This is yet another one shot in my collection of strange meetings. Enjoy. btw: I don't own the characters (duh)

He wandered down the path slowly, not wishing to rush the sense of freedom that this dream brought him. At the moment, his mind was telling him that he was in a lush green forest, surrounded by the towering trees. He knew that he was still in that damnable plastic cell the police had decided to lock him up in since Ellis Island. But at the moment he chose to ignore it, and to accept just for a short while he was free in his mind.

The path reached the crest of the hill and made its way down into the wooded valley beneath. He stood at the crest and treasured the feeling of the wind on his face. The vantage point gave him a good view of the surrounding area. The only thing it didn't give him a view of was the person standing behind him. He may not be able to see him, but Erik could feel the other man's eyes watching him.

"Are you going to just stand there all day?" he asked the mystery man without bothering to face him. It couldn't be a threat; this was his dream after all.

"Who am I to interrupt one admiring the beauties of Middle Earth for the first time?" a familiar voice asked in return. Eric smirked. As a man with a thick white beard took a place next to him.

"It may not always be like this though," the bearded man continued, "there is a dark force trying to destroy all of it." He looked over the forest with sad eyes.

"Opposing evils can be stopped with the right amount of force," Eric said calmly, mentally noting for the first time that the bearded man only had one piece of metal on him. When he realized this, he also realized he had felt nothing like it before in his life. "May I ask what type of metal is that?" he asked and gestured to the pin on the other man's cloak. It was a leaf wrapped with thin wire.

The man looked down and smiled. "It is elven made, and I doubt that its name will hold any weight with you. I am curious, what type of human are you? I've never met one quite like you before."

Eric struggled to control his temper at the insult. "It would serve you well to never associate me with humans again, vile creatures. I am homo superior, a mutant." To explain he held out his hand and summoned the pin off the bearded mans cloak. He could feel power in this pin; it was something she had never felt before.

"Not all humans are bad."

"No?" Eric felt the smirk on his face. "I'm willing to bet that this power that is threatening to destroy this world is somehow a fault of humans."

"Yes, the greed of humans may have played a role in it, but it is their bravery that will help save us."

"You really trust humans to save this world? When you have elves and the like, which are no doubt stronger and better."

"They will play their role, but it is humans who will set the examples for the others to follow. Why do you hate them so?"

"Why do you trust them so much?" Before Eric could get the answer he woke to find himself once again in his plastic hell. And that blasted guard was coming in. But he was different today; today he had iron in his blood, lots of it. Eric smiled; maybe angels could send aid to those in hell.

Hope you enjoyed this Strange Meeting. Feel free to give feedback on what you think or other meetings you would like to see. And check out my profile for other Strange Meetings.