Middle-Earth (c) J.R.R. Tolkien or whoever owns it now.
The little fish swam deeper and deeper into the ocean. He saw a bright flash of light, and curiously came closer. He swam for a few moments, and then stopped, confused as to where the light had come from. A light flashed, and he jumped. Drawn by a gnawing curiosity, he swam closer and closer until he suddenly hit the sand at the bottom of the ocean.
He poked at the sand, nudging it this way and that, until he came upon a small, perfectly round object. The object gave off a blinding light for a brief moment, as if in greeting, then dimmed to a glow. The fish jumped back, startled, and looked at it. It was beautiful to the little fish. He suddenly had a strong desire to possess it.
Looking around, he again moved closer to the object. He slowly opened his mouth, as if for no reason. Then he quickly snatched the object up in his mouth and swam away.
As he swam, he felt proud of himself for finding such a pretty object. He swerved from side to side in glee. He suddenly found himself on the sand. He tried to swim back to the water, but a sudden wave pushed him further up. He lay on the white beach, struggling, mouth opening and closing. He dropped the little round object without noticing, and flopped to his other side. Hands closed around him, and he flew through the air back into the ocean. He swam away, shaken, and mourning the loss of his pretty little ball.
~The Lost is Found -- Chapter One~
Veloren wandered through the ruins of the once-great city. She touched the familiar pillars, breathing in the scent of the ocean. This was where she came when she wanted to get away. She had heard the stories about this place, that Elves used to live here. That this was where the Ringbearers left for the refuge of Valinor.
The Grey Havens had been abandoned for over a thousand years, when the Last Ship sailed for the distant shores. Men had forgotten the wisdom and beauty of the Elves. They claimed to be the wisest in the entire world, with their enormous knowledge of medicines and nature. But Veloren knew that the Elves were the wisest and fairest of all.
Some openly said that the Elves never existed. They said that the tales of Aman and the Lost Road were all stories made up to entertain little ones. But Veloren believed it all was true. How else did the place she was standing in get there? She had seen no towers and buildings built so beautifully in any other place she had ever been, even in its ruin. She had found libraries full of ancient text, unreadable but yet fascinating. What did they say? What were they about?
Veloren sighed as she passed the statues of various people. There were so many questions she had about this place, so many unknown answers. It bothered her to not know. She walked down to the beach, admiring the white sand that lay there. Her brown hair flew from side to side in the wind. Her hair ribbon had fallen off somewhere. She cringed as she thought of what her mother would say, but shrugged it off and walked down to the water.
The water was still and clear. It shimmered with an unusual light. Veloren looked up to the sky, curious. The sun was covered over with a cloud. She looked back to the water. The shimmer was still there. She walked closer to the bright area, and jumped to see a little fish, gasping on the shore. She picked it up and gently threw it back in the ocean, pitying it. She then bent down to look at the bright light. It suddenly dimmed, and lying there was a little round ball. She picked it up, and it shone again with a dazzling light. Expecting to get burned, Veloren was surprised to find that the temperature of the ball did not change. Pocketing it, she decided to head home, her mind full of questions.
~The Lost is Found -- Chapter 2~
Morwen waited impatiently for her daughter in the doorway. Veloren was supposed to have been home an hour ago.
That girl spends too much time outside. She should be inside doing the duties of a woman! thought Morwen. She sighed. She lives in a fantasyland of her own. Her head is always in the clouds.
Even as she thought these things, she noticed Veloren running towards the house, her hair flying behind her. Morwen sighed again. She had lost another ribbon.
Veloren ran up to her mother, panting. �I�m sorry I�m late, mother. I just found this little...�
Morwen put her hand up. �I don�t want to hear excuses, Veloren. This is the third time you�ve been late this week! No, don�t even think of interrupting. Look at your hair! Where is that ribbon I gave you? Those ribbons cost money! And look at your dress! It�s soaked! You were walking in the ocean again, weren�t you? You�re going to ruin all of your dresses that way! And your hands are filthy!�
Veloren bowed her head in shame. She started to walk inside, but her mother stopped her.
�Don�t you even think of walking in my house with those feet! Rinse them off!�
Veloren sighed and turned around. As soon as her back was to her mother, she rolled her eyes and made a face. She walked to the little pond next to the house and dipped her foot in. She took it out and paused, pondering how to put her foot down without getting it dirty again. Shrugging, she stuck both feet in the cool water. She stood there for a moment, enjoying the feeling of the cool water swirling around her feet. As she did, she remembered the little ball in her pocket. She took it out and looked at it. It was beautiful, and it shone so brightly that Veloren had to close her eyes for a moment. She put it back in her pocket and headed through the dirt to the house.
As she entered, her three little sisters ran to greet her. Veloren always gave them something when she came back from the ocean, and they expected something this time.
�Lori! Lori! What did you bring back?� cried Veloren�s youngest sister, Elanor. She ran to Veloren and attempted to put her hands in Veloren�s pockets, but Veloren stopped her and pulled a huge shell out of her left pocket, along with a shiny pink rock and a perfect black feather. She held them out, and her sisters each grabbed one of the items. Veloren smiled as she looked at her three sisters.
The oldest of the three, Anirwen, was 12, about six years younger than Veloren herself. She was a serious child who enjoyed staying inside and reading. She was a neat person, which was reflected in her room, which was always tidy. Veloren often felt that her mother wished she were more like Anirwen. She picked the feather and silently headed back for her room.
Faerwen was 8 years old and was most like Veloren than her other sisters. She loved the ocean and the old Grey Havens, even though she had only been there a few times. She was often daydreaming or off running in the woods. She had endless amounts of energy. She grabbed the shell and ran outside to show her bird, Caw.
Elanor, the youngest at 3, was a beautiful little girl. She loved pretty things and shiny things. She loved washing dishes with her mother and eating sweets with her afterwards. She took the rock and ran off to show her mother.
When all three of Veloren�s sisters were gone, she took out the ball from her right pocket. It was still very bright. An air of mystery surrounded it, and Veloren sensed that it was very old. There were feelings that seemed to be connected to it. Veloren could feel a pride in the ball, perhaps a little too much pride. She closed her eyes, imagining an Elf holding it, proud of his work.
Her vision suddenly changed. She saw an Elf, tall and handsome with flowing crimson hair, looking upon them greedily. She saw majestic creatures, graceful and beautiful, looking upon it lovingly. She saw an Elf crying in agony as he held it. She saw a dark creature, terrible to behold, setting it in a crown. He appeared to be in pain as he did so. When the task was done, he smiled through his pain. He then looked up and stared straight at her. Veloren gasped and snapped open her eyes, panting with fear.
What was that? she asked herself. I didn�t think up any of that! Who were those Elves? Why was one of them crying? Who was that... that black creature? How did he look at me?
Veloren�s thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. She turned quickly to the door and yanked it open. She cried out in surprise and astonishment. She looked behind her, then back to the person at the door. She stumbled back and almost fell, but caught herself on a chair. She rubbed her eyes and looked again, but she was still there.
It was an Elf.
~The Lost is Found � Chapter 3~
Veloren could not believe her eyes. She had always believed that Elves existed, but she had never considered that they were actually real. She stared stupidly at the Elf in front of her with wonder, until she realized the Elf was waiting with annoyance for her to snap out of it. She blinked and shook her head.
�H-hello,� she stammered. �May I help you?�
The Elf frowned. She took a step closer into the room, then quicker than lightning, grabbed Veloren�s arm and hurried out of the house. Veloren cried out as she stumbled and tripped out the door until she caught her footing and ran to keep pace with the long strides of the Elf. She tried to yank her arm loose, but the Elf�s grip was tight. She stopped a few minutes away from the house and turned to face Veloren, without letting go.
�Excuse me, but I didn�t ask to come with you,� said Veloren, still trying to reclaim her arm.
The Elf finally let go of her arm and glared at Veloren with dark eyes. Veloren shrank a little under the powerful gaze of the creature, but held it with almost equal ferocity.
�I am the Veduiedhel,� said the Elf, startling Veloren with her sudden words. Her tongue was not stayed, however.
�The Veduiedhel?� asked Veloren. �Is Veduiedhel your name or what?�
The Elf opened her mouth, but seemed to reconsider her words. She opened her mouth again to speak.
�I am� my name is Veduiedhel. Yes, that is my name.�
Veloren nodded, still scrutinizing the so-called �Veduiedhel.� Veloren could see that it was obviously not her real name, but she was somewhat afraid of the Elf and didn�t want to pry.
�Why did you bring me out here?� asked Veloren. �What do you want with me?�
�What have you got in your pocket?� asked Veduiedhel.
Veloren suddenly remembered the little glowing ball she had found, and the terror it had brought her. She shuddered at the memory of what she had seen, but brought the little ball out of her pocket. She held it out to Veduiedhel, whose eyes were wide in alarm.
�So it has been found,� Veduiedhel muttered to herself.
Veloren heard her and grew curious. �What is it?� she inquired. �Is it important? Do I need to keep it a secret?�
Veduiedhel gave her a sharp glance to quiet her, and then took the ball from Veloren�s hands. It shone brightly, more so than Veloren had seen since encountering it at the Grey Havens. Veloren shielded her eyes from its fierce light, more curious than ever before. She had so many questions now. Why did it glow? Why more so when the Elf was holding it? Who made it? Why did she see the vision when she held it?
�This is the last remaining Silmaril in Middle-Earth,� said Veduiedhel slowly. �It was made by F�anor, the crimson-haired, and it is one of only two remaining lights of the Two Trees.�
Veloren cocked her head to one side. �What are Silmarils, who is F�anor, and what are the Two Trees?� she asked, curious to the point of bursting.
Veduiedhel�s eyes were dark and fearful as she looked up at Veloren.
�Go to your home,� she commanded, handing back the Silmaril. �Take whatever is necessary for you to survive. You will need a blanket, clothes, and food. Bring whatever you think you will need on a long journey.�
Veloren felt a pang of intense fear in her gut. A long journey? Where was she going? What would her mother say? She took a slow step backwards, half disbelieving the predicament she had gotten herself into. She looked inquisitively into Veduiedhel�s eyes, searching for some kind of answer, but Veduiedhel seemed to have blocked all emotion from her face.
�Now!� shouted the Elf. Veloren quickly spun around and ran, startled by the sudden outburst of the Elf. She had always imagined Elves as happy, lighthearted creatures, but this Elf was definitely not happy or lighthearted.
She reached her home in a few minutes and ran straight to her bedroom. She grabbed a sack and began stuffing it with clothes, a blanket, and a few keepsakes she believed she couldn�t do without. She ran to the storage room of her home and grabbed a few miscellaneous items, and then headed to the kitchen for some food. She stopped short as she noticed her mother, standing in the doorway of the kitchen, tapping her foot loudly.