AN: I just wanted to apologize for taking so long to update. This chapter is fairly choppy and out of character. I'm very sorry. I haven't read any Lord of the Rings fanfiction since the last time I updated, so this was considerably more difficult to write than usual. This is also the final chapter of the story. I am planning on writing a sequel at some point, but I don't know when it will be finished, or even started for that matter. I'd like to thank my friends Emily and Katie for making sure that I actually did finish this story. I hope you enjoy the end! It's been fun to write!

-In Mirkwood-

Pippin gazed out the window, willing his friends to appear at the palace gates. He did see something approaching, though it was not what he had hoped for. A massive dark cloud was heading toward Mirkwood with a distinct foreboding. Something about the cloud was, to put it simply, off. It had more of a toxic-brown tint to it than the usual gray color of a rain cloud. Behind him he heard footsteps and he turned to face the intruder. It was Gandalf.

"You've seen it as well, haven't you?" Pippin asked quietly, pointing toward the cloud.

"It is tainted with Saruman's magic. He has been rebuilding his army of orcs, sending the smog of toxins involved in their creation toward Mirkwood. 'Tis no ordinary rain that shall fall upon Mirkwood, Pippin," Gandalf explained wearily, "it is an acidic substance that shall kill everything here."

With a shocked expression, Pippin looked between the toxic cloud and the wizard beside him, asking, "But what about the elves? What shall they do? And what of the others? When they return from wherever Saruman has taken them, Mirkwood shall be ruined! Where will they go? What of Legolas? He lives for his home. Will he choose to leave Middle Earth? What-"

"One question at a time, my dear hobbit," Gandalf interrupted kindly. With a sigh, he stated, "Most will sail, but some shall remain. Legolas at this point is questionable. 'Twill not be until he returns that we shall know. His recent experiences alone would be enough to tilt the odds in favor of leaving for a more peaceful place and the destruction of his home shall not help, but he has always been stubborn and his heart truly belongs to Middle Earth and his friends. Those that choose to remain are likely to go to the other elven realms until such a time has come that they are deserted as well."

"Do they know?" Pippin asked hesitantly.

Gandalf nodded, "Thranduil is leading the elves to Rivendell in the morning. You shall go with them."

"What of you?" Pippin asked.

"I shall be providing the distraction I promised, allowing the rest of the Fellowship to escape," Gandalf replied. The wizard swept out of the room, leaving Pippin to his thoughts.

Gimli glanced around the corner, ducking back quickly when he saw the orcs coming. He had managed to escape his cell after tricking an orc into believing he was asleep, then springing suddenly to life. The orc didn't stand a chance against Gimli's fury. The dwarf was now attempting to free all of his friends before his escape was discovered. Unfortunately, their cells were a bit more guarded than Gimli's. At this thought, Gimli was vaguely insulted, but pushed the feeling away so he could focus on the task at hand. In one hand Gimli held a rock and in the other was a twisted bit of metal that could pass as a knife should he need it. A reckless plan came together in the dwarf's mind, and with only a moment's hesitation, he threw the rock down the hall.

The orcs who had previously been standing guard in front of the cells of Legolas and Aragorn glanced at each other before running off to investigate the source of the noise. Gimli darted out of his hiding place and frantically picked the lock on the door of Aragorn's cell. His anger grew as the appalling condition of his friend was revealed. The man was still unconscious and blood was forming puddles on the ground around him. For a moment, panic overtook the dwarf's senses. If Aragorn were in such a condition, it was presumable that Legolas and possibly Pippin would be in similar states, making it impossible for the injured dwarf to evacuate them safely. Pushing away his momentary lapse in attention, the dwarf hobbled over to Aragorn's side, gently shaking him awake.

"Wake up, laddie," Gimli whispered urgently. The man groaned before opening his eyes slowly. When he saw the dwarf, he immediately became more alert. Gimli was still watching him carefully when he asked, "Can you walk?"

Aragorn quickly assessed his various injuries, noting that his ribs were likely to cause the most pain and blood loss was already making him dizzy. As he tried to rise, he slumped forward and would have fallen had Gimli not been there to catch him. The dwarf was obviously concerned, but Aragorn was determined to leave. In a hoarse voice, he stated, "I can walk, though I may need a bit of help to stay upright."

The dwarf nodded his agreement and allowed Aragorn to keep a hand on his shoulder while they slowly staggered out of the cell. As Gimli was picking the lock on Legolas' cell, he asked Aragorn, "How bad off was the elf when you saw him last?"

"His condition has improved very much physically, but his heart despairs," Aragorn replied. To himself, he muttered, "As does mine."

Though the last comment was not meant to be heard by the dwarf, he heard it none the less. It caused his concern to grow, for it seemed that all his friends would have many mental scars as they left in addition to their physical ones. Gimli growled slightly as he thought of the wizard responsible for the breaking of his friends' spirits. Once they got out of this hellhole and were healed, he would have his revenge upon Saruman. The lock finally gave in, allowing Gimli to open the door.

Legolas looked up immediately, unable to completely block the fear in his eyes. More disturbing to Gimli was the lack of spark within the elf's eyes, showing just how much the elf was despairing. The usual glow that surrounded Legolas was also much diminished. With only a mild look of confusion he rose and walked stiffly over to Aragorn and Gimli. He asked softly, "Where are the orcs?"

The question sent a thrill of fear through the dwarf, followed quickly by a deep sense of confusion. Indeed, the orcs that chased the rock should have returned by now. Perhaps this had all been an elaborate scheme to further break their spirits, to allow them to get so close to escape only to be recaptured. Pushing those thoughts aside with slightly narrowed eyes, Gimli led the others to Pippin's cell.

Merry was huddled in the corner of his cell, his eyes reflecting deep sorrow and guilt. The pitiful sight of the hobbit nearly crushed the other three, for they had not thought of how difficult it must have been for the hobbit to accept the death of Pippin, his best friend and partner in crime. Legolas called out quietly, "We must go now, Merry. Come with us."

The hobbit stared ahead blankly before rising slowly, following without question. As they reached the end of the hallway, Legolas asked, "Where are Sam and Frodo?"

"I do not know," Gimli replied with concern, "I haven't seen or heard them since we arrived here."

In the middle of the forest, Frodo and Sam stood, looking around for any sign as to where they were. They had determined that they were in Mirkwood and that the cloud was unmistakably unnatural and they didn't want to be caught under it. Beyond that, however, they had no idea as to how to get back to the palace or even how to find a safe place to spend the night. They had managed to escape from Saruman when the wizard foolishly left the two together in a cell. After knocking out their tormentors they escaped to find help for their friends.

Voices coming from the left of the hobbits gave them a sudden hope. Sam collected the supplies they had managed to steal from Saruman and followed Frodo as he walked toward the voices. A large company of elves was traveling down what appeared to be the path to Mirkwood. King Thranduil himself led them. Toward the back, with a tall, fair-haired female elf was a shorter being. Frodo almost believed that the shorter one was Pippin, but knew that the young hobbit had been killed in the ambush. As they drew nearer, however, Pippin's voice was unmistakable.

Sam and Frodo exchanged delighted glances before rushing over to their friend that they had believed to be dead. At the sight of Sam and Frodo the entire company of elves halted and stared, some looking into the forest as if they were expecting to see the others approaching as well. After hugging his friends, Pippin asked, "Where are the others?"

"We came seeking help," Frodo replied solemnly, "for we managed to escape, but were unable to free the others. We can lead you to where we were taken."

King Thranduil replied, his voice full of sorrow, "We cannot rescue them. The citizens of Mirkwood must be evacuated before the storm begins. It shall destroy Mirkwood and all who remain. We must hope that they have escaped on their own with the help of Gandalf's distraction and are able to leave before the storm strikes. I must insist that you join our company and come with us to Rivendell."

With an air of despair the hobbits joined the elvish company, wondering what would become of their friends.

Gandalf was indeed providing quite a distraction. A short distance from the lair the wizard stood, destroying the structure piece by piece. He had somehow managed to block the orcs and their weapons from coming within ten feet of him. Thus, Saruman himself was forced to come out into the open for the first time since his defeat and face Gandalf. Saruman was a bit afraid, though he fought to keep his voice calm as he said, "Ah, Gandalf, what brings you here? Not an attempt to free my prisoners, I would hope."

"Of course not!" Gandalf exclaimed, much to the surprise of Saruman. A moment later, the wizard continued in a more serious voice, "They have done that well enough on their own."

Saruman spun around, searching frantically for any sign that his captives had managed to escape. Legolas, who had been able to hear Gandalf, managed to warn his friends to hide before Saruman saw them. After seeing nothing but orcs, Saruman laughed and faced Gandalf once again. "Fool! There is no one out there but my orcs. I hadn't thought I would be able to add you to my collection, but I see I was mistaken."

Saruman attacked, sending Gandalf flying backwards. Gandalf landed on his feet and proceeded to send Saruman flying back against the wall. The orcs were now becoming quite frustrated, for they knew that it was their duty to protect Saruman but they were unable to approach the battling wizards. After several minutes of dueling, Gandalf disappeared in a flash of blinding light. Saruman tightened his grip on his staff in frustration before turning and leading the orcs back to his lair. Moments later, an angry yell could be heard from inside. Saruman had discovered that his captives were all gone. Once again he had been defeated.

Once the wizards began their battle, Gimli had led his friends toward Mirkwood. They were held back by Aragorn, who was feeling the full impact of his injuries. The man leaned heavily upon Legolas who, despite his best efforts to help his friend stay upright, was in no condition to be holding up anyone's weight save his own. Merry was no help to anyone for despair had overwhelmed him. The loss of Pippin had been devastating, but the disappearance of Sam and Frodo had completely broken the hobbit. Indeed, though he was in the best condition physically, he was the least useful member of their straggling group.

After finding their way into Mirkwood, Legolas took the lead. Their pace continued to be quite slow, for Legolas was barely able to stagger forward at a snail's pace and Gimli now found himself stumbling under Aragorn's weight. Merry barely had the motivation to move forward at all and continued at a slow, mournful pace. Legolas was growing increasingly uneasy as the forest cried out in distress and the ominous cloud overhead moved toward Mirkwood's palace faster than the small assembly of friends.

Oddly colored rain fell several hours later when they had nearly reached the palace. Aragorn hissed in pain as the acidic rain touched his already injured flesh. Legolas could only stare blankly ahead at the sight of trees and buildings being destroyed by the rain. A burning sensation spread across his body, but he failed to comprehend the reason or even truly feel the pain over the emotional turmoil within him. Tears mingled with the rain, diluting the acid as it touched his face. Gimli pulled his friends under the overhang of someone's roof. As the shock began to wear off, with a voice full of anguish, Legolas asked, "What has befallen of my home? Where is everyone?"

"I'm sure they made it out, laddie," Gimli replied as soothingly as possible, though he too was horrified by what had befallen the home of his friend. Aragorn was muttering about needing to go check on Arwen. For indeed, it seemed quite possible now that Saruman's words were true. In the forest, Gimli saw a blurry figure approaching. He prepared himself to defend his friends, but it was unnecessary.

"Come with me. We need to go to Rivendell. The others are waiting for us there," the figure stated calmly.

Gimli's eyes widened as he recognized the voice. In surprise, he asked, "Is that you, Gandalf?"

In response the wizard stepped out of the shadows. He beckoned the friends to follow. Legolas glanced at his ruined home one last time, murmuring, "Namarie."

The End

AN: Thank you for reading the story! And thank you to all of my reviewers! I'm going to try to write a sequel. It will be about what happens to the now homeless Mirkwood elves, the reunion of the Fellowship, the discovery of whether or not Saruman was lying, and what Saruman's fate will be. Please review:)