Chapter Three

AN: This takes place before and during chapter 3 of 'Spectrum: Ninniach's Tale'. Please read that as well!

I searched the stone-strewn beach for well over an hour, before I realised that my hunt was futile- the Silmaril was not here. I knelt on the ground, kneading my forehead in frustration. I had to find it! I paced back and forth for some time, before realising that the mysterious elleth, who seemingly hated me, was my only chance. I would have to return to the hospital, and somehow persuade her to listen to me. I rapidly brushed the damp sand from my clothing, and strode determinedly back towards the village, thinking hard of how I could calm her enough for her to hear me out.

I re-entered the hospital with a vague plan in mind. I doubted I would have any luck finding help from the mortals who were employed here, as last time, I would have gotten nowhere without having eavesdropped. No, if I was to locate the elleth, and gain access to her, I would have to use trickery. I wandered the halls of the hospital for some time, walking purposefully, as if I had a destination in mind, until I located the young Man who had been speaking of the elleth earlier. I braced myself. Fortunately, we were in a deserted area of an upper floor, so this would not be too conspicuous. I approached him, trying to look nervous.

"I am sorry, could you help me? I believe I am lost. I have not been in this area before, and..."

He smiled reassuringly, and I felt even guiltier. "Of course! Where are you headed?"

"Ah," I looked around quickly, "I was looking for the exit, actually. I need to find the stairs, but every set of doors has the same appearance."

"I know, right? One corridor here looks just like all the others! C'mon, the nearest set of stairs is this way." He began walking in front of me, as I had intended, and I subtly began narrowing the distance between us. He drew level with a storage cupboard, and I muttered a nearly-silent prayer of forgiveness as I struck him on the back of the head with my fist. He passed out instantly. After ascertaining that he was not seriously injured, I dragged his limp form into the cupboard, and quickly stripped him of his blue garb, donning it over my own clothes. I also took the tag clipped to the front of the blue shirt, as I assumed it was his form of identification, but thankfully, it did not feature an image of him. Perhaps with this, I would be able to persuade someone to help me find the elleth. I slipped out of the cupboard silently, leaving the Man inside, and closed the door as softly as I was able. Now to resume my search.

With no real idea where to start looking, I walked each corridor, looking into all the patients' rooms. Eventually, I would find the one I sought. Then I would- hopefully- persuade her to leave the Mortals' guardianship, and then I could learn the location of the silmaril, and keep it (and the elleth) from the hands of Man forever. One of the rooms I passed must have been vacated very recently as there was clothing inside that had apparently been abandoned. Glancing about myself quickly, I ducked into the room, and helped myself to several of the items. A pair of trousers, a long-sleeved shirt, and some shoes. Normally, I would not steal, but if, or preferably when I could persuade the elleth to leave with me, having some clothing for her would make our escape easier. I bundled the clothes up in my arms, and continued looking.

I was reaching a deserted part of the hospital now, and none of the rooms seemed to be occupied. I was on the verge of descending to the lower storey of the building, when I noticed two muscular and somber faced Men standing on either side of a doorway, as if they were guarding it. My hopes rising, I moved towards them, stopped some distance away, and listened carefully. Luck appeared to be on my side, as I recognised the elleth's voice. She was asking for clothing. This was a stroke of good fortune indeed! The Men standing guard caught sight of me as one of them bid the elleth to stay in her room. I lifted the heap of clothing in my arms to indicate why I was there. The men exchanged suspicious looks, then the taller of the two stepped toward me, and examined the tag on 'my' shirt. Apparently satisfied, he nodded towards the room. I smiled slightly as I entered.

The elleth had tensed when she recognised me, and I knew I had very little time before her fear drew unwanted attention from her guards.

"Please," I spoke softly, "please listen." I walked slowly towards, hoping to convey that I meant her no harm.

"I will hear no words from a servant of Melkor!" Her angry retort made me wince, and I was stunned that she had actually spoken His name- that was never done! I stepped back instinctively. She hugged her knees protectively, as I set the pile of clothing down on a chair. I took a deep breath, and struggled to keep my voice even as I spoke again.

"I know that many of my past actions have served the one you speak of, but it was never in my heart to do so. I also know that there is no way to atone for the evil I did in foolish, wretched pride, but please, believe me when I say it has never once been my will to serve the enemy." I met her eyes, silently imploring her to believe me. She stood up slowly, and breathed in deeply, watching me avidly. at last, she spoke, nodding.

"I believe you."

I was elated, full of relief, but had not forgotten the urgency of this situation. I spoke again, immediately. "It is not safe for an elf to remain with mortals. Will you come with me?" I held my breath in anticipation of her answer. Her own fate, and much more, rested on her decision, but I dared not tell her that, as I did not wish to frighten her again. However, we had need of haste: I could hear one of the guards murmuring behind me, like as not calling for reinforcements. The elleth hesitated, then nodded.

I lowered my voice, so I would not be heard by the mortals. "Dress quickly. I will return for you soon." I walked back out of the door, and the elleth closed it behind me.

"What's goin' on in there?!" one of the guards demanded. I elected not to respond, and simply struck. He stumbled at my first blow, and I then used the same move I had used earlier on the young nurse whose clothing I wore, striking the guard in the back of the head. The second guard had pulled a black device from his belt, and was shouting into it, while maintaining a safe distance from me. I covered the space between us in an instant, and swiftly knocked him unconscious as well. After ensuring that they would both recover, I returned to the elleth's room. She was dressed and waiting, thankfully, as time was a factor now. She caught sight of the unconscious Men, and paled.

"Did you kill them?" she exclaimed. I wanted to clap a hand over her mouth to quiet her, but decided reassuring her would be better.

"No, they are merely unconscious." I picked up one of the brightly coloured chairs, and flung it at the window, which shattered. Quickly closing the door, I forced the chair under the door handle, to delay anyone coming in, and used a blanket from the bed to clear the glass-strewn windowsill.

I held out my hand to the elleth to help her, hoping she would not comment on the scars that had lasted millenia. She hesitated still.

"Quickly," I urged. "They will be here soon." She grasped my hand, and clambered onto the sill, then leapt out onto the roof. I followed suit, supporting her with my arm round her shoulder as we ran to the roof's edge, then I took the lead, leaping into the branches of a nearby beech tree. I heard her cry out in pain as she followed me- perhaps she was unused to tree climbing, though that was strange, for an elf...I pushed the thought aside as we climbed down, and ran as far and as fast as we could from the hospital.

We ran for a long time, until Happisburgh was out of sight. The elleth was winded by the time I decided it was safe to stop. I was somewhat breathless myself, but I could not forget what I had to find out. Best to start this conversation in a friendly way...

"I have not run like that for years," my words, to my embarassment, came out in a wheeze. Surely I was not in that bad condition? I waited for a few moments, until my breathing was more even, then gestured to the elleth to continue walking. I spoke again.

"I have many questions, elleth," I spoke firmly. "But I must ask you this first. Where is the silmaril?"

She blinked at me, her expression confused. I waited for several minutes, and we continued walking, but she did not respond. She was biting her lip, looking apprehensive. I tried again.

"I need you to understand, I cannot allow the silmaril to fall into the hands of Mortals. It is far too dangerous."

Again, she did not answer, though she was frowning, and I began to feel impatient.

"Do you know where it is?" I asked, perhaps in a harsher tone of voice than was necessary. She jumped, and took several steps away from me. She tilted her head to one side, as if puzzled by my words. I took a deep breath to calm myself.

"Listen to me, Ninniach, is it? I think that was how you named yourself... the silmarils contain the light of the Two Trees of old, and are far too dangerous for Mortals to handle. If used incorrectly, a silmaril could even reveal Valinor to Men. I know you had contact with it, it left traces of the light on your skin. I understand you don't trust me, but I only want to keep the silmaril hidden. You have to tell me where you hid it!" I was nearly shouting by now, but she still did not respond, although her mouth opened several times, no words emerged from her. I fought the urge to bury my head in my hands, and instead held Ninniach's gaze steadily. Her rainbow-coloured eyes showed utter confusion. She spoke at last, hesitantly, stumbling over her words.

"When you took me from the hospital...I-I thought you understood. I did not make contact with the silmaril, I..."

"Nonsense!" I cut her off. "If you knew nothing of it, how did its light come to leave its mark upon you?"

She sighed, and looked away from me, into the west, where the Sun was setting. Earendil was ascending the sky, and she stared at the star with...yearning? I began to feel unnerved, and shivered involuntarily. She stared right at the star's light without blinking, and as Earendil rose higher in the heavens, the light bathed Ninniach. She smiled wistfully, before turning to face me once again.

"Do you understand now?" she asked me, softly.

I could not find the words to answer. The blinding, pure light that encompassed Ninniach did not come from Earendil. It came from Ninniach herself. My legs gave way under me, and I stared up at her in awe.

"You did not handle the silmaril," I finally managed to say, in a voice that was barely a whisper. "I do not understand how...but...you are the silmaril!"

To be continued...