III. Astrologers proclaim the week of the Phoenix

Melian resolved to show surprise about nothing. In a world that looked like it has lost most of its subtle tones, becoming similar to a tale somehow made back into reality, it was not really difficult. Even those she knew turned into some sort of effigies, and those who appeared as the troops under her command – or that of Finrod, or Galadriel, or the few other leaders in the employ of Nargothrond – seemed to possess very little personality. That was another offense to the wise Maia, but there was very little she could do about it. All of her aspirations were put towards two things: ending the conflict, and finding Thingol. She was not even sure Lúthien existed in this warped mirror-image of Beleriand, but somehow she believed that her husband held the key that would open the doors back into the Arda as she remembered it.

That, or he was the key.

Still, weeks of the world's time have elapsed, and Elwe was still nowhere to be found. She had crisscrossed the land – finding that somehow its geography retained enough resemblance to the real Endor as she remembered it, though, again, looking like a moderately faithful reimagining of it – and battled more than one enemy, serving either the sons of Feanor (flying blue flags) or Morgoth's faction (which, shockingly enough, included Prince Fingon in one encounter... ah, was it the recruitment pool at work once again?) All along, Melian was absentmindedly cataloguing the peculiarities that permeated this version of Beleriand. For one thing, the land was dotted with strange objects she has never seen in her world – like mines that somehow operated with no manpower yet produced the particular kinds of resources for the faction's treasury without fail. Gold, ore, shiny red crystals, gems and sulfur... as well as neat bundles of wood coming from sawmills, and buckets full of liquid mercury – back in reality as she knew it, it would not have been possible, yet here no one found it perplexing. In fact, mercury turned out the most sought after kind of natural resource, for it was somehow (that Eru-damned word again) instrumental in the purchase of the most peculiar creatures she has found under her command.

When seeing a brightly shining phoenix for the first time, Melian caught herself unwittingly regretting the fact that there were no such beings in the actual Arda. These birds proved to be excellent combatants, flying quickly into the thick of the enemy armies and dispatching them by breathing streams of flame, all the while being immune to most of the magic elements that were thrown against her other minions: fire, ice or lightning similarly had no effect against them. And even though she kept reminding herself that none of those fighters serving her were probably real – for one thing, how could creatures of flesh and blood, let alone sentient ones, appear in towns seemingly out of nowhere every week to replace those fallen in combat? – the Maia was still aiming to preserve the lives of her troops as best she could.

Then, there were the said towns themselves. She found bustling military outposts – some teeming with creatures way beyond her knowledge, including the repulsive undead – where nothing of the kind existed in the Beleriand she knew... yet these settlements bore all the familiar names of the locations in the real world. Like the reflection of Nargothrond she found herself in, their organization was always following a pretty similar (if inconceivable) pattern: in every town, she found a well, a magic guild where she would gain the knowledge of new spells, a huge statue (why a statue and how could it manage to increase the income?..), a tavern and the same set of fortifications. Skipping from place to place, she explored the entire eastern half of Beleriand, wresting almost a dozen castles from the two enemy factions (that luckily spent a lot of time and effort fighting each other just as they did the forces of Nargothrond), even liberating Doriath. By that time, she was not really hoping to find absolution, and so she was not disappointed that the deed turned out pretty perfunctory. This Menegroth was not her Menegroth – just an image bearing the name she loved. A castle of the Sorceress faction, the words coalesced helpfully in her mind. A highly advanced one, but just one of many objects on a giant stage played by... whom?

Elwë, where are you, she thought desperately. I'm getting pretty fed up with this parody of my world.

She was doing her best to drive away the fear that Thingol would be warped like the rest of those she knew, or heard of. Somehow, she was hoping beyond hope that even in such a state, he could be recovered, to whichever end.

Meanwhile, Finrod appeared very much pleased by her performance and her eagerness in venturing out to do battle against the enemy, far and wide. Melian did not deign to enlighten him about the real reasons for her zest – her only hope was that after this was would be concluded, she would somehow be liberated. If she had found herself in something that resembled a game, the pieces would surely be retired from the board once one side won... right?

Over a month of the realm's time had passed before she had the encounter that roused her from the onset of lethargy inside... even if it was due to the sheer incongruity of it all that raised the degree of absurdity a few notches at once.

And that was no mean feat, given all she had seen so far.

Notes:

The chapter title refers to the fact that every seven days, the dwellings (in the towns and on the world map) are restocked with troops. Each week is randomly given a title, and sometimes it's named after an actual unit - in this case all towns get a 5 bonus to the population of this creature type.

Phoenix is the ultimate (tier 6) creature of the Sorceress faction. One of the two fastest (speed 7) creatures in the game, attacks across two hexes (which can be a good or a bad thing...), immune to cold/fire/lightning magic and Elemental Storm spell. One of my favourite creatures in the entire HOMM2, and it's a pity it was cut from the subsequent games. :)