In An Age Before – Part 289
Chapter One hundred sixty-nine
The Dragon and the Fëanicse – The Third Age of the Sun
In the aftermath of the explosion, Helluin and the Dwarves gathered before the ruins of Gunûdu Uzbad. 'Twas soon obvious to them all that the entrance hall had completely collapsed and there was no longer a chamber 'neath the rubble. There was no longer any direct access to the tunnels or the treasury either and all groaned in dejection at this turn, for though they had freed their old home from the Dragon, their wealth would have to be won from the mountains anew. Great labor lay ahead if they were to recover the riches from the twice fallen Halls of the King.
"We are not equipped for such an extensive excavation," the engineer 'Urnarûn said, and all those standing 'nigh nodded in agreement.
"Nay, we are not," Captain Rukhsiflid agreed, "for even had we the proper tools of miners and masons, still the count of this company is insufficient to provide the labor."
"In light of these unfortunate events, I deem the decision to pursue the recovery of the wealth of Gunûdu Uzbad is best reserved for His Majesty King Thrór," Ustalusantarâg said, shaking his head. "The labor shall be very great, for none can tell if the tunnels remain or if they too have collapsed." Again, those gathered 'round nodded gloomily in agreement.
Helluin had allowed their conversation to flow past her without participating, and as it continued, her attention wandered. She had no stake in the treasure and the whole sequence of events had left her feeling dissatisfied. How could such an improbable success also become such an unmitigated disaster, she carped to herself as she eyed the wreckage of the waterwheel, blower, and filter. Atop all this, the Noldo felt an undercurrent of nervousness, a shadow growing in her mind as of something that approached, an unnamed threat that she suspected might bring yet further hazards.
'Twas then that she marked yet another dismal aspect of the detonation that had thus far remained unnoticed by her companions. A sigh escaped her and she called their attention to a further loss.
"My friends, those we had intended to honor with burial are also buried 'neath the rubble," she said. The entire area beside the gates where they had laid the remains of the slain defenders from 2589 was now completely covered with fragments of fallen stone, from huge boulders to gravel.
The Dwarves looked thither in silence for several heartbeats 'til they saw that the truth of her words brooked no dispute. Helluin had expected wailing and curses or beards and hair rent in frustration and mourning, but to her amazement, the Dwarves looked to each other and began to smile. She cast Captain Rukhsiflid a questioning glance and he explained.
"We had intended that the fallen be honored with interment in their old home, the scene of their fall in the defense of their mansions and king," he said, "and by the demise of their foe, that has been accomplished. I can imagine no greater vindication than to find their rest atop the grave of their enemy." 'Round him, other soldiers nodded gravely in agreement.
The Noldo had to grin in acceptance of their sentiments. The dead had been honored and with far less labor than entombing them in the Dwarvish manner would have required. It seemed that all were satisfied with at least this aspect of the debacle and some good had come from the rather messy resolution of their Dragon problem.
Thereafter, the engineers came to her and presented their conjectures as to why the plan had gone awry. Helluin listened intently, for she was curious and perhaps there was somewhat to be learnt through hindsight…not that she e'er expected to attempt the slaying of another Dragon whilst employing that same strategy.
"We deem that much of the explosive effect can be traced to the residual lighter mal-air from the coal furnace that was still trapped in the tunnels 'neath the ground," engineer Ustalusantarâg told her in a placating tone. "'Naught else can explain the detonation inside the entrance hall."
"We reckon that with the extraction just begun, little of the mal-airs had actually been removed ere the fireball of Biraikhgirul-Uslukh's bowel airs ignited all," 'Urnarûn said, though it did little to make Helluin feel any better about the outcome.
"And 'tis most likely that for the prior three days after we shut down the blower, the mal-airs had separated somewhat, with the flammable lighter mal-air rising towards the entrance hall and increasing its concentration there to a dangerous level," Ustalusantarâg added with a shrug.
"So all things conspired to create a situation of the greatest jeopardy, though we knew it not," Helluin summarized, and the two engineers nodded reluctantly in agreement.
"None could have foretold how this would come to pass," 'Urnarûn said. "We thought the Dragon dead and had no reason to think otherwise."
That much was true. If 'aught, they had been worried that Biraikhgirul-Uslukh was already decomposing atop his hoard rather than quite alive and coming to confront them at the gates. They could do 'naught now save thank Mahal for their lives and prepare to return to Erebor.
Helluin nodded in agreement for she too had thought the Reeking Dragon dead.
"We were fortunate, more than we had any right to expect," she told them, "and none are more astonished at the outcome than I."
"And yet thou stood face to face with the Dragon and told him we would slay him," Captain Rukhsiflid said with a chuckle. "Fey or fearless thou art, O Bazgûnsulûkhu, and thy bravery shall long be recalled in Erebor."
"To be honest, I was at a complete loss for what to say," the Noldo admitted, "and after his accusations, only did I know that to lie would invite an immediate attack. I told him what truths I believed, deeming I had 'naught to lose and perhaps I could instill in him some doubt."
And whate'er came to pass, I cannot die, she thought. Yet none of their conclusions answered the question of why the mal-airs had not slain the Dragon. How could Biraikhgirul-Uslukh have survived 'nigh three weeks breathing that poisonous air? T'would hath slain even a host of the Noldor in a day, for enclosed within Gunûdu Uzbad, 'twas a jeopardy far deadlier than the smoke and fires of the Dagor Bragollach.
"Well, with all that behind us, I am inclined to allow the company a day's peace ere we begin our return," the captain said. "I think all have earnt it. I know I feel a decade older in a day."
Drawn from her ruminations, Helluin nodded, for his notion was good and the company would appreciate the respite. Yet still, on the verge of her thought the shadow of danger grew. She cast a glance to the sky where she saw the cloud of smoke and dust thinning and blowing away to the south. What am I missing? she asked herself. Wherefrom comes this premonition of danger? And where is that bird?
The explosion and collapse of Gunûdu Uzbad had been loud enough to be heard miles away, and the concussion would have been clearly felt through the ground. Then there had been the column of smoke and dust that had risen two hundred fathoms into the sky. Hanging o'er the uplands, t'would have been visible for many leagues and it had persisted for the half part of an hour. Gunûdu Uzbad was located high enough in the Ered Mithrin that the cloud of debris had likely been visible in northern Mirkwood and on the Withered Heath. The Noldo wondered who had been present to witness it.
Helluin eyed the dispersing cloud that was spreading o'er the lowlands south of the mountains and her apprehension only grew. She turned to Captain Rukhsiflid who was also looking up at the sky with a grimace.
"Captain, whilst I believe a day of rest would do our company good, I am hesitant that we should take it here. I feel that this incident has been all too visible," she said quietly so that few of the others would o'erhear.
"What is thy recommendation, O Bazgûnsulûkhu?" he asked as if he too was ill at ease.
"That we withdraw in haste, at least 'round the bluff whence we came so that we are out of sight of these ruins," she said. "The premonition of an unknown danger has come upon me and I cannot dismiss the feeling that some threat betides."
Rukhsiflid only nodded once ere turning and beginning to issue orders for the abandonment of the camp. Helluin watched as the Dwarves ordered themselves. Some began hitching their horses to the carts. With military efficiency, both soldiers and engineers struck the camp, packed their belongings, stowed their supplies, and loaded their weapons. The arbalest was withdrawn from the bridge and hitched behind the last cart in the formation, and then the company prepared to move out down the miner's road heading east.
Helluin mounted Smoca and walked him o'er to the captain.
"Pray begin the withdrawal, my friend. I am still unsettled in mind and wish to make a quick survey from higher ground ere I rejoin thee," she said. At Rukhsiflid's nod of acknowledgement, she turned the stallion and urged him up the stream bank heading north. After a couple furlongs, they found snow still melting upon the ground.
Are we not going in the wrong direction? Smoca asked as he turned his head to meet the Noldo's eyes. Or dost thou not intend to return to Erebor?
I hope that we shall rejoin the company shortly, but first I wish to reconnoiter from the heights. I feel uneasy after the explosion of the Dragon. Also, I wonder whither that bird has gone.
What dost thou expect to see? he asked with growing worry, surely we would know if another Dragon came 'nigh.
Perhaps, Helluin agreed halfheartedly, but I wager the dust cloud was visible on the Withered Heath and the explosion was surely heard. I hope that none have been drawn to the spectacle.
So then, thou suspect another Dragon may approach, for what else abides upon the Withered Heath?
Aside from some goats and sheep in the uplands, I know not. Pray let us go and return with haste. This has become an unwholesome place to linger. The residual snow had only grown thicker and the cold north wind was increasingly noticeable as it tossed Smoca's mane.
The stallion increased his gait to a trot and they passed uphill along the stream bank with greater haste. After only a mile, they reached the headwaters of the stream at the highest point. They were disconcerted to discover that but five miles lay 'twixt ruined Gunûdu Uzbad and the Withered Heath. From there they looked down into the lowland home of the Dragons. They saw no movement and it appeared deserted, but Helluin was not satisfied. She withdrew her viewing tube and set about surveying those sere and desolate lands.
After several minutes of searching, Helluin hissed in surprise. In the airs below she saw the 'most wonderful bird' engaged in what seemed a game of chase with what the Noldo deemed to be a young, winged Dragon, reddish in color and roughly double the bird's size.
Now the Dragon was a strong flier and reasonably agile for so large a creature, but the bird twisted and turned, rolled and looped, e'er evading the great lizard and it seemed to be doing so with ease. After a rolling loop, the bird took up the chase and in playful fashion, the Dragon fled ahead of it, now ascending high, now diving low with the bird flapping hard to match its speed. This continued as the Noldo watched, covering many leagues of airspace several miles out from the foothills of the Ered Mithrin.
Great as her shock was, Helluin became all the more astonished when the bird broke off its pursuit to stoop upon something on a steep face of the highlands. It dived and then recovered, carrying in its talons a struggling sheep. More astonishing still, the Dragon followed and in its turn, plucked another hapless sheep from close by. Then together the bird and Dragon ascended, spiraling upward several hundred feet, and then dropped their prey onto the rocks of the Withered Heath but a half-dozen fathoms apart. They alit together and began to feed.
Helluin realized that she had ne'er seen the bird confront a living Dragon. It had fed readily enough on the remains of Khabbkurdu, but that was its sole prior experience. The bird was now six years of age and she realized that for a creature that might live for an unknown count of years ere bursting into flames and leaving behind some eggs, 'twas still a baby despite the great size it had attained. As for the youthful conduct of Dragons, she was in total ignorance.
The Dragon feasting on the floor of the Withered Heath was already perhaps fifteen fathoms in length, (a third of that being its tail), had a wingspan of twelve fathoms tip to tip, and at her best guess, weighed perhaps forty stone. The bird now stood nine feet high, weighed fourteen stone, and boasted wings measuring eight fathoms 'cross.
"Dragons are slow to grow and may take many centuries to mature. Rarely do they mate, for they trust one another little. Three years after mating, a female will produce a single egg, surprisingly small for the creature's size. This she guards in her nest within a cave and carefully tends for another three years ere it hatches.
Newly hatched Dragons are about the size of a lynx or hound, weighing a couple stone. They will eat meat 'til gorged, as much as they can get, and are totally indiscriminate about their diet. The more they are fed, the faster they grow…" Aiwendil had said.
It stood to reason that this Dragon might already be a century old, though how many years depended on how well it had fed. Helluin honestly had no idea how long a Dragon could live if 'twas not slain, but guessed that its span must be great if it took many centuries just to reach maturity.
The Dragon ate with gusto and in four great bites had completely consumed its sheep. The 'most wonderful bird' gorged with more discrimination, avoiding the pelt and bones, and so lagged behind its dining companion. As Helluin watched through her viewing tube, the Dragon approached the bird and extended its head as if to challenge for the bird's sheep. The bird mantled its prey with its wings and threatened in return, though this resulted only in a temporary withdrawal.
Again, the Dragon stretched out its neck to snatch the bird's feast away, and this time, the bird sharply pecked the Dragon's nose with its beak. The Dragon's head jerked back, whether in pain or simply in surprise, the Noldo could not tell. Again the bird threatened, lowering its head, hissing, and spreading its wings as a shield o'er its meal, and in reply, the Dragon roared, faint 'cross the distance, but audible to Helluin all the same. Then it reared back and flapped its leathery wings, sending up a cloud of dust. Ere it ceased, the bird had grasped the remains of its sheep in its talons and taken wing.
Now again a chase ensued with the bird wheeling, rolling, climbing and diving as the Dragon gave chase, but this time, encumbered by its partially eaten sheep, the bird evaded with lessened ease. Yet still, each time the great lizard drew 'nigh, the bird slipped away and Helluin marked that 'twas slowly making its way towards the highlands, leading the Dragon o'er the broken ground 'nigh the cliffs where the landscape was riven with deep gullies and fissures. Then the bird climbed high, higher than its games had encompassed aforetime, outpacing its pursuer.
The Noldo watched, enraptured by the aerial display, but fearing for the bird for it seemed that so long as it retained its hold on its meal, t'would ne'er escape cleanly. As she watched, the bird rose higher than the summit ridge upon which she and Smoca stood whilst the Dragon seemed to lag e'er further below. 'Twas as if the lizard loathed to fly higher than the mountains. Finally, the bird, now high above the Ered Mithrin halted its ascent and for a moment, seemed to soar motionless three hundred fathoms above the would-be thief. And then it turned.
The 'most wonderful bird' closed its wings and dived, the sheep in its talons trailing behind 'neath its tail. As the Noldo followed its path through the viewing tube, its speed increased like a falling star, its colors brightly reflective in the harsh, highland sunlight.
Helluin followed its fall and she marked its path, stooping at a steep angle upon the Dragon, and then she marked its shadow, a black speck swiftly growing larger and centered dead on the Dragon. The bird was diving with the sun at its back; the light blindingly reflected off its diamond-dusted form. It came down as if it were a comet or a shooting star racing towards the ground and the Dragon seemed mesmerized by the sight of it. On the ridge atop the Ered Mithrin, the Noldo held her breath as the collision became increasingly imminent. In those moments, she recalled a memory from Númenor, long ago in the reign of the Queen Tar-Telperiën…S.A. 1600…Her Majesty's warship Valacirca out of Rómenna.
The Valacirca measured 320 feet in length and her three masts seemed tall for her size. She was sleek and sturdy, a stiff, swift hull with canvas enough for a ship a third again her size. And if this were not yet enough, Helluin marked the furled studdingsails rigged to open at the sides of the mainsails, where they would extend far beyond the sides of the ship, adding canvas for light airs. Yet in a fair wind, Valacirca would fly!
She also marked the presence of four, forty-foot arms mounted on swivels, two each on the starboard and port sides. Each tapered arm pivoted near its thicker, lower end, whilst the more slender end bore a net. Catapults, she realized! The ship mounted four artillery pieces, perhaps for coastal sieges. She saw also ballistae, giant crossbows, three per side, mounted 'twixt the catapults, and these she understood, were for use against other ships. Ne'er aforetime had she seen such weapons mounted aboard a ship. There was one further feature of the Valacirca that she had ne'er seen aforetime; the saw-toothed, steel sheathed prow.
"Imagine, Helluin, the effect of the mass of this vessel, running at well 'nigh 30 knots, striking amidships another vessel with that prow," Captain Baragund told her when she asked about it. "We carry siege engines, but we art the battering ram."
The thought chilled Helluin to the core. No captain she had e'er met would have willingly jeopardized his ship.
From the start of its fall at three hundred fathoms above the Dragon, the bird had streaked downward two hundred and fifty, as fast and blazing bright as Helluin recalled the tip of her late-High King Gil-galad's spear Aeglos as he snapped it forward to impale a foe. Yet like Valacirca, the bird carried a far, far greater mass. The impact would be devastating.
At the very last instant, with not a dozen fathoms to spare, the bird tilted only its head. With the speed of its fall, that slight adjustment in its aerodynamics altered its course by a few critical feet. It released the sheep and shot past the Dragon close enough to ruffle the feathers on its breast as it slipped o'er the Dragon's back. On the ridge, Helluin breathed a sigh of relief.
The carcass of the sheep slammed into the Dragon's face and sent it tumbling in mid-air as the bird recovered from its dive to swoop low o'er the Withered Heath, its wings finally extended to slow its descent. Then it turned and climbed to confront the Dragon again as the great creature struggled to control its tumble.
Stunned by the impact but furious, the Dragon had instinctively spread its wings and stopped its fall. It righted itself and sought for the bird, the sheep carcass forgotten. By the time 'twas again reoriented and in full control of its flight, the bird had regained the advantage in altitude and presented itself backed by the sun. It hung facing the Dragon from above, its body vertical and its spread wings flapping only to maintain its position ten fathoms away.
There was no playful nature left in the Dragon. The winged lizard was no longer even interested in stealing a meal. Now 'twas obsessed with redressing the grave insult done upon it, for the bird floated unharmed before it as a taunt. The bright-feathered creature had stooped upon him as if he were prey! He cocked his head back and spread his jaws, roaring in rage and displaying a mouth filled with dagger sharp teeth.
From a league away, Helluin watched through her viewing tube as the Dragon's chest glowed with a ruddy light that rapidly grew brighter and seemed to backlight his scales with fire. She had seen the like sixty-one centuries aforetime in Gondolin. Urulókë! A winged fire-breather! The Noldo tried to scream a warning, but her voice would ne'er carry so far and certainly not in time.
The Dragon snapped his neck forward as if lunging at its prey and the gout of fire blasted forth from his open mouth like a blowtorch, brilliant yellow Dragon fire that could consume a even a Ring of Power. Only sixty feet away, the bird had no chance to evade this attack and did not even try.
The Dragon fire struck the bird fully head on and enveloped it in a conflagration that would have melted gold in a moment, but from the deflection of the flames, it seemed that the bird persisted. Then 'cross the miles came a ringing clarion like chimes of many notes struck all at once. A Mandela of Light exploded into presence, placed as it were a shield 'twixt Dragon and bird, its design infinitely complex, grading with unnatural saturation through all the colors of the rainbow, indeed all the colors that the bird's plumage had borne. It scintillated, pulsated, o'erpowering even the sunlight, and then with a flash, all of its colors exploded outwards, extinguishing the Dragon's flame and slamming the creature downwards 'til it smote its ruin upon the Withered Heath. There it lay on its back in the dust with its legs barely twitching.
The Mandela sizzled in the air and slowly dissipated, for as the chime faded from hearing, so too the prismatic Light faded from sight. In its wake, to her utter astonishment, Helluin saw the bird gently flapping as it hung in mid-air where it had been aforetime, but now 'twas greatly reduced in size and yet its dazzling iridescence was concentrated and transmuted into incandescence, as if t'were a diamond of many colors shimmering from within. Her mouth agape in shock, she lowered the viewing tube. Then, o'erwhelmed by the wonder and awe that she felt, she blazed with the Light of Aman, seeking to summon the bird and caring not at all to whom she revealed her presence.
It seemed that the bird marked Helluin's ril, and after a last glance down at the stricken Dragon, flew towards the Ered Mithrin to join the Noldo and the stallion. When it finally arrived, the changes in its size and power became even more obvious. 'Twas now no larger than an osprey, and though its colors were preserved, they no longer merely reflected the sunlight like iridescent metal. Now the bird blazed with colors and a Light of its own. 'Twas as a living gem or prism, the likes of which not even Fëanor had conceived. Helluin stared at it, dumbfounded as it alit and perched upon a boulder. Sure enough, it now sported a lacy crest and a long, flowing tail just as Aiwendil had described.
Whilst Helluin was stricken mute, the bird met her eyes, but now it spoke with words and its voice was distinctly female.
"I thank thee for accompanying me hither, for only by Dragon fire could I be quickened and come into my own. I am the Uruš Iniðil and the Fëanicse¹, quencher of Dragons. I am the manifestation of balance 'twixt bright frost and intemperate flame. In Rhosgobel, the other three are no more, for now I am and at any time there can be only one." ¹(Uruš Iniðil, Fire Flower = uruš(fire) + iniðil(large flower) Valarin, and Fëanicse, Spirit Frost = fëa(spirit) + nicse(frost) Quenya)
"Then what shalt thou do and whither shalt thou go?" Helluin asked the Fëanicse, the first two of a hundred questions racing through her mind.
"In the war to come, I shall close the north against the Withered Heath. My enemies of old linger there, the last of those defeated in the Great War. Thou remember. Yet for now, I return with thee to Erebor, and then I shall wait upon the time," the bird said.
Helluin did remember, for the 'Great War' she spoke of could only be the War of Wrath.
"But Eärendil came, shining with white flame, and about Vingilot were gathered all the great birds of heaven and Thorondor was their captain, and there was battle in the air all the day and through a dark night of doubt. Before the rising of the sun Eärendil slew Ancalagon the Black, the mightiest of the dragon-host, and cast him from the sky; and he fell upon the towers of Thangorodrim, and they were broken in his ruin. Then the sun rose, and the host of the Valar prevailed, and well 'nigh all the dragons were destroyed…¹" ¹(Quote taken verbatim from 'The Silmarillion', 'Quenta Silmarillion', XXIV 'Of the Voyage of Eärendil and the War of Wrath', pgs. 126-7.)
"Thou art Maia as Thorondor and the Eagles of Manwë," Helluin said, but the bird shook her head 'nay'.
"I am a soldier with a mission, conceived in the mind of Manwë, Lord of the Air, to oppose His brother's works, but confirmed by the Will of the One, for there can be no life save by His Grace. Unlike the Eagles of this Age that have descended into mortality from Manwë's Maiar Eagles, I am as I was, alone, unchanged, and undiminished in spirit."
"So that explains thine unique rebirth," the Noldo said, and the bird nodded 'aye'. "And thou know that war shall come again."
"'Twas ordained on the day my foes escaped," she said, "and hereat I remained. Sundry enemies fled as well and so war shall be renewed. Thou know this in thy heart."
Helluin nodded in confirmation. Yrch, Tor, Wolves, Wargs, and Dragons all waited on the day when Sauron would marshal them against the free peoples of Middle Earth. Morgoth and Angband were gone, but the resumption of war was inevitable, for the Shadow remained.
"He is here, thou know," Helluin said. "Mairon has endured."
"He is not my concern," the Fëanicse said. "It falls to others to thwart him."
Again, she nodded in agreement. Five had been sent from the West to accomplish just that and Helluin would stand with them against Sauron and all his minions. At least there would be no Dragons coming from the north against their rear guard.
"What of the young Urulókë?" Helluin asked. The Fëanicse huffed, still annoyed at the creature.
"He claimed the name 'Smaug the Magnificent', the self-aggrandizing little shit," she said. "Having endured a harsh reminder of his place in the order of things, I expect no further trouble from him."
"Let us return to Erebor then," the Noldo said. "The Dwarves are already withdrawing down the miners' road and explaining all that has come to pass shall take some time." At least they already speak to their ravens so the concept of a talking bird shall not seem so strange, she thought to herself.
Helluin turned Smoca downslope and the stallion's nose followed his tail back along the stream bank to the ruins of Gunûdu Uzbad. As they passed the collapsed mansion, the bird gave her a questioning glance, but the Noldo only said, "'Tis yet another tale to be told."
Mid-afternoon had come by the time they rejoined Captain Rukhsiflid and the company in the lee of the bluff, out of sight of the devastation. At first, the Dwarves broke into a clamor of welcome at Helluin's appearance, but then the Fëanicse fluttered down to perch on her pauldron as it had in the first spring of its life and they were silenced by the change in its appearance.
It took 'til nightfall for all their tidings to be told. As Anor fell 'neath the horizon, the company marked the bright rainbow Light emanating from the Fëanicse and they began to wonder if they would get any sleep that night for its brilliance. Taking pity on her mortal friends, Helluin carried the bird on her shoulder back 'round the bluff and out of their sight. Neither she, nor the bird would sleep that night and neither of them feared 'aught that might come upon them in the dark.
The morn of 6 Gwirith dawned and the Dwarves began their return to Erebor with Helluin riding Smoca beside Kallfelak on Fola as Captain Rukhsiflid and his formation of soldiers marched behind. The six carts brought up the rear whilst the Fëanicse circled o'erhead, announcing their coming more flamboyantly than any heraldry carried before the vanguard of a host. Thus, they proceeded east 'til on the 15th, they rounded the southwestern spur of the Lonely Mountain.
The soldiers waved a greeting in return to cheers from the watchmen on the spur and Helluin saw the pair of ravens that had accompanied their mission returning to roost in the crags above the watch post. They made the turn from the dirt track onto the paved road and the facade of Erebor came into sight. Shortly later, they were o'erflown by a single raven winging its way swiftly towards the gates, no doubt bearing tidings of their return. By the time they arrived, a throng had gathered to welcome them home, but their cheers fell silent as the Light of the Fëanicse perched upon the Noldo's shoulder glowed in their faces, even in the afternoon sunlight.
Whilst stable hands attended the horses and stowed the carts and the soldiers stood down to their barracks, Helluin, Kallfelak, and Captain Rukhsiflid were summoned to report before King Thrór and his council. All of the company had returned in good health and none had been lost, but their carts bore neither treasure nor the bodies of the fallen and added to the changes in the bird, the throng of Dwarves knew not what to think. Uncertainty stilled the anticipated celebrations in the halls of Erebor, as if the people held their breath in suspense and waited on tidings.
Now the returned trio came before the throne and bowed low to the king, and when seats and refreshments had been provided for them, they spoke their account of all that had come to pass. As they had expected, the reception of their tale was mixed and many questions were asked. King Thrór and his council gave thanks that the Dragon had been slain and the company safely returned. Thanks too the king gave for the gathering and honoring of the fallen defenders, and that they had been entombed in Gunûdu Uzbad, their recently liberated home. That they now rested in the place of Biraikhgirul-Uslukh's fall was also worthy of praise, despite that its manner had been unintentional.
"My Lord Thrór, we found not thy father, nor thy brother amongst the fallen, and so we could not honor them save in our hearts," Captain Rukhsiflid admitted with obvious regret. Though Thrór felt his own measure of sorrow, the king honored his captain whose efforts had been great.
"I doubt not but that thou did all thou could, my friend. I have made such peace as I can with their loss and feel better now that they are avenged by thine arrow. I offer thee my heartfelt thanks," Thrór told him and dipped his head to honor the captain, "and hope that Mahal has seen fit to take them into his halls in the Blessed Realm that they may live again one day."
Rukhsiflid and Kallfelak had told most of the slaying of the Reeking Dragon, but when it came to speaking of what she had seen on the Withered Heath, they fell silent. Then, to Thrór and his council's astonishment, Helluin spoke of what she had witnessed and the Fëanicse gave testimony of what was to come and how challenges long ahead could be met.
"Thy realm is the gateway of the north, King Thrór, and when the long war is renewed, I shall deny the enemy's passage south. Here, by thy leave, I would settle," said the bird.
The king was elated at the prospect of having the wondrous Fëanicse abiding in Erebor, but he had reservations as well.
"Thou art the ancient enemy of the Dragons," he said, "and knowing now of thine existence, shall they not strive to destroy thee and my realm as well?"
"They might, should they learn of my abiding hither, yet none know whither I have come and 'til war resumes, I shall make no sorties, nor engage in any lesser battles," the bird told him.
To this the king nodded, accepting the Fëanicse's reasoning, yet he also gave thought to foiling any mention of its presence.
"We must make a plan to avoid any knowledge of thee residing in these halls from spreading," Thrór said. "'Til then, pray accompany the Bazgûnsulûkhu whilst she remains in Erebor."
The bird nodded her head in assent and the king dismissed Kallfelak and Captain Rukhsiflid and adjourned his council. Then he turned to Helluin.
"But shortly after thy defeat of 'Urmuakhshâm and Khabbkurdu and the return of the treasures of 'Anshâkalathuk and Zudrâathuk, I took thee to the treasury, and there thou enhanced an ingot of mithril with thy Light, O Bazgûnsulûkhu. Since that day, the experiments of our craftsmen have borne fruit. Pray join me now that I may show thee the works they have wrought."
Helluin's eyes widened in curiosity, for since that day in early Urui of 2589, five and a half years had passed. There had been no mention of the investigations of the metallurgists and the whole affair had passed from the Noldo's consideration. Now she dipped her head to the king and followed him as they retraced their steps down through halls and tunnels, but not to the treasury. Instead, they came after several turns to a passage, newly delved by the look of the rock, which led on yet further still. Here the lamps grew few and the way progressively dim so that only the glow of the Fëanicse lit the walls and floor. A few fathoms ere reaching what appeared to be a dead end, a stout, locked gate blocked their way.
Thrór produced an elaborate key and released the lock, then thrust back the gate so they could pass within. To her surprise, he handed Helluin the key and then said, "Pray grant us thy Light, O Bazgûnsulûkhu."
Helluin nodded and then projected a ril of silver and gold. All that space was illuminated and upon the blank wall, a design was revealed.
"Remarkable," Helluin whispered in amazement as the motif became clear.
Thin threads of silver-gold grew in the smooth stone where moonlight and starlight would ne'er come. There were drawn the outlines of elaborate double doors bracketed with the emblems of Telperion and Laurelin and crowned by an arch of branches. Centered at mid-height, half upon either side where the two doors met was the emblem of the Sarchram, and in the space above the branches of the Two Trees appeared the first line that the Ring Blade bore. Mine corma i vile tuvata te¹. ¹(One ring that flies to find them. Quenya)
"If thou wouldst enter, simply complete the incantation," King Thrór instructed.
A like enchantment was familiar to Helluin from the Ennyn Durin of Moria, but here the lines of the design were not only the True Silver of ithildin, for they required the illumination of the golden Light of Laurelin as well. The creation of this new alloy was truly a triumph of Dwarvish craft.
"Mine corma tulta te ilya min i Cúmanna ar mi moreasa neumate¹," Helluin recited, and the doors swung inward, surprisingly smoothly for their mass. ¹(One ring to send them all unto the Void and in its darkness bind them. Quenya)
The doors opened onto a spacious chamber appointed as an apartment with bookshelves, a desk, and chairs. King Thrór himself kindled several oil lamps to light the interior. A sofa was set before a hearth, whilst at the far end of the room stood an opulent bed with posts and canopy in a convincing facsimile of the Elvish manner. The headboard and frame were richly carved with motifs of nature, just as were the most finely crafted examples in Imladris or Lindon. The bedding was of satiny linen in a pale blue, spread o'er a thick down mattress and matching pillows. Rich rugs of wool with a high pile woven in hues of green and brown covered parts of the flagstone floor.
Two doors opened towards the rear, the first leading to a bathing chamber with a sunken tub carved of white marble and a matching basin, both served by a dedicated hand pump fed from the mountain's groundwater system. There was even an irrigated chamber pot with a lid and seat. Towels of fluffy cotton hung on a rack. A cabinet held vials of scented oils and unguents whilst a shelf held stacked bars of scented soaps. Opposite the tub, a vanity and chair backed by a mithril-silvered mirror stood against a wall.
The second door led to a chamber wherein were shelves and tables and wheeled bins. On one wall stood a weapons rack populated with spears and other pole arms, long and short-hafted axes, swords, daggers, shields, helms, and bundles of arrows to fit both recurved and cross bows. But the most significant contents were the ingots of precious metals, silver, gold and mithril, and caskets of multicolored gems cut and polished so that their facets twinkled in the lamp light. Chests filled with minted coins lined a wall. Many a king of Men would have felt envy at the wealth contained therein.
"What is all this, Lord Thrór?" Helluin asked. "Who dwells hither?"
The King of Erebor chuckled, but when he turned to face Helluin, his expression as grave.
"For 'nigh on six thousand years thou hast been our friend and most trusted ally, offering thy support in peace and war without thought of gain for thyself. From thy first defense of Gikli and Merk, and aye, I know their names, to thy bequest of wealth to the House of Gneiss, so much has been gained through our friendship and so little has been given in return that we have always felt some gesture of gratitude was due," he said. "Wealth thou would not accept, for thou said thou had established neither keep nor treasury, but chose e'er to wander.
We expect not that thou wouldst settle permanently here, yet we would be honored if thou wouldst accept privy lodgings in the mountain at any time as thou wouldst care to visit. We would offer thee a place of thine own and such accoutrements as might support any need thou may have in days to come."
"But all this?" Helluin asked, still astonished, as she gestured 'round the treasury. She could not begin to calculate the value of what she saw, but she knew 'twas very great.
"'Tis as a token of esteem to us compared to all that we have gained, but think not of it as a payment due. If thou wouldst offer support to people that have been hard pressed by famine or flood, or are in need of relief after plague or war, from this, thou may do so. If thou shouldst one day seek to amend thine armor, or to forge weapons for some special need, here is material to suffice. We know thou hoard not nor count thy wealth, but such may have many uses in causes as selfless as 'aught else thou hast done."
"My Lord Thrór," Helluin said, bowing to the king, "e'er aforetime I have taken the knowledge of thy peoples' speech as a treasure far in excess of any debt one might assess. 'Tis imperishable and intangible, a cultural treasure and a declaration of friendship, trust, and acceptance that few of my kind have e'er been awarded."
"And so we too deem it, O Bazgûnsulûkhu," Thrór agreed, "yet the two are not mutually exclusive. Pray accept this place as a home away from the Wild thou know so well, to be a haven and redoubt perhaps, that only thou may access for so long as thou abides upon these Mortal Shores. It shall stand, sealed save to thy Light, 'til the Lonely Mountain stands no more."
So earnest in these sentiments did the King of the Longbeards seem that Helluin could not gracefully demur without seeming insulting or ungrateful, and whether she e'er returned to this space or no, t'would indeed remain sealed 'til the mountain was worn to dust. She dipped her head in acceptance to honor her friend, the latest of many amongst the Gonnhirrim, and expressed her gratitude with such grace as she could muster.
"E'er has the generosity and honor of thy people been a source of esteem to both me and them, O King 'Neath the Mountain. In S.A. 121, Gikli and Merk offered the blessing of hospitality and that tradition has held unwavering 'cross all the years since. I am proud to accept this gesture of friendship from my ancient allies. Henceforth I shall call Erebor home, the latest but not the last of many."
Thrór son of Dáin nodded and offered her a broad smile, and Helluin thought that had he not been constrained by his position, he might have actually capered.
"Then welcome home, O Bazgûna Sulûkhu of Erebor," he said.
Now after spending a short additional period to acquaint herself with the premises, Thrór led Helluin, still with the Fëanicse perched on her shoulder, back out of the apartment and through the tunnel. They took a different route, turning several corners ere finally passing sentries and coming to the door of the treasury. As he had years aforetime, Thrór used the large key to actuate the clockwork mechanism that withdrew the multiple bolts from the doorframe and allowed him to heave the vault open.
"Somehow I cannot stand to pass 'nigh without gazing upon it again," he said, and Helluin knew of what he spoke.
During the intervening years since she had first set foot in the treasury, the recovered wealth of 'Urdazhâr and the e'er increasing profits of the mountain had been added to the trove of the king's hoard. The change was hardly noticeable, so vast had that fortune already been, yet still some things were easily marked and the most outstanding of these rested on the table 'neath the light shaft. There sat the Arkenstone, shimmering in the sunlight, the bright heart of the mountain. 'Twas so impressive a sight that even the Fëanicse leant towards it from its perch on Helluin's shoulder. Standing before it, Thrór was as one entranced and it seemed to Helluin that its effect on the king had grown more profound.
Now a single solitaire of clear adamant weighing one carat would be a gem of great value, twinkling with reflected light from its fifty-eight facets, but the Arkenstone weighed 2,265 carats, one full pound, and 'twas without flaw or inclusion, its color clear as mountain air. Thrór peered at it, mesmerized, and the bird stretched out its neck and tilted its head, appraising it from e'ery available angle.
Helluin, much as she appreciated the natural wonder of the jewel was far less subject to its enchantments, for she had seen even more wondrous gems in Aman, the greatest of which had been the Silmarils ere Fëanor had sequestered them in the treasury of Formenos.
"As three great jewels they were in form. But not until the end…shall it be known of what substance they were made. And the inner fire of the Silmarils Fëanor made of the blended light of the Trees of Valinor… Therefore even in the darkness of the deepest treasury the Silmarils of their own radiance shone like the stars of Varda…they rejoiced in light and received it and gave it back in hues more marvelous than before.¹" ¹(Quotes excerpted from 'The Silmarillion', 'Quenta Silmarillion', VII 'Of the Silmarils and the Unrest of the Noldor', pgs. 69-70.)
Whilst King Thrór remained wholly besotted by the sight of the Arkenstone and Helluin was preoccupied with her memories of greater gems long lost, the Fëanicse seemed to reach some decision.
"In Erebor I shall abide 'til the resumption of the long war and herein shall my spirit be housed to wait upon the time," the bird declared.
Otherwise preoccupied, neither the Noldo, nor the king really paid much heed to the Fëanicse's words, for it had already been decided that the bird would dwell in the Lonely Mountain 'til the day came when t'would deny the Dragons entry from the Withered Heath into the lands to the south. Helluin responded with only a grunt of acknowledgement whilst Thrór muttered, "Aye, aye, as we have already said. Thou art welcome to remain."
Having obtained permission from both its foster mother and the lord of the realm, the Fëanicse took flight from Helluin's shoulder, fluttering for a moment in the beam cast down through the light shaft ere disappearing into the Arkenstone as if t'were but a puff of raktmajâd smoke sucked from a pipe. For Helluin and Thrór, the effect defied their instinctual belief in object permanence, for one solid object is not simply absorbed into another so that it ceases to exist, or so their lifetimes of experience decreed. 'Twas an upsetting and unnatural phenomenon.
Afterwards only the Noldo and the king remained in the room and neither possessed sufficient sorcery to conjure what they had seen come to pass. The bird was gone without leaving even a single feather behind and yet not all was unchanged.
Now rather than the Arkenstone becoming akin to one of the tiny winter dioramas enclosed in water-filled globes of glass so popular with children and displaying a diminutive Fëanicse within, it now blazed with projected Light in all the colors of the rainbow. Helluin stood paralyzed in shock whilst Thrór leapt and shuddered as one bedeviled by a seizure. Whilst the Noldo was muted by her amazement, the Dwarf was gibbering in agitation. 'Twas some time ere either could form a coherent sentence.
They both eventually recovered their composure and then spent more time closely examining the Arkenstone. If 'aught were true, 'twas far more impressive and far more beautiful than it had been aforetime. Whereas it had been a singular gem of the earth, 'twas now an enchanted talisman in which dwelt a promise of future deliverance. Whereas it had been a source of pride, 'twas now a source of hope. What had been the Heart of the Mountain had become the Heart of Erebor's people.
"Hereafter, the Arkenstone shall be an heirloom of the king's house," Thrór declared, "that the knowledge of what it hides may remain in the keeping of few."
"The lore of the Fëanicse shall then be guarded by thy noble line, O King, and it shall not become an enticement to Dragons for the threat it holds against them," Helluin agreed.
"I shall declare no tidings of thy bird, Helluin, and most shall assume it departed with thee when thou take thy leave of us."
"So the question of a serviceable subterfuge is solved, for none shall discover even a rumor of that creature hiding in Erebor now," Helluin said, sharing a chuckle with the king.
"I deem that all is as well as could be hoped and better than could be expected," he replied, "how very strange." The Noldo nodded in agreement, though all that had come to pass since she had encountered Kallfelak at Rhosgobel and become entangled in Aiwendil's schemes had been strange. She found herself longing for the simplicity of her life on the farm.
"I reckon the longer I remain, the greater the chance of someone asking about the bird," she said. "I shall take my leave this night." King Thrór nodded to her, accepting her intentions, for he too could imagine complications arising from her continued abiding in Erebor.
"I shall be sorry to see thee go, Helluin," he said, using her Elvish name for the first time in years. "Recall that thou now hast a home here in the Lonely Mountain for so long as it stands."
"I shall not forget, my friend. Pray be well 'til next we meet."
Alone in the treasury, the king and the common born warrior traded equal bows of respect, and then they took their leave together. That night at the changing of the midnight watch, Helluin rode Smoca south on the paved road from the gates with Fola trailing behind, for the Noldo intended to visit Rhosgobel on her way to Norðr-vestandóttir Bý to return the pony and trade tidings with the Brown Wizard.
For the next few days Helluin rode west at a leisurely pace whilst the solitary peak of Erebor dwindled in the distance. And within its mansions now abides an ally greater than any Dragon, she thought. I find my cares eased, knowing that no Wyrm of Morgoth shall again trouble the Sons of Durin. How very wrong she was.
To Be Continued
Author's note: In this chapter, we have seen the origins of the legends of the Dragon and the Phoenix (Fëanicse), counterparts that represent the duality of the male and female essence, Yin-Yang, and dichotomies in general. We have also learnt why no Dragons came against Erebor in the War of the Ring when only Easterlings attacked the Lonely Mountain and Dale.
It should also be noted that the Fëanicse was "a soldier with a mission" and "'til war resumes, I shall make no sorties, nor engage in any lesser battles." When the very same Smaug that she had defeated on the Withered Heath in 2595 attacks and occupies Erebor in 2770, she will not oppose him at that time, remaining dormant inside the Arkenstone.
This chapter takes some liberties with the Arkenstone. In 'The Hobbit' (book), when Bilbo finds it, it is described as, "…tinged with a flickering sparkle of many colours at the surface, reflected and splintered from the wavering light of his torch. The great jewel shone before his feet of its own inner light, and yet, cut and fashioned by the dwarves, who had dug it from the heart of the mountain long ago, it took all light that fell upon it and changed it into ten thousand sparks of white radiance shot with glints of the rainbow." This seems to describe both reflection and refraction, naturally occurring characteristics of a cut gem. In another canon reference, the Arkenstone is described as being, "…like a globe of a thousand facets…"
In Peter Jackson's movies, the Arkenstone is portrayed as an oval cabochon lit from within that emits wavering multiple colors rather than being a sparkling, faceted sphere. In this chapter, I have described it as akin to the book canon appearance at first, and as a blend of book and movie canon after absorbing the Fëanicse. It remains a globular faceted gem, but now projects its own rainbow colored light rather than just reflecting and refracting natural light.