There was no moon nor stars to light the dreary landscape. Far off into the distance a deep, black and endless water rumbled and roared as it thrashed against the rocks. Birds called back and forth to each other in high, echoing wails but remained invisible. The boulders surrounding her were falling into the water, slowly unraveling the face of the mountain as they crashed back into the sea.
Nadi had never been there before, and yet the space felt so familiar. It could have been Erebor. Or perhaps it was only a crude picture of her mountain memories stitched together in her final moments before death.
Death.
There was a lingering presence behind her. She could barely remember what it felt like to be warmed by the sun suddenly unveiled behind rain-laden clouds, and yet the creeping aura along her back was oddly reminiscent of something. She turned around to face the Woman in the Rocks. She was beautiful in her nudity, her form ever-changing and pulsing with whitish light as she cradled a baby to her breasts. Both their bodies were tinged grey as the rocks with which they melded, their veins visible beneath their skin and shimmering with blue phosphorescent bloodlines. A single tear track rolled along Nadi's cheek.
Is that my son? Her words fell a beat behind the movement of her lips. The birds continued to cry all around her as the falling boulders were devoured by the hungry sea. The Woman in the Rocks had eyes like liquid obsidian leaching from between her lashes. It was a strange thing: Nadi could feel her smile but could not see it.
He's your offering. The woman said, even though her lips had not moved once. The wet blackness from her eyes was rolling down her cheek and dripping onto the suckling child's face. Nadi looked away.
I have offered you nothing.
For now. Give me the baby, Nadi. Give me the child. Give me your son.
Nadi placed her hands against her ears but the woman's voice was in her head and she could not escape it. Blood had begun to bubble and froth from along the unseeable top of the mountain. Now it cascaded along the stones, painting them red, and began to pool around her boots. She lifted her foot in horror but there was simply too much blood. It rolled over the stone ledge and burst forth from the mountain like a waterfall. Nadi squished her eyes closed and moaned behind teeth clenched tight.
Am I dead? She asked, even though her fear of the answer was powerful enough to make her quake. The birds were no longer calling to each other: they were screaming in agonized, deathly throes. A thick webbing of cracks suddenly shot through the stone wall beside her. Then, as she watched in horror, the entire thing collapsed into rubble and tumbled into the sea.
You're dying. Ana looked down at the baby and smeared the blackness across its peaceful face. But have no fear. You will rise again.
How?
My spirit is within you. It fortifies you. As long as I reside within your body, you will be tethered to this earth.
What must I do to keep you with me? Please, I'll do anything you ask!
Ana's neck detached fluidly from the stone as she bent down and placed a kiss on the baby's head. Then she looked back up at Nadi. Her mouth split into a nightmarish grin, exposing the pinpricks of her glistening silver teeth. There was an unearthly roar as the blood began to siphon itself from the sea. The rocks clambered back up the mountain in reverse and settled themselves into their original places. The voices of the birds distorted, strained, and then resumed their serene callings across the sea. Her world was rebuilding itself, stone by stone and drop by drop. Nadi felt the tingling return to her fingertips and web itself through the rest of her body. A light was glowing behind her, its brilliance rising to the point of being blinding. The sun was rising upon the mountain, its rays hot enough now to sear her back.
She looked up at Ana but found herself unable to convey her fear and confusion. A stinging sensation began to roll along the front of her neck. The pain was frighteningly familiar. She fell to her knees and put her hands to her throat just as the blood began to spurt out again. Intuitively, she knew that this was the sacrifice required to go back to the land of leaving. Blood for blood. Her grip on her neck tightened to the point of crushing it and she grimaced, her mind stuck on an image of Kili's face to keep from going mad.
We will meet again, Woodland Warrior! Ana called as she waved a single tendrily through the air. The light of the sun overtook everything. Nadi was completely blinded and then…
X
She opened her eyes with a scream and began to thrash madly at whatever was surrounding her. Still screaming, she pummeled and yanked and tore with her fingernails until the scratchy cloth enclosing her ripped and she was able to sit up. Immediately, she put her fingers to her neck and prodded anxiously at the curdled line of skin that circled her throat. She had no idea where she was, much less who she was. All she knew was that something terrible had happened and she had to move.
Her legs shook beneath her as she stood up and began to weave side to side. Slowly, her mind began to identify parts of the world around her: trees, a fire, a ripped bag on the floor. And beyond the fire, a woman was leaning against a trunk with her arms crossed. Nadi cast a distracted glance at her as she wobbled past. The woman's eyes were open beneath the large brim of her hat, but it was obvious that she was asleep by the slow rise and fall of her chest.
But Nadi couldn't care less about who the woman was or why she was there. The memories were beginning to come back with a sickening swiftness, like stones pelting her conscience.
Ropes binding her arms, Fili and Kili tied up beyond, the crowd backing away as a woman approached, the glint of a silver blade above her…
Her stomach gave a sudden heave. She stumbled onto the edge of the dock and fell to her hands and knees, gasping and choking on strings of rancid bile. The woman behind her gave a confused sniffle as she presumably woke up. Then, seeing Nadi, she cried out in surprise and hurriedly stood up. Nadi remembered who she was now. It was Khurza.
The woman who had slit her throat.
Nadi pushed herself up onto her feet and attempted to wobble away. Swift as a flying arrow, Khurza charged at her and caught Nadi by her hair. She gave a hard yank, and Nadi was swung onto her back.
"How-!?" Khurza started. But Nadi was quick to stumble back onto her feet and walk away. She didn't care about Khurza. There was only one thing on her mind now. Her reincarnation and newfound mission eclipsed Khurza's presence completely. Khurza followed her for a few seconds in shocked silence before shoving Nadi in the back again.
"HOW-!?" Khurza shouted. Getting no response, she shoved Nadi again and again. But each time, Nadi shrugged her off and continued upon her path. She knew where she was now: she was at the dock leading into Lake-Town. The gate master stumbled out of the small office and gave a cry when he saw Nadi.
"For the love of all that is good…" he muttered in stupified wonder. "The girl lives...the girl lives! Wake, everybody! Wake now!"
Nadi pushed past him. Lights flared all along the avenue as the citizens lit their lamps and leaned out of their windows. Then, seeing Nadi's staggering figure, they rushed out of their homes to meet her. Still, she pushed on as they fell to their knees around her and clasped their hands in fervent prayer.
"She has risen from the dead," a man called. "The woman lives!"
"But how!? She was killed, right in front of us!"
"See her neck! It has healed completely!"
"It's the Stone! The power of the Arkenstone revived her! The legends are true!"
She barely glanced at them as she moved past with Khurza close at her heels. There was a thick wooden post some ways ahead. Even in the dark, she could make out two men bound to it by thick ropes. She knew their shapes immediately and began to walk faster, cutting through the awestruck crowd like a turbulent wind.
"Cut them free," she demanded in a hoarse croak.
The people did not hesitate. Several men jumped forward and began to saw at the binds holding Fili and Kili to the post. Nadi watched as she undid the clasp in her hair and fingered her locs until she found what she was looking for. Khurza stood some ways behind her, watching it all unfold with angry, narrowed eyes.
The crowd stepped back as one as the brothers fell free from the post. Both of their faces were flush beneath the dried tear tracks lining their faces. Kili took two dazed steps forward, his eyes wide as he stared into Nadi's face. She could see in his face that he was trying to process what he was seeing: that she was actually standing before him alive after having her throat slit. He covered his mouth with his fists as he gave a sob, stumbled onto his knees, and promptly fell to a faint with a strained gasp. Fili met her eyes and then slowly, slowly lowered himself to his knees before her. The crowd followed suit and soon all except for Khurza were kneeling around her with their arms spread across the ground in a sign of devoted humility. She stepped over them swiftly as she dislodged something from her hair and stood before Fili.
"Get up, idiot boy," she hissed, and then added, "Or would you rather I call you Master of Lake-town?"
"What-" he looked up at her and fell back with a soundless cry.
There, before him, stood Nadi as he had never seen her before. Her face, hair, and clothing were stiff with blood as she held out her hand, in the palm of which was cradled a magnificent white stone. It was so illustrious that its glow lit everything around it, including her haggard face. He stood up slowly, his eyes never leaving the stone. A hunger the likes of which he had never felt before coursed through him as he reached out and set his fingers gently upon it. All watched in silent awe as Fili closed his eyes in response to the stone's touch and took a shuddering breath in.
"Well don't just fondle it," Nadi said. The moon was in her eyes and illuminating her teasing grin. "Take it, Fili. It is yours."
She swiveled her hand and let the stone drop into his palm. Then, she gently closed his fingers over it and took a respectful step back. He was having trouble meeting her eyes, and even more trouble believing that the King's Jewel now rested in his calloused hand. There was an icy aura about the stone that spread through his fingertips, traveled along his palm, and coursed his blood until it reached his tumbling heart. A powerful sense of euphoria blanketed his every sense and he knew, then, that he could do anything.
"Behold," his word a breathy sigh that had been held in for too long. Already, the strangeness of Nadis' reincarnation had been forgotten. He opened his eyes and turned to address his people. "Behold! The Stone's new wielder! You have all witnessed its wonders and the miracles that it can bring. Are there any remaining who dare oppose its power - my power?"
The crowd was silent, watching him hungrily. Though it troubled him to do so, he stuffed the stone beneath his vest for safekeeping. He could feel it hanging heavy above his heart, absorbing every beat and blood-laden pulse. All had trouble meeting his eye as he glanced around.
"No?" He asked, somewhat snakishly. He was, after all, a highly dignified man. The town's previous treachery against him and his fellow Dwarves would not be easily forgotten. "Then rejoice! You are all standing upon the precipice of a bold, new era! I will see this town rebuilt, and reach such greatness that all the trials and tribulations of your past will be forgotten." There was silence and his brow furrowed. "I said rejoice!"
The crowd rose quickly and gave a fervent, long-lasting cheer. It was the men amongst them who shouted the loudest, having been moved by Fili's impassioned words and warrior presence. Though the women were relieved by their new master's willingness to play the part of the savior, they were unsettled by Nadi's rise from the realm of death. And, at last, there were elders among them who had not forgotten that it had been Dwarven greed that had brought ruin among them in the first place. Silent and withdrawn, the citizens from Ironhaven watched the proceedings from the fringes of the crowd, their attention always lingering back to Khurza. None but their own knew of what they truly felt about the matter, or the woman.
One of the women of Lake-Town came up to Fili and flushed a thick blue cape across his shoulders. He looked down and smiled humbly as several people approached him with offerings gathered quickly from their homes. He was quick to wave them away and address the crowd again.
"Hold, hold!" He ordered and the crowd immediately fell silent again. "I am not the one who has made the greatest sacrifice for this honor. Let us not forget the brave woman warrior who traveled to the land of the dead and back just to prove the Stone's power. Where is she? Where is Nadi? We must celebrate her contributions!"
The crowd shuffled about as they looked around. Then, someone cleared their throat. They all looked at a man who was pointing at the ground behind Fili.
"I think that she is, er, indisposed at the moment, m'lord," the man said as Fili whirled around in alarm. And then, seeing what had become of her, he gave a small laugh.
Nadi was sprawled out upon the ground with her head resting along Kili's lower back. Her chest rose and fell slowly as she snored through her open mouth. The poor thing was in such a deep slumber that if she had fainted like Kili, none would have been the wiser.
"-well, perhaps we'll celebrate tomorrow," Fili said with a chuckle as he undid his cape and flushed it out over the two Dwarves. "No - leave them be. They've been through quite a lot. I suggest you all get your rest tonight. There is a lot to come of the next few days."
The crowd murmured their agreement and one by one began to take their leave. A few of them stopped to thank Fili and offer words of support and encouragement. He accepted their kindness graciously until finally they had all dispersed and he was left alone with his slumbering kin. He knelt down and pushed the bloodied strands of hair away from Nadi's forehead. Sometimes it was easy for him to forget that she was still so young. And yet she was bold! The blood on her mouth and purple bruise blooming along her neck lent her a warrior-like resplendence that he could not look away from. He did not know of anyone else that could face a trial by death and come away from it grinning.
"Mizimith," he said under his breath. "Menu tessu."
She gave a grimace and a moan in her sleep as if she had heard him and was disgusted by his words. Eyes still closed, she reached out and grabbed on tight to a loc of Kili's hair. Then she nestled her chin against his shoulders. A small smile slid across her face as the sound of Kili's heartbeat kept her tethered to sleep.
There was nothing that she could have done at that moment to cause Fili more pain.
"Even in sleep you torment me," Fili muttered to himself as he pushed himself up. "Very well. I hope you enjoy wandering your dreams with him."
He turned and began to walk away, deep into the heart of his new kingdom.