lkhlokeiel, better known as Lokei was born in the third Age in Lothlorien, to Bragollain of the Green Elves and Penntalien of the Golden Wood. Her name translates roughly to “Rushing with red-gold loops flowing away,” but in childhood she was also called Llachien, which means “Leaping flame.” Her father, Bragollain was a chronic wanderer until he met Penntalien. Not long after raising Alkhlokeiel to a responsible age, the urge to wander reigned again and he was injured by a party of raiding orcs somewhere in the Misty Mountains. Both her parents have sailed to the West, and she has no known siblings or other relatives.

ith bright copper hair and hazel eyes, Lokei is unusual among the Lorien elves, not least for her looks, but also for her almost ceaseless energy and merriment. She spent much of her early life as a tree-tender, caring for the great mallorn trees and helping to provide the plants necessary for the sustenance of Galadriel’s kingdom, as well as serving some time as a Lorien scout, accompanied by a succession of horses, currently her faithful sorrel mare, Cullachin. Cullachin, the Bright Flame, is similar in both color and temperament to her rider, and like Lokei is fond of anything made with apples.

hough free time in Lorien meant writing of music, the playing of mandolin and flute, and craftsmanship and swinging off ropes into the river, Lokei’s wandering spirit chafed in her small role in the guarded forest. One craft which could bring her peace was the working of the clay, taught by the capable hand of Veon, an elf that was once the sword-brother of Bragollain. For some brief time in the lifespan of elves, Alkhlokeiel happily played the jester for Galadriel’s court, but a conversation with Mithrandir spurred her to seek a more fulfilling existence and she began to travel.

er wanderings took her to Rivendell, where she was for the first time seen as an elf of promise instead of one of mere amusement. Lokei found places and friends among many of the elven guilds, taking on roles of both teacher and apprentice among the Bards, Writers, and Architects. Closest to the Master Songweaver’s heart was her sworn sister, the High Bard, Narelen of the silver hair, once beloved of Gil Galad King. When the golden years in Imladris ended and the troubled soul of her closest friend drew Narelen over the Westward Waters, Lokei herself was troubled, and in sickness of spirit turned to the Wilds and the company of Men for comfort.

irst she sought her father’s kin, the Laiquendi, going first to Mirkwood and then to the edges of the known world to seek the nomadic Green Elves, whose love for Middle Earth was stronger than the light of Valinor. Later, for countless long days, she wandered with a group of the Dunedain, thoughtful flint-like Rangers, led by a man named Tevin, son of Tinabar. In those days she still occasionally rode an aging grey stallion named Sidheru, the peace of Eru, one of a long line of elven-bred horses, and the sire of Cullachin, her current steed.

ne day, while Lokei and a small group of Tevin’s Rangers were journeying to Minas Tirith, they passed through the Entwash, and the group was separated. Lokei had been journeying to seek news of Narelen’s granddaughter, Trey Andurandir, hoping to reconnect with the only family she still knew. Instead, amid the ancient forests on the borders of Rohan, Lokei met the other she would grow to love and esteem as a sister, Aislynn Breanna, the Lady Sunrider of the Rohirrim, and woman of Gondor as well. As so frequently happened among those she called family, Lokei and Ace met with sword raised and bow drawn against a common enemy: a marauding party of orcs, quickly dispatched by the new-found comrades.

hough time passed and Lokei returned briefly to her old haunts in Imladris, it was clear her heart was no longer at peace in the glistening valley, the Last Sanctuary of the Elves holding none for her. With a strange lightness of heart, she left once more for Minas Tirith and the heart of the Reunited Kingdoms of Men. She took the surname Obnimir, Adunaic for “Once-Elven,” and swore fealty and love to King Aragorn Elessar and his Queen Arwen Undomiel. Wishing to bear her sword and bow for her new homeland, Lokei joined the ranks of the honorable Roquen, and settled in to a usually peaceful life with Trey, her brother Tiren, and Aislynn on the coasts of Dol Amroth. When in the city, she may easily be found in her own pottery studio, Elanor Earthworks, minding the unruly in the pubs with a fierce red pen, training with Cullachin, or making merry with her friends, such as Ren Quintillian, all of her fellow Roquen: Ceriwynd, Lerivel, Hoyamir, Naran, and others, Arteris and his bottle of red ink, the minstrel Dunnottar, and the many citizens of Minas Tirith she has been fortunate to befriend since her arrival. Though no grey ship will ever bear her to the bright shores of Tol Erresea, Lokei looks to the sea with a glad heart, knowing that she, born in the twilight of the elves, was meant to both love the starlight of the Eldar, and to see the dawn of men as it rises over the breaking waves.

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