Chapter 3 On The Shores of Awakening

Then for many a long age Elena was forced to watch the world go on; but she did not exist: she was a bodiless soul drifting through the void. At last, Middle-Earth came to the end, the last battle was fought, and the cycle started all over again, but this time, Elena was a part of it.

When the Firstborn awoke on the shores of Cuiviénon, they were in the spring of their adulthood. They looked with wonder at everything around them, but most of all at each other. Thus, before long, the Firstborn had children of their own.

Elena was the daughter of Alquawen the Swan-maiden and Tauredil the Forest-Lover, and they named her Lomiel, Dusk-like, for her hair and eyes were as dark as the night, though a hint of twilight was in her pale cheeks.

The elves loved the stars, which greeted them upon awakening. Beneath those pinpricks of light they sang and danced, rejoicing to be alive. But always Lomiel sat apart in the ceremony. Her parents noticed this and worried about their strange, quiet daughter, but she could not explain the gloom that always lay upon her.

But one day, as Lomiel sat watching the dancers, a handsome and noble-looking elf sat beside her and said, 'Come maiden, why do you not join in our merrymaking?' He extended his graceful hand before her, and reluctantly, she allowed herself to be pulled into the circle of dancers around the fire.

As they were dancing the elf-lord asked, 'What is your name?'

Shyly and with her eyes averted, she replied, 'I am Lomiel daughter of Alquawen and Tauredil.'

'I know Tauredil! He hunts with my father. But I know all of the children of my father's friends, yet I know you not.' He let go of Lomiel's waist and called into the shadows, 'Elwë, knew you that Tauredil who hunts with father had a daughter?'

Elwë stepped into the light, and Lomiel felt her face turn bright red. He was the handsomest elf that she had ever seen. His eyes were the stars and his hair was the dark night. He stood a head taller than everybody around him, and strength abound in his arms.

'This is my older brother Elwë, and I am Olwë,' her dancing partner introduced. 'We are the sons of Lord Vinye and Lady Ithilwen.' To his brother, he said, 'this is Lomiel, daughter of Alquawen and Tauredil.'

Elwë nodded politely to Lomiel. Then he turned to Olwë and said, 'No my brother, I knew not that Tauredil had a daughter, nor that she was so close to our own age. Next time our fathers hunt together, you must come to our home and it shall be merrier than playing with the children.'

In response, Lomiel turned even brighter, for from her father she had heard of Elwë and Olwë and their father's might. Theirs was a noble house; also the brothers were handsome, and Lomiel saw the looks of envy decorating the faces of the other elf-maids.

As the days passed, Lomiel fell in love with the handsome young lord Elwë. When she was with him, she felt happy and safe, and she was less shy than normal. They spent long hours walking through the beautiful woods surrounding Cuiviénon, silently enjoying each other's company.

One night, as she was sleeping beneath the distant stars, her dream about Elwë was cruelly interrupted.

A child stared morosely at her, her brown eyes red and staring. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

The girl disappeared, only to be replaced by a sobbing woman, running towards her.

She too disappeared.

Lomiel was in a crowded room in a peculiar place. A table stood before her that strangely dressed people were filing past. Filled with curiosity, she pushed her way past them, who moved to make room for her. She reached the table, upon which was a box, inside of which a decaying girl, whose eyes were wide open. When Lomiel reached it, the corpse sat up and stretched its arms toward her.

Backing away, Lomiel stumbled and screamed.

'Shh, Lomiel, he'll hear you.' A hand covered her mouth.

She pushed the hand away, thinking of the flesh hanging off of the dead girl's reaching palm. Lomiel shuddered.

'Did you have a nightmare, or did you hear that thing out there?' The hand moved away. There was movement in the shadows, and then Elwë unveiled a lantern.

'What thing?' Lomiel asked. Her mind went back to the thing in the nightmare. Could it be that the creature in her sleep was real?

'I do not know. We were dancing around the fire when a dark shadow flew through the sky on a great stallion.'

'A dark shadow?' She repeated distractedly. She was trying to decipher her chilling dream. The people in it seemed so familiar, and yet their dark clothing could not have belonged to any of the elves'…

Before Lomiel could think anymore on the topic, an elf that she only vaguely recognized had rushed up to Elwë.

'Elwë Lord, he has come among us!'

Elwë started, 'What?'

The elf, panting, said, 'He looks like a man, but different, a great lord of a distant realm, perhaps.'

Elwë said, 'He must be great, indeed, if he has tamed a flying horse. I shall go see. Stay here, Lomiel.' Before she could protest, Elwë and the elf had taken off at a sprint.

Lomiel thought of the dead girl, then hurried after Elwë: whatever the 'dark shadow' was, it could not be as bad as the dead thing haunting her sleep.

When Lomiel at last found the shadow, a great circle had formed around him, but even from the distance Lomiel could see that he was not evil. He was handsome, even more so than her beloved Elwë. In his face shone a light as bright as the stars.

'…Do not fear, Children of Ilúvatar for I am Oromë and this is my horse Nahar. I swear on the Grace of Valinor that I mean ye no harm.' At the mention of his name, a distant memory stirred within Lomiel.

Murmurs arose around him, as neighbours asked each other of the strange words he spoke.

'Then why did you block the light of the stars and cover us in darkness?'

'I knew not that any dwelt here in the land beyond the sea. For here beyond the sea is my hunting ground, and never ere have I met any who spoke. But this night I saw fire flickering in the distance, and I heard fair voices singing. I followed the sweet song and behold, I have found ye.'

Again, a great muttering arose after he had spoken. They questioned him some more, and then the crowd gradually left the newcomer, instead forming around Vinye, his sons, and two other noble elves that Lomiel did not know. They were discussing the stranger.

Lomiel alone stood still, and soon Oromë's gaze drifted towards her. 'You are not afraid, Child?'

Boldly she replied, 'Your name is familiar to me, my lord. And a great power I see in you, though I perceive that it is not a dark one.'

Oromë said naught for a long time; he watched the slender maiden before him carefully, but finally he said, 'You have the gift of foresight…or something else. I wonder …' He stopped himself, his keen eyes still fixed on Lomiel. 'What is your name?'

'Lomiel.' But as she said it, the word tasted foreign on her tongue.

'Lomiel,' Oromë repeated, as if disbelieving. 'And how like you this land, Lomiel?'

She thought it a strange question. 'I like it fine, my lord, but I have known no other.'

'Have you not?'

Lomiel frowned. 'No my lord, I have not. Ever since my people awoke on the shore of the Lake of Awakening, I have lived here. Never have I ventured far from it.'

Still looking at her with those piercing eyes, Oromë suddenly said, 'Even in dreaming?'

Thinking of the dream that had haunted her only moments before, Lomiel stepped back, suddenly fearful. 'H-how did you know?'

Oromë smiled gently. 'Do not be afraid. I, too, have the gift of foresight. And let me tell you this: always pay heed to your dreams, for when Lomiel sleeps, your soul wakens and She has much to say if you would listen.'

Lomiel took another step away from the strange visitor that had read her mind. She backed away slowly, and then took off, flying through the woods.

Oromë's voice followed her: 'Remember to listen!'