The Search For Kathea, A Leap Into Facing The Ravenous Darkness

 The Search For Kathea, A Leap Into Facing The Ravenous Darkness

     As they proceed along their way, the words to a song come into her mind,

     'If you're goin' through hell, keep on going

     Don't slow down, if you're scared don't show it

     You might get out before the devil even knows you're there.'

     She prays whoever wrote those words knows the truth about them and that they came to her at a time when she needed them most. They are within sight of the 'mind' they came to find when words are shouted into the Aether, "He comes, hurry, we will shield you as best we can but you must hurry."

     She reaches the plinth with a small Mantella sitting on it. "We don't have time to free him here. We will have to take the Mantella with us and free him when we get back to Telios." Iriisii grabs the Mantella and whispers to the mind trapped within, "we are here to rescue you, but we must run now. We will release you later when we return to your old body on Telios." She feels more than hears the mind within nod its figurative head in acceptance, as she grabs the gem and turns back in a race to the 'Bridge'.

     Letting out a near-constant barrage of 'chirps' she, Dettlaff, and Reaper, run full out for the Rainbow Bridge. Dodging plinths, rocks in the dead dust, corpses of trees dead for uncounted years, they reach about fifty yards from the 'Bridge'. Feeling the presence of the Ravenous Darkness, she calls a halt and they place themselves in battle formation. Facing the direction she feels 'him' coming from, she notes the feeling inside her, and remembers when she first felt that presence.

     She shakes her head, no, now is not the time to revisit that memory, now is the time to face the present, not the past. She sends a quick mental message to Byrsael, 'he is almost here, let me begin this, if we fight, hold until you have a clean shot, then take it. Tell Thor and Baldur the same, use the 'Catalyst' but be careful.' Byrsael returns, 'we will do as you have instructed, please, take no chances. I love you!' Iriisii smiles deeply within, feeling the power within those three words strengthen her for what comes.

     Then 'he' is there, ahead she sees the swirling cloud, if possible even darker than the blackness of this dead Realm. 'He' is stopped, not moving, observing her, she senses memories within him coming to the fore unbidden. Maybe there remains some semblance of intelligence in him maybe all is not insanity, a very faint whisper, 'wait and see'. And so she motions Dettlaff and Reaper to stand ready, but wait for her to initiate combat.

     A mental voice as grating as chalk grinding on a slate, "you! I...know...you, I...remember!"

     "I should think that you should, you prove not all of your mind is lost to insanity. What do you remember about our first meeting?"

     "You...hurt...me. Why?"

     "You were going to do something I saw as wrong. You were pursuing those scientists that had created those AI's. Why were you doing that?"

     "Wanted...them...to...fix...me."

     "Fix you? How could they do that?"

     "Stop...the..., no...words...to...describe. No...words...can...describe."

     "Can describe what?"

     "Not...what...who."

     "Wait, you have no words to describe a 'who'? The ones who made you what you are?" 

     "No, who...used...them...to...make...me. They...knew...not...who...was...using...them. Even...as...he...used...me...to...consume...them.

     "But you did more than that. You destroyed their entire civilization, a people that spanned whole galaxies, and you left entropy in your wake."

     "They...would...have...stopped...him. Kept...him...from...being...whole. He...said...they ...had...to...die."

     "Who is he, who is the one who used them to bring you into existence. Who has used you to destroy all life where ever you went? TELL ME WHO HE IS!!!"

     "You...know...who...he...is. He...said...I...am...nothing...next...to...you. I...am...a...flawed...tool. You...are...perfection...incarnate. You...are...the...one...he...wants, not...me, not...me, NOT...ME!"

     And with that pronouncement, she feels a dark sinking come over her. It all fits together now, she knows the 'who', she knows the 'why', and all she needs now is the 'how'.

     "BUT I DO NOT WANT HIM!"

     "It...matters...not. He...will...not...stop...until...you...are...his. And...I...am...cast...aside. The...only...way...he...will...accept...me...is...if...you...and...I...are...one."

     "You know he will never accept that! He knew you would try this and so he let us meet once more."

     "But...why...would...he...do...this. If...there...is...no...way...for...me...to...be...his?"

     "Because he knows I will defeat you in the end. And you will no longer be a problem for him to consider. I thought there might be a way this would not have to happen. Sadly, I can not see a way to make it happen. We will meet one more time and then it will be decided for all times to come. You or I, one of us will win, and one of us will lose, but not until that time is upon us."

     "You...will...not...have...him, he...will...take...me. I...will...be...his...only...choice. You...must...die...now!"

     Iriisii moves forward to attack him, Dettlaff and Reaper coming in from the sides. They have difficulty landing any blows while not getting too close. The covering blackness around him hides his physical body. All they can do is to keep striking, hoping to score a lucky hit, until he grows frustrated and opens himself to a ranged hit.

     Byrsael is holding ready, she has the Catalyst ready to apply to their weapons. When the Ravenous Darkness does indeed grow frustrated, he makes a mistake, and Iriisii's blade strikes, causing deep pain within him. The pain he has not thought to feel since he plunged through the walls of the wormhole to escape being destroyed when it collapsed. He then decides he has no choice, she will not stop and she is protected from his abilities somehow. He begins to open himself.

     But doing so on the surface of a world rather than out in boundless space triggers a gravity distortion, and quakes rock the area. The movement of the surface is felt even through the 'Bridge', as Byrsael was applying the Catalyst to Thor's hammer, Mjolnir. The Catalyst does contact the hammer's face, but so does Byrsael's hand when she stumbled. Thor reaches to help her up, not noticing the Catalyst shining on her hand as it is absorbed through her skin. She shouts to him to throw Mjolnir now, before it is too late, then recall it.

    He looks toward the Ravenous Darkness and sees the opening within its protective barrier. Choosing his path, he shouts, "FOR ASGARD AND ELYSIA!" and lets Mjolnir fly. The hammer takes on a blue glow the closer it approaches the Ravenous Darkness. 'He' starts trying to close the hole he has opened but it is too slow a process. Mjolnir coated in the Catalyst, strikes, and a howl of tormented pain erupts from the Ravenous Darkness. 

    The minds of all in the battle are struck by the backlash of pain. When she can. Iriisii looks to where the Ravenous Darkness was, but now no sign can be seen. She gathers up the crystal with the mind trapped inside, gets Dettlaff and Reaper to their feet, and staggers to the Rainbow Bridge. As they pass from Elysia to Asgard, Iriisii sees Byrsael drop to the bridge floor. She goes to her and immediately smells the Catalyst.

     "Somehow she came into contact with the Catalyst, I have to get her to Asgard, now! The ritual cannot be done here, this close to the Ravenous Darkness, it is too dangerous. I am going to open a portal for us". But before she can, they are standing at the gate. Heimdall, watching from his station has recalled the Bridge to get them back as quickly as he could.

     "There are healers coming from the Temple, what can I do to help?"

     "Just watch over us, let no one disturb us while the Ritual goes on. We will be oblivious to everything outside of our minds. If we should go transparent or vanish, do nothing but wait for us. I have no idea of what we will encounter in this, or how long it will take."

     Iriisii sits, then lays herself alongside Byrsael, holding her in her arms, her head on Iriisii's chest, as she whispers to her, "hold on, my love, I am coming to you. Do not move until I am with you." As she inhales the odor of the Catalyst enveloping Byrsael's body, she is drawn inward into her mind, into a battlefield strewn with bodies of men, elves, dwarves, orcs, and goblins. The dead, the dying, the maimed and wounded, lying in pools of mixed blood on the ground, while just a short way, the battle continues. A tall, dark armored figure, surrounded by armored men and elves, being swept away, broken, like ragdolls, upon being hit by the gigantic mace the dark figure is wielding. Back and forth, the mace is swung, more bodies flying through the air.

     Iriisii spots Byrsael as she is running to enter the fray, her sword in hand. Then in an instant, the dark figure stops, its attackers frozen in time. He points an armored finger at Byrsael and speaks, "not this day young one! You will not die at my hands, but rather I would extend my hand to you to live."

     "I will never take your hand in that manner!"

     "Perhaps not now, but later still remains to be seen. You have proven yourself powerful and resilient, and now even more beautiful as you blossom. A worthy woman to stand at my side.

Your companion is another story."

     "Leave her alone! You are not worthy to even be the dogshit on the bottom of her shoes!"

     The dark figure laughs, "true, I am not worthy of one as powerful as she is. But he whom I serve is another matter." Looking at Iriisii, "My master and yourself share a common goal."

     "And what goal would that be?"

     "Both of you would see to the defeat of the 'Blind Dreamer'. He is no friend or ally to my master, who would offer an alliance to defeat a common enemy."

     "Don't listen, you cannot trust anything this serpent says!"

     "You would ally with both light and dark against a common foe. This you have said and demonstrated by your actions."

     "I have, so speak what your master would have me hear from your mouth."

     "Simply this, he would ally himself and those he commands in your service for the purpose of defeating the 'Blind Dreamer'. You know as well as my master that the 'Blind Dreamer' is not of our Creation, but seeks to turn it to his desires. There would be no place for any of us, light, dark, good, evil if he takes control."

     "I am aware of this, you know this is why I keep going. Why I climb higher, ever higher up the Celestial ranks. To be able to stop him from implementing his plans, and put me between him and our Creation."

     "My master knows this as well. He knows you are the only one who has chosen to do this, but as you stand for the Balance, there must be one of Good, and one of Evil, to stand with you against him. He would be the one of 'Evil' to stand with you. As to who would be the one of 'Good', that one has yet to reveal themself."

     "And what of the 'Gray Paths'?"

     "You already have their contribution among your number. My master knows the time is not yet when all are needed to come together. He will speak with you later when the time approaches for your decision."

     And in a flash of dark shadow, the figure disappears, and the battlefield vanishes with him, leaving Iriisii and Byrsael in rolling green countryside, a bright sun shining down, wildflowers gently moving in a cool breeze. And another voice adds to the conversation, "he can still speak with gentleness and flowers when he wants to. A pity he had to give himself over to his darker desires."

     "And who are you supposed to be and why are you interfering with this Ritual?"

     "My apologies, I did not intend to interfere, but your presence within this sphere of influence is, shall we say, concerning and enlightening at the same time."

     "I take it you do not get many Celestial visitors then?"

     "That would be putting it mildly, yes."

     "Well besides the point that I am wed to Byrsael, have spent time as a Ranger helping to protect the Shire, and thought enough of it to purchase property as well as build a home here. It did not sit well with me when she came to me in Cyrodiil almost at death's door just to say goodbye. She was lucky in that I and others of mine were able to do what the most accomplished of your Elven healers were not able to do."

     "So it was you who removed the shard of the Morghul Knife from her?"

     "Yes, I, Illyria, and Rigmor, we removed it, almost to her heart had it reached. We then scant days later, destroyed that shard by Dragonfire. I asked Byrsael to marry me then, the thought of losing her a second time, was more than I could bring myself to bear."

     "A second time?"

     "I went to the 'Grey Havens' to see her off to the Western Lands, almost I asked her to come away with me. But I knew this was her will, and I would not gainsay it, no matter how much pain I would suffer because of it."

     "I understand, your sense of honor is indeed great that you would put her wishes ahead of your own. But as to why I am here, what we have heard of you, while very surprising is also concerning."

     "You are concerned because I do more than pay lip service to the Great Balance. That I, how would it be said, consort with agents of the dark?"

     "You have to admit it would be concerning to us who tend to do battle with the dark."

     "I know only that those who follow 'ultimate good' have betrayed those they were to guide. The only hope our Creation has is to thread the path between 'good' and 'evil', if either one wins the coming battle, Creation is doomed."

     "Surely you cannot..."

     Iriisii holds up a hand for silence, "I once fought the dark while espousing that I followed the balance. I learned the hard way of my folly. I saw too many of my brothers and sisters fall, while the rest only said they were not strong enough to stay on the path. It took being enslaved within my own body, learning the skills of the assassin, plying that trade on the orders of another who held my chains, to make me see the error of my ways.

     If 'good' truly worked as it was intended, then why did I suffer such a fate? It was my first mate, Rigmor Ragnarsdottier, who taught me how to love again. And that for me to love another, I had to relearn how to love myself. To do that I had to question everything I had been taught about the Gods. Only to find out that the priests knew less about the truth of the Gods than I did.

     It was only when I subjected myself to them, completely, that I learned the truth of them. And my feet were set upon the path that I still tread this day."

     "What was it that you learned?"

     "That the Gods have other matters of far greater import to deal with than the lives of the mere mortals that seek to worship them. But that to deal with this inequity, the Aurbis brought into being, the Ascended Ones. Mortals that came in whatever way to reach for and pass their 'Test of Apotheosis'. It may take many different forms, called by just as many names, but the result is the same. The ascension of a mortal to Godhood. 

     They, at first anyway, remembered their mortality, still felt for the mortals they left behind. And tried to do their best to guide and mentor them, until those who were born Gods, distracted them and caused them to become like they were and forget their mortality. Some few turned away from this and stayed on the path, those were the ones who saw in me what they felt was needed to set Mundus on the course they wished for it to take.

     I will not bore you with all that happened, I set the course for my Realm, and those beyond looking for someone to take up the task of trying to right the balance of Creation saw what I had done for Mundus. Saw that I was already on the path they needed someone to tread. And so they nudged me along until it was too late for me to turn away, because I had seen the price to be paid for that and I would not let Creation come to naught, would not see my children inherit a dead fate. I wanted them to live, to grow, to love. And for that reason, I looked above me, and found those Gods who watched and guided me. Then asked for knowledge of how Creation worked. They told me what I could understand and said as I progressed, I would learn more and more of the truth.

     And I learned how broken things had become, because those whose task it was to oversee and protect, did not do their job. Those who follow the light and the dark knew what was happening, knew the highest and lowest had lost their way, and no longer cared. So they kept looking for someone both sides could follow so that they could get behind that one and help restore what had been lost. The 'Mother of the Cosmos' searched the timelines to find just the one she needed to step up and fill the gap. She found me and set about training me using life events. And so we are here now.

     I care not if you and yours are concerned about where I seek allies from. The alternative, well there is no alternative. It is me or nothing. I will do what I must to accomplish what I see are the tasks that I encounter as I go forward. I will accept help and assistance from whoever will offer it but do not think that I am naive in thinking that some will not attempt to turn on me when the current crisis is over. I know that they will and I will be prepared for it. The first step in avoiding a trap is knowing of its existence. Now if there is nothing else, I need to attend to Byrsael, she has much to learn as I did when I underwent this ritual."

     "What is it you hope for her to learn from this?"

     "To find out who she really is, what she wants to be, what the cost of that will be, and is she ready to pay that cost. Then to show her there are many more possibilities than just the one she starts with, and maybe one of them is better for her. Ultimately to find the path to the destiny that she wants above all others, to find a path that she is willing to pay the price to tread."

     "And are you still following the path you saw when you did this ritual?"

     Iriisii smiles and says, "what do you think?"

     The white-haired, and bearded gentleman in white robes, bows to her, "I think you have gone past the point you saw last. I think you are making your destiny as you tread the path your footsteps are moving upon. Further, I think you are ready for what comes next, the question is now, is what comes next ready for you? We will speak again at another time, follow your own path and all will work out as you will it."

     He then fades away and the scene shifts yet again, this time they see what Iriisii saw when she first entered this realm, naught but the river of time flowing forward with all of its branches spreading out like a paper fan. She thinks about just who that old man was, the questions he asked, and the comments he made, leading her to open her thinking to him. About what she had learned along the path of her life and how it had shaped her decisions. Being within Byrsael's mind it would be easy to assume he was one of the wizards of her Realm, but she thinks he was far more than that. Maybe he has links to wizards in many realms, or maybe they all partake a little from him. But this is Byrsael's time, and something tells her this might be just as difficult as Rigmor's was, just in a different way.

     "We can think about what we saw and heard later, for now, we must concentrate on you. Know that I will not leave you, I am here with you though, whatever happens, I will show you what you must do, lend you my strength, but the final decisions are yours to make. Do you know what direction you wish to go in, what it is that burns in your heart and soul, where you want to be as far down this river as you can bear to see?"

     "I really am not certain what it is I truly want to be and do."

     "That is just fine, we can start with lesser things and see where they lead."

     "The Shire! I want to keep my ties to the Shire, the hobbits, the land, all of it."

     "Good, we will start there, take up the strands of your life from the river, then think of the Shire, the hobbits, sitting on a streambank fishing as they smoke their pipes. The smoke forms a small cloud above them until the breeze blows it away. The sounds of their children as they climb the apple trees in the orchard, chase the sheep and goats, terrorize the chickens until the rooster fights back. The smells wafting out from their kitchen windows make your mouth water in anticipation. Keep these things in mind and let your mind separate those from the rest."

     Iriisii patiently waits as Byrsael separates those from everything else and lets the rest flow back into the river.

     "Now do not think of what is next, let your heart think instead of your mind."

     "How do I do that?"

     "Be quiet and listen, hear the song that flows from mine, yours is a part of that song. When you hear it, let it resonate through you, let it sort the strands you still hold, find the ones that sing your song back to you."

     Slowly she finds what Iriisii is speaking of, lets it fill her, then uses it to sort what remains. As she looks at them she sees somewhere the Shire flourishes, and somewhere it is no longer there, still, others where it is scarred but still vibrant, still alive. Surprising to her is that it is these last that Iriisii bids her look more closely at. She starts to question why but stops herself and takes a deeper look.

     What she sees surprises her, the hobbits had the power to heal the scars but chose instead to keep them as memorials. She sees the commemorations that take place on the anniversaries of those events, where adults who remember gather to speak and teach the children what they learned from what happened. She looks more broadly about and sees people of all races visiting, trading, and a few settling down. The traders are both light and dark, with the dark able to cross over into the light in order to deal fairly with the Shirefolk, and are welcomed in turn.

     They are no longer so insular, although they do not as a whole journey themselves, they keep up with news and events all over Middle Nirn, for they have learned the hard way that simply keeping to themselves does not mean they will be ignored when trouble comes knocking at the door. The Elves it seems have all retreated to the Western Lands, the Wizards still walk about seeing to whatever they can, but the main group that acts as guardians is as it has always been, the Rangers.

     She thinks to herself, although it pains me to see the scars in the land, I see where this is the better path for the Shire. They have learned to look beyond their borders, even though they do not have to be a part of the rest of Middle Nirn, they need to know what goes on in order to protect themselves. She looks toward Iriisii, "you see why I told you to look at these paths rather than discard them. Sometimes the best way is not the one that shines brightest in our eyes. Now let us see your part in these paths, and which of these is also best for you."

     Byrsael somewhat fearfully looks for herself in these remaining paths, not knowing if she is even there or what part she plays if any. As she sorts through she does find herself, but the roles are greatly varied in where they go and what they say and mean about her. Some force her to sit back and search deep to see the faults and the heights that she sees evidenced in the threads.

     "There is time to reflect on what you see, none of us, even me, are perfect or get all our decisions and actions right. It is about accepting responsibility for our faults and doing what we can to change ourselves in response to what we see. You know I have not always followed the path others thought I should, did things others disagreed with me on. This is why learning that all I have been taught is not necessarily correct. 'Right thinking' and 'moral doing' are often in the mind of those judging others for what they did, but are never applied to those doing the judging.

     It is a constant struggle not to fall into that trap. But the higher we go, the greater the consequences if we do fall. Thus we must approach everything with open eyes and no preconceived judgments of what is right or wrong. Judge your actions on what comes from them, and adjust your future decisions to keep between the extremes. We will never stay exactly within the center, but as long as we do not stray too far to one side or the other, all benefit from our decisions."

     "When you take the 'Mantle of the Mother' how will you reorder Creation?"

     "That is a question I think of most often. For what is the true purpose of 'Good' and 'Evil', 'Light' and 'Dark', all I can do is the best that I can. Look at what has happened with the current holders and see what changes when they are changed. Some will be changed, and some will remain the same. I look more for 'balance' between them all as a whole rather than one over the other."

     As Byrsael continues her deep dive into the remaining threads, she looks at her relationships to see what diversity of outcomes is present. It is there that she sees the most frightening scenes, for in each and every single one she is standing next to 'Sauron' in his dark armor, and nowhere is Iriisii or any others seen. She points this out to Iriisii, who looks into it as well.

     This is unusual, to say the least, we need to back up with these and see where this situation becomes solid within the timelines. So they jump back a bit at a time until they see an absence of 'him' and Byrsael together. 

     "Now we need to slowly go forward to see what happened and when. Then we can evaluate if there is some manipulation going on here."

     It is not long before they find what they are looking for, at least Iriisii recognizes the problem.

     "Here there has been manipulation of the timelines, whether it is direct or indirect, we need to look further."

     "What do you mean by direct or indirect?"

     "Direct is exactly that, someone changing time according to a set outcome across all affected timelines. Indirect is an event within a timeline occurring that is so overwhelming that it commands change within several timelines.

     We must be careful because the power of either needed to do it without causing a paradox is very great. We are looking only for what happened, not to intervene. We can decide what is needed to be done then after consulting with our advisors."

     They slowly make their way through the events that they watch unfold. The unease continues to grow as they get closer to the crux event. Byrsael asks Iriisii to stop for a brief time.

     "I do not know for sure, but something is telling me I should go no further. That the risk to me is too great if I do."

     "Share it with me, let me see and feel what you do."

     As Byrsael does as Iriisii asks, Iriisii tasks herself to trace where it is coming from and is greatly surprised to find it coming from Byrsael's past. Her ancestral memories have yet to come forward, yet one is pushing this feeling toward her conscious nonetheless.

     "Come forth and speak of what you know!" And Iriisii opens the way to let this one memory come forward. A tall, older man in robes walks forward, some of the other memories shirking him, turning their backs on him. "Can you explain why so many of the other memories are shunning you?"

     "Indeed, it is tied up in so much of who you are, and the gifts that lie dormant within you, Daughter of Gondor."

     "Then please tell us what you know, so that we can understand what it is that is going to happen."

     "Please start with your name, good sir, and why the reaction from the others, for I do not sense any reason of alignment for it."

     "I was called, Lorian Whiteoak when I lived."

     "This is strange, I have studied the Tree of Ancestors, in my studies as a youth. I recall no mention of your name at all, yet you are here, so you must have a place."

     "I was exiled from the family, my name stricken from all records for all time. Not for any crime, at least not what would be considered a crime now."

     "I begin to see, you are obviously not a Ranger, which some generations ago, in the family, for a male not to follow would indeed be a high crime. Pray, tell me what life course did you follow?"

     "I became a wizard."

     "Now it makes sense, that would be the ultimate insult to generations of Rangers produced by my family. No wonder your name was stricken, they would want no mention of such to be known at all."

     "And it also answers questions I have sought answers to about you for some time."

     "What questions?"

     "I have sensed magical abilities within you, buried so deep as to almost not be able to be found, but there nonetheless, they have been strengthened by your ascension. But I could not fathom where they came from, now I know."

     "What else?"

     "It may also explain how you were able to survive the Morghul Knife shard within you for so long. Your latent abilities were working against it."

     "Anything more?"

     "It would also explain 'his' great interest in you. Notwithstanding your physical attractiveness, which is very profound in my eyes, but I would think not so much in 'his'."

     "I would agree with all that you have said, it does answer more questions than it raises. But how does this tie into what we saw in the future for Middle Nirn?"

     "It goes back to the forging of the 'One Ring'."

     "Did he create a second one?"

     "No, the 'One' is unique in that it bound the others that were made and contained so much of his personal power, that when it was unmade in the fires of Mt Doom, it almost completely unmade 'him' as well."

     "Would that it had!"

     "I would not argue that, but to the point. Morgoth did make a second ring with his own hands. This one would not act as the 'One', but rather would not become active unless the 'One' was somehow destroyed."

     "So he suspected that the possibility of that could have happened, and made the second ring for that eventuality. But just what can it do that the 'One' could not, I mean did he make it more powerful? If so, what is it capable of doing? Oh no! No, that is just too horrible to contemplate!"

     The look Byrsael gives Iriisii as she voiced her question and then thought of a possible answer, speaks volumes to Iriisii. "It is not to control the other rings, but rather to control me, isn't it? And through me to control you. To defeat the 'Blind Dreamer', now it makes sense. But what about the other thing 'he' said, do I really need one of 'Good' and one of 'Evil' to stand with me against the 'Blind Dreamer'?"

     "What about the one from the Gray Paths? Who is that?"

     "Dettlaff."

     "And the 'Good'?"

     "Unknown right now, or not chosen as yet. But I have no knowledge as to the truth of that. Just because 'he' said it does not make it so. But just the same, we should assume that it is the case and prepare anyway. Then we will be ready for whatever happens. We will need to continue this after we have settled these questions. Lorian, will you act as 'ancestral gatekeeper' for Byrsael to keep her from being inundated by the other ancestral memories. They seem to me to have a healthy fear of you and that is of use to us for the foreseeable future. Anyone who has constructive ideas to contribute, we will want to hear them, anyone else can sit back and stew about them. And any who may be thinking about staging a coup, think again. You will not only be dealing with a 'Balrog Slayer', but you will also be dealing with me."