Lusseriel was sitting with her back against a tree-trunk, her bare feet in the water of the river, at the light of a fire nearby and of the dim light of the sun setting in the horizon. She let her eyes trail over the river for a moment before she turned back to her journal on her laps.
"It's been a few days since I last wrote anything in there. Since then, many things happened.
For one, the morning after our return and after a night in the hands of proper healers finally, Tindollion was fine.
Alas, that's about the only good news we received that morning. Bori and Broin are a shame to dwarves everywhere. They decided to recover the mithril axe. That thing is in Dol Guldur’s tower, and I was in no hurry to go there honestly, but apparently there was a hidden entrance somewhere in the Ashenslades that'd allow us to enter the fortress.
And no matter the decisions of the dwarves, the news of a secret passage needed to be checked.
Also, Candath about deafened us all when he reacted to Bori's demand. I can swear I had my ears ring for a couple minutes there.
Everyone's reaction to lady Tindollion's presence was... Interesting and fun. I feel somewhat sorry for her, because everyone seemed to have developed overnight a natural knowledge of medicine and decided for her she should still be lying on a bed or shouldn't decide to accompany us or...
Admittedly, I wouldn't have wanted her to go alone, but fact is, she's fine, she's alive and she's in her right to chose to come with us back to Dol Guldur. I’m not saying it was the safest course of action, but it was her choice and her right to make it.
On the way to the Ashenslade we were attacked by orcs once or twice, but everyone was fine.
Annag led us to the passage. She didn't know for sure where it was but had strong suspicions and apparently she was right. We found it. Malevolent spirits found us too but we got rid of them without sustaining injuries so that's good.
It was a cave entrance, well hidden. We went in carefully, weapons at the ready just in case. And we found small groups of creatures. Merrevail, goblins, even trolls.
All looking ragged. Not enough to ignore us and let us pass without trying to kill us, but they were less strong than the others we've met around Dol Guldur I think.
We separated when the cave opened on several tunnels. We came together again after a while, perhaps it'd have been better not to separate at all, I don't know, but we did and everyone was fine.
The cave was unsettling though.
Candath passed around some Miruvor. I didn't take it; it’s better keep it for when it'll be really useful or for someone who'll really need it.
I was uneasy, not ready to run far, fast and screaming. I’ve seen worst. Though one could argue that running far, fast and screaming is a perfectly reasonable thing to do when dealing with dwarves gifted with stubbornness and such greed that verged on stupidity, or with Dol Guldur, whichever is the bigger threat.
The passage led us straight into the tower. And Broin came to us… And left us again. He went *alone* further into the tower in search of his axe. I hoped so, so much that an orc or something would kill him with that axe once and for all! It's terrible.
And as a result of course... Candath shouted something along the lines of "fool dwarf"... In the tower. With corridors that were not necessarily made to stop any and all sounds... How we survived at all I still don't know.
This being said, there was a surprisingly vast number of books in there. I was almost interested in picking up one or two of them for... Well curiosity, but then trolls and orcs arrived and it reminded me nicely that this was neither the time nor the place. Besides with my luck every tome in there would have been written in Black Speech and unhealthy to the extreme.
Honestly the rest of our... Ah, visit of that tower was more of the same: We tried to be discreet and advance in the tower, found orcs and trolls and what not, fought, rinse and repeat.
Until we found Mazog and oh, he is dead! Finally!! We should celebrate. It was long in coming, but well deserved.
Broin got his axe back though. I hope he trips and falls on it.
For all the trouble that axe and that dwarf's ego brought everyone around them? That'd be a fitting end.
But as Mazog was dead and the dwarf was back with us, we elected to leave the tower before Mazog's master came by with reinforcement.
Our story came to a happy end.
Tindollion was back with us, we all got out alive... The dwarves are going back to their Mine and hopefully they'll never get out of it again so I can avoid the both of them easily enough from now on...
Candath decided to leave to go back to Rivendell to report to lord Elrond and lord Glorfindel.
Aireliniel said she would too return to Imladris. I think Tindollion will too, and Ilthirian said something about reporting to lord Elrond so...
Wyck said he was going back to Bree, Annag joined him I believe.
As for me, I finally managed to deliver those letters.
And I have a few return letter to Lothlorien. I'm about to enter the golden woods again, tomorrow. And after that if my services aren’t needed, I’ll go back to Rivendell, I hope that I'll cross path with everyone again there.
It was nice meeting them. Hopefully they’ll remember that I'm not a healer now... I hope they find no trouble on the road.
I also received a message from Dealia, alongside a biscuit, which was very nice.
I’ll transcribe the letter here:
“Hullo!
I believe I heard some of the Elves here at the inn speaking of you and the others completing some serious business! I am personally heading further north.. Though I wish you the best of luck in the days ahead.
Stay safe and keep an eye on those troublesome friends of ours! And please enjoy this biscuit.
-Dealia”
That was very thoughtful of her and I was glad to see her letter. At least she was fine by the time she wrote it.
I sent a letter in answer along with some lembas for her journey, hopefully the messenger will catch her before long.”
Lusseriel looked up at the night sky with a smile. A messenger using the services of a messenger. Ironic. She could have tried to find Dealia herself after all…
But ah, she still had her duty after all. Perhaps another time.
Soon the forest and its gloominess would be behind her, and she'd be back in lands she knew better and were far easier to travel in. And perhaps sometimes soon, she’d meet her new friends again. Rivendell wasn’t that big that they wouldn’t cross path again at least with the elves…
