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Land of Light and Shadows by Thundera Tiger	83 Review(s)
Lera	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/10/2005
Ahhh, in spite of that cliffie, I am so happy to have been yanked into Harad again, pulled into the adventure. You have no idea how much I enjoyed seeing Dashnir realize that he had "yet again underestimated his opponent." For far too long, Aragorn and Eomer have been playing catch up, trying desperately to understand what is going on. Finally, finally, finally, the tables are being turned. I love the idea of using the sea longing for something like this. I imagine using it against people of the desert must be particularly effective, as it is so different and almost other worldly to them. People often ask me who my favorite character in LotR is. My answer changes every time I read the books or watch the movies. Well, it also changes everytime I read one of you chapters! You write Legolas and Gimli so well. Gimli is often neglected or almost typecast I think, as stupid, gruff and only there for comic relief. Legolas is almost as abused, as he's been kidnapped by Orlando loving teenyboppers. You write him as an Elf should be, strong, not to be underestimated, and with qualities that make him special. But not infallible. Not above being weakened by the elements. What's wonderful, is that he actually gets many of his special qualities from his friendship with Gimli. I do hope we won't have to wait long for the next chapter. :) I understood what you were saying about it being a bit rough, but I didn't think that detracted from the storyline at all. It rather fit, with how rough and ragged everyone was feeling. Thank you. Author Reply: Hooray for turning tables! They're going to turn even more over the next few chapters, and I'm very excited about that. So are our heroes, because they've been begging me to turn them loose for quite a while now. :) I'm glad you liked the sea-longing, and I agree that for desert dwellers it would be incredibly disturbing. They would have no context or frame of reference. And I'm glad you like the way I've written Legolas and Gimli. I'm a bit tired of all the dwarf-bashing that goes on. I envision him as a much stronger character, and in the books, he is. It's that movie portrayal that...well, I'll stop here before I begin ranting. Anyway, MANY thanks for the review, and I'm glad you thought the rougher aspects of this chapter fit. They were supposed to, but I began to wonder if I'd gone too far. Thanks again!

ziggy	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/10/2005
Wow. That last chapter was truly awesome. You write Legolas and Gimli particularly well- one the very best of fanfic around actually. And you keep going - which is brilliant.I need to join the pleas of other readers and BEG you to concentrate on finishing this one before Fear no darkness - although I love that too and am desparate to know what has happened to poor Merry and Legolas. Anyway, this last chapter just took my breath away with the excitiment and tension- what was so convincing is that it really did dawn on me what Legolas was doing at the same time as it did Dashnir- and I think it was the way you slowed that sentences down, and that gave the impression of time slowing... so @Dried blood that is' made me look down (as it is Dashnir's point of view) and slowly realise ...ah. Er. Whoops. And the reference to the veil lifting is, as I read it, like Legolas' lifting of the uglir that HE has sort of put on them through using the sea longing (that is such a fantastic idea!!) - and then Dashnir can realise waht he has done. And he was a bit smug in the previous chapter with Asbad so he does deserve if (if he hadnt already!) OK- this review is a bit of a witter but there is so much I want to say really- sorry. The way Legolas adapts to the u-glir is totally convincing in my view- so that even though he is sundered from the Song, he is still the same person, and an elf and rediscovering his strength is an important discovery for him- will make him stronger. The idea that he can use the sea longing is brilliant. The scene where he starts humming and then sings is wonderfully eerie - and its only when I printed out he whole stary to re-read this week that i really understood what a brilliant idea that is. (Yes, after picking up the last chapeter, i had forgotten a lot and wanted to read it agin- so printed out all whatever pages and sat in the garden thoroughly enjoying myself instead of cutting the grass, weeding the garden etc.Thank you!) THat scene makes me think of Jean Michel Jarre's piece, Equinox, which is a lovely piece of music and very haunting.What this scene does in particluar, along with the last chapter, is make yopu suddenly remeber how very 'other' Legolas is... elves of Mirkwood are so much more elvish and other worldly than other elves (not a trace of bias here of course ) but do you know what I mean? Rivendell is The Last Homely House and that makes it easier, but Mirkwood is dangerous, its elves 'more dangerous and less wise'. To me, they are more unpredicatable and a little more fey. In this, Legolas and Gimli's friendship is really explored- it goes beyond anything and it has to be like this for Gimli to ultimately give up Middle EArth and go with Legolas- of course, Galadriel is a big attraction too. BUt the notion of just keeping going, one step and another- is a bit like the Wal faced by marathon runners and then they get over that and get their second speed. And I have loved the way you have portayed Gimli in this- he really does get all the best lines - dwarven diplomacy. You can see why Eomer and Gimli would get along - there was one reference you made very much earlier about dwarven diplomacy but I cant find it- it was hilarious and much of this has made me chuckle. Having said that, not sure Legolas is that great at diplomacy- he has killed one and certainly, let's say, annoyed several others! Equally, your oc are unntterly convincing and I have become rather fond of Arabano and actaully, Asbad- even though he is a baddie!They are complete and different - but I have to really commnet on the culture that you have developed in Harad. The ways of the desert are totally convincing- it makes absolute sense that they should measure journeys in days riding rather than in distance. Did you pick that up from somewhere or is that your own idea? And the subtle politicking in Harad is just the way it should be- nothing really said, everything ambiguous and very cloak and dagger. The plot is utterly satisfying. Hope this helps to convince you to work on this story - I really cannot wait very long until we find out what has happened to Legolas - ooh- the bit when Dashnir says about the carrion eaters - a flicker of fear - it reminds me a little of The English Patient when the main character has to leave his lover in the caves to go and rescue her, but returns too late - it is a desparately sad story - but not the case here. I told you it was a bit of a witter. Will try to make more sense next chapter- will be soon I hope, really really hope! Author Reply: Holy cow! You certainly wrote a lot. Wow. Let me see if I can get to all of it in this response. (Not that I'm complaining, mind you. Not at ALL. I love long reviews!!!) I've gotten several very convincing pleas to concentrate on this story for a while, and I'm beginning to think that I will. I'll have to intersperse other stories now and then, because I'd burn myself out otherwise. But we're so near the end here that I might just give it more of my attention. We'll see. No promises. I'm glad you liked Dashnir's moment of realization, and I'm glad the slower sentences worked for you. I was trying to approximate those flashes of insight you get when time seems to slow to a crawl and something you should have realized earlier broadsides you mentally. One of those crawling "I can't believe I'm only now thinking of this" moments. Legolas's adaptations are things I've been toying with all story long, and I've longed to let the sea-longing loose since I played with it around Dol Amroth. You've gotta love those Mirkwood elves. I wholeheartedly agree with the concept of more dangerous than the elves of Rivendell, though I've got qualms about the "less wise" aspect. I think Bilbo might be getting his information from biased sources. But unpredictable and fey are definitely descriptions I'd use. I'm also very glad you like the portayal of Gimli, Eomer, and the various OCs. Those are things I've been worried about the most, actually, because there are several chapters in which the bulk of the story is carried by the OCs, and that's always a risky proposition. I wasn't sure mine could sustain the story, but people seem to be attached to them. My favorite far and away is Arabano, though I have a soft spot for Fastahn, idiot that he is. Someday he'll learn. The idea of measuring journeys in days rather than distance is a difference I've noticed in American culture, actually. The East tends to travel in miles while the West tends to travel in days. It's not readily apparent, but once in a while you see it and I thought I'd make use of it. I wouldn't worry about carrion eaters just yet. Gimli's reasonably safe for the moment. He won't be in a few hours, but right now, he's fine. Many thanks for the review! I'll try to have the next chapter out faster.

docmon	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/9/2005
terrific chapter! you finally gave us some elf&dwarf time! oh, no, not complaining, no, not here. ;-) Legolas's despair and grief were so heartfelt, I really felt for him as he was forced to leave his friend. The sense that both Legolas and Gimli, but especially Legolas, were at the end of their endurance really came across ('dregs' of their endurance, perhaps?). Enough so that I fully believed at the end that he was struggling to stand upright. I had no idea he was faking, though I KNEW you would not be killing off our favorite elf. I was relieved enough to almost not hate the awfulness of the cliffhanger. Please update soon! We must know how Legolas gets himself (and Gimli) out of this! He may have injured Dashnir but he's still not out of danger yet! and we need to know how Aragorn's "something-resembling-a-plan" is going! Author Reply: Hey you! I owe you an email. I'll...get to that eventually. Promise! :) Kudos for realizing the tie-in with the title of the chapter. Everybody is scraping the bottom of the barrel at this point, and they're all coming up short. Some of them don't realize that's what is happening, but they will soon. As for Legolas faking it...the jury's still out on how much of that was acting and how much was real. Our elf doesn't have a lot left and is essentially working on...well, dregs. And that is a rather bad cliffie, isn't it? I'll work on that. Seriously. I've heard several very convincing arguments as to why I should put more work into this story, and I'm considering it. No promises, though!

Estel_Mi_Olor	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/7/2005
Wow! Suspense! Nicely done, as usual! Let me see...absolutely heart-wrenching to read about Legolas' and Gimli's injuries. I know Gimli doesn't die...but... it is just so suspensful! Now I am rather confused...but I am sure you planned it that way to keep your readers in suspense. What happened with Legolas? One minute he was dying helping Gimli, the next he is attacking Dashnir. I do believe I have failed in comprehending something that will be explained in the next chapter. Or not, since you like to be suspensful, it will probably be explained in the chapter following that. Do you realize I might die from suspense? Or not...enough teasing, I really love the suspense. You write it so well! This is not predictable at all. I wish it were though...Well cheers and keep writing and update soon! Author Reply: What happened with Legolas... Well, he's certainly not in the best shape right now. Let's see if I can clarify things a bit. After moving Gimli to what Legolas felt would be a safer cave, he left the lava fields and headed out in the desert, hoping he was going the right direction. After a while, he noticed Dashnir's men patrolling the outskirts of the rocks and hit the dirt, hoping they wouldn't see him. (This is partially explained next chapter, but I'm not giving anything away but telling you now.) When they seemed to be breaking up, he headed out again and that's when Dashnir saw him. Legolas started to run, but he obviously couldn't outrun horses. So when they began firing at him, he faked an injury, took a tumble, and grabbed one of the arrows now lying on the ground. Then he did some more faking to make it look real and tried to lure somebody close to him so that he could strike. But as for just how much faking he did is up for debate, because he is very sick and very exhausted right now. Dashnir's estimate of his strength is not far off the mark. Legolas has just about had it. Anyway, hope that helps explain part of what happened, and I'm glad you're enjoying the suspense! It makes me feel like I've accomplished something. ;)

Nightwing	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/7/2005
Ah, that elf is magnificent. Whenever I start making my Legolas wimp out too much, I must remember to come over here and take another good look at your Legolas. This is just the way he should be; strong, resourceful, cunning, resiliant, unpredictable and dangerous as hell. I enjoyed following his lonely trek in search of a place to hide Gimli. In addition to all those potentially scary attributes, to his friends he is steadfast and loyal, and would lay down his life for them. He is sick and hurt himself, but protecting the dwarf comes first. The elf's love for his friends is absolutely fierce, if that is not too odd a description. Describing Gimli's final call to Legolas as being "like a whisper borne on a dying wind" was perfect. Time is running out for Legolas' friend, and the elf knows it, though he is trying to force the truth of mortality back by refusing to acknowledge it and by shushing Gimli's words. Your efforts to make Legolas' elvish behaviors different from men are excellent, and yet how very human that particular reaction was. Don't think it, don't speak it, and it won't happen. During moments of great crisis we all act like that sometimes. Clarify this for me if you will: is the arrow wound in Legolas' left shoulder in the front or in the back? I had been thinking it was in the back, since it happened while he was fleeing on horseback, but the elf's clutching the arrow and "drawing it forth" sounds more as if it is a front wound. The ending was fantastic. The way Legolas drew Dashnir in until he was able to strike him down was terribly exciting. But it was not surprising, and I do wish it had been. I saw it coming, and I'll tell you how I knew. There were two particular sentences earlier during Dashnir's observations of his captive that clued me into the elf's deception. "The resulting pain seemed to steal whatever strength had kept him upright...", was the first. On it's own, I might have skipped right past it. But a bit later came this one: "Seemingly unable to control himself, he sank forward..." The instant I read that sentence I said "Ah ha! Legolas is playing it up." If that first section of the sentence had been omitted so that it simply began "He sank forward..." I never would have had a clue that the elf was working it, and the tension would have been tremendous. I'd have been truly terrified for Legolas instead of just excitedly waiting for him to make his move. You gave it away a little bit. Do you see what I mean? I love the unique way you have incorporated the sea-longing into this story. It is very skillfully done and feels just right. The longing is a major aspect of Legolas' life, something he lives with every minute, and yet is is a good indicator of his inner strength that he is able to harness some of its impact for his own use instead of being helplessly under its control all the time. I know you are working on many other stories, but you simply must concentrate on this one! I and many others have been in absolute agony over the fate of Legolas and Gimli in this story, and now you have left us with a very tense situation indeed. One monumental cliffie. He may have eliminated Dashnir, but there is no way the elf can take on the rest of these guys. He was acting it up a bit for full effect in order to draw his foe in, but I have no doubt he truly is close to complete collapse. Even such an elf as Legolas has a breaking point. And I sure don't think Gimli will be charging to the rescue, much as he might wish he could. Please please get the next chapter out as quickly as possible (focusing once again on our two friends in need), and ease our worried minds! Author Reply: Great googly moogly, she wrote an epistle! Wow. I'm...very amazed. Very taken aback. Huge thanks! Holy cow, look at the size of that thing! When it showed up in my inbox, you turned me into this blubbering mess of shock and swelling ego. Wow. Speechlessness... It's amazing. Right, er, let me see if I can form a coherent response to it! (Speaking of responses, I owe YOU a review, too. I'll work on getting to that!) Okay, first of all, I've never known your Legolas to be a wimp. Overcome and traumatized, sure, but you pull it off believably so that he never becomes a wimp to me. But I do thank you for the compliment. I'm quite fond of my hale elven warrior. I just hope I don't push it too far one of these days. He does have limits, which we'll see next chapter. As for his loyalty to Gimli, someone else decided to call it ruthlessly efficient, which I like very much. So I also like your description of "fierce," because I think that's what it is. Legolas becomes so fierce and ruthless that nothing else seems to matter anymore. The don't-speak-about-it-and-it-won't-happen reaction is a very human reaction, but a lot of the elves in LotR have it, too. Gildor and his band, for instance, all but refuse to talk about Black Riders or anything else that might be happening in Arda because if they ignore it, it won't affect them. That's part of where I'm drawing Legolas's denial from. The other part is that he's almost out of his mind with fear and exhaustion. He can't handle anything else. The morning's arrow hit Legolas in the back of the shoulder and lodged just behind the scapula, left side. If he reaches back with his right hand, he can touch it. He could probably touch it with his left hand, too, but he's informed me that he'd rather not use that arm right now. That was clearer in one of the earlier drafts, but for some reason, it became muddled in the final. I'll see if I can work with it... Okay, about the tension in the ending... Maybe you can help me with this. I debated about giving too much away because I couldn't decide if I wanted readers to be waiting for the elf to act or worried that the elf couldn't act. I went for the former. In other words, you were supposed to pick up on the acting. (It's amazing how many still didn't.) But I can see your point about building more suspense... I think I like your idea better than what I went with. The fact that Legolas happened to be hit in the exact same place he was hit earlier should rouse suspicions in alert readers, and the rest can pick up on it at the end. Right. I'll mark that down for edits. As for updating this story before anything else...I'm seriously considering it. We ARE getting close to the end, and I did leave you with a rather nasty cliffie. Oooo, no promises but I'l definitely think about it. And you're right. Legolas IS close to collapse. He doesn't have much left. And if it makes you feel any better, the next chapter will have lots of Legolas and Dashnir once again. Everyone else is either traveling, preparing, or planning. We'll get to them eventually.

Frodo3791	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/5/2005
Hey, glad to see you updated. The long waits are always worth it. I have to work on some homework, so I'll keep this short. I enjoyed the chapter as always. Legolas' desperation and tiredness was well written. He keeps pushing himself so much, thinking that he can rely on some of that elven stamina. Doesn't work in the desert... and under these circumstances. I like how you also write from the "bad guys" point of view and give him some decent reasoning behind his thoughts. I love layers in characters, and you definitly got it down with Dashnir. I have one question though. Why did Dashnir say to kill Legolas? Maybe this was addressed in the earlier chapters and I forgot, but I thought that they wanted Legolas alive so that they could hand him over to Umbar. Thanks for keeping this story going and continuing to make it interesting. I love your stuff. I've kind of losing my interest with fanfiction as time goes by, but I always find your stories a pleasure to write. I think you definitly do a good job of keeping the realism and historical factors in this story while staying true to Middle Earth. Great work, as always. -Frodo Author Reply: Hey there! It's always a pleasure to see what you have to say because you've got such great insights. Such as Legolas. You're absolutely right. That elven stamina is about to give. The Haradrim might be underestimating him, but Legolas is doing a bit of overestimating on his part. He doesn't have much time left. As for why Dashnir didn't kill Legolas, that was something he and Asbad discussed last chapter. They decided that the elf was simply too dangerous to have around, with or without u-glir. Remember that before this all took place, there were other plans underway. When it was discovered that two of those coming to Haradhur would be an elf and a dwarf, the plans changed, and at this point, we're somewhere around Plan C or D. The two kind of meshed. What Asbad wants to do is go back to Plan A as far as the elf is concerned, which meant that Umbar was going to find its own elf. Asbad doesn't trust his men around Legolas for extended periods of time anymore, and rightly so (as Dashnir just discovered). Gimli, on the other hand, is not viewed as a substantial threat because of his injury, so they feel that they can take him alive. Which might prove harder than it sounds, but that's for a later chapter.

Elenora	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/5/2005
Absolutely excellent chapter!! I've been waiting on pins and needles for an update concerning Legolas and Gimli, so this was definitely much appreciated. I have thoroughly enjoyed this story all along, and I have found it intriguing what you are doing with Legolas - the whole "u-glir" (sp???) thing - and then when he used the sea longing to affect an escape from the enemy camp - left me nearly shivering with the thought of it! And now, using the same sea longing to distract and mesmerize Dashnir...well, that was really a brilliant idea, and one I've not run across in any other fan fiction. It is a very compelling and intriguing idea. I also loved that little bit where Legolas lets out a "keening cry" that not only frightens the men, but disturbs the horses, too. These subtle "differences" that you incorporate into Legolas's character are wonderful at continuing to remind us that while Legolas was one of the Nine, friend and "brother" to Aragorn and Gimli, and very often in the company of men, he is not a man, but something a bit more....complex, and mysterious at times, as well. With his close friendships with Aragorn and Gimli, one can lose Legolas's "elven-ness" too easily as he interacts with these mortals. Such little touches as what you are having him do with his sea longing, and the looks he bestows on his enemies that have them seeing strange and disturbing things in his eyes, remind us all that yes, Legolas often seems so very human, but he is not. I await with eager anticipation the next chapter to this riveting story! Thanks for not giving up on it! Elenora voxstellarum9@aol.com Author Reply: I love to write Legolas and I love to write from his POV, but he scares me for the simple reason that he is NOT a man. He's an elf. And as an elf, he's different. As a result, it makes me very happy to hear you note the differences. I don't know if they always come across, but I've tried to keep Legolas somewhat separated from Aragorn, Eomer, and Gimli. And I'm glad you're liking the many uses of sea-longing. It's not canon, but by the same token, I don't think it's that far removed from canon, either. Tolkien has described Legolas's people as being very powerful in song and that it's part of how they defend themselves. So I didn't think it was too far removed to employ it as a weapon, especially when you have a power as dangerous as the sea-longing to unleash. For what it's worth, that's my reasoning, anyway. Glad you're enjoying it! I'm having fun.

	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/5/2005
Excellent chapter, but if you don't mind me sayng so, it's about time! It's been a while since you last updated and I've been dying to see how this goes. Don't get me wrong, I know it's hard work to write stories like this, and life getsin the way, but update sooner, I can't wait for the next chapter, And please understand, I'm not critizizing you, I just really hate waiting for a good fic to be updated! I wish you speedy writing, and the best of luck! Author Reply: No, criticism accepted and deserved. I don't update often enough. I wish I could do something about that, but in all honesty, there's not much I can do. It's hard for me to scale down the number of fics I work on because then I burn out on them, and real life likes to get in the way, too. But I'll do my best to update faster in the future. Promise!

Eruvyweth	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/5/2005
OHHHHHHHHHHH, YOU UPDATED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANK YOU A THOUSAND TIMES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wonderful chapter! Every word of yours I read makes me more your adoring fan!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Author Reply: You're very very welcome, and thank YOU! Sorry to make you wait so long, though! But I'm glad you liked the chapter.

Elemmíre	Reviewed Chapter: 38 on 4/5/2005
Oooh, very nice. Yay Legolas! :), Elemmíre Author Reply: waves flag and adds to cheering section

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