Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter after a very long pause. I apologize for that.

Let's get to it.

Chapter 22- Call For Help

Jakan looks out over Minas Tirith and the surrounding fields from his position on a balcony on the outside of the Citadel. The height gives him view of a great swathe of land, though it's hard to make out some of the features of city;s surroundings at nighttime, despite the full moon.

It's been less than a day since their arrival in Gondor. Following the meeting with Denethor, they had made their way to their quarters, escorted by some guards showing them the way. Boromir had not come with them, as he was still with his father. He had come to see them after he got out of his meeting with his father. He gave them a summary of their meeting before he had to leave to discuss matters with the other army officers in Minas Tirith.

Needless to say, Boromir's private meeting his father had not gone terribly well. He had been very angry that Boromir had not brought back the Ring. Boromir had managed to keep Denethor unaware by telling him that the ringbearer had gone off on his own, and he had no idea of the Ring's current location. Denethor had been furious with Boromir and ordered him to leave his presence.

They hadn't seen Boromir since he left to speak with his officers, but he had promised to come see them first thing in the morning. He also said that when he came back to see them again, he wanted to speak with Jakan and Mirta about working with his soldiers.

Now, night has fallen. Jakan and Mirta are dressed in clothing given to them by servants in the Citadel so that they could take some time not wearing their armor. They are now standing with Gandalf and Pippin on the balcony.

Jakan and Gandalf have been speaking in regards to the Beacons of Gondor. Despite the meeting with Denethor and the Steward's insistence otherwise, it's clear that the Beacons will have to be lit. Gondor's survival depends on it. However, they are of differing opinions on how to do so. Jakan is more in favor of waiting to allow Boromir the chance to convince his father to light them. However, Gandalf believes that they must be lit immediately in order to hopefully bring Rohan to Gondor's aid as soon as possible.

"If we trust in Boromir, it will bring about a far better outcome than if we try to light them ourselves," Jakan argues.

"And if we trust only in Boromir, all of Middle Earth could come to regret that we took so long to act," Gandalf says.

Jakan sighs, knowing Gandalf does have a point. He walks up to the edge of the balcony and leans against it.

Pippin looks out over the fields surrounding Minas Tirith. After a few moments, he says, "I don't want to be in a battle. But waiting on the edge of one I can't escape is even worse." He then looks over his shoulder at Gandalf and asks, "Is there any hope, Gandalf, for Frodo and Sam?"

Gandalf leans up against the edge of the balcony himself and replies, "There never was much hope. Just a fool's hope."

He briefly looks down at Pippin with a small smile before looking back out in the direction of Mordor, his face growing grim again as he watches the light from the eruptions of Mount Doom, which seems brighter than ever.

"Our enemy is ready. His full strength's gathered. Not only orcs, but men as well. Legions of Haradrim from the south. Mercenaries from the coast. All will answer Mordor's call," Gandalf declares. He pauses for a moment, then says, "This will be the end of Gondor as we know it. Here the hammer stroke will fall hardest. If the river is taken, if the garrison at Osgiliath falls, the last defense of this city will be gone."

"But we have the White Wizard and two Mandalorians. That's got to count for something," Pippin says with optimism.

Jakan and Mirta smile a bit at Pippin's optimism. Then, they see the look on Gandalf's face, and their smiles fade away. Pippin also notices that Gandalf doesn't appear moved by his optimism, and asks, "Gandalf?"

Gandalf sighs slightly as he stares out towards Mordor. After several moments he says, "Sauron has yet to reveal his deadliest servant. The one who will lead Mordor's armies in war. The one they say no living man can kill. The Witch-King of Angmar." He then looks at Pippin and says, "You've met him before. He stabbed Frodo on Weathertop."

Pippin looks shocked and nervous for a moment as he recalls the memory. In the meantime, Mirta asks, "Who is he, Gandalf?"

Gandalf turns to Mirta and says, "He is the Lord of the Nazgul. The Greatest of the Nine. Minas Morgul is his lair."

As Gandalf explains this to Mirta, Jakan is musing on what they've just been told, and thinking back to when he and the others confronted Saruman in Isengard. He remembers Saruman telling him that he would die at the hands of Sauron's greatest servant. He also remembers Sauron himself repeating those same words during the incident with the palantir. Is this what they meant? That they believed he would fight and die at the hands of the Witch-King?

Suddenly, there's a flash of light in the distance, and a moment later, from between some of the mountains surrounding Mordor, a massive pillar of green energy suddenly shoots up into the sky.

Jakan instantly fixes his attention on the pillar of energy. He then asks Gandalf, "Is that from Minas Morgul?"

"Yes, that is where it lies," Gandalf says.

Jakan watches as the energy continues to shoot up into the sky. As he does, he recognizes that this is a signal. A signal from Minas Morgul to Mordor. Letting them know they are ready for war.

(The next day)

Jakan slowly walks along the Othram, the large outer defensive wall of Minas Tirith, watching Gondorian soldiers along the wall. Not long ago, Gandalf's argument had won out, and he had sent Pippin to light the beacons. Boromir had apparently attempted again this morning to convince his father to light them, but Denethor had still refused. Due to that, Gandalf decided that it was time to light the Beacons, whether they had Denethor's approval or not. The signal is now on its way to Rohan. Hopefully, reinforcements will come to Minas Tirith soon.

As Jakan looks out across the Fields of Pelennor that stretch out around Minas Tirith, he looks towards the ruined city of Osgiliath. As he stares at the city, something makes him take a closer look. As he looks closer, he can see a lot more fires and smoke in the city than he remembered yesterday. A second later, he also realizes that three creatures that look almost like dragons are circling over the city.

Jakan's eyes narrow. He remembers Gandalf talking about these beasts, and knows what is riding them. "Nazgul," he mutters under his breath.

He hears running footsteps, and turns his head to see Mirta running up beside him. "What are those flying things?" she asks.

"I don't know exactly. I think Gandalf called them fell beasts. In any case, it's not the beasts but their riders we really have to worry about," Jakan says. Mirta immediately understands that he is referring to the Nazgul.

Right then, the two mandalorians see more movement, and taking a closer look, see at least 200 horses riding out of Osgiliath, as well as a handful of men trying to escape on foot. However, they hardly get any distance before the three fell beasts begin swooping down on the Gondorians, snatching up horses with their talons and flying up before dropping them and killing them.

Jakan and Mirta look at each other in horror. Then, they firm their faces and nod, both knowing the plan despite not sharing a word. The two slide their helmets onto their heads before turning back in the direction of Osgiliath. As they do, Jakan can see Gandalf starting to ride out of the Great Gate.

Jakan and Mirta activate their jetpacks and take to the air. They hear several Gondorians cry out in shock, but they stay laser focused on the three fell beasts. They watch the displays on their helmets counting down the distance between them and the fell beasts. Finally, as they get close enough, Jakan calls out over their comms, "Now!"

He and Mirta both press buttons on their vambraces and bow their heads to clear the way. A moment later, both of them launch the rockets located in their jetpacks. The Mandalorian ship had brought a small surplus of rockets, and Jakan and Mirta had each brought a spare rocket to Minas Tirith in addition to the ones already in their jetpacks. While they had wanted to save them for emergencies, both think this definitely qualifies.

The rockets streak away from the two Mandalorians, heading straight for the fell beasts. Each rocket targets a beast and homes in for the kill. After just seconds in flight, the two rockets strike home, one hitting its targeted fell beast in the stomach, and the other striking on the back near its neck. Each fell beast is blown apart, and the Nazgul riding them fall screeching to the ground.

The third fell beast roars as its Nazgul rider screeches in anger, and the beast turns towards them. Jakan and Mirta pull out their blasters and prepare to fire on the fell beast. However, as the beast closes in on them, an extremely bright light suddenly begins to shine behind them. The beast roars as it stops itself in midair before turning around to flee. Jakan and Mirta turn around, and see that the light is coming from Gandalf's staff as he rides Shadowfax towards them.

After checking that the last fell beast is indeed retreating, the two decide to set down, wanting to conserve the fuel in their jetpacks. They see a pair of horses on the outer edge of the group with no riders, and assume that their riders had been snatched up by the fell beast. The two swoop down and cut their jetpacks just in time to land in the saddles before snapping the reigns and spurring them on. The Gondorians around them watch this in shock, but focus most of their attention on getting back to Minas Tirith. As they ride, Jakan sees among the crowd of Gondorians both armored soldiers and men wearing cloaks and more normal clothing who look more like scouts. Jakan guesses these must be members of the Gondor Rangers that Boromir told him about.

Jakan and Mirta hold their horses steady as they ride back to Minas Tirith. Up ahead of them, guards open up the Great Gate just in time for the flood of horses and riders.

Jakan and Mirta reign in their horses as they ride through the gate. As they do so, Gandalf rides up beside them on Shadowfax. He looks at the two of them and says, "Well done bringing down those beasts. You saved many lives through your quick thinking."

"Thank goodness there were two of us of here instead of just one," Jakan says.

As Jakan looks around at the ragtag group of survivors, he suddenly hears a voice call out, "Mithrandir!"

Jakan turns and sees a man riding towards him and Gandalf. The man is wearing the clothing of the Rangers. His hair looks very similar to that of Boromir. In fact, the longer Jakan looks at him, the more he can see similarities between this man and Boromir.

"They broke through our defenses. They've taken the bridge and the west bank. Battalions of orcs are crossing the river. Everywhere, legions of the enemy advance," the man says.

A GOndorian officer names Irolas, upon hearing this, calls out, "It is as the Lord Denethor predicted. Long has he foreseen this doom!"

"Foreseen and done nothing!" Gandalf retorts as he reigns Shadowfax around.

As Shadowfax turns to the man who approached them, the man notices Pippin. Almost immediately, his focus seems to zero in on Pippin. Gandalf quickly notices this and says, "Faramir?...This is not the first halfling to have crossed your path, is it?"

The newly introduced Faramir looks up at Gandalf and slowly shakes his head, saying, "No."

Hope rises in Jakan. At the same time, Pippin's face lights up and he asks, "You've seen Frodo and Sam?"

Faramir looks at Pippin, then at Gandalf as he nods. Gandalf, in a very hopeful tone, asks, "Where? When?"

"In Ithilien. Not two days ago," Faramir says.

Jakan begins to smile under his helmet, knowing now that Frodo and Sam are alright. Then, Faramir says, "Gandalf. They've taken the road to the Morgul Vale."

Gandalf looks up at Faramir, now looking horrified. "And the path of Cirith Ungol," he finishes. Faramir just nods in response.

"What does that mean?" Pippin asks.

Suddenly, they hear, "Faramir!" All of them turn to see Boromir walking over, looking very excited.

Faramir's eyes light up. "Brother!" he declares.

Jakan looks between the two, finally making the connection and wondering why it took him so long. The similarities in their appearance and names…of courser Faramir is Boromir's little brother.

Faramir dismounts from his horse and hurries over to Boromir. The two embrace with a laugh. As they separate, Boromir says, "It is so good to see you again, little brother."

"And to you, Boromir. I only wish you could've come home to something other than me losing the defenses you held for so long," Faramir says.

"Don't let yourself be caught up enough in our father's words that you repeat them," Boromir says.

The two share another hug, and then Boromir says, "Come, brother. I must introduce you to a good friend of mine."

Boromir leads Faramir over to Lodreng. Jakan, taking a hand off the horse's reigns, removes his helmet to reveal his face. Before Boromir can even get out an introduction, Faramir says, "You must be the one called Jakan."

Smiling slightly, Jakan asks, "Frodo and Sam told you about me, did they?"

"Indeed. They told me you come from a warrior race known as the Mandalorians," Faramir says.

"Indeed, he does. And he is one of the greatest men I have ever known," Boromir says proudly.

"It is an honor to meet someone my brother thinks so highly of," Faramir says with a smile, and he, Boromir, and Jakan share a chuckle.

(Edoras)

Gar and Fel look down at the map that Theoden has stretched out over a table. Despite his argument with Jakan prior to him leaving Edoras, Theoden has not shown any animosity towards the two Mandalorians who stayed in Edoras, and had asked them to attend this meeting to discuss the military situation in Rohan, including possible incursions that Sauron may attempt to launch into their lands.

The two Mandalorians have been inputting their extensive military knowledge into the meeting. However, they have also been thinking heavily about their two friends who have gone to Gondor. Theoden has shown no sign of changing his mind and wanting to go to Gondor's aid.

As they stand together, watching as Theoden goes over a certain map with Hama, Gar turns to Fel. "We can't wait much longe. The forces of this Sauron will be moving against Minas Tirith soon. Jakan will need our help. I know that Aragorn is planning to leave soon. I think if Theoden hasn't decided to go to Gondor by the end of the day, we leave first thing tomorrow."

"I agree," Fel says.

Right then, the door into the Meduseld bursts open, and Aragorn sprints into the hall. "The Beacons of Minas Tirith! The Beacons are lit! Gondor calls for aid!" he yells as he runs up to Theoden.

The hall goes completely quiet as everyone looks at Theoden. The king is silent, looking at Aragorn as he silently ponders this. The two Mandalorians glance at each other before looking back at Theoden, recognizing that the fate of Middle Earth could depend on Theoden's next words.

Therefore, they begin to break out in big smiles as Theoden says, "And Rohan will answer. Muster the Rohirrim!"

The officers within the hall react immediately, several moving to other rooms in the Meduseld while others leave the hall to begin marshalling the Rohirrim.

Gar and Fel look at each other. "Well, looks like we're going to Minas Tirith with the Rohirrim," Gar says.

The marshalling of the Rohirrim begins in earnest. Within the hour, men have already dressed in their armor and are mounting their horses, ready to go, as members of the Royal Guard and messengers are dispatched across Rohan to spread the King's summons to battle to all of Rohan.

As the Rohirrim marshall, Gar and Fel walk out of the Meduseld, carrying small sacks with supplies in one hand, and their helmets held in their other hands. As they come out of the hall, they see Merry hurrying away from Theoden, looking extremely excited.

Theoden notices the two Mandalorians and walks over to them. "It will be our honor to have you ride with us. I look forward to fighting beside you," he says.

"And we look forward to fighting beside you," Gar says to Theoden, extending his hand, which Theoden takes.

The two soon follow Theoden down towards the stables. They strap their sacks with supplies to the saddles of the horses they've been lent before swinging themselves up onto the backs of their horses.

The two Mandalorians reign in their horses as Eomer begins shouting to all the assembled ROhirrim, "Now is the horu! Riders of Rohan, oaths you have taken! Now, fulfill them all! To lord, and land!" He then urges his horse forward, and leads the column out of Edoras, beginning the trip to Dunharrow, where the Rohirrim will gather before riding to Minas Tirith.

And, I'll end there. Hope you liked this chapter.

Next chapter will be up sooner than this one was. Until it is up, please leave a review, and stay tuned!