Other Worlds Than These

[Midge]

Aerin listened while Nightshade expounded upon the Narnian Creator Aslan. There were several things she noticed, some that shocked her. However, as she opened her mouth to reply, a huge yawn is what came out instead.

Sighing, she said, "Nightshade, I am fascinated by what you have told me, and I would like to speak of this further, but for tonight, I am tired. We will have several hours of marching tomorrow morning, and I would be happy to continue this discussion then. I would, however, like to sleep now."

[Aikanáro]

Rivailen watched the group at the far table for a moment longer before giving a definite nod. 'I think we ought to,' she said quietly to Barufiniel. 'To be sure.'

To be sure of what she wasn't quite sure. Anahera was no more her responsibility than the dragon was, not really, but Rivailen couldn't help but want to make sure she was alright before they left her. It was as if by witnessing her arrival, by witnessing that portal, she had been drawn in. To whatever this was.

This wasn't something that displeased Rivailen. On the contrary, despite her misgivings, that part of her mind that told her not to spend any more time in the company of such strangeness lest it prove catching, Rivailen was in a way delighted to have seen something so rare and enigmatic.

She looked to Barufiniel again. 'Would you approach her first? She spoke more readily to you. I think that I frightened her.'

[Varnafindë]

Nightshade tried to hide a small amused smile at Aerin - all the new information had apparently been too much for her this late in the evening.

"Some sleep would be good," she agreed, "especially if we have far to travel tomorrow. Let's get ready - each in her own way," she winked, "and then retire."

[Midge]

After what proved to be a very refreshing sleep and a small but satisfying breakfast, Aerin and Nightshade set out for the village. Aerin supposed they would have maybe four or five hours at a pretty easy pace. For the first part of the morning, Aerin chose to walk beside Glaeren. She wanted to be closer to the badger, to hear better.

Aerin thought back to what Nightshade had spoken about the Creator previously.

"So... the first thing I'm wondering is.. Well, you mentioned he is not a tame lion. Does that mean he is wild, like a lion? I suppose you call him a lion because he is like a king, right? So he is your king, but you don't live in his country? And... did you say he appears to you? How marvelous! So you can see what he looks like and touch him? Or is he untouchable?

"As to the other story - the one where he sings the world into being - well, I can tell you the story that is told of our world. It is like yours, but different. But first, tell me what I want to know!"

[Varnafindë]

Nightshade was a bit confused.

"I call him a lion because he is a lion," she said. "The lion is the king of the beasts, like you say, and Aslan is king - but he is king of the whole world, not just of Narnia. He has other countries to take care of as well, he comes and goes like a wild lion, you cannot command him to stay in one place like a tame one.

"So he doesn't sit on the throne of Narnia. A Son of Adam or a Daughter of Eve - or, as during the Golden Age, two of each - should always sit there. But the current king isn't a good one, nor was his father before him. We need Aslan's help to have him mend his ways. Perhaps the Royal Four can do something."

She sighed. She didn't know in what way the help would come, but surely, if she could only tell Queen Susan - or Peter the High King - about it, surely something would be done.

Meanwhile, she enjoyed telling Aerin about the Great Lion.

"Aslan is son of the Emperor beyond the sea," she continued, "when he visits Narnia, he always comes from the East. And I don't think it's possible to travel to his country. Perhaps if you sail east, all the way to the end of the world, Aslan's Country will be beyond that - but if so, you wouldn't be able to return.

"He hasn't visited us for a long time. Not during my lifetime, perhaps not for a few hundred years, at least that anyone knows about. I would so much like to see him - but if he never appears during my lifetime, I know that I shall meet him when he welcomes me into his country, afterwards.

"And the stories that tell about him appearing, tell that he is indeed a lion. And he is not untouchable, no, not at all! It is said about Queen Lucy that she used to hug him and bury her face in his mane. She and her sister even rode on his back, at least once - but that is part of yet another story."

The thought of that story made Nightshade very still and solemn.

[Midge]

Aerin's mind was clearer after Nightshade spoke.

"Forgive me," she said. "I mistook you. It does make sense that in a world of Talking Beasts, your King would be a Beast as well." Aerin fell silent for a while. Then...

"It is remarkable," she continued. "In your world, the East is a place of hope and good. In this world, the West is where people look for light.

"I would like to tell you of the story of our world's creation. There is One called Ilúvatar, and he is neither Vala or Maia. Before the worlds were, he created beings called the Ainur from his thought and they sang songs of the mind of Ilúvatar.

"Then Ilúvatar arose and gave the Ainur a theme and told them to weave into it their own ideas, based on their gifts and powers. And thus were many things, including evil, introduced. For then, Ilúvatar stopped the Music and bade the Ainur to behold the Music they made taking shape as Arda, the world.

"Since then, many things have happened to shape the world into what it is now, but I would need much more time than we have to tell you of them. The history of Middle-Earth is vast and complicated, weaving in and out of itself, and involving the mightiest Vala and the lowliest Man.

"And so it is - your world and mine were created with song. How wondrous that such a similarity could be seen!"

She looked about them. "We have traveled far! We have only a short while longer until we arrive at the village. Is there anything else you want to know?"

[Midge]

The flowers falling over their shoulders were red. Mother and Father had told them, many festivals ago, that the color was the same as the dew from the Thulcandrian, Ransom. He had called it "Blood" or, in their language, "hru". The petals were soft and smooth, with a beautiful sheen which winked at them under the dim light from the roof of the sky. Lur loved to touch them, to feel the sleekness of the petals on his fingertips.

Lantura loved the flowers too, but not for their feel. She loved their scent. They were heady, but not too strong. The smell caught her up and took her straight to the feet of her maker, Maleldil. It was the beginning of the Birthing Festival - the anniversary of the day long ago when the world was born anew, under the rule of the twins' parents - Tor and Tinidril, the King and Queen, Father and Mother, Lady and Lord of Perelandra.

According to the custom decreed by their father Tor, as the flowers fell down, those gathered at the celebration raised their arms to receive the deliverance from evil which allowed their world to be reborn. The shy singing beasts, in accordance with their purpose, raised their voices to praise Maleldil for His glorious plans. Though the twins couldn't see them now, they knew the singing beasts looked noble as they unwittingly fulfilled this part of the ceremony on yet another glorious and joy-filled day in Perelandra.

[Varnafindë]

"There is one thing I have been wondering about the world of the Four Royal Siblings," Nightshade said. "Are there really no other intelligent beings here? Only Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve?"

[Midge]

Aerin was confused. Who were Adam and his sons, and Eve and her daughters?

"Intelligent beings? I know of no Adam or Eve. But we have many different intelligent beings. There are Elves, Men, Dwarves, Ents, Hobbits, Valar, Maiar, Orcs, Trolls, Dragons... And I know of one being who has the shape of a man, but calls himself the Oldest, saying he was here before the forests were, and that he saw them made." She paused a moment, to consider this. She'd never realized how many different races were in Middle-Earth. For the first time, she wondered at it.

"Each race is distinguishable from the others. I am an Elf. Men fall ill and die. Dwarves are shorter than Elves and Men, and they mine the earth for metal and gems. Ents look like trees, and they are the shepherds of the forests. Hobbits, when they are grown, have the shape of children, and they are a simple and hardy folk.

"The Valar and the Maiar are higher beings. The Valar are in Valinor and they are very powerful. The Maiar are also powerful, though lesser than the Valar. Orcs, Trolls and Dragons are evil beings. One of the Valar was evil, and he introduced evil to Middle-Earth. There are both good and bad Maiar."

She took a breath. "Who are the Sons of Adam and the Daughters of Eve?"

[Varnafindë]

"I'll try," Barufiniel said. She walked over to the group.

"We meet again, Anahera," she said, bowing her head in greeting. "I am sorry that we couldn't help you to get home when we met you earlier today - but I'm glad to see that you have met with more people here. Perhaps we can do something together."

She nodded to the two others in turn.

"I am Barufiniel, daughter of Rameldir," she said. "I come from Rivendell, and Rivailen here - " she pointed over to the woman standing a little way off "- directed me to this inn, to stay here for a little while before I go on to Minas Tirith. Are you people of Gondor?"

[Aikanáro]

Minas Tirith. That was where Elspeth had said her king lived. Ashkaio wondered if this woman was part of his household. She was, he could not help but notice, exquisitely beautiful. She had to be a noble lady of some kind, he felt that he could see it in her, that she would not be out of place in whatever court her people held.

Ashkaio stood to greet her. He did not bow, as that was not the custom when at table, but he smiled at her. 'I am Ashkaio Mirat dan-Kazhrun,' he told her, 'and I am not from Gondor. I am from a place called Tathera. It is far from here, sera. I do not think that you will know of it.'

Except that she knew of Anahera who was just as much an outsider here as he was, didn't she? He could not let the potential opportunity pass without saying more. 'You said that you will go to Minas Tirith. Are you intending to see the king?'

[Varnafindë]

Tathera. Barufiniel did indeed not know of it. Or, wait, wasn't there a city in Calormen by that name? - no, she remembered now, the name was only slightly similar. You're silly, she chided herself, he couldn't come from Calormen, Calormen doesn't belong to this world.

And then she realized that with this afternoon's events, that needn't be a hindrance ...

He certainly was a young nobleman, wherever he was from. He was well-dressed, and his bearing - well, he would not be out of place in whatever court he turned up at. He knew about Minas Tirith - perhaps he wanted to visit the court there?

"Seeing the King is indeed my intention," she said. "The Queen - Queen Arwen - is my kinswoman. Her father was the Lord of Rivendell, where I live. I even knew King Elessar when he was fostered there as a child. I visited them at Minas Tirith some years ago, soon after he had ascended to the throne, after the War of the Ring. Now I would like to see them again."

[Aikanáro]

He had been right, then, to think her connected to the royal household in some way. Even if she had remained somewhat vague as to the actual details, and some of what she had said - had their king really married his foster-sister, that he had known since childhood? Such a thing would have been heavily frowned upon in Tathera, as such bonds counted as only slightly less than blood kinship.

Ashkaio had only met his own intended bride, Aycharindel, when she had already grown to womanhood. At that point, she had come to live at Kazhrun-court so that they might get to know each other. If she had been fostered there as a child, it would indeed be as if she were his own sister! Ashkaio was not certain he was going to approve of the customs of this King Elessar's court.

He knew better than to express any hint of his surprise to this lady, Barufiniel. Remarking upon the customs of others was inappropriate for a person who needed to remain diplomatically sensitive. All the same, he thought it better that he repeat back her words, to be sure he had understood the relationships correctly.

'Let me see if I have it,' he said softly, smiling again. 'You are of the household of Rivendell-' that sounded like a place- rather than a house-name, but it was the only one she had given him, 'and blood-kin to your lord. You grew up with his daughter, who became Queen and married the king who was her foster-brother, and now you are to visit them in Minas Tirith?' He paused a moment, and then explained: 'I am here as a diplomatic emissary from Tathera, to meet with one of your lords, and I wonder if Minas Tirith might not be the place to find, if not him, at the very least information about his household of residence.'

[Varnafindë]

"Oh, but I didn't grow up with Arwen!" Barufiniel exclaimed. "She is far older than I - I'm only eight hundred years old. In fact, I didn't grow up at Rivendell at all - I lived elsewhere for my first five hundred years, and then went to Rivendell on my own after my parents left.

"And two hundred years later, the little boy who is now the King, was brought to Rivendell after his father was killed by Orcs. Arwen wasn't at home then, she was staying with her grandmother for some years - he never saw her until he was twenty years old. Then he fell immediately in love with her, but she didn't think much of him at first. Not until much later.

"He is mortal man, you see, he is human. And Arwen and her father and I are Elf-kind. We grow old only along with the earth, and if we aren't killed, by murderers or in battle, we will only die at the end of the world. We are not plagued by sickness. For all practical purposes we are immortal.

"So Arwen wasn't impressed with this mere boy until he grew up and became more mature. But then she fell for him, too, and gave up her immortality to stay with him.

"Oh, sorry if I'm rambling and bothering you with love stories! The Royal Court at Minas Tirith is indeed where you should go to look for one of our lords. I may have heard of him, of course - what is his name?"

[Aikanáro]

This time, Ashkaio didn't so much as try to conceal his disbelief. He shook his head. 'Sera, you do me a discourtesy with such words. Tathera is perhaps not so grand a place as your own court, and perhaps I am only a boy to your eyes, but do not take me for an ignorant fool. While many great lords might wish that they would live forever, that is not the nature of things. It is a thing unchanging across the worlds, for the Sacred Word has made it so.'

He frowned, not knowing what to make of her speech, for he could not see the mockery he expected to in her eyes. 'If your lord's tale, the truth of it, is one you would not share with an outsider and a stranger, then that is well and I will not ask again. But do not tell me you have eight hundred years behind you when you look to be not so very much older than myself.'

[Midge]

The next part of the celebration was the most anticipated part. Only Tor and Tinidril had seen and met Ransom, who vanquished the evil one and rescued both Tinidril from his temptings and Perelandra from an evil fate.

After the evil one was gone, Tor, Tinidril and Ransom (and many beasts also) had been summoned to the peak where Lur and Lantura now sat. There, along with the eldila - the spirits who place themselves in the worlds as people place themselves in water - they spent an entire year glorifying Maleldil and his plans. Tor now stood and recounted the kinds of things that were said during that year. Every festival, Maleldil recalled to his mind different sayings which were said. A whole year's worth of praise cannot be recounted in an hour.

Lur was listening to his father very intently when he heard the voice of Maleldil in his head: Beloved. Lur, my son. You shall go to the floating island. You will be made older there. You shall never be oldest in this world, but you shall be older in this matter than your father is. Go. You shall leave this hour. He glanced at Lantura. They were neither older than the other. All things they learned, they learned together. Maleldil always gave this gift to them. Lur saw that now was no different. Lantura usually listened to her father's speech with eyes half-closed, making sure to remember the words said of Maleldil, for they were precious. Yet now her eyes were wide open and not focused on anything in front of her, but were aimed slightly upwards, as if Maleldil was fixed behind the sky roof. Lur found himself asking Maleldil,

Which floating island? There are many on the seas of Perelandra.

I will put into the mind of the fish who carry you which island. You shall not need to direct the fish. Their joy shall be in carrying you as yours is in riding on their backs. You shall live there for a time as your parents did before the world was reborn. Then Lur heard the voice become quiet in his mind.

[Varnafindë]

Barufiniel stared at Ashkaio. He thought she was lying to him - and lying in order to mock him?

"I'm so sorry - I meant no offense!" she said. "That 'mere boy' - I was only referring to him at that time, I didn't mean to imply the same about you! You are a diplomatic emissary from your people, you're a mature man, I usually look for maturity rather than years in mortals. Years don't affect my people - it's not a lie! - so I tend not to think much about them, until they move my mortal friends close to death."

She stopped, and shook her head a little - how could she convey the right message to him?

"To live forever in this world is indeed not the nature of things," she said. "Even the world itself will not last forever. It will end. And my people, who are bound to the world, will end with it. The mortals, on the other hand, are free from it when they die, and they go somewhere else, which we don't know about. This is their gift from the Creator."

Then something struck her.

"You say this thing is unchanging across the worlds - you know about other worlds, then?" she asked. "Anahera here came through a portal from a different world earlier today, and she wants to go home - as she has probably told you. And my parents went through a portal to a different world before I was born, and I was born in that world and grew up there. I came here through the same portal they had gone through, to the same day they had left from. After that I went to Rivendell."

Could he even be ... on a day like this ...

"Tathera - would that possibly be a different world?"

[feawen]

Elspeth listened to the conversation unfold. Anahera had lost the meaning of the words, no one lived that long and so she had stopped listening.
However when Ashkaio become upset at the prospect of Barufiniel mocking him Elspeth spoke up, "She is telling the true. Elves live a very long time! Didnt i tell you about elves and drawfs when we first met?"

Anahera stopped staring out of the window only when she heard her name. She still didnt much like these women and as of yet she was undecided about the posh man and his helper lady. "Blue light in sky, not natural!" She muttered. "Shiny unuseful things and smelly noisy villagething. All not natural" She reverted back into her own tongue muttering something.

[Aikanáro]

Ashkaio looked from Elspeth back to Barufiniel. He could see now, at least, that she believed what she had said and was not intending to deceive him. Perhaps it was even true. He bowed his head slightly. 'I accept the apology, sera, and I thank you for making your words clearer to me.'

She, unlike Elspeth, knew also about the doorways that opened to other worlds, and so no preliminary explanations were needed there. 'Tathera is not the name of the world,' he explained, 'but of a great city within it. The city of Tathera is the home of my family, House Kazhrun, and my mother's brother is our ensi, that is the word we have in the old speech for the ruling lord of a city-state. I have come through the doorway between worlds to search for a man named Yagluk. He is a great lord, or at the very least the commander of a mighty army.' Despite his best attempts at neutrality, it was clear from the flatness in his tone that Ashkaio was no admirer of this Yagluk.

He paused, cleared his throat. 'Will you not sit at table with us?' he asked suddenly, aware of the fact that they both were still standing. 'I would like to learn more of what you have said. I will tell you of the tradition of our people, of impermanence as the nature of things. Before the beginning was Ansuki, she who created all of existence. She birthed her creation not of her body but out of a word. That is the Sacred Word of our people, and Ansuki is to us Ninsha-Tavehi, that is the Mother of the World. That word she spoke is unknowable to us, up until the point of our own deaths, when we shall hear it from her lips and become wise. I would ask you, if it does not offend, whether the Creator you spoke of is our own Lady Ansuki, by another name. Might she have decreed that your people will not pass on in wisdom until the world's ending?'

If that were true, Ashkaio did not know what to think of it. Tradition said that the world was given for their delight, and they ought to enjoy it while their lives lasted, and certainly no-one would seek to hasten the end, but to live forever? It was, as he had said, simply not the nature of things. Perhaps Barufiniel spoke truly to say that Ansuki had given his people a gift.

[Varnafindë]

"May I extend your invitation to sit with you at table to my friend Rivailen as well?" Barufiniel asked, indicating the other woman. "What you tell about your Creator is very interesting - I should need to think about it a little.

"Meanwhile, about your errand - this lord or commander Yagluk, I've never heard of anyone by that name in the service of King Elessar. If he commands a mighty army, I guess it must be in a different part of Middle-earth, further to the south or east, not in the united kingdoms of Arnor and Gondor. Unless you've ended up in the wrong world altogether?"