FOUR - Searching For Solutions
Keldin grumbled, annoyed at being interrupted. He had been sitting in his workshop much of the night, trying to build a better arrow. The Elves were now using a simple razor arrowhead, nothing more. The enemies are going to have thick armor. That means more arrows will be needed he thought to himself, irritated. He twirled an Elvish arrow in his fingers.
"Keldin, have you found something we can use?" Elenna asked, her voice impatient and her eyes glinting. The longer she waited, the more anxious she became. Lord Elrond was captured, and her army's weapons weren't enough to make even a small dent in Azruk's forces.
"No," the fletcher said softly. "I have not found it. But patience, my dear. Patience. It will come."
"We don't have time for patience! The forces of Mordor could be knocking on our door at any second, and Lord Elrond has been taken!" Elenna immediately regretted shouting at Keldin, so she added, "Your arrows are worth waiting for, but we really don't have time."
Keldin turned his gaze on the elf-maiden, his unnervingly calm gray eyes holding her blue ones. "My dear, the idea will come to me soon and then I can get your arrows to you. But bothering me will only hinder the process."
Elenna sighed. "Fine. I hope to see you at the council tonight." She tapped the door with her knuckle before leaving.
Turning back to his work table, Keldin's glance fell upon a glass cup filled with water that Elenna had brought him. His eyes went wide as he picked up the cup, spilling some of the water. Brilliant, he thought. This will be my best idea yet.
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In the hallway, Elenna met Glorfindel. He took one look at her exasperated expression and asked, "He hasn't come up with anything yet, has he?"
"No. I'm praying for a revelation by the council tonight. Otherwise there simply won't be time to get everything ready." Suddenly she realized that she could hear the sound of someone breathing behind her. "I can hear you, whoever you are. Come out and explain to me why you have been eavesdropping."
Celebmundoiel came out from behind a door, red faced. "I wasn't eavesdropping!" she said angrily. "I just happened to overhear. Why are you even bothering to wait for that idiotic fletcher to come up with something? Don't you understand that Elrond could be dead?"
Elenna willed herself to keep her temper. "Of course I understand that. But without a new arrow design, we have no hope."
"We have no hope anyway!" Celebmundoiel nearly shouted. Then she rounded on Glorfindel. "What chance do you think Elrond has with this fool commanding the army? Had your wits gone begging when you agreed to let her command instead of you? I think you only agreed because you two are lovers."
Glorfindel, who generally didn't lose his temper, held Elenna's sword hand as she reached for her blade. He turned to the furious niece of Galadriel. "I did not agree for any such reason, Lady Celebmundoiel. Truly, I do love Elenna, but Lord Elrond put her in charge, not me. And if you do not trust his judgment, you are more of a fool than any of your ignorant ranting can show you."
Then Elenna spoke. "I see that you are trying to undermine my command. You are upset because I will not let you run off on a one-maiden mission to save Elrond. Please go find something productive to do. I tire of listening to your whining."
Celebmundoiel looked for a second like she was going to jump at Elenna, but instead whirled around and stomped down the hall. After she was out of sight, Elenna rolled her eyes and went back to the library, followed by Glorfindel. They had work to do.
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Keldin muttered aloud as his fingers moved deftly over the shaft of his newest creation. He twirled the arrow in his hands and as he did, his muttering became louder. "Mallome, I do not know if this will work. This arrow will need a thick bow and a very strong archer to fire it at sound speed. But it is worth a try, eh?" With the orcs practically at Rivendell's door and the Lord of Imladris captured, time was of the essence. Even Keldin was hurrying about his task.
The wood of the shaft was mallorn. It was light and flexible, but would hold the weight of the head well. The arrowhead was made in three parts: one, the base that held the head on the shaft. It was composed of three steel claws that held the second part of the arrow, the glass component. This was rather weighty and would throw off the balance some, but he could fix that later with a glass nock and a steel band around the feather. The steel tip was like a barb and wouldn't do much damage until it hit something hard - like armor. As the arrow hit its mark, the glass would shatter, causing great damage to the foe. When pulled out, the three steel prongs that held the glass in place would snap inward, making a worse wound. If pulled out correctly, the arrow would take on its final transformation. Linna-gur.
Keldin touched the feathers, and then pulled them out. Re-notching the end of the arrow with his small carving knife, he cut a spiral for the feather to be fit in. "A flu-flu would be good. It would cause more trouble for our foe, right, Mallome." He smiled as he glued the feathers back in place, then he carefully fit the steel rings on the end and last but not least, the glass nock. It was made of elven glass that would not break easily and shone like a star in the night, so they could find their arrows again. "Come, we must test it." He grabbed his bow and the dozen arrows that he had made in the span of a day. Setting them in his specially made quiver, he set out.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Elenna sat in Lord Elrond's great chair in the council chamber. Being on the dais made her a little nervous, for, had things been normal, it would not be her place to sit here. However, nothing at all was normal.
"All right, friends. As you know, we are likely to see battle tomorrow. We must rescue Lord Elrond before he is broken by torture."
A voice shouted from the back. "Lord Elrond will never surrender!"
"Elrond Halfelven is a great lord, but Azruk is cruel. I hope that our lord will survive, but practicality leads me to believe otherwise unless we do something soon. Keldin, have you found anything?"
"Yes. I have invented a new arrow, but I don't have enough to supply every archer in this army, and my design is far from perfect."
"Well, you have tonight to finish. Stay up until dawn's light if you must, but we have to be ready by sunrise tomorrow," Elenna ordered. Keldin looked annoyed at being commanded thus, but she had other things on her mind.
"Tomorrow, the battle will begin. The Bruinen is a terrible place to fight, but it's the best we can do. Our archers will have to shoot from the trees, and the rest of us will be spending most of our time in the river. Now that Elrond has been captured, we cannot flood the valley. Archers, Azruk has thousands of orcs that are nothing but arrow fodder. They are meant to be a distraction so that you won't notice the Uruk-hai. Don't waste your arrows. Form crews - some shooting for orcs, some for Wargs, some for Uruk-hai. The sword and dagger fighters should go primarily for the Uruks. And leave Azruk to me. We have an old score to settle."
Elenna stopped, and Keldin caught her eye. He knew of what she spoke. Ten years ago, the Uruk-hai general had found Elenna's little sister, Lalaith, playing in the woods. He had killed Lalaith and brutally tortured Elenna. When Keldin's wife, Mallome, had tried to stop him, he killed her as well. Elenna had sworn to kill Azruk with the very blade she had named for her sister. Then, coming out of her reverie, she addressed Keldin again.
"You had best go back to your workshop, friend. We shall need those arrows very soon."
Keldin growled, a low rumbling noise that made the elves seated next to him sidle away. They dare to rush me? he thought. The arrows will be flimsy if I hurry. But the orcs won't wait, I suppose. She has a point. He stood and made his way forward to the dais where Elenna sat.
"I have them almost finished. I just need to do a bit of refining and then the archers can come and get them. I have enough to supply 40 archers, if they get 36 each. Choose 40 of your strongest and most accurate, for these arrows are heavy and the balance is very different from what they are used to." His voice seemed gruff, but it immediately caught everyone's attention.
"You have them done!" Glorfindel said, clapping a hand to his friend's shoulder. "It would be a great asset to us if we had them for tomorrow." He and Elenna came off the platform, and Keldin handed them each a prototype of linna-gûr.
"These are incredible, Keldin!" Elenna exclaimed.
He nodded slowly, crossing his massive arms over his chest, looking down his nose at the tough warrior maid. "They can be used twice. The first form is the shatterstar. It will pierce any armor and create a terrible wound. The next form is the most deadly. Linna-gur. It shrieks as it flies, making a sound that will deafen any Warg, causing pandemonium in their ranks." He took a deep breath and continued. "That will buy you enough time to eliminate most of the Wargs, leaving only the orcs and Uruks. Remember that you only have a few of these, so spend them wisely. And be careful when you remove them. Twist and pull."
Elenna smiled up at him, an expression that almost made you forget that she was a fearless warrior. Keldin was forcibly reminded of the way the Elenna had been before her sister and his wife were killed. "Good. Thank you, Keldin." She clasped his arm and then quickly walked out of the door. "I'll have forty of my strongest stop by your workshop tonight." She disappeared around a corner, and the other commanders followed her.
Keldin sighed as he watched the rest of the warriors file out. "I know, Mallome. She reminds me so much of you," he muttered as he left through the back door.
Keldin grumbled, annoyed at being interrupted. He had been sitting in his workshop much of the night, trying to build a better arrow. The Elves were now using a simple razor arrowhead, nothing more. The enemies are going to have thick armor. That means more arrows will be needed he thought to himself, irritated. He twirled an Elvish arrow in his fingers.
"Keldin, have you found something we can use?" Elenna asked, her voice impatient and her eyes glinting. The longer she waited, the more anxious she became. Lord Elrond was captured, and her army's weapons weren't enough to make even a small dent in Azruk's forces.
"No," the fletcher said softly. "I have not found it. But patience, my dear. Patience. It will come."
"We don't have time for patience! The forces of Mordor could be knocking on our door at any second, and Lord Elrond has been taken!" Elenna immediately regretted shouting at Keldin, so she added, "Your arrows are worth waiting for, but we really don't have time."
Keldin turned his gaze on the elf-maiden, his unnervingly calm gray eyes holding her blue ones. "My dear, the idea will come to me soon and then I can get your arrows to you. But bothering me will only hinder the process."
Elenna sighed. "Fine. I hope to see you at the council tonight." She tapped the door with her knuckle before leaving.
Turning back to his work table, Keldin's glance fell upon a glass cup filled with water that Elenna had brought him. His eyes went wide as he picked up the cup, spilling some of the water. Brilliant, he thought. This will be my best idea yet.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
In the hallway, Elenna met Glorfindel. He took one look at her exasperated expression and asked, "He hasn't come up with anything yet, has he?"
"No. I'm praying for a revelation by the council tonight. Otherwise there simply won't be time to get everything ready." Suddenly she realized that she could hear the sound of someone breathing behind her. "I can hear you, whoever you are. Come out and explain to me why you have been eavesdropping."
Celebmundoiel came out from behind a door, red faced. "I wasn't eavesdropping!" she said angrily. "I just happened to overhear. Why are you even bothering to wait for that idiotic fletcher to come up with something? Don't you understand that Elrond could be dead?"
Elenna willed herself to keep her temper. "Of course I understand that. But without a new arrow design, we have no hope."
"We have no hope anyway!" Celebmundoiel nearly shouted. Then she rounded on Glorfindel. "What chance do you think Elrond has with this fool commanding the army? Had your wits gone begging when you agreed to let her command instead of you? I think you only agreed because you two are lovers."
Glorfindel, who generally didn't lose his temper, held Elenna's sword hand as she reached for her blade. He turned to the furious niece of Galadriel. "I did not agree for any such reason, Lady Celebmundoiel. Truly, I do love Elenna, but Lord Elrond put her in charge, not me. And if you do not trust his judgment, you are more of a fool than any of your ignorant ranting can show you."
Then Elenna spoke. "I see that you are trying to undermine my command. You are upset because I will not let you run off on a one-maiden mission to save Elrond. Please go find something productive to do. I tire of listening to your whining."
Celebmundoiel looked for a second like she was going to jump at Elenna, but instead whirled around and stomped down the hall. After she was out of sight, Elenna rolled her eyes and went back to the library, followed by Glorfindel. They had work to do.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Keldin muttered aloud as his fingers moved deftly over the shaft of his newest creation. He twirled the arrow in his hands and as he did, his muttering became louder. "Mallome, I do not know if this will work. This arrow will need a thick bow and a very strong archer to fire it at sound speed. But it is worth a try, eh?" With the orcs practically at Rivendell's door and the Lord of Imladris captured, time was of the essence. Even Keldin was hurrying about his task.
The wood of the shaft was mallorn. It was light and flexible, but would hold the weight of the head well. The arrowhead was made in three parts: one, the base that held the head on the shaft. It was composed of three steel claws that held the second part of the arrow, the glass component. This was rather weighty and would throw off the balance some, but he could fix that later with a glass nock and a steel band around the feather. The steel tip was like a barb and wouldn't do much damage until it hit something hard - like armor. As the arrow hit its mark, the glass would shatter, causing great damage to the foe. When pulled out, the three steel prongs that held the glass in place would snap inward, making a worse wound. If pulled out correctly, the arrow would take on its final transformation. Linna-gur.
Keldin touched the feathers, and then pulled them out. Re-notching the end of the arrow with his small carving knife, he cut a spiral for the feather to be fit in. "A flu-flu would be good. It would cause more trouble for our foe, right, Mallome." He smiled as he glued the feathers back in place, then he carefully fit the steel rings on the end and last but not least, the glass nock. It was made of elven glass that would not break easily and shone like a star in the night, so they could find their arrows again. "Come, we must test it." He grabbed his bow and the dozen arrows that he had made in the span of a day. Setting them in his specially made quiver, he set out.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Elenna sat in Lord Elrond's great chair in the council chamber. Being on the dais made her a little nervous, for, had things been normal, it would not be her place to sit here. However, nothing at all was normal.
"All right, friends. As you know, we are likely to see battle tomorrow. We must rescue Lord Elrond before he is broken by torture."
A voice shouted from the back. "Lord Elrond will never surrender!"
"Elrond Halfelven is a great lord, but Azruk is cruel. I hope that our lord will survive, but practicality leads me to believe otherwise unless we do something soon. Keldin, have you found anything?"
"Yes. I have invented a new arrow, but I don't have enough to supply every archer in this army, and my design is far from perfect."
"Well, you have tonight to finish. Stay up until dawn's light if you must, but we have to be ready by sunrise tomorrow," Elenna ordered. Keldin looked annoyed at being commanded thus, but she had other things on her mind.
"Tomorrow, the battle will begin. The Bruinen is a terrible place to fight, but it's the best we can do. Our archers will have to shoot from the trees, and the rest of us will be spending most of our time in the river. Now that Elrond has been captured, we cannot flood the valley. Archers, Azruk has thousands of orcs that are nothing but arrow fodder. They are meant to be a distraction so that you won't notice the Uruk-hai. Don't waste your arrows. Form crews - some shooting for orcs, some for Wargs, some for Uruk-hai. The sword and dagger fighters should go primarily for the Uruks. And leave Azruk to me. We have an old score to settle."
Elenna stopped, and Keldin caught her eye. He knew of what she spoke. Ten years ago, the Uruk-hai general had found Elenna's little sister, Lalaith, playing in the woods. He had killed Lalaith and brutally tortured Elenna. When Keldin's wife, Mallome, had tried to stop him, he killed her as well. Elenna had sworn to kill Azruk with the very blade she had named for her sister. Then, coming out of her reverie, she addressed Keldin again.
"You had best go back to your workshop, friend. We shall need those arrows very soon."
Keldin growled, a low rumbling noise that made the elves seated next to him sidle away. They dare to rush me? he thought. The arrows will be flimsy if I hurry. But the orcs won't wait, I suppose. She has a point. He stood and made his way forward to the dais where Elenna sat.
"I have them almost finished. I just need to do a bit of refining and then the archers can come and get them. I have enough to supply 40 archers, if they get 36 each. Choose 40 of your strongest and most accurate, for these arrows are heavy and the balance is very different from what they are used to." His voice seemed gruff, but it immediately caught everyone's attention.
"You have them done!" Glorfindel said, clapping a hand to his friend's shoulder. "It would be a great asset to us if we had them for tomorrow." He and Elenna came off the platform, and Keldin handed them each a prototype of linna-gûr.
"These are incredible, Keldin!" Elenna exclaimed.
He nodded slowly, crossing his massive arms over his chest, looking down his nose at the tough warrior maid. "They can be used twice. The first form is the shatterstar. It will pierce any armor and create a terrible wound. The next form is the most deadly. Linna-gur. It shrieks as it flies, making a sound that will deafen any Warg, causing pandemonium in their ranks." He took a deep breath and continued. "That will buy you enough time to eliminate most of the Wargs, leaving only the orcs and Uruks. Remember that you only have a few of these, so spend them wisely. And be careful when you remove them. Twist and pull."
Elenna smiled up at him, an expression that almost made you forget that she was a fearless warrior. Keldin was forcibly reminded of the way the Elenna had been before her sister and his wife were killed. "Good. Thank you, Keldin." She clasped his arm and then quickly walked out of the door. "I'll have forty of my strongest stop by your workshop tonight." She disappeared around a corner, and the other commanders followed her.
Keldin sighed as he watched the rest of the warriors file out. "I know, Mallome. She reminds me so much of you," he muttered as he left through the back door.