As an apprentice Blacksmith I've beaten iron and steel, beaten it until I'm physically exhausted. But nothing could have prepared me for this.
A brother........ it is true that i knew little of my mother. My father told me that she died when I was young, but it seems that is not true.
How, how could I have a brother?
I'm getting ahead of myself.
Whilst camping at Thorenhad in the Bruinen Gorges our company of riders came across a band of Elves. One such Elf, Felogar, mistook me a friend of his, Maverickson. I have never heard of this man, but some of my kinsmen had ridden with him before I found them. Felogar was certain that we two must be related as the similarity was subtle to mortal sight but not to his keen Elf eyes.
Determined to see if this was true or if I was being taken for a fool, although I did trust this elf, I went amongst the women traveling with us. One woman, Aada, told me that she knew my mother and that what Felogar told me is true my mother did have another son.
She told me that my mother and father quarreled a lot and one day he took his anger out on her, physically. Maleth, a stable hand to the King stepped in and fought my father. After knocking him to the ground he took my mother to safety. Father, being embarrassed to have been bested by someone younger than him, took us to Bree, as far away from Rohan as he could get. I was told, that my mother was killed by a jealous love rival and that we left for Bree as father was banished for taking his revenge on his rival. Aada told me that there was truth in that. After careful planning and waiting, my father took revenge on Maleth, though it came years later. He bribed some of Grima's men to murder this Maleth and my mother.
That was not the end to Maleth's tale, no he had put a son in my mother's belly, this Maverickson. Now, Maverickson believed that the men had murdered his father as he was becoming wary of Grima's control over the King. Maverickson came to Bree, hiding as he looked for support in his 'war'. There he met Felogar the Elf and Eovind of Rohan. Finally Grima's men caught up with him and put an end to his vendetta.
Or so they thought.
I Staark, son of Verickwyn, promise to avenge my brother and mother and to take up my brother's quest. I promise to kill these brigands and their snake of a leader Grima. I will cut out his heart and then, the brother I never knew can finally rest. I will put right my father's wrongs.
This I swear to you.
