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**************************************************************************** ********* Resisting the urge to close his eyes and flee back the way they had come Elrohir walked close behind Galadriel as she led the party with Gimli by her side. He did not like the darkness of Moria. It went deeper than simply the lack of sunlight. There was no joy to be had here, simply a deep sense of menace. Around him he could feel the unease of the men and the loathing of the elves. Of the dwarves the reaction was mixed. Dalin and Falin appeared glad to see Moria but upset about the state it was in and the dead dwarves in the entrance hall. Gimli, on the other hand seemed, too absolutely hate being here. He walked beside Galadriel, leading the way with no complaints. But something about his demeanor told the young elf-lord that Gloin's son was far from overjoyed at returning to his people's ancient home. He knew the basic idea of what had befallen the Fellowship in Moria but wondered just what horrors they had faced that they did not speak of. For the blackness of Moria was caused by much more than simply orcs or even a balrog. Evil permeated its very core and suffocated those who entered. Deep in his mind he wondered how much his brother had to do with strengthening the evil of this place. As much as he expected Estel to have the strength to destroy the ring a small part of him feared he would not have the ability to do so. The blast of power at Mount Doom had shaken Elrohir deeper than he would admit. That much power had to be addictive.
"Estel will do what he must," Galadriel commented, answering his unvoiced thoughts. Her knowing gaze turned to meet his. "You must trust in him. His strength comes from the love and trust of his family. To doubt may well weaken him." She glanced down at Gimli whose brow was furled in concentration as he sought to retrace the Fellowships path correctly. "To dwell on the blackness will only make it stronger and weaken your will. Trust in yourself and your fellows."
Not able to hold the powerful gaze for long Elrohir looked at the path ahead of them "That is easier said than done, but I will try." He glanced about nervously. "I am actually surprised we have not been attacked already."
"We have done nothing to draw attention to ourselves," Gimli commented. "Besides the doorway behind is still open."
Knowing there was more that the dwarf was not saying Elrohir decided not to ask. He did not really want to know.
Galadriel smiled slightly. "The other force has entered Moria. Our best guess is that the main attack will come once we reach the great hall." Her eyes were distant as though listening to another conversation they could not hear. She flinched slightly. "Aragorn does not think he can keep the orcs and other creatures in check much more than a day or so. He does not want to release them until the two groups are closer together since he is not able to get a good gauge on the numbers of the individual groups."
"Lord Aragorn controls the orcs?" Imrahil asked quietly, he had moved up to the leaders after being sure the columns were in order.
Her brow furrowed thoughtfully the Lady of Light slowly shook her head. "Not controls, exactly. More like suggestions that are difficult to ignore, but not impossible." She glanced down at Gimli. "We must move faster."
The dwarf nodded without looking at her. "The way gets easier with fewer obstacles."
This trailing someone without being noticed was difficult Boromir observed to himself as he followed his father to the top of the tower. There were many rooms up here and he did not want to be fumbling around trying to find the correct one. Denethor had spoken to no one after they had arrived, locking himself away in his rooms with orders not to be disturbed. Boromir had seen to the ordering of the guard and on the security of the white city. Afraid to say too much and anger his father unnecessarily he had answered questions about the return of the king cautiously, but he had confirmed that an heir to Isildur lived and planned to come to the city once the remaining forces of Sauron had been dealt with. If he had not been convinced how worthy Aragorn was to take the kingship he would have been upset and jealous by the hope and joy that news brought to the people.
Finally his father reached the topmost chamber and pulled out a key to open the door. The room was dark and his father left the door open. Silently he crept up to it. A milky white ball stood on a pedestal in the center of the room.
"Enter, my son," his father's voice invited chillingly. "Come and see how your father learns the truth of the world."
Nervously, his battle instincts screaming at him Boromir entered the chamber. "A palantir," he breathed in horrified recognition. Gandalf had been given the one Merry had found in Orthanc and had told the remainder of the Fellowship the danger it posed. "Father, this can not be trusted. Sauron controlled what it shows. Or actually warped what was seen to his own advantage."
Ignoring his words his father lightly caressed the globe. "No. I am strong enough to control the palantir. I have seen what is to come. Your king is nothing but a lowly ranger who will destroy the white city and all of Middle-Earth. He does not carry the strength to rule." Walking over he laid a comforting hand on Boromir's shoulder. "You once asked why we did not take the kingship and I told you because we always waited for the king to return. But I was wrong. The line of kings is weak. We should take the title of king."
Slowly Boromir backed away from the odd light in his father's eyes. "No. Aragorn, son of Arathorn is well worthy of the title of king. He is my liege lord and I will follow him."
Eyes narrowing Denethor suddenly drew his sword and sliced out at his son.
Frozen in disbelief Boromir could do nothing but stare as the death stroke fell. An inch from his neck the sword stopped. Looking into the steward's enraged eyes and bulging muscles he knew it was not by Denethor's choice. 'Disarm him,' Aragorn's voice in his head commanded.
Not stopping to think about what had just happened Boromir did so. "Guards," he called, knowing that they would not be far.
Racing steps sounded outside the door before he had even finished the call. Two rangers burst into the room and took the steward into custody without pausing.
'Bind him and take him to the dungeons,' Aragorn commanded in his head. Before Boromir could even think up his many objections the voice softened regretfully. 'No, just take him to someplace secure. We will deal with him when I return.'
Not wanting to think of the implications of this event on any level. Boromir nodded his acknowledgement. 'Thank you,' he mentally replied, not even knowing if his king would hear.
'You are welcome.'
"Boromir." Without another word of explanation Aragorn stopped walking and closed his eyes.
Caught off-guard the others of his party stopped as well and looked uneasily at the uncrowned king. Standing beside Frodo Sam could almost feel power emanating off the ranger. The hobbit looked around but could find no reason for the sudden intensity. To his surprise he noted that both Halbarad and Legolas had taken two steps back and held their weapons at the ready. Glancing at Frodo he saw that his master's eyes were locked on Strider and his fists were clenched with worry. The gardener looked back at the ranger who was opening his eyes. He looked around at those who were anxiously watching him. "Denethor tried to kill Boromir," he said by way of explanation.
Faramir stepped closer to his king, eyes filled with worry. "What happened?"
"He has been subdued." The eyes he turned on the Steward's youngest son were still glowing with power barely contained. "He is in custody, I left it to Boromir on where to secure him." His eyes flashed and the ring glowed brighter in protest at those words.
Slowly Faramir nodded. "Thank you."
"How did you know?" Sam could not stop himself from asking. "Gondor is far from here."
He looked at the hobbit in confusion. "I just know." He shrugged lightly. Suddenly sagging slightly he closed his eyes a moment before opening them to look at Elrond and Gandalf. "I should not know, should I?"
Stepping forward Elrond laid a comforting hand on his youngest son's shoulder. "No." He signaled for the group to move out but stayed by Aragorn's side. "Tell me what happened."
For a moment Aragorn was quiet, his eyes far away. "I am keeping an eye on the major orc parties as well as Galadriel's group. On the edge of my awareness I can feel others I care about. I felt fear and disbelief from Boromir and suddenly saw through his eyes. It was an easy matter to paralyze Denethor and call rangers to Boromir's side." His haunted eyes met his father's. "I wanted to kill him. I managed to simply order him put under guard. I left where to Boromir. I am falling, aren't I?"
Elrond was unable to answer for a moment, fear almost overwhelming him. "You knew this was going to happen. You are not evil nor a dark lord. But yes, the longer you wield the one ring the more into darkness you will fall."
Taking a releasing a deep breath Aragorn nodded. "I just did not expect it to be like this. I am simply becoming used to these abilities." He closed his eyes and when he reopened them the vulnerability had been cloaked behind his usual self-assured gaze. "I will last long enough to finish what we have to do." His gaze went back to Halbarad and Legolas, walking behind and to either side of him. "And then what will have to be done, will be done."
"There is too much to be done," Merry groaned in dismay, looking around the treasury. "How are we to go through all this in less than two days? Not to mention the rest of the fortress."
Feeling the same dismay as the hobbit Arwen laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "To the best of our ability."
Pippin was looking around in awe as well. "Strider meant what he said then. He really did want people he trusted to go through this stuff with you. Not just to keep us safe."
With a sad smile Arwen nodded her head. Her gaze once again scanned the room piled high with crates and items from every civilization on Middle- Earth. "You know the symbols of Rohan and Gondor?" she asked the two hobbits. She waited for their nods of acknowledgement before going on. "See what you can find from those kingdoms. Once we have narrowed the stuff down we can request the assistance of one of the rangers and rohirrim on what is most valuable to their kingdom."
They had only just started sorting through stuff when Pippin abruptly jumped backward. Merry ran to his side. "What is it?"
The hobbit only pointed. Arwen joined them as well and pulling a bag from a pile of boxes slid the palantir into it. "Two," she commented softly.
"Two?" Merry repeated.
Arwen nodded. "Aragorn found one in the audience chamber. He has it stored away." Sadly she shook her head. "No wonder he was able to so easily corrupt Denethor and Saruman." She looked at the two hobbits. "Let us be extra careful, we do not know what else of potential danger we will find."
Elrohir suppressed his shudder as they walked through the wide halls of Dwarf City of Dwarrodelf. The presence of evil and the menace of the orcs was all but suffocating him. A quick glance around showed the rest of the elves were on edge as well. The humans were looking around suspiciously. Their senses may not be as sharp as an elves, but they were sensitive enough to feel the evil surrounding them. "We need to find a more defensible position, immediately," Galadriel spoke quietly but urgently to Gimli beside her. They were the first words any had spoken in several hours.
The dwarf nodded once and increased his pace, withdrawing his battle-axe. The rest of the column, seeing the action brought their own weapons, already in hand, up to ready. "Balin's tomb," Gimli stated sadly as he led them in.
Galadriel did not bother to look around. "Prepare yourselves. Aragorn can no longer expend the strength to keep the orcs in check and if they are held much longer they would form a united front."
Standing in front of the dwarven tomb Elrohir notched an arrow. Around him he could clearly see the signs of an old battle and one more recent. Up against the wall he noticed a familiar gray hat. His gaze shot to Gimli, who had taken a position next to Galadriel. The dwarven member of the fellowship did not look around. Familiar cries split the air and Elrohir felt his usual anger flare up. How he hated orcs. They had stolen his mother from him and tortured and killed too many that he cared about. Body reacting on instinct he began to fire arrow after arrow. Backing away as the evil creatures entered to allow the humans and those elves better with swords to fight hand to hand while the most accurate archers took to the narrow ledge lining the wall to continue their rain of death. Below him he noticed his brother and Gimli, along with Haldir and two lorien elves had formed a protective perimeter around Galadriel. The lady of light was literally glowing. Her aura of good was slowing the orcs. But not nearly enough. more and more orcs were squeezing into the room with Uruk-hai and goblins joining them. Time seemed to stop as he aimed and fired, aimed and fired in a never-ending stream. Around him he was aware of desperate battles taking place as many from both sides fell. Then he had no more arrows left. Withdrawing his sword he leaped lightly to the floor, cleaving an orc head off as he landed. Swiftly he made his way to his brother and grandmother. "We can not hold much longer."
Her face a mask of concentration Galadriel only nodded. Her usual pristine appearance was smudged and dusty. Closing her eyes the light around her faded for a moment. The orcs pressed in their attack. As soon as the Lady of Light reopened her eyes her aura brightened again and all but the Uruk-hai fell back. "Duck or press back against the wall," she called out.
Caught completely off-guard Elrohir never the less immediately obeyed his grandmother's command. A quick glance around showed him about what he expected. The majority of the elves were dropping while the humans were more reluctant. Those that were not engaged in immediate combat were obeying. A goblin was approaching him and Elrohir was fighting the urge to leap to his feet to defend himself when a blast of power shot through the room. The orcs, goblins, and Uruk-hai all froze, as did the few humans and elves who had not managed to duck.
Galadriel rose to her feet, an unusual glow to her eyes. "Finish them," she commanded in a voice that was not hers.
Jumping to his feet Elrohir found it hard to strike, despite his hatred of the evil creatures. They were frozen and defenseless. Something in the elf cried out at the unfairness of it. His feelings ignoring the logic that the orcs would not show similar hesitation. But he was not an orc or an evil creature.
"Do it," Galadriel's voice was soft, almost a plea. "We can not hold the spell long."
Gimli was the first to break the frozen tableau. He beheaded the nearest orc. Shaking off his own lethargy Elrohir turned to the orc nearest as well. Soon all were dead. He began to hunt for savable arrows as Galadriel sagged wearily against the wall.
Suddenly she stood up. "We must go, now." As she led the way out of Balin's tomb she did not wait for Gimli to show her the way. They walked for less than five minutes before the sounds of battle reached them. Galadriel held up her hand to prevent them from racing forward. "Wait a moment. The battle is almost completed and a sudden rush may bring about accidental deaths as the defenders turn unknowing that we are allies."
As they entered Elrohir was relieved to see that Galadriel was correct. The battle was all but over. Looking around he saw that the formation was wrong. This was like no battle he had ever seen or participated in before. His eyes were drawn to Estel. His brother was standing unmoving, hand slightly raised, the One Ring glowing brightly. To his horror he saw that darkness surrounded his brother. Always before Aragorn had glowed with light, not as strong as an elf, but stronger than a mortal. Now all that remained was a slim band of light. A small gasp pulled his eyes to the side. About ten feet from Aragorn, eyes locked on him stood Elrond, Galadriel, and Gandalf. They were glowing more strongly than he had ever seen before and there left hands were linked together. His breath caught in a sob and he reached out for his twin as he realized what was going on. The two elven lords and wizards were facing off their powers of light against Estel's darkness. He pulled his gaze back to his little brother, noticing that Legolas stood behind him, his bow notched and aimed at Estel. Opposite him stood Halbarad, his dagger in hand. The battle ended and all went silent as eyes were drawn to the silent battle. The tension steadily increased until Elrohir feared he would have to cry out or go mad. It was pressing down on him. Many had turned away, dropping to their knees in the face of such power. How long the silent battle of wills went on Elrohir could never say, but he suddenly knew that the strength of the elven rings was failing. Aragorn and the One Ring were overpowering the elf lords and wizard.
"Strider," a pleading cry tore through the silent cavern.
The tension disappeared as Estel whipped his head around to see Frodo with an Uruk-hai that had played dead attacking him. Reacting on instinct Aragorn whipped out his elven knife, a gift from Celeborn, and threw it. It cut the Uruk-hai's throat and it fell dead. Immediately Imrahil ordered his warriors to be sure all the enemy were dead. He darted forward and caught the former ringbearer before he fell. "Frodo," he breathed, seeking to stop the bleeding.
The hobbit was gasping. "It was a poisoned blade."
Aragorn's terrified eyes shot to Elrond. Slowly the elven lord shook his head, he was wearily leaning against a large pillar. "I am too exhausted to be able to reach him."
Sam had been digging through his pack and hurriedly handed the ranger some athelas.
His eyes full of terror Aragorn looked at those closest to him. Doubt mirrored in his eyes. "The Ring," he breathed. "I-"
Faramir had kindled a small fire and was hurriedly heating some water.
Gasping for breath Frodo brought a shaking hand to Aragorn's cheek. "I trust you," he sighed before slumping backward.
Eyes closed, forcing his heart rate to calm down Aragorn crushed the athelas and dropped it into the pot of water Faramir handed him with a quiet, "my king."
Fear almost crushing him Sam stumbled to Legolas' side. The archer had lowered his bow but still had it out and ready. "What is wrong? Isn't Strider a healer?"
"The ring could interfere. Healing is a power of light, destruction is the power of darkness. Aragorn fears to do more harm than good."
Sam looked up at him and then over at his master and the ranger. "Strider would never hurt Frodo." So saying he walked over to stand next to the ranger, laying a hand lightly on his shoulder. Aragaorn did not respond, his eyes staring down at Frodo as he used his healing gifts.
Expelling a deep breath Frodo opened his eyes as sat up, allowing Aragorn to bandage his shoulder. "It was only a minor cut," he assured those watching anxiously.
Not getting up Aragorn remained seated, holding Frodo in his lap. "Legolas, I need word sent to Mirkwood immediately that the area surrounding Dol Guldur needs to be cleared." Still not looking up from Frodo he went on. "Imrahil, Eomer, I would ask that you and the lorien elves leave the mine as fast as you can. I would ask that you ride to your homes to see everything settled and meet in the white city two weeks from today."
"As you wish," Imrahil replied and started gathering his men.
"Gimli, do the dwarves want to reopen Moria?"
Caught completely off-guard by the question Gimli looked to Dain. The dwarven leader nodded slowly. "Yes."
Aragorn nodded slowly. "You will have to open many of the shafts again. The depths need to be blocked but Dwarrowdelf shall be left untouched. I would ask that you attend the council in Minis Tirith as well."
"It would be our honor," Dain replied.
Closing his eyes a moment Aragorn slowly pushed himself to his feet, reaching down a hand to assist Frodo up. His gaze moved to the soldiers of Dol Amroth and Rohan. "We left our horses near the Dimrill Dale. " His gaze moved to Eomer. "I know how important your horses are to you, but I ask you to allow us to temporarily exchange horses."
His eyes not leaving Aragorn's Eomer slowly nodded. "We can return them when we meet in Minis Tirith in two weeks." Turning he signalled his people to follow the soldiers of Dol Amroth and the majority of the rangers that had accompanied Aragorn's party. The ranger's gaze next moved to Faramir. The steward's youngest son raised his head. "I remain with my king."
For a moment the eyes of the chieftain of the rangers of the north met the eyes of the chieftain of the rangers of Gondor. Aragorn nodded his head slowly. "As you wish."
While this had been going on Legolas called the few Mirkwood warriors over to him. "You will leave now and send out the warning. Put my royal code on it."
Eyes widening in surprise the ten warriors left, breaking into a smooth run.
Gandalf walked up to them, his face was a little less gray but he was still leaning heavily on his staff. "Aragorn?"
The ranger looked at him but quickly dropped his eyes. "We need to go to Mirkwood. My presence here has brought out the spiders. They must be destroyed before," here he stopped and swallowed hard. "Before the ring is destroyed. We need to leave." He started off, not bothering to see if anyone followed.
The journey out of the mines took half the time the journey in had taken. Sam stayed right at Frodo's side as his master stayed right at Strider's side. Legolas and Halbarad walked just behind them. The gardener found himself unable to take his eyes of the ranger who had been their protector for so long. He was different. He could see the changes the others had hinted at, but his sense of the ranger had not changed that much.. He knew Strider would not hurt Frodo. No matter what else had happened he was sure that core part of him had not been changed. Maybe it could be changed in time, but not yet. Not yet. And Sam also knew that Frodo was one of the reasons he was able to hang on to that part of himself. That being the case Sam said nothing as they strode through Moria quickly. Time lost all meaning and he focused on only putting one foot in front of the other.
"Faramir."
The command in Strider's tone caused Sam to look up as Frodo was suddenly lifted from his side. Before Sam could do anything he felt hands lift him as well and he was placed on Faramir's back. Looking to his left he saw Frodo perched trustingly on Strider's back. After what felt like forever they finally left the mines. Sam hoped he would never have to go back again. The exit had been cleared of the rubble. As soon as they left the valley two men approached with several horses.
"We need to rest before we go any farther," Gandalf announced. His eyes went to Aragorn who had wearily eased Frodo to the ground.
The ranger did not look up but nodded his head. Silently camp was set up. Sam placed his bedroll next to Frodo who was next to Strider. He was asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow, his last thought that he could now sleep anywhere unlike the hobbit who had left the shire so long ago who had thought he would never find a decent night's sleep on the rough ground.
It seemed that no sooner had he closed his eyes than someone was shaking him awake. "Sam, it is time to go."
Reluctantly the gardener opened his eyes to see Frodo crouched over him. Around him the rest of their group was in the process of mounting, the camp already broken. "What?"
Frodo grinned at his sleep filled question. "We are travelling to Mirkwood with Strider, the rangers of the north and Elrond's family." He glanced over his shoulder to where Aragorn and Faramir were having a heated discussion. "I believe Faramir is going to go with us as well. Everyone else is heading for home. Oh yes, Galadriel and Gandalf travel with us."
Faramir rode up to them. "Master Baggins you are to ride with me."
"No." The hobbit straightened up, his gaze going to Aragorn's stiff back and distant eyes. "I will ride with Aragorn." The former ring-bearer walked up to Lord of Ring. He looked down at Frodo in surprise. After a moment he smiled and lifted the hobbit to his horse.
Sam turned to Faramir. "I guess I ride with you." He could not keep the tone of suffering out of his voice. The gardener did not like riding horses, or at least riding like baggage on a horse. As they left the clearing he was surprised to see that Gimli was riding with Elrohir instead of Legolas. All through the war the dwarf had rode with Legolas. "What is going on?"
His eyes on his king Faramir shook his head slowly. "I wish I knew. I know we ride to Mirkwood to cleanse much of the evil, but after that I do not know. Aragorn has sent all but his closest companions home. Hold on, Master Gardener, we have a long ride."
It was nearing dark when the much smaller party reached the edge of Mirkwood. Aragorn dismounted and walked to the very edge of the forest. After a moment Gandalf, Galadriel, and Elrond had formed a triangle around him. "I do not know of how much use we will be," Elrond told him.
His eyes not leaving the shadowy woods Aragorn only nodded. He turned to lock eyes with Halbarad and then Legolas. Holding their gazes for nearly two minutes. Both gave a single slight inclination of their heads, hands going to their weapons. Aragorn turned back to the woods. His eyes began to glow.
Sam fought the urge to retreat. He stood behind Elrond with Frodo and Faramir. Elladan, Elrohir, and Gimli stood just behind Galadriel, while Legolas and Halbarad, the only ones with weapons out, flanked Gandalf. Power the likes of which he had never felt before swirled around him and then seemed to lash out.
The tension surrounding the small group faded, and Sam could almost see those around him wilting in relief. Turning to Frodo he realized it was not over. His master was staring at Aragorn, his eyes full of sorrow. "Frodo."
The head turned to look at him, eyes vague and unspoken. "Now comes the most dangerous use of the Ring's power."
Eyes widening Sam turned back to Strider. He was taking long, deep breaths. His eyes closed and Sam could feel the tension building once again, this time even tighter than before. He wanted to close his eyes but could not pull his gaze away from Strider. He was almost glowing, but the aura was dark not light.
Feeling the power coursing through him Aragorn allowed it to build. It felt good. At the moment he could not remember why this was not a good thing. With his last bit of concentration he managed to refrain from lashing out at the three points of light were trying to distract him. No, they were at the moment providing support. A part of him questioned why. Just a short time ago they had tried to stop him, to contain him. They had to be destroyed. Shaking his head Aragorn dislodged the wrong thoughts. They were not his target. With his mind he reached out for the aura of evil. The first one was close. Gathering the power to him he lashed out in a continuous stream. The ground began to shake and around him he was vaguely aware of those that had accompanied him falling. They did not matter. All that mattered was himself and the power. When he sensed no more evil he reached out with his mind. Another presence was behind him. Turning unknowingly to face Moria he lashed out again. Only the depths, a part of his mind reminded him. With effort he narrowed his attack and aimed. The power did not want to be controlled. His fists clenched in concentration he felt the evil aura fade. Without pause he reached out for the strongest force of evil. Forcing a control he feared he could not maintain he reached out to feel for a familiar mind. Arwen was miles away from the evel. With a deep breath he lashed out strongly. As the power enveloped him he felt if he did not stop soon he would be lost. But the truth was he did not want to stop. Closing his eyes he continued his attack, while fear enveloped him. Fear. Suddenly he had an idea. Concentrating he forced his fear, anger, doubts, and as much of the power as he could at the evil area. The ground around them shook and in his mind's eye he could see Barad-ur and the black gates collapse in a heap of rubble. Breathing hard he fought to reign in the power as the plains were swept as the power sought to destroy. Little by little he managed to gain control. The light reached out for him and against his better judgement he reached for the light and the power receded even more. Managing to force his eyes open he turned to Legolas and Halbarad. "Get me to Mount Doom," he managed to breathe out before he collapsed.
Elrond caught his youngest before he fell. He hurriedly handed the unconscious man up to the already mounted Halbarad. "Go," he ordered, handing Legolas the reigns of Roheryn and an extra horse. "We wil follow. Next he turned to his twins. "Go for your sister and bring her to Mount Doom as fast as you can." The two raced off.
"What about us?" Frodo demanded.
Elrond was watching the four horses disappear in the distance. "We will follow, but will not be able to make the ride as fast. It will be a hard ride."
"It does not matter," Sam replied. "Strider is the important one."
Elrond nodded. "Master Baggins will you ride with me?"
The hobbit nodded. "Hurry, " he whispered to the elf lord as they raced away. "Hurry." He could feel the end drawing near and he was scared.
**************************************************************************** ********* Resisting the urge to close his eyes and flee back the way they had come Elrohir walked close behind Galadriel as she led the party with Gimli by her side. He did not like the darkness of Moria. It went deeper than simply the lack of sunlight. There was no joy to be had here, simply a deep sense of menace. Around him he could feel the unease of the men and the loathing of the elves. Of the dwarves the reaction was mixed. Dalin and Falin appeared glad to see Moria but upset about the state it was in and the dead dwarves in the entrance hall. Gimli, on the other hand seemed, too absolutely hate being here. He walked beside Galadriel, leading the way with no complaints. But something about his demeanor told the young elf-lord that Gloin's son was far from overjoyed at returning to his people's ancient home. He knew the basic idea of what had befallen the Fellowship in Moria but wondered just what horrors they had faced that they did not speak of. For the blackness of Moria was caused by much more than simply orcs or even a balrog. Evil permeated its very core and suffocated those who entered. Deep in his mind he wondered how much his brother had to do with strengthening the evil of this place. As much as he expected Estel to have the strength to destroy the ring a small part of him feared he would not have the ability to do so. The blast of power at Mount Doom had shaken Elrohir deeper than he would admit. That much power had to be addictive.
"Estel will do what he must," Galadriel commented, answering his unvoiced thoughts. Her knowing gaze turned to meet his. "You must trust in him. His strength comes from the love and trust of his family. To doubt may well weaken him." She glanced down at Gimli whose brow was furled in concentration as he sought to retrace the Fellowships path correctly. "To dwell on the blackness will only make it stronger and weaken your will. Trust in yourself and your fellows."
Not able to hold the powerful gaze for long Elrohir looked at the path ahead of them "That is easier said than done, but I will try." He glanced about nervously. "I am actually surprised we have not been attacked already."
"We have done nothing to draw attention to ourselves," Gimli commented. "Besides the doorway behind is still open."
Knowing there was more that the dwarf was not saying Elrohir decided not to ask. He did not really want to know.
Galadriel smiled slightly. "The other force has entered Moria. Our best guess is that the main attack will come once we reach the great hall." Her eyes were distant as though listening to another conversation they could not hear. She flinched slightly. "Aragorn does not think he can keep the orcs and other creatures in check much more than a day or so. He does not want to release them until the two groups are closer together since he is not able to get a good gauge on the numbers of the individual groups."
"Lord Aragorn controls the orcs?" Imrahil asked quietly, he had moved up to the leaders after being sure the columns were in order.
Her brow furrowed thoughtfully the Lady of Light slowly shook her head. "Not controls, exactly. More like suggestions that are difficult to ignore, but not impossible." She glanced down at Gimli. "We must move faster."
The dwarf nodded without looking at her. "The way gets easier with fewer obstacles."
This trailing someone without being noticed was difficult Boromir observed to himself as he followed his father to the top of the tower. There were many rooms up here and he did not want to be fumbling around trying to find the correct one. Denethor had spoken to no one after they had arrived, locking himself away in his rooms with orders not to be disturbed. Boromir had seen to the ordering of the guard and on the security of the white city. Afraid to say too much and anger his father unnecessarily he had answered questions about the return of the king cautiously, but he had confirmed that an heir to Isildur lived and planned to come to the city once the remaining forces of Sauron had been dealt with. If he had not been convinced how worthy Aragorn was to take the kingship he would have been upset and jealous by the hope and joy that news brought to the people.
Finally his father reached the topmost chamber and pulled out a key to open the door. The room was dark and his father left the door open. Silently he crept up to it. A milky white ball stood on a pedestal in the center of the room.
"Enter, my son," his father's voice invited chillingly. "Come and see how your father learns the truth of the world."
Nervously, his battle instincts screaming at him Boromir entered the chamber. "A palantir," he breathed in horrified recognition. Gandalf had been given the one Merry had found in Orthanc and had told the remainder of the Fellowship the danger it posed. "Father, this can not be trusted. Sauron controlled what it shows. Or actually warped what was seen to his own advantage."
Ignoring his words his father lightly caressed the globe. "No. I am strong enough to control the palantir. I have seen what is to come. Your king is nothing but a lowly ranger who will destroy the white city and all of Middle-Earth. He does not carry the strength to rule." Walking over he laid a comforting hand on Boromir's shoulder. "You once asked why we did not take the kingship and I told you because we always waited for the king to return. But I was wrong. The line of kings is weak. We should take the title of king."
Slowly Boromir backed away from the odd light in his father's eyes. "No. Aragorn, son of Arathorn is well worthy of the title of king. He is my liege lord and I will follow him."
Eyes narrowing Denethor suddenly drew his sword and sliced out at his son.
Frozen in disbelief Boromir could do nothing but stare as the death stroke fell. An inch from his neck the sword stopped. Looking into the steward's enraged eyes and bulging muscles he knew it was not by Denethor's choice. 'Disarm him,' Aragorn's voice in his head commanded.
Not stopping to think about what had just happened Boromir did so. "Guards," he called, knowing that they would not be far.
Racing steps sounded outside the door before he had even finished the call. Two rangers burst into the room and took the steward into custody without pausing.
'Bind him and take him to the dungeons,' Aragorn commanded in his head. Before Boromir could even think up his many objections the voice softened regretfully. 'No, just take him to someplace secure. We will deal with him when I return.'
Not wanting to think of the implications of this event on any level. Boromir nodded his acknowledgement. 'Thank you,' he mentally replied, not even knowing if his king would hear.
'You are welcome.'
"Boromir." Without another word of explanation Aragorn stopped walking and closed his eyes.
Caught off-guard the others of his party stopped as well and looked uneasily at the uncrowned king. Standing beside Frodo Sam could almost feel power emanating off the ranger. The hobbit looked around but could find no reason for the sudden intensity. To his surprise he noted that both Halbarad and Legolas had taken two steps back and held their weapons at the ready. Glancing at Frodo he saw that his master's eyes were locked on Strider and his fists were clenched with worry. The gardener looked back at the ranger who was opening his eyes. He looked around at those who were anxiously watching him. "Denethor tried to kill Boromir," he said by way of explanation.
Faramir stepped closer to his king, eyes filled with worry. "What happened?"
"He has been subdued." The eyes he turned on the Steward's youngest son were still glowing with power barely contained. "He is in custody, I left it to Boromir on where to secure him." His eyes flashed and the ring glowed brighter in protest at those words.
Slowly Faramir nodded. "Thank you."
"How did you know?" Sam could not stop himself from asking. "Gondor is far from here."
He looked at the hobbit in confusion. "I just know." He shrugged lightly. Suddenly sagging slightly he closed his eyes a moment before opening them to look at Elrond and Gandalf. "I should not know, should I?"
Stepping forward Elrond laid a comforting hand on his youngest son's shoulder. "No." He signaled for the group to move out but stayed by Aragorn's side. "Tell me what happened."
For a moment Aragorn was quiet, his eyes far away. "I am keeping an eye on the major orc parties as well as Galadriel's group. On the edge of my awareness I can feel others I care about. I felt fear and disbelief from Boromir and suddenly saw through his eyes. It was an easy matter to paralyze Denethor and call rangers to Boromir's side." His haunted eyes met his father's. "I wanted to kill him. I managed to simply order him put under guard. I left where to Boromir. I am falling, aren't I?"
Elrond was unable to answer for a moment, fear almost overwhelming him. "You knew this was going to happen. You are not evil nor a dark lord. But yes, the longer you wield the one ring the more into darkness you will fall."
Taking a releasing a deep breath Aragorn nodded. "I just did not expect it to be like this. I am simply becoming used to these abilities." He closed his eyes and when he reopened them the vulnerability had been cloaked behind his usual self-assured gaze. "I will last long enough to finish what we have to do." His gaze went back to Halbarad and Legolas, walking behind and to either side of him. "And then what will have to be done, will be done."
"There is too much to be done," Merry groaned in dismay, looking around the treasury. "How are we to go through all this in less than two days? Not to mention the rest of the fortress."
Feeling the same dismay as the hobbit Arwen laid a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "To the best of our ability."
Pippin was looking around in awe as well. "Strider meant what he said then. He really did want people he trusted to go through this stuff with you. Not just to keep us safe."
With a sad smile Arwen nodded her head. Her gaze once again scanned the room piled high with crates and items from every civilization on Middle- Earth. "You know the symbols of Rohan and Gondor?" she asked the two hobbits. She waited for their nods of acknowledgement before going on. "See what you can find from those kingdoms. Once we have narrowed the stuff down we can request the assistance of one of the rangers and rohirrim on what is most valuable to their kingdom."
They had only just started sorting through stuff when Pippin abruptly jumped backward. Merry ran to his side. "What is it?"
The hobbit only pointed. Arwen joined them as well and pulling a bag from a pile of boxes slid the palantir into it. "Two," she commented softly.
"Two?" Merry repeated.
Arwen nodded. "Aragorn found one in the audience chamber. He has it stored away." Sadly she shook her head. "No wonder he was able to so easily corrupt Denethor and Saruman." She looked at the two hobbits. "Let us be extra careful, we do not know what else of potential danger we will find."
Elrohir suppressed his shudder as they walked through the wide halls of Dwarf City of Dwarrodelf. The presence of evil and the menace of the orcs was all but suffocating him. A quick glance around showed the rest of the elves were on edge as well. The humans were looking around suspiciously. Their senses may not be as sharp as an elves, but they were sensitive enough to feel the evil surrounding them. "We need to find a more defensible position, immediately," Galadriel spoke quietly but urgently to Gimli beside her. They were the first words any had spoken in several hours.
The dwarf nodded once and increased his pace, withdrawing his battle-axe. The rest of the column, seeing the action brought their own weapons, already in hand, up to ready. "Balin's tomb," Gimli stated sadly as he led them in.
Galadriel did not bother to look around. "Prepare yourselves. Aragorn can no longer expend the strength to keep the orcs in check and if they are held much longer they would form a united front."
Standing in front of the dwarven tomb Elrohir notched an arrow. Around him he could clearly see the signs of an old battle and one more recent. Up against the wall he noticed a familiar gray hat. His gaze shot to Gimli, who had taken a position next to Galadriel. The dwarven member of the fellowship did not look around. Familiar cries split the air and Elrohir felt his usual anger flare up. How he hated orcs. They had stolen his mother from him and tortured and killed too many that he cared about. Body reacting on instinct he began to fire arrow after arrow. Backing away as the evil creatures entered to allow the humans and those elves better with swords to fight hand to hand while the most accurate archers took to the narrow ledge lining the wall to continue their rain of death. Below him he noticed his brother and Gimli, along with Haldir and two lorien elves had formed a protective perimeter around Galadriel. The lady of light was literally glowing. Her aura of good was slowing the orcs. But not nearly enough. more and more orcs were squeezing into the room with Uruk-hai and goblins joining them. Time seemed to stop as he aimed and fired, aimed and fired in a never-ending stream. Around him he was aware of desperate battles taking place as many from both sides fell. Then he had no more arrows left. Withdrawing his sword he leaped lightly to the floor, cleaving an orc head off as he landed. Swiftly he made his way to his brother and grandmother. "We can not hold much longer."
Her face a mask of concentration Galadriel only nodded. Her usual pristine appearance was smudged and dusty. Closing her eyes the light around her faded for a moment. The orcs pressed in their attack. As soon as the Lady of Light reopened her eyes her aura brightened again and all but the Uruk-hai fell back. "Duck or press back against the wall," she called out.
Caught completely off-guard Elrohir never the less immediately obeyed his grandmother's command. A quick glance around showed him about what he expected. The majority of the elves were dropping while the humans were more reluctant. Those that were not engaged in immediate combat were obeying. A goblin was approaching him and Elrohir was fighting the urge to leap to his feet to defend himself when a blast of power shot through the room. The orcs, goblins, and Uruk-hai all froze, as did the few humans and elves who had not managed to duck.
Galadriel rose to her feet, an unusual glow to her eyes. "Finish them," she commanded in a voice that was not hers.
Jumping to his feet Elrohir found it hard to strike, despite his hatred of the evil creatures. They were frozen and defenseless. Something in the elf cried out at the unfairness of it. His feelings ignoring the logic that the orcs would not show similar hesitation. But he was not an orc or an evil creature.
"Do it," Galadriel's voice was soft, almost a plea. "We can not hold the spell long."
Gimli was the first to break the frozen tableau. He beheaded the nearest orc. Shaking off his own lethargy Elrohir turned to the orc nearest as well. Soon all were dead. He began to hunt for savable arrows as Galadriel sagged wearily against the wall.
Suddenly she stood up. "We must go, now." As she led the way out of Balin's tomb she did not wait for Gimli to show her the way. They walked for less than five minutes before the sounds of battle reached them. Galadriel held up her hand to prevent them from racing forward. "Wait a moment. The battle is almost completed and a sudden rush may bring about accidental deaths as the defenders turn unknowing that we are allies."
As they entered Elrohir was relieved to see that Galadriel was correct. The battle was all but over. Looking around he saw that the formation was wrong. This was like no battle he had ever seen or participated in before. His eyes were drawn to Estel. His brother was standing unmoving, hand slightly raised, the One Ring glowing brightly. To his horror he saw that darkness surrounded his brother. Always before Aragorn had glowed with light, not as strong as an elf, but stronger than a mortal. Now all that remained was a slim band of light. A small gasp pulled his eyes to the side. About ten feet from Aragorn, eyes locked on him stood Elrond, Galadriel, and Gandalf. They were glowing more strongly than he had ever seen before and there left hands were linked together. His breath caught in a sob and he reached out for his twin as he realized what was going on. The two elven lords and wizards were facing off their powers of light against Estel's darkness. He pulled his gaze back to his little brother, noticing that Legolas stood behind him, his bow notched and aimed at Estel. Opposite him stood Halbarad, his dagger in hand. The battle ended and all went silent as eyes were drawn to the silent battle. The tension steadily increased until Elrohir feared he would have to cry out or go mad. It was pressing down on him. Many had turned away, dropping to their knees in the face of such power. How long the silent battle of wills went on Elrohir could never say, but he suddenly knew that the strength of the elven rings was failing. Aragorn and the One Ring were overpowering the elf lords and wizard.
"Strider," a pleading cry tore through the silent cavern.
The tension disappeared as Estel whipped his head around to see Frodo with an Uruk-hai that had played dead attacking him. Reacting on instinct Aragorn whipped out his elven knife, a gift from Celeborn, and threw it. It cut the Uruk-hai's throat and it fell dead. Immediately Imrahil ordered his warriors to be sure all the enemy were dead. He darted forward and caught the former ringbearer before he fell. "Frodo," he breathed, seeking to stop the bleeding.
The hobbit was gasping. "It was a poisoned blade."
Aragorn's terrified eyes shot to Elrond. Slowly the elven lord shook his head, he was wearily leaning against a large pillar. "I am too exhausted to be able to reach him."
Sam had been digging through his pack and hurriedly handed the ranger some athelas.
His eyes full of terror Aragorn looked at those closest to him. Doubt mirrored in his eyes. "The Ring," he breathed. "I-"
Faramir had kindled a small fire and was hurriedly heating some water.
Gasping for breath Frodo brought a shaking hand to Aragorn's cheek. "I trust you," he sighed before slumping backward.
Eyes closed, forcing his heart rate to calm down Aragorn crushed the athelas and dropped it into the pot of water Faramir handed him with a quiet, "my king."
Fear almost crushing him Sam stumbled to Legolas' side. The archer had lowered his bow but still had it out and ready. "What is wrong? Isn't Strider a healer?"
"The ring could interfere. Healing is a power of light, destruction is the power of darkness. Aragorn fears to do more harm than good."
Sam looked up at him and then over at his master and the ranger. "Strider would never hurt Frodo." So saying he walked over to stand next to the ranger, laying a hand lightly on his shoulder. Aragaorn did not respond, his eyes staring down at Frodo as he used his healing gifts.
Expelling a deep breath Frodo opened his eyes as sat up, allowing Aragorn to bandage his shoulder. "It was only a minor cut," he assured those watching anxiously.
Not getting up Aragorn remained seated, holding Frodo in his lap. "Legolas, I need word sent to Mirkwood immediately that the area surrounding Dol Guldur needs to be cleared." Still not looking up from Frodo he went on. "Imrahil, Eomer, I would ask that you and the lorien elves leave the mine as fast as you can. I would ask that you ride to your homes to see everything settled and meet in the white city two weeks from today."
"As you wish," Imrahil replied and started gathering his men.
"Gimli, do the dwarves want to reopen Moria?"
Caught completely off-guard by the question Gimli looked to Dain. The dwarven leader nodded slowly. "Yes."
Aragorn nodded slowly. "You will have to open many of the shafts again. The depths need to be blocked but Dwarrowdelf shall be left untouched. I would ask that you attend the council in Minis Tirith as well."
"It would be our honor," Dain replied.
Closing his eyes a moment Aragorn slowly pushed himself to his feet, reaching down a hand to assist Frodo up. His gaze moved to the soldiers of Dol Amroth and Rohan. "We left our horses near the Dimrill Dale. " His gaze moved to Eomer. "I know how important your horses are to you, but I ask you to allow us to temporarily exchange horses."
His eyes not leaving Aragorn's Eomer slowly nodded. "We can return them when we meet in Minis Tirith in two weeks." Turning he signalled his people to follow the soldiers of Dol Amroth and the majority of the rangers that had accompanied Aragorn's party. The ranger's gaze next moved to Faramir. The steward's youngest son raised his head. "I remain with my king."
For a moment the eyes of the chieftain of the rangers of the north met the eyes of the chieftain of the rangers of Gondor. Aragorn nodded his head slowly. "As you wish."
While this had been going on Legolas called the few Mirkwood warriors over to him. "You will leave now and send out the warning. Put my royal code on it."
Eyes widening in surprise the ten warriors left, breaking into a smooth run.
Gandalf walked up to them, his face was a little less gray but he was still leaning heavily on his staff. "Aragorn?"
The ranger looked at him but quickly dropped his eyes. "We need to go to Mirkwood. My presence here has brought out the spiders. They must be destroyed before," here he stopped and swallowed hard. "Before the ring is destroyed. We need to leave." He started off, not bothering to see if anyone followed.
The journey out of the mines took half the time the journey in had taken. Sam stayed right at Frodo's side as his master stayed right at Strider's side. Legolas and Halbarad walked just behind them. The gardener found himself unable to take his eyes of the ranger who had been their protector for so long. He was different. He could see the changes the others had hinted at, but his sense of the ranger had not changed that much.. He knew Strider would not hurt Frodo. No matter what else had happened he was sure that core part of him had not been changed. Maybe it could be changed in time, but not yet. Not yet. And Sam also knew that Frodo was one of the reasons he was able to hang on to that part of himself. That being the case Sam said nothing as they strode through Moria quickly. Time lost all meaning and he focused on only putting one foot in front of the other.
"Faramir."
The command in Strider's tone caused Sam to look up as Frodo was suddenly lifted from his side. Before Sam could do anything he felt hands lift him as well and he was placed on Faramir's back. Looking to his left he saw Frodo perched trustingly on Strider's back. After what felt like forever they finally left the mines. Sam hoped he would never have to go back again. The exit had been cleared of the rubble. As soon as they left the valley two men approached with several horses.
"We need to rest before we go any farther," Gandalf announced. His eyes went to Aragorn who had wearily eased Frodo to the ground.
The ranger did not look up but nodded his head. Silently camp was set up. Sam placed his bedroll next to Frodo who was next to Strider. He was asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow, his last thought that he could now sleep anywhere unlike the hobbit who had left the shire so long ago who had thought he would never find a decent night's sleep on the rough ground.
It seemed that no sooner had he closed his eyes than someone was shaking him awake. "Sam, it is time to go."
Reluctantly the gardener opened his eyes to see Frodo crouched over him. Around him the rest of their group was in the process of mounting, the camp already broken. "What?"
Frodo grinned at his sleep filled question. "We are travelling to Mirkwood with Strider, the rangers of the north and Elrond's family." He glanced over his shoulder to where Aragorn and Faramir were having a heated discussion. "I believe Faramir is going to go with us as well. Everyone else is heading for home. Oh yes, Galadriel and Gandalf travel with us."
Faramir rode up to them. "Master Baggins you are to ride with me."
"No." The hobbit straightened up, his gaze going to Aragorn's stiff back and distant eyes. "I will ride with Aragorn." The former ring-bearer walked up to Lord of Ring. He looked down at Frodo in surprise. After a moment he smiled and lifted the hobbit to his horse.
Sam turned to Faramir. "I guess I ride with you." He could not keep the tone of suffering out of his voice. The gardener did not like riding horses, or at least riding like baggage on a horse. As they left the clearing he was surprised to see that Gimli was riding with Elrohir instead of Legolas. All through the war the dwarf had rode with Legolas. "What is going on?"
His eyes on his king Faramir shook his head slowly. "I wish I knew. I know we ride to Mirkwood to cleanse much of the evil, but after that I do not know. Aragorn has sent all but his closest companions home. Hold on, Master Gardener, we have a long ride."
It was nearing dark when the much smaller party reached the edge of Mirkwood. Aragorn dismounted and walked to the very edge of the forest. After a moment Gandalf, Galadriel, and Elrond had formed a triangle around him. "I do not know of how much use we will be," Elrond told him.
His eyes not leaving the shadowy woods Aragorn only nodded. He turned to lock eyes with Halbarad and then Legolas. Holding their gazes for nearly two minutes. Both gave a single slight inclination of their heads, hands going to their weapons. Aragorn turned back to the woods. His eyes began to glow.
Sam fought the urge to retreat. He stood behind Elrond with Frodo and Faramir. Elladan, Elrohir, and Gimli stood just behind Galadriel, while Legolas and Halbarad, the only ones with weapons out, flanked Gandalf. Power the likes of which he had never felt before swirled around him and then seemed to lash out.
The tension surrounding the small group faded, and Sam could almost see those around him wilting in relief. Turning to Frodo he realized it was not over. His master was staring at Aragorn, his eyes full of sorrow. "Frodo."
The head turned to look at him, eyes vague and unspoken. "Now comes the most dangerous use of the Ring's power."
Eyes widening Sam turned back to Strider. He was taking long, deep breaths. His eyes closed and Sam could feel the tension building once again, this time even tighter than before. He wanted to close his eyes but could not pull his gaze away from Strider. He was almost glowing, but the aura was dark not light.
Feeling the power coursing through him Aragorn allowed it to build. It felt good. At the moment he could not remember why this was not a good thing. With his last bit of concentration he managed to refrain from lashing out at the three points of light were trying to distract him. No, they were at the moment providing support. A part of him questioned why. Just a short time ago they had tried to stop him, to contain him. They had to be destroyed. Shaking his head Aragorn dislodged the wrong thoughts. They were not his target. With his mind he reached out for the aura of evil. The first one was close. Gathering the power to him he lashed out in a continuous stream. The ground began to shake and around him he was vaguely aware of those that had accompanied him falling. They did not matter. All that mattered was himself and the power. When he sensed no more evil he reached out with his mind. Another presence was behind him. Turning unknowingly to face Moria he lashed out again. Only the depths, a part of his mind reminded him. With effort he narrowed his attack and aimed. The power did not want to be controlled. His fists clenched in concentration he felt the evil aura fade. Without pause he reached out for the strongest force of evil. Forcing a control he feared he could not maintain he reached out to feel for a familiar mind. Arwen was miles away from the evel. With a deep breath he lashed out strongly. As the power enveloped him he felt if he did not stop soon he would be lost. But the truth was he did not want to stop. Closing his eyes he continued his attack, while fear enveloped him. Fear. Suddenly he had an idea. Concentrating he forced his fear, anger, doubts, and as much of the power as he could at the evil area. The ground around them shook and in his mind's eye he could see Barad-ur and the black gates collapse in a heap of rubble. Breathing hard he fought to reign in the power as the plains were swept as the power sought to destroy. Little by little he managed to gain control. The light reached out for him and against his better judgement he reached for the light and the power receded even more. Managing to force his eyes open he turned to Legolas and Halbarad. "Get me to Mount Doom," he managed to breathe out before he collapsed.
Elrond caught his youngest before he fell. He hurriedly handed the unconscious man up to the already mounted Halbarad. "Go," he ordered, handing Legolas the reigns of Roheryn and an extra horse. "We wil follow. Next he turned to his twins. "Go for your sister and bring her to Mount Doom as fast as you can." The two raced off.
"What about us?" Frodo demanded.
Elrond was watching the four horses disappear in the distance. "We will follow, but will not be able to make the ride as fast. It will be a hard ride."
"It does not matter," Sam replied. "Strider is the important one."
Elrond nodded. "Master Baggins will you ride with me?"
The hobbit nodded. "Hurry, " he whispered to the elf lord as they raced away. "Hurry." He could feel the end drawing near and he was scared.