Now I don't usually write notes here but I did want to say, wacked as this is I am really trying hard NOT to make it a Star Trek meets Middle Earth tale. But I suppose the minute you have a large orbiting ship and an admiral and high tech gadgets, (including my version of a transporter and communicators) everyone nominally thinks "Star Trek."
"Star Trek" is an archetype in anything science fictional, as Tolkien's elves are to every fantasy that includes anyone elvish.
You just can't get away from 'em.
But seriously, no one on Elrond's ship or on Middle Earth is a member of the Federation. And the elves are not Vulcans!
(And I winced when I had Elrond ask for tea. I forgot all about Picard's Earl Grey!! See what I mean!!)
Anyway on with the tale!
Mithrandir walked out of the passage room, and making sure everything was in order, pushed the lock override. He exited quickly making sure the door was locked behind him.
Once out in the hallway, the wizard made his way towards the guest rooms, fingering a small hypo in a deep pocket of his robe that he had picked up in sickbay.
Before he got to the rooms, he was hailed by Elrond's Second, Glorfindel. "My Lord Admiral." He bowed slightly. "How is the Ringbearer?"
"Elrond is just starting exploratory surgery I imagine." The wizard cocked his head at the golden-haired elf. "Frodo is infected with a nanobot of Sauron's and it is headed towards Frodo's heart."
"Does he need any assistance?"
"He told me he would contact you if necessary. At the moment we are a bit worried about the tenacious and wandering Samwise. He is not resting as the others are and the ship's monitors have him coming in this direction. We need to keep him from the recovery room until Frodo is stabilized."
"All right. I can certainly handle one small hobbit if you wish, admiral."
"I would appreciate your help Glorfindel." Mithrandir smiled and patted his stomach. "I admit I am feeling a bit peckish and the kitchens of Rivendell quite surpass the ship's galley!"
Glorfindel laughed and made to go on. The wizard stopped him, handing him the hypo. "If necessary, drug our little wanderer. Give him some kind of pleasant dream. This should keep him abed til morning, when we can come up with another reason why he can't see Frodo just yet."
"All right." Glorfindel bowed and Mithrandir, relieved of hobbit tracking, whistled an ancient Ansturian adventure song under his breath.
Perhaps later he would send some food to Elrond as well.
Glorfindel continued down the hallway and turning a corner, he almost ran down the small gardener.
"Master Samwise, may I help you?"
Sam looked up at the tall elf dressed in a smoky blue robe that just touched the tips of his dark brown boots and smiled thinly. If another elf asked him one more time politely if they could help him, he was going to burst a seam!
"I was just going to see how Mr. Frodo is doing, my lord," he said with a sigh.
"He is being prepared for rather delicate surgery at the moment. This would not be a good time for a visit." Glorfindel smiling down, put a hand on the hobbit's shoulder and turned him back towards the guest rooms. "Surely you are exhausted by your travels Master Samwise and could use a bit of a rest yourself."
Sam pulled back against the elf lord's firm hand. "Now begging your pardon my lord, but seeing how I have been the one taking care of Frodo all this time, with Strider and Merry and Pip's help of course, I think I am entitled to check on his progress!"
Sam stopped and turned to give the elf lord a no nonsense glare. "I know that Strider says Lord Elrond is a bang-up healer. And be that as it may...." Sam slipped around the tall elf and moved quickly down the hall continuing in his original direction.
These elves! Friendly as they appeared, they certainly had mighty peculiar ways of handling guests.
".....I still need to see to Mr. Frodo!"
The elf lord almost laughed out loud. This Samwise was obviously not going to be easy to convince.
Knowing the recovery room was locked, Glorfindel followed the determined hobbit at a more leisurely pace.
How to handle Sam?
Allowing the hobbit to pull ahead, Glorfindel went to a nearby room ostensibly devoted to a collection of ancient artifacts the elves had collected in their millenia on Middle Earth from the earliest peoples of this planet.
Ignoring the wonderful pots and ornate jewelry, the elven lord went to a small tapestry behind which was a niche. Therein lay a ship's communicator. There were not many about Rivendell as they interfaced with the Elbereth very rarely.
Picking up the device, Glorfindel perched on the corner of a small writing table and activated the communicator.
"Elbereth? Would you locate Elrond?"
"He is sleeping in sickbay."
"And the Ringbearer?"
"Do you wish his vital statistics or his general condition?"
"General condition."
"Stable."
"All right. Glorfindel out---wait a moment. Elbereth can you imitate the captain's voice?"
"Yes."
"I need you to broadcast in the recovery room, in about seven minutes. A very anxious young perian will be coming to the door to demand entrance. I need him stalled."
"What do you wish me to say?"
"Hm. 'I am sorry Master Samwise, but I have begun the surgery and I am a bit busy at the moment. If you give me but an hour, you can see Frodo.'"
"It shall be done."
Glorfindel signed off, replaced the device and left the room.
In a few minutes he stood behind the anxious Sam at the door of the recovery room.
And then they both heard the mellifluous voice of Elrond repeating the words Glorfindel had told the ship.
"It is as I said." Glorfindel spoke mildly above Sam.
Sam turned a bit angrily and said, "But I just wanted to see him, my lord, to ease my mind."
Glorfindel knelt at the hobbit' side, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You are a very loyal friend Samwise and Frodo could not ask for any better. But you must give Lord Elrond leave to work. He is Frodo's only hope of recovery."
Sam knew the elf lord was right...but still. He looked up into the blue-green eyes of his companion. But perhaps, if he let him think he was giving up....
"All right, my lord, I will go back to my room." Sam stretched and yawned for his audience.
"Good idea Samwise. I am sure we will have some news in the morning."
Sam nodded and let the elf lead him back to his room. Not even slowing to take off his weskit, Sam flung himself on the bed and yawned again. Glorfindel smiled and left.
Walking to his suite of rooms, the elf grinned. Well, now, that had not been so difficult. Samwise had been very reasonable in the end. And his loyalty indeed was admirable. He thought a moment how he would have felt if it were Elrond under these same circumstances. And his smile broadened.
He would behave the very same way.
But now to business. As Elrond was occupied, it was up to Glorfindel to see to the daily business of Rivendell. And with all the guests, there was plenty to do.
Entering his study, he sat at his desk and began going through Erestor's reports and supply requests.
Sam yawned again. And since there was no one to see, this one was for real. He rubbed his eyes. The pillows he laid against were very comfortable, as was the bed. It was wonderful to lay on a bed instead of the cool damp ground. And to not have to hunt or cook and wash dishes. He yawned again.
He sprung off the bed with that because he would truly fall asleep if he lay there any longer.
Time to track down Frodo again.
Peering into the hall, he saw no one was about and quick as a ferret, he padded down the thick carpet runner. He remembered all the twists and turns and once more, found himself outside the room Frodo had been taken to.
He tried the door carefully. Locked tight.
Stepping back, he looked up and down the hall and saw the slight glow of daylight to his right. Trotting towards it, he peered around and found some open arches that lead outside to a large terrace.
No one was on it at the moment, but it was big enough that it went outside Frodo's room.
Smiling the hobbit went out on to the flagstones and carefully went up to the doors where Frodo must be.
Peering in through the glass panes, Sam dropped to the floor.
The room was empty! And it had to be the right room, there was Frodo's rucksack in a large chair in a corner. Even his walking stick propped up against the wall next to it.
The elves...lied to him!!
Frodo couldn't be...dead.... could he?
No, no, he would have known! He would have felt something! No Frodo was alive, just somewhere else.
Well, if that didn't beat a pig up a tree!
Sam got up and started to brush his tears away. He marched across the terrace and back into the House. He was going to find that Lord Elrond and give him a piece of his mind and then he better darn well see that Mr. Frodo was not only alive, but on the mend.
Once he reached the connecting hallway he looked around frowning. But which direction should he go in now?
Suddenly there was a strange bell tone and a disembodied voice spoke out calmly for a minute in a language Sam did not understand.
Shaking his head at the peculiar ways of the elves, he went back around towards Frodo's room and then ducked quickly behind a huge vase full of flowers he could not get to bloom this late in the autumn. There was that Lord Glorfindel and Gandalf! Followed by the other dark-haired elf....Erestor. And, they all went into Frodo's room!
Sam carefully peeked around the corner and was delighted to see that the door was slightly ajar. Tiptoeing up to it, he pushed it opened and saw the big folk standing near what looked to be a closet. Gandalf pulled aside a wall decoration and pushed his finger into the square hole that was revealed and a piece of the wall slide aside and a light went on in the closet!!
Scuttling into the room, Sam crouched down by the big chair where Frodo's rucksack lay and watched as Erestor, his fair face serious, went past him without a glance and left the room.
Sam waited for the other two, but beside a small bell sound, they did not appear. Sam quickly went around to the side of the bed and then laying on his stomach, peered around the edge towards the closet.
They were gone!
Astonished, the hobbit went to the closet and peered in. There was no one there.
Now where did they go? Sam stepped into the closet.
Glorfindel and Mithrandir walked briskly down the ship's gangways until they reached the sterile confines of sick bay.
"Captain? We came as quickly as we could." Glorfindel went to Elrond's side as he stared at the screen hanging above the still unconscious Frodo who was moaning in his sleep. Glorfindel put a hand on the small one's shoulder and read the screen as Elrond gave the hobbit an injection. His movements stilled quickly.
"The nanobot is on the move and it is resisting the counter motions of my nanobots. Is Erestor getting the Morgul blade hilt? We may be able to determine more about this technology if Estel brought it with him."
"Yes he should be here shortly," Mithrandir said as he watched the screen from a point behind the two elves.
Elrond bent and brushed the now slightly damp hair off the hobbit's forehead. "Hang on Frodo! We'll best this evil yet!" Adjusting his sterile cuffs, the elven healer turned to his surgical implements. Elrond made another careful incision in Frodo's chest and slipped in another nanobot of his own. If this did not work, more radical surgery would have to be done and the invading nanobot forcibly removed instead of surrounded and destroyed by the Elbereth's medical technology.
Adjusting the IV, Elrond added more nutrients to the flow. Frodo was going to need all the strength he could call on to help fight the evil of Sauron.
"By the Valar! Look Glorfindel! The nanobot is dividing!" Elrond slipped another thin wire into Frodo's vein and this time, released a string of active nanobots.
Glorfindel, having suited up in white clothing like Elrond had just snapped on sterile cuffs when he said thoughtfully. "Wait Elrond. What if we lowered Frodo's body temprature? Wouldn't that make the blood thicker and slow the nanobot down some?"
"I am not sure they are affected by cold, but it is worth a try. Come let us get this little one to the stasis chamber and see what can be done."
Glorfindel nodded and carefully began to remove the catheter and IV while Elrond tended to the wires that introduced the nanobots. Mithrandir had moved on and set the stasis chamber to cycling.
Cradling the small hobbit in his arms, the elf lord carefully laid the pale form of Frodo on the table. He and Glorfindel worked swiftly in concert hooking up the leads necessary to maintain Frodo while his body temperature was lowered.
Once done, the two elves stepped out of the chamber and Mithrandir began the process.
It didn't take long and in less than 30 minutes Frodo was virtually in suspended animation. The three watched the readout screen carefully especially the blood flow and the position of the nanobots.
All was motionless and then Elrond sighed deeply. All right, this was going to work!
He was about to turn away when he heard Glorfindel hiss. "They are moving Elrond!"
Elrond punched up a closer picture of the struggle within Frodo's tiny form and frowned. Tapping a long slender finger against his pursed lips he said, "But they are moving much slower than before. Let us see how this progresses."
Just then Erestor came in, holding a wrapped bundle, and the arm of a squirming Sam.
"It appears we have an interloper my lords."