Disclaimer: I don't own LotR, but I am planning a rather bloody coup that
will leave me a very rich woman. (JUST KIDDING!)
In Memoriam:
To my friend Victoria Pendelton, who would be 15 tomorrow, February 18, and who died on September 11, 2001.
And to the victims of the 1979 Marine base bombing in Beirut, Lebanon, 25 years ago today.
Hiro lle hidh ab 'wanath
May you find peace in death.
LOL, y'all are driving me nuts! I am NOT updating until I get AT LEAST 5 reviews!! Well, that, and I have NO time to write!! But REVIEW!!
Once again, I would like to remind you all of two things: I am messing with the movie cannon a LOT, mainly because I have yet to see FotR.
The next few chapters will have large amounts of angst. I think. Just another friendly warning.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter Fourteen: Moria
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The smell and sight of the dead bodies sprawled and stacked around the large hall was nearly enough to make Calime throw up. She pulled the hood of her cloak lower on her face and covered her mouth with it, blocking out the rotten smell.
"'Tis like a tomb," Gimli said quietly, to no one in particular. Calime could not help but agree with him. She had not seen anything like this since the time she had done a report about the Black Plague and saw pictures of the mass graves. But that book had not conveyed the smell, and that made it worse.
"Orcs," Legolas added, voicing what was on all of their minds. "We should move quickly."
They entered a huge hall, with many arches leading off of it into smaller chambers and corridors. The sheer enormity of it left Calime in a state of awe. She leaned over to Aragorn.
"Why is this so big when dwarves are so small?" Aragorn didn't answer, just smirked and looked away. Pippin and Merry walked on either side of her, and she reached out for their hands. The gesture reassured her as much as it seemed to reassure them.
Gimli gave a cry and ran through an arch. Aragorn called after him, and the rest of the Fellowship followed. Inside, Gimli knelt before a stone coffin.
"Here lies Balin, son of Fundin, Lord of Moria," Gandalf read over Gimli's shoulder. Then he picked up a book and began to read aloud. Calime tuned him out and began to walk carefully around the cobwebbed room, keeping her arrow at hand. Suddenly, a loud crash broke through her trance. 'Pippin, what did I tell you!?' she thought silently. More crashes followed.
"They will find us for sure, now," Aragorn said.
"Fool of a Took! Throw yourself in next time and rid us of your stupidity!" Gandalf thundered. The sounds of running and shouts ensued. Boromir and Aragorn ran to the doors, and Legolas threw axes to them to keep the door shut.
"They have a cave troll," Aragorn said sarcastically. The Fellowship gathered around the door as something very large banged on the other side. Calime readied her bow and arrow and aimed at the blocked entrance. The doors flew open and a heated battle ensued.
Calime lost track of how long she fought. When she was rid of arrows, she pulled out her sword and stabbed at anything that moved. Legolas dodged one swipe by a mere paper's width.
"Frodo!" Sam cried. Calime broke from her trance, and Aragorn moved sharply from where he stood, next to the newly slain cave troll. He approached Frodo and turned him over so that he faced up. The little hobbit groaned and sat up.
"He's alive!" Sam exclaimed, astonished. Frodo carefully unbuttoned the top buttons of his shirt, exposing a fine chain mail, which lay like pewter silk on his chest.
"Mithril!" Gimli said. "You are full of surprises, Master Hobbit!"
Sounds of crashing and unearthly shrieking drew closer.
"To the bridge of Kazad-dum!" Gandalf yelled. They ran through the great halls of Moria. At the end of one huge corridor, was a fiery light.
"A balrog!" Gandalf shouted. "A demon of the ancient world. A foe beyond any of you. Run, quickly!"
They ran down a flight of stairs. Suddenly, the steps came to an abrupt stop. Legolas caught Boromir right before he fell over the edge to certain death.
"Lead them on, Aragorn. Do as I say! Swords are no more use here!" Legolas jumped the gap first, followed by Gandalf. Boromir jumped, holding Pippin under one arm and Merry under the other. Aragorn tossed Sam, and then Gimli jumped. Legolas caught him by the beard.
"Not the beard!"
"Calime!" Legolas and Aragorn shouted at the same moment. Aragorn reached to toss her, knowing she could not reach the other side by herself. Calime ignored him and took a running start. A few feet from the edge, she twisted herself into a back handspring. For a few breathless seconds, she was suspended over the fiery, unknown depths. Then she landed with mere inches to spare.
Across the ever-widening gap, Frodo and Aragorn were stranded on a lone pillar. Aragorn said something to Frodo that Calime could not hear over the roaring from below. Then the pillar came slamming into their side. Calime caught Frodo as he tumbled down the stairs.
"Over the bridge! Fly!" came Gandalf's order, as he brought up the rear of the pack. The bridge also began to crumble. The dragon-like balrog appeared.
"You can not pass!!"
"Gandalf!" Frodo cried. Boromir held him back as he tried to go after Gandalf.
"The dark flame will not avail you, foe of udun! Go back to the shadow!" Gandalf battled with the balrog, who lashed a blazing whip. The balrog seemed to swoop around, and then crashed into the infernal depths in a rush of fiery tentacles. One of the tentacles wrapped around Gandalf's leg and pulled him over the edge through the gap in the bridge. Gandalf hung to the edge by his arms.
"Fly, you fools!" And then he was gone.
Moments later, the Fellowship burst into the cold mountain air, gasping sharply as they stumbled on the rocky flat. Calime was last, followed only by Aragorn. Pippin and Merry sat together, weeping. Boromir held back Gimli, who struggled fiercly to go back in after Gandalf. Frodo stood off by himself; Sam sat near her, crying into his hand. She knelt and embraced him, letting him sob into her shoulder. She caught sight of Legolas, beautiful Legolas, standing among the others. He had a confused, almost dumbfounded look on his face. 'He's an elf. He's never known death before,' she thought. In her heart, she felt sad for him. Maybe he had all but ignored her since Rivendell, but he had never had to deal with someone dying before. For Calime, the pain and rawness of her own father's death was still so near that she felt no sadder than she had before. She blinked back the tears that had formed in her eyes. She had already cried once, and once was enough.
"Boromir, get them up," Aragorn commanded sharply.
"Give them a moment, for pity's sake!"
"By nightfall, these hills will be swarming with orcs. We must reach the woods of Lothlorien. Pippin! Merry!"
"Come, Sam, there's my lad. We must go," Calime whispered into his ear. He nodded and stood.
"Frodo!" Aragorn called. Frodo turned to face them. A single tear ran down his cheek.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A/N: Well, there you have it: Chapter 14. It was a bit boring, I think, so I might redo it, but read and REVIEW anyways!'
Lil Eimeim: You are such a sweetie, you know that? Thanks for bearing with me through the boring bits (i.e. NOW!) Thanks for reviewing! ;)
Glorwen: LOL, thanks so much! I bet your story doesn't suck. I'll have to read it! I hope you keep reading!
Feanen: You are a person of very few words, aren't you? LOL. Thanks for the review! Keep reading! ;)
Eamane-elf: Thanks. ;) In response to your question, no, he did not die but he doesn't have a whole lot of time left, so I wanted to start coming to terms with it now. I don't know if it'll work, though. Please keep reading!
In Memoriam:
To my friend Victoria Pendelton, who would be 15 tomorrow, February 18, and who died on September 11, 2001.
And to the victims of the 1979 Marine base bombing in Beirut, Lebanon, 25 years ago today.
Hiro lle hidh ab 'wanath
May you find peace in death.
LOL, y'all are driving me nuts! I am NOT updating until I get AT LEAST 5 reviews!! Well, that, and I have NO time to write!! But REVIEW!!
Once again, I would like to remind you all of two things: I am messing with the movie cannon a LOT, mainly because I have yet to see FotR.
The next few chapters will have large amounts of angst. I think. Just another friendly warning.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter Fourteen: Moria
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The smell and sight of the dead bodies sprawled and stacked around the large hall was nearly enough to make Calime throw up. She pulled the hood of her cloak lower on her face and covered her mouth with it, blocking out the rotten smell.
"'Tis like a tomb," Gimli said quietly, to no one in particular. Calime could not help but agree with him. She had not seen anything like this since the time she had done a report about the Black Plague and saw pictures of the mass graves. But that book had not conveyed the smell, and that made it worse.
"Orcs," Legolas added, voicing what was on all of their minds. "We should move quickly."
They entered a huge hall, with many arches leading off of it into smaller chambers and corridors. The sheer enormity of it left Calime in a state of awe. She leaned over to Aragorn.
"Why is this so big when dwarves are so small?" Aragorn didn't answer, just smirked and looked away. Pippin and Merry walked on either side of her, and she reached out for their hands. The gesture reassured her as much as it seemed to reassure them.
Gimli gave a cry and ran through an arch. Aragorn called after him, and the rest of the Fellowship followed. Inside, Gimli knelt before a stone coffin.
"Here lies Balin, son of Fundin, Lord of Moria," Gandalf read over Gimli's shoulder. Then he picked up a book and began to read aloud. Calime tuned him out and began to walk carefully around the cobwebbed room, keeping her arrow at hand. Suddenly, a loud crash broke through her trance. 'Pippin, what did I tell you!?' she thought silently. More crashes followed.
"They will find us for sure, now," Aragorn said.
"Fool of a Took! Throw yourself in next time and rid us of your stupidity!" Gandalf thundered. The sounds of running and shouts ensued. Boromir and Aragorn ran to the doors, and Legolas threw axes to them to keep the door shut.
"They have a cave troll," Aragorn said sarcastically. The Fellowship gathered around the door as something very large banged on the other side. Calime readied her bow and arrow and aimed at the blocked entrance. The doors flew open and a heated battle ensued.
Calime lost track of how long she fought. When she was rid of arrows, she pulled out her sword and stabbed at anything that moved. Legolas dodged one swipe by a mere paper's width.
"Frodo!" Sam cried. Calime broke from her trance, and Aragorn moved sharply from where he stood, next to the newly slain cave troll. He approached Frodo and turned him over so that he faced up. The little hobbit groaned and sat up.
"He's alive!" Sam exclaimed, astonished. Frodo carefully unbuttoned the top buttons of his shirt, exposing a fine chain mail, which lay like pewter silk on his chest.
"Mithril!" Gimli said. "You are full of surprises, Master Hobbit!"
Sounds of crashing and unearthly shrieking drew closer.
"To the bridge of Kazad-dum!" Gandalf yelled. They ran through the great halls of Moria. At the end of one huge corridor, was a fiery light.
"A balrog!" Gandalf shouted. "A demon of the ancient world. A foe beyond any of you. Run, quickly!"
They ran down a flight of stairs. Suddenly, the steps came to an abrupt stop. Legolas caught Boromir right before he fell over the edge to certain death.
"Lead them on, Aragorn. Do as I say! Swords are no more use here!" Legolas jumped the gap first, followed by Gandalf. Boromir jumped, holding Pippin under one arm and Merry under the other. Aragorn tossed Sam, and then Gimli jumped. Legolas caught him by the beard.
"Not the beard!"
"Calime!" Legolas and Aragorn shouted at the same moment. Aragorn reached to toss her, knowing she could not reach the other side by herself. Calime ignored him and took a running start. A few feet from the edge, she twisted herself into a back handspring. For a few breathless seconds, she was suspended over the fiery, unknown depths. Then she landed with mere inches to spare.
Across the ever-widening gap, Frodo and Aragorn were stranded on a lone pillar. Aragorn said something to Frodo that Calime could not hear over the roaring from below. Then the pillar came slamming into their side. Calime caught Frodo as he tumbled down the stairs.
"Over the bridge! Fly!" came Gandalf's order, as he brought up the rear of the pack. The bridge also began to crumble. The dragon-like balrog appeared.
"You can not pass!!"
"Gandalf!" Frodo cried. Boromir held him back as he tried to go after Gandalf.
"The dark flame will not avail you, foe of udun! Go back to the shadow!" Gandalf battled with the balrog, who lashed a blazing whip. The balrog seemed to swoop around, and then crashed into the infernal depths in a rush of fiery tentacles. One of the tentacles wrapped around Gandalf's leg and pulled him over the edge through the gap in the bridge. Gandalf hung to the edge by his arms.
"Fly, you fools!" And then he was gone.
Moments later, the Fellowship burst into the cold mountain air, gasping sharply as they stumbled on the rocky flat. Calime was last, followed only by Aragorn. Pippin and Merry sat together, weeping. Boromir held back Gimli, who struggled fiercly to go back in after Gandalf. Frodo stood off by himself; Sam sat near her, crying into his hand. She knelt and embraced him, letting him sob into her shoulder. She caught sight of Legolas, beautiful Legolas, standing among the others. He had a confused, almost dumbfounded look on his face. 'He's an elf. He's never known death before,' she thought. In her heart, she felt sad for him. Maybe he had all but ignored her since Rivendell, but he had never had to deal with someone dying before. For Calime, the pain and rawness of her own father's death was still so near that she felt no sadder than she had before. She blinked back the tears that had formed in her eyes. She had already cried once, and once was enough.
"Boromir, get them up," Aragorn commanded sharply.
"Give them a moment, for pity's sake!"
"By nightfall, these hills will be swarming with orcs. We must reach the woods of Lothlorien. Pippin! Merry!"
"Come, Sam, there's my lad. We must go," Calime whispered into his ear. He nodded and stood.
"Frodo!" Aragorn called. Frodo turned to face them. A single tear ran down his cheek.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A/N: Well, there you have it: Chapter 14. It was a bit boring, I think, so I might redo it, but read and REVIEW anyways!'
Lil Eimeim: You are such a sweetie, you know that? Thanks for bearing with me through the boring bits (i.e. NOW!) Thanks for reviewing! ;)
Glorwen: LOL, thanks so much! I bet your story doesn't suck. I'll have to read it! I hope you keep reading!
Feanen: You are a person of very few words, aren't you? LOL. Thanks for the review! Keep reading! ;)
Eamane-elf: Thanks. ;) In response to your question, no, he did not die but he doesn't have a whole lot of time left, so I wanted to start coming to terms with it now. I don't know if it'll work, though. Please keep reading!