[Nerindel]

The Desert calls

A large shadow swept over the wolf clan residence and as it did the guards looked up, seeing them at the last minute the eagle swooped down behind the stables out of sight, she then flew around the back of the building and climb upwards behind the west tower of the house, perching herself atop the conical roof. She had followed the young raven, (as she had chosen to call him) all day and the more she observed his actions the more the feeling of wrongness filled her mind. From the Harbour, the young man went to the market and then to the palace, which did not seem out of place as he seemed to be a trader of some kind. However, her closeness to the palace stirred a great fear within her and the sight of the heavily armed guards who dutifully patrolled the palace walls, did even more.

The sound of a whip cracked disturbing the quiet stillness of the Haradwaith desert, the stinging brought tears to her eyes as the leather tip found purchase and tore at her sweat ridden skin, the salty sweat burning as the she struggled to rise from the blow.

“Move!” was the harsh order that followed. Many Dark skinned Warriors surrounded them and ahead the pennants of Umbar waved in the hot desert winds. However, their destination was not for the great city of the Corsairs instead they had remained on a northerly course, steering east as the desert ended and they neared the river Harnen. Ahead Dark Mountains loomed ominously and she feared that their peoples doom and the doom of all men lay just beyond.

A wrinkled sun blistered hand grasped tenderly at her arm and she looked up into to the concerned eyes of the old Woman she had earlier stopped to give her ration of water too, gaining her the bite of their captors whips. She managed a weak but reassuring smile to let the woman know that she was all right, even though the pain was beginning to become almost unbearable. Nevertheless, she did bear the pain she had to for them! Her gaze took in the other prisoners, mostly mothers and their children who where innocents in this world and should not have been subjected to such fear and uncertainty. Also bound were several young men, no more than boy’s who were just beginning to develop their skills, but had not yet the control to enable their escape. The children were all purposely separated from their parents and she now looked on them with sorrow filled eyes, pulling at her binds as one of the children stumbled and was roughly pulled back up by one of the dark warriors. The whips of her captors again tore at her back and a rough hand gripped her chin pulling her up

“I would learn restraint if I were you, for the revennors of the dark Lord are not so lenient!” the man hissed, his hot breath on her face making her feel nauseous, he pushed her head away and laughed wickedly, "You will see, you will all see!"

“No!” Her pained cry had almost alerted the palace guards to her presence, but thankfully, they had looked down and had not the presence of mind to believe that a bird had made the cry. However, she did not give them the chance to reconsider, she soared high into the clear sky and flew away from the palace and the vision its guards had stirred within her.

She returned to the young mans house, knowing that he would eventually return. And he did, just before sunset. Followed shortly by the two men from the White City. They entered the courtyard accompanied by four guards all dressed in the same fashion as the ones she had observed at the palace. The guards where not permitted to enter the house, which eased her heart greatly, for her instincts told her that these men were not honourable and should not be trusted. But as she listened from her perch to their grumbles and complaints, the uneasiness she had felt before at the palace returned, these men or what they represented frightened her. She launched herself into the air and circled the tower once reluctant to leave, but her fear was too great, memories of dark places filled with death and torment, filled her mind, she had to get away!

She flew into the desert to find quiet solitude in which to sort through these confusing images and to make some sense of them, not far from the city she found a series of caves and rockfaces. Perching herself on a craggy ledge near a large opening, she nestled herself in for the night, preening a few stray feathers before closing her eyes for the night.

“Why did I come here!” she sighed, unable to get the rest she desired. She knew she was not like other eagles and for over a decade, she had been able to forget the pain of her past, but three days in these lands had brought back memories now unfamiliar to her. A wise friend had once told her that she would not be able to hide from herself forever, Perhaps he was right, perhaps now was the time for her to find who she really was.

For the past eighteen years she had remain an observer in this world content to simply learn through observation the way’s of the races of Middle earth, but it was a lonely existence and she often longed for companionship. Although she gained much knowledge from studying the various races, she feared to interact with them, afraid that they would find out her dark secret. In these times of despair, she would flee to the solitude of the mountains, and there she would remain until her curiousity and thirst for knowledge eventually drew her back out into the world.

It was after one of these retreats that she came again to the lands that men called Gondor, and to the port town of Edhellond. The men of this town where Fishermen; tall and strong who relied heavily on fishing and trade to feed and support their growing community, but on this visit she observed that things were not well, the fishing boats returned day after day with empty hauls. arguments and disputes broke out all over the usually peaceful town. More than ever, she felt the desire to help, rather than watch all that these people had achieved fall apart, because of misfortune. She flew out to sea and searched for many weeks looking for some sign or silvery shadow that would denote large shoals, or signs of other animals whose diet consisted of fish.

After two weeks of searching, she found a small isle and basking on its eastern shore were seals and many sea birds of varying types, and to her delight, she saw the silvery shadows of large shoals of varying fish, enough for both the Kelvar of the isle and the men of Edhellond. Flying swiftly back, she found the fishing fleet just outside the bay of Belfalas. She circled the lead ship screeching loudly and flying southwest, but they did not understand and would not follow. So she quickly flew back to the isle and swooped down plucking a fat herring from the water and flying back to the ship and depositing it at the feet of the lead ships captain. Then when the captain looked up, she screeched again and began to fly toward the isle, this time the fleet did follow.

However, as the isle came into view the large fishing vessels stopped. “Meneltarma, Atalantë!” some of the men whispered, but she did not understand their hesitation, again and again she swooped down plucking fish from the sea and depositing them at the feet of the captains, but still they would go no further west. Not understanding she perched on the side of the lead ship and cocked her head at the ships captain. He was tall and strong of build, but for all his long days, at sea he was fairer than the other men of Gondor were and as he regarded the confused bird, his grey eyes sparkled with an ancient sorrow and knowledge.

“I am sorry my friend, but we can go no further, that Isle is all that remains of the once great kingdom of Númenor or Akallabeth as it is more commonly known by those who remember their history of old.“

Although the ships would go no further they did cast out their nets, three days passed with no avail but on the fourth day their patience finally paid off and they pulled the largest haul they had ever seen, catching a bounty of large deep salt-water fish. The return journey was a joy for her to watch, their spirits lifted they spent the evenings in song and storytelling, their voices lifted in mirth and laughter.

She made several journeys with the men of Edhellond, and learned much listening to the tales of the fishing captain, who the others called Aerandil. The sailors of the fishing vessels saw her as a good omen and she often helped them to find good fishing spots, but often her gaze would turn westward hoping to to catch a glimpse of the sacred lands to the west that Aerandil had spoken of in his sad tales about the Lords of Númenor.

One day when the fleet returned to the fishing grounds near where the star isle once stood, she decided to go see if she could see the fair towers of the Eldamar of which Aerandil spoke. But as she passed over Meneltarama, a great storm arose from the sea and engulfed her, before even she could return and warn the ships of its approach. She fought hard to stay in the air, but the strong winds pulled her down and with her feathers water logged she fell to the ground. How long she lay unconscious on the small isle she did not know, but when she awoke the memory of a dream remained with her and no longer did she desire to travel west, instead an urgency to head south grew within her.

In the dream, a large stone city rose from the sands and cast a dark shadow over the desert lands. In this dream, she also saw a strange battle, small olive skinned men fighting each other and animals of varying shapes and sizes aided both sides. Above them, all loomed a large dark shadow that she could not make out, in the blood red of the setting sun.

Remembering the dream, she shuddered. It was now five years since she first had the dream, and although urgency had initially welled within her, the further she got from the isle the more she thought the dream unimportant and no more than a feverish nightmare. She strayed from her course, lingering for a time in the forests and mountains of the North, but over the past year, the dream returned, haunting her and in the hope of finding some release from its torment she came south, if not only to prove to herself it was nothing but a dream.

But the longer she remained in these lands the more uncomfortable she felt, finding the young man in the desert was hap stance or so she believed. But now as she thought on her feelings regarding the young mans presence in the city and how wrong and out of place it had seemed, she realised that it was not only him, but his whole household and even herself, who did not belong in the city of the Corsairs, In the city she felt caged and restricted… suffocating! But out here in the desert, she felt free and at one with the land, a freedom that brought with it a strong sense of familiarity.

As she tried to digest these thoughts and the fear she had experienced at the sight of the cities soldiers along with the slowly emerging memories of her past, something caught her eye. A rider less horse! The beast stopped just outside the cave she was perched above and a moment later a spotted leopard darted past into the cave, but the horse remained un-startled, stranger still the beast followed the dangerous predator inside.

After some debate with herself about the danger, her curiosity got the better of her and she flew down to the ground and cautiously walked inside. The horse much to her relief was still alive and stood quietly just inside the opening, venturing further she saw the big cat curled up, seemingly asleep at the rear of the cave. Cocking her head, she watched the gentle rise and fall of the beast’s chest as it slept.

“What a strange friendship!” she mused quietly. The leopard stirred causing her to jump, suddenly realising how venerable she was in this enclosed space she tried to get out quickly, but as she jumped up to take quick flight she misjudge the height of the caves roof and hit her head hard, falling to the ground.

“Ouch” she whispered, groggily, rubbing her head under her wing.