Stories of Arda - Lord of the Rings Fan-Fiction Archive


	About Us News Resources Login Become a member Help Search

The Wars of the Valar by Fiondil	7 Review(s)
Kitty	Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 1/27/2008
Sorry, somehow I did not get around to continue my reviews here for quite a while. Fascinating insight into the relationship between the Valar at this early time. This story makes Námo even more loveable (is that a word?), as he’s not the intimidating Lord of Mandos, but a rather vulnerable, uncertain young Ayanuz. It leaves me wanting to hug him – rather unusual, I suppose ;-) Interesting that it was Námo who kept so calm during the crisis after hearing Vairë screaming, and who took control of the situation. Author Reply: "Loveable" is indeed a word. grin And yes, Námo certainly is that, at least here. Námo is beginning to show the kind of Vala he will eventually become in this situation. When you're the Lord of Mandos dealing with one crisis after another (think of all those wars and kinslayings he had to deal with just in the 590 years of the First Age of the Sun), you learn to take command early on.

Imhiriel	Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 9/30/2007
I feel it was high time someone took Varda to task for her aggressive and unfriendly attitude towards Námo! I don't think her initial apology was 100% sincere, but at least she learned better once the two worked together: You have a unique point of view. I confess I don’t always understand or appreciate it, but more often than I care to admit, your insights have proven sound. The Valar are scattered, just as I suppose Melkor planned ("divide et impera"?). Erm, question from an ignoramus like me: are there pink stars? Lol, Eönwë remembering all oaths! Námo certainly knew how Glorfindel felt in the same situation... Nessa stringing the stars in certain patterns. Is this an allusion to star constellations? The sight seemed to settle him and he shrugged off Nienna’s embrace, standing there with implacable purpose. "SILENCE!" Such was the force of his command that all motion ceased and they all stared at him in surprise. claps Hands and cheers Yes, Námo, that's it! Therindë Finally a name where I can recognise the meaning: Therindë > Serindë > Broideress. Very apt for a follower of Vairë. BTW, in this context, may I add my voice to the request for a list of names (with a one-sentence description, perhaps, and with their meanings, if possible) for this story, but, much more importantly, for "Elf Interrupted"? No one is created for a single purpose, my child, came the whisper of Ilúvatar’s thought, and every gift bestowed is multi-faceted. It is for you to discover their depths for yourself. Wonderful thought! Author Reply: Sometimes, we learn to appreciate the "other" by having to deal with him or her on a daily basis. Manwë was wise in understanding this about his spouse, and Námo. While Varda needed to learn to appreciate Námo's gifts and Námo himself a bit more, Námo, in turn, needed to get over his own mistrust of Varda and her famous temper. It does work both ways, you know. I will eventually create a character list for both stories and one also for "Stirrings of Shadow" since many have requested such, but it may take a while to compile, so just be patient.

Radbooks	Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 9/11/2007
Finally, a moment to review this! An exciting chapter and I'm anxiously waiting to see what has happened to poor Vairë and Therindë. I was shocked when Manwe left and that he left Varda and Namo in charge, though he is doing exactly the right things to bring Namo's gifts out. Namo needs to be in those situations - well, not necessarily what happened, but in positions of responsibility so that he can grow as a person... Vala. :) I am amazed to see how Varda has changed over the years from one story to the other, she seems so young here; it's a good thing she learned to control her temper before the children showed up! :) I liked seeing Nienna dealing with the life on the planet when she was working with Namo and how she encouraged him. I don't quite 'get' her and so it was good to see a glimpse of her there and I liked how she grabbed him and made him calm down a bit so they could go to where they needed to be. Then later with Irmo planning to go with Namo for the rescue was neat too. It is interesting to me that some of the Valar are brothers and sisters in the thought of Illuvatar... I wonder why Tolkien did that. Anyway, really enjoyed the chapter and I'm looking forward to the next. I hope things are going well for you. It's crazy for me right now with school. :) Author Reply: Often we show our true colors when thrust in positions of responsibilty we did not expect to have. Manwë is giving Námo that chance and even Varda, for she needs to grow up a bit as well. Varda is indeed young here, as are they all, so it stands to reason that over the eons that separate this story from even the first chapter of the Silmarillion, she would have matured and grown in wisdom and degree, as they say. Nienna is a hard Valië to pin down. Tolkien's portrayal of her is less than insightful and frankly I can't see her spending every minute of every day weeping. As she is mentioned first before Námo and Irmo in the Valaquenta I have decided she must be the older and so I am showing her in "older sister" mode here. I don't know why Tolkien made some of the Valar brothers and sisters in the Thought of Ilúvatar, but I'm glad he did... makes exploring the relationships between the various Valar more interesting as a writer. grin Things are going very well for me and not at all crazy. I like my classes (so far) and am making friends, both among the other foreign teachers as well as with some of the Chinese teachers who speak English. I certainly have many more firends here than I did in Manzhouli.

Agape4Gondor	Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 9/6/2007
Ugly things - jealousy and treachery. I remember that Gandalf said that treachery had always been their biggest foe... I hope that our friends can be found and brought back. My personal favorite part of this whole chapter was Manwe's wisdom. He thrills me - when I see him stand up and command as he must. And to place Varda and Namo as co-conspirators (LOL) was brilliant. Hopefully, this will prepare them for the role they will play later on. As for Manwe - I hope he hears (perhaps he even knew this would happen?) and comes in time to 'back' Namo when he must make whatever decision is needed - once they find the captives. Great chapter! Author Reply: Thanks, Agape. I'm glad you liked this chapter. Yes, treachery has always been their biggest foe, from the very beginning. Manwë is starting to claim ownership of his role as the Elder King. I think of him as being somewhat laid-back and easy-going about a lot of things, but when he don's the Elder King's crown, he's all business and nobody's fool. I'm sure he had hopes that Varda would come to recognize Námo's worth by making them, as you say, co-conspirators, and that Námo would gain a little more confidence in himself at the same time. I doubt, though, that Manwë knew or even suspected that something like this would happen, otherwise I'm sure he would not have gone off when he did. He, would, however, have devised some other means of throwing Varda and Námo together. grin

Rhyselle	Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 9/6/2007
Pink stars! chuckle I liked it that Namo lost his temper with Varda, but I also like it that he immediately apologized for his outburst. In any case it had the desired outcome--Varda took him more seriously and he gained a bit more confidence in himself. I don't think that Varda really intended to put Namo down in the way she praised Orome, but it was clear to me that despite her intentions, she really did see him as lesser value and skill. Obviously that is going to continue to change... I liked Nienna's experimental world and her promise to restore the planet to one capable of sustaining life once their salinity experiments were done with. You gave us a lot of snapshots of several different characters in this chapter and it was good to see more of their personalities and characters revealed. Ah ha! When you and I discussed whether to use Quenya or English in titling the chapter, I had my suspicions as to who was taken... and I was partly right. By taking Vaire, Melkor pinpointed who he was aiming the act at--for I'm certain that he very likely could have taken Varda captive instead if he'd wished. But it is Namo that he wants. It's frightening how Melkor knows the things that make one vulnerable to him--He must have been fully aware of Namo's feelings for Vaire. And I can see him happily taking advantage of the way the Máyar have fallen into a heirarchal organization based on seniority of age in the Thought of Illuvatar to foment jealousy and other negative emotions. I love Atar's words to Namo... our various gifts really do have multiple purposes and uses, although it can be difficult to see them as applicable to other things than we first realized they could be. I really look forward to seeing how our future Lord of Mandos deals with the situation and how he grows and changes as he does so. I have a feeling that Manwe will be very proud of Namo when he returns. Excellent chapter! I just wish it had more readers/reveiwers... we need to go out a recruit more Valar fans! grin Author Reply: Hi Rhyselle! Thanks for reviewing. Yes, pink stars would be an interesting sight, wouldn't it? snicker It's obvious that Varda was goading Námo into exploding, but the end result was that they came to respect one another on a deeper level. Varda's turn around only made it possible for the others (especially the Máyar) to see Námo in a different light. Whether Melkor could have taken Varda is problematic, but Vairë would have been an easier target, especially with her chief Máya helping in the kidnapping. Melkor is quick to take advantage of the situation with the Máyar and exploit it for his own purposes. I think that over time this hierarchical organization among the Máyar will break down and become more democratic in the sense that the Ayanumuz already practice it, seeing themselves as peers of one another even though all acknowledge Manwë as their leader. We often limit ourselves needlessly with respect to our gifts and talents, thinking they're only good for some situations but not for others, or even worse, not recognizing that we even have a gift or believing that it's not as "good" as someone else's gift. How Námo deals with the situation, of course, remains to be seen.... and the only way to recruit new Valar fans is to tell them about it. grin

Nieriel Raina	Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 9/6/2007
ACK! What a terrible thing to do! But I think Melkor's schemes will only help Námo come into his own. And taking Vairë is a scheme to lure in Námo, isn't it? Oh dear. Now I'm afraid and what a cliffie you have left us with! I love Námo's interest in Black Holes, and Irmo's comment of keeping Námo from doing something stupid was priceless! I'm glad Varda has finally become nicer to Námo and is appreciating his gifts. Fantastic chapter! I would say more but I have to get off of this thing! Have a wonderful day! NiRi Author Reply: Melkor obviously is targeting Námo in taking Vairë, but Námo is a little wiser now and hopefully realizes this, though Irmo probably understands his brother better than Námo does himself, which is why he's coming along in the rescue attempt. Varda isn't being consciously mean to Námo, she's really at a loss as to how to relate to him. He isn't like the other Ayanumuz, and she's not sure how to deal with that, hence, her sometimes antagonistic attitudes towards Námo. However, having to deal with him on a more regular basis with Manwë away has helped her to see him in a different light.

Larner	Reviewed Chapter: 8 on 9/6/2007
It's wonderful to see how constellations were begun, and the early experiments with forms of life. And now they shall all see Namo begin coming into his own. Go, Namo--find where Ungoliant and Morgoth have taken your beloved. Author Reply: Acairis as Ungoliant.... hmmm.... that's a rather big assumption... but you never know, you may be right. At any rate, while we are only told the names of a few of Melkor's followers, it stands to reason that there were many more and Acairis would be just one of them.

Return to Chapter List