Tolkien Oneshots

Farewells

The vast sea of bodies seemed endless.

The young, blond Sinda had been scouring the battleground for hours. He walked with a slight limp, occasionally pressing a hand to the wound on his shoulder that still trickled blood. His disheveled hair, covered in filth, stuck to his bloodied face; he didn't even bother to try and brush it away.

He released a shuttered gasp as a gust of wind blew down the fiery mountain, carrying with it a cloud of toxic fumes that caused his chest to constrict and his eyes to sting as they filled with tears.

"Father!" He shouted as loud as his burning lungs and sore throat would allow. He tripped over the body of a fallen elf, and unable to hold his own weight, fell to his knees and choked out a sob.

Death. There was death everywhere. Elves, men, orcs - the overwhelming odor filled his nostrils and it was all he could do not to let himself retch. Unseeing eyes stared into oblivion, eyes that only a few hours before had faced the enemy with courage and determination.

Why did they have to die?

Both Edain and Eldar still wandered the plains. Some just stood there, staring, others searched among the dead, and others still just knelt on the ground, weeping with a fellow comrad or clinging to a dead colleague.

"Prince Thranduil!" The familiar voice of the Captain of the guard snapped him from his daze.

He looked up at his friend, Feren, who stood over him, face stained with blood and tears and despair. The brunet elf placed a hand on the prince's shoulder. "You need to come,  Thranduil," his voice cracked as he said this, only adding to the sense of dread that had already built itself inside the prince's heart.

Feren hauled him to his feet and wrapped his arm around his shoulder, and led him across the field.

A glimpse of silver hair in a pool of crimson drew a gasp from Thranduil's cracked lips. He pulled away from his friend's grip and stumbled across the short distance separating him from the body of the silver-haired elf.

He fell to his knees beside the ellon, shivering, breath coming in short, shuddered gasps.

A clear droplet ran down his face and he hesitantly reached out with a shaking hand to touch his father's ashen face. The shaft of an arrow had struck his neck, and a spear had embedded itself in his side, wedged between the plates of his silver armor.

Thranduil pulled the body of Oropher into his arms and cradled his body close to his chest. His father's head lolled to the side, streams of blood flowing from his mouth and nose. Thranduil's body shook in silent sobs. He leaned against Oropher's forehead, squeezing his eyes close a tears continued to fall, first one, then two, until he was nothing but a mess of broken cries and tears.

Feren stood to the side, quietly crying as his friend wept over his father's broken body.

Thranduil threw his head back and screamed. The long, hoarse, anguished cry of horror and despair sent a chill down Feren's spine and startled the nearby elves and men. Thranduil then fell over his father; limply he held onto Oropher's armor as he laid atop him, weeping.

He didn't know how long he stayed there, mourning. His chest constricted as waves of pain crashed over him. The blood continued to flow from the wounds on his shoulder and leg, but he did not care. It hurt to much for him to care.

He did not register the two strong arms that wrapped around him, nor when they pulled him up, until he was face-to-face with a familiar Noldor.

Elrond's own face was streaked with tears, filth, and blood. He held out a slightly shaking hand, where a gold ring embedded with a large blue gem sat on his finger. Thranduil's brow contorted with sorrow and anger.

"Lord Gil-galad has fallen," Elrond swallowed hard. "I..." He couldn't bring himself to finish, for his voice had caught in his throat.

Instead, he pulled the Sinda into a tight embrace, and dissolved into silent tears. There they sat, on the charred ground and amongst the scattered dead, the weight of evil and the pain of loss weighing heavy on their hearts.

So, my first attempt at a oneshot. I hope it was alright; I wasn't entirely sure how to end it. This isn't proofread or edited at all, so forgive me for any mistakes ;) anywho, thanks for reading.
~M