Chapter Summaries

Herbert led his boats into an Easterling ambush and died after ordering his surviving men to warn their people to flee. The next day, Bal and Akkad pursued another fleet of townspeople, but Klethi and Grim attacked the Easterlings, killing Akkad and driving the rest away.

• Bal and Akkad led the Easterlings along a forest trail and ambushed Herbert's boats on the Running River.
• The Easterlings killed many Longbowmen, and Akkad shot Herbert; Herbert died after ordering his men to run and warn their people.
• Herbert's surviving Longbowmen carried his body into the forest and fled west, while Bal and the Easterlings rested before continuing their pursuit.
• Bal's cavalry caught up with several hundred townspeople on boats, but Grim charged from the forest with Klethi's light cavalry behind him.
• Grim panicked the Easterlings' horses, and Klethi's riders killed many fleeing soldiers with javelins and sabers.
• Klethi overtook and killed Akkad with throwing knives, then ordered her men to stop pursuing Bal and return to camp.

Klethi’s unauthorized scouting led her to ambush Easterling forces and learn that Herbert had been killed, while Allen rushed preparations for war across Wilderness Town. After mustering troops and assigning forces to defend the town and support Mirkwood Road, Allen set out with Beorn, Jeremus, and a mixed force to face the approaching Easterlings.

• Klethi left Alayen’s camp with fifty cavalrymen, tracked migrants along the Running River, and helped protect Red River Town’s people by ambushing Bal and Akkad’s force.
• Red River Town’s cavalrymen confirmed their lord had been killed and rode to inform Malherb, while Klethi continued investigating Herbert’s death.
• Allen returned to Wilderness Town, where Ymira arranged for rescued captives to help with planting and later produce weapons and ammunition.
• Allen took over the mobilization, sent Firentis to the Lonely Mountain, and dispatched infantry and archers to Mirkwood Road.
• Allen left Tuoju, Wulf, and defenders to protect Wilderness Town, then departed for Mirkwood Road with Beorn, two Skin-changers, Jeremus, and a mixed force.

Allen secured the support of Oak Village and Pine Tree Village by accepting Gael and Baren as squires and promising to protect their people. He prepared to face the Easterling attack, but Hollimion and Malherb arrived first with migrants from Red River Town.

• Hank initially resisted recruiting his villagers to fight the Easterlings, then asked Allen to accept Gael and Baren as squires.
• Allen swore Gael and Baren into his service and ordered them to organize the villages' capable fighters.
• Allen promised to relocate the people of Oak Village and Pine Tree Village to Wilderness Town, where Ymira would arrange housing.
• Allen told Alayen to bring Gael and Baren gifts of armor and horses, then refocused on the coming Easterling attack.
• Hollimion and Malherb arrived with the first group of residents migrating from Red River Town.

After Herbert’s death left Malherb grieving and responsible for more than two thousand people, Klethi’s plan to have him ride Grim through the migrating column restored the people’s confidence, and they reached Heidelberg. Allen offered Malherb land and a choice between becoming a vassal or joining the Cabinet as a Brave; Malherb chose to serve in the Cabinet.

• Allen learned that Herbert had died, Malherb’s brothers had collaborated with the Easterlings, and Malherb had been left to lead Red River Town’s people.
• Klethi suggested that Malherb ride Grim in bear form through the column, and the display calmed the people and helped the migration proceed faster.
• Malherb’s people reached Heidelberg, where Allen offered them land between the Old Ford and the Golden Iris River.
• Allen presented Malherb with the choice of becoming a vassal or becoming a Brave in the Cabinet, explaining the terms of each option.
• Malherb chose to become a Brave and serve in the Cabinet, and Allen welcomed him into the Kingdom of Rhovanion’s ranks.

Thorin and Firentis discovered that the Easterlings were ravaging eastern Rhovanion, while Firentis’s cavalry rescued Northern Men and drove off enemy patrols. Allen learned that Ironwall Town was besieged and faced the problem of how to help its people with too few troops; he spent the night awake.

• Thorin pursued the Easterlings to the Redwater River, destroyed the bridge, and sent Dáin Ironfoot to find Firentis while he led the Dwarves back north.
• Firentis learned that the Easterlings were raiding settlements and besieging Ironwall Town, then used his cavalry to ambush and destroy their patrols while rescuing fleeing Northern Men.
• Ashur stopped sending cavalry into the wasteland and intensified his assault on Ironwall Town as Sauron’s plans for eastern Rhovanion were explained.
• Firentis escorted several hundred rescued Northern Men to Lake-town, where Balin organized shelter and work for them.
• Allen learned that Easterlings had occupied Red River Town and that more Northern Men were fleeing to him; he accepted the refugees but could not spare troops to relieve Ironwall Town.
• Allen stayed awake through the night, troubled by his inability to save the besieged Northern Men.

Unable to spare troops from Heidelberg, Allen entrusted its defenses to Alayen and rode to the Iron Hills with twelve guards. He found more than fifteen thousand Easterlings besieging Ironwall Town, where over a thousand Northern Men prepared to resist.

• Allen weighed his forces and concluded that he could deploy only himself and twelve Twilight Knights without endangering Heidelberg and Wilderness Town.
• Allen questioned Alayen about Heidelberg's defenses, approved his plans, and left him in charge.
• Allen rode to Lake-town, met Firentis, and crossed the Running River toward the Iron Hills.
• Allen and his men reached the Easterling camp, where he learned that Ashur commanded more than fifteen thousand Easterlings.
• Ashur halted costly probing attacks and ordered his forces to cut trees for siege engines, while Ironwall Town's defenders prepared to fight to the death.

Ashur’s Easterling army assaulted Ironwall Town, overcoming the defenders’ Trebuchets and archers through coordinated attacks and heavy losses. Allen watched from a nearby cliff as the last Siege Tower reached the walls and the town’s defenders faced a final assault.

• Ashur advanced the Siege Ram and four Siege Towers toward Ironwall Town while the defenders fired arrows at them.
• The defenders’ Trebuchets damaged the siege engines, so Ashur sent archers forward to suppress the walls and the Trebuchet crews.
• Ashur had the Northern Man who guided him to Ironwall Town seized and hanged after learning he had failed to report the Trebuchets.
• Nearly a hundred Northern cavalrymen charged out of the town and slaughtered an Easterling archer formation before the larger army overwhelmed them.
• The Trebuchets destroyed two Siege Towers and damaged the Siege Ram, but the final Siege Tower reached the walls and Easterling infantry advanced with scaling ladders.
• Allen climbed a nearby cliff, saw the Easterlings’ final assault, and realized Ironwall Town could not be saved.

Allen watched the Easterlings under Ashur destroy Ironwall Town and struggled with guilt over how his changes to the Battle of Five Armies had affected Rhovanion. After spotting a group of youths hidden in a cave, he waited for a chance to rescue them, but Ashur discovered him and forced him to flee before the town was mostly abandoned.

• The Easterlings overwhelmed Ironwall Town's defenders, captured the town, and opened its gates to brutal street fighting.
• Allen blamed himself for the invasion's consequences until Firentis reassured him, helping him resolve to focus on becoming stronger.
• Allen and Firentis spotted a middle-aged man hiding a dozen young people inside a concealed cave, and Allen decided to wait and take them to safety.
• After four days, Ashur arrived at Ironwall Town, noticed Allen watching from concealment, and was wounded when Allen shot him with a Noldor Rune Bow.
• Allen evaded Ashur's search parties, hid in a valley for two days, and returned to find most Easterlings gone as Ashur departed with captured armor and supplies.

After the Easterlings left Ironwall Town, Allen rescued Auston and the other surviving young Northmen and escorted them to a hidden gorge. Auston asked Allen to help his people find land where they could live, leaving Allen to consider how to respond.

• Allen warned Balin and Thranduil that the Easterlings were marching toward Lake-town, then entered Ironwall Town after scouting the area.
• Auston and the other young survivors raised their weapons at Allen’s party, but Hollimion identified Allen and Allen ordered his men to stand down.
• Allen offered to escort the young people to safety, and Auston accepted while asking to travel southwest instead of going to Dale or Lake-town.
• Auston led Allen and the survivors to a hidden gorge where the elderly, women, and children were sheltering.
• Auston asked Allen to help his people find a place where they could live, and Allen fell into thought.

Allen arranged for more than two thousand Northmen refugees to be resettled, then hurried to Long Lake to join the defense against the Easterlings. He reached the Dwarven stronghold and reunited with Kili, Balin, and Dáin as the enemy gathered across the water.

• Allen agreed to help Auston relocate the refugees, but most initially refused to leave the gorge until Allen's men pressured them; a few hundred remained behind with supplies.
• Allen entrusted the migrating refugees to Firentis, who led them toward Heidelberg, while Allen rode with his remaining cavalry and Personal Guards toward Lake-town.
• Allen met Woodland Elves scouting near the Running River and learned that the Woodland Realm was ready to repel the invasion.
• Allen reached the Dwarves' fortified camp near Long Lake, where Dwarven warriors watched the Easterlings gathering across the water.
• Allen met Kili, Balin, and Dáin Ironfoot after Kili returned from patrol, and greeted his Dwarven friends.

Allen briefed Balin, Dáin, and Kili on the Easterling forces gathering around Long Lake and proposed striking before they could unite. Thranduil agreed to lead the Elves in a pre-dawn attack on Kurda and Amish, and to handle the river crossing.

• Balin and Dáin explained that Easterling forces had reached Lake-town, while Kili warned that an even larger force was approaching.
• Allen used a map to estimate the enemy’s numbers and explain that his troops were occupied guarding Red River Town.
• Balin asked Allen to persuade Thranduil to join an attack, promising the Dwarves would serve as the vanguard.
• Allen left Balin’s quarters and rode to Thranduil, who was organizing the Elves’ defenses near Long Lake.
• Allen urged Thranduil to attack before Ashur’s forces arrived, and Thranduil agreed to attack before dawn and manage the river crossing.

Allen, Dáin, and Thranduil launched a coordinated night raid against the Easterling camps, choosing Hamish’s camp as their first target. The Dwarves burst through its gate as fire and confusion spread, and the battle began.

• Balin and Dáin secretly prepared three hundred veteran Dwarves while Allen organized his rested cavalry for the raid.
• Allen’s cavalry crossed the Elven-built bridge over the Running River, destroyed the Easterling mounted scouts, and found Kurda’s camp too heavily guarded to attack first.
• Dáin and Thranduil agreed to attack Hamish’s camp while the Elves watched Kurda’s forces and prepared to ambush any reinforcements.
• At Allen’s command, Hollimion and the Twilight Knights shot the perimeter guards as other riders set fire to Hamish’s camp walls and chariots.
• Balin blasted open Hamish’s gate with a Flash-Flame Bomb, and Dáin led the Dwarves into the camp.

Allen, Dáin, and Thranduil’s forces overwhelmed the Easterlings, killing Hamish and driving Kurda to flee, until Khamûl arrived on a Fell Beast and unleashed a new attack. The chapter ended with the beast wounded by a glowing arrow and Khamûl facing fourteen silver-clad figures.

• Hamish rallied his soldiers and charged toward the fighting, while enslaved Northmen escaped the burning camp and Allen directed them toward Dale.
• Kurda sent chariots and soldiers to reinforce Hamish, but Thranduil’s Elves ambushed them with arrows, forcing Kurda to flee toward Ashur.
• Hamish charged Dáin’s Dwarves in his chariot, escaped briefly after his horses were struck, and died when the Dwarves brought him down with spears.
• Allen’s cavalry struck the Easterlings from behind as Dáin’s Dwarves attacked from the front, breaking the enemy forces and ending the battle.
• Khamûl arrived on a Fell Beast, whose piercing shriek terrified the humans and horses, while Thranduil’s Elves formed up to meet the approaching threat.
• Fourteen silver-clad figures shot at Khamûl and his Fell Beast, and a glowing arrow struck the beast, throwing Khamûl to the ground.

Khamûl led Half-orcs to the burning camp and confronted Allen, whose Sacred Qi Art could harm the Ringwraith. After Allen sent Hollimion to aid the Dwarves and changed weapons, he and Khamûl began a fierce battle.

• Khamûl flew toward the burning camp and descended among the humans, Dwarves, and Elves, where his aura spread fear.
• Allen charged Khamûl with a white-lit greatsword after his arrow killed the fell beast, and their clash wounded Khamûl and briefly weakened him.
• Khamûl's Black Breath left two Twilight Knights unable to use their arms, while their Rune Longswords failed to harm him.
• Allen ordered Hollimion to help Dáin and the Dwarves hold back the Warg Riders, then drove the Black Breath from his injured knights.
• Allen replaced his greatsword with a Noldorin Rune-sword and enchanted shield, and Khamûl attacked him as the two fought amid the flames.

Allen fought Khamûl while the Elves and Dwarves struggled to hold back the Warg Riders. After invoking Varda, Allen killed Khamûl but collapsed from his wounds, leaving the battle’s outcome uncertain.

• Allen fought Khamûl, whose Morgul Blade repeatedly repaired itself as the Ring replenished his strength.
• Thranduil held the Sangail Formation against the Warg Riders while the Dwarves and Hollimion struggled to protect Allen’s rear.
• Khamûl entered the Unseen World and approached Allen with his Morgul Blade raised.
• Allen invoked Varda, Gilthoniel, and Elbereth, then saw Khamûl and thrust his Rune Longsword into him as the Ringwraith stabbed him.
• Allen’s white light destroyed Khamûl and his Morgul Blade, and the fleeing Wargs and Warg Riders broke away from the Elves and Dwarves.
• Allen picked up a gold ring set with a sapphire from Khamûl’s tattered clothing, then collapsed as Hollimion called to him.

Allen awoke after a month-long coma and reunited with Ymira, who told him how the war had ended and how the region had fared during his recovery. He explained that the Ring of Power was evil and offered to have Frey make Ymira a different ring.

• Allen watched visions of his past and a mysterious young man before white light carried him out of the darkness.
• Allen woke in bed, remembered being wounded near Zendar, and saw a vision of the Queen of the Stars before Ymira woke and embraced him.
• Ymira explained that Allen had been unconscious for over a month and recounted the battle’s aftermath, the Easterlings’ retreat, and the reconstruction of Lake-town.
• Ymira told Allen that Hollimion had given her the ring he had been clutching, and Allen warned her it was forged by the Dark Lord.
• Allen offered to ask Frey to make Ymira a ring suited for a lady, leaving her stunned.

After recovering vivid memories of his time in Calradia, Allen tested Khamûl’s Ring of Power and discovered that it let him see the invisible and greatly strengthened its wearer, though his own power resisted it. He considered using the ring to pursue the Star of Elendil and strengthen his opposition to Sauron, then had the Easterling who tested it publicly executed.

• Allen recalled the brutal realities of his two years in Calradia and realized that Varda’s white lightning had protected him from being taken by Sauron’s claw.
• Allen prepared himself with the Ancient Rune Helm and Hollimion’s assistance, but the ring’s power clashed with his own and produced no effect when he wore it.
• Allen placed the ring on the captured Easterling Envoy, who vanished; Allen could still see him and watched the ring enhance his strength.
• Allen removed the ring before the Easterling could break his bonds and considered using it to obtain the Star of Elendil and support Aragorn and the northern Rangers.
• Allen realized the Easterling had learned about the ring and arranged for him to be hanged publicly as Wilderness Town’s first executed criminal.

Allen reviewed the consequences of the recent battle, as his fiefs and settlements gained people, trade, and new problems. He left the chapter preparing to reorganize his forces after summoning Firentis and Alayen back.

• Allen learned that a Swadian dispute over Yaragar had ended with Earl Haringoth buying its title from Earl Tredian and granting the village to Allen's cousin, increasing Allen's monthly income.
• Allen accepted a verbal peace with Ashur but refused to return the Easterling prisoners, and he planned to draw Saruman toward the ring by showing it to Radagast.
• Allen's rescued Northmen settled in Eowya, Wilderness Town, and Lake-town, bringing the population under his rule close to twice its former size.
• Marnid returned with merchants from Bree, and Allen arranged food shipments to resolve the settlements' shortage.
• Allen renamed Orc Town Steel Mine Town, kept soldiers there to guard the Easterling prisoners, and sent envoys to summon Firentis and Alayen for an army reorganization.

Allen reconsidered Wilderness Town’s military system as prolonged garrison duty risked burdening soldiers and fueling resentment between established residents and newcomers. After his returning subordinates gathered for a Cabinet meeting, he presented plans for paid professional soldiers and limits on citizen soldiers’ service, leaving the Cabinet members to consider how to implement them.

• Allen recognized that extended deployments in Heidelberg and Steel Mine Town could make soldiers dissatisfied and disrupt their families’ livelihoods.
• Allen planned to recruit experienced veterans as full-time paid soldiers, who could hire newcomers to work their households’ fields and earn their living.
• Allen proposed limiting citizen soldiers’ service to two months and rejected granting fiefs under a knight system for the time being.
• Alayen and Firentis returned to Wilderness Town, and Allen convened a Cabinet meeting to present his military and labor proposals.
• Ymira, Firentis, Alayen, Bunduk, Marnid, and Stephen remained silent as they considered how to carry out Allen’s plans.

Allen’s advisers discussed plans to establish a standing army while improving trade and supporting soldiers’ families. The meeting ended with Allen and Ymira’s relationship becoming the focus of friendly questions, and Jeremus urged them to marry this year.

• Marnid proposed building a market and designing a commercial tax system, and Allen approved the plan.
• Firentis outlined plans to recruit paid standing soldiers and warned that garrison rotations were needed to prevent discontent and desertion.
• Allen told Firentis to retain the existing recruitment system and prepare military-age men in Lake-town, Wilderness Town, and Eowya for training and rotation.
• Ymira proposed assigning new residents to soldiers’ families to help cultivate their fields, and Allen agreed.
• At a banquet, Allen told Jeremus and Firentis that his near-death experience had changed how he viewed his relationship with Ymira.
• Jeremus urged Allen and Ymira to marry this year.