavy, large sword, but it had a spirit, he could tell. Suddenly, Gandalf and the others saw it glowing. Was Pippin the heir to Emanor? No, it couldn't be right, Pippin was a halfling, not an elf. But surely there was some power in the sword that made Pippin a stronger hobbit than before, for he took the sword and seemed not to realize there were others about him. His eyes shimmered green in the sun and he stabbed countnless numbers of orcs; alone. All but Adriel stood shocked and in awe.

"Do not stand there!" shouted Adriel. "Unless you wish to die you mustn't stand idle for so long!" She loosed four arrows at once from her bow, and slew another Orc. Though there were many orcs slain, the Uruk-hais were persistent and not giving up. The leader, whom all the others called Garut, had his blood-lusting eye upon Adriel. He grabbed the hilt of his sword and went charging towards Adriel. She sensed his arrival and turned quickly, the arrows pointed to his chest.

"You ask for death," said Adriel beneath her breath. "Surrender and show us the way to Orodruin."

Garut laughed: "Orcs do not aid elves, even if it were an elf that guided us," he said. "It is you who shall die, if you do not release your arrows and come willingly to Mordor. Or shall you die no matter, even if you are sent to Mordor?" Garut let out a laugh and his breath reaked of death. Adriel loosed three elven arrows, managing to hurt Garut's arm, but as she reached back, there were no more arrows in her quiver; and Temrbanil was not sheathed at her side. Adriel looked slowly to Garut's red eyes with a slight, trembling fear. Garut smiled and unsheathed his grand sword, holding it high above his head. Adriel closed her eyes and sang softly beneath her breath to herself.

"Adriel!!!" cried Pippin, still holdling the sword in his hand. Temrbanil seemed to become much lighter as he saw Garut's sword strike Adriel's torso. She did not scream, open her eyes, or cry. She simple fell to her knees, still singing but with less ferocity as she had. The sword stuck out of her stomach and it was no doubt she was in horrible pain. She at last opened her eyes, which teared as she looked up at Garut.

"Do not meddle with the lives of elves," said Adriel as best she could, "for that will only bring you pain and unhappiness!" Quickly Adriel ripped from her stomach the sword of Garut and turned it against him. She beheaded the Orc by the power of his own sword. WIth their leader fallen, the Orcs and Uruk-hais retreated, but vowed to return later. Gandalf and the others watched their enemies leave, then ran to Adriel, who fell once again to her knees. She looked to be painless and happy.

"Adriel!" shouted Pippin. "I should have never taken Temrbanil! You should have never let me have it!"

"What would I have done then?" whispered Adriel. "Watch you die for you wielded no sword? No, that is what a dishonest and disloyal being does, such as Saruman the traitor. I am not Saruman, I will not watch my friend die." Still the tears swelled in her eyes, but they did not fall; they drew a film and veil over her eyes and for a few short moments she could see nothing but white. She flinched for a moment, then it came to the others that she had finally been taken. She fell into Gandalf's arms and was no longer fair skinned, but pale and pasty; she looked more beautiful in the light of the sun and in death than she did in life to Pippin.

All the Company stood silent about her. Gandalf laid the body down straight on the ground, with a pile of leaves about her, and her sword at her side. Temrbanil glistened again in the light, which came to Gandalf as a sign of some sort. Temrbanil lay restless next to her though the only ones who could openly see this were Gandalf and Legolas. Aragorn noticed the animals speaking to themselves throughout the forest, as if a great soul had passed on. Gimli took from his head his armor and knelt beside her. The others did the same and they all looked to the ground.

'O good glory!' thought Pippin as his heart split in half. 'What a grand elf she was! So kind and purehearted! And to let me wield Temrbanil for a time! What an honor! O Adriel, you go to your father now. It is not fair, this world needed more of your kind, but now you are gone and there shall never be any more like you, Adriel Woodleaf. You were pure like gold and strong as silver, you leave behind a legend and a tale, and you shall be remembered if I should ever have little hobbits of my own. Right, I shall remember you always, Adriel Woodleaf.'

Aragorn took Temrbanil in his hands. "There is something strange," he said; "that Temrbanil lies continuously restless. Gandalf, why is it that it shines so brightly?" He looked to Gandalf, and saw him put his right hand up. There was silence.

"Listen," Gandalf said. And so Aragorn opened his ears in order to hear, and he was shocked; as were Legolas, Gimli, and Pippin. A soft, beautiful voice sang a slow but melodious tune, one which moved Pippin's soul to hear. "That is the Song of Celbranir, also known to the Mirkwood elves as the song of Temrbanil," he then turned to Adriel. "She cannot be dead. Temrbanil would have ceased by now. Her soul is here, somewhere; she lives." They all turned to the elf and looked at her wound, which had dripped so little blood they worried for a moment whether Adriel was not really Galadriel or Arwen, one of the fair and immortal elves. For a moment, it seemed to Aragorn that she was Arwen Undomiel.

"Undomiel!" cried Aragorn as he dropped to Adriel's side and held her in his arms. "Undomiel!"

"No, Aragorn!" shouted Gandalf. "This is not Undomiel, do not be deceived. Call her Adriel Erimas and she shall answer to your calls."

Aragorn brushed the light hair from Adriel's brow. "Adriel Erimas..." he whispered to her. "Wake and open your eyes, Erimas. The legend calls for fulfillment, the world calls for an heir. Temrbanil awaits you." Before she fluttered her eyes open, Aragorn bent to kiss her brow, and then he stood again, beside Legolas. Adriel Erimas' eyes opened and once again the life was restored in her.

"Whither to now?" she whispered to herself. "I am Adriel Woodleaf, Gandalf. How is it you know my other name?"

"Lady, I knew your father whence he was birthed," Gandalf replied with a smile on his face.

"Who is this, Erimas, Gandalf?" questioned Gimli. "Why did you say it was not Undomiel nor Adriel?"

Gandalf turned to Gimli. "Stout and short Gimli," he said, "all half-elvens respond to two names for they are birthed with two souls, one that responds to the elven name, and one that responds to the human name. Erimas is the name of Adriel's human spirit, which passed all those years ago when Adriel choose to be elven; however, when Adriel was struck, her eyes began to glow green and it was then I realized it was the passed human spirit that she bore inside her. The rage which she brought out upon the Uruk-hai was the strength of her human force, but then also of Temrbanil. Even through separation the assimilation of Temrbanil and Emanor has long lasted in the blood of his heirs, and thus the spirit of the sword lies silently in the all of his heirs' souls.

"Adriel did not pass," he continued, "for it was Erimas that once again perished in her and it was Temrbanil that shielded her. But be warned, Adriel: Erimas now is no longer living, and Temrbanil will never again have the strength to protect you to that length. When you face death once more it shall be your time."

Pippin ran into Adriel's arms. "Oh it's so grand to have you back, Lady Adriel!" he cried. "I feared the worst for you, but now I see you alive and well! My heart weeps, Adriel! We must go back to the Grand Palace, must we not? To rest our weary souls?"

Adriel looked back to the palace, where now a black cloud stood. "No, Master Peregrin," said Adriel sorrowfully. "I fear that we shall never again see the greatness of the Grand Palace. If Lord Colodrin did not heed my words I fear it shall be that none see him again, either. It is best we do not turn back, for there shall be more orcs and Uruk-hais to muster with if we walk backwards. Onward shall we go, and shall we always do, even in the face of evil or danger." So Adriel, with her sword once again sheathed by her side, and her bow hanging in her loose quiver, walked foward, ahead of the others.


So they passed over East Bight of Mirkwood, and through finally the last of the gates. They passed through the Brown Lands and to South Undeep, where they crossed Emyn Muil and came at last to the border of the Ephel Duath (Mountains of Shadow), where beyond lay the lands of Mordor. The cursed lands of Mordor. As they arrived at the Ephel Duath, they came to rest in one of the darker territories where Orcs and Uruk-hais did not bother. They hid themselves in a cave for their first night closer to Mordor.

They ate in silence, and went to sleep at an unknown time, for on the borders of Mordor, the sun never shone. Adriel did not sleep, but rather walked about the poisoned lakes and the dying trees. Legolas did not sleep either, for elves seldom did, and instead went to see to Adriel. She noted his presence but kept on: "It is never going to end, Legolas, if that is what you worry," she said. "

"I begged you to stay in Rivendell," Legolas replied. "It was your own fault that you are now closer to death than you ever were."

"And were you not close to death when you crossed through Moria?" she asked. "Or when you and Mirthrandir and the others climbed Celebrant? Or when you passed into the realm of Lothlorien, where the temptress elf sits high in her chair, never aging and never gaining years? Do not tell me I was close to death, for I have been many times before. I am a warrior just as you, though the blood of a warrior runs thicker through my veins than through yours."

"Peace! Adriel!" cried Legolas as he began to laugh. "I will not doubt you any more, there have been too many incidences that you have proved yourself. I acknowledge your will power and your strength, though you must admit that there are times that bravery differs from foolishness, and when honor and valour run differently than stupidity and blindness," Legolas sighed and paused for a moment. When at last he spoke again he looked Adriel directly in the eye. "When you were presumed dead, I feared the end of me."

Adriel laughed loudly: "You?" she said. "For what reason? That I am more powerful than thee?"

"Precisely," Legolas replied with a smile drawn on his face. Another pause came from him, but at last he spoke: "In my heart, Adriel, do you know that I do not wish to be the betrothed to Haladrin?"

"Do not speak of matters such as these now," hissed Adriel. "It is not the time nor the place to do so. Here you must think of fighting and staying alive, rather than for the safety of me or even Mirthrandir. Worry about Haladrin when we return to Mirkwood or Rivendell, or wherever we shall be departing to. Do not tell me now that you hate your betrothed; love her as you would love any other, for she will serve you well as your queen." Smiling, Adriel walked back to the cave to rest.


Morning, if it was morning at all they couldn't tell, came swiftly. They breaked their fast, though it was meager and composed only of small, left over lembas from their tiring journey since Lothlorien, which seemed so far and long ago in their minds. Again Gandalf and Adriel led the way over the great mountains of Ephel Duath, and soon they came to a large wall, with enormous, evil carvings on it. It seemed to be a door and all over it the forbidden language of the Nazguls. Adriel waved her hand before it and it opened.

The room they walked into was dark and uninviting, a smell so thick and dry as to make any normal man choke. Pippin nearly did, even as he stood behind Gandalf and Adriel. Behind him he found it fortunate there was Legolas, then Gimli, and Aragorn. He was surrounded only by great and strong people, and he feared no longer the silence and darkness of the cave. Gandalf used his staff to create light within the cave, as he had once in Moria. Still, no one said a word as they walked down the steep and thin cave.

Adriel stopped, suddenly. She and Legolas looked back into the darkness, glints of silver in their eyes as though all that followed them was an impenetrable darkness. Fear quickly crept up once more behind Pippin, and he finally began to tremble. As if Frodo and Sam were near, he suddenly turned his thoughts towards them and how they were fairing. He also wondered about Merry, who was still alone with the Eomer in Gondor. How he longed to see his best friend and be able to jest and talk with somebody his age! Pippin had yet to "come of age" as the hobbits of the Shire called it, as did his friend, thus all others were so much older (especially the elves) than he.

"Sch!" Adriel hissed to Pippin. It seemed he had spoken his thoughts out loud. "Speak not; an evil darkness haunts our footsteps." Adriel went slowly down the steep stairs, holding her bow and keeping her arrows readied, and Gandalf next to her with his sword. Then, the stairs below them collapsed. With her reflex speed, Adriel grabbed onto the stair and onto Gandalf's wrist. He looked down and saw a chasm below them. A deep chasm filled with fire and with numerous bridges crossing it. He could see no other living being below him. He dared not let go, for then Gandalf the Grey and Gandalf the White would have both perished. The others lifted Adriel and Gandalf onto the stair, then jumped across the hole onto the other side.

"We should be careful as we journey down this stair," said Adriel, as she turned to see to the others.

"Why? What is down there?" asked Pippin.

"Things of great horror and mystery," replied Adriel. "Now quiet, lest you wish to be eaten alive by one of the beings down here." Quietly Adriel walked briskly down the stairs, wary of all that was about her and all sounds she heard. Gandalf was abreast with her, and behind her Pippin, Legolas, Gimli, and Aragorn. The rest of the way down the stair was the same, never changing: the stairs were dark and narrow, steep and yet wide at the same time. Pippin and Gimli's large feet tended to stumble, whilst Gandalf, Adriel, and Legolas walked smoothly down the steps.

continued to part iv

-how is it so far? there will be more battle scenes, and nobody dies in the next ones. i think. really, i haven't thought about those parts yet. oh well. pippin is becoming my favorite character in this fiction, partly because he is very loyal to adriel.