In the latter years of the reign of Araphant, the Witch-king of Angmar sent forth groups of his orcs and evil men to conduct raids upon the peoples of Arthedain. They avoided the larger fortresses and the capital of Fornost and struck the outlying towns and farmsteads with small warbands. The scouts of Arthedain would often spot these attackers, but it was difficult for the kingdom’s armies to respond in time due to the swiftness that the enemy could achieve, save for when they pushed their luck too far and were rode down by the cavalry of Ost Galumar.
Dismayed by their inability to safeguard these homesteads, Thorneth rallied many of her fellow scouts to begin striking back at the raiders wherever they were found without waiting for support from the armies. Most of these scouts were Hill-men loyal to King Araphant, though like Thorneth, they were looked upon with suspicion in return. They knew the land far better than the enemy, allowing them to reach the raiders in time and rout them with ambushes despite their lesser numbers.
The deeds of Thorneth and her scouts won them great trust amongst the Dúnedain. When Arvedui succeeded his father Araphant as King, he chose to officialise them as their own force. Thereafter, these scouts became known as the Rangers of Arthedain, and Thorneth was made their captain. Of such renown were the Rangers that many archers and hunters of the Dúnedain flocked to their ranks as well.
By this time, Bregur son of Tologur, half-sister to Thorneth, had achieved great deeds of his own as a Knight of Arthedain. He was entrusted with command over the fortress of Ost Nuaran, which guarded the pass leading to the Gates of Fornost from the woods of Annúndir. These very same woods were the birthplace of Thorneth, and with her familiarity and the vigilant watch of her Rangers, the Angmarim did not once come even close to the pass. Thus, Bregur found his glory stagnated, while his half-sister gained ever more fame harrying the enemy in the wilds.
Then one day in the year 1974, the Rangers reported that a large host had come out of Angmar, greater than any warband they had previously seen. It was an invading army, one beyond the ability of the Rangers to stop.
The army of Angmar assaulted Ost Galumar with all its strength and overwhelmed the city, taking with it most of its mighty cavalry. Though the Witch-king’s own forces were decimated in the battle, the enemy was one step closer to the capital of Fornost. Once they could muster enough reinforcements, they would be ready to march into the heart of the kingdom.
The Rangers of Arthedain assembled around Raild’s cabin, which was now Thorneth’s as her father had passed on from this world several years earlier from old age (the Hill-men generally had shorter lives than the Dúnedain). They sought to hamper the Angmarim and thin out their numbers should they choose to pass through Annúndir. Even though they had it on good authority that the Witch-king would not take this route due to the effectiveness of the Rangers, they remained within the woods as their methods were poorly suited to the open plains that the forces of Angmar were likely to cross.
The plan was instead to hold the army of Angmar at the city of Minas Vrûn to the south of Fornost while the Rangers and the garrison of Ost Nuaran acted as a deterrent against taking the path through Annúndir. But that was not enough for Bregur. “Why should I languish further within Ost Nuaran while the Lord of Minas Vrûn receives all the glory for defeating Angmar?” he thought.
When the orders came down from the King confirming this plan, Bregur carefully removed the wax seal with his knife without damaging it. He forged a letter ordering the Rangers to instead gather at Ost Lagoros and attack the enemy upon the plains nearby when the Angmarim advanced. Then, he reheated the wax beneath the removed seal using a candle so it could be attached to these false orders.
Bregur knew that Thorneth would never refuse direct orders from the King, even if she was certain that such an attack was folly. He hoped that the Rangers of Arthedain would waste their strength on open fields, and the Witch-king, realising that the Rangers were spent, would direct what remained of his forces through Annúndir. The final defeat of Angmar’s army would happen at Ost Nuaran in this way, and the glory would belong to Bregur.
To deliver this letter, he used one of his mother’s falcons, which were frequently sent to relay messages for the King. Bregur did not possess his family’s gift for Beast-speech, but he was still Lady Helediril’s son and a capable falconer. However, this proved a mistake, as the falcons were loyal to Helediril above all others.
The eyes of birds were sharp, and the falcon noticed that the reheated wax seemed different from the seals upon the letters he usually carried. Rather than delivering the orders to Thorneth, he flew back to Helediril. She too recognised that the letter had been forged and was greatly troubled by its contents. She asked the falcon who it was that gave him this letter, and the bird took her to the watch-tower south of Ost Nuaran.
Helediril set camp nearby and waited for several days with the falcon. One of these days, Bregur climbed the tower to see what was afoot in the surrounding land, hoping to spot some sign that his plot was working. The falcon immediately took flight from Helediril’s camp and landed on Bregur’s shoulder, and Helediril knew that it was her own son behind the false orders.
Climbing the tower, Lady Helediril confronted her son, saying, “Why did you write this letter and place the King’s seal upon it?”
Seeing that there was no denying it, Bregur confessed his plan to his mother and his reasoning for it, but this only roused more outrage in Helediril.
“Do you not see that your plot would have driven your sister to death, fighting upon open plains for which she and her Rangers are ill-suited? Do you value your glory so much that you would throw the lives of your own family to the enemy?”
Then, Bregur was unable to contain his own fury, and he proclaimed, “That half-breed is no sister of mine! I am the heir to the House of Rochanar, yet it is she who holds the favour of the King, and your favour also.”
Helediril shook her head with sadness and disappointment, and she said, “If Thorneth is no sister of yours, then you too are no son of mine, Bregur. With these words you have shown yourself unworthy to be heir, and I am sure the King will agree, once I tell him of your treachery.”
“You will do no such thing!” shouted Bregur.
He leapt forward and tried to prevent his mother from leaving to inform the King. However, Helediril was not as steady-footed as when she was younger, and in their struggle she stumbled and fell from the watch-tower to her death.
At first, Bregur was horrified at the sight of his mother’s lifeless body. But when the falcon spread its wings and began to fly in the direction of Annúndir, evil thoughts crossed his mind once more. He drew his bow and with a well-placed arrow, shot the bird out of the sky. Then he collected the falcon’s corpse and buried it, so his mother’s fate could be attributed to an unfortunate accident.
So passed Lady Helediril, royal falconer to King Araphant and King Arvedui. Alongside her went Bregur son of Helediril, for in his wicked deed he had withdrawn all right to be her heir. Instead, he was now well upon his way towards the title by which he would be known in all days hereafter: Bregur the Betrayer.
