Denethor steps out of the room and closes the door behind him. Taking a deep breath, he knows he needs to face the world in front of him. Looking around, he sees nothing really surprising. The guards from before still stand at the door. Two other guards stand in the distance. They look like they are waiting for something or someone. Most likely, they will accompany him as he ventures into the city. He turns his head and sees Barhador standing in the distance. When their eyes meet, Barhador walks up to him.
"My lord, you asked to see me. How can I be of service to you?"
"Barhador, I need you to ensure that captain Faramir receives the care he needs. Have my son brought to the houses of healing; the healers there are best equipped to care for him."
Barhador frowns and nods but does not fight him. Denethor knows why he requested it as he did. He needs to assure him Faramir receives the best care available. The healers are best equipped to do that. Something he knows he should have realized earlier. And by talking about it immediately, he cannot forget about it. Just as he makes this realization, he is brought out of his thoughts by Barhador.
"What do I tell the healers? We both know they will have questions for me. Especially Master Neston."
"Tell them that my son's care will be in their hands. They should give Faramir all the care he needs. There is nothing else the healers need to know."
Barhador nods. Denethor smiles slightly. He is pleased Barhador does not question him more. He also knows Barhador is right. The healers and especially Master Neston will be questioning Barhador for any information they can get out of him. That is why he did not give Barhador specific instructions. There will be nothing they can get out of Barhador which he does not want them to know. Besides, they will know better what Faramir needs than he or Barhador will ever know.
"Is that all, my lord?"
"No, it is not. Inform the servants to prepare food. Food and water are to be distributed among the men in the higher levels. No servants are allowed to enter the levels where the fighting is occurring. Not ever. Make sure they know it."
"Yes, my lord. I will ensure it happens."
He smiles happily. He is pleased to know another worry has been solved. Now, his last worry needs to be solved. He knows the servants have been inactive for too long. They can from now on contribute to the siege. Something they should have done from the start. If only, he has ensured it. But as he said earlier, he cannot change the past. He can only work with what is happening. And that means he ensures that from now on the servants are contributing. Looking at Barhador, he knows he needs to respond to the words which were spoken.
"I am glad to hear that. There is something else you can do for me; have all those who are not needed to prepare the food and distributing it report to the houses of healing. I am sure the healers will be glad to have more people aiding them."
"Of course, my lord. The servants will be glad to have something to do once more. They have been anxious with inactivity. I have seen it. As for the healers, we both know how they will see it."
He nods knowing full well how the healers will react. They will be pleased with the aid. And annoyed they had to wait so long to receive it. Hopefully, the happiness to receive aid will be more than the annoyment. Looking around, he tries to see if there is anything else he needs to do. Finding nothing, he knows it is now time for him to leave and join the battle. He is about to walk away when his eyes move towards the door. Faramir is in there. He bites his lips. Leaving his son is something he does not feel comfortable doing.
"My, lord? Go and do not worry. I will ensure captain Faramir will be looked after. Everything else will also be taken care of. Do not worry. Do what you have to do, my lord."
The bite on his lips eases. He looks Barhador in his eyes to determine if what he said is true. As well as to ease his heart. Something he will refuse to admit. Finding no lie in Barhador's eyes, he turns away from the door and walks away. Soon he is followed by the guards he saw earlier.
Approaching the door leading outside of his house, Denethor feels his heart beating faster. What will he see once he has crossed through the door? And what will he see once he descends into the city? These thoughts bring many possibilities to his mind. He can be met with a damaged courtyard. Or a relatively unscattered courtyard. As for the city, he knows the city will be damaged. The question remaining is how damaged it will be. The city could be destroyed on all levels. Or the damage can be limited to a few levels. He can't tell based on what he saw and heard earlier.
The thoughts about the damage has his mind moving towards escape routes. He knows which one will be secured. But are there more? He thinks about it when his mind moves back to his youth. He remembers paths through the city which allowed him to enter and leave undetected. Something he made good use of in his younger years. If these paths are still accessible then these can serve as additional escape routes.
His eyes narrow. How well known are those escape routes? Not really, he imagines as it has always been a secret. But he knows if many people were to use them at once then they will be revealed. It will be a high risk to use them but if necessary he will do so. These paths will lead to those which are being guarded. Or at least, in the direction of those pathed.
Another thought crosses his mind; how accessible are these paths? He does not know for he has not had to use them since he became the steward. They could be entirely inaccessible right now. He simply does not know. So, should he leave those paths be? He only needs to think about it for a moment before he dismissed it. These paths will be used. Even if they pose additional problems. He will manage it somehow. Those paths will give more people a chance to flee.
He knows he only needs to give the order to use them early enough. Then it will not be too much of a problem. Especially as the guarded escape routes are citadel and on the sixth level. So for those who reach the escape routes, they will have ample time to flee through them. As well as time to hamper the orcs' ability to follow them through it.
Opening the door, he steps outside. The wind hits him hard in his face. A feeling he did not know he missed. But right now, he enjoys the feeling of wind hitting his face. Looking around, he sees the courtyard has escaped the damages of the war. At least for now. Whether it remains like this, time will tell.
Looking closer at the courtyard, he sees another group of guards stand. What are they doing here? How many guards will accompany him? He never believed two. But he also finds it strange for ten guards to accompany him. What use will they be? Four guards should suffice. Any more and they will only hamper their ability to protect him.
"My lord, where do you want to go?"
"I want to join the battle. But tell me, why are there so many guards waiting for me?"
He lifts an eyebrow to reinforce his words. This is a question he wants to have answered. Answered before he will talk about anything else. The captain lifts an eyebrow in return. He narrows his eyes. This is not the reaction he would like to receive. He nearly taps his food on the ground but manages to refrain from it. The captain stands up a bit straighter.
"Well? We do not want to take any risk with your safety."
"I appreciate your concern. But I do not need ten guards to accompany me. Four should suffice. The others can join the army in the battle."
The captain shuffles slightly. Almost unnoticeable. He only saw it because he was looking closely at the captain. Anyone else will have missed it. The shuffling changes in a quick nod. He smiles pleased and waits for a response. Something he does not have to wait long for.
"Of course, my lord. Where do you want to join the battle."
"That I do not know. First, I will seek out whoever has taken command of the defense in my absence. Only when I know what the situation will I decide where to join the battle."
Denethor nods once to show he deems the conversation is finished. He walks towards the ramp without waiting for a response. He does not need one. The captains always follow his command. And as he expected, the sound of armor moving follows him. From the sound of it, the entire group follows him. If they do, he will let them. But only four of them will stay with him. The others will join the army. Just as he ordered.
Walking down the ramp, he comes four citadel guards. They carry an empty stretcher between them. He smiles lightly. He does not need to think about what they will be doing. He knows what. They are following his orders. He now knows for certain Faramir will be cared for. He is also pleased with the fact he got to see it. He will not be left in uncertainty. No matter how small. Or how little he deemed the change his orders would be ignored.
Minas Tirith
Walking through the city, he looks at everything he sees. All in an attempt to learn what has happened in the city. At the same time, he will be able to tell where Imrahil and Mithrandir might be. They can give him the answers he seeks. He is certain of it. He only needs to find them.
Entering a new road, he is met with nothing he has not seen before. The damages here are little. It seems even more likely that the sixth level has escaped the damages from the siege. Time will tell if it stays like this. He walks without reacting to what he sees. All his thoughts focus on is the location of Mithrandir and Imrahil. A task which quickly gives him a problem. The problem being he determines that he does not know where to begin looking. They could be anywhere in the city. He could have missed them. Or he could be far away from them still. He simply does not know.
This lack of knowledge has him thinking about the men. About what he knows about them. Imrahil is someone who leads a battle from the front. So, it is likely Imrahil is wherever the battle is occurring right now. Or somewhere close to it. Especially as Imrahil will want to be close to his sons. His nephews will be fighting at the front. And if not then they will not be far away. Imrahil will thus not be far away.
As for Mithrandir, he has no idea where to look. He does not know Mithrandir well enough. It is mostly his fault as he never talked to Mithrandir a lot. And with a reason; he never liked Saruman. As such he wanted to as little as possible to do with the Istari. But back to where Mithrandir can be. All he can think about is that Mithrandir and Imrahil are together. Or he hopes at least. He cannot come up with anything else.
So where should he look for them? In a quiet area or one where there is heavy fighting? Where? Should he follow his knowledge about Imrahil? He narrows his eyes. It is at least a direction. And if he is right about them then there is only one place for him to look; there were the heavy fighting occurs.
A destination in mind, he makes his way ever lower into the city. The guards become more nervous as he continues. That is if the sounds coming from them are any indication. Any moment he stops walking, they surround him. It frustrates him to no end.
He is still not close to the fighting. What danger are they expecting? An orc disguised as soldier attacking him? Not very likely. There are no dangers here.
Turning his head towards the guards as he walks, he sees their concerned looks. Really? He already knows there are no dangers here. So why the concern? He simply cannot believe these guards. Only they act so strangely. No guard has ever acted like this. What is he dealing with here?
He shakes his head and walks on. It will not do to be distracted by this. It is something he can look into later. If he remembers it. As he descents, he finds more damage to the lower he gets. From the fourth level on, he finds roads blocked by fallen stones. Houses destroyed. It is not a good sign. The people who live here will be homeless no matter the outcome of the siege. And he knows he will have to provide for them. It is a headache he quickly pushes from his thoughts.
Reaching the gate to the second level, he stops. Guards surround him almost immediately. He ignores them. All which is on his mind is that he is not looking forward to seeing the damages here. It will be the worst he has seen so far. He is certain about it. But it will not as severe as the first level. Of that, he is also certain. There the damages will be truly severe. He would be surprised if a few buildings come out of the siege undamaged.
Taking a deep breath as silently as he can, he walks forward through the gate. As he walks around the level, he comes across a few swan knights. One of them he is certain he recognizes; it is Elphir. Could Imrahil be close by? Looking around, he sees Elphir's brothers are also closeby. Erchirion and Amrothos are talking to a few officers. What they are talking about he cannot hear.
"Uncle, what are you doing here. Can I be of any service to you?"
He turns and sees Elphir standing in front of him. When did Elphir get so close to him? He really must have been lost in thoughts. Or paying too much attention to what he saw. But even though Elphir surprised him, he finds it no problem. It saves him time and effort; he does not need to approach any of his nephews.
"Yes, you be of service to me. Tell me, do you know where to find your father. I need to speak to him."
He mentions with his hand to the captain. It is time for the excess guards to leave. And well immediately. He does not want to worry Elphir unnecessarily. Or more than he already does. He also does not want to keep capable men from defending the city. They will be needed. He listens closely to the captain as he sends men away. But not with words as he expected. No, the captain does not say anything. Why? Did he choose the four who would protect him already? It seems so. Those who leave must have gotten a signal. It is the only thing he can think about. The only thing which could explain it.
Even though he pays close attention to the captain, he also keeps an eye on Elphir. As such, he sees the frown on Elphir's face. And notices Elphir looking around. For what? He follows Elphir's example but does not see anything strange. The road is not deserted. Nor is it crowded. No, there are enough people around that they will not be overheard. And that they will not attract any attention. Just as he realizes this, Elphir finally answers.
"Father is somewhere around here. I am not sure where."
"Where did you last see him?"
"I last saw him two alleys down."
He turns his head. Erchirion and Amrothos stand to his left. He tilts his head. Which of the two spoke up? They both look at him neutrally. So he cannot be sure. He narrows his eyes. Erchirion is smiling slightly while Amrothos is grinning. The brat. Well, he should not have expected anything else form Amrothos. But at least he now knows Erchirion was the one who spoke up.
"Thank you, Erchirion. I will look for your father there. But tell me, is Mithrandir with him?"
"Last I saw they were together."
He nods and leaves the boys. He knows this will result in gossip. Normally, he would not like it. But right now, he does not mind. It is not important. They need to return to their duties. And he needs to find both Mithrandir and Imrahil. Hopefully, they are still together.
Walking into the ally, he looks around. In the distance, he can see a group standing together. If he is right then these are officers. He waits a bit to see what they are doing. From what he can see, they are not doing anything. The only thing the officers do is leaving. As they leave, he finally spots Mithrandir and Imrahil. He smiles pleased. Soon, he will have the answers he seeks. He approaches the men slowly while the guards walk around him.
The second level, Minas Tirith, Imrahil POV
"Do you think we can hold the first level?"
Imrahil looks at Mithrandir. He hopes they can but highly doubts it. He knows the situation. It does not look good. Especially, if they cannot figure out what to do right now. Mithrandir strokes his beard in thoughts. Imrahil has an idea of what answer he will get.
"I doubt it, Prince Imrahil. If we do not take the battle away from the city walls then I deem it likely they will be able to enter the city. In due time, yes. But they will be able to enter the city."
"I know. But what can we do? It is not like we can send the cavalry out."
He sighs knowing the cavalry will only ride out if Denethor gives the order for them to ride. Else they will be stuck in the city. A waste of resources in his opinion. They are the only ones who can potentially make a difference now. The infantry will be unable to act against the overwhelming number of orcs.
"No, it is not. Your brother-in-law is the one who needs to permit that."
"Yes, and he is not likely to do so. I fear he lost all hope. Even though I tried to ensure he maintains hope."
He turns his head towards the sky and thinks back to the conversation he had with Denethor in the council room. Despair was already visible then. But he had hope Denethor would not succumb to despair. Later, he feared Denethor had fallen into despair. He knows as he did then, that the people need to see Denethor during the battle. He has been their leader for so long. Besides that, Denethor is a well-respected commander.
Turning his head back towards Mithrandir, he is met with a worried look. Raising an eyebrow, he wants Mithrandir to tell him what is worrying him. He wants words and not expressions. A smile comes over Mithrandir's face. He frowns. Where did this come from? Just as he thinks about it, Mithrandir speaks up.
"So what can we do? I doubt we have enough men to strengthen the defenses more."
"No, we cannot. We are already stretched thin."
Mithrandir nods. He turns his head to the sight. He does not want Mithrandir to see his concern. He knows it is futile but the knowledge calms him down a bit. As he looks to the side, he sees someone approaching him. Who is it? And why does the posture seem so familiar to him?
"What is it, prince Imrahil?"
"Nothing, I thought I saw someone who I recognized. Forget about it. It is probably nothing."
"Oh, no. Tell me, who did you recognize?"
"That is the problem. The posture is what I recognized. Not the person directly. I simply cannot place a name to it."
"Mhhh."
Mithrandir turns his head into the direction he indicated while stroking his beard. Imrahil follows the turn but still keeps his eyes on the Mithrandir. This way, he can get a feeling for Mithrandir's reaction. In the distance, he can see the person moving ever closer. Mithrandir gets a curious look on his face. What would he give to know Mithrandir's thoughts right now. He would at least know if Mithrandir recognized the person. Now, he has to wait for a reaction to learn it.
"Ah, I see. You saw Lord Denethor."
"What!"
His eyes widen. Mithrandir grins at him. So, he was right. He saw someone familiar. But why could he not see it was Denethor? He should have. Looking back, he does recognize Denethor. But why could he not see it before? He does not know. He can only blame it on the stress of the siege. Something he was never bothered by before.
"Yes, he is coming towards us."
He follows Mithrandir's direction. And Mithrandir's words prove to be true. Denethor, indeed, walks towards them. Something, he did not pay attention to before. He frowns. Why is Denethor coming now? And why towards them? What does he want? He thinks about what has happened. Anything which might draw Denethor here.
He cannot determine anything with certainty. But at the same time, he hopes Denethor found hope again. If Denethor did then what will happen with the decisions he made? Will they be discarded? Or will they be left standing? He bites his lips. He hopes some of the last ones will be discarded. How will he ask about it?
Denethor comes ever closer. He needs to figure out soon how he will ask about it. And in such a way no further conflicts will be created. It is something he wants to avoid at all costs. Problems are something, he does not need at this time.
Once Denethor reaches them, Imrahil looks closely at Denethor's face. Denethor does not seem to be in his right mind. He seems to be worried. Or preoccupied with something. But by what? Oh, he can guess. It is not difficult. It will most likely have something to do with all the tragedies Denethor suffered recently. It does not excuse what Denethor has done. At the same time, it makes it understandable.
"My lord Denethor, why have you come?"
"I have come because I need to do my duty. It is long overdue."
Long overdue? Really? He nearly huffs but manages to hide it. Denethor should have done this at the beginning of the siege. Not just now. If only, Denethor had not lost hope. But with Denethor here, it is clear he found hope once more. Why else would Denethor have come? He smiles and places a hand on Denethor's shoulder before responding.
"Yes, it is. I am glad to see you here, Lord Denethor. I am glad you found hope again. If only to fight."
"It is good to be here where I belong. Tell me, what is the current situation?"
"You are here to take command of the battle?"
"I am."
He smiles and squeezes Denethor's shoulder. Denethor places his hand over it. He knows what he will say now. He will not fight Denethor's return.
"Then I gladly turn command back to you. It will be just as it should have been from the moment the siege happened."
"That is true. Let us do what we should be doing."