I Say Neither Yea Nor Nay

About a year ago a messenger came to Dain, from Mordor: a horseman in the night, who called Dain to his gate. The Lord Sauron the Great, so he said, wished for our friendship. Rings he would give for it, such as he gave of old. And he asked urgently concerning hobbits, of what kind they were, and where they dwelt. "For Sauron knows," said he, "that one of these was known to you on a time."

At this we were greatly troubled, and we gave no answer. And then his fell voice was lowered, and he would have sweetened it if he could. "As a small token only of your friendship Sauron asks this," he said: "that you should find this thief," such was his word, "and get from him, willing or no, a little ring, the least of rings, that once he stole. It is but a trifle that Sauron fancies, and an earnest of your good will. Find it, and three rings that the dwarf-sires possessed of old shall be returned to you, and the realm of Moria shall be yours for ever. Find only news of the thief, whether he still lives and where, and you shall have great reward and lasting friendship from the Lord. Refuse, and things will not seem so well. Do you refuse?"

At that his breath came like the hiss of snakes, and all who stood by shuddered, but Dain said: "I say neither yea nor nay. I must consider this message and what it means under its fair cloak."

"Consider well, but not too long," said he.

"The time of my thought is my own to spend." answered Dain.

"For the present," said he, and rode into the darkness.

***************

The messenger comes three times, and in the book, THAT'S the reason Gimli is in Rivendell--to warn Bilbo about Mordor's sudden interest in him.

This is a fun moment, but not a particularly epic one. It's in here mostly because I wanted another picture of King Dain, in all his King-Under-the-Mountain regalia. Someone pointed out that the title "Deeds of the Dwarves" might also refer to their workmanship, so I tried to spend some time on that this time around.

And there is something really cool about Dain's statement: "The time of my thought is my own to spend." It's his way of saying, 'you may be the Dark Lord, but I'm still King Under the Mountain, and I'll make my decision in my own sweet time." Not like Dain was ever actually going to WORK with Sauron the Faithless, but just his assertion of his sovereignty is cool.

One more, with Gimli, and then we're done with this series. Shouldn't take too long, almost done with that picture already. Been fun, but looking forward to the finish.

--Deeds of the Dwarves--

The Dwarves of Belegost: [link]

The King Under the Mountain: [link]

The Fall of Azog: [link]

Alas! My Axe is Notched: [link]

Thorin "Oakenshield": [link]

The Last Stand of Dain: [link]

The Ruin of Doriath: [link]

The Orcs are Behind the Wall!: [link]

A Chance Meeting: [link]

Baruk Khazad!: [link]

The Undying Lands: [link]