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Stirrings of Shadow  by Fiondil

42: Home Are the Hunters

By the time Aragorn, Thandir and Gilhael made their way to the main room of the keep, quite a crowd had already gathered. Aragorn saw Wídfara and Elladan, the former still using crutches but no longer encumbered by the splint. The three made their way towards where Celegrýn and Gilgirion were standing with the other hunters, their expressions set. All around them people were shouting questions and demanding answers.

"Be silent!"

All noise ceased as Thengel, with Morwen on his arm, entered the hall. Captain Alric walked behind them, acting as guard. A pathway was hastily formed as people bowed to the royal couple. Thengel and Morwen came before the Elves and hunters, their expressions solemn. Thengel gave the four Men and two Elves a searching look, then sighed, seeing in the eyes of his own men if not in the eyes of the Elves the answers he sought.

"Tell us," he demanded quietly, then, without another word, escorted Morwen to their usual seats while everyone else quickly found their own seats. The two Elves and their companions remained where they stood, quietly discussing something. Finally Celegrýn nodded and the others took their own seats, while he remained standing. Thengel gave some whispered commands to Alric who was standing behind him and the captain nodded, moving away towards the kitchens.

Aragorn, Gilhael and Thandir joined Wídfara and the sons of Elrond at their usual table. Wídfara’s expression was sad but resigned. Aragorn gave him a brief smile of understanding. While people settled where they would to listen to Celegrýn’s report, the cooks came out with platters of meat, cheese and bread and flagons of mead and beer. At a gesture from Thengel they served the hunters and the two Elves first before bringing anything to their king and queen. Celegrýn and Gilgirion satisfied themselves with goblets of mead but the four Men fell upon the repast with delight. Other members of the kitchen staff, supplemented by some of the older boys and girls from among the refugees, went around the hall serving beer and mead to everyone else.

When all were set, Celegrýn gave Thengel and Morwen a brief bow. "The others have chosen me to be the bearer of news," he said without preamble, "and I fear the news is not good."

A sigh went up among the listeners and one or two women began weeping, though not so loudly as to disrupt Celegrýn’s tale.

"It took us longer to reach the dale where your Riders went missing than anticipated," the Elf continued, "for some of the trail through the mountains has, as you know, disappeared and we had to make new trails. Also the snows hindered us."

"Hindered us, you mean," Déorhunta interjected, stressing the pronoun as he pointed to the other three Men. "As I recall, you two walked on top of the snow as if it wasn’t even there, while we were forced to slog through it."

"That’s just how it is, friend Déorhunta," Gilgirion replied with a smile and a shrug.

"What he means, Déorhunta," Aragorn couldn’t resist adding with a wicked grin, "is that Elves, being the fastidious creatures that they are, don’t like to get their feet wet or their hair mussed, which is why they spend an inordinate amount of time showing off how wonderful they are by doing things like walking on top of the snow instead of through it like the rest of us."

"But we are wonderful," Thandir replied with a sniff, refusing to let the Heir of Isildur get away with his barbs, "and so naturally we must show off. We are as Eru made us. Would you have us go against our nature and therefore Eru Himself?"

"It wouldn’t hurt you to try for a little more humility," Aragorn retorted.

"Is that word even in their language?" Wídfara asked with a wicked smile.

"Hmm.... now that I think about it...." Aragorn started to say, but Celegrýn cut him off.

"Do you mind?" he demanded, his expression a mixture of amusement and exasperation. There was soft snickering through the hall at the banter.

"Sorry, Celegrýn," Aragorn said with a grin. "Pray continue."

"Thank you," the Elf replied with a sniff. "As I was saying, it took us longer than we had hoped to reach the dale...."

****

"Does anything look familiar to you?" Celegrýn asked the Men as they made their way up the dale. It was late afternoon and the Men at least were cold and tired; the two Elves, however, looked neither as they walked beside the Mortals. They had only recognized the entrance to the dale because Ragnawulf had had the foresight to leave a cairn marking the place before they had left for Dunharrow, for there were many mountain dales in this area and they all looked alike.

Déorhunta looked about, trying to remember. The ground was snow-covered and the mountain brook was mostly frozen over. He pointed towards the left to a stand of pine and mountain aspen and holly. "We camped there," he said. "The site where traces of the missing men were found is another league further up, I believe." He turned to Éothain and Heremund for confirmation and the two hunters nodded.

"Let us go then," Gilgirion said. "By the time we reach it, it will be nearly full dark. We’ll have to wait until morning to begin our search."

The others nodded wearily and the Elves cast them sympathetic looks, being careful to walk no faster than the slowest of the Mortals, their eldritch eyes marking out the best path to take. The Men were grateful for the solicitousness of the Elves, though they were still somewhat wary of them. Still, there was no outright animosity and the Rohirrim found that they had many things in common with these Eldarin warriors.

As predicted, they reached the area where they had found Haleth’s broken bow just after sunset. Éothain recognized the site because, like Ragnawulf, he had marked the area with a cairn of small stones next to the abandoned firepit. It was only a matter of minutes before a new fire was laid down and they were enjoying the warmth. The two Elves slipped silently away into the woods that hugged the eastern slope of the dale, returning about an hour later with game for their evening meal.

"We will start our search in the morning," Celegrýn told them. "Do you remember where you conducted your own search? It will be a good place to start our own."

Éothain and Heremund exchanged looks. The older Man answered the Elf. "As I recall, we ventured no further up the dale than perhaps a mile, keeping to this side of the stream."

"You never crossed over to the other side?" Gilgirion asked and the two Men shook their heads.

"We found Haleth’s bow and everything got so... strange," Éothain explained, "that we all just wanted to leave, so we did not linger."

"Also, though he sought to hide it from us," Heremund added, "we could all see that Lord Earntungol was in a great deal of pain. We decided the best thing was to rejoin our fellows though we were left with too many unanswered questions."

The two Elves nodded. "We will search again on this side but I think it would be well to search to the west," Celegrýn said. "I want to be able to report to Thengel King that we left no stone unturned even if we must return empty-handed."

They all nodded at that and, as with the previous nights, the Elves stated categorically that they would take the watches. The Mortals had learned early on not to dispute the statement but to accept it as a gift. Soon, only the two Elves were awake, singing softly to the stars that peeked now and then from behind thin high clouds....

****

"I wasn’t in that much pain," Aragorn protested.

"Don’t speak such foolishness, Lord Earntungol," Ragnawulf admonished him. "You were fortunate that the boulder only gave you a glancing blow. Your spine could have been broken or your legs crushed. You could well have died. There is no shame in admitting to injuries as grave as yours were. That you were able to function at all was nothing short of miraculous, I say."

Éothain and Heremund were nodding even as Aragorn grimaced at the reprimand. Thengel gave the Dúnadan a sympathetic smile. "The mark of a brave man is one who carries on in spite of everything, but the sign of a strong man is one who also admits to his pain before others even as he carries on. You then become a standard by which others may measure their own bravery, for many think that to admit to pain is to admit to weakness, when it is just the opposite."

Aragorn gave the King a thoughtful look and slowly nodded, sighing. "I guess I was in greater pain than I wanted to admit to." He turned to Celegrýn. "Gilhael says you found the missing hunters. Where? How? What clue did I miss?"

"You didn’t search across the stream," the Elf answered baldly.

"They were there all that time and in my arrogance...."

"Say rather in your inexperience," Elrohir interrupted Aragorn gently. "From what we’ve been told, you were in excruciating pain and were probably not thinking straight. Under such circumstances, it would be easy enough to miss clues or simply forget to think the situation through. Had you not been in such pain, you would probably have thought to check to the west."

"I think when we found Haleth’s bow in the holly tree, we all felt spooked," Éothain added. "Well, at least I was and I wanted nothing more than to leave that cursed and haunted spot and return to Dunharrow even if it meant not finding the answers we sought."

"And that sense of disquiet and ill ease helped contribute to your being less than thorough," Thandir said to Aragorn.

"I should have...."

"Well, you didn’t, Cousin," Gilhael intervened. "I think you needs must be less harsh on yourself and simply accept this as a lesson learned."

Aragorn glanced about the hall and, seeing a nod here and there among the older members of the King’s éored and a gracious smile from Morwen, he finally nodded in acquiescence, turning to Celegrýn. "So what did you find?"

"We were fortunate," Celegrýn answered, "for the next day dawned clear, making our search that much easier...."

****

They started on the east side of the stream. "Just to be thorough," explained Gilgirion and the Mortals did not argue. Éothain and Heremund showed them where Aragorn had concentrated his own search and where the broken bow had been found. After an hour of scouring the area and finding nothing it was decided to try the other side of the stream.

"Do you think they really went that way?" Heremund asked the Elves. "Why did they not run down the dale to us, instead, and what happened to the deer meat? Did they take that with them as they fled?"

"Assuming they fled anywhere," Isenhelm interjected with a scowl. "The night before there was an after tremor. It wasn’t as large as the initial earthquake, but it was large enough. We thought perhaps a fissure opened up and swallowed them."

"A possibility," Celegrýn said, his tone noncommital. "We may never know. Come, let us cross over and check the area."

The brook, which was almost completely frozen over except in the center, was not overly wide or even very deep and with careful placement of their feet the Mortals made their slow way across. Gilgirion simply leaped across, landing about halfway upon a flat-topped boulder that stood in the midst of the frozen stream, then leaping again to land on the other bank. Celegrýn wasn’t that flashy, but he did walk backwards, grinning at the four Men. Déorhunta gave him a sour look.

"I could almost come to hate you, Celegrýn, if it weren’t for the fact that you tell interesting tales. They almost make up for your... your... superiority."

"I don’t think his tales are all that interesting," Éothain opined with a grimace as his foot slipped and plunged into the icy waters. "My ieldramódor tells better stories."

"Your ieldramódru are both dead as I recall," Isenhelm said with a laugh.

"Which tells you something right there," retorted the younger Rider and now even the Elves laughed.

When all were safely across they began scanning the land. "It’s doubtful there are any real clues left after all this time," Heremund said with a sigh.

"Nonetheless, we should search," Celegrýn replied. "Let’s make our way towards the mountains. If something forced them across the stream at this point they might have simply decided to run straight."

"Do you think something could have attacked them?" Isenhelm asked, his brow furrowed. "But what? What haunts this dale that would drive hardened warriors and hunters into a panic?"

"Perhaps we will discover that," Gilgirion said. "Let’s widen our search a bit. Spread out and head west."

They did so, though they kept one another in sight. It was Déorhunta who found the first clue. "Over here!" he shouted and soon they were all gathered around a low thornbush on which was snagged the tattered remains of a cloak. "This looks like it might be Léofrod’s. See this bit of trim?"

They looked closely at a scrap of fabric that was embroidered with a running stag.

"Léofrod’s all right," Heremund grunted. "His wife’s embroidery if I’m not mistaken."

While the Men were examining the remains of the cloak, the Elves scanned the landscape, trying to imagine where the missing Men would have gone from this point. "That way," Celegrýn said, pointing northwest where the land actually dipped slightly into a narrow dell. "The land falls away at this point. It would be the easiest path for them to take."

Down they went, keeping a closer eye for more clues but none presented themselves. However, about a mile further on the dell widened and they found themselves facing a short span of open land that ended with a wall of mountain, which was a jumble of rocks and boulders.

"Hey! There are caves here," Éothain exclaimed, pointing upward to a shelf of rock where an entrance could be seen. Looking about, they noticed several other dark openings.

"Take care entering any of them," Heremund cautioned the younger Man. "See you where there have been rock slides? I think some caves may well be blocked."

"Do you think that’s what happened to them?" Isenhelm asked. "They ran into a cave for protection and then a rockslide sealed them in?"

Éothain looked ill at that thought and the others grimaced. "We won’t know for sure until we find them," Déorhunta answered.

They spread out, each one checking the openings they could see first. Most of the caves were little more than shallow depressions and none interconnected with the others. When they were satisfied that all the caves they could find were empty they began searching for entrances hidden behind the rock slides. It was tiring work and the Elves forced the Men to stop and rest around noon, refusing to allow any of them to continue searching until they had eaten something and rested for at least an hour. The Rohirrim grumbled at the ‘mother-hennish’ attitudes of the Elves, as Éothain put it, but they complied, however unwillingly.

About an hour after they resumed their search they found what looked like a sizeable cave behind a screen of rocks and boulders. It was hot and heavy work to shift the rocks without causing an additional slide, but eventually they were able to gain entrance to the cave. This one appeared to be larger than the others.

"Certainly large enough for three Men to squeeze into," remarked Déorhunta and the others nodded.

It was decided that Celegrýn and Déorhunta would enter the cave alone while the others waited. "If they are in there, we don’t know what condition they will be in," Déorhunta said gently to Éothain when the younger Man protested. "Let us go in first. They may not be there at all."

With that the Rider entered the cave with the Elf right behind him, stooping slightly to clear the top of the opening. For a long moment there was no sound or movement, then Celegrýn poked his head out, his expression unreadable. "Come," he said, gesturing with a hand and the others wasted no time in following him into the cave.

It took several minutes for their eyes to adjust to the dimness but when they did....

"Éofred!" Éothain shouted, going to his knees before the body of his cousin and embracing him. Isenhelm put a comforting hand on the younger Man’s shoulder as Éothain wept his grief.

"They look as if they are sleeping," Isenhelm said. "Did you..."

"Nay, Isenhelm," Déorhunta denied. "We touched them not. They are as we found them."

The three missing Men were lying side-by-side, and it indeed looked as if they were merely sleeping. There was no sign of trauma and their expressions were calm.

"How did they die then?" Heremund asked in confusion. "If they ran in here and then the rock slide sealed them in, should we not have found them nearer to the entrance as they died trying to escape?"

"One would think so," Celegrýn said, his tone even, "but it does not seem to be the case. Given the way they are positioned, I think the cave was blocked after they were already dead."

"Then what killed them?" Éothain demanded, tears still running down his face as he continued to hold his cousin’s body to his breast. "What killed my cousin and these others?"

The two Elves exchanged glances before Gilgirion answered. "There was an earthquake and you said you felt tremors even after the initial one." The four Men all nodded. "This cave, unlike the others we saw, runs further into the mountain. It is possible that when the second tremor hit, they were already in the cave, for whatever reason, and gases were released with the tremors, gases that may have no scent but are very deadly. They would never have known what hit them."

"You have seen this before?" Déorhunta asked.

Both Elves nodded. "It’s been known to happen," Celegrýn stated, his expression compassionate. "The gases released would have killed them almost instantly, or may have rendered them unconscious too quickly for them to act and then the cave was sealed by the rock slide and they simply died in their sleep."

For a long moment no one spoke, then Éothain laid his cousin’s body down again. "At least their deaths were painless. That knowledge will comfort their kin."

They all nodded. "Do you wish to bring them back to Dunharrow?" Gilgirion asked gently, his expression as compassionate as Celegrýn’s. The four Men glanced at each other and when Éothain shook his head, Déorhunta spoke for them all.

"Let us reseal this cave and leave them to their rest. We will take such small tokens as we can to give to their families so they will know we speak truly."

So it was decided and so it was done. Once the cave was resealed the four Men spoke brief words about each of the dead Men, then, by mutual consent they made their way north towards the dale’s entrance intent on spending the night away from the tomb....

****

"Here are the tokens," Déorhunta said, standing to remove a small satchel from around his neck. "We took their cloak pins and belt buckles and we brought away their swords which we have left outside with the rest of our gear."

Thengel nodded, gesturing for the Man to bring the tokens to him. Déorhunta complied, placing them all on the table. It was a pitiful looking pile, all that remained of three stalwart warriors the King could ill afford to lose. Thengel sighed. "I will see that these are taken to their families, if any still live." He then stood and bowed to Celegrýn and Gilgirion. "We thank you for the aid you have given us in finding the lost. We are in your debt."

"There is no debt between us, Thengel King," Celegrýn said. "We did what we did because we were asked to lend our skills in tracking. While I sorrow for the deaths of your men, I am glad that we were able to help solve the mystery of their disappearance."

"I wonder what made them flee, though?" Wídfara asked, his expression one of puzzlement.

"We may never know," Thandir replied. "Be grateful that they suffered not at the hands of orcs or other foul creatures of the Enemy. Their deaths are tragic, as all deaths are, but take comfort that they did not suffer in their dying nor were their bodies molested."

"But to die in that manner...." Wídfara protested.

"A better grace than most are granted, child," Thandir retorted, his expression becoming cold and forbidding. There was old pain in his eyes that was at once too deep and too intimate for any to endure and the Mortals sitting around him had to look away.

Murmurs of agreement spread about the hall at the Elf’s words. Thengel nodded and addressed the hunting party. "You did well to leave them where they are," he assured them. "We will hold a funeral feast for them tonight and remember them as they lived, not as they died."

To that there were no objections and soon preparations were being made to remember the victorious dead.

****

Ieldramódor (Plural: Ieldramódru): Grandmother.





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