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The Muster of Rohan

Now all roads were running together to the East toof war and the onset of the Shadow And even as Pippin stood at the Great Gate of the City and saw the Prince of Dol A of Rohan ca In the last rays of the sun the Riders cast long pointed shadows that went on before the fir-woods that clothed the steeprode noly at the end of the day Presently the path turned round a huge bare shoulder of rock and plunged into the gloo winding file When at last they ca had fallen in the deep places The sun was gone Twilight lay upon the waterfalls

All day far below theh pass behind, cleaving its narroay between pine-clad walls; and now through a stony gate it flowed out and passed into a wider vale The Riders followed it, and suddenly Harrowdale lay before the There the white Snowbourn, joined by the lesser strea on the stones, down to Edoras and the green hills and the plains Away to the right at the head of the great dale the hty Starkhorn looged peak, clothed in everlasting snow, gleamed far above the world, blue-shadowed upon the East, red-stained by the sunset in the West

Merry looked out in wonder upon this strange country, of which he had heardroad It was a skyless world, in which his eye, through direat walls of stone behind great walls, and frowning precipices wreathed withto the noise of water, the whisper of dark trees, the crack of stone, and the vast waiting silence that brooded behind all sound He lovedon the edge of stories brought from far away; but noas borne down by the insupportable weight of Middle-earth He longed to shut out the immensity in a quiet rooh they had ridden slowly, they had ridden with very little rest Hour after hour for nearly three weary days he had jogged up and down, over passes, and through long dales, and across many streams So&039;s side, not noticing that ether: the hobbit on his little shaggy grey pony, and the Lord of Rohan on his great white horse Then he had talked to Theoden, telling his of the Shire-folk, or listening in turn to tales of the Mark and its hty men of old But most of the time, especially on this last day, Merry had ridden by hi to understand the slow sonorous speech of Rohan that he heard the e in which there seeh spoken ly than in the Shire, yet he could not piece the words together At ti, and Merry felt his heart leap, though he did not knohat it was about

All the same he had been lonely, and never more so than now at the day&039;s end He wondered where in all this strange world Pippin had got to; and ould becoolas and Giht of Frodo and Sa them!&039; he said to himself reproachfully &039;And yet they are more important than all the rest of us And I came to help them; but now they must be hundreds of miles away, if they are still alive&039; He shivered

&039;Harrowdale at last!&039; said eomer &039;Our journey is almost at an end&039; They halted The paths out of the narrow gorge fell steeply Only a glireat valley in the gloa by the river

&039;This journey is over, o Last night theI shall ride to Edoras to the gathering of the Mark&039;

&039;But if you would take my counsel,&039; said eomer in a low voice, &039;you would then return hither, until the war is over, lost or won&039;

Theoden smiled &039;Nay, my son, for so I will call you, speak not the soft words of Worue in my old ears!&039; He drew hi into the dusk behind &039;Long years in the space of days it seeain If the war is lost, what good will be rief will it be, even if I fall, spending ht I will lie in the Hold of Dunharrow One evening of peace at least is left us Let us ride on!&039;

In the deepening dusk they came down into the valley Here the Snowbourn flowed near to the western walls of the dale, and soon the path led them to a ford where the shalloaters uarded As the king approachedup out of the shadow of the rocks; and when they saw the king they cried with glad voices: &039;Theoden King! Theoden King! The King of the Mark returns!&039;

Then one blew a long call on a horn It echoed in the valley Other horns answered it, and lights shone out across the river

And suddenly there rose a great chorus of tru froathered their notes into one voice and sent it rolling and beating on the walls of stone

So the King of the Mark came back victorious out of the West to Dunharrow beneath the feet of the White Mountains There he found the reth of his people already asse was known captains rode to es from Gandalf Dunhere, chieftain of the folk of Harrowdale, was at their head

&039;At dawn three days ago, lord,&039; he said &039;Shadowfax caht tidings of your victory to gladden our hearts But he brought also word fro of the Riders And then caed Shadow?&039; said Theoden &039;We saw it also, but that was in the dead of night before Gandalf left us&039;

&039;Maybe, lord,&039; said Dunhere &039;Yet the sa darkness in the shape of a , and all men were shaken with fear For it stooped upon Meduseld, and as it caable, there came a cry that stopped our hearts Then it was that Gandalf counselled us not to assemble in the fields, but to meet you here in the valley under the hts or fires than barest need asked So it has been done Gandalf spoke with great authority We trust that it is as you would wish Naught has been seen in Harrowdale of these evil things&039;

&039;It is well,&039; said Theoden &039;I will ride now to the Hold, and there before I go to rest I will meet the marshals and captains Let them come to me as soon as ht across the valley, which was at that point little rass, grey now in the falling night, lay all about, but in front on the far side of the dale Merry saw a frowning wall, a last outlier of the great roots of the Starkhorn, cloven by the river in ages past

On all the level spaces there was great concourse ofand the riders fro away into the distance behind there were ordered rows of tents and booths, and lines of picketed horses, and great store of ar like thickets of new-planted trees Now all the great asseht-chill blew cold frolowed, no fires were lit Watchmen heavily cloaked paced to and fro

Merry wondered how uess their nureat ar fro cliff on the eastern side of the valley; and there suddenly the path began to climb, and Merry looked up in amazement He was on a road the like of which he had never seen before, a great work ofUpwards it wound, coiling like a snake, boring its way across the sheer slope of rock Steep as a stair, it looped backwards and forwards as it climbed Up it horses could walk, and wains could be slowly hauled; but no enemy could come that way, except out of the air, if it was defended fro stones that had been carved in the likeness of ed with their stu of the years had lost all features save the dark holes of their eyes that still stared sadly at the passers-by The Riders hardly glanced at them The Pukel-men they called them, and heeded theazed at the almost of pity, as they loomed up mournfully in the dusk

After a while he looked back and found that he had already climbed some hundreds of feet above the valley, but still far below he could di along the road towards the ca up into the Hold

At last the king&039;s co road passed into a cutting betalls of rock, and so went up a short slope and out on to a wide upland The Firienfeld h above the deep-delved courses of the Snowbourn, laid upon the lap of the great mountains behind: the Starkhorn southwards, and northwards the saw-toothed ri out of steep slopes of so the upland into two therestones that dwindled into the dusk and vanished in the trees Those who dared to follow that road ca, and theshadow of the forbidden door

Such was the dark Dunharrow, the work of long-forgotten end remembered it For what purpose they had s, none could say Here they laboured in the Dark Years, before ever a ship came to the western shores, or Gondor of the Dunedain was built; and now they had vanished, and only the old Pukel-s of the road

Merry stared at the lines of , some were fallen, sory teeth He wondered what they could be, and he hoped that the king was not going to follow them into the darkness beyond Then he saw that there were clusters of tents and booths on either side of the stony way; but these were not set near the trees, and seemed rather to huddle away froreater nuht, where the Firienfeld ider; and on the left there was a smaller camp, in the midst of which stood a tall pavilion From this side a rider now came out to meet them, and they turned from the road

As they drew near Merry saw that the rider was a woht, yet she wore a helirded with a sword

&039;Hail, Lord of the Mark!&039; she cried &039;My heart is glad at your returning&039;

&039;And you, eowyn,&039; said Theoden, &039;is all ith you?&039;

&039;All is well,&039; she answered; yet it seemed to Merry that her voice belied her, and he would have thought that she had been weeping, if that could be believed of one so stern of face &039;All is well It was a weary road for the people to take, torn suddenly fro since war has driven us froreen fields; but there have been no evil deeds All is now ordered, as you see And your lodging is prepared for you; for I have had full tidings of you and knew the hour of your coorn has come then,&039; said eomer &039;Is he still here?&039;

&039;No, he is gone,&039; said eowyn turning away and looking at the ainst the East and South

&039;Whither did he go?&039; asked eomer

&039;I do not know,&039; she answered &039;He caht, and rode away yesterone&039;

&039;You are grieved, daughter,&039; said Theoden &039;What has happened? Tellthe darkening lines of stones towards the Dwi &039;Of the Paths of the Dead?&039;

&039;Yes, lord,&039; said eowyn &039;And he has passed into the shadows froone&039;

&039;Then our paths are sundered,&039; said eomer &039;He is lost We must ride without him, and our hope dwindles&039;

Slowly they passed through the short heath and upland grass, speaking no &039;s pavilion There Merry found that everything was otten A little tent had been pitched for hi; and there he sat alone, whilecounsel with hiht came on, and the half-seen heads of the mountains ere croith stars, but the East was dark and blank The ht, but still beyond the shadow of the Dwi

&039;The Paths of the Dead,&039; he muttered to himself &039;The Paths of the Dead? What does all this one to some doom: Gandalf and Pippin to war in the East; and Saolas and Gih, I suppose I wonder what they are all talking about, and what the king oes now&039;

In the hts he suddenly reo and see if anyone else in this strange camp felt the same But at that veryhi&039;s board

In the inner part of the pavilion was a ss, and streith skins: and there at a small table sat Theoden with eomer and eowyn, and Dunhere, lord of Harrowdale Merry stood beside the king&039;s stool and waited on hiht, turned to him and smiled

&039;Come, Master Meriadoc!&039; he said &039;You shall not stand You shall sit beside hten my heart with tales&039;

Roo&039;s left hand, but no one called for any tale There was indeed little speech, and they ate and drank for the e, Merry asked the question that was tor him

&039;Twice now, lord, I have heard of the Paths of the Dead,&039; he said &039;What are they? And where has Strider, I one?&039;

The king sighed, but no one answered, until at last eomer spoke &039;We do not know, and our hearts are heavy,&039; he said &039;But as for the Paths of the Dead, you have yourself walked on their first steps Nay, I speak no words of ill omen! The road that we have climbed is the approach to the Door, yonder in the Dimholt But what lies beyond no man knows&039;

&039;No end, now seldom spoken, has somewhat to report If these old tales speak true that have come down from father to son in the House of Eorl, then the Door under Dwioes beneath the otten end But none have ever ventured in to search its secrets, since Baldor, son of Brego, passed the Door and was never seen aain A rash vow he spoke, as he drained the horn at that feast which Brego made to hallo-built Meduseld, and he cah seat of which he was the heir

&039;Folk say that Dead Men out of the Dark Years guard the way and will suffer no living man to come to their hidden halls; but at whiles theyout of the door like shadows and down the stony road Then the people of Harrowdale shut fast their doors and shroud their s and are afraid But the Dead co death&039;

&039;Yet it is said in Harrowdale,&039; said eowyn in a low voice &039;that in the e array passed by Whence they came none knew, but they went up the stony road and vanished into the hill, as if they went to keep a tryst&039;

&039;Then why has Aragorn gone that way?&039; asked Merry &039;Don&039;t you know anything that would explain it?&039;

&039;Unless he has spoken words to you as his friend that we have not heard,&039; said eo can tell his purpose&039;

&039;Greatly changed he see&039;s house,&039; said eowyn, &039;griht him, and like one whom the Dead call&039;

&039;Maybe he was called,&039; said Theoden, &039;and ain Yet he is a kingly hter, since couest It is said that when the Eorlingas cath up the Snowbourn, seeking strong places of refuge in tio and his son Baldor climbed the Stair of the Hold and so caed beyond guess of years; tall and kingly he had been, but noithered as an old stone Indeed for stone they took hiht to pass him by and enter And then a voice caround, and to their aue: The way is shut

&039;Then they halted and looked at him and saw that he lived still; but he did not look at theain, It was made by those who are Dead, and the Dead keep it, until the time comes The way is shut

&039;And ill that tiet For the old man died in that hour and fell upon his face; and no other tidings of the ancient dwellers in the mountains have our folk ever learned Yet orn may pass&039;

&039;But how shall athe Door?&039; said eoh all the hosts of Mordor stood before e Alas that a fey reathearted in this hour of need! Are there not evil things enough abroad without seeking them under the earth? War is at hand&039;

He paused, for at thatthe nauard

Presently the captain of the Guard thrust aside the curtain &039;A man is here, lord,&039; he said, &039;an errand-rider of Gondor He wishes to come before you at once&039;

&039;Let him come!&039; said Theoden

A tall man entered, and Merry choked back a cry; for a ain and had returned Then he saw that it was not so; the h as like to Bororey-eyed and proud He was clad as a rider with a cloak of dark green over a coat of fine ht a sle arrow, black-feathered and barbed with steel, but the point was painted red

He sank on one knee and presented the arrow to Theoden &039;Hail Lord of the Rohirrion I a you this token of war Gondor is in great need Often the Rohirrim have aided us, but now the Lord Denethor asks for all your strength and all your speed; lest Gondor fall at last&039;

&039;The Red Arrow!&039; said Theoden, holding it, as one who receives a su expected and yet dreadful when it comes His hand trembled &039;The Red Arrow has not been seen in the Mark in all my years! Has it indeed come to that? And what does the Lord Denethor reckon that all th and all my speed may be?&039;

&039;That is best known to yourself, lord,&039; said Hirgon &039;But ere long it may well come to pass that Minas Tirith is surrounded, and unless you have the strength to break a siege of es that the strong arms of the Rohirrim would be better within his walls than without&039;

&039;But he knows that we are a people who fight rather upon horseback and in the open, and that we are also a scattered people and ti of our Riders Is it not true, Hirgon, that the Lord of Minas Tirith knows e? For we are already at war, as you may have seen, and you do not find us all unprepared Gandalf the Grey has been a for battle in the East&039;

&039;What the Lord Denethor s I cannot say,&039; answered Hirgon &039;But indeed our case is desperate My lord does not issue any cos you only to re spoken, and for your own good to do all that you s have ridden in from the East to the service of Mordor Froorlad there is skir, and fear has fallen on all our coastlands, so that little help will come to us thence Make haste! For it is before the walls of Minas Tirith that the doom of our time will be decided, and if the tide be not stemmed there, then it will flow over all the fair fields of Rohan, and even in this Hold ae&039;

&039;Dark tidings,&039; said Theoden, &039;yet not all unguessed But say to Denethor that even if Rohan itself felt no peril, still ould come to his aid But we have suffered much loss in our battles with Saruman the traitor, and we must still think of our frontier to the north and east, as his own tidings reat a power as the Dark Lord seeht well contain us in battle before the City and yet strike with great force across the River away beyond the Gate of Kings