“ Suddenly the great beast beat its hideous wings, and the wind of them was foul. Again it leaped into the air, and then swiftly fell down upon Éowyn, shrieking, striking with beak and claw.
Still she did not blench: maiden of the Rohirrim, child of kings, slender but as a steel-blade, fair yet terrible. A swift stroke she dealt, skilled and deadly. The outstretched neck she clove asunder, and the hewn head fell like a stone. Backward she sprang as the huge shape crashed to ruin, vast wings outspread, crumpled on the earth; and with its fall the shadow passed away.
A light fell about her, and her hair shone in the sunrise.”
I have several Tolkien prints by Angela Rizza (purchased on etsy), and this is one of my favorites.
She has a whole Tolkien series that is really beautiful. I have this one in my living room. People don’t realize what it is until they look closely and see the sword and the blood, haha.
… as they are so terrified, that they stare at the print to avoid any remarks about why there is a bloody sword in your living room.
Haha, I guess I must have missed it in my pre-guest “hide everything that might horrify someone” routine.