Lady of the Elves

Chapter 11

There shall be a contest at the end of this chapter!!

Legolas's POV

Darkness, that was it, darkness lay beyond every corner, closing in behind us, a horrible suffocating darkness. The shadows of each of the company flickered on the walls, warping our images and throwing false images of orcs jumping out at us. In front of me I could see Aelia shaking her every so often as we passed small skeletons scattered here and there. I could almost see the look of horror on her face, she was not shy of death, but the great number of the skeletons could shake the hardest hearted of warriors.

Gandalf led us through great caverns littered with weapons with rotting handles and broken shafts; narrow bridges, were chipped with use and great black pits in which light could not reach, opened below hiding unseen beasts unknown to man. More than twice we came upon abandoned mines, with buckets still filled with stone, and pickaxes still leaning against the wall as if the workers had gone on a break and never returned to their work.

As we passed through one level of a mine Gandalf stopped quite suddenly and ran his fingers along silvery lines that decorated the rock, "The wealth of Moria is not in gold, nor jewels but Mithril," Gandalf announced stepping confidently to the edge of the cliff and shining his light to reveal the vast deepness of the caverns, "Bilbo had a shirt of Mithril rings that Thorin gave to him."

"Aye that was a kingly gift," Gimli said.

"Yes, I never told him, but its worth was greater than the value of the Shire!"

"Did you know Gimli, I also received my dues in Mithril from the horrid worm's lair," Aelia said as a single dagger flashed into her hand.

"My," Gimli said as he took the dagger into his hands, "This is wonderfully made, tell me has it ever been sharpened?"

"Never," Aelia answered.

"Oi!" Gimli shouted, his voice echoing through the chamber. He had run his finger along the blade, "Still as sharp as if it was made yesterday."

We traveled from that place for an hour further, but time was hard to track in this overwhelming darkness. At the end of the approximate hour we happened upon a small room with three doors, "I have no memory of this place," Gandalf said, his voice puzzled.

We dropped to the floor, and waited. Time passed slowly, seconds turned into minutes, and minutes turned into hours as we sat. Then, a soft voice came into the silence unbroken, except by Merry and Pippins conversation, the voice grew slowly louder and louder, it was a somber and solemn song the voice sang,

"The darkness falls,
The dawn she weeps,
The snow falls down,
With tears of sleet.

Cold fingers wrap,
Their mottled hands,
Around still warm,
Frozen hearts,

Pulling those once loved,
So far away,
Too far to feel a mother's touch,
Too far for a lover's kiss,

Fathers, brothers, husbands, sons,
Pulled before their time had come,
Leaving behind loving families,
Who know not to mourn,

Deep with in the cav'rns of old,
Their bodies lie,
Their fates untold,
Despite their age each too young to die,

Mothers, sisters, wives, daughters,
Wait with bated breath,
To again meet those,
That had left,

Unknowing are they,
For death has set upon a vic 'try march,
Leaving dead behind,
Those it met,

Soon death he snatches them away,
To the lands where the men lie,
Reuniting families,
In the cruelest way

Life is no more than flame,
Flickering before falling silent,
Burning before becoming cold,
Breathing before losing breath,"

From my seat next to the singer I could see as she sang she had drawn in the dust, faces, intricately simple, each one recognizable, staring sadly with blank eyes upon the broken world. Each members of Aelia's lost family. Then, to my utter surprise a picture of my mother joined them, then me, then Gimli, Gandalf, Boromir, Merry, Pippin, Frodo, Sam. Thorin, Fili and Kili, Tauriel, several warriors who had fallen in the battle of the five armies also appeared from the tip of her dagger.

A choked sob escaped from her lips as she drew herself holding her brothers hand, she and him had always been so close. Small tear drops fell onto the picture, not scarring it, but seemingly enhancing it. His name, her brother's name came hard in remembering, for it was a long known tradition in her family not to speak the names of the dead, Huor, was his name, a magnificent warrior, strong and courageous, and unlike the rest of the elves, he preferred daggers to a bow, though he fought better than most with either.

"Do not worry, for they now dine at the table of the Valar and feast every night," I whispered just loud enough for her to hear.

She began to add detail to my mother's long hair, "And she dances across the stars and watches you daily from above."

A smile slipped onto my face, "We will see them again, where the sky meets the sea and we sail to the land of the Valar."

"You have always known what to say," she answered just as Gandalf's voice rose slightly in his discussion with Frodo.

"Pity?It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death and many that die, deserve life. Can you give it to them Frodo ? Do not be too eager to deal out death and judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends," Gandalf always found ways to amaze me, even in his words to Frodo, he gave us encouragement in the harsh deaths we knew.

"Many die that deserve life. Do not forget, even the very wise cannot see all ends," I whispered to Aelia, who smiled sadly before returning to her picture.

"Ah! It's this way!" Gandalf called delightedly getting to his feet.

"He's remembered!" Merry cried happily jumping up.

"No," Gandalf said turning to face him from one of the doorways, "But the air doesn't smell so foul down here. If in doubt, Meriadoc, always follow your nose.

We stepped into a giant cavern filled with columns stretching from floor to ceiling, "Let me risk a little more light," Gandalf said lifting his staff and letting the light shine around the cave, "Behold the great realm and dwarf city of Dwarrowdelf!"

Sam let out a soft whistle, "There's an eye-opener and no mistake."

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So, heyo, a bit short, but I hope you liked it.

I am going to have a little competition for who can write the best Mary Sue story!! A Mary Sue is a character who is perfect, flawless, and can do absolutely everything. So, for an example checkout Stars_Alight. she has a story called "Tips Concerning LOTR Fanfiction" the chapter is called Curse of the Mary Sues.

Please PM me your entries and send as many as you please!! I will post here the winner as soon as the contest has finished.

1st prize: You get to make/ be a character and I will vote for every chapter in one of your books and follow you if I am not already following you.

2nd Prize: you get to make/be a secondary character and I will follow you if I am not already following you.

3rd Prize: I will follow you if I am not already following you.

The top three entries will be posted at the end of the chapter when the contest has finished!!

If you need clarity leave a note here and i will respond in answer ASAP.