Chapter Text
A full day has passed since the trial by abyss took place. Elrond spent most of the previous day inside the healing chamber at the insistence of Galadriel and Queen Miriel herself. No one knew if the trial succeeded in drawing out Morgoth’s poison until Elrond noticed that the scars on his shoulder had completely disappeared. He felt elated at the discovery but couldn’t help feeling wary after observing the disturbing vision the sea worm showed him.
He did not tell Galadriel about what he had seen when he was underneath the waves, he told no one about his vision. The pain and nightmares were thankfully gone, it was as if he’d been never wounded in the first place. He could finally sleep again without fearing to lose control over his body and mind. Though as a precaution, he was still guarded by Galadriel and Camnir during the first night just to make sure.
Now that a full day has passed without any further incidents, the company of Elves presented themselves again to Queen Miriel in the conference chamber they had been in earlier. Chancellor Pharazôn was not present during the meeting. Miriel told the Elves, after they had inquired after his absence, that she had sent him to organize the Númenorean war fleet but Galadriel had suspicions that his truancy had more to do with the disappointment of the outcome of the trial.
“I am glad that we are able to converse again without this cloud of darkness looming over us.” The Queen spoke with some relief. The past few days have been trying times for everyone involved. The Elves nearly lost someone dear to them while the whole commotion almost cost Miriel her throne.
“Forgive me for all the troubles I have caused during our visit.” Elrond replied bowing politely before the Queen.
“We do not bow in Númenor but your apology is gladly received.” The Queen answered. “I do sincerely hope that your new gained health will last and that you will no longer be plagued by wounds from the past.”
“I thank you with all my heart for your kind words and support.” Elrond bowed again despite Miriel’s words as did the other Elves behind him. This time, the Queen did not comment on the gesture, she learned from Galadriel that it was a deeply engrained custom within the Elvish culture.
“As to the matter at hand about a proposed military alliance, I am proud to say that Númenor accepts your offer. We have seen the possible devastating results of the Deceiver at first hand and if this is any indication on what would happen on a larger scale, we indeed need to unite our forces to put down the Deceiver once and for all. “
All of the Elves looked extremely pleased at hearing the news. Their difficult journey to Númenor hadn’t been in vain after all.
“It will take a while to mobilize our army and fleet but we would like to send a small party of representatives back with you to your King to formally announce our alliance. Captain Elendil has enthusiastically volunteered to present our deal to your King.”
Elendil smiled and nodded at the Elves , Galadriel couldn’t help but think there was an ulterior motive behind his eager willingness to accompany them back to Middle-Earth.
The Elven ship that lay in port ever since the company’s arrival in Númenor was now being prepared to make the journey back to Mithlond. All of the Elves seemed eager to leave the island behind after the traumatizing events of the past days. They were joined up by Elendil and a few Númenorean sailors who volunteered to follow their captain back to Middle-Earth.
The Queen was present on the docks during the subdued farewell ceremony which was attended by a relative small crowd. No offical announcements were made of the departure of the Elves to make sure that there could be no unrest. Despite Elrond having been cleared as innocent by the trial, Miriel didn’t take any risks to ensure the safety of the Elves.
While the Elves and men boarded the ship, Galadriel turned around and embraced the Queen warmly with eyes bright full of tears. “Thank you for your support, for both Elrond’s sake and that of Middle-Earth. “
“There is nothing you need to thank me for.” The Queen replied with a whisper. “All I did was giving your friend a death sentence, something that will loom forever in my mind.”
“Do not burden yourself with these thoughts of guilt, you saved his life and your kingdom in the process.”
Miriel smiled, “I hope that our paths will cross each other again soon, have a safe journey home.”
Galadriel released the Queen from her hold and boarded one of the small rowboats that would take them to the ship.
“Suil vain.” Miriel called out as the small rowboat made its way to the larger vessel.
Once on board of the ship, Elendil was simply amazed at the Elven craftmanship. He could not help himself but pace around the entire vessel exploring every wooden beam he could see. His fellow Númenorean sailors seemed to be equally enthralled by being part of the crew on an Elven ship. Galadriel couldn’t help but smile at the human sea Captain’s enthusiasm.
“This is such delicate workmanship, the vessel is as light as a feather yet sturdier than the largest ships of the Númenorean fleet. How is this possible?”
Galadriel grinned and stood beside him watching him inspect the foremast. “This ship was commisioned by Cirdan the shipmaster, it was build in Mithlond. Perhaps you could ask Elrond for the details, he has been taught the basics of shipcrafting by Cirdan himself. “
“I must certainly do so.” Elendil breathed.
The journey to Mithlond went smoothly and without any incident. The seas couldn’t be calmer and a fortunate breeze made the ship basically glide over the water as if the Valar themselves were steering the vessel towards safety. Their voyage back was completed within five days, time spent resting and getting to know their human crew. Galadriel also noted with interest how the Silvan Elf now seemed inseparable from Adar.
Vorohil and Beriedir had discovered the art of gambling from the Númenorean sailors and spent a large amount of the five days journey gambling with humans for rations with limited success. Galadriel knew that Gil-Galad would not appreciate this new habit from his own personal guard but shrugged it off and did not interfere with the matter.
Elrond spent a lot of time on his own and in the company of his best friend Camnir and the ever curious Elendil. His nights were finally peaceful, no longer plagued by nightmares so the others were confident to let him sleep on his own again.
The ship moored in the port of Mithlond on a quiet afternoon. Until their great surprise, High-King Gil-Galad was waiting near the docks together with Cirdan. They both looked rather worried as they observed the ship attaching its mooring lines. Elendil, together with his small Númenorean crew, were quick in making the ship secure. In fact, the Elves on board doubted they could have done it better themselves.
Elrond and Galadriel were first to disembark and greeted their King politely.
“How did your journey fare?” Cirdan asked cheerfully. The shipwright looked at his vessel and saw a group of Númenoreans disembark next.
“Ulmo has blessed us during our journey.” Galadriel replied. “And we have the privilege of being accompanied by the most skilled sailors of Númenor.”
Cirdan smiled broadly at the Elves but Gil-Galad looked a lot less certain. The King kept gazing at his Herald waiting for some kind of explanation but Elrond remained unusually quiet and diverted his gaze away towards the building behind the King.
Elendil joined up with Galadriel as well as Elrond and bowed politely before the Elven King. He knew that Númenoreans never bowed but he had learned from the Elves that the people of Middle-Earth did bow before their betters and he wanted to give the best impression of himself and his men before the ruler of the Noldor.
“My name is Elendil.” The captain introduced himself, “I have joined your emissaries to bring you official news from our Queen.” He handed over a rather large scroll richly decorated with the coat of arms of Númenor. Gil-Galad accepted the scroll and thanked the Sea Captain.
“If you three would like to follow me, we can talk in a place that is a bit more private than here on the docks.”
“Feel free to use my cabin Ereinion.” Cirdan replied cheerfully.
“Thank you, that is much appreciated.” The King answered seriously. Elendil was amused at the casual way the shipwright seemed to be treating the High-King. He wished to say something, to ask about it, but he kept his questions to himself for later.
Elrond didn’t appear to be very eager to join Cirdan and the King for the debrief of their mission, in fact he looked downright uncomfortable at the very thought of having to recollect all that transpired in Númenor.
The four of them entered the comfortably looking cabin and seated themselves around the dining table of the shipwright while the latter himself gathered a tray of drinks and small refreshments.
Ereinion was reading through the scroll he had been given and sighed a little in relief knowing that the Númenoreans agreed to a military alliance and were gathering their forces at this very moment. It seemed that their little excursion to the Island nation was a success but he couldn’t help but shake off the uneasy feeling that he had been sensing for days.
The red ring on his finger had been giving immense sensations of woe and desperation about a week ago and he knew that Cirdan felt it as well. He could not place it until the shipwright explained that the three rings shared a connection with each other with the third one being wielded by Galadriel. Ereinion realized something terrible must have happened there on Númenor but both Galadriel and Elrond refused to tell him anything. He just knew it had something to do with his Herald who remained quiet and unusually subdued throughout their conversation.
The King knew he had to say something, he had to ask before Elrond fled back to Rivendell but he wasn’t sure if asking it in front of the human Captain was the right thing to do. He fidgeted with the ring on his finger before he took the plunge.
“What exactly happened on Númenor? Don’t hold back any important details now because I will know.”
Elrond immediately looked down at his lap but Galadriel saw the King fidgeting with the ring on his finger. She immediately understood, the King had felt the disturbances and so did probably Cirdan but the shipwright acted as if nothing happened.
Galadriel placed a hand on Elrond’s shoulder, “Should I tell him or will you?”
Elrond looked at her and nodded gratefully at her, “You can start, I will fill in parts if necessary. You two probably have a better understanding of what has happened than I do myself.”
“Better understanding of what?” Ereinion asked in confusion.
“Do you remember what happened to Elrond during the siege of Eregion?” Galadriel asked tentatively.
“I try not to.” The King answered solemnly.
“It turned out that the stab wound had more lasting effects than we anticipated. The rings were not powerful enough to draw out Morgoth’s poison itself which allowed Sauron to take over his mind,”
The King uttered a brief but audible curse as his eyes settled on that of Elrond again who was still avoiding his gaze.
“It started mildly at first. The Uruk noticed that Elrond was suffering from nightmares before we even embarked on our journey. During the sea voyage, Sauron first took control over his body which resulted in Elrond leaping into the sea in the middle of the night. Fortunately we had Adar with us, he saw it all happen and retrieved him from the sea before he could drown.”
One of the King’s eyebrows arched in surprise, “Is this true Elrond?”
The Half-Elf nodded.
“During our first night in Númenor, Sauron took over his mind again.” Galadriel continued.
Elendil picked up the story, “I was asleep when I heard a loud creak next to my bed. Before I knew it, Elrond tried to stab me with a knife. I saw that something was wrong when I looked into his eyes, he didn’t look like himself as I tried to fight him off. I could however not fight him off on my own, fortunately two other Elves managed to drag him away from me before any real harm was done. They had to knock him out by force before he snapped out of whatever or whoever was taking control of him. It was a deeply unsettling moment to have witnessed.”
Elrond looked up at the Captain seated right next to him. “I’m so terribly sorry for what I’ve done, my behaviour was inexcusable and I deeply regret any harm I have inflicted.”
The Sea Captain patted Elrond comfortably on his shoulder as if to comfort one of his own children. “I accept your apology although there is nothing you need to apologize for. It was clear that you were not in the right state of mind and had no control over your own actions.”
The King looked downright shocked at the relevations made by Galadriel and the Númenorean in front of him, even Cirdan couldn’t help but look uneasy at this news.
“We thought we might seek a remedy to his affliction by searching through his brother’s journals at the hall of lore.” Galadriel continued. “We left Elrond under the watchful eye of the others in our company while I, Elendil and Camnir were away. Unfortunately, Elrond managed to slip away in our absence and….”
“And what?” The King pressed on.
“He attacked our sacred tree in front of the palace and assaulted a few of the royal guards in the process.” Elendil finished the story.
If the King looked worried before, he appeared completely aghast now. “Did you now? Why on earth would you do that?”
“He clearly wasn’t himself.” Elendil continued. “The guards arrested him with the help of one of your Elves. Of course you can imagine that our people were very angered by his actions and wanted justice. The situation couldn’t have been more dire. But we found a possible solution that we wanted to try. With the help of our Queen, we administered the trial by abyss to draw Morgoth’s poison out of his body.”
“It seemed to have done the trick and we immediately averted a political disaster in the process.” Galadriel finished the story. Both Elf and human left out the part where Elrond stabbed himself inside the Númenorean jail. They could see that the King was already deeply worried and this particular detail felt save to be omitted for now.
“Dear Eru..” Ereinion mumbled softly while rubbing his face with his hands. He thought that sending them to Númenor would have been a relatively easy task. After all, Galadriel was already known to the royal court and Elrond had deep connections to the island. It was supposed to be easy like a gentle breeze but he could not have anticipated the disastrous storm that unfolded, though he did sense something bad had occured through his ring.
“Forgive me my King.” Elrond finally lifted his head to face his King. “I was sent as a representative of your authority and I nearly ruined our reputation through my own misgivings.”
Ereinion held up one of his hands to stop his Herald from speaking any further.
“No one here is to blame but me. I sent you out there without realizing that you could still be suffering from your injuries. I am only fortunate enough that you are surrounded by people who care deeply for your well being. Not only did you face a terrible darkness, you have overcome it and accomplished your mission despite the setbacks. I am proud of you Elrond.”
The King rose from his seat to embrace his Herald who was at this point now openly crying at the kind words he received from those around him. Elrond hugged him back fiercely while still apologizing himself for his behaviour.
“I have not earned such high praises from you, my King.” Elrond sniffed into Ereinion’s cloak.
“Now I want you to spend some well earned time here in Mithlond to heal further before you assume your role as Lord of Rivendell. I will let the others in your company decide whether they will follow you to Rivendell or resume their previous role.”
The King released his Herald and moved towards the exit of the shipwright’s cabin. “I thank you Captain Elendil for helping my people, especially in supporting Elrond through one of his most dire moments. I look forward to receive Númenor’s forces and deepen the relationship between our nations.”
Elendil bowed politely as Gil-Galad left the cabin. Elrond sighed and dropped down on one the chairs again.
“Well, I am very glad that everything turned alright in the end.” Cirdan spoke jovially. Feel free to stay the night here in my cabin if you wish, I have some matters that I still need to discuss with Ereinion.” And with that, Cirdan also left the cabin.
“What will you do now Elendil? Will you go back to Númenor right away?”
The Captain shook his head. “There is a reason why I accompanied you on your ship rather than sailing my own. My son is here in Middle-Earth and I will find him, only then I can return home in good conscience. “
Galadriel placed her hands on both shoulders of the Peredhel and embraced him from behind. “I shall accompany you Elendil. I have been to the Southlands and I feel honour bound to help you find your son.”
Elendil’s eyes lit up, “you would do that for me?”
“Of course, besides I can hardly let you travel on your own through Middle-Earth, it’s full with danger especially with Sauron so nearby.”
Elrond leaned back on his chair into the touch of Galadriel. “I will go with you as well.”
“Didn’t the King just order you to take some well earned rest?” Galadriel teased lightly before stroking the curls of his hair.
“I am fine, I assure you. I have spent the past five days resting on board of the ship. I can’t stay here and fiddle my thumbs while you are on yet another adventure.”
“Hmmm. We need more people to make our mission a success. I know a few who would love to travel to the Southlands with us. I am certain both Adar and Arondir are jumping at the chance to return to the Southlands. Having a cartographer on our side will be useful though I am not sure if Camnir is ready for yet another dangerous adventure. And if Vorohil and Beriedir are willing to follow you rather than Gil-Galad, we can surely use their help as well. “
“It is settled then, we will carefully and covertly plan our mission tomorrow and ask the others if they wish to join us.” Galadriel planted a warm kiss on the Peredhel’s cheek before releasing him.
“One small rule I wish to uphold. If anyone suffers from any sort of a nightmare, I want to be the first to know about it.” Elendil joked heartingly.
The other two Elves laughed along with the Númenorean.
“Now please if you wish to indulge me Elrond, what did Cirdan teach you about Elven ships?”