Light of the Stone (Lord of the Rings Story)

2. Arabia's Coucil

Reiness walked into the tower, and slammed the door behind her; sliding down it. The tower was the only one on the palace, it was on the very back of the palace on the east side. It was Reiness' personal tower; the walls were white stone, but the floor was smooth mahogany wood. The torches were made of Reiness' own light, they gave off a soft, warm flood of light that made the tower feel...homey. The lower room had high ceilings and it curved around the stairs; spiraling upwards, the railing was made of twined wood with green and white vines wrapped around the curves. At the top of the stairs was Reiness' room, the entire back wall had been removed to reveal the view of the mountains in the distance. A stream ran through the room, cascading into a water fall that flowed over the edge of the tower; it made a sound that could put anyone to sleep.

Reiness sighed, she was exhausted.

"Eildron!" she called, still sitting down against the door.

From one of the leather couches, the tiny ball of white and black fur stirred and raised it's head. He looked like an ordinary white tiger cub, Arabia had rescued him a year ago during her journey over the mountains; he had been abandoned, so she'd taken him home and given her to Reiness as a birthday present. He was a White Tiger of the Edoras, and in time he would grow to become the size of a horse. He hopped up, stretched his long legs and trotted over to Reiness; he looked at her with curious green eyes.

"Mom has summoned her council, Eildron," she told him, stroking his fuzzy head," It looks like we could have another way."

Eildron narrowed his eyes, and pawed her arm; as if to ask why.

"The orcs attacked again, and left a message in black speech," Reiness said, standing back up.

She wore a white tunic (which was dusty from the battle), deep gold pants and leather boots; her silvery hair pulled around in a side braid. She walked back over to one of the couches and crashed down on it, sighing. There was a knock at her door, and Ronan walked in.

"How did find that?" Reiness asked.

"Find what?" Ronan replied, frowning.

"That writing, how'd you see it?"

"I saw an orc go into that garden, and I followed him; I saw him write the words."

"So...you shot him before he could tell us anything?"

"I wasn't thinking, I shot him when he was walking off.

"If you hadn't, we might have actually gotten something out of it."

"I didn't do it on purpose!" Ronan scowled.

"I know, I know!" Reiness said quickly," At least now the Council may come up with a solution."

Ronan snorted,

"If they feel like it," he muttered.

The next morning was buzzing as the kingdom rushed about, making preparations for the arrival of the Council.

Arabia's Council; a group of powerful beings in Middle Earth, was formed directly after the defeat of Sauron. Only her closest accomplices were on the Council, there was a total of fifteen at the time.

On the southeastern side of Cairences, built on the edge of the mountain, was a courtyard of white stone. Fifteen chairs were arranged in a circle around a pond with water as white as snow, a swirling mist surrounding it. On the edge of the cliff was a giant oak, with leaves greener than the greenest valley; it's bark was white and it's roots were visible as they dug into the other side of the cliff. This is the gathering place of the council.

Reiness sat on the edge of her seat in the dining hall; fidgeting around. It's not that she hated gowns, Elven gowns were quite comfortable, it's that she wasn't used to them. The gown she wore was a light-weight white gown that skimmed her toes, which were covered by soft, satin slippers. The embroidery was gold, it matched the amber-colored jewels pressed into the silver circlet that wrapped elegantly around her head. Her hair flowed freely around her shoulders, and the dress made her eyes seem even brighter.