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THE
CITY
OF ELVING/ELANDIM
("THE
WHITE
CITY") |
Elving is the largest of the twin cities of the Zeiphyr, and indeed the largest elven city in Santharia. Elving is indeed the Tharian name for the city, the elven name is Elandim meaning "centre" or "middle", referring to the city's place it had in the ancient kingdom of Eyelia, now in Santharia and indeed as well in elven life in general. It stands, surrounded in a bubble of magic, serene, protected from the elements, the Great Shining City of the South. The city exist on two levels, one that is open to all visitors, an illusion of the city; but mutter the words by the great gates of Tarrkin on the Elving Road and you are admitted to a city beyond the wildest dreams of men. Elving is infact almost two cities in itself. To the east is the Old city. The best preserved buildings remain inside the city walls, while outside, the lonely ruins of Old Elving stand testement to old bloodshed.
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Description. The
City of Elving stands atop the Limestone cliffs where the
Zeiphyrian Forests clear, for the saline
air created by the sea smashing against the cliffs is too harsh for trees, and
is replaced by costals grasslands. It is the Great White City, named after the
white cliffs it stands upon, visible for great distance at sea. Held in a great
bubble of magic, the sky remains clear above
the city, and rain falls at regular intervals as the
elven magi do what they are best at, working
with and manipulating nature.
The city itself exists on many levels. The true city is visible only to those
who can speak the passwords to open the great gates of
Tarkkin on the Northern Road, or to pass
under the great crossed tree trunks that mark the other entrances. If one can
do so then the site you are met with is beyond compare. The city, despite many
human myths, is a place of calm, renweal and
healing. It is where the
Quaelhoirhim come to recover their
cár'áll, and to find direction and purpose if they lack it, for indeed it
is home to many who are wise. The elves say
that no evil dwells within Elving, for no evil thing, it is said, could speak
the words that inlicit your entrance into the true city without turning to dust
the instant the syllables left their tounge. The true city is a maze of levels
and gardens, homes and places of production. In Elving and the other main city,
Saloh, buildings are grand and made of stone and clay and surrounded by huge
city walls and very much like any human city,
though cleaner and kinder to the land they are built on, making use of the
natural cave system beneath the city.
The
Gates
If one approaches the city - as most do - from the North, upon the Elving Road,
you meet the city walls. The way in is via the Great Gate of
Tarkkin, a mythical elk and keeper of the
Elverground. His graceful figure is emblazened on
the doors made of blue stone nearly 0.3 peds thick. This blue rock is highly
polished, and has a relective gleam. In the moonlight the increased contrast
between dark and shadow makes the mythical elk ghostly outline appear almost
three dimensional. There is a popular myth amongst both local
humans and
hobbits that the form in the gates has been known to move at night, but put
this to the Quaelhoirhim, and
they will laugh at you and tell you that humans
that dwell in this particular locality, have rather over active imaginations
and that it has probably to do with being out in the
sun too long.
The Gates, like most of the rest of the city you will walk through was
constructed at the ending of SW I's hostilities in 729 b.S., to replace much of
the Old City and the original port of Elving, which were burnt, ruined or
destroyed at the beggining of the war in 806 b.S. Small parts (mainly in the
East of the city) were salvageable and the decision was taken to move the new
city and its new port some distance East of the original site. Thus the New
City walls enclose both the grand city that replace Elving, and the small parts
of the Old City that could be saved. Some buildings of course were constructed
immediately after the assault, but these were hastily constructed, and have not
stood the test of the millenia.
If the Great Gates are shut, as they are often at night, one must attract the
attention of the elves in the guard house,
atop the city wall. There is a small pull chord with which to do so. The guards
are highly trained archers, and have been known to pin people to nearby trees
with a shower of rapid arrows - so don't irritate them! They will ask your
name, place of birth and alligance, and if unconvinced you may be met by a
couple of elven guards who will demand to see
your papers.
Elven Housings
As you pass under the Gates you must utter the passwords you will be admitted
to Elandim, the true Elven City. You pass along the Gate Road. On your left are
streets that pass into residential areas, but while the streets are lined by
the occasional white stone cottage, much of the land between the cobbled roads
are gardens, both landscaped and wild. Butterflies flit between both cultivated
and wild flowers. If you are wondering where on earth all the population live -
look up. Like their Quallian cousins, the
Quaelhoirhim like to live life
in the trees! Every so often and enormous specimen of a tree will carry a small
stair case around its huge trunk, and it will carry you into a world small
walkways and houses on every level and yet still the
elves are not crowded, for each has equal and
plentiful space, both to live and to relax. Flowers cascade from branches, and
fruit vines wind their way around elven doors.
Such treetop homes are well shelteredd by the
Zeiphyr's high canopy against the winds that blow down off the
Elverground. Some homes are empty. Should you
wish to aquire such an empty property, one should begin by talking to the
neighbours. They will usually tell you how to get in touch with the former
resident. If this is impossible, then the house will either be held by the
closest relative, or by Housing Administration.
Housing
Administration
Housing Administration is housed in the grand white building to your left. It
was originally part of the Old City, and its twin spires made up the western
guard tower. It was the only building that escaped the 806 b.S. attack
unscathed. This might have to do with its residents.
The Twin
Towers
The twin towers are now home to all mages in Elving and the three great halls
on the ground floor of the main body of the building are dedicated to teaching
and studying of Xeuá. Other types of
magic are learnt and practiced here, but
strict guidelines exist about their use. The upper level is also home to
magical arts and research, but is divided into
smaller rooms, that individual experienced magi use to carry out their work.
Many of these high wizards are vital to the maintainance of Elving's
multilayered illusion. It seems odd then that if you hang a left as you pass
through the main doorway of this great magical
establishment is a small office, staffed by two, often rather stressed
elves. Their job is to make sure that no
property is untended for, and preferably that no
elf is left with no place to live.
It may seem a rather un-elven concept, but it
works very well for the Quaelhoirhim.
Elving and Saloh have a virtually non-existent homeless community. While this
is true of most elven cities, few are the
size, nor house the population of these two. No
human city of comparable size (Nyermersys or
Strata perhaps, Vezash, or Voldar)
can match this, and indeed if they knew would probably be rather envious of it!
Indeed, social policy in Elving is very strict. While
elves have a tendency to think in wider terms,
as demonstrated by their language, in Elving it is vital. Any
elf that gives cause for major grievance by
another can be banished from the forest indefinetly. This occurance is rare
however, as Housing Administration has the authority to host arbitration. If no
comprimise can be reached, it may, in severe cases be brought before the
Avá'ránn or her advisors. Their word is always final. The city is a place of
peace and healing, and the elves will NOT
tolerate trouble makers.
The
Gardens
Pass futher down the Gate Road, and on your right is the Eastern Garden. Here,
as in the Western Garden ornalmental and plants from far flung places are
grown. The Eastern Garden is well known for its
rose gardens, with types from all over Caelereth -
many made as gifts to the Avá'ránn - for nothing pleases the
Quaelhoirhim better than plants
or goods that are new to them.
The Garden is divided in to by a road that at one end leads to a ruined look
out tower, part of the old city that has been built into the war, partly
because its loose bricks could be recycled to build the higher parts of the
present city walls.
The Central
Square
At the other end is the center
of Elandim, its Central Square. A small market may often be found here, but
three features dominate: The fountain, the State Building and the City Hall.
The Fountain. A large fountain in a lake stands at
the northern end of the square. The sculpture is Caelereth,
supported by both Avá, and
Coór, and the Twelve are to be found at
their feet and around the disc that they support. Water cascades from the disc
of Caelereth into the pool, the edges of which are
planted with herbs with healing and food usages, which residents are free to
collect on a sort of bring and take basis. If one takes from the poolside, one
must also plant something in return.
The State Building. Two grand buildings domintate
the Southern part of the Square. The round building with a blue, gleaming domed
roof, is the State Building. The space inside is divided into one large,
semi-circular single room, with the other half divided into small chambers and
offices at the back. The roof is painted with the night sky. This is the state
building. The Avá'ránn and her staff spend much time here. All meetings or work
of a state nature are performed here.
The City Hall. Next door is a similar domed tower,
attached to a large oblong building that has a rectangular spire with a flying
dragon, wings outstreched, gleaming
silver, on its top. This is the center of
Quaelhoirhim cultural and city
life. This enormous buliding houses the library, the art gallery, and places
for learning healing, lore, history, art and crafts, languages (Elving produces
some of the greatest linguists, and many from all races apply to study here -
being elven helps, as you can actually get
into the real city, but humans and others are
invited to interview, they may be met in the false city and if successful will
be brought to the real city). The idea is that Elving should produce all the
skills it needs to be a thriving city. Anyone is free to wander through its
doors, and marvel at what is contained within. Here are housed the
Quaelhoirhim tomes (the original
version) complete and unabridged (except the part where somebody has written
the plans for the Battle of the
Fores over several pages of the manuscript).
The
Pipes
The streets immediately South of the square are affectionately called The
Turaom, or The Pipes, due to their narrowness and contain buisnesses -
craftsmen, linguists, smiths, carpenters, builders, gardeners, tailors, grocers
- anything you can think of. Santharian currency is
taken, and welcomed, for most traders require money to operate; but the
traditional Quaelhoirhim
tradition is what still persists. If you need a service, you offer yours in
return to them or their extended families, and an agreed task is settled on.
This requires some amount of bartering. If you cannot offer them help at the
present time, the goods are taken in respect that you will pay for them with
your time or effort some time later. The whole thing can get very confusing,
but the elves have used it for thousands of
years and they have little intention of changing their habits now!
The
Market Place
Follow the Pipes east and you end up on the Market Place, surrounded by further
shops. This market is awash with other races, because it exists also in the
illusion created by visitors. In one corner is the small stone house of the
Market Supervisor. In the southeast corner, the lighthouse rises up, a
watchpoint of unfriendly ships, and a guiding light for friends. The flame is
lit by an elderly elven mage, who refuses to
come down. Few have ever seen him. It is said he went up there as a young boy
nearly 600 years ago, to replace the previous mage owner, to prevent the need
for a wood furnace as is common in other light houses. Worries are now mounting
about finding a replacement for this lonely job when he dies.
Moving west from the market and the light house there is another residential
area, much the same as that in the north, leading eventually to the Harbour
gates and the costal road that runs out of the city.
The
Illusion and Double Reality of Elving
If one is to pass into the
city without uttering the secret words, one enters a very different
environment. This is well documented in the few
human accounts of those who have seen the
elves' beloved home:
"To any other the entrance way to Elving, the Capitol of the Zeiphyrian forest elves, were two crossed trees in the shape of an X, surrounded by more trees, underbrush and leaf strewn ground during the spring, summer and fall months and snow covered during the winter months. But if you said certain Styrásh words as you went beneath the crossed trees you would take one step from reality and your next step would be as if you were in a dream, at least that is what it seemed like to Salina."
-- Capher: "The Wizard in the White Tower" - Chapter 7
The elves often use Elving to describe this environ, reserving Elandim for
their own city. The city is very much like other small
human fishing towns up
and down Santharia. Grey stone buildings line cobbled streets, quite drab and
unimpressive. there are three roads that enter Elving, and from each one passes
down a long cobbled street, surrounded by a long parade of statues, of people
and events past (the elven mages who work tirelessly to maintain this illusion
of the city are very proud of this touch) into a main market square, where
goods can be bought and traded. A stall can be rented for the morning if one
arrives before dawn and talks to the market's caretaker, who is currently a
rather grumpy, elderly Ahrhim
elf by the name of Golthaim. Surrounding this
square are shops of a more permanent nature. In fact they are the petrusion of
the shops in the real Elving into this artificial dimension. When one passes
through the door of a smithy for example, you pass momentarily into the
real
Elving world. Around the shops on the square there are roads leading to small
residential areas, but none of the houses that you meet on these roads are
real, merely illusions. Each of these streets inevitably lead you back to the
market square.
A second illusion is seen from sea. From this direction the city appears as a
huge fortress castle atop the cliffs,
very different from its true appearance.
It is surrounded by double city walls, which only the most determined mind would
contemplate assailing. As one draws closer, one can even see little archers
patroling both walls.
The
Harbour
However, from the sea what you can see is Elving's harbour area. This is real
enough. The elves only bother to protect the port in times of great danger:
Then it simply disappears from view!
The harbour itself is a maze
of small wooden jetties
stretching quite some considerable distance along the sand and pebble beach at
the foot of the cliffs.Hundreds of ships may be tethered to these jetties at a
time. As well as small Quaelhoirhim
fishing vessels, identifyable by their distinctive shape: long thin boats,
often shaped or painted to look like the great creatures of the deep, and often
called Dragon Boats, one may see merchant boats from all over
Sarvonia, stopping here on their way to
New-Santhala,
or south to Strata, or simply docking to trade with
the elves. As a result, a small market of its
own exists within the docks, as people trade from their boats, and the
elves bring
wares down to the port to trade with the boats captains.
At the east end of the docks
are the great military boats
of the elves. There are three curently in Elving, though they have stood idle
now for many hundreds of years and the
Quaelhoirhim
have begun to use them as accomodations
for fishermen and guests. The vast decks are also a great place to entertain,
and bards from all over the Zeiphyrian Forests
and beyond regularly give perfomances on the decks to any who will watch them.
Payment for their performance is by handing around a small wooden bowl at the
end of the performance. Contribution is voluntary, though it is thought rude to
be entertained and in many cases educated and not leave some gesture of your
appriciation. Bards are invited to perform on the boat deck by the Bard's
Guild, who are housed in the third boat. The guild is responsible for
membership in the Zeiphyr,
Quallian, Auturian,
and Sharadon forests.
The
Caves
Overlooking the docks there is a similar cave network to that of the
Noarian
Caves, some
50 strals SW of Elving, created by
natural erosion. These caves have been used by the
Quaelhoirhim for as long as
any can remember, and have been converted into energy efficient homes and
lookouts. Such military installations provided great advantages in SW
I and II.
Access to the cave network is via staircases in the real city in the Eastern and
Western Gardens.
Passage from the docks to the city is by a steep staircase carved into the
cliffs. Many do not bother, as everything one needs for a comfortable stay is
in the Harbour region. If you do, you pass through a small cave near the top,
where again you must utter the passwords if you are to pass into the real city.
Either way, at the top you are confronted with two paths, one which passes back
to the city and one that passes east along the
cliff tops, an utterly idyllic walk
in any weather. This path leads to the Shrine of
Baveras.
The
Shrine of Baveras
Perhaps "shrine"
is a too
strong word, for Baveras
is from this high spot overlooking a point where the
waves crash most violently against the rocks below.
There is little else here to mark the
spot, though the face of the Goddess has been carved into the cliffs below, but
they have been withered by the waves and the passing of time.
The
Ruins of the Old City
Continue on this road and you pass out of the city once more and are soon
confronted with a reminder that the city has not always been as quiet and
serene as it stands now. You are confronted by the great ruins of the Old City,
the scene remains unchanged, as though the Burning of Elving that happened in
the First Sarvonian war happened just yesterday! The corpses are long gone -
removed by the elves, or disintergrated and the dust blown to the wind, but
walk into the ruined houses and you see meals on tables, unwashed laundary
waiting in clay baskets to be washed. This place is a mornful one. Even walking
around these ruins in bright sunlight, one can hear the screams on the air -
time has simply stopped in this place, and the
Quaelhoirhim have done nothing
to move it on. What could be salvaged was relocated to the remains of the Old
City that now stand within the new one. There is no reason for the
elves to
come here anymore. Those who were lost have already come again, reincarnated
into new forms. So the ruins just stand, and collapse a little bit more every
year as the sea air eats at them.
The
Tree Cathedral of
Nethor
In the far eastern corner of the ruins
life
remains.
For here the Tree Cathedral of
Nethor was built - it seemed
appropriate tribute that out of the rubble the God of Concern,
Morning and
Sorrow,
but ultimately of
Healing and Renewal, should go about his work. The
trees grow out
of the rubble and form and intertwine to form a fine temple. Low shrubs are
immaculately pruned to form seats and in the hollow trunk of a massive
oak, that
has probably always stood here, surviving war, fire and
floods a door, framed
in climbing roses and in'ilá, is a small alter to the
God of Healing. The
Cathedral is maintained by Nethor's
elven clerics, who dwell in some of the
more structurally sound ruined buildings of the
Old City.
Nethor is also God of
the Performing arts, and so many of those who visit the site bring their
instruments, and at sundown will dance and sing until the rise of the
eastern
cross in the sky, late at night.
Location. Elving is
situated in the Santharian
province of
Sanguia, at the very end of the valley that seperates the
eastern Forest from its larger twin
to the west. Much of the Old City
lies in the Western forest, but the vally made a useful route for the
elves
northward across the Elverground, so the
city has spread
east to stand at the
valley's head. Along this valley runs
the Elving road, and the city is met by two others, one from the East, from
Saloh and Manthria and one from the West, from the
Thaehelvil
river, Vezash the Quallian
and beyond.
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| Map description. Location of the Quaelhoirhim's Zeiphyrian Forest and the city of Elving at the coast to the Aetryam Sea in the Santharian province of Sanguia bordering Manthria and the Auturian Woods. Map drawn by Artimidor. |
People. Elving is the
Capitól - if such things
can be said to exist in the
elven
world - of the
Quaelhoirhim tribe.
It has been their home, their idyll and their solace for so long, life without
the city seems unimaginable. This is why they go to such lengths to protect it
while still allowing the tribe the luxury of being open to the outside world.
It is no secret that the
Quaelhoirhim are
the traders and the politicians
of the elven
world. Their importance as they
see it is their general knowledge of affairs of many races, and as the tribe
that links their more reserved
elven
neighbours (especially the ridculously shy
Ylfferhim, who very rarely leave the
confines of the Quallian)
and represents elven
rights to the rest of the world. Certainly such claims
are rather overrated, for the Avá'ránn
now works directly with the Santharian King.
However, the openness of the
tribe is non-negotiable. It is
part of who they are! They are by nature hospitable and gregarious
types who welcome strangers, albeit to an illusion of their city.
As a result Elving itself receives
goods that other elven
ports only dream of. Wares from all over
Santharia
nd up here and may be sent on to surrounding towns and villages - perhaps to the
capital itself. In Elving fish is the main foundation of diet, one can see this
at the harbour, where catches are bought and sold. Though Elving also receives
many foodstuffs from other settlements and tribes. On the
Elverground meat and vegetables are consumed and
the excess is sent to Elving,
arriving just after harvest
time to be stored in the vast cave chambers until needed.
The
Quaelhoirhim are known for their craftsmanship,
beautiful emammeled jewellry, wonderful
and highly decorated armour and swords. Glass is also a speciality to be found
here. Many windows are adorned with coloured glass. Sand from the shore is
collected and mixed with minerals brought in by merchants from further afield and
heated in the great furnaces in the south of the city. Elving
glass wear is found on the tables of
many stately homes in Santharia.
The
Quaelhoirhim also
produce strong functional wares such as storage vessels, cooking pots, etc.
The city has a very high concentration of mages - for there is much need for
them here, both to maintain Elving's illusion and to keep
Elving at the heart of
Quaelhoirhim affairs. The city also provides much opportunity for
magic and
magical research. While the mages guild building hardly competes with
Ximax as a
center of magical excellence, in Sanguia, it is the best place to study for
miles around, and Elving does attract some of the greatest achievers in Xeuá
Magic -
for many were born locally - either in the Zeiphyr or the
Quallian. For many the
draw home is strong.
Many halflings from the Shire of Elenveran have free run of the true city. The
Quaelhoirhim are
extremely fond of their diminuitive
neighbours! However the approach
to the city is known to be perilous - for the
Zeiphyr is populated by
drakes,
wolves and many other animals who would eat a
party of halflings
for a midday snack. As such, the
elves will happily escort them in and out of
the forest. Several halfling
amilies dwell in the true city and are well resected by
their elven neighbours.
Coat of Arms/Sign.
Here is the originating place of the
Quaelhoirhim
tribe's
coat of arms - the place that suffered
most in the First Sarvonian War, and the place that has both best dealt with
that hurt, the tribe's
exceptional love for humans - and will longest
remember it. The tribe's
coat of arms,
a gleaming sword engraved with the eye of
Avá on a red field
flanked by two frost dragon,
is sometimes used by the
city - the sword is replaced with the
dome tower in the city's
heart. Elving's Coat
of Arms is therefore often used for political
correctness, but is only generally used when the
Quaelhoirhim
must attend a meeting in
New-Santhala or
any other
human settlement. It is felt that their normal
coat of arms would be imflamatory. Thus the city coat
of arms is found in that illusion of Elving where
humans are most often found!
Climate.
The
Zeiphyrian Forests
are very warm for most of the year.
Winter is brief and mild, providing an almost continuous growing season. Thus,
trees reach enormous heights. Rainfall occurs all year round, usually in the
afternoon, but can be more prolonged in the winter months. The sky is usually
clear, but overcast skies can linger for days at a time during autumn and
winter. In Elving
especially a southerly breeze can be often felt, keeping the
city cooler than the rest of the
Zeiphyr.
Flora. Inside the city,
fauna continues as it does
without. Elandim is home to the peace pine
and two species of tree related to the
cloewen tree: The in'ilá (Styrásh:
"climber", lit. "scaling the
unmoving")
is like its wild Quallian relative a sparse shrub,
though this sub-species has a climbing habit, often found wound around the
trunks of other trees and through branches. In Elving they are often carefully
grown around doors and windows. The bejón’efér is a small tree, with a bushy,
bright green crown with huge red and orange flowers, that resembles
a tiny fire. It thrives in the clearing that Elving has been built on.
Roses are a favourite, and are found in all
colours and imaginable shapes.
Toward the coast, natural limestone pavements dominate, delicate in nature and
housing some extremely rare
species, including the so-called purple
sell that will only grow in the crevices
of the limestone blocks. The saline enviroment created by the sea spray means
that as one approaches the harbour, sea grasses replace the lush forest
vegetation of the northern
city.
Fauna. For a city,
Elving is alive with life, and not just urban crestures who thrive in most
cities - like rats. In fact within city walls
the ecosystem is much like that of the Zeiphyr
that surrounds it, with bird and insect life quite happily sharing their habitat
with the elves. There are however, not
drakes, nor
black
harts to be found within the city walls, and if one
is found, the elves are
rather skilled at removing the animal - often using their
hunting hounds to herd the
creature out. As a result life within the city is a little safer than life
outside.
Resources. Elving is
one of the richest areas in the living forests! As with the rest of the forest
wood is a great reasource. The east
of the forest is known for yielding rocks containing iron ore (the soil here is
often red, or in marshier areas, blue, depending on the ferric state of the
iron) and provides Elving with raw material to make beautifully crafted objects
and functional objects. Sand from the coastline at the southern edge of the
forest can be used for glass, enammel and building. The
limestone cliffs are also useful for
some basic chemical reactions, and rudimentary small explosives
can be made by mixing with acid
in a small container. Lime can also be used in the treatment
of various insect stings and bites, as well as a good building material - much
of Elving is made of limestone,
the buildings and the roads. Some amount of gold can be found in the western
edges of the forest, which also finds its way to Elving, to be smelted or to be
sold on.
Elving, however, does not simply have resources from its natural area - it receives
resources from all over Santharia. The first
recorded trade was with the Sophronians
early in history, when time was barely recorded. This trade stopped during SW
I and II,
but has remained constant ever since -
so trade routes run up through Saloh as far as Elsreth these days.
Elving's resources, as a
result, are primarily its people - friendly, dexterous
- not afraid to take ideas from other races. unafraid of change. This gives them
a variety of labour base that no other
elven city
can match, and most human cities admire. They
also have a history and culture that sets Elandim apart from many other
settlements. The Old City and the library
in the central square house many antiquities, and was for a time the resting and
hiding place of Maengolth's
blood. The Quaelhoirhim Tomes,
are the most famous modern example of Elving's
collection, an ancient script, written about 400 b.S., though possibly compiled
over hundreds of years (one page is thought by the
elves to be over 8000 years old) it is part description and census of the
world of Caelereth
at that time, part detailed history, part literature and poetry and part lore
and myth though its descriptions of events prior to and during the First
Santharian War are considered to be some of the most accurate existing
descriptions.
Myth/Lore. There are
many stories about Elving - but many of them are
human
ones. Apart from the
moving figure of
Tarkkin on the Great
Gates, many
human
claim the city to be cursed or haunted by the ghosts of
slain soildiers. This creepy feeling is probably caused by the slight problems
of spatial arrangement caused by entering the illusion. Had they seen Elandim,
no such story would have ever arisen.
A similar story exists among
human
sailors. Unaware that the figure in the
cliff's rock was
Baveras, a story has over the years
emerged, that a young elven woman used to sit
on the rocks above the bay of
Elving and sing to the
Sea Goddess. So beautiful
was her voice that
sailors used to ignore their duties
and crash onto the rocks that petrude from the cliffs.
Baveras was
distraught, unable and
unwilling to punish someone who sung to her so sweetly,
Urtengor
stepped in, or so it is said, and turned the girl to rock, her face in the
cliff. So upset were the elves when she did not
return to Elving that night that they built the light house to scour the sea and
land for her.
There may well be a grain of truth in the story of a singing
elf, that may refer to the breaching of the
city walls during a storm in 900 b.S.;
however, such a date, and accuracy
is hard to estimate, as
elven
records show that the first Ránn
was not in place until about 804
b.S. and the new city walls which contain the lighthouse not built till
long after that. However, A very similar story is told by sailors of all races,
and indeed those who live on the Elverground tell
of Benvia, a young
elven
maid, daughter of the Avá'ránn
of the
Quaelhoirhim,
who had the sweetest singing voice of all the children of the world. Her voice
kept Grothar entertained, and aided
Baveras in
concentrating on her work. One day a human soldier
stole her far away, beyond the Elverground
and kept her there.
Grothar grew weary, and the
wind rose; Baveras
forgot her duties to that part of the coast, and the
waves crashed and roared up the cliffs and flattened the city walls, and the
city was flooded. Though Benvia grew to care for her capture, she wished nothing
more than to return home. One day while she sat by a river crying,
the Gods took pity upon her and turned
her into a
dolphune,
and she swam home, guided by the light that the lighthouse threw out.
Some have taken this as evidence that the old city too had a lighthouse, which
has been totaly destroyed at some point int the past.
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Information
provided by
Wren
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