Hi all, welcome to chapter six! As ever first things first
Disclaimer: I don't own The Lord Of The Rings, if I did I'd be a lot richer and that new series wouldn't have been made, these fantastic stories and worlds are owned by the Tolkien estate and New Line Cinema respectively.
Now for the reviews!
123dal, thanks, that's pretty much the entire reason I came up with this story, don't worry I don't plan on messing it up!
Ominous Olethros, that was pretty much his thinking as well, while he could quite easily introduce flintlocks to middle earth, doing so would more likely arm Sauron than really improve things long term for the free peoples!
Jack Redhawke, that is an issue I've noticed myself and am doing my best to avoid it as quite frankly it annoys me when I go over my things before publishing them myself!
Don't worry, Marcus isn't planning to bring muskets and such into middle earth, he's not that cocky.
pasorider67, thanks! I'm doing my best to get one chapter out a week.
RedReaper31, heh I looked for a long time to find a story that wasn't that and when I couldn't find one I made it myself!
As for that helm, I'm fairly certain that was destroyed with Beleriand so he won't be using it I'm afraid.
Now onto the story!
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Chapter six: The Passage of Time.
It'd been three weeks since Gandalf had left, in that time I'd slowly become less of an oddity in Bree, though I still received the occasional curious question from one of the other residents, most of which weren't too difficult to answer thankfully, I still got the feeling that the more intelligent residents didn't fully believe my story.
My work in the smithy had progressed to the point where I'd started to experiment in creating riveted maile, currently all the examples I'd seen had been butted, where the links were only held together by the strength of the steel, riveted however physically linked the two ends of a ring together and so made the whole thing far more robust, though consequently the manufacturing process took far longer, in the last week I'd only made a piece about four square inches across.
I'd also started to tell stories at the tavern once a week, it had started the second night of my stay in Bree when a curious Hobbit had asked me about my land, it's people and if we had any good tales, I'd told him and the crowd the tale of The Lion and the Witch in the Wardrobe, I hadn't wanted to start out with anything too grim afterall.
The second week I'd gone there on the Friday and they'd all asked for another tale from my land, I'd told them the story of Henry the Fifth and how a man who wasn't even an adult by Hobbit reckoning had brought my peoples greatest rival to her knees in a single campaign, that one I'd noticed had interested the men of Bree far more than the Hobbits.
I figured that was due to their nature of avoiding adventure and living a good and peaceful life, though some of the younger ones had certainly enjoyed it.
This week I'd planned to tell them the story of the Trojan war, I'd be curious as to how they'd react to such a story, both my human and non-human listeners.
That night however I was in my room, once again scribbling down designs, as ever I kept any parts that were written in English, it was a rather effective way of ensuring they couldn't be translated easily, I really didn't want the enemy getting ahold of them.
I was currently scribbling down the formula (as it were) for Napalm, I had a feeling it would come in handy for clearing goblin infested tunnels.
While I was writing I couldn't help but think back to something that I'd only realised that day, and specifically had actually gone to double check earlier that night, unless I was very much mistaken this village lacked a Brothel, something that had surprised me greatly as it was a modern misconception that people in the past had less sex, it was more that young women had less sex while young men just visited various establishments, it wasn't spoken about as such things had been considered "ungodly" but it had been pretty common, yet this isolated little town was completely lacking in such establishments, it fed into something else I'd noticed, these people, even the men at the tavern seemed strangely pure to my modern eyes, they didn't drink to excess as often as the people of my time, they all seemed to have happy and functioning marriages, were kinder to each other and less violent in general, it'd rather stumped me.
Sitting on my writing desk however was a partially completed set of blueprints, various cut-outs and written sections showing the process for completing the long term project, I'd need a hell of a lot of wood to build it after all, on the cover I'd written a simple name. "Project: Surprise."
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I'd now been here three months, I'd been quite surprised at that, not realising that a quarter of a year had passed so quickly, though in a way I shouldn't have been, I was so busy that time had been flashing by after all, I'd by this point become a partner to Harold the Smith, something that had surprised me greatly as I'd thought I'd have needed years of training to reach his level of skill, yet he was already telling me I was starting to surpass him, the same had been happening with both my horsemanship lessons and my archery, all of which I'd had absolutely no skill with before coming to this world, indeed I'd noticed and received comments that it seemed I only needed to be shown something once to remember it, while that didn't mean I instantly knew how to do it, it did mean that I didn't have to go over things more than once to be able to practice and perfect them in my own time, even my handwriting was starting to look less like a drunken spider had stumbled across a page!
I wasn't sure if this was some quirk of pureblooded Numenoreans or something that had been done to me when I was transported through time, I was leaning towards the latter as why would a people with an extended lifespan need to learn something faster than ordinary men?
I was still trying to figure out a way to mass produce my riveted Maile as it was an utterly exhausting thing to do and I had a massive backlog for it, a couple of Ranger's had come into town and had been so amazed by it they'd ordered hauberks for themselves, only to return a few days later and tell me that their Chief had ordered a hauberk for every ranger, I now had to make almost two hundred of the bloody things! They took a month each!
On the bright side that order and all the others from the town guards to just a couple of traders had allowed me to buy my own house, I even had a maid, a charming older hobbit woman who came around twice a week and cleaned my house, though she seemed utterly exasperated at my lack of interest in the garden apart from keeping the grass nice and short, something I did with a goat I'd bought, I hadn't seen the point in paying for someone to cut it when an animal did it for free…and was quite amusing.
I'd finished my designs for Project: Surprise and had even started forging some of the few metal parts needed for it, but I'd need a lot more money for it than I was currently making to build the rest.
Instead I'd started another project, a full harness of early fifteenth century plate, it was pretty early plate, lacking in even Faulds to protect my hips and groin, instead just using an extended Hauberk to do so, it was still no doubt the most sophisticated armour in the world, or it would be when it was completed.
So far I'd only finished the Hauberk, Vambraces and Greaves, I was currently working on the pauldrons, sabatons and gauntlets, I was still designing the breastplate as I had a rather special idea for that, I'd always loved Brigandine…
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After seven months I'd been invited to join the towns council, it was a sort of democracy that led the town, as though Bree and indeed Bree-land lacked a central government, they needed some organisation to judge criminals and the like, also to maintain the roads and help coordinate with the other small farms and such that littered Eriador, they needed somewhere to sell their produce after all.
I'd been invited on mostly thanks to all the trade my metalworks were bringing to the village, the ranger's visited all the time now as they needed me to repair their new Maile, that also meant they were staying at the tavern whilst they did so, got their clothes repaired in the town and other such things, they in return would often go out hunting for the large game and sell the skins and meat so they could pay their own bills, the town's economy as a result was booming, we'd also seen a couple of rather surprised dwarves passing through to the blue mountains, they'd been utterly shocked by the craftsmanship of the armour I'd been forging and had told me they planned on telling their own smiths that a man had figured out one of their techniques.
But back to the council, I'd both made good friends and and great enemies there…admittedly I was dramatising a bit, it turned out that whilst some, namely the sheriff and a few of the tradesmen one-hundred-percent agreed with my incessant suggestions to build a palisade and train up the constabulary, there were those who felt that I was just a young whipper-snapper who was just looking for trouble and a reason to feel important, sadly they didn't know what I knew about what was coming, the horrors that were lurking just below the horizon.
However I was slowly gaining ground, though I felt like a complete cad as I slowly took away their innocence, and the fear I sometimes saw in their eyes when I snapped during a debate and lost my temper, something I noticed with some distress seemed to be far more common than I was used too, such as now.
"No Cadmus! The Orcs will not simply ignore us if we stay out of their business! They come solely to kill steal and destroy! They do not care if you are innocent or not!" I thundered to the old hobbit, hating how he cowered slightly before my fury, a few others who agreed with him also looking nervous, I'd put on at least an inch of height in the past few months and now stood at an astonishing six-foot-eleven-inches, my work in the smithy had also increased my muscle mass, I was still relatively skinny as I was technically a teenager, but compared to the hobbits three-foot-six-inches I was utterly giant in every way, even for the "big-folk."
"I-it has worked for centuries!" He just managed to avoid squeaking, finding that legendary hobbit courage as he glared up at me, his allies nodding and cheering in agreement to his statement…and to his standing up to me no doubt.
"The world is changing! Much that once was is now lost! There are few left to oppose what is happening, this evil will seek out and destroy everything and everyone good and true!" I thundered, accidentally revealing in my fury some of my future knowledge, we'd had this argument many a time and I'd had enough.
"How do you know this?" Old Mirri asked, she was the only woman on the council as the chief midwife and wise women of Bree, she was also the oldest person in the village…it was rumoured she had some Dunedain blood in her as at almost a hundred years old she looked closer to sixty, she was also in my opinion the wisest person in the village.
"You have all no doubt heard of the Witch King of Angmar?" I asked softly, watching as their faces collectively paled at the name, whilst this far north Sauron had been long forgotten, the Witch king was recent enough and horrific enough that they remembered him.
"Yes? What of it?" Cadmus snapped, glaring at me still, he no doubt felt that I was just stalling and keeping him from lunch.
"He was but a puppet, a servant of a far greater, far older evil, Sauron the Deceiver, he is the master of the Witch king and of eight other ancient kings of men, their souls eternally bound to this earth by his will, and he is growing in power again, have you not noticed that few are even willing to go near the old barrows anymore? That the orcs infesting the Misty mountains are growing bolder? Cutting us off from the south? We have time to act now, to reverse this, but first we must ensure that our home is safe, all I'm asking for is a simple palisade to ensure that the Rangers do not have to fight so hard to defend us, is that so much?" I finished softly, looking at each council-member imploringly, I could see that old Mirri was looking at me curiously, clearly knowing that this wouldn't be all I'd want, Cadmus was looking at me in open distrust.
In the end that debate would go on for a few hours more, but I'd get them to agree on the construction of the palisade.
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Nearly a full year in this little town saw me training the newly formed militia, it was an at the moment in name only change to the simple constabulary, though I'd increased both their recruitment and the quality of their equipment, now they were all armoured with at least butted maile hauberks, nasal helms and at my request and design tower shields, I'd armed them with short swords and an eight foot spear, compared to their prior armament of a truncheon and cap they felt invincible, something I was training out of them, currently I was fighting them eight on one and absolutely trouncing them, not through any great skill of my own, but through their own ineptitude, they had no real idea how to fight in formation, something I was teaching them slowly but steadily.
It would be a long time before they'd be up to the standard I'd need to call them soldiers, but they were getting better, more to the point I'd noticed that they'd started to walk like soldiers, tall and proud, they were also drawing in recruits like crazy, in a village with a population of just over three-hundred the newly formed militia was at an impressive forty-five men.
Every Friday at the tavern I'd taken to telling stories extolling civic duty and the glory of serving your people through the military, I felt like a fascist, but I'd rather be that than see these people dead or enslaved because I hadn't been willing to do what it took to teach them to fight for themselves, my own morality could go hang if I could achieve that, whilst I knew that it hadn't happened like that in the original timeline, I had no idea what changes I'd already caused and I'd never been one for gambling.
I'd also mostly completed my armour by this point, though I was still working on the gauntlets and my helmet, both of which were rather complicated and difficult to make.
I'd also mostly got all the hauberks forged for the rangers, it'd been massively helped by the apprentices I'd taken on who'd helped lower the work required by both myself and Harold, instead he'd taken to helping me forge my armour and in return I'd taught him how to forge the early Longsword, something that had previously only been known by the Dunedain, the Gondorians having forgotten it, alongside their knowledge of a lot of things from what I could tell.
My newest project had been instead to start working on designing some decent horse armour, something I was mostly doing form the ground up as I'd always been more of an infantryman at heart.
It was quite a difficult project as unlike designing armour for people you couldn't exactly ask a horse. "Does this feel comfortable? How's your movement?" At best you'd get a gentle nuzzle and a silent request for apples…working with living things sucked sometimes.
I was also working on making effective Bodkin arrows, if I was going to be possibly giving the enemy my improved maile, all they had to do was successfully kill a Ranger and strip his corpse afterall, I was going to design a way to bypass it as well, no point not having a counter to my own tech as a just in case after all.
Suddenly I had a rather amusing idea, I remembered from the films that Nazgûl weren't too fond of fire, I wasn't sure if that had been in the books as well. "I wonder how those shrieking bastards would like Willy Pete?" I mused to myself, my grin decidedly evil.
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A few weeks later I was in the forge, putting a few finishing touches on my helmet, whilst as usual singing to myself, at the moment it was more out of amusement, I'd missed and hit my thumb whilst hammering a rivet flat and so was currently cheerfully singing at full volume. "And I'm bleeding out! Said if the last thing that I do
Is to bring you down
I'll bleed out for you!"
I was deliberately off key, mostly just to annoy Harold, the old man insisted I shouldn't distract myself whilst working in the forge, so I made a point to be as distracting as possible…because I was a bastard.
"I seem to remember your voice being far Fairer than that." An amused old voice ringing with hidden power chuckled behind me.
Whirling on the spot I couldn't help my delighted grin as I called out cheerfully, my tone full of warmth. "Gandalf! How're you my friend? It feels like an age since I've seen you!" Wiping my hands on a rag to get rid of the worst of the grease and grime of the forge before I shook his hand.
"No doubt it feels that way to you my young friend, I am very well thank you, how are you? You seem to be doing well for yourself if master Harold is letting you work on your own projects on your own in his forge." He observed with a small smile and an impressed nod at my almost finished helm.
"Let me? Oh my friend there is so much I need to tell you, Harold doesn't let me do my own projects, we're partners, what I'm constructing might be our next greatest item, I'm just designing the uh…" here I paused as I realised that Westron had no word for. "Prototype, it means the first and uh…un-tested version of something. " another word they lacked was experimental. I was also lying just a little there, while I did plan on manufacturing this armour for my allies, I'd do so when I had a superior version for myself, I didn't believe in arming any possible enemies to the same degree as myself.
The old Wizards eyes had gone wide at that and he slowly nodded. "Yes I agree, you are right, there is much we need to discuss." He mused, clearly both surprised and a little impressed at my statements.
"Why don't we meet at the tavern for lunch? I can go through it with you there as at the moment I'm just wasting good coal." I offered with a small smile, pointing over my shoulder at the glowing coals.
Nodding his agreement after a couple of moments I grinned and waved goodbye, I was so damn close to getting this thing done, I wasn't going to stop now!
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An hour or so later I'd cleaned up and joined the Maiar pretending to be a mortal at a table, giving the pretty serving girl a charming smile that sent her off with an embarrassed giggle after giving her my order, getting a slightly displeased look from the old wizard. "What?" I asked curiously.
"Unless you're planning to marry her you shouldn't toy with her like that, she might waste her life trying to pursue you rather than settling on a man who is genuinely interested." He stated firmly, his thick brows drawn together in disapproval as he frowned at me.
"Gods you sound like my mother sometimes." I exclaimed in exasperation, getting a bit tired of the constant scolding I seemed to always receive from him. "It's just a bit of fun, she's not so stupid that she'll spend the rest of her life pining after a man who teased her a little." I argued back confidently, crossing my arms across my mailed chest, I'd taken to wearing armour everywhere to get used to the weight and strengthen my body.
Suddenly the old wizards presence seemed to grow, along with his height, the room darkening and beginning to creak and crack as though under an immense weight, his words ringing with thunderous power as for the first time since I'd come to this world I felt a genuine chilling fear. "There is only one god of this world, only one, do not take his title in vain." He warned, his eyes boring into mine
"Y-yes…you've made your point." I stated as strongly as I could, getting a rather stern reminder that for all his warm personality and gentle disposition, Gandalf was a being older than time and far more powerful than I could ever dream to be.
"Now, tell me of what has happened since last we met, you were a mere apprentice then!" He continued far more warmly, that terrible presence fading, though I could remember it's terrifying aura, I didn't think I could ever forget it if I was honest.
After a moment I started to tell him of all that had happened since he'd left, all the changes and things that I'd done, he'd already noticed the palisade around the village and the increased activity of the guards, but hadn't known that I was the cause, I couldn't help but feel proud as I told him of the training I'd been giving the militia, they were becoming a genuinely effective fighting force now and had almost sixty members.
He seemed both impressed and a little disappointed, if I had to take a guess it'd be at their loss of innocence, something I understood but felt was necessary for their survival.
"So Gandalf, what brought you here? You've been gone for so long I figured you were on another adventure, visiting Harad perhaps?" I asked curiously once I'd finished my tale, raising a brow at him, thanking the girl for bringing me another drink after a moment.
"I was in Gondor actually, reading up on the old records of your people, it has been so long since any have seen a pureblooded that the only place that keeps any proper record of them is Gondor…after I then visited Imladris, Lord Elrond is possibly the most learned Elf not in Valinor and I spoke with him, his brother Elros was the first king of Numenor and he expressed an interest in meeting you actually, that is why I am here, if you wish you can travel with me there?" he offered with a small smile.
In deference to the aura of dignity I was trying to maintain I resisted the urge to jump up and down in my seat at the thought of visiting Rivendell and getting to meet Elrond himself, he was one of my absolute favourite characters in both the books and films, though after doing as much reading as I had into his background I'd always felt that the casting hadn't been quite right for him in the films.
"I would be honoured Mithrandir." I stated with a pleased smile before continuing. "I will need a couple of days to get my affairs in order and then I'll be ready if that is all right?" I asked, hoping that he wasn't in too much of a hurry.
"That will be no issue, I will stay at the Inn for the next few days then." The old Wizard agreed easily, smiling at me in a way that told me I was failing at maintaining my dignity.
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On the third day of his stay in Bree Gandalf found himself waiting outside of Marcus's relatively modest house, the boys horse was already saddled and waiting for him also, a rather lovely and docile mare of Rohirric stock if he was not mistaken, a good horse for one as new to the saddle as the young Numenorean.
Suddenly he heard the growing sound of clanking and rattling approaching the front door, only for it to be flung open and the boy in question to come marching out, he was clad in some queer form of armour that the Maiar had never seen before, a dull red leather jerkin of some kind, covering what was clearly more of that magnificent maile of his, the rest of his body covered in various metal plates, the only areas where the maile was visible were the joints.
Under one arm was some strange helmet with the oddest crest the wizard had ever seen.
"We are going on a journey to one of the safest places on this earth, not going off to war, what reason could you possibly have for wearing all of that?" He grumbled, his thick brows drawn together in a frown as he gazed at the much younger man.
"Testing!" The boy replied cheerfully as he locked his houses front door. "I need to see how this armour feels when one wears it for weeks on end, it's also a great way to check the fit and make sure I got all the adjustments right!" He finished with equal cheer, before then turning and marching down to meet with the wizard.
"And yet you felt the need to do so now?" Gandalf queried his tone a little more amused as he looked at the admittedly incredible craftsmanship.
"Well I did finish it yesterday, and there's no time like the present!" He stated happily, pulling strange gloves, also covered in metal plates from his helmet and sliding them onto his hands, idly curling his fingers with impressive fluidity, obviously to check the movement, before then pulling the helmet onto his head, the fitted Aventail protecting his neck and also giving him great mobility as tilted his head back and forth.
"Well? Shall we be off then?" He asked as he mounted up, his horses saddlebags full of supplies.
"Indeed we shall." The old wizard agreed, only to pause and blink in surprise when he saw the lad reach up and pull down on the strange crest, the whole thing sliding forwards until his entire face was hidden, it had a strange almost beak like protrusion covered in little holes on one side and narrow slitted eyes that seemed to be silently judging everything and everyone around it, compared to the helmet he'd given Gleodan it seemed smaller but far more practical and of lighter weight.
Still he'd be able to ask him about in the journey, no point now when they were trying to leave the village.
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Righto, chapter six done, I'm not sure how I feel about the timeline of events as I feel it might have been a bit too compressed, but as ever please feel free to review and leave constructive criticism.