The Balrog Slayer Rides Again
Chapter 6
As Glorfindel looked for a safe place to camp for the night, Glorfindel knew something was wrong. Night was approaching swiftly, as winter was nearing, and his instincts told him something was wrong. It was too quiet. The trees did not even whisper amongst themselves this night. The quiet was not of calm, nor tranquility, but of apprehension, and of dread.
Glorfindel knew it was unsafe to travel in the darkness on a night such as this. His memory flashed and he suddenly felt as if he were reliving an old memory. The woods had been still then, too, but he had been with a scouting party. That evening was not one Glorfindel would choose to remember, but it did open his senses to a new height of awareness. The small party had been ambushed by over a hundred orcs, in a place where most felt secure and close enough to home that an ambush was unthinkable. Only a few had come out alive. Glorfindel was one of the few.
Often he had questioned himself if he could have done better, or if he could have been more aware of his surroundings. The questions never knew answers, so Glorfindel had stopped questioning himself a long time ago. But the memory still left him unsettled, and he gazed about warily.
But now was not the time to reckon with his past. There were problems at hand, problems that needed a solution quickly.
Glorfindel heard a wail. It was a shrill, shrieking sound that replaced his cautiousness with an extreme fear. Glorfindel knew that cry. It was the cry of a Nazgul.
Glorfindel calmed his fear, and placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.
So there are more than one of those creatures in this forest. Glorfindel thought with a silent curse.
The Trollshaws were already dangerous enough. Glorfindel hated the thought of having to outrun both a Nazgul and a party of orcs, as well as trying to find tracks to lead him onto the Hobbits trail. Why, when he found Estel…
As Glorfindel imagined the lecture he was going to give that Edain, he also imagined that cursed innocent look that ranger always gave him when Glorfindel blamed him for something. Estel had been more reproachful of late, and sometimes instead of the innocent-look, he would get The Glare. Glorfindel sighed and began to understand why the ranger was irritable. These woods would fray anyone's nerves.
Glorfindel then came upon a small series of caves. They looked relatively safe, and he didn't feel particularly wary against them.
When he entered, he found that the cave was shallow and came to an abrupt stop after about 15 feet. Glorfindel decided he would stay here tonight, against his own better judgment.
Glorfindel grabbed some dried meat and hard bread from a small knapsack. The meal was simple but efficient enough.
As Glorfindel settled down to sleep, he was still troubled by the evil he sensed in his mind. It faded sometimes, but it remained there, steadily pulsing until Glorfindel's exhaustion lulled him to sleep.
A/N: I know that took forever. I'm really sorry it took so long, I'll try to update faster. My computer crashed twice while I was writing this chapter, and it took a while to fix it. The file was saved, but my inspiration was gone for quite a while.
On an extra note, do you know how old an elf would be to act as mature as a mortal of 7 or 8 years old? I was wondering for a story I have planned.
Replies to reviews:
Ellfine: Thanks! I appreciate your kind reviews.
Seeing-spots: Lol! Sorry about the long update.