110: Findings

Sador, Glóremmir and Faramir were just finishing dinner when Maranwë announced that Lord Námo was ready for them. The three ellyn, who had been enjoying the repast and quietly speaking on various subjects of interest to them suddenly went still, their expressions wary.

Maranwë smiled at them. "There is naught to fear, children," he said kindly. "Come. We will show you where you may freshen up and then we will take you to Lord Námo."

Fifteen minutes later they were making their way up a flight of stairs to the next level and then they were being ushered into a room that was perhaps forty paces across. There was only the one door through which they had come. High clerestory windows provided them with illumination. The walls were plastered and painted with geometric shapes in soothing shades of mauve and grey. The floor was tiled with rainbow obsidian flagstones. A large star pattern in the center of the floor was made from isilsardi, shimmering blue-white in the light of day, for Anar was only now slipping westward and it would be a couple of hours before she set.

The three elves stopped in consternation as soon as they entered, for they saw that not only was Lord Námo there but all the other Valar as well. Faramir gasped in dismay and Sador grimaced, but Glóremmir went absolutely white.

"No!" he shouted and turned to leave, but Vanimeldë blocked his path. He started beating on her in his terror and his screams reverberated across the room. Námo was there in an instant, taking the ellon into his embrace.

"Hush now," he whispered as Glóremmir struggled against him, sobbing. "It’s all right, Glóremmir. No one will harm you. Hush, best beloved."

"No... no... not again... please not again," they heard the ellon say over and over again.

Sador and Faramir exchanged worried looks and moved toward one another as if to close ranks against an enemy. Námo noticed them and gave them a knowing smile. "It’s not what you think," he said. "Glóremmir is merely remembering his Judgment before all the Valar."

Manwë came over and placed his hand on Glóremmir’s head. Nothing seemed to happen at first, but Sador and Faramir noticed a slight glow around the Elder King’s hand and Glóremmir’s sobs slowly quieted and his shaking stilled until he was utterly calm.

"That’s it, child," Manwë said softly. "There is naught to fear here. We are not here to judge but to learn, for you and your companions have much to teach us."

After another moment or two, Glóremmir raised his head, blinking as if waking from a dream. Námo smiled down at him. "Feeling better?" he asked and the ellon nodded, looking embarrassed. He turned to face Lord Manwë who gazed upon him with warm benevolence.

"That’s right, Glóremmir," the Elder King said as he gestured for the ellon to come to him. "All is well now. Come. Why don’t we make ourselves comfortable and we will explain what we wish to do."

He led the ellon towards the center of the room where some chairs were set in a circle. Manwë directed Glóremmir to one of the chairs while Sador and Faramir joined him. Manwë and Námo sat as well while the other Valar remained where they were. There was no sign of any Maiar. When all were settled, Manwë turned to Námo.

"Perhaps you will explain to us what you hope to accomplish here."

Námo nodded. "We found some genetic anomalies when we scanned Glorfindel’s genome," the Lord of Mandos said.

"What sort of anomalies?" Manwë asked.

Námo shrugged. "That we’re not sure about," he answered. "My people and I have been comparing Glorfindel’s genetic make-up with Ingwion’s. Naturally, there are vast differences in their genetics since they are unrelated to one another, but on the other hand, where there should be similarities because they are both elves, we’ve found some unexpected irregularities. Here. Take a look."

To the utter astonishment of the three elves, Námo raised a hand and made some gestures and suddenly before them, floating in mid-air, were two ladder-like structures twisting along a central core like a spiral staircase. The ‘rungs’ were half one color and half another in no particular pattern that they could comprehend — blue and green, yellow and red. The three glanced at each other and shrugged while Námo pointed to the one on his left.

"This is Glorfindel’s DNA pattern," he said. "The other is Ingwion’s. Look! Here is where the anomaly appears." He pointed to a set of ‘rungs’ and Manwë leaned forward to take a closer look. Ulmo and Irmo also moved forward, with Ulmo standing between Sador’s chair and Glóremmir’s while Irmo stood on Glóremmir’s other side between him and Faramir. The Valar ignored the three ellyn as they studied the structures floating before them.

"Hmmm...." Ulmo said, stroking his sea-green beard. "Most interesting. I can see why you want to continue examining other Reborn. It would be interesting to see if someone like Findaráto has this same anomaly."

"I could always send him along if you want," Irmo suggested.

Námo shook his head. "These three should do well enough," he said and Sador, at least, was beginning to wish he could just quietly disappear. As if the Vala could read his mind, Lord Ulmo placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it. Sador was surprised but also comforted, though he could not have said why.

"You think this anomaly explains why he keeps slipping his leash as you like to say?" Manwë asked.

Námo shrugged. "I really don’t know, which is why I want to examine these three ellyn to see if they exhibit the same anomaly."

At that point Glóremmir turned to Sador and whispered, "Do you know what they’re talking about?"

Sador shook his head and whispered back, "Not a clue, except the fact that Glorfindel is odd, but we knew that anyway."

There were amused chuckles from the Valar.

"You should be examining Edrahil," Sador said to Námo without thinking.

"Why?" Manwë asked.

"But... don’t you know?" Sador asked, clearly confused as he glanced from one Vala to another. "I thought you would know."

Námo’s expression became unreadable and Sador wondered if he should have said anything at all. Ulmo patted him on the shoulder, as if to get his attention, and he looked up at the Lord of Waters. "Why don’t you tell us about it?"

"He... he slipped his leash," Sador answered. "At least, that’s what we think happened."

"Tell us the details, Sador," Manwë insisted.

"It was when we were in Tavrobel," Sador said. He then proceeded to tell them of Edrahil’s blood trance and the subsequent drama of Finrod searching for his fëa and bringing him back. "I thought you would know," he ended, looking directly at Námo who’s expression remained impassive.

"I did," Námo said, "but I hesitate to subject Edrahil to any more stress at this time, which is why I did not have him come here."

"And I wouldn’t have allowed it anyway," Irmo said. "Sending him off with Findaráto and the Royal Progress was risky enough. He needs to be stronger in fëa before I will let him leave again."

"So I figured," Námo said to his brother. "Yet, Sador’s suggestion does have merit. So far, except for those few older elves who did as Ingwë did, Edrahil and Glorfindel are the only two Reborn to have suffered such a slippage of their fëar. I hope that when you deem Edrahil able, that you will allow me to examine him as well."

Irmo nodded. "I will have Findaráto bring him when I deem the time is right and you can examine them both. You might want to see if you can also get Ingwë and those others who went into the past in fëa to agree to be examined so we can do a better comparison. We really need to understand what is happening with the Children. In the meantime, let’s concentrate on these three and see what we can learn from them." He smiled down at the three ellyn and the trust that they had for him was evident in their relaxed manner.

Námo and Manwë nodded and stood, so the three elves rose as well. Almost at once the chairs disappeared and in their places were three raised beds and before they had time to protest, Námo, Irmo and Ulmo were encouraging each of them to remove their boots and belts and then lie on one of the beds. Námo smiled down at them.

"As I told you earlier, this will be rather boring for you, so feel free to fall asleep if you wish. We’ll wake you when we’re done."

With that, he stepped away from them, as did Manwë, Irmo and Ulmo. Námo raised his hands and the three elves gasped as one as a globe of golden light rose to surround them. Then to their amazement a ladder-like structure similar to the ones they had seen earlier was floating over each of them. The other Valar moved to stand in a circle around them, paying no attention to the ellyn but staring intently at the three images floating in mid-air. Sador noticed that the Valar were careful to stay outside the globe of light.

"We’ll do a complete mapping of their genomes and then make the comparison," Námo said.

"Can you call up Glorfindel’s and Ingwion’s genomes again?" Ulmo asked as he stared intently at the projection in front of him.

Námo nodded and immediately two other ladder-like structures appeared, floating in space within the globe of light. Sador turned his head to see what the reactions of his two friends were to all this and noticed that Faramir was pointing up at the structure above him and asking Lady Nessa, who happened to be standing near him, what it was all about. Nessa was attempting to explain but it made no sense to Sador, yet Faramir actually seemed to understand. At least, his eyes weren’t glazing over as Sador’s was and his expression was one of deep interest. Sador had to grin at the sight of Lady Nessa having to ask Lady Yavanna to help her answer one of Faramir’s questions. Apparently, the Valar were not all equal in knowledge. Somehow that thought made them seem more accessible to him, less all-knowing and powerful. Glóremmir on the other hand was obviously not as interested. Sador could tell that the ellon had already begun to slip onto the Path of Dreams. Perhaps the fright he had received earlier had drained him emotionally. Sador hoped the ellon would recover.

He turned his attention back to the discussion Námo and Ulmo were having, hoping he would get a glimmer of what they were talking about but it was hopeless. Half the words made no sense to him. What on Arda was ‘mitochondrial DNA’ anyway!? It didn’t even sound like Quenya. In fact, now that he thought about it, he wondered if they weren’t speaking partly in Valarin. The very idea sent shivers through him.

"....and notice at this locus how the sequence of bases is the same for the Reborn but not for Ingwion." Ulmo was saying, pointing at the display.

"There shouldn’t be the same sequence for any of them," Námo replied, frowning. "The sequencing should be completely different for all of them at this locus. Only identical twins have the exact same sequence of bases."

"Apparently," Ulmo said. "And notice, too, that in Ingwion’s case the length polymorphism is a microsatellite of three repeats while the others are minisatellites with a repeat of... hmmm... thirty."

"It makes no sense," Námo protested, "although I have been saying all along that the fëar of the Reborn resonate on a slightly different frequency than the Once-born." He shook his head, obviously frustrated. "I need additional samples. I need to check Ingwë and those few others who went into the past. I wonder if they exhibit something similar in their genetic sequencing."

"I will broach the subject to him when he comes to Ilmarin on Valanya," Manwë stated. "I do not think he will refuse our request."

Námo nodded. "We need to get to the bottom of this. If these anomalies are showing up in all the Reborn, we need to know why and what they signify."

"When you recreate the hröa of a Reborn, you follow the imprint in the memory of the fëa, do you not?" Nienna asked.

"As Atar showed me," Manwë replied. "Each fëa of the Children retains in itself the full imprint and memory of its former house; and in its nakedness it is open to us, so that we may clearly perceive all that is in it. It is from this imprint that we may make for it again such a house in all particulars as it had ere evil befell it."

"So that means that we have a blueprint of the hröa right down to the cellular and chromosomal level," Námo added.

"You essentially clone them," Nienna commented.

Námo shrugged. "Essentially, that is correct, though in truth that is not what we do since we do not create the hröa from any cellular material but from the fëa’s inviolate memory."

"Then how do you explain these anomalies?" Námo’s sister insisted. "Whence do they arise? Are they mutations which occur after their re-embodiment, or something that is already present when you create their hröar?"

"They are not really mutations," Námo said, "but rather it is as if latent genetic sequences are being activated for some reason. Something tells me that this is important for us to understand for the future. Ultimately, I foresee that the number of Reborn will outnumber the Once-born, especially once we begin to release those Children who died during the Great Migration and all those who still reside in Endórë and are bound to die because of the wars that we have seen will arise there. If that is the case, and if the Reborn are the next evolutionary step in their development we need to know what that will mean for us all."

"It would probably help to have you examine those besides Ingwë who originally came from Cuiviénen, then," Ulmo said. "I will speak with Olwë and convince him to submit to an examination. If the oldest of the Children are exhibiting something similar in their genetic make-up as the Reborn are, it may show us the way."

"It will be interesting to see if the same genetic sequences are being activated," Námo averred. "If so, then it means that those who do not die will eventually evolve naturally. We know that in the third stage of their lives they begin to exhibit characteristics that are absent earlier, such as the growth of facial hair among the ellyn. There may be more subtle changes of which we are as yet unaware. We know that they are subject to fading, though the effects of that are mitigated here in Aman. Still, what else may be happening to them of which we know nothing?"

"Then perhaps we should use this upcoming council to... er... solicit volunteers for our examination," Oromë suggested with a grin. "We should try to get a sampling of the population as a whole along an age spectrum from the oldest to the youngest, although I think we can dispense with examining elflings. Anyone who has reached their majority would do."

They all nodded. "It sounds like a good idea," Námo said. "I will start setting up the parameters with my people and perhaps Irmo and Ulmo can help me with the particulars so we’re not wasting our time looking at everything." Both Valar nodded acceptance.

"Yes," Ulmo said, stroking his beard, his brow furrowed in thought. "I have some ideas along those lines. We can discuss them later."

"Are we finished here then?" the Elder King asked, pointedly glancing at the three elves. Glóremmir was definitely asleep, they saw. Faramir was wide awake and obviously hanging on every word of their discussion though they doubted he understood one word in twenty. Sador was idly humming to himself, apparently having lost interest in what they’d been saying, his eyes gazing at nothing in particular. He tried to stifle a yawn but not very successfully. The Valar hid smiles and most of them faded away, leaving just Námo and Manwë behind.

Námo glanced at the display and nodded in satisfaction. The mapping of the elves’ genomes was nearly done. He caused the maps of Glorfindel’s and Ingwion’s genomes to fade away and then shortly thereafter, the rest of the display dissipated and the light faded. Sador blinked a few times, as if coming back to himself from wherever his thoughts had taken him. Faramir sighed, looking glum, and Námo silently bespoke to Ulmo and Aulë about apprenticing the ellon with them in the field of genetics.

*He obviously is interested in the field,* he told them. *It might be well to begin teaching the Children the deeper fields of genetics beyond what they have discovered on their own concerning heredity.*

Both Valar agreed. *I can have Amillo begin tutoring him,* Ulmo said, naming one of his Maiar who was as well versed in the biological sciences as Ulmo.

"Are we done, lord?" Sador asked, rising on his elbows. Faramir was also sitting up, but Glóremmir never stirred.

"Yes, we are done, and I thank you for your patience," Námo said, giving the two ellyn a warm smile. "You seemed quite interested in what was going on, Faramir."

The ellon nodded. "Though even with Lady Nessa and Lady Yavanna explaining things I still didn’t quite understand it all."

"Would you like to?" Manwë asked.

Faramir’s eyes lit with mingled hope and fear and he simply nodded.

"Ulmo has agreed to send one of his people to tutor you if you are willing," Námo said.

"Truly?" Faramir whispered, his eyes growing wide.

Both Manwë and Námo nodded. "When you return to Tol Eressëa Amillo of the People of Ulmo will come to you," the Elder King told him.

"Thank you, lord," Faramir said fervently. "I was always curious about how children seem to inherit certain characteristics of their parents but not all of them, and I’ve studied something of how traits are passed from one generation of plants to another, but that’s as far as I’ve been able to go." He gave them a self-deprecating chuckle. "There was little call for such knowledge when we were battling orcs."

"Then we will see that you are able to indulge your curiosity to your heart’s content," Manwë said with a smile. "In the meantime, it grows late and Glóremmir is already asleep. Why don’t we show you to your rooms? Tomorrow you will rejoin your companions."

"I hope Atar wasn’t too upset when we didn’t return as we promised," Sador said, looking uneasy.

"When we explained to him that you were my guests for the evening, he accepted it gracefully enough," Námo answered with a slight smile as he leaned over Glóremmir and placed his hand gently on the ellon’s forehead, calling him to awaken.

Glóremmir blinked, focusing his eyes and looked up at the Lord of Mandos. "Is it over? Sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep."

"Yes, it is," Námo said with a chuckle. "And there’s no need to apologize. Sador and Faramir are ready to retire for the night, though."

"Oh, then I guess I should as well," the ellon said as he struggled to a sitting position, giving his companions a wry smile. The other two ellyn chuckled and soon the three were gathering their boots and belts and following the two Valar out of the room and down the hall to another room where three beds awaited them.

"Sleep well, children," Manwë said in benediction and then he and Námo left them to their own devices.

Faramir and Sador spent a few moments as they were preparing for bed filling Glóremmir in on what he’d missed but the ellon just shook his head as he climbed into bed and pulled the covers over him. "I think I was smart to fall asleep. You two will be awake half the night trying to figure out what the Valar were saying and getting nowhere in your ruminations. I, on the other hand, will not be plagued by such thoughts and will sleep the sleep of the innocent."

In reply to that rather pompous statement, Glóremmir found himself being pelted by two pillows at once. He retaliated in kind and for a while there was a lively pillow fight and much laughter before they finally settled down and went to sleep.

Vanimeldë, unclad and keeping watch over them at her lord’s command, smiled fondly at their play, remembering when each of them had been in Mandos. In some things, she thought to herself, highly amused, they never grow up and she, for one, was glad for that.

****

Isilsardi: Plural of isilsar: Moonstone. A symbol of truth in self-reflection and showing what ‘is’ [isil ‘moon’ + sar ‘stone’].

Note: Manwë’s explanation of how the Valar recreate a Reborn’s hröa is taken from Athrabeth Finrod ah Andreth, Appendix: ‘The Converse of Manwë and Eru’ and later conceptions of Elvish reincarnation, Morgoth’s Ring, HoME X.