Hello everyone! It's been quite a long time, but I just recently got back into the swing of things with this story. I hope that you all who have taken the time to read and stay with it so far have enjoyed it and that you all have been well. Here is the latest! A bit of story and some memories that surfaced from my OC's past. I hope to after this, to have the next chapter soon...
Two days after the goblin tunnel escape...
The burning earth lingered in the air, and the heat spread the stench of an earlier war. While investigating the layout of the slain, the clanging from metal weapons still echoed, and the lasted effects had bounced off of the walls and faded into an eerie and strange silence. Decayed flesh ridden by disease and fell hygiene, much worse than when it clung to a live body.
"Goblins in all of their, I daresay not glory", uttered Ulrik, still ever vigilant in surveying the damage. His staff in hand, sword at the ready, and his left eye that carried the "Outer Sight", ever so cautiously caught glimpses of the former battle, Avalair and the Arkenites, Thorin and the dwarf company, his friend Gandalf, and a...Hobbit?
"Oh Avy, what have you gone and done? I thought I taught her to take better precautions than that, but I would not be surprised if you even showed me something new", he would be as serious in question, but also know that she would not be so foolish as to take one that would not survive in the wild on a journey unless it were important. Upon his search for one that would have some answers, he found one, a goblin they called G. Ah yes, he has a lot to retain shortly before his demise. Ulrik placed his hand upon the goblins head and picked him up as if he had applied an adhesive. He closed his eyes, chanted in an ancient language, and the goblins eyes opened in a robotic state and then met the elder Maiar's own with fear.
"Now, you are going to tell me what happened here, and if there is any attempt at hiding the tru-, well, scratch that, I will know the truth!"
Flashes of capture, search for others, more capture, and rescue from Mithrandir to aid in escape from the goblin goons - some getting treated horribly only to redeem themselves in battle and finding their own in using the bridges against the enemy. He chuckled to himself, saw all that he needed to see, and the goblin's corpse was slammed into the ground with the side of his face toward one of lesser fortune in their attempt to defeat the ones they captured.
He released his grasp and turned to the ceilings of the tunnels with relief that they had made it out alive. He adjusted his robes and heaved once as he set forth to find his way out of the dank and dreary goblin tunnels. He would not sheath his sword yet, as you can never trust all goblins to die away as a majority of their kind did in this ferocious battle. He staggered along the path that once gapped bridges, made his way by raising up his own from remnants of broken wood and frayed rope, and continued on as if nothing. Once in a while, Ulrik would draw a slight expression, one that would shudder to believe could happen to such a being in such circumstances yet he prevailed to show emotion when it fit the cause...a wry grin indicated in the corner of his mouth drew and elevated his faith in his little being, the Omnien who was to stand above it all...and actually listen for a change...made it's way to his weathered facade...
"Good girl, Avalair. Just as I hoped you would do. Just as I hoped you would."
Early the next morning, Avalair set aside some bread and honey for Bilbo, as he seemed to be enjoying his bit of sleep that he had missed on their journey. Thorin had been watching her closely and of how she thought of her nephew, and now from what he observed, his nephews as well. They had grown close over the course of months, and he would hold this bond of trust to his heart and mind as best as he could. Had their potential private moment of what could have been a kiss not been interrupted by the sound of the dark closing in and they should catch up on rest, he would have been more receiving of the welcoming morning and what it had to offer to the company.
'I don't even want to try to understand that obstinate woman', Thorin thought with malice and hope blended within his heart, 'But soon I hope to make sense of it all. I know deep down she feels it too.'
Ippa flew about, as he usually did, and dropped a piece of bread onto Thorin's lap. He slightly acknowledged the offering and ate it with hearty knowing that it would serve to fuel him long enough for the journey that lay ahead. He bowed his head to the kind services of the affectionate and mischievous creature whom he was more than glad to be on his side. He gathered his company in attendance and surveyed that they all were well prepared to set off for Mirkwood.
The company parted for Mirkwood with forced indifference. The path would be this, that, dangerous, as Gandalf would warn, much appreciated of course. The sooner they arrived at the entrance, the sooner they would pass through and be on their way to fulfill their quest at hand. Avalair rode alone on her pony only wishing that she could feel the longing stare of a certain dwarf king whom she would leave in emotional disarray at the vacuous decision to stop their near lip lock, and yet even after her meeting with her other past life, something still didn't feel quite...genuine. Hoping at the highest, she would maybe come to a place for another meeting to gain verification of what Uledan had said was true or if this was one of those past lives that in her journey that she would have to prove that she was not an ingredient of the "madness" that would sorely and unfairly afflict an Omnien. To uphold her purpose to herself, she recalled, if not reluctantly, the moment that almost made her descend into madness. She would have to face it, and use that time in her life as fuel to remind herself of her strength...
Flashback...February 2941, Other-Earth...
Avalair had fought an intense battle against Xai'yn...one that would acclimate into the most ferocious foe she ever thought to encounter...Nars, her water-bending master who she looked up to as a father figure, came to her aid even after she exchanged harsh words to him out of frustration and exhaustion from the chaos that whipped around her entire psyche. She was out for a time and brought back to her uncle's palace.
Local and distant healers were summoned to assess Avalair's condition. Most of them concluded that same - an ancient and stagnant energy with no name laid within her body and the only diagnosis was overall wekaness from her ordeal and was in need of rest and she was in need of vigilant watch. Remedies were prepared for her and administered while she slept in hopes of bringing her out of the lingering comatose. Eleven healers from many regions as well as those of Arkenian and mortals departed, but not before they brought thier gratitude and offered extra protection and offers of scouthood for the whereabouts of Xai'Yn - Enemy #1.
Sounds of faint whispers filled Avalair's ears as she lie in bed bandaged and nestled under linen sheets and thick blankets. It would be two weeks before a rousing in her spirit peered through to make itself known. In the hushed darkness, she could only imagine if she would hear sounds ever again. The whispers grew louder until the decibles troubled her to believe that she was either captured or listening to a bad rendition of how they were going to kill her. She stirred to a familiar coice as her waterbender friend and proficient healer Dyani, made her wah to her with a salve strong enough to jolt anything awake. The smell was rare but familiar. Peppermint, spearmint. Dragon's blood herb, and juniper - aimed to pull one out of their own mental captivity, and if you're ever smelled it, one shoud not think too much as to how well it works.
"AAAHH!", Avalair was startled at the pungent smell and soon she was aware of the present moment. She glanced over at Dyani with an expression as if she played and unnecessary prank.
"Avy! Thank goodness you're awake!", Dyani set down the salve and tried to calm her. Dalon, trying not to be too engrossed by how well the combination worked, was sitting nearby with a back up of herbal tea and a mighty air-blast up his sleeve for anyone that dared to attack her. Avalair exhausted herself a bit from the sudden arising from her bed, but she was alive nonetheless.
"Avy? Talk to me Avy", Dyani leaned in to provide assurance that she wa in the company of not just her friends, but family. Dalon remained locked tight in the chair as he noticed her stirring. They flinched as eh shot up and back down on the bed, unclear as to how they could help her from this moment.
"What happened? Where is Xai'Yn? Did we finish her off?", Avalair's eyes were droopy yet determined to make sense of what was going on.
"Oooww...my head...", she murmured holding her hand to her forehead.
"That evil bitch must have known you were about to kill her so she took off. We aren't certain of her whereabouts but all that have suffered losses of their fok are on strict watch should she be sighted. You too quite a nasty fall back there. I think you were dead for a while." Dyani thought it best to not drag on the truth and go into detail on what had happened.
"Dead?!" Oh no! This is the worst time for this to happen!"
"What do you mean?!"
"I mean that if I died while in the Omnien state, the cycle of reincarnation is now broken. Unless I can reach in again somehow, I may never stop Xai'Yn."
Avalair tried to bend any air or produce fir but to not avail.
"Is that water?", she pointed to a bowl of water adjacent of a pile of folded cloths.
"Yes, for when you have night sweats", Dyani said.
With water being her dormant element, Avy waved her hand and arched her arm to move it but it only rose a few inches and fell back into the bowl.
" I can't even bend! This is terrible! What if there is now way I can obtain my abilities in time?"
Xai'Yn did not have the power to remove and give bending, and she was certainly not capable of generating lightening for you have to be in the proper mindframe before doing so. She managed to redirect it although in a more unorthodox fashion. Xai'Yn in all her cleverness would not be underestimated in finding out what she had done and would use it to her advantage.
"We will find a way", Dyani assured. "Right now, you must rest. Your Uncle Lulan, and your other bending masters are going to see to you soon. I managed to use the last of the moon water to save you along with help from Ulrik. I'm sure that your will be able to defeat her as soon as you have been tested."
Dyani reassured her solemnly but only because she had exhausted herself in healing Avalair. She was most grateful but dowby was beginning to swell her mind. Endless questions should ask themselves questions sometimes just to understand the pain of trying to answer all of them.
"How am I going to defeat her?", Avalair wondered aloud as she held her head and relaid her head onto her pillow. Dyani placed the salve on the table and Dalon handed her some tea, to which she sipped with relief.
"Don't plan an attack just yet", Dyani warned, "Do you remember anything else from the incident?"
Avy searched and fully concentrated on any other recollection of the past events.
"I remember I was at the Deep Blue Cliffs. Xai'Yn and I fought until I restrained her at the edge. I was going destroy her. And then what happened next is deeply grievous but I can not explain why it happened. She sent lightening back to me."
The others gasped, looking to each other for answers.
"That is not what I wanted to hear," stated Dalon. "However, much she had done, she would not have the proper state of mind to accomplish bending lightening. Her only aspiration is to show off and...to kill us all."
"While that may be sad yet true", Dyani added, "she would have learned the secret. I'd say she was posing as someone else during her meeting with those that had never seen her face. They may have told her or she figured it out on her own. Either way, she may be able to bend it but not control it."
"For her to have such power could mean doom for us all. We mush aler the counsel about this", Dalon said.
"Wait, where is Nars? Is my beloved water master still alive?!" Avalair remembered him coming to her aid and becoming victimized by a sneak attack from Xai'Yn.
"He is in the other keep. I just came from there." Dyani could not lie to her when she was like this even if she would do something drastic.
Avalair shot out of bed and raced out of the room. Despite the impending bodily soreness and large contusions that marked her like diabolic patchwork, she ran down a flight of silvery white marble stairs and made her way to a hall that adjoined with outside gardens. She swung a left and ran into one of the palace guards.
"Please allow me to see my water master!" She begged.
The guard held a hand in place as Water Emperor Lulan entered the hall upon hearing the commotion.
"Your highness, my most sincere apologies. Master Nars is unwell but will see you in time."
"I am not your highness, I am the Omnien. And I will see him NOW!", she winced a bit despite her refusal to be detained.
"Rudgen!" Release her!", shouted Emperor Lulan.
The guard released her and at that time the emperor comforted her. Her tear swelled in her eyes as she apologized endlessly. He stroked her hair as she rocked on the floor. Her bruises were most to blame yet her will would not keep her on the outs.
"Please be strong, dear niece. As he is. You should see him now."
Avalair got up only to stumble over her own left aching foot. Her uncle gathered her to help her into the next room. Nars lay as comfortably as possible and focused his heavy lidded eyes to one of his finest students and greatest friends. Avalair held his hand and opened her mouth to speak but he began for his time was little and strength was frail.
"Be like water, Avalair. If anything should entrap your mind...suh...such as d-doubt, worry, g- guilt, shame, or fear...change its course to meet its end. Do not be s- sorrowful *cough cough*", he shuddered and peered further to resist the pain, "or melancholy for me. That must change into fury to set things right. Remember, in the end, you are your own master. Master the art of fulfilling your d- destiny."
Avalair's tears shrouded her cheeks and she searched for the appropriate words as she clutched Nars hand.
"There are so...so...so many things I want to say to you right now",she sniffed, her bottle of emotions overflowing as the others emphasized with her longing for him to remain close in life for a while longer. Nars inhaled with a slight strain as he lifted his hand to cup Avalair's curved, finely bearded cheek.
"You have learned so much since my first coming to know you. Not just from me, but from your wonderful hobbit family as well. Your are courageous, astute, honorable, wise, and clever. Your beauty surpasses a moon cycle of starry nights and exudes from your pure heart and your smile is as the dawn of victory after a long war. You will know what to do in time." His heaving chest became a pillow for her weary head as her nestled her grief in his departing spirit.
"I love you Master Nars. Your name will be sung in songs and cherished by our future children. I - I just - ", her voice giving into hysterics.
"I love you too, Avalair Soulcharmer", he wheezed while exhaling his final breath.
June, 2941, Middle Earth, back at Beorn's...
Avy's head swirled as currents in a rapid river, jagged rocks as barricades from keeping herself in a sane state of mind and as if by fate of connection, Gandalf had been monitoring her. Avalair had not simply been planted on the doorstep of the Tooks by accident but by the urging of an old force, as old as time, for he knew that Avalair was the Omnien just by looking at her.
Gndalf gazed at the small yet significant being before him. This young girl, no this capable and woman before him, was proven to be a prevalent purpose for Other-Earth and Middle Earth alike...he could not help but recall the moment that the Maiar Ulrik, the Shadowlord, presented him with this mere infant destined for great things, tying loose ends, burning bridges, and cementing a solid place among both lands of the same world...
June 2835, Other-Earth
Upon arriving to see scourged bushes that corralled the dusty grounds, unease surrounded the mind of the grey wizard as he surveyed for the whereabouts of his caller. Sears of flame, shouts of declaration to end the "control", to "conquer once again", "give us the child", rung his attuned ears. His haste to the calling of another Maiar were indeed met with the fortune of meeting him
behind a tall boulder with the only light of a tree on fire enshrouded with desperate screams for mercy. Any ordinary would cower to such a string of events yet Gandalf with all of his magical senses knew that they were the defense from the ancient being lightly jogging toward him.
Mithrandir, my old friend!", a ragged, towering figure stood breathy and on edge before Gandalf, gathered in his arm was a tiny bundle of shredded ash-ridden cloth. "I would hope that you would answer my call. For this is of the most importance that Luthiel would sing of it's purpose!"
"As one could rightly tell!", exclaimed Gandalf, "what is it?"
Ulrik was not known for a pleading look, not for quite a long time, and yet...
"Please dear friend, I need you to take this one. She is most special. Hurry, I can't hold them off for long!" The disheveled graying yet ominous being held a tiny little infant blanketed in shredded cloths, dirty as they were, the little one was content enough had it not sensed the trills and howls of battle. What was most peculiar was her bearded chin and cheeks, golden red as the moon in autumn, and a glow, of such calm and unwant, that layered her entire body.
"Ulrik, is she? Does she carry on the Omnien line?", he dared ask even though he already knew the answer.
"Yes, she is the one protector", Ulrik rushed as he sent off another ball of fire toward a scowling group with foul intentions. They pointed to the grey wizard with foul intent in their eyes. They were after the baby!
Gandalf would glare to uproot their own gaze as the infant was passed into Gandalf's grasp.
"There is no time! Take her somewhere that not even I know! Hurry now! I will hold them as long as I can!"
"Hold fast Ulrik!", was the final shout before he would search for a concealing point of a land that was vague in familiarity to him. Unveiling the infant girl's face, he saw that there was also a pendant and hair pin with distinct symbols. With no time to look back, Gandalf raced between two cliffs that allowed him to flee out of sight. As the echoes of shouts, horrific screams and wails lowered in volume behind him, he came upon a spot, a tall and oddly curved tree that would allow him to travel to Middle Earth with hardly the use of his own magic...
Once again upon welcoming greener hills, the scent of vegetables blended with fine lilac and prize daffodils, Gandalf further examined the contents of this infant, who was now crying.
His efforts to shush her were met as he removed a wooden object adorned with bells of the gentlest song painted with matte purple and blue waves before the tiny baby girl. She cooed and was gradually at ease.
"Come now, uh, I'm sorry little lady, I did not get your name."
Searching for other information, he came upon a piece of dried leaf with scribbling in an ancient code. He placed his staff upon it to reveal, "Her name is Avalair, AHV-uh-lair."
"Avalair. Ah, then", smiled Gandalf. Pretty name. And I assure you Avalair, your new family will be delighted to have you."