Disclaimer: See chapter one, part one.
Chapter fifteen: The Spirit of Mordor.
"Feavair…can you hear me?" he gently shook her shoulder trying to wake her from her deep and restless sleep. Frodo was bent over her a look of deep concern in his eyes. They had decided to rest at the foot of the mountain before they started to the last lap of their journey.
Feavair blinked her eyes open and stared at them, her green eyes shrouded behind a gray cover. Her eyes filled with water and a single tear ran down her cheek, her jawbone and collar.
"Darkness all around. I have always been scared of the dark"
Frodo swallowed deeply and closed his eyes briefly.
"There is not much to see here anyway, only rocks and a few scares plants here and there…the sky is gray and neither sun or moon has greeted us in days" he whispered.
"So we are here then…at the edges of Mount Doom." it was not a question and Sam nodded and took a deep and ragy breath.
"Yes we are…at last we have reached what we have been wandering towards….it is not long now" Sam said.
"Then we must get to the top" she tried to move but still found that her strength was deceiving her again. Frodo immediately grabbed her arm and supported her as she slowly rose.
"You have barley any strength left…do you want to rest some more." Frodo asked concerned and she shook her head.
"I do not need more strength then to climb this mountain, it was always planned to be a one way trip," she said.
"Are you…sure there is no other way?" Sam asked, she had become a dear friend to him, and wished nothing more then to take her home and show her Shire, the rivers and the trees of his home lands.
"No…this is the only way, we all know it" she said and let her sleeve wipe across her eyes, drawing away the tears.
"You have given me life…and strength. Without your aid I would never be able to fight the will of the Ring" Frodo said and a small smile or frown played on her lips.
"Yes, the Ring, it has been a burden for so many years, and so have I it is time for it all to end"
"Then may it be" Frodo said slowly and Feavair nodded "Yes, may it be. Frodo can …can you show me the way?" she asked and he nodded.
Once again, he grabbed her hand and slowly they started to crawl up the mountain, making their way through the sharp rocks and the small thorn bushes poking up here and there. The blackness of night surrounded them again as they climbed on. Now and then they stopped and eat some of the remaining elven way-bread or what was left of the food Faramir had given them.
The dreadful night passed and the dim daylight fell over them. The air was even heavier and murkier then when they climbed the road to Shelob`s lair. Out from the Dark Tower crept the veils of Shadow that Sauron wove about him self. He had lost his prisoner, but could not understand how a blind woman could escape his army of orcs.
The two hobbits were also growing weary because they had lived off scares food and little sleep. Nevertheless, they would not give up, hope seemed to grow stronger each second and the end of their quest seemed to be closer then ever.
As they walked Frodo dreamed about the happy times back in Shire and hoped that they would one day be again, that someday they would see all the others again, Merry and Pippin.
He had not though about them in many days, he hoped they were safe, wherever they were.
He hoped that Gimli, Boromir and Aragon were rested and safe. He hoped that Legolas was wandering under the stars and singing softly for him self.
Out of now where a sentences the elf prince had whispered to Feavair in Moria drifted through his mind. It was right after she had pushed him safe of the blow of the troll. He had though it nothing more then an elven dream whispered on their strange tongue.
"Amine mela lle, Feavair Uma gurth"Then drifted to him the words she had spoken in fear when they faced the huge spider.
"Mele en coiamin, amin hiraetha"He did not know since when the elven tongue of Lothlórien had become part of his own language, but he suddenly found meaning in the words they had whispered when they thought nobody else listened.
They were exclaims of love.
He turned around and stared at Feavair, she to had stopped when he did no longer move. She stared ahead, her eyes empty and lifeless. Did Legolas know that she was here, what she was going to do? How was he going to face the elf prince again?
Perhaps he would not be so lucky.
"Why have we stopped, is something wrong?" Sam asked concerned. Frodo shook his head and then continued to go. As he tugged at Feavair hands, she stood still and she tilted her head slowly to the left.
"I think…I hear something," she muttered. The two hobbits immediately froze and scanned the area, but they could see nothing.
"Whh…what?" Stuttered Sam. Feavair sighed deeply and shook her head.
"Perhaps it was nothing, let us go"
Frodo nodded and they embarked on.
After a good day, walking and a night with unrest full sleep they were ready to walk again. Frodo slowly gathered his things and sighed deeply as he touched the ring. It was still hanging lifeless around his neck. He looked up at the mountain standing ominous and alone, looking taller then it had yesterday. The confused and tumbled shoulders of its great base rose for about three thousands feet above the plain and above them. Frodo sighed deeply once more and then continued to walk, when he suddenly discovered something.
They were walking on a road.
"Hey….looks like they have prepared for our coming" he said brightly. "They have mad a road for us"
Unknown to Frodo they were walking on Sauron`s Road from Bara-dûr to the Sammath Nur, the Chambers of Fire.
They stood for a moment in silence marveling at the road that sloped ahead before them. Sam was about to say something, when suddenly something gray leaped out from the rocks.
"Wicked master and nasty elf" it hissed "Wicked master cheat us, cheats Sméagol, Gollum. He must go that way, he must not he will hurt Precious. Give it to Sméagol….yess…give it to us!"
Sam quickly drew his sword, but he could do nothing. Frodo and Gollum were locked together, Gollum tearing at Frodo`s neck trying to get the chain and the ring. Feavair stood still, only hearing the voice of the creature and Frodo`s muffled cries for help.
From an unknown source, Frodo suddenly found he had massive strength. Gone was the weariness from his body and the ache in his bone. He pushed Gollum off and he landed among some rocks, but quickly crawled out, ready to attack again. He was nothing more then a ragged, starved skeleton of gray skin.
"Go away…If you touch me again you will end up in the cracks of the Mount Doom" Frodo yelled. Gollum hissed again, but this time Sam stepped forward and raised his sword ready to attack.
"You two go I will deal with him!" Sam growled, then he turned to Feavair and stared at her for a long time, knowing that this was probably the last time he would ever see the green elf eyes again. In the back of his mind, he knew she would the inspiration to many songs and stories, which he hoped would be told later.
Frodo grabbed Feavair`s hand and the two of them started to climb.
"Now" said Sam. "At last I can deal with you!" He leaped forward with drawn blade ready for battle. Nevertheless, Gollum did not spring; he fell flat on the ground and whimpered.
"Don`t kill us" he wept " Don't hurt us with nasty cruel steel. Let us live….yess…let us live a little while longer, when Precious go we will die". He clawed up the ashes of the path with his long fleshless fingers. "Dusssst!" he hissed.
Sam hesitated, his mind was short with the wrath of the memory of what had happened, of what evil this creature had inflicted on them. It would be easy for him to slay this treacherous murderous creature….but deep down inside him there was something that hesitated. He could not kill the wretched creature tormented by the Ring. Frodo was also tormented by the Ring.
"Be of…argh…. curse you stinking thing!" he yelled. Gollum got up on all fours and backed away for several paces, and then as Sam aimed a kick, he fled down the path. Sam stared after him then he remembered Feavair and Frodo. Maybe there was time for a proper goodbye.
He climbed on, and soon the road bent down eastwards passing in a cutting along the face of the cone and came to an end at the dark door of the mountains said. The door to Sammath Naur…the crack of Mt. Doom.
Far away in the south the sun, piercing the smoke and haze burned ominous dull and red. However, Mordor lay in the darkness, like a dead land silent and folded in shadows.
He had come to the heart of the realm of Sauron. Fearfully he took a few steps into the darkness suddenly there came a flash of red that leaped upward and smote the rood. Then Sam saw that he was in a long cave or tunnel that bored into the mountains smoking cone.
Feavair stood silently in the opening staring dead ahead as Frodo stood erect staring at the small ring that he suddenly held in his palm. Sam stopped and hid his gasp as he stared at his friend. Would perhaps the ring claim him in the very end? Would the power be too strong for Frodo and Feavair to fight off?
He stood frozen in the spot and around him the fire danced and licked the walls around them. He opened his mouth to call his master's name, when suddenly Gollum leaped forward. Before anybody had time to do anything, Gollum snatched the ring from Frodo`s palm.
"Precious, precious, precious" Gollum cried. "Oh my Precious" he sang and lifted up the price to gaze at it in wonder. Then he started to dance happily around, and suddenly he took a step too much backwards. He toppled and wavered for a moment on the brink, then with a shriek he fell.
Out of the darkness came his last wail "Precious" and he was gone.
Roars of fire leaped up and licked the roof, and the mountain started to shake. Frodo staggered backwards until he stumbled into Sam`s arms. Then before them danced visions of fire, great towers fell, armies stumbled and rivers of blood floated. The shrieks of the Nazgûl echoed in the mountain, and pierced the clouds asunder.
Frodo and Sam stood for a long time, still feeling the mountain shake.
Then they turned around and saw that Feavair was starting to walk towards the crack. Frodo reached out a hand and grabbed her writs. She stopped moving, but did not look at them. Sam took a deep breath and closed his eyes briefly.
"You will not be forgotten," he said slowly. She did not move or blink, she was like in a trance and Frodo could guess that she was thinking about happier times years away.
"Amin nyar ro, lle meale ro" ( I will tell him, you love him)
He whispered, she turned her head in the direction of his voice and smiled sadly.
"Diola lle aier, amin harmuva onalle"
(Thank you little one I shall treasure your gift in my heart)
Frodo gave her hand one last squeeze, and then he grabbed Sam's hand and together they walked out and left her alone.
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