Elven Legacy

Chapter 124

Noah

When his senses returned, everything lay quiet, like a vast sound-absorbing blanket had been spread out over his surroundings. There wasn't the slightest hush of wind or the distant song of birds. A gentle light bathed his face, teased his eyelids, beckoning them to open. But before he did, he had time to realize just how good, how impossibly whole he felt. It struck him that he hadn't felt this great in months, maybe even years. His mind was well-rested and completely clear, like there was no residue of alcohol left in his system, as if everything had been cleansed. The headaches and hangovers were faraway memories. Any bruises or aches he may have collected were gone. Instead, the muscles in his lower back protested mildly, something that would be fixed simply by sitting up and stretching. And he felt somewhat hungry, but it was a pleasant appetite more than a distracting need.

But then, as he breathed in, the air was not fresh and pure as he'd expected it to be. His nostrils caught the acrid scent of scorched skin and hair, and the memory of burning in Abyss' fire tumbled onto him like an avalanche. Panic kicked under his heart and jolted him upright, his eyes opening wide and looking down at his arms, his hands.

Fine.

His skin was fine. In fact it was perfect, without any scratches, callouses or dryness. A strand of raven hair fell in his eye as he looked down at the rest of himself. Everything was intact, though the ground beneath him was scorched black. And his clothes were different now – he wasn't even sure he should call them clothes. They were like a second skin, perfectly adapted to his body but not tight enough to be uncomfortable, and if he looked closely, they seemed made of uneven strips of strange silky fabric, of a deep, rich color somewhere between gray and dark green.

"You're all right." The voice was gentle and melodious, so familiar and welcome he thought his heart might burst.

"Kili," he breathed out as he looked up, and there she was, slender and pale, sitting with him on their bed of blackened ground. Her onyx eyes held a soft brightness, a silver glow, beckoning and sincere, just like the velvet black lips that formed the most charming of smiles.

She reached out to brush his hair back from his face, but before she could do so, Noah took her in his arms and pulled her flush against him. He sighed shakily and closed his eyes as he buried his face in her hair, breathing in its sweet fragrance of subtly-scented roses. He wasn't yet ready to glance at the rest of the world. Especially since she held him back with equally as much desperate longing.

"How are you here?" he whispered.

Gently but firmly, her hands slipped from his back and grasped his shoulders. She pulled away, and a strange, deep regret filled him, like saying goodbye. As if some part of him knew they'd never get to hold each other like this again.

Unable to shake it off, he looked at her, and her eyes held sadness too. Reflected in them, again, was that eerie silver glow.

"There was something I needed to do," she said, her voice soft yet firm, just like her hands on his shoulders before she let them drop. She sat back, as if to give him space. "Something I needed to give you."

It dawned on him, then, that the silver light shining on her beautiful face actually came from him. He touched his chest, the loose collar of the strange shirt allowing for direct contact. The catalyst was a perfect, flawless circle under his exploring fingertips. No more crescent-shaped hole. Not even a single tiny crack. As if it had never been carved in two pieces.

"I don't understand," he said warily, then noticed something else as he looked up again. Gods' sakes, how had he not realized until now?

Noah and Kili were the only mobile things in their entire surroundings. A small gasp of shock escaped him as he glanced everywhere around them. He'd never seen anything like it before, not even close.