There was a heavy silence in the late morning air as Lothrien recited the dream he had been shown the previous night to the Lord of the Forest’s court. The elves listened intently, all attempting to piece together what he had already figured out. The stars had shown him a great beast emerging from a cave that was ablaze, followed by humans covered in thorns. Lothrien had spent his early hours pacing inside the tallest tower the city offered. Since his time being discovered as the Dreamer of his generation, he had long sought refuge in the place that allowed him to be closest to the stars.
A cough from the crowd brought his focus back to the matter at hand. Pointed ears were listening for him to name the elf that would be tasked with finding a burning cave guarded by a terrifying creature. A few proud elves puffed out their chests, wanting their names to be called and given the honor of being chosen by a Dreamer for a quest. It was a frivolous endeavor. Lothrien had already chosen who would venture out of the safety of their city to stave off another tragedy.
He announced that those who believe they are suited for this journey may go to the blacksmith for a test of fire, and that tonight he would consult the stars to decide who will undertake this duty to keep their world safe. Lothrien spoke with the confidence that had been imbued in him by the Lord of the Forest. He was a just leader, and while he kept Lothrien close since childhood, he never stood in the way of Lothrien’s purpose in life.
This time would be different. There was no realm in which Lothrien would be permitted to leave the city to prevent a tragedy from occurring; he was just too valuable to risk. Which is why Lothrien had organized a false test and given himself an evening to get ahead of anyone who would come looking for him.
As the crowd dissipated, he made his way to an alcove along the city wall to grab a supply pack he had hidden. It was time for him to prove that he was not someone comfortable living in luxury while others were willing to put their lives on the line. He had never been outside the city, but he was eager to see what the world offered.
Lothrien snuck through a seldom-used gate out of the city wearing a cloak that had been gifted to him by an elf he had sent on a journey some months ago. It was on the smaller side, but he had appreciated the gesture then and cherished the anonymity it afforded today.
He kept a brisk pace leaving the city, wanting to put as much distance between it and himself as possible before anyone realized he was gone. Still, he allowed himself to enjoy the scenery of the forest surrounding him. There were trees in the city, but they were mere saplings compared to the giants that he was walking amongst. He had seen the forest from the tower he frequented, but the view from afar could not compare to the beauty of seeing the forest in person.
Dusk approached, and the forest was serenading him with the sounds of nature when Lothrien heard the distinctive sound of a fallen twig snapping. He froze in place, scanning his environment and using his elven hearing to listen for any further sounds. Lothrien was surrounded by trees and could hear a river to the east, but there was no sign of what made the sound. The harsh reality hit him; he had only brought a dagger with him in his haste to leave the city. He was alone in the woods on a journey to find a great beast near a burning cave, and all he had to defend himself was a ceremonial dagger.
With a shaky grasp on his dagger, Lothrien turned toward a thicket of brambles where he heard a low growl begin. Large amber eyes, nearly completely concealed by the greenery, met his as the sun began its final descent. Hundreds of pages from books and reports flashed through his mind as he tried to remember how others had outmaneuvered creatures in the wild. Elven lands were hidden from humans thanks to their innate magic, but occasionally large beasts slipped through their defenses.
A thought occurred to him: if he couldn’t fight the beast, then perhaps he could tame it. Taking his hand off the dagger and maintaining eye contact, Lothrien cautiously reached into his pocket to grab a piece of dried meat. He took a deep breath and offered it to the beast in his outstretched hand. The brambles rustled as the beast slowly came toward him, those amber eyes focusing on the offering in Lothrien’s hand. The beast was smaller than he initially thought it would be, barely coming up to his knees. It looked to be covered in mud and foliage; whatever fur lay underneath was obscured. It walked with rigid movements; its ears and tail were all tucked down. Whatever this creature was, Lothrien was certain that it might be more afraid of him than he was of it.
Lothrien set down the dried meat on the ground as the creature approached, not trusting that it would not bite his hand to retrieve the offering. That seemed to appease it; he could see it relax ever so slightly. He watched it grab the meat quickly, its sharp white teeth gleaming in the moonlight's glow. A rush of courage flowed through him as he offered another piece to the creature, this time in an open palm. It took the curious thing only a few hesitant sniffs before taking it. Perhaps this animal could aid him in saving the humans from the beast guarding the burning cave from his vision.
After a handful more pieces of dried meat were given to the muddied creature, it finally let him touch it. Soon they were walking in the forest together. Lothrien already imagined ways to combine his title of Dreamer with his new skill of taming this wild beast. It was well into the night when he made camp. His supply pack included a tent, though the night was nice enough that he decided to just sleep under the stars. The beast, which he had named Alluvium for the river dirt that covered it, brought him sticks for his fire. Lothrien would write about this experience when he returned to the city. Taming wild beasts was not nearly as difficult as the texts had made it seem. He would need to provide a more accurate recollection of how to complete the task to help others in the future. They slept peacefully next to each other under the stars that always made Lothrien feel peace.
The next morning he had let Alluvium lead the way through the forest. It was clear the creature was more familiar with the terrain than he was and had some form of intelligence. All the while, Lothrien kept an eye out for any signs of the cave or beast he was looking for. During their adventure together, he would teach the beast commands, all of which it took to quickly. By noon he had taught the creature to bring back items, sit, follow, and wait. This was incredible research that he could not wait to share with others. There were a handful of cats in the city to help with pests, but if they could tame more creatures like this, it would unleash so many possibilities for both defense and companionship.
It was late afternoon when he spotted smoke in the distance. Lothrien attempted to remain calm; after all, it could simply be someone settling down before the evening. He tied a rope he’d been weaving to keep his hands busy around his waist and whistled at Alluvium to follow him toward the smoke. The forest thinned the closer the pair got to the source of the smoke. Lothrien could smell it now, a distinct scent of burning wood with a hint of rotten eggs. He couldn’t place where the secondary smell would come from, but he knew that the burning wood was more than that of an ordinary campfire in the forest.
Finally, the glade opened, and he could see smoke pouring from an entrance on the side of a hill across the clearing. Approaching the entrance, Lothrien determined it was not like any cave he had seen in the texts he studied, but it was apparent that the smoke coming from the entrance was not supposed to be there. Before he could decide to either enter this strange opening in the hill or search for anyone nearby, Alluvium grabbed the robe hanging from his waist and dragged him inside.
Every instinct was screaming at him to turn and run from the danger. The smoke began filling his lungs with every breath. It was the screams for help that forced all thoughts of turning back from his mind. There were people trapped somewhere inside the earth. Alluvium was sniffing the ground relentlessly, as if searching for clues to the direction in which to go. Lothrien followed his new companion through a maze of tunnels, each bringing him further into the earth.
The first person they found was trapped under a wooden beam. Using his elven strength, he lifted the beam to free what he saw to be a human male. Alluvium was already racing down a different tunnel by the time Lothrien told the human to run for the exit. They found a pair of humans trapped underneath a cart filled with what he believed to be coal that some boulders had pushed. He barely had freed them before Alluvium once again was onto the next scent. Lothrien ran after the beast he’d grown fond of, finding it with more humans. They continued on like that until there were only two left, trapped behind a fire.
Lothrien grabbed his cloak from his pack and ran through the fire to the humans. He had them under his cloak and was walking back through the fire before they could protest. It would be scorched, but it was just a piece of cloth worth nothing compared to these two lives. The smoke was fogging his head; breathing had become a chore rather than a subconscious reflex. With his last clear thought, he grabbed the rope around his waist and gave it to Alluvium. Lothrien would have to trust his newfound friend to guide them out of this place. It was all he could do just to focus on keeping himself and the two humans with him upright and walking.
Not soon enough, he could see the light at the entrance of the opening in the hill. His thoughts were barely coherent anymore. All he had to do was get the humans out of here; if he was struggling, then they were surely worse for wear. He felt the sun kiss his skin as they crossed the threshold, Alluvium leading them to safety. There were so many people outside. They all blurred together as he lost consciousness.
A wet sensation on his face woke him from a deep sleep. He was no longer outside, but in a cottage of some sort. Alluvium was by his side, licking his cheek. With a groan, he sat up and fully took in his surroundings. The cottage was small but homey, with a human woman tending to a large pot on the fire. She must have heard him moving, turning toward him with a smile. He was about to ask where he was when she abruptly thanked him for saving so many lives in the coal mine fire. He properly introduced himself as Lothrien Blackthorn as she put a bowl of soup into his hands. She explained that there had been an accident and he must have gotten to the mine just in time to save every single human in the mine. She told him how the entire village had watched in amazement as people kept emerging from the mine one after another. It wasn’t until they had seen the town dog leading an elf who was covering two humans from the burning embers that they all realized who had saved so many lives.
That made Lothrien pause, then ask her what a dog was. With a great laugh, she pointed at Alluvium and explained that he had run off a few days ago into the forest. A blush spread over his face as he realized he was no great beast tamer after all. The human woman was kind enough to offer him the comfort of knowing that even if he wasn’t a beast tamer, he still prevented a great tragedy from befalling their village.
Once he felt better, Lothrien thanked the woman for helping him recover. The entire village saw him off when he left to make his way back to his city. While he was sad to leave Alluvium behind, he thought of all the ways to convince the Lord of the Forest to introduce these fantastic creatures called dogs into their city. After all, he had foretold of Alluvium’s ability to keep their world safe.
Lore Machina 