If there is one thing that represents Númenor above all other things, it is by far the ocean. No other natural element of this pristine world reflects so much of our lifestyle and spirit. There is something magnificent about the ocean that every honest man must respect. In fact sometimes I feel our island would be better named Azrubîl.
The holds much significance to the ordinary person of Númenor. The sea is enduring and powerful, much like our empire is. It is present almost everywhere, through the many rivers of Arda. The sea is fierce, but loyal to those it has let enter its trust. It is for these reasons that Ossë and Uínen are the best-loved, and perhaps the only loved, out of all the Valar.
In the midst of all the terror that is caused by the "religion" of Morgoth, these mystery cults persist. The ocean is indeed a thing beyond my comprehension, if it can inspire men to defy Sauron. But then again, perhaps it is not the sea, but belief itself that causes the defiance.
I have already explained before how I feel about the ocean. I can indeed stomach ocean voyages (as almost every Númenorian can), but I do not feel the excitement that others feel about the sea. Still, I have been told repeatedly by Amandil that such a feeling is there, and there are very good reasons behind it.
So many of our important discoveries and inventions come from the sea; the two largest bureaus are related to the sea, we focus most of our research on designing greater and greater ships, and we are known by the peoples of Endor for our sea voyages and exploration. I wonder if, when we are no more, will we be only remembered for our fascination with the seas?
-From the Abridged Journals of Arnuzîr
Aulenmir closed his copy of Journals and looked outside at the window. The snow was beginning to come down harder now, and it was getting steadily darker. Aulenmir stared at the letter in his hand. His sister had written him a few weeks ago regarding today. He read it again, although he had already memorized it.
Dearest Brother,
This year has been a harsh year for those of us living in the Vale. The weather has not been its usual fair, calm state, making our harvest this year extremely mild. I am forced to ask for your help. I understand that things can be difficult for you up there, but I am terribly desperate.
I am aware that when we last parted, it was not on the best of terms, but I hope that we can change this. I think that we should mend the breaks in this family rather than let ourselves be hurled to the far corners of this world. Speaking of which, Liriel has written me all the way from The Citadel of Gold, in the City-State of Burdesh, where she says she is a guest of the Grand Mekkar himself!
But, back to the point I was making, I feel it is imperative that we mend our family. We (the children and I) are going to visit you up in your mountainous home, during New Year's. There, I must ask you to do a large thing for me. I plan on bring the King's attention to the problem that faces us Valefolk. I will ask to petition him, and I expect this process to take several weeks.
During this time, Peladin and Sirilfa will have nowhere to stay, and I cannot expect to bring them with me. Please, will you take care of them for me?
Much love, Telimperion
"She does tend to go on an' on, doesn't she?" Aulenmir asked Noldolma, who did not respond. Noldolma was an old, near blind dog who had been living with Aulenmir longer than he had been living in the White Mountains. He had found her, abandoned by some farmer who couldn't afford to feed her, and had taken her in. She had followed him faithfully for over a decade and a half now, and showed no intention of stopping.
They had many such one-sided conversations. Noldolma tended not to do much, but she was a very good listener. Occasionally, on those very rare special occasions when she felt like responding, she would flick her ears or give a small sneeze. Aulenmir didn't mind. She listened to him, which was better than most humans. Or orcs, for that matter.
"You ever try to hold a conversation with one of them? No? Eh, no matter. I tried once, you know," continued Aulenmir, not caring whether or not he was the only participant in the conversation. "I gave the blighted a friendly wave, asked him what he was doing this far west, wondered if he had caught anything good. And you know what he did?" Aulenmir chuckled to himself, then went on. "He spat at me an' said 'it ain't none o' yer business, y' pushdug tark'. I once asked someone what that meant, they said it was some orcish swear or something."
Aulenmir stared at the letter again, mouthing the words scrawled there in Telimperion's fine hand. She had always been the "most civilized" of his siblings, in her own words. Despite her life as a farmer's wife, she bought fancy cloths and fine jewels. She had taught herself how to do sums and read and write. Being the older sister, she had forced these skills (but thankfully not the gemmery) on him.
Suddenly, a thought came to Aulenmir. Couldn't the kids stay with Telimperion's husband? He tried to recall his name. Oh, yes, Torenor. Indeed, why couldn't the children stay with him. As though she could read his thoughts, Noldolma gave a small, contrary sneeze. Then he remembered. Torenor had gotten a job that required him to be away from home frequently. Aulenmir couldn't quite remember what it was. Oh well. Aulenmir had a rather poor memory, a fact that he prided himself on and that Telimperion disproved of heartily. Well, that wasn't actually correct. He had a fantastic memory when it came to family history. This was a lot, actually.
Noldolma gave another sneeze, this one coupled with an ear flick, as if to say "get back on track". Aulenmir reminded himself of the problem at hand. It wasn't that he didn't like Telimperion, although she could be annoying. Their 'last parting' had been more of an upset for her than for him, anyways.
No, the problem was the actual favor she was asking. Almost a decade ago, Aulenmir had retreated up into the White Mountains to move away from the Vale where his family had originated. Most of his brothers and sisters had done the same, although most of them were motivated to merely get away from the family, not people in general.
No, all the company that Aulenmir needed was Noldolma and the cold mountain winds. Technically, he was not the only inhabitant of the White Mountains. Although few Gondorians ever ventured out here, there were tribes of men who had been living in these lands since before Morgoth had been thrust outside the walls of the world. These people, collectively known as the Ephûl, had helped Aulenmir survive his first year, then had left him to his own devices.
He wondered at his sister's desire to reunite the family. "Doesn't she remember why we split up in the first place?" He asked Noldolma. The dog, of course, made no indication that she had heard him. Aulenmir, realizing it was getting late, began preparing dinner for himself and Noldolma. He realized he would have to bring in more food tomorrow, since that was the date Telimperion was supposed to arrive.
Aulenmir read himself to sleep with Journals. That night, unlike most nights, he had a vivid dream. He was spinning in a circle, trapped in the middle of a wide expanse of water. There were faces in the water, who looked vaguely familiar, but Aulenmir didn't recognize a single one. They appeared to be murmuring at him, and their voices grew louder and louder, reaching a crescendo after a few minutes. Aulenmir came to realize that something was terribly wrong and he looked upwards to see...
The Sun streaming in through the windows. Apparently the snow had stopped its tantrum long enough for Aulenmir to find some food. He got out of his bed and tucked the dream away in the back of his mind, where his poor memory would make short work of it. He got dressed, fed Noldolma, and together they both went outside. Romping across the snow was always fun, and it was one of the few times Noldolma moved with any speed. Not that she was lazy or anything, she just found it more and more difficult to run in her old age.
"Let's see what our snares caught today, shall we?" No response from Noldolma, who was probably out of earshot anyways, having run ahead. In order to feed all his guests who would be arriving, Aulenmir would have to get lucky with his snares. Apparently, some Power had decided to smile upon him, for he found more food than he would have used on a normal day. After resetting the snares, he and Noldolma returned to his hut.
"So, what do I do about Telimperion?" Noldolma thumped her tail against the floor, then rolled over on her side, exposing her belly. Usually when she would do this, Aulenmir would pretend she had said something. Sometimes, Aulenmir swore she was actually communicating with him.
"Send her away? No, I can't do that. She may be annoying at sometimes, but she is family. It's the least I can do to hear her out. Hmm, it's been a while since I've seen the kids, hasn't it? I last saw them seven years ago, so Sirilfa would have been just born and Peladin would have been only one year old."
Aulenmir walked over to his bookshelf and selected another book to read, this one about the Rings of Power. If there was one thing he enjoyed doing above all others, it was reading, especially about history. There was something about reading up on events that occurred thousands of years ago that Aulenmir enjoyed, though he didn't quite know what that was.
As he made himself a small noon meal, it began to snow again. He predicted that before long, it would become a blizzard. Ailments felt sorry for Telimperion, Peladin, and Sirilfa. Since it was at least a week's journey from the Vale to his house, they had probably been traveling in weather like this as soon as they reached the mountains, which was probably two days ago.
Suddenly, there was a loud knocking at the door. Aulenmir jumped when he heard it; Noldolma, of course, remained as unspoken as ever. The knocking persisted, increasing in volume with every percussive thud. "Alright, alright, I'm comin'", Aulenmir muttered at the door. He pulled back the door to reveal his sister and her children standing there, shivering from the cold.
Before he could give them a proper greeting and ask them to come him, Telimperion reached to him and gave him a firm hug. Unused to contact, Aulenmir flinched, but Telimperion clung on to him. "Oh, Auly, I'm so glad your safe. I was truly worried sick when you didn't write me back".
Aulenmir had a few things to say about that statement (why did she have to use that childish name, for Eru's sake!), but pushed them aside and said "I'm so glad to see you, Tel. Come in, all of you". He opened the door further and motioned them in. Noldolma broke out of her state of inactivity to give the newcomers a cursory sniff, then settled back down in her bed.
As he was unused to real social interaction, Aulenmir said nothing as Telimperion, Peladin, and Sirilfa settled themselves in. Luckily, he didn't have to, for Telimperion chatted away the silence. She inquired as to how he had been, how the weather was in these parts, and the other usual pleasantries that she engaged in.
Telimperion had quite literally not changed a bit since they had last met. She was tall and thin, like most of Aulenmir's family. Unlike, the rest of the family, she had blue eyes and blond hair, which she kept loose. But, the core of Telimperion's character was her tone of voice. If Aulenmir had to sum it up in one word, he would call it "motherly". Her tone appeared to be personally fretting about whoever she talked to. She would constantly worry over people for minor things. However, when she need to, Telimperion became quite stern.
Aulenmir was glad to have a chance to talk to her. However, Peladin and Sirilfa were looking quite bored. He interrupted Telimperion's latest question (concerning his position on the growth of Athelas, of all things) to speak to them.
"And how are you two doing?" He asked. "I haven't seen you since you were this tall," he said, marking an approximate foot in the air. Sirilfa muttered something barely audible.
"Go on, speak up," encouraged Telimperion.
Sirilfa stared at the floor and shuffled her feet. Finally, she spoke up. "I got a gift for you, Unca'!" She squeaked, then held out her hands. She showed him a majestic ship, modeled out of clay, that she appeared to have created herself.
"She has quite a talent for sculpting," said Telimperion. "She spent about a week working on it."
"Well, thank you, Sirilfa," Aulenmir said, pocketing the gift. "So, who's hungry?"
"Oh, me," interrupted Peladin, who had been very quiet up until now. "We haven't eaten since-"
"Hush, Peladin," interrupted Telimperion. "There are many things I wish to talk about, and it is probably best to discuss them with a full stomach". They all sat down, as Aulenmir prepared dinner. Noldolma inched over to the table, probably looking for scraps.
After everyone had dug in, Telimperion cleared her throat and began to speak. "Children, I have a slight confession to make. I did not bring you here just to celebrate New Year's at your Uncle's house, as fun as that is. I have a serious journey I must undertake, one that you cannot go on. I have asked your Uncle to take care of you for the next few weeks."
Immediately, the protests began. "But, mother!"
"I don't wanna stay with Unca! I wanna go with you!"
"Silence!" Telimperion interrupted. "This decision is not your to make, it is all up to your Uncle".
All of them swiveled their heads around to stare at Aulenmir. Aulenmir stared into his food, not saying anything. He did not want to take care of his sister's children, and he did not relish having to take on that responsibility. On the other hand, Telimperion was family, and Aulenmir believed in sticking up for his family beyond all thing. He had a question to ask Telimperion before he would come to a decision.
"How long will you be away?" He asked gruffly.
"Only for a few months or so".
"Only a few months! I can't take care of them for that long. There is no way I can catch enough food to support us all for more than a month!"
"The children will be glad to help you, I'm sure".
"No we won't," muttered Peladin.
Telimperion swung her fearsome gaze around to her children. "Yes, you will," she said in a flinty tone. Peladin went white and muttered an apology.
"But, I will have to teach them everything!" Aulenmir complained. Suddenly, another thought rose to the surface of his mind. "What have you taught them with regards to our family history?"
Telimperion saw a way she could convince her brother to take in her children. "Why, nothing," she said sweetly. "However, I'm sure they would be happy to learn".
Peladin spoke out again. "No we wouldn't!" he said stubbornly.
Aulenmir gave a fierce grin. "Oh, yes you will. However, I am willing to make you an offer. I will tell you a story about some ancestors of ours. If you like the story, I will tell you more of our history. If not, then I get to teach the valuable art of chopping wood. Deal?"
Peladin weighed the offer in his mind. Aulenmir could see him thinking hard about it. Finally, he said "Deal", and Sirilfa nodded in agreement.
"What story?" said Telimperion.
"I was thinking of telling them of the Tale of Aldarion and Erendis".
"Oh, that's a good one. Well, what are you waiting for? Begin!"
Aulenmir cleared his throat, took a sip of water, and started.
"At the dawn of time..."