This is replacing a double post from earlier.
~Rhudaur~There was confusion amongst the prisoners when the orcs guarding then started to drop. Where were the arrows coming from? They milled around for a few seconds before one the men grabbed another and started to run.
As soon as Olben cleared the brush he guessed the elves intention; to create chaos during the battle between the two tribes of orcs. Minyair and Feredir were both yards ahead of Olben. Quickly he changed course, heading for the scattering group of prisoners. He slashed at the upraised arm of one of the wounded orcs holding an axe, and not waiting to see the damage inflicted, making for a young boy standing stiff and frightened. Scooping him up with his free arm he said loud enough for the other prisoners who seemed too confused to know what to do.
“Follow, quickly.”The two Southrons were both occupied fighting the orcs led by the fierce Urk-hai. The sound of clashing weapons, cries of triumph and shrieks of despair filled the air as Olben hurried the prisoners along. He wasn’t sure how long the two elves would be able to hold off any that followed or even where they were for sure. His first thought was getting the prisoners away.
He hurried through the trees, urging the prisoners on. The young boy still clung to his neck; he could feel him sobbing quietly against his shoulder. Time passed while Olben pushed them forward, the noise from the battle had faded and he heard no sound of pursuit yet but still he didn’t stop. But he would have to soon though, some of the prisoners were stumbling, one fell but was helped to his feet by another. Olben slowed the pace a little, all the time listening for any sound from behind. Minyair appeared at his shoulder.
“Make for the ruins at Dol Aglardin. It is not far now.” He told Olben before quickly fading back.
Shifting the boy in his arm Olben hissed loud enough to catch the attention of most of the prisoners. They stopped and he could tell they welcomed the rest. Some started to drop to the ground.
“No rest yet, a safer place is not far.” He spoke quietly scanning the group, most were men though there were a couple of women and the rest were men and older boys. A few of them nodded, too tired to speak and the ones who and sat on the ground wearily rose to their feet.
The pace Olben set was brisk and he hoped that everyone would be able to keep up, but the going became rougher as they gradually left the cover of trees behind. The ground grew rough as they traversed hills; Olben tried to keep them in the ravines and vales the higher they climbed but it was harder going and even the weather was starting to go against fast travel; the wind was growing stronger in the open stretches bringing with it darker grey clouds from the heights of the Misty’s. Olben kept one eye on the sky; soon there would be rain which would help to erase any signs of their trail.
Finally after about an hour of hard travel Olben sighted the ruins in the distance. He called a halt.
“That is where we will shelter”, he pointed eastward.
“But we must hurry. The last part is over open land and we will be easier to spot from a distance.”At last they made it to the ruins of the old ruins of the Kingdom of Rhudaur. There wasn’t much left of Dol Aglardin. Only one of the three towers that had originally stood atop the hill was still standing plus a few crumbling walls. The door to the tower had lost since fallen away and only a few rotten timbers clung to the frame. Olben handed the child he still carried over to one of the men as they filed past him into the tower.
“For now rest, I will be back soon.”When Olben returned to the tower, most of the group was laid out on the dirt floor of the tower in small clusters. The child he had carried lay asleep across the lap of one of the women. A lean man, dressed in a plain homespun tunic and woolen breeches slowly stood and approached, him. “We cannot thank you enough…” he held out a dirt stained hand.
“My name is Jem.”“No need, you can give your thanks later, when you are back safely in your homes. For now, can you tell me what happened?”Jem told Olben that he was a woodsman who lived in the eastern edge of the Trollshaws, the rest were from a small settlement not far from where he lived. The raid had surprised them all, though there had been rumors of late of roving bands of orcs further north. Clans of Hillmen from the Ettenmooors were moving south he had heard, but they had thought themselves safe.
Olben nodded and then unslung a pack from his back. There wasn’t much by way of food in it, a small hard loaf of brown bread, a couple of black sausages plus a few withered apples found on an ancient apple tree outside the tower. He handed the pack to Jem telling him to pass them out to his people. Night would soon be upon them and with it the growing danger of more orcs roaming the area.
There were the remains of crumbling stone steps leading to the higher reaches of the tower and Olben carefully climbed them to the upper reaches. He would keep watch for the two elves and any others during the night.
A few hours before daybreak Feredir arrived at Dol Aglardin. Soundlessly he entered the tower, he didn’t want to wake those sleeping on the floor, and made his way up the steps. Telling him that Minyair stood watch outside, he talked with Olben until the sky outside lighted to a dull grey. Light rain was falling outside when Olben and Feredir descended to the lower floor.
Jem and a few other men who were awake gathered near Olben, warily keeping an eye on Feredir. They all had the fierce, proud blood of Hillmen mixed in their blood and trusted not the elvish people. When Olben told him of the intention to lead them to Imladris, Jem and the others stubbornly, yet quietly refused, asking instead if Olben would help them to return to their homes. There were still people left in Brockenridge, families and friends who had hid or fled during the raid. They wished to find them. After arguing for a few minutes Olben reluctantly agreed telling Jem they would leave in an hour. Then he went outside with Feredir so that they could survey the landscape and speak with Minyair.
The hour came and Olben and the elves started the trek to Brochenridge. It rained all that day and the next. There were no further signs of orcs and the journey ended during late in the afternoon of the third day. Minyair and Feredir left the next morning after helping search the area for any people still in hiding. They would return to Imladris to inform Elrond of the events and deliver a message to Durham to meet him here.
Olben stayed and met with all the survivors of the raid. He advised them to leave the area, but when they stubbornly refused he met set up a meeting with a group of the men and advised them to set about putting defenses in place. He drew a rough sketch of a watch tower with a wall where the people might gather for safety and explained how sending out regular patrols would give them an early warning of danger.
~
aka Hunter