The Lord of the Rings 2: Judgment Day
Chapter 7
The ten of them stood just inside the gates of Rivendell, ready to depart. They were well equipped despite having had only one night to prepare. The elves had provided them with cloaks and food, weapons and waterskins; they were as ready as they ever would be. Frodo carried Bilbo's sword Sting; and Gimli had his father's axe, graciously loaned to him for the journey. All the others had their own weapons, except for the Terminator. He had requested and been given two weapons: a mace, which he held in his right hand; and a bow, which was slung over his back.
"Companions, we have prepared you as quickly and as thoroughly as we know how," Lord Elrond told them. "The road ahead of you will be long and dark, and you must take counsel in your guide at all times. Gandalf, have you decided what path you will take east?"
"The gap of Rohan is controlled by Saruman," Gandalf replied. "We will take the Redhorn Pass."
"Negative, the pass will be obstructed by heavy snows. We must proceed along another route," the Terminator responded.
"There is no other route," Gandalf told him. "The Redhorn Pass may be difficult, but it will get us across the mountains."
"That is incorrect."
"Come now," Frodo cut in, "arguing is a poor start to our journey. Let's discuss this on the road."
"Yes, time is your greatest weapon in this fight," Elrond said. "The more of it you have, the better. We must not spend too long sending you off, so allow me to say just one more thing." He raised his hands as he spoke. "May all the blessings of the free peoples go before you, and may you carry on through all roads."
"It will be unnecessary to travel on every thoroughfare," replied the Terminator, "the one to Mordor will be sufficient."
"Yes, that's what I meant…"
With that the companions turned towards the road, proceeding out with Gandalf leading the way. Aragorn had been just behind Gandalf, but he soon dropped back a few spots. Now he followed Legolas, who was just behind the Terminator and Frodo. As they hiked out of the valley and turned south, several of them, especially the hobbits, turned and gazed back longingly at the fair dwelling, reluctant to leave such a place after only just arriving. In the back, however, Boromir noticed that Aragorn was the only one who didn't look behind.
…
For the first day the companions kept a steady pace, making much progress. The weather was kind to them; there were no winds to bother them, and the only rains they saw were off to the west. They made camp late and rose early, and it was not long before everyone was feeling tired.
It also wasn't long before the topic of how to get across the mountains came up again. For the moment they were making their way parallel to the mountains, and their path would take them to either the pass or the Gap of Rohan. But in a few days they would have to make a decision. During the nights Gandalf would stay up talking with the Terminator. Debating, it seemed to most.
"We cannot go through the Gap," Gandalf said one of those nights. "Isengard lies too close by. Saruman would be a fool if he kept anything but a complete watch over it. The pass is our only way. What other road is there for us?"
"We must travel under the Misty Mountains, not over them," the Terminator replied. "The pass will be inaccessible."
"But how do you know?" Gandalf asked. "Did one of us in the future tell you which way we went?"
"I cannot answer that question."
"Why not?"
"I was programmed to not provide information of what will happen during the journey. This is to avoid any disruption which might jeopardize the success of the quest."
"And yet you are still insisting that we not go over the pass."
"Affirmative. It will be inaccessible."
"But if you know which way we will go, why not just let us find out which way is the right one?"
"I must avoid delays in our progress. Such delays will decrease Frodo Baggins' probability of survival. That is my first directive."
Gandalf leaned back against a tree and considered the Terminator's words. "So either you were told that we would not be going over the pass, or we did go over the pass, but conditions have somehow changed with your arrival."
"As I said, I cannot tell you," said the Terminator
"Yes, yes; I know." Gandalf stood. "It seems I will get nothing more out of you, not tonight at least. You are quite the difficult advisor, Master Terminator. Good night."
…
In a few days the road had led them to the west of the pass. The peaks loomed like great towers to the east, closer than ever; and it was time to make a decision.
"We must at least try the pass," Aragorn declared as the group sat in a circle. "Right now it is our best option."
"But the Terminator has said that we will not be able too," Gandalf replied. "And I am inclined to believe him."
"And why is that? Does he know something we do not?"
"I have told you everything that I am programmed to," the Terminator told him. "I can only tell you that the pass will be inaccessible and a waste of time. Do not forget that the T-1000 is tracking us."
"Yes, of course," Aragorn replied with an annoyed expression on his face.
Gandalf said, "I am inclined to believe him because obviously he knows much more than we do. He can't tell us, but he knows how our journey will play out, and that makes him the best one to make those sorts of judgments."
"I also am inclined to believe him," Frodo said. "Not the least reason being that he saved my life." He turned to the Terminator. "But you say that since you cannot tell us about things that happen during our quest, then either you know that the pass was not the way we would take; or it originally was, but something has changed that will prevent us from using it."
"Those theories were inferred by Gandalf, but they are logical," the Terminator replied.
"So have conditions changed because of your coming?"
"I cannot tell you because that would indicate whether or not you crossed the pass originally, and violate my mission directive."
"Alright…" Frodo thought for a moment. "If we fail to cross the pass and then turn back for another road, would that give the T-1000 enough time to catch up with us?"
"That depends on the T-1000's current position, which is difficult to determine; but it is unlikely that it would have enough time to catch up to us."
"And what are our options if we cannot make the crossing?"
"The Gap of Rohan is too dangerous. Even with my capabilities, Saruman's superior military strength would overwhelm me. The only other option is the Mines of Moria."
The members who knew the significance of that statement gasped, and even the hobbits sensed that this was not a road that they wanted to take. "All the more reason we should try the pass!" Aragorn declared. "The Mines are no place to enter lightly, especially when such superior options are available."
"But the pass is inaccessible," the Terminator said.
"Aragorn is right," Gandalf replied. "The Mines should be our last option, even with the risk of the T-1000. But we still need to consider the Terminator's words. Frodo, what do you think?"
Everyone turned to the ringbearer. After another moment of thought, he spoke up. "It seems that there are three possibilities. Either conditions have changed and the Terminator is right that the pass is blocked, or we never went there in the first place; and in both cases we should avoid it. The third possibility is that conditions have changed, but the Terminator is wrong in his assessment, and the pass is accessible. And because of that, I think we should at least try to cross here." The fellowship seemed to share his view, and it was quickly decided that they would attempt a crossing.
"It's settled, then," Aragorn declared. "We make for the Redhorn Pass immediately!"
"Alright," the Terminator replied, "but this is a bad idea."
…
"As I informed you earlier, this was a bad idea."
"Shut up!" Aragorn said as he brushed the snow from his face for the hundredth time. He led at the front of the line as the fellowship shoved their way through waist-deep drifts (face-deep for the hobbits). This was his second turn at making a path in the front, and he was enjoying the experience even less than the first time. While from a distance Caradhras had seemed calm and sun-lit, now a blizzard raged across its face as the fellowship tried to both keep moving and avoid freezing.
Frodo shivered as he tried to wrap his cloak around himself even tighter. There was nothing to see on his right, where the cliff they walked beside dropped into darkness. In front of him the vague shape of the Terminator loomed like a phantom. As he and his companions trudged on, he again thought to himself that the Terminator had probably been right.
Just ahead of him the Terminator was speaking with Gandalf. "This snow is going to be our doom if we get stuck," the wizard declared. "Where in Middle-earth did this blizzard come from?"
"This storm is not a natural weather pattern," the Terminator replied. "It likely originates from a power source to the south."
"Saruman."
"Affirmative. Isengard is the most likely origination point."
The thunder that had been sounding throughout their ascent was now quite close. Each clap rang in the travelers' ears, even through the constant howl of the wind. But soon it seemed that there was a voice rising and falling in the wind, like a figure dashing in and out of view amongst the trees of a forest. It got louder until they could almost hear words. None of them said a thing until Legolas finally shouted, "There is a foul voice on the air!"
Gandalf, who was already gazing worriedly into the distance, yelled, "It's Saruman!" even as a great rumbling shook the mountain. The Terminator grabbed Frodo and shoved him against the cliff to his left. Boulders tumbled from some high place and dropped into the abyss.
"He's going to bring down the mountain on top of us!" Legolas yelled.
"Now would be a great time to turn back!" Gimli added.
"I will not be turned back by him!" Gandalf declared. Striding to the rim of the chasm, he began shouting words they could not understand. The Terminator then walked up and pushed Gandalf back, saying, "I'll handle this." Standing at the edge of the cliff, he leaned into the wind and yelled, "Fuck you, asshole!"
…
Miles away, Saruman stood atop his tower, focusing all his energy on the mountain, when he heard an odd voice in the wind.
Did I just hear what I thought I heard? he asked himself.
…
Back on the pass the blizzard did not subside. "My response appears to have been ineffective," the Terminator announced.
"Gandalf, we have to turn back!" yelled Aragorn. "If we stay here any longer we'll be crushed!"
"No!" replied Gandalf. "We must keep going! If we turn back-" His voice was cut off as thunder struck above the party. Everyone looked up to see a wall of snow falling towards them. The Terminator shouted at them to get against the cliff, but his words were lost in the roar as the white enveloped them. Frodo scrambled to cover his face as his body was cocooned in cold. For one terrifying moment he couldn't hear or see a thing; but he soon found that he could move his limbs, if only a little. With a great heave he pushed first one arm and then another above the snow, and started shoveling it away from his head. All of a sudden someone grabbed his arms and hoisted him out onto the surface, where he sucked in the fresh air. Frodo looked up to see the Terminator looking back.
"Are you damaged, Frodo Baggins?"
"No…" the hobbit replied. "I think I'm fine…" He looked around at his companions. Gimli was climbing out of a hole in the snow with much grunting. Boromir had gotten himself out and was helping Sam out of the snow, who shivered and muttered something about the superiority of snowless weather. After everyone was on the surface, and after Sam also made sure Frodo was unharmed, Gimli spoke what was on everyone's mind.
"Great war-hammers, one more dumping like that and we'll be finished!"
"He's right," Aragorn concurred, "there's no helping it. We won't get over the mountains by this road!"
Gandalf looked them over, and they were starting to wonder of he would respond, when he said, "Yes. We shall get off this mountain. It seems the Terminator was correct…" As he walked back down the trail to take the lead again, they noticed a troubled look on his face. But the companions didn't ask him about it; they just wanted to get to warmer elevations.
A few hours later, they were walking the rocky trail down the mountain, on the west side again. Though they were glad to be out of the cold, they showed no signs of it. Their backs slumped as they trudged along, and their eyes stayed focused on the ground. The Terminator was his usual self as he walked alongside Aragorn, and presently he spoke.
"As I informed you earlier, thi—"
"Yes! I know!" Aragorn replied hastily. "I suppose… you were right…"
"Affirmative."
After another hour of walking, they finally collapsed in a clearing to the side of the road just as the sun passed its zenith. Soon Gandalf stood and addressed the nine of them.
"Well my friends, Caradhras has defeated us. We will not get over the mountains by any pass, and the Gap of Rohan is still too dangerous. There is only one road left for us. Moria." When no one responded, he continued. "I will not mislead you: it will be dangerous. It will be two days or more in almost complete darkness, and even I cannot tell what we will find in there."
Aragorn was the first to respond. "I would not have us travel this road if there was any other way." He shot a glance at the Terminator. "But it seems that we have come to that point. I agree with Gandalf."
With the two of them expressing their views there was little more discussion. The others agreed to go through Moria, though Frodo was not the only one troubled by the prospect.
"Let us cover as much ground as we can before nightfall," said Gandalf. "Come, the entrance is not too far south."
…
Far to the north, a lone figure walked along the road. The trees around him were drenched in the afternoon sun, but he paid no heed to his surroundings. His brown-haired head faced downwards, searching the ground in front of him.
The figure had lost track of them outside Bree, but he was catching up. Presently he came to a low point in the road where footprints were left in the mud. Stopping to bend over them, the figure's face showed not a shred of emotion as he studied the tracks. Yes, they had definitely come this way. There were the four sets of barefoot prints in the mud; but there were more as well, left by booted feet. The target had new companions? It did not matter. All that mattered was completing the mission. And the lone figure was very good at that.
Rising once more, he continued south, his face still an emotionless slate. It would not be long now. They had to stop and rest, and he could walk as long as long as he needed to. Yes, he would find them very soon.
