In the gentle heartland of the Vales of Anduin, lush valleys stretched serenely beneath the watchful peaks of distant mountains, their slopes covered in forests of vibrant greens and deep, shadowed blues. Crystal-clear rivers whispered as they cascaded gracefully over smooth stones, threading …

The sun hung low and golden over the hills of Enedwaith, casting a warm glow across the red rocks that jutted from the earth like the bones of some ancient creature. I was far from the familiar woods of my youth, drawn instead to the rugged terrain near Maur Tulhau by whispers of a hidden place—a …

The sound of the river Anduin was especially strong that morning. Its waters bold, tumbling over stone and root as if stirred by something deeper than the current. I had been tending to Radagast’s garden before dawn when the wild birds arrived in a flurry of wings, disturbed and anxious, their songs …