Destiny Diverted

Disclaimer: Avatar:the Last Airbender duly belongs to Bryke. The Lord of the Rings belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien. The movies result from the vision of Peter Jackson. No profit is made from this story other than the sheer gratification of reviews. And there is no way in Hell that I can write even a fraction as well as J.R.R. Tolkien, so no very high expectations of writing quality, please.

NOTE: And more action, naturally, we're getting into the "meat" of "The Return of the King" and some of my favorite battle sequences. As I mentioned before, as much as I understand the importance of Frodo and Sam's part of the story, their scenes bored me and I thoroughly enjoyed every glorious fight scene. I am poor at describing them but I do love watching them and imagining changes the benders might do.

Please forgive me if Zuko and Katara might go a bit over the top in their involvement in the battle. After all, Legolas isn't the only one who is allowed to be larger and life. (Gandalf and Aragorn need not be mentioned. It's a given that they're awesome.)

I'm not going into the battle of Pelennor Fields blow by blow though, too much happened there to be contained in these pages. And there is so much that still needs to happen. You've seen the movies, you know how it all plays out. What I'm more concerned with is how our benders contribute to the fight (although in this chapter, it will be mostly Zuko.)

Enjoy.

CHAPTER SEVEN

All over the city there was tormented weeping, even from the bravest of soldiers, for the orcs were ruthlessly using their catapults to hurl the heads of fallen men of Gondor over the walls. At the sight of their dead, dishonored and desecrated in such a foul manner, the people of Minas Tirith could feel nothing but sorrow and rage. They mourned the brave men who had fallen to protect the city, and they grew furious at the vile creatures who now dared to attack them. There was more reason to fight back now, to at least avenge the dead who had been so shamelessly defiled.

Zuko shuddered at the sight of these bloodied heads, having never seen such depravity before. He wept with the rest since he had had the chance to fight alongside these men, and he grew fiercely determined to defend the city from such ignoble foes.

The firebender climbed up to the walls of Minas Tirith, and with the remaining frightened soldiers, he gazed down upon the hosts of orcs who were resolutely marching towards them. Again, he saw how different this battle would be from Helm's Deep, and again, Zuko wondered where on earth did all those orcs come from?

They were so numerous that they seemed to sprout from the very ground they were trampling upon. But they needed to be stopped, somehow. And though he knew he was not in a position of authority in Minas Tirith, Zuko still encouraged the soldiers to remain at their posts and to do whatever they could to stop Mordor's forces from entering the city.

Reminded of their duty by the words of the foreigner, the men of Gondor began to ready their weapons. Archers launched their arrows onto the orcs below, and some of these monsters fell dead. But many remained.

As he did in Helm's Deep, Zuko aided the archers by setting their arrows on fire in an instant. And from where he stood, Zuko launched great balls of fire onto strategic points in the orc's army, especially those near their weapons. Again, the distraction of keeping their large contraptions from burning down gave the rest of the soldiers of Minas Tirith opportunities to kill more orcs with their arrows.

But the exchange of blows was abruptly interrupted by the bellowing voice of Denethor who shouted from the Citadel. It seemed that Faramir's body had reached him at last and the distraught father had remembered how much he loved his younger son.

"My line has ended," the steward cried out in anguish, "Rohan has deserted us. Theoden has betrayed me."

The steward walked to the wall, and upon seeing the masses of orcs approaching, he realized that Minas Tirith stood on the brink of utter destruction.

"Abandon your posts!" cried he in despair, "flee, flee for your lives!"

All the soldiers looked up and listened to the words of their lord gone mad. And Zuko heard these cries with angry incredulity.

"What is he doing?" the firebender exclaimed, "saying all that at a time like this!"

But the soldiers had heeded those words and there was now confusion and chaos in the ranks, with Zuko trying hard to keep them together. This was the worst possible time for them to fall apart.

"Prepare for battle!"

Zuko looked up and with relief saw that Gandalf had knocked Denethor out and had taken charge of the situation, as was his habit. Having a great respect for the White Rider, the soldiers of Gondor followed his orders.

"All men to the walls! Defend the walls! Return to your posts!" Gandalf commanded as he rode to the lower levels. And all the men obeyed.

Riding to the top of the wall, showing great authority, the wizard looked to the hordes of arcs gathered in front of the city. Mithrandir's presence was an immense comfort to the men and even though fear gripped at their hearts, they felt stronger with such an ally by their side.

"Send these foul beasts into the abyss!" Gandalf cried.

And at once the soldiers of Minas Tirith launched their own catapults and trebuchets, raining large rocks upon the orc army, with some of these stupid creatures too stupid and slow to evade such attacks. The soldiers were hurling huge chunks of the ancient city upon their enemies, and effectively crushing them. Some of these blocks of stone even destroyed the ladder like structures of the orcs.

Gandalf managed to find Zuko who ran to him eagerly as the fighting continued.

"Can you still fight?" the wizard asked in concern.

"Of course," the firebender replied, "especially if the enemies are so ugly and annoying!"

"Then, I shall rely on you to do whatever you can," the wizard said with complete trust before going off to other parts of the wall to help the other soldiers.

Zuko nodded and ran off to see how best he could help. The orcs were using their catapults now and also launching large rocks towards the city. There was no way for the men to counter such attacks and the damage would be very great indeed.

The firebender was thinking fast, trying to find a solution. Then, he remembered that the Earth Kingdom had used such methods before. And firebenders had always managed to subdue them. How else would they have been able to keep the war raging for so long?

"I've got it!" Zuko realized excitedly, and he quickly ran towards where the nearest rock was about to crash into the city.

The soldiers watched incredulously as the foreigner tried to get into the direct path of the flying rock.

"My lord," they cried, "you have to get out of the way!"

"Trust me," Zuko replied to them, getting into a proper stance, "I got this."

And with a swift and fluid movement, Zuko shot a sharp blast of fire towards a specific spot on the rock that was flying towards him. If he calculated correctly, it would work.

The rock exploded in mid-air with millions of tiny pieces falling harmlessly on the walls. Both orcs and men gaped at this in awe and disbelief. Zuko smiled smugly at his accomplishment.

Even Gandalf had paused to see what the commotion was all about. When the wizard witnessed what had happened, he smiled proudly.

"Well done," Gandalf whispered with satisfaction.

There was less to worry about now that Zuko was strong enough to fight again.

Proud of his handiwork, Zuko turned to see gaping faces staring at him.

"Well, don't just stand there," the prince ordered, "we have a city to defend!"

At once, the soldiers recollected themselves and all returned to their posts and to their tasks with greater spirits. They marveled at the strength possessed by both the white wizard and the stranger who wielded fire. There was still hope for them all.

So Zuko continued to use his firebending to blast the rocks into oblivion, although he was not able to destroy all the flying rocks since he was just one firebender and the orcs had many catapults at their disposal.

After a while, when the orcs had temporarily stopped using the catapults, Zuko joined the other soldiers and tried to organize them and to instruct them on more effective battle formations and strategies. The prince of the Fire Nation was not about to let years of military training go to waste.

And though many of the soldiers were a lot older than the young commander, they respected his opinions and took his suggestions seriously. He had proven himself in battle and they were ready to follow his instructions.

Soon the orcs were launching flaming rocks at the city, which only gave Zuko more ideas. The temporary pause in firebending had restored some of his energy and since the sun was still high in the sky, Zuko did not feel faint.

This time, he used a different approach, one involving blasting greater fire at the burning rocks, pushing them backwards so that they fell upon the hapless orcs below. Again, while Zuko was unable to stop all these rocks from hitting the city, he was able to push back a good number.

This made the orcs more and more afraid and wary of him and many a time did they attempt to shoot down the one who wielded fire. But the soldiers of Gondor knew enough to guard Zuko while he was firebending, and he was never hit by any arrow or blade of Mordor.

More burning arrows flew from Minas Tirith and many of the lesser orcs had already fallen.

But the forces of Mordor had even more sinister enemies, who now arrived to strengthen their campaign.

Piercing the air with their ear-shattering screeches, the Nazgûl and their winged mounts swooped down upon Minas Tirith, spreading terror and chaos among the soldiers. Mordor had unleashed some its most powerful weapons and the remaining soldiers in the stone city were hard-pressed to defend themselves against such mighty horrors.

For the deafening, high-pitched screams or sounds which came from the Nazgûl did more than intimidate. These unbearable noises awoke fear and terror in the soldiers and distracted them from their purposes.

Pippin covered his ears in fright as the Nazgûl approached. Having encountered them before, the hobbit knew what evil they were capable of. And yet, while he was more familiar with the Nazgûl than the others in Minas Tirith, he was not less afraid.

"Not them again!" Zuko cried out as he covered his ears and flee from the path of the black riders.

He had seen them briefly when Faramir had first arrived in Minas Tirith but Gandalf had somehow sent them away. But Gandalf was busy on the other side of the walls and the howling sound from them was maddening. All around him, men were screaming as they ran, trying to keep out of the Nazgûl's reach.

With his hands firmly pressed against his ears, Zuko tried to figure out how to get rid of these new foes. He could see that the riders did very little and relied on their flying beasts to destroy parts of the city and to grab and drop many soldiers. Those horrid winged creatures were ugly and repulsive and yet gave such a great advantage to their riders.

The Nazgûl had but to steer their mounts in strategic directions and just look menacingly at the people of Minas Tirith for them to be successful.

Several times Zuko had blasted fire at the Nazgûl but to no avail. They were quick to avoid his attacks and he was too disturbed by their chilling presence to be able to send stronger blows. The firebender sought out Gandalf and puzzled over how to deal with these disgusting enemies.

But soon the Nazgûl were flying further away and Zuko realized that they had just been a big diversion so that the towers filled with orcs could approach the walls. The archers were doing their best to kill the large, hideous creatures pushing these towers forward.

Zuko looked down and then made a face as he looked at the huge beasts.

"What in the world are those?" he asked of a soldier nearby, while he blasted one of the strange creatures and it effectively began to burn to death.

"Trolls, my lord," the soldier replied quickly, "and we need to get rid of them."

Zuko continued blasting fire at the trolls and alternated with throwing fire at the wooden towers. Then, he thought of something else.

"Stand back!" the firebender told the soldiers and they immediately complied.

Taking a deep breath, the prince summoned a huge mass of flames which he pushed towards the tower of orcs. The whole thing was ablaze and the screams of the burning orcs could be heard from inside. A cheer was heard from the men of Minas Tirith.

Zuko ran as fast as he could towards the other towers and managed to destroy a few more before he needed to pause and regain some of his energy. Greatly respecting him, the soldiers rallied around him to make sure that he was not harmed.

But there were still so many orcs remaining and now they marched towards the gates of Minas Tirith with a large battering ram to try and breach the entrance. The archers shot down as many orcs as they could and it was clear that the gate was not about to fall.

"What's that?" one of the soldiers cried in alarm and all eyes followed where he pointed.

With horror the soldiers of Minas Tirith saw that the armies of Mordor had an enormous wolf's head battering-ram with fire in its mouth. Huge trolls were pushing this monstrous contraption towards the city and it looked like whatever it was, it would be strong enough to break down the gate.

"Grond! Grond! Grond!" the orcs chanted with glee, cheering on that humongous wolf's head.

"That," Zuko muttered, "doesn't look good."

He was thinking fast of a possible solution. He regretted that his firebending was only good at a certain range. He needed to stop the orcs from entering the city. He needed to get closer to them somehow so he could use his firebending. Looking up and scanning the sky for options, Zuko had a crazy idea.

"It's risky," he thought boldly, "but it just might work."

Making his way across the walls and slashing a few orcs who blocked his path, Zuko found Gandalf, who was equally busy ordering the soldiers and cutting down orcs. They greeted each other curtly.

"What brings you all the way here?" Gandalf asked, "you seem to have been doing well where you were."

"We need to get rid of that thing," the firebender said, pointing towards "Grond" or whatever it was called, "I have a plan."

"By all means, tell me what I can do," the wizard replied eagerly. He was tired of thinking of everything.

Zuko pointed to the sky where some of the Nazgûl continued to circle the city.

"Do you think you can get me on one of those?" the firebender asked, motioning to the winged mounts of the black riders.

Gandalf's eyes grew wide and he frowned sternly.

"Are you mad?" exclaimed the wizard.

"No, just creative," Zuko replied calmly, expecting such a reaction, "don't worry. I know what I'm doing. If I could have the advantage of flight, I could do a lot more to weaken the enemy's defenses."

"Those aren't dragons, Zuko," Gandalf protested, "they are creatures far more sinister and menacing. You can't just mount one of them so easily."

"They seem easy enough to steer once you have control of the reigns," Zuko said, "and I've had experience riding big, nasty creatures, believe me."

Gandalf still looked highly doubtful and the two of them turned to slash down some random orcs before continuing the conversation/negotiations.

"Look," Zuko urged, "all you have to do (as if it was that simple) is knock down one of those riders, while I try and take control of the flying thing. If I can't control it, we kill it, and then, we'll have one less freaky rider on our hands."

"The Nazgûl are not that easy to subdue," Gandalf explained.

"But you are a great wizard," Zuko argued, "I know you can take one of them down."

"Even so," Gandalf conceded, "I still think it's too dangerous."

"Well, do you have any other ideas?" Zuko asked urgently.

"Not at the moment, no," Gandalf had to concede, "I have too much on my mind already."

"Then, please take a chance on my plan," Zuko asked, "we don't have a lot of options left."

Gandalf sighed. He admired the firebender's eagerness to fight and his impulsive behavior. Zuko was really proving to be a valuable addition to the alliance of free peoples of Middle-earth, even though he was not of this world.

Theoden was surely on his way with whatever troops he could muster. Minas Tirith needed to hold on until their arrival.

"Very well," the wizard conceded, "but had better make sure you know what you're getting into."

"I will, thank you," Zuko replied with an eager smile, "besides, all this would have been a lot easier if you had brought at least one earthbender with you."

"Don't question my judgment," Gandalf muttered in annoyance.

"I'm just saying," Zuko answered with a shrug as he followed the wizard to where the nearest Nazgûl was flying.

All this banter was more to help Zuko gather enough nerve for what was to come. Gandalf was well aware of how risky this plan was and yet he had that unfathomable feeling that it would go well somehow. And having reliable instincts, the wizard decided to take a chance on the firebender.

"I must warn you," the wizard told Zuko as they settled on one of the minor Ringwraiths, "you cannot long control a beast of the Nazgûl. Do not allow yourself to be drawn into the Shadow."

"I won't," Zuko assured him, "this is just to buy time until Theoden's riders arrive."

With this, Gandalf aimed his staff at one of the Nazgûl. He chose one of the lesser kings of men and not the Witch-king of Angmar, and the target took the bait.

The winged beast swooped down towards them, howling and screeching, while the Nazgûl used his presence to try and strike fear and terror in his adversaries.

But Gandalf was strong enough to resist this psychological attack and he had given Zuko some power to do the same, at least for a short duration. The firebender still shuddered at the sight of the black rider and his mount but he was able to focus on helping Gandalf push the Nazgûl off the beast.

Combining the white light of the wizard and severe blasts of fire, the Nazgûl fell from his mount, screaming and screeching as he descended on the orcs below the city. Gandalf distracted the winged beast.

"Quickly now!" cried the wizard.

Zuko obeyed and in a moment, he had the reins of the flying beast in his hands and he was trying to make it fly. The firebender struggled for a while, and did his best to remain behind the beast, as far away from its fanged mouth as possible. And then, with a few more forceful tugs, Zuko soared into the air atop a Nazgûl mount.

Gandalf watched the firebender with pride and concern. He was now tasked with the difficulty of making sure the other Ringwraiths would not attack Zuko. Fortunately, they had spread out around the city and had not yet noticed that one of their kind had fallen.

"Be careful!" he reminded Zuko who was already flying towards the orcs of Mordor.

Up in the air at last, and keeping his wits about him, Zuko headed straight for the large wolf's head battering ram that was slowly making its way to the city. Zuko considered blasting fire on the orcs as he made his way to "Grond" but decided against it. He did not want to call attention to himself just yet.

As he neared Grond, Zuko saw that it would take a very powerful attack to destroy the weapon. Successive balls of fire would not be enough. He looked around him and noticed that the sky remained overcast, Sauron's artificial weather to sustain the orcs. There were loud rumblings of thunder.

And just like that, Zuko was struck with another crazy but potentially effective idea. But it wasn't going to be easy maneuvering the flying beast while bending.

"I have to try," he thought, "I'll only get one shot at it, but if I do it right, that should be enough."

Taking a deep breath, Zuko flew towards Grond. But the orcs had noticed him already.

"It's the flame thrower of Gondor!" cried out the orcs from below.

Zuko frowned. They recognized him, and now, arrows were being fired in his direction.

He tugged at the reins, making sure that both he and his ride would not be struck by any arrows. He shielded himself with fire and the arrows burnt out before even reaching him. It also helped that he was wearing some armor of Gondor. Zuko was really impressed with the mithril he had been given.

"But I can't keep this up for much longer," he thought frantically, "I have to do it now."

Flying higher than any arrow could reach, Zuko took a deep breath and concentrated. Balancing on top of the winged beast even as it roared, with the reigns tied to his arms, Zuko raised his hands. He closed his eyes for a moment.

And then, opened them again, this time channeling the energy of lightning from the dark sky through his body and shooting straight at Grond. The weapon exploded as lightning hit it, and the surrounding trolls and orcs were also gravely injured. The rest cried out as the wolf's head crashed to the ground.

Grond would never reach the gates of Minas Tirith.

Zuko smiled as he settled back on the winged creature which was noisier than ever now, having been upset by the huge explosion. The orcs were distracted by the destruction of their great weapon and so Zuko was able to get quite far from them while taking advantage of his position by flying around, blasting fire into the ranks of Mordor.

With a triumphant smile, Zuko flew around the walls, burning down orcish weaponry and blasting a barrier of fire around the walls and the gate so that the orcs could no longer approach.

"It won't last too long but it'll do for now," Zuko thought as he spread fire a few meters in front of the outer walls.

He listened with satisfaction as the orcs wailed in frustration and anger and Zuko saw that the remaining men of Gondor had regained some of their confidence. They were cheering him on as he flew and the sound of their encouragement drowned out the annoying, shrill cries of his mount.

Gandalf beamed at him but this lasted but a moment.

For there was Pippin, running towards him and calling to the wizard.

"Gandalf! Gandalf" the hobbit shouted, "Denethor has lost his mind! He's burning Faramir alive!"

The wizard rushed to the citadel as the rest of the soldier continued defending the city. Zuko now had to fly away from the city for he was being pursued by the other Nazgûl. He blasted fire at them when he could, but for the most part, all his energy and attention was on flying as far away from them as possible.

"This is the hard part," Zuko muttered as he held on to the reins. Already he could feel some of Gandalf's protective power weakening from the approach of so many Nazgûl, and the firebender was trying his best to shield himself from the fear the Ringwraiths so effectively sowed in one's heart.

Then, there was the sound of a horn.

The Nazgûl were distracted and flew away and Zuko looked ahead of him to see what had bothered them so. In the distance, a long line of valiant horsemen, their armor glittering in the sunlight that shone over them.

"Rohan," Zuko muttered with joy and relief. Reinforcements had arrived at last.

Theoden gazed at the battlefield before him and began shouting orders to Eomer and Gamling, distributing the men to strategic points.

"Arise, arise riders of Theoden!" the king cried to his men, "spears shall be shaken! Shields shall be splintered! A sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises!"

The orcs had managed to form some ranks in preparation for the charge of the horsemen. But Zuko was not about to make it easy for them. He had been strengthened by the arrival of Rohan and the sunlight, and he now began to blast as much fire as he could on the orcish defenses, breaking through their ranks and causing chaos.

"Ride now!" Theoden shouted as he rode, hitting the spears of his riders with his sword, "ride now, ride for ruin and the world's ending! DEATH!"

"Death!" the riders echoed, the very sound of their battle cry made the ground quiver, "DEATH!"

"Forth, Eorlingas!" Theoden commanded, and the horn of war was blown once more. And so began their mighty charge.

"Fire!" commanded the orcish leader to his archers, and at once arrows had been launched towards the Rohirrim.

"Oh no, you don't!" Zuko cried out from above, and he burned as many arrows as he could in mid-air.

Seeing the great exhibition of fire, Theoden recognized Zuko, and was glad. The old king once more marveled at the strength and power of the strange prince and was very relieved to have Zuko fighting by his side.

The riders charged relentlessly, and cut down every orc that stood in their path. Eomer and Gamling emerged from the sides and the orcs saw in horror that they were surrounded. The Rohirrim fell upon the hordes of orc scum like waves crashing upon the shore.

In moments, all the minor orcs had either been defeated or had been driven towards the river. The city was rid of its attackers through the combined strength of Gondor, Rohan, and a representative of the Fire Nation.

But just as the field had been emptied of the orcs, reinforcements arrived from Mordor. Theoden's eyes widened as he saw the new forces they were up against.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Zuko cried out in exasperation from where he continued to hover above the battle, "what in the world are those?"

A legion of Haradrim approached, vicious men, who rode atop their enormous mûmakil, beasts with long, sharp tusks and short tempers. These towering creatures could easily stamp out any soldiers who crossed their paths.

Theoden gathered his riders and they began to charge towards the mûmakil with all the force they could muster. The clash of army against army was great, but the Haradrim seemed to have the upper hand.

Zuko flew towards them and began launching fire at the ridiculously large beasts.

The Rohirrim were being trampled upon but they soon found ways of bringing down the mûmakil. Eowyn managed to slash the legs of one while Eomer instructed the others to aim for the heads.

Zuko saw how this was effective and began to blast small but accurate shots of fire towards the heads of the beasts. Little by little, the mûmakil fell, and the riders of Theoden were making progress once more.

But Mordor was not to be outdone, and seeing how the weaker forces began to fall at the mercy of the Rohirrim, the other Nazgûl began to participate in the battle, much to everyone's frustration. A fierce fight was soon being played out between Eowyn, Merry, and the Witch-king of Angmar.

Meanwhile, near the river, an angry Mordor official was complaining about the punctuality of the corsairs.

"Late as usual, pirate scum!" yelled the officer, "there's knife work here needs doing!"

"Come on, you sea rats," cried another scornfully, "get off your ships!"

And to their surprise, only four people emerged from the fleet, a man, a girl, a dwarf, and an elf. The three males charged towards them while the girl began controlling large waves from the river, drowning the hideous soldiers.

Some of them did not live long enough to see the army of the dead that followed behind the four strangers.

"There's plenty for all of us!" Gimli cried to Katara and Legolas, "don't take them all down, Katara!"

"I'll try my best," the waterbender replied with a grin, riding on large waves and launching icicle darts all around her.

Using water from the great river, Katara moved forward, and soon began aiming for the mûmakil with walls of ice and large water whips. Even though she had almost single-handedly defeated a fleet of the enemies just hours before, Katara still had the energy to continue fighting.

In the distance she could already see the stone city and the damage that had been done by the armies of Mordor. She saw the riders of Rohan bravely putting up a fight against enemies so much bigger than them. She was not about to be outdone by anyone.

"Excuse me, coming through," Katara announced as she seemed to surf her way around the battlefield, slashing through orc and mûmakil with blades of ice.

Small explosions and blasts of fire caught her eye and she looked up to see Zuko, riding a horrible looking winged creature, flying above her.

She sighed with relief at seeing him safe, although he looked extremely exhausted. She was tired as well, but still determined to be helpful.

Zuko had noticed the waves of water and blades of ice being fired and looked down to see a grinning waterbender waving at him.

"Well, it's about time!" he called out with a smile, raising the hand around which he wore her mother's necklace.

"You're welcome!" she shouted back, as she brought down another mûmakil.

They were aware that it was hardly the time for a friendly chat so they gestured to each other, signifying that they would catch up later. With Aragorn's new allies easily getting rid of the rest of the enemies, the two benders were fairly sure that they would survive this fight.

Minas Tirith and its surroundings were being cleansed of all the filth of Mordor by the army of the dead. There was little left for the Rohirrim, the members of the Fellowship, or the benders to do in the fight.

But Katara knew that there was work still to be done. Her heart grew heavy as she saw all the dead and wounded from both Rohan and Gondor strewn across the battlefield. War was never without casualties.

The waterbender ceased fighting and focused on using her powers as a healer to save all who could still be saved. She could never ignore the cries for help, and the sheer number of the injured made her realize her own limitations.

But she was determined to help, even at the cost of her own strength and health. Katara did not know the danger she was getting into because of her compassionate nature. Little did she know that the more she got into contact with wounds inflicted by the filth of Mordor, the more poison was spreading to her system.

Not the conventional deadly liquid that was easily detected, but a slow, seeping shadow that ate into one's very soul, and led one to waste away in fear and despair.

So it was that when Katara rushed to tend to the wounds of the lady Eowyn, the waterbender was touched by the Shadow of Mordor, and she felt herself falling into a darkness inescapable.