Although Aragorn finds tracks that show Frodo headed downhill, he decides to go to the Seeing Seat rather than follow. Before he can see anything significant, he hears Boromir's horn and the sound of orcs. Aragorn finds Boromir dying from the wounds of many orc-arrows. Boromir confesses that he tried to take the Ring from Frodo and that Merry and Pippin have been captured by the orcs. Legolas and Gimli help Aragorn array Boromir in a boat for a funeral, and they discover that the orcs come from both Sauron and Saruman. Aragorn decides to let the Ringbearer go, while the remaining three members of the Fellowship will pursue Merry and Pippin's captors. Taking only essential equipment, they begin running after the orcs.
Soon the Three Hunters find several dead orcs, victims of an argument won by Saruman's servants. Later, they find hobbit tracks and an elven brooch. Heartened by this, in four days, they run 135 miles until they encounter a troop of the horsemen of Rohan, led by Éomer. Tensions run high, because both the riders and the hunters are wary of the Enemy. Learning the identity of Aragorn, the heir of Isildur, as well as the hobbits, Éomer expresses amazement that creatures of legend have come to walk the earth. Satisfied that the companions are not a threat, he tells them that the Rohirrim destroyed the orcs but found no signs of the hobbits. He lends them two horses, and Aragorn and his friends continue to Fangorn Forest, where they find the remains of the orcs. Fangorn has a similar reputation to the Old Forest, but it is much larger and more dangerous. As they camp on the edge of the trees, an old man appears and scares off their horses, then vanishes.
