"Their footsteps left the battlefield...and ran into Fangorn Forest..."
On the battlefield near the edge of Fangorn Forest where the Rohan cavalry burned the bodies of orcs and orcs, Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas were following the messy footprints on the ground to find them. Hobbits, and then they discovered that the two little hobbits took advantage of the chaos and ran into Fangorn Forest?
"Fangorn Forest..."
"Are they crazy? How dare they run into a place like this?!"
Carrying his own long-handled battle ax, after knowing that Pippin and Merry had probably run into this ghost place called Fangorn Forest, he looked at the strange and ancient twisted pieces not far away in front of him. Huge tree, Gimli couldn't help but exclaimed.
In the past, Gimli had heard a lot of rumors about this place. It was said that many daredevils or reckless men who were not afraid of death had entered this forest, and then they never came out again...
You know, the history of Fangorn Forest is very long, and there are many ancient legends that are not known to ordinary people.
In fact, as early as the First Era and the Second Era, this Fangorn Forest once covered the entire Iliad and Carannahorn regions. It can be said that it was the largest forest in the entire Middle-earth world. ,none of them!
It is a pity that, except for the existing Fangorn Forest, other places were cut down and destroyed indiscriminately by the Númenóreans who landed in Middle-earth and established their country in the wars of the previous two eras. !
Then, when the Demon Lord Sauron fought with the Númenóreans and the elves, a considerable part of them was destroyed again...
So, now, the only thing left is the Fangorn Forest south of the Misty Mountains and in the northwest corner of the Arhat territory! This is the territory of the oldest tree shepherds like Treebeard, and it is also the last habitat of the tree people...
It is precisely because of this that the tree people, who think they are being persecuted, do not welcome any intelligent creatures into their territory! Whether it's elves, humans, dwarves, orcs or hobbits? Anyway, as long as they enter the Fangorn Forest and are discovered by them, no one will be able to come out alive!
In the eyes of those shepherds who love trees and nature, any creature that can use metal tools and cut down trees is their enemy! Of course, if the forest is cut down elsewhere, they will definitely not be able to control it, but if they seek death to cut down the Fangorn Forest, the end will definitely not be good.
"Aragorn, what on earth are we going to do?"
Legolas looked at Aragorn and asked, he didn't know what to do now.
Even as the Elf Prince of Mirkwood, Legolas, who deals with the forest all day long, would not be willing to break into Fangorn Forest casually! The elves of the immortal race know better than anyone else the rigidity and stubbornness of the tree people. They have the same attitude towards almost all intelligent races, even the Silvan elves are no exception!
Of course, it is said that they have good relations with the Lothlorin elves in the Golden Forest? But this was just a rumor, and Legolas didn't know much about it.
But judging from Queen Galadriel's ability, and the fact that the Golden Forest and Fangorn Forest are not far apart, the other party should be able to have a good relationship with the tree people. This rumor should be true. After all, the Golden Forest The lady is also a perfect and ancient elf.
"Let's go in! We must find those two hobbits!"
After thinking about it, Aragorn made a decision.
They would never leave those two hobbits behind! Anyway, I have been chasing it for so long now, so I shouldn’t give up at this time!
Moreover, if we calculate the time, the two hobbits, Pippin and Merry, should have just entered the forest last night, and now, it has only been one night. If they are lucky, they may really Can you find each other again?
"Let's go! We'd better be careful!"
After saying that, Aragorn tightened his equipment and took the lead in walking into the dark and ancient Fangorn Forest.
————
In the northwest of Middle-earth, in the southeast of the mountains of Lake Ivandin in Annuminas, and in the south of the Great Plain of Fornost, Queen Orfina of the United Kingdom of Alicia is wearing a full body of golden armor and riding a horse. Her tall white unicorn mount stood under a huge white bald eagle flag with a red background and gold rim that was erected high up. She was looking sharply at the auxiliary militiamen who were cleaning the battlefield.
Here, in this flat plain, yesterday evening, she personally led the newly formed First Army of the United Kingdom of Alicia, a total of one thousand newly formed musketeers who had not been trained for a long time, and more than five hundred The people's auxiliary militia met here and defeated in one fell swoop the more than 3,000 infantry and cavalry mixed coalition forces of Annuminas and the Iliad Free Council of Fornost!
It took a lot of time for both sides to form their formations in this battle, but when the fight actually started, to the surprise of the Free Council: in just one round, the musketeers of the United Kingdom of Alicia used thunder to Without being able to cover their ears, they instantly defeated the coalition forces they thought were very powerful!
From the perspective of Queen Ofina, this battle actually doesn’t have much suspense!
She had already guessed that under the volleys of those terrifying Mini rifles, no mortal could resist those metal bullets, not even the plate armored cavalry and infantry of the Free Council!
Although the opponent was very brave and tenacious at the beginning! However, the opponent did not even get close to the 100-yard area in front of their Alicia United Kingdom Legion formation, and was defeated by volleys of gunfire and dispersed...
After last night's battle, the First Army of the United Kingdom stayed in this open area and began to set up camp in an area that was easy for the musketeers to defend. It was not until the sky brightened in the early morning that the auxiliary militia was sent to clean up those areas. A messy battlefield.
"Her Majesty the Queen!"
"The results of the battle have been preliminary calculated. We won an epic victory last night! This will definitely be recorded in the history of Middle-earth!"
Just as Ofina was looking at the battlefield filled with enemy corpses, her eyes flickering and she didn't know what she was thinking, a female officer riding a horse, carrying a cavalry-specific short-barrel rifle on her back, dressed as a ranger, came to her. She came galloping over here.
Then, with an excited look on his face, the other party reined in his horse and stopped not far in front of Ofina's unicorn and loudly reported.
With 1,500 men facing off against the enemy's powerful coalition forces of more than 3,000, it is estimated that less than 600 men actually went into battle? Then, not only could they easily defeat the enemy in one fell swoop, but they also suffered almost no casualties on their own side. What is this if not an epic victory? !
"In the battle last night, based on the corpses left on the battlefield, we killed a total of 632 enemies and captured 417!"
The female officer reported excitedly while raising the parchment in her hand.
"So far, no one on our side has died! However... two musketeers did not operate their rifles according to standard procedures, so their eyes were injured. I am afraid they are no longer suitable to continue participating in the battle..."
At this point, the female officer felt a little ashamed. The two people who did not operate the rifle according to the rules happened to be her subordinates. Not only were they blinded in one eye alive, but it also caused the other musketeers to have an inexplicable fear of muskets, and they even became a little timid when reloading.
In fact, she thinks, don't they think with their own brains?
Those two idiots, how dare they tear open the fixed charge package and stuff it into the barrel when there are still sparks in the barrel? And you even look at it with your eyes? Those exploding gunpowder, if it doesn't explode them, who else can it explode? !
Fortunately, they didn't reload, otherwise, they might have two corpses whose heads were shot by their own weapons!
"In other words, at least one thousand to two thousand of their soldiers fled back to Annuminas and Fornost?"
Seeing her soldiers cleaning up the corpses of the enemies and finding ground to bury them, Ofina asked thoughtfully. They fought a rout battle last night, so it was not too surprising that so many enemies escaped within her expectations.
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"According to the reports from our 'Lark' musketeers: Most of the defeated enemies fled along the road back to Fornost in the north, while Annuminas in the northwest was heading there due to the rugged mountain roads. There are not many who are escaping."
"There are still some who simply dispersed into the surrounding villages. We don't have enough troops to hunt them down right now!"
This female officer who is the Queen's bodyguard knows quite clearly about these things.
Most of the musketeers who set off overnight and fell behind the enemy's rout have returned. They brought back a lot of news about the enemy. It is said that they also captured a lot of prisoners?
"Go! Find some enemy officers among the prisoners. I need them to help me bring two letters to Annuminas and Fornost!"
After saying that, Ofina took out two handwritten letters placed in a bamboo tube from her mount's satchel and handed them directly to the female officer.
"Find a few reliable prisoners, give them a few horses, and ask them to tell the parliamentary nobles in the city: As long as they hand over their troops and Kaicheng surrenders, then I can promise to let them continue to keep their Wealth and land!”
For the sake of unnecessary trouble, Ofina did not want to commit too many crimes in the homeland of the former Kingdom of Arno.
Now, the newly-appointed commander of the Second Army of Lenas in the south has already reached Tabard on the south bank of the Swan River and has begun contact and war with the Dunland barbarians! Therefore, she must not continue to waste time here. She needs to go to the south as soon as possible to attack Isengard's forces. This is the top priority assigned by her master Anne.
"But, Your Majesty..."
"We are sure of victory now. We have muskets, and we have even more powerful cannons! Isn't it too generous to give them this kind of treatment? We can use cannons to blow down their city gates, and then occupy the north Two important towns..."
"It's impossible for them to withstand our offensive! Maybe they will collapse by the time we reach the city?"
The female officer became a little anxious when she heard that Her Majesty Queen Ofina wanted to give those people the right to retain wealth and land.
Isn't the reason why they sacrificed their lives to join the United Kingdom of Alicia just for land and money?
And a victorious war is the guarantee for them to obtain these things! She believed that as long as they captured the opponent's city and accumulated enough military merits, they could obtain fiefs, titles, a lot of money, etc.!
Then, in the future, they will be able to live a luxurious life like that of an aristocrat that they only dared to think about before?
"Okay, no need to say more!"
"Kelly, you should know that our focus is not on the north, but on the south! Do you understand?!"
Looking at her female guard, Ofina shook her head in amusement.
What she has to consider is how to rule this place well, instead of turning the place into a smoke and annihilating the dissidents, which will only push their United Kingdom of Alicia to oppose everyone! Therefore, it is feasible to use some tolerant policies when necessary.
As long as that parliament is willing to hand over power and troops and ensure that there is no trouble in the north, what if she allows them to continue to enjoy those decadent aristocratic lives?
"Isengard's power is gradually increasing, and now even the Dunlanders have joined them. I believe that the Rohan people will not be able to hold on for long..."
"Once Isengard destroys Rohan and attacks the Kingdom of Gondor with Mordor from both sides, our situation will be very passive in the future! Our kingdom's heritage is not enough, and there are some things that cannot be done even with money. There’s a way to solve it!”
"Okay, just follow my order just now and you go and execute it!"
After thinking about it, Ofina waved her hand and asked the female officer to take her handwritten letter, and then went to carry out her order.
She hopes to completely quell the turmoil in the north within five days, and after ensuring that there will be no major problems in the rear, she will integrate the other party's armies, and then make early preparations to go south to Rohan!
In fact, in Orfina's own plan, she also planned to deal with not only Annuminas and Fornost, but also places like Shire, Argonde, and Sarenford.
As long as those local lords are willing to hand over their troops and accept the leadership of the United Kingdom of Alicia, then she can completely promise to retain their wealth, land, and even titles and governance rights within a certain period of time!
"..."
After taking another look at the bloody and messy battlefields, Ofina frowned and patted the unicorn on her crotch, asking it to turn around and return to the military camp behind.
She was not surprised at all by the outcome of this battle. After all, a group of cavalry and infantry with cold weapons faced a group of musketeers, even if it was a group of musketeers who had not been initially trained for a long time. This kind of result was normal. The weapons of both sides , but the difference is several generations!
In fact, she had been ready for war ever since the so-called envoy of the Iliad Free Council sneered at her in Bray's castle a few days ago!
Those arrogant nobles may still be immersed in the past glory of the so-called Kingdom of Arno. Do they really think that the world is still the same as before?
Even if their United Kingdom of Alicia does not appear, once the war in the south is won or lost, no matter who the winner is, the outcome waiting for these little lords in the north is already doomed!
Thinking about that envoy at that time, he actually dared to demand that she hand over the minefields and pay compensation. Ofina almost laughed out loud at that time!
"If we don't hurry up, the war situation in the south will probably become one-sided..."
Now in Ofina's view, Isengard and Mordor in the south have already occupied an absolute advantage. In addition, the barbarian Haradlin and the Rune tribe in the south have joined the Mordor Alliance. When the time comes, they will definitely also She launched a flanking attack on Gondor, so she was not optimistic about the situation in the south. Gondor's defeat was only a matter of time!
Therefore, now she wants a prisoner to go to the other party's Free Parliament with a letter of persuasion to surrender. She doesn't want to stay in the north for too long. After the north is slightly stabilized, she will lead the legion directly south and return to the mine to replenish troops. After collecting supplies, go directly to Isengard and Rohan!
————
"Wow! What a big squirrel!"
At this time, in the Fangorn Forest, little Annie was enjoying herself with the two hobbits Merry and Pippin, knocking the pile of nuts that she got from nowhere with stones.
Then, after a while, a chubby squirrel about the size of a kitten jumped out of the tree and kept squeaking at the three people who were eating dried fruits. He's still jumping up and down, as if he's very anxious?
"Look! Merry, it seems like it wants to say something to us?"
Pippin looked at it for a while and felt that this squirrel seemed to be very human. Maybe he had something to say to the three of him?
"Huh? I guess it wants to join us?"
Merry and Pippin had different views. He felt that the squirrel wanted to join in after seeing them eating. Maybe it’s because there are very few living people in Fangorn Forest, so it’s not afraid of people?
"What a cute squirrel... I wonder if it would be delicious if roasted?"
Little Annie's eyes flickered. She looked at the small pile of nuts on the ground that she had almost eaten, and then looked at the cute and fat squirrel, and then she suddenly said this.
Then, when the squirrel felt the little girl's malice, it was so frightened that all the fur on its body stood up. Then, it ran as fast as possible to the one who was talking quietly to Gandalf over there. On the top of the tree bearder's head and hid.
She actually knew why the squirrel was in a hurry, so she really wanted to eat it as soon as possible and destroy the corpse!
"It was just saying... you little girl... stole the nuts it hid..."
After appeasing the little squirrel hiding behind the tree crown above his head, Treebeard glanced at the evil little witch over there.
"You're talking nonsense! I didn't steal anything from it!"
"How can it prove that these nuts are its own? It doesn't have its name written on them, so why shouldn't I be allowed to eat them?"
Anyway, she has eaten them all now, so Annie will never admit that she just found this thing in a dry tree hole and brought it along!
Besides, there were no squirrels in the tree hole just now. How did she know whether these dried fruits and nuts fell in from the branches by themselves? Therefore, Annie felt that it must be the squirrel who wanted to frame her!
It's a pity that I didn't find it in the tree hole just now, otherwise, Annie would have been eating roasted squirrel by now! There is no oil or water in the nuts or anything like that, they are so dry and unpalatable!
"..."
Well, now, everyone probably knows what is going on...
"Huh? Three more people came into the forest!"
Just as he was about to say something, or to lure the chubby squirrel down to grab the roasted Annie, he suddenly turned his head and looked in one direction.
"Gandalf! Those three good friends of yours are here to find you!"
After sensing the other person's aura and knowing who it was, Anne angrily yelled at the old Gandalf in the distance who seemed to have finished talking to the old tree man.
"My...good friend? What does that mean?"
Gandalf couldn't understand the little girl's words, Ji? friend? What does this mean?
"Oh...that's what people on earth say, which means being a very close friend with you! Yes, that's it!"
After staring at the tree man's head for a while and realizing that the fat squirrel refused to come down easily, Annie had to give up her plan to eat the roasted squirrel.
"Very good friend? Well...who could that be?!"
Gandalf felt a little baffled. He always felt that the little girl was not telling the truth, but he didn't know what was wrong.
"It's the old man who plays with the sword, Old Man Ge's son, and the pretty boy who likes to play with bows and arrows!"
Actually, in Little Annie's opinion, those three people are all elderly uncles!
Whether it's the human, the dwarf, or the little white-faced elf, the youngest among them is already dozens of years old! What is he if he's not an uncle?
"Uh... I think I probably know who it is..."
After being stunned for a while, Gandalf finally realized who the three people Anne was talking about were. Then, he turned his head and looked at the two hobbits over there, Pippin and Merry, who were doing nothing and said:
"Pipin, and Merry... you should stay in Fangorn Forest during this time."
"Treebeard has just promised me that he is willing to protect you for a period of time! Don't worry, please believe me. With Treebeard and the others here, you will be safe here!"
What Gandalf is going to do next may be a bit dangerous, so he doesn't plan to take these two obstructive hobbits with him for the time being.
…
Aragorn, Gimli and Legolas have now gone deep into Fangorn Forest. They are following the footprints of hobbits and orcs, and have been moving deeper into the forest.
"Bah! These are the blood of orcs..."
The dwarf Gimli found a few drops of dark brown sticky substance on some leaves. Then, when he dipped his hand in it and put it in his mouth to taste it, he spit it out quickly.
Obviously, this is the blood of orcs! Because the fishy and smelly nausea that rushed from his taste buds straight to his head was something he was very familiar with. It was an orc, and he would never admit it wrong!
"We may have to speed up again... There are three orcs chasing Pippin and Merry into this forest! We must save them before they are caught again!"
After looking at the clear footprints and other marks on the ground, Aragorn said anxiously.
Thanks to the special environment of this forest, the traces left by hobbits and orcs when walking here are very obvious. The three of them can ensure that they will not lose them easily!
"Come on, those orcs are here!"
Suddenly, Legolas, who was scouting in front, shouted to the two people behind him, and then Gimli and Aragorn quickly drew their weapons and rushed over.
"..."
"You didn't tell us they were dead!"
Gimli, who originally thought there was a fight, ran to Legolas and saw that it was indeed an orc with his head smashed open, and he couldn't help but muttered to him in annoyance.
"But I didn't say they were alive?"
After being complained about, Legolas could only reply with a dumbfounded reply.
"This... was its head smashed with some blunt instrument? Its broken skull was deeply pierced into its brain... This shows that the attacker was very strong. It should not be Pippin and Melina Two hobbits did it, they didn't have the strength!"
After squatting down and using a branch to slightly pull the head of the orc whose brain had been smashed, Aragorn quickly came to his own conclusion.
"We have to be careful. Besides hobbits and orcs, there should be other people here..."
After slowly standing up, Aragorn put his hand on the sword at his waist. He was ready to fight at any time.
"Oh! Come and see! Here, there is a burnt... Orc?!"
At this time, Jin Li, who had a loud voice, suddenly discovered a thin figure leaning against the tree trunk. The other person's body was curled up and twisted, and it was almost burned to a ball of coke.
However, he could barely recognize it from the outline of the other person's head. This was undoubtedly a half-orc!
"..."
Seeing this situation, Aragorn and Legolas looked at each other and gasped!
Because they know that there is nothing more than magic to burn a half-orc alive like this! Then, thinking about the half-orc whose head was smashed before, it is not difficult to deduce: the other party should be a wizard? !
However, what they don't know is, who is this wizard?
"Oh...guys, you better come see this again!"
At this time, Jinli, who went around to the other side of the big tree to check, screamed again.
Because, he made a new discovery: In a large pit that was like a sunken footprint, there was a flat orc corpse that had been stepped on and deformed? The opponent's body sank deeply into the earth, his head and torso were stepped on and exploded, and the black blood directly stained a large area of moss...
What kind of existence is this that can step into such a big pit?
Moreover, the footprint alone is so big, so how big should its body be? What kind of existence is there in this ancient Fangorn Forest?
"..."
"These footprints are very strange... I have never seen a creature with such footprints..."
After pondering for a while, Aragorn still shook his head. Even though he was an old ranger with decades of experience, he still couldn't tell what race or those who could leave such huge footprints. biology?
"Whatever it is, I suppose we'd better pray right away that we don't touch it?"
Gimli hates meeting those large monsters the most! For example, the troll they encountered in the mines of Moria almost wiped out their group! And the monster that left this footprint seems to be much bigger than those terrifying trolls?
"This forest is old... they are full of memories, and anger..."
"The ancient trees are talking to each other..."
At this time, Legolas began to listen attentively. After a while, he quickly heard some important information from the abnormal noises of the trees swinging.
"These ancient trees, they are saying... the white-robed wizard is coming?!"
After saying that, Legolas quickly winked at his two companions, telling them to be careful.
"..."
When Gimli and Aragorn heard this, they paused and quickly became alert on the spot. Then, at this time, they both felt the footsteps of someone approaching behind them? !
A wizard who can set off fireballs to burn orcs, plus what Legolas heard just now, it seems that the white-robed wizard they talked about in the previous conversation between the ancient trees must be Are you referring to the white-robed wizard Saruman?
Therefore, when Gimli secretly grasped the small ax at his waist, Aragorn slowly put his hand on his side. There, there was his short sword that could be used as a flying knife.
"Seal his mouth as soon as possible and don't let him recite the curse!"
Then, Aragorn whispered to the two companions beside him who were also tense.
Now, he finally knew why there was a half-orc that was burned to char. It turned out that the white-robed wizard Saruman appeared here in Fangorn Forest?
If you think about it carefully, the only one who can appear here at this time is Saruman!
After all, Essinger is right next to Fangorn Forest, and isn't it normal for an evil wizard who lives forever and moves around in strange ways to visit Fangorn Forest when he has nothing to do?
However, Merry and Pippin, the two unlucky hobbits who had just escaped from the clutches of the orcs, seemed to have been captured by the other party again? Then, the three of them also directly bumped into each other's hands?
"Remember, move quickly..."
After finishing speaking, Aragorn took a deep breath. After realizing that his companion was also ready, he suddenly turned around and waved his hand vigorously. With a "choking" sound, he didn't even need to look, and let go The dagger shot directly towards the direction of the enemy he sensed!
At the same time, the dwarf Jinli also roared and threw the shorthand ax he carried directly towards the figure in white clothes with all his strength!
At this time, Legolas was not far behind. One of his sharpest long arrows also made a sharp sound of breaking through the air, and then shot straight towards the opponent's head...
At this time, they turned around and could see clearly that the opponent's figure reflected by the light magic probably looked like white clothes and a white cane. That must be Saruman, so it would be impossible to kill him. wrong!
Bang!
It's a pity that the hand ax thrown by Jinli with all his strength seemed to hit something like a shield, and it was shattered and bounced away on the spot! And Aragorn's dagger was knocked aside by the opponent with a light stick? As for the long arrow that Legolas shot towards the opponent's head, it was hit by unknown magic, and then shattered into a ball of powder in the air, no longer posing the slightest threat...
And when Aragorn was about to rush forward and kill someone directly with his long sword, his weapon suddenly became red and hot, which forced him to abandon his beloved weapon.
It’s over, it’s over…
Aragorn sighed in his heart. All the attacks that the three of him broke out in an instant were all broken by the other party. Then, he probably knew that in the face of such a powerful existence, the three of them must be There won't be any chance again!
"Ha! What a pity. This old man Gandalf was obviously injured, but you couldn't kill him? It's really useless!"
Suddenly, a little girl's voice came from above the heads of the three people.
"The bearded dwarf, your hand ax should be thrown directly at his lower body, because his shield is hemispherical and only protects his upper body!"
"As for the elf pretty boy, you should have shot three times in a row just now. In that case, the old man Gandalf would definitely have been hit by two arrows, because his protective arrows were too poorly used, and he could only shoot every time. Protect yourself from an arrow!"
When the three Aragons used their hands to cover each other because of the white light dazzling them, the little girl's voice that seemed very familiar to them continued to talk to herself.
"Uh...is it Lady Anne?"
Hearing the familiar little girl's voice, Aragorn said in surprise on the spot.
He was very familiar with that little witch named Annie! After all, when they were in Rivendell, that naughty little guy caused a lot of trouble for himself?
"Okay, old Gandalf, you better stop pretending, your light spell is so dazzling!"
Anne didn't care about the three gay friends below at all. She didn't answer Aragorn's words, but just snorted dissatisfiedly at Gandalf, who was like a human-shaped light bulb.
"Is he Gandalf? Not Saruman? How is this possible?!"
After looking up and seeing a little girl sitting cross-legged on a high branch of a tree, cracking nuts and eating them, the three of Aragorn looked in front of them in surprise, looking at the white-robed man who had just been attacked by them. figure.
How could it be Gandalf? Didn't Gandalf fall into the abyss with the Balrog in order to cover their retreat in the mines of Moria? !
"Ahem...Okay, I said Annie, can't you just keep quiet? I just want to give them a surprise..."
Shaking his head, Gandalf no longer had any hope in the little girl's character.
He felt that this little girl must be a little girl who was spoiled by her family. Her eccentric personality was completely different from other little girls in Middle-earth!
"Also, Annie, do you really hope that something will happen to me? Are you going to help the three of them?!"
Gandalf, whose identity was revealed twice, could only sigh and slowly dissipated the light spell on his body, allowing the shocked Aragorns and the three of them to clearly see his appearance.
Originally, he wanted to play with these three old friends slowly, so that their expressions could be richer?
"That's for sure. Think about it: if you accidentally go too far and are beaten to death by one of your own people, wouldn't that be super fun?!"
