Disclamier: Please see chapter one. Some of the sentenses are direct quoats from the movie and the book.
Chapter XII: The Spirit of Tquel Part IIThey walked up in the darkness the stairs growing narrower and steeper. The light from Gandalfs staff was barley enough for them to see where to place their footing. The silence was only broken by the hollow sound of echoing water dripping somewhere deep down.
"Let us sit down and have something to eat, here on the landing since I doubt we will find a dining room" Frodo said suddenly. The turmoil of the horrible clutching arms still lingered in his memory and he was suddenly terrible hungry. All welcomed the proposal and they sat in the darkness eating quietly.
Gandalf stared at the nameless elf as she took some water from her bottle and handed it to her dog, that eagerly licked it. Spirit Weaver he thought solemnly where are you going? Do you know where you are going? Suddenly she looked up at him as if she had heard his thoughts. Is there anything behind those eyes or are you just an empty shell? Some part of you is connected to the Dark Lord Sauron do you….?
He knew it had gone unnoticed by the others, but they didn't know what to look for either. He could see that the darkness and death that surrounded them was affecting her badly. She had grown pale ever since they reached Moria, now she was visible shaking. Gandalf was worried about her, but at the same time he was scared.
He knew very little of what powers she held. The Spirit Weavers knew the magic that raised the dead or to cut the string of life, but what other skills did she have? She carried a part of the Dark Lord Sauron with her, was it growing stronger or weaker in the presence of the Ring?
It seemed that only time would be able to answer his questions
They continued their journey in the dark, climbing the stairs for hours. It was Gandalf who led, consulted by Gimli, who was unlike the hobbits, Aragon and Boromir, not troubled by the darkness. It was his courage that kept their spirits up as they walked the ever lasting road that twisted and turned. Now and then the dwarf and wizard stopped to argue about some direction, but it was always Gandalf who got the last word.
Suddenly they reached a crossing that divided into three paths. Gandalf stopped and stared for a long time at the doorways before he said slowly, mostly to him self.
" I have no memory of this place"
It was a most welcomed rest for the others and they sat down. Gimli started to roam around for his pipe, as well did Aragon while the hobbits rested, nobody talking. Legolas leaned against the wall and cast a glance at her as she stood in the middle of the room, silhouetted by darkness. He furrowed his eyebrows and stared at her, and Tquel who she still carried in her arms, the dog whimpered slightly and she let a hand comb its fur.
She looked different then in Rivendell. The light in her face and eyes were gone, instead she was deadly pale and he could see that she was slightly shivering. She stood with her back turned to them, as if she trying to be invisible.
Why has she returned…. Uncompleted ? he mused. She seemed to be just an empty body walking around, with no soul or spirit. There was nothing there that hinted about her former glory and beauty. Had he wanted her back this badly, he wondered. Was it not better that her spirit had found its rest and not been reborn in this miserable creature?
He was about to walk over to her and ask if everything was all right, when Aragon beat him to it. The ranger but a hand on her shoulder, and he watched how she flinched slightly before she turned around and met his gaze. He said something to her, that he didn't hear, but in the next moment his cloak was resting over her shoulders and she sat down on a couple of rocks.
Legolas sighed, he had promised him self, not to let his thoughts cloud his judgments…. But it pained him to see her as she was now. The way she looked at him, as if he was nothing hurt him so immensely that it felt as if his heart was being clenched.
He walked over and sat down next to her and caught a glance Boromir was sending her… he tried to understand what he was hinting about, but the son of Gondor avoided his eyes.
Frodo stared at the two men, and the two elves wondering what was going on between them. Then he sighed deeply and then suddenly Pippins voice rang through the darkness.
"Merry?"
"Yes Pippin?"
"I am hungry!"
Frodo smiled sadly and then stared down in the darkness and he saw something move under him. Startled he hurried to his feet and ran over to Gandalf. "Gandalf…there is something down there…." he stuttered. Gandalf just nodded and didn't remove his gaze from the door.
"It is Gollum, he has been following us for three days"
"Gollum?"
"Yes…he hates and loves the Ring…like he hates and loves him self"
Frodo was silent for a long time thinking, before he suddenly burst out.
"It was a pity Bilbo didn't kill him when he had the chance!"
Gandalf turned around and looked at Frodo with a look of surprise on his face.
"Pity…. was it pity that staggered Bilbos hand? Many has lived that deserved death and many have died that deserved life, can you give that to them?" The old wizard asked and Frodo didn't answer.
"No my dear friend…. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring…as you were meant to get it. Gollum still has a part to play, where or for good or evil, Bilbos pity may have changed the faith for many of us"
Frodo let his fingers briefly twirl the ring that rested around his neck.
"I whish I never had gotten this ring…I wished no of this had happened" he muttered sadly.
"So do all who gets in this kind of situations…it is not for them to decided the part faith plays for them…just to do with the time given to them!" Gandalf said, and then suddenly he rose and walked towards the middle door.
"Here it is!" he called brightly and the others jumped to their feet. "He has remembered then!" Pippin said happily and Gandalf shook his head. "The air doesn't smell so foul down her…remember that Pippin, whenever in doubt just follow your nose!"
Last they reached a large hall with delicate carved poles of rock as far as the eye could see. The black walls were polished and looked like glass, and from far away they could feel a faint draft running through the room. Awes spread around the hall as Gimli smiled proudly.
They walked huddled together staring at the roofs and trying to see where the Great Hall ended. Suddenly they saw a small room, with sunlight streaming down on a lonely stone box. Before anybody could stop him, the dwarf ran to the room.
The others followed and stopped when the saw the dwarf kneeling by a stone tomb. Gandalf walked over and dusted some dirt of the box and touched the stones slowly and his lips moved as he read the inscription.
"Here lies: Balin Son of Fundin Lord of Moria" Gandalf read out loud as Gimli started to sob, leaning his head on the coffin. Around them more skeletons watched them with hollow eyes. "So he is dead then….it is how I feared" Gandalf muttered and walked over to one of the skeletons resting against the coffin, holding a large red book.
He dusted some dirt of it and flipped the book open to the last page and read.
"….They have taken the Bridge and second hall. We have barred the door and cannot get out. The end comes and then drums drums in the deep. They are coming….they are coming, we cannot get out!"
They were all silent as they pondered over the fate of the dwarves. Pippin started to slowly back, and then suddenly his back hit a skeleton sitting on a well. They could see the head fall off and could hear it rattle down in the deep, then suddenly the body followed crashing down brining the bucket with it. It was a long time before it reached the bottom with a loud crash, and when it did Pippin stared at everybody, trying to be as invisible as possible.
"Oops" he sighed as Gandalf angrily walked over to him and grabbed the hat and staff he had handed to him earlier. "Fool of a Took….throw your self down next time and rid us of your stupidity!" he growled angrily.
Then they heard the drums followed by eager snarling.
Aragorn and Boromir hurried over to the door, gasped, and yelled that they saw the orcs appear from nowhere. They quickly barricaded the door as arrows started to swoosh past them. Boromir leaned heavily on the door and cried.
"They have a cave troll".
"They are coming" cried Pippin."We cannot get out"
"Trapped" cried Gandalf " why did I delay? Here we are, caught just as they were before. But I was not here then, we will se what…."
Doom, doom came the drumbeat and the walls shook.
They reached for their weapons and Frodos sword, Sting, was glowing with a flaming blue light. Legolas jumped on the coffin and armed his bow. Aragorn handed the elfmaid a sword, not knowing if she knew how to handle it.
They heard the growling of the orcs as they clawed against the door and the sound of their swords as they furiously tried to break the barricade down. Soon the door yielded and Legolas fired an arrow piercing an orc on the other side.
"There is still one dwarf in Moria who draws breath!" Gimli cried as the door burst open. They started to fight, hitting furiously everything inside; soon the doors burst open and the orcs poured in through the door.
She clutched the sword in her hands and swung the sword at the first orc that jumped towards her. The sword entered its stomach and black blood poured out. Surprised by the warm fluid she dropped the sword and ran towards a corner.
Tquel ran along the floor barking at the orcs, and he even managed to grab hold of the ankle to one of them, making it scream in pain. Sam decided that frying pans were just as effective as his sword.
"I am getting rather good at this" he said to him self, when suddenly the huge troll burs through the door. The hobbits gasped in fear and the troll started to swing its club blindly, hitting whatever stood in his way. Legolas fired two shoots at the troll, but they seemed to just tickle him.
The troll scanned the room, saw Frodo and then came after him. The club smashed a pillar, turning the stone into dust. Quickly Frodo took cover behind a pillar, as the troll made his way towards him, angrily sniffing the air. The troll reached out to grab him and he just managed to escape. He could feel his heart beat loudly against his chest and taste the sickly flavor of blood in his mouth.
From across the room, she saw him barely escaping the troll. She cast a glance at the others seeing that they were busy fighting off orcs.
"Aragorn" Sam cried, and he turned around, saw the troll chasing Frodo, and rushed towards him.
She saw Frodo run towards the wall, and she saw the troll heading the same way on the other side of the pillar. Three orcs that jumped at Aragorn stopping him, and she knew he would not reach Frodo in time.
Frodo heard the troll's breathing and gurgling sounds from its throat. He closed his eyes and dashed away from the wall, hoping to manage and escape the troll, when suddenly he felt somebody grab his arm. The nameless elf stepped out in his place, the troll raised its club, and she pushed Frodo out of the way, taking the blow that would have killed him.
She stumbled backwards and hit the wall, her knees buckled and she collapsed. Tquel growled in anger and leaped at the troll, when Merry and Pippin saw how brave the dog was, they felt that they could not be any worse, and with roars of fury they jumped on the troll's back.
Legolas felt his heart jolt as he saw her fly across the room and hit the wall with a sickening thud. He jumped down from where he was standing and rushed over to her. He could feel his heart crying as he gingerly lifted her into his arms. He pressed her body against his chest and he could feel a small stream of warm blood wet his clothes.
"Amin mela lle Feavair. Uuma gurth"
He cried, and wiped some dirt away from her face. Her body stiffened against his and slowly her eyes opened and she stared at him with a blank and dreamily expression. She opened her mouth to say something, when suddenly Frodo yelled out in pain as the troll's spear pierced him.
For a moment, they stopped fighting and turned towards Frodo as the hobbit stumbled to the floor. This only fed the anger in Merry and Pippin and they hacked loose on the troll screaming in rage. Legolas lifted her up and placed her against the wall. Then he fired an arrow at the troll piercing its head. The troll stopped moving for a second, and then it swayed and flung Merry and Pippin off its back.
He shot another arrow this one through the troll's mouth and into its brain, the troll stopped moving. Everybody was silent as the heavy troll body fell to the ground making the walls shake. They hesitated for a moment; nobody wanted to go over to Frodo only to discover what they feared.
She closed her eyes and searched for the hobbit's life tread. Sensing nothing she opened her eyes and stared at the hobbit, the spear still penetrating in his shoulder.
"-He is not dead-" she said, surprised with the strength her own voice held. Aragorn hurried over to Frodo and gently lifted him up. The hobbit blinked his eyes and stared at the astonished look on Aragorns face and then at the spear piercing him.
"I am okay…Im not hurt" Frodo said, surprising him self as he felt no pain at all.
"That spear would have killed a wild boar," Aragorn said and pulled out the spear. Frodo took a couple of deep breaths and then smiled.
"Let us get out of here!" Gandalf ordered. Legolas lifted her up and quickly carried her out to the hall, closely followed by the others. Orcs started to crawl out from cracks and holes, as spiders, soon they were surrounded by hundredths of screaming and groaning orcs.
Suddenly they heard a loud bang…. followed by another. The orcs looked at each other with panicked expressions. "Ghâs" They muttered and then started to desperately flee towards holes they had come from.
Far down the corridor they could see a sharp and piercing light blend them, and the loud banging started.
Suddenly she found the darkness overwhelming and the loud thudding in her head drowned her thoughts out. Her breathing became ragged and her head fell down on Legolas' shoulder as she fell into unconsciousness.
The orcs ran screaming away and soon the only sound was the chanting of the drums in the darkness.
"What…what is it?" Frodo asked, wondering what could have scared the orcs so badly.
"A demon from the when the earth was still young" Gandalf said and the drumming continued.
Doom boom doom went the drums in the deep.
"Let us run…. weapons will do us no good now!" Gandalf ordered and they started to run away, down the corridor towards the exit. They could hear the drums condone their mantra as they raced down the narrow corridors and over bottomless pits. They climbed down countless stairs, never stopping to ask questions on what was following them, never looking over their shoulders; the mantra of the drums followed them, growing louder and louder.
"Go on, and chose paths leading downwards and right!" Gandalf cried as he let the others pass him.
"We cannot leave you to hold the door alone!" said Aragorn and the others hesitated.
"Do as I say" the wizard said fiercely "swords are no more use here".
They groped their way down a long flight of steps. Frodo turned around and he saw nothing except the faint glimmer of the wizard's staff. Then they heard Gandalf running down the steps, muttering words that echoed down the slopes.
"I have tried a shutting spell on the door, although I am not sure if it will hold, let us run," he said.
The drumbeats rolled, growing louder and louder.
In the distance, they saw a thin bridge stretching over a bottomless pit and they ran with all the strength they had left.
"The bridge of Khazad dûm" Gimli cried.
They hurried to cross it, Gandalf last making sure everybody was safely over.
As he reached the middle of the bridge, the monster appeared. It roared over them being nothing but darkness and fissure of flames. Its blistering mane kindled, and blazed behind it. In its right hand was a blade like a stabbing tongue of fire.
The hobbits gasped in fear and Legolas clutched her tighter to his chest.
"A Balrog" Legolas wailed as the demon roared over Gandalf.
"Durins Bane" cried Gimli and dropped his axe and covered his face.
"You cannot pass!" The wizard said trusting his staff in the bridge. The Balrog roared again and conjured a sword of flames that it swung over its head and howled. A white light surrounded the wizard as the sword swung down on him, not breaking the shield the wizard had around him.
"You cannot pass! I am the servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. You cannot pass. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udûn." Gandalf cried. The Balrog made no answer, and the fire in it seemed to die, but the darkness grew.
It stepped slowly forward on the bridge. " You cannot pass!" Gandalf repeated and thrust his staff into the bridge. White light flared up and the Balrog took a step back. "Back to the shadows!" The Balrog's nostril flared and it roared.
Her eyes shot open and she gasped for air. She could feel the blackness pressing at her chest and the whispers drummed in her ears, in a hazy dream she saw the wizard and the monster. The Balrog turned its attention to her and Gandalf followed the demon's gaze. She saw the monsters' heart of darkness; saw the dark spirit that gnawed within, their eyes locked and the Balrog took a step back and lowered its head.
"Go back!" Gandalf yelled again, the spell on the monster was broken and it snarled, making the walls tremble.
Then the demon conjured a mighty whip of flames and let it fly over its head, and he swung the weapon at Gandalf, who thrust the staff harder into the bridge. The bridge started to shake and shatter, stones fell into the darkness and Gandalf's staff broke. Suddenly Tquel leaped out and ran towards the Balrog.
The demon snarled and was about to attack the wizard when the dog leaped forward angrily barking, the Balrog hesitated for a second then it roared in flames and used its whip once more. This time bridge gave after its weight and it fell to the darkness.
Gandalf crawled desperately backwards, trying to save him self, when the edge of the whip caught hold of his foot dragging him down. Tquel grabbed the wizards cloak and tried to pull him up as the bridge started to disappear under them.
Gandalf stared into the dog's brilliant eyes, and then at the group on land. He held on to the edge with his arms trying to hold his body up as the Balrog slowly dragged him and Tquel towards their doom.
"Fly, you fools," he cried and then he and Tquel were gone.
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