1. Reverence
His calloused hands caressed the wall before him, fingertips brushing lovingly over gem and ore, delicately exploring creases, curves and edges.
His eyes drank in the beauty, the perfection, of this place. Colorful veins painted a map across the dark stone. Above him and around him, mineral columns glittered in yellow, pink and white.
He pressed his hands flat to the cool surface, bits of quartz digging into his palms, and he could feel the whole world pressing back--every mountain, every hill, every stone.
Within this glittering temple, within the living rock, Gimli son of Gloin touched Aulë himself.
This is a work of fan fiction, written because the author has an abiding love for the works of J R R Tolkien. The characters, settings, places, and languages used in this work are the property of the Tolkien Estate, Tolkien Enterprises, and possibly New Line Cinema, except for certain original characters who belong to the author of the said work. The author will not receive any money or other remuneration for presenting the work on this archive site. The work is the intellectual property of the author, is available solely for the enjoyment of Henneth Annûn Story Archive readers, and may not be copied or redistributed by any means without the explicit written consent of the author.
