8: Annúminas

Maglor did not take the most direct route to Annúminas, which, he explained to Ragnor as they climbed the hills, would be along the shore. “There was an actual road that led up the escarpment where the citadel stood,” he told the other Elf, “but I wish to avoid that. We can reach it by going into the hills and come to it from a less direct route.”

Ragnor merely nodded as they topped one of the hills and looked about. Maglor pointed down to his left. “That gully goes behind the citadel, if I’m not mistaken. I suspect that’s how our friends traveled so they could not be seen, otherwise, we would have noticed movement on these bare slopes.”

“It bothers me that we never saw the scouts,” Ragnor said with a frown. “Surely that large a group wouldn’t have been out hunting. They would have broken up into smaller groups, each going in a different direction.”

Maglor nodded. “I agree that it is troubling. Perhaps we did not sense them because we were not expecting to find them and so took no precautions ourselves. It was only because I felt a troubling in my mind that sent me and the others to scout ahead and have the rest of you move away from the hills. That saved us all, I think, otherwise you would not have been able to reach a position where you could use arrows effectively, evening the odds.”

“I once helped guard the borders of Lórien with Captain Haldir,” Ragnor said with a rueful look. “I should have been more alert.”

“We all should have,” Maglor responded, clapping the ellon on the shoulder. “I fear we have been too complacent, believing these lands empty of enemies or possible enemies. I, for one, will not make that mistake again.”

Ragnor gave him a nod and a grim smile in agreement. “These creatures… if they are not Orcs, then what are they?”

“I think they are merely a brutish form of Man,” Maglor replied. “Perhaps there was some mingling of Men and Orcs in the past but over time the more Orkish traits may have disappeared, save for their aggressiveness. These creatures could have left us alone. We were not threatening them, but I fear they may have seen us as a possible food source, not recognizing us as people.”

Ragnor shivered at that thought. Maglor gave him a wry look. “Let’s head down to the gully and follow it,” he suggested and the two set off, lightly running down the hill slope until they reached the floor of the gully and headed west, keeping a wary eye out. They encountered no sign of life and after a couple of miles they came to where the gully, only about six or eight feet wide, suddenly opened up into an actual valley. It was narrow, perhaps only a hundred feet at its widest but it looked as if it had once known the hand of Men, for there were several large standing stones, many of them fallen, though a few were still upright, rising some twenty feet with capstones connecting them. There were two rows forming an avenue that ran the length of the valley, disappearing from view as the land curved southward. To their right was a series of stone steps that wound their way upward to where they could see part of a wall.

“This is the road that leads down into the moorland overlooking the Shire,” Maglor explained in a soft voice. “These steps lead to the citadel.”

“Do we climb them?” Ragnor enquired.

Maglor shook his head. “We would have to climb one at a time and who can say what we would find at the top? No. There’s another way up.” Without further explanation he loped between the standing stones with Ragnor following. They did not go far, only a few hundred yards, before Maglor veered to his right, neatly jumping over a fallen monolith and Ragnor could see that the southwestern slope of the hill had been terraced where it came down into the valley. He gave Maglor a puzzled look which Maglor returned with a grin.

“This was the royal vineyard,” he said.

“This far north?” Ragnor exclaimed in surprise.

Maglor shrugged. “It is well protected with excellent drainage and adequate sunlight. I’m sure the grapes were far inferior to what was produced in the south, but they served their purpose. As you can see, it was not very large. But come. We can reach the citadel from this side easily enough. If I recall correctly, there was a wide courtyard on this side with stables and a smithy and barracks. Some of the structures may well be standing even after all this time, affording us some cover.”

As they started climbing, Maglor sniffed the air. “I smell smoke,” he whispered and Ragnor nodded. The terraces made the climb easier, but before they reached the top they were crawling up the slope. Maglor waved Ragnor to stay where he was while he inched forward, raising his head just enough to see over the lip of the hill. He did not stay long but slithered down to where Ragnor waited, leaning to whisper into his ear.

“There is the ruin of a wall that blocks our view but will give us cover. The bulk of the wall lies to our right.” With those words he actually climbed over Ragnor and began crawling up at an angle with the other ellon at his heels. Again, Maglor held out a hand to warn his companion before inching up to take a quick look before climbing all the way, waving for Ragnor to join him.

Ragnor found himself leaning against a wall that at its highest was only about six feet tall, most of it crumbled and fallen. “Stay here,” Maglor whispered and then, keeping low, he headed for the closest gap and carefully peeked around it. He was still for so long Ragnor wondered somewhat irreverently if the ellon had somehow fallen asleep. He was tempted to leave his post and shake him when Maglor began crawling backwards before turning around to face him, gesturing him to come forward.

“Carefully,” he whispered in Ragnor’s ear and then nodded toward the gap, letting him know that he could see for himself. Ragnor inched his way forward and peeked around the stones making sure that he did not lean too far forward. His view was very limited, but what he saw amazed him. He was looking at a wide courtyard with the ruins of several buildings on the other side and suspected that he was seeing the western face of the citadel. The courtyard itself was not occupied, but he could see people further along in the ruins themselves moving about. He spied two females hunched around a fire, tending it while younglings played nearby. An older male child stood nearby holding a crude spear and Ragnor assumed the youngster was acting as a guard. The females and the older boy were all crudely dressed in half-cured animal skins, the females bare-breasted, while the younger children were naked. Their bodies were hairier than the Men who abode in the south, which made sense considering the climate.

Ragnor felt a tap on his ankle and inched backward until he was not in danger of being seen, then turned to face Maglor who gestured downward. In seconds they were back in the avenue of standing stones.

“I want you to go back to the others and bring them along,” Maglor directed the other ellon. “We’ll take the avenue of stones into the Shire. Warn Denethor to come with all stealth. I do not want to confront these creatures if at all possible.”

“I saw only females and younglings,” Ragnor said.

“And perhaps that is all that is left, but I wish to take no chances. Go. The day is waning and I want to be well away from here before these creatures discover that their menfolk lie dead on the lake shore and come hunting for us.”

Ragnor nodded and without another word, loped away. Maglor reclimbed the hill, deciding to keep an eye on those above while he waited.

****

Denethor was about to leave his post and check to see how the others were faring when he saw Ragnor running along the gully and then starting to climb the hill.

“What did you find?” Denethor asked, reaching down to help pull the ellon up.

“Annúminas, or at least its ruins, is occupied,” Ragnor answered. “Maglor wants you to bring everyone along the gully as quietly as you can. There’s a valley just below the citadel that Maglor says leads into the moorlands overlooking the Shire. He wants us far away from here.”

“The sun is nearly setting,” Denethor protested, “and our wounded are resting. Saelmir, especially will find the going difficult with his broken leg.”

Ragnor pointed toward the lake and Denethor saw that scavenger birds had arrived to feast on the corpses. “And in the meantime, the creatures at Annúminas will be wondering what has chanced with their menfolk. Someone is bound to notice all the birds flocking and will come to investigate. Maglor doesn’t want us here when they do and I agree with him. Come. Let’s get everyone going. We do not have to travel far. It’s only a couple of miles to the citadel.”

Denethor nodded and the two went back to the camp where Ragnor accepted some venison jerky while Denethor told them the news. “We need to leave as quickly as possible. Voronwë, can you and Gilgaran help Saelmir down to the gully? Don’t wait for us. Just go. We’ll be right behind.”

The two ellyn nodded. Voronwë picked a protesting Saelmir up and started down the hill with Gilgaran lending a hand to steady him. “Hush now,” Voronwë said. “You can walk on your one foot once we get to the gully.”

“More like hop,” Gilgaran said with a grin. “Too bad we have nothing with which to make a staff for you to use, Saelmir.”

“I keep wondering where those creatures found wood to make their spears and clubs,” Voronwë said as he set Saelmir on his feet. He and Gilgaran stood on either side of the ellon who had his arms around their shoulders and together they made their slow way to the west.

“Hmm… you’re right. I never thought of that,” Gilgaran said. “Do you suppose there are trees here somewhere? I didn’t think the climate was conducive enough for them. We’ve seen nothing larger than hardy bushes. They couldn’t have used those for making spear shafts.”

“These hills are sheltered,” Saelmir replied with a grunt of effort as he tried walking only on one foot, using his friends as crutches. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there were a few hidden dells where the conditions are right for tree growth. Many trees have airborne seeds and they could have come floating on the wind from the deep south.”

“Well, we may never know,” Voronwë said. “I do not know if these creatures are a type of Orc or some primitive form of Man, but I, for one, have no desire to meet any more of them, so I am disinclined to go searching for the source of their wood.”

Both Gilgaran and Saelmir agreed and then they fell silent, concentrating on making their way along. The gully was in complete shadow now that the sun had slipped behind the hills. Only starlight illuminated their way. Behind them came the others, silent as ghosts.

****

Maglor was asking himself the same questions as Voronwë had asked, wondering just where these creatures — he was loath to call them ‘Men’ — had gotten wood. He realized that in the heat of battle and afterwards he had shunted that disturbing question from his mind. But now, lying here, keeping an eye on the activities of the creatures in the ruins, he had plenty of time to think and his thoughts were not pleasant. The more he watched these creatures the more convinced he was that they must have some Orkish blood in them, for they were very aggressive toward one another. At one point the young male apparently tired of standing guard and approached the females still tending the fire, grabbing one of them, who appeared somewhat younger than the other, and pulling her away, throwing her to the ground before mounting her. No one protested, not even the female, and the others simply ignored the grunts and screams of the two in the throes of animal passion. Maglor found he had to look away, feeling disgusted. He slithered down the hill to wait for the others, willing himself not to hear anything other than his own breathing.

It was close to two hours before he saw Voronwë, Gilgaran and Saelmir approaching with the others right behind. He ran to them, giving them soft greetings. “No questions,” he admonished them in quiet tones before any of them could utter a word. “Follow the standing stones. Ragnor, you and I will be the rearguard.”

Denethor gave him a sour look. “Who is leading these people?” he whispered harshly while everyone else stood by.

“You are,” Maglor replied.

“I am beginning to have my doubts,” Denethor retorted.

“We’re wasting time,” Maglor said impatiently. “Take the lead, Denethor. The way is clear.” Then he turned his back on him, quietly addressing Ragnor. “We’ll let them get ahead about half a mile before we follow.”

Denethor hesitated for a moment, then shrugged. “Voronwë, how are you and Gilgaran holding up?” he asked.

“We’re fine for now,” Voronwë answered, “but we could probably do with some relief in a bit. Saelmir is heavier than he looks.”

Saelmir responded to that with a muttered curse that had everyone else grinning.

“Neldorion, you and Duilinn take over for Voronwë and Gilgaran. We’ll take turns every couple of miles so no one is overly tired. Saelmir, I know this is difficult for you, but try to move as quickly as you can without making too much noise.”

“I’ll try, Denethor,” the ellon said with a grunt. “I wish we had horses. It would be much easier to get around.”

“Well, if I had known you were going to get your leg broken, I would have at least brought a mule along,” Denethor retorted with a grin and the others chuckled.

Maglor stood impatiently, wishing they would all just shut up and go, but realized that he really had no authority over these people. Denethor was their appointed leader and he was the interloper. That was nothing new; he’d always been the outsider, even among his own brothers, his temperament somewhat different from theirs. Caranthir, he recalled, used to call him soft-hearted and Maedhros had called him foolish, especially when he adopted Eärendil’s sons. He resisted a sigh when Denethor finally gestured for everyone to move, ordering Neldorion and Duilinn to set the pace, since they were burdened with Saelmir. Voronwë offered to scout ahead and Gilgaran joined him.

By now, it was full dark and the sky was clear of clouds. Maglor glanced up and saw the Coll Elbereth spanning the sky in all its glory. The sight of it was as a balm to his soul and he felt some of the tension he’d been feeling easing, though he never relaxed his guard. When he could no longer see any of the Elves with Denethor, he started off with Ragnor with him.

“Do you seriously think these creatures will follow us?” Ragnor asked in a whisper.

“No, but I don’t wish to take any chances. We could’ve been discovered at any time while everyone was standing around talking. We have no idea how large this colony of creatures is and we are too few with several of us injured to risk another encounter.”

“Denethor didn’t seem all that pleased with your ordering us about,” Ragnor said. “He was reluctant to even move the camp so close to sunset and with people recovering from the battle.”

“I’m sure he’ll get over being miffed,” Maglor replied. “Denethor is an estimable Elf and he is a natural leader, though I don’t think he realizes that, but he can’t have it both ways. He can’t insist that I take the lead and then resent it when I do.”

“I think most of the resentment lies with the others,” Ragnor said, speaking carefully. “They see Denethor as having been chosen by the Belain themselves to lead us, for to him came the dream or vision or whatever it was that sent us hurrying northward to your rescue.”

Maglor snorted. “I wasn’t aware that I needed rescuing.”

“Well, that’s how most of us see it,” Ragnor retorted, flashing a wide grin that was visible even in starlight. “We were unaware of the fact that you had come here to die, only that the Belain wished for us to find you and convince you to come with us to seek the Straight Road to Dor Rodyn.”

Maglor shrugged, not having any response to that.

“Did you truly mean to die?” Ragnor asked after an awkward moment or two of silence.

Maglor sighed. “In truth, I don’t know anymore. I had become so tired of my life. There was no hope or joy in it. I wasn’t even really living, just existing, wandering from one place to another with no actual goal or purpose. I just wanted it to stop.”

“And now?”

“Now, I’m beginning to think that traveling with you lot is a greater punishment than being exiled from my family for all the ages of Arda.”

“Hmph… and here I thought we were the ones being punished,” Ragnor said with a sniff.

Maglor grinned and clapped him on the shoulder and Ragnor grinned back. Then Maglor slowed to a halt, his attitude one of wariness. “Someone’s coming,” he whispered, drawing his sword, and Ragnor drew his as well, staring into the darkness. He saw a dark figure running toward them.

“That’s Haldir,” Ragnor said, identifying his firstborn. “What is amiss, iôn nîn?” he called out, though not too loudly.

“We may have a problem,” the young ellon said as he came abreast of them. “Denethor sent me back to get you.”

“What sort of problem?”Maglor asked.

Haldir shook his head. “Come and see for yourself.”

Maglor nodded, sheathing his sword and Ragnor did the same and the three loped away. They traveled about a mile or so by Maglor’s estimation before they found the group huddled together. Maglor saw Denethor and went to him.

“What is wrong? Why are you not moving?”

“Come and I’ll show you,” Denethor said and he led him further along the avenue, but they had only gone about five hundred yards when they stopped. Maglor just stared, trying to grasp what he was seeing. The avenue of standing stones simply stopped and the way before them was blocked, for, some time in the past, there had been a quake or a landslide and the hills here were shattered and tumbled, the land folded and contorted with sharp-angled ridges that rose precipitously before them.

“We’ll have to climb over that or find another way around,” Maglor finally said with a huff of exasperation.

“But not in the dark,” Denethor stated unequivocally and Maglor did not argue, for in truth, he was in complete agreement.

“I little like the idea of remaining here, though,” he said. “We’re too exposed.”

“I already have a couple of people scouting about to see if we can find a more secluded place to camp,” Denethor explained.

“Good,” Maglor said. “Ragnor and I will head back down the avenue a little way just to keep an eye out. Let us know if your scouts find anything. I would caution against building a fire, though.”

“I agree,” Denethor said. “I’ll send Haldir back to get you as soon as I have everyone else settled.”

Maglor nodded to Ragnor and they moved back down the avenue, going about a quarter of a mile before stopping. Maglor took a seat on one of the fallen monoliths while Ragnor sat opposite to him on another fallen slab.

“Well, that’s just great,” the ellon complained. “As if we don’t have enough problems. I doubt we’ll be able to climb that.”

“I doubt it, too,” Maglor replied with a sigh. “Certainly Saelmir wouldn’t be able to even with help. Well, hopefully daylight will show us a way around it. I just hope we’re far away from here before those creatures show up.”

“Do you think they will?”

Maglor shrugged. “Who can say? Eventually someone will go looking for their men and find their corpses. They will wonder how they met their deaths. Had we continued along the shore route, they would have seen us long before we saw them, so they will know we didn’t come that way. It’s possible they will be able to track us.”

“How? We left no trace,” Ragnor protested.

“They may be able to sniff us out,” Maglor said. “Orcs always could and these primitives may have that ability as well. All I’m saying is that I don’t want to hang about to find out.”

Ragnor gave a grunt of agreement and silence fell between them. Nearly an hour passed before they saw movement from the west and then Haldir was there to lead them back, veering to the left over a small rise and then into a narrow bowl-shaped valley that could not have been more than a hundred feet at its widest. They found the rest of the party already there and settling down to wait for the dawn. Maglor slowed, letting Ragnor and Haldir go on, settling himself halfway down the slope so he could oversee the encampment, wrapping his cloak more tightly around him.

Several minutes later, someone began climbing toward him and Maglor saw it was Denethor, who silently handed him some jerky, which he accepted with a soft word of thanks. Denethor sat beside him, while Maglor chewed on the dried meat. A strained silence fell between them. After a few minutes, Maglor stopped eating and gave Denethor a rueful look.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” he said. “I should have consulted with you rather than issuing orders on my own.”

“I asked you to lead us and you have, however reluctantly,” Denethor replied, sighing. “It is I who should apologize.”

Maglor gave him a slight grin. “Well, we can spend the night arguing over who should be apologizing to whom or we can just let it go and I promise to consult you in the future if you promise to accept my… um… suggestions in the spirit in which they are offered.”

Denethor grinned back. “Agreed,” he said and held out his hand and Maglor took it. A more companionable silence settled over them as they sat watching over the encampment as the night advanced inexorably toward dawn.

****

Coll Elbereth: Elbereth’s Cloak, what we would call the Milky Way. The term is non-canonical.