The mouth of Helm's Deep broods ahead, stone walls catching the last cold light of day. Randwulf rides up with Eomer and Eowyn at his flank, and the great Hornburg stands sealed behind a line of black-liveried men.
The Lieutenant
Halt there. By order of Saruman, no one enters. The ghost has been sent, and the fortress is under protective quarantine.
His men tighten their grip on sword hilts. Violet smoke curls from the arrow slits above the gate, thin and unnatural against the dark stone.
Eomer
You stand before the King's kin and a sworn guard of Rohan. We ride on Theoden's mandate. Open the way.
Eowyn
If Helm Hammerhand walks within, I will not be kept outside by polished threats and black cloth.
The lieutenant does not step aside. He watches Randwulf now, as if deciding whether courtesy or steel will serve him better.
The Lieutenant
Choose, rider. Turn back to Edoras, or explain why three servants of the king would defy Saruman's peace at my gate.
✓ Quest Accepted
Force passage through Helm's Deep gate
“"I am most pleased to hear that the wizard has taken notice of our little ghost problem and would fane speak to him about it before bringing tidings back to my master the king. is he within?"”
FAILURE (Fair Diplomacy, rolled -1)
Randwulf
I am glad to hear the wizard has taken notice of our ghost trouble. Before I bring tidings to my king, is he within?
The Lieutenant
Within? If you mean Saruman, no. If you mean his will, yes enough for this gate. My order is to keep Helm's Deep sealed until the omens are answered.
The Lieutenant
He gives the answer too quickly, then watches whether it is believed.
Eomer
So that is your quarrel, not ours. You hide behind a name and call it duty.
Eowyn
Or the ghost is not the only thing shut away here.
The Lieutenant
Mind your tongue, lady. The halls are quiet by command, and the smoke above the stones is proof enough that this is no common blocking of roads.
He does not meet Randwulf's eye when he says it, and that small hesitation makes the quarantine sound less like protection and more like concealment.
“"But I seem to see smoke pouring from the windows! I hope the wizard can impose his will without destroying this ancient and treasured refuge. What of the garrison? Are they safe?"”
SUCCESS (Good Perception, rolled +3)
Randwulf
But I see smoke pouring from the windows. I hope the wizard can impose his will without ruining this ancient refuge. What of the garrison? Are they safe?
The Lieutenant
Safe enough, if you mean alive. Sealed in the lower halls, on Saruman's order, with stores and watchmen enough for a siege. The smoke is his measure, not a fire.
At that, the black-liveried man glances toward the stone, and the words slip out of him like an unwanted truth.
The Lieutenant
He says the haunt stirs old wounds in the rock. He means to question the place before he opens it again.
The gate remains barred, but the line hardens into something stranger than a quarantine. It is a seal, and the men here are not merely guards, they are witnesses.
Eowyn
Then we are kept outside while others test our stronghold like a wounded beast.
Eomer
And if Saruman can shut Helm's Deep today, what else may he shut tomorrow?
From above, the violet smoke curls darker for a moment, and one of the black-liveried men by the arch looks suddenly uneasy as he hears his own order named aloud.
“"Do you really want me to go back to Edoras and tell the king that Saruman has seized Helm's Deep and is holding the garrison prisoner? That will be my report if I leave now."”
FAILURE (Fair Diplomacy, rolled +0)
Randwulf
Do you want me to ride back to Edoras and tell the king that Saruman has seized Helm's Deep and holds the garrison prisoner? That will be my report if I leave now.
Randwulf lets the words hang over the gate. The lieutenant’s mouth tightens, and for a moment the smoke above the arrowslits seems to pull inward, as if the stone itself is listening.
The Lieutenant
Careful. I did not say prisoner. I said sealed. There is a difference, and I am sworn to keep it.
The Lieutenant
If the king hears the wrong version, then every oath here turns to ash.
Eowyn
Sealed from whom? From a ghost, or from the truth?
Eomer
He will not answer that by standing aside. Yet he has already shown us one thing, Saruman’s hand reaches deeper than a mere warning.
The lieutenant’s eyes flick to the archway, where one black-liveried man grips his spear too hard. Between them, a narrow service stair is visible, half-lost in smoke, and the barred gate no longer looks like the only path into the keep.
✓ Quest Accepted
Discover the true nature of the quarantine imposed by Saruman's men
− Scene Quest Removed
Force passage through Helm's Deep gate
“"Look you, this is getting out of hand. I only need a few words with Captain Gamling to clear this up, and then I will trouble you no further. Please be good enough to tend our horses until we get back. It shan't be long. " He dismounts and offers the reins of his horse to the lieutenant.”
SUCCESS (Fair Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Randwulf swings down from the saddle and places his horse’s reins in the lieutenant’s hand. The black-liveried man hesitates, then takes them, blinking as if the gesture catches him off guard.
Randwulf
This is getting out of hand. I only need a few words with Captain Gamling, then I trouble you no further. Tend our horses until we return, if you please.
The Lieutenant
You ask it as though I had a choice, lordling.
His grip loosens on the reins, and his gaze drops toward the gate stones. The wordless strain in his face says more than his duty does.
The Lieutenant
Gamling is inside. He has been kept to the keep, not by me, but by Saruman’s command. We are told the hall is to be quiet, the lower chambers watched, and no voice from without is to unsettle what is within.
The Lieutenant
I do not like the order. I like it less each hour.
Eomer and Eowyn exchange a sharp look. The service stair, half-hidden in smoke, now feels less like a secret way and more like an excuse made of stone.
The Lieutenant
If you mean to speak with Gamling, then go. But know this, Randwulf, whatever waits above has not been kept from us for our own good.
Quest Complete
Discover the true nature of the quarantine imposed by Saruman's men