The Silmarils

[Gwaihir the Windlord]

Yet it is said that Morgoth looked not for the assault that came... he thought that he had forever estranged the Noldor from the Lord of the West, and that content in their blissful realm the Valar would heed no more to his kingdom in the world without; for to him that is pitiless the deeds of pity are forever strange and beyond reckoning.

That should just about say it, Aredhel. Although what you said about Ungoliant; he could have destroyed her then, although she had swelled in her power immensely after devouring the life of the Trees (while he, through his long grounding in Valinor, was weakened at this time), through the Balrogs that came to his rescue. This scene, that between Ungoliant and the newly-christened Morgoth, is one that I have always found particularly interesting -- evil versus evil, and the bigger evil (Morgoth, after summoning help) prevails.

Remember that Melkor was still a Vala, and said to be the most powerful of all the Ainur. He was mightier than Ungoliant. After his return to Angband, he would have again grown in his power; and most importantly through the power he had invested (the Balrogs, for example), he was by far her superior.

Make no mistake about the Noldor, though. Morgoth was going to wipe them out, along with the other peoples of Beleriand that were left in opposition to him. As I have said he defeated and squashed them totally, his forces controlled Beleriand and -- not expecting their succour from the West -- he was merely taking his own time. Quite possibily savouring his final, hard-fought victory now it had come.

(Morgoth the Great -- no, obviously he didn't wipe them out. Many Elves escaped him, a significant number in various corners of the land. But he did have dominance. He had beaten them, and finishing them off was just around the corner. Obviously he didn't control their affairs (which is why 'some escaped') in the few hide-outs left for them to crouch in, awaiting the final blow. These affairs, however, would soon stop and were in any case nothing at all to him.)

[ August 14, 2003: Message edited by: Gwaihir the Windlord ]