Tauriel pressed her lips into a thin line but said nothing.
She had to remind herself why she was here.
She wasn't here to argue over what was right or wrong, or to be swept into Ebon's tangled philosophies.
She was here for one reason.
One person.
Iyra.
Her friend.
Tauriel locked eyes with Ebon, her voice cold and firm.
"Tell me about Iyra. What happened to her?"
The glimmer in Ebon's eyes dulled, his casual amusement fading.
"The fate of the world doesn't concern you, but your friend does?" he said quietly, almost to himself. "Fascinating."
He let out a slow, weary sigh, shoulders relaxing as if burdened by unseen weight.
"Iyra... is trapped," he said. "Sealed, would be a more accurate term."
Tauriel felt her blood boil. Her fists clenched at her sides.
"Why? Why is she sealed?!"
Ebon met her fury with a calm, unreadable expression. "Iyra isn't just any goddess," he began. "She is the Goddess of Light and Life itself."
