Chapter 24
Kili, King of Ered Luin, stood outside the north-facing parapets of his kingdom in the early morning, a cold wind whipping his long, straight black hair to his left. Skirfir, his one-time fosterling turned loyal Commander, stood in front of him while Kili used the lad's back as a desk–quickly using a blunt knife to carve a short message into a scrap of thin leather. At his feet, a strong young raven perched on a rock, having been commanded to wait.
"That's done," he said to Skirf as he added his "K" rune, pocketed the knife, and straightened to roll the scrap into a tight packet no larger than his thumb. Skirf handed him a small leather harness and Kili tied the message to it. Then he offered his arm to the raven, who quickly hopped up, wings half out, and stood tall to accept the loop over his head with the little packet attached.
"Duillond Tower," Kili said to the bird.
The raven quorked loudly and then muttered. "Good nuts. Yes."
Kili grinned. This raven, who wore a small identification bead secured to one leg, was trained to deliver messages the way Fili had trained the Erebor ravens during the siege. It was an especially necessary skill for a Kingdom with only two Ravenspeakers. And Duillond Tower had a special landing area always stocked with interesting treats for bead-legged ravens.
Kili lifted the glossy fellow higher, stood so it pointed north, and the raven arrowed away. Kili watched it for a moment, then turned back to Skirfir, "Now we need to set up for action," he said, and with one hand on the lad's shoulder, issued orders for the guard.
"Got it," Skirf said, his hand quickly touching his bandolier where it crossed over his heart in an informal salute before he made his way to the Guard commanders
As his plans were put into motion, Kili raised one arm again and looked upwards. There, high above, was Karket, current chief of the flock. He opened his hand wide in a gesture of invitation, and the bird circled down.
When Karket alighted, he bobbed to his King. "Flock is south," he muttered. "Guard the Valley."
"Good bird," Kili praised the raven. "You also need to fly south. Go to Khelethur, to Hen-Hen. Tell her bluestone. Repeat it, Karket."
"Bluestone. Yes. Hen-Hen."
"Good bird. Fly now. Return to me when the Snow Dragon is gone." He raised his arm a little higher to urge the raven away, and Karket leapt into the air, wings catching the wind and soaring upwards to the ridgeline above. For a raven, it would only take a few minutes to crest the ridge and arrow down the craggy slopes and cliffs to the valley floor below.
And to his beloved Nÿr. Be safe, love, he thought. And with that, he strode to the line of guards at the overlook to check-in with Skirfir. He also scanned the soldiers on the line, assessing who was there and who might be his third archer. There–Goda. Hefty lass with a strong arm and skilled aim. He touched her arm and motioned for her to follow. A few steps away he explained himself.
"The three of us will share the task of calling the snow dragon," he said to Skirf and Goda.. "Bring three bows for distance and arrows large enough for payload.. Meet me up there," he nodded toward the higher outcropping where he'd been ravenspeaking. When they left he spent a few minutes checking with soldiers on watch, confirming that the goblins below had thrown a few rocks at the pesky ravens, but had done little else.
"It's cold down there–it's still in the shadow of the ridge," one lad told him.
"Yes," Kili agreed. "Makes them slower than usual." He didn't mention that they were lucky these were common goblins and not the larger orcs he'd seen east of the Misty Mountains. Those orcs were single-minded and wouldn't stop for cold or snow. But common goblins could do much harm, as he well knew.
Then he joined Skirf and Goda on the outcropping and the next fifteen minutes were spent stringing bows, testing tension, discussing potential payload weights and the vagaries of the gusty wind. Discreetly, they shot a few test arrows.
And Kili kept watch for ravens. He'd ordered them away, but sometimes their curiosity over-rode their common sense.
On the other side of the great alpine ridge that formed Khelethur's mountain rooftop, Ered Luin's Queen stood well-guarded on the parapet of the family lodge. She'd heard the reports of goblins below the northern entry and of Kili heading out with a full contingent of guards.
Together, the ravenspeaker and her very young apprentice watched the skies.
"There!" she pointed at a large raven coming in, wings flapping with purpose and then swooping into a circle above them.
"Yes!" Kirin seemed to bounce in his boots, then quickly stopped himself before his mother could caution him.
Nÿr smiled. "Good job, Kirin. Stay still and keep your eyes on him."
Around them, the guards became more watchful of the woods, alert for ground-level trouble.
As the big corvid descended, Nÿr held out her gauntleted arm in invitation. She felt a slight hollowness in her gut as she waited. When defensive action was taking place, she never knew what kind of message would come in. She hoped for "all clear," but of course always feared something worse.
The raven hovered, calling out loud and angry. "Hen-hen! Hen-hen!" Beside her, young Kirin took a step back. Nÿr's own heartbeat sped up a little. This was an angry war-raven, not a goofy bird begging for treats. She steeled herself as the bird descended at speed, feet outstretched. It backwinged just in time but still latched to her arm with more momentum than usual.
"Hen-hen!" It's call was deafening.
"I'm here, I am Hen-hen," Nyr shouted. The bird flapped in agitation, not settling.
"Tell me your message!" she commanded.
"Hen-hen, Hen-hen!" the raven repeated. Then, panting from exertion it calmed a little and looked her in the eye to deliver a one-word message.
"Bluestone." And without waiting for a nut or fruit treat, the great corvid launched itself back into the sky.
Nÿr reached for Kirin's hand and spun toward the Guard. "Captain Jonsi!" She hitched up her skirt to make haste as he turned toward her. When they met, she held her head up and stood to her full height and in her best command voice delivered her beloved's order.
"Bluestone."
The Captain simply replied with a quick hand-on-heart motion and spun into action, giving orders to the guard, most of whom leapt to pass along the order which meant "lock up and shelter." It was a drill the people of Khelethur practiced regularly and Nÿr trusted every resident to do their part quickly.
And then Embur was there, helping Nÿr into a thick leather battle coat and taking Kirin's hand.
"Mama?" Kirin asked, eyes wide.
"Just like we practiced, Kirin. Go inside–keep Sorin and Lís safe." She bent to kiss the top of his head and then turned him to go with Embur. "Hurry now!" She watched them go until they were inside the door, and then turned to nod at Jonsi as the guard Captain approached.
"We seven will remain with you," he said. "Inside the stone room." And with that, Nyr allowed the Captain to whisk her toward the steps to a fortified ravenspeaker tower, normally closed off, and as the guard unbarred the doors, she entered into the safe area. It was well fortified and stocked with provisions, and she would be able to watch for ravens from the safety of tall slits in the stone–handy for both archers and for ravens. She gave the order for her guard to raise the tower's small signal flag–the one that would tell incoming ravens where she was. As she took the stairs to the upper floor, she heard the boom and bang of heavy locks securing the doors.
Mahal, Kili, she thought, her heart sinking. Stay safe, my love.
A/N: Thank you for reading! Apologies for the very short chapter-but Ch 25 is ready to post in about two weeks, and is longer. In the meantime, thank you for reading and I wish you peace and happiness in what whatever winter holidays you celebrate! Here in the US Pacific Northwest we already have snow and the lovely tall fir trees on my road are nicely covered in fluffy stuff. There are indeed a few ravens among the (mostly) crows. As always, let me know what you think...and everyone is welcome to add a reveiw or PM me...please do! I'll post again on Dec. 16th!
Cheers, Summer
