1. Free At Last
Elrond opened the velvet pouch and dumped the contents into the palm of his hand. The weight of the gold and the sparkling sapphire were considerable, but the weight of power it had contained had evaporated.
With it, he had protected his stronghold and all of those who had come to him, but no more. Vilya was dead, an artifact of another Age, of a need fulfilled.
With no hesitation at all, he dropped it into Celebrimbor's open hand to join the other two rings. Free at last - and forever diminished - Elrond reclaimed Celebrían's hand and walked away.
With it, he had protected his stronghold and all of those who had come to him, but no more. Vilya was dead, an artifact of another Age, of a need fulfilled.
With no hesitation at all, he dropped it into Celebrimbor's open hand to join the other two rings. Free at last - and forever diminished - Elrond reclaimed Celebrían's hand and walked away.
This is a work of fan fiction, written because the author has an abiding love for the works of J R R Tolkien. The characters, settings, places, and languages used in this work are the property of the Tolkien Estate, Tolkien Enterprises, and possibly New Line Cinema, except for certain original characters who belong to the author of the said work. The author will not receive any money or other remuneration for presenting the work on this archive site. The work is the intellectual property of the author, is available solely for the enjoyment of Henneth Annûn Story Archive readers, and may not be copied or redistributed by any means without the explicit written consent of the author.
