Chapter I, Part I: Evil Beneath the Blue Mountains

Somewhere in the depths of the Blue Mountains, there is a once quiet, and unfrequented, cave system. From the outside, it still appears uninhabited, except by a bear and a colony of bats, but any visitor unlucky enough to find this isolated place and foolish enough to venture deep inside, would be met with death. For there in the shadows lurk hidden guards, dark-clad men and women whose job is to execute trespassers in utter silence. Yet, even if one should pass those guards, there are now, carven out of the liven rock and inhabited by fell spirits of old, lesser Watching Stones, which forbid all but the bravest to pass. For in these parts, a great and overwhelming terror falls upon the unwary, and even the prepared are greatly shaken, to the point where they fall into the deepest pits of despair. Beyond these hidden gates a small city is being carven out of the rock, a stone city, a fell city, a city of evil men. For here dwell the Malkog-Zaduk, a community of fanatical Angmarim devoted to the service of the Great Eye. Not far from the entrance stands the First Altar, where Hallechil Malkogkala made the first sacrifice to dedicate the new city. Even now, congealed blood covers the altar, as does a strangely well-preserved corpse of an unlucky dwarf. About this altar hangs an eerie glow, and a sense of great dread and evil accompanies it. For this poor soul died in great torment upon that fell altar, even as the Angmarim made clear in their ceremony their intentions here in Ered Luin. Now, the horrified eye of observation is finally drawn away from the First Altar to follow the rough road into the city itself. Here, the cavern widens out, and doors and windows open in rock walls adorned with flickering torches and red lamps set in stone. Over every door is painted the symbol of the Great Eye crowned with an Iron Crown, and above every road sign at every intersection hangs a banner of Angmar. Grim, crimson-clad men patrol the streets, wicked weapons hanging at their sides. Others wield hammers and chisels, still working on shaping the city out of the very bones of the Blue Mountains. Yet others labor with wheelbarrow and spade, seeking to create fertile land for some few crops that grow with little need of light. As the road delves deeper into the city, it passes from one great cavern to the next, each lit with the glow of torches, red lamps, the glowing purple of Watching Stones, and an eerie green light that grows stronger nearer to the city center. And there, upon a hill above the rest of the buildings in its great cavern, towers the Temple to the Great Eye. From the windows of its great tower emanates that eerie light, sometimes stronger, sometimes weaker, as the Echil work under the Hallechil's direction. Walls encompass this evil Temple, even though no enemy is like to ever penetrate here. The gates are unguarded, save by imposing statues from which a terrifying purple glow emanates. Carven into the base of each is a single word from a corrupted version of the Black Speech. On the left is "Malkog," meaning "Swear" or "Oath." And on the right is "Zaduk," meaning "Destroy." Upon the arch above them are the words, "The Noble Order of the Foresworn" written in that same language. Beyond the arch is a courtyard, and here grow some stunted, twisted trees with colorless leaves, trees that appear a sickly green in the eerie light. Rooting around them can be found a few cave claws, their skins spotted with corruption. Dark birds roost in their branches, filling the air at times with a raucous cawing, while under the overhangs of the walls are lairs for various beasts, including a great brown bear and her cubs. The great door to the temple is flanked by large braziers, their blue-burning fire casting shadows about the courtyard. Above the door is written in the Black Speech: "This Temple is dedicated to the Eternal Friendship of Sauron, Lord of Middle Earth, and the great King Skorgrim Dourhand." Within the portal itself, in the outer antechamber, can always be heard the sound of sonorous chanting. Deep crimson carpeting leads through an open doorway, lit by candles placed in holders on the walls. The great central room is nearly empty, though some crimson-clad Nethechil may always be found there, keeping the narthex clean and tending to various articles around the walls. Upon a raised dais to the side is a great, dark throne, flanked by braziers, where the Hallechil sits in judgment. The next room is the inner antechamber, its walls lined with books. Here, some of the more experienced Nethechil mingle with the Echil, crimson and white robes making a strange contrast in the eerie green glow that is reflected from the walls of the stairwell behind. Candles still flicker along the stairs, though they only throw shadows across the steps and the walls, for the eerie light is enough to see by. At the top of the stairs can be found the upper chamber of the tower of the Temple, a chamber dominated by a pit full of fire. Sometimes this fire is green, sometimes blue, sometimes orange, but the glass in the windows is of a green tint, and a thin green veil serves in place of a door. Around this fire can always be found the senior Echil, the ruling Priests of the Malkog-Zaduk. Here they gather in conclave to make decisions, and to work their spells for the downfall of Ered Luin. Here they summon Fell Spirits and bind them into stone hearts that are later placed with great ceremony in the Watching Stones. Here they work their greatest corruptions and their greatest rebellion against the Will of the Valar. And here, only the Echil are allowed, save for the members of the Mubarshtaum, the Ruling Council. And here is the seat of the Hallechil, a mere chair unlike its brother down below, but no other chair exists in the inner sanctum of the Malkog-Zaduk. For this is the Oathkeeper's home, and it is filled to the brim with evil.