One of the dwarves had spotted the intruder from the Gates, but as she approached, her feelings ran the gamut from caution to outrage to pity. The stranger was sobbing so—it was impossible to hold her disrespect of the holy lake against her.
‘Why are you weeping by Kheled-zâram?’
‘There was another lake that shone like dark glass,’ replied the elf. ‘We saw our faces mirrored, hers and mine, and above the mountain peak flamed white, like these. She is not here—and even the lake is under the sea.’
The dwarf put a gentle hand on her shoulder.