Welcome to the Lord of the Rings lore cast, the show that explores the background of Tolkien's amazing world from the very beginning. When we left off last week, Tour and Veronwe were in danger.

They had come across not just one encampment of orcs, but potentially three or more.

They're simply trying to cross the highway, a well-traveled path that heads from north to south

all the way down to Nargothrond. And in order to get to where they're trying to go, they have to make this crossing.

And tour is exhausted.

He has said, basically, we need to make a straight path to where we are going because he's

hungry and tired and running out of the strength to deal with anything more than just

getting to where they need to go.

This is a desperate situation.

This is probably the most dire situation they've been in yet.

And because of that, we may not have even considered the question of why exactly these orcs are here.

Why along this pathway?

Why not out in the wilderness?

Why not further apart with these encampments?

What exactly is their goal?

But we're not given that much time to consider this, because as Tour and

Veronwe tried to sneak through this area, they hear cries in the distance, the voices of

orcs. The watchers had scented and heard them.

The hunt was out. Fortunately for the two travelers, this area was densely, densely populated with trees and bramble, roots and branches.

They were able to scurry up the side of a slope among the knots of the rowan and the low birch.

And when they get to the top, they listen, and they can hear the shouts and the crashing

of the orcs in the undergrowth below.

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