'We should examine the northern approach to the town, since that's the direction from which the Dead came. Let us clean up whatever detritus fell from the wights so as not to spark alarm in the townsfolk... though it may seem too late for that!'1/1
1.2) Use spawned itemCollect tarnished jewellery left by the wights (x/3)3/3
1.3) Use spawned itemCollect rusted blades left by the wights (x/4)4/4
2 KillCrawling Arm1/1
2 Use itemRusted Helmet1/1
3 ObjectiveWTF1/1
4 Speak toBoromir (Show dialog)
'I share Meneldir's amazement, Player, but I do not like it. Let the Dead sleep, and trouble not the living! I am filled with disgust that such things may be.
'But where has Egfrith gone? I thought she went with you, but she has not returned. Do you think she ran afoul of some among the wights we might have missed?'1/1
5 Speak toMeneldir (Show dialog)
'Boromir is right. I have not seen Egfrith since we came outside. I thought she went with you to collect the fallen items of the wights, but you say you have not seen her? Perhaps she went back inside the inn?'1/1
6 Enter areaFind Egfrith inside Crossway House1/1
7 Speak to(Show dialog)
'The woman of Rohan? No, I haven't seen her since you all went outside.'(Show dialog)
'I hope I have not done wrong, Player. She told me not to give you the letter for a day or two, but if you already know to expect it I suppose there is no harm in you having it early.
'I did not read it! She told me not to do so, and her expression was so grim I took her at her word. I hope I have not done wrong, Player.'1/1
8 Use itemFlip over the parchment Egfrith left with Aberthol1/1
9 Speak toEgfrith's Words (Show dialog)
'My friends...
'No, I cannot address you so, for our friendship was based upon a deception. I am sorry. It causes me great pain to write this, but I am left no other choice. I could not forgive myself if I abandoned you without explanation. But leave you I must, for...'
The ink here is smudged.
'Player, Meneldir of the North, and Boromir of Gondor... my errand to this land is not as I told you. It is true that I was born in Faldham of the Norcrofts, and I hold the good of Rohan above all else, but my mission was not to seek the Dúnedain. Théoden King is ill, that much is true, but there is no cure to be found for his ailment, neither in the Riddermark nor in the Dúnedain's wilderness. He has grown weak, and has himself become a grave threat to the survival of Rohan! His people need a strong King, but he languishes in his sick-bed! He has forgotten the strength he once possessed, and can no longer lead the people who cry out to him! In days past perhaps he would have ridden out in glory, to die in battle and stir the hearts of the Rohirrim, but no longer.
'It was with the Wizard Saruman that I consulted on this, for he has long been a friend to Rohan, and he confirmed that which I feared: it is a weakness of the blood that troubles Théoden, and it must run too in the blood of Théodred his heir. The Wizard has much wisdom, for he has lived to see many lifetimes, and he can see that which the rest of us fail to recognize: Rohan itself suffers from an illness. He will treat this illness with a difficult remedy. He has found numerous Orcs, likely from their mountain strongholds, and prepares to send them against the kingdom. Through the crucible of this testing, the mighty men of Rohan will prove who among them is strong enough to lead. I say \qmen,\q but perhaps it will be a queen who proves able to save Rohan from this peril? The old lineages are not enough.
'Even with all his wisdom, Saruman cannot see all. When Boromir of Gondor rode near to Isengard, the Wizard sought to learn what caused the son of Denethor to depart his own land. Was Saruman's plan to save Rohan in jeopardy? He charged me to follow the son of Gondor north and to learn the purpose behind his quest. I kept a day's journey behind him, out of sight in the empty lands, but always near enough to find his course, until the crossing of the Greyflood at Tharbad. That is where I encountered you, Meneldir, and Player.
'It was an act of desperation to join your band, but I feared Boromir would escape my reach and I would fail my own quest. And yet I did fail, for in the brief time we journeyed together, I came to understand what drove Boromir to this land, so far from his home. He travelled these many leagues at a dream's behest, for nothing so certain as the slimmest hope that it might aid Gondor. So too is it with me and Rohan. Each of us would do the same for our own home-land.
'Even now I try to excuse my treachery, as if I could avoid judgement by not writing it down. There was more to my errand: once I learned Boromir's purpose, I was to slay him. I could not have done it in battle, for all my weapon-skill, but one of these nights, while he slept, I might have managed it.
'But I will not. I go now to bring Saruman the knowledge he craved. He will learn something from Boromir's dream, and it will need to be enough. I thought I could slay anyone, if it meant saving my kingdom, but I was wrong.
'I will command Aberthol to give you this letter in a few days. I want you to know what I have done, and not done, but I will not risk you stopping me.
'For Rohan, always,
'Egfrith.'1/1
10 Speak toMeneldir (Show dialog)
'What happened, Player? Did you find Egfrith? Is she in some danger?'
You hand the letter to Meneldir, and as he reads it his expression darkens, a storm-cloud of anger enveloping his face.
'This cannot be. This cannot be!'1/1
11 Enter areaCatch Egfrith south of Herne before she can escape1/1
12 Speak toMeneldir (Show dialog)
'I see the print of hooves in the dirt. She must have stolen a horse in Herne and has already escaped into Minhiriath. She is beyond our reach now.
'Saruman will learn what he sought.'1/1
13 Speak toBoromir (Show dialog)
'I did not see it, Player. I thought Egfrith was trustworthy. I did not see it.'
Boromir speaks quietly, but you can hear the strain in his voice.
Iron Coin of Cardolan (2)
