Disclaimer: Blah Blah, I own nothing. See Chapter One.

A/N: 100 REVIEWS!!!! WOO-HOO!!! Does Happy Dance! 100 Reviews was my goal and I am so psyched that I actually reached it!!! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed. It is nice to know that this story is being read. I never would have thought I'd get 100 reviews. (I guess that mind-whammy actually worked--Wow! I must have mystical powers…)

Sorry again for the long period of time between updates. I start off thinking I'm going to get a chapter done really quickly and then it takes me longer than I thought. I hope you guys don't mind the wait too much…

Anyway, on with the story…

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Chapter Ten

The Tower of Orthanc grew steadily nearer as the column of Orcs marched throughout the rest of that day. Sam and Frodo struggled to keep up with the larger Orcs, breathing heavily and weary with exhaustion. Gandalf, for whom the journey was much easier, watched the two with concern. Subtlety was their only hope for gaining entrance into Isengard and should the hobbits falter, they would no longer remain inconspicuous.

"Steady lads." he whispered, his voice barely audible. "We are very near now, it will not be much longer.

The hobbits wearily nodded their understanding as they continued to trudge along. True to his word, they did reach the outskirts of Isengard not too much later and as the Orc army slowed their pace, much to the relief of the hobbits, Gandalf marveled at the changes in the formerly beautiful place. Gone were the once immaculately kept Gardens, as he knew they would be for he had witnessed their destruction from atop Orthanc Tower. Still, to see the remains up close brought a sadness to his heart. If those gardens had been a symbol of goodness and light, then their destruction only reinforced the darkness that had consumed Isengard. Gone also were the trees that had once stood so proudly along the path leading to the tower. As had happened at the outskirts of Fangorn Forest, the trees had been ripped from the ground by their roots and left to die next to the gaping holes in the ground that had once nourished them. It was a senseless act and Gandalf could not help but think again that the Ents truly were not fully aware of the extent of Saruman's evil. Gandalf shuddered as a chilled wind blew around them. Isengard had become the epitaph of evil, rivaling perhaps even Mordor. The one that obtained the Ring first would be the one to claim control over everything. Saruman had indeed become a formidable rival for Sauron.

Frodo and Sam also gaped at their surroundings as they marched, though they knew not just how bright and beautiful a place it could be and thus did not feel the ache of loss that Gandalf felt. They did, however, see its potential, beneath the fires and soot that masked its glory. As the army neared the tower, Orc and goblin activity increased and the three became more nervous as scrutinizing eyes turned their way. Averting their own eyes, they avoided all contact, instead trying to fade into the realm on inconspicuty. Managing, to their immense relief, to reach the doors of Orthanc unchallenged, they came to a half with the rest and waited.

Craning their necks, Sam and Frodo struggled to see the dark haired elf as he dismounted his horse, gesturing angrily at a very familiar looking Orc. A chill crept through Frodo as he recognized Ugluk, the leader of the group that had attacked them in the clearing. Unconsciously, he hid himself behind the Orc in front of him, momentarily forgetting that the spell masked their identities. The Elf continued his angry tirade at the Orc leader before abruptly turning and stalking into the tower. Frodo was surprised to see the Orc's eyes narrow perceptively as he glared at the retreating elf. Finally he faced his squad.

"Man flesh will be yours in the morn!" he shouted, earning some shouts of disaproval.

"Amras promised it upon return!" An Orc near Frodo yelled, earning a glare from Ugluk.

"Complain again and we will feast on you instead." Ugluk warned, causing the other Orc to slink away. Ugluk growled again and the Orcs dispersed, a fair number of them still grumbling about the denied man flesh.

"Come." Gandalf urged them, leading them into the tower. "We must find the others quickly. I have a feeling that they are to provide the promised man-flesh tomorrow morning."

Sam paled. "They would eat Strider and Boromir?"

Gandalf nodded. "The Orcs will eat almost anything, but the flesh of men and elves is their desired treat."

"I feel ill." Sam groaned and Frodo agreed.

"That makes two of us. Gandalf, where are the dungeons?"

"Many levels below us. But we must use caution so as to remain unchallenged." he led them to a small, dark stairwell and Sam suddenly found himself feeling slightly claustrophobic, something that was very unusual for a hobbit. As he peered into the eerie passage, he could not help but think that the stairs descended for miles upon miles and the walls almost appeared to be closing in on them, threatening to crush them to death.

"It is an illusion, my friend." Frodo assured him, aware of the other hobbit's misgivings. "The walls are not going to crush us."

Sam steadied his breathing. "I know.

"The Orcs might though." Frodo added, smiling as Sam paled once again.

Quietly, they descended stair after stair, going deeper underground. The air became damp and stale and the torches that lit the passage threw off ominous shadows, causing Sam to jump at every flicker.

"I would not wish anyone to come to a place as evil as this." he muttered to himself, wishing he were instead back at the Shire, where the air was fresh and the sun shone brightly. And the walls were not trying to crush him!

Frodo stopped quickly, his expression tense. "Gandalf, someone is coming up the stairs."

"Hide!" Gandalf urged.

* * * * * * * * * *

"You!" Amras growled, throwing open the cell door with a thunderous bang, causing the occupants to jump. Legolas quickly stood in challenge as the furious elf fixed him with an angry glare. "You dare lie to me?"

"Amras," Legolas began calmly, his hands raised in a gesture of compliance, "I could not tell you where it was."

The other elf moved quickly, quicker than even Legolas had ever seen and landed a hard punch to the younger elf's jaw, the force knocking Legolas to the ground. "You could not tell me?" he yelled at the dazed prince, his rage increasing. "You dare not tell me?" he yelled again, emphasizing each word with a brutally well placed kick, causing Legolas to wince it pain. "I will make you tell me! Chain the rest up!" Amras screamed at the Orcs who stood just outside the door. "The Prince and I are going to have a chat." Two Orcs grabbed the dazed Legolas and followed Amras out, while the others rushed the remaining prisoners and secured them to the wall.

Legolas was dragged to an empty adjacent cell and thrown roughly to the hard stone floor. He struggled briefly to stand up, but the effort proved in vain as Amras stormed into the cell and kicked him in the head, dropping him back to the floor.

"You think you are so smart, so brave, little Prince." Amras sneered as Legolas glared up at him, slightly worried at the other's immense anger. "I will get what I want from you." Amras promised, his smile sadistic. "I will make you tell me."

"I cannot." Legolas mumbled, wincing slightly at the pain it caused in his jaw.

"Then your precious comrades will suffer for your impudence! I warned you, Legolas. May their deaths forever be on your conscience!"

Legolas turned white. "If you harm them, I will never tell you. That is my vow."

"I will not be the one hurting them, insolent Prince. Ugluk will," Amras gestured to the Orc in the room, "when he peels the flesh from their writhing bodies and feeds them to his army. You have until first light to save them and tell me what I want to know."

"You would still kill them, even after I told you." Legolas scoffed. "I will not dishonor their lives by giving you the Ring."

Amras considered him, then smiled. "We shall see what you have to say in the morning, when you are forced to watch them die. I think we will begin with that annoying Dwarf." Amras paused and looked pointedly at Ugluk, who swiftly grabbed hold of the stunned elf. "But before I leave you to consider their fate, I will give you a reminder of yours." He withdrew a phial from his pocket, the swirling red liquid immediately recognizable.

"Amras…" Legolas began, his wide eyes fixed on the phial.

"You recognize this, Legolas?" Amras taunted, approaching with his dagger drawn. "Do not move and I will not have to cut you much." he ordered, running the sharp blade lightly over the elf's skin, leaving a small red trail in its wake. Legolas winced slightly as he continued to stare at the object Amras held.

"This is just a sample of what is to come, little Prince." he said, allowing a small drop of the Spiders Venom to fall into the cut. "I would tell you to consider that, but I do not believe you will be able to think clearly for the next hour or so." Amras smiled as Legolas's body began to tremble, the venom working its way through his bloodstream and causing his muscles to cramp. Legolas curled into a ball, shutting his eyes tightly and clenching his jaw against the pain. "As I said before, the venom may not be fatal, but you will wish it was. Have a nice hour, Legolas, and a very contemplative night." With one last smile, he left the cell, followed by Ugluk, though their exit went unnoticed by Legolas as his body was consumed by agony.

* * * * * * * * * *

At Gandalf's urgent command, Sam threw himself down an adjacent tunnel, getting himself as flat against the wall as possible, and held his breath as two Orcs thundered past. He waited for a few tense moments before breathing a small sigh of relief. Emerging from his hiding spot, he joined Frodo and Gandalf on the stairs.

"That was close." Frodo remarked worriedly.

Gandalf agreed. "Too close. And the danger only increases the closer we get to the dungeons. We must be extremely cautious."

Frodo and Sam nodded, their eyes and ears alert as they continued descending the stairs. The sound of angry, gruff voices occasionally drifted up the stairs, causing the hobbits to tense up as they strained to listen, though each time no one appeared. After a strained journey, they finally reached the end of the stairs, emerging into a dimly lit antechamber, at the end of which was a thick wooden door. Gandalf cautiously tested the door.

"Locked." he grumbled.

Sam sighed. "Of course. That is just our luck. What do we do now?"

Gandalf raised his staff. "I will try a spell to open it."

"No need." Frodo interrupted him quickly, his eyes searching for a place to hide. "Someone is opening it from the other side." He and Gandalf dashed quickly behind the large door as it swung open, hidden from view from those coming through it. Sam, however, was not so lucky as he found himself face to face with the angry dark-haired elf and to his absolute horror, Ugluk. Sam froze, his eyes wide with terror as the elf quit talking to the Orc beside him and fixed Sam with a frigid glare.

"What are you doing down here?" he inquired frigidly.

Sam stammered, shrinking back in fear. "I am here to guard the prisoners."

From behind the safety of the door, Frodo and Gandalf held their breath as they waited anxiously for the elf to respond. Amras turned to stare at Ugluk.

"New guard, Ugluk?" he sneered. "Typical of your inept command that he be a cowering twerp." Ugluk bristled at the obvious rebuke in front of his 'soldier', as Amras waved Sam past. "Very well, guard. Perhaps in time you will gain some courage and become a real soldier." With a final sneer, he dismissed Sam and headed up the stairs. As if an afterthought, he turned back to Sam and grinned, an act which sent chills through him. "Do not concern yourself if the Prince screams. That venom I gave him should prove too much for even him to handle." That said, he turned and headed up the stairs, laughing softly to himself. Ugluk stared after Amras until he disappeared, then growled at Sam.

"Do not appear weak again, or I will kill you and feast on your bones."

"Yes sir." Sam managed to grunt as the Orc leader stalked from the chamber. He breathed a loud sigh of relief as the large beast's footsteps receded, willing his beating heart to remain in his chest. "I thought for certain I was doomed." he said as Gandalf and Frodo emerged from behind the heavy door.

"As did we." Frodo trembled. "I was certain they would see through the spell."

Gandalf shook his head. "They did not see through it because they did not want to. They have grown overconfident in their security."

Frodo smiled. "Well, we solved the problem with the door. It is open…now what?"

"I would say we have no more time for subtlety. Let us rely on surprise instead. Draw your weapons and we will rush the guards." Gandalf commanded.

Sam frowned. "Rush the guards? That does not sound wise."

Frodo grinned at his nervous friend. 'Wise or not, I would trust Gandalf's council with my life. I say we do it. What say you Sam? Let us achieve a heroic deed."

Sam tried to grin in response, only to have it come out as a grimace. "I will follow you no matter what, Mister Frodo. I just wish it was not into an Orc dungeon."

"That is the spirit." Gandalf said. "On three…one…two…three!"

* * * * * * * * * *

Aragorn craned his neck as he tried to catch a glimpse of the room outside their cell. "What in blazes is going on out there?" he wondered as a sudden commotion erupted.

Boromir shook his head. "I do not know, but it sounds as if a fight has broken out."

"Between the guards, no doubt." Gimli huffed. "They tend to fight over everything."

"They are probably arguing over who gets to eat us first." Boromir scoffed. "Let them argue. Perhaps they will kill each other and we can escape this place."

"Did someone wish for escape?" A small, though instantly recognizable voice asked through the cell door. Its occupants looked at each other in shock.

"Frodo?" Merry called out tentatively. "Is that you?"

"None other." Frodo answered happily. "And Sam and Gandalf as well."

"Gandalf?" Aragorn shouted in surprise. "Alive?"

"Of course." Gandalf said, appearing suddenly into view, looking a bit disheveled. "Did you expect otherwise?" The jingling of keys was heard, along with the wizard's soft cursing. "Too many blasted keys!" he muttered to himself, before finally finding the correct one. With a satisfying 'clank' the lock was undone and the door swung open, revealing a triumphant looking Gandalf. "I do believe it is time you left this place."

"You have no idea how happy we are to see you." Boromir laughed as Frodo struggled to unlock his chains.

Frodo grinned in response. "You should be, you are on tomorrow's breakfast menu. There will be many disappointed Orcs when they discover you gone."

Sam stood by the door, nervously keeping watch. "Speaking of Orcs, should we not get out of here quickly?"

"Yes," Gandalf agreed, frowning as he looked around. "Where is Legolas?"

Aragorn absently rubbed his wrists where the chains had been. "In the adjacent cell." he said, leading the way out of the room.

"What happened to the guards?" Merry asked, his eyes resting on the unconscious bodies of two Orcs, piled in a heap in the corner.

Frodo laughed. "Gandalf knocked them out with his walking staff."

"It's apparently not just for walking, but a weapon as well." Sam smiled.

"Gandalf!" Aragorn shouted suddenly. "Bring those keys. Legolas does not look well."

Gandalf hurriedly searched for a key as Aragorn stared into the cell. Legolas lay inside, curled into a ball on the cold stone floor, his jaw clenched against some unseen pain. "Legolas?" he called to his friend. "Can you hear me?" The elf made no response, which only increased Aragorn's anxiety.

Boromir looked into the chamber. "Spider's Venom." he said worriedly, instantly recognizing the effects from his experience with the poison.

"Spiders Venom?" Gandalf frowned. "How in blazes did he come into contact with a spider?"

Boromir shook his head. "He did not. Amras has devised a serum, using the venom from a spider. Very unpleasant stuff, I can vouch for that. Fortunately, it is not fatal to elves."

"Fatal or not," Aragorn interrupted impatiently, "we need to get him out of there so we can get out of here!"

Gandalf tried his last key, turning a sympathetic gaze towards Aragorn when it failed to work. "We do not have a key to that cell." he apologized. "We only have the keys that the guards carried. Amras must have this door's key with him."

"No key?" Aragorn repeated, startled. "We will not leave him here. We must find another way to open this door!"

"There may be a way." Gandalf said, raising his staff. "I will try a spell to open the door. Stand back."

As the others stood back, out of harms way, Gandalf began muttering his spell. At the conclusion, he pushed out with his hands, propelling an unseen force at the door. With a loud bang, which echoed unendingly throughout the chamber, Gandalf and the others were forcefully thrown backwards.

"Nice spell." Boromir groaned, landing in a painful heap on top of Gimli.

"Get off me!" Gimli growled, hurling the man off him. "You are as heavy as a troll!"

"That was not from my spell." Gandalf said, picking himself up off the floor. Rubbing a bruised side, he stared at the intact, undamaged door. "This door has been enchanted against all magic. It will not open until its Master bids it to."

Aragorn looked at him. "What does that mean? We cannot open it?"

Gandalf nodded. "No key will open this door. No magic will open this door. It will remain locked until Saruman opens it."

"Saruman!" Gimli growled. "I will rip his head off and spit down his neck!"

"As much as we would all like to do that, Master Dwarf, we have a problem. We cannot free Legolas and I fear that blast will alert Saruman to our presence.

"Go." the croaked command came from within the cell.

"Legolas!" Aragorn cried. "My friend, are you alright?"

Legolas struggled on the floor, determined to stand. As the venom faded from his bloodstream, his muscles continued their small tremors, making his attempts difficult. Finally getting to his feet, he grimaced as he made his way to the door. "I am well, Aragorn. But hear me, you must go."

Aragorn shook his head. "We will not, my friend. We will not leave you behind."

Legolas fixed him with a pained stare. "You must Aragorn!" he said forcefully. "Amras will know you are here. He will be coming soon."

"Aragorn," Gandalf said from behind him. "We have to go."

"You would leave him?" Aragorn shouted, twirling around to face the wizard, anger etched on his face. "You would leave him here to suffer?"

Gandalf returned his glare. "Yes. To save Middle Earth, I would." he sighed. "We will come back for you Legolas." he said to the elf, who managed a nod.

"I know."

"We are leaving?" Merry asked, shocked. "Just like that? We leave him here?"

"To face that monster?" Pippin added. "No. I cannot do that."

"And neither can I!" Merry agreed. "Legolas has saved our lives more times than we can count. We will not abandon him."

"Yes." Legolas commanded. "You will." his breath caught as another wave of agony flowed through him, letting him know with a vengeance that the poison had not completely dissipated. "You will save Middle Earth, as is your duty."

"Legolas…" Gimli tried, only to be interrupted.

"Gimli, no. No arguments. Just go." Legolas sighed.

"We must hurry." Gandalf cautioned. Aragorn nodded.

"We will go."

"Aragorn, no!" Boromir shouted.

Aragorn nodded. "We will go." he said again. "We will retrieve the Ring. And then we will return to retrieve you, my friend." his face apologetic, he faced Legolas once more. "I do not want to leave you behind."

"I know. But you must." Legolas managed a small grin. "I can handle Amras. He fears me, I am sure of it. Probably knows I can beat him with one hand bound behind my back."

Aragorn managed a smile of his own, though it was halfhearted and heavy. "You could beat him with both hands bound behind your back, my friend."

"That would be a benefit." Legolas smirked. "Because I have a feeling they both will be."

"Legolas," Gandalf said softly. "Where will we find the Ring?"

"Go back to Parth Galen." Legolas advised. "Pippin can find it from there."

"I can?" Pippin repeated, looking uncertain.

Legolas nodded. "You can. It will become clear once you reach Parth Galen."

Aragorn locked eyes with the elf. "Take care, my friend."

"You as well."

"Aragorn," Boromir said softly, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "We must go." Nodding, Aragorn finally turned to leave, following the others as they ran for the stairs.

"We will be back, Elf." Gimli promised, before disappearing from view.

"I know you will." Legolas whispered. "I know you will." Trembling, he sank slowly to the floor as the poison made itself known, stabs of pain still shooting through his body. Fighting off waves of nausea and despair, Legolas gave in to the agony, willing himself into a healing sleep. His last conscious thoughts were of his friends, and his desperate wish that they escape Isengard safely.

* * * * * * * * * *

A/N: Oh, I can hear it now…how could you leave Legolas there? Well, just trust me…it is all part of my master plan. And yes, there will be a tad more Elf torture in the future…hehe. grins evilly. Me likes to hurt the Elf…its all in good fun, of course :-)

Um…oh yeah…please review :-) (consider yourselves still mind-whammied from the previous chapter and do your duty.)