"He might be right, Ellaryn; but he refuses to contemplate Elvish riddles, so he will never know!" Ofnir said, chewing on the wood of his pipe. "However I don't know the answer myself, and I [i][b]am [/b][/i]contemplating them, and have done so for years. . . ."

He got up and viewed all the paths carefully with a scowl. "The things is, all the Elves share the same fate -- or rather doom, depending on your attitude. Whichever path they choose, their goal is the same." He put his pipe away and coughed. "I suppose that all our options lead to the same destination. But the journey there is different depending which way we go."

It seemed to the wizard that each path spoke to the heart of each of them: master Dwarf was drawn to the path of craft as was understandable for one of his kind, and the young hobbit to the path of journey and adventure, and niceties. He had no doubt that Aelin would pick the arch of the Teleri, being a bard. He himself felt discouraged by the Noldorin path, knowing from tales what doom befell them in the North. The Teleri remained and lingered, unwilling to go, and then many died, killed by their own kin. That left the Vanyar, the most eager to go; and he was eager to go too.

"I agree with Ellaryn and think we should make for it fast. I would remind you of your freedom to abandon the quest at any time and to turn away and leave, but the path is closed now. I am afraid uncertainty is all I can offer now. So on we go to the left! Unless you want to stay here and go mad."