A/N This story is based on book lore rather than film or TV adaptions where possible. Therefore the prologue is aimed at those who are unfamiliar with Middle Earth and the works of JRR Tolkien and is a potted history with my own characters weaved into it rather than the actual story. Therefore, if you are familiar with the books as opposed to the films, you can skip this prologue. Also if you are familiar, but need a brush up on your knowledge or are unsure about the lore then check out the Tolkien Gateway wiki a most excellent resource.
Dedicated to two beautiful souls called Claire. One, my Sister -in -Law who had to go home early. The other, my birthday sister, who grew weary of this world and returned home to heal. Gone too soon, never forgotten.
and to the lovely Denise aka Thranduil's Twilight the greatest Woodland King on Instagram for all her support.
The word Dúnedain is the Sindarin Elvish name for 'Men of the West'. These were the people who fought against the Dark Lord Morgoth in the First Age of Middle Earth (see the Silmarillion). As a reward, the Valar (Demi-Gods in Tolkien's universe) raised an Island out of the ocean for them between Middle Earth and Aman, the undying lands. This was at the dawning of the Second Age.
It was an Island of plenty and its people were granted extra long lives. They learned many skills from the Elves who visited them from Tol Eressëa, an Elven Island that was part of Aman. The island was shaped like a star and called Elenna. The Men named it Númenor. But there was one rule in this Island paradise. No Man could sail to the West and set foot in Aman, as although the Númenóreans were blessed with long lives, they were not immortal.
In those days the world was flat and all was well. Númenor's first king was Elros. He was the twin brother of Elrond. Half-Elven twins given the choice to be Elves or Men by the Valar. Elrond chose to be an Elf, but Elros chose the life of a mortal man. As the centuries passed, the Númenóreans grew strong and wise. They were tall, highly skilled and great explorers as time passed some returned to Middle Earth setting up colonies and helping the Middle Men who had remained.
But some of the Númenóreans expressed dissatisfaction and resentment of the immortal Elves for they wanted to be immortal too. This resentment grew even among the kings and soon there were two factions on the Island the King's Men and the Faithfull. Till the last king, Ar-Pharazôn came under the influence of the Dark Lord Sauron, raised an armada and tried to invade Aman. However, the Valar called out the Eru Iluvatar, the one God who made everything, for help.
And so Eru made the Earth round sinking Númenor in the process. But not all the Númenóreans perished. For some still dwelled in their colonies and those who had remained faithful to the Valar, the Elf friends of High King Gil-galad escaped the island in nine ships as Númenor was consumed by the waves. These faithful, now called the Dúnedain, were granted lands in the west of Middle Earth, making Elendil, the Lord of Andúnië, their High King. There he founded the Kingdom of Arnor and built the great city of Annúminas on the banks of Lake Evendim.
In the south, his sons Isildur and Anarion founded the Kingdom of Gondor and for many years all was well. Then, At the end of the second Age during the war of the Last Alliance of Elves and Men, Elendil and Gil-galad were killed defeating Sauron. Isildur then took his ring of power as wergild for the deaths of his father and brother. Sauron's spirit returned to Mordor vowing revenge on the Númenóreans.
As the Third Age arrived, the ring betrayed Isildur. Death came to him and three of his sons, and the ring was lost for centuries in the great river Anduin. Many years later it was found by a Stoor Hobbit called Sméagol. Who was corrupted by it, becoming the foul creature Gollum, but the ring did not remain with him either and was picked up by Bilbo the Hobbit during the quest of Erebor.
For the Dúnedain, however, Sauron's shadow soon came upon them. Wars and plagues over the centuries destroyed the Kingdom of Arnor and its people became scattered across the region. Its Kings became Chieftains and its once great cities became abandoned ruins. And so unseen they watched over the people who lived within the bounds of their former Kingdom, keeping them safe from the Orcs, Trolls, Wolves and Wargs that prowled the borders of the land.
The heirs of every chieftain were fostered in the safety of Lord Elrond's Realm of Rivendell before taking their place in the wilds. The people of Breeland called them Rangers and looked upon them with suspicion and scorn. However, these men wore the name with as much pride as they wore their precious star brooch pins.
But now in the Third Age of Middle Earth, their numbers dwindle and their vigil grows ever more dangerous. The shadow of the Dark Lord Sauron now reaches out across Middle Earth. He seeks to destroy the Dúnedain in revenge for their part in his defeat at the Battle of the Last Alliance and for the loss of his ring of power which he believes is in the keeping of their chieftains.
His servants and spies stalk Middle Earth, seeking news of any living heirs. Sauron's greatest fear is a prophecy proclaiming that when the rightful king returns to Gondor and his ring is destroyed, then the Dark Lord's defeat will be total.
And so the rangers of Dúnedain and their kinfolk live a hidden existence, fearful that discovery could mean death or enslavement. But there is yet hope, Aragorn, their chieftain, makes plans to claim the throne of Gondor and reunite Arnor with its more prosperous sister.
A day's ride from Rivendell lay Duincar, the last Dúnedain village left in the Trollshaws. Nestled between the woods and the Bruinen River, well hidden from the Great East road. Enclosed within its fence and ditch, those too old for the wilds guarded it day and night. The people felt safe and untroubled by the world outside.
The Village had grown from an outpost for passing Rangers going back and forth to Rivendell. By the end of the Third Age, the Lord of Dunicar was Beren, first cousin of Aragorn, Chieftain of the Dúnedain. Beren was a few years his cousin's junior and his heir
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Daughter of Arnor - Servant of Fate
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