silhouetted against the fire. They stood staring in misery at the fire, thinking of all their friends that lay about it. All three were shivering with the cold and wet.
Suddenly harsh shouting broke out on the far bank. They saw orcs gathering directly opposite where they stood. Many were fitting arrows to their bows.
'What is it?' asked Thalion. 'What do they see?'
'There!' shouted Ohtar. 'Do you see? At the edge of the moonlight. Something is splashing!'
'It is the king!' said Linfalas. 'I see the circlet he wears on his brow. See how it catches the light?'
'He is well within their range!' groaned Ohtar. 'Why is he visible? Sire! Sire! Over here! Put it on, Sire, put it on! They see you!'
'I lost it,' came Isildur's voice from the water. 'I slew many of them, then I followed you into the water. But then it just fell off. It was as if it suddenly grew larger and came off.'
Arrows started whistling into the water around his head.
'Swim, Sire, swim, for Eru's sake,' screamed Ohtar, dancing about helplessly on the bank. More arrows whistled out of the dark, plunging into the water with a sound like cloth ripping.
'Dive, Sire!' shouted Linfalas. 'Dive and turn.'
'I have lost it,' moaned Isildur, as if he had not heard them. Another arrow struck only inches from his head. He splashed on slowly. 'Why did it come off…' he began. Then they saw an arrow strike him. He cried out and raised one arm toward them. A half dozen more arrows fell all around him. At least one must have struck him, for he suddenly stopped struggling. He looked up toward his subjects watching in horror, his face a white oval in the dark water. 'I lost my preciousss…' he wailed, then his face disappeared and did not come up again. From the far shore a hideous cry of triumph went up. Ohtar and his companions stood silently, watching the flowing water, waiting for Isildur to reappear. At last they slumped to the ground, lost and desolate.
Some time during the night they crawled off under some bushes and lay shivering, miserable and cold and full of despair. The night seemed endless, but in fact it was not long before the sun began to lighten the eastern horizon. When she was fully up, they crawled out into the chill morning air to draw what little warmth they could from the low slanting rays. Mist was rising from the river and drifting slowly around them. From glimpses they could sometimes catch, there was no sign of anyone on the opposite shore. Shivering so hard they could hardly speak, they took stock of their situation.
'Well, as I remember what Elendur told me,' said Thalion, 'it's another eighty leagues or more to Imladris. That could take three weeks on foot. And we have no food, no weapons, no warm clothes, nothing.'
'I have the king's pack,' said Ohtar. 'Perhaps there's some food or clothing.' He unfastened the pack and a gush of water spilled out. He rummaged inside and pulled out a long bundle wrapped in embroidered cloth.
'Is that all?' asked Linfalas. 'Is there no food?'
'No. Only this.' Ohtar laid the bundle on the ground between them. Untying a cord wrapped many times around it, he gently folded back the cloth and they all stared down at the object within.
'It's a sword,' said Linfalas. 'But it's broken.'
'Yes,' said Ohtar. 'This is Narsil, his father's sword, that was broken when he fought Sauron.'
'A noble weapon,' said Linfalas, 'but it will not help us in our need.'
'It could serve yet as a weapon, and certainly as a tool. And the cloth when dried could be a blanket for one of us at a time. Perhaps with this cord we could try snaring a few birds.'
'Do you really think we can still get to Imladris by ourselves, with no more than this?' asked Thalion.
'We must, and we shall,' said Ohtar. 'We must take this sword to Isildur's heir.' He shook his head in grief. 'That would be poor little Valandil now, I suppose.'
'Why? What's the use of a broken sword?'
Ohtar sat staring off into the sunrise as if he could see something there the others could not. 'Some day Narsil will be reforged,' he said. 'And someday Isildur's heir will avenge his father with it. We must take it to Valandil in Imladris.'
They all sat looking down at the broken sword. It was going to be many weary dangerous miles. And even if they could somehow get it back to Imladris, what could a young boy do with a broken sword? How many years would it be before the sword was made whole again?
'Come,' said Ohtar. 'We have a long way to go.'
Thalion and Linfalas got stiffly to their feet and stood stretching in the growing warmth of the sun. Ohtar carefully re-wrapped the shards of Narsil and put it back in the pack. Then he shouldered the pack and started walking north along the bank of the Anduin. The others stared after him a moment, looking at each other. But then they stumbled off after him. Soon all three disappeared into the blowing mists and were gone.
Chronology
Apr 15 — Council of Gil-galad; Waning gibbous moon rising at 8PM
Apr 16 —
Apr 17 —
Apr 18 —
Apr 19 — M: Isildur, Gildor, and Elrond leave Barad-dur; Third quarter moon rising at midnight
Apr 20 — Waning crescent moon rising after midnight
Apr 21 —
Apr 22 —
Apr 23 —
Apr 24 — A: Gildor and Elrond part from Isildur at Morannon
Apr 25 — E: Gildor and Elrond camp at Emyn Muil
Apr 26 — New moon rising at dawn
Apr 27 — E: Gildor and Elrond cross Anduin at Celebrant
Apr 28 — M: Isildur arrives at Rauros and crosses Anduin; Gildor and Elrond arrive in Lothlorien; Waxing crescent moon rising in morning
Apr 29 — M: Isildur departs from Rauros; Gildor and Elrond meet with Celeborn and Galadriel
Apr 30 —
May 01 — M: Gildor leaves Lothlorien, is refused entry at Khazad-dum; E: Isildur crosses Entwade
May 02 — M: Gildor starts up the Dimrill Stair
May 03 — First quarter moon rising at noon
May 04 — Gildor crosses the Misty Mountains
May 05 — Waxing gibbous moon rising in afternoon
May 06 — A: Gildor arrives at the WestGate of Moria; Isildur arrives at Angrenost
May 07 — A: Gildor arrives at Glanduin ford
May 08 —
May 09 — M: Isildur departs from Angrenost; E: Gildor arrives at Tharbad
May 10 — Full moon rising at sunset
May 11 — Waning gibbous moon rising in evening
May 12 — M: Gildor departs from Tharbad
May 13 —
May 14 —
May 15 —
May 16 — M: Gildor crosses Baranduin; A: Isildur arrives Anglond; E: Gildor arrives at the Emyn Beraid
May 17 — A: Gildor departs from Emyn Beraid; Third quarter moon rising at midnight
May 18 — M: Corsairs attack Anglond; E: Gildor arrives at Mithlond
