Since the very beginning of “The Rings Of Power,” a mysterious trident-shaped mark started appearing in various places on Middle Earth. Sometimes it was seen in the dark and dingy spaces where immorality was bred. Sometimes it was seen on the bodies of those who conformed to the moral standards as if putting a blot on their righteousness. Galadriel, the commander of the northern army, knew that the symbol held a lot of significance, but she was not able to decipher what its purpose was. She knew that it had something to do with the dark lord Sauron. When her brother, Finrod Felagund, was killed by Sauron, she found the same mark on his dead body too. The trident-shaped sword was called the Hilt, and it was a key that had the potential to conjure dark powers. Apart from Galadriel, the dark elf, who went by the name of Adar, was also trying to locate the Hilt. But unlike her, Adar knew exactly what the purpose of the Hilt was. He and his army of orcs, whom he often referred to as his children, were digging tunnels because they knew how to harness the power of the Hilt and use it for the furtherance of their evil plans.
The first problem was resolved when Adar came to know that a young boy named Theo had the Hilt. A man named Waldreg had it in his possession earlier, but Theo had taken it from his barn. Waldreg had sworn his allegiance to Sauron, and he told Theo to do the same. But Theo had been brought up by a righteous woman named Bronwyn. She had always told him that darkness, no matter how strong it got, would always be overpowered by light. He was quite skeptical about the whole proposition because he knew that the odds of winning the battle against the mighty army of Adar were not in their favor. Still, he put his faith in his mother. He didn’t leave the tower of Ostirith, and decided to stay back and fight for his people. He shows the Hilt to Arondir, and the wise elf instantly realizes that the dark powers would be coming to take it from them. Arondir knew that they couldn’t let Adar take the Hilt. He had been captured by Adar earlier, and he was well aware of what the dark sorcerer was capable of. So, he hid the Hilt and believed that, together with the other men and women of Southlands, he would be able to withstand the tide and fight for their honor.
How Did The Hilt Lead To The Creation Of Mordor? How Will It Serve Sauron’s Sinister Plan?
The Hilt played an important role in laying the foundation of a dark realm that, later, came to be known as Mordor. As soon as Adar got the Hilt, he gave it to Waldreg to put it inside the slot in the tower of Ostirith. Adar knew that Galadriel, Halbrand, and the Numenoreans were coming for him. He knew that if he could distract and mislead them for a bit, it would give ample amount of time to Waldreg to do the needful. As soon as Waldreg inserted the Hilt into the slot, there was a tectonic shift that was felt by everybody. The nearby river started flooding, and soon the water entered the tunnels that were dug by Adar and his army of orcs. Adar knew, well in advance, what was going to happen, and that is why he had commanded his forces to dig an intricate network of tunnels that could channel all the water to a nearby volcano. Though in the sixth episode of “The Rings of Power,” the name of the volcano has not been revealed, we know that it is Mount Doom, where Sauron forged the One Ring. It is the same place where Frodo Baggins and Samwise Gamgee went at the end of “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” to destroy the Ring once and for all. Mount Doom was created by Morgoth, and that is why it was an innately sinister place. Adar knew that, and he wanted to use it to his advantage. Adar was well aware of the fact that he could not change the physical inabilities of the orcs. He understood that in order to make them thrive on Middle Earth, he needed to alter the environment and make it conducive to their survival. He knew that his dream of giving a permanent residence to the orcs could be accomplished only near Mount Doom. That is why he was so desperate to find the magical key, i.e., the Hilt, and unlock the dark powers. As soon as the water from the tunnels touched the core of Mount Doom, there was an eruption. It felt as if the malevolent soul of the volcano had been awakened. The evil that lay in its core was spitted out on the surface of the earth. The plush green fields, the deep blue sky, the diverse flora, the happiness, the hope, everything was covered in a gray hue of deathly despair. It was the beginning of a transformation. The Southlands were metamorphosed into a land where evil was bred, and hopelessness thrived. It was called the Land of Mordor.
Though Adar was captured by Galadriel and Halbrand, he knew that the Hilt had done its job. He knew that his children would thrive. He knew that the pain they had endured (according to him) was going to be over soon. But there still existed an obstacle that, maybe, Adar was not aware of. He claimed that he had killed the dark lord Sauron, but even Galadriel knew that it was not possible to kill him so easily. We know that Sauron did make his fortress, Barad Dur, in Mordor itself. So, in a way, the Hilt did serve the purpose of the Maia, who was also given the title of the Lord of Mordor. He forged The One Ring in the depths of Mount Doom and fueled his dream of ruling all the living beings of Middle Earth. He knew that The One Ring would give him enough power to turn the evil dreams, once seen by Morgoth, his master, into reality.
It was just a matter of time till the smoke from Mount Doom would cover the skies, and the orcs would be able to walk freely even during daytime. The Hilt had awakened the dormant dark forces once again which felt like history was going to repeat itself. The seeds of treachery and darkness, which were sown by Morgoth, had burgeoned to take their full shape and form. A herculean task now lay in front of the elves and men. The Hilt had served its purpose, and now the fate of Middle Earth lay in the hands of those few who still had hope that they would be able to change the course of the future and eradicate this evilness.
