Year 2949-50: Sentinel of the North

[Vladim]

As the woman split into her multiple presences, Barin signalled to Núr to accompany him, following one of the apparitions into the basement.

"Come with me, and remain wary. Something is amiss here."

The hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end, and as the dwarves followed, the sounds of their companions faded along with their presence in the darkness.

Slowly, they trailed the woman down the wide stone staircase, their footsteps - and only their footsteps - echoing hollowly on the smooth stone. He was unsure of what this presence signified, nor what business it would have in the basement, but he hoped that it would at least give some further insight into how the company might safely escape the bowels of the tower without giving it over to the Orcs massing outside.

[Vladim]

Annungil stirred and frowned in surprise before rising to his feet and beginning to bow to the lady, but she seemed to not notice. He was about to speak, but some strange feeling urged him to hold his words. So he spoke not and only watched, letting out a breath as she seemed to split into multiples. It set the hairs on his neck stirring and his hand gripped his sword.

But still, the figure made no move or no sign of recognition, and Annungil relaxed, following slowly up the stairs to the roof.

[Vladim]

Barin & Núr

Núr nodded quietly to his master and at once imitated him, looking alarmedly left and right and at every other direction, and placing his hand to his belt, where a weapon hang ready, as he followed along.

The woman herself seemed still not to notice them at all. As the dwarves followed further, everything else faded, including the other five, identical images, along with the rest of their companions. They were transferred to another time, for the tower at once looked as it once had been, restored, lacking any damage that time and abandonment had inflicted upon it.

At the basement, the passages lay open and sound, but a great pile of wood and other fuel lay carefully arranged in the middle, and extended to the tunnels, forcing them to almost huddle closely. And though at times the dwarves and the strange spectre were so close that they could almost touch, she still seemed oblivious, as if she existed in a reality different from their own.

She held in her hand a torch, which she had taken from the wall at the staircase, and stood in silence and contemplation. At times she cast glances along the southeastern passage, long and longing, as if awaiting something or someone, or weighing one thing against another. Her eyes and her unshaking hand signified strength and resolve, as if she had long prepared herself for this very moment. But that was not the strangest thing in all of this: the dwarves could feel her resolve, so strongly and so intimately as if it was their own, as if they were her, and no longer themselves.

At length she took a step back, returning to the first steps of the staircase. The dwarves followed. She closed her eyes, and muttered something that was barely audible:

'To each their time is given
For each a day must come'

These were the only words they heard her speak. She cast the torch to the ground, and slowly a great fire begun to grow, consuming the fuel hungrily. She watched for a while, in a resigned and cold manner, before falling back to the entrance level. There, she sealed the stone door behind her with great effort. It was done at last, and a sense of relief-no doubt the woman’s-washed over them, as if a heavy burden was finally lifted from their shoulders.

That was the last thing they saw. Soon after, the vision faded, and the two dwarves awakened, and found the tower still a ruin. It must have been a dream, then…

(OOC: Same things as I wrote for sloth’s OOC apply!)

[Vladim]

Annungil

The woman climbed the stairs, and Annungil followed closely. She did not perceive him, but as soon as they had taken a few steps, all other things behind them dissolved: her five mirror-images, and the rest of the companions, who seemed to disappear in different directions. And not only that: all at once, the tower once again was splendid and repaired-not the ruin that Annungil had found when he had first entered it with his companions.

There, atop the great tower, daylight greeted them. The woman stood by the parapet, gazing at a distance. A black mass was moving towards the tower… riders and soldiers, it proved to be. The woman stirred and her heart fluttered with immeasurable expectation, and Annungil felt his own do the same, sharing the same emotion both in quality and intensity in a manner that not even extreme empathy could explain. It was as if, at that moment, he was she, experiencing the same scene entirely through her eyes, mind and heart.

They bore black banners. Instantly, their hearts sank, and Annungil felt despair seize him. It was, of course, the woman’s feeling. As the soldiers approached, he could make out that they bore one dead, lying on his shield. The woman could not hold back the tears now, and Annungil felt the same sorrow, bleak and terrible, take hold of him.

The scene faded before he could see more. A small mercy. He awoke beside the others, yet the feelings did not subside instantly. For a while they remained, a lingering link between him and the strange woman.

By now, he was certain that she was the tower’s last defender.

(OOC: Same comments as for the others!)

[Vladim]

Some part of Annungil's mind recoiled in confusion as the scene shifted, but he hardly noticed as the other women vanished and the ruined tower returned back to its full glory. He could smell woodsmoke and torch smoke, with washed walls and woven tapestries across the walls. It was not unlike Minas Tirith and there was a strange sense of anticipation... of expectation, of vibrancy in the tower that he could not quite understand until they stood at the top.

He looked out past the edge, shading his eyes to see more clearly the approaching host. Yet there was something majestic about it, not frightening as a host from Gundabad should be. As they drew nearer, he could make them out- men at arms on foot and on horse. Not orcs then, but Men. But his stomach turned at the sight of the black banners and the lone man carried home on his shield, as well as the crushing feelings of the woman.

But soon, it faded, and he woke, sitting up slowly to see his companions around him again, but still, that sorrow churned in his gut and he found tears in his eyes. "She was a woman..."

Annungil said slowly. "The skeleton was the lady of the tower."

[Vladim]

Gramtyng & Belgo

Gramtyng and Belgo followed the strange woman up the stairs, remaining close behind, but still being as if invisible to her. No sooner had they taken a few steps than all others behind them seem to grow distant and then vanish, along with the woman’s mirror-images.

The woman herself appeared to age and grow smaller as she ascended the staircase, until at last, when they all reached the topmost floor, she seemed little but a shell of herself: exhausted, starved, malnourished and extremely frail. She had not much time remaining on this world. Yet most disconcerting was the fact that both Gramtyng and Belgo shared these feelings fully, as if they were their own, they themselves experiencing what she must have felt in her final hours.

Belgo seemed as pale as a sheet, yet he spoke not, casting only furtive glances towards his master. The woman sat by the table with the chess-pieces, barely managing an occasional move, and only with great difficulty. How much time passed thusly, none could tell. They did not seem to notice when the woman finally closed her eyes and breathed her last. She seemed tranquil, as if in sleep, but they knew her to be dead. They had just witnessed her final moments.

Then the vision faded, and Gramtyng and Belgo found themselves back in the tower as it was at present, along with their companions.

[Vladim]

Ingi & Alviss

Ingi and his former tutor followed the woman downstairs. She seemed to don a black cloak at some point, though it remained unclear how or when it had manifested. As they took their first few steps, all others seemed to vanish: their companions were no longer there, and the woman’s mirror-images dissolved into thin air. It was strange and unnerving, but everything moved fluidly, as if in a dream. They pressed on.

She exited the tower, and there were no orcs or enemies about. No menfolk or others. She stood by herself, and in her hand, she held a few flowers that seemed hastily put together. A deep sorrow was within her-sorrow that both Ingi and Alviss inexplicably shared, as if it were their own. As she entered the small cemetery that lay outside the tower, they could see it as if restored, and all the gravestones were new, untouched by the defiling hands of the orcs.

She lay the flowers near the stone that Annungil had discovered, and lingered near. Then, she wept quietly for a few moments, and the shared sorrow that had been felt amongst the three threatened to overtake them. But the vision faded before they could see more, and soon they were cast back into the waking world, alongside their comrades.

 

OOC

Vote tally from the Doodle:
Beornings: 3 (Annungil, Barin, Ingi)
Woodmen: 3 (Annungil, Barin, Ingi)
Radagast: 3 (Annungil, Barin, Ingi)
Idunn: 3 (Annungil, Ingi, Gram)
Lake-town: 2 (Annungil, Barin)
Erebor: 2 (Annungil, Barin)
Wood elves: 2 (Dahr-Ol, Barin)
Eagles: 3 (Dahr-Ol, Barin, Gram)
Dale: 1 (Barin)
Gondor: 1 (Annungil)
Viglund: 0
Guthred: 0
Rohan: 0

Edit: and Gram/Dio add Idunn & the eagles to the tally. Edited above.

For the next parts:
1. Feel free to RP any reactions to what just happened, but I am also ok to hand-wave it.
2. As the days pass, the orcs outside will be joined by wargs and hill-folk, and they will be issuing challenges and calling out the PCs, so we could RP that scene (unless you want to stay hidden, but the crebain have told the enemies that you are here).
3. We should at some point do the letters too. If you want to write them, feel free, or we can just hand-wave it. Some may require skill rolls or trait invocations, and others not. For example, your closest allies (Beornings, Woodmen, Radagast, and your region of origin) will not require a skill check unless you make a request for something really big (and in that case, it depends on the details). Other groups, esp. the more aloof ones (e.g. Eagles, elves) may require a skill check if material aid is requested (but again, depends on specifics).

I am good not to get too bogged down by the minutiae in all this and just resolve it in a week or so of real time, if possible.

[Vladim]

Dahr-Ol was silent for a moment as the tower returned to its current state. Presently he turned to face Elfwynn.

"There is a lot that needs saying between us, but I don't know that now with the enemy at the gate is the right time. But these may be our last days so I guess I'm going to.

If this tower marks my grave, it was worth it to see you freed, if only for a month. It is my personal wish that we excavate the tunnel and at least see if you can make your way to the Beorning lands. If we send those ravens the dwarves are always talking to ahead of you; Beorn would give you a fair hearing.

I'm not stupid enough to believe you would go, so I won't even ask. I had not thought I would ever see you again when my family left the mountain. To be honest, I never give much thought to the future when I did live among our people. But you were the brightest memory of that place. I would offer to marry you now, but I have a debt that I must pay to Idunn. Her imprisonment was the price of your freedom. I cannot find it in me to celebrate my own fortune while she languishes...

Know this. Upon winning her release I intend to come calling for you. Unless one of those silver tongued dwarves has caught your fancy...." Dahr-Ol chuckled at joke as he waited nervously for her reaction.

[Vladim]

Gramtyng watched silently as the woman split into six, and shielded Belgo with free arm, his right going to his sword for a moment. But seconds passed, and nothing threatening had happened... He had felt nothing he could consider alarming - no fear, worry, fury, or even joy. It was... simply what he would normally feel when faced with an example of what was either sorcery or an apparition. "Stay calm." The patted the boy on the shoulder. "Panic will not be of any help. We must understand before we can judge." Slowly, he followed after the woman, hand remaining on his sword, just in case. It did not seem she saw them, or at least that she paid them any mind. As she walked, she aged - and the further they followed her, the more their companions faded from sight. Still, any information was precious, with their current dire state. It was worth the risk. As they reached the top floor, he lost any misconception that she had been dangerous - she was so incredibly exhausted, shrivelled up almost, that a pang of sympathy had moved even in the bard's wary heart. She looked so... small. He could practically feel her misery, her exhaustion, hunger, and the chill that touched her skin. He was reminded momentarily of the dream he'd had when he was an old man, whom Idunn had come to get for his last battle. Idunn... Where was she now? He tried to chase away the grief that perhaps was not even his own, and looked once more at the woman, who sat at the table, moving pieces across the gameboard, her fingers shifting with great difficulty. He stood, simply watching, as the woman continued her game, her only opponent herself, until at last, he felt the weight lift from his shoulders, and he knew she had passed, though little had changed in her features, apart from her shut eyes. As the vision dissolved, Gramtyng had not said a word but squeezed his squire's shoulder, letting him know he was still here. His hand slowly left his sword, and he settled on the floor, looking at his companions, who alsos seemed to have seen something. This was a vision - perhaps a dream... But Idunn was not in it. Then... Was it of a different source?

"...What have you seen?" He asked the others quietly. "I've seen a woman slowly grow old, something consuming her, playing an endless game of chess with naught but herself as her opponent... and then pass on."

[Vladim]

As one by one they awakened, they found the fire still burning, though the flames were beginning to die. The first to break the silence was Annungil, and he looked to his companions and spoke the realization to which, perhaps, they had already arrived by themselves: that the last watcher had been a woman, the very same that they all saw in their dreams or visions.

Elfwyn was at a loss for words. The shared experience, and what she had seen in the dream-these things were still felt strongly within her, and she found it difficult to respond to Dahr-Ol’s words. She did not blush, but she fretted and shifted aimlessly in subtle manner upon hearing them, though only for a moment, and looked at him briefly and spoke in short sentences.

’I will not leave, not now, not until we see it through, and can go together. As for the rest, we shall see what the days bring. These may well be our last.’

On other things she did not comment; perhaps a more private setting was more appropriate for such matters. Yet it was not because the sentiment was not shared. All knew it or could tell by this point. Their constant vanishings; their tendency to spend much time in each other’s company; such things made it apparent even to the least perceptive amongst them.

Of them all, Heruthain had not even registered the exchange, or any of what had just been said or happened. He was silent, and lost in thought, as if haunted still by the visions he had just witnessed. But when at last his countryman spoke, he shifted, and spoke with eyes still cast down, against the ruined floor of the tower.

’The curse that was lain upon my line… it is here that it all started.’

He raised his head, and looked to Gram with grim and tired eyes.

’My ancestor… it was him and his kin that abandoned this tower when at last our folk migrated to the South. Without them, the others were doomed to defeat and death.

I understand now. The dreams summoned us here to end this curse.

My duty… it has been long in coming.’

[Vladim]

As Barin rubbed the sleep from his eyes, he sat and listened to his companions in turn. He stroked and tugged his beard as he ruminated before speaking.

"Aye, it's obvious now that the last defender was this woman we all saw. Núr and I witnessed her collapsing the tunnels - done by burning the supports from the centre of the basement, and also witnessed her sealing the entrance here." He pointed towards the front doors, still sealed from the inside against the growing numbers of Orcs massing on the plain.

"What I can tell you is that the southeastern passage is likely the one that lead to and from this place - it certainly had more importance to the woman over the others. She was ... expecting something, or someone who never arrived.

"She spoke something, what was it? ..." he trailed off, trying to recall the exact words, as young Núr took up the tale,

"She said:

'To each their time is given,
For each a day must come'

"This, just at the point that she cast down the torch to seal the passages. I ... I could feel her resolve, and the sense of relief that flooded off her. Such presence of will." he trailed off himself in thought, looking expectantly at his elder to suggest what next.

"It's plain to me that we're stuck here. We could try to clear the southeastern passage, but with no tools of note, it will be hard and long work. We're also lacking enough supports to shore up the tunnel to prevent further collapse, so it would be dangerous in the extreme.

"Perhaps a better option would be that we write those letters after all. I can write something that will get the attention of King Dain in Erebor. Whether he will send troops or aid though is another matter. Someone pass me some writing gear and I'll get on with it. Otherwise, I think we're out of options."

He grinned suddenly, "Unless anyone fancies a rash, last stand charge out of the doors to lay waste to the foul creatures camped on our doorstep. It won't be the subject of songs and ballads with no-one there to witness it, but by Durin's beard it'll be glorious."

[Vladim]

Annungil nodded slowly, listening as the others spoke, piecing together the components of the riddle, and why it was that they had been summoned. Heruthain, he could understand why. Oaths, even long-forgotten, held great power and responsibility, even upon their descendants.

"Aye, a letter to King Dain and the king in Dale, I believe will be of great use, although I fear we cannot hold out long enough for them to arrive. Since it was on behalf of Beorn that we first set forth to visit Viglund, I believe we are honor-bound to inform him as well. As for Viglund..." He scowled. "I do not wish to see that blackguard sully a tower that my people built and fought to defend, or a lady as fair as the last defender's sacrifice wasted upon a fool such as he."

He considered for a few moments. "What about the Elvenking? They are the closest and the swiftest, are they not? Or perhaps the Great Eagles whose nest sits atop the tower?"

[Vladim]

Dahr-Ol listened as the others spoke of what they saw.

"It would make sense that she held out hope for some time. We saw her bid farewell to a man who rode off with a host, armed and armored. There was great love there. And I think some fear of the future. But not the bitterness of the grave and certain death. I saw no families or refugees with them. I think the final abandonment happened later.

I believe that without allies we will face the same fate as she. I agree that Beorn should be appraised. But my people cannot travel swiftly in such weather. If you think the eagles or the elves will answer your call that may be our only hope. I would not be surprised if Radagast could send aid, although what form that would take only the wizard knows. I do not dispute the right of the Dwarves and Gondor to learn of this tower's fate. I just don't see how they could reach us in time to do anything.

I would send your birds to Idunn so she can make her own plans accordingly. The eagles, the elves, Radagast, Idunn, and Beorn so that he can at least move to free Idunn. That is how I would send them out. If you have more birds left, I suppose it matters not where we send them. All would be two months march away in this weather.

Now as to our unwanted guests at the gate. Perhaps our brains may serve us where our weapons cannot. Can your birds keep watch tonight and tell us just how many and were our enemies lay in wait? Also, we must know if another enemy force is moving towards us."

[Vladim]

Annungil considered the words of Dahr-Ol, before slowly nodding. "Aye, I would agree. Idunn should know, as she knows the precarious situation of Viglund's hall, and I trust her judgment on how to best proceed in such a perilous state. And furthermore, I do indeed suspect that wits will serve us further than our swords in this situation. If a grand host such as we saw could not hold this tower, I see no means for us to do any same thing, unless we can lead them astray in some manner."

[Vladim]

"Idunn is of the Woodmen. Not of the Beornings - though at times, it is hard to tell - If anyone's a duty to free her, it would be us and her chieftains - Radagast and Old Hartfast." Gramtyng leaned against the wall, grimly studying his companions. "If Beorn acts then it can be an act of war - which Viglund will no doubt welcome. Simply getting close to his lands may already be enough. I think that is still up to us, lest we wish to stir up an armed conflict with even more deaths." The bard fell silent for a moment, collecting himself. "...I agree with the rest. Notifying Idunn will serve another purpose - the lot of you werent there, but there is at least one ally we have in his camp - his Thane, Guthred. Myself and Idunn have fought side by side with the man. He is harsh and cold as the cliff-face in winter, but is also just and fair. He has lost much in the employ of Viglund. Idunn, as far as I know her mind, felt similarly." Gramtyng looked at the faces of the others in turn: "...Once we endure this siege - whatever it takes - I am going back to Viglund, and if he will not release her, or take the gold I've got, I will demand trial by combat. Him, or his son will do fine. There is no time to enact the plan I wished to use before." He looked at Heruthain and nodded. "I do not believe your duty is to die here, however, but to defend the fort until other forces arrive."