Middle-Earth Role Playing Campaign

The jade ring they showed to Fael-Linnis and asked him about it. "You perceived well, Araquenval," he said, when the Elf told him about the life-giving spell they believed was in it. "Yes, this will give life once a year, and the spells awakens again after the shortest day. It has not been used for that purpose for some time, and even now the spell is awake. Guard this treasure; you may well need it before your adventures are over."

Still Rhôn-Hari-Rhôn had not joined them. He had spent the night out on the meadow, sleeping under the stars. When the morning came, feeling completely at home, he meandered north into the forest that surrounded the vale and there found berries and roots that served him for breakfast. That afternoon, back at the stone circle, he caught a strange movement in the meadow. It came toward him slowly but surely, then a badger poked its head out of the grass. "Your presence is requested at the cottage," it said, then turned and ambled off again. Rhôn delayed a bit, then slowly made his way back to the cottage, arriving in time for dinner.

The meal was the same as the night before. Most took of the food merrily, having accepted their good fortune in being called to Tanglewood Vale, laughing and enjoying themselves. All save Bauglir, who sat by himself and ate little, for he still could not really believe the Vale existed. Then, as Bradlegar was finishing his second dessert, Luinár passed by Bauglir and noticed he appeared as if in a trance. She tried to rouse him. It took several minutes, and when he came to he rubbed his temples and kept his eyes shut. "Whatever else you do here," he moaned quietly to Luinár, "do not cast a spell to detect channeling magic!"

When the meal was over, Fael-Linnis announced to the group, "Tonight we go to the palantundo, where perhaps you will see visions of relevance to your lives."

"And perhaps we will see also the search that must still be on for us," said Dennenor.

"Perhaps," Fael-Linnis replied. "The olorondo shows what it shows, and it is difficult to will it otherwise. It tends to display images that may or may not be truthful, and it selects them from the past and future as well as the present."

Dennenor was ready to go at once, but Fael-Linnis bade him wait, for the olorondo manifested its magic only under the stars.

They tarried until sunset, again standing quiet and still outside with Fael-Linnis while the day came to a close. Only after the stars appeared did Fael-Linnis lead them on the trail to the palantundo.

The Seeing-Mound was an unusual hill, in height some one hundred feet from base to tip, shaped almost as a cone. About it a path spiraled to the top. This path they climbed and at length came to the summit. From there they could see all of Nan Fastataurë, and in the moonlight it looked twice as beautiful as it did by day. Wisewing the Crow was there also, sitting in the single tree that grew atop the hill. But the most noticeable feature there was a large globe, nearly four feet in diameter, set into the mound so that only half of it was visible.

"Although the olorondo appears to be glass," said Fael-Linnis, "it actually is a clear stone. Long ago there was this, the mother-stone, and four smaller orbs that could talk to it. Until yesterday I believed they had all been destroyed. But then I saw the olorkorna in Araquenval's hands. I believe it tried to communicate with the olorondo when you found it in the Sparkling Cavern, and that perhaps is why I saw your faces out of all the people in Angmar."

"And yet you saw our faces three days before we acquired it," said Dennenor.

"True, but that was one vision out of many. I saw you next the day you found the olorkorna, and every night after that I could will the olorondo to show you, something I have not been able to do for a very long time."

"Can your olorondo talk to our olorkorna?" asked Araquenval.

"It would be very difficult to do, and the message you received may not be at all clear," replied Fael-Linnis.

"How many of these smaller stones were there?" asked Bradlegar.

"Four," said Fael-Linnis. "Three were blue, and Araquenval holds one in his hands. The fourth was red, in size a little larger then the blue ones. I am quite certain it was destroyed in the War of Wrath."

"And what was the War of Wrath?" the Hobbit asked.

"It was the war that ended the First Age of the Sun on Middle-Earth, when a great host of Valar, Maiar, and Eldar destroyed Angband, the fortress of the Great Enemy, whom I knew as Melkor, and called by the Elves Morgoth. And in that war Melkor was cast into the void, and Beleriand, where Angband stood, was obliterated and swallowed up by the sea. So great was the destruction that the Valar decided they never again would intervene directly in the affairs of Middle-Earth.

"But I did not bring you here for a history lesson, but rather to look into the olorondo. But it is not without risk, for it may show you something you do not wish to see. Weigh your decision carefully, but remember what you see may be of use to your quest."

"I am very honoured that you would allow me to look into it," said Mîriel.

"And I likewise," said her sister.

And suddenly Bauglir stood very proud, as they had not seen him since he had been led into the pit back at the mine. "No-one controls my destiny," he scorned. "Why should I look into it?"

"Curiosity, perhaps?" asked Mîriel.

"As for me," said Dennenor, "I am an Elf and my path is already charted. I desire to see where it leads. But if I see an event that is from the future, is it what will happen, or only may happen?

Fael-Linnis smiled, and his eyes twinkled blue. "Ah, what is the future?" he asked. "That which will happen, or only might? That perhaps is the greatest danger, that you see something and try to prevent it, but by trying you actually bring the event about."

Then he gestured to Mîriel. "Come, approach the olorondo, and stare into the heart of the stone."

"Should I touch it?" she asked.

"You may, although at times strange energies course through the stone. But I find it useful to put both my hands upon it."

The others stood back at a respectful distance as Mîriel went up to the globe, placed both her hands upon its smooth surface, and gazed into its centre. She felt strangely drawn into it, as if the stone were pulling her into itself. At first the stars above reflected in the stone, then suddenly they parted, and Mîriel could see a strong fortress built of stone. Immediately she knew it was her home, and she could see herself and Luinár as girls, playing in the courtyard. How naive we were back then, she thought to herself, thinking we were safe when the very borders of Angmar were so close.

And now she was in a stand of trees that once stood to the west of her home. A great old oak grew in the very heart of the stand, its gnarled old roots arching up from the ground. Mîriel saw Luinár chasing her, and the memory of that day came back to her. She had run to the great oak tree, and there tripped on a root and fall headfirst into a hole. She screamed, for she thought the tree was trying to devour her, and Luinár pulled her out. But what the stone showed her was different from her memory, for where she recalled only a hole in the ground, here it was a tunnel leading where she knew not. The vision faded out and the stars reappeared in the olorondo, and she removed her hands from the stone.

"Who wishes to look next into the Seeming Stone?" asked Fael-Linnis.

"I shall," said Araquenval. He approached and, like Mîriel, put his hands on it. Immediately he felt like he was walking in his dreams or in one of his Elvish meditations. And there he saw a splendid city set at the junction of two rivers, with mountains plainly visible in the background. The city was older and grander than Mithlond, with many tall towers, very carefully planned out; it had to have been the work of Noldo Elves.

But all was not well in the city, for it was on fire, and black smoke rose into the sky. A single Elf with long black hair stood before a set of double doors. He was armoured in shimmering chain mail and upon his hands wore a pair of silver gauntlets, and he wielded a mighty blade. All about him were the bodies of his slain kin, but he fought bravely still, throwing back Orcs and Trolls, until at last a demon appeared and the Elf fell.

Then Araquenval saw that not all in the city had perished, but many had escaped through another way, made possible by the sacrifice of the Elf at the doors. He saw the Elves embarked on a long journey, pursued by a traitor. And before the olorondo went silent, it showed him a tall and impossibly beautiful woman walking across a barren, broken land, shedding many tears. And where each teardrop fell, it turned to gold and remained on the ground.

When Araquenval stepped away from the stone, Fael-Linnis turned to Dennenor. "Will you look next into the olorondo?" he asked.

"I will," said Dennenor. He, too, placed both hands upon stone and concentrated on drawing forth the vision. And he saw himself travelling downwards in a dark and oppressive place. Others of the group were ahead of him, and he saw that Bauglir and Araquenval would stop from time to time to check the ground carefully, as though searching for something. Then they passed into a large cavern. There was a lake here, but they were not in the cave above the Sparkling Cavern, for the lake was larger and the walls smoother.

At length they came around a curving corner, and beyond it was another large cavern, and he was aware of a stone shelf there, and upon it treasures and riches beyond imagination. Then Bradlegar ran past him to the shelf, and Dennenor called out to him. He chased after the Hobbit, but a terrible creature suddenly emerged beside him, and a great claw cut the vision short. Dennenor abruptly lifted both his hands from the stone, stood still for a short time, then returned to the others.

"Luinár, do you wish to go now?" asked Fael-Linnis. "Remember you do not have to look into the olorondo just because the others are doing so."

"But I shall," she said, "for I consider it an honour to be allowed to do so." And she touched the olorondo and peered into it. For her the vision was longer in coming, but in time the reflection of the stars moved to the sides and she saw a large fortress set in a desolate landscape. In shock Luinár realized the fortress was her family home, and the forsaken lands were the fields and meadows where she had been raised. The land had been turned upside-down as if in a nightmare: trees had been cut down, fields left to go to weed.

But there was much activity about the keep. Patrolling the battlements were many Orcs, and outside Easterlings and Angmarim were riding up to it. And off to one side there was a large mound she was not sure had been there when they were carried off. It appeared to be a burial mound, but was also being used as a rubbish heap, for garbage and offal were piled about it.

Is this the future, or perhaps even the present? she wondered. And who is buried beneath the mound? Orcs? Or my family? And seeing the mound and the destruction of her home, Luinár felt anger rise up within her. She wanted to attack with her sword, but remembered Fael-Linnis saying she could not influence the events showed her by the stone. When the vision ended, Luinár stepped back and took out her sword. She waved it wildly for several minutes, slashing at the air.

Bradlegar and Bauglir looked at one another, wondering who would go next, and Bradlegar eventually decided to. He approached the stone and placed his hands on it, imitating the others. Because he was short, he found it easier to look into its depths, and there he saw stars and the moon, which even now was rising over Nan Fastataurë. Suddenly the stars parted as if they had been swept from the centre to the right and left. Bradlegar jumped back and took his hands off. Fael-Linnis nodded at him, and he put hands back on again.

First he saw long lines of Hobbits crossing the mountains, travelling as though on a great journey. Then that vision faded and he saw a pleasant and sunny countryside with gently sloping hills, and there beside a sparkling pool were Hobbits digging smials. Then he saw someone who looked liked himself, but older: more portly and greyer in the hair, looking contented on the doorstep of his Hobbit-hole. This last vision faded away and the stars returned.

Now Bauglir went up to the stone. He paused there a moment, as if he was considering doing something, then shook his head as though he had just rejected the idea. Unlike the others, he did not touch the stone, but simply stood there for a few minutes staring into it. His face bore a now-familiar scowl, but he nodded his head from time to time as if in agreement. Finally he turned around and joined the others again.

"And you, Rhôn-Hari-Rhôn, have you decided?" Fael-Linnis asked.

"I have," the wildman replied. "I will look into stone. Rhôn-Hari-Rhôn's future is set, and his knowing of it will not change it."

Rhôn walked once around the olorondo, then put both his hands on it and pressed his face very close. It took some time for something to happen, and when it did all he saw was the valley, and himself looking into the stone. Then he saw himself again, sitting cross-legged in a sunlit glen in his own lands, holding something in his hands, concentrating as though weighing a great decision. The third vision was a repeat of the first, then the stars reappeared. Rhôn stepped back from the stone and scratched his head, puzzled by the visions.

Then Fael-Linnis looked at each in turn, then said, "Now we should leave, for we will not be able to see anything again tonight, nor indeed for some time."

Fael-Linnis lead his guests down the palantundo and across the meadows back to the cottage. "I will leave you to yourselves now," he said, "for there is other work in the Vale I need to do."

Everyone in the room looked at each other awkwardly, unsure if they wanted to relate their vision. Luinár spoke first. "Mîriel, we have to get home sometime soon!" she exclaimed.

"Did you see something about home?" her sister asked.

"Yes, and -"

But Mîriel cut her off, saying, "These things are best discussed between us only." She and Luinár went outside and there talked alone for some time. Each related to the other the vision she had received: Mîriel's remembrance of a tunnel beneath the great oak tree, and Luinár's horrifying account of destruction and the burial mound.

"I wonder if the tunnel I saw was another way into our home, one that not even Father told us about?" Mîriel wondered.

"If it is," Luinár replied, "the Orcs could well have connected it to the under-deeps of Angmar by now. And if we wanted to take back our home, it would be difficult to assault, given the number of Orcs there."

"But we must find out exactly what has happened there," Mîriel said. "Would you make the trek once we have delivered the message to Rivendell?"

"Perhaps even more than you. The others may join us as they see fit; perhaps Dennenor, possibly even Araquenval. I doubt Bradlegar would want to come: he may be a mighty warrior Hobbit, but his heart is not in adventuring!"

"And I would not even ask Bauglir," Mîriel added. "There may be secrets still within our home I would not want him to learn. I would ask Rhôn, but he may or may not want to come along."

The two sisters returned to the cottage. The others were talking about their adventure up to now; obviously they had been waiting for the other two to rejoin them before they continued their discussion of their visions.

"I saw the history of a Noldo city that fell," said Araquenval. "But I am at a loss to explain what it has to do with me, for I did not see myself in the vision."

"What about this city you saw?" asked Bauglir. "Was it Mithlond?"

"No, it was older than Mithlond."

Then Dennenor told his vision: tracking in a deep cavern with the others, the great treasure, Bradlegar's mad rush for it, and the terrible creature that ended it all.

"That's very interesting," said Bradlegar. "For my vision didn't say anything about me coming to an early end. I saw myself in a pleasant country, enjoying my later years, sitting contented in front of my Hobbit-hole."

"There are perhaps two potential futures for Bradlegar," said Mîriel. "Either he will see destruction and a great treasure, or a quiet retirement."

"Or both," said Bradlegar, "and thank you, Dennenor, for giving up your life for me!"

They all laughed, and Dennenor said, "It may be my fate to die while saving others in this group. But, little one, just don't go dashing off after treasures. As well, we should remember the words of Fael-Linnis, that not everything in these visions will come to pass."

"Hmmm," rumbled Rhôn-Hari-Rhôn, "All you saw great stories, but I saw only Rhôn-Hari-Rhôn."

"And what about yourself?" asked Bauglir. "What did you see? We all saw ourselves, so what made yours so different?"

"I do not know why your vision was different," replied Mîriel. "You have not told your vision."

"No," said Bauglir, "but others have told theirs. What was so different about yours? What was so confusing about it?"

"Saw nothing confusing," said Rhôn. "That may be the problem. All I saw was Rhôn-Hari-Rhôn thinking large, making difficult decision."

"Bauglir, are you willing to share with us what you saw?" Dennenor asked.

Pride clearly showed in Bauglir's face as he spoke. "I saw the most important thing--me! But I'm not sure I need to share it with you, for it does not have much bearing on any of you." He paused a moment, then continued. "Actually, I'm not really sure it was me. But I believe it was, for anything of such importance would have to be me, obviously."

"And how many bodies of innocents were being sacrificed in your name?" asked Luinár, and her voice was not friendly.

Bauglir just laughed. "No bodies, just a fleet. I am certain it was my fleet of ships."

"And what were the fleets doing?" Araquenval asked.

"Sailing, unlike many of the Dúnedain fleets that are now lying the bottom of the harbour."

"Sailing to where?" asked Dennenor.

"I do not know. And even if I did, I would not be inclined to tell you."

"What was that about the Dúnedain ships?" asked Mîriel.

"Oh, they were all at the bottom of the harbour! Every one knows the Rangers of the North can't sail worth their water. Only the Gondorians can sail."

"Actually, my cousin Bill can!" piped up Bradlegar. "By the way, Luinár, what did you see that made you so upset?"

"Orcs--many Orcs around my home, and a mound where it appears my family is buried." And having said that, she pulled out her sword and began to sharpen it.

The conversation continued for only a short time after that, then each retired to bed or went outside to spend time under the stars. And again the rest was peaceful, for there was nothing in the Tanglewood Vale to cause them upset.

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Guided Tour

Day 15: Farewell to the Tangleood Vale

Day 13: An Unexpected Refuge

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Based on events played to July 29, 1997. Accesses since September 30, 1998: