The moist ground, after several days with heavy rain, have cleansed the ground for all traces, making it impossible to track anything that might be older than a few hours. The same goes for the smell and other senses... everything smelled and felt fresh… unspoiled, assuring me that for now there are nothing to worry about, around the northern area of the farm.
It was time to head eastward again, before I return to the farm and report my findings. I know the third marshal riders are busy at work in the southern and eastern direction, rounding up any dunlending's they could find, but in that progress they could also have scare off the man I’m searching for and make any trace after him cold. Still I need to make sure, since I do not trust the third marshals riders ability to find him.
The rain is pouring down now and I pull the green hood, matching the rest of my clothes, over my head and start walking eastward, while my mind recollect the last few days.
There is a fortnight ago since I got the bad omen in the whispering forest, while thinking on Waelden, Yllfa and Ethel and decided to seek them out earlier than intended. On the route to their farm, I had to pass Edoras and decided to stay the night there and get some solid cooking in my belly, instead of those black roots I chew on all the time. To my surprise I stumbled upon those I intended to visit in the Edoras tavern and that evening they told me a troubled tale. A tale about a huge dunlending that had attacked them at their farm and inflicting a poisonous wound on Waelden in the progress. They had managed to drive him away, barely, but feared he might return to kill them all and burn down their farm. Waelden seem calmed and relaxed, but Yllfa’s face was filled with worries. Seeing Yllfa’s worried face stirred something within me, an unknown force... a push if you will… that made me take an oath in front of all in the Edoras tavern. An oath to protect those who I own everything, and oath to protect or die trying for the rest of my life. I think I shocked them all… where their first response was to not hold me to the oath, but then accepting the fate I had set in motion. They were not happy with my oath, not being ungrateful I think, but maybe they felt if something happen to me, it would be their fault… Pah! Dun… stop your minddance and concentrate on the task before you…
I pause my walking and start observing the horisont of the plains to my left side, southward, and only see dark heavy clouds with rain passing in slow motion, with scattered trees and large boulders here and there. Standing completely still I let my eyes wander back and forth over the landscape, to see if there where any movements. There was none and no sounds, but far far away in the south, I'm sure there are riders about, but I can't explain how I know that. I just know.
Secure in my thoughts that the south of me was clear, I turned my head slowly towards the small holt that had came up in my eastern direction. The place had the advantage of of rising up in the flat landscape around me and dense enough with trees to hide within. Standing still, with the rain still pouring down around me, making the raindrops sounds like there was somebody walking close by, I kept focusing on the holt in front of me. I knew I had discovered something, but not what, so I kept my distance… I kept standing still… watching.
I’m not sure how long I had stood there, but some considerable time had passed and it was turning dark and the air still filled with heavy rain. Before I saw him, I had out of reflex reached for the hilt of my sword. A large man appeared out from nowhere, looking directly at me, coming out to face my silent challenge. Due to the distance and the failing daylight, I could not sort out all the detail about the man, but I was sure I had found the man I was looking for. Taking the measure of the man and awaiting any further response, I decided to keep my ground and continue watching him. We both took our time, getting the measure of each other, both kept silent and standing still. He then suddenly used a hand gesture, a silent language I knew the dunlendings used, and he asked me a simple question. What-you-want?
I had promised Waelden I would not risk any fighting during my scouting ventures, due to my wounds, so I could not signal that I wanted the man's life. Instead I gave him another a simple reply in return. Horse. The man had stolen Yllfa’s horse, when he fled after his attack. As a rohirrim, I knew how precious and important they are for us and could easily feel the sting of loss Yllfa must have felt, discovering her loss. I wanted that horse, whatever it took me to get it.
The man shakes his head and replies. Horse-to-escape. Then he followed up with another gesture. You-leave-you live.
Now it was my turn to shake my head and the nodded my head in the south direction. Riders-many-catch-you-die. I was pretty sure the dunlending was as knowledgeable as me, regarding his surrounding and probably was aware of the riders south of us. He had picked this holt to observe his surroundings and stay hidden, I would have done the same. I gestured another string of words. Trade-me-horse-you-safe-passage.
The man took his time considering my offer, or was he buying time for the night to appear and escape? He must by now, understand that he could not escape me, even if he had a horse. He must have understood that I was skilled enough to find him, where others have failed. His tracks would now be to fresh if he tried to run and I was close to a patrol of riders I could throw on his trail. When he finally signaled back, probably after weighing his options, he gestured. Offer-more.
Safe-passage-food-herbs-me-return-farm. I replied and then took off my backpack and took out the remaining food and the herbs Yllfa had provided me. Holding it all up with both my hands, so the man could see it, before putting it back into the backpack. Then I took several steps away from the backpack, indicating the he could have it.
Again the man stood there for a long time, before giving me a surprising reply. More-Blood-oath-on-offer. The dunlending wanted more of me, he wanted me to take a blood oath with him on my offer. Was this a trap? Based on Waelden account, the dunlending was a sly one and I should watch my back. A dunlending blood oath required both oath takers to slit their wrist and then handshake each other as warrior brothers, while the open wound to both got in contact with each other, mixing the blood that would strengthen the oath.
That was a dangerous gambit to play and I wanted to consider what other options I had, but I felt the time was running out… I decided to risk it and in the progress get a better impression of the man who now haunted my friends. I picked up the backpack from the ground and walked toward the edge of the holt and the huge dunlending standing there, grinning at me approaching him.
Walking up close front to him, he take out his dagger and offered it to me, but I shake my head in denial and pull out my own knife instead. I knew of the poison the dunlending had coated his daggers with and would not fell for such a simple ploy. The man gave a short laugh and for the first time he spoke to me. “So the old gafr* is still alive eh? He gave me great sport and I will have it so again soon. And now he have sent his errant boy finishing of the task he could not himself.” I decide not to give the man a reply and simply held out my knife, hilt towards him. “You are not the talkative sort eh?. Fine, lets us get done with this.” The man accepted the knife and sliced his wrist lightly, before returning the knife to me. I repeated the action, slicing my own wrist and then offer the man my arm. He grabs my arm and I can feel his enormous strength through his grip and pull... How did Waelden and Yllfa manage to face this man and still be alive? He stares at me darkly... “Are you going to swear your oath… boy?”
Returning the stare unblinking, being on my guard, I replied. “I Duncadda, a man of the mark, true to my honor and my ancestors swear an oath to this man. An oath that this dark dunlending can leave and will not be followed, if he gives up the horse he stole. An oath that I will provide food and herbs to the same man, aiding him leaving our lands...” The man chuckles… “your land eh?” and attempted to loosen the grip and step back. I use all my strength keeping the hold and holding the man back from releasing his grip, while I stare into his eyes, saying. “Listen and listen well horse thief, if you decide to attack the farm or my friends again, I hereby also swear an oath that you will die!” The man stares back down at me and replies. “Know this duvodiad, if you try to defend them or attack me, I Ordoc swear an oath that it will be you that die!” And he use all his strength and pulls me towards him like I was a small child, so close that that I cannot avoid not looking into his hard dark eyes. We reach an silent understanding standing there eyeing each other.
Stepping back from each other, he turn around and leaves, only to return a few moments later with Yllfa’s horse. The horse was unkempt and unfed, but still nothing it could recover from. In return I gave him my backpack with all its contents as promised. We depart in different directions, without speaking to each other. We had said what needed to be said. He was going eastward and me westward towards Waelden and Yllfas farm.
What would I tell them?
* gafr (Dunlending) for goat
