The Cosmic Detour

[Sighter Tnailog]

He had no time to think about what the wizard said. From the moment Anton had reappeared he knew this was trouble. A silent mind-message to Hilmandil and a few others in the back room was all he had before all hell broke loose. They had been planning for this eventuality a long time. He could hear the thrum of the portal as it activated; he would have only a few moments to get through it before it closed forever, and he knew that Hilmandil and the others were already through.

A sword appeared in his hands again, this time a plain steel blade. Ainalindil's unsheathing in war was for another time and place. With the other hand, he produced a throwing knife, spearing one of the enforcers in the eye before he could recover his senses. With a cry the one who called himself Cildorian jumped up onto the countertop, then leaped from it to plunge the sword deep into the chest of the other enforcer.

He tried to release and let go, after which he planned to flee from whence he came, fly through the portal, and escape. But it was not to be so. The wyrmian he had stabbed choked down the pain and grabbed the elf by the shoulder. He brought his other fist around to crunch, with an excruciating crack, into the elf's face.

The body crumpled to the floor, lifeless.

* * * * *

"And thus, in the world yet to be, passes Findelfin ap Fingolfin, named Cildorian, whose hand never again rose in defiance of his enemies.

"Quite an unsatisfactory end to our little saga, don't you think?" The voice now came from nothing; Findelfin stood alone, unclothed, wrapped in the light that seemed to be from everything and from nothing.

"I think so too, Findelfin ap Fingolfin. And so I send you back, with the hope that you'll tell everyone how nice I was, remember your gods, and please try to do your best to avoid that disaster in Kilya Gorge. If I may give you a hint; prayer never hurt anybody. Acolyte Xem, he prayed."

And then the voice rung with the boom of years uncounted, and in that moment even the eldest of the immortals on the planes of existence would have felt as a child.

"Now Go. My gift will be with you when you depart."

And the world was changed.

Spoils Request:

I would like a rosary. It is to be of seven sections, each section containing seven beads. The materials are expensive, and so I am asking that you consider my thread "Slings and Arrows," "The Field of Sighs and Sorrows," and "Beyond the Bridge of Souls," as well as the work of this thread, in approving this. Also, since this thread is of appropriate length, I would like to request an official judging. Here is the spoil.

The first section of beads is of diamond, in honor of Aurient, the star-mother, whose soul surpasses all gems on earth and whose spirit of adamant will stand ever firm in the face of danger.

The second section is of amber, each bead containing a small insect. Amber is the stuff of Galatirion, for it traps life within life and holds something like a soul in its rough resin. Amber is for Galatirion, the giver of life.

The next section is of black coral. Smooth and hard, this coral once held in it the breath and salt of the sea; it is the representative of Earlon the Rain-Star, whose gift of the sea must be recovered and cherished by the Raiaerans.

The fourth section is resplendent ivory, each bead carved with a likeness of Arddunwë, the Sweet-Star. Each depiction represents a different mode of beauty; young and old, male and female, living and dying, and Holy Other.

The fifth section honors Cuarye, the Swift-Star, and is of simple yew wood. The simplest and cheapest of the materials in this rosary, it calls the bearer to remember that the heart of Holy is not only in the trappings of wealth, but in simple lives and simple people; and it also reminds those who wield the Bow that simple weapons are often the best.

The sixth section is of smooth mythril. All other materials on this rosary are of substances that were once alive; even diamonds were once coal, which was once the stuff of trees and life. But in honoring Megillion, the Silver-Star whose gift is metal and its working, the prayers of the rosary remind the living to remember the dead; and that, in the end, metal is only a purveyor of death and not a means to final life.

The final section is of crystal glass, and set in these crystals is the living light of Findelfin's own memory. Each crystal evokes a different type of memory: people, places, events, things, evils, and lore. And the final crystal conjures the strongest memory of all: the memory of the star-gods in their glory before the elves were sent to earth. When Findelfin holds each bead, the memories associated with this bead will become more acute.

The sole power in this rosary is that it is somehow connected to Findelfin; no one can touch it besides himself, and the only power it has exists in its connection to Findelfin. Any powers it does have will be uncovered through threads, and not here.

Thanks for considering this spoil.