I'll just keep posting the chaps I wrote ages ago just for the heck of updating lol. I might do more writing on the later, like during the summer when I have time Enjoy. ;)

Chapter 9 – Growing threat :: February 13th-14th, 3019

Many months passed the same despite the change in weather. It seemed as though every day a new threat would rise and we would need to put more on duty to ensure the protection of our people. There has been word that Saruman the White has betrayed all and joined with Sauron. It is rumoured that he is breeding an army of goblin-orc crosses, the Uruk-hai I believe they are called, and they do not sound as though they are easy to throw aside. I now live in fear of the future, though our home is kept rather secret for these purposes, a shadow of threat has been growing in my mind, and I fear we will not live out this war in peace. This war is to take place in the south, mostly within Rohan and Gondor, however it will affect all Middle-Earth. I also heard that the Rivendell Elves are preparing to leave for the undying-lands. To me, this is a sign of weakness and of coward hood. I know not what the future holds for Lórien, I can only hope it does not bring despair and horrid death, mostly to the children. Amidst war is no place for an Elfling to grow up. This is why I will continue to guard my woods, whether it be during the day or night, or both, I will protect my home and try my best to keep war from seeping through our nets into their lives.

On February the 14th I think it was of the year 3019, I woke to meet a cold chill. I shivered and sat up to look around me. Cold frost clung to the leaves of the many branches around me, and my breath came out in a white cloud, then, disappeared.

I stood up to go to the edge of the talan I had been living on for a month or so with my father and Uncle Rumil and Orophin. The sun still had not risen and it was dark, I knew not if it was early in the morning or late at night. I looked down; frost covered the grass that was slowly dying, and a cold wind blew, stinging my eyes and making my face feel numb from the freezing temperature.

It was silent all around me, and I glanced around at all the other talans, all were asleep. I walked to the south east side of the talan to look through the gap of branches, all I could see were the branches of other trees. But faintly through them I could see a black and red spark on the horizon, I squinted my eyes to see what it was.

Next thing I knew, I seemed to travel at extraordinary speed, flying, though my feet were still on the talan. I reached a black land, supposedly, Mordor, and I was at the base of a tower, orcs worked endlessly, making swords shields and armour for Sauron's armies. My vision travelled up the dark tower to the top.

There, Sauron's eye loomed, staring deep into me, I tried to get away but could not, wind blew strongly all around me, my cloak and hair whipped about fiercely. A voice pressed in about me in another language. "Lab dump kul-dhog, fiimûrz ilid. Lab-nur kul-lûmp. Narisha izish rad, ugil lub dump skaat-u-nork-sing." Though I did not know the language I understood what the voice said: 'Your doom is near, young Elf. Your kin will fall. Join with me now, before your doom comes to claim you.'

"NO!" I screamed.

"You cannot hide. I see you at all times."

And with that I seemed to be released. I came back, but my world was still mute, I was on the very edge of the talan, and lost my balance.

I fell, but grabbed the edge. I was breathing heavily, and frightened out of my mind, by both what I had just seen and heard and the possibility of falling. I held on, adjusting my grip, my fingers were going numb, and I could feel myself slipping.

I grunted and continued to hold on. I tried to heave myself up, but had no success. I tried to yell but could not, something was stopping me from talking. 'This is it,' I thought. 'It's all over.' I could not feel my hands now, and the numbness soon spread to my arms. Still I held on. I began to slip, first my palm, then, my knuckles all that was holding me were my fingertips. I tried to get a better grip again, but one of my hands slipped. I whimpered and looked down, my heart pounding at an unbelievable speed in my chest. The frosted grass did not look too soft to me, and it was a long fall, maybe 20 feet. My fingertips gave way, and I screamed, but I was not falling.

I looked up; my Uncle Orophin had caught me just in time. He started to pull me up, and I grabbed his arm with my other hand. Finally, enough of my body was on the talan, to heave myself up.

"What were you doing?" My Uncle Orophin panted. Should I tell him about what happened?

"I was umm, sleep walking... I think." I replied, feeling my heart still beating more on the fast side, but starting to slow down.

"Sleep walking?" Uncle Orophin repeated. I nodded. He eyed me sceptically. "Tell me the truth. You are a bad liar."

I bit my lip.

"Would you tell your father?" Orophin asked.

I did not know, what if other elves over heard and they, and maybe even my own kin would think I was some demon child because of all the close encounters I seemed to have with Sauron's evil and all seeing eye. No, father is wise; he would probably know why this is all happening. I nodded.

"Well, then go back to sleep and tell us all in the morning." My Uncle Orophin said. He went back to his blankets and I lay in mine, until I was sure they were all asleep again.

I sat up and turned my back on the southeast, bringing my knees up to my chin, and wrapping my arms around my legs.

'Lab nur-kul-lûmp...' Sauron's voice echoed over and over in my head. 'Narisha izish... Lab dump kul-dhog.' I could not sleep, not with these words invading my thoughts. What could he mean by 'my kin will fall'?

I would jump at the slightest sound of an animal walking below us, or an owl hooting. What seemed like maybe a couple hours after my scary incident, I heard the sound of the frosted grass crunching under someone's feet, or something's.

I got up and silently started to creep towards the ladder in the middle of the talan, after picking up my bow.

I was nearly there, before I accidentally kicked the edge of my father's armour. I cringed at the sound, silently cursing myself. I cursed even more when I heard my Uncle Rumil rousing.

He opened his eyes blearily, and looked at me. "Halkira? What're you doing up? Go back to bed." He said groggily.

"I heard noises down on the ground." I replied. "Someone's walking around down there, it could be a stranger."

My Uncle Rumil groaned and pulled the blankets up over his head. "It's just one of our own going to get breakfast for us all. In case you have not realized we are running out of lembas, not to mention getting tired of it."

"Oh..." I trailed off.

"Now go back to bed, please! I cannot sleep when you are awake."

I walked to my pile of blankets that had served as a bed for me for several weeks now, and sat down. I still could not sleep; I felt something evil was coming. I took out a book on Mirkwood, and began to read, but I guess the rustling of pages annoyed my Uncle.

"Halkira, I am serious, go to bed. As in sleep." Rumil said, his voice was rather muffled because he did not remove the blankets from over his head.

"I cannot sleep." I replied.

"Well, then, I don't know. Just do something that does not make much noise." He said, voice still muffled.

"Reading is noisy?" I asked sceptically.

"I have very keen hearing like your father, and the simple turning of a page is like leaves rustling under the feet of a thousand yrch." My Uncle Rumil said, sounding as though he were half asleep.

"Fine, then I guess I will read the same two pages over and over." I said, a little angrily.

"Sounds good to me." Rumil mumbled, drifting off to sleep again.

I stared down at my book, trying to concentrate, but the evil threat kept growing stronger in my mind. Finally giving up, I threw my book aside, and lay down closing my eyes and trying to fall asleep.

It was very frustrating because every time I closed my eyes, the visions I saw replayed in my head, and if I opened my eyes, then I still heard Sauron's words.

Eventually, I drifted slowly to sleep, filled with horrific dreams. The caverns of Isengard, fire everywhere, Uruk-hai Orcs being bred, and going off to war on Saruman's command, the filthy trader!

I awoke the next morning, but did not move, my mind was awake but my body still needed rest, so I listened to the voices of my father and Uncles.

"She nearly fell off the talan?" I heard my father say in disbelief.

"Yes, she would have fallen, if I had not caught her." My Uncle Orophin said.

"That seems very unlike Halkira, she is not clumsy at all, spare a fairly cold winter and slippery ice over the rivers." I heard my Uncle Rumil state. I would get him back for that when I was fully awake.

"What happened?" Haldir asked.

"I do not know, she would not tell me. She agreed to tell us all once you were awake." Uncle Orophin replied.

"Why would she not trust you? Halkira has trusted both of you even more so than she trusted her own mother for ages." My father said. They were all clearly confused.

"Well, she trusts me more than Orophin." Rumil said. Dear Uncle Rumil, always finding a way to make fun of a serious matter.

"And why would that be?" My Uncle Orophin asked. "Because I have a better sense of humour." I could tell Uncle Rumil was smiling by the tone of his voice.

I heard someone shove him, most likely my Uncle Orophin.

"Let us get on to more serious matters. Now, where were we before Rumil side tracked us?" Haldir said, shooting a look at my Uncle Rumil.

"I think we were going to wake Halkira up, so she could tell us what happened last night, before we go to duty." My Uncle Rumil said.

"Alright, and how do we do that?" My Uncle Orophin asked.

My Uncle Rumil grinned widely. "Let me! Please! It'll be fun; I can get her back for all the times she woke me up when she was little. You know, jumping up and down on my bed. 'It's time to get up, Uncle Rumil. You have to play with me, I'm bored!'" My Uncle imitated me.

They started whispering and I began to drift off again.

I had just fallen into a deep slumber, when someone pulled my blankets off of me. "Come on, Halkira! It's time to get up and greet the sun! Smell the coffee, as I heard a strange folk say once, I don't know what coffee is though." My Uncle Rumil said.

I opened my eyes wearily and shut them tight when the sun appeared blearing in them. I groaned and rolled over, pulling the blankets back again.

"Oh, no you don't." Rumil said, pulling at the blanket. "Time to get up. Stop being so lazy. I thought you were not tired last night."

I groaned again. "Yeah, but that was because of what I saw and heard." I said.

"While we're on that subject, what did happen last night?" I heard my father ask. I peered up at my father and Uncle Orophin. "Do I have to?" I whined.

"Yes." My Uncle Orophin replied.

"Now, get up, you lazy Elf. Up!" My Uncle Rumil ordered, tugging more at my blankets. I resisted and ignored him, while he pushed me and continued pulling at the blankets. I sat up and rubbed my eyes, blinking a few times before I could get clear vision.

"Could you please tell me what you saw, Halkira? I know not what you are afraid of." My father said.

"I'm afraid that you will all fear me." I replied.

"Why would I be afraid of you? I'm bigger after all." My Uncle Rumil joked.

"Rumil this is no time for jesting." Haldir said sternly.

"Sorry." He replied, putting his hands up in mock defence.

"You can trust us." My Uncle Orophin said.

I sighed. "I woke up, and stared at the south-east because I could see something on the horizon." My father and Uncle Orophin looked at each other, they both knew which lands dwelt in which corners of Middle Earth. "Then I sort of went into a trance, and I ended up in Mordor. Then, I reached a tall black tower, it was like a bird or something was lifting me up to the top. But when I reached the top, the eye of Sauron loomed, my world was mute and wind rushed all around, I could hear a voice speaking in another language. The Black Speech if Mordor, I believe it was from my studies, and I understood it. He told me 'Your doom is near, Young Elf. Your kin will fall. Join me now before your doom comes to claim you.' Then I refused and he spoke again before I seemed to come out of the trance."

"What did he say?" My Uncle Rumil asked.

"'You cannot hide. I see you at all times.' So after I came back to the real world, right on the edge of the talan, and I lost my balance, I held on, but could not get back up. Then Uncle Orophin helped me. But I kept hearing the voice in my head." I finished, and all was silent. "Go ahead, say it. You think I have gone insane." I sighed.

"No, we are only worried. It is a scary thing to happen, for a young Elf such as yourself to have such a close encounter with the Dark Lord. And to hear the words of the Black Speech, yet understand it." My Uncle Orophin said.

"You have no idea." I replied. A sudden noise made us all jump, and look at the hole from which the rope ladder went down to the ground.

We had pulled the ladder up, and heard a voice. "Throw the ladder down, I have arrived with your breakfast." It was Nilfalath.

My father looked down, and lowered the ladder for him. Nilfalath brought us a weeks worth of some bread, fruits, drinks, and other food.

"Cuio mae." He said before leaving to give food to the others.

"Cuio mae." We replied, I could have sworn I saw Nilfalath take one last longing glance at me, as he disappeared down the ladder. For some time now, I knew he was interested in being more than friends, but decided to ignore it till he actually talked to me about it.

After breakfast, we set off for duty. I glanced at the small speck of red and black on the horizon that was Mordor, then, went down the ladder after my Uncles and father.

The evil threat that had been growing in my mind for some time seemed to come closer and closer by the hour.

When we were heading West, however, it grew so strong, I thought I would faint from the pressure. Not being able to go any further, I stopped and leaned against a tree.

"What is it?" My Uncle Rumil asked.

"Something is coming, I don't know what, but it is of great evil." I replied, staring out to the West.

"We will have the people in look out trees then." My father said.

After noon, Elves were posted in trees around the woods, mostly on the Western side. We waited and talked.

It was quite late in the afternoon when a shrill bird whistle sounded from the far West. Many other whistles followed this so the signal could reach all in the woods. Whatever I had sensed was approaching.

The Elves would follow the stranger or strangers through the trees until we were all in a circle around them.

After a few minutes I saw a company of eight approaching.

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Translations:

{ yrch: orcs. }