Chapter Nine: In the Tower

Elrond was walking in the gardens with his daughter when he suddenly grunted in pain and nearly toppled over as agony swept through him as though he had just been whipped. A scream echoed in his mind that he knew was not his own.                                  

“Adar?” Arwen questioned as she touched his arm.

The Elf lord was not aware of her concern. He knew where that scream came from and searched far in his mind to reach the one from whose lips it had issued. He saw his little brother laying atop some rags on a filthy floor. He was naked and curled around himself in a vain attempt to protect himself from the whips of the enemies who surrounded him. The physical pain caused Elrond to grit his teeth as he felt each stroke as though it touched his own flesh, but what brought tears to his eyes was the agony that radiated from Frodo’s fëa. He reached out to cover that lacerated soul with solace and warmth.

Arwen looked at her father and realized that he was in contact with someone else. The agony in his face made her fear it was Aragorn, but the cry of her heart was fainter than it would have been had it been him. It was the Ring‑bearer then. She held onto her father’s arm to support him, but did not try to reach him again. His features changed and she knew her father was praying now in his torment.

Where are you, Adar? Why aren’t you with him?

I am, My child. Always.

Then, why...why...

In his weakness is My strength. Ever he moves closer to his Enemy’s defeat.

And his own destruction? Adar, please don’t let it be so. His fëa bleeds so. Can he survive such a wound? Even now it is as though he is wrapped in flame.

He is continuing to Become who he was made to be.

But why must he suffer so? It cannot be Your will.

He is following My will every moment of his journey that he remains bound to the Light. He is learning much in those moments and when he is straining against the darkness and is sometimes taken by it. He did not believe in his own strength before. He has a better understanding of it now and of his weakness.

But the terrible despair he feels now, that is growing worse. Does all his toil come to nothing?

No, My child. How can you believe it to be so when all is guided by My hand? You must look beyond the immediate peril. I have led him thus far and I will continue to do so. None of this is for naught. Trust that it all has a purpose even if you can’t see it. His capture was essential to our Enemy’s defeat as you will come to see.

My eyes are weaker than Yours, Adar. I have seen too many of the Enemy’s victories. And this seems to be one of the most cruel--that such a bright, beautiful spirit should be crushed so.

Yet, he continues on. Sometimes it is in the crushing of a flower that the beauty of its scent is released. Our Enemy seeks to break him but out of that brokenness will come a greater light. He is battling a foe greater than his strength, but not greater than Mine. The Road will continue to darken, but I will ever be with your brothers. Listen and watch now and renew your hope.

Elrond obeyed and he heard Sam’s voice raised in song and Frodo’s weak response. He saw the tender reunion of the two heartbrothers and the peace in both their features as Sam held his beloved treasure close.

Le hannon, Adar. I beg forgiveness once more for my lack of trust.

It is forgiven, My child.

Elrond returned to himself and regarded his daughter, noticing her for the first time and answering the questions in her eyes. “He continues on,” he said and she nodded, adding her own prayers of supplication and thanks. She remembered well that bright, beautiful being who had accepted a terrible burden beyond anyone’s strength but the One who had given it to him. Elrond took her hand and squeezed it. “He continues on,” he repeated.

“He continues on,” she echoed.