In An Age Before – Part 269
That opportunity was realized shortly later as Helluin and her mob of filthy moppets, unfed urchins, and bewildered adults wandered down a pristine forest path beside a placid stream. Most were still a bit damp, for they had charged towards the clean water upstream as soon as it became visible, slaking their thirst and then scrubbing their faces and hands. Now their pant legs, sleeves, and the necks of their tunics were dark with moisture, whilst most had acquired cowlicks and the disheveled precursors of hairstyles more typical of itinerant madmen. Helluin thought that having their faces visible under the dirt was an improvement, though the cursory washing had done 'naught to improve their smell.
Lindir had appeared as Helluin rounded a turn in the path, hedged on one side by a boulder of granite and on the other by the trunk of a massive pine.
"Mae govannen, meldis nín," he had said with a smile, and then his brows furrowed as the first of Helluin's following had come 'round the bend. "I see thou hast brought company."
"Indeed so, meldir nín. They are the surviving folk of an Orc raid on the far side of the Hithaeglir whom I have liberated from captivity of late." She watched as Lindir's brows continued to rise higher and higher as more and more freed slaves came into view. "They are in dire need of food and rest, and I shall seek the counsel of Lord Elrond on their behalf straightaway."
"Yes, yes, of course, Helluin," the Peredhel's seneschal muttered as his eyes flicked from one unfortunate to another. The dark Noldo was sure that he was taking a head count and noting any outstanding injuries.
Soon the pathetic throng had surrounded them and she marked that Lindir was subtly breathing through his mouth. The hundred-odd children regarded the meticulously groomed Elf in his pristine robes with beseeching eyes and he groaned. One appearing wealthy could not convincingly dissemble before beggars. Helluin stifled a chuckle, and then prompted him into motion with a raised brow and a cant of her head.
"Come, children," he finally said, looking 'round the circle, "we shall go and have a picnic of hot soup and fresh bread, and…and fruit, out in the fresh air on a lovely terrace."
There arose a clamoring of enthusiastic agreement and many expressions of thanks. Lindir cringed when two children took his hands and began walking him down the path towards the last Homely House. He caught Helluin's eye and silently said, May the Valar preserve me, I am become a nursemaid.
And I am sure that a fine figure thou shalt cut in that capacity, she replied with a nod of approval, well done, my friend.
Having sloughed off the immediate responsibility for the welfare of the escapees, Helluin sought the Lord of Imladris, finding him in his study as she had expected. He was again in the company of Mithrandir, as she had not expected. Since the door already stood ajar, she rapped on the doorframe to announce her presence and took a step 'cross the threshold, then offered them a bow.
"Suilaid, hírin nín," she said, "I come with refugees and tidings."
"I see," said Elrond, casting a swift glance to the windows behind his desk. Outside, the terrace was swiftly filling with children and adults all mobbing a hard put Lindir and beseeching him for the promised soup and bread. Mithrandir chuckled at the sight.
"I am sure there is some interesting story behind their sudden arrival, Helluin?" the Wizard asked.
The dark Noldo dipped her head in agreement with the Ithron and said, "Hence the tidings I mentioned, my friends. I have seen sights unexpected and terrifying deep 'neath the earth."
Here she cast a glance above the terrace, to the east ramparts of the Hithaeglir that rose, snow-capped in the distance. Elrond and Mithrandir followed her gaze and the Peredhel exhaled a sigh to articulate his foreboding and then gestured her to the seat next to Mithrandir that faced his desk. He poured her a goblet of a deep red wine and from long habit, moved to call for Lindir ere restraining himself and shaking his head.
"Pray accept a seeded cake for now, Helluin," he said, offering her a salver of the ubiquitous refreshments. "I fear thou shalt needs wait on hot soup and fresh bread, and…and fruit."
Helluin and Mithrandir both chuckled at that. Helluin took a sip of wine and a seeded cake and then asked, "What lore hold the Wise concerning the Orkish realm of Kâpul Ulot?"
The Wizard and the loremaster regarded her, their confused expressions reflecting their lack of recognition.
"Kâpul Ulot can be translated from the Orkish as 'Goblin Town' and sounds to me like a Mannish epithet," Elrond reasoned. "Whither lies this realm of the Yrch?"
"I too have ne'er heard tell of a Glamish realm known as Kâpul Ulot," said Mithrandir.
Helluin nodded to them, for she had only heard that name from the lips of various Yrch, its first mention coming from some of those she had slain in the mountains 'twixt 1851 and 1974. She thought back on the songs she had heard at the celebratory feast and recalled a victory ditty that she had deemed inane and refused to consciously acknowledge at the time. It went like this:
Snap! Clap! The black crack!
Grip, grab! Pinch, nab!
And down, down to Goblin-town
You go, my lad!
Clash, crash! Crush, smash!
Hammer and tongs! Knocker and gongs!
Pound, pound, far underground!
Ho, ho! My lad!
Swish, smack! Whip crack!
Batter and beat! Yammer and bleat!
Work, work! Nor dare to shirk!
While Goblins quaff, and Goblins laugh,
Round and round far underground
Below, my lad!¹
¹(Song sung by Goblins as they drive Thorin Oakenshield's company down from the 'front porch' cave for their audience before the Great Goblin, from "The Hobbit", Ch. IV "Over Hill and Under Hill", pg. 58.)
In context, the song had referenced the Goblins forcing their captive Uruks into the depths of Kâpul Ulot where they met their deaths below, and the victorious Goblins gorging and drinking, (and laughing as well as singing, poorly), afterwards. Helluin suspected that the words might find universal appeal in myriad circumstances, but that was hardly important. What was notable was that the Goblins had referred to themselves as Goblins, and to their home as Goblin-town.
"Kâpul Ulot is the inhabitant's name for a vast warren delved 'neath the High Pass," Helluin revealed. "The resident Orcs call themselves Kâpulu, Goblins, and regard Uruks with animosity. Those they call Uruks are the descendants of deserters from Angmar. I know not if they use that term for all other Yrch."
"Would thou deem these Goblins and Uruks responsible for the attacks on travelers using the High Pass?" the Peredhel asked.
"Aye, without a doubt," Helluin said. "I entered their realm from the Vale of Anduin and left on the west side of the mountains only a day's march from Imladris. There are many entrances, the population numbers in the thousands at least, and I wager the realm has stood many centuries or perhaps far longer. They could easily waylay the pass as well as threaten hamlets downslope. I wager they have done just so for many years and shall continue to do so in the days to come."
The Peredhel received her tidings with a grim expression. The notion of a vast realm with thousands of enemies lurking only a day's march from his valley left him ill at ease. He had to wonder why his people had not already been assailed and when such an invasion might come. Finally, he shook his head as doubt and worry etched his heart. He cast a glance to the refugees on the terrace, pitying them and wondering if his own people might be similarly afflicted one day.
"Helluin, thou must tell us all thou hast learnt," he said.
The dark Noldo nodded in agreement, but ere she could begin speaking, Mithrandir said, "The Lady Artanis should also hear thy rede, my friend. Pray allow me a moment to summon her."
To this notion, both Elrond and Helluin concurred. The Noldo snatched another seeded cake whilst the Ithron's eyes defocused as he looked far away in spirit. She had finished the first cake and begun nibbling at another when Mithrandir blinked and his focus returned to Elrond's study. A moment later, Galadriel's astral projection appeared, unceremoniously superimposed as if standing knee-high in Helluin's lap. The dark Noldo choked, spewing a mouthful of seeded cake 'cross the Peredhel's desk as the lady flushed with embarrassment and quickly stepped to the side.
"My apologies, Helluin," she stuttered, a graceful hand held o'er her mouth, "in Lothlórien I was facing Mithrandir as we spoke, but here…how mortifying."
Elrond closed his mouth as he recovered from his shock and managed to say, "Welcome, my lady…" but then trailed off, at a loss for what else to add.
"I trust that no one is harmed," said Mithrandir, looking 'round at the others one by one.
Helluin's heart rate had returned to normal after her blenching and she took a deep breath ere saying, "I was quite startled, but am now well. No harm taken, my lady," she added, dipping her head to Artanis, "I am sure it could happen to anyone."
The lady chuckled and quipped, "'Twas the only way I could get 'neath thine armor."
Her words prompted a moment's shocked expression from Helluin ere she muttered, "Good one, my old friend."
"Levity aside, we have serious considerations to explore," Elrond said, his nervousness palpable. "Helluin has returned of late from a vast warren of Yrch whence she liberated many captives taken from a town on the far side of the Hithaeglir. She hath many tidings to share."
Galadriel's brows rose at his words and she cast a glance through the windows to the gathering of refugees gorging on the terrace. When she looked to her son-in-law, he gave her a subtle nod of confirmation.
"The poor things, to have had stolen from them their fleeting days of youth," she said, speaking of long past but clearly recalled and still treasured memories of her own days as a mother. "'Tis a very good deed thou hast done, Helluin, what with childhood being so precious. Tell us then of this den of the Glamhoth."
"I spent the better part of a fortnight roaming those tunnels and some of what I saw I deem myself incapable of describing with words alone," Helluin said. "Rather would I show ye the impact of that place, the better to convey its horrors."
Galadriel gave her a nod of acceptance as did Mithrandir, and after a moment's trepidation, so too did Elrond. The Peredhel recalled some prior experiences the dark Noldo had shared that had proved most disturbing. Still, his curiosity at her emphasis of the sights she had seen being beyond words convinced him to chance his equanimity once again.
"Let us adjourn to the sitting area that we may face Helluin from the settee," he suggested, and the others nodded in agreement and walked o'er to the group of seats before the hearth.
When Elrond and Mithrandir had settled themselves at either end with Galadriel appearing superimposed o'er the cushions in the center, Helluin took an armchair facing them and they gazed into her eyes. Helluin captured their attention and subsumed their consciousnesses and they fell into the blue wells of her eyes.
The study vanished and they saw through Helluin's memory the emptied village of Helrunahlæw in its vale on the eastern side of the Hithaeglir. The sad ghost town stood in the afternoon light with deserted streets and silent buildings as if its soul had been ripped out, leaving only its carcass behind. A quick image revealed the poisoned well and then the wagon tracks leading away uphill. Briefly, they followed the trail 'til they came upon a cave entrance by night. A moment later, they saw Helluin in the guise of a Nazgûl enter and behead the two guards, and then her slaughter of the remaining ten Yrch in their guard chamber. They saw her write on the walls with their blood.
Gruesome, Helluin, and are these slogans truly necessary? Mithrandir asked.
'Twas with such taunts that I created the myth of the Ghâshgûl five centuries ago, Helluin explained, and now I seek to revisit that fearsome lore and set terror anew amongst them.
The memory advanced in a jump and now they were in darkness surrounded by walls of rough-hewn stone. They were moving at a jogging pace following a half-dozen Goblins, the leader of whom carried a torch.
Pray pay heed to their chant, the dark Noldo advised, for aforetime, 'naught but bickering and curses have accompanied marches of their kind. Herein we find cooperation and common cause.
When you can't stand the pace,
(can't stand the pace)
In the Big Rodent Race,
(Big Rodent Race)
Come on in where it's safe,
(in where it's safe)
Where the menu is tref…
(the menu is tref)
There's a smell in the air,
(a smell in the air)
that reminds you of hair,
(reminds you of hair)
You've got something to get,
(something to get)
And it looks like your pet!
(looks like your pet)
Not only the participation of the six in the chant, but also their attendance at their council made plain the fact that these Goblins acted in concert and of their own will. They were far more cohesive and committed to cause than any Yrch that Elrond, Mithrandir, or Galadriel had seen aforetime.
I saw no leader, but rather many unified by common purpose and engaged in willing participation, Helluin said, potentially a very dangerous state for previously fractious foes.
Helluin showed the others her memories of the mustering and assault of the Goblins on the Uruks, at which time the trio of the Wise also saw their first view of the prisoners in their slave pen. Then they were following the Goblin mob as they drove the defeated Uruks to the Anto Cúmo. Galadriel, Mithrandir, and Elrond witnessed the execution, and after the Goblins took their leave, watched in fascination as Helluin tested the chain and then lowered herself through the floor.
For a slow count of ten they fell, nine score and ten fathoms, Helluin said.
They saw what she had seen as she illuminated that netherworld with her Light, and astonishment held them thrall at the sight of so vast a subterranean space that had been wholly unsuspected aforetime.
Amazing, whispered Elrond in silence.
Thou ain't seen nothing yet, Helluin muttered, distracted by what she knew was to come.
Her increased Light revealed the surface of water far 'neath her and the sparkle of reflections on the surface, and with them, the slow movement of a massive wave. The Wizard, the loremaster, and the princess understood what that movement implied as swiftly as Helluin had when she dangled from the chain. Then she blazed with the full measure of the Light of the Two Trees and the leviathan broke the surface and lunged upward. The three recoiled in visceral horror and 'twas all Helluin could do to constrain them against their own reflexes. She forced them to look, just as she had done, down into the maw of the monster, and then she climbed as if all the devils of Angband were at her heels. With a blink, she released her friends and together they sat panting and shivering in Elrond's cozy study.
The horror was slow to pass, even second-hand, and 'twas some while ere any spoke. Helluin quaffed what remained of the wine from her goblet and then set it aside. Elrond was silent, his eyes distant as he replayed what was now for him a new memory, and his fear was plain to see on his face. Mithrandir too seemed consumed in thought, but Galadriel whispered in shock to no one in particular, "What demon of Morgoth might that have been?"
"I know not, for ne'er aforetime have I seen its like, and I believe I was not meant to, for the terror of it lives in my heart," Helluin admitted. "All the world seems strange to me now and all its promises empty." She cast her glance to Mithrandir, for he was Maia and if any of them knew 'aught of it, t'would be he.
Galadriel too looked to the Ithron, but he shook his head as he met their eyes.
"What 'twas, I too know not, yet 'tis held that there are older and fouler things than Orcs in the deep places of the world¹," he said softly. Long years later, he would recall those words and the knowledge gained from Helluin's memory. His own trial in those depths lay centuries ahead. ¹(This line is based on Gandalf's reply to Frodo Baggins in Moria in The Lord of the Rings/The Fellowship of the Ring, Book II, Ch. IV A Journey In The Dark, pg. 301.)
Now after spending some time to digest the horror of what lay 'neath the Misty Mountains, both Goblin Town and the unnamable, they turned to the disposition of the refugees.
"Thou intend to return them to the Vale of Anduin, Helluin?" Galadriel asked.
"Aye, for 'nigh half this count of survivors already abides in Norðr-vestandóttir Bý and I deem they should be settled with their families and neighbors," she said.
"I imagine they shall all rejoice at that reunion, unlooked for and welcome beyond hope," Elrond said. "I know t'would be so for me at the repatriation of lost family."
Mithrandir nodded as well, though he observed that, "The High Pass can test hikers and most are still children, and the Goblins and Uruks know many places to waylay travelers. How shalt thou convey them hence in safety, Helluin?"
"I had thought to first ensure that they are healed and well rested, and then with good provisions and some added security, make our way carefully o'er the pass. I know at least one entrance that I assailed in 2008 upon my return trip from Gondor, but there may be others unknown or new. 'Tis a jeopardy, aye, yet I wager it still an easier road than marching south through Eregion to Caradhras and then all the way north on the Dwarf Road to the Old Ford."
"Warriors I can send with thee, but not hundreds," Elrond said.
"I reckon that hundreds shall not be needed. I believe two dozen shall suffice to see us o'er the pass. 'Tis small companies that guard the entrances to Kâpul Ulot and we have heard no tell of large bands attacking travelers. Only the attack on Helrunahlæw involved more."
"Shall thy foes in Goblin Town not be eager to recover those that thou liberated, Helluin?" Galadriel asked. "Shall they not come in force against any found in the pass, whether to recover those lost, or to lay in bondage others as replacements?"
"They may," Helluin conceded, "but we shall have illusion and surprise on our side."
The lady raised her brows in question at that claim and Elrond's expression was one of confusion. With a sigh, the dark Noldo turned away to retrieved her cloak from her travel bag and donned it, pulling the hood up to conceal her head. Then she drew Anguirél and her dagger and turned back to them, looming forward, her face hidden in shadow and her weapons spread wide to her sides clasped in her gauntleted hands. Helluin looked for all the world like one of the Nine and her appearance in person was far more convincing than the images in her memories.
"Hûrlatu bugjabat? Thraku goth gothûrzaz zaz snagaz!¹" she grated out, her voice harsh and threatening. For a moment, it seemed that the room had darkened as clouds obscured the sun. ¹(Hûrlatu bugjabat? Thraku goth gothûrzaz zaz snagaz!, You dare to oppose (me)? (I) bring to most powerful master these slaves! = hûr-(v. dare) + latu(pl. you) + bugjab-(v. oppose) + -at(inf v suff, to oppose) + thrak-(v. bring) + -u(prep. to) + goth(master) + gothûrzaz(most powerful) + zaz(these) + snaga(slave) + -z(pl suff for nouns ending in vowels) Orkish)
Their eyes and ears told them that a Nazgûl stood in their midst and its words had conjured a darkening of the world. Worse still, they felt bloodlust and the promise of slaughter radiating from the figure and knew that mortals would feel o'erwhelming fear. Then Helluin sheathed her weapons and drew back her hood. The room no longer seemed dim and the sun shone bright through the windows. She greeted the shocked expressions of her friends with a grin.
"I pray we can find some black cloaks for any sent with me," she said, and Mithrandir laughed.
Later, Elrond admonished, "I would appreciate thou not speaking that tongue in Imladris, Helluin."
Helluin suppressed the rolling of her eyes and gave him a deferential nod, saying, "'Twas but an Orkish dialect, not the true Black Speech of Sauron, yet I shall refrain, hír nín."
"I appreciate that, meldis nín," the Peredhel replied.
"And I believe I have heard enough upsetting things for one visit," Galadriel said. "I shall take my leave if there is 'naught else so pressing?"
She and the others looked to Helluin.
"Save that Dol Guldur has been quiet these past dozen years, nay, there is 'naught else so dark," she said.
"Very well, mellyn nín, I bid ye farewell for now," Galadriel said, adding a dip of her head to the Ithron and her son-in-law ere she vanished.
'Twas but moments later that Lindir trudged into the study looking quite put upon. His robes were stained and his hair disheveled, and he moved as one bowed by great fatigue. His face was grim and a sour looked had turned the corners of his mouth down. Helluin had ne'er seen him so. Mithrandir and Elrond regarded him with worried expressions. He spoke ere even being asked after his condition.
"My lord, we are out of soup and bread," he announced without preamble, "and shall needs press more cider." He sighed dramatically and muttered, "Can the babes of Men not keep their hands to themselves? I have had my sleeves tugged so oft that I fear the seams have torn. 'Twas as if I was being attacked by dogs, and by the griminess of their hands I shall needs launder my garments forthwith."
He actually poured himself a goblet of wine and then collapsed into a chair to quaff it down. After the last swallow, he turned beseeching eyes to Helluin and pleaded, "'Tis long since I have endured a day so dismal, beset with their endless pleas for food and their tireless calls for a song. Am I become a tavern keep? A minstrel? Then once their hunger was sated, the wee savages amused themselves by flinging food. Canst thou not make them go away?"
"I suppose I could return them to thralldom in Goblin Town and thereby earn the esteem of thousands of Yrch and their alliance with the Hidden Valley, though I wager they are no less demanding of victuals, nor any cleaner of hand," Helluin offered, and saw Lindir shudder. "Too time consuming? Then I could simply slay them all outright and we shall have no lack of soup."
"That is very dark, Helluin," Lindir said, shaking his head. "Could we not instead sell them to the Dunlendings and make a tidy profit?"
"Enough, you two," said the Peredhel in an exasperated tone. "They are unfortunates and deserved not their plight. We shall aid them in returning to their homeland as was Helluin's original intention."
"Ahhh, then they shall be away in timely fashion," Lindir said, sighing in relief.
"Aye, my friend, they need only a respite in which to recover their strength and heal from any wounds," said Helluin. "I deem such a span may be easily assessed by any competent healer."
To this, the Lord of Imladris and the Ithron nodded in agreement.
Now that afternoon, healers of Imladris interviewed the survivors of Helrunahlæw and found them in good condition all considered. They were dehydrated, malnourished, fatigued, and traumatized. The children and most of the adults were plagued by nightmares, slept only fitfully, and after their initial gorging, were afflicted by inconsistent appetite, stress induced vomiting, and headaches. Their attention wavered and they were given to fits of temper, irrational fears, and some degree of paranoia. Few amongst them failed to start when approached and all of them were seldom at ease for they were haunted by their memories. It seemed their initial hopefulness at achieving freedom had been the result of their shock and once that faded, they were left with symptoms from the trauma of their captivity.
"They shall require at least a fortnight to recover their physical well-being," a healer told Lord Elrond, "but their emotional healing shall take far longer. Their hearts and minds are fragile and I should not favor sending them on an arduous journey for at least a season."
Upon hearing those tidings, Lindir threw up his hands and Helluin rolled her eyes. 'Twas already mid-Ivanneth and a fortnight would see the start of Narbeleth. A season would bring them to mid-Narwain. T'would then be the depths of winter and Helluin had no intention of dragging o'er a hundred children through the High Pass in freezing temperatures with icy footing and snowfall. She shook her head and groaned.
"If they are to remain a season, then it shall be spring ere I would choose to lead them o'er the High Pass," she said. "Even delaying a fortnight would make the timing chancy."
"Yet the longer the delay, perhaps the more the vigilance of the Yrch shall flag," Mithrandir said. To that reasoning, even Helluin had to nod in agreement. She looked o'er to see that Lindir was well 'nigh in tears.
"If I am truly to delay our departure 'til the end of Gwaeron 'twixt winter's frost and the spring rains, then I shall make the best of my time," Helluin declared. "On the morrow, I shall return to Kâpul Ulot and resume my campaign as the Ghâshgûl. Perhaps by spring they shall be fewer and fearful and our passage o'er the mountains the easier."
"Thou shalt be absent half a year?" Lindir asked in horror.
"Aye, or so I intend," she said.
"Living all that time sneaking about in a den of Yrch?"
"Indeed so and not for the first time," replied Helluin. Sotto voce, she added, "Thou couldst escape the menace of that mob of toddlers by accompanying me thither."
Lindir seemed both horrified and tempted by her offer. She cast a quick glance to Mithrandir and saw the effort he was expending to contain his mirth. Meanwhile, Elrond was shaking his head in disapproval.
"I am afraid that I shall have dire need of my seneschal, Helluin," the Peredhel said. It seemed that Lindir was undecided about whether or not to be thankful for his lord's intercession.
The dark Noldo dipped her head to the Lord of the Hidden Valley, deferring to his will. With mock resignation, she added, "T'would only have worked if he spoke fluent Orkish anyway."
"Rather, I shall be speaking like a mortal child ere thou returns in the spring," Lindir muttered.
Helluin wondered if Lindir would indeed become versed in mortal childhood vernacular as she strode up the climbing path to the High Pass the following day. The thought coaxed forth a chuckle, and then she turned her attention to breaching Kâpul Ulot for the second time in a fortnight.
On her second day out from Imladris, Helluin approached the narrow cleft dividing the cliffs on the north side of the pass. Rather than returning to the exit from which she had shepherded the survivors of Helrunahlæw four days past, she had decided to try entering the same tunnel where she had poisoned the company of Yrch in 2008 as she had returned from Gondor with Lainiel and Annuihír. Six months hence, she planned to lead the refugees past this place.
Now as she stood on the path outside the cleft, the Noldo reviewed her memories of that place. On a bed of sand, scree, and bare rock, a trail passed downslope, cleaving the high walls to form a narrow ravine, 'til it breached the southern wall of an amphitheater with a floor of bare stone that was hemmed in on three sides by cliffs. Only on its northern side was a view of distant mountains visible from the edge of a precipice, whilst in the eastern wall lay the maw of a dark den.
Helluin sensed no presences and smelt neither the putrefaction of the dead, nor the stench of living Yrch. Then again, she recalled the dearth of air movement through the cutting, and of course, the rotting bodies of those she had poisoned now lay five centuries in the past. Still, 'twas with stealthy steps and senses sharply focused that she entered and passed 'twixt the close standing walls. As she had aforetime, she walked hugging the left wall with her bow ready and an arrow notched on the string.
This time, when she reached the amphitheater, she marked that the trickle of snowmelt was dry, but as aforetime, heaps of bones, excrement, and unidentifiable filth lay scattered 'round the entrance to the tunnel. The smell of it hung pungent and stagnant, and she wrinkled her nose in disgust. Unlike her prior visit, a pair of Yrch flanked the entrance now, bored and inattentive as they passed the duration of their watch by bickering 'twixt themselves. Helluin marked their hobnailed boots and deemed that they were Uruks, not Kâpulu. In silence, she set a second arrow on her bowstring and moved to the right wall of the cutting, closest to the opening.
The Noldo waited for the moment when the two guards spoke at once in the heat of their argument, and then she stepped 'round the corner into the amphitheater and shot them in their faces with a single release of her bow. As they dropped to the ground, Helluin swiftly crossed the distance to stand at the side of the tunnel entrance, and there she ripped her arrow from the skull of the closer dead guard and set it on her bowstring.
For a while, Helluin stood, carefully listening. In 2008, the entrance had been unguarded. This time, though guards had been posted, she again heard 'naught from within and no one came forth in alarm. It seemed that none had lurked close enough to mark her slaying of the sentries. She retrieved her second arrow and ducked into the tunnel entrance. There she found 'naught but darkness and silence, just as aforetime.
Now the tunnel she recalled from memory, a half-furlong and then a sharp left turn, then another furlong with several more turns, both to the left and right, finally leading to a large chamber wherein aforetime she had found several dozen Yrch sitting in small groups 'round a number of fires. There had been a larger cook fire, unattended, and a massive, communal stewpot into which the Noldo had introduced the deadly venom of Ungolúróg. They had eaten and died from the inside out.
"Vrasulûk," she had whispered, kill them all.
Though Helluin had not explored further at that time, she had seen that many tunnels led from that long chamber. Now she knew that they led into Goblin Town, though she had no idea of which led where. As she had time on her hands and no specific destination, she reckoned that it made little difference which passage she took. Given time, she would explore them all, but first, she expected that there would be several dozen Yrch to slay.
Eventually, Helluin reached the last turn and by then her ears had confirmed the voices of many Yrch. The flickering light of their fires illuminated the entrance to the chamber and wavered on the walls of the tunnel. Helluin slipped forward and with great care, chanced a peek into the cavern to view the compliment of foes ensconced within. All was as expected, save that more Orcs now sat 'round their cook fire, perhaps gathered there to guard the cauldron for safety's sake. From this, she wagered that they recalled the poisoning of their stew centuries ago, though the cauldron still sat towards the front of the chamber 'neath the smoke hole in the ceiling. She also counted five tunnels leading from the rear sides of the cavern ere it passed out of sight and into shadow.
The Noldo stood in the darkness of the tunnel, debating with herself the best way to slaughter the roughly five dozen Orcs she had seen within. They were dispersed enough that some might flee and raise an alarm if she attempted a direct, frontal assault. Likewise, enough of them had clustered 'round their stewpot that she would not be able to elude the sight of them all to administer poison again. On the other hand, the chamber was just as poorly lit as it had been aforetime, with wavering flames that cast moving shadows, but still left many places in darkness. 'Twas easily sufficient cover for the concealment of a warrior who was well versed in stealth. In the tunnel, Helluin nodded to herself, having decided on a plan.
It took the Noldo 'nigh two hours to get into position for her attack. The first ten fathoms had consumed almost half an hour, but she had worked her way 'round the chamber from the entrance 'til she stood at the mouth of one of the exit tunnels, well behind the gathered Yrch. As she had come to that position, one lucky Orch had left the chamber, passing her by only two fathoms and ne'er suspecting that exiting then had saved his life. Helluin had been thankful that no guards kept watch within the chamber and that by nature the Yrch were lazy and easily distracted. With no clear and present danger to face, half had been dozing or sat bored and inattentive, whilst of the rest, some had been arguing with those closest to them and others had been staring at the stewpot anticipating supper.
Mealtime came without announcement the third part of an hour later. Those nearest to the cauldron simply stood up and formed a ring 'round it, awaiting their turn to use the ladle. Those at the smaller fires joined them, clutching their bowls and eating utensils. To Helluin's surprise, most left their weapons where they had sat. As they gathered in a jostling throng 'round the stewpot, not one in ten was armed. With their attention focused on the food and the shuffling steps of their hobnailed boots to cover any sound, the Noldo pulled her hood up o'er her head and then drew Anguirél and her dagger and strode forward behind them.
Helluin started slashing and stabbing and six fell dead ere the rest even began to react. They turned from their pending meal to face the black robed horror and its whistling blades. Petrified by shock, their screams died on their lips. One of the Dark Lord's Nine had come upon them.
"Shapog-ir fûralu Hokurvótárob!¹" Helluin grated out, her voice hissing hash and threatening from the black space 'neath her hood. ¹(Shapog-ir fûralu Hokurvótárob, Vengeance on betrayers of Angmar = shapog(vengeance) + -ir(prep, on) + fûr-(v. betray) + -al(n. on v. suff., betrayer) + -u(pl suff for nouns ending in consonants) + hokur(iron) + vótár(home) -ob(prep. of) Orkish)
The few Uruks who were armed remained too terrified by the appearance of their assailant even to raise their weapons. They fell to the Nazgûl's preternatural speed with their mouths still agape in horror. After five centuries, they easily believed that the Witch King was redressing the crimes of their ancestors and the inherited guilt exacerbated their fear. In despair, they accepted their deaths. When they lay still, Helluin dipped her hands in the abundant blood and scrawled 'Vrasuztakûrûk!' and 'Ghâsh gijak-ishi!' on the wall just inside the entrance to the chamber. The claim that, 'I killed them all' was redundant, for they were obviously all dead, and in the lore of the Yrch, 'Fire in the Blood' was still associated with the scourge of the Ghâshgûl.
Shortly later, after cleaning her hands and her weapons, Helluin made her way down one of the exit tunnels. After a thorough examination of the cavern, she had chosen the left most of the seven that she had found. She still expected to explore each in turn, and so she had started at one end and intended to try each of them in order left to right. None had seemed more promising than the rest and she could find no reason to exercise a preference. They had all appeared to lead downward, but in different directions, and the Noldo had only the most general sense of where she was in relation to where she had been. Therefore, Helluin began by adding what she found to a growing mental map that had begun in the amphitheater.
Now the tunnel led first straight on in what she deemed to be a northerly direction. After a furlong, she encountered a series of right turns that eventually formed a descending corkscrew.
Typical of the Yrch, she thought, too lazy to carve a spiral staircase.
Ere the tunnel leveled off, Helluin reckoned that she had descended a good forty fathoms. During all that time, she met none and heard no footsteps or voices. Finally, after following a level passage for half a furlong, Helluin came to a small, round room with a trio of exits spaced roughly equally 'round the walls. After using the Sarchram to leave a mark beside the exit she had entered the room from, she chose the tunnel to her left in order to remain consistent.
This new tunnel carried on straight and level for a hundred yards ere taking a left-hand turn and descending steeply. After another hundred yards, it ended in a blank wall. With a groan, Helluin retraced her steps to the round room and took the next tunnel to the right. This one descended from the start, though far less steeply, and it broadened 'nigh at once 'til four could have walked abreast. This, the Noldo reckoned to be a good sign for perhaps it led to a more populated area.
Soon, tunnels branched off right and left, but she kept on straight. Helluin had come but a furlong ere she began to hear footsteps and voices. Soon, she marked a torch approaching and the now familiar flap of bare feet. In the distant, bobbing light of their torch, the Noldo counted a dozen Goblins, jogging along to a rhythmic call and response, though with different words than what she had heard aforetime. Translated from the Orkish, it sounded something like this:
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a dress of cotton,
(jump down, spin around, pick your nose and bottom)
Gotta jump down spin around and pick a dress of wool.
(jump down, spin around, pick your nose 'n drool)
Gotta jump down, spin around and pick a dress of cotton,
(jump down, spin around, pick your nose and bottom)
Gotta jump down spin around and pick a dress of wool.
(jump down, spin around, pick your nose 'n drool)
Grab those bargains off those racks,
(Tie those children up in sacks)
Who needs Bergdorf, who needs Saks.
(Stuff 'em into holes and cracks)
Gotta jump down, spin around, save a dollar-eighty
(jump down, spin around, kids are soft 'n tasty)
Gotta jump down spin around, save a lotta dough.
(jump down, spin around, hang 'em by a toe)
Gotta jump down, spin around, save a dollar-eighty
(jump down, spin around, kids are soft 'n tasty)
Gotta jump down spin around, save a lotta dough.
(jump down, spin around, hang 'em by a toe)
Here's what I've been searching for,
(Ears 'n eyelids, tongues 'n more)
A genuine copy of a fake Dior.
(Lips 'n noses, lungs 'n gore)
Gotta jump down, spin around, take it off the rack
(jump down, spin around, give a hearty whack)
Gotta jump down spin around, try it on your back.¹
(jump down, spin around, kick 'em in the sack)
¹(Lines not in italics are partial lyrics from the Allan Sherman parody "Jump Down, Spin Around (Pick a Dress O' Cotton)" recorded in 1962 on his "My Son the Folksinger" album and based on the traditional American work song, "Pick a Bale of Cotton" originally sung by slaves on southern cotton plantations.)
The call and response went on with many further verses, but Helluin had heard enough and ceased to hearken as she followed them down the tunnel at a prudent distance. The Goblins took many turns and jogged for what seemed like miles, but in the dark, boring tunnels, one furlong looked identical to another. Helluin kept track of the turns and the mileage, near as she could guess it, and continued to build her mental map of Kâpul Ulot. After the half-part of an hour, the group she was shadowing joined a larger company and took up their marching song. The Noldo ignored it as she trailed behind, yet she could not ignore her impression that they were growing excited; that they felt some anticipation of great events.
Now after another quarter hour and several more turns, (seven right, five left, yes, yes), and the addition of more companies, the throng of Goblins turned a corner and entered a vast chamber lit by many fires. After so long in the dark, the light coming from the entrance and playing on the tunnel walls seemed very bright. The rise and fall of a host of voices reverberated in the air. Helluin gave them a good lead ere trying to spy on the cavern.
After slipping forward to the entrance, the Noldo edged one eye 'round the corner and beheld a voluminous space 'nigh as large as the exhausted mining cave in Khazad-dûm called Ugar in Khuzdul, the Greatest Cavern, or in the Sindarin tongue, En Res Beleg, The Grand Canyon. The further margins of the space extended into darkness, but ere it passed into shadow, Helluin saw a ceiling hundreds of feet o'erhead, draped with flowstone and pendant stalactites as thick as a mallorn's truck. The floor was riven in many places by chasms whose depths were unguessable. 'Twixt these, lit by numerous bonfires, stood many flat-topped pillars of rock connected by natural stone spans, or by rickety, swaying bridges contrived by the Yrch of wood and rope. A host of tens of thousands of Goblins populated all of the pillars and all of them were clamoring and chanting in a deafening chorus.
The entrance that Helluin peeked out from led to a ramp that descended onto a rock shelf at the cavern's edge from which many bridges, natural and contrived led. She looked from one to the next towards the center of the cavern where the largest of the stone platforms stood and upon which she saw rested a mighty throne hewn from the living rock. Upon it sat a Goblin larger than any that Helluin could have imagined. She reckoned that he stood o'er three rangar tall and weighed 'nigh thirty-five stone.
Make that forty stone with that belly, she thought in astonishment.
Upon his globular, hairless head rested an iron circlet mounting half a dozen human skulls 'round its band. In his mighty hand, he clasped a gruesome mace topped with a horned skull as his rod of office. A gold ring was in his nose and the Noldo reckoned t'would have served her as a bracelet. He was swaying with the chant and his bare feet were stamping out the rhythm with vigor. The Great Goblin's subjects cavorted 'round him in some Neptunian jubilee, the significance of which was totally lost on Helluin. Still, they all seemed happy. The Noldo retreated into the tunnel and took a deep breath as she pressed her back against the wall.
The Goblin King, she thought in amazement. In ten thousand years I have ne'er aforetime seen a ruler of Yrch who was not universally despised by his subjects. I suppose there is a first for all things. I wish Álfrhestr could see this.
After a while, the choruses trailed off and the Goblin King sang a solo. Helluin slipped forward and peeked through the entrance to watch, for her curiosity had risen through the roof. On his central platform, the Great Goblin turned and stepped, astonishingly light-footed for his bulk, and he croaked out his tune in a raspy baritone o'er the utter silence of his adoring throng.
I see wounds turn green, red seeping too,
I see them ooze, for me and you,
And I think to myself,
What a gruesome old world.
I see flesh stripped off, bones bleached white,
Baked by the sun, gnawed in the night,
And I think to myself,
What a gruesome old world.
The bloating of the bodies, so broken where they lie,
Are also like my enemies, just ere they die,
I see swords cut off hands, torsos run through,
We'll all eat well, just me and you.
I hear babies cry, I watch them stew,
They taste much better, than me or you,
And I think to myself,
What a gruesome old world.
Yes, I think to myself,
What a gruesome old world.¹
¹(Sung to the tune of "What a Wonderful World", written by Bob Thiele and George David Weiss ©1967, and recorded by the inimitable Louis Armstrong whose vocal qualities should be emulated by anyone trying to perform as the Great Goblin in the privacy of their own home.)
After a moment of silence as his last lines faded away amidst the echoes of the cavern, the throng erupted in applause and hooting cries of approval and Helluin slipped back out of sight 'round the edge of the entrance tunnel and leaned against the stone wall. 'Twas the most abominable thing she had heard in centuries and yet she had no doubt that the Goblin King sang from his heart with all the truth and self-exposition of the best Eldarin minstrels. Helluin could do 'naught but stagger away in disgust, revolted by the sentiments. She had gone not a hundred yards ere she caught herself humming the tune. The words were indelibly etched in her memory as well. Coupled with her viewing of the leviathan, Helluin could not but believe that Kâpul Ulot would claim her sanity for the weight of the memories she had acquired there.
For the following six months, Helluin prosecuted her campaign with an increasing mania. She slaughtered hundreds of Uruks whilst avoiding the Goblins as much as possible. During that time, the dark, the endless tunnels, her memories of the leviathan, and the Goblin King's performance haunted her. All too oft, she caught herself humming the tune or mumbling the words when she let her focus lapse. Am I slowly becoming an Orc? She asked herself more than once. Yet she had to admit that she had become infected upon a single hearing and her affliction had been anything but gradual.
What she deemed far worse was that somehow, through no conscious intent of her own, she oft found herself peering into the Goblin King's cavern and watching him perform. This seemed to be a regular occurrence of which the better segment of the population of Kâpul Ulot partook. In early Gwaeron of 2478, Helluin o'erheard a performance that went something like this:
Oh the Witch King's come to my realm to play,
To stab and slash and take the Uruks away.
To chase the deserters from the caverns and tunnels steep,
And blast with fire that stops them cold and burns them deep.
While all of us Goblins, when supper is done,
We sing 'round the cook fire and has the mostest fun,
'A listening to the dark deeds the Nazgûl tells us about,
That the Goblins will get ya if ya don't watch out!
Once there was an Uruk who wouldn't stay to fight,
Instead he fled away to the mountains in the dead of night.
But the Ringwraith heard his steps when he tried to slink away,
An' he came to the mountains with his sword and he made him pay!
The Witch King sought the Uruks in the caves and tunnels and pits,
And even in the dirty rooms where the Goblins leave their shits.
But all he left behind was their bodies and their blood,
In the writing on the walls that said, 'I killed 'em all…dead, dead, dead!'¹
¹(ok, this is a clumsy bastardization of the first two stanzas of the poem 'Little Orphant Annie', ©1885 by James Whitcomb Riley that eventually became the inspiration for the 'Little Orphan Annie' comics and the Raggedy Ann doll.)
That had been the last straw for Helluin. Her exploits had become fodder for the Goblin King's great art and she had had enough. Besides, she had marked that of late, the Uruks had become scarce, and whether her rampage was taking its toll, or they had fled Goblin Town and gone elsewhere, she knew not. Still, 'twas then spring and she had somewhere else to be. After o'erhearing that last performance, she strode through tunnels and passages, unmindful of meeting any, for she was in no mood for stealth. She saw none, though a few Goblins who had not attended their king's performance did catch a glimpse of her, striding with purpose and draped in her black cloak. They gave the celebrated Witch King a wide berth, very thankful for his efforts in eradicating the Uruks.
Finally, Helluin left by the same exit through which she had taken the captives of Helrunahlæw out of Kâpul Ulot a half-year aforetime. She stomped off downhill and into the trees as a few Goblins gathered at the tunnel exit to watch. During her subsequent march, she caught herself humming 'What a gruesome old world' more than once. 'Round noon the next day, she walked into the Hidden Valley, wondering if Lindir still lived there and if he was now as damaged as she.
To Be Continued
Author's Note: Okay, working from canon presented a conundrum for me here. The portrayal of Goblin Town and its resident Orcs in 'The Hobbit' is somewhat at odds with the presentation of Orcs in 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'The Silmarillion'. While a lot of that impression comes from the tone of 'The Hobbit', (where they are still threatening and cruel), their conduct is more reminiscent of vicious, drunken mob behavior, rather than the unmitigated evil in 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'The Silmarillion'. (The portrayals in the movies made this disparity even more exaggerated). The previous representations of Yrch in this story are more in keeping with their representations in 'The Lord of the Rings' and 'The Silmarillion'. Still, 'The Hobbit' is part of JRRT's canon and I could not ignore it while exploring Goblin Town.
What I did attempt to do in mitigating the disparity in the presentation of the Yrch was to make the Goblins and Uruks into mutually antagonistic moieties based on differences in culture acquired over long years of incomplete isolation. The Uruks are akin to all the scheming, evil Yrch we have seen since Morgoth created them in the Age of The Trees. While the Goblins are not 'good guys' by any means, (they still ate horses, people, and each other, and they still took slaves), they are moderated somewhat by the social conventions they have developed. They exhibit a greater degree of cooperation, less mutual antagonism, more cohesiveness, and a penchant for socializing as evidenced by their participation in non-hostile group activities.
In 'The Hobbit', Tolkien states of the Goblins that, "They did not hate Dwarves especially…", (though they seemed to hate Elves particularly), which I find difficult to believe only 142 years after The War of the Dwarves and Orcs, unless the Orcs of Goblin Town did not suffer so greatly in that war. Goblin Town certainly did not seem depopulated. Perhaps, unlike the Orcs from Gundabad and Moria, they had simply kept to themselves. Still, the Great Goblin knew Thorin by name and the hated reputation of Durin's folk.
I admit that all of this is pretty contrived, but I hope that it presents a believable explanation of the differences between Goblin Town and say, Dol Guldur or Minas Morgul. If it fails to rectify the disparities suggested in canon for the sake of this story, then I hope that it was at least the source of a few chuckles.