The Light Between Our Scars | Adar x Galadriel | Rings of Power

Chapter 8: Among friends

The shadows of the evening were beginning to fall among the trees. The autumn afternoon had been exceptionally warm, but with the approaching sunset, a soft breeze started to blow from the mountains. Galadriel slightly shivered while taking off her armor and the dress underneath. She had reached a secluded bend of the little river that ran through the Elven camp, further down the valley. She couldn't remember the last time she had a bath, but it was before the battle of Eregion. Before... Adar. She was covered by his and her own blood, and she had more little wounds and bruises than she expected, all of which were starting to hurt now that she relaxed.

She immersed herself in the freezing water of the river, shivering again. The cold water pleasantly anesthetized her physical pain and seemed to help her mind bring order to her thoughts. She started to swim to warm herself up, and a sudden sense of relief and comfort pervaded her soul. The feeling was similar to what she felt when she used to ride lightheartedly on her favorite horse. Immersed as she was in nature, she felt free and strong again. Galadriel always had a deep connection with the natural elements, as every other Elf; this time, as she swam in the dark blue of the river while the yellow leaves on the trees were illuminated by the last sun rays, she felt a deep embrace from Middle-Earth. Dark days were waiting for her in the future - she was aware of this - but nature was telling her that darkness wouldn't win. She could see the recent events in a different light. All the mistakes she made were part of the path that had to be followed, a path that none of the protagonists involved could understand, but that would lead to the total destruction of darkness - in the end.

She allowed herself to think about Adar. Their encounter in the clearing only happened the day before, but an entire lifetime seemed to have flown from then. How different he was from the horrendous creature she considered him to be after the creation of Mordor. Could he really be healed from his corruption? She found in herself a deep longing to know the new Adar. Who was he now, after the recent events? She tried to divert her thoughts from him, but she couldn't. The strange connection that she felt when he gave back Nenya to her in the clearing was always there, even deepened. She felt the memory of Halbrand fading in her heart, but she was unsure of what was replacing it. She only knew she wanted to explore that feeling and was eager to meet the Uruk again.

Talindra was waiting for her on the bank with a clean, white dress in her hands. When Galadriel got out of the water, she couldn't hold back a gasp when she saw all the bruises of the battle on her body. She quickly took an ointment from her bag and handed it to Galadriel "Spread this all over your skin, Lady Galadriel. It will give you instant relief, and the bruises will heal quicker".

Galadriel smiled with gratitude. The perfume of the ointment was heavenly, and mixed with the pleasure of the bath and the feeling of the clean fabric of the dress on her skin, it gave her a sense of joy she hadn't felt for months.

Talindra diverted her from her blissful moment, "We have to go now; Gil-Galad and Elrond are waiting for you. You can eat this while we go", she said while handing a loaf of bread to her.

Galadriel made a braid with her wet blonde hair and quickly took the Rings from her armor. She wore Nenya on her finger and placed the Nine in a hidden pocket inside her dress, then followed Talindra to the camp where the fugitive Elves were trying to set up. She hungrily ate the bread that Talindra gave her while studying the Elves they were encountering on their path. Galadriel felt so proud of her people, of their courage and stubbornness in not feeling defeated. They were licking their wounds, but Sauron hadn't broken their dignity and honor. She could see fierceness in their tired and suffering eyes - they might have lost everything they had and most of their families and friends, but they refused to surrender.

She also noticed something else when they looked at her. A mixture of respect and doubt. She imagined that the news about Adar was spreading through the camp.

Talindra seemed to ignore those suspectful stares and guided her to the tent where Gil-Galad and Elrond were discussing the next moves. Entering the improvised shelter, she had a sudden surprise; another couple of friends were waiting for her. "Arondir! Cirdan!" She exclaimed, overjoyed to see them again.

Arondir nodded at her, smiling, while Cirdan took her hands in his, relieved. "We are so delighted to see you again on this sad day, Lady Galadriel" he said; then he frowned, seeing Nenya at her finger. "We thought these Rings would solve everything... but now... How many rings did he make?".

"Seven for the Dwarfs and Nine for Men, all corrupted by him. I have the Nine with me. Celebrimbor gave them to me before..." Galadriel swallowed, holding back tears.

"Celebrimbor..." Cirdan's face seemed to shrivel up in sorrow, and his forehead wrinkles became more evident. "It's clear now how we underestimated Sauron and his deceiving manipulations. Celebrimbor was one of the best among us; may he rest in peace in the reign of the Valar".

Gil-Galad said "We were discussing about... Adar. I told them everything about his situation and... not all of us agree on having to deal with him".

Galadriel looked at Arondir. He had been seriously stabbed by Adar and could survive only because of the experience of the Elven Healers. The Elf had a serious expression on his face and boldly held her gaze. "I'm sorry, Lady Galadriel, but I find it difficult to understand why you want to help him after everything he did. I helped you escape from his capture, and you weren't so favorable towards him then".

Galadriel nodded "I understand you, Arondir. During my capture, I had the opportunity to talk with him, and I was already surprised by how he showed compassion towards the Orcs. He called them his... children and seemed to care for them like a father would do. His only goal was to destroy Sauron. He certainly chose the worst way to do it, but we all agree that we have a similar goal in common and that he showed particular sharpness in leading the battle. An experience that we could turn in our favor, now that the Orcs are the army of Sauron".

Elrond intervened, "I wouldn't say it's a good reason to join an enemy to defeat another. As Elves, we always follow the light, wherever it will bring us".

"I agree, Elrond" Galadriel replied "I was ready to forge an alliance with him under his capture, and I discovered too soon that a corrupted Elf isn't trustworthy. I'm not proposing to join with the old Adar, the Uruk. I'm proposing to join with the healed Adar, the Elf. When he took off Nenya and handed it to me, it was very clear that he wanted to end darkness and violence. He wanted to heal the rift between Elves and Uruks by destroying Sauron together and bringing a new peace to Middle-Earth. He promised to retreat with his children to Mordor".

"Was he trustworthy, then?" Cirdan asked.

"Completely" Galadriel nodded.

"He is not completely healed from Morgoth's Crown darkness now, though" Gil-Galad intervened "Galadriel proposes to heal him with Nenya again. We could offer it to him in exchange for information about the army of Orcs. Where are their hiding places, how many there are, how can we defeat them in a battle against Sauron, everything that could be useful for us".

"We don't have to forget that he knows Sauron better than every one of us" Galadriel added.

Elrond nodded "Yes, I agree on this. If Nenya really has the power to restore him to his old self, I think we could try and take this opportunity to learn more about Sauron and the Orcs. As long as Galadriel is always with him when he wears Nenya and we take all the necessary precautions not to lose the Ring again".

"It is with a heavy heart that we make this decision, but we are living in heavy times" Gil-Galad sighed, "Tomorrow morning we will talk with Adar; I want to see for myself how much he has really changed".

Arondir surrendered to the best knowledge of the others, and Cirdan nodded. They all agreed that a night of rest was what was needed.

After setting up guard shifts among the soldiers, Elrond guided Galadriel to a tent near the King's. "Elrond, I want to thank you..." Galadriel started to say, but was interrupted by her friend.

"Don't add anything" he said calmly "If we don't trust each other, then who can we trust in this world?".

She smiled with gratitude and caressed his face. "Goodnight, Elrond".

"Goodnight, my friend" he responded.