*Takes the money and walks across to the bar* I'll have a pint of your best ale, good sir. *Takes drink back to table*Takes a sip* Well, I did promise to tell you a story. Let's see...
I suppose you have heard of
Gondolin? That was a mighty
city, which
Turgon built in those dark times. Yes, no-one knew where it was or how to get there, save for the
Eagles and those who dwelt there. It was possibly the safest place, except for
Aman, which was difficult to get to, and you could perish on the journey. There were seven gates that guarded the haven, made of wood, stone, iron, bronze, silver, gold and a final one which was the strongest of all. Long
Morgoth Belchiot sought for the
Hidden City, yet he never found it until he released
Hurin and tricked him. While Gondolin stood, with Turgon its lord as High King of the
Noldor, Morgoth could not rest, as he wished to destroy all Noldor, especially those who were mighty among us.
Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, I was not one of those, yet I am a Noldo, and I have seen much in my life. I fought in the guard of Turgon in the
Nirnaeth Arnoediad, and that was a hard battle, in which we lost more than we gained. Many mighty Eldarin and
Edain lords were slain in that battle, and Hurin was captured. He was eventually released, yet the
Dark Lord kept a close eye on him. For Hurin son of Galdor had once dwelt in Gondolin, though he knew not the paths that would bring him hither. He did, however, guess which region it was in, and thus gave away part of our safety.
Yet it was not only the treachery of Hurin that helped Morgoth the Black. An
elf named Maeglin, played a major part, which is sad because he was of close kin to Turgon himself. Maeglin, desiring Turgon's daughter Idril, wished to wed her and thus become Turgon's heir. This was not allowed because they were too close a blood-line. Then something happened to spoil Maeglin's plans.
Tuor, son of Huor, was sent by
Ulmo lord of the Waters to warn Turgon. He arrived, and fell in love with Idril Celebrindal, who loved him in return. Maeglin despised Tuor, although Tuor rose high in the King's favour. At this time, they were wedded, and Idril began preparing a secret path out of the city. Maeglin gave way to his heart and sold out the location of Gondolin, believing the lies of Morgoth thinking he would have Idril as his prize.
Morgoth Belchiot attacked the Hidden City with
Balrogs,
Dragons and
orcs. It was horrible, and had it not been for Idril's planning, none would have escaped. I was one of the lucky few that did, along with my wife Rewian. Amongst us was Tuor, Idril and myself, and we had a long distance to traverse before we were in the safety of our allies. Turgon was killed in the onslaught, which meant Idril and Tuor were our leaders.
We had
mountains to cross, and that was the hardest part of the journey, in which my wife died. We came to
Cirdan, who gave us refuge.
They were sad times, and I wished to cross over the sea to
Valinor from whence I came, yet Cirdan asked me to remain, and I did. There are many other
events which I have seen and wished I could forget, but cannot.
What did you think of it, young elf? Do you believe me?