It was at this time that Boromir received a warning from Aragorn.
"You said Thorongil sent you to warn us that an army of Eastern barbarians and Umbar pirates are heading north to attack Osgiliath?" The crown prince and his brother sat majestically in the commander's tent and asked The messenger who came to deliver the news.
"Yes, Your Highness." The messenger said in a moderate tone: "Our spies went deep into the south and saw a large army of Suutin people (a group of Harads) and those despicable pirates. They were numerous, and With malicious intentions! Vow to destroy the hope of humankind in the west. Osgiliath is the first to bear the brunt! Among them, the black ships of the Umbar pirates will go up the Anduin River, and there is nothing we can do about it! And the war of the Sultin people We will delay the behemoth as long as possible. For the rest, Your Highness, I can only rely on you."
The news was so explosive that the crown prince and his brother couldn't help but whisper to each other.
"...Does fate come true here?"
"...I have doubts, my brother...there are many words we cannot understand, maybe..."
Then they stopped worriedly, and Faramir asked: "As you said, Umbar betrayed Gondor again, so how should we believe you? Thorongil is just a legendary figure, we don't know Did he also betray the royal family?"
The crown prince's brother stared at the messenger extremely sternly, with a serious and majestic expression, and his gray eyes were full of suspicion.
"A wise man will have doubts about the unknown, but it is not wise to choose to ignore a selfless man who has fought for the people for more than ten years." The messenger said: "The blood we have paid is no less than any nobleman in the White City! Even more! Because the first thing the enemy burned was our home!"
The messenger's merciless words made the Boromir brothers a little embarrassed. They just asked to ensure that the intelligence was credible and prepared, and there was no malice.
"Such an important claim must be confirmed, and clear evidence is needed." Boromir said: "After all, the world today is full of dangers. So, please forgive us for our presumption."
The messenger was silent for a moment, sighed and said: "It is true! And there is a lot of betrayal." But then he said: "It's just that we don't have the exact evidence you need, because those who go to attack the enemy cannot guarantee that they will stay." I risk my life to bring you 'evidence'."
With that, the messenger took leave of the crown prince and his brother.
"My mission has been completed. Your Highness, please allow me to leave, because I want to go back to be with my comrades, whether life or death!" This loyal and brave soldier said, and turned and left the camp.
This greatly shocked the crown prince and his brother.
Boromir frowned, his long and strong fingers tightly grasping the armrests of the chair, and said nothing.
Faramir said worriedly: "I can feel that he is not lying. There is a big army, and there are pirates, brother, we can't hold on!"
Osgiliath (Osgiliath) was the old capital of Gondor. It was built on both sides of the Anduin River. In other words, the largest and longest river in Middle-earth runs through this magnificent city built by the ancient Númenóreans.
In its heyday, towers and stone houses stood on the great bridges built by the Númenóreans across the river, and trading ships from the sea also anchored here. The Osgiliath Crystal lies here, the most powerful one in Palantir.
However, due to many wars, this magnificent capital city has long been abandoned. If Umbar's pirates really moved up the river and attacked on land, Gondor would not be able to hold on.
Moreover, the most important thing is that they only have more than 2,000 soldiers stationed here at this time, which is the last army controllable by Gondor or the royal family. If all were lost here, the rule of the Hurin family would be shaken.
Yea, they have not forgotten the One in Minas Tirith.
The disagreements and struggles between Prime Minister Orlandil and the king have become increasingly clear. Denethor II's decrees are almost gone from the royal court. Faramir can't imagine that without this predecessor, the expeditionary force and the royal city will be banned. What will happen to Minas Tirith, the pro-royal army formed by the Guards.
Perhaps this is the prelude to the prophecy?
Boromir knew this deeply and was so hesitant. "Needless to say." The crown prince stood up, with all the hesitation in his eyes, and said resolutely: "This is the last and most important line of defense for Gondor. We must hold it here!"
He listened carefully to the powerful and enthusiastic drill sounds of the soldiers outside the camp, with a trace of nostalgia and relief on his face. "There are countless people behind us, Faramir. We have no choice."
The crown prince's brother stopped talking.
He knew that his brother was worried about the people in the Pelennor Fields after this. They can evacuate, but the people cannot flee with their families like them.
In other words, even if we want to evacuate, we must first resettle the people. This is their responsibility.
Therefore, even if Aragorn's warning is received, the occurrence of battle is almost inevitable.
To the south of Ithilien, Aragorn had done what he could to slow down some of his enemies. But the number of enemies is simply too great. When he reluctantly killed the Suutin people's land beast. The vanguard of these cruel, warlike, tall barbaric enemies with long black hair, white eyes, brown and dark skin, and relatively tall bodies has arrived on the east bank of the Anduin River.
They have a total of 10 thousand troops. And there’s more to come.
Almost all of these ferocious-looking, troll-like enemies carry short bows and arrows and blow needles coated with venom. The weapons on his waist are some weird knives and sticks.
However, thankfully, they had almost no steel armor, and most of them just wore a few pieces of animal skins and bibs. Occasionally, there would be a few leaders wearing iron armor sitting on tall sedans from a distance, beating and scolding the slaves around them.
Therefore, under the orders and horns of the slave owners, these fallen humans from the dark land in the east began to attack the western humans in front of them.
"waaaaagh~~"
They shouted in a strange language that Boromir and the others did not understand, and rushed forward in a swarm with no formation at all.
Under the command of their generals and crown princes, the soldiers of Gondor nervously but resolutely grasped the spears and swords in their hands, waiting for the moment of battle.
"Wait, wait!" Boromir had already put on his armor and helmet. The bright armor and black cloak made him look extremely majestic. He shouted: "Now, let go!"
The adjutant immediately conveyed his order to the concealed archers. The archers hiding behind the abandoned but still standing old city walls immediately stood up and fired deadly arrows at the enemy.
A large number of unarmored enemies immediately fell, which made the soldiers a little excited. But compared to the number of enemies, this seems too small.
And, as Gondor attacks, so does the enemy's counterattack.
They shouted in confusion, and while running, they drew their short bows and fired back at Boromir and the others. In addition, soldiers must pay attention to those poisonous needles coated with poison, because compared to crossbows, these thin needles are easier to pierce the gap between their chain mail and helmets.
And once you are stung by these needles coated with the venom of snakes, scorpions, spiders, and poisonous weeds, you are basically not far from heading to the underworld.
Therefore, even though the soldiers of Gondor had the advantages of armor and terrain, in the end, the battle became tense after the two sides engaged in close combat.
"Hold on! Hold on!" Boromir chopped off the dark head of an enemy with a sword, and shouted: "Believe in your training! Believe in your strength! Our home is behind us, our Our loved ones need our protection! People of Gondor, fight the enemy bravely! Don’t lose the courage and prestige of Western humans! For Gondor!”
The soldiers were greatly encouraged. They put up their shields and gathered in groups of four or five in the narrow abandoned stone path to deal with the enemy, bravely killing one terrible enemy after another.
Or be killed by them.
at the same time.
In the center of Osgiliath, on one side of the river, Faramir also led a part of his army to hide behind the dark tunnels and stone walls, waiting quietly.
Dozens of unknown ships with black sails, black hulls, and black oars silently moved upstream along the shallow and narrow river.
"Umbar's pirate boys have indeed betrayed us." An adjutant said through gritted teeth.
"Silence!" Faramir's armor is dark gray, which is obviously different from his brother who is always bright like an ancient king. Faramir is more low-key, as he always prefers to stand behind his brother. Moreover, although his attainments in weapons were not inferior to others in the slightest, what he was holding at the moment was a long bow as tall as a man.
Everyone immediately closed their mouths and looked nervously at the enemy who was getting closer. Many of them wear gray cloaks, making them nearly invisible.
Finally, the first black boat docked at the bank of the river.
"Lazy bugs, get out of here, the war has begun!" a rude voice shouted. Dozens of pirates, who were about the same size as Gondor humans but had darker skin, immediately jumped off the ship and headed towards the south shore of Osgiliath, cursing.
"It's now!"
Faramir jumped out of the shadows, shot the guy who gave the order to death with one arrow, and shouted: "Don't let them pass!"
Dozens of archers immediately ignited the special arrows in their hands, drew their bowstrings, loosened their hands, and shot at the enemies on the narrow river. And more warriors armed with long swords and sharp spears, led by the previous adjutant, bravely charged towards the enemies on the shore.
The sudden attack made the enemy panic.
A fierce battle broke out between the two sides in the narrow river.
