It's night, and many people have fallen into a contented sleep. But in an open-air garden in Rivendell, there are still people worried about the future of Middle-earth.
The great wise man called Gandalf by northern humans, Mithrandir by elves, and Shakun among dwarves stood in the starlight, silently looking down at the lower levels. A certain figure in the garden escaped into the shadows, with a pair of wise black eyes shining with a certain light.
"Lord Turka." Elrond said to the silver-white king sitting on the large carved oak chair in the center of the garden: "We have all seen the power of that ring. It cannot stay here. The elves cannot fight it. of evil power."
Turka held his cheek with his left fist and placed his right hand on the armrest. Starlight flickered between his majestic golden vertical pupils, and the light of the elf crown on his forehead was incomparable.
He was thinking and pondering, but he didn't say a word.
Then the wizard turned back and said, "You already knew about the existence of the Supreme Ring and made arrangements for it. Now, that time has come. I hope your plan can go as smoothly as you wish."
Between the lines, the wizard's hope for the silver-white king is revealed.
So Turka spoke, his voice as majestic and gentle as ever, and both the wizard and Elrond couldn't help but listen seriously: "If I have any plans, it is also the arrangement of fate."
"Bilbo found it. He is the destined ring bearer. I know its power, but I can't destroy it. And at that time, it did play a certain role." The Silver King gave Elrond and Gandalf He talked about the adventure many years ago and how he arranged for the hobbits to use the ring to escape from Thranduil's palace. Then how did Bilbo use the ring to find the heart of the mountain from under Smaug's nose, which opened the prelude to the Battle of the Five Armies that was praised by the world.
He said: "Then Manwë's warning made me suspicious that our hidden enemy might be back with a face we didn't know existed. The time has not yet come to destroy the ring, a voice said to me."
Elrond and Gandalf were both wise men who knew the origin of this great king, and they immediately said, "That must be the holy Ilúvatar."
Hearing that holy name, Turka's starry eyes flashed and he did not deny it. He fell into some kind of thought.
"Maybe."
After a long time, he woke up from his meditation and said: "But from then on, I knew that destroying the ring was not my destiny. I arranged it as properly as possible. In Bilbo's hands, the ring is safe, and Sauron may The presence of the ring was sensed, but he could not invade the body and mind of this brave and loyal hobbit."
Turka couldn't help but think of the person who was so small in stature but had the toughest mind among all the people he had seen.
Or one of them.
"He's one of the most incredible warriors I've ever seen," he said.
"The Hobbits are indeed the most suitable candidates to hold the One Ring." Gandalf nodded, agreeing with the Silver King's evaluation of the Hobbits, but at the same time he also said: "But they cannot keep it for a long time. The power of that ring and Sauron cannot be resisted by anyone, not even the wise.”
"So, we have only one choice. That is to destroy it!" Elrond said: "Maybe fate has foretold it, but I can't help but say: The time has come!"
He followed Gandalf's example and walked into the starlight, looking down at the person in the shadow of the garden below, with a hint of relief in his gray eyes. He said: "Humanity in the south has fallen, but hope is not lost. The shadow has occupied Minas Tirith for too long, and it is time for the true blood of the kings to return to the white city."
"This is what I want to say." The wizard looked worried and uneasy: "I have long suspected the origin of the Prime Minister of Gondor, but he has always been hidden in the towering and deep seven-story stone city, and does not show his true face. He is just using it. His will and his evil minions influence and rule Gondor. I have always suspected that the death of Turgon II was a conspiracy and a tragedy!"
He sighed longly and said: "But Gondor rejected the wizard's friendship, and no wizard has walked on that land for many years."
As he spoke, the wizard recited a short poem with a strong prophetic meaning:
The thrones of the kings turned from light to darkness, and the man who killed his father ascended the throne and became king!
On the throne, the old heroes become the new prisoners of the Nine Rings;
His son followed in his footsteps;
But the descendants of the Hulin family still have hope:
Northern glen, home of elves,
The broken sword is reforged, the king returns,
The dragon roars again and the curse is gone.
The king rests on his throne and the prime minister returns to his throne;
The Holy White City will shine through the ages!
"This is a ballad spread among humans in the south." The wizard said: "It is said that it was first spread from the Holy White City! The glory of the Númenóreans has not ended, and people still miss the light in the darkness. Boromir and Farah Mir's arrival confirms this. They will bring the truth about the old stories, I have a feeling."
"Indeed," said Elrond.
But Turka heard the wizard's dissatisfaction and criticism of him inside. He believed that it was the indifference and inaction of the King of the North that caused mankind to suffer this catastrophe - you clearly have the ability to end the chaos in the human world.
Meanwhile, there was silence in the garden.
Turka Aracano was silent for a long time, and then said: "Everyone should bear the consequences of their choices. You, me, elves, humans, and dwarves are all the same. Haven't I contributed enough to this world? Didn’t I pay the price for it? How can you expect that every disaster and misfortune in this world, big or small, will be solved by me?"
At that time, the wizard and Elrond both bowed deeply, and they said: "We dare not question your sorrow, we all know your greatness, but fate has chosen you, my lord!"
That night, the Silver King sat quietly in the garden, thinking for a long time.
in the mean time.
In the courtyard below, Boromir emerged from the corner. He stared at the exquisite, lifelike wall carvings of the elves, which depicted the story of Isildur holding the holy sword of Nasil against the Dark Lord - the elves did not draw the Lord of the Rings on it.
Then Boromir walked to a statue and stared deeply at the remains of the holy sword contained in the tray above.
"It was this sword that cut off Sauron's finger." He picked up the hilt of the sword, and the sword emitted a faint light in the cold moonlight. "Anar and Isil." He said two words that seemed meaningless to ordinary people, but Aragorn, who was a descendant of Númenóreans, knew that they meant the sun and the moon.
In legend, the Holy Sword of Nasil is described as emitting the light of the sun and moon.
"You are not an elf, but you are not an ordinary human either." Boromir waved twice, as if he was looking for the center of gravity of the sword, and as if he was testing Aragorn, who had been sitting in the darkness. "You know the language of my people, but I have never heard of you. Who are you?"
At that time, Aragorn's gray eyes were like two sharp sword lights, staring straight at Boromir of the Hurin family. "You know who I am." said the son of Arathorn, who was no longer young. "Though that name is not my real name. But yes, I am a Dúnedain. I have fought against the darkness, only for the free people. Enslaved: In the jungles of Ithilien and on the banks of the Anduin, there are traces of my struggle. I am Thorongil."
Boromir was silent for a long time.
Then he put down the remains of the Holy Sword of Nasir and bent down to him. It is said that at that moment Boromir seemed to understand Aragorn's identity, but he still had doubts in his heart, so he did not reveal it.
When he turned to leave, Elrond appeared and said to Aragorn: "Aragorn, it is time. The glory of the holy sword of Nasil will bloom again. The people of Gondor need his king."
At that time, Aragorn stood up and said to the elf who had taken care of and raised him: "I only hope that freedom and glory can return to the holy white city of kings. Whether it is a king or not is not what I want."
"But this is your birthright and responsibility." Elrond said: "Lord Turka and Lord Mithrandir recognized this."
Aragorn couldn't help but raise his head and look at a certain garden above his head.
