A Stranger In The Woods
Chapter 19: The Balrog
"To the bridge of Khazad-dum!" Gandalf cried, heading for the exit.
Legolas grabbed Katie's arm and pulled her behind him as he followed the wizard out the doors and back into the abandoned city. She ran as fast as she could, trying to keep up with the elf as he sprinted around the pillars barely visible in the shadows. The shrill screams of the orcs echoed all around them- making it impossible to pinpoint their location.
"This way," Gandalf ordered, sharply turning to the right.
Katie took the corner and happened to glance up. What she saw nearly stopped her dead in her tracks. Orcs. Hundreds of thousands of them poured out of a hole in the ceiling directly above them.
Legolas yanked her along roughly. "We must keep going," he yelled back at her, but he had slowed down quite a bit.
The group reduced their speed as the orcs advance on them from all sides and were forced to stop as the creatures surrounded them completely. Legolas let go of her arm and readied his bow. Everyone followed suit and drew their weapons. Everyone except Katie. She knew it was useless. She knew what was approaching in the darkness.
Just then a low rumble echoed through the halls. The orcs glanced around nervously and scattered as the noise sounded once more.
Gimli let out a victorious laugh, then grew quiet as he realized his mistake.
The group turned towards the red glow as the monster let out another long growl. The orcs started fleeing in fear, scattering into the darkness. Realization dawned in Legolas' eyes and he slowly lowered his bow. Katie took a step closer towards him.
"What is this new devilry?" Boromir asked Gandalf quietly.
"A balrog," Gandalf whispered, "A demon from the ancient world."
Katie looked up at Legolas and was surprised to see fear shining in his light eyes. She didn't know what scared her more, the Balrog, or the fact that Legolas was afraid of the Balrog.
"This foe is beyond any of you," Gandalf decided. "Run!" He took off towards the stone doors.
The group wasted no time following the wizard through the doors and down some steps. Katie followed behind Boromir as he skidded to a stop when the stairs suddenly ended. She grabbed the man around the waist before he could fall over the edge, and pulled him back as hard as she could. They both landed with a thud on the hard rock step.
Boromir jumped up and helped her to her feet, looking startled. "Thanks," he whispered in what to Katie sounded like appreciation.
"You saved my life earlier," she pointed out softly. He met her gaze, silently asking her for forgiveness, for camaraderie. Katie smiled at him, hoping this was the beginning of a new friendship. The wizard yelled, breaking their moment.
"Do as I say," He ordered Aragorn, running behind them and starting down the other set of stairs. "Swords are no more use here."
Katie followed Boromir as the group climbed down the angled staircase, going as fast as she could without slipping and falling. Legolas cut the corner and jumped beside her, placing a firm hand on the small of her back and leading her over the steep passage. They reached a large gap and the group skidded to a halt.
Legolas paused only a second before leaping to the other side. He landed gracefully and quickly turned, reaching his arms out for her as a signal to jump.
Katie risked a glance over the edge and sucked in a breath. She could not see the bottom. 'No way.' She shook her head forcefully, too scared to care that she was holding up the group.
"Come on," Legolas said, noticing her reluctance. "I will catch you."
She shook her head again. There was nothing he could say to make her jump.
"Katie." A breath of a whisper.
'Except that,' she realized, hearing the soft plea in his voice. Without giving it another thought, she closed her eyes and jumped. For one heart-stopping moment, Katie thought she wasn't going to make it; then she felt Legolas' strong arms around her- catching her. Gently, he placed her to her feet, then turned and reached for Gandalf.
Katie had just gotten her balance when something whizzed by her ear, startling her. She turned her head, confused, and felt the sharp blade of an arrow graze her cheek. "What the—" she muttered, causing Legolas to turn and look at her. He looked at the cut on her cheek, then to the outer walls.
"Goblin archers," he stated. There was no fear in his voice; he could easily kill them. He drew his bow and fired in rapid succession. "Stay down," he ordered before turning and helping the rest of the group.
Katie backed up, keeping her body as close to the gritty stone steps as possible. She watched as Boromir grabbed Merry and Pippin and jumped, just as the ledge collapsed underneath them. Aragorn grabbed Sam and threw him to the man while Legolas turned and shot several more of the goblins.
"Nobody tosses a dwarf," Gimli growled stubbornly, then attempted the jump. Legolas had to grab his beard to keep him from falling backwards off the edge. "Not the beard!" Gimli yelled as the elf pulled him and his beard to safety. The ledge crumbled even more- leaving Frodo and Aragorn trapped.
"Hold on!" Gandalf yelled as the balrog growled loudly in the distance. The piece they were standing on broke, and began to sway.
"Lean forward," Katie shouted, knowing it was their only chance to make it. She watched as they both leaned forward and the piece slowly began to fall towards where the group was standing.
"Come on," Legolas hissed, opening his arms to catch them. The two jumped to safety as the piece fell and smashed to the ground. Everyone turned and raced down the rest of the stairs.
"Over the bridge," Gandalf shouted as they reached an open hall. Hot flames towered behind them. "FLY!" He screamed.
Katie ran as fast as she could, following Gimli, feeling Legolas right behind her. She looked back just as the flames exploded and the balrog appeared. 'This is bad,' she thought, dizzy with fear. She turned back around and nearly fainted when she spied the impossibly narrow bridge up ahead. The bridge they were about to cross. 'This is really bad.'
Legolas grabbed her arm, pulling her against his chest as the others crossed one by one. "We will cross together," he whispered, his hot breath against her cheek. He reached down and took her hand in his. "Do not let go."
He waited until Gimli was on the other side before slowly leading her across. Katie held on to his hand for dear life, forcing herself not to look down as they walked. It seemed to take forever to make it across. Once on safe ground, she reluctantly released his hand, knowing she wouldn't be holding his hand anytime soon after he found out she knew about Gandalf's death and didn't tell.
"You cannot pass!" The wizard yelled at the monster.
Katie wanted to close her eyes, block out what was going on around her. Block out all she knew was going to happen. She heard Frodo yell Gandalf's name. Scared. Pleading. Desperate. The balrog rose to its full height, spouting fire from every crevice of its terrifying body.
"I am a servant of the secret fire," Gandalf yelled, "wielder of the flame of Anor." He held up his staff, emitting a brilliant white light. "The dark fire will not avail you- flame of Udun."
The balrog swung its flame-sword at the wizard but was stopped by the white light.
"Go back to the shadow," Gandalf hissed.
The monster took a step towards him and cracked the fiery whip menacingly over its head.
"YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" Gandalf screamed as he slammed down both his staff and sword into the hard stone by his feet. The bridge split in two, crumbling under the balrog. Everyone watched as the monster fell into the darkness, breathing a sigh of relief.
"No!" Katie screamed, unable to contain it any longer. She couldn't allow this to happen. All promises and reasoning flew out of her head as she charged forward. All she could think was she needed to save the wizard. She couldn't let him die.
Strong arms caught her from behind and refused to let her go despite her struggles. "No!" she screamed again.
She watched helplessly as the whip reappeared and gripped Gandalf's leg, pulling him off the ledge. She watched as he tried to pull himself up and failed. It seemed surreal to her. Like a bad dream she needed to wake up from.
He struggled a moment, looking panicked, then looked at the group. "Fly, you fools," he whispered, then disappeared silently over the edge.
She went limp in Legolas' arms, feeling dazed. Unfeeling. 'I should have stopped it,' she thought numbly. Frodo's cries of grief sounded distant to her ears. Too far away to matter. Her mind shut down with shock. She didn't even notice as Legolas threw her over his shoulder and carried her up the stairs, into the bright sunlight.
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