Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter.
Let's get to it.
Chapter 7- Taking the Capitol
(X + 19 days)
As the sun rises over the island of Numenor, the island is rather quiet. The chaos of the last two and a half weeks has quieted down. So far, the sky is empty of American aircraft, and there are no American troop movements ongoing.
However, the tension is still very much present, and nowhere more so than in the capitol, Armenelos. From a tower of the royal palace, the queen of Numenor, Miriel, stares out at the rolling lands surrounding the capitol city, and the sea of enemy forces surrounding the city.
The American invasion had progressed alarmingly quickly for the Numenoreans. The fact that most of Numenor's armies were either in Middle Earth or had been destroyed in the destruction of the Great Armament, and few natural obstacles, meant that the US forces could move relatively quickly. About half of the remaining armies on Numenor had been killed or captured, while the rest of them had retreated to the capitol to try and fortify it.
A full week ago, the III Corps had captured the city of Romenna, cutting off the last real hope of escape for the inhabitants of the capitol. After two days of little movement to allow for further reinforcement and resupply, General Krueger had then ordered most of his forces to advance on the capitol.
The siege of Armenelos has now been going on for two days, with the city surrounded on three sides by the Americans, and the mountain of Meneltarma on the fourth side. The I Corps, which included the 20th Armored Division and the 40th and 77th Infantry Divisions, and the 4th Infantry Division from the X Corps, coming in from the west, had positioned themselves to the south of the city. The III Corps, comprising the 2nd Armored Division, 1st Cavalry Division, and 5th Infantry Division, had positioned themselves directly east of the city. FInally, the VIII Corps, comprising the 28th, 36th, and 86th Infantry Divisions, had positioned themselves to the north. The rest of the forces that had landed at Eldalonde were busy holding the western territory that had been captured. The I Amphibious Corps was holding Romenna, while the VII Corps is working to take the rest of the Orrostar and hold the initial landing sites in the north-east. Despite three corps not being positioned around Armenelos, the Americans still have 10 divisions positioned around the capitol, numbering over 300,000 troops, several thousand artillery pieces, and almost a thousand medium and light tanks. In addition, the Army Air Forces have almost 200 P-47s and P-51s on standby to provide close air support, as well as one bombardment group of A-26s for heavier bombardment if needed.
The siege had begun two days earlier when the American divisions had stopped moving and established their line around Armenelos. Given the goal was not to wipe out Numenor, and the Faithful wanted the city kept as intact as possible, General Krueger had agreed to a siege in an effort to get the Numenoreans to surrender without a fight and prevent any more damage to the city. An emissary, comprised of both Americans and Faithful Numenoreans, had entered the city when the siege began to deliver General Krueger's message to queen and ruling council, as well as a large flare that could be fired to signal their willingness to surrender. Miriel, always opposed to her husband's actions, wished to surrender to spare the people of the city, as she did not yet know if the Americans would attempt to slaughter the people if they were forced to take the city. However, most of the ruling council and military leaders wished to fight, believing in their pride that they should not just surrender to this mysterious enemy, and still believing that they could hold Armenelos. They had kept the queen locked up in the castle.
However, the emissary had also given the Numenoreans a time limit to surrender, or else the siege would end and the attack on the city would begin. The deadline given was noon today, which is now just a few days away.
Krueger had also agreed to the siege for another reason, and that being Sauron. Sauron's whereabouts since the start of the invasion could not be confirmed. The last confirmed sighting of him was in the temple of Morgoth. However, the temple had been completely destroyed days earlier by a B-29 raid on the city, and Sauron had not been seen in the wreckage or since the raid. Krueger hoped that the siege might either force Sauron to reveal himself, or give the Americans time to locate him. Unfortunately, neither had happened, and his whereabouts were still unknown. Although Krueger was hesitant to allow the attack to go forward with Sauron potentially still in Armenelos, he also knew that if he didn't hold up the deadline he had given, it would embolden the Numenoreans. If he held up the deadline, it could inspire surrenders by showing they would hold to their promises. All he could hope was that Sauron had either fled or would recognize the overwhelming power of the 6th Army.
However, he was also prepared for the eventuality that Sauron was still in Armenelos and would fight back. If that was the case, a B-29 was currently sitting on the tarmac of the airfield in Valinor, with an atomic bomb sitting in its bomb bay. The Joint Chiefs, along with Krueger, had decided that if Sauron was in the capitol and attempted to fight, and could not be defeated by conventional means, that the US would withdraw from the city to a safe distance, bringing as many civilians as they could and the queen if they could manage, and then drop the atomic bomb on Armenelos to try and kill Sauron. The Faithful had initially protested, but Krueger remained firm that he would use the bomb if he had to to stop Sauron, but would only use it as a last resort.
Now, as the sun rises higher and higher in the sky over Numenor, the forces surrounding the capitol are readying for battle. For the last two days, the soldiers had been able to rest for the most part, with only the tanks and artillery on constant alert for Numenorean action against them. But now, all the troops are gathering their supplies and ammunition and readying their weapons. The attack on the city will begin at noon, and all soldiers have orders to be ready an hour before that deadline to ensure their readiness.
In a field HQ set up east of the city, the generals of the three corps surrounding the city are gathered to discuss the final preparations for the attack and have a last second planning session. This includes Major General Roscoe B Woodruff of the I Corps, Major General Ira Wyche of the III Corps, and Major General Charles Hall of the VIII Corps. They are also joined by Elendil, who has essentially become the leader of the Faithful, and the Numenorean advisor to the American forces.
Elendil looks around the table at the three generals. "It is imperative that whenever your men enter buildings to clear them of any adversaries that they go in large groups. At such close quarters, even with your weapons, a Numenorean will outmatch your men," he says in a very serious tone.
At the start of the invasion, the three generals might have dismissed Elendil's warning. However, Elendil has spent enough time with the Americans that he has seen the capabilities of the American soldiers and their weapons. If he is still giving such a warning, they know it's something to take seriously. All three generals respond with respectful nods to Elendil's warning.
"I think it's clear at this point that the commanders of your people's army are likely keeping the queen from surrendering. Do you think the city and its defenders would surrender if the queen could communicate her desire to surrender to the city?" General Wyche asks Elendil.
"I do not know," Elendil responds, "Some certainly would, especially in the face of your overwhelming force. However, there are many zealots among the King's Men who would not be convinced by the queen. In the case of those men, only realization of your overwhelming force will be enough to convince them to surrender."
"Very well," General Wyche says.
General Woodruff speaks up and says. "Alright. Our men are ready. The attack will begin at noon as scheduled. Hopefully this will finally bring this to an end." The others all nod. While the other two generals are worried about how this battle is going to go for their troops, Elendil silently worries about the effect this will have on his fellow Numenoreans, and what kind of damage this battle will do to Armenelos and the Numenorean people.
The minutes tick by as the Americans ready themselves to begin the attack. Artillery crews load their weapons and prepare to fire as the tanks crews start up their engines and ready themselves to move.
Finally, as the sun reaches the apex of its climb overhead, a loud horn begins to blare behind the American lines. The horn was an heirloom horn of the Lords of Andunie, wielded by Elendil's son Isildur, who was among the American forces as a liaison to help them in their interactions with Numenoreans. Isildur blows several long blasts from the horn, the sound echoing over the plains surrounding the capitol.
Across the fields, Americans hear the blasts of the horn, and amidst the many artillery crews, commanders bellow out the words, "Open fire!" And with a series of explosions, thousands of various artillery pieces open fire.
The American artillery focus their initial fire on the walls and defensive positions around the perimeter of the city. As the artillery shells begin hitting and exploding, a number of Numenoreans are killed and wounded, and more abandon their positions to retreat further into the city. Throughout Armenelos, the sound of American artillery beginning their bombardment can be heard, and everyone knows that the siege is over, and the direct attack on the city has begun.
The American artillery crews continue their bombardment, calmly reloading their weapons without any threat to themselves, something they are not used to. As the bombardment continues, a continuous rumble soon joins the bangs of the firing artillery. Numenoreans and Americans alike look into the sky and see American aircraft bearing down on the city, including A-26s, P-47s, and P-51s.
Within a few minutes, the artillery bombardment is augmented by an aerial bombardment as A-26s begin bombing fixed targets with Armenelos, dropping heavier 1,000 pound bombs, destroying barracks, fortresses, defensive walls further into the city, and other defensive obstacles. The Thunderbolts and Mustangs focus their efforts on smaller, softer targets, zooming low over the city to find concentrations of Numenorean troops, and begin attacking them with 5 inch rockets or 250 pound bombs. Numenoreans run through the city in terror as thousands of explosions tear through the city from artillery, rockets, and bombs.
The bombardment lasts for only 20 minutes before field commanders order the artillery to cease fire. Isildur then blows the horn once more, and several hundred tanks begin their advance towards the city, followed by trucks and jeeps, followed by infantry on foot. As the army begins its advance towards Armenelos, the A-26s turn back towards their bases and begin the return trip, while the P-47s and P-51s circle low over Armenelos, ready to provide close air support while also strafing any targets of opportunity they can find with their machine guns.
In a matter of minutes, the leading M4 Shermans roll past the ruins of the outer walls of the city, finally entering Armenelos. A handful of Numenorean warriors charge towards some of the leading tanks in a misguided attempt to protect their city, but are quickly blown apart by a volley of 75mm shells from the tanks' cannons and sprays of machine gun fire. The tanks continue their advance into the city, unhindered.
The battle for the capitol of Numenor has truly begun.
(Several Hours later)
In a major street not too far from the city center, the place has become a scene the Numenoreans never would've expected. The street is almost unrecognizable. Bodies of Numenorean soldiers litter the street, some missing body parts or just completely in pieces. Multiple fires are burning, and a number of buildings are crumbling and badly damaged. Most of the Numenorean civilians living on this street have fled their homes, leaving them open for Numenorean soldiers to try and use for defensive positions. While most of the city has seen little combat, this portion of the city has felt the full force of American firepower.
A handful of Numenoreans are still in the streets, trying to use bows to engage their enemy, but find that bows are woefully insufficient against the rifles of the American troops.
At the other end of the street, American soldiers of the 5th Infantry Division are pressing forward towards the city center, moving slowly and carefully. At this point, they are being forced into closer and closer quarters with the Numenoreans, they are becoming more cautious, knowing that the closer quarters the combat gets, the more of a chance the Numenoreans have of getting to them.
One of the American troops is a 23 year old 1st Lieutenant from New Jersey named Frank Tyler. He had just joined the Army right after the end of WWII after he was old enough to become an officer. Lieutenant Tyler runs and jumps over a piece of fallen rubble as the Numenoreans about 50 yards down the street from him let out another volley of arrows. He ducks behind the rubble to avoid the arrows, although one of his fellow soldiers does take an arrow in the arm and crouches down to try and nurse the injury.
"Light 'em up, boys!" Tyler shouts out. Several other soldiers fire their rifles at the Numenoreans, but the Numenoreans are smart and have ducked down already, and only one is wounded by a shot in the shoulder.
Suddenly, more arrows rattle against the stones, and several of the American troops cry out in pain as the shafts of arrows pierce their bodies, several dying and more falling wounded. Tyler swivels his head around, and soon spots the culprits. On the upper floor of a home just up ahead and to the right, Lieutenant Tyler can see a number of men armed with bows.
"Everyone down! And get me a radio!" Lieutenant Tyler bellows. Everyone around him that is within range of the archers quickly take cover as one of the men from Tyler's company rushes towards him, carrying a field radio.
Tyler quickly activates the radio and calls into it, "This is Lieutenant Tyler, Foxtrot Company. We have archers holed up in a building. Several casualties caused by them already. Requesting tank support!"
"Copy that. Support is on the way," someone responds over the radio.
Lieutenant Tyler raises his head a bit and shouts, "Everyone stay down. Support is on the way!"
The Americans stay behind their cover, taking potshots at the Numenoreans down the street whenever they get a good shot. For a few minutes, combat on the street virtually grinds to a halt. The archers in the building still try firing arrows at the American soldiers down on the street, but the Americans have taken good shelter by this point, and are no longer easy targets.
Then, after a few minutes, everyone on the street can hear rumbling as one of the M4 Sherman tanks attached to the 5th Division comes trundling up the street. Tyler smiles a bit as the tank approaches their position. "Alright, boys! Let's mark the target for them! Fire!" he shouts.
Several dozen soldiers turn their weapons in the direction of the home and start firing towards the upper floor where the archers are. The archers take cover to avoid getting hit, by the bullets are shattering what windows still are intact and sending out puffs of dust and gravel as they hit the stone.
In the tank, the tank commander has his head out of the turret to watch for where the archers are. As he sees the fire from the soldiers on the ground hitting the home where the archers are, he drops back into the tank. "We got our target, 2 o clock position, 35 yards out. Rotate turret and load the shell! High explosive!" the tank commander calls out.
The turret of the tank slowly rotates towards the home as the loader rams a high explosive shell into the gun and closes the breach. "Clear!" the loader calls out.
A second later, the gunner centers his sights on the target. "Target in sight!" he shouts.
"Light 'em up!" the tank commander shouts.
"On the way!" the gunner shouts as he depresses the trigger. The tank's 76mm main gun fires, sending the high explosive shell into the upper floor of the home. The shell smashes through the outer wall before exploding, blasting through the walls of the home and sending rubble and shrapnel in all directions. All but one of the archers are killed almost instantly.
Down on the street, the Numenorean soldiers in the street and hiding in other homes, as well as the few civilians that hadn't fled their homes when the Americans arrived, watch in shock and horror as the top of the house is blown apart by the tank shell. A second later, the tank fires a second shell into the home to make sure all of the archers have been finished off. The tank then swivels its gun and fires another shell down the street, killing several Numenorean soldiers hiding behind rubble and wounding others.
With the archers removed from the equation and the tank keeping the warriors in the street occupied, the soldiers of 5th are now free to begin clearing houses. Lieutenant Tyler gathers up half a platoon's worth of men and leads them towards one of the houses they know that some Numenorean warriors have holed up in. One of the bigger guys rushes up to the door and kicks it open, the soldiers storming into the house immediately after.
Lieutenant Tyler leads the men into the house. Almost immediately, they see two warriors in the front room. Both men turn towards the Americans, swords in hand. Tyler quickly kills one by putting a bullet between his eyes. The second is killed a second later when two of the other soldiers unload their rifles into his chest.
"Alright. Let's clear the house. Nobody on their own. If they want to surrender, let them. Otherwise, shoot 'em," Tyler orders before he moves towards the stairs leading up to the second floor of the home, several of his men following behind him.
As Lieutenant Tyler and his men, along with other troops of the 5th, are clearing the houses along the street, back in the palace, Miriel is racing through the halls of the palace, a sword in her hand, several soldiers following behind her. She knows she has to move quickly if she is going to save her people and city.
Since she was basically put under house arrest in the castle by the war council, Miriel has been trying to win the loyalty of the soldiers being used to guard the palace and keep her contained to the castle. Finally, she had managed to succeed in winning about a third of the soldiers to her side. And after the battle for the city had begun, Miriel had put her plan into action. Her followers sprang her from captivity and provided her with a sword. Miriel was now leading most of them to take out the remaining soldiers she had not converted and secure the beacons provided to them by the Americans, while the rest of the soldiers on her side are making their way to the highest towers of the palace to run white flags up on every tower they can to help signal their intention to surrender.
Miriel and her soldiers finally reach the chamber where they know the beacons are being stored. They find about a dozen soldiers standing guard outside.
Miriel slows to a stop and levels her sword at them. "As your queen, I order you to stand down," she orders, trying to give them a chance to live.
Two of the men take the queen's offer, laying down their sword and stepping away from their fellows while getting on their knees. The others draw their swords defiantly, and one says, "You are a traitor to your own people, your highness."
"Alright then," Miriel says before she rushes towards them, her followers running with her.
A quick scuffle between the two sides quickly begins. The guards fight as hard as they can, and several of Miriel's men are killed. But it doesn't take too long before all of the guards who refused to surrender are killed, with Miriel herself slaying two of them. Although it pains her heart to have to kill her fellow Numenoreans, Miriel knows she has to do it.
Without waiting, Miriel and her men throw open the doors and enter the chamber. Sure enough, right in front of them, amidst several other items, the beacons given by the Americans and the Faithful are resting on a table. The soldiers rush forward and pick them up off the table.
"Quickly! To the court! We must fire the beacons as soon as we can!" Miriel urges her soldiers.
Miriel leads the soldiers out of the chamber and through the corridors of the palace towards one of the large garden courts, where they will be able to fire the beacons and have them seen throughout the city. It takes them only a few minutes to reach the courtyard, where they quickly dispatch the guards in the courtyard that attempt to resist them.
"Quickly!" Miriel urges. The soldier accompanying her hurry to set up the beacons. After a minute, they light the fuses with their torches. Seconds later, the beacons fire into the sky, sending massive showers of flames, light, and sparks through the air above the palace, with the bangs they cause audible throughout the city, even above the sound of the fighting.
Across the city, Americans and Numenoreans alike turn their heads in the direction of the palace, the great beacons easily visible all across the city. For both sides, they recognize the meaning of it. Even though they adamantly refused to use them, the Numenorean commanders had let slip to their men the existence of the beacons and their purpose. The Numenoreans quickly realize that, despite the initial determination of the war council to fight, the armies are now being ordered to surrender. Of course, they have no way of knowing that it's not being ordered by the war council, only that it is being ordered.
Across the city, many of the Numenoreans finally begin to accept that resistance is futile. They had already begun to accept this, but felt compelled to fight on out of duty and honor. Now, as the beacons fire, their last motivation to fight on against this seemingly unstoppable enemy is gone. One by one, across the city, Numenorean warriors begin to throw down their weapons and surrender to the American forces.
Of course, not all. Some Numenoreans, the most devout and zealous supporters of the king and of Sauron, refuse to surrender, determined to fight to the death against the invaders, and continue the fight. Although these zealots will continue to resist for hours, dragging out the battle even longer, it is clear to all within Armenelos that the city has fallen.
(Several hours later)
In the biggest courtyard of the palace of Numenor, which lies just beyond the main gate, Miriel waits on the far side of the courtyard from the gate. She is dressed in very simple attire, as are all of her entourage. Only her personal guard, which she had reduced to just four soldiers, all hand picked by her for their loyalty to her, are armed with just their personal swords. They had heard that American forces were closing in on the palace, clearly intending to enter the palace. Miriel intended to meet them in humility and surrender to them, and beg for the lives of her people, as she still did not know just what kind of people the Americans were.
Soon enough, she can hear grinding, rumbling, and echoing bootsteps. Then, across the courtyard and beyond the gate, Miriel watches as a large M26 Pershing tank of the 2nd Armored Division rolls into view, its gun seeming to point right at the gathered Numenoreans. The tank is followed by a second Pershing, then several M4 Shermans. Then, marching behind them are hundreds of troops from the 2nd Armored Division and the 5th Infantry Division. Lieutenant Tyler is among the troops of the 5th who are marching behind the tanks.
As the tanks roll into the courtyard and spread out in front of the Numenoreans, the infantry following suit. As the tanks and infantry assemble in formation in front of the Numenoreans, they can tell that these are truly a well trained fighting force, as the discipline is evident in their precise movements and schooled expressions. In their hearts, each of the assembled Numenoreans realize that even if all the troops that had gone with the Great Armament had still be on Numenor, that Numenor would likely not have been able to stand against this powerful enemy.
After a minute of silence, a jeep drives up the path in the middle of the assembled Americans and stops in front of the assembled Numenoreans. Several men hop out of the jeep, all dressed in standard American army uniforms, except for one, who is dressed in rather regal Numenorean clothing and well made armor. Miriel quickly recognizes him as Elendil, the son of Pharazon's friend Amandil. Among the Americans, she recognizes one of them must be someone important. His uniform looks slightly different and more clean, and on his helmet he's wearing, Miriel can see four stars arranged in a line. The man looks to be in his 60s, by the standard of other Men of Middle-Earth. His expression and the way he carries himself shows that he is someone very experienced in leadership and war.
The man with the stars on his helmet and Elendil walk towards Miriel, the other Americans that climbed out of the jeeps following behind them. The two stop a few feet in front of them, and the man with the stars on his helmet speaks, asking, "Queen Miriel, I assume?"
"Yes," Miriel responds.
The man nods slightly before seeming to straighten slightly and raising his hand to his brow in a salute. Of course, this kind of salute is not used by the Numenoreans, but she recognized it must be a salute of some kind based on the man's expression and the general motion. "Your Highness, I am General Walter Krueger of the United States Army, commander of the Sixth Army. Well met." Miriel is surprised to hear him speaking in the Numenorean tongue. Of course, Krueger was not fluent in their language. But Elendil had been coaching him for days on basic pleasantries and other words he would need to know so that Krueger could communicate simple messages to the Numenoreans.
Miriel is surprised at the politeness of General Krueger. She had not heard the stories yet of how well the Americans were treating the Numenorean civilians in the places they had captured so far, and so this level of respect was not something she expected. After a few moments, she manages to speak and says, "General Krueger. I welcome you to Armenelos."
Krueger nods. He speaks again, remembering his lessons from Elendil in how to say what he has planned out in the Numenorean tongue. "Queen Miriel, I want to reassure you that we have not come to destroy your people. We have come to free Numenor from the plague of wickedness that has gripped it. Your people will be treated well and well cared for. But we are not fools, so do not take us to be. I hereby demand the immediate surrender of all of Numenor's military and the disarming of your armies. Numenor will be placed under military occupation until we have finished our work and the one called Sauron has been found and destroyed for good. We will be fair to your people and, when the time comes, we will return governance of this land back to the Numenoreans. But for now, for the safety and security of your people, I am here to demand the immediate and unconditional surrender of Numenor."
Miriel is privately surprised at how well he is speaking their language, though she can guess that he was coached by Elendil or another Numenorean. However, she is still hesitant, and she looks to Elendil. She knows the man from several meetings they have had over the years, and knows his honesty. He also is clearly well connected to General Krueger. Seeing the question in her eyes, Elendil speaks up and says, "Your Majesty, General Krueger speaks the truth. His people have come not to subjugate Numenor, but to save it. You know how far our great land has fallen from its glory. General Krueger and his people, the Americans, seek the restore Numenor to its former glory by ridding it of the wickedness that has permeated our land. They will treat our people right, and once the evil one has been vanquished and our land made safe again, they will return to their own lands. Please, Your Majesty, take the general's terms."
Miriel is quiet for a few moments before she turns to General Krueger. Summoning her humility, and knowing she is doing the right thing, Miriel holds out the sword she had used to fight during the attempt to take the beacons. "General Krueger, as the Queen of Numenor, I hereby surrender this city and the land of Numenor to you and your forces," she says.
Krueger reaches forward and takes the sword from Miriel's hands. "Queen Miriel, I accept your surrender on behalf of your people. We will work with you and your people to restore your land to what it once was, provided you cooperate with us and do not resist our efforts," he replies. He then extends a hand to Miriel, which the queen takes and shakes, signifying Numenor's surrender.
And, I'll end there.
Obviously, all fighting will not end yet. There will be people of the King's Men faction who will still resist the Americans, so it will take a few more weeks to fully secure the island. But, for the most part, Numenor is now under American control.
So, with Numenor defeated, obviously attention is now going to turn to Sauron. The US will now shift its attention to Sauron and working with the Free Peoples. You'll see that phase of the war soon enough.
Alright. Next chapter will be up soon. Until it is, please leave a review, and stay tuned!
