Twilight at the Sarn Athrad by King Naugladur

Twilight at the Sarn Athrad

I am nothing but an old Dwarf. I am the sole remnant of the great host of Tumunzahar, which marched against the Elves of Doriath for a matter of treasure. I am freezing, frightened and filled with hunger and thirst. I bear only my tale, the tale of the sole survivor of the Battle of Sarn Athrad.

It began when an Adan, called Hurin, came to the halls of the Elvenking Thingol Greycloak, bringing a treasure with him. Hurin had obtained the treasure from the ancient halls of Nulukkizdin, which the Elves who changed all the names call Nargothrond. He took it after slaying Mim, the last of a line of exiles from the far eastern mansions, those our kin has in the Red Mountains. Since Mim’s ancestors had carves the caves of Nulukkizdin, he had every right to the treasure. But, Hurin slew him, claiming that Mim had betrayed his son.

The treasure Hurin brought to Doriath was the Nauglamir, which our ancestors had crafted for Finrod, the Elven king of Nargothrond. He had prized that  craft of ours more than everything he possessed.After Hurin brought the treasure to Thingol, he requested smiths from our city to work on his treasure, but only if their crafts were good enough.  Of course, our fellows agreed to do the job, since we  never flinch at the face of a challenge. How much I wish we had flinched from that one.

Besides  his other jewels, Thingol had a Silmaril in his possession. The Silmarils were crafted by an Elven smith, called Feanor and they were said to have captured the light of the Two Trees, which are sacred to the Elves.  Our smiths set the Silmaril upon the Nauglamir and thus our greatest craft and the greatest craft of the Elves sat in a perfect harmony.

When our smiths finished their work, they presented it to Thingol. Then, they asked the Nauglamir with the Silmaril as their just reward.  He rebuked them, using very harsh words and bade them remove themselves from his sight. Rightly, they felt offended. After that grave insult, they killed him and took their just reward.

Alas, the Elves were quick to anger. They pursued our fellows in the woods and slew all but two of them. Those two made it to our city and told us their tale.  Our King Naugladur said that we were not going to allow that disgrace. We requested aid from our cousins living in the city of Gabilgathol (they are Firebeards, not Broadbeams like us), but we were denied it. Thus, we marched upon Doriath. The Queen of the Elves, who had set a Girdle over Thingol’s realm, had left after her husband’s death and her sorcery was now absent.

We marched against their capital, called Menegroth, the Thousand Caves. A great battle was fought and Mahal was kind with us and gave the victory to our side. King Naugladur slew the leader of the Elvish army, Mablung the heavy-handed.  We had suffered much, it is true, but we had slain many Elves and we had managed to reclaim the Nauglamir.

However, it was not to end this way. Before leaving, the Queen of the Elves had told her husband’s one-handed ally, Beren Erchamion, the tale of our smiths’ confrontation with Thingol, but filled with lies that made him look a victim. Beren had been the one who had claimed the Silmaril from the Dark Lord who lurks in his fortress of Angband.

While we were crossing the Sarn Athrad, we heard and saw countless arrows flying against us. It was Beren, leading a host of Green-elves against us and he had set an ambush. We fought, but they were numerous, we were weary and we received no mercy from them. Many of us were slain and some, myself included, tried to escape to Mount Dolmed. Near the foot of the mountain, terrible tree-like giants emerged and killed my unfortunate comrades , stomping them with their massive feet. Anxious for my life, I hid under a corpse and waited for the giants’ wrath to calm down. Then, I crawled out of the forest and, hearing the sounds of battle, ran to the point where rivers Ascar and Gelion meet.  There, I saw the last chapter of the tragic tale unfolding before my eyes:  King Naugladur and what had remained of his bodyguard were still resisting the horde of the Elves. The King was wielding his axe and was ready to smite Beren. Most unfortunately, he stumbled at a tree root, which twisted itself at the time he was passing it. No doubt a trick of those giants. King Naugladur was now unarmed and alone, posing no danger to the Elvish host. Yet, Beren thrust his sword and pierced his heart, seizing the Nauglamir. However, with his dying breath, our king cursed the treasure, which proved our bane. The one-handed man threw the hoard to the river, save for the Nauglamir, which he claimed for himself.

Thus ends my tale. So sorry I am, for I have fallen short of my King’s expectations. I was too afraid to aid or comfort him. I will not return to Tumunzahar, I will go to the Longbeards’ grand city, for  I am too ashamed to face my close kin.

I beg only for Mahal turn King Naugladur’s last wish into reality, that the jewel shall bring torment and hostilities to the Elves. This way, his cause will not be entirely lost.

                                                               THE END

Chapter End Notes

Tumunzahar= Nogrod in Khuzdul

Adan= Man in Sindarin

Nulukkizdin= Nargothrond in Khuzdul

Gabilgathol= Belegost in Khuzdul

Mahal= Khuzdul name for Aule