Chapter 10 Section 7 Denethor's funeral pyre

When the Shadow at the gate had withdrawn, Gandalf remained on his horse, and Pippin seized the opportunity to stand up, feeling as if a heavy burden had been lifted.He listened to the sound of the horn, and felt that there was no more beautiful music than it in the world, and his little heart seemed to burst with joy.After that, every time he heard the sound of the horn, he had the urge to burst into tears.But then he suddenly remembered his mission, and hurried forward; and at that moment Gandalf moved, stooped to speak to Shadowfax, and seemed to be about to run out the front door. "Gandalf, Gandalf!" Pippin yelled, and Shadowfax stopped.

"What are you doing here?" asked Gandalf. "Isn't the law of the city saying that men in uniforms of black and silver must remain in the fortress, and only leave when the king orders?" "He gave orders," Pippin said, "He sent me away, but I was afraid that something bad might happen up there, and I thought the castellan was mad. I was afraid he would kill himself and kill Faramir too. Can you do anything?" ?” Gandalf looked out of the door, and at this moment the voice of Smash came from the plain. "I must hurry," he said, clenching his fists. "The Black Knight is out there, and he might still beat us. I'm running out of time!" "What about Faramir?" cried Pippin. He's not dead, and they'll burn him alive if nobody stops them!" "Burn him alive?" demanded Gandalf, "what's the matter? Tell me!" ’ said Pippin, ‘he took Faramir with him, and told us that they would all be burned, and that he would not wait any longer, he ordered his servants to build a funeral pyre, and burn him and Faramir on it. Firewood and oil have been sent, I told Beregon, but I'm afraid he's afraid to leave his post, he's on guard. What can he do?

Pippin finished all the story in one breath, stretched out his trembling hand, grabbed Gandalf's knee, and said, "Please save Faramir!" "Perhaps I could," said Gandalf, "and if I did, I feared that someone else would die. Well! Since I have no choice, I must go and help, but it will bring sorrow and misery." The result. I didn’t expect that even in our strongest fortress, the Demon King can attack us, and his will must be at work behind this.” He made up his mind and immediately put it into action.Gandalf snatched Pippin up, placed him in front of him, and ordered Shadowfax to turn his head.They galloped up the streets of Minas Tirith, the sounds of battle behind them growing louder.Everywhere the two went, everyone was struggling to straighten up from desperation and fear, took up their weapons, and yelled at the top of their throats, "The hussars are here at last!" Generals were calling the shots, and there were troops everywhere. Assemble, some people have already started rushing towards the main entrance.

They met King Imrahil, who called to them both: "What now, Mithranda? Hussars are fighting on the plains of Gondor! We must muster all our forces to support!"" All the men are not enough," said Gandalf; "you must be quick, and I will go as soon as I can, but at present I must get to King Denethor. You take over!" They continued to charge forward.The fortress was getting closer and closer, and they could feel the breeze on their faces, and the dawn in the far south was gradually revealing.But that doesn't bring hope. They don't know what they're going to see. They worry that they're too late.

"The darkness has receded," said Gandalf, "but it is still thick in the city." They met no guards at the gate of the keep. "Then Beregon is gone," Pippin hoped, and the two turned their heads and followed the path to the sealed door.The door was left open, and the porter lay beside him, killed and the key taken. "It's the devil's trick!" said Gandalf. "That's what he likes best, Wall of Brothers, when people quarrel out of confusion, and don't know whose allegiance is due." He dismounted, and told Shadowfax to go back to the stables. "My friend," he said, "we should have been on the battlefield long ago, but what is happening in front of me makes me unable to escape. If I give the signal, please come quickly!" The two walked through the gate and came to the winding road. The tall stone pillars and statues on both sides passed slowly like gray ghosts.

Suddenly the silence was broken, and they heard the clash of swords below.Since the fortress was built, there has never been such a sound from this place.After some difficulty, Pippin and Gandalf came to the Street of the Dead, and they rushed to the Chancellor's Mausoleum, which was even more ominous in the twilight. "Stop it! Don't mess around!" said Gandalf, running to the stone steps in front of the door. Beregon stood alone in front of the door, not allowing these people to enter.Two of his servants had already been slain by him, and the holy place was stained with their blood; others kept cursing him, cursing him as a traitor who refused to obey the king's orders.

While Gandalf and Pippin were running wildly, they could hear Denethor's roar from the tomb: "Quick, quick! Do as I say! Kill this traitor! Must I do it myself? ?” The door blocked by Beregon’s left hand was pulled open, and the castellan stood in front of him, tall and crazy, with terrible anger in his eyes, and a drawn sword in his hand. Now Gandalf sprang up the steps, and the people drew back, covering their eyes; his presence seemed to bring a blinding white light to the place, and his wrath could not be resisted.With a wave of his hand, Denethor's sword flew out and fell back into the mausoleum.Di Naiser, who used to have power all over the world, took several steps back in a daze.

"What's the matter, my lord?" said the wizard, "the place where the dead live should not be a place for the living to play. Why do your subordinates kill each other here when the war is raging outside? Has Rasdinand even fallen into the hands of the devil? ""When will the King of Gondor be responsible to you?" asked Denethor. "Can't I command my servants?" When evil commands, others can challenge your authority. Where is Faramir your son?" "He lies there," said Denethor, "with a fever and burning, and they kindled a fire in his flesh, But soon, all will be ashes. The West has failed, and all will be consumed by fire, and all will be over... ashes! All will be ashes, blown away with the wind!" Gandalf found himself utterly insane , fearing that he had done something irreparable; therefore he rushed in, leading Beregon and Pippin.Denethor stepped aside and stood beside the stone table.They found Faramir still lying on the stone table, half asleep and half awake with a high fever. The firewood had been placed under and beside the stone table, and it was covered with lamp oil. Even Faramir's clothes and sheets were covered with oil. With flames to devour everything.Gandalf showed his true strength, and in his gray robe he leaped, and took Faramir down, very ill, and went to the door; but, as he did so, Faramir wailed, calling his father name.

Denethor seemed to have just woken up from a big dream, and the flames in his eyes were instantly extinguished.He cried, "Don't take my child! He is calling me!" "He is," said Gandalf, "but you cannot see him yet. He must seek deliverance between life and death, and he may There's no way out. Your job is to go out into town to fight, maybe to your own death, and you should know that." "He won't wake up again," Denethor said. "It's futile to fight, we Why linger on? Why don't we die together? "You have no right, Steward of Gondor, to choose the time of your own death," replied Gandalf. Bloodline to be buried with him." He carried Faramir out of the mausoleum, and placed him on the stretcher that was being carried.Denethor followed, standing trembling, looking lovingly at his son.For a brief moment, the aged king struggled.

"Come!" said Gandalf, "others need us, and there are many things you can do." Suddenly Denethor laughed, and he puffed out his chest and looked proud again.He quickly walked back to the stone table where he had been lying before, and picked up the pillow he was lying on.He walked to the door, and uncovered the pillow, and there was a crystal of true knowledge underneath!When he lifted the spar, others seemed to see flames inside, and the city lord's thin face was also stained with red light, looking as cold and heartless as a statue. "Pride and despair!" he yelled. "Do you think the White Tower is blind? No, gray-robed fool, I have seen more than you know. Hope is just a byword for ignorance. Go ahead and heal He! Go ahead and fight! It's useless. You may win temporarily, gain a few inches of land, and survive for a few days, but, to fight against this rising power? We have no chance of winning. The entire East is mobilized, even if Now, the sea wind that brought you hope has also brought a whole black fleet. The West has failed, and those who don't want to be slaves should leave here." "This kind of thinking will definitely make the devil win. said Gandalf.

"Then you continue to hold on to hope!" Denethor laughed. "Mithranda, do you think I don't understand you? You want to replace him and sit on the throne of the four corners, ruling the North, the South and the West. I have already guessed your thoughts and schemes. You think I don't know that you let this Halfling tight-lipped? Or didn't see you send a spy into my halls? But, in the course of our conversation, I've learned the names of all your companions. It seems that you will use your left hand to fuck first Make me a shield against Mordor, and then place this Ranger of the North at his right to take his place. Gandalf Mithranda, let me speak plainly!I don't want to be your puppet!I am the prime minister of the Anorian family, so I am not willing to give up my position to a brat as his subordinate.Even if he did have blood certificates, he was only Isildur's heir.I will not bow to this guy, he is just a poor royal family without kingdom and glory! " "Well, if you could have your own way," said Gandalf, "what would you do?" "I will make everything the same as it is every day of my life," replied Denethor: "and Like all my ancestors before me, be the lord of the city with peace of mind, and leave my throne to my son, who will be his own master, not a plaything of wizards. But if fate does not allow me to do so, then I can only die with jade : I don’t want to live a lowly life, I don’t want my honor to be challenged, and I don’t want my respect and love to be divided.” “In my opinion, the honor and respect that a prime minister who dutifully handed over his power has is not would be diminished," said Gandalf, "at least you should not take your son's life when you are not sure." At these words, the fire in Denethor's eyes was anew.He clamped the spar under his side, took out a small knife, and walked towards the stretcher. But Beregon jumped out immediately, blocking Faramir with his body. "Hmph!" said Denethor, "you have already stolen half of my son's love for me, and now you have stolen the hearts of my knights, and now they have completely taken my son from me But, at least this is not something you can stop, I will decide my own fate.” “Come here!” he shouted to the servants, “Come here if you are not traitors!” Then, two servants ran to him .He took the torch from one of them and ran back to the mausoleum.Before Gandalf could stop him, Denethor had stuck the torch into the wood, and the house was instantly engulfed in flames. Denethor jumped onto the stone table, covered in fire, and broke the prime minister's scepter at his feet; he threw the broken scepter into the fire, hugged the spar to his chest, and lay down on the stone table.It is said that since then, if anyone uses the spar, unless he has extremely strong willpower, he will always only see a pair of old hands burning slowly in the flames. Gandalf turned his head sadly, and closed the door.He pondered for a moment, there was a dead silence outside the door, but the sound of raging fire kept coming from inside the door.Denethor screamed, and then he never made any sound, and no mortal saw him again. "And thus died Denethor son of Exilion," said Gandalf, turning to Beregon and the servants who stood there. It's over. Evil things have happened here, but please put aside the hatred between you, because this is all the plot of the devil. You are just innocent bystanders caught in the plot. Think, you These blind servants, if it were not for Beregon's disobedience, Faramir, the general of the White Tower, would now be ashes. "Take your sacrificed companions away from this sad place, and we will take Faramir, Steward of Gondor, so that he can rest well, or die quietly according to the arrangement of fate." Gandalf and Beregon carried the stretcher. To the hospital, Pippin walked behind with his head down.The servant of the city lord was still staring blankly at the mausoleum in front of him. When Gandalf came to the end of Rasdinand, there was a loud noise from behind.Looking back, they saw that the dome was split open, and a great deal of black smoke was coming out; then with a crash, the whole dome collapsed, but the flames were still burning through the ruins. The servants fled the place in fear, and followed Gandalf. Not long after, they returned to the Sealed Gate, Beregon looking mournfully at the gatekeeper. "I will never forgive myself! He said: "But I was in a panic at that time, and he refused to listen to my explanation, but just drew his sword at each other." Then, he took out the key he had snatched from the dead man and locked the door. "That will be left to Lord Faramir from now on," he said. "King Dol Amroth is acting as castellan," said Gandalf, "and since he is not here, I will take care of it. I order you to keep it until order is restored in the city." At last they Back in the city, a group of people walked towards the hospital in the twilight; this was originally a beautiful building for the care of critically ill patients, but now it has become a shelter for the treatment of seriously injured soldiers on the battlefield.They are not far from the gate of the fortress, in the sixth city against the southern wall, surrounded by a garden full of green trees, and it is the only place in the city.Among them were the few women who were allowed to remain in Minas Tirith because they were skilled in medicine or had to serve as physician's assistants. As Gandalf's companions entered the hospital on a stretcher, they heard piercing screams from the field, rising higher and higher, and being blown away by the wind.This terrifying sound made everyone stop involuntarily.When the sound faded away, everyone felt filled with hope that had been missing for days; the sun seemed to grow stronger, and the clouds began to gradually disperse. But Gandalf's expression was very solemn and sad. He ordered Beregon and Pippin to carry Faramir into the hospital, and he walked to the nearby city wall, staring at the battlefield in the sun like a statue, observing what happened.When Éomer went and stood beside his father's body, he sighed, put on his cloak, and went down the wall.When Beregon and Pippin walked out of the hospital, they happened to see him standing at the door in a daze. They looked at Gandalf, and there was a moment's silence between them.Finally, he said: "My friends, and all the inhabitants of the western land, regret and glory have happened to this land at the same time. Should we cry or laugh? The enemy general was unexpectedly destroyed, you heard yes His last scream, but he didn't leave empty-handed. If it weren't for Denethor's madness, I might have been able to stop all of this. I didn't expect the devil to be able to affect this place! Alas! Now I have already guessed his will How did you get into the city? Although the prime ministers think this is a secret that only they know, I have discovered from a long time ago that one of the seven crystals is preserved in both the Pure White Tower and the Orthank Tower.When Denethor still had wisdom, he did not dare to use it, let alone challenge Sauron; because he knew the limit of his power.However, he was deceived by himself, and as his kingdom was in danger, he used hedrons more and more, and since Boromir left, he has been deceived by the Demon King many times.His power is too strong to succumb to the darkness. What he sees is only what the Demon King allows him to see. There is no doubt that the information he knows often only allows the Demon King to do whatever he wants.But the Enemy kept letting him watch the power of Mordor to his heart's content, until at last fear and despair swallowed up the last rationality in his heart. "I see what's wrong!" Pippin shuddered as he spoke. Weakness." "When Faramir was brought into the city, many saw a strange light emanating from the very top of the tower," said Beregon. Wrestle with the will of the Demon Lord." "Sure enough, my guess is correct," said Gandalf, "that is how Sauron's clutches entered Minas Tirith, and I am bound here. And , I still have to stay here, not just because of Faramir, I will have other tasks soon. I have to go down and meet those who come here.I saw a very sad scene on the battlefield, maybe the tragedy will not end like this.Pippin, come with me!Beregon, you should return to the fort and tell the captain of the garrison what has happened, lest he will transfer you from the garrison; but tell him so, if he will take my advice, you should Sent to the hospital as guard and servant to your beloved general, and if he ever wakes, you must be by his side, because you brought him back from the fire.go!I will be back soon. As soon as he had finished speaking, he turned and led Pippin down town.As they quickened their pace in the street, the sea breeze brought a heavy gray rain, all the fires were extinguished, and thick smoke rose before them.