Chapter 2: Isles of the Cosari

What now awaited Brandyé was a thing beyond his imagination. Who these men were remained unknown, but where they had come from was now clear, for before him lay a creation of a size and nature that he had never heard spoken of, even in his grandfather’s wildest tales.

It was a water vessel – so much was clear, for it lay half upon the beach, and half in the shallows of the sea. But it was as unlike the craft that had borne him from Consolation as a pebble is to a mountain. The vessel’s hull rose some ten or more feet above his head, and atop that he saw a great mast, towering high towards the clouds, and from which hung vast drapes whose purpose he could not fathom. To the rear of the craft stood another mast, though shorter than the first, and the tapered bow ended in a carving of some fanged beast that reminded him uneasily of the fierundé.

There were perhaps some dozen men on and around this great craft, and Brandyé could see many more animals – small deer, foxes, a kind of wild pig, and birds that resembled pheasants. Each was bound in a […]

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Chapter 1: The Black Sea

The mouth of the Tuiraeth was many miles behind, left to empty itself into the ugly and dead sea, and Brandyé Dui-Erâth was alone, and cold. Some way inland from the sea he had found meagre grass, and running water, and here he lived amongst the hard stone and moss. Ever restless, he wandered aimlessly along the coast, not wishing to look upon the dark waters, yet unwilling to lose sight of the coast for fear of becoming lost himself.

How he might become lost he knew not, however, for he knew not where he was. He was far from the Perneck and the last trace of what he had for all his life known as home, and was indeed as exiled as the Fortunaé could have desired. Comfort was nearly forgotten, now but a stray memory of firelight and tea and rich tales. His chin grew thick with bristles, though he knew it only by touch, for there were no mirrors to be found, nor even a pool of calm water.

He had tried to bathe in the rain once, but it had been dreadfully cold and biting to the skin, and left him with a redness that […]

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(vi) The Building of the End of the World

With the return of the Duithèn and the rebuilding of the kingdoms of Darkness, the men of Thaeìn were now facing the very end of their world. Their own strength had waned greatly since the end of the Second Age, and it appeared they would not last long against the storm that was now gathering against them.

What little hope remained was in that the Bridge of Aélûr remained broken, and so there was no connection yet between the kingdoms of Aélûr and Thaeìn. As such, it was impossible for the men of Aélûr and their terrible allies to reinforce the forces of Thaeìn; though together they might well crush the kingdoms of men swiftly, separate their strength was not yet great.

It was the hope of the Duithèn that the finding of Namrâth might change all this.

Fortresses of Urkûl and Dûnra

The Duithèn were enraged when the lords of the skøltär would not aid them in their quest for Namrâth. They threatened to destroy their new kingdom and turn their own subjects against them, but the lords of the skøltär laughed and called them spirits of the air, and […]

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