Club Eclair III: Off to See the Wizard

[Tiempko]

Where we are at:


The level cap is 66(67)

Week of April 1

We will be continuing our attempt to advance through Ost Dunhoth.

With 10 folks each, both groups are advancing through the elephant races. The Saturday group has passed through the Elephant races and reached the Balrog, and the Monday group reached the back room twice but failed to bring down all the elephants. Still, there is progress.

(NOTE: At some point, we may exercise some spring cleaning. This will mean getting some Level 140 help to go through the elephant races quickly to take on the Balrog. Once everybody has won the race legitimately.)

We have some extra (temporary) help showing up, which is a blessing.


NOTE: Ayrhawk will be around at 1:30 and 7:30 on Thursdays for skirmish trainings, epic battles, and other drills iffen anybody wants company at those times. Once we finish Ost Dunhoth, he will be making patrols ahead of the main group to scout out the lands. (NOTE: Ayrhawk has already done everything in Ost Dunhoth except the final battle.)



Where We are Going

Nowhere.

We are going nowhere until Ost Dunhoth is done.

When we get everybody through Ost Dunhoth, we will then return to Galtrev and continue our regular chain of adventuring. We will finish at Galtrev, then go to Tâl Methedras, and then Starkmoor. At which time we will raise the level cap to 68 to finish up Dunland. And then up to 70 for the Gap of Rohan.

When we near the end of the Gap of Rohan and are doing the Level 74 quests, things get . . . fuzzy. The epic story line will require our full-time attention as we go from Chapter 17 to Chapter 30. I will have a special request on how to go through these chapters - which . . . well . . . I am not sure it will work. I do not want to give hints now because of spoilers. Anyway, if we go this route, we'll finish off the epic story line and the instances and Isengard at level 72.


xxxxx


You are invited on an adventure - a story - that will take a fellowship from Rivendell to Isengaard over a course of several sessions.

The adventure begins in Rivendell, 9:00 AM Saturday April 23, or 8:30 PM Monday April 25. (There's two groups; they will travel the same course.)

We have been asked to gather up the Rangers in Eriador and send them south to Aragorn, who has called for them.

To participate, one will need a character that is no higher than 62nd (63rd) Level. We will use an XP Disabler to keep our levels below that of the landscape where possible to make for more interesting adventures.

The intent is to roleplay our way through the Epic Quest line through Book 5, gathering the Rangers and accompanying them southward through Eregion, Enedwaith, Dunland, and the Gap of Rohan, ending by confronting Saruman at Isengard. Each group will meet weekly for about 2 hours or until we reach a good place to stop. We will not only go through the epic story, but we will also partake in whatever other adventures and stories we happen upon along the trip.

(NOTE: Club Eclair has already done this for Volume I and Volume II. We are just finishing Volume II.)

There are two hard-and-fast rules to follow:

• Rule 1: Respect the level cap. There is an absolute prohibition on adventuring above the level cap - with one exception. Every once in a while, somebody makes a mistake and gains a level one did not seek to gain, just by forgetting to equip the Stone of the Tortoise (XP disabler). If that happens, the player is not expelled. The player is asked to forego any advantages from the new level until the cap officially goes up. We will raise the level cap when the adventure calls for it.

• Rule 2: This is a walk-and-talk roleplay adventure. Adventures take place in-character (at least in terms of 'say' and 'emote'), though out-of-character conversations take place on group channels. We roleplay through 'say' and 'emotes'.

NOTE: Our standard form of communication is a user channel that you can access using '/joinchannel club-eclair'. Note the hyphen. The hyphen is very important. We are not a kinship - our members belong to a number of different kinships.

The two groups (Saturday at 9:00 AM and Monday at 8:30 PM) travel in parallel, and characters can freely join either group each week to help to accommodate schedules. There will also be a makeup session on Sundays at 10:00 AM.

[Tiempko]

I have been thinking about a schedule for transitioning to Volume III.

Note that the first part of the epic story takes places in regions where we have already travelled - well below our level, and not much opportunity for adventure. We do not enter new territory until we reach Volume III, Book 2, Chapter 9.

Anyways, looking at the epic quest line, I am recommending the following for discussion.



VOLUME III: BOOK 1

April 23 & 25: At this time, those participating in Book 1 of Volume III should has done the prologue quest. This is a solo instance. Those interested will muster at Rivendell and begin the mission to find and gather the Rangers. Head to Thangulhad and try to find Radanir.

April 30 and May 2: Muster at the Forsaken Inn, then go and find Candaith at Weathertop and find out what he needs so that he can join the expedition.

May 7 & 9: Muster at the Prancing Pony then go see what Saeradan wants from us.

May 14 & 16: Muster at the Plough and Stars Inn and see what Halros is going to do.

May 21 & 23: Muster at Esteldin to get Halbarad.

[Swanee]

With Vol 3 set to begin, here is an updated link to the Donut Shop: The official Discord server for Clubs Eclair and Bearclaw.

https://discord.gg/Et9D9NyC

[Swanee]

The ride from Ost Forod was uneventful. Bandits in the area were becoming scarce. Perhaps the Wardens had turned the tide. Perhaps the city would be fully recovered. Belthran allowed himself a small smile as he brushed Eriech, the fine horse he had borrowed for his journey north. As he brushed the dirt from Eriech’s back, Belthran’s thoughts wandered back to the frozen lands. Angmar was attempting to establish a foothold in the region. The Ranger Lothrandir was at the main camp of the Lossoth and maintained a watch on the North. It was his warning that had caused Belthran to make the long trek. Calenglad needed to know the extent of the threat and if there were chance enemy reinforcements would soon be marching south. The Lossoth had thus far resisted the Angmar forces and stalled their advance in a small valley to the East. They were not yet a threat to the Rangers in the South.



The sun was just rising when Belthran finished cleaning the horse and storing the tack. He grabbed a small bite to eat then turned to stare at the Great City. Once again, he smiled slightly as he imagined the streets clear of enemies. The city’s banners would blow in the breeze coming off the lake. Boats would be out fishing, while feats were held in the great halls again.

“Daydreaming again, I see.”, a voice said from behind.

Before he had even turned, Belthran recognized the speaker as his good friend Calatherdir.

“I would think you’d spend less time in contemplation and more time enjoying life, short as it is.”, he continued wryly.

Calatherdir, just as his friend Belthran, was not one of the Dunedain. They had both been adopted by the rangers many years ago, when they were very young. Belthran didn’t know how he came to be orphaned. All that had been told was he had been found many miles south of Bree. He was brought to the Ranger camp at Tinnudir and raised among the Rangers. Calatherdir had a similar story, but was found in the town of Bree. Together they learned to hunt and forage. They learned to read and write. Mostly, though, they learned to fight. Evendim was not safe place for those that couldn’t defend themselves. After many years, the friends became Wardens of Annuminas. They were charged with freeing the sunken city from the grasp of Angmar. Calenglad, the chief of the Rangers, treated them as though they were of the same bloodline.

The friends settled onto the grass near the edge of the lake, and admired the beauty of the old city in the morning light.

‘We have made great strides retaking the city,” Belthran said as he looked across the water. “One day we may retake it all.”

“Possibly. We seemed very near victory when that band of wandering warriors came through.” Calatherdir replied. ‘What did they call themselves? Eclanders?”

“Eclairs.” Belthran chuckled. “Club Éclair.”

“Ahh yes. That was their name.” Calatherdir sighed slowly as he remembered those battles. “We nearly had the city.”

Indeed, they had. The assistance from that wandering band had given the Wardens a much-needed boost. Halls long held were finally cleared. The trolls and evil men of Angmar had been pushed beyond the walls. Victory seemed a sure thing at that point. It was a few months later, after Club Éclair had departed, that reinforcements had slipped in the from the East, past the watchful eyes of Esteldin. Angmar regained much of the city and there had been fighting in the streets ever since. That route has been secured but Angmar is still looking for ways past the Rangers, hence Beltran’s trip to Forochel.



The two friends continued to watch as the warm pink rays of morning illuminated the white stone of Annuminas.

“I almost forgot,” Calatherdir said, glancing to his left at Belthran, “Calenglad is calling a council. He wants to hear your report of the North before he makes any decisions.”

“Decisions? About what I wonder”, Belthran said, speaking his thoughts aloud.

“I don’t know, but there have messengers from the South. Enemies are moving through the lands. Perhaps he is worried we will be surrounded.”

“Perhaps. I’ll go speak with him.” With that Belthran got up and went to find Calenglad.




Belthran adventured with Club Eclair when they battled in Evendim. This short story will tell of how he crosses paths with them again for the new Volume of adventures.

More to follow.

[Tiempko]

Hedgerow wiped the biscuit crumbs off of the paper and frowned as the ink smeared across the page. Sighing in exasperation, he looked from the paper to the side of his hand, also smeared with ink. Licking at his hand, he tried to clean the ink off. Then he crumpled up the paper and threw it in the direction of the huge fireplace. It landed a considerable distance short, but travelled further than any of the other balls of paper that littered the floor between him and the fireplace.

After taking a moment to think, he took a mouthful of biscuit and started chewing, wiped all of the crumbs off of the table in front of him and onto the floor, took another piece of paper and centered it on the cleaned tabletop, and began writing:

Dear Aearthor: I don’t know if you remember me, but we travelled together on adventures where we slayed the Steward for the Witch King of Angmar in Carn Dum.

This, he thought, had little chance of success. It had been so long since he had seen Aearthor that he was probably off on some new adventure already and without him. However, there was little to be lost from trying. He had heard from some he had come across in his travels that the shipwrecked soldier from Gondor was still in the area of Rivendell somewhere and hoped that the elfs could find him. Others he knew from those long-past adventures . . . Brabbo, Wilbus, Cindersoot, Tubli, Wollar . . . had vanished. If he had even the slightest idea on where to send the invitations, he would have sent each one to them as well. There were others. Zubrette, Fredebras, Onyon, Z.Z. Kestril. He had met many fine folks in his journeys. All of which would have been great company into the unknown lands to the south.

He made sure not to include anything in the letters that would upset Elrond, writing only about an important mission he had been assigned to deliver an important package – and asking if his friends might want to help in protecting the delivery. He did not mention that the package to be delivered was a set of Rangers collected from all corners of Eriador. And something else – something the elf lass Erwin said she would give him for delivery before he left with the Rangers.

The Rangers would be company enough, one would think. But Hedgerow worried that the Rangers would have their own concerns. He had worked with Rangers before. In fact, he discovered that he knew every Ranger on Elrond’s list of Rangers to be collected and shipped south. However, they seemed to have their own agendas, and were not very forthcoming with help – expecting whoever they sent off to deal with whatever problems were encountered on their own and with their own resources. Hedgerow resolved to bring his own help, then. Folks he could rely on.

Finishing the letter, he folded and sealed it and added it to the pile of near to a score of letters to be sent out. Some were clearly hopeless, such as the letter to Erikin. Erikin had decided to stay in Moria and join the Iron Guard. But the dwarf deserved an invitation - deserved an opportunity to make up his own mind. Others were hopeful, such as Liatri, who had done such an excellent job watching over him in the past. When others had wandered off – having forgotten about the short hobbit lagging behind – Hedgerow would look up and find Liatri watching him patiently, ready to aid with her bow if he should find himself in trouble.

At the very least, he would have Thorcundo and Roy. He found them in Rivendell when he arrived, and they discussed making the adventure together. Roy had some other business to attend to - visiting dwarfs in the Misty Mountains, but promised to catch up with Hedgerow somewhere on the road to Bree.

With the last letter done, Hedgerow pulled another piece of paper off of the stack and, this time, opened a book sitting on the table. He had a page marked with a strip of cloth that he removed and set aside. The page, near the start of the book, contained a map marked "Dunland and the Gap of Rohan". He placed his paper on top of the map and pressed it down flat. Then, dipping his pen into the inkwell, he very carefully began to trace the map.

People would be counting on him not to get them lost. He resolved that he would not let them down.

[Swanee]

The captains gathered around the fire shortly after sunrise. Calenglad received reports from them all. Advances were being made in the southern part of the city. Enemies had been spotted in the hills east of Ost Forod. Even a messenger from further south reporting the troubles facing the Hobbits in Oatbarton. When it was his turn, Belthran reported what he had found in the North. Calenglad stood quietly while the information was presented. Following the final report, the road to Esteldin was clear and quiet, their chief thanked the scouts for their bravery then presented his own report.



“As many of you have probably guessed from what we have heard today, we still have many battles ahead. The Hobbits face troubles of their own and we are too few to assist. The strength of the enemy in our city is still strong. We may kill fifty for every one of our losses, but that is still too high a price.”, Calenglad paused a moment to look at each of his captains. Some eyes were downturned. Others just stared at the fire. Theirs was not a look of defeat, or fear, but of resolve. They might not win this fight, but they would die trying.

He continued, “Yet, not all news is bad.”

Belthran looked from the fire to Calenglad and saw his gaze being returned.

“The enemy is not threatening from the frozen wastes. The Lossoth will hold that land. I have also received word from Gath Forthnir in Angmar.”

At that announcement all eyes were raised once again. Gath Forthnir, the hidden camp at the edge of Carn Dum, deep in enemy territory had not been heard from in some time. All had thought that camp lost. If word from those Rangers had made it this far, then maybe something had changed.

“Angmar has been dealt a grievous blow. Golodir has sent word that the Eclairians entered Carn Dum and defeated the Witch Kings captain.”

The Wardens gathered around the fire exchanged surprised glances. The captain of Carn Dum defeated, thought Belthran. Was that even possible? He focused again on what was being said.

“They even made forays into that darkened crag called the Rift. Rumors are that they slew a Balrog hidden deep below the surface.” With that statement the glances turned to murmurs. Calenglad spoke louder and the whispering stopped. “This defeat surely has slowed the ability of Angmar to reach beyond its own borders. This may be our chance, at last, to push the enemy from our city.”

A change had come over the gathered Wardens. They now stood proud and tall. Some gripped the shafts of spears. Others absently raised their shields from the ground. Belthran could feel the excitement creeping into his legs and moving into his arms. It was like standing near to a lightning strike.

“We must ready for battle.” Calenglad declared. “Alert the smithies. Swords, spears, and shields must be prepared. Uiriel, ensure your healers have gathered herbs and prepared bandages. Brogdagnir, let our brothers at the Eavespires know of the reports. We may need to move into the city from their position.”

Orders were handed out to each of the assembled captains. Belthran stood to the side, not a captain but still expecting to receive some guidance. Perhaps we would join in the main attack, or be part of a flanking force. He looked up the length of his spear, ending at the three-edge point. Its sharpened point glinting in the early sunlight. As Belthran imagined the using that long spear to slay his enemies, he became aware of the silence around him. Looking around, he realized he was standing alone with Calenglad.

“That is a good spear.” Calenglad stated, admiring the weapon. “Made in the style of my ancestors.”

The Chief shifted his stance a little and a grim look emerged on his face. Belthran steeled himself, unsure of what was to follow.

“You will not be joining in the fight.” declared Calenglad.

Belthran felt as though he would faint. Was his chief not confident in his abilities? Had he done something to lose standing? Was it because he was not of the Dúnedain? Before his mind could darken further, Calenglad continued.

“Instead, I need your scouting skills again.” He finished his previous statement. “I fear with Angmar defeated; the evil remaining may seek to find an escape to the East. I doubt they would try to move through the Ettenmoors and near Rivendell. The Misty Mountains, however, could hold the hidden paths they desire.

Calenglad held Belthran’s gaze as issued his command, “I need you to travel East to Rivendell. Speak with the Elves about what we have learned. Perhaps they will know more about the enemy’s designs. We Rangers do not maintain a presence in the Mistys, but the Elves keep a watch. Their knowledge may be of help to you on your quest.”

He continued, “From Rivendell, head north into the mountains. I expect you will encounter goblins, as they have long inhabited that region. Look for Angmar though. We must know if they are fleeing.”

Belthran nodded. Still partly in shock with the idea of missing the coming battle, but excited to be trusted with such an important quest.

“The mountains are dangerous, and far from allies.” Calenglad said reaching down to pick up his shield, “You may need this.”

A club strike from a troll could not have rocked Belthran harder than the sight of Calenglad offering him his shield.

“You are a Warden of Annúminas. A ranger, in all but bloodline. It has been an honor to watch you grown into the warrior standing before me. I’m not sure what you will encounter on your quest, or what you may find when you return. Just know, this is your home and we are your family.



After a few goodbyes and hearty hugs from his fellow Wardens, Belthran mounted Eriech for the long ride. The horse would carry him to Rivendell but no further. The trek into the mountains would be on foot and the Elves would see to the horse’s return. Belthran, not knowing where he would exit the mountains, would have to find another way home.




More to follow

[Swanee]

It was shortly after sunset when Belthran rode into Bree. Just shy of two days on the road and both he and his horse could use some rest. Belthran had chanced a visit to Saeradan’s cabin to the north of the town, but the fellow ranger was not there. A cold campfire and no recent footprints told the story of no recent visitors to the cabin. Bree-land was a large region, with its own share of trouble makers, so Saeradan could be anywhere. No sense waiting around, so Belthran continued south hoping to find a bed at the Prancing Pony.

The north gate to Bree was open with a single guard. Belthran dismounted and gave the guard a short nod. No further pleasantries were needed. In this town, privacy was fiercely guarded and the curious were seldom welcome. He continued down the path, turning slightly west towards the Inn. Ereich was left in the capable hands of the hobbit Nob and Belthran headed inside the Pony.



Butterbur was in his usual spot behind the bar. The common room was neither empty nor crowded. A small group of local patrons were settled at a table near the fire. A pair of hobbits could be seen enjoying a meal and more than a few drinks nearer the stage. After securing a room for the night, Belthran found a comfortable spot, away from the others, to enjoy a small meal and a smoke. Shortly after he headed to his room, hoping for an early start the next morning. Calenglad would understand the need for a short rest, but extending his stay longer could not be justified. The Misty Mountains awaited, and the enemy needed to be found.

The next morning was cool when Belthran rode out of the south gate. Nobody seemed to take more than a casual interest in his passing, which was good. Not that he was on such an important quest that it required total secrecy, but still, he did not want to draw attention. The sky was a bright blue, with a few puffy grey-white clouds floating lazily in the air. The road east was void of all traffic, which might have been strange if Belthran knew of the comings and going in this part of the world. In fact, he knew very little of the lands east of Bree. Calenglad told him of the usual camp sites of the few Rangers he may encounter on the way, but after missing Saeradan at his cabin, Belthran has less hope of encountering Candaith. His camp was to be found in the hills just north of Weathertop.

The west slope of the old watchtower still showed some ruins of old. They now housed several craban high up, and gave shelter to a few wild pigs at their base. Belthran maintained a distance from the pigs so as not to rile their anger. His spear would be defense enough if attacked, but there was no sense in killing the boars if they were just defending their dens. He climbed a low rise under the shade of the few trees on this side of the great hill and caught sight of campfire smoke.

“Perhaps Candaith is at home”, Belthran surmised out loud.

Indeed, the Ranger was at his camp, and he was happy to see one of his brethren.

“What are you doing this far east of Bree?” Candaith inquired as Belthran dismounted. “Don’t tell me Calenglad has claimed victory in Annúminas and now seeks to rebuild the watch tower.”

Belthran smiled at the jest. “If only that were true. Angmar has been quiet and we seek answers that can only be found in the east.”

“I had heard rumors from travelers on the road.” Candaith said nodding, “Other than the name Sharkey, the Breelanders haven’t mentioned any problems in recent days. What answers do you seek by riding east?”

Belthran sat by the fire, stretching his legs straight out, “Calenglad wonders if Angmar may be fleeing through the Misty Mountains, or worse, that they are receiving help from further east of the mountains.”



“I assume you are riding for Rivendell, but if you are not, I would counsel you to meet with the Elves before heading to in the mountains. They may have some information that would be of benefit to you”, Candaith offered.

“You assume correct. Though I have never been to the hidden valley before. Calenglad’s directions were a little vague after crossing the last bridge.”

“It has been some time since I made that trip, but you’ll find the path to the elves in the High Moor. Head east from the bridge until you reach the Ford of Bruinen.” Candaith drew and lit his pipe as he spoke, “Then climb the slope east. I suspect the guards of the valley will find you first, and should help you on your way. The Elves of Elrond have ever been our friends.”

“Thank you for your help. I was thinking of taking rest here, but the days grow longer and I fear and delay could mean disaster to my brother wardens.” Still Belthran took a short break from his ride to water Ereich and eat a small meal with Candaith.

Mounting his horse Belthran looked down and the Ranger, “I hope to see you on my return trip, though I’m not sure I will pass this way.”

“If you find the northern route to rugged for your liking, this camp will be open to you.” Candaith replied smiling. “May the west wind ever blow in your travels.”

With that farewell, Belthran rejoined the road just south of Weathertop. Riding east he past the old fortress of Ost Guruth and continued on to the Last Bridge. The multi-colored trees of the Trollshaws rose before him, contrasting greatly with the scrub grass and bushes of the land behind.



more to follow

[Swanee]

The path through the words was not well worn, and a casual traveler may have lost his way. Belthran was not a casual traveler, nor a novice scout. He had little difficulty in finding his along the twisting and turning path. Soon the sound of rushing water filled the air. It started like the sound of a breeze disturbing piles of fallen leaves. As he rode on, the sound grew into low growl of a slumbering bear. As he rounded a corner on the worn trail, the sparkling water of the Bruinen came into view.



Belthran stopped for several moments on the western shore of the river. There were many shallows’ points at which to cross, but they also led to many paths climbing the eastern cliffs. As Ereich enjoyed a long drink of the cool mountain water, Belthran wished Candaith had been more specific with his guidance. Two of the climbing paths appeared to rejoin higher up so Belthran followed the left of those. It seemed to be no better a choice than the right, but he couldn’t spend all day trying to trace every path up the hill.

Luck, it seemed, was on his side. The path Belthran chose did indeed go all the way to the top and on to the east. Although, the right path appeared to have been a shorter route. No sense in worrying about paths not taken, he continued along the trail. The grasses in this higher land showing the trail more visibly than the dirt of the forest floor, Belthran was able to sight his route at a greater distance. Eriech seemed to be energized by the easy riding in these new lands. Belthran, too, felt the weariness of the long ride leaving his limbs. He was just starting to consider the source of this new found energy when four elves, clad in green and brown, stepped from behind trees to his front left and right. Their bows were drawn and their eyes suspicious.

“What are you doing in these lands, Man?” The left most elf inquired.

“I am Belthran. Warden of Annúminas. I have been tasked with speaking to your Lord Elrond about matters in the north.”

The speaking elf relaxed his bow. He looked to his three companions who then did the same. “Man of the west, your kind is known to us. The ranger Radanir calls these woods his home. If you are of his kin, then you are welcome.”

“I thank you for your kind words,” Belthran answered while relaxing muscles he didn’t realized had tightened. “Could you show me the way to your hidden refuge of Rivendell? I should like to be on with my appointed task.”

The elf laughed, “Why you have already found it. If we had not stopped you, you may have galloped right over the cliff.”

With that, the elves parted and showed Belthran and small gap in the bushes ahead. “You will find the path down, just ahead.” That same speaking elf announced as Belthran and Ereich passed by.

Belthran found their words to be true as he followed the small path through a gap in the bushes, and then between two rocky walls. There it was, Rivendell. He ridden halfway down the path to the hidden valley when at least he came into view of the Last Homely House. Stopping to gaze that refuge, Belthran once again felt energized, and yet totally at peace.



‘Well, Ereich, it appears we have reached the end of your journey…….and the beginning of mine. Let’s go see what the elves have to say.”

At the bottom of the cliff path, Belthran came to a small bride crossing a roaring river. Not as wide as the river at the Ford, but this torrent no doubt fed into that boundary of elven lands. Across the bridge he turned his mount towards the great house he spied from higher up the path. Several elves were near the entrance, speaking quietly to each other. One stepped forward as Belthran dismounted.

“Mae Govannen. Welcome to the house of Lord Elrond.”

“Uh…Hello. My name is Belthran. I am here to speak Elrond.”

“I see. Lord Elrond has many guests this day. Perhaps you would like to wait for him in the Hall of Fire. It is most comfortable there. I will take your horse to stables and ensure he provided good care.”

Belthran saw no reason to distrust the elf so he said, “That will be fine. I will wait until your Lord is ready.”

He had no trouble finding the Hall. There were a few elves scattered throughout the great room. Some were playing music, others drinking wine. Belthran found a quite spot near a pillar, halfway down the left side. Three fires were crackling at the far end, no doubt giving the Hall of Fire its name. Belthran drew his pipe from his pocket. He had just taken his first long draw of the pipe when the doors opened and a strange trio walked in. Two were elves, not that strange except their clothing did not look like the other Elves he had seen in the house. The third was a hobbit. Not just any hobbit either. He looked familiar.

The hobbit caught sight of the ranger standing off to the side. “Belthran!” he exclaimed. “It’s me, Alphred.”

Alphred. He was one of those Eclarians that had come to Evendim so long ago.

“What are you doing here?” The excited hobbit continued.

“I am on my way to the Misty Mountains. I stopped here first to speak with Elrond.” Belthran replied, still very surprised to the Hobbit Bounder. “What are you doing here?”

“Well…ahh…we’ve kind of been given a quest of sorts from Elrond. I don’t think I should say anymore though. It’s a secret.”

“You should probably ask him though, it kind of concerns you, or you people anyway.” He added quicky.

That surprised Belthran even more. What business would an Elven lord have sending a hobbit to deal with the Wardens?

“Maybe I should go and speak with him sooner than later.” Belthran said, putting his pipe away. “It is good to see again.”

Belthran left the hall confused and intrigued. Something was going on. Maybe this had to do with his quest up north. Surely if it involved his people, Elrond would explain. A myriad of thoughts and presumptions bounced around in his mind as Belthran walked then found himself standing before the doors to Elrond’s library. With a nervous sigh, he knocked and entered.

Got a little busy this week so wrote the last two entries tonight. I hate that I forgot to take screenshots of the meeting in the Hall of Fire. I was so excited by the roleplay that I had already switched characters by the time I thought of it. Anyway, Belthran is now back with Club Eclair, having been tasked with the same quest to gather the Rangers. My goal is to have him adventure with the Saturday group but if I miss the patrol, he will bump Thalachon for the Monday night group that week.

[Tiempko]

With the late afternoon sun approaching the eastern horizon, Alphred pulled in his line at the stream before the Last Homely House. The plan was to leave Rivendell after dark, so that prying eyes would not see that they had gone. Elrond had given him a list of rangers to find and invite to Rivendell for a trip south. However, this trip was not to attract undue attention. He had spent the day fishing and relaxing in his civilian clothes - comfortable clothes for a civilized community. With darkness coming, it was time to switch into something more appropriate for travelling.

He donned the Bounder outfit he got before he started off on this adventure. He was standing his post outside of Bounder Hole in Michel Delving when a hobbit - Hoppa Joel - came up and started a conversation. Hoppa was well known about Town Hole, and well liked. He had a reputation for collecting all of the different styles of clothes - from formal wear to casual - ever known. I mentioned the need for a uniform. He left and came back with an outfit he said that some relative of his grandfather, Tobblin, had worn as a Bounder long ago.

What Alphred laid out in the dressing chamber were the remnants of that uniform. Galdhron had quipped that, with all the patchwork and mending, there might not be even a single thread of the cloak he had been given.

"Is it even the same uniform?" he asked.

He said something about the Uniform of Theseus . . . who was likely some elf who had some old uniform somewhere. Alphred smiled and pretended to understand.

Once dressed, he went down to the Fire Hall. There, he found Thalachon staring at the statue of some elf. Thalachon was old . . . very old . . . though he had no memory of more recent times. He slept through them all. The elf was of somebody that Thalachon once new, long gone. Alphred forgot the name the instant Thalachon told it to him - elf names were easy to forget.

Together, they started on their journey.

Along the way, others joined up with the pair, slowly adding to their number without giving any hint that the group meant to travel together or even that they had some common goal. Liatri the bowhobbit, Kuronwen the rock wizard, and Jaytull the minstrel hobbit with a fondness for battle musics and cries each joined the march in their turn. Up the trail a ways, Thorfaniel the staff wizard came running up, just as Jaytull remembered something he needed to pack and went rushing back to Rivendell.

In his last letter home, Alphred had told his father that he could arrive a few days after that last letter. That much continued to be true. Was was no longer true was the suggestion that he would stay in Little Delving after that - that his adventuring days were done. For about three days, he found this to be a welcome thought - lounging by a streambed fishing and relaxing without orcs or nameless - headless - creatures trying to rip off his limbs. Then he started thinking of adventure. The enemies they have been battling remain - a threat to good people in the lands of Gondor and Rohan. Yet, he was planning to live content on the bank of a stream fishing. He could not handle that.

When Elrond had offered him the quest of gathering up the Rangers and accompanying them to Rohan, he did not give it a moment's thought. He did not even let Elrond finish talking before he accepted it. He simply asked where he could find these Rangers and made plans to leave as soon as possible.

Another adventure.

He noticed that the others were having trouble keeping up with his quick stride.

[Tiempko]

"Were those flowers beds there? And that flag?" Alphred asked himself. He had lived at Little Delving all his life - until running away. He remembered the archway across the road as bare stone and a wall. There had been changes since he had left. The Little Delving he grew up in was an out-of-the-way town at the end of a dead-end road. Almost nobody travelled that road except the post hobbits carrying letters into and out of the town. While he had been gone, the Mayor felt the need for a new road to Yondershire, and build it right along the edge of the Troute property and up into the mountains.

Pausing at the archway, Alphred smiled to himself. His father's rule had been strict - no going beyond the gate. Of course, as a young hobbit, he would often disobey the rule, but his violations carried him only to the bend in the road where he could look off of the cliff to the Shire lands below. On a clear day, he could see Sandson's Farm. He imagined he could see The Hill and the tree that topped Bag End, though his father said that was absurd.

This was home, but Alphred walked through the archway on the final leg to his journey with a sigh. His father certainly would not be expecting him at this hour. He had been walking all night, and would be knocking on the door just as the sun was rising. Living in the dark of Moria all this time - and Mirkwood was no better - had made him indifferent to the rising and the setting of the sun. They would still be expecting him to sleep at night and travel in daylight - probably arriving near supper. He smiled. This would be a surprise.

The fist thing that came into view was the waterfall that crashed down just beside his home. He had lived every day of his young life with the loud roar and the spray of that falls. It made a deep pool right beside the house - the fishing pond where his family caught the dace and catfish that his mother would cook up and sell to the townfolk or ship off to market in Michel Delving. His father took up the task of cooking when his mother passed away, and young Alphred took up the task of fishing. However, his father had also insisted that he spend a good part of his day with Postmaster Proudfoot learning to read and to write and to learn of things outside of Little Delving. He would learn about them, but he would not see them - he was to remain in Little Delving. His father even had a way to see to it that little Alphred would be too afraid to wander beyond the bounds of Little Delving. He told Alphred the tales of Mad Bilbo Baggins - of encounters with trolls and giant spiders and dragons and orcs - of wars and battles.

Only, it did not work. Alphred could not wait to leave and see the world.

He ran away at the first opportunity - running to Michel Delving, hoping to find work in the town starting a new life. Then, Meadowlarke Sweetweed enlisted him in the Bounders and put him in a group being organized to deal with a problem with wolfs east of town. One thing lead to another and, eventually, Alphred found himself in the Bree, then Rivendell; high in the rocky cold of the Misty Mountain and on the frigid windblown planes of Forochel. Then, when the call came to go to Moria and help the dwarfs reclaim their home, he could not help but recall Burglar Baggins helping his own dwarfs take back their homeland and headed off on a new adventure.

That was oh, so, long ago.

He knocked on the door. This was his home - he had walked through that doorway without knocking for a good twenty years of his life. Yet, now, it felt . . . wrong. He was a visitor.

His father opened the door and smiled. Cleaning his hands on his cooking apron, he threw himself into a strong hug, then held Alphred out at arm's length to get a good look at him. "You look fit."

"You have no idea how many stairs there are in Moria," Alphred answered with a smile. There was also the matter of hefting shield and spear against orcs and trolls, and far worse creatures in the deepest darks of Moria, but that was not the subject of friendly conversation.

His father then looked questioning. "What's wrong."

The question knocked Alphred off balance. He imagined telling his father that he had accepted a quest to round up some Rangers and accompanying them to Rohan. It was a task that was likely to take near to a full year and pull him away from home yet again. His visit would be short lived. He had just gotten home, and he did not want to mar the reunion with a fight.

"Oh, I'm just tired," Alphred answered. "I was anxious to get home, so I didn't stop for rest. I walked through the night."

With a scowl, Alphred's father looked past him onto the road. When Alphred lived here, this was an out-of-the-way town on a deadend road into the mountains. Since he was gone,

His smile returning, Char stepped aside and let Alphred enter.

Alphred's two young sisters stuck their heads out of the dining room, then came at him in a rush. His older sister, Hollie, near to knocked him down when she crashed into him and squeezed him so that he could hardly breathe. When she let him loose he checked for bruises and asked, "How goes your training?"

"I'm going to be a Bounder, just like you," she said.

"Not like Alphred," said their father. "There's no need for you to go trapsing off from one end Middle Earth to the other. There's plenty of Bounder work to do within the Bounds, what with goblins near to bubbling out of the mountains around the Greenfields and trolls in Bog. Mr. Sweetweed says that there is plenty that needs doing nearer to home."

Alphred gave his father a sidways glance then said to Hollie in a voice he hoped his father could not hear, "Do as you please, but there are dangers beyond the Bounds." In a louder voice, he said, "There's some villainy best dealt with far beyond the Bounds. One wouldn't want to meet an orc army or a tribe of stone giants on the Bounds of the Shire. Best to keep them as far from the Shire as possible."

"Sit," said his father. "Set him a place, Jasper . . . and, Hollie, fetch me some more eggs and bacon. I assume you haven't eaten yet, Alphred, and it wouldn't matter any if you had."

Alphred stopped by the ice box on his way to the table and poured himself a glass of milk before sitting down.

"You're home for good, now, Alphred. No more adventures." That was not a question.

"For now," said Alphred, cringing.

His father stopped his cooking and stared at Alphred. Alphred returned the look, refusing to avert his yes.

"For now," said his father. "Well, you're here today. We have that going for us."

[Tiempko]

Father . . .

I know, leaving again without saying goodbye. When I came home, I know you were expecting me to stay, to take up a normal hobbity life. But I just couldn't see myself spending my days catching catfish and selling catfish cakes. I know . . . with all the money Mr. Sweetweed paid you for the ores and other materials I had shipped to him, there's no need to ever work again. When you spoke of the Troutes taking up a place in the Shire alongside the Tooks, Brandybucks, and Bagginses, it really does sound wonderful for you. But, for me . . .

I'm needed out here. There are dire and dreadful things happening in the world and, iffen it's not taken care of, it will spread and invest the Shire. There'll be no great families of the Shire on account of there won't be a Shire. We took care of some of those villains . . . we defeated the Steward of Carn Dum, the Balrog in the Rift, the Once Dead Dragon, the Watcher and the Priestess of Pestilence in Moria, and the Lieutenant of Dol Guldur . . . but as fierce as they are they are only some of the people what threatens everything that makes Shire life so worthwhile.

There's Saruman . . . the White Wizard. He is allied with the villainy, or so Gandalf told us. And we have no Galdalf any more to help us. Yes, I heard what you said . . . that crazy old wizard is more trouble than he's worth. Well, for better or ill, the story is that he fell in Moria. And he was the best thing we had to stand against the White Wizard. He's not leaving the Shire alone. He's known as Sharkey, or Sharku. I suspect he has other names. But the brigands what are causing trouble near Woodhall and Dwalin and, now I hear, even in the Yondershire are acting on the direction of that wizard.

Our path, taking the Rangers down to Rohan, will take us into the very shadow of the White Wizard's tower. I cannot help but wonder and hope that I can think of something what might help to convince the White Wizard to leave the Shire alone.

I am leaving Rivendell in the morning, heading south. Thorcundo, Sagla, Roy, and Hedgerow are already gone. The Rangers are packed up and will be heading out at first light. I think I will try to hit the trail mayhaps an hour ahead of them. It'll still be dark, but Moria and Mirkwood made me comfortable marching in the dark. I saw Thorfaniel in Elrond's house just as I was finishing my practicing. She had just returned from battle training and was heading off to bed. I suspect she'll not be far behind me. And I spoke a few words to Belthran as I left. He said that he needed to spend some time at home before heading off on another adventure, but that he'll try to catch up with us as soon as he could. I also had supper last night with Boermmy, Medloth the bear lady, and Fraori the rock wizard. I'm suspecting that they will be marching south as well . . . after they get some sleep. The efforts that they had to go through to rescue Golodir . . . you wouldn't believe it. It was one of them cases where, iffen something could go wrong, it did. It took a whole night and almost all of the next day to reach Golodir and knock some sense into him. And even then it was a near thing. He was trying to get himself killed.

He's looking better now, Golodir is. I met him over at the Rivendell stables. He's coming with us. It'll be good for him to escape Angmar and all of its bad memories. But it's just one sign of how the villainy can destroy a person's life unless we do what we can and deal with it. And what we can do is help deliver these Rangers to Aragorn so that he can claim his throne and set things right in the kingdom. Bah, but we depend too much on kings. The Shire has done quite well without anything like a king. But these man-folk seem to put great stock in their kings. And iffen that is what it takes, then I will leave them to it.

Anyways, I am sorry again for leaving as I did. I promise to be safe. It shouldn't take near as long just to deliver some Rangers to Rohan as it took to help clear out the deepest darks of Moria and drive the Lieutenant from the castle of Dol Guldur. I will be back home before you know it. I promise.

Alphred Troute

[Tiempko]

Father:

I am leaving in a short while for the lands of Enedwaith . . . helping to get the Rangers south to help Aragorn become King.

On this, Father, I must admit, I am a bit uncomfortable with this idea of a king. It was a king that gave the Shire to us hobbits to live in, provided that we provide him with an army when called upon. And it was a king that built the Brandywine Bridge, conditional upon us hobbits maintaining it in good condition.

But I do note that we hobbits have lived without a king for a good long while and we seem none the worse because of it. We have Thane Palladin Took that takes care of much of the administration - making sure that the roads get weeded and the bridge is maintained and the Bounders get paid. And we have Mayor Flowerdumpling making sure that permits are assigned and sees to justice in the Shire. Postmaster Proudfoot competently manages the post. There is only one use for a king as far as I can see . . . to unite the different lands under a single banner when an evil such as Sauron threatens.

Yet, these Rangers, and that ghost I mentioned, and all of these people seem anxious for the establishment of a king that they can kneel to and devote themselves to, rather than devoting themselves to their own families and neighbors. I just do not understand it.

But, there is a threat, and somebody needs to stand against it for as long as it lasts. And, I suppose, iffen Aragorn can unite the free folk into an army strong enough to challenge Sauron, that is needed, for the moment. Though I am thinking that once Sauron be defeated that he find himself a nice farm somewhere and take up gardening unless and until another Sauron appears.

In dealing with the current threat, the chore ahead of us makes sense.

Twostep came to Mirobel two days ago after helping the Rangers at the forges. She left shortly thereafter with Sagla, Aearthor, Thorcundo, Bohunc, Hedgerow. Oh, and Kuronwen showed up . . . hadn't seen her since Moria as I recall. Aearthor tried to make the walk on foot, but came back moments later saying the pain in his leg was too great and he came back for his horse. Hedgerow came back yesterday for his pony Pie, which he had packed up and then forgotten to take with him. He said that the road is relatively clear and that we shan't worry too much about villainy.

By agreement, the Rangers are to stay put at Echad Dunann while we scout ahead and behind for signs of villainy. However, Hedgerow reported that the Rangers have had a difficult time keeping up with their side of the agreement. They could not resist temptation to go out and scout the landscape themselves, sometimes getting themselves into troubles that require rescuing. They scarcely follow a single commander, with each Ranger doing what he judges best in the circumstances. Already, some of them have caused some problems that required the Eclairians show up in some force to deal with. Hedgerow has promised that iffen any other Rangers get themselves into trouble, that they will leave it for us to deal with. He said he had rescued his share of Rangers already.

And so we are starting.

I am going to get some sleep now. We are heading out in the morning. It'll be full daylight when we leave. The Rangers are supposed to keep themselfs somewhat hidden, but a part of this is that we are to make ourselves somewhat conspicuous so that the eyes of the enemy will be on us and not on the Rangers. That will mean a late start in the morning. But, still, I wanted to get this post sent.

Stay well.

Love,

Alphred Troute

[Tiempko]

To: Meadowlarke Sweetweed
Chief, Bounders of the Shire - Addernotch Station


Sir!

This is my first Bounder Report of our new mission. It was a shame missing you at Bounder Inspections. I was so looking forward to meeting you. From what I heard, that was the first time you had missed inspections in years, and it happened to be on the day that I was to report.

I do not know iffen Fallibrand and Penndinias forwarded my report. I am on a new mission now - one that involves rounding up a bunch of Rangers and escording them to Rohan where their chief Aragorn seems to be at. All of that is quite confusing to me. When last I saw Aragorn it was at the elf city in Lothlorien and, so far as I could tell, it was his intent to . . . well . . . um . . . now that I think of it I perhaps ought not to be writing down what they were up to. What I can say is that it didn't seem to involve going to Rohan and certainly did not involve rounding up these Rangers. If it did, then they would have been rounded up earlier. This was some last-minute change of plans for some reason. I do hope that the hobbits are well taken care of.

Anyways, we have entered a new land called Enedwaith. Kuronwen showed up . . . she was not with us as we rounded up the Rangers and I had wondered iffen she had gone home. Other than her and me, Sagla came with us, as did Thorcundo and Twostep. Bohunc is here, iffen you were wondering where he vanished off to. We're also taking care of a manfolk name of Pooch who seems to be an associate of Saeradan. Unfortunately, Saeradan seems to have moved on ahead to set up the next camp, leaving Pooch behind with us.

Anyways, these new lands are filled with folks called Dunlanders. Okay, that's not really what they are called. They are a breed of man-folk that live here. And they do not actually fill the place. This seems to be the North Bounds of their territory and it is mostly ruffians and the like - fringe folk - that seem to be in the area. When we crossed the river and entered these lands I sought to ask one of them about where to find some ruins in the area. These are the ruins where at we were supposed to meet the Rangers. He proved most unfriendly.

Well, me and the other Eclairians managed to find the Rangers. Two of themselves went out and got themselfs into trouble, but we rescued them. Meanwhile, we had a look at the trail ahead.

It appears that, rather than carry huge amounts of supplies with them, the Rangers sent messages ahead and had supplies hidden for them to pick up along the trail. The lands about our campsite is said to contain hidden caches of these supplies that need to be picked up. Since the Rangers are supposed to be keeping quiet and unnoticed, we'll be going out and gathering these supplies. After we eat, of course. One can't hunt supplies on an empty stomach.

Meanwhile, I went out on a patrol all by myself last night while the others slept. This is something I have done often before we entered Moria - looking over the landscape and seeing what is about and filling in my maps. Here, it seems that the Rangers are intent on heading south, and I was aware of the fact that I did not know what was to the north and east of our campsite. I know what is to the north and the west on account of that is the direction from which we came. So I headed out to see iffen I could find anything interesting. I found a farm that I need to tell the others about. There was some lady living there . . . I didn't go talk to her on account of the fact that I was by myself and that might have been dangerous. I'll tell the others and we can visit her tomorrow while we are picking up all of the caches.

There's an odd sort of wolf growing in these parts. They appear . . . well . . . to be honest . . . they appear a lot like wolf-shaped smoke. Very black smoke, with red eyes and a red mouth, and definitely wolf-shaped. They appear only at night, except off in their smoke-wolf den far to the southwest. That's another thing we need to do. There is something mysterious and . . . well . . . wrong about these smoke-wolfs. Something . . . unnatural. They warrant some looking into. But I'm not going to investigate smoke-wolf lairs without a lot of people with a lot thicker armours than I usually wear, that is for certain.

Anyways . . . between collecting supplies, talking to these farmers, and investigating the smoke-wolf lairs, it seems we will have a busy day before us. I should get this letter sealed and get myself some sleep. I will keep you posted as to our progress.

I will keep you informed so as you know what is happening in the world outside the Shire.|

Bounder Hedgerow Shrewburrow

[Tiempko]

To: Meadowlarke Sweetweed
Chief, Bounders of the Shire - Addernotch Station


Sir!

Tomorrow, I think I am going to go to that farm we found to the east and see iffen I can get fresh vegetables and such for the Rangers. They've hidden supplies along the trail so they don't have to carry everything, but there's also the option of buying some things along the way. I looked over her fields and saw quite a variety of vegetables growing there. No doubt, it is more than a family needs and she makes provisions for selling them in town. Town is quite some distance away and a bit of an inconvenience. Not to mention the likelihood of brigands and such taking either her crops as she goes to town or her profits as she returns. I think that we can offer her a fair price, properly discounted for the benefit of saving her a risky trip to market.

We're still kinda waiting for folks to catch up. Roy has been off visiting dwarf friends to the north - as has Fraori. I would wonder iffen there's some kind of dwarf holiday going on, but Thorcundo is here. Medloth and Thorfaniel seem to be wandering about on their own. Alphred is out on patrol as I write with Bohregard, while Jaytull sits here by the fire having his second breakfast. I think Jaytull went out and did some scouting on his own. The same may be true of Thorfaniel as well. Aearthor got called to Rivendell.

Anyways, as I was saying, folks have been doing a lot of different things and I am not sure who or how many are ready to move on. We are in a bit of a hurry, but not so much as we need to rush off into danger and get ourself mauled. There was that Redrobe battalion that Alphred and his company ran into near Gwingris. And, another oddity is a flock of mysterious and magical wolf-beasts in the hills south of here. I do not think they are from these lands. In fact, I would almost say that some wizard set up some magics in a nearby cave to summon them and allow them to do untold harms to the local folk as well as to us.

And, of course, there is the fear that these creatures were summoned by somebody who knows of the Rangers' passing through with an eye to causing them problems.

Well, we're going to head down to that smoke-wolf cave and see iffen we can find out any more about them and see iffen we can do something to keep them from showing up.

As soon as the other folks show up, I suppose we will take an inventory of what would do the most good with respect to getting these Rangers moving. Saeradan has already set up the next camp somewhere to the south. Iffen we can get done soon enough, we will have time to march down and meet him.

Anyway, all is quiet, for now.

Hedgerow Shrewburrow

[Tiempko]

Greetings:

It is my pleasure to report that we are still working our way through Enedwaith on our way to Rohan.

The local folk have not been so much of a trouble as we have cleared. There's a band of mischief makers to be certain. We raided their camp and scattered them a few times, so they should not be a bother. But many of them what live here seem to be pleasant. We bought some oats from a farm nearby for the horses. Though the land is rich enough that there's no shortage of forrage. It's too rocky to farm, but one could graze a herd on it, as the Enedwaithian folks tend to do.

But I should warn you . . . there's a road leaving here heading to the northwest. I am thinking that we may have found the bottom half of the road out of Bree. I don't know iffen you are familiar with Bree but, south of town, there's a great but ancient road that enters into some ruins. While we were there, those ruins were the home of half-orcs and brigands. I think that we have found the other end of that road.

I beg to report that we have found information here suggesting that a couple of groups of villains left here recently. If I am correct, they will be appearing in them ruins just south of Bree here in the near future. I don't know iffen you have any communications with the Bree folks, but they should be warned of villainy approaching from the South. Though, by the time you see this . . . they may already know.

There's some other oddities here you should know about. We found the remains of a Bounder here. We did . . . among the camp of the villainy. He were killed recently in one of the Villainy camps. I can't explain him being here. He weren't a spy - he was fully dressed in Bounder garb. Unless he was spying for the villains and came here to give a report and . . . well . . . villains can't be trusted. I do not recommend them as employers.

A short while ago I got a note from Alphred. Well, the not came to Saeradan with instructions to "pass the information to the other Eclairians." They went out to talk to a bunch of goat herders. By "they" I am referring to Alphred, Medloth, Bohregard, Thorfaniel, and Fraori. They went bearing gifts. They wrote back saying that the goat herders are being haunted. According to Alphred's instructions, iffen we wanted to see for ourselves we should come at night.

Not far from this camp is the shadow-wolf caves with shadow-wolves appearing out of nothing. Those shadow wolfs roam the whole valley at night . . . though in daylight they can only be found near their lair. It is a lair with odd shadow fires . . . wizards' work iffen ever there was one, which conjures shadow-wolfs out of smoke. Apparently, the shadow-wolfs are not the only hauntings.

I think I will want to see for myself what is going on.

I did pass through that area once . . . though it was daylight. We didn't find anything frightening. We mostly scattered about the countryside looking for medicinal plants and hunting and such to supply the Rangers. But I did see a nice green valley that went deep into the mountains. I wasn't able to map it. Sagla shouted that we were getting distracted and called me and Thorcundo back to harvest bird feathers. The bird feathers were on account of some of the people here prize bird feathers and there was a thought to offering them as a gift.

I do hope that I can convince Sagla to let me visit with the goat herders at night. I think these spooky sightings need investigating. I fear that there may be a greater evil behind it. I do hope not, but I think there might.

There's more to say, but I fear that this report is getting too long. I will give more details later.

Until then, I remain . . .

Bounder Hedgerow Shrewburrow

[Tiempko]

Father,

As I write to you, we are preparing for a big battle.

Saruman has installed a minion of sorts in this area that is not only a threat to the Rangers, but a source of mischief and malevolence among the local Dunlandfolk. She has powerful magics. There's a cave off to the east of where we are currently camped where dark magics make wolfs out of smoke and send them across the countryside to hunt and kill. There's also an enchanted place where the goat herders herd their goats that conjure smoke-goats at night.

We went to try to talk to her, before we knew her connection to Saruman, to ask her about the mysterious happenings in the area. We received clues that she may be not be on the side of the freefolk when we saw Saruman's banner at the mouth of the valley that climbed up to her home. They valley itself was under the umbrella of unnatural dark and stormy clouds. With no sunshine bearing down, ghosts and smoke-goats filled the place and we had to battle our way up to her hut. I had Bohregard with me, and Jaytull and Fraori. Thorfaniel was with us for a short while and Kuronwen as well.

When we got to her hut, we were met by a pair of Orc butlers. It turns out that old lady was not home - or so the orcs told us, before they attacked. These were mean and powerful orcs . . . though with such a crew we were well able to defend ourselfs.

We returned to Saeradan, and it was agreed that we had to end Saruman's influence in this area. We have heard that she has a hut further up in the mountains, up nearer the snow-covered peaks. We do not know exactly where it is, so we are going to split up into two squads and climb higher into the mountains in order to try to find it.

We are expecting to confront a particularly powerful villainy. Indeed, I have some worries that we may be forced back off of the mountain in retreat. Mostly, this will be Saeradan's call. Iffen he cries out for a retreat, then we are to leave the battle and head out of the mountains. My hope is that we can keep our resolve and end this menace.

If we are successful, then the road down to the Dunlandfolk city of Lhanuch will be made safe for travel. Well - the road that goes through Enedwaith. There's another road, it seems, that heads off to the northwest and, it is our estimate, turns into the Greenway somewhere around Bree. That road is blocked by villainy. We know of at least two companies of soldiers that occupy the road and it is blocked here and south of Bree. We are going to have to leave them. That is too much of a distraction.

As for what to do after that, we are in something of a quandry. We have found a sword what was used by one of these Dunlandfolk that appeared to favor us - after he got himself killed by Dunlandfolk who favor Saruman. Saeradan thinks that we should travel to this Dunlandfolk capital and find Wadu's family and give it to them. At the same time, he has told us to join some Rangers who went off to the west who are trying to scout a route around the capital.

Since we are not Rangers, and it is a part of our job, I think we are going to head down to the south to Lhanuch and see about the prospects of getting the Rangers through. Mayhaps it will turn out that Saeradan can call back his scouts and the way will be clear.

That's after we get back from battling the Old Woman on the Mountain.

I will write upon my return.

Love,

Alphred Troute

[Tiempko]

To: Meadowlarke Sweetweed
Chief, Bounders of the Shire - Addernotch Station


Sir!

Well, that was a mistake.

Saeradan had given us conflicting orders. There was this local Enedwaithfolk what had agreed to help us after we showed him we were not allied with those who followed Saruman. He didn't have much like for the Rangers, mind you, but he said that I had earned some position of respect with him and that was good enough.

His name was Wadu.

Unfortunately, he went and got himself ambushed. We were off patrolling a road northwest out of Enedwaith . . .

Oh, that reminds me. Before I forget. There's this road going northwest out of Enedwaith. I kinda think that it might continue up and turn into the Greenway as it goes past Bree. It's been blocked by villainy for quite some time - half orcs and brigands, mostly. But I remember them working for Saruman. Honestly, iffen you go over my past reports, it's likely I thought that this villain named of Sharkey were responsible, but I have since come to learn that Sharkey and Saruman are the same person. Saruman sent a couple of companies in that direction and they have closed the road on this side as well. Which makes me think, iffen we could actually get through this barracade and follow the road, we'd end up on the Greenway out of Bree.

I just thought I would throw that in.

But anyway, Wadu is dead. We found him laying about the side of the road just short of that barricade I mentioned. We searched the body. The sword seemed to be valuable, so we brought it back with us.

Saeradan seemed to think that if we returned the sword to his family that this would buy us some favor among the Enedwaithfolk and ease our travel to the south. So, off we headed to Lhunach to hand over the sword.

I said that we had conflicting orders. Saeradan had also sent some Rangers to the west to scout away round the Enedwaithians living to the south. At first, he told us to go west as well and aid in the scouting. But then he suddenly changed his mind and sent us south to try to earn some favor with Wadu's folks.

That was a mistake. Wadu's father apparently thought his son was a coward and thought the only misfortune involved in his death is that he lost the opportunity to grow into a decent person. Well, decent by Enedwaithian standards. His sister, Nona, was a bit less judgmental, but only a bit. He told us to go east into some Dwarf sanctuary and find out more about what happened to her brother. But we were in the employ of the Rangers and we told her so. So, we packed up and headed back to Saeradan's camp. I figure that our visit didn't earn us any favors among the locals. They took our coins easily enough - they had some fine shops and such. But they were never quite friendly.

Worse still, Saruman had an ambassador in the town what was consulting with the town's leaders. No doubt they were trying to strike some sort of deal - a deal that would not work out well for the Rangers and their plans to reach Aragorn. We got some hints that some local folks wanted our help in trying to make it the case that Saruman's offer was rejected. It is certainly the case that it would do no harm iffen we could find a way to prevent Saruman from making this tribe his subjects. But it is hard to tell what would happen iffen we started to meddle in the ways of the Enedwaith folks. Besides, it seemed contrary to our plan to get ourselfs caught in the middle of a huge political dispute.

Scouting the route to the west, Saeradan's original conception, seems to be the wisest.

After returning to Saeradan's camp, which I did mostly on my own. Except for Twostep and Roy, the rest opted to stay in Lhunach for a bit and spend some of their hard earned coin. Except for Aearthor and Liatri, they never went to Lhunach. They stayed back in camp with Saeradan. Anyways, the tall and the short of it is that we reported the emissary and the general disfavor of the Enedwaithfolk to the south and that going around to the west might, indeed, be the better option. I did suggest to Saeradan that there seems to be some sense that, iffen we can help those who oppose this alliance with Saruman that we can prevent an alliance with him. That would weaken Sarguman. But Saeradan said we should at least get a better idea of what sits off to the west first and the possibility of getting around.

Well, that's where we are going next. We are heading off to the west to help the Rangers scout.

We did have a right vicious fight. Saruman had won the affections of a sorceress living on the side of the mountain and had seduced her into giving us and the Enedwaithians some trouble. We sought to drive her out of her home and send her back to Saruman. It was our hope that the local Enedwaithfolk would be grateful of being rid of such a menace. It was summoning clould wolfs and cloud goats to eat their lifestock, and people ghosts as well. She had some kick to her. Our first charge up the mountain was ill fated. A second charge worked better and we dislodged her from her home. That makes at least the northern part of Enedwaith safer than it was.

But we still have a long, long ways to go to get to the Gap of Rohan. Detouring around Lhunach will only add to our delays.

I will write when I have more news.

Bounder Hedgerow Shrewburrow

[Craiden]

Pooch was sitting at the edge of some old elvish ruins in a far away land called Enedwaith. He felt lost and alone and didn't know how he got into all of this. Saeradan, a Ranger who had taken him under his wing for the last couple of months, who had been like the father to him he never had, had gone into the wilderness further north without taking him with him, without even telling him where he went or that he was going to go in the first place. He looked at the three other Rangers in the camp, who didn't seem to like him too much. They only said that Saeradan was on an important mission, establishing another camp for their journey south. What exactly it was they are going for, he didn't know. He had heard rumors though that they were going to Rohan to lend their aid to a man named Aragorn, who seems to be their leader.



He was thinking about writing a letter to his mother, Maida, back in Combe. She must be very worried about him and may think he is still with the Blackwolds in the Chetwood. But he is far from it. He had initially joined the Blackwolds when they recruited him and several other young men from Combe, Archet and Bree, promising them great riches. It sounded like decent work at first and good pay, he took on some innocuous errands for a man named Applewood, but things turned more and more ugly when a group of strange, dark-skinned men from the north had arrived. They bred wargs and planned an attack on Archet. Being not happy about the turn of events, aghast even, Pooch voiced his concerns. He still participated in the raid on the town though and saw it burn down to the ground.



But the attack had been a failure and the Blackwolds did not succeed in taking over the town. Back at their headquarters, the dark men blamed him and a few others for their defeat. They were convinced that he collaborated with the defenders and warned the townsfolk of Archet about the imminent raid. He and some others were tied up and tortured brutally. Then, in the aftermath of a great chaos after a weird incident involving a dwarf (who he heard was not even alive) he managed to escape.

He had shaved his head and his beard and took on the name of Pooch. When he went back to Archet to see if he can help rebuild the town, he briefly met a man named Strider. Even though his clothes were rugged, the man had an aura of nobility around him. Pooch trusted him immediately and let him know what happened. He had to write now, for the dark men had done terrible things to him during their torture and in their anger. The man looked at his scribbled notes carefully and then sent him to speak to a kinsman of his, Saeradan, who lived in a small cabin north of Bree. Pooch wasn't sure what the man saw in him or why he told him to go there, but not knowing what else to do, he went.

This man, Saeradan, was kind and understanding and agreed to take him in as his assistant. Said it'd be nice "for this old man" to have someone gather wood, cook and tend to his horse. One day, while grooming the horse, a strange group of people showed up, among them elves, dwarves and hobbits. He didn't know what they wanted from Saeradan, and he sent him away when they were discussing whatever it was. When he got back, the group had left.

Saeradan had then sent him to the Yondershire, where he helped the local hobbits with some of their problems. He spent a good amount of time there, enjoyed the small villages, the well-visited taverns and the countryside. Unbeknownst to him, Saeradan had picked this assignment in the hope to change Pooch's attitudes and the way he looked at life in general. Hobbits have their own particular way of doing that.



Pooch took a liking to the hobbits, even though some of their shenanigans seemed a bit silly to him. He particularly befriended one named Reginard Pickthorn, whom he rescued from a goblin camp and spent a wonderful evening when Reginard cooked them a dinner and he listened to all his stories in his camp near a beautiful marsh. He was very sorry that he didn't stay longer in the goblin hideout to find his four-leafed clover. And when he left him, Pooch made a vow to only do good deeds in his future.



When he got back to Saeradan, he learned that he was about to leave for Rivendell to meet up with others of his kin for some important errand. He asked him to join him and together they rode the long way to the hidden valley of the Elves. What a marvellous place that was, Pooch had never seen anything like it. There was a gathering of many Rangers who had also travelled there, and he again met that same group of people he had seen in Bree-land before. What they were doing there, he did not know.

But he met them again in Eregion, where he had ridden with Saeradan. On the way, Saeradan's horse had lost a shoe and, for the first time, he went out with the group to find a smith who could fix the horsehoe.



On the way they encountered an Uruk-hai orc and easily defeated him. When the horse had it's new shoe, they all continued further south, to a place called Mirobel, once a great elven city now in ruins, and then to the northern reaches of Enedwaith.

And now Saeradan had gone missing. The group of adventurers was still here though. He looked at them. They seemed to be very confident and quite seasoned, and very much at ease with each other, as if they have been travelling together for a long time. Their covert leader, of all people, seems to be a small, unassuming hobbit from Michel Delving named Hedgerow. Pooch decided to spend most of his time near him, until they find Saeradan again. There were also 2-3 dwarves, one wearing heavy armor and a shield, and the other one robes and a stone in his hand. Seems he can summon some magics with it. Then there are several men and women from all sort of places. Two of them with the rank of Captains, wielding great swords and having a herald to serve them. There is one woman from Bree who can become near invisible and is highly menacing in any battle Pooch was involved in. And then there is a mysterious elven woman, very slender and all dressed in forest-green leather clothes, who can also summon lightning. She is always wearing a hood, so Pooch has never seen her face.

They had welcomed him in their midst without making much fuzz about it. But even though they were friendly and relaxed towards him, he still didn't feel like he'd belong. Maybe that will change at some point, but for now all he could think of was Saeradan and to get back together with him again.

[Tiempko]

To: Meadowlarke Sweetweed
Chief, Bounders of the Shire - Addernotch Station


Sir!

There's hobbits here!

Here . . . we're in Enedwaith. The place is sparcely populated by a somewhat rough sort of manfolk. However, tucked into one corner of these lands out of the way, we came upon a flock of hobbits.

We're planning to visit them. We introduced ourselfs to a couple of the folks what we met. But we didn't want a swarm of us to just go wandering into town. I was thinking of how hobbitfolk would react of an army suddenly showed up at Oatbarton or Stock. It would be shocking to say the least.

One of them, name of Meillion, went with us as we patrolled the countryside. She seems not to have travelled much, or so she said. Like most Shire folk, I suppose. She says she has never heard of the Shire. But, then again, I never heard of this place so we're about the same on that regard.

I should tell you what we are doing here.

We took a trip to Lhunach to return the sword of a fallen soldier to their family. Only, their family weren't too pleased with them. And there was an emmisary of Saruman there what was trying to convince the local tribe to become his subjects and send soldiers to fight in Saruman's wars. As we are just passing through on our way to the land of the horsefolk, we thought it best not to get involved.

Well, the Rangers thought that. Though I sense there may have been something of a dispute among the Rangers. I get a sense that some are arguing that we should not allow this tribe to become vassals of Saruman. Others want to just get through here and find Aragorn.

The "get to Aragorn" faction seems to be winning, and so we joined some Rangers in scouting a way around the town rather than through it. That's when we met the hobbits. Trying to avoid the town, we headed off into the wilds to the west and came upon a valley filled with them.

Hobbits wouldn't be a threat to Rangers just passing through. The Rangers need not even pass through the Hobbit community, they can travel well south of it.

But, there's other menaces about. Giants - we saw where a poor hobbit had been squashed by a giant-thrown rock. And a whole city of goblins. These goblins dress like hobbits in order to fool folks and lure people into their traps. I was fooled the first couple of times and nearly got myself soupkettled. I was the only hobbit, so I figured it was my duty to talk to them. They thought it was their duty to serve me for lunch.

Anyways, we're going to visit the hobbit community and see what folks there know about these lands. Meillion went back home to warn them we are coming so we will not surprise folks. Meanwhile, I think the Rangers what favor preventing the local tribes from joining Saruman are starting to win the debate. I will let you know how that goes.

I wonder iffen Postmaster Proudfoot would put a post office here? We really should keep in touch.

Anyways, we continue our efforts.

Bounder Hedgerow Shrewburrow

[Tiempko]

Father,

I have found the most wonderful fishing lodge. This place is a dream - something you could scarce imagine.

And it is run by hobbits!

Well, the owner is a hobbit name of Aled Madcorf. He found his way here recently. He said he is from Staddle, near Bree. One evening, he said, a man stopped by the Prancing Pony in Bree while he was visiting and they got to talking. He mentioned a village of hobbits on the road between Bree and Gondor. And Aled got it into his mind to take a look for himself. So, he came down here.

And, as it turns out, he was right. There IS a village of hobbits here. They're in a valley to the east a short ways. It was exciting to meet new hobbit folk. I should say, the hobbits what live here are peculiar. They wear shoes, for one thing. And they seem a bit skinny. The number of hobbits here wouldn't fill the village of Hobbiton alone, I would think, so this is no place as grand as the Shire or anything like it.

Anyways, while Aled was here visiting, the road north to Bree got blocked from them villains I mentioned. They have blockades up on this side and on the other just south of Bree and they're not letting folks pass. We took a look at the area and, I would say, it seems possible the Eclairians might make it up the road to Bree, but a lone traveller like Aled has no chance. And so he became stuck here with the local folks.

He says that after a while his welcome here started to wear a bit thin. There's just a lot of differences between the way these hobbits live and what you would expect from the Shire. They wear shoes, for one thing. And a good many of their houses are just built up out of the ground with brick walls and such rather than being cut into the hillside. Though, to be honest, the hillsides here are rock. It's a red, sandy stone what makes up the walls of their valley and there's scarce enough dirt to make a decent garden out of.

Eventually, Aled left the town and moved off on his own in a valley up in the mountains with a very nice fishing lake. It's quite isolated and alone up here. Aled reports he has not had much to worry about at all - other than the weather. He did report a fierce hailstorm what went through a short while ago. We can see the damage as the windows of his smial are boarded up and broken and he is trying to see iffen he can't get new glass for them.

The fishing here is as good as I have seen anywheres. I stood at the edge and, in a short while, filled my quotas with troutes, and fish of all kinds. I am going to have them salted up and put in a barrel to send to Mr. Sweetweed for making into good hobbit meals. I do hope they survive the trip. It would have been wonderful iffen the road to Bree was open as that would cut the shipment time down a great deal. As it is, the salted fish will need to travel north through Eregion and mayhaps even to Rivendell before it gets directed down the Great East Road to arrive in the Shire.

It has been most relaxing here and I have quite enjoyed the fishing. Though it is one of them good things what must come to an end. The Rangers we are trying to get to Aragorn in Bree have decided just last night that they need to meddle in the affairs of local villagers. The villain Saruman is trying to trick them in becoming allies. Saruman has orcs in the countryside killing and burning. And he has an emissary at the village what is offering them protection from the orcs - protection from orcs he is himself using to attack the village. I told you this Saruman is villainous. I suspect the offer will be made for us to deal with these orcs so as the village will not need Saruman to call them off - though they do not recognize it as such. Attacking the orcs directly is going to put Saruman in an ill temper, I fear. It goes against the whole plan of getting through silently so that Saruman does not know what we are doing. Though I am suspecting that the Rangers intend for us Eclairians to deal with the orc problem and take all of the credit, while the Rangers stay secretly camped in the mountains scarcely making their presence known.

Anyways, so, I am going to go to bed and to get some rest before we travel tomorrow. All here is going quite nicely at the moment. Another night of sleeping next a peaceful lake. Aled said he has never been bothered in his little valley by goblin, beast, or hobbit, so we can rest comfortably and without fear.

An offer I cannot refuse.

So, I will be getting some rest and getting this letter posted to you before we leave.

Love,
Alphred Troute

[Tiempko]

To: Meadowlarke Sweetweed
Chief, Bounders of the Shire


Sir!

A warm morning fishing in a valley to a cold evening shivering on a mountaintop in one day.

We left the elf village yesterday morning to go to Lhunach. The Rangers had decided that they wanted us to meddle in the affairs of the local villagers - in particular to discourage them from agreeing to be subject to the likes of Saruman. Saruman is offering to protect the villagers from orcs. At the same time, Saruman is commanding the orcs that he is offering to protect the local folk from. We were able to go out and find some of these orcs and return with more than enough pieces of evidence that Saruman was providing the orcs with weapons and armor. Between those of us on the journey we found well over a dozen pieces of armor and weapons that were marked with Saruman's white hand.

We brought these items back to the village, but it was not enough to convince them to send Saruman's ambassador away. They are fearful of the battles ahead. There seems to be a local weapon that - if repaired - could provide the local villagers with a sufficient boost in morale to take on Saruman. But we have to get it fixed. For that purpose, we were asked to take it to a dwarf stronghold atop a mountain. So, off we went, mountain climbing. That is how we ended up going from the valley bottom to the mountain top in one day. By the time the sun had set . . . or, actually, quite some time after the sun had set . . . we found ourselfs atop a mountain visiting a dwarfen library.

And what a library!

Gad, you should see this place. And it is going to ruin. Somebody needs to organize an expedition to come up here and get as many of the books out of here as they can before this place suffers some calamity. Of course, them who did so would have to deal with villainous villagers and dragons along the road between here and Lhunach. It wouldn't do to have wagon burp on a wagon full of books and have the whole pile go up with us in smoke.

In the mean time, we discovered some disturing news. There's a dwarf up here by the name of Nar. He seems to be suffering from some sot of malady as he is confused all of the time and disoriented. The Rangers took an interest in him once he told us what the elfs were doing here - secrets that the elf brothers shared only with their father. Now there is a fret about as to what or who knows of the purpose of our mission and what evil plans they may put before us. The Rangers are asking that we find out. Another delay, I fear, but finding out what Saruman might know of our journey may prevent us from falling into a trap.

So it will be back down the mountain to Lhunach here in a bit.

In the mean time, we are about to head out to do some more collecting of plants for medicines for Nar in the hope that, with a cleared head, he can focus on whatever it is he may have come to know about our trip to the south and how he came to know it and who he might have told or heard the information from. This has gotten Corunir, the Ranger what followed us here, more than a little concerned. He says that Candaith may know more and is talking about sending us all the way back to Lhunach to speak with him.

Well, it all depends on whether we can learn any more once we get more of these plants down the poor dwarf. Mayhaps it will clear up all of the mysteries and we can go about our business.

I will let you know how things progress.

Hedgerow Shrewburrow

[Tiempko]

Hedgerow awoke

Hedgerow awoke, noting the throbbing pain in his head. Thinking back, the last thing he remembered was sitting at a table on the top floor of the library reading a book. Now, he was laying at what he recognized to be the first floor, his head throbbing in pain.

“What happened?” He asked the dwarf tending to him.

Frithgeir answered, “We called you down for dinner. I saw you up there, atop the stairs, reading a book as you walked to the stairs. You missed a step, and down you came. A terrible tumble it was, too. You took a blow to your head, but nothing appears broken.”

Sitting up only made the pain in his head that much worse. He picked up the book, now torn, and felt a twang of guilt atop the other pains. He also noticed his therobo sitting there.

“Hroik brought that when he saw you’d been hurt. He said you had the power of song. A soothing melody, and you’d be as good as gold or better.”

Hedgerow reached slowly for the instrument. Indeed, there was a song, one that started slow and soft and picked up tempo over time that was good for headaches, stress, and even hangovers.

And he could not remember what it was.

Neither the words nor the notes came to his mind.

He could recall how the song worked. He could recall times in which he sang it - some very recent as the dwarfs and Twostep requesting the remedy on many mornings. But the song itself escaped him.

He tried to recall other songs and cries - those he used in battle to bolster the courage and lift the spirits of others.

Nothing came to mind.

“What’s wrong, Mr, Shrewburrow. You look bothered.”

Hedgerow sought to focus his eyes on Frithgeir, which did not happen easily, then waved off the question.

“Nothing. I am just finding it hard to concentrate.”

“Understandable, really,” said Frithgeir. “That was quite a tumble. I tell you what. You go lay down. I will tell the others you are resting. Meanwhile, I’ll fix something to clear your head out of the medicines you brought for Nar. That would work.”

Hedgerow agreed with a nod and let Frithgeir help him to his feet. Then the dwarf headed off while Hedgerow stumbled to where he had made a bed out of blankets and pillows taken from the Draig-luth - a villainous tribe that inhabited the lands to the west.

“I remember their name,” Hedgerow cursed under his breath. Why can’t I remember my bloody songs?”

From one of his footlockers, he pulled out a set of four books. The dwarfs of Moria had given them to him as a reward for helping to drive off the beast guarding the entrance to Moria and allowing the dwarfs access. Though written in an ancient language, some magic allowed Hedgerow to understand the meaning as he scanned the page. It was a set of books on how to supply and equip soldiers on the field. It mostly focused on ways of keeping up morale, judging morale to be far more important than any other quality to people’s ability to fight.

The third volume was dedicated to a system for keeping up morale in battle much like what Hedgerow had learned on his own before getting the books. Not wanting to learn a new system, Hedgerow had modified and applied what he learned from the books to what he already knew. Now, what he had already known was escaping him.

There was a knock at the door and Frithgeir entered with the brew. Hedgerow drank it quickly. It did clear his head, and the headache nearly vanished. However, he struggled all the harder to recall the songs and cries he once used to aid his friends in battle - all without success.

“Excuse me, Mr Shrewburrow. Your friends are asking if they can expect you for supper. They are truly quite concerned.”

“No,” Hedgerow answered much too quickly. He panicked at the thought of his friends falling in defeat because he could not help them in the way they had come to expect.

More calmly, Hedgerow said, “Tell them I am fine and I just need some rest.” He told himself that if he could learn at least some of these old songs and cries from the book, they would be of help on the next patrol. It would be better than nothing.

“Very well,” said the dwarf, turning to leave.

“Oh, and, if you wouldn’t mind,” said Hedgerow. “If you wouldn’t mind bringing me a plate.”

“Of course,” Frithgeir answered as he left.

[Tiempko]

To: Meadowlarke Sweetweed
Chief, Bounders of the Shire - Addernotch Station


Sir!I ha

It is my honour to report that we are back in Lhunach, having left Nar's Peak behind. Fortunately, we have made it here in one piece.

I'll confess to you, Mr. Sweetweed, that I have worries. I had an accident a short while ago . . . a bump to the head . . . and now I can't remember words nor notes or any of the things I would use to aid my friends in combat. I fear they may be counting on me and I won't be able to help.

I should tell them. I really should. They'll be all sympathetic and kind and tell me not to worry about it. But still, they would look at me with those pathetic stares that will just make me feel awful inside.

I keep hoping the memories will return, but there has been no luck so far.

I am not all lost, Mr. Sweetweed. These old books I got from the dwarfs have their own songs and such for aiding in combat. While I am waiting for my own memories to return, I am learning those of them that I judge to be the most useful and, hopefully, I can do some good if called upon.

Alas, it is not going well. Pooch and Kuronwen suffered horrible blows while we tried to chase the giants out of Thror's Coomb - a valley on the east side of Enedwaith. I had learned only the easiest of tunes before we set out, and we opted to assault a whole village of giants and lizards - including their king. I was scarce able to keep up with the little I had learned in that time. The blows were not fatal, though Pooch in particular looked much the worse for wear after his dual with a giant. I should have asked Roy for help . . . he has his own tricks he can use.

I do not think that they actually noticed that I was only using one or two of these techniques for boosting morale and they were not as powerful as what I once could have done. But that just makes it worse. I should tell them. I really should.

Maybe later.

Typically, our troop does quite well against the villainy we come across. But these giants and lizards are not the normal foe. They are huge and powerful.

Fortunately, we have put them behind us. I was fretting that, if we were to continue to battle against them, I would have to tell folks about what happened.

Oh, they know about the fall down the stairs and such. Upon discovering that I seem well, it has become an object of laughter and mirth. But there remains the fear that they may take on more than they can handle, expecting me to bolster their courage as I have done so many times in the past, with me unable to do so. If they do get hurt, then there is no denying that it will be my fault.

Meanwhile, as we sit here in Lhunach, events are swirling around us. Apparently, the villagers held some type of special council meeting just last night. I have heard only rumours about it from some of the local villagers. I need to find out what happened. Apparently, one of our battlers - Thorcundo? Sagla? Thalachon? - happened to be there when it happened. And the Eclairian mentioned our suspicious that Saruman was arming and equipping the villains that were menacing the lands. It proved decisive, as the villagers decided against bowing to Saruman. This resulted in the Ambassador's body guard trying to teach our Eclairian - I do need to find out who it was - a lesson. But we're hardened battlers by now. It were no trouble fending off the bodyguard.

Now, the village will be depending on us for their protection. Us and the Rangers.

On that matter, we're to head south and talk to the Ranger Mincham. There are worries about what the enemy may know of our journey. We have a mystery to track down. And the villager Nona, whose brother Wadu is at the center of this mystery, is insisting on going with us. Halbarad is saying otherwise. I cannot say at this moment what the result of that battle will be. Either way, we'll be heading south shortly. At least we will be travelling in the right direction, though not in haste.

While, now you are informed. I need to get back to my studies. I have to practice with these ancient systems for boosting the morale of an army in battle. I cannot waste a moment. Folks are depending on me.

Bounder Hedgerow Shrewburrow

[Tiempko]

Father:

I am sorry, I know that I have not written to you in quite a while. When I last wrote, we were resting comfortably at a fishing lodge amongst the company of hobbits. I hope that left you with a sense that I was well and happy in the time since I had last written.

In fact, we are still helping the Rangers to work their way south to meet Strider in Rohan. The Rangers decided that they would ally themselves with a local tribe and we went to their capital city - which, to be honest, was little bigger than Little Delving itself. Saruman had an emissary there that was trying to get the tribe to join his army against the horsefolk to the south. The village was experiencing raids from half-orcs and wargs and Saruman promised to protect them not only from the half-orcs and wargs, but from folk invading from the north - by which he meant us and our Ranger companions.

While they were deciding, we went out on patrols and found proof that Saruman himself was commanding the half-orcs and wargs that were menacing their village. This persuaded them to send the emissary back to Isengard. Though now they worry that they may face their threats alone. On that matter, we met . . . um, rescued . . . a messenger from the South that made mention of other tribes standing up against Saruman, and there is talk of an alliance of resisting tribes being formed. It's just talk at the moment. For our part, Saruman is weaker than he would have been and a small group is united in defiance against him. That is considered a plus.

We have since been stalled here while the Rangers puzzle through a difficulty involving a dwarf suffering from the effects of age on his mind, but who seemed to know exactly why we were here and what we were trying to do - even though we have kept that a secret (particularly from an addled old dwarf). They are fearful to determine who else knows and what they may be able to expect as a result. So, we have been trying to track down this information. We've done some researching at a dwarven mountain forest where this addled dwarf happens to live, and will be leaving to return to the capital here shortly.

In the mean time, we have been making regular patrols to help to secure this local tribe of folk, at least for so long as we are in the area. Hopefully, we can leave them in a strong enough situation that they can stand on their own in our absence.

That should catch you up to where we are at now. I am in a massive Dwarfen library. If you lined every wall in every building in Little Delving with shelves, and filled each shelf with books, I doubt you would have a tenth of the count of books that surround me here. Hedgerow is in hobbit heaven. Maybe we'll be lucky and he will choose to stay here and quit bothering us as we continue our mission.

Speaking about being addled, Hedgerow took quite a fall a while back and seems to have suffered for it. I noticed on our most recent patrols that he seldom offers much in the way of aid - as sometimes seems to have forgotten the vary things he used to do as a matter of routine. I will speak to the Rangers about leaving him with the hobbits we found here. He should be safe and happy there until he finds a way to get back to the Shire.

I promise to keep you better informed. As I said, we are leaving this mountain library tomorrow and returning the the tribal capital with our new research. I do not know what the Rangers will decide to do with this information. However, I fear we have been stalled here far too long, and we should consider moving along to Dunland. We will be passing through the very shadow of Isengard on this march, so I am certain they are anxious to know what Isengard has planned for them. But we cannot wait here until the end of days worrying about it.

I will write soon, I promise.

Love,

Alphred Troute

[Tiempko]

To: Meadowlarke Sweetweed
Chief, Bounders of the Shire - Addernotch Station

Sir!

I am sending you a quick report before I head out on my journey. One of the Rangers is up at the the Dwarf library called . . . um . . . starts with a Z. Also called Nar's Peak - that is much better. Anyways, Halbarad is ready to leave this place and continue on south and has asked for somebody to trek up to Nar's Peak and tell Corunir . . . that is the Ranger's name . . . that it is time to come back so we can continue our journey.

The one thing we learned is that the road to the South is too dangerous. We lost a Ranger. I don't know iffen you know him. He was camped out at Weathertop for quite some time protecting the Lonelands from villainy. He opted to come with us. But he got chopped up by an oathbreaker. Imagine having to live forever even as your body rotted and decayed from death because you broke a promise. Anyways, well, Candaith lied. I heard him say he was Aragorn and showed the ghost a ring what was made as a copy of Aragorn's. And the oathbreaker didn't believe him. Gad, iffen oathbreaking can get you into the trouble these Oathbreakers are in, what about lying and saying you're the king? I knew it was a mistake the moment he said it. And it was. The oathbreaker got all insulted and slayed Candaith right there on the spot before our eyes.

We charged out of there as fast as we could, but the oathbreakers blocked our way. Sagla, Roy, Twostep, Thorcundo, and Meillion all charged out into the open. We didn't stop running until we were back at Lhunach. But it is clear, the road to the south is blocked. So, we are going to be trying the road to the west into a place called the Mournshaws. I know, it hardly sounds safer. But, still, we have probable villainy over certain villainy, and we have decided to opt for the probable villainy. When Corunir gets back, we will be off to find another way into Dunland.

We have spent some time on the south road and I had already thought that it was not the right way. It is full of crypts and barrows, much like the Barrow Downs near Bree. Since you came from Bree, I am certain you know the Barrow Downs. It was odd that Mincham, the same Ranger what watched the Fields of Fornost with all of its dead, was set to scout out the region. We spent some time doing patrols for him and, though we settled the place down a bit so far as I can tell, I would certainly prefer a route other than that.

The route we will take will send us west a bit. The Rangers have set up a camp in the wilderness. From there, we will scout in a southernly direction. As soon as we detect a safe route, it will be off into Dunland with us.

There really isn't that much to report. We have been spending our time scouting the south road, trying to make this place safe for the local tribes when we leave, and figuring out the secret of Nar. Now, it is seeming to have been a waste of time and efforts. That way is blocked and we need to go around.

We may be in the wilds for a bit, so I am not sure when I will reach a post again. I will write to you once I return from Nar's Peak and we are ready to begin our detour. After that, I will do what I can.

Bounder Hedgerow Shrewburrow