Hunt for the Palantíri RPG

[piosenniel]

The Elves and Lossoth had all entered the cavern and were beginning their explorations. Rôg took one last fly-about in the main cavern. Bats are, of course, blind for the most part, but he sent out a high pitched squeal, unheard by the human ears, and listened closely to the pattern of echoes that returned to him. He was beginning to make a sort of map in his head of the interior of the main cavern . . . where the rocks were that jutted up from the floor; where the ceiling slanted, where it arched up; where the rock shelves jutted out about the walls, their echoed images configured with the irregular shapes of fallen rock that cluttered along their lengths.

How odd! he thought to himself as he moved from rocky grouping to another. How very odd! Probably nothing, really . . . He shrugged off the difference in the returned echoes as he moved across a particular section. Parts of the echoes were different, softer, blurrier than the others. Having never been in this sort of situation before, he could not tell what it was that made the difference.

Still, as he dropped down to where Luindal stood, the light of the torch flickering on his features, Rôg thought that perhaps he should tell the Captain that there appeared to be some ‘irregularities’ in the rocky structures that he had picked up. ‘I really have no idea what they mean,’ he said as he finished telling Luindal of them, having taken on his mannish form once more. ‘But I thought you would want to know about them . . .’

Luindal took Rog’s information under advisement, then repeated the question about the side tunnels and caverns. Rôg gave his gathered information careful thought, presenting it finally in as organized a way as he could:

‘There are thirteen tunnels,’ he began, ‘leading into smaller caverns than this, although four of them – the four immediately to your left as you stand with your back to the main cavern’s entrance, are blocked to entrance by rock fall. I managed to squeeze into them – they are small caverns and small tunnels. I really doubt something the size of even the smaller of the palantiri could have been deposited in them.’

‘That leaves nine tunnels – the four leading to the larger caverns; that is the ones you Elves could probably stand hunched over in are straight ahead of you. I think they must be the ones the motion of the incoming tides hits the hardest. They are likely candidates for having had the globes rolled into them at one time or another. Unfortunately, when the tide comes in, there might possible be headspace for breathing, but I would hate to have to find out whether that is true or not. And breathing room or no, the tunnels leading to them will all be completely filled with surging water.

‘The other five – three to the right of those larger mid-caverns and two to the left have very low ceilings. It will be a hands and knees search in there. And those five will certainly all fill with water as the tide comes in. They are large enough certainly for the smaller of the globes to have become lodged in.’

‘According to Bear the tide was just fully out, the waters of the bay ebbed as much as they would, when we gathered in front of the tunnel into this cavern. The incoming tide will be a very high one and will be at its full around midday when the sun is straight overhead. The tunnels will be passable about half way into that time period. Beyond that, they may be too full of water for some to pass safely.’

‘So . . . it is best that we make haste to finish as much of our investigations as we can this morning . . .’

[Arry]

The passage through the tunnel narrowed down in both height and width. The Elves and man had to tuck their elbow close to their bodies in order to traverse it. And by the time they neared the cavern itself, they were all three hunched over.

“Ouch!” cried Annû as he stepped into the main body of the cavern and attempted to straighten up. A string of rather colorful curses followed as he dropped his torch and slapped his hand to his injured head. From behind him came the unsympathetic laughter of his brother. “Look up next time, before you stand up,” came Carrandû’s unsolicited advice, followed by a surprised cry of pain as his Annû, in frustration, gave his brother a sharp rap on the shins with his now unlit torch.

A few moments of uncomfortable and rather dark silence followed. Then, the sound of giggling began bubbling up into full blown belly laughs. With a whoof of expelled air Annû sat down on the stony floor and reined in his laughter. The hand which held his unlit torch came round to be handed off to his brother. “At least Galhardir has kept his head about him,” laughed Annû, rubbing his own. “Pass our torch on to him and let’s get it relit.”

As the additional light flared up, the brothers and the man looked about the small cavern about them. “This is not a good sign,” commented Carandu, his hand going out to touch the encrustations in clumps on the walls of the narrow area and on its low ceiling. “Looks like barnacles and limpets, doesn’t it? That means the tide water fills this place completely.”

Annû retrieved the lit torch from Galhardir. “Let’s take a quick look around for a roundish sort of rock stuck in the cavern floor. Spread out in a line and we’ll crawl about for a close look-see. Hold your torch low, Galhardir, so we get a big pool of light as we move along.”

The three explorers moved in silence, their gazes fixed on the floor of the cavern. Carandû, at one point, reached out briefly and brushed some sediment off a likely looking little outcropping. The other two looked at him hopefully, but he shook his head ‘no’ at them and they moved forward in their search.

Carandû smiled to himself at the little specimen of rock he had found . . . the imprint of a whorled fossil imprinted in the small shale slab. He slipped it carefully into the pouch at his belt. Rodhal would have a souvenir from the adventure he had not been allowed to go on, he thought . . .

[Taralphiel]

Freyn followed at the end of the group, surveying the large cavern they had entered. Finally finding the source of these events was of great interest to him, and the story of this Stone had struck his curiosity. His boots padded lowly along the floor of the cave, making the familiar noise, and a loud echo following it. His old eyes darted across the tips of the slender peaks of ice, watching every slight movement or tremble of what was around him.

A few of those in the group divided, and he stood where he was, still watching the Cave cautiously. One hand was in his pocket, his thumb pressed on a small fur pouch of herbs and cloth, bandages and salves. He was not the fastest or strongest of this group, this he was oft reminded of. And so he though to provide service where it may be needed most, to those who may find trouble on their search instead of this Stone. He smiled as he recalled the worried mumbling of his wife as he left the tent, complaining that one so aged as he should not try such adventures of boys.

He chuckled inwardly, though saying nothing to the others of the group, as they waited for more to be said to him. The men they had chosen were good and brave, and he had no fear of this cave when trod through properly. Still, the familiar nagging in his gut told him that caution was always best, and his supplies would be well used by the end of this expedition.

[Orofaniel]

"What's that you've got there?" Annû asked his brother with great curiosity. He tried to crawl towards Carandû but was stopped by the big rock that lay in between. "There is a rock there..." Carandû said, without turning to look at his brother as he stumbled over it, loosing his torch. "Ouch!" Annû exclaimed. Galhardir crawled forwards to help the poor elf up, but Annû managed it on his own.

"I apologise brother," Carandû said causally as he still seemed fixed on his discovery. "Eh..no problem," Annû said, with a great deal of sarcasm. "I'm alright, if you were wondering," he then added, smiling widely. Hs brother burst into a merry laughter and so did Galhardir. But still, Galhardir was a bit worried about Annû’s fall, and asked him if he really was alright. Annû didn't seem to want to discuss it so Galhardir accepted Annû’s short answer. Now both Galhardir and Annû had reached Carandû and his discovery. "What exactly is that?" Glahardir asked Carandû as he examined it with his own torch. "It's...it's a fossil," Carandû said, looking very proud of what he had found. "See the lines here?" he then asked. Galhardir nodded.

"Where is your helmet Annû?" Galhardir then asked, noticing that Annû’s helmet could be everywhere else than it should be; on his head. "Uh..I don't know," the elf said, touching his head. "I probably lost it as I fell over the rock..." he then said. "Without noticing?" Galhardir then asked suspiciously. "Aye, must have been..." Annû continued.

"You better go get it," Carandû then said, finally looking away from the fossil. "Ah..you're right," Annû said. "Hand me your torch, Galhardir, will you?" Annû said, holding his empty hand out. "I could need both; it's so dark in here..." he then said, while Galhardir handed his torch over to Annû. "You two just stay here," Annû then said, turning his back on them to find his helmet.

Not a minute had gone by before Galhardir and Caranû could hear a great boom. Galhardir jumped, holding Carandû by the arm. "What was that?" he whispered. Carandû didn't answer, just had the only torch they had in the direction they had heard the noise. "Maybe it's Annû!" Carandû exclaimed. "Maybe...he went after all, in that very direction!" Galhardir then whispered back. "What shall we do?" Galhardir continued. He suddenly became aware of the tales that had been told about this cave; what if they were true? He got anxious and frightened, but could not tell by looking at Carandû that he felt the same; he seemed so calm. "We should just stay...hush!" Carandû said. "I hear something," he continued, he too was whispering. Galhardir could also hear it; slow footsteps, as they were dragged along the cavern.

"Who's there?!" Carandû then yelled.

Galhardir heard nothing but the echoes.

"It's just me..."

It was a familiar voice. It was Annû’s voice! "Annû!" Carandû exclaimed, as he saw the elf move slowly towards them. "Aye, it's me.." he then replied. "What was that frightful noise we heard? Did you hear it too?" Galhardir then asked.

"I did hear it, indeed. Too well, one might say..." Annû then said. He had now reached the two others. The light from the two torches he bore mad it possible for Galhardir to see the blood from his forehead. "What happened?" Galhardir then gazed. "The same old rock..." Annû said, smiling a bit.

"That doesn't look good, my friend," Galhardir continued, shaking his head. "No, we better return to the main cavern, don’t you think?" Carandû then said, holding his hand out to touch Annû head. "Nah-a," Annû said, taking a step backwards. "It's alright my friends," he said. "There is nothing to worry about...although returning to the main cavern is something we could...and should do after, my opinion," he said as he handed Galhardir the torch back. "Aye, there is nothing to find here...let’s go," Galhardir then said, leading the way.

[Niluial]

Er, Elwë where exactly are we going?" Andtuariel asked anxiously.

"I want to go into that unexplored tunnel," Elwë pointed to the dark, lifeless tunnel. He shivered; the icy air had bitten right into his
bones, and his teeth couldn't stop clattering together. Andtuariel followed him, grabbing onto his hand as they entered the small tunnel.
They had to bend over to walk in the tunnel as it was low and the sides
touched them as they crawled along. As they kept on going, it got smaller and smaller, and soon they had no choice but to squeezed through.

Andtuariel muttered something to herself and Elwë chuckled. "First sign
of insanity to talk to yourself, you know." Elwë said trying to joke, in hope to avoid the anxiety and fear. Before Andtuariel could reply Elwë said abruptly, "what's that?"

"Oh, it looks like a cave!" Andtuariel said jerking her head trying to see more of it.

"Yes, a rather small one."

"Let's go see." Andtuariel said with a sudden tone of excitement.

Squeezing through the blacker hole that marked the entrance into the smaller cave, Elwë stopped and looked about it. It had a surprisingly high ceiling covered in long pointy pieces of ice. The thought that one of those icy swords could come tumbling down upon them was too terrifying to put into words. Elwë then shivered. "Beautiful, isn't it?" Andtuariel said, walking slightly ahead of Elwë exploring the iced cave.

"Beautiful, yet dangerous," he added.

Elwë walked around the small cave, looking for another tunnel. A few
rocks fell from the ceiling and Elwë lifted his head and pricked his long, pointy ears up looking around suspiciously. "Did you hear that?" He asked Andtuariel, with a worried expression.

"Yes, but it's probably just the vibrations or something like that,
nothing to worry about" Andtuariel said, sure that everything was right.

"Vibrations from what? Do you think some of the elves have ventured up
above us, on the roof?"

"Probably!" Andtuariel said sounding not very concerned. She crouched down examining a strange looking rock. It was covered in what looked like sickly fungi. She stood up, starting to walk towards Elwë, "I really think. AAAAA!"

Elwë rolled his eyes. She's probably seen a spider, silly girl.
"What's wrong now?" He waited for a reply. Nothing. "I said, what's
wrong!" he shouted but quieted himself, remembering the long ice pieces
hanging from the ceiling.

He walked to where she was. He suddenly froze, "Andtuariel!" he shrieked as he saw her body on the ground. "I. I. I think I'm ok" she stuttered, slightly opening her eyes. Elwë shone his torch to examined her; her one foot was stuck in a hole and her head was bleeding as it had hit a sharp rock. He tugged at her foot, trying to get it out. "Try and get it out Andtuariel! We need to get you to Freyn."

"I can't"

Elwë sighed and sat back after ten minutes of tugging. Now what? Do I keep on trying or leave her and get help? It's too dangerous! I wonder where Rôg is.

[Arry]

‘Hmmm . . . this doesn’t smell too bad!’ Annû lifted his helmet off and fingered the bandage that Freyn had applied. Carandû hissed at him and jammed the helmet back on his brother’s head. From the corner of his eye he could see Captain Luindal looking their way.

Galhardir, catching the last of Freyn’s question, stepped forward and introduced himself. Freyn’s gaze fell on the man’s injured hand and he offered to take a look at it. ‘Go on,’ said Annû. ‘Let him look at it. He’s not half bad!’

Carandû sighed and stepped forward. ‘I’m Carandû, from the elven ship . . . but then you probably already knew that . . . the Elven ship that is.’ He dragged his brother forward. ‘And this is my brother, Annû, . . . my younger brother. And you need to know his “not half bad” comment really was meant as a compliment.’ Carandû nudged his brother who shook his head ‘yes’ as he made a small bow toward the healer.

‘Say,’ said Annû, ‘we seem to be your only patients at the moment. Would you like to join us for a little exploration of one of the side tunnels.’ He looked toward his brother. ‘We have enough time for that, don’t we? Before the tide turns and begins washing in?’

‘It’ll have to be a quick search,’ returned Carandû, after giving the question a little thought. ‘I think the Captain will probably call us together soon and we’ll need to get out of here – back to the boat.’ He looked expectantly at Freyn. ‘What do you say? Four pairs of hands and eyes would make the work go more quickly. And besides,’ he said laughingly as he looked toward his brother, ‘the medicines and bandages would probably be where they’re most needed.’

[piosenniel]

After his ‘encouragement’ of the Elven brothers and the Lossoth concerning their need to visit the healer, Rôg joined Luindal’s group in one of the smaller caverns on the northern end of the big cave. ‘Might as well get in on the action,’ he said to the captain, as he lit the torch he’d brought and bent down close to the floor with it. It was back breaking, dirty work - all hunched over, eyes glued to the surface of the floor, hands prying through whatever silt had mounded up around objects on the floor. Rôg inched along, on his knees for the most part, brand in one hand, knife in the other for prying at likely objects.

After a bit, Luindal motioned him over. ‘I’m worried that we might spend too much time in here and the tide start to come in,’ the captain said. ‘I’ll have my little group move back out to the main cavern. Can you contact the other groups and tell them to head back there, too? Once we’ve all gathered together and all are accounted for, we can head back to the ship and make plans for the morrow.’

With a great sigh of relief, and a small rub to his back to ease the cramped muscles, Rôg handed the captain his torch and changed back to a little bat. Soon he was zipping in and out of the tunnels, bringing the message to the search groups . . .

[Arry]

It was Carandû who took the lead this time. He’d spied another tunnel half hidden behind a pile of loose rock that had apparently fallen down from the ceiling. The four searchers cleared away the pieces – carefully, as Freyn and Galhardir reminded them that the rock, though soft and easily flaked often bore sharp edges where it had separated from the surrounding stone facings.

Freyn was tied on to Carandû and him in turn to Galhardir, with Annû bringing up the rear. The tunnel itself was short, and thankfully high enough that it could be crawled through without elbows or skulls hitting the sides and top of the passageway. Once they were in, the cavern it connected with was another small sized on, at least in ground area, but to the Elves’ delight, it was tall enough for them to stand.

‘I think we should untie ourselves and each take a torch,’ offered Galhardir as he looked about the area. ‘Good idea,’ said Annû. ‘We can each go over a quarter of the ground.’ He looked about the small area. ‘It does look promising. The tunnel was big enough for the smaller of the palantir to be wash in. and there are plenty of piles of loose rock that it could be hidden beneath.’

The four men divided up the search area and going to the farthest boundary of their part of the little cavern. They got down on their hands and knees and began an examination of the floor, moving the piles of rubble carefully as they did so..

‘Remember,’ said Carandû, calling out from his lit corner, ‘work as quickly as you can without hurting yourselves. We can’t spend long in here. The tide will be coming back in soon . . .’

[Orofaniel]

"The tide!" Galhardir exclaimed. He had completely forgotten about it; The water would be flowing all over the place when the tide came. They ought to be out before then. What happened if someone didn't make it out until that time, Galhardir couldn't say for sure, except for that they would indeed be in a difficult situation. He shuddered while thinking about it, before he followed the others through a new narrow, dark path.

"Do you actually think we'll find something?" Galhardir whispered to Annû. He didn't quite know why he was whispering, but he couldn't help it.

"It depends, I guess," Annû said. "But it's too dark," Galharidr replied. "Aye, it is. But if the thing we are looking for really is here in the caverns, I don't think the darkness will stop us finding it," Annû then said. Galhardir shrugged. "You're probably right," Galhardir then said, thinking about the others who were also looking around in the other tunnels. They had to find it eventually.

Galhardir then turned his thoughts towards Rodhal. He still felt a bit bad because he left him behind. But at the same time, it wouldn't be responsible to bring him along. Rodhal was old enough to know that and he had shown his uncle how mature he was by telling just that to him.

"I think we should return to the others," Carandû then said after a while. He didn't have to repeat that as all four of them moved quickly. As they came towards the end of the tunnel, Rôg asked the two eleven brothers to help two of the other elves that were stuck further down the tunnel. Galhardir gasped as he heard the news. How would they get out? But he trusted the Carandû and Annû as the two of them followed Rôg. Freyn and Galhardir continued forwards, waiting for Annû and Carandû, together with the two elves to return...

[Lalwendë]

Lalwende's post

Tarn moved quickly down the tunnel, following the elves and Galhardir. He was eager to keep up with what they were doing and did not move quite so awkwardly on his return to the main cavern. He moved in short bursts, stopping to hide when he thought he may be spotted, carrying on when he could remain within the shadows. A change in the level of the voices indicated that he had arrived back at the main cavern; they were not so clear, and it sounded as though a crowd had gathered. Yet when he peered around to look, there was just a handful of elves and men.

Creeping along the dripping wall of the cavern, away from the light, Tarn edged out of the tunnel and into the wider space. He started to breathe a little more easily, and side-stepped along until he came to a corner where he could hide. He heard who he thought was Nilak move into the corner next to him, but his breathing was different, and he seemed to be taller.

"Outside, now " said Marreth

Tarn didn’t refuse. He was desperate to be outside once more. As soon as he left the cave he stretched, screwing up his eyes as they adjusted to the light, and greedily breathed in the clear, fresh air as though he was drinking after a long thirst.

Tarn's eyebrows shot up when he heard Marreth’s plan. He didn't know whether to say something defiant to the captain, to try to refuse, but this sounded like a task he could relish. He nodded his assent and started to climb with speed. He was eager to be one of the first to reach the ledge above the cave entrance and as Tarn was a good climber, nimble and surefooted, he was soon standing near Marreth. He began loosening a boulder, working quickly but with a wry smirk on his face.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rinfanawen’s post

Diera climbed quickly up the jagged rock wall alongside her captain and other officers. Despite the fact that she still hated the land immensely, she loved the thought of not entering the caves for at least an extended length of time. She smiled merrily at sun. A bright light was finally shining on their mission. The top of the cave soon came, and the crew stepped foot on the peak. Marreth began to address them once again:

“The plan is to push the rocks on the ledge onto the ground below, making it look like a rockslide, so that the Elves are not suspicious. When they try to get out, they will be trapped. So…there are some large boulders here and we will need to work together. Who will help me push these rocks down?”

The corsair crew immediately began to aid Marreth in loosening the boulders from atop the cave. Some, Marreth for one, used tools such as crowbars or metal rods to loosen the protruding rocks. Others, Diera included, chose a more subtle approach. She began with the smaller rocks near the edge of the cliff, tossing them aside for lack of purpose, which slowly began to free the larger rocks from their positions on the cave wall. If nothing else, Diera thought. We could use the smaller rocks for hurling directly at the Elves, just in case one manages to escape. The rocks began to shift slightly as the stones beneath them were removed. Diera smiled evilly. She returned to the previous side of the larger boulders and began to push against them, aiding their plunge to the cavern entrance.

[Rinfanawen]

“Jynne and Diera will go as a team.”

Diera despised the words. Of course, why wouldn't I be chosen? she thought to herself. It's just my luck. She praised the moment at the fact that Jynne had been chosen to go as well, for at least the two were familiar with each other. But the Lossoth... she sneered in her thoughts. I do not trust them...not well enough, at least. Marreth may find some loyalty in them, but I cannot find the loyalty I need to let them go wandering about a Cave of the Dead. They must not foil our plans. I will make sure of that.

As a foul look of disgust crossed her fear-worn eyes, she turned to look upon the Lossoth men. One, named Tarn as it were, had at some point placed a metal helmet upon his head. The helmet, to her, seemed rather odd to be worn by a Lossoth, since they mostly adorned in fur or some sort of animal hide. Diera questioned his intentions greatly. That ridiculous fool, she thought. We are going into a cave to spy, not give away our position with such outlandish armor. Suddenly the Lossoth caught her eye. Tarn smiled politely, but Diera sneered at him and turned her back before she arose in laughter. The helmet, and then the unusually white teeth? she thought in mockery. Well, you learn something new every day.

Diera led the small group silently through the cave. Just the thought of being there made her shudder, but knowing that is was indeed called the “Cave of the Dead” did not make it any more comforting. The cave was dark. Small rocks could be heard tumbling down the cavern walls far ahead, but she knew that no one had yet entered. Something was definitely lurking there, and she feared to meet what that was.

“I think we should split up here,” Diera whispered to the Lossoth. She signaled the Lossoth to take the far side of the cave while the Corsairs found some place nearby. The Lossoth took the lantern. The cave was now almost completely dark as Nilak led Tarn on away from them. Diera almost smiled at the thought of leaving the Lossoth, but she knew she must not forget her business.

Diera and Jynne walked on until they found a space near the top of the cave. They were clearly hidden from all...even the Lossoth. A small time elapsed before any sign of Elves appeared, and in that time, she found herself shivering at the eerie wind that blew through the cave. That is not a wind she thought to herself. It is far too lively to be any normal breeze. The light from the approaching Elven group soon lightened up part of the cave. Diera lowered her head below the rocks in front of her, as did Jynne. The Elves could be seen walking slowly below accompanied by many Lossoth.

I knew they couldn’t be trusted! Diera thought raising her eyes at the sight. The Lossoth have joined with them as well! You would think that the entire group would join with one side or the other. I must now keep an extra eye on those who say they are with us. She peered down with glaring eyes at the Elves. Fear could be seen clearly through the eyes of the Elves as the wind continued to blow. Rocks began to fall from the walls, one happening to fall directly towards an Elf. The Elf fell in shock, but managed to keep her balance. Diera laughed inside. If only Doyal could see this, she thought, remembering her shipmate. Oh, this is going to be quite fun.

[Child of the 7th Age]

Luindal had staked out for himself a section of the floor as well as the adjacent wall along the back of the cavern. The search here was easier in one respect: this was the tallest part of the cave so that he could stand upright with no difficulty and still have considerable room to spare. The ground in this spot had only a superficial covering of mud and silt. Underneath the mud was a hard, rocky ledge. Larger boulders were spread out here and there.

Right above his head, Luindal noticed some odd formations that almost looked like giant icicles hanging down from the roof. He had seen these in other caves back home, but the matching icicles that usually pushed up from the ground were totally missing, perhaps destroyed by the waters of the Bay.

Still standing upright, but using the protruding rocks to feel his way cautiously along the length of the ledge, he had to be careful not to cut his hands. Several of the stones had unrelenting sharp edges: one reached out to nab his ankle sending him sprawling to the floor. Feeling a bit embarassed, he reached out and grabbed onto a boulder to pull himself up to a standing postion. His fingers unexpectedly rubbed along something that was soft. Holding the torch closer, he was startled to see a tiny swatch of material hanging from a jagged rock edge. The cloth looked as if it was torn from something larger and still had a large button sewn on it.

Someone in our party must have caught his cloak and ripped it. Yet strange that I should find this here. I could have sworn I was the first to search here. But perhaps not. You can't see more than a finger's breadth in front of your nose in this infernal darkness. And what a strange design this button has. Certainly not Elvish. It probably belongs to one of the Snowmen"

Luindal absentmindedly stuffed the button and scrap of material into his pocket thinking that, perhaps later, someone would discover they had lost it and be grateful to get it back. He firmly believed that nothing should be wasted or simply tossed out. Then he forgot about the incident and refocused his attention on examining the floors and walls.

When another hour brought no new discoveries for anyone in the party, he stood up and beckoned the Elves and the Lossoth over to his side. "We must make haste. We will split up and search the side tunnels as Galhardir, Carrandû, and Annû have already started. But be careful! The most dangerous part lies ahead. Freyn, make sure to keep in touch with Rôg in case anyone needs your help."

With that, the last of the Elves and the Lossoth collected their torches and filed out of the main cavern to begin their exploration of the treacherous side tunnels.

[Lalwendë]

Tarn

Nilak had finally found a hiding place and Tarn was so relieved to have stopped descending further into the caves that he crept in behind the other Lossoth man, despite the alcove in the rock being so small and cramped that he began to wonder if this was what being buried alive would feel like. He wriggled about until he managed to fit his long legs into the crevice in such a way that they would stand no chance of becoming trapped there. The rock was cold and slimy with salt water caught in the cracks; this was obviously a place which filled to the brim with water at high tide. Tarn raised himself up onto his arms a little to be free of the clammy stones.

“Yes, this is a good spot” he said to Nilak quietly. “I suppose some of those elves will come down here. So we just lie and watch.” For a while, there was nothing to see, and little sound apart from the incessant dripping of water, a sound that soon began to get on Tarn’s already edgy nerves. Nilak extinguished the lantern and they were plunged into oppressive darkness. The walls seemed to close about even more tightly and Tarn struggled to breathe steadily. Then he felt a slight breeze on his cheek, and heard a faint whirring sound, as of birds’ wings. He sensed another noise, one which he could not hear, but felt as an uncanny flickering in his eardrums, as though the air pressure had altered. He kept as still as possible, holding his breath and after a minute he exhaled in a rush.

“What is it?” whispered Nilak, in as low a voice as he could manage.

“Something went by” Tarn whispered back. He couldn’t work out what type of creature it was, whether it was a bird or an insect, but he knew something had passed them by. Tarn was an instinctive hunter and knew the ways of animals, and he knew that what had just passed by was not a draught of wind.

Minutes later voices began to drift into the tunnels, as mingled and incomprehensible as the sound of waves at first, but gradually changing. A woman’s voice came echoing down the tunnels, musical yet filled with fear, then it grew quieter. A group of men approached, making a lot of noise. Tarn heard shouting, followed by laughter, and a torch revealed a group of three, two elves and Galhardir. Tarn realised what the Lossoth boats had been doing at the Elven ship yesterday; they were forming an alliance. “Idiots!” he thought to himself angrily, as he and Nilak slowly crept as far back as possible into the shadows, like two spiders hiding from the light.

Tarn watched the party search the cavern and couldn’t help but smirk as he thought of these elves and their Lossoth companion, rummaging around in the silt, vulnerable and entirely innocent of the spies who watched them.

[piosenniel]

Once he had spoken with Luindal, Rôg took wing again. The Captain had indicated that three of the searchers had already gone down one of the side tunnels. Carandû and Annû – the two who had so kindly helped him below as they’d entered the bay. One of the Lossoth was with them, also. Galhardir – the fellow who had brought the young boy with him.

The main body of Elves and Lossoth had broken up into search parties at Luindal’s direction and were now fanning out toward the side tunnels that Rôg had indicated were passable. Rôg flew low, skimming softly at knee height about the main cavern, checking for the presence of searchers heading down the tunnels to the small caverns. At one of the tunnels, he heard the sound of scraping coming near – something moved along slowly within the passageway. Flying cautiously into the side tunnel, he caught the sounds of the two brothers and Galhardir moving toward the little cavern. ‘By the Stars! he squeaked to himself – the keen-eyed Elves had apparently found an additional tunnel that opened into yet another small cavern. No luck, though he noted, scanning their hands – nothing of a rounded, globe nature could he pick out.

The three came all they way out into the main cavern, their knees covered in silt. And themselves looking a bit battered, he noted changing back to mannish form. One of the Lossoth’s hands had a good deal of dried blood on it. And the foolish Elf, no helmet to be seen, looked to have a sizeable goose-egg of a lump on the top of his head, and a few streaks of blood from where it had bled a bit.

Startling the three, as he stepped into their pool of light, he raised his hand in greeting and pointed back near the entrance to the main cavern. ‘One of the other Lossoth, Freyn by name, has stationed himself over there. He has his little kit of herbs and bandages. Go over and let him take a look at your injuries. We wouldn’t want any of you falling ill from them.’ Annû was about to wave off the suggestion, saying he was alright, there was no need. But Rôg stood firm, saying the Captain had made a point that injuries of any sort should be seen to . . .

[Regin Hardhammer]

Marreth watched and listened as the Elves passed out of the large cavern into the side tunnels, their footsteps leaving behind an eerie echo through the empty chamber. Even with my coat, it’s still freezing cold in here, he grumbled. One by one the Elves passed by Marreth’s hiding spot, completely oblivious to the Corsair who crouched in the shadows.

So, the Lossoth had been telling the truth after all. Marreth decided he would reward the shadowy figure for being of use to the expedition. Of all the places to look, he would never have imagined that the fools would choose to search in the Cave of the Dead. Gleefully, Marreth saw them stumble and grope through the darkly lit cave. One or two seemed to have sustained minor injury. Foolish immortals, scoffed Marreth, their pretty little faces will all be bloodied and bruised.

After a moment spent relishing the Elven misfortune, Marreth turned his attention back to the reason he had actually come here: to have his men spy on their enemies. He had already learned a number of things. The group was definitely searching for the Stones but had yet to unearth anything of use. He had also found out that their captain's name was Luindal, a tall and gangly fellow who appeared strangely calm.

His men had already apprised him of the numbers in the cave. At the present moment, the Elves outnumbered them by seven or eight. With the numbers being against him, Marreth was quite glad he had decided not to attack the group outright, but to pursue a more subtle approach by keeping his own intentions hidden.

The newcomers were relatively well armed, bearing an assortment of things that could be used as weapons: torches, daggers, short swords, and pick axes. A few of the group were not Elves at all, but Snowmen, like the ones Marreth had working for him. He did not harbor the same ill feelings for the Snowmen as he did for the Elves or Gondorians. But, if these foolish Lossoth chose to side with the enemy, they would have to be discarded as well. These fools might have been rewarded if they had aided the Corsairs. Now, their fate was sealed.

Hearing a suspicious rustling on the ledge next to his own, Marreth rapidly turned about. To his horror, one of the crew had pulled out a knife and was about to jump out and slit the throat of an Elf passing by. Moving decisively out of the shadows, Marreth forcibly restrained the crew member, clapping a hand tightly over his mouth. Although enraged, Marreth controlled his temper for fear of being heard. He had heard tales of the sharp hearing of Elves and did not wish to test their validity.

Moving to a farther corner of the cave away from the stream of Elves, Marreth grabbed the man by his neck and whispered commandingly, “You fool! What do you think you were doing? Trying to get us killed?”

“I am sorry my Captain. I just couldn't resist. They looked like easy targets. I could not bear lying idle and watching them prance about this hole pretending to be the masters of it. As I was spying on the vermin, a fire of hatred burned in my belly and I resolved to act."

Mareth grimaced, “Fool, I am the one giving orders here. If you had attacked, the Elves would bear down on us like a wolf on fresh meat. We must keep surprise in our favor at all costs. Don’t ever disobey me again, or you will swim with the sharks. I will deal with your lapse when we get out of this cave. And do not think my mind so feeble as to forget it!”

“No Captain, of course not Captain.” The man cringed submissively and slunk silently away.

Although the deed was reckless, Marreth understood the impulses that drove his crewman to act. He had also felt the urge to attack and humiliate the Elves. The only difference was that he possessed enough discipline to control his actions. His men, however, were growing restless. He would have to act soon, or they would get out of control. The only question was what course of action would bring the results that they needed.

[Imladris]

Jynne listened to the elves as they worked, listened to the leader tell them how the Stones looked. And he realized that the Corsair's job could be so simple. As he heard the elves and Snowman scrabble down one of the side caverns, leaving the main cavern, he slithered from his ledge of rocks and slipped into the shadows, seeking for the captain.

As he crept along the rocks, he heard a sharp whispering. "Don’t ever disobey me again, or you will swim with the sharks. I will deal with your lapse when we get out of this cave. And do not think my mind so feeble as to forget it!”

Clinging to the cavern wall as if he had become one with the shadows, he slipped around a jutting crag and saw the captain with his hand gripped around a fellow crewman's neck. A thin smile flickered upon his face.

“No Captain, of course not Captain.” The man cringed submissively and slunk silently away.

"Captain," Jynne whispered softly, "why should we crawl around like blind worms when the sun shines?"

"What?" asked Marreth.

"Why not let these...elves look for them? The caves --" he guestured up towards the cavern ceiling -- "are old. They are crumbling. There could be a...natural...disaster," he added silkily. "The elves would become trapped...hopefully they will find the Stones before they realize their peril...we would wait until the filth had died and then uncover the treasure within. And if the elves did not manage to add the Stones," he added, "then we will find them ourselves without our steps being dogged."