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| What's left behind by perelleth | 6 Review(s) |
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| elliska | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 7/4/2006 |
| Catching up on reading... Wow, that was a great battle scene. Very fast and tense! And the whole intrigue with the men. You know I loved that. The elves handled that well I thought and cleverly. I particularly loved Legolas's thoughts about the men after speaking with the old man. Middle-earth belonged to those hurried, short-lived, short-sighted creatures that struggled fiercely for a handful of sun-rounds only to see everything slip through their clenched fingers when their time arrived. Sad but true. Great chapter! Author Reply: Thank-you, elliska! It was the first time I tried t write a battle scene and it is really painful, I confess! I admire all of you even more now! I enjoyed myself playing with the mens' loyalties and points of view, and the elves apparent cluelessness. They are wise creatures, and I believe it must have been so outrageous for them to feel that they had to leave their beloved M-e in the hands of the Secondborn, and quite difficult to come to accept!! I am glad you enjoyed it and I wish you all luck with the recovery of lost things! | |
| Redheredh | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 7/2/2006 |
| I loved this chapter for its action and intrigue! So well written, in movement, setting, and dialog. Excellent episode covering the time between last chapter and the next. The characterization of the Men was especially well conveyed, I thought. You did not always know what kind of people they actually were even though they fell into the usual roles. I don't know about other readers, but I enjoyed the circumspect way you conveyed what was in the minds of Legolas' and the rest concerning the machinations of Esrren and Birger. And I do so love poor, relatively young, Mallereg! Author Reply: I wanted to try my hand at writing a battle scene, and was terrified! Glad that it came out nicely, mainly in movement and setting, which bothered me most! I really enjoy picturing different takes on same issues, and misleading even myself. Men were just...following their own agenda, and when you are so busy doing that, at times you simply forget that the other party is playing, too, and may have their own views and strategies. SO the elves had known all along, and had simply acted accordingly, without fussing about it. I suppose that Esrren might have had a fit, had he known that his cunning plans had been revealed so easily since the very beginning... Mallereg's coming out as kind of Legolas' alter ego, I'd say. He's fulfilling LEgolas' role naturally and it is clear that Lasgalen does not lack warriors, commanders and responsible leaders, although that does not mean that LEgolas will nt be missed terribly... THank-you again, Redheredh! :-) | |
| Nilmandra | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 7/2/2006 |
| Poor Mallerg. He is beleagured on every front, isn't he? His father is already unhappy with them and now this. And Legolas clearly needs to make it clear that the tree fell, not him! Nice look at the treachery of the lesser men, who tried to play both sides of the fence on too many occasions. Hmm... like sometimes we still do today. Good chapter. Author Reply: Poor Mallerg. He is beleagured on every front, isn't he? LOL. Life would be easier if troubles were kind enough to come one at the time, wouldn't it? ;-) Men were dumb enough to feel that they would be able to fool the elves. I suppose these forest men did not know much about their secretive neighbours, and these two human hsots were looking at their own interests, rather than seeing the larger picture, which is whence most problems come... I'm glad that you liked it, Nilmandra. This was my first fighting scene, I wasn't sure how it would come out... Thank-you | |
| Bodkin | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 7/2/2006 |
| Those men weren't too bright! Waiting for the elves to work out Birger's treachery for themselves - well, Esrren would have been a lot more sensible to talk earlier on. But I suppose I can understand his doubt of elves. Men might be treacherous - but at least he knew where he stood with them. I'm glad he and his son took on the responsibility in the end - even if it was with their arms twisted up behind their backs. And for the first time is it men who will continue (in their short-lived way) while the elves disappear. I like Geldoron - and Thalaur. It must be a bit of a thankless task trying to keep the warrior heirs of Thranduil out of trouble! And both Legolas and his nephew are having unexpected arborial difficulties! Neither will live it down. I think it might turn out to be a Good Thing, though, that Mallereg knocked himself silly - he has been able to remember his admiring little brother and release some of the grief he feels for not being omnipotent in reality and being able to come to his rescue. And the call of Ithilien gets stronger. Fingers crossed everyone comes to a decision that it's better than the call of the sea - seeing as how it's only a (relatively) short ride away and visitors are allowed to go home again. Author Reply: I'm glad he and his son took on the responsibility in the end - even if it was with their arms twisted up behind their backs. LOLOL! You made me laugh here! Each group here was following their own agenda, and the men thought they wre fooling the elves, whle the elves were just being eves and following their own agenda without entering the men's game. IT was a last victory for the leves, though.Soon they will be displaced and the land will beling to the Men. THank-you for your kind words BOdkin! I'm really having a tough time with this tale, and sincerely hoping to be able to lead it to its conclusion asap! (so I can go a dive into sweet woodwine, among other things! :-) | |
| daw the minstrel | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 7/2/2006 |
| Loved Mallereg and Legolas playing good cop/bad cop with the leader of the men. And I also loved the cleverness of the elves. The man is sadly right though. The elves will be gone and the men will still be there, more's the pity. But I think my favorite part was the exchange at the end after Mallereg was hurt. He's so broken down that he finally admits his pain over his failure to protect his little brother, who thought he could do anything. Thalaur is a hoot, by the way. Author Reply: Since Legolas wasn't in charge in this mission I wanted to see things from his perspective...as a second, so having a supporting, advisory role.. and making good use of his talents at "public relations" I found it amusing that after all the pains the men had put into deceiving the elves, the elves had known all along and had followed their own agenda, reaching their goals and putting the men into good use. But they are all too different to share the same world, and that must hve been so difficult for the elves to admit that they were the ones who had to depart, despite them being the ones who took better care of Arda... MAllereg is thankfully reaching the end of his tunnel, it seems... and THalaur will find his job a bit easier, i suspect! :-) Thank-you, Daw! | |
| French Pony | Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 7/1/2006 |
| Once again, another tribe of Elves learns the immortal lesson: no plan is ever fully idiot-proof. The trouble with dealing with a species known to have divided loyalties is that the divided loyalties tend to show up at the worst possible moments. There's no real way to know ahead of time which Men are the good guys and which are the bad guys. I have a feeling that this sort of lingering distrust between Men and Elves is probably a major factor in the Elves' eventual abandonment of Middle-earth. I loved hearing about Mallereg and his mysterious ways of convincing Galion to keep him well supplied with wine. I like him more and more as this story goes on. He seems like a real stand-up sort of a guy, doing his best for his people and being a mensch to his family. He must miss his little brother terribly. Author Reply: I have a feeling that this sort of lingering distrust between Men and Elves is probably a major factor in the Elves' eventual abandonment of Middle-earth. I think so, too. The gap was wider each passing year, one race doomed to dwindle, the other to bloom and both to meet even more rarely as time passed by. I'm glad that you like Mallereg. HE grew on me too, as the tale progressed. I see him as filling in what LEgolas' role must have been in his forest and in his father's court, and showing that no one is indispensable. They will all miss Legolas but his departure will not threaten the stability of the realm... | |