A Second Choice 7

A Second Choice

Part 7

Posted: May 28, 2008

*****

Melian and Elwë watched over Elrond and Glorfindel as they lay in their healing sleeps. At first Elwë had raged on about the stabbing but eventually calmed down after Melian had assured him that there would be no lasting damage to either of their charges fëa. Now a fierce protectiveness lingered as he came to realize exactly how much he had opened his heart to the young ones. He had been hesitant to trust again after agreeing to be reborn and had kept himself separate from family and friends with the exception of his wife’s Maian kin. As he sat watching them sleep, Elwë realized that he had begun to think of these two as the sons he always wanted but been afraid to bring into the world after seeing his daughter’s painful existence. He had not thought he had the right to cause another child such pain. As he acknowledged where his feelings had led him, he also considered that these two had suffered just as much pain during their lives but in different ways.

As he watched his great grandson and his fëa brother sleep, he contemplated and questioned why Ilúvator had felt the need to create two who would and could suffer repeatedly the way these two had. Had Melkor so marred Eru’s creation that he had had no choice but to create several who were little more than sacrifices? Or was something else going on, something on a wider scheme? He felt that perhaps they had been created for something more but what was beyond him. As he had little else to do but sit with them, he contemplated and tried to fit the pieces that he knew together.

“So Elwë has stumbled upon the truth without realizing the broader implications,” Varda said to her husband as she helped him card Thorondor’s feathers.

“Melian will reveal to him what else she knows when we tell her that he is ready,” came Manwë’s reply.

“Does that not place him in danger?” she asked.

“He knew when he took her to spouse that there would be broader implications. He just had no idea exactly how broad,” he told her. “He will slowly put the pieces together and realize the results of success,”

“Or the consequences of failure,” she responded. “There is no guarantee that both of the boys will survive is there?”

“Eru has not chosen to tell me how things turn out,” her husband admitted. “I was reminded by Namo when I asked that there is a variable of free will involved that can not be anticipated. We often forget that Elrond is Peredhil, and as such has a degree of free will to consider that the firstborn do not. The fact that he and Glorfindel have become so close was unexpected as well. I still do not know if that will work out for the best or not.”

“So Eru has not revealed the future of our boys to Namo either,” Varda said with a smile upon her face. “Why can he not just admit it?”

“It is hard for him. You forget that his daughter has chosen Glorfindel as her heart’s desire. He fears for her and does not know why,” Manwë said quietly. At his wife’s questioning glance he continued. “I too am worried. The fates of children of Ainur decent have not ended well. I fear for the ones who remain including the child we gave up to Eru when asked.

“Elrond will see through whatever has to be done. He has not failed Ilúvator yet when asked to do something,” Varda said after a moment of silence as she remembered her daughter. “He will do what needs to be done and somehow bring the others through with him.”

Manwë did not respond to her but prayed to the creator that she was right.

Elrond floated in dreams where he learned many things about the song and all it encompassed. Sometimes his brother Glorfindel was with him but most of the time he was alone with the teachers. He understood that he had much to learn that Glorfindel had already been taught. He walked these paths for what seemed like months before he was told it was time to awaken. Knowing it was useless to fight, he allowed himself to be pushed toward the light.

Waking slowly, Elrond felt another body curled around his and knew without looking that it was Glorfindel. Nudging his brother to release him so that he could rise, Elrond was surprised when he was gently restrained.

“Be still young one,” Olórin told him, “You are not yet ready to rise. For a first healing lesson Glorfindel did well but you still need to rest.”

“But it has been a while, surely I am well by now,” came Elrond’s confused response through a scratchy voice.

“No Elrond, you were stabbed only yesterday,” came the quiet reply as he held a cup of water to his lips. “Here drink this, and then show me where you have been.”

Elrond let some of his memories be seen when Olórin placed his hand on his forehead. Then he watched as his mentor sat back with an understanding smile.

“You have been tutoring with our kin outside the song of Arda. You both are blessed in this for none others have received this training since the beginning of Arda’s time. But you must remember that time flows differently in other places. Just as the time here in Aman is different from what we experienced in Middle-earth, so too does the time flow differently among the teachers,” he tried to explain to Elrond. Seeing understanding dawn in Elrond’s eyes followed by questioning comprehension, Olórin realized that another question was coming. “Ask your question child.”

“I was told I would be in Mando’s Hall for thirty days,” Elrond began. “While there, I reconciled with Ereinion but nothing of his relationship with Celebrían was ever mentioned. Then I was released into the Gardens here, and after a few weeks find myself confronted with him again. This time he is married to her and from what I can conduce, they have been married for some time.”

“You needed more time in the Halls than originally planned. We could not ask for your permission at the time because you were still in contemplation in your hall. Namo and Manwë made the decision to give you what time you needed,” he explained as he quietly waited for the coming question.

“How long?” Elrond asked.

“56 years as they count them in Middle-earth,” came the careful reply.

Elrond lay back and thought about what he had been told. He recalled his time in the Halls and knew that Manwë’s decision was right even though they had not consulted him. He had another thought as he realized that he had lost all track of time sense.

“She lied to me then. There was never any lover waiting for Celebrían on the shores here. She sailed to West to wait for his release from the Halls. She never loved me at all and only agreed to our marriage for political purposes,” Elrond began. “How could she be so cruel? And what of our children? Did they ever mean anything special to her and how could she abandon them?”

“The decision to marry was not hers alone, I believe. She tried but could not overcome the feelings she had for Gil-galad. As to how she could leave her children behind, only she can answer that. You must remember that your children were full grown and responsible for their own lives by the time she left,” the Maia told him. “Do not judge them too harshly. In many ways, they are as much victims of the situation as you were.”

“How long ago was I stabbed?” Elrond inquired again even though he knew the question had already been answered.

“Yesterday afternoon. Glorfindel still sleeps off the weariness of the healing,” came the reply from the doorway.

Looking over, Elrond saw his grandfather Elwë standing against the door jam giving Olórin a dirty look. He smiled when Elwë came over to the bed and kissed him on the head while checking on Glorfindel.

“He will be awake soon. Enough questions for now young one. I will have them prepare a good breakfast for the two of you to help you regain your strength,” his grandfather told him. “Let me get you cleaned up properly and you can ask your questions later.”

Elrond followed the unspoken command to wait to ask his questions until later. As much as he wanted his answers now, he sensed that asking now would cause nothing but trouble. He allowed his grandfather to carry him into the bath and lay back relaxing in the tub of hot water that had been prepared. He was drifting in a state of half sleep when suddenly he was gripped by a strong vision of death and destruction that he did not, and could not, understand. Then the pain began as he felt like he was on fire. Struggling to free himself, he fought unseen hands that held him back and shivered at the cold, cruel laugh that echoed through him.

“You will be mine or be destroyed,” echoed through his brain as the pain increased and he could no longer hold back his screams.

Elwë had pulled the door to the bathing area closed after depositing Elrond in the tub so that he could confront Olórin.

“There is more going on here then we are being told and I want to know,” he began. “Can you not leave him in peace? Has he not suffered enough to earn a rest?”

“He made the choice, Elwë,” the Maia said in his own defense. “They both did. They were created to be different from the rest of you and are only becoming what they are truly meant to be. Everything they both have been through before has just been tempering for what they will become.”

“Tempering?” Elwë began. “You call their previous pains tempering! What kind of cruel masters are you? What task could possibly require that type of preparation? Do they even know and comprehend what you are preparing them for? Did you even tell them?”

“The choice was ours,” Glorfindel said from the bed.

Turning to see him sitting up in the bed watching them, they approached and Olórin checked him over.

“I am fine,” he said. “We may not know the entirety of the situations, but Elrond and I made the choice of our own free will. We talked many a night before sailing about our differences from others and the reasons behind them. We came to the conclusion before we left Middle-earth, that we had been created for something more.”

“That still does not answer my own questions, and I believe that you both have earned a well deserved rest for your work in Arda-Marred,” Elwë said. As he bent down to help Glorfindel up they all froze in shock as screams began to sound from the bathroom.

“Elrond,” Glorfindel shouted as he pushed the others away and ran to the bathing room door. He found that he could not open the door and began trying to knock a way through it as the screams increased in intensity. He and Elwë began throwing their weight against the door in an attempt to burst it open when the screams were suddenly cut off and it became deathly quiet.

“Move aside,” came the command from Oromë, who had suddenly appeared behind them with Tulkas. They felt more than saw the power Oromë turned toward the door to open it. At first the door resisted but finally flew open. Olórin held them back as Oromë and Tulkas rushed through the door to find the power he had been pushing against gone. They found Elrond floating face down in the tub.

Tulkas pulled Elrond from the tub as Estes appeared. Within several minutes she had Elrond breathing again and changed into dry clothing. Namo appeared with Varda as Elwë and Glorfindel were tucking him into the bed. After a quick conference with the other Vala, Namo told everyone that he would take Elrond back to his Halls to heal and find out exactly what had happened.

“No!” Glorfindel said as he came to stand between Elrond and Namo. “He stays here with me. I will take care of him.”

“Do not be a fool Glorfindel, you have no idea how to help him or even what is wrong,” Namo began.

The other Vala watched the exchange between the two as Glorfindel refused to move and Elwë came to stand by him. Finally, after a quick message exchange with Manwë, Varda intervened before Namo lost his temper.

“Enough,” she shouted. When she had their attention she turned to Glorfindel. “Consider your answer well Glorfindel and tell me why you are so adamant about Elrond not going back to the Halls.”

“I do not know exactly why I feel this way. All I can tell you is that if he goes back to the Halls, we will lose him,” Glorfindel began looking confused. Varda looked deeply into his eyes for several minutes before nodding her head.

“Elrond stays here. Tulkas, you stay nearby in case of another attack. I will have maiar sent to assist you. Estes, stay by his side, there is no telling how he will react when he awakens. We will have to wait until then to determine how much damage was done,” she said.

Turning to Elwë she addressed some of the questions flying through his mind unasked. “Elrond and Glorfindel were indeed created to combat something greater than what you have or will see here. As you already suspect, there is something greater going on outside of Arda that will slowly begin to affect life here. It has already interfered with life in Arda Marred and is slowly working its tentacles here. That is all I am allowed to tell you other than to be patient. There are several others of the firstborn who have seen and grasped a bigger picture than most. You will slowly recognize each other and begin to exchange ideas. When the time comes, more will be revealed to you.”

Elwë did not like it but nodded his understanding and grudging consent. Varda and Namo conferred silently with Olórin about what to do with Glorfindel. Telling him to lie beside Elrond and hold him, Varda them sent him into a deep sleep. With a final look at the others, she and Namo departed to confer with Manwë.

When next Elrond was aware, he found himself lying on the grass in the garden where he had taken lessons with the teachers. Sitting on a rock nearby was a being shaped like one of the Secondborn, with blonde hair and deep blue eyes. There was a glow about him that spoke of much power and a nearness to Eru. He was surprised that he felt no fear after the attack he had suffered and could only attribute it to the presence of this being. Elrond settled back to wait to be addressed by him.

The being studied Elrond for a while before speaking.

“My name is Michael and I am here to teach you to defend yourself against attacks like the one you recently suffered from,” the being said.

“Will you teach Glorfindel also?” Elrond asked as he sat up.

“If Eru consents, I will. For now I must concentrate on you. The attack came much sooner than we had anticipated and I am sorry you were not prepared,” Michael told him.

“Where is this place?” Elrond asked.

“Your fëa has been transported to a safe place outside Arda where it can learn peacefully. One day, after much time has passed, you may come here in your entirety. There is much to be completed before them,” Michael answered. “Come, we must begin to build your defenses. Your brother has already received most of your first few lessons so you can practice these with him when you return.”

Elrond spent what felt like the next several days learning to shield and defend himself between bouts of sleep. Finally he was deemed competent and told that it was time to return.

“My presence has shielded you from the affects of your attack. When you go back and awaken, there will be no such shield. Your memory of your time here will recede into the back of your mind until you have need for it. You will suffer the full affects of the attack as if it had just happened. You need this experience to grow. Rely on your brother and the others to help you through it but give yourself time,” Michael told him. “I hope we meet under better circumstances young one.” Kissing Elrond on the brow, he pushed him back into sleep.

Elrond woke up screaming and fighting as he felt himself being held. His skin felt as if he was on fire and the slightest touch brought excruciating pain. He managed to push whoever was holding him away before he threw the covers off of himself, and scramble off of the bed where he crawled to a basin of water and pulled it over onto himself. He rolled around in the water on the floor as he tried to relieve the burning feeling. As others in the room tried to grab him, he fought desperately. He had to get away. They managed to grab him again as what little strength he had fled. He struggled and cried as they held him down afraid of what was to come. He did not think he could survive being violated again.

“Elrond, calm yourself! It is I, Elwë,” his grandfather said as he grabbed Elrond’s head and forced him to look him in the eye. “You are safe now; I have you and will not leave you.”

Elrond grabbed desperately for Elwë. He knew in his heart that his grandfather could never protect him from the beings that had attacked him but his presence was a comfort.

“I feel as if I am burning, on fire,” he managed to gasp out between gritted teeth.

“Be still little one, we will help you,” came the gruff voice of Tulkas from somewhere beside him. Suddenly he felt hands slide over his chest and rest above his heart; then a cooling sensation flowed over him until the burning was extinguished. Elrond sighed in relief as he slipped into darkness again.

Elwë picked Elrond up and carried him back to the bed where Glorfindel had watched everything from across the room where Oromë was holding him.

“He did not mean to push you away, child. His skin felt as if it were on fire,” Tulkas began to tell as an explanation that would help calm everyone somewhat. “I have put out the invisible fire but he will suffer as if burned until he heals.”

“There is something else wrong also,” Glorfindel began. “There was a terror in his eyes, a terror of being touched.”

“We will stay with him and help him,” Oromë said as he released Glorfindel.

“I will not be able to stay here with him,” Glorfindel said as he watched his brother sleep. “He will not allow it now.”

“You do not know that young one,” Olórin said as he pulled the blonde into his arms for a hug. “Give him time to heal. Now, go with Elwë and clean up. You also need to eat. We will care for Elrond now and call you when he is better.”

Glorfindel looked worriedly back over his shoulder at his brother as he was lead from the room.

“So Lucifer has decided that Elrond is a threat,” Manwë said after being updated by Namo and Varda.

“He must have made inroads among the firstborn that we have not found out about yet. We will have to be more observant now to prevent trouble,” Varda began. “I would have thought he would wait until their training was further along; then attack Glorfindel, not Elrond.”

“He has tipped his hand but not without reason,” Namo said. “He suspects that Elrond is the more dangerous of the two but I believe that he is looking for a weakness that can be exploited. He would love to convert Elrond to his side but needs a way to do so. I suspect that the violation of Elrond’s mind is similar to what he has used before.”

“It is as I suspected then,” Manwë began. “The boy’s closeness will be their downfall if we do not counteract it. It is Glorfindel we will have to watch now as he will become a target to turn Elrond.”

“Do you wish them to be separated now while Elrond recovers?” Varda asked.

“No,” Manwë answered. “Elrond will want to be able to see him even if he does not allow him close. They must realize where the danger lies themselves in order to combat it.”

“As you wish,” came Námo’s quiet reply. “And the others?”

“We must speed up everything every though our timetable will be skewed now. Have Irmo send dreams to the ones who already suspect something more is going on. Let them be led to Lórien where they can meet and discuss what they suspect. I trust that they will realize what to do from there,” Manwë ordered.

Bowing in acknowledgement, Namo departed as Varda went to sit beside her husband and watch over Valinor.

*****

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