Disclaimer: We all know I own nothing but Valora. And some LotR memorabillia. That's about it.

Okay, so I can't entirley blame Alexandros for this taking forever. It was in part due to laziness after I finally wrote this damned chapter (which took forever, by the way). I wanted a break. Then the notebook I wrote this chapter in by hand got lost. (Does anyone else feel like they have an even harder time finding their stuff after they've cleaned their rooms than when it was a big old mess? Oy.) Anyway, since I went through hell trying to get this done in the first place, I absolutely refused to start over.

Thank you to all my readers and reviewers for being so damn patient with me. And for the wonderful reviews.

On with the new chapter.

No sooner had the Orcs begun to rush into the room that one of them fell dead, an Elvish arrow lodged directly between its eyes. Another fell with the Ranger's arrow protruding from it's neck. Valora's arrow found it's mark as well, piercing the temple of one of the creatures just as yet another received an arrow between it's eyes from Legolas.

But there were so many that they were not even slowed. Like a flood, they flowed through the doors. Within seconds, they had reached the first members of the Fellowship.

Gandalf let out a yell and rushed into the fray, followed shortly by the Hobbits. Valora, on the other hand, backed away even as she continued to shoot the beasts. Aragorn quickly abandoned his bow in favor of his sword. With a yell, he beheaded an Orc, it's blood spurting like a fountain of black ink.

Part of the doorway was sent flying by the large club the cave-troll carried. The beast roared angrily as the Orcs tugged it into the room by a chain around it's neck. It grunted in pain as Legolas shot it in the shoulder, then let out a bellow of fury. Its eyes quickly fell upon Sam. It raised it's club high and brought it down towards the Hobbit.

Had Sam not dived forward between the troll's legs, he'd have been flattened. It took the troll a moment to realize what had happened before it turned to attack him again. Sam crawled for dear life, only to find himself against a wall. He rolled onto his back in time to see the troll lift its foot into the air, preparing to stomp on him like a bug.

Before the troll could carry out it's plan, it was jerked backwards. Aragorn and Boromir has seized the chain the Orcs had used to pull it into the room and tugged with all their might. The troll nearly toppled over. Nearly. It turned, enraged and swung at the two men, who dodged.

Aragorn, however, had let go of the chain when he dove out of the way. Boromir had not. A mistake he quickly realized, but not in time to let go before the troll also grabbed a hold of the chain and used it to fling the man against the wall.

Boromir hit the wall with a sickening crash and bounced off of it, falling to the ground. He lost his grip on both his sword and shield when he landed. All he felt at the moment was pain. As he tried to regain his senses, an Orc approached him. He had not had so much sense knocked out of him that he couldn't realize that he was now completely defenseless.

A sword sliced through the air and impaled the Orc through the neck. The creature shrieked and fell back, dead. Boromir sat up and looked at Aragorn, who had thrown the sword. The Ranger nodded before turning his attention to an Orc as it rushed at him.

In the next instant, Valora was by Boromir's side, helping him up. She'd seen him go flying and had worked her way to him as quickly as she could. An Orc made a grab for her with one arm, a wicked looking dagger in its other hand. She lashed out a kick that seemed to knock the wind out of it, but it still had a firm grip on her arm. Legolas is going to kill me for treating my bow like this, she thought just before she gripped ittightly with her freehand and swung it at her attacker's head. It was a solid hit. The Orc backed away in surprise, letting go of her arm.

Behind her, Boromir and Aragorn had both retrieved their weapons. Before she could go for another arrow or draw her own sword, Aragorn moved forward and killed the Orc.

Boromir gripped her shoulder briefly. "Stay close to me," he ordered.

"Not a problem," she assured as he moved the pick up his shield. She shot another Orc and was about to reach for another arrow. "Shit!" There was another rushing her. Both men were currently preoccupied, everyone else was too far away to offer assistance and she knew she wouldn't be able to draw her sword or another arrow before it was upon her. "Well, batter up."

The Orc had not been expecting to be beaten senseless with a bow. It was too surprised to react, so she was able to get in several blows. Enough that it staggered slightly. She drew her sword while she could and ran it through before she even had time to think about what she was doing. Some of it's blood splattered on her. It was her first close up kill.

The troll was attacking Orcs just as much as the Fellowship. It was the only advantage, if it could really be called such, they had. Everything else was riding on their skills, their wills to survive and, especially for Valora and the Hobbits, sheer, dumb luck.

Legolas fired two arrows simultaneously from his bow. The troll reacted as he'd hoped, backing away from a fallen Gimli. As he'd also expected, it now turned on him. The troll whipped the chain at the Elf, forcing him to duck. It swung the chain at him several times before accidentally wrapping the end of the chain around a pillar. Legolas stomped down on the chain to make sure it was secure.

Valora looked over in time to see him run up the chain and attempt to shoot an arrow directly into the troll's head. The arrow broke and he leapt down. "Why the hell couldn't I have been born an Elf?" she muttered.

She didn't have long to dwell on it, however. Her instincts screamed at her to turn around. She did. And let out a yelp as she barely managed to duck underneath a sword as it was swung at her. That had been far too close for comfort. She successfully blocked another swing. The Orc then launched itself at her. Valora suddenly found herself on her back with no weapon in her hands and an Orc on top of her. An Orc that was rearing up to deliver a killing strike. She grabbed the first rock she could reach and struck the Orc in the head as hard as she could with it. It fell to the side, out cold.

Hastily, she shoved it's leg off of her and looked around frantically for a weapon, any weapon. Her sword lay just out of reach. She dove for it. Sensing another attacker, she rolled onto her back and saw another Orc preparing to drive a spear right through her chest. She rolled out of the way, but not quitefast enough. The spear opened a red line across her arm. Before it could try again, it had a sword through it's abdomen.

Boromir yanked his sword out of the body and it fell right on top of Valora. Black blood oozed from the wound and onto her. The body was yanked off of her by either Boromir or Aragorn. She wasn't sure which. Frankly, she didn't care. There was a burning pain across her left bicep where the spear had grazed her. She knew she was bleeding, but she couldn't worry about it now. Not if she wanted to live through this.

A loud clang rang out as Sam smacked an Orc square in the face with his frying pan. Frankly, he was having more luck fighting with it than his sword.

Merry, Pippin and Frodo stuck together. They had retreated to the far corner of the tomb, hoping to keep the Ring-bearer out of harm's way as much as possible. Unfortunately, the troll had spotted them and followed. They divided, Merry and Pippin darting to one side and Frodo to the other as the troll smashed it's club down in the exact spot where they had been standing. The stone beneath crumbled as if it were a sand castle.

Hearing the crash, Aragorn turned and realized just how bad of a situation the Ring-bearer was in at the moment. "Frodo!" He couldn't get the them just yet. There were still so many Orcs to fight off. He battled harder, cutting them down as quickly as he could, al the while edging closer to the endangered Hobbits. They could not lose Frodo.

By the time he was in any position to help, the troll was dragging Frodo from the corner. Frodo called for help as the troll prepared to crush him. Aragorn leapt in front of him, startling the troll. The Ranger didn't hesitate as he drove an enormous spear into the monster's ribcage. Merry and Pippin began to throw rocks at it's head in an attempt to help.

Angry beyond measure now, it backhanded Aragorn away as though he were no more than a rag doll. He flew through the air, crashing into the wall. When he landed, his head struck a rock and blackness consumed him.

Frodo ran to his fallen friend's side and frantically shook him. He wouldn't wake. Frodo wasn't sure what frightened him more; the troll or his friend and protector's unresponsiveness. He turned to find the troll had yanked the spear from it's own body and was advancing on him. He ducked as the spear was thrust towards him. He slashed Sting across it's elbow as he darted past the troll. He had to get away, had to keep the ring safe. He was jarred to an abrupt halt as the shaft of the spear appeared in front of him, blocking his way. The troll had moved much faster than he'd anticipated. He was thrown back against the wall, facing the troll. It brought back it's arm, spear poised and ready.

Valora ran towards him, intending to put herself between the Hobbit and the spear if she had to. But she knew she would never get there in time. "No!"

Frodo let out a gasping cry as the troll drove the spear into his chest.

The girl froze as Gandalf turned. Merry and Pippin stared in shock and horror. A moment passed. Then the two Hobbits let out a cry of outrage and leapt upon the troll's back. They drove their swords into it over and over.

"Valora!" She turned at Boromir's shout and narrowly dodged the Orc that had come after her. Rage unlike any she had ever known rose in her heart. They had taken her friend from her. She attacked viciously, hell bent on making them pay for it. Sam and Gandalf shared her sentiment wholeheartedly. Before long, only the very frustrated troll remained standing against them.

After many tries, the troll managed to grab hold of Merry and yank him off of it's back. Gimli and Gandalf attacked, slicing and jabbing with their swords. The troll flung Merry aside to better deal with the Dwarf and wizard. It swung a fist and managed to hit Gimli, who fell back. Pippin drove his sword as deep as he could into the troll's back. As it reared back, bellowing in pain, Legolas took careful aim and fired an arrow right into it's open mouth.

The troll groaned in pain and shock. It staggered before falling forward, dead at last. Pippin was thrown over it's head, and the arrow protruding through the top of it's skull, landing rather hard on his back. They stared for a few seconds, breathing hard from the exertion of battle.

Gandalf was the first to rush towards Frodo. Aragorn crawled through the rock and debris, stopping beside the fallen Hobbit. Frodo was lying face down on the ground, He was completely still. "Oh, no," whispered Aragorn. He reached out and carefully turned the body over.

Frodo gasped for air, amazing them all. He couldn't be alive. How could he possibly be after being stabbed like that?

Sam was instantly at his dearest friend's side. "He's alive." He didn't think he'd ever, in his entire life, felt such relief.

Frodo sat up and rubbed at the spot where the spear had connected. "I'm alright. I'm not hurt."

Valora shook her head. Her legs felt as though they might give out on her any second. "How?" she asked hoarsely.

"You should be dead," agreed Aragorn. "That spear would have skewered a wild boar."

"I think there's more to this Hobbit than meets the eye," said Gandalf.

Frodo pulled open his shirt, revealing the gleaming metal underneath. The shirt Bilbo had given him the day they left Rivendell.

"Mithril," said Gimli reverently. Smiling slightly, he said, "You are full of surprises, Master Baggins."

Vaolra let out a small laugh of relief that was almost a sob. She rushed forward and threw her arms around Frodo, burying her face in his hair. Despite her vow never to let anyone see her cry, she very nearly burst into tears right then and there.

The moment was short lived. The sound of more enemies, Orcs or Goblins, they weren't sure which, could be heard. Looking towards the doorway, shadows were visible, moving closer by the second.

"To the Bridge of Khazad-dum!" ordered Gandalf.

I was seriously trying not to drag this one out too long. Don't know if I succeeded. Please let me know. And I tried not to make Valora too good in battle just yet. I think I did okay there. If you disagree, by all means, let me know.