The sun was swiftly descending to the horizon and her friend was nowhere to be seen. That stag! she sighed. Only melodious laughter was to be heard from the house and she smiled at the adorable voice which rang above all. But her smile soon dimmed; something hurt in the farthest corner of her mind. The only parent she ever had was her Ada, and he wasn't her true father. Never did Erenien doubt his love. Yet, incidents like these left a hole, one which may never truly heal, at least not in this mortal realm.
As evening gave way to twilight, from her place on the veranda she swept one last glance across the thick greenery that surrounded the house. As one of the branches of a tree swayed, her eyes caught a faint glow, far away. Curiosity got the better of her. She stepped out into the courtyard and peeked through the greenery, eyes wandering across the plain and into the trees casting dark shadows on the horizon. Not one, but there were many flickering lights which seemed to be carried by dark emptiness?
Erenien stood there, squinting at the flickering lights. Finally, the bearers of the light stepped out from under the trees. On the plain, in the faint glow still lingering in the west, their forms became more discernible- the heralds of death. At every passing moment they advanced in her direction, crossing the plain. Erenien inhaled sharply. She rushed into the house, feet barely touching the cobblestone.
"Orcs! Orcs are coming," she yelled.
None of them paid any attention to her. "Can't any of you hear me? Orcs are coming. They will be here soon. Run!" No response, even when she jumped in front of the child's mother.
"Are you people really deaf? This is no time for playing. Listen to me," she shouted at the top of her lungs again, to no effect.
FINE! Even if you people do not care for the safety of your child, I do. None of you know what they are capable of.
She rummaged through the kitchen to find a possible weapon. There were only knives, no swords or bows or any other weapons. She took two knives which looked reasonably sharp and rushed back to the courtyard and peered into the darkness. Much to her horror, firelight danced at the foot of the hill and some had already begun ascending, but only at a slow pace demanded by their bulky bodies. Hairs stood up at the nape of her neck and she gulped, her whole body threatening to collapse with the onslaught of memories. Despite the creeping cold, sweat beads dotted her forehead and wetted her palms. She looked down at her trembling hands and gripped the knives tight, in a desperate attempt to stop the shivering.
Stay strong, Eryn. You have to, no matter what.
They were heavily at odds with too many of the orcs against the six of them. Erenien went back in and with shaking hands, firmly shut the doors and locked the bolts. The first one of the group to hear the fray was the brother of the ellon, whose name she found to be Amdirin, who hurried to barricade the door. Suddenly, panic spread through the family.
"Hanno, what is it?" the child's father asked Amdirin, panic slowly creeping in his features.
"Yrch," he muttered, eyes gleaming in hatred.
"Anoriel, take Aerien and leave with nana and Laswen," the child's father breathed to his wife, glancing at the sleeping form of his child resting peacefully in the arms of his sister.
"No! They are coming for me, Calemir. It is me who must face them. You leave with them," her reply was stern.
"I will not leave you to face them alone," Calemir said, grasping his wife by her shoulders.
"You must. For the sake of our child, go with them," her voice was more pleading than before.
"I will not!"
YOU ARE READING
The Eternal Starlight
Fanfiction"I cannot raise a child!" Thranduil said aghast. "What she needs is a mother and a father- a proper family," he sighed. "Maybe she has found them in you..." It was said that after the death of his Queen, the Elven king became bitter and cold. Everyo...
