Fading Light

Three weeks had gone by since Lord Elrond had received a frantic message from Lady Galadriel that her beloved daughter Lady Celebrian had not arrived at Lothlorien. Galadriel had been awaiting her daughter who was traveling from Imladris to Lothlorien to visit her and her father. When the appointed time had come and gone with no sign of her daughter coming she began to worry. Galadriel had gone to her mirror to see if she could see what had happened. When she had looked for hours on end finally a vision began to form and when it was clear she screamed in terror at what she was seeing. There dragging her daughter away screaming with terror were a group of at least forty orcs. The escort had managed to kill some of them but because they were caught unaware and not prepared for this type of ambush, they had been over powered and all were killed. Galadriel wasted no time in reaching her son-in-law.

Upon hearing the news, Lord Elrond immediately gathered together all of his best elven warriors including his twin sons Elladan and Elrohir and the famed Balrog slayer Lord Glorfindel. He had left his chief adviser Erestor in charge of things while he had gone to search for his wife. They were now nearing the part of the Redhorn Pass where she had last been before she had been ambushed.

Lord Elrond was frantic with worry. Why did he let his wife leave? Why didn't he escort her himself? Why didn't he foresee this happening? What if she was dead? All these thoughts were racing through his mind. As if sensing his friend's thoughts Glorfindel tried to reassure him that Celebrian was ok and that they would find her in time. "I'm sure she is okay Elrond. Your wife is a fighter. We will find her, I swear it." Glorfindel had told his friend, but on the inside he was also afraid for her as well.

Glorfindel had grown to love this family as though they were his own family. He had been there when they were married and was there when Celebrian had given birth to the twins and then Arwen. He had watched them grow and then when the twins were old enough trained them himself. He couldn't bear the thought of anything bad happening to her.

He looked around and his eyes fell on the twins. They were almost like nephews to him and his heart ached at the thought that they might never see their mother again. On the outside they appeared to be brave, holding their emotions together, trying to be strong like their father, but on the inside he knew it was a completely different matter altogether. On the inside they were a complete mess. Thoughts of how they would find their mother, would she be ok, and most importantly thoughts of how they would exact revenge on the orcs who slew their kin and took their mother. Glorfindel worried for them and how they would react upon finding these foul creatures of Melkor. He knew how deadly the twins could be when provoked to anger. He should know, he had trained them himself and they had taken after their father in the temper department.

Finally, they had arrived to the spot where Galadriel had told them that Celebrian's escort had been ambushed. As they approached the sight they were met with was something from a battle scene. All around were dead bodies from both orcs and elves. The snow was a deep crimson red from the blood of elves and a deep black from the blood of orcs. Most of the elves had been killed before they even knew what had hit them and the elves that had fought didn't stand a chance. They were outnumbered. Never had this many orcs come out during the day light or this time of year as they had that day.

When Lord Elrond had seen the carnage he immediately dismounted his horse and began to look for his wife. Elladan and Elrohir had followed suit and searched the bodies for any sign of their mother. "WE MUST FIND MY WIFE! I WANT ALL OF YOU TO LOOK FOR HER!" Elrond had shouted. Everyone started searching but to no avail. Celebrian was nowhere to be found.

"My Lord, she is not here. We have looked everywhere." Said one of the elves.

"She has to be. Keep looking!" Elrond spat back a little too harshly.

Finally Elladan shouted to his father. "Ada! Over here!"

Elrond ran over to where his son was. "Ada, they've taken her. Look." Elladan handed him a necklace that Elrond had given his wife on her begetting day. Elrond took it and swore under his breath. "She was definitely alive when they took her ada. She put up a fight. And the tracks lead this way." Elladan pointed north.

"Then we will follow those tracks and we will not stop until we find her!" Elrond vowed. "THIS WAY!" He commanded. Everyone was tired but they didn't dare argue with the Lord of Imladris.

"Father, what about the bodies we can't leave them like this." Elrohir responded.

"Then some of you stay behind and take care of the bodies, the rest of you follow me." Elrond ordered. At that Elrohir had ordered at least ten men to stay behind to burn the bodies and the rest had begun to follow the trail that led to where Celebrian was being held. They could only pray that she was still alive when they found her.

It was nearing nightfall when they had finally arrived to where the tracks had lead. When they dismounted the horses they had quietly walked over to a large mouth that lead to a foul smelling cave. The smell was so rancid it was all one could do not to gag or be sick.

"She's in here, I can feel it, but her fea is very weak." Elrond stated almost breaking down right then and there.

Elrohir placed a hand on his arm. "We will find her ada."

Elrond smiled at his son and nodded for the rest of the elves to follow him. "Glorfindel you take some of your men and head to the east of the cave. Elrohir, you and your brother take some of your men and take the center part of the cave and I will take the west side. Try not to be seen or heard and if you come across any orcs, show no mercy on them."

The elves all nodded and went off to find Celebrian. Elrond had come across a few orcs but had slain them without a sound. About twenty minutes of searching Elrond had finally come to a little side cave where he had heard grotesque voices and saw a small light. As he slowly approached he was met with a horrific sight. There chained to a wall beaten horrendously and crying hysterically was Celebrian. Next to her at a small makeshift table were five orcs who were arguing about what to do with her next. Elrond didn't even wait to let them finish talking. What came over him could only be described as temporary insanity. With a rage of utter hate in his eyes and a loud scream that almost sounded savagely he flew into a killing frenzy and beheaded every orc in the room within seconds.

When he was done he had ran to his wife who at that time was so traumatized she didn't even recognize her husband who by that time had unchained her from the wall. Celebrian was screaming with a blood curdling scream and flinging herself trying to get away. Elrond had somehow managed to calm her before she fell limp in his arms. Elrond had taken this opportunity to look at her wounds. What he saw made his stomach churn. Her dress had all but been torn from her body; she was covered in lacerations and bruises that covered the majority of her body. Her face was covered with dirt and cuts. Her wrists were badly bleeding from the chains that held her to the wall and on her upper left shoulder was a deep stab wound with nasty black lines leading away which indicated it had been poisoned.

Elrond's healing instincts had kicked in and he instantly put some Athelas in the wound to help stop the poison. When he had done that he ordered one of his men to boil some water. When he had done that he took a rag and began to clean her wounds carefully while making sure no bones were broken. Fortunately none were but her right shoulder was badly dislocated from the position she had been chained. Elrond knew she would feel it but he had to relocate her shoulder. When he popped her shoulder back in place she had woken up and began screaming again. "Celebrian, meleth, it's me Elrond. You are safe now. Please come back to me." At that Celebrian had stopped screaming and fell limp again. Elrond just held her in his arms and began crying.

By this time Glorfindel and the twins had found them and the sight of their mother in that condition had fueled them with a hatred and anger they had not felt before. Elrond had heard them come near him and he looked up at them pain apparent in his eyes.

"Look at what they have done to her. Why? She was so innocent, why her?" He could barely finish his sentence before he began to cry again.

"Ada, we will avenge her, I swear it. I swear on our own lives we will not stop until every last orc is slain." Elladan had vowed.

Glorfindel had regained his composure, "Mellon nin we must get your wife back to Imladris. She is in desperate need of healing and we can't do that here."

"Ai, let us go now before more of them come." Elrond said while he carefully picked his wife up and carried her out of the cave and to his horse.

Upon returning the elves all inhaled sharply at the sight of their beloved Lady being carried by Elrond who had covered her with his cloak. No one dared to say anything the whole way back home but it was obvious on everyone's faces that they were devastated and angered by what had befallen her. Everyone knew that the twins would stop at nothing to avenge their mother.

When they had returned to Imladris Elrond took his wife straight to their room which he had turned into a private healing wing. For months he had not rested and barely ate as he cared for his wife. Elrond had managed to heal her body but he knew that the damage he would not be able to cure would be her spirit. He knew deep down that she would never recover from her ordeal and that she would eventually sail overseas to the Undying Lands sundered from him until the day he himself would sail. All he could do until then was enjoy what time they had together before she would sail.

One year later at the Grey Havens Celebrian, Elrond, the twins and Arwen were saying their goodbyes. When it finally came time for Celebrian and Elrond to part they couldn't stop crying. "I will come for you Celebrian. When the time is right and all my work here is done I will sail and come be with you. You are my shining light and nothing can keep us apart, not even the seas."

"I love you Elrond. Always and for eternity. I shall wait for you." Celebrian said while holding him one last time.

Finally it was time and as Celebrian stood on the ship she stared as her husband waved to her until she was nothing more than a dot on the horizon. She was gone.

Hours later Elrond finally left to return home where he would spend the rest of his days on Middle Earth alone without his beloved Celebrian. He would sleep the rest of his days alone with nothing but her memory to keep him company at night. As for his sons, they had gone out to do exactly what they vowed to do: to go out and hunt down every last orc that stood to avenge their mother, the Lady of Imladris.