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~ Three ~
They had reached the enchanted mists which enshrouded the shores of the Undying Lands. Day after day they drifted through the dense fogs, but kept bright lamps burning and horns blowing, and each ship was commanded to keep within near sight of the others. Some of the younger men aboard the ship were growing fearful, though knew enough to conceal their concerns well within sight and earshot of the King. Nevertheless there were murmurs of foundering in these mists as heroes of ages past were rumored to have done, never to be seen or heard from again.
The King would occasionally calm their fears and restore their pride with a rousing speech, or threaten severe punishment should anyone quail. This for the most part seemed to calm the sailors enough to keep drifting onward toward the West, or as best as they could judge in the mists.
Then as dawn broke one morning and the sky lightened at last the dense fog seemed to thin, and mist rose off the sea as the sun rose. They could all feel the presence of fair and radiant air warm them, knowing somehow they had reached a region in which the weather was always this pleasant. The sun began to rise bright from behind them, and suddenly like a lifting curtain the veils of mist at last parted before them, and they beheld the fair white arches of the harbor over Eressea, sparkling with gems and pearls as did the beaches and even the surf, for such beautiful things were scattered and adorned about all things there even the shallow waters in which to wade, simply for the delight of those who lived there. The lieutenant was not alone in his awe, and he along with more than a few of his fellow sailors struggled with a deep desire to disembark thither, forsake their mission and take their ease in such a lovely paradise for as long as they dared.
But no inhabitants were to be seen. They had all fled to shelter, shuttered within their homes, and the beaches and streets within view were still and silent. On the King's ship his mariners glanced to their leader, who took in the sight of the fair isle but kept his face firm, and if he was moved by the sight he did not let it show, but turned his gaze and looked onward, past the island to the waterways that routed beyond the island to his destination. Many among the crew of the fleet continue to gaze at the island in its beauty, glittering in the morning sun, before at last renewing their hardened resolve if any had wavered and turned their gaze further westward in dutiful following of their unwavering leader.
There was more mist lying behind the island, but it was not long to get through it. Again the mists cleared, and they came within sight of the beaches of the Undying Lands as the sun rose higher, and they saw the magnificent Pelori Mountains rising up sheer and tall not far beyond. The fleet continued on into the inlet which cut from the Light Pass and now into clear view came the Great Mountain, Taniquetil. In their hearts all the sailors quailed at the sight of it, its height and girth so great they seemed beyond measure, the peak beyond the reach of their eyesight, and clad completely in pure white crystalline snow that almost seemed to glow with its own radiance in the mid morning light. Even the captain himself, their fearless king, felt doubt of his mission come to his heart. Suddenly he felt hesitant, wondering if the messages of the Valar had been truthful this whole time, and the counsel of Sauron not so.
The captain and his comrades stood staring at the towering peak, feeling all but overwhelmed with awe and fear of its terrifying beauty, and while he found the isle of Eressea enticed him to disembark and stay a while in peace, looking upon the towering mountain of the Undying Lands filled him with both fascination and dread, and he felt an overwhelming desire to turn back and head for the safety of home, and the moth-and-flame effect that the herald from the Lord of Winds described was now beginning to come clear and feel all too true.
He could tell his comrades were feeling much the same. He looked over to his king, whose expression also said the same, and the king's cousin was filled with hope for a retreat. But the king hardened himself, mastered by his pride and powerfully called on them to press onward. Throughout the fleet hearts sank at first, but feeling their own pride stirred at his words most were then able to harden themselves to push onward. The captain for his part did not find that his pride could overpower his fear, but there seemed no way out now. Even if he escaped his people at this point, even if he managed to steal a life boat without getting caught and likely executed, what then? Would the Valar even let him leave? Could he get back through the enchanted mists alone? And if he could, could he possibly hope to get back home across the wide sea in a little row boat? His heart sank even further. He realized he had made his choice, and that he had little choice but to keep going, following his King, and see where the path ended.