Chapter 9
"Lords, Ladies, dear friends, I welcome you to this council, in which the fate of Middle Earth will again be decided." Celeborn spoke to those who had gathered on the small platform on which the council had assembled. "It has been many years since I have seen such as you gathered together in such a meeting as this. And, as many of you will have noticed, it is exactly ten years since the Council of Elrond in which the fate of the One Ring was decided. They chose to destroy the threat to their homes, and now we must do the same." Celeborn paused and turned to Alana, who was sitting on his right, with Legolas sitting on hers. "Alana, will you now tell us of your journey, and what you learned from what you have seen."
Alana rose and nodded. "Yes my Lord, I will do that. The time has come at last, for secrets to be at last, brought out into the open." She paused and took a deep breath."
"I began my journey, exactly 14 months after the destruction of Sauron and the One Ring. I was sent by the Lady Galadriel, who had asked me to do this for her before she left these shores, ne'er to return. A strange request, I thought, until His Royal Highness, King Aragorn, told me of the guardian, a tale that will be told by him, after I have spoken of my journey."
"I left Rivendell, and headed south toward the kingdom of Rohan, where, Galadriel informed me, I was to speak with the King of that land, Eomer. I arrived there ten weeks later after much hard travel, and learned a great deal. Galadriel had entrusted to Eomer, a secret at King Ellessar's wedding to Arwen. Great evil was growing, greater than Sauron, perhaps even greater than Morgoth himself. It would not awaken, for some years, but when it did, a great good would also be awakened in one of the free peoples of Middle Earth, the Guardian. Galadriel, asked Eomer to safeguard her secret until the time was right, and her messenger arrived. And he has done so.
"I left Rohan three days later, and, at Eomer's request, journeyed to Fangorn forest, where I spoke with Treebeard. He told me that if the Guardian did not wake soon, then all good beings on Middle Earth would perish, and the ending of the world would take place. Treebeard the entrusted me with a gift for the Guardian, was I ever to meet them, a book of spells and enchantments, old as time. He said that when the time came, I would know what to do. I left Treebeard, and journeyed to Lothlorien, where I stayed for some months, before journeying to far lands in the East, of which I will not speak."
"I arrived back in Rivendell almost 2 months ago, and it has now become apparent that the Guardian has emerged." Alana finished, and sighed. Celeborn, deep in thought, nodded in her direction, and she sat down.
"My lord Aragorn, have you discovered the identitiy of the Guardian, that Alana speaks of?" Celeborn asked quietly.
"I have my Lord." Aragorn answered as he rose. He turned and pointed at Alana. "It's you." He whispered.
Everyone in the council gasped and turned to look at Alana, who sat with her head tilted downward. Legolas looked at her with hurt in his eyes. Why had she not told him this before? Why had Aragorn not told him this?
Legolas stood and made as if to go, but Celeborn stopped him. "Stay Legolas, there is still more that you need to hear." Legolas nodded and obeyed him, sitting down beside Alana.
"Aragorn, would you begin?" Celeborn asked.
Aragorn nodded and took a deep breath. "I will tell you now, of the Guardian, what her quest will be, and of her history, which I have only recently discovered, by reading various books from Lord Elrond's library."
"Before the beginning of the Second Age, the Valar, discovered that a Great Evil would soon be born , an evil that, given the chance, would completely destroy Middle Earth forever. They created a child, an Elven child, and gave her special gifts, the gift of foresight, the ability to freeze time, and the gift of Telekinesis. She would become the Guardian of all this Middle Earth, and protect her from the Evil. They called this child Alana, which means peaceful and serene, qualities which the child would posses as she grew. The Valar hid the child in the womb of an Elven woman, and were forced to bind her powers, until such time as she would need them, to protect her from the Evil as she grew and learned."
"The time has come my friends, the evil is awake and waiting to make its' move. We have discovered the Guardian, are we going to sit here and let Middle Earth be destroyed, or are we again ready to fight, to stand up and be counted among great heroes of legend? This is your first and only chance to make this choice, for there will be no other. Now what will you have? Death, or Hope, life, a new beginning for your children, for your descendants. Stand up my friends, and be counted. What will you have?"