Author's note:
I'll put my note at the end of this chapter, as it is mostly a response to a very comprehensive review. Anyway hope you enjoy this chapter and please review
Disclaimer:
I do not own Lord of the Rings or any of the places, characters, items, etc associated with it. I am not making any money from this piece of fiction and am merely borrowing these places and characters to place in a new situation for you and my amassment.
However, the Rocs, the City of Cirus, Aquila, Pandion, Audax and any other characters, weapons, places, etc associated with the Rocs are my own creation and I lay full claim to them.
Three
A Roc ReturnsA swift breeze hurried through the many open archways that served as windows and doors in the many beautiful buildings in Rivendell. Leaves were plucked from the ground and swept up the side of the cliff upon which the largest building in Imladris sat on the edge of. The House of Lord Elrond was every bit as beautifully crafted as everything else the skilled Elves created. The Lord of Imladris himself sat in a high backed chair mulling over an array of maps and ancient scripts that littered his desk. His brow furrowed as he studied a particular map more intently. Leaves scattered the floors and still more drifted in. The breeze swirled around Elrond and shifted his long dark hair; the only thing keeping it from obscuring his vision was the mithril circlet upon his brow. He was so absorbed by the task at hand he did not hear or even notice the Elf that had entered the room. The Elf called his lord's name several times but failed to get his attention. Finally in a bold move he approached the desk at which Elrond was sitting, placed both hands on it and leant forward.
"My Lord?"
Elrond looked up but did not seem the least bit concerned by the fact that he had not noticed the other's arrival.
"Yes?"
"I have brought you lunch, you were not present at breakfast and we were worried that you would forget to eat at lunch as well."
"Thank you Cer, both for the lunch and for worrying about me." He smiled politely at the young Elf who had now walked back to the door where he had placed the tray of food he had entered with on a small table. He then promptly returned to the desk and searched vainly for a place to set the tray down. Elrond, meanwhile, had returned to pondering over a script.
"Forgive my second interruption my Lord but where should I set your meal?"
"Well…perhaps if I moves these," he picked up a pile of maps only to find more beneath. As he continued to try and clear a space Cer had returned to the door and picked up the small table he had set the tray on earlier. He then carried it to the desk and set it down beside Elrond. He then placed the tray on the table and smiled. Elrond smiled back.
"Oh, another thing my Lord. We have received word that the party you sent to the Western Coast will reach Rivendell by the end of the day."
"Good. Be sure to inform me of their arrival, as I will much desire to speak with them of…" he was cut short by a distant screech. Looking intrigued, if not slightly confused he pushed his chair out and got to his feet. He turned his back to the other Elf and wandered out onto a balcony, listening intently.
"What is it my Lord?"
"Shhh" Elrond whispered while gesturing for silence. It didn't take long for the cry to pierce the quiet again, this time louder. Elrond smiled to himself before turning and facing Cer.
"Tell me Cer, what bird would you say is that calling?"
"Well Master Elrond, were I not mistaken I would say it was one of the Great Eagles. Though I fear I am mistaken for I speak their language well yet I have not understood a word this bird has said."
"You are right, it would sound very much like one of the Great Eagles to one who has not heard this birds cry before. How old are you Cer?"
"Nearing 1019 my Lord"
"Then you would not be expected to understand a word this bird is saying. For, though all reason suggests otherwise, I believe that cry belongs to a race that disappeared from Middle Earth nearly 2000 years ago." Elrond then turned once more and walked to the edge of the railing, gripping it tightly. "If it is indeed what I think it is then this will be a glorious day." He then scanned the sky for said bird and caught a glimpse of it in the distance approaching swiftly on the breeze that swirled through Rivendell, and with his keen Elf eyes his dreams were confirmed. There was only one more test to conduct before he was sure that this was what he thought it was. "Come Cer for you will soon see a sight that no one has seen for nearly two millennia." Cer slowly walked out onto the balcony to stand slightly behind Elrond. A third piercing cry echoed through the valley, this one loud enough for the whole of Imladris to turn their heads towards the sky, some in wonderment, others simply looked confused. Cupping his hands at either side of his mouth Elrond answered the bird's cry with a similar screech.
"You are talking to it?" Cer asked in wonderment.
Elrond merely nodded, smiling, before emitting another cry. The bird answered with another call and as it slowly circled closer and closer Elrond called out in his own tongue. "You are free to land! May you find haven in Rivendell!" He then quickly walked along the balcony till he reached a flight of stairs that lead down to a courtyard, which the huge bird was clearly planning to use as a landing platform.
Cer and a number of other Elves gathered behind Elrond as the bird slowed its descent. Talon's outstretched it landed in the courtyard amongst a swirl of leaves, kicked up by a final beat of its massive wings. The wind caused by it radiated out and tangled the hair of many an Elf. Elrond simply watched in wonderment. The bird lowered itself until its belly was touching the ground. Then, as if from nowhere, four Hobbits slipped from its back. Helping each other down they laughed and chattered away, oblivious to those around them.
Elrond looked on in shock as the Hobbits steadied themselves on legs cramped from sitting too long. His expression then warmed as he quickly recognized the four Hobbits to be none other than Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gamgee, Meriadock Brandybuck and Peregrin Took.
"How is it that lately when ever I seem to receive ill news regarding Middle Earth you four show up?"
"Elrond" Frodo smiled widely and walked over to him. "It is good to see you again and what ill news do we come to this time may I ask?"
"I myself am not sure of its source or severity so I will not trouble you with it for now Frodo. Your Uncle is in the library if you wish to see him." He questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Thank you!" Frodo cried out before dashing off in the direction of Rivendell's extensive library with the other three Hobbits in tow.
Elrond then turned his attention back to the great bird only to have to raise an arm in order to shield his eyes from the blinding flash of white light that erupted from where the bird stood. As himself and the other Elves lowered arms and hands, and eyes adjusted to the return of natural light Aquila was revealed to them in her Half form, standing exactly where the great eagle-like creature had stood but seconds ago. Many Elves gasped in realization as to what she was, many questioned those who seemed to know what her presence meant. Soon a soft murmur had spread through the group. All this was lost to Elrond as he watched the Roc delicately walk towards him. It was if she walked from the mists of a dream, one that had long been lost to him.
She stopped a few paces from him and dropped to one knee, head bowed. She then raised her head and locked eyes with the Lord of Rivendell.
"Elrond Peredhel you once said to me that Imladris would be a haven to me if I ever sought one."
"And it always shall be, Aquila Princess of the Rocs." He smiled warmly at her and indicted for her to stand. He walked a full circle around her before stopping in front of her. "It has been far too long since one of you kind walked amongst us." A light filled his eyes unlike any she had ever seen before. "Perhaps there is more hope than I thought."
"Then you have seen it too?" She whispered so that only he could hear.
"You may have some foresight ability but unless you have exercised it since your father brought you to me to teach you then you will have none beyond the dreams you used to have."
"'Tis true, I have only seen these visions in the deepest of my dreams. You would have seen them more vividly than I."
"Indeed I have." His brow creased and he lowered his eyes. He then sighed and rose his gaze to meet Aquila's "This is hardly the place to discuss such matters though. Join me in my study?" He gestured a hand up the staircase he had descended before.
"Thank you. I have much to tell you and much to ask you." She sat down in one of a set of chairs set next to a small table, upon which stood two crystal wine glasses.
"I imagine you do but you cannot even begin to comprehend the number of questions I have for you." Elrond returned from a wine rack after selecting a bottle of the finest red wine Middle Earth had to offer.
She lowered her gaze till it rested upon the floor.
"The decision to leave was not mine."
"I do not doubt that it wasn't but I also believe you know the reasons for your father's choice to leave?" He poured the wine into the two glasses and picked up one of them between his slender fingers and offered it to Aquila. She took it smiling and raised it to Elrond in a toast. He returned the smile and raised his glass.
"To the return of the Rocs" He proclaimed before placing the glass to his lips and drinking deeply. Aquila did the same, savoring the taste. Both then placed their glasses back on the table.
"I'm afraid it is just one Roc." Aquila added. Elrond raised a questioning eyebrow.
"Then you have come without your father's permission?"
"Indeed I have. He may be happy sitting about on his throne while the rest of Middle Earth suffers but I was not. He would not send help and I know if I had of told him I was leaving he would have done everything in his power to stop me."
"Ah…so the Rocs have not left Middle Earth?"
"No but please do not ask me where we now live for I will at least allow my father the secrecy he strives so hard to maintain."
"Pandion did not think to come? Of the few times your father brought him here he never seemed like the type to sit by and watch the suffering of others."
"Normally he would argue the point with father over sending armies to aid the free peoples of Middle Earth more fiercely than I but this time………" she trailed off and lowered her eyes. Just as Elrond was about to coax her to finish the sentence she lifted her head and continued "Pandion is the reason I am here. What happened to his family was the last thread to be pulled from a tapestry that had been unraveling for quite sometime."
"I trust their deaths have something to do with the trouble I think we've all been sensing in the West"
"How did you…?" She looked confused.
"'Tis written in your eyes princess. You have not yet finished grieving for your brother's loss, which makes me think your journey here was rather rushed."
She smiled at him and was glade she had come.
"Though I fear we can delay the topic no longer, as it seems to be the reason for your unannounced visit to Imladris, I would like for you to tell me all that you have done and seen since you left…where ever it is that the Rocs now dwell. That is unless you are weary from your journey and wish to rest. I have a party of Elves returning from the Western shores this afternoon to bring news of this evil."
"Their news will be days old, even if they travel upon the swiftest steeds Middle Earth has to offer. I was there yesterday morning so my news at least will be fresher."
Elrond raised both eyebrows and leant back in his chair.
"Then I think it is necessary that you tell me what news you bare as it will be far more useful to me than theirs."
Aquila smiled and sank back into her chair before beginning to tell the Lord of Rivendell everything that had happened to her that day. She of course left out anything about the location of the City of Cirus and was vague about directions, other than she headed west, when speaking of her journey to the sea. She probably needn't have been so scarce on directions, as her journey had been greatly distorted by the constantly changing air currents which she had traveled in. She spoke of the turmoil at the shores and the creatures crawling up the beach in great detail. Elrond listened intently to everything she said, often questioning her if a detail was left out. She told him of her meeting with the Hobbits and ended with their arrival in Rivendell. Once finished she picked up her wine glass and drank another large sip from it. Elrond looked deep in thought and she decided it was best not to disturb him till he was done pondering whatever it was that was running through his head. Both their thoughts however were interrupted by a quick knock at the door.
"Enter" Elrond called out, now snapped from his trance-like state. Cer slipped through the door.
"The party has returned from the west. They are on their approach to Rivendell my Lord."
"Thank you Cer." Elrond said while rising to his feet. Aquila followed suit. Cer slipped back out the door and shut it softly. "Will you join me in welcoming the travelers back?"
"Thank you Master Elrond, I believe I will join you." She smiled and followed him out the door. As they walked she walked beside but slightly behind the Lord of Imladris out of respect. Elrond smiled at all the subtleties that indicated she had been brought up a proper princess. No one would think that beneath her poised appearance lay a fierce warrior. The Rocs had always been a bit of an oddity to the Elves; a never-ending enigma that became more complicated the more you learnt. One of the more complicated was Aquila. As a child she had come to see Elrond once her father discovered she was glimpsing visions of the future in her dreams. Since then the Elven Lord had done his best to understand Aquila but just as he was getting somewhere the Rocs disappeared from Middle Earth. At the present moment none of this really mattered so he pushed it to the back of his mind, resolving to try and get some more information as to the Rocs sudden departure from Aquila at a later time.
To be continued…
Author's note:
I.H.N: Ok, next time I decide to write a story remind me to contact you before hand. I mean this in the best way possible as your review may well be the pinnacle of constructive criticism and that is a very good thing, it has certainly made me rethink a lot of what I've written or are about to write.
So let me start of by saying thank you for talking the time to write all you did. First off I will mention that I have read some of the earlier histories of Middle Earth so I am not totally naive when it comes to the subject. I will admit however to not knowing it in any great detail, which you seem to. When Tolkien created Middle Earth he also wrote an impossibly airtight history to go along with it, good for readers of his work, not so good when you're trying to weasel something in, i.e. my Rocs. I will, however, try to the best of my abilities to answer your questions.
For the 'who created them' question this is a very good point and the thought never really crossed my mind, believe it or not. Bringing it up however has forced me to consider this. The best answer I can give you is that Eru created them and that their creation rose from a desire to further unite nature and the Children of Ilúvatar. This is also why they were given the gift of being able to transform from a giant eagle into a human/elf type creature (this is before the development of the Half form), so that they were forever suspended between being creatures of Arda and a race of beings. The reason they are immortal stems from the fact that they existed in two forms, one a bird with a life span far shorter than even mortal men, the other a being. By gifting the Rocs with immortality it did not matter how much time they existed in either form, it would not affect their life span. Their Half form was accomplished, as afore mentioned in the prologue, by a Roc named Falco. As they naturally know the process their bodies go through to descend or ascend from one form to the other they were able to find a point in between these two forms, which they could pause the transformation at and exist as a mix of the two forms.
I agree entirely with your claim that new races seem to always be created better than others and I am trying to keep my Rocs from falling prey to this. I never made a claim that they were any stronger than the other races of Middle Earth, merely very skilled warriors; this skill of course is ascertained through strenuous training undergone throughout their lives. Unlike the elves they are no wiser then any other race, caring little for history and telling few tales, preferring to witness displays of skill, such as dueling competitions, as a source of entertainment. Their time in life is mostly donated to training in the art of battle. Their skill as craftsmen has been gained through knowledge passed on by the Elves, which they have experimented with since leaving, creating a number of unique weapons.
Their language is their own though not entirely created by them. Like many of the spoken languages in Middle Earth it is derived from elsewhere. I imagine it evolved as a mix of Elvish and the 'calls' they communicate with in their Eagle form. Though there could well have been other influences.
I am very aware the Elves are not entirely peaceful, they have quite a violent past in some parts. Being allied with the Elves the Rocs did indeed fight with them in many of the wars fought in Middle Earth's earlier histories, that is, before the Rocs departed. As to a lack of their mention in these early histories I can only speculate as to why this is. I would say that many of the records the race of Men held concerning them would have been destroyed after the Rocs supposed 'betrayal' (of which I will mention as the story progresses). As for any Elvish records concerning them I imagine these too were destroyed or, more likely, hidden so as not to cause further conflict between Elves and Men. The Rocs too destroyed any record of their existence in Middle Earth before departing in the hope that they would be forgotten. My guess is the race of Men wished to forget them too.
As for the danger lurking beneath the Western sea I can't say too much without giving away a lot so I'll answer as best as I can for now and the rest will hopefully become clear later. I do know the sea is Osse's realm but aside from that very little is known about it. Really can't go too much into it but let's just say the danger may have originated in the sea and was not necessarily a danger while it remained there but it does not remain in the sea for very long and becomes a much bigger problem. That's about all I can say on that topic. I'm really just trying to go with something a bit different in the 'possible threat' sense.
Thank you for the heads up on the angle thing, you make a very good point and I will be sure not to let myself slip like that in the future.
I'm afraid I most certainly cannot tell you where the Roc city is located at this point in time as it will eventually be reviled. But you are most certainly right about it being difficult to hide an entire city. I had a lot of trouble finding a plausible location for it but hopefully you will find where I have placed it believable enough. We have to learn to be just a little flexible.
Thank you for the advice regarding both Aquila and the Rocs (in later chapters I hope to introduce some of the other Rocs into the story). I have taken on board what you have said regarding the Mary-Sue thing and (as this is only my second fanfic) I would defiantly appreciate any more help you can give on the matter. Hopefully some of her flaws will come through in later chapters and she will be a likeable enough character.
Well I am very glad to hear that my spelling and grammar are up to scratch, it's not normally a very strong point of mine and I'll try and keep the standard up. I apologize for the Elvin instead of Elven, I can safely blame that one on the horrible Word spell checker who thinks it is spelt Elvin and a lapse in concentration while spell checking. 'Why not add Elven to its dictionary?' you ask. The answer is simple, I cannot spell to save my life and rely almost completely on spell checker to ensure my essays contain no spelling errors. Unfortunately for me Elven is way too close to Eleven and if I added Elven, then dropped an 'e' off Eleven the spell checker would not pick it up and I can only imagine how thrilled my tutors would be to discover I have Elven written all through my essay instead of Eleven.
Ok I have talked far too much in this author's note, hence why I put it at the end. It could almost exist as it's own chapter 'A bit more history on the Rocs'. I do hope that this has answered some of your questions or clarified a few things. Of course there's also the chance that it's only further confused you but I hope not. However if you have any more suggestions or questions do feel free to comment and ask as your opinion and clearly extensive knowledge of Middle Earth's history is greatly valued
- What Lurks In Shadows