The sky was grey and the sun had not come up over the dark mountains behind Sellardore when Tem, Soolin and Darvid came to the Northern Gate. Arcorn was waiting for them. He had with him a donkey loaded down with bags."Good," said Arcorn, "I knew you would come. You must waste no time, we have no way of knowing when Zorin will come back. Follow the path north into the mountains. The track will end at the Great Doors to the Ork Mines. I have loaded this donkey with food and the tools that you might need. Which of you is the best fighter?"
"I am," said Darvid.
"Then you shall take this sword. It is the old sword of our fathers and will cut through metal armour. And which of you knows the ways of magic?"
"I know nothing," said Soolin, "But Tem has helped us out of a few tight spots with his skills in magic."
"Oh dear," said Tem, "I'm really not very good at it, I only know the spells my grandmother gave me."
"That will have to do," said Arcorn, sounding a little angry. "You will find magic things in the red bag. And what do you do, Soolin?"
"I'm pretty good at locks and traps." she replied.
"Then you will find all you need in the green bag. You must go now. Good luck. Remember, Zorin has many spies so you must tell no one about this quest. When you find the Wand you must bring it only to me."
With that Arcorn left them alone.
Darvid swung his new sword and cut the tops off a few bushes. Then he walked over to an old broken wagon wheel by the road side and swung at that. The iron rim of the wheel fell in two. Pleased, Darvid put the sword into his belt.
Tem was looking in the red bag. It held powders and small bottles as well as a strange red candle. He understood some of the labels on the bottles but he had never seen such an odd candle. He took it out of the bag and held it up, looking at it closely to see if there was any writing on it.
"That's Dynamite," said Darvid.
Tem had heard of Dynamite. He dropped it and dived behind a rock. Soolin and Darvid laughed.
"It's okay," said Darvid, "It won't explode unless you light the fuse on the end."
Tem stood up. "I knew that," he said, "I was just joking." The other two knew he had been scared but they did not make fun of him. He was the youngest of them but one day he would be a great wizard.
Soolin lead the donkey up the stony mountain path and the others followed.
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