HAIL! TĂNU!Â
Born in TA 2957, TĂnu Telumendil (lover of the stars), also known as Bjarke the Bear, was the youngest son of KĂli, Dwarven King Under the Mountain and Tauriel, an Elf, from the Woodland Realm commonly known as Mirkwood, and Queen of Erebor. TĂnu carried the grace of the Valar and the Elven-kin, gifted with the agility, sure-footedness about the forest and pure-hearted soul of his mother; however, he was famed for his great brute strength, something passed down by his father and their Dwarven heritage, for TĂnu was a direct descendent of DurĂn the Deathless, as were all of his siblings. As a youth, he found a great affinity for a warhammer, oftentimes finding himself able to wield it far more efficiently than most of the men and women of the mountain. His mother taught him to shoot a bow - but with little luck. An archer, he could never claim to be.Â
An avid lover of the world, of the life which grew around him, he was perpetually exploring the Lonely Mountain, as well as the lands surrounding it; a surprising friendship was struck with the Lady of Dale, Tilda, Bard's youngest daughter, which lasted well into her old age. TĂnu, who was still yet a boy when she died, was simply sorry he had not known her longer. He explored all he could, riding even as far South as Gondor, Rohan, to the Blue Mountains and back, much to the ire of his mother.
In June of 3018, at the still young age of 61 - younger than his father was at the undertaking of reclaiming Erebor - he travelled to Osgiliath, after receiving word from his friend Faramir, whom he had met during one of his many excursions, of a threat brewing to the East. TĂnu was injured in the defence of Osgiliath, but thanks to the ingenuity of Faramir and his brother, Boromir, it was not in vain; they held all the western shores of the Anduin. Returning to Erebor in October of the same year, TĂnu spent his time with his brother, Seregon, convincing their father that there was a very real threat coming, one they must prepare to defend against. It was not until word was sent from Dain in the Iron Hills that KĂli began to take the words of his sons seriously. In March of 3019, Sauron sent a horde of Easterlings - Men of RhĂťn - to attack Dale and the Lonely Mountain, while the rest of his forces invaded Gondor. Should the Mountain and Dale have fallen, it would have given Sauron an opportunity to unite the Easterlings, Orcs from Dol Guldor and Uruk-Hai under one banner and lay siege to Mirkwood. However, this was not the case, and the combined forces of Men and Dwarves proved ever-resilient.Â
Victory, however, came with a price.Â
While KĂli and Tauriel led their forces in a flank, Seregon, their eldest and heir to the throne, led a host of their army and held the main slope between Dale and the River Running (Celduin). Meanwhile, ĂarmĂrĂŤ, their only daughter and twin sister to HĂŽr, and King Brand, grandson to the Dragonslayer, held the city itself and stopped the Men of RhĂťn from invading the Mountain. TĂnu, who had been gifted a crafted hammer and named it Onuzn, fought bravely and was wounded superficially -- but a cry broke his concentration. King Brand had been slain and his sister then only one left standing between his body and an ever growing horde of orcs and Easterlings and trolls. TĂnu fought to get to her, but by the time he arrived she had been slain by five arrows, her axe still embedded in the head of the great Orc general which led Sauron's army.Â
It was here that TĂnu earned his notoriety and the name Bjarke; upon seeing his sister dead, he leapt onto the back of a cave troll, pressed his hands to either side of his head, and crushed it's skull through sheer force of his own strength. Upon seeing the troll die, many lost heart and will to fight (though it was not known at the time, it was then the armies in Gondor were driven back by the Men of the South and the Eorlingas) and days later, they were all driven back.Â
In July of 3019, a few months after the Battle of Dale, TĂnu travelled West with his brother HĂŽr, who had been overcome by great grief at the loss of his twin, to Rivendell. In the summer of 3021, their parents joined them and in September of the same year, KĂli and Tauriel revealed they had left Erebor to Seregon and intended to sail to the Undying Lands with Elrond and Lady Galadriel. HĂŽr was infuriated, but said nothing to dissuade them, and his distaste for the Lonely Mountain was forever secured. HĂŽr stayed in Rivendell with Elrohir and Elladan, Elrond's sons, until they too sailed into the West. HĂŽr became the keeper of Imladris and was lost from history. TĂnu, however, returned to the Mountain in October, 3021 in time to witness his brother crowned King Under the Mountain. Dwelling there for some hundred years, flitting to and from the newly restored Greenwood, he eventually grew restless and sought to travel more broadly than he had before. Returning to Gondor, to his friend Faramir and the King Aragon II, and again to Rohan, striking a friendship with EĂłmer (which led later into a strong friendship with his son, Elfwine). He saw the crowning of his nephew, and very many great-nephews afterwards; saw the last of the Ents leave Arda; saw the death of Aragorn and Arwen and the entire ruling of their son Eldarion, and his son. TĂnu witnessed a great deal of the Fourth Age, travelling to every corner of Middle Earth (indeed, a great deal of the maps in use at this time of reckoning are credited to his original works and wanderings), but after nine-hundred and sixty-four years of life, in the year FA 921, he left Middle Earth and sailed to the Undying Lands to join his mother and father.Â
