The Doom

Chapter One

Just a bit of an introduction: This story is sort of a combination of Dragonlance and Lord of the Rings. Sam is portrayed as a kender, and naturally, if you combine this with the Ring and a kender's natural curiousity, it makes for some interesting situations.This is the scene on Mount Doom when the Ring is about to be destroyed. Also, a disclaimer: I do not own LoTR or Dragonlance. Confound it all!

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Frodo leveled Sting at Gollum's scrawny chest.

"All right then, Smeagol, if you hurt me or Sam here, I'm not going to have mercy and not kill you. You will die by my cold hard steel if you do not leave. NOW!"

Sam watched wide-eyed and delighted as Gollum crawled away, whimpering. "Wow, Frodo, that was sure something. For a second there I was sure you were a goner, but you weren't. Can I see your sword for a minute? I won't keep it," he added hastily, seeing Frodo's wary look, "but it sure is neat. How do you make it glow like that? I remember Uncle Trapspringer telling me about finding a sword like that once; let's see, now how did it go? O, yes -"

"Sam, shut up. We have no time for your kender tales right now if we're going to destroy the Ring in time."

Sam gave an indignant cry. "But Frodo, it's a really good story, and it wouldn't take that long to tell -"

"I said be quiet, you doorknob!"

"Yes, Frodo," Sam said meekly, subsiding into a temporary silence. Frodo glanced away at the small black figure of Gollum.

"Now, Sam, I want you to be rear-guard and watch out for Gollum if he comes back. It's a very important job, do you understand?"

"I understand, Frodo. But what will you be doing while I'm rear-guarding you? What do I do? Does that mean I will be guarding your rear end?"

"No, no, NO, Sam, it just means you will keep watch for things that will be coming from behind. I don't want any distractions while I'm destroying the Ring."

Sam pouted, but almost immediately forgot about his hurt feelings, as he was appropriating Frodo's sword. It looked quite jaunty tucked in at his belt.

"All right, then, I'm off." Frodo's hand went up to his neck as he said this, to clasp the Ring that always hung there by a golden chain.

It was not there. He frowned and patted around, even sticking his hand into his pocket to see if it had by chance fallen in there. Then he noticed Sam's large brown eyes looking innocently up at him.

"Sam," he said warningly. "Where is it?"

"Where's what?"

"The Ring!" Frodo burst out angrily.

"What ring? O, you mean the Ring! I don't know where it is. Maybe you lost it."

"Sam, this is no time for games! Give it to me NOW!"

"O all right, all right," Sam muttered, delving into his pockets. His pouches he had been forced to drop down a pit, to lighten the load, as Frodo had put it. He had also lost his beloved cooking utensils, which meant he couldn't practice any of the cooking skills he had picked up on the road, even if though there wasn't any food besides lembas.

He discarded a mallorn leaf, a wineskin stopper, a shiny piece of blue glass, a slimy, chewed-up-looking object, an elf-necklace, a dead rat, several spoons and some odd-looking coins before he finally found what he was looking for.

"See?" Sam said as he handed the Ring to Frodo. "I was keeping it safe for you. Any common thief might have taken it. You should take better care of it. See, I even cleaned it up a bit for you!"

"Sam, the Ring doesn't have to be clean to be destroyed," Frodo said wearily.

"O well, it is always important to look your best," Sam argued, "even if you're about to be chucked into a fiery mountain. Say, that would be a neat way to die! Falling down and down with magma rising up to get you. Although it could get awfully warm..."

Frodo let Sam ramble on to himself. Meanwhile he started on up the Mountain, to do the final deed for good or for ill.

It took Sam a few minutes to realize he was alone. "Where did Frodo get to, I wonder?" he mused aloud. "Frodo! Frodo!" he called. No answer.

Sam felt a snuffle coming on. "He's gone and left me behind, while he gets all the excitement. I suppose he wants to do it himself, but that's awfully mean of him. Maybe he didn't really mean to."

A thought occurred to him. "O boy!: I forgot. Frodo wanted me to be rear-guard. I've never done that before!"

Considerably cheered, Sam started pacing back and forth, looking down the Mountain. But before long, his pace slowed. "I'm bored," he announced to himself.

At that precise moment he was bowled over from behind by a lean black shape. Gollum hurtled past, hissing, "My precious, my preciouss! We musstn't let Him get it!"

"Hey!" Sam shouted after him. "Where are you going? Can I come too?"

As he followed Gollum's progress upwards with his eyes, he noticed with a queer feeling starting in the region of his stomach that he couldn't see Frodo. And then to his delight and susequent distraction from his former thoughts, Gollum started fighting like mad with some invisible thing near the brink of the fiery chasm.

"O, I do wish I could see better!" Sam exclaimed, hopping up and down. He started running up the mountain.

Suddenly, Frodo reappeared, clutching his hand. What was wrong with him? Sam wondered. Gollum was dancing like a maniac, holding something in the air. What was it?

And then with a demonic shriek, Gollum slipped and fell down, down, down.

The mountain erupted.

"Wow!" said Sam, wide-eyed and grinning. "That's incredible!"