DISCLAIMER: I own nothing blah blah blah...
Pirates in the Fellowship Chapter 11
The Fellowship needed no more prompting and quickly followed the wizard out of the rear exit of the chamber and back into the spacious hallway, pursued closely by Orcs. Every member picked up their pace as more orcs began to spring out of the cracks in the floor and flood in from the ceiling, crawling down the great pillars like spiders, coming from every direction to begin surrounding the Fellowship.
Will slammed into Jack as they came skidding to a halt, completely surrounded with no escape through the sea of armored orcs, who were waving their weapons and snarling.
Jack stood back to back with Legolas, his bow also drawn. Jack looked around frantically and was seriously considering screaming out parley, figuring he had nothing to lose by attempting it. Just then, when he was about to give it a try, a fiery light appeared at the end of the hall followed by a thunderous rumble. The Orcs looked around, panicked, until another rumble came. Within a second they retreated, leaving the Fellowship standing in the middle of the hall, alone, staring in the direction the roar had come from.
"What is this new devilry?" Boromir asked, leaning in closer to Gandalf.
Gandalf didn't reply right away. Instead he closed his eyes, trying to concentrate.
Jack groaned at the thought of having to face yet another type of monster, and wondered how any race could survive in a world like this one.
"A Balrog. A demon of the ancient world." Gandalf said warily as the thing growled, still hidden around a corner of the vast hall, throwing fiery light on the pillars. Will looked at Legolas who was standing next to him. The elf's eyes showed only fear. Will shifted on his feet nervously. Legolas clearly knew what the beast was, and Will knew it must have been something of great evil to so deeply disturb the elf, who had always remained calm and collected in even the worst situations they had been in.
"This foe is beyond any of you. RUN!"
At Gandalf's command the Fellowship again began to run though the hall, eventually passing through a doorway in the wall. "Quickly!" Gandalf urged to the last hobbit as he took one last look back before following the others. The door way led through yet another passage and Boromir was the first one through, continuing to follow the staircase. He came to a halt where a segment of the stairs had broken off, his arms failing about as he tried to regain his balance and not fall into the dark abyss below. Legolas was the second one through and ran up behind Boromir, pulling him back away from the edge where the man was tittering. The hobbits were the next ones to come, followed by Jack and Will, all coming up just short of falling in themselves.
Jack look back up the steps where he could see Gandalf finally coming through looking weary and leaning against a wall for support.
"I don't think this is the time for taking rests!" Jack yelled up to him as the ground shook and the roar became louder and closer.
The wizard ignored Jack and turned to Aragorn, who had laid a concerned hand on the wizard's shoulder. "Lead them on Aragorn, the bridge is near!"
Aragorn looked off in the direction Gandalf was and spotted a long bridge spanning across the gap between the hall and a cliff face. Aragorn looked back at the wizard and took a step toward him only to be roughly pushed away by the old wizard. "Do as I say!" Gandalf yelled at the ranger whose face was a mixture of hurt and confusion. "Swords are no more use here!"
As the Balrog roared again the Fellowship began to descend another twisting flight of stairs until once again they reached another gap, only this distance was one they could easily jump.
Legolas was the first to leap forward, of course, landing surefooted on the other side. "Gandalf!" Legolas beckoned the wizard to jump as the Balrog again shook the foundation causing it to begin to break and crumble. Gandalf finally made the jump and Legolas caught him making sure he was steady before he called for Jack to follow.
Jack turned to Aragorn. "Let me bring Frodo with me, mate, get him safe and sound, savvy?" Aragorn nodded in agreement and ushered Frodo toward Jack.
"Hold on tight mate." Jack said as he picked up Frodo, who in response wrapped his small arms around the pirate's neck. Having jumped and swung over greater distances, Jack didn't even think twice as he leapt over the gap, and landed on the other side. Legolas and Gandalf both helped Jack catch his balance as a rain of arrows began to descend on them.
Jack placed Frodo down and then pushed the hobbit behind him, keeping him out of danger as he, Aragorn and Legolas all responded to the assault by firing their own arrows, each hitting their target sending them tumbling down into the darkness below.
"Help the others, I'll handle the orcs, mate." Jack called to Legolas.
Legolas nodded and left Jack to handle their assassins as he helped steady Boromir, who had just jumped across the gap with Merry and Pippin.
Aragorn placed a hand on Will's shoulder. "Toss Sam and Gimli to Boromir!" Will motioned Sam toward him and when the hobbit was ready, tossed him across the gap, which had grown larger since more of the steps had crumbled away.
Once Boromir had caught Sam, Will turned to Gimli who held up a hand to him. "Nobody tosses a dwarf!" Before Will could even argue, Gimli made the jump, landing on the very edge. He would have fallen to his death if it weren't for Legolas who quickly reached out and grabbed the Dwarf by the beard.
"Not the beard!" Gimli hollered as Legolas pulled him to safety.
Suddenly, Will and Aragorn both felt the steps beneath their feet begin to crumble away. Aragorn pushed Will back up the steps and began to move up after him when the ground beneath his feet completely fell away. Aragorn caught the edge of the stone and began to struggle to pull himself up, but of course having no footing and trying to hold into his bow made it all the more difficult, until he felt a pair of hands wrap around his forearm. Glancing up he saw Will, who again pulled on his arm, pulling Aragorn up far enough that the ranger could finally get his feet under him. Standing up the two faced their companions who were on the other side of the now larger gap.
"What do we do now?" Will asked Aragorn as he continued to stare across the gap which was now obviously much too large for them to jump, and from what Will knew, there was no other way to the bridge. Aragorn shook his head, he had no solutions.
Suddenly the Balrog made itself known again; it's fiery light drifting in from the other hall. The ground shook again as the Balrog got closer, causing huge stone slabs to fall from the ceiling, one of which smashed through the stair case behind Will and Aragorn, making another gap behind the two men.
Jack, standing behind Gandalf, watched in horror as his two friends swayed back and forth with the stair case, trying to move with it so it didn't tip over. When the stair once again stopped swaying Jack heard Aragorn telling Will to lean forward and as the two did so the stairs began to fall towards the Fellowship. Legolas and Boromir both stepped forward, arms outstretched, waiting to catch one of their two companions.
"Come on!" Legolas called as the stairs came closer finally slamming into the one he was on. Both Aragorn and Will leapt to safety, Will being caught by Boromir and Aragorn landing in Legolas awaiting arms. Not even looking back as the stairs crumbled into the abyss, the Fellowship once again resumed their path to the bridge which was now very close.
"Over the Bridge! Fly!" Gandalf ordered as they rounded a pillar, a great wall of flame behind them. Jack paused a moment and looked over his shoulder to see a great form of black shadow leap through the flames, its eyes of white fire, great ash-black horns curling around a bull-like head.
"What in God's name is that?!" Jack heard Will ask to no one in particular.
"That is a Balrog." Legolas replied to the blacksmith's question.
Jack turned back around and faced Will. The two looked at each other for a brief moment before taking off at full speed towards the bridge. "I hate this world!" Jack yelled as he ran past Aragorn, he and Will being the first two to reach and cross the bridge with the others trailing not far behind.
Everyone turned back towards the bridge trying to see where the Balrog was and realized that Gandalf was on the bridge, yelling at the demon. "You cannot pass!"
Frodo called the wizard's name as the Balrog stood straight up, great shadow-like wings of ash whirling around the demon, which spread its arms and burst into cracking, bursting, thundering flame.
Gandalf seemed unfazed ad he continued to stand beneath it, staff and sword raised. "I am the servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor..." As he said this the light from his staff began to envelope him and grow brighter. "The dark fire will not avail you, Flame of Udûn!"
The Balrog raised its arm, a sword made of fire forming in its hand which it brought down on Gandalf who parried the blow with his own sword, shattering the Balrog's blade.
Aragorn began to run forward, but was stopped when someone grabbed him by the arm. He quickly turned to see Jack, who had made his way down to where Aragorn was, again holding him back as he had done when Legolas was discovered by Barbossa's crew. Aragorn didn't fight the pirate as he turned back to the scene unfolding between Gandalf and the Balrog.
"Go back to the shadow!" Gandalf said angrily through clenched teeth.
A thread of flame issued from the Balrog's maw, and it stepped forward onto the bridge. The Balrog brandished a flaming whip, and lashed it about menacingly over the wizard's head. Gandalf summoned the last of his energy, and raised his sword and staff together into the air. "YOU...SHALL NOT...PASS!!" With that Gandalf drove his staff into the bridge, causing a bright flash of blue light to appear.
Flaring its nostrils in anger, the Balrog stepped forward onto the bridge which collapsed from under it as it moved towards Gandalf, breaking before the wizard's staff.
Will watched with a small smile coming to his lips as the Balrog fell into the abyss with a roar and Gandalf slowly turned to rejoin the waiting Fellowship. But he quickly lost his smile when all of a sudden the Balrog's whip came back up and wrapped itself around Gandalf's ankle, dragging him down and over the edge. Will tried to grab Frodo as he ran by, but the hobbit avoided him. Boromir managed to grab the Ringbearer, and held the struggling hobbit securely to his chest.
Frodo called out Gandalf's name as the wizard struggled to get a better grip. He finally stopped and looked up into the hobbit's eyes, uttering his last words. "Fly, you fools! With that Gandalf lost his grip and fell back into the chasm with his arms outspread.
Jack's hand fell from Aragorn's arm in shock as Frodo screamed in anguish and Boromir picked up the hobbit, heading back up the stairs. Jack looked back when he heard he man calling out his and Aragorn's names, and he again grabbed the stunned ranger by the arm and began to pull him along as Orc arrows began to whistle past them.
Aragorn pulled away from Jack as he dodged an arrow and took one last look back at the bridge before he followed the others up yet another fight of stairs, this one leading them out of the darkness of the mines and into the bright day light. Jack followed Aragorn and stopped a few feet from the ranger as he turned to look at his companions. Sam sat by himself, his head bowed and weeping. A few feet away Merry sat with Pippin who was crying hysterically as his friend tried to comfort him.
Jack locked eyes with Legolas who looked shocked and also confused, like he didn't understand what had just happened. When Legolas broke the contact Jack spotted Will. He sat near Boromir, who was trying hold Gimli back, with his head bowed and his long brown hair, which he usually kept pulled back, falling in his face. Jack drew in a deep breath and began to make his way over to him and sitting down wrapped his arm around the blacksmith's shoulder, offering him what comfort he could.
Jack sighed as he looked around again. He had never truly felt this great of a loss before and he had to admit the feeling confused him. He had lost crew members before, friends before, but it had never affected him like this. Aragorn had been right when he had been teasing Jack; he was a pirate, he was supposed to be heartless. Jack rested his head in his free hand. This was what Barbossa had meant; this was the reason for why Jack had originally lost the Pearl. Even though he tried not to show it much, he did actually care about other people.
Aragorn wiped his sword clean and faced the others, hiding whatever emotions he was feeling for the time being. All he knew at the moment was that he was the one who had to try and get his hurting friends to safety. "Legolas, get them up."
Legolas, still dazed and confused, turned and made his way over to Merry and Pippin.
Boromir shook his head as he glanced at Will, whose face remained hidden by his hair, and Jack, who Boromir was surprised to see, had tear tracks running down his face. "Give them a moment for pity's sake!" Boromir yelled to Aragorn pleadingly, trying to give them all more time to try and come to terms with their grief before moving on.
"By nightfall these hills will be swarming with orcs! We must reach he woods of Lothlórien." Aragorn stated as he re-sheathed his sword. "Come, Boromir, Legolas get them up!"
Jack stood and hastily wiped his face with the back of his hand before he moved off to help Legolas get Merry and Pippin to their feet. Will also rose, pushing his hair back from his face as Gimli came trudging by, grumbling about how he'd like to go back in and fight the orcs.
"Are you alright?"
Will was about to say everything was fine, like he normally would have, but he knew Boromir would pick up on such an obvious lie, especially since the man wasn't blind and he could see Will's current state. "No, my friend. I couldn't be further from it." Will looked at the other man who was obviously hurting just as much as he was, but doing a much better job of keeping his emotions in check.
Boromir didn't say anything, but placed his hand on Will's back and moved him forward with him after the others.
Will hurried up to join Aragorn. The ranger glanced over at the blacksmith with a small smile. "Everything will be alright once we get to Lothlórien, my friend."
"I hope you're right." Will replied as they began to make their way down the rocky mountainside heading off to the distant elven realm of Lothlórien.
Aragorn jogged ahead of the others. The group had been silent since they left the mountain side, but they had made excellent time. Crossing a small stream, the Ranger ran up onto a small pile of rocks, smiling as he looked off into the distance. Framed against a deep blue sky, he looked past the mountains to the green-gold woods beyond. Lothlórien. Turning around he yelled to his companions, "Hurry, our destination is close now!" With that Aragorn hopped down from the rocks and broke into a sprint.
Jack sighed as they slowed down to a walk as the Fellowship entered the woods. Once Aragorn had taken off, the others followed, at first running as fast as they could to try and keep up with the Ranger, and then just to finally reach safety. Jack looked around in awe. Rivendell had been a place of extreme beauty, and so far Lothlórien, with it golden-green forest, was promising to be just as beautiful.
Jack stopped checking out his surroundings as he listened to Gimli tell the hobbits about the Elf-witch that lived in the wood, and how anyone who laid eyes upon her fell under her spell and according to the dwarf, were never seen again. Jack just shook his head and dismissed the dwarf's account. His mind kept drifting back to Gandalf, and something important dawned on the pirate. He realized that he and Will had just lost their only chance of returning home to the Caribbean. This just gets better and better.
Jack was drawn from his thoughts by nearly walking into an arrow. Looking around the entire fellowship was surrounded by fair-haired elves, all with their bows aimed, ready to fire their arrows. The only member of the Fellowship who had a chance to retrieve one of their own weapons was Legolas, who had an arrow notched and ready to fire.
Aragorn raised his hands up in submission as another elf stepped forward, obviously the leader.
"The dwarf breathes so loud we could have shot him in the dark." The elf said a little smugly.
As night came the Fellowship was led up into platforms high in the trees, where the fair-haired elf began to greet them.
"Mae govannen, Legolas Thranduilion. Welcome Legolas, son of Thranduil." The elf said, placing his hand over his heart and then extending his hand.
Legolas repeated the motion. "Govannas vîn gwennen le, Haldir o Lórien. Our Fellowship stands in your debt, Haldir of Lórien."
Haldir glanced over Boromir, his gaze finally resting on Aragorn "A, Aragorn in Dúnedain istannen le ammen. Oh, Aragorn of the Dúnedain, you are known to us."
"Haldir." Aragorn said the elf's name and placed his hand over his heart. He then noticed the Elf looking behind him to Jack and Will. "Haldir these are two of my fellow Rangers."
Haldir studied the two "rangers" closer. The first one was identical to Legolas, except that his hair was shoulder-length and a dark brown, and he looked as though he was no older than twenty. Strange, the elf thought to himself. The other ranger Haldir found to be just as strange. Jack had by now grown his beard back, and once again had woven the beads into it. He also still insisted on lining his eyes in black, which needless to say, no one did here in Middle-Earth.
"Man eneth lín? What is your name?" Haldir directed the question to Jack.
"Elendur i eneth nín My name is Elendur..." Jack paused and placed a hand on Will's shoulder "...and this is Ciryon." Jack finished, switching to the common tongue and saving Will from having to introduce himself, seeing as he didn't know elvish.
The elf frowned for a moment and glanced at Aragorn. The ranger could tell, from past experiences with Haldir, that the March-Warden was suspicious, and he realized what was causing it too. He had chosen names for Jack and Will based on his own ancestry, and Haldir was old enough, and well-versed enough in history to have recognized the names as those of Isildur's children.
Aragorn shot a pleading look at the elf, which the others missed, and as Haldir locked eyes with the ranger, he saw that Aragorn was silently promising an explanation for these two strangers later.
Haldir nodded, obviously satisfied with the answer and placed his hand over his heart. "Mae govannen Elendur ah Ciryon in Dúnedain. Welcome, Elendur and Ciryon of the Dúnedain."
Jack and Will repeated the motion, which gained a smile from the tall elf. Jack glanced at Aragorn and caught his friend smiling at him. Jack realized then that he had actually spoken perfect elvish which made his smile broaden.
Gimli, on the other hand, became thoroughly annoyed. "So much for the legendary courtesy of the Elves! Speak words we can all understand!"
Haldir's smile faded as he looked down at the dwarf. "We have not had dealings with the Dwarves since the Dark Days." he replied, obviously annoyed as well.
"And you know what this Dwarf says to that? Ishkhaqwi ai durugnul! I spit upon your grave!" Gimli shot back in his own tongue, making the rest of the Fellowship look at him curiously, as none of them, save Aragorn, understood the dwarven tongue.
Aragorn closed his eyes before grabbing the dwarf by the tunic. "THAT was not so courteous."
Haldir cast one last dirty look at Gimli before he looked at Frodo. "You bring great evil with you." Will eyed the elf, noting that he almost seemed frightened of what Frodo carried.
"You can go no further." Haldir said to Aragorn before turning and walking away.
Twenty minutes had passed now and Aragorn still argued with Haldir, while Legolas and Jack stood behind the arguing man and elf, listening intently.
"Boe ammen veriad lîn. Andelu i ven! We need your protection. The road is fell!" Aragorn said fiercely, trying to make Haldir see reason.
Will sat with Boromir; also listening to the arguments, wishing he understood what was being said as Haldir replied to Aragorn. The elf was speaking too softly for Will to make out what he was saying, but he could hear Aragorn clearly, even if he couldn't understand the elvish.
"Merin le telim. I wish we may come with you." Aragorn replied to whatever Haldir had said.
Jack shook his head. "This is getting us nowhere!" he said quietly so that only Legolas could hear.
Legolas sighed "Give him more time mellon nin."
Aragorn could feel himself becoming more and more irritated. "Henio, aníron boe ammen i dulu lîn! Please, understand, we need your support!"
Will sighed. He could tell by the desperation in Aragorn's voice that things weren't going well.
Boromir had tuned out the argument long ago. He figured that there was no point in listening to it since he couldn't understand it. Instead he had been watching Frodo, who was glancing between each of the Fellowship members, and looking downcast. "Gandalf's death was not in vain...nor would he have you give up hope." Boromir continued when he had gained Frodo's attention. "You carry a heavy burden, Frodo ...don't carry the weight of the dead."
Frodo began to ponder the man's words, but looked up suddenly. Haldir stepped up to them, looking and sounding less than happy. "You will follow me."