Veryacano

Today I awoke with a terrible pain behind my eyes, and I sat blinking in the sunlight not knowing where I was, until a cooked egg was thrust in my face, and I was bid to eat it by the Lady Himwen. I was told that the eggs were laid by a wild pea-hen, but they were not able to catch and roast the hen, which is a sore pity.

''It has been fifteen days since we left the Valley of Imladris. We have finally reached the western passes leading into the Gap of Rohan, following the news given to us by the ranger Artewen. She claims to have seen the company holding Lord Anglachelm captive has gone south through here. We have found western one of the two passes blocked by a barricade and an orc camp was spotted nearby.

I lie down and look at the rest of the company around me, and I felt each one being alone with their own thoughts. Lord Veryacano had told us to watch over the massive camp of dunlendings warriors while he considered Parnard's idea of sending his falcon down.

The 15th day we left the Gravenwood, crossing through it not far from where I was caught in the accursed orc mangling trap. It was to the Gap of Rohan that we were bound, to recover Lord Anglachelm, at least, that was the idea.

It seems to be hours since I left lord Estarfin and Turmagor to go to sleep. And still sleep evades me as the past two days events keep coming to my mind. Oh, alright, not all these days’ events. Just some of them.

How Parnard basically owes his life to the fact he was suffering from more than one arrow wounds to beginning with and how I didn’t noticed the state of Parnard’s ankle, which could have healed badly, provoking a permanent fragility of the joint, chronic pain and blood circulation problem.

“Well done, O cracker-eating varlet! And so I am to be roused, and awakened out of my sleep, to listen to more of your sing-songing prattle! See how my leg is wound up, and my limbs yet trembling and shaking, from the putrid orc arrows? No, varlet, I suppose you must not, else you would give me a moment’s peace, and not twine my thoughts like some noisome, overgrown weed, filling my head up with a bramble chain of idle fancies. You must not suppose I need rest, varlet; but if you do, you are widely mistaken – “

He stood apart from the others, the faint glow of the fire still visible from the copse of stunted trees that he stood in. The rain had ceased its downpour hours ago but his cloak was still wet through, clinging to his light armour and inner layers of clothing. He stood still, leaning against the rough bark of one of the nameless trees, silent, uncomfortable and cold in his wet clothing. Drops of rain fell on him from time to time, a residue of the storms still left upon the dark leaves of the tree.

Below our camp lay the Gravenwood, and when we first arrived there, I was mightily heartened to see its pines and majestic oaks and many white birches, and from a distance, I thought its tall, straight, good-looking trees suited me. I do not know why it is called the Gravenwood by the Ranger-folk, but perhaps it is because the Wildmen abuse the bark of its trees for their barbarous carvings.

A new day was here, and I was once again hunting for some game for us to eat. I caught a boar, and I took some ribs from it, cooking it on a fire. I cutted the ribs to separate bones and served it to others. Lord Tindir hesitated at first. ”No more sausages, please”, he said. ”Sausages? I suppose they taste like that”, I said. I knew that some Men used boar for sausages, so I understood why he would say so.