Leothross ran his hands over the old, yellowed parchment, smoothing out the creases. Tears around the edges cast ominous shadows across it in the flickering candlelight. No name labeled the paper, but it was clearly a map. Menacing mountains, partially obscured in the shadows seemed to hem this land in. Elegant elvish script labeled several features. Most prominent was a name that would make any heart skip a beat, “Carn Dum.”
It’s true. This was a map of Angmar. He couldn’t help but wonder if the land was the same. The map was ancient, it was hard to tell what had happened there in past age. The land had largely been abandon after the defeat of the Witch-King. He studied it again, tracing paths through the mountains with his finger. Would he be able to find what he was looking for? It seemed overly optimistic. He didn’t even know what he was looking for. He only knew that somewhere, at some time, he may have been there before – rather, he had been there before. And if there was any chance that he could learn anything about his past; well, he would take it.
He thought of Mariym. He was worried. Could he protect her? He chuckled, would he even have to? Still, as much as he was glad for the company, he wished that she had not been dragged into it. It wasn’t safe. But, he knew. She was determined, and would come, one way or the other. Besides, he wasn’t sure he could muster the heart to try to convince her otherwise, even if he had wanted to.
He folded the map up again, along the creases it had been folded so many times. They would manage. Besides, a journey like this was worth so much more than just to chase after some scrap of memory, long past. If successful, they would get a peek into the land that caused so much anxiety among the people of Eriador. Surely they would learn something that would be useful. The Knights needed that information: too long had they been fighting an enemy they knew little about, besides rumors and legends.
He stuck the parchment back in a pocket inside his robe. He turned round, and strode over the fireplace behind him. As he had so many times before, he stood there, the flames dancing in the reflections in his eyes, and the night growing old. So many thoughts rolled through his mind. But, it wouldn’t be long now. Questions would be answered, one way or another. They would make the journey.
