Dear Brother,
I write to you in a time of great change.
It begins with dire news. The Forces of Angmar grow ever bolder by the day, and many Dúnedain lives have been claimed by them. A company of experienced troops set an elaborate trap within the town of Stoneheight, a small settlement some miles west, nestled within the hills of Annúndir to the West, where what was thought to be a plea for help turned out to be an ambush! I was not there to witness this tragedy unfold; for there was a private matter I had to attend to, however I fear my involvement would not have changed the outcome.
The fallen Dúnedain were cremated atop a great pyre overlooking the southern North Downs, atop a plateau once used by the Dúnedain of Arthedain as a beacon much like those throughout Gondor. It is by tradition that all the Lords of Dolindîr, and then the Stewards of Esteldín that followed them be cremated in this way so that their ashes would keep watch over their lands after this departure. I believe even the remains of the late Steward Halbarad were brought back to Esteldín following the war so that this tradition would continue.
One moment of the ceremony that did stand out to me was the reflection of the Legacy of the Dúnedain as told by Aelwynna, a lady of both Gondorian and Rohirric heritage who found herself in the North. She is a healer and, in a way, she reminds me of dear Faer. As I have come to know her, her story is a complicated one, and furthermore one that is not mine to tell.
“We continue this journey”, she said, “not for ease or glory, but because there is profound goodness still in these lands,” she said, “a good that we are sworn to protect and uphold”.
In the wake of the ceremony, the ever-mysterious Steward of Esteldín tasked the Order to seek out and recover the Star of Estel, a relic that has a deep history with the fortress. As to what the Star is, I suppose it holds similarities to the Elendilmir jewel, for it was the symbol of authority for the House of Caranor as the Lords of Dolindîr. It is a silver seven-pointed star of silver about the size of a fist, with a sapphire set in to each point, with a larger one set in the centre. Legend says the Lords of Dolindir would swear their oaths over the Star, and that it was to bring hope to the Dúnedain in times of darkness, especially during the fracturing of Arnor and then the collapse of Arthedain. Originally, it was believed that this artefact was from Númenor and survived the Downfall. However, a dwarf-friend of the Order, Thonin of the Blue Mountains Regiment, who much like myself is a historian for his people, explained that this was not the truth. Instead, the Star of Estel, or what the Dwarves know in their tongue as the “Thatrajân”, was a gift from the Dwarves of the Blue Mountains to the Lord Mormerilion Caranor at some point during the early years of the Third Age. Perhaps this illustrates how important such an artefact is to the Dúnedain; not only is it represented on their banners and represent a friendship with the dwarves, but will also serve as the Steward’s Mark of Office. It currently resides within the Angmarim, according to the Angmarim sorcerer, a settlement of Tham Úmdúr, nestled along the border mountains of the northern reaches. It has been known to the Rangers for a time, and is said to be a winding maze of tunnels carved into the stone. We must take care in assaulting Tham Úmdúr, for it would be the ideal space for an ambush by the Enemy.
I have become acquainted with a Dúnedain. Anarlossë of Evendim is her name, a Warden of Annúminas who found her way to Esteldín on the orders of her commander, the Steward of Evendim, Orchalwe. Having properly seen the Dúnedain fight, I can see how their style has changed with their circumstances. It is very unlike the lances and horses of Gondor, but I suppose more akin to the skills of the Rangers of Ithilien, which Faer will be all too familiar with. Why I mention Anarlossë is because she has plentiful knowledge and experience of traversing old Arnorian ruins, which will become great assets in the continuation of my own work.
As I write the conclusion to this letter, I have returned from an expedition to seek out a tribe of Jorthkyn, better known to the locals as Earth-Kin or Ogres. These troll-like beings I thought were merely the work of Arnorian myth; tales of tall beings that wandered the forests, akin to what is said of the equally elusive Onodrim. I seem to recall some text describing them as flesh-eating spawn of darkness; however, they are more than just tales. They are a people, with this tribe having a long history of living on the Nan Amlug plains, not preying on the Free Peoples but rather living a quiet existence of their own herding Aurochs that graze on the plains. One of their own had renounced their spirit-protector, the Earth-Mother, and abandoned the tribe for the “Strength of Angmar”. He convinced some of his people to join him. The Order’s attempt to make this Jorthkyn see reason were unsuccessful, and Angmar now has several of them within their ranks. I hope this does not have dire consequences for the Dúnedain of Esteldín or these Jorthkyn who wish to live free of the evils of Angmar.
The Order’s efforts are now entirely spent on retrieving the Star of Estel for the Steward of Esteldín. Perhaps when this is done, more stability will return to the region.
Please send my love to Mother and Faer when next you see them.
No aer i eneth Helcharon. Padrad mi i calad.
Thandanar, on the eleventh day of Nínui in the 3020th year of the Third Age
