Chapter 8 Section 5 Long March of Hussars

Merry was lying on the ground, wrapped in a blanket, and he couldn't see anything because he couldn't see anything around him.However, although there was no breeze in the night sky, the surrounding trees were sighing slightly.He looked up.Then he heard the voice again: Like the faint sound of drums echoing through dense forests and hills.Sometimes the pulsating sound would disappear suddenly, and then continue in other places, sometimes far away, sometimes near, it was unknown whether the guards on duty at night heard the sound. He could not see what was around him, but he knew there were hussars of Rohan all around him, and he could smell the horses in the dark and hear them pacing on the pine-needle-covered ground.The army camped in the pine woods near the beacon of Alanarky, a hill jutting out from the edge of the Druidon Forest, near the wide road in East Annorion.

Although Merry was very tired, she couldn't sleep.He has been riding for four days in a row, and the never-ending darkness began to make his heart heavy. He began to wonder why he was so eager to follow, why there were all kinds of excuses, even the king of hussars They all gave him orders, but he still insisted not to stay behind.He also wondered if the old king would be angry if he knew that he had sneaked in against his orders?Maybe not, there seemed to be some kind of tacit understanding between De Heim and the general Ai Heim who commanded their cavalry.He and all his subordinates pretended not to see Merry, and deliberately ignored him when he spoke. Everyone might think that he was another backpack carried by De Heim, and De Heim was very satisfied with this situation. anyone to talk to.

Merry felt small, insignificant, and very alone.The crowd was growing tense and dangerous, and they were probably a day's ride away from the outer walls of Minas Tirith that had been built on the surrounding plains.Scouts were sent to the front line to scout the situation, some never came back, others rushed back to report that the road ahead was all occupied by the enemy.An enemy army was stationed on the road, about three miles to the west of the mountains of Amundine, and there were still many human troops stationed along the road for not more than nine miles, and the orcs filled the hills and forests beside the road. middle.Hussar King and Eomer held many meetings in the dark.

Merry wanted someone to talk to, and he thought of Pippin, but that only made him sleepless.Poor Pippin was shut up in that great city of rocks, alone and frightened.Merry wished he could be like Éomer, a tall warrior who could blow a horn or something to rescue him.Finally, he sat up straight and listened to the sound of the drum that seemed to come closer.He could hear people talking in low voices, half-hidden oil lamps moving among the trees, nearby humans starting to wander in the dark. A tall human stood up, accidentally stepped on him, and started cursing the nasty tree roots.He recognized General Elheim's voice.

"My lord, I'm not a tree root," he said, "and I'm not luggage, but a bruised hobbit. You can at least tell me what happened and make up for my injuries." You can’t see anything clearly in the dark,” Ahem replied, “My king ordered everyone to get ready to go immediately, we may have to dispatch urgently.” “Is the enemy coming?” Meri said nervously Ask: "Is that their drumbeat? Since no one responded, I thought I was imagining it!" "No, it's not," said Elheim, "the enemy is on the road, not in the mountains. You heard that They are the people of Voss. They are wild people who live in the forest. They talk by the sound of drums. It is said that they still live in the forest of Druidon. They are a minority left over from ancient times. They lived as alert and careful as wild beasts. They would not fight Gondor or Rohan, but now they feared the darkness and the coming of the Orcs, and they feared that the dark age would come again. Our last Well thankful they weren't going to hunt us, rumor has it that they use poisoned arrows and are unrivaled in survival and archery. However, they volunteered to assist King Theoden, whose leader was just brought to Beside the King Hussars, which is also the source of the fire. That's all I've heard, and I must hurry to carry out the King's orders. Pack it up, Mr. Bag!" He disappeared into the shadows.

Merry wasn't too fond of wildlings and poisoned arrows, but he had bigger things to worry about than that.The waiting was unbearable, and he desperately wanted to know what was going to happen.He stood up and quickly followed the route where the last oil lamp appeared before. Not long after, he came to an open space, where the Hussar King's tent was set up under a big tree, and an oil lamp that was covered above was hung on the branch, casting a pale and weak light on the surroundings.Theoden and Eomer sat on the ground, and in front of them was a strange-looking man.He looked as old as a rock, with a mess of hair and beard that hung like moss over his fat head and chin.His legs were short, and his figure was very bloated, with only grass blades hanging from his waist to cover his body.It seemed to Merry that he had seen this man before, and then suddenly he remembered the Pucos of Dun Harrow.He looks exactly like those statues, maybe he is the object carved by those ancient craftsmen.

There was silence as Merry approached, and then the Wildling spoke.It seems to be answering a question.His voice was very deep and hoarse, but Merry was surprised to find that he used the Common Tongue; there were only some hesitation and some irregular pronunciation mixed in. "No, father of the cavalry," he said, "we don't fight, we hunt, and kill Gorgon in the forest. Gorgon is a half-orc and hates orcs. You hate Gorgon too, and we can help. Savage ears and eyes They are sharp, and know all the ways. The wildlings lived here before the stone house, and the tall man has not come from the sea." "But what we need is support on the battlefield," said Éomer. "What will you and your people do?" Help us?" "Come back with information," said the wild man, "we can see from the mountain, and we can climb the mountain to look down. The stone city is locked up, and there is fire outside and inside. Do you want to go? Then you must hurry! But Brother Gang and the humans are over there," he waved his stubby hand to the east, "blocking the road, there are many people, more than there are horses..." "How do you know?" Eomer said.

The old man's expressionless face didn't reveal anything, but he could feel some displeasure from his voice. "Wildlings live freely and without restraint, but are not children," he replied. "I am the Great Chief, Gombrigon. I can count many things, the stars in the sky, the leaves on the trees, and the men in the dark. Yours The number of people is fifteen times twenty times twenty, and they have more. War, who will win?And much more around Stone City..." "That's right! He was very accurate indeed." Theoden said, "Our scouts reported that they dug and staked the road. We couldn't possibly Assault them by surprise." "But we must be quicker," said Éomer, "Minas Tirith is in flames!" Said the wild man, "He knows more than one way, and he will lead you on the way where there are no traps, no Gogan, but only wild men and beasts. When the stone-dwellers were stronger, they built more than one way, and they cut the mountains , as the hunters cut their game, they made their wagons from Duyton to Raymond. Now they do not take the road, the road is forgotten, but not the wildlings, the road still hides in trees and meadows, it goes over the hills, to come To Dingshan, and finally back to the road. The wildlings will take you this way, and then you can kill Gogan, and drive away the terrible darkness with bright steel, and the wildlings can go back to the forest to sleep in peace." Eomer and The Hussar King spoke for a while in the language of Rohan.Finally, Theoden turned to the wildlings and said, "We are willing to accept your assistance," he said, "Although our own homeland has been attacked by the enemy, so what? If the Rock City falls, we don't need to go back ;if it is saved, the supply lines of those troops will be cut too. Gumbrigon, if what you say is true, we will reward you handsomely, and the hussars will be your allies forever." "The dead will not Friends of the living, and give no gifts," replied the Wildling, "but if you survive after this darkness, you must not bother the Wildlings, nor hunt them down like animals. You fall into the trap, and he will go there himself with the father of the cavalry, and if he leads the wrong way, you can kill him." "That's it!" said Theoden.

"How long will it take us to bypass the enemy and get back to the road?" asked Éomer. "If you lead us, we'll have to go on foot, and I guess it won't be a wide road?" "Wildlings walk fast," said Gumbrigon. The horses run parallel to each other," he said, waving his hands to the south, "but the opening and the end are very narrow, and the savage walks from this side to Dingshan just at the time when the sun rises to Zhongshi." "Then the vanguard must take at least seven hours to arrive. "Iomer said, "it will take about ten hours for the whole procession to pass. There may be unexpected obstacles on the way; moreover, if our troops are all scattered, it will take a lot of time to regroup after leaving the mountains. Now What time is it?" "Who knows?" said Theoden, "it looks like night anytime." "It is dark everywhere, indeed, but it is not night," said Gombry, "when the sun rises, even if we I can't see her, but I can feel her. She has climbed out of the eastern mountains, and the sky is just sunrise." "Then we must start as soon as possible!" said Éomer. "Even so, we will not make it in time today. Gondor." Merry waited for a moment, hearing nothing new, so he slipped back to wait for the call to march, the final stage before the great battle.In his opinion, not many people should survive.But all he could do was suppress his fear at the thought of Pippin and the flames of Minas Tirith.

Everything went smoothly that day, and they found no enemy that might hinder their progress.The Wildlings sent out many mobile hunters, not to give any orcs or spies a chance to learn about the movements in the mountains.As they approached the besieged city, the light grew fainter, and the hussars weaved through the darkness like black silhouettes.Each company was led by a wildling, and Gang walked beside Theoden himself.The start took longer than expected, and the hussars lost time leading their horses into the thick forest behind the camp and into the hidden stone cart valley.When the vanguard set foot on the wide flat land to the east of Mount Amundine, it was about to fall, and there was indeed a road blocked by the hills from Nado to Mount Amundine.This road that ancient horse-drawn carriages could pass passed through the pass, stretched all the way, and joined the horse road leading to the main city again in Annorian.However, the road had not been used for many, many years, it was broken in many places, and was hidden under countless years of accumulated foliage and thick woods, which provided just the place for the hussars to hide their whereabouts before they went to war. Last chance; for after that is the way to the plains of Anduin, and the east and south slopes are rocky and uncovered.These barren mountain ranges stretch continuously, connecting with the huge body of Mingdu Lu'an Mountain.

The forward stopped, and the troops behind quickly rushed out of the Stone Car Valley, and scattered among the trees to find cover.The King of Hussars called all the generals to a meeting, and Éomer sent out scouts to scout the way ahead, but old Gumbrigon just shook his head. "It is useless to send men on horseback," he said. "The wildlings have seen what can be seen in the dark, and they will be back soon to join me here." The generals all came, and then A number of Pukhas, not unlike Gumbrigon in stature, came noiselessly out of the woods, and they spoke to Gumbrigon in a strange low tongue. Gombre just turned to the Hussar King and said, "The wildlings have said many things," he said, "First of all, be careful! There are still a lot of humans camped an hour's walk after Dingshan." He turned to the black West waved his hand. "But no enemy can be seen from here to the new wall built by the people of Rock City. Many enemies are busy over there. The wall is gone. Brother just brought down the wall with underground mines and black iron sticks. They are very careless , don’t pay attention to the situation around them, they think their friends have seen all the way!” At this point, Gamble just let out a strange grunt, and it seemed that he was laughing. "This is good news!" cried Iomo. "Even in such a dark situation, the fire of hope is rekindled! The devil's schemes often turn out to be our helpers, and this damned darkness is our best. Cover. Now, his half-orcs are eager to destroy the plants and trees of Gondor, and at the same time destroy the defense I was most worried about. The outer wall of Gondor would have become the most terrible enemy to stop us. Now, as long as If we can cross this road, we can drive straight in and out of the city. "Gumbrigon of the forest, I must thank you again," said Theoden, "and good luck to you!" "Gang Briang replied: "Use steel to drive away the stinky air and darkness!" , we won't be sure until tomorrow what will happen." Gamble just got down on his stomach and touched the ground with his forehead to signify farewell, and then he stood up, as if preparing to leave; but suddenly he raised his head, Sniffing like a frightened beast smelling a strange smell, his eyes lit up immediately. "The wind has changed!" he yelled.As soon as he finished speaking, he and his subjects disappeared into obscurity, and the hussars never saw them again.A short time later came the faint beating of drums from the east again, but though the wildlings looked rude, not a single hussar doubted their promise. "We need no further leadership," said Elheim. "I am one of the knights in our company who went to Minas Tirith in the time of peace. When we came to the roadside, We shall see it turning southward, and twenty-one miles before we reach the main city, and the grass is almost on both sides of this road, and the messengers and heralds of Gondor use this road to gallop at full speed, and we You can get to the city in a very short time.” “Then, since we are waiting, we must do our best to face the dangerous enemy,” Eomer said, “I suggest that everyone rest first and set off in the dark of night. In this way, we can go out early tomorrow morning, or when the king gives the order." The king of hussars agreed, and the generals all returned to their respective troops, but Aihaim returned quickly. "The scouts found nothing suspicious beyond this gray forest, my lord," he said. "Only two men were found—two human bodies and two horse bodies." "Go on," said Eomer Said, "Is there anything special?" "Well, my lord, they are messengers of Gondor, and one of the corpses may be He Gang, at least he still holds the scarlet arrow in his hand, but his head has been chopped off. Lost. One more thing, from the indications, when they were killed, they were fleeing to the west, and I judged that when they came back, they found the enemy had attacked, or had taken the outer wall. If they used Most of the horses provided by the station arrived two days ago, and they could not enter the king's city, so they had to turn back." "How bad!" said Theoden, "then Denethor would not have heard of our departure at all, He may feel hopeless because of it." "People will not tolerate being late in times of emergency, but it is better late than never," said Eomer. "Perhaps this time people will find that the proverbs of the ancients have never been so It was fitting." It was night, and Rohan's troops were moving silently on both sides of the road.This road has crossed the outer ring of Mingdu Lu'an Mountain and started to turn south.People can see the flames soaring into the sky in the distance directly ahead, and the outline of the mountains is also surrounded by red light.They had approached the outer wall of Lamas on the Paliano Plain, but the hour of sunrise had not yet come. The king of hussars was in the center of the vanguard, with all the members of his family at his side, and Ayheim's cavalry closely behind; Merry noticed that Derheim left his post and advanced silently in the dark until he was close to the hussars. Until the cavalry king's guards.The order to stop the whole army came from the front, and Merry could hear whispers coming from the front, and the scouts who had been sent out to observe the situation also returned, and they came to the King of Hussars. "Your Majesty, the fire is very fierce!" said one person, "The main city is almost completely engulfed in flames, and the plain seems to be full of enemies, but most of the force is almost devoted to the assault on the front gate. We speculate that the outer wall side Not many people stayed behind, and those who did not move out were very lax and devoted themselves to destroying." "Your Majesty, do you remember what the wild man said?" Another person said: "I lived in the valley in peaceful times, and my name is Wayfara, I can also smell the news of the air movement, the wind has indeed changed. There is a smell from the south in the air, a very faint sea salty smell, and there must be a major change tomorrow morning. We It should be dawn when you pass the city wall." "Wifara, if you are right, may you live in the blessings of everyone for all your lifetimes!" Theoden said.He turned to face the knights gathered around him, and he spoke in such a powerful voice that even the knights of the first cavalry could hear what he said: "Heroic hussars, sons of Io! The critical moment has come! The enemy and the flames are in front of you, but your home is far away. Although you are fighting in a foreign land, the glory you won will always belong to you Yes. We have promised allies, and it is time we fulfill our promises! We will let this land and its ruler know our friendship! ”The people struck the shield with their spears one after another, making an astonishing sound. "Eomer, my son! Lead the first cavalry," said Theoden, "and let the banner of the Hussar King fly in the center; Ehem, lead the troops to defend the right flank as we pass the outer wall, Grimble Take the troops to defend the left and right, and the rest of the troops will find gaps to follow up and disperse any assembled enemies. We don't know the situation on the battlefield now, so we can't plan other strategies. Rush forward, don't be afraid of the dark! The vanguard galloped, and no matter when the change Wayfara felt would appear, there was still darkness all around.Merry hugged Durham tightly, with one arm around his waist, and the other trying to loosen the scabbard.Only then did he understand what the king of hussars had said to him: Meriadoc, what can you do in such a battle? "Only this," he thought, "drag a rider, and hope he can keep his seat and not be trampled to death by the horses behind!" They were less than three miles from the outer wall, so they reached their goal in no time, It was too fast for Merry.Shouts of panic came from the battlefield, as well as the brief clanging of gold and iron.The orcs who remained on the outer walls were few in number, and did not anticipate such an attack, and they were quickly killed or scattered.In front of the ruins of the north gate of the city wall of Lamas, the Hussar King stopped again, surrounded by the first cavalry.Although Elheim's troops were on the right flank of the formation, Deheim deliberately approached the hussar king, while Grimble's men passed through the gap in the city wall further east. Merry watched from behind Durham, and at a great distance, at least ten miles away, on the plain, a very violent fire could be seen.But between it and the hussars, the fire was like a crescent moon, and the closest distance was only about three miles.He could see nothing clearly on the dark plain, and he had no sense of dawn, let alone a change in the wind. The troops of Rohan came silently across the plains of Gondor, gathering slowly, like floods lapping over dams that men thought were safe.General Sombra's full attention was on the city that was about to fall, and no information could alert him that there was a loophole in this foolproof plan. Not long after, the King of Hussars led his men to the east and came to the gap between the city wall and the flames of the battlefield. They were still not blocked by anything, and Theoden still did not issue any orders.At last he stopped again, and Minas Tirith came nearer again, and the air was filled with the smell of burning and death, and the horses were very restless, and the King of Hussars sat motionless on Snowmane's back. , looking upon the misery of Minas Tirith, as if overwhelmed by the terror or pain, his shoulders seemed weighed down by the weight of the years.Merry felt that he also felt the uncertainty, boundless fear took advantage of the gap, his heart was beating slowly, and time seemed to stand still.They are too late!Being late is worse than never!Perhaps Theoden would admit defeat, hang his old body down, and flee back to the mountains with his tail between his legs. Suddenly, Merry finally felt that the situation had changed.got windy!The morning light has gradually come out, looking to the far south, people can vaguely see the fuzzy clouds rolling—dawn is coming soon. At the same moment, a dazzling white light flashed, as if the ground of the royal city was struck by thunder.At that moment, the royal city became black and white, and the tallest spire was like a shining needle; then, the darkness covered everything again, and the low rumbling sound drifted from the direction of the city gate. As soon as he heard the sound, Hussar King's senile body suddenly straightened up.He regained his self-confident and dignified demeanor. He puffed out his chest and shouted loudly. This is the clearest voice that humans have ever made: Rise up, rise up!Hussars of Theoden! The monster wakes up, burns, kills and loots! Spears should be brandished, giant shields should meet the enemy, before the sun rises, we will fight bloody battles! Go, go!Rush to Gondor! As soon as he finished speaking, he snatched a huge horn from Guslav, the flag bearer, and blew it so hard that even the horn couldn't withstand the force and was blown to pieces.The horns of the whole army of hussars responded at the same time, interweaving into a heroic symphony.The deafening sound of the horn swept across the plains and hills of Gondor like thunder and lightning. Go, go!Rush to Gondor! The king of hussars yelled at Xue Mane, and the horse immediately spread its hooves and galloped.The banner behind him fluttered in the wind, and the white horse galloped across the green grass, but even the banner could not keep up with his charge.The whole army of hussars followed closely behind, and the king of hussars still rushed to the enemy at the head of the horse.Éomer pursued closely, the white ponytail on his helmet fluttering in the wind, the first cavalry came menacingly, but they still couldn't catch up with Theoden.He looked like an invincible madman, with the blood of the ancestors boiling in his body, as majestic as Orome, the riding god in the battle of the main gods.He held up the golden shield, reflecting thousands of golden lights, and the four hooves of the mount seemed to be surrounded by green flames.Dawn did come, and the dawn came with the southern sea breeze, and the darkness receded, and the hosts of Mordor were restless, and their hearts were shaken; .All the hussars of Rohan sang a mighty war song, and slew their foes mercilessly, for this was their greatest battle.Their ear-splitting singing was carried by the wind into the restless royal city.