Part Six ~ The Edge of the World ~ 2

Grey Havens.

The Elves called it Mithlond but whatever the name, it could not be mistaken for any other place in Middle Earth. Poised on the shore facing the Gulf of Lune, it was from here that the elves would journey to the Western lands. Even though it existed like any other place in Middle Earth, Eowyn could not help thinking that there was a certain unreality to it. Grey Haven was like Rivendell, steeped in legend yet existing in tune with the ordinary world even though nothing about either would ever let a visitor think otherwise.

They had left Hobbiton after spending most of the day asleep and had continued their journey under the cover of dark. They had traveled for two days after departing the Shire before they reached the coast. As they saw the gray ocean sending frothy waves hurling against the cliffs, it felt as if they had reached the edge of the world for beyond the Gulf of Lune was the western sea and what existed there was unknown to the peoples of Middle Earth. She knew that the elves sailed its expanse to reach the Undying Lands but apparently it no longer existed within the realm of the world as they knew it and only the elves were able to make the crossing between the two.

The city of Mithlond was built around the bay that emptied into the Gulf of Lune and from which the Lune River flowed. Along the shore, Eowyn could see the great ships that were under construction in readiness to carry the elves away in their exodus from Middle Earth. Until she saw for herself, Eowyn did not realize how much for granted she had taken their departure. Since the War of the Ring, it was easy to forget that the world was changing when everything seemed to be settling into its place. The elves had always been a distant entity, something that men had learned to live with but had never truly understood. They seemed too far removed from the lives of men with their immortal existence and their differing values. Yet now that Eowyn found herself friend to one of their greatest daughters, she had come to know something about them and seeing the ships in readiness to leave, taking these legendary fair folk away forever, left Eowyn with a terrible sense of loss.

She could not even begin to imagine how Arwen must have felt.

The activity taking place as Arwen, Eowyn and Melia rode through the streets of Mithlond towards the house of Cirdan the Shipwright was almost frantic. Elven tradesmen, be they carpenters, shipbuilders or workers of metal, hurried about their business, attempting to ready the ships before the arrival of their passengers. Although Arwen knew it would be a matter of months before Elrond sailed away to the Undying Lands, those months were merely a splinter of time to these folk when there was so much work to be done. She wondered if the call of the sea hastened their imperative for she could hear its call in her bones. It was a siren song that was capable of making her abandon her quest if she gave it leave. The longing to cross the sea was in her blood still; accepting a mortal life did not change that.

The cold air from the sea blew in across the town, making the trio pull their cloaks closer to their skin. Their arrival in town did little to inspire the interest of the elven smiths who were moving to the pace of their own agenda. Some raised their brow at the presence of the women and paused to look at the Evenstar as someone familiar, though they were uncertain of who she was exactly. Arwen saw no reason to call attention to herself, preferring to see Cirdan the Shipwright with a minimum of fuss before setting out on the final leg of their journey. Once they reached the Havens, everything beyond was uncharted territory for her two companions.

Melia had been true to her word, guiding Arwen and Eowyn to this point utilizing the speediest routes available to them; however, she knew nothing of the lands beyond Angamar. Eowyn knew even less having spent most of her life in the vicinity of Rohan and Gondor. Arwen hoped that Cirdan might be able to direct them toward the fastest route to the Blue Mountains. As if was, the time was fast approaching the next full moon and Arwen did not wish to squander what little there was left of it by trying to find their way north without guidance.

It did not take them long to be directed to Cirdan once they made themselves known at his household. The elves of Mithlond were more than happy to bestow every courtesy to Lord Elrond’s daughter. Cirdan, was as anticipated, at the shore, supervising the work being carried out on the ships that would make the journey to the Undying Lands. He was issuing orders to his ship builders, sending them scurrying about the beach like ants, each with their own purpose to fulfil. Arwen had left Eowyn and Melia in Cirdan’s house in the care of the shipwright’s wife who was even now, offering a warm repast to her guests in the wake of their journey.

"I see you are busy Lord Cirdan," Arwen called to the distinguished elf after he had sent yet another underling running to carry out some unknown duty.

Cirdan looked up at the sound of her voice. His face having become more lined from living so close to the sea, he still wore his thick red hair in a neat braid and he looked more like a man of Gondor than he did an elf. It was the lifestyle of endless devotion to his craft that made him appear more weathered then most elves. He was one of the wises of the elves and a good friend to her father. Arwen had not had much opportunity to see him since before the War of the Ring until her wedding and her thoughts were not entirely focussed on her guest on that particular occasion.

"Evenstar?" Cirdan exclaimed with a mixture of shock and genuine delight. "What in the name of Manwe are you doing here child?" He asked as they met in a warm embrace.

"I have business in the Blue Mountains," she explained, not particularly eager to tell him about the terrible quest she had embarked upon to save her child.

"Business?" Cirdan stared at her with no small measure of disbelief. "Do you expect me to believe that you have traveled halfway across Middle Earth on business? Is the King with you?" His brows knotted as he awaited his answer.

"No," she shook her head. "I travel with Lady Eowyn of Ithilien and a Ranger of Angmar named Melia. Estel is in the White City."

"What business could you possibly have in the Blue Mountains?" Cirdan asked, finding this whole matter strange to say the least. It was not safe for three women to be travelling alone in the greater wilderness of Middle Earth, even if one of those was the Shield Maiden of Rohan and the other was a Ranger. Not when the third member of their party was the Queen of the Reunified Kingdoms.

"I beseech you not to ask me that," Arwen pleaded with him. "There is great darkness at work here Lord Cirdan, darkness that watches me closely and I dare not speak my intent lest he is watching. Only know that I must go there and I require your assistance in finding the speediest path to my destination."

"Does the King know of this darkness?" Cirdan asked, not ready to let the matter rest, not when her eyes were filled with such intense fear.

"Yes," she lied because in truth, she had no idea whether or not Galadriel would tell Estel what she had done. "I go with his blessing."

"The Blue Mountains is a dangerous place," Cirdan confessed after a lengthy pause trying to decide how he should respond.

"I must go nonetheless," she said firmly.

"No you must not," Cirdan retorted because he did not believe the Evenstar understood what kind of danger lay awaiting her in the Blue Mountains. "There is something that you do not know about the Mountains, something that has only arisen in recent months."

Arwen felt her insides grow cold for inwardly, she suspected that it was only a matter of time before the evil heads of the Enemy's agents again rose to plague her on this quest. "What is it Cirdan? What is it that you are afraid to tell me?"

"The elves of Lindon have been attempting to deal with the problem themselves," he said quietly, unable to meet her gaze. With all the trouble that Sauron had caused and with so much blood spilled by men in waging the war against Mordor, we did not even know what evils had been arising closer to home. Not until some of the elven villages in the far north had been razed to the ground, by what menace we do not know. We have sent expeditions to deal with the danger but so far our parties have not returned and since we would no longer intend to remain on these shores…."

"You sought to leave the problem as it stood?" Arwen stared at him in nothing less than horror.

"No," Cirdan retorted shocked that she could think such a thing. "We were going to wait until your father and the others have left for the Undying lands so that we could place our full attention to the problem. Whatever has caused the destruction has not ventured beyond the realm of the villages and is content to remain in place for the time."

"That does not mean anything," Arwen returned. "Whatever lies in wait there could merely be preparing itself for another assault, one that is even more terrible then the initial strole."

"I know that," Cirdan replied, unable to meet her gaze for he was no happier at his choices then she. However he did honestly intend to deal with the situation once he had completed the task of building ships for the elves that intended to depart these shores in a matter of weeks. "I will turn my attention to it in due course but for the moment, I do not have the time for anything else other than to convince you not to go."

"You cannot steer me from this course," she replied, looking as if he were an alien creature she had never before met.

Whatever his reasons, she could not abide his choice to let the trouble in the north gain malignancy with each passing day by ignoring its existence. Estel would never tolerate such a situation and it was at this moment more than any other since the War of the Ring that Arwen understood why men found it difficult to trust elves. Before the War of the Ring, it was Gondor who kept Sauron’s dark forces from spilling forth into the rest of Middle Earth while the elves merely held back, manipulating things from behind the scenes, doing little to stem the tide of evil until the war truly began. What Cirdan was doing was no different, holding back until the last moment, allowing the situation to fester until its disease became unstoppable.

"Arwen, nothing could be that important for you to make this journey," Cirdan pleaded, having no wish to see her enter the fray.

"You are wrong Cirdan," she met his eyes full of emotion because he was the one who did not understand. "There is no question of whether or not I should go to the north. That was decided long before I arrived here. I mean to go there with or without your aid, if it is without then so be it but I will not be deterred from my course."

"You know that I will do all that I can for you," Cirdan responded, seeing something in her eyes that told him she had good reason for her choices and he had no right to keep her from going. "Even if you are determined to do this thing."

"I am glad," she rested her hand on his shoulder. "I need your help and I do not have much time."

Cirdan saw the look on her face and could well believe the urgency he saw there. He did not know why she was making this journey but she was the Evenstar, daughter of Lord Elrond and had undoubtedly inherited her father’s strong spirit. If she chose to go north in order to face whatever dangers lay in wait there, then there was nothing he could do but help her as best he could.

"All right," he finally conceded the point, understanding that there was no convincing her to alter her course. "What do you require of me?"