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Chapter 12 - The Council

Outer-Earth was a peaceful land, led by elves and their wisdom. Tranquility and harmony were the words one could describe the aura of this world. Nobody was in a hurry, for these immortal beings... everything had its own purpose, its own place and its own time.

However, this peace had to be disturbed for compelling reasons. One of these reasons... was the Council of the istari, which was held at the most eastern city of the elves every four hundred years. This was where Gandalf put his base of operations, where Hyano arrived on Outer-Earth.

Wizard from all over this world made the long journey from their residence in order to meet and discuss important matters and their progress in their tasks. For some, it was a tiring trip from the peak of the highest mountain or from the deepest recesses of a valley. Some came from the other end of the world, while others needed to take two steps.

But in the end... they sat together despite all hardships of their journey.

The room itself was made of wood, of course, seemingly carved into the tree itself, only the movable furniture was made of separate parts. It all was an oval shape, a long table went around the room, giving enough space for the people to sit at. The table had a little food and drinks on it to suit everyone's needs during their long discussion, goblets and plates were set for each person in the room. The space was lit by small light orbs which floated around on their own will, bumping into one another on occasions, lighting up brighter as a result but eventually they returned to floating away. There were only istari and as suspected, all those who seemed to have gone lost in the ages were there.

The blue wizards, Aalatar and Pallando, who presumably have explored east of Middle-Earth for a while until they were called upon the Valar to turn their gazes to the shores on the west. Asteri, the star wizard, whose past was not the happiest fairy tale to listen to, making him a distant and always displeased old man. And finally, even two new wizards Gandalf was speaking about were accompanying the rest. The color of their robes spoke of their rank. The two were young compared to the others in appearance and they clearly did not choose to look like old men. One had a violet robe on, having put his hat down on the table to reveal short black hair. He had brown eyes, going with his dark short fullbeard. The other was even younger, possibly looking to be at the age of Hyano. He was obviously the new brown wizard, possibly created after Radagast's demise to replace him. He had long light brown hair and equally light brown eyes.

Hyano's eyes widened as her face went from pleased to shocked. She stood and looked at the crowd before her eyes landed on the new brown wizard. Her mind froze for a moment almost mistaking the new wizard for her old mentor but her mind quickly corrected this. No. this was not Radagast... It was a new wizard but... she wondered if he was anything like the last brown.

The people in the room didn't seem to notice the White but continued chatting, many of them seemingly had a very deep conversation, while others laughed, sharing stories.

Asteri was the first to notice their company and smiled.

"Ah, well, it is about time you showed up. I was starting to wonder if we should set up some cots and get ready to spend the night." He teased before blinking as he noticed Hyano. "My stars... The young Hyano isn't so young anymore, now is she?" He said, his voice holding a tone of surprise.

Hyano gave the older wizard a sheepish smile, rubbing the back of her head. She knew already just how much she had changed since she last saw the wizards. To say the least... she had grown up.

The other wizards finally also noticed the trio and stopped their chatting, all sounding a noise of awe at the young lady that became of the child they knew.

"Oh but she is young, Asteri." Pallando chuckled, now taking off his own hat to show his grey hair. "I know one thing, though,... she is indeed too young for you." He added with yet another amused chuckle, which was soon followed by the laugh of the others. It was meant as a joke, of course. Istari never thought of each other that way.

"Eh, stop it you two!" Came the scolding from Alatar, the other blue wizard. "She just came back after so many years and you won't let her feel comfortable. Look at her! She is blushing now." He added, followed by a few more murmurs, as usual averting quickly from the current topic to speak about Hyano, how small she was and about how much she grew. Yes, they were old men indeed. Istari, yes, but old men.

Hyano face palmed. Even when she was a child they were like this. Rosa just sweat dropped. 'Old perverts' kept running through her head and for once she did not mind being ignored. Hyano sighed before letting her eyes wander the men, then went to the one who would best understand her situation.

Asteri.

He was one of those wizards that were not all that well-known by Man. He spent most of his time in Middle-Earth with staring at the sky, learning about the great beyond that stretched far into the unseen. One could say, he was an astronomer, someone who was most interested in the great beyond than the here and now. He kept company to few people and Hyano herself saw him rarely. When he did stop by, she knew him as a cheerful, very carefree wizard. He did not take disrespect and handled those who saw him as a useless old man as children that they were. Then one day... he thought he found the purpose of his existence when he found that little boy... The prince of a land in Eriador. He never saw a young child being so enthusiastic about the stars and magic. So he took him as his apprentice and loved him as the son he never had. Up until... up until Sauron messed everything up. While he still smiled and joked as he used to, very much had changed. Anyone who didn't know him before probably wouldn't see it but Hyano knew better. For one, his eyes were far darker, his skin paler and the lines of age much deeper. All remnants from what Sauron had done to him... They had thought him dead at one point. The loss of his apprentice, the boy he saw as his own son truly shattered him to the core. She was glad to see he was still well.

Gandalf chuckled at the talk before tapping the ground with his staff, finally gaining some attention, making the other istari stand up in respect for their leader and in greeting the newcomers. Well, to say the least they weren't all that sure about the... other girl and they did glance at her but knowing Gandalf, there must be a good reason why she was there.

"Alright, everyone. We have much to discuss today. After the meeting you may swarm our young wizard with questions but for now we have our priority." He said, raising his voice to keep the attention of the other wizards but as usual there was always the one who leaned to the side to say a few words to their neighbor. "But first. I would like to indeed confirm, that our orange wizard, Hyano will be staying with us and will now take on her work as a full-fledged member of our Order." He announced with a smile, gesturing for Hyano to move forward and greet the others.

Of course, at the news the others cheered and nodded at her, clapping loudly, clearly approving of it. So far Hyano was an apprentice but now that she survived Middle-Earth and proved herself, she can now call herself a member of the Order. "Now her success is our success and her failure is ours in return. From now on her responsibilities grow but so does her reputation."

When Gandalf drew attention to her again, Hyano blinked, then what he said replayed in her head.

"Wha- oh uh... Thank you." She said as she stepped up, allowing the others to give their approval. If she was honest with herself, while it was nice to be accepted into the Order as a full wizard she... well... she didn't need it. She was so used to being the only istar... that the thought of being in a group again made her edgy. However, she was also glad to not be the only one anymore... It was nice not to be alone.

"Now..." The White drew attention to himself and reached out to pat her shoulder. "I think it is time to introduce you to our new additions." He said, gesturing towards the two new istari with his staff. The two seemed to straighten themselves at the mention of this, ready to be formally acquainted with this new wizard. "First, we have here our new Violet wizard, Zhia. He will continue the work of our lost member Saruman, becoming the wizard of knowledge." He said, gesturing towards the older new wizard, who nodded towards her in means of greeting. Then he gestured towards the other one. "Now, here is our new brown wizard, Ragnarök. He will take over your mentor's, Radagast's task in protecting the flora and fauna in Outer Earth." In response, the new istari also bowed his head just like Zhia, giving her a kind and almost knowing smile of his own, meeting her gaze. Was there something she did not know?

Hyano nodded back at them before her green eyes met the eyes of the wizard who would be replacing Radagast. She saw the same kind nature as was in the last brown. This made her smile a bit before nodding, although his smile held something strange...

"I am glad to see that things will be well taken care of... You both have some big caps to fill, though." She told them with a grin. Those that they were supposed to replace were both powerful in their own field. While Radagast was not known for his power, he had quite a bit and his knowhow of the natural world was unmatched. Well... almost unmatched until Hyano came into the picture.

"Oh, we know that. And we will do everything to try and match them. Though, we cannot replace them." Zhia said as he moved to sit, his gaze strict on her green eyes.

Slowly everyone sat down now, all of them taking off their wizard caps, setting them on the table. Some grasped for their goblets to drink, while others decided to have a bite from the food that was set out for them. Nonetheless, the happy chatting almost restarted, whispers became loud laughs, before Gandalf tapped the ground with his staff, making them go quiet and look up at him. He gestured for the two girls to sit on either side of him, then spoke up again. This meeting was far from over. They didn't even start yet!

"Now that introductions are done... I think we should begin." He suggested, now sitting down himself. "I would like to welcome everyone to our four hundred years council. I have two important announcements to make before we start anything, so please pay attention." He waved at the wizards, almost in a scolding manner, who in return started playing along, all seemingly displeased that they need to listen to this and groaned, although it was just a way to lift the mood. "The first matter we need to talk about is something that requires quick handling if we decide to accept the call for help. This young lady..." He trailed off, gesturing towards Rosa, now turning all attention to the herder girl, causing some whispers to start as they watched her. "... is the result of a magical change in the tree herders of Middle-Earth, that I have talked about before. Now, she has a request to us and asks for our help in something important to her. And what is important to her, is important to our Order." He finished, then gestured for Rosa to stand and tell them what she wished from them. Of course, the istari all looked at her, now falling silent, watching her intently and waiting for the request.

Rosa blushed slightly before standing, trying to keep herself calm. She was a heavy hitter more than a talker, really. She thought for a moment, trying to think of anything that may calm her down. Fieven's last letter came to mind... his written words calmed her down and she took a breath, then started.

"I would like to ask that some boats be sent back to Middle-Earth in order to bring back more of my kin. There is a war starting and..." She stopped, glancing at Hyano. "They are threatening to use nukes." She said and the orange wizard's eyes widened.

Hyano knew exactly what she was talking about. In her time on Middle-Earth, she saw all the horrid things they have created. Nukes were one of the worst. A weapon of mass-destruction. She could not call it anything else... It was something that she swore came out of the Void itself and brought the power of thousand dragon fires. She knew the others might not know what the herder girl was talking about, so she stood up.

"I thought those idiots got rid of those!" She yelled, her voice sounding both furious and shocked. While many suspected that countries still held the weapons, everyone had made a pact to get rid of them years ago. Hyano had hoped that the world leaders might have kept their word. It seemed she was wrong.

Rosa cringed and nodded.

"I know..." She said sadly, almost ashamed at this fact. Some of her people were involved in making those horrible contraptions back then. Not like they had a choice. Some of them even died in the result of nuke attacks.

Asteri decided to cut in.

"Excuse me but... nukes?" He questioned and looked around, noticing that everyone shared his confused stare. From the tone of the young woman, it was clear that this might be something important and a dangerous thing but... well. They won't know if nobody tells them.

Hyano looked at the star wizard before sighing. She then picked up a piece of bread and put it in the middle of the table so all could see. She then snapped her fingers and in a split second the bread was gone leaving a scorch mark where it had been. Like a shadow. She heard some gasps in the room.

"That... is what a nuke does. It is a type of explosive weapon, similar to many of our potions that we toss at enemies. Only this one is a lot bigger... and it doesn't take many to destroy a whole planet." She explained, her green gaze going from one wizard to another, watching as their expressions changed.

Zhia leaned forward and rubbed his chin, watching the weapon as it went off. Everything that was new and held new information was welcome in his collection, of course. The humans surely knew much, had the means and the time to experiment, creating things that they would never be able to. No matter if it was devastating or something for the greater good.

"This seems quite bad. But... remember the way a world has a beginning and comes to an end." Pallando said as he leaned back in his seat, looking at each person in the room. "It is just the sign that the humans will destroy themselves and their world. This is how it should be, after all. They are corrupted; they are not to survive with their wasteful ways of living." He explained, seemingly not at all touched by the display. He even found it the natural order of a world. A world that was created will end one day. At least those which simply were not meant to survive. They could only hope that this world made it through... Each fail, after all, brings a new experience and this experience could be utilized to avoid those mistakes that caused the demise of the previous creation.

"So you ask us to just forget all those who have no hand in this?" Hyano asked bluntly. "The herders and those like them are not at fault. To simply stand by and let them die because we see it as the natural order of things is wrong on a moral level. The herders have done nothing but protect the earth that the istari all left behind. The majority won't leave even if they have a chance but if we can save some... then I think we should. They would do this world a lot of good." She argued.

Asteri for once was silent, leaning back and just listening, wanting to hear every argument there was. Considering this was a room full of istari, he was sure there would be many. Opinions between mortals and Maiar tend to differ. The former placed emotions forward, whereas the latter saw everything in a factual view. The destruction of a world affected the mortals more.

"Do not think with one thought we don't care about them. The life has simply this order. We do and say what the Valar wish to discuss and disclose. We are all aware of our own possible demise. These people live in a dying world and are now too late to flee." Pallando said, looking back at the two, still not thinking this was something worth the discussion.

"So you want us to put one child over the other?" The orange istar asked, her eyes on the knowledge wizard now. "Many of you may see Middle-Earth as just some corrupt place where darkness resides but the fact that none of you have even set foot on there in five thousand years is likely the reason for that. You no longer see it as your home but as a place that can be easily destroyed. I haven't forgotten, though. Yes, that world is full of darkness but there is good there too. To just let it die because we are too scared to do anything about it is wrong." She said, feeling like she was talking to some people who did not seem to care about this topic at all. She was baffled how ignorant they seemed to be. Nobody was jumping up to help them.

Not even Gandalf.

"We have created Middle-Earth." Pallando decided to say something, cutting into their debate, leaning forward on his folded hands, narrowing his eyes at her. "Middle-Earth is our creation. We worked on it for thousands of years, even more than you were alive. We know exactly how a world works and what remains once it is to destroy itself. We have worked so hard for this... and we are forced to watch as it goes down because our gods do not deem them as a race that is worthy for the protection any longer. They were to survive on their own, to take care of Middle-Earth and use its resources wisely. They abused this gift. And yes, they all have to suffer for it. We feel like our heart is ripped open to see something like a world we took part in its creation to go down like that. But this is how it is." He shrugged, now leaning back again, crossing his arms. "We created hundreds of worlds before. This one isn't any different." He added, pointing at the table, his finger drumming on its wooden surface to emphasize what he said.

"Besides." Zhia chimed in, keeping his eyes on the goblet in front of him with which he was playing around. "Those who were left behind are now too much corrupted. The darkness realized the fall late as usual and is now using its chance to seep into the minds of the living. If they manage to make it into this world, they will corrupt everything that we worked for so far. This world isn't ready for something like that. Pure darkness..." The violet wizard added, looking at everyone but stopped to stare at Hyano. He had yet to see her in an argument with him. The wizard of knowledge against her. He wondered how long she would last against him. "If we open any magical gates towards Middle-Earth... The darkness will come right in along with them. It is waiting, lurking, watching us from the outside, wanting to enter. Would you let this darkness in? Would you want to corrupt this world before it even had the chance to truly work?" He asked, wanting to hear her opinion on this matter. "It isn't just about people and leaving them behind. It is about saving what we have now and giving it a chance to live."

Hyano could not help but sigh at the mention of darkness. She knew it would come up sooner or later. She could see the challenge in the voice and gaze of the violet wizard and was more than happy to test her mantel against him.

"Yes, I know there is a risk of darkness coming into this world but believe me when I say that darkness does not need people to get here. It will get here one way or another and if you think avoiding it will make it come any less sooner, then you obviously have never seen darkness for what it really is. You seem to think of darkness like a parasite, as if it latches onto people and follows them wherever they go... No. It is a mist and once Middle-Earth is gone... it will come here anyway, even if we let everyone of Middle-Earth die." She told him bluntly.

"Darkness is indeed a mist. But also a parasite." Zhia decided to take back the word and waved at the blue wizard to be silent now before he could utter anymore words. Their debate ended and now he wished to see what the young one wished to say. Yes, he saw her as the younger of the two, even if she was created first. Her mind was young and inexperienced. In addition, she was relying too much on emotions. Every each argument she brought up could be traced back to moral and emotions. This wizard will not bring it far with such thoughts. "It might survive on its own for a while but later, after many thousand years, it will not be able to sustain itself and will dissipate if it did not find a soul it can attach itself to." He explained, nodding to himself. He was honestly baffled at her theory about darkness. He heard about her little involvement with it and he was surprised she knew so little of it or even had so much false information. He was glad he had more knowledge or else people would blindly believe it and panic. "It can come and search now. It is trying to flee, embedding itself into the minds of desperate people, those who it thinks will manage to survive the longest. In the end, it has latched itself onto everything living. Indeed, it is already swirling close, indeed its is waiting beyond the magical barrier... Waiting for us to open the gate to this new world. And with what you propose, we would need to. Maybe darkness will not come in their soul but it will come in through the gates." He pressed on, knowing what he was talking about. "The barrier is protecting us. And no, it will not come in. It will dissipate just like every portion of darkness that was in the other worlds. Darkness here will be creating itself within the hearts of those who live here... when the world is ready. But right now... Outer-Earth couldn't take such a blow."

Hyano looked at them as if they were all crazy but was caught off guard before she could speak by a fist hitting the table and Rosa speaking up angrily. She could see some tears collecting in the corners of her eyes.

"I bet if it was an istar you would!" She yelled and Hyano cringed. "You opened the barrier to get Hyano but you would not do it for anyone else because they aren't your kind! Because to you they aren't important enough! Who are you to pick and chose who lives and dies?! Does any of you have some direct line to the gods?!" She said, then pulled her phone out and put it on the table. "If they were all meant to die then why is it this still works?! Hyano said I shouldn't have been able to use this once we got here but I have been getting messages almost constantly! So, you tell me! If you are so damn sure they are all meant to die, how is that possible?!"

Hyano blinked. She had wondered how they had found out about this in the first place but had been preoccupied with the problem and didn't think to ask. She pushed away from the table and walked over to the teen who was obviously worked up. Hearing Pallando dismiss it so easily... it had hurt. Like someone stabbing a knife into her heart over and over again.

"Calm down..." She hushed, her tone going to a more motherly one as she did what she could to calm the herder teen. With more or less success.

The istari looked at each other, emotion wasn't truly able to be read from their expression. They tried to not show any of their thoughts at the moment.

"Don't you find it strange that when you left there was only a spark of the destroying war... and yet only a week later you get a message talking about the world ending with the war? That the humans came this far, becoming so hostile to destroy themselves?" Zhia continued. He was used to debates which held much emotion, much accusation... He was good in keeping his posture. Despite the other side breaking under their realization. "When you came through the portal you didn't just jump in space... But also in time. When Hyano was saved from this situation, the world wasn't yet in such peril. But now it is. Many years passed since your departure and we cannot open the portals anymore or else the darkness will come right in. For us, a new pure world in the making is more worth than a dying one which cannot be helped. We have to know our priorities. We have to concentrate on what we can achieve after a failure."

"It hurts..." Alatar finally spoke up. He was silent all this while, leaned against his chair, picking at his food, not raising his gaze to see the debaters. He wasn't interested in the faces. He could imagine them thanks to the voices and the sounds. "It hurts that someone would think that the istari think nothing of the living beings. If that was the case, we would have not have helped create Middle-Earth either. We would have not worked hard to build its society, to raise the first creatures like the children we never had, the tree herders among the many. We taught and helped the elves, the humans... We helped create civilization, the first cities... We watched over all that was living... Being their guardian. And you speak as if we do not care..." The wizard sighed, now looking up, his gaze meeting hers. His expression showed that he was deeply offended. Just like her, her words were like stabs in his heart. He was sure the others thought the same. "You speak as if we do not mourn the loss. As if we do not think about it anymore. We were a part of that world and left parts of our own beings in it. Of course, we wish to save everything that we can, preserve the world and all that we worked for and raised." He paused, trailing off as he looked down at his food. "However, as every creator you make mistakes. Think about it like sewing a shirt. When you start, you are clumsy. You will keep making mistakes. But you do not keep the fail shirt and try to correct it if the mistake is too deep. You discard it. Then you make a new shirt, which will have mistakes still and you cannot sell that one either. You discard that too and try again. The more shirts you make, the more mistakes you will realize and correct. You do this until you made... the perfect shirt. Creating worlds, however, is far more complex than a shirt. Small mistakes grow with time. They embed themselves, eat themselves deep within. In order to make sure we can keep trying, we have to move on to a new world. We cannot stop as the new world counts on us."

Rosa looked away.

"Out of everyone here... you are the only one I believe. So far I have heard little emotion from anyone besides you and Hyano. What am I supposed to think?" She pointed out, her eyes watering. Hyano made the girl sit down and patted her head softly. "And if this is what you have kept doing over and over again... that means you all have made a mistake again and again... and I'm willing to bet part of it was giving up on the old shirt." She said, using the istar's own words. "... I work with someone making clothes regularly and I have made mistakes... but I don't disregard the old because what I made it of is still good. The fabric is fine. The product is not. So, you memorize the mistake made, then you pull the product apart until all you have is the fabric again and you use it to make something new. You are right, I may not be able to make that same shirt but in reality I don't want to anyway. I want to make something new, a better one... And if I just keep getting rid of the product... eventually I'm going to run out of fabric." She pointed out to him. She guessed her work with her mentor actually came in handy.

Hyano was actually a little proud of the young herder. Despite knowing that all these wizards outranked her and had a far greater purpose than what she was asking them to do... she still dared to stand up to them. Despite the situation... she still debated with them, she still attempted to change their mind. The orange wizard chose to not say a word, instead let her continue. Perhaps her strong will might prove a point to these wizards.

Asteri pulled out his pipe and gave it a light before blowing out some smoke.

"No offense to you, Zhia, but it might be easier for her to hear from someone who has actually stepped foot on Middle-Earth." He said calmly. "You are quite harshly saying that we are going to allow her family and friends all to die. All the herders who made a change in order to continue to protect what we could not... and we are going to leave them all behind. To be honest, I think they are stronger than any istar in this room. This girl is standing in front of a group of men who all have given up already and is still willing to try." He said, giving the girl some credit. She seemed to need it. "I will admit, though, I am torn. I have seen darkness first hand in some of the worst ways and I would hate to let it touch what we have here but... I do believe the herders are worth saving. They have proven that they are a strong and pure species despite the horror of a world they had to live in." Asteri admitted. He wasn't saying yes but he wasn't saying no either.

"I might have not been on Middle-Earth but knowledge can be gathered through fierce study. I think I know more about that world and its creation than some of you. Despite me not being there, I have been looking over the information. Very carefully." Zhia pointed out, defending his position as best as he could. "Now, thinking your example through... In order to make a new shirt of the old fabric, you said you take it apart, destroying it to a simple... fabric." He gestured, making sure to speak slower so she could understand what he was saying and imagine it at the same time. "Don't you think, that this is the process that is going on now? The shirt is being pulled apart to be the very base of it. The fabric. The barren land that this world was as well. The Valar also reuse the base of Middle-Earth as they did with the others. Creating life on itagain and again. If the mistake is so deep indeed that you cannot correct it with stitches, then you have to reduce it to its base. Only that this 'shirt' is cleansing itself from the threads and we have no say in that. And as it was said... creating worlds is far more complex than how you could imagine. Right now you are in a world which might be in the process of creation but already at the end of this process. Our work has not finished, neither will it ever finish."

"Look, we all are... broken deep down to see the world we worked on so hard fall like this as Alatar said..." Pallando spoke upagain, meeting her gaze with his hardened one. "... but we are istari. We created hundreds of worlds. We lost just as many. We hardened against these emotions and are ready to move on without looking back. Yes, our heart hurts, the world calls but the new world awaits. We are doing important work. And as such, we have no time for such things as mourning or waste resources to save something that cannot be saved, in the mean time letting evil seep into this pure land." He pointed out, then cleared his throat. "Think about the feeling of what you had when you made your first shirt. You made a mistake and indeed there is not much you can do about it. You feel sad about it. Of course. But the more shirts you make, the less emotional will you become towards its failure. And if you keep on not discarding and not taking them apart... you will have a lot of failed shirts you cannot sell. You have to learn to let go, discard it or take it apart to make it to a fabric, so you can use it again. Just like how the Valar handle the worlds."

Hyano hushed Rosa before she could get into it anymore and looked at Zhia. He was indeed sent to replace Saruman. He seemed to look at everything objectively, which was a good thing on its own but right now... the herder girl did not need this.

"Zhia, it has nothing to do with what you know. It is all about experience, being able to speak on someone's level takes less knowledge and more of simply being there and having firsthand experience. It would be like me giving you advice on this world. I may have all the answers but you are more likely to trust one of the Council than myself simply because they have real experience to go off of." She told him, then looked at the Council, her green eyes sweeping over everyone in the room. "And you all are talking about people like they are stitches. They are the fabric of the old world as well. They helped make it what it was and despite humanity's many faults... they also had many wonderful things to them as well. You also haven't answered the question of how Rosa is still receiving messages from Middle-Earth if the Valar meant for it to be just done with. If that was the case, we would not even be discussing this." She pointed out to them all.

"Of course I wouldn't trust you with it. Mainly because you didn't study this place. You know, sometimes the views of someone who wasn't there is far more clear than those who are clouded by emotions and feel attached to the world." Zhia concluded, looking at her, his eyes boring into hers as if challenging her to refute his theory. "You are only making a fuss because this is the first world you have to leave behind. Yes, I probably will be attached to this one as well, seeing this is my first world... But with time, you will play part in the creation of hundreds of more worlds. Then you will learn that your work is far more important than to dwell on the past and to try and save something that cannot be saved anymore..." He finished, pleased with himself for now. Everyone knew and remembered their first worlds when they were connected first with Arda. Yes, they all felt broken at the first few tries... But eventually they learned to let go. If they were broken each time a world perished... Then they would have died long time ago of depression and giving up living. They hardened against all this.

"If we leave anyone alive... Then how would we be able to create something new?" Pallando continued, explaining this further. "It is not up to us. Their destruction is brought to them by themselves. This is the Valar's will. They will be destroyed, just like the many hundreds of worlds. Then after we are done with this world... We get to go back to one of the bare bases and restart creation. But then we will already have more knowledge and will create a much better world."

Hyano face palmed, then tapped Rosa's shoulder.

"Go outside." She said and Rosa looked ready to protest but Hyano obviously wasn't having it.

Rosa nodded before standing up and excusing herself.

Hyano waited until she was out of the room before looking towards Zhia.

"Listen up, you know it all prick. I honestly could not care less if Middle-Earth burns to the ground. I have seen more than enough to know it's time for it to go. But if you are going to speak as such you will have some tact, especially if you are dealing with someone from that place that is about to lose it all." She snapped at him, sounding a lot like a mother defending her child. She had been protecting them for so long it was no real surprise. "Now with that said... I am not asking you to save Middle-Earth. I am asking you to save a small group of individuals, those that proved their worth and could add a lot to what you already have. Gandalf can tell you. The herders are fantastic people and would be a great asset here. They are their own race and have proven how strong and pure they are, despite the things they were put through as a race. If anything, it has only made them stronger and I think that would make a perfect addition to this land and is worth the risk."

"Now excuse me but!" Came the harsh voice of Pallando, who stood up now, defending the violet wizard, finding her tone more than unacceptable. However, before he could continue, the other blue wizard, Alatar, pulled on his robe rather strongly and pulled him back into his seat. The man looked at the culprit with a harsh gaze but he didn't seem to be fazed by it the slightest. They knew each other by now. And knew they didn't mean ill towards one another.

Zhia had been silent through this harsh exchange of words but did not reply to what Hyano said, despite her disrespect. He did not need to and was actually quite pleased with himself. He managed to show everyone just how impatient and emotion-driven she was. They were istari, mighty beings sent by the Valar to watch over the world and keep the balance from tipping. They cannot afford to be emotional like this. It was clear she was too attached to these beings and even went as far as insulting him for pointing it out. Now, she showed her true intentions and he felt his job was done.

"Now now... No need to shout, no need to scream or call each other names." Alatar said, trying to calm the three down. Hyano and Pallando, mainly. "We are far more mature than that, aren't we?" He asked, giving both of them a scolding look, before fixing Hyano in an offended gaze. "Once again, you think that we don't lose anything? What this girl is losing with the downfall of Middle-Earth is rather insignificant compared to our true loss. We are losing our work... Our creation... Our children... A part of our being. We lose all those years, thousands of years that we spent caring for that world... It breaks our hearts, even if you cannot see it." He pointed out, answering to her argument that Rosa was losing something great and that they don't understand it. This was a large lie. "We do understand her but... If we open the gates... Darkness will flood inside from around the barrier and from within the people... It is up for a reason... So nothing that is bad can come in. This is what the evil is waiting for. That we make the mistake to open a tunnel... This is why we cannot. For us, the creation of a new world, the future of the creatures on this pure world full with possibilities... is simply more worth than a few people from a dying world." He paused, looking at her, his gaze never leaving hers. "They are our creations the same way. They are our family as well. They are a loss for us too... But we cannot let this world corrupted so early in its creation and for this we will all stand united. You are young... You don't understand. Middle-Earth and those people in it are your first creatures to look after. Thousands more will follow in your life as an istar. And you have to learn to let go... To part with them for the sake of the new world." He whispered the end and stayed silent, waiting for her reply to this. He seemed to be the only one who tried to truly reason and truly explain with more emotion. But then again... Ragnarök still had to say a word on the council. Maybe he had nothing to say...

"I am not saying that you don't understand." hyano clarified with a sigh. "I am saying she doesn't. Istari express themselves differently than any other race. It is because we live even longer than the elves. We understand things they can't but if anything... that just makes us harder to understand. Rosa is but an infant compared to everyone in this room. To ask her to take news so bluntly like any of us could is asking too much. She is already going to have to go through enough... when those bombs go off... the herders will know even if the barrier holds against it... When they gave up their magical connection, their earthly one only grew stronger even when earth itself stopped speaking to them. Those bombs are going to hit and pull the very life out of the earth and when it does it will feel like they have been set on fire." She said, remembering the last time this happened. The 'testing' phrase or the few times that man had been stupid enough to actually use these weapons on others. She remembered the screams and how they kept complaining about the crying in their ears that just wouldn't stop. How bad it hurt... how helpless she felt because there was no way she could stop it. She shook her head. "Listen, I get what you are saying but I refuse to believe that the Valar allowed for these people to be made for them to just be wiped out like this. There was a lot going against them when they first made the change. It was very likely they wouldn't make it past the first generation, however they did and they have proven themselves worth saving. One family will not be enough to restart their whole kind. It just isn't possible."

"Perhaps they aren't meant to restart their kind." Came the answer from Zhia once again, who couldn't help but comment. "Yes, I can only assume this but so can you only assume that they are. Theories. They are not quite facts. Perhaps they are meant to blend in. Perhaps their kind will spread by breeding with elves." He shrugged, unsure if that was the true theory but then again, no one could know for sure. "Humanity also had quite bad chances, especially when the Dark Lord stepped up in Middle-Earth. They were his sole targets. They went through many hardships and here they are... not fit to survive and will bring down their own world." He pointed out, raising his chin, not tolerating any questioning against his knowledge.

"The tree herders' connection to Mother Earth is more difficult and complex than one thinks..." Finally came the words from Ragnarök, speaking up for the very first time since the meeting started. "However, as soon as they are pulled from one environment, they make connection to the next. As soon as they came here... they are now connected to Outer-Earth. This is why Iron bark felt nothing of the earth's suffering in Middle-Earth either. The magical barrier blocks all contact. In time and space." He pointed out but with no word did he support or go against one side or the other. He was just stating facts. Nothing more.

"Actually..." Alatar decided to chime in, humming as he raised a hand and stroked his long grey beard. "... I am sure that the usual path isn't the only way to bring them in..." However this was quickly wiped away by Zhia, who once again shook his head at the suggestion.

"Even if we are to use any other means, like teleporting... We still need to open a portal, a tunnel, a gate through time and space towards Middle-Earth. And through this tunnel anything can come in... Darkness surely will be faster than any other being. It will be there, waiting." The violet wizard stated and crossed his arms over his chest. He still did not believe that these people needed or were worthy for any kind of saving. They were meant to be destroyed on Middle-Earth but he could not explain how they were able to establish connection through time and space with them without some kind of higher interfering from those above. This was why he decided to let go of that argument.

This of course rendered the murmuring to go silent. It seemed like there was truly no way...

"Every world has a most pure core..." Came the whisper all of a sudden from Ragnaroc again, who raised his light brown eyes to look over at Gandalf, then at the other wizards slowly. "A place which darkness cannot yet reach, only upon its destruction. A source of the existing light, the last patch of peace. Where no magic and darkness has ever been... Innocence and happiness. Peace and quiet. All at one place..."

"The docks where I was picked up." Hyano chimed in. "It is the last patch of real magic left in Middle-Earth and the humans and those like them have had no desire to set foot there because of it. I had not been there myself since Gandalf left but when I returned to it... Heh, the feeling of the purity that land still held brought a lot of relief to my body." She said honestly, remembering how some of the weight and ache of her body was lifted when they reached the shore. She smiled a bit at Ragnarök and Alatar. They weren't exactly helping, more like stating facts but at least they weren't damning the idea all together.

The new brown wizard shook his head at her claim.

"Where no magic had been." He repeated this one sentence. He knew somehow that she would bring up the shore as the most pure place on Middle-Earth, so was prepared to counter that. "That place was full of magic still a few years ago but that dissipated. The moment the magic was gone, darkness seeped in... True purity can be reached by lack of magic." He whispered, looking around, his light brown eyes now stopping on the violet wizard, who seemed to be deep in thought himself, stroking his short beard thoughtfully.

"Well, wizard of knowledge?" Gandalf started, raising an eyebrow at Zhia. "Where is that pure place on Middle-Earth?" He asked, actually expecting him to know. While Hyano might think that the violet wizard knew nothing of Middle-Earth, she would be surprised just how much knowledge he gathered from it by either the Valar or the books they brought along. The memories of other istari were also helpful in the matter. This was why the White wizard respected him. He knew what he was doing and knew exactly what he was saying. He might seem almost emotionless or even harsh but this was how scientists were. They like facts and like to look at situations in a different light than those who prefer emotions and imagination.

"The Shire..." He whispered, looking up at the other, trailing off, stopping to stare at Gandalf. His words however were not as determined.

At this exact moment, they suddenly froze when they heard some kind of strange noise in the room. It was fait, rhythmic... Almost catchy. They looked among one another in confusion but eventually they were able to follow back the noise to Hyano.

Hyano jumped as she realized where the noise came from and quickly fumbled around in her pocket to fish out that bloody thing. Eventually, her fingers grasped the phone and brought it up to look at it.

This was an actual call this time.

The orange wizard was a little surprised. She looked at the group before picking up the call and putting it on speaker phone.

"Hey there. How are you doing?" She asked.

There was a gasp on the other line, then silence before the boy finally replied.

"Hyano? I thought you and my cousin left Middle-Earth? I figured this thing was dead?" The voice asked, shocked. Rosa had made a point of not replying to any of his texts. He had been just texting and calling her number just for his own sake. Had someone seriously been on the other line this whole time?

Hyano smiled a bit, looking honestly glad to hear the boy's voice, then looked up and noticed how she had drawn the other istari's attention.

"We did, hun. Seems the phone still works rather well here. I'm currently sitting with some of my friends. Remember the stories I told you about Gandalf and the others? Well, there are even more than that." She told him.

"Cool! Has Gandalf pulled any pranks on you yet?" The boy on the other side of the line asked instantly which earned a snicker from Hyano.

She shook her head.

"One or two. Sorry but I am going to have to cut this short. Can you tell me how things are going over there?" She questioned.

The other line went silent for a while before the voice replied. It was quite cheerful before, clearly shocked and happy to be able to speak to the orange wizard but once he spoke again... there was no trace of any of that.

"Not so good, Hyano... Everyone seems to be mad at everyone... and anyone who isn't taking sides is just as bad... Namely us. Many of my best friends seem to hate me now. I don't understand what I did wrong... Did I do something wrong?" He explained.

Hyano leaned back in her chair. She remembered hearing this before.

"No, hun... It isn't you at all..." She said and thought things over for a minute. "Tell me... has anyone touched the Shire?" She asked, changing the subject quickly. She could tell the boy must have gone through quite a lot lately, and she was also in a hurry to finish this before the line gets cut. It could at any moment.

"What? No, I don't think so. It seems like no one cares. I guess everyone thinks that place is useless because I don't think anyone has been there in years." The boy replied.

The wizards met each other's gaze at the news. Is this person truly there now? Of course he was, wasn't he? But still...

"How do we know that darkness didn't start infecting that place as well?" Came the thought from Pallando, who drummed his fingers on the wooden surface of the table, drawing all attention to him. "In the last years of peril, darkness would have already made it its home. No need for anyone to live there... It is in the very air..." These words once again awoke some doubt in this theory. "There is no way to see that darkness... so they cannot tell... How do we know that evil has not spread there too?"

"We can't... It's a gamble." Asteri spoke up. "There is no way of telling unless we are there. Someone would have to go to Middle-Earth and take the risk of not being able to come back." He added.

"Hyano what is going on?" Came the voice from the other end of the line, clearly a bit confused and concerned about all the voices he was hearing. He could pick up bits and pieces probably but not enough to know what they were talking about.

"Nothing yet, hun. I will call you back later, alright?" The orange wizard said and before the voice could protest she hung up. She did not want to give the boy any false hopes by telling him there was in fact a chance he could be saved. Not yet anyway. "I would say I would go but that would be a useless trip. My body has been broken down too much as it is. If I go... I will just be cut at the knees by the lack of magic and there would be no chance for a return trip." She said, a little annoyed by this. However, going so many years had done quite a number on her body and while the magic here was keeping it from being visible... the moment she went back... she would likely crumble in a matter of seconds.

"Didn't you listen to what I was saying?" The violet wizard said slowly but raised his voice to point out his annoyance. "If we go there, we need to open a portal... a gate... And if there is darkness... then that thing won't wait but will come right in once you even make a step outside towards Middle-Earth. We cannot take the risk." He explained the umpteenth time today. "A portal goes two ways. One can come in and go out. By the time you make it to Middle-Earth, we will get whole dark clouds of pure darkness swirling above our heads!" He shouted, banging his fist on the table, kind of irritated that no one was paying any attention to what he was saying. Perhaps now they will understand.

"We can make a portal, Hyano. It can be made by all of us. If we combine our forces, we will be able to open one and ensure return, keeping it up long enough..." Gandalf told her, turning his gaze towards her own, then nodded towards Zhia. "But he has a point. We open a portal, darkness will come in, if there is any, so going there ourselves will not be an option for this..."

"But... How could we know... Who is right...? How could we test it?" Pallando murmured, stroking his beard, grimacing. "Maybe... we could open a smaller one for a moment... that little darkness wouldn't be a big problem... But in only so little time we cannot test it ourselves... We aren't sensitive enough..." He pondered, looking around at the others but soon all attention turned towards the White wizard, who cleared his throat.

"I think... I might just know the candidate..." Gandalf trailed off mysteriously, then slowly turned his blue eyes towards the orange wizard with a knowing gaze. They actually... might have someone... who would be sensitive enough towards darkness... "And... this will be the next topic of our meeting..."

This confused the rest of the wizards, who turned their expectant gaze towards the female istar.

Hyano's eyes widened at the suggestion. She seemed to think it over for a moment. She honestly did not know what to say... She will need to speak to him about this before she could promise this happening. With the wizards being the ones who require his help... he might actually not do this out of his hate towards them. But she will need to give this more thought. For now, she felt all the gazes on her, so decided to speak up.

"He is talking about the wraith I brought back with me." She stated bluntly which earned the biggest reaction from Asteri as he turned basically pale at the news, considering he too had firsthand experience with their kind.

Gasps and sounds of shock filled the room at the mention of the wraith, the wizards all started to talk at the same time, only when Gandalf loudly tapped the ground with his staff did they quiet down.

"You brought back a what?!" Asteri finally snapped, shedding his thoughtful and silent self all of a sudden, surprising even the others in the room. Forget any darkness that could possibly be brought because of a portal... This was more than enough.

"How dare you bring such a creature into Outer-Earth! Are you out of your mind? In this case we can easily just open a portal and send in everything dark. We already have a source of evil and corruption inside." Pallando almost shouted in fury, standing up, pointing at Hyano, and practically accusing her quite fast for the possible fall of this world. "We have to destroy that thing before it can truly do anything bad. I don't care that you spent time with him, his very presence makes our work to nothing." He continued, taking a deep breath, trying to calm down but it did not seem to work. Once again, Alatar reached out and pulled the other blue wizard down into his seat, shaking his head at him.

"He is stable! I spent the past two weeks in a bloody cave with him... We are forcibly connected. I will explain more into it later but for now... if you suggest this to him he will likely turn you down. Wraiths are nothing short of prideful creatures. If he thinks you want to use him as a guinea pig he will be both disrespected and agitated. He also will have a similar problem to me. The lack of magic will hit like a tidal wave. You have one shot for a very short amount of time... and if he doesn't get back... well..." Hyano looked back at Gandalf. If the wraith didn't get back... that was it for the orange wizard too.

"I think... it would be best if you truly explained everything to the Council, Hyano. From the very start." The White wizard whispered to her, leaning to the side and gestured towards all the istari, who seemed to be agitated, stressed and completely furious at the same time. They didn't understand how such a creature was even let to enter. "And don't speak like they should know... Show some respect when speaking and explain. They don't know anything." He made sure to warn her. Somehow he had the feeling that if he didn't do that, Hyano would just say a few words and in such a manner as if it was obvious knowledge that she was tied to the Nazgul. She will need to explain indeed. And very detailed as well. This was their current topic now, after all.

The orange wizard met Pollando's glare with her own gaze, though, it seemed to be full of understanding. She did not blame him for his anger. If she was in his place she was sure she would feel the same way. At Gandalf's words she sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. Something she had not done in some time.

"Alright... from the start, then?" She asked, although she did not wait for a reply and instead thought about what to say for a couple of seconds before starting. "As you all may know I was friends with Ren the wraith back when he was human. I was assigned to be his court wizard. Part of my training and all that." She explained and looked around the room to make sure everyone indeed knew about this. She did not see any confused stares, not even from the new wizards, so she did not see why she could not continue. "I bore witness to his transformation. In order to spare me the pain this loss caused me... my memory was blocked." Her gaze flickered towards Gandalf for a moment. "I met Ren again as a full wraith. I had no idea I had met him before and since I had no involvement with the war of the ring, I really had no idea what I was looking at either." There was a small smile appearing on her lips as she remembered all the fun times that followed this. She could probably talk about this for hours without end but she knew she had to be as short as possible. "So again... we became friends. Some chaos went about and long story short... my memory was taken... again and Ren was taken away. Not long ago I met him again. He, among other things in the dark city, had been dug up and put on display. By this point the lack of magic in the world had turned Ren to stone... When I made the mistake of touching him... he was broken from his stone prison... and now we are forcibly connected. Without him I can't tap into the magical energy in this world... If you all let your senses search you will see I am currently not drawing in any magic at all. I can't. Neither can he, which means if Ren dies... so do I and vice versa. That is why he is here... I didn't exactly have any other choice." She explained, keeping her words clear and to the point and was ready to hear the arguments. She already knew them all... and she was ready to hear them as well.

"A great mistake indeed..." Came the voice of the violet wizard. "While you had no memories of him, you surely had memories of his kind. So why didn't you just destroy the stone once you saw it? This would have been your duty as istar. To protect the world. This would have meant one less evil." Zhia pointed out, crossing his arms over his chest, hearing agreeing murmurs from his sides. "Instead now we have the first evil in this world... Why don't we, indeed, just open that portal and let in everything... This world is doomed anyway." He shrugged, now finally showed that he didn't even care anymore. With the Nazgul here, evil already set foot into Outer-Earth, so they could already request from the Valar to be taken to the next barren world. "This is a mistake you will have to correct yourself. Either find a way to bind yourself to something or someone else... or destroy yourself and take him with you." There were now gasps coming from the room, all looking at him dumbfounded, however he knew what he was talking about. "We don't know how much this thing changed you... and we don't need another Saruman." Silence engulfed the room, some actually agreeing, while others didn't dare utter a word as they were not sure themselves. But him calling her the next potential 'Saruman'... they knew it surely was a strong blow. They did not want a part of that.

"I see that while you are very wise you also lack people skills. You should start working on that." Hyano said rather calmly, despite the harsh statements he just made. This had been exactly what she expected, going from welcomed into the Order to likely the new 'Saruman'. She thought that idea insulting really for more than one reason. None she really wanted to discuss, though. "I just spent two weeks in a cave with the wraith. In that time I was able to alter the connection. Before I was acting like a sift, changing the magic here into the dark magic he needed. Now I control the magic he gets and I have been altering it to a more balanced state. He has changed quite a bit, noticeably in personality. I would also like to point out that your world isn't doomed yet, so quit being so bloody dramatic. If you all are so ready to give up just because of this... Valar help you if we ever face anything like Sauron in the future." She stated, continuing to explain herself and also noting her displeasure with how they seemed to just give up.

It was rather... depressing, really.

"You forget that you aren't the only one in control of the magic between you." This time Pallando spoke up, raising his chin, agreeing with Zhia of course, trusting his hard earned knowledge and, of course, he had his own doubts. Who wouldn't have one... They were confident in keeping this world untouched by darkness until it was ready for it. "You might have more say at the moment but in the next he can alter it too... He has just as much right to control it as you, only that this control from his side is unpredictable. His ring will not let you alter too many things. Sauron's curse and enchantment is too great for any wizard. You cannot undo it; neither can you achieve significant changes." He pointed out, narrowing his eyes, watching her suspiciously. "We will find a way to tie you to something else and then we shall destroy the creature. It cannot stay. Or perhaps... you are defending it now?" He asked, watching her carefully. After Saruman's betrayal any such signs of doubt will be taken into account and they won't waste time to act.

"Yes, I am." The orange wizard said, not making any move to hide it as she looked at Pallando. "I defend him like I would anyone else and you are correct in that I can't change him completely. That is impossible, however I can shift him to a more balanced state. I have already had my battle with the ring..." She shook her head, remembering that little fight. That had not been pleasant to say the least. "And stop calling him a creature. Last time I checked, just because he became a wraith it not change the fact that he in fact was a man. At least show some respect." She added simply. The way they spoke of the wraith... one could tell they did not see them as anything more than dark creatures of the Dark Lord. "I am not saying he isn't a threat, however he isn't nearly the threat you give him credit of being. He thinks, feels,.. he even dreams now. I would say that is a great improvement." She said with a slight smile.

"You forget that he is not a 'person' anymore, as you like to put it." Zhia said, narrowing his eyes at the girl, not at all liking it how she seems to be on his side... This made him silently question her true loyalty. Neither did he like her attitude. She was talking to them like she owned the Order. If it was up to him, she would learn discipline and respect by punishing her heavily for this behavior. "This thing is nothing more but darkness. Pure evil. He was created to destroy and who is to say that he will not snap one day and kill people? He was made to corrupt, to kill. Many innocent lives were wiped out by these creatures. They feel nothing, they have no compassion and no mercy. They have no emotions and no way would they cooperate with the light and the good. That wraith is evil to the core and just wait... Once he regains his aura... The ring ties him to his master and the dark magic. And if the Valar do not watch and he comes back... and he gives the order to kill to this creature... He will not hesitate to destroy you in return." He pointed out and looked at the others, seeing nothing more but agreeing gazes. The istari knew these creatures, saw the destruction they could cause and what they can do... In this case her inexperience could lead to her misjudgment. "You don't know anything about them if you are defending one. They are no pets, they are no friends... They only do what they know will benefit them. Nothing more. And I highly do not care what kind of development he went through or what fight you did with the ring. The power of the enchantment will be always in place and will always affect him. It is even affecting you as it seems..."

Hyano raised a brow at his claim of her not knowing anything about the wraith. She looked at Gandalf wondering if he was serious before looking at Zhia.

"I am more than aware he will kill me if he feels the need to, Zhia. He has tried several times now." She said and tapped the new mark she sported on her neck. "And if you think you know anymore about a wraith than Asteri and I do, then you need your head slammed with every book you own." She added, resting her head on her hand. She looked at Asteri who had been quiet so far before looking at Zhia again. "I know exactly who and what I am dealing with and to be honest, I have seen the humans do worse. Sauron isn't even crazy enough to do half the things I have seen the humans do over the years. You haven't even spoken or seen the 'creature', yet you are willing to condom him already. Remind me to not to let you ever be my prosecutor." She added. She seemed to only really be talking to Zhia here so she focused her attention on him.

"Knowledge gathered from books and memories are just as much worth as experiencing them. Even better, since you can see everything as non-involved, third person. You see everything the way they are without being clouded by emotions." The violet wizard pointed out, not liking that she is questioning his knowledge. She doesn't know the extent of what he gathered so far and how much he knew about everything. She was the only one who questioned him and the facts he was listing, so he started to think that his suspicion was indeed valid. She was affected by the darkness. "If you question my worth in this council one more time, I will request your removal. I will not tolerate such attacks against my person." He demanded, watching her with a harsh gaze, awaiting if she will attack him verbally again. "And I advise you pull back on your tone and your challenging words. This is not fit for a wizard in the Order. We aren't among human children anymore."

"Books or not books, memories or not... Everything is the same once enough time goes by. Even we forget some information, which we have to refresh by reading." Pallando said, defending Zhia of course and for once came the curt nod from Alatar as well, who agreed. "And besides, I agree with him. I was there to see what they can do, fought them personally, unlike you who only saw a wraith the first time when that thing showed up in front of you and can say that such a creature only means trouble. You have not seen any other wraith, you do not know what they are capable of doing. His darkness is rubbing off of him into this world. We don't need that. He needs to go." He also demanded, crossing his arms. Surprisingly, also a nod came from Ragnarök, agreeing with the mention that this creature did not belong in this world and could become dangerous. There was no doubt... They didn't even need to vote...

Hyano watched them for a moment before standing up, again keeping her eyes on Zhia.

"The amount you can learn from books is limited because people and creatures vary, are unpredictable. You cannot write these things down because there are too many variables. While I do not doubt you are very wise... I do doubt you can make a clear judgment before even meeting Ren and seeing for yourself who he really is as not only a wraith but a person." She replied, then looked at the council. "However, it seems such action is not needed. Everyone here would rather solve their problems as simply as possible... Destroy the wraith and you destroy me." She told them with her hands in her pockets. "Oh, by the way, Zhia. There are a few books in the shack I think you would be interested in. Some history accounts from back in Middle-Earths and also a few science manuals." She added, as if it was an afterthought to everything that was going on. She had brought them without really thinking about it and had honestly wondered what she would do with it. Seeing the bookworm now, she found he might get more use out of them than she would.

"Books and memories. And not just one kind of book but many types of it, so yes, I can see most varieties and I need not to know the wraith personally to know that I would be dealing with darkness itself. A creature that shouldn't be. He was never meant to be. How do you know if deep down he is not yearning for eternal rest? Immortality cannot be processed by those who aren't made to have this trait." Zhia explained further, pointing out the extent of his knowledge. She was going on about this as if he was just reading a single big book. There was more than that and memories give him a more suitable view of the happenings. He didn't see why this wasn't a valid source of knowledge.

"We don't mean to destroy you." Alatar spoke up, waving at the two to stop their bickering. "I am sure we will be able to find a way to tie you to someone else. Then we can destroy this creature. You are one member of the Order, so we do everything to protect you as long as we are here. But the wraith must go. So, try not to get emotionally attached to it... Or if you are already... then try to build up distance. He cannot stay. No matter how much you made him change... no matter what he said, what he did, he is a creature that was never meant to exist, that corrupts this new world as we speak. He is a danger to all."

Hyano sighed heavily, shaking her head at the stubbornness of those around her. They would not understand that no matter what solutions they find, she would never let them harm Ren. On the other hand, this connection does hold a danger for them both. Perhaps finding a way on how to separate them was not such a bad idea. But how could they do anything like this? A spell? Not even Gandalf was able to find anything that could help them. That is before an idea came to her mind.

"... Maybe this could contain something to help?" She questioned before pulling off her backpack and reaching into it. She dropped the book she had recovered from Moria. The very book she learned dark magic from, which miraculously survived all these years, only to be found again inside her old room. "This is the dark magic spell book I studied for a time at Moria... There are many... interesting spells in it." She suggested. She also knew this was admitting there was a darkness inside herself but she was also offering a solution to it. She honestly wasn't sure why this came to mind.

The nearest istar, Pallando, took the book from her, and looked it over. The book itself didn't contain any darkness, thank goodness, but he was sure that the content was not as nice either. They will need to get rid of this book as well while they were there...

"Interesting..." The blue wizard said as the book landed at him, opening it to see the first few pages. "I have never seen this book before... And I have seen much. Seems to contain a lot about dark magic. From small to complex magical tricks. Someone must have written it and used it to learn some dark powers." He continued, referring to Saruman, then gave the book to Asteri to look it over first before it could land at Zhia. Yes, he suspected and knew it belonged to the old wizard of many colors. He could recognize his handwriting.

"We will look it over and see what we can do." The violet wizard explained. "Once we have the spell, then we will have to practice it. And it won't be nice. You two are the only ones with darkness. So you will be our test subjects." Zhia said, looking at her, then his gaze traveled to the book that had yet to reach him. Well, in his mind they were done with this topic.

"We can still use the wraith to see if any darkness is around the Shire..." Alatar shrugged. "At least give him some use while he is here. We didn't say to open a full portal and send him through it..." He said, looking at Hyano, correcting what she was starting to say before they went on with this subject. "We said to open a smaller one briefly, let the air flow in somewhat so he can feel the consistence. He should be sensitive enough to feel the tiniest amount of darkness."

Asteri looked over the book for a moment, also able to recognize the writing and the manner, the tone in which it was written. There was no doubt.

"So, this is what Saruman was working on." He said remembering how the istar had put so much work into a book yet had made a point of not sharing its contents. He used to tease the White wizard about having a journal... this was in a way just that... however it was a very dark one. He then handed it over to Zhia.

Hyano could only shrug.

"Then, the only problem is his pride... I will think of something with that, though. If he is willing, then we have nothing to worry about." She said, putting her backpack on again and put her hands into her pockets.

"I am sure you can convince him. Especially how you said you know him. Just say the right things and he will comply." Alatar said as the book passed him as well but did not find any interest in it, instead let Zhia take it.

The violet wizard hummed as the book was put in his hand and ran a finger along its spine and stroked the cover. It was old indeed. While it contained no dark magic, it did contain some kind of power. He will make sure to find out what power it was. He put the book down, intending to read it later.

Suddenly, an uncomfortable silence set over the council. Everyone was looking at the other, trying to tell if they wanted to add anything more to the subject but as it seemed, they all said what needed to be said. The book will be carefully stashed away and studied to solve this little issue they were having with the wraith.

"Alright. I think the two topics had been discussed. If you wish to leave, you are free to do so. The council however has still a lot to discuss." Gandalf offered, knowing that Hyano -as a new Order member- might not be able to sit for hours in one place, discussing matters that do not concern her. He will excuse her this one time but he will make her participate more in the next few until she will be forced to sit there all day. He also suspected that she might have other matters to attend to, like comforting Rosa and taking care of the wraith.

Hyano thought the offer over for a moment but the phone rang before she could make a decision. She laughed lightly and stood up. Seems like the decision was made for her.

"I think that is my answer. I did tell Wally I would call back, after all." She said as she stood up. "Alright I will go. I will see you all later. Zhia, make a point of stopping by the shack if you can. Those books are just going to take up space otherwise." She instructed, bowing her head as she excused herself and made her way out.

- back in the city -

Rosa had found a spot by the door and had actually fallen asleep. She was worn out, tied and had been worrying too much in the past hours. She honestly wondered if she will be able to have a good night's sleep. This will eat her up...

In the mean time, Hyano managed to catch up with her and reached the new home of the herder people. Luckily, she was good with location and her memory was reliable, so she was able to find the house despite only having been shown once. The sight of the tired herder girl made Hyano smile before nudging her with her foot as she held out the phone for her. She already talked to the boy on the other side of the line. She thought if this did end up being the last time they got to talk... she found they had the right to speak as much time as they pleased. However, she was surprised when Rosa just looked up at her and although she did take the phone, she did not make a move to call anyone. If anything, there was something wrong...

"Hyano..." Rosa started as she gazed up onto her and sighed sadly. "Lilly..." She trailed off and averted her gaze.

Hyano's eyes widened and quickly rushed inside without saying another word.

We thought about cutting the council half but then again... why would we force our readers to read this in two chapters? Better make it one.

See you all in two weeks!

CA Productions