[VanimaEdhel]

Kalir took a breath and looked at all the deathless beings, wondering to himself what it must be like to not know personal death. He also wondered what the Elves of old had thought in the time when there had been a great many deaths of mortals near to them. Imagine knowing so many generations pass away before you.

Kalir looked up, trying to figure out how to phrase the loss of death for the crew watching him.

"What I believe," he began, "is that - wait. First you must realize that I do not speak for my whole race."

The others nodded and he went on, "Well, death is like...what is a good analogy? Death is like an eternal sleep, I suppose. It can either be a peaceful sleep or a dreadful nightmare, from which you can never awake. You never know what it's going to be like, so you should not go searching for it. Does that explain it better?"

"But what does it feel like to have one close to you die?" LinGalad asked.

"It feels...like losing part of your heart," Kalir said, "I cannot describe it in any stronger fashion."

He lapsed helplessly into silence, wondering if they understood. When he looked up, he saw that even the little busybody had stopped her writing and was considering what he said for a second, trying to figure out what it would feel like. They all looked sorrowfully down, and Kalir had to smile to himself.

I suppose they now understand, he thought to himself.

When they looked back up, Kalir continued, "Now you must tell me of what it is like to live for so many ages and see so many passings of seasons."