章 18: EIGHTEEN: Sephora

Shortly after King Elrond had departed, I observed a shift in Cirdan's demeanor; it seemed as though he wished to rise and leave.

"Would you prefer me to leave?" I inquired, not wanting to cause him any further discomfort. When he did not respond, I attempted to stand, but he continued to gaze over the lake. In a low, menacing tone, he commanded,

"Sit."

I do not know what transpired, but I was suddenly overwhelmed by an aura and found my body obeying his command. We sat in silence for a short while, the bread crumbs quickly dwindling.

"So… ducks, is this a breeding lake for them?" I asked, half expecting a reply.

"Yes," he responded curtly.

"What happens when their population increases? Are they cooked or...?" I began, but he interrupted me immediately.

"I do not eat duck meat," he said, his languid expression unchanging.

It surprised me that he shared such information; I could only stammer, "Oh, that's… something." It seemed he had a fondness for ducks, and for some reason, they were drawn to him, as they consumed his bread crumbs more eagerly than mine.

Soon he got up to leave as I had been anticipating he would, "Don't stay out here too long." He warned, whether he meant to sound caring I did not know, because his tone told otherwise.

"Thank you, for letting me feed the ducks," I said, as he turned to leave, he paused for a moment, and without any response I watched his retreating figure disappear behind the hedges.

With a sigh, I grabbed one of the ducks that tried to follow him and muttered to it, "Not so fast, you're going to love me as much as you love him."

I had carried on feeding the ducks as the day grew darker, paying no mind to Cirdan's earlier warnings. The bright blue sky was no more, as it now resembled the rare stone, obsidian, the silence of the night only disturbed by the occasional chirping of the crickets, "That fast?", I asked rhetorically, expressing surprise at the speed at which night came.

I was about standing, when I noticed the feathers on the backs of the ducks stood, resembling Goosebumps, citing agitation, Then, as if a switch was flipped, the ducks suddenly scattered as if running from something, disturbing the quiet evening with their panicked quacking, as they retreated into the hedges, one by one till no other ducks remained, in their absence, I noticed, it had gone completely silent, the kind of eerie silence where your ears, look for a sound so desperately, it in itself a form of torture.

Suddenly, the leafy smell of the pond changed to a pungent odor of sulphur that stung my nostrils.

Mist gathered around the pond, it was at this moment my ears found the sound it was looking for I turned and out of the corner of my eye, I saw a being, standing at the far side of the pond, I need not be told, from its appearance, I could deduce that this was not a friendly being It was unlike any of the beings I had encountered in this realm. It had the look of the devils told of in children's folklore: horned, with blood-red eyes, yet its presence cast a strange aura of familiarity.

Cold sweat ran down the back of my neck, as I stood there frozen in fear, staring into its eyes, my lips had moved unknowingly to me, as I uttered the words "Cirdan", then it clicked in my head, that's why the being seemed familiar, it's aura was so similar to Cirdan's, it let out an bloodcurdling roar, it was such an awful sound that strength left my legs as I sat down forcefully on the grass, it started approaching me, only ten paces away it's features became clearer.

It had black skin unlike the tones I've been told of, it was more of midnight black than dark skin and its rough skin couldn't be ignored, the smell had gotten stronger than before, I maintained eye contact as it started to reach for me with its clawed hands, I winced expecting an attack, instead it gently stroked my hair, it seemed to call my name "Sep….Sephora", if it wasn't clearer before now it is, this creature that stood in front of me was Cirdan, although his appearance was thwarted, he still seemed to retain his sense of self, at least partially.

Just when I had begun to relax, he screamed as if in pain, he moved backwards before advancing towards me, menacingly, I could feel the murderous intent, as I began to fear for my life, he moved fast, intending to dig his claws into my skull, tears had dropped from my eyes as I screamed at the top of my voice as my vision faded away

I woke up, sweat-ridden as I tried to stop my heart from tearing a hole in my chest, I was hyperventilating, I have to calm down I thought as I started pacing my breaths, I tried to shake off the sharp pain in my head as I looked around, still dizzy, looking for the creature I had encountered, there was no trace of it anywhere, it seemed that I dozed off overtaken by the tranquil of the pond.

The time seemed to be around 1 in the morning, I got on my feet and brushed off the grass from my dress, then I had the eerie feeling that I was being watched, I turned around and saw a pair of red eyes in the bushes, my heart skipped a beat as I feared it was that same creature, but it faded away, at this point, I couldn't put it off, there was certainly something off with this place.

I hurriedly retired to my chambers, try as I might I couldn't go back to sleep as I had this feeling that I wasn't alone, and the room, while vast felt as small as my bed, I awaited the light of day, for what seemed like forever, day and night couldn't be any more opposite as unlike the fast paced day, the night creeped ever slowly as if it searched, but couldn't find the morning.

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