Behind the Scenes

Original Prologue of Mirkwood

Merry Christmas! I wrote this prologue for Mirkwood: The Forest of Fear. This was originally how I was going to start the story until I did more research and realized it wasn't close enough to canon, in my opinion. So I scrapped it and started over. Because I worked hard on this prologue, I'm posting it here for you to enjoy as a Christmas present. I plan on starting my Arda series project in 2021.

Leaves rustled in the breeze, changing patterns of the Sun's beams on the ground as they pierced the canopy. Birds twittered happily as they streaked across the blue sky, returning to their nests and young with food. Below, majestic deer grazed on vibrant green shoots. White spotted fawns frolicked after their parents on shaky legs. Red and grey squirrels chased each other into the trees, their cheeks bulging with nuts.

Despite all of this outside, the focus of the Queen of Mirkwood's eye was her son. Her whole world lay in her arms swaddled in a light green blanket. Legolas was her pride and joy. He had his father's Sindarin blond hair, though it was a shade darker. She liked to believe that her own ross-brown hair influenced that. Both his parents had blue eyes, but Legolas inherited hers: a twilight azure. Those eyes held an age that would not be expected if he were a human and not an Elf. He had already lived much longer than he appeared.

A butterfly as vibrant blue as their eyes landed softly on the railing. Legolas studied it with wide, curious eyes. After a moment, it fluttered away to rejoin its kin.

She sensed him approaching with her Elven warrior instincts long before feeling his embrace and kiss on her cheek. Wordlessly, she placed Legolas into his father's strong arms.

Fainmîr stepped back to take in the scene before her. Thranduil's silver blue eyes never left their son's face, ignoring the entire world as she had done. A smile adorned his face. A face that had the potential to be cold and regal, softened by that tender smile. That's why she loved it. She locked the moment away in her eternal memory.

All too soon, the moment was interrupted by a young Elf named Feren. There was an urgent expression on his face and his hushed words into the king's ear shadowed the joy with grim seriousness.

Wordlessly, the King of Mirkwood handed the prince back to his mother. For the anxiety on her face, Thranduil sent Fainmîr a reassuring smile he reserved only for her before leaving the balcony with his faithful subject in tow.

The moment they were alone, there was a beat before a cold wind suddenly cut through the air like a knife. Legolas shuddered through his blanket and fell silent. The mother instinctively held her son close to her breast as she searched for the source of the chill. Her free hand rested upon the hilt of her sword, which King Thranduil had made for his queen.

She almost drew it when a guard rushed at them. He was breathless, hands pressed against his knees as he gasped for air. His face was pale with fear. She had not witnessed one of her blessed kin so spent and afraid since the War of the Last Alliance at the end of the reign of King Oropher.

"Meletyalda," the guard finally managed, "I must escort you and the prince to safety."

"Why? What is happening."

The moment she finished speaking, another cold breeze swept over the land. The queen gazed out over the kingdom. Beyond the barriers of the Woodland Realm, Greenwood the Great was changing. The once alive forest was now so silent. The Sun was still shining brightly, but she could barely feel her warmth. There was a new scent in the air. It was sickeningly sweet like poison. There was barely a difference to her eyes and she would have thought it nothing if it were not for the foreboding in her heart.

"What is the cause of this?" Fainmîr whispered. Her question hung in the air, but she knew the answer deep within. The air was unusually thick; thick with evil. She sensed a darkness slowly spreading like a plague. Legolas began to cry, his pure heart sensing the same darkness. Even the guard shuddered as his face turned a shade paler.