#348 - Coercion
“Ringwraith!”
The two people inside the tower spoke the name of the uninvited guest in unison. Saruman frowned and immediately returned the staff he had just snatched from Gandalf.
Gandalf quickly grabbed the staff and struggled to stand up.
Hiss——
The ferocious flying beast roared, carrying a Ringwraith towards the tower.
“Get out!”
Saruman raised his staff and banished it.
However, there was more than one Ringwraith.
The other eight were not just watching; they swooped down together, trying to break through Saruman's strong defense.
“And then there's me.”
Just when Saruman couldn't hold on any longer, Gandalf stepped forward, placing one hand on his shoulder, bearing immense pressure for him.
Saruman was stunned.
Never had he felt that this annoying, pedantic Gandalf was so pleasing to the eye.
“You filthy creatures, today I'll let you know whose territory this is!”
Saruman angrily cursed at the Ringwraiths in mid-air.
Rumble!
Thunder rumbled in mid-air, causing people's ears to buzz incessantly. A ghastly green lightning bolt struck the tower terrace before the sound, blasting Saruman and Gandalf together, leaving them charred and collapsed on the ground.
Pfft——
Gandalf opened his mouth and spat out a puff of black smoke.
He missed being a guest at Rivendell. Rivendell was so much better, safe and harmonious, feeling comfortable everywhere.
And then there's Isengard.
He had never suffered so much in his life as he had today.
Compared to Gandalf, Saruman's condition was obviously much better. He stood up, leaning on his staff, and said:
“You see, what did I tell you? Sauron's spiritual power has almost fully recovered. Now even his lackeys have such great power.”
“If you hadn't insisted on holding me back, wasting my power for nothing, how could I have ended up in such a state?”
“If you had told me about the ring earlier, and the ring had fallen into my hands, the Ringwraiths outside would be kneeling down and calling me master, instead of…”
Before Saruman could finish speaking, the leader of the Ringwraiths, the Lord of Morgul, the (former) Witch-king of Angmar, couldn't wait to laugh:
“Hahahaha—two crippled wizards, how dare you try to contend with us?”
“Instead of being there mocking us wantonly.”
Saruman gritted his teeth, glaring at those annoying Ringwraiths.
Gandalf could see that this guy's condition was no better than his own.
He was holding on.
If he were to poke him in the back with his staff now, he would definitely fall to the ground immediately.
“Say whatever you want, the two of us have no chance anymore.”
Gandalf lay on the ground, accepting his impending fate.
“But I'm not worried at all, neither about our mission, nor about the debt between Sauron and the Ringwraiths.”
He took a breath and continued, “Because I know that someone will avenge us, someone will protect this land.”
“In that case, what does it matter even if we die?”
The sooner he died, the sooner he could return, saving him trouble.
Gandalf sighed, took the pipe from his staff, and then remembered that it had just been broken by Saruman.
So he sighed again, his voice full of regret.
Saruman still stared at the Ringwraiths, just listening quietly.
Suddenly, those cold eyes, always filled with meanness and a mad pursuit of power, calmed down slightly for a moment.
When the Ringwraiths made another move, he suddenly said:
“When did Gandalf the Grey, who has always been known for bringing hope to people, start saying such discouraging words?”
Thump!
The Ringwraiths' charge was ineffective. They once again crashed into some kind of defense mechanism of the tower, failing to break through.
Saruman's breath caught. After a moment, he suddenly turned around, grabbed Gandalf's robe, and laboriously dragged him to the edge of the terrace.
“What are you doing, Saruman?”
“Letting you get out of my sight.”
“What?”
Bang!
Saruman suddenly raised his staff and, like hitting a golf ball, slammed it hard into Gandalf's waist, knocking him off the tower.
“Aaaaaah—!!!”
Gandalf shouted in fear, falling all the way down.
As he fell, suddenly, a vast power like a star held him up. This power was hard to say whether it was light or dark. It carried a hint of violence that could be vaguely felt, dragging Gandalf far away, leaving Isengard at an extremely fast speed.
Until the Gap of Rohan.
Thud.
Having done all this, Saruman finally couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to the ground.
The defense measures of the Tower of Orthanc completely failed. The figures of the Ringwraiths disappeared from the ferocious beasts. An extremely evil gust of wind swept into the top of the tower, extinguishing all light sources.
Nine dark figures emerged from the darkness. They drew their long swords and surrounded the white-robed wizard in the middle.
Saruman turned his neck stiffly, looking left and right, truly feeling a sense of despair.
Actually, sometimes, it's nice to have an uninvited annoying guy.
But miracles don't always happen.
“Come with us, wizard, the master invites you.”
The Ringwraiths placed their swords on Saruman's neck.
There was no escape.
Saruman closed his eyes, using the cover of his robe to take off the Ring of Stars from his hand and quietly drop it on the ground, without making any sound or attracting the attention of any of the Ringwraiths.
They left.
…
“You look like a beggar.”
In a fortress in western Rohan, Théoden, who happened to be passing by, couldn't help but say this when he saw Gandalf, whose face was blackened and extremely embarrassed.
And Gandalf, at this moment, didn't have the slightest bit of energy to argue with him.
“The situation is very serious, Théoden. Isengard has been captured by the Ringwraiths, Saruman's life and death are unknown, there are a large number of Orcs that are taller and stronger than ordinary Orcs, their allegiance is still unclear, and we must focus on defense.”
Théoden frowned and said:
“Those Ringwraiths, they flew over Rohan unscrupulously, and the cries of the ferocious beasts under their crotches caused considerable panic among the people.”
“I was chasing after them, but I didn't expect that this was what happened.”
“That is indeed very serious.”
Théoden waved his hand and called the marshal behind him to begin ordering the警戒事宜事 of Isengard.
After speaking, he pointed to Gandalf and ordered, “Prepare a comfortable resting place for our wizard, he looks very tired.”
“No need.”
Gandalf shook his head and refused.
“If you really want to provide me with help, then please provide me with a fast horse, I have to go find Li Wei.”
“Alright.”
Théoden nodded and said, “You can choose any horse here, just ride away with whichever one you like, I believe you will take good care of it.”
“Thank you.”
Without further politeness, Gandalf immediately turned around and left, heading straight for the horse trough.
Among the many free and unowned horses, he immediately took a fancy to an extraordinary, unruly gray horse.
At first glance, this horse's fur was gray, but in places where the sun could shine, it shone like silver, and in the shadows, it was like shadows.
“What is its name?”
The groom next to him answered Gandalf's question:
“Shadowfax.”
“To be honest with you, this is the best horse in Rohan, the best of steeds, the king of horses, and also the contemporary king of all horses.”
“But I have to remind you that although it runs very fast, even faster than the horses in Rivendell, its temperament is quite fierce, and no one has ever been able to ride it.”
“As I said just now, a king will not easily lower his head.”
“It doesn't matter, I'll take it.”
As Gandalf spoke, he tried to mount the horse.
Then he was kicked and got an injury on his face.
“Good, very good, its temperament is indeed fierce enough, but this can't stump me.”
You, the king of all horses, have a temper, doesn't the old wizard have a temper?
Speaking of Shadowfax, this king of all horses is not called for nothing. It only took four days to carry Gandalf from Rohan to Rivendell.
However, when Gandalf arrived at Rivendell, it was actually a week later.
The extra three days were the time he and Shadowfax played games. This best horse in Rohan was indeed difficult to tame. The poor old Gandalf fell and ran again, chasing Shadowfax on the prairie for three whole days before taming it and successfully sitting on its back.
However…
Rivendell, Shadowfax was panting, not caring about Little Pink's gaze above his head, eating grass and drinking water in the pool.
And at the castle gate, looking at Gandalf, whose face was blackened, his robe was torn in pieces, and he had many fall injuries, Li Wei couldn't help but say:
“Were you caught and taken to Mordor to dig coal?”
