Author's Note; Well, here's chapter 3 folks. I am delighted with my reviewers, and hope my readers are enjoyin' it! I have answered a few questions in my personalised responses below….. Oh, and for those of you that might not know, 'Elessar' is Aragorn's kingly name given to him by Lady Galadriel.
Conn8d; Thnx a mil, my new reader – oh, and yep, I meant 'Brago' because I figured Brego would be too old to add in, though he will be featured. In further chapter's, you'll hear of 'Brago' being 'Brego's' son – LOL! Perhaps I could do a spin-off!
RS; Well darlin', I figured you may have liked it – LOL! At this point in time, I would like to add – I LOVE ARAGORN! Oh dear, I did mean 'served' instead of 'severed'! And yes, 'bedside chest' was another one! Aw man! If there are typo's below, I apologise in advance and will be contacting 'LindaHoyland'. I swear, something is wrong with me lately – I usually have a great memory and all, but all of a sudden, I'm forgettin' and mixin' up EVERYTHIN'! There's a major mistake in 'The Birthday Boy' – I think – so I'll be mailin' you with a question 'bout some facts! And if you liked the father/son interaction, read below hun! The Telcontar household is set to be mightily disturbed! xx
LindaHoyland; Thnx dear, I am glad you like the way it's unfolding – nothing thus far has happened for no reason, so take note. And, yep, I've discovered the typo's. If there are in this chapt, I will be askin' for your help! However, I might as well add in a note here to US readers - do bear in mind that there are some spelling differences in Irish/European English (ie; color/colour, neighbor/neighbour) so there may be some extra 'u' and 'e' placed in words. Also hun, 'cos I love Liv and Viggo, I base my Aragorn and Arwen's appearance as on the movies. So, I am also basin' Eldarion's appearance as he was in Arwen's vision in 'ROTK', and he had farish (which Irish call light brown) hair. Or else, maybe, I'll pretend that he inherited it from Galadriel and Celeborn! LOL! Thnx as always girl.
Sarahbarr17; Aw, another new reader – thnx a mil for takin' the time to review! And yay, I am glad you picked up on the Haradrim, but don't place any bets just yet! There is more with the father and son below. x
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Chapter 3 – The Nightmare
The white marble of the magnificent city glowed in the honey hue of the golden sun. It stood against the mountainous terrains with grace and noble honour. King Elessar of Gondor and his son walked out across the Palace citadel in ceremonial dress, past the ornate fountain and exclusive White Tree, and did not stop until they reached the tip. With pride, they overlooked the vast green landscape before them as it basqued in an ethereal white light.
"This is my blood, and so too it is yours," The King said to Eldarion, waving his hand across the land below. Elessar then reverently held high Anduril, the Flame of the West, forged by the elves from the shards of Narsil, the sword of their royal ancestor, Elendil. It was richly carved with runes and the clear silver shone bright all the way up along the regal blade.
As the King then attempted to pass the sword to his son, however, the sky light began to fade. A black shadow crept slowly from behind the mountains and made its way around each side of the Pelennor fields. It spread far and wide, even reaching across over Osgiliath and by the time it had reached Minas Tirith, nothing was left untouched. All sound disappeared and the sky above them had become a drab cloud of smoke.
Elessar and Eldarion turned for the refuge of the Palace, but to their horror, they saw the White Tree was now turned to a coal black. Beside the tree stood a hooded figure, draped in a pitch carbon cloak. Faceless and silent, the phantom-like silhouette did not move at first, but merely circled around the darkened tree. The sinister form then turned to the King and his son, and began to float toward them. In defence, Elessar lifted Andruil, but it faded to dust from his hands. The winged crown of Gondor and the sceptre of Arnor fell from him to the stone ground. As the figure drew near, both father and son tried to move, but their bodies were wholly paralysed. The shadow drew a gloved hand out to reach the Prince, and as he was about to scream, the scene disappeared into a pitch abyss and it ended suddenly.
However, Eldarion's scream was carried through.
The wailing echoed through the corridor and into the King's chamber. Aragorn had just been settling to sleep before his son's desperate cry reached his ears. He shifted in the bed and unwillingly lifted the warm blankets from on top of him. Reaching a blind hand in the dark, Aragorn found a torch and lit it in a bid to find some clothing before he was to embark out into the large hallway. It had been the third time this week.
With his quick movements, the Queen also awoke and she too heard Eldarion's screams. She turned to her husband and in the kind candlelight, she saw that he was ready to leave. "Again?" she asked, her creamy voice laden with sleep.
"Yes, he has only just awoken. Do not let yourself worry – I will go to him."
"I will go with you," she replied, already sitting upright at the bedside. It was usually her who heard him first, but because of the increasingly frequent late nights, she had become utterly spent. Arwen reached for her dressing gown and hastily joined her husband.
The King's own two guards were outside the Royal chamber, and another, Cerran, approached the King and Queen from the direction of Eldarion's room. He moved quickly in his armour and nervously bowed before them. "Sire, upon your previous order, Telion has entered the Prince's room and I have come to fetch you. We found no other in there with him, Your Majesty, and we believe it to be another disturbing dream."
With a nod and 'thank you', Aragorn and Arwen made their way to the room. The large oak door was open and inside was Telion questioning the young prince on the matter of his cries.
Though his screaming had ceased, Eldarion was still severely shaken and tears fell in a river-like trail down his reddened cheeks. "Ada! Naneth!" he exclaimed upon seeing his parents enter his room. He said nothing else before reaching his short arms toward his mother and received her secure embrace.
"Your majesty, it appears the Prince has had another nocturnal mare. He talks of a man, but I can find no evidence indicating any one has entered here," Telion whispered. "I assure you sire, we would have caught anyone unsanctioned along these corridors. Would you like us to search for intruders outside?"
"Thank you Telion," the King gently smiled to his trusted guard, "but that will not be necessary."
Telion bowed before leaving and resumed his position outside the chamber door.
"Tell me son, what is troubling you?" Aragorn softly asked, sitting across from his wife on the warm bed.
The boy was nestled in his mother's arms and continued to cry until he was physically unable. Arwen lifted his head from her shoulder and looked to his swollen eyes. "Come ion-nin (my son), tell us of your dream," she coaxed, rubbing his long, sepia hair, "Is it the same as before?"
Eldarion looked to the rich floral pattern of his mother's dressing gown, composing himself in order to answer. His panic had caused his throat to tighten and though he wanted to talk, the only noise he was capable of making was constant breathless hiccups.
Arwen looked to her husband, and he to her. They did not need to speak in order to express their concern. They both believed this to be a childhood phase, but still felt powerless in stopping their son's deep anxiety. It was two weeks since it all began and seemed to increase.
Eventually, the child managed to somewhat settle. He kept his head hung low and fixed his gaze below him. "It did not seem like a dream Naneth," he finally spoke, his voice deepened with a sore throat. "He was here. I felt him here."
Arwen swiftly looked to her husband again. This mention of a person was new to their ears.
"Who? Who was here?" Aragorn calmly asked.
"A man," the prince replied, turning to his father with frightened eyes. His small body tensed and his hands tightly griped the blanket, "a shadow man."
"Son," Aragorn began again, "There is no such person. Dreams are merely dr……"
"NO!" came the child's adamant cry, "it was not some dream! We were out on the citadel, Ada, and you were dressed in your crown clothes. You were going to give me your sword, but a huge shadow came and covered everywhere, and we turned back to the Palace, but a man in a black cloak was beside the white tree, but it was now black, and the shadow man came over to us, floating on the air, but we could not move…… "
"Ssshhhh, son, alright, alright," the King soothed in a bid to settle the child, "it is all over.
With that, the Prince caught his breath. His tears started again and he fell back into his mother's arms.
Arwen gave her husband a knowing look as she comforted the boy. She gently ran a gentle hand across her son's back as she told of her idea. "Darling, would you like if your father stayed here with you for the rest of the night?"
There was a long pause before the Prince showed his face again, and sniffled as he contemplated his answer. He nodded his head 'yes' as he lifted his small hands to wipe his eyes.
"Come now, you do not need to worry son," Aragorn said, taking Eldarion from his wife's hands to his own.
"Indeed!" the Queen remarked, "With the guards outside and my two brave men in here, I do not think any harm could come to the Palace."
"My sentiments exactly!" the King beamed.
Eldarion gave a hopeful smile in return as his father tucked him inside the secure blankets.
"I will leave a candle in here for the night, but be careful," Arwen playfully warned, "And you two behave now, no battle stories."
"Oh please Naneth, just one?" the Prince quickly defended.
"No darling, I would that you sleep," she softly said, kissing him goodnight. She turned to her husband and kissed him also before leaving for her own bed.
Once left, the pair talked of various things. Eldarion was always asking questions, and found even the smallest of things interesting. It appeared that tonight was no different. The King had become worn after answering from 'Where do mountains come from?' to 'Why is the White Tree white?' and slumber came easy to him when the child grew tired.
However, Aragorn's peace would be short lived. As he began to doze, he heard his son call in the kind light again.
"Ada?"
"Ummmm," was the King's effort to reply.
"What is 'Narsil'?"
"It was the name of my sword, Anduril, once," he whispered, with his head half in the pillow, "when it belonged to our forefather over an Age ago."
No more was said, and Eldarion soon after fell to sleep. Aragorn was about to follow suit, but he sharply woke as his son's last enquiry came to mind. Funny – he did not remember ever telling him of Narsil.
