In An Age Before – Part 241
Chapter One Hundred fifty-one
Nurn – The Third Age of the Sun
In the following years, Helluin learnt that there was little hope of training Eärnur in the ways of the Rangers, for he had trained himself to excel at the warfare of a grand realm. The prince was indeed a great captain though, renowned as a commander, long a favorite with the troops, and excellent with the sword. The Noldo found that he was barely passable at archery, and as for stealth, he relegated it as fit only for scouts and assassins. In his opinion, 'twas certainly not an exercise worthy of real soldiers, and though unsaid, the Noldo perceived that he meant, 'real Men'. He was far more comfortable charging against foes leading mass formations, wielding lance and shield whilst uttering some fierce battle cry. He fancied bright armor and colorful pennants, tall horses and lofty helms. In all things, he epitomized the heavy-handed knight of Gondor.
To the folk of Minas Tirith, the prince was noble and chivalrous, well mannered, and in the years following his sojourn to Eriador, better read than he had been aforetime. Prince Eärnur deemed his paragon the emulation of the majesty of Númenor, his charge, the defense of the realm, and his calling, the kingship, and the people of his city agreed. He was his father's heir, and he was committed to executing his birthright according to the contemporary forms of Gondorian royalty.
Alas, Prince Eärnur's interpretation of the forms of Gondorian royalty were colored by his personal predispositions towards grandeur and militancy, well 'nigh to the exclusion of 'aught else. During his childhood, he had idolized his father, the general who had conquered Gondor's enemies in the Battle of the Camp. His boyhood ambition, to command Gondor's armies in a grand, set-piece battle had come when he led the expeditionary force to the aid of Arthedain, yet the dearly sought after resolution had escaped him. When the storm and the terror of the Witch King had driven his horse to flight, he had lost his opportunity to triumph in battle, and worse, he had been made the laughing stock of his foe. Even from his arrival in Eriador, he had been confronted with those whose nobility, lineage, and wisdom had eclipsed his own. It had shaken his certainty in his mandate to rule, left him insecure e'er after, and exacerbated his prior grasping for military glory. In compensation, he had resolved to become the preeminent warrior king of the world of Men.
In T.A. 2003, when Helluin first came to Gondor in the reign of King Eärnil II, the prince was already seventy-five years old, well past the age at which his father had sired him. Yet he had taken no wife, was betrothed to none, and showed no interest in courting any. During his lifetime, this ne'er changed. He cared 'naught for perpetuating a dynasty. Some whispered that he found no pleasure in the fairer sex, insinuating that he preferred to take his pleasures amongst his fellow soldiers, but no evidence of this was e'er substantiated. Indeed, the Wise deemed that the prince was basically asexual, having no real interest in romantic liaisons of any kind, for his heart was wholly given to combat and the exercise of arms.
'Naught but a few anecdotal tales attributed to childhood friends conveyed 'aught of the heir's sexual experiences. As an adolescent, the son of the then General of the Southern Army had on a few occasions awakened to find that his newly available seed had been spontaneously expelled during particularly arousing dreams. These, he claimed, were supremely exciting scenes of personal combat. His nocturnal emission was incited when his shaft repeatedly followed the head of his spear as it deeply and forcefully penetrated the viscera of some vanquished enemy. Upon waking, the spurts of his foe's blood that had bespattered his body were not arterial red. Disappointed, he wiped the slippery, milky residue away and went to his training. By the time his body had attained the strength and stature to make his dreams come true, such annoying and impulsive lapses had been wholly sublimated 'neath more overtly warlike concerns and troubled him no more.
Ironically, Helluin's appearance in Gondor had validated and reinforced the prince's predilections. The Noldo had driven off the one foe that Eärnur had met and failed to defeat. Having learnt somewhat of her lore, he deemed her a consummate warrior, and as time passed and she showed no interest in forming any new romantic liaisons, he deemed her a kindred spirit as well. Appearances aside, 'naught could have been further from the truth. O'er forty-eight centuries aforetime, Helluin had wed Captain-Admiral Vëantur and raised a daughter with him in Númenor. They had spent 'nigh three centuries as husband and wife, and their only child, Almarian, had wed Írimon and become the fifth Queen of Númenor. In some small measure, Helluin's blood even ran in Prince Eärnur's veins.
Beginning several hundred years later, Helluin had been soul-bonded with Beinvír Laiquende for o'er forty centuries. Though they had been separated since 1851 and Helluin had spent the last century and a half in abstentio, the Green Elf would always hold her heart and the Noldo still expected to meet her again one day, for the bond 'twixt their fëar had not been severed. For all intents and purposes, Helluin was still mated, and that was a far cry from the prince's total lack of interest in mating on any level. Still, he saw what he wanted to see.
For her part, Helluin concluded that the prince was dedicated to living by the sword and suspected that he would die by it as well, a fate he seemed determined to embrace whether consciously or no. Unlike his father, whom the Noldo had come to esteem only slightly less than his crafty steward, she deemed Eärnur better suited to being a captain than a king.
Despite her reservations, the council of generals and admirals approved a two-pronged mission to commence on 15 Narwain of 2004. Helluin and the three dozen Rangers of Lebennin already familiar with the Nargil Pass would invade Nurn whilst Prince Eärnur would lead one hundred of Gondor's cavalry to suppress the Haradrim slavers and whatsoe'er bandits they found in northern Harondor. Accompanying the veterans of Nargil this time would be an additional dozen Rangers to hold and defend the coomb where the horses would be picketed.
These plans left the Noldo apprehensive of appraising Álfrhestr about the boredom he would again endure. Revealing that they were to go hence by ship would be just as badly received. Helluin groaned to herself at the prospect of their upcoming 'chat'. Indeed, she found it weighing more heavily on her mind than the possibility of Eärnur's cavalry bringing down the wrath of the Haradrim on the Rangers as they returned out of Mordor.
Now the next month, 'twixt Helluin's report to the lords of the city on 14 Girithron and the company's departure from Minas Tirith on 15 Narwain, was spent on mission preparations. Ships for the river transit were assigned and provisioned, although the prince favored riding with his cavalry down the South Road through Ithilien instead. Helluin might have joined him for Álfrhestr's sake, but the same logistics of saved time and resources that had been proved valid on the prior mission still favored traveling by water. At least this time they would ride in proper troop transports supplied by Gondor's Navy, rather than sundry vessels out of Linhir. The Noldo wondered how many knots and nails blessed the lumber of their onboard stalls.
At the Harlond on 14 Narwain, Helluin surveyed the transports and found that any notion of secrecy had gone right out the window. The ships were of uniform conformation, nine, two-masted topsail schooners dressed in the black and gold of Gondor and flying the ensigns of the King's Navy. Each hull measured a shapely hundred-ten feet in length plus the bowsprit and jib boom, carried a crew of ten and berths for a crowded thirty passengers, or eighteen knights and their horses. The Noldo marked that they bore no yards for topgallant sails atop their foremasts, yet by the heights of their masts and the lengths of their bowsprits, she reckoned that they could easily rig a quarter more canvas than any of the ships from Linhir. Perhaps when the time came, they would make better speed upriver on the Poros.
After returning from the Harlond to the city, Helluin went straightaway to the stable in the Sixth Circle. There she found Álfrhestr in his stall chewing a mouthful of hay.
I grow bored, he said without preamble, as soon as he caught her eyes.
Helluin immediately felt guilty, for not only was she the bearer of unwelcome tidings, but save for their short daily rides of a few miles on the Pelennor, she had spent minimal time with the stallion.
Of late, I have come to wonder why I left the farm. I do not think that life in the big city suits me, Helluin.
'Tis not my favorite place either, the Noldo confessed. At first, Beinvír loathed visiting cities.
She must have been a wise horse then, for she had good sense.
Even conversing silently eye to eye, Álfrhestr's assumption struck Helluin dumb for a moment. After recovering from her astonishment, the Noldo finally said, Beinvír was of the kindred of the Green Elves of Eriador, and my beloved. She was taken by the Enemy and has been lost to me for the last century and a half.
Oh, he said, abashed, and nervously shifted his hooves.
Ne'ermind, I have come for other purpose, Helluin said. I bear tidings.
Still embarrassed, Álfrhestr perked up and hearkened, glad to have the subject changed, at least for a short-lived moment.
We are again tasked with visiting the lovely lands of Harondor, Helluin told him. We take our leave upon the morrow.
Álfrhestr did a double-take. His mouth dropped open and the hay fell out onto the floor. His eyes went wide and he shook his head as if to elude some bothersome fly.
So our suspicions are true! Oh woe! I had hoped 'twas 'naught but a malicious rumor, alas!
Helluin stared at him. How had he learnt of the military's 'secret' plans? She marked the heads of the other horses turned to regard them, and amongst them, Prince Eärnur's stallion.
T'would seem that secrets of state are circulating untimely, she observed, half to herself.
'Tis impossible to ignore the conversations of our riders, the prince's mount offered, especially when they are spoken right atop our backs.
So 'tis true? Asked one of the officers' mares. We are to go south?
Of us all, only Álfrhestr has visited those horrible lands, said another steed. We plied him with many questions at his last return. The boredom sounded atrocious…and the owls, big as houses and many. Truth be told, we fear for our lives.
Helluin groaned. Álfrhestr grinned. The other horses waited on her words with palpable trepidation. Though tempted to exaggerate the hazards, Helluin took a deep breath and instead offered them facts.
That some of us shall be setting forth on the morrow to the Nargil Pass and the surrounding lands of Harondor is true. Half a hundred Rangers and a hundred of Gondor's cavalry shall deploy thither. I shall lead the rangers into Mordor, whilst Prince Eärnur shall prosecute slavers and bandits of Harad in the proximal precincts. Some of ye may go thither, and I trust ye shall conduct yourselves with consummate professionalism as your duty to the king demands.
Delivered with a stern expression, Helluin's admonishment brought nods of acquiescence from the horses.
But, what of the owls? The officer's mare asked, the whites of her eyes showing 'neath her widened lids.
Firstly, there was but one owl in the Nargil Pass, Helluin said in exasperation, and it came ne'er from the highlands. Secondly, I alone spoke with it and found it helpful and reasonable. Thirdly, 'twas in size akin to a Man and nowhere 'nigh the dimensions of even the meanest hut. I know not how such reports came to be so disproportioned that I should be hard pressed to recognize them myself. Here she cast her eyes to Álfrhestr and saw him wince.
Pray calm yourselves, she said. I deem the greatest dangers shall prove to be boredom and the Haradrim.
The horses regarded her solemnly and one by one, they nodded their heads in acceptance. Helluin took her leave, only later realizing that she had ne'er mentioned that they would go by water.
Now on the morrow, the mixed company rode out of Minas Tirith and any notion of secrecy fell by the wayside. At dawn, the knights with Prince Eärnur at their head passed the city gate in a parade formation 'neath pennants proudly displayed, and accompanied by a fanfare of trumpets. By then, the Rangers had already arrived at the Harlond, having taken their leave in the dark, in irregular groups at irregular intervals, whilst attracting little attention save for the sentries on watch and the drunks staggering from the First Circle's common rooms and taverns.
Ere the knights arrived at the quay, the Rangers had boarded and settled their mounts on three of the ships. Helluin then ordered their captains to stand off from the docks and drop anchors in Anduin to maintain position. Most had taken the opportunity to grab several hours' sleep whilst the cavalry companies distributed themselves aboard the remaining six vessels. The results of this were that the cavalry was distributed eighteen per transport whilst the Rangers were able to occupy their berths at seventeen per ship and their horses the stalls at eighteen per ship. This reflected the three additional pack horses brought to bear rations for an extended deployment, and sheaves of extra arrows, plus some replacement weapons.
By the end of the second hour after dawn, the knights had filled their six ships; each with two supply wagons drawn by teams of two and driven by a pair of squires. They were lashed in place on the weather decks. These wagons were filled with food and spare weapons, but also with campaign tents and furnishings, which the Rangers had chuckled o'er, but that were deemed requirements for a proper deployment of knights.
Prince Eärnur gave the command for the flotilla to get underway. The captains ordered the ships freed from their moorings and turned into the current. As the prince's flagship passed into the downstream lane, the Rangers stood at the railings and saluted, and then their ships weighed their anchors and followed the cavalry south.
Now whereas aforetime, the four ships of Linhir had made twelve knots downstream, at the prince's command, the crews set sails to achieve eighteen knots, cutting their expected time on Anduin by a third. Through that day and into the night, the nine ships followed the flagship in a single file at equal intervals. The two hundred twenty miles from the Harlond to the mouth of the Poros passed in a shade o'er twelve hours so that three hours ere midnight, the nine ships turned hard to port 'cross Anduin's current and entered the river mouth. The maneuver was executed with military precision and barely did the separation 'twixt the vessels change even as their speed dropped against the downstream current.
Dawn of 16 Narwain found the small fleet making six knots, their location sixty miles upriver. So far, they were maintaining their pace, blessed by somewhat stronger winds than Helluin had encountered in Hithui aboard Gwathui Gaer. At the fourth hour, the schooners came abreast of the landing site the Rangers had used aforetime and there they lowered anchors.
"Your Highness, pray debark the Rangers first to secure the landing site," Helluin called out 'cross the water to Prince Eärnur. She reckoned that each of the cavalry's wagons would take longer to offload than a whole ship full of Rangers and it seemed that the prince agreed, for he waved them towards the shore.
One after another, the three transports pulled to the flat rock shelf on the southern bank and there the Rangers led their horses down the gangplank and onto the solid ground of Harondor. A defensive cordon of archers was set beyond the riverbank and then the cavalry began landing their mounts and material. As expected, offloading the wagons was a harrowing process in which twin gangplanks were set and teams of horses were used to control the descent with ropes as they inched forward 'cross the deck. Even with their hulls hauled tight against the shelf, the slightest bob or roll of the deck in the current caused hearts to flutter as the wagons lurched on the narrow tracks. Slowly, each wagon rolled down the twin gangplanks 'til it reached the flat rock shelf, and there 'twas turned and its team of two horses hitched to their normal harness. Then, with an additional pair to provide added pulling force, the wagons were hauled up the bank and onto level ground at last. That time consuming and nerve wracking sequence was repeated 'til each of the dozen wagons stood ready to move south, and in that too, added jeopardy was required.
Having already felt like sitting ducks during the hours required to debark the wagons and the knights, the Rangers were yet more annoyed to learn that the wagon train required passage down the Harad Road to traverse Harondor. Unlike single riders, the wheeled vehicles needed a flat, smooth track. They would proceed with the knights as an escort and the Rangers spreading east and west as scouts, all to secure the way whilst risking their lives for the safety of campaign tents, folding chairs, writing desks, and waxed canvas bathtubs. Their snailish pace led to a day and a half consumed in slowly crossing the thirty-five miles of open land ere reaching the road. Of course, they rode forward with pennants fluttering o'erhead displaying the heraldry of Gondor. The Rangers were only thankful that the prince forewent the trumpet fanfares.
The early afternoon of 18 Narwain found the company reaching the Harad Road at last. The knights and their squires were relieved, the Rangers apprehensive.
"Such a bad course this," commented Sergeant Húbion, shaking his head in dismay as he drew his horse alongside Álfrhestr.
"Aye, yet as he is prince, we cannot but suffer it," Helluin agreed in resignation. "I reckon the best we can hope is that these lands have remained deserted."
"Huh. I should wager no more than a mug of ale on that."
"Nor I," Helluin replied. "Pray take thy company and Sergeant Orodben's to the west of the road. Remain together by companies and stay out of sight. I shall take Renidir's company with mine east of the road. Worst comes to worst, support the knights from shooting distance and allow them the close quarters battle."
"In other words, they are the bait," Sergeant Húbion said with a grim grin.
To this, Helluin nodded in agreement.
"They have made themselves such, and better them than we."
Not only did the Rangers ride out of sight during the days, but they also maintained their protocols for travel in hostile territory by night, camping cold a couple furlongs to either side of the road. Hidden from sight 'neath their cloaks amidst the boulders and shadows, their sentries kept careful watch on the cook fires and watch fires kindled in the knights' camp astride the road. At least the Dúnedain had circled their wagons and picketed their horses in the center.
In the night of 20 Narwain, after having come fifty miles south on the Harad Road, the Rangers slew two dozen Haradrim raiders as they quietly walked their horses toward the knights' camp.
"Movement," Dúnriel had whispered to her fellow sentry, canting her head to the south as she drew an arrow from her quiver.
"Five…no eight…" he replied just as quietly, and then he too prepared his bow.
"They are many," said the third sentry on duty in Sergeant Orodben's company. "I shall rouse the others."
'Round the same time, but slightly to the north, the sentries in Sergeant Húbion's company marked the movement of Men and horses sneaking forward. They too roused their company as the strangers advanced. With little cause for doubt, both sergeants deemed them foes seeking to attack in stealth. Whispered orders were passed and the shooting began, deadly accurate in the night. When they finally mounted and charged from the darkened land, the Southrons were lacking a third of their complement.
They took the Dúnedain camp by surprise and managed to slay a squire and three knights, but even as the attack began, more of the raiders fell to arrows shot from the flanks. In short order, the prince and his Men recovered from their surprise and took up the fight in earnest. Soon, the Haradrim found themselves o'ermatched and the last three dozen retreated into the darkness. O'er the league they rode back towards their own camp, another ten were shot from their saddles. The survivors had barely dismounted and taken the measure of their defeat when flaming arrows ignited some of their tents and by the light of the burning camp, the rest were shot down one by one.
From the destruction, the Rangers culled two stone of wheat flour, some smoked cheeses, a cask of acceptable wine, another of lamp oil, miscellaneous other foodstuffs, plus nine gold coins and fourteen silver coins each. Sergeant Orodben took a finely etched falchion in a gilt scabbard as a spoil whilst Sergeant Renidir took a shapely brass oil lamp with reservoir and chimney of ruby glass. Draugrán joined several others rounding up the raiders' horses. The Rangers then gathered 'aught else of value, blankets, weapons, and clothing for disguises mostly, loaded all onto the captured horses, and rode from the ruins of the camp greatly enriched.
Now on the following morn, that being 21 Narwain, Helluin came to the camp of the knights and spoke with Prince Eärnur.
"Your Highness, 'tis good to see thou art well," she said after offering a bow in greeting. "My sympathies for last night's fallen."
"My thanks to thee and thy Rangers," the prince replied. "In the aftermath of the battle, we marked that many of our attackers had been shot. We appreciate the support."
"The Rangers shot two dozens ere the battle and then pursued the survivors to their camp and slaughtered them to the last, m'lord, some five dozens all told. Thy Men are avenged."
A smile shaped the prince's lips and he uttered an enthusiastic, "Yes!"
"Lord Eärnur, the time has come for us to ride east to the Ephel Dúath and the Nargil Pass, so to take up thy father's mission to invade Mordor. We can accompany thee no further," she said.
"We all serve at the king's command, do we not, Lady Helluin," he asked rhetorically. Then he nodded, accepting the requirements of her mission and offering her a smile. "We shall push on. I wish thee and the Rangers good fortune in battle. May we meet again in triumph!"
"And I to thee and thy knights, Lord Eärnur. May they feel the wrath of Gondor. We take our leave."
Upon her return from the knights' camp, the Rangers broke cover and began riding east at a trot. The prince marked that they seemed to have lost none in battle and had somehow doubled the count of their horses, for a long train of laden steeds followed the Rangers' three packhorses. Soon enough, they had disappeared into the broken landscape.
The Rangers were disgruntled, for having come fifty miles south on the Harad Road, they were now two hundred forty miles west of the Nargil Pass, a full day's ride further than if had they simply ridden 'cross country after landing in Harondor. They begrudged the added danger more than the actual mileage, for now they had proof that hostiles inhabited those lands. Still, if there was any consolation, 'twas that the knights would draw enemies more readily than they.
Even so, they were forced to send scouting parties ahead and to their flanks. They made at most roughly thirty miles a day, and for the last two, they hugged the foothills of the Mountains of Shadow. In this way on their eighth day, they discovered the cirque, a great oblong plain roughly a mile in diameter that lay at the head of a ravine. They had stopped to water the horses at the out flowing stream and two Rangers were dispatched to follow the watercourse upstream. When they returned 'twas with jubilation, for they had found a new and far greater base for their operations than the coomb had been. Indeed, they had solved a nagging problem, for they had not only fifty-three horses of their own, but also an additional forty-six taken from the Haradrim. The coomb had been barely large enough to pasture the thirty-six steeds they had brought in Hithui.
The company spent the 29th exploring the cirque and scouting its surroundings. They found, in addition to the stream, a small lake in the center of a dished field strewn with small boulders, all hedged by cliffs. At the head of the valley stood a waterfall that brought melt water down from the highlands of the Ephel Dúath. It could hardly have been more perfect for their needs, and as such, they deemed 'twas also known to the Haradrim, yet they found 'naught but a few old fire rings in the ravine. Any prints of hooves or feet had long been weathered away.
"Think thou that this place can be defended by a dozen?" Helluin asked Sergeant Renidir, who would again command the detail left outside the Nargil Pass.
"T'will of course depend on the count of foes, First Guardian," he replied. "If they number a couple dozen then aye, we can hold. If they are a company such as assailed the knights, then nay, we would be forced to flee."
"At least the valley is broad enough that t'would be possible to escape rather than be trapped," she said, "provided thou can win free through the ravine."
"If so desperate a measure became necessary, I would stampede the Haradrim horses at the fore to clear the way and then follow behind them."
Helluin nodded, accepting his suggestion. Alas, they had no wealth of dry fodder, for such a stampede would become far more terrifying if the horses were bearing bundles of flaming, oil-soaked straw.
What think thou? Helluin asked Álfrhestr as she watched the Rangers removing their tack and supplies from the horses.
'Tis a far sight better than the coomb, he declared. Thither we should have had not even space to breath with so many of us now.
The Noldo nodded to him in agreement.
Hither ye shall be able to run and move about at your leisure, she said. I pray t'will hold the boredom at bay, at least for a time.
T'will certainly help, he agreed, and the newcomers have offered some interesting conversation as well.
That is good, O Álfrhestr. I hope that thou may impress upon them the opportunities for greener pastures in Gondor.
The young stallion regarded her with narrowed eyes.
I should do so had I seen any, rather than the insides of the stalls in the Sixth Circle or those boats.
Helluin sighed. He was still irritable about being conveyed to Harondor aboard ship.
Perhaps then thou may warn them of the owls, she said.
They have their own tales regarding the owls, the Yrch, and even their own people, all of whom are not above depriving seniors of a well-earned retirement. One has told me of his granddam, rendered into both glue and jerky.
The Noldo gave him a sympathetic look, though she suspected that no few aging nags had wound up in En Sennas Iaur's 'stew of beef with roasted root vegetables'.
Life can be hard in these arid lands, she said, with few resources set aside for those who can no longer win their sustenance through a day's labor.
'Twas not so in the days of Ivar and Norðr-vestandóttir, nor their heirs in Suꝺriborg, Álfrhestr said. They treated us with honor and we remember.
I would have esteemed them had we met, Helluin said, wholly ignorant of that irony, and perhaps those memories too, thou should share.
I cannot imagine them coming so far north in the Vale of Anduin.
Perhaps not, yet the blessings of one may bring hope to many, simply to know that such may be.
To this, Álfrhestr gave thought, and Helluin returned to the Rangers to discuss their plans for the deployment of the three companies who would invade Mordor.
"First Guardian, we are slightly more than a league from the foot of the pass," Sergeant Orodben reported after the scouts had returned.
"That is good tidings, sergeant," Helluin said. "If all remains well, then we shall enter the pass upon the morrow."
Shortly following dawn on 30 Narwain, Helluin and three dozen Rangers took their leave of the cirque and made their way east in stealth to the foot of the Nargil Pass. As they drew 'nigh, they checked the coomb, but found no sign that any had come thither in their absence. They would have no enemies lurking at their backs. Two hours ere noon, they entered the pass and for most, the way was familiar. The narrow trail 'twixt the cliff walls was unchanged and they made good time. For prudence's sake, they established their first night's camp where they had set their ambush aforetime. When night fell, Helluin backtracked a short ways and found again the place of deep clefts and mixed boulders, and there she waited, glowing weakly and hoping for the appearance of Glohsúl, the great owl.
Despite keeping a constant watch, 'twas not 'til the owl alighted on a spur of rock rising close by that the Noldo marked its presence. She dipped her head in greeting and met the hunter's eyes.
Fair night to thee, bright one, the owl said. I wondered if we would meet again.
Fair night to thee, silent hunter. 'Tis my honor to greet thee. I hope all is well and thy hunts have been rewarded.
They have, Helluin. Was thy prior foray successful?
Aye, 'twas so indeed, Glohsúl. Yet now we are tasked with a new mission.
I have marked three dozens with thee, yet thou shalt wait long ere more can flee yonder land.
We are sent to enter those lands and do 'aught we can to encourage more to flee.
To this, the owl bobbed its head and fluffed its feathers ere settling again.
Now some guard yonder land. None have fled of late.
Then I deem we are needed and our coming timely, Helluin said.
The pass lies open for thy passage, Helluin.
My thanks, Glohsúl, fair hunting.
The Rangers set out east through the pass the next morn and spent 1 Nínui carefully advancing in the highlands though the Owl had claimed the way was open. Prudence had demanded stealth, but they met none. Glohsúl had spoken true.
The Nargil Pass entered Nurn at the rear of a deep and narrow valley that opened to the north and ran 'twixt two steep arms of the Ephel Dúath. Those jagged ridges of black rock were indistinguishable from the many that lay to the east and west, and so one would have needed to know aforehand whither to seek for the pass.
Now of them all, only Helluin had aforetime entered Mordor, but her experiences were of the Plateau of Gorgoroth several hundred miles to the north. It had been desolate, a depressing, blasted land of volcanic debris and toxic fumes, a torment even to the Yrch forced to abide it. Yet Sauron cared 'naught for the comfort of his slaves. Twofold were the strategic imperatives that had made it the center of the Dark Lord's empire. From the heights of the Barad-dûr, his Maia sight allowed him to keep watch o'er Udûn and the Morannon, the gateway to his realm. More importantly, the proximity of Orodruin was paramount. As had his master in Angband of old, the volcanic fires served his sorcery and empowered his forge. The iron for the Black Gates and the Dark Tower had been wrought there, his mace and armor had been formed there, and most importantly, his Ring had been forged in the fires of Mt. Doom. And all of those works were bound to and partook of his power, his debasement of the Eternal Flame.
To Helluin and the Rangers, Nurn, or at least what they could see of it in the dimming evening light, was a revelation. Nay, 'twas not such bountiful farmland as the Pelennor, nor as unspoiled a wilderness as Ithilien, but 'twas far from a wasteland. Bordering several small rivers and streams that ran down from the Ephel Dúath were spread fields and orchards. Channels dug with much labor conveyed water outwards from the natural watercourses to allow the cultivation of a swath of farmland covering many hundreds of acres that stretched off into the distance.
Of a darker nature were the scattering of rickety slave sheds, more akin to cattle byres than the dwellings of free farmers, wherein the masses of 'Snaga' took their rest. These were spread amongst the fields, the better to dissuade camaraderie and stifle community, whilst providing the minimal lost time for going to and from their labor in the fields. Also at regular intervals, Helluin and the Rangers marked small outposts encircled by crude stockades, each containing barracks, communal halls, and pens for Wargs. These were the abodes of the slave drivers and o'erseers who goaded the 'Snaga' with lash and truncheon 'til they eventually collapsed, their lives spent in unremitting servitude.
Yet more ominous still was a small fortress of stone with a wall and low tower, set upon a spur of the Ephel Dúath to the western side of the valley leading to the Nargil Pass. A garrison of a couple hundred could easily be deployed within, whilst from its tower, soldiers of Mordor could o'erlook the farmlands and guard the entrance to the pass. From its gates, a road wound down into the farmland, whilst a crossroads connected it to a larger way that ran east west along the foothills of the Mountains of Shadow. 'Twas easy enough to guess that the fort they saw was but one amongst many spread along the borders of the Black Land to guard the frontier.
Helluin and the sergeants Húbion, and Orodben surveyed the fading scene as the various factions of the inhabitants began to show themselves with the disappearance of the sun. There was much work to do and their mission would be no swift raid upon an isolated farming outpost. What they had seen ere the evening light faded to an inky Mordor night was 'naught less than a long-established and well-developed tributary realm with a social structure and military presence strongly entrenched. Their mission would be more akin to the subversion and o'erthrow of a kingdom.
"Post sentries and then take some rest," Helluin told the two sergeants, "I deem that 'naught can we accomplish here ere dawn. Meanwhile, the Yrch shall labor through the night."
Sure enough, in the lands stretching out from the valley, the occasional torch marked an Orkish o'erseer driving his companies of slaves to the fields. Helluin shook her head as the windows in the fortress brightened with firelight and a horn harshly brayed the start of the 'work day'.
To Be Continued