The Elf, Dewedir, led me around the palace and into the gardens, where he instructed me to wait for Lord Elrond. I wandered a bit after he left, kneeling by the flowers to take in their smell. The wildlife here was truly amazing; cultivated after thousands of years of practice. The Elves of Rivendell had lived here for 4502 years, so it was kind of expected that they'd know how to make their civilization beautiful.
"Dewedir tells me you have urgent business, Henry Smythe is it?" I heard a voice behind me and stood, turning to see Elrond - Hugo Weaving - wearing a sleek robe of green and silver. He had a passive smile on his face, and was escorted by the Elves who brought me here.
I bowed, hand to my heart. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Lord Elrond. My name is indeed Henry Smythe, and I bring with me information and a request, both of which are indeed urgent. I thank you for allowing me into your lands, and giving the time to hear me out."
"Let's hear this information of yours over some tea; just over here, it is already prepared," Elrond gestured towards a table in the center of the garden. He sat down in one chair, leaving me to the other. I took a sip of the tea he poured in my cup, and was surprised by how earthy it tasted. It was quite good, comparable to the best tea I'd had on Earth. "So, what would you tell me, Master Smythe?"
"Something is coming, this winter," I began slowly, trying to find the best way to word this. "A winter, colder than any this continent has faced since its creation. Many will suffer, and I have come to seek aid from you as only you can offer."
"A cold winter?" Elrond said after a moment of thought. "What more do you know of it, and how have you come to learn of it?"
"I know that all of the North and West of Middle Earth will suffer because of it - a cold storm from the North and East that blankets the lands of Rohan, Dunland, and Eriador in a thick snow. Thousands die to the cold, and to the famine that follows, and I cannot allow it to affectto the Shire as I have seen it will," I said. "I… am aware of certain future events, but I cannot tell you how. I need you to know, however, that I want only the best for this world and its people."
Elrond was silent for a time, mulling over my words as he and I sipped our tea. He began to make me nervous, as did the contemplative looks of the four Elves with us. He finally spoke with a sigh. "If this is indeed true, and such a storm approaches, there isn't much I can do to help the Shire. We Elves are capable of much, but changing the weather is not among our abilities."
"The storm isn't a problem, anymore," I shook my head. "I have devised a material to insulate every home in the Shire, keeping heat in and cold out, and enchanted rings that will regulate their body temperatures for as long as they are worn. This, I have spent the last decade preparing for."
"You know magic?" Elrond cocked his head to the side in surprise.
"I do, but we will come to that in a moment," I nodded. "I don't need help with that from you, but with the famine. Their harvests will last them through the Long WInter, but the Days of Dearth that follow will result in thousands of deaths. Even with Gandalf's assistance."
I took a moment to collect myself as I had grown somewhat impassioned as I spoke. My heart was beating a thousand times per second as I came to the crux of my request. "I heard of a foodstuff the Elves can make, called Waybread. I heard it can feed a man for a day with a single bite, and so I sought you out." The expressions of our entourage grew complex, while Elrond furrowed his brow. "I know it is a closely-guarded secret of the Elves, but I am willing to give anything for the recipe, or for enough to last until the Hobbits can recover from the cold. Any material in Middle Earth, any service I can provide; even my life. I have grown to care for- love, even, these people as if they were my own family, and I will do anything to keep them safe. Please, Lord Elrond, help me with this and I will be in your debt."
He was silent for a while longer before speaking. "It is true that some Elves can make this foodstuff - we call it Lembas bread - which can indeed feed a man with a single bite. It is also true that it is a secret kept from even most of our kind, and only a few can create it. I'm sorry, but we do not have enough Lembas to feed so many for such a time." My shoulder slumped and I sighed, only for him to continue. "I can, however, give you the recipe and whatever extra we can provide during these next seven months, should you be capable of what you say you are."
I looked at him hopefully. "I can offer the use of my magic, which also allows me to create any material from nothing. I am willing to work for your craftsmen, or retrieve any artifact, slay any foe - whatever you need."
Elrond nodded. "What materials could you create?"
"Anything you can think of. I have created a great deal of iron, steel, and silver in the past. I can also create gold, mithril, and even galvorn. I can create any herb, any seed, any wood," I said. "I also know of a great many technologies that can be of use in agriculture, though they may be beyond my current craftsmanship. I can enchant things, and devised a runic alphabet capable of channeling magic. The one who you call Mithrandir helped me expand my skills with this alphabet, himself, during his rare visits to the Shire."
"You know Mithrandir?" One of the Elves asked.
I smiled at him. "I am a recent friend of his, but I know what he will participate in - what he will become. He is a good man, and we've shared a few drinks over the years."
"If you consider Mithrandir a friend, then you can consider me a friend, Master Smythe," Elrond said. "As for your abilities… You mentioned galvorn. Such a material hasn't been seen since the First Age, and few relics containing it remain in this age. Can you really create it?"
I nodded, purchasing a pound of galvorn from the shop for 500,000 credits. It was a worthy investment, because it would earn me favor among the Elves. "Currently, I can create up to eighteen pound of it, including this bit, but no more. I would need to give up a great deal of crafted items to make more."
"You exchange items you craft for things like this?" Elrond picked up the ingot with marvel in his eyes. He likely had seen the things created by Eöl in the First Age. I figured it wouldn't hurt if someone trustworthy like Elrond was aware of my abilities and nodded.
"To quantify it, I've spent the past ten years forging steel daggers, which I enchant and sell for three-hundred 'credits'. That ingot, there, cost me five-hundred-thousand. In comparison, an ingot of pure iron costs me only one-hundred," I told him.
"Amazing…" Elrond murmured. "I believe I know what I would ask of you in return for the recipe to what I offered. I will be contracting your services for the next sixth months, during which time I want you to learn from our smiths the Elven ways of smithing and enchanting. By the end of it, you will have processed this ingot into a pair of bracelets. That will pay for the secrets of our people."
"I'd be honored to spend the next six months with your smiths," I stood and bowed. "I promise to make the greatest bracelets you'll ever see, worthy of you and whomever you will give them to. On my honor as a smith, I vow it."
"Very well," Elrond offered a hand - a rare gesture among Elves - which I accepted and gave a firm shake. "I wish you the best of luck, Master Smythe; I have other duties to attend to, so I'll allow Dewedir to take you to the forges. I hope for a good relationship during your time here."
"As do I, Lord Elrond," I smiled. "Farewell."
"Farewell," Elrond walked away, leaving me with the other Elves.
"Shall we?" Dewedir nodded to the side. I nodded him and followed the four Elves further into RIvendell, up into a room that had been carved into the mountain behind the city. Therein, one Elf worked an anvil while another stood at a drawing table and a third whittled a handle at a workstation to the side. I was heavily-impressed by the quality of the workshop, which had a large forge at one end and a series of workstations along either side. In the center of the room was a large anvil surrounded by smaller ones - seven of them, in a circle. All with enough space between it for someone to walk without getting in a smith's way.
"It's amazing…" I muttered, to which Dewedir smiled.
"I hope you enjoy your stay, Henry. Me and my companions must make our way back to the border, but someone will show you to a guest house at the end of the day. Good luck," Dewedir said.
I nodded to him thankfully. "I wish you the best, friend." With that, I turned into the smithy and approached the Elf at the drawing table.