Orc Character Bio
From
the moment I opened my eyes, I knew pain and suffering. This is how life works
in Angband. My childhood, if you could call it that, was not filled with
laughter and happy memories, as rumors of Elven childhoods were. I was brought
up to be a warrior to The Master. A mindless drone to wage His war against His
enemies, with no regard for my own life. I have not seen The Master with my own
eyes, only visions of smoke. I know He is a being of such power that me and my
kin have no choice but to submit to Him. I hate The Master. Why do we toil away
in the depths of His dungeon? Why must we be slaughtered by the thousands? Why
must we fight the war that He brought unto Himself? But I cannot fight Him.
Hate him as I may, His power is undeniable, and His influence is incredible. Thus,
I spend my days aiding his services: forging weapons in the lava for the
armies, taking patrol scouts and looking for Elven encampments. My brothers, if
you can call them that, call me Celgal. I don’t know what it means.
Today,
The Master had an important mission for my garrison. Rumors of an Elven warrior
by the name of Fëanor had been spreading like a plague throughout the caverns
of Angband. Another garrison leader, and Orc they call Zulogh had told us that The
Master had taken something precious from this Elf, and he was set on getting it
back. All I knew about him was of his strength and influence. Like The Master,
this Elf was able to convince hundreds to follow him, and any scouts sent to
stop his approach were decimated, news only returning to Angband through the
few cowards that managed to escape.
On
the day of our mission, I led my army of Orcs out of Angband, in an attempt to surprise
this Elf’s group and lay siege to them. Our goal was his head. I looked at my
group as we waited for the right moment and was disgusted. We are a hideous
race of creatures, built to serve only one purpose. That purpose, however, was wonderful.
As the Elf’s group fell into position, we attacked. We outnumbered the Elves by
hundreds, and as our weapons clashed, I had but a fleeting moment of happiness.
If my only purpose is to serve Him, I wish to serve that duty well.
I am not afraid to
say I take joy in the killing of my enemies, Elves especially. Elves are
rumored to never reach The Halls of Mandos by natural means, so I take pleasure in snuffing
out the eternal burning flame housed in each of them. As my blade slashes
across their flesh, as I hear their screams, I have a smile on my face. A
moment that is rare in my life. It seems, however, in my fleeting moment of
happiness, I neglected to focus on the overall battle at hand. As the lesser
Elf fell from my blade, I turned to see a nightmare. The Elves, despite being
so much smaller in number, had completely overwhelmed my garrison. I looked upon
the ground to see my troops, disgusting as they may be, lay bare and lifeless.
In that moment, I
did what I had to do. I ran. As I fled the scene of the massacre, the question
of my life re-entered my mind. Why am I doing His bidding? Surely my life is worth
as much as any other, yet He plays with us like His toys.
As soon as the
thought entered my mind, it quickly left, as I was reminded as to why I follow
Him. I heard a commotion further into the forest, on the edge of where Angband
began. Looking upon a clearing, I saw Fëanor, the mightiest of the Elven warriors,
the one who had commanded the army that laid siege to my troops, under the foot
of Gothmog, Lord of the Balrogs. Upon seeing this utter display of both strength
and humiliation, I was reminded of my place. Gothmog answers to The Master. I
am at the bottom of the hierarchy of Angband, so to question my position in all
of this is foolish.
I know my place. I
am Celgal. I am an Orc. I serve The Master. I hate The Master. I will die for
The Master
wow this was such a haunting read. I love how you gave Celgal a voice, An orc who hates his master but cannot escape its power. It really made me sympathize for him.It really captured the fear and hopelessness that ruled the hearts of those who served in Angband. The part where celgal witnesses Feanors fall really portrayed how courage and rebellion can be crushed under morgoths powerful rule. I truly pity for the orcs as they live only to fight for a master they despise.
ReplyDeleteThis was absolutely phenomenal, it was so insanely descriptive it was like I could literally put myself in his shoes. I really like seeing how you painted Cegal's inner voice, something I found really interesting was how he was only really happy when he was able to defeat the Eldar. I know its because he's being useful to Melkor, but could it also be because this is one of the few moments where he actually has power over another being rather than being on the bottom of the hierarchy himself? This was amazing to read, you should write more!
ReplyDeleteThis text in particular really shows a chilling aspect of Melkor's abilities and how he rules, in comparison to a character like Ungoliant. It paints the picture of the terrifying powers of manipulation Melkor has in regards to all of those under him, being able to trick masses of people and twist his own darkness and evil into them, creating horrors under his command and his command only. Even though the orcs may despise Melkor, they follow him as they ultimately do have the same darkness that Melkor does, while submitting to his power.
ReplyDeleteDear Celgal,
ReplyDeleteBravo. Your description of the internal conflict orcs face is an interesting deep dive into one of Tolkien's ideologies and important problems in the LOTR universe. What is amazing to me is how you express the problems Tolkien faces himself in regard to orcs. This problem determines whether they are intrinsically evil or have been corrupted, and if they are not intrinsically evil, should they be blamed for their actions? Your line “I hate the master, I serve the master” perfectly explores and illustrates this problem. It implies that even though the orcs have been corrupted, they still have some sort of free will/opinion, and that means that they don’t like Morgoth. You illustrate how Celgal goes through cognitive dissonance, which humanizes orcs to the audience. This is a great piece of literature for communicating to LOTR fans the inner turmoil that goes on within orcs.
You already know the truth, Cegal, you despise the Master because he has taken your life. Every moment of happiness you believe you experience while serving him is actually his chain getting tighter. He will use you until you are nothing and then discard you. His power is merely control, not strength. You will never experience freedom if you continue to follow him; it will only be a pointless goal. Keep in mind that while no shadow lasts forever, those who hold onto it are buried when it goes away.
ReplyDelete