Chapter 11: Frodo disappears! The arrival of the mysterious ranger, Strider
At the Prancing Pony Inn, the hobbits, Raven, Pidge, Beast Boy, Lance, and Hunk sat at a table. Sam was still concerned for Gandalf. "Sam," said Frodo, "he'll be here. He'll come."
Beast Boy, Lance, and Hunk look at Raven. She should've told Gandalf about Saruman before they left. Now… she feels that his delayed arrival is somehow… It's her fault. Merry came running back to their table with a cup of beer.
"What's that?" asked Pippin.
"This," answered Merry, smiling mischievously, "my friend, is a pint."
"It comes in pints?" asked Pippin.
Merry muttered in agreement.
Pippin walked from the table. "I'm getting one!" he said.
"You've had a whole half already," stated Sam.
Pidge rolled up her eyes, 'ohhh…boys. They always want to get drunk these days,' thought Pidge . Sam then looked away at a distance and spotted four figures cloaked with hoods over their heads, eyeing them very suspiciously…
"Those four fellows over there have done nothing but stare at us since we arrived," said Sam. Raven, Pidge, Beast Boy, Lance, and Hunk also looked at the four figures that Sam spotted.
Frodo then stopped the innkeeper, who was coming towards them, "excuse me, those four men in the corner. Who are they?"
"Well," answered the Innkeeper, "one of them, I don't recognize. The three strangers must be old friends of his or something. But the other one though… he's one of them rangers."
This caught everyone's attention as the innkeeper continued, "dangerous folk, they are, wandering the wild. What his right name is, I've never heard, but around here… he's known as Strider."
The Innkeeper immediately left them afterwards, leaving Frodo silently repeating to himself, "…Strider."
Frodo carried the ring in his hands, playing with it. Frodo began to undergo a trance. He closed his eyes, with everyone looking at him with both curiosity and suspicion…
Raven was looking at Frodo as well when he went into a trance…
She looked at the ring, which Frodo was caressing so fondly. She finds herself… enticed to look at the ring…
Frodo was being influenced by the ring's power once more. And apparently… so was Raven.
Baggins! the ring muttered…
Baggins…!
Baggins…!
The ring kept muttering Frodo's name until…
"Baggins!"
Someone else was speaking Frodo's name, which enabled Frodo and Raven to come out of their trances. Pippin was the one speaking and was also drunk as well.
"Sure I know a Baggins. He's over there, Frodo Baggins," Pippin said as he turned around and pointed to Frodo. Frodo instantly gasped at this.
"Grr," growled Beast Boy, "what does he think he's playing at?"
Pippin went on, "He's my second cousin, once removed from his mother's side. And…"
Frodo ran up to the drunk Pippin and tried to stop him babbling. "Pippin," he yelled out, grabbing Pippin's arm.
"Steady on!" said Pippin. Suddenly…
Frodo tripped sending the ring in his hand flying up in the air. Everyone gasped, including the four figures that were staring at Frodo. The ring then started falling to the ground. Frodo tries to catch the ring, but the ring slipped on Frodo's finger…
…And he vanished!
The entire crowd gasped in fright to what they saw. It had more of an adverse effect on Frodo's companions.
'I don't believe it…' thought Raven.
'Me neither...' though Pidge.
'Frodo disappeared?' thought Beast Boy.
'Where did he go?' thought Lance.
'He just vanished?' though Hunk.
Instantly, the black riders sensed the ring's power being used and rushed on immediately.
Before his own eyes, Frodo was in some kind of shadow realm. It frightened him greatly. But the most frightening part was the appearance of a large, fiery eye. It approached Frodo, as it spoke…
"…You cannot hide… I see you…"
Frodo backed away from the eye as much as possible but it still came even closer to Frodo…
"…There is," the eye went on, frighteningly, "…no life… in the void. Only… death." Then Frodo quickly took the ring off his finger and the shadow realm disappeared.
He was completely back at the inn. Frodo took a deep breath, not before being snatched by someone. It was the four hooded figures who were staring at him earlier.
"You," said one of the strangers, "draw far too much attention to yourself, 'Mr. Underhill'." With that remark, they dragged Frodo upstairs and into his room.
Once they got there, Frodo was thrown onto the floor. The second stranger decided to remove his hood, revealing a short spiked black hair of a very tall 18 year old Chinese boy wearing a red scarf around his neck.
"He's right, shortie," he said, "this isn't the place for disappearing acts, you know."
The third stranger decided to remove his hood, revealing a half man and half robot. He is a tall, African and muscular man, with his body parts replaced by robot parts. His light circuits are blue, as he has one red light as an eye. He always uses weapons.
"Um.. Thank you sir," he said, "I wish I could tell you the whole story of how I became half robot but It's a long story."
The fourth stranger removed his hood, revealing an 18 year old Chinese boy with black short hair.
"My brother's right," he said, "this place isn't for you to disappear or vanish."
Frodo stood up and asked, "What do you want?"
"A little more caution from you," said the other stranger known as Strider, "that is no trinket you carry."
"I carry nothing," objected Frodo.
"Indeed," said Strider. He then walked over to the window and snuffed out the candles one by one using his finger.
"I can avoid being seen if I wish, but to disappear entirely… that is a rare gift," said Strider as he removed his hood as well.
"Who are you?" asked Frodo.
"Are you frightened?"
"Yes," answered Frodo.
"Not nearly frightened enough," countered Strider, "I know what hunts you."
Frodo was shocked to hear this and suddenly… the door opened. Strider and the Three other strangers drew their swords. It was Sam, Raven, Pidge, Beast Boy, Lance, Hunk, and the rest of Frodo's companions at the door.
Sam demanded, "Let him go! Or I'll have you longshanks."
The short spiked black hair of a very tall 18 year old Chinese boy wearing a red scarf around his neck then spoke, "Raven, Pidge?"
The African American half cybernetic half man also spoke, "Beast Boy, Lance, Hunk?"
The 18 year old Chinese boy with black short hair spoke, "Raven, Pidge, Beast Boy, Lance, Hunk?"
"Mako?" Raven with a quizzed look on her face.
"Cyborg! Bolin?" Pidge with a quizzed look on her face.
"Huh? You're with this guy, Mako?" asked Beast Boy.
"Wait a minute? You're with this fellow, Cyborg?" asked Lance.
"You three are with these men,?" asked Hunk.
"You three know the two women and three men?" asked Strider.
"Yeah," said Mako.
"Of course we do know them," said Cyborg.
"We surely do," said Bolin.
"Wonderful," said Strider, a little annoyed as he, Mako, Cyborg, and Bolin re-sheathed their swords back into the scabbard. Then Strider turned to face Sam, "and you have a stout heart, little hobbit. But that will not save you."
Strider then said to Frodo, "You can no longer wait for the wizard Frodo… they're coming."
Back at the front gate, the gatekeeper heard a noise. He went to investigate and he was knocked down along with the gate, killing him instantly. It was the black riders breaking into Bree. They went straight towards the Prancing Pony Inn. As they entered, the innkeeper hid from them as he closed his eyes, hoping they wouldn't find him and kill him.
The riders entered the hobbits' room. They saw two additional sleeping bags on the floor. The beds were full, including the sleeping bags…
The riders slowly proceeded towards the beds ominously…
…And stood over the beds with their swords. Then…
…SLICE!
They stabbed the beds simultaneously, in a continuous motion. But there was no blood…
…There were only bunches of feathers. The sinister riders tore the beds apart, along with the sleeping bags on the floor. The sinister riders screeched in agony.
While this was going on, the hobbits, Raven, Pidge, Beast Boy, Lance, and Hunk woke up in another room, with Strider, Mako, Cyborg, and Bolin standing watch at the window. Frodo, Raven, and Pidge sat on the edge of the bed next to each other while Beast Boy, Lance, and Hunk lay in the bed next to the Hobbits.
"Good thinking, eh Strider," congratulated Mako.
"Great work, Strider," congratulated Cyborg.
"Great job, Strider," congratulated Bolin.
"Yeah Cyborg," interjected Beast Boy, "we'd all be dead now if it wasn't for Strider."
"Yeah Mako," interjected Lance, "we shouldn't be caught now if it wasn't for this man."
"Yeah Bolin," interjected Hunk, "we'd shouldn't be dead now if it wasn't for Strider."
Frodo spoke with fear in his voice, "…what are they?"
The riders screeched again. Everyone listened as Strider explained…
"They were once men," he said, "… great kings of men. Then Sauron, the deceiver, gave to them nine rings of power. Blinded by their greed, they took them without question. One by one, falling to darkness. Now they are slaves to his will… "
Strider then looked out the window to see the riders leaving the Inn…
He went on, "…they are the Nazgul… Ringwraiths, neither living nor dead. At all times they feel the presence of the ring… drawn by the power of the one. They will never stop hunting you."
The fact was made clear as the riders took positions outside Bree, bent on finding Frodo's companions and killing them.
The next morning, the group left Bree. They had in their company a pony named Bill. Strider took the lead, alongside Bill. "Where are you taking us?" asked Frodo.
"Into the wild," answered Strider.
As they continued their long trek, Merry had doubts about Strider, "how do we know that this Strider is a friend of Gandalf?"
"I don't know, Merry," said Raven, "but Beast Boy, Lance, Hunk, Pidge, and I definitely know and trust Cyborg, Mako, and Bolin."
"You're Right. Raven" said Pidge, "we always know and trust them."
"Miss Raven and Miss Pidge are right," said Frodo, "we have no choice but to trust him."
"But where is he leading us?" asked Sam.
"To Rivendell, Master Gamgee," answered Strider, "to the house of Elrond."
"Did you hear that? Rivendell, we're going to see the Elves," said Sam. Rivendell was the meeting place for Robin and his companions provided by Radagast, but ended up scattered by Bumblebee's temperament.
Later on, Raven asked Cyborg, "how did you meet up with Strider, Cyborg, Mako, Bolin?"
Pidge asked Mako and Bolin, "how did you three meet up with Strider?"
"Well," responded Cyborg, "Bolin, Mako, and I found ourselves in a forest somewhere…"
Cyborg, Mako, and Bolin recalled what happened to them while they explained…
"…And Cyborg, Bolin, and I couldn't find any of you guys and Korra anywhere…"
"Man," said Mako, "that's the last time we let an old man take us through some portal! This forest seems endless. I can't seem to find my way out. I wish I could bring some food with me."
"Yeah," said Cyborg, "the last time we let him take us through the portal!"
"Oh man," said Bolin, "we should have brought some food with us."
"Then," interjected a voice that came from the woods, "let me provide you with food, strangers."
"He wanted to share some food with Me, Mako, and Bolin," said Cyborg, recalling his meeting with Strider.
"He shared the food with us," said Mako, recalling his meeting with Strider.
"He gives us some food to eat so that we can't starve to death." said Bolin, recalling his meeting with Strider.
The stranger provided Mako, Cyborg, and Bolin with a large wafer of a type of bread. Mako, Cyborg, and Bolin ate a piece of the bread… and somehow… felt full up already.
"Mmm," Mako hummed with satisfaction, "I feel full up already. What is this stuff?"
"This is good," Cyborg hummed with satisfaction, "it tastes like the body of Christ."
"Does it taste like the Catholic Church or something," said Bolin."
The stranger answered, "It's called Lembas Bread, food of the Elves. One bite is enough to fill the stomach of a grown man."
"Are you an Elf?"
"No," the stranger answered solemnly, "…I was raised by Elves. I am a ranger, fellow traveler. You three may call me Strider."
"Strider?" queried Mako, "that's not much of a name."
"That's a strange name?" queried Cyborg."
"Your name is Strider?" queried Bolin."
"That's all I have," Strider sadly said, "I must take my leave of you three, I have important business ahead."
"What is this business?"
"Is that some part of your job or something?"
"It's some kind of mission or something?"
"I must go to the village of Bree. The wizard, Gandalf the Grey, has asked me to look over a hobbit that has a powerful object."
Mako, Cyborg, and Bolin seemed interested in Strider's quest, especially when he just heard the name Gandalf mentioned by Radagast.
"Excuse me sir," said Mako, "would this powerful object happen to be a ring?"
"Some kind of magic ring?" said Cyborg."
"Is the ring powerful?" said Bolin."
Strider was taken aback by what Mako, Cyborg, and Bolin asked. "Do you three know," he asked, "…about the One Ring?"
"Yeah, buddy. You see… Cyborg, Bolin, and I are not actually from this world… but from another. Another wizard that calls himself Radagast sent us three and twenty one of our other friends here because of this ring. We can't seem to find any of our friends and my girlfriend Korra anywhere."
"Mako's right, we're not from this world," said Cyborg.
"We're from another world," said Bolin.
"Then," resolved Strider, "I think it is best that you three come with me. What are your names?"
"I'm Mako. It's nice to finally meet someone in this place."
"I'm Cyborg. It's nice to finally meet you."
"I'm Bolin, Mako's brother. It's perfect to meet somebody in the place."
And so… Mako, Cyborg, Bolin and Strider went on to Bree to meet up with Frodo…
"That's how We met up with you guys," concluded Mako, "it's nice to see you again, Raven."
"Yeah it's nice to see you again, Pidge." concluded Cyborg."
"We're glad to see you guys again," concluded Bolin.
"And I'm thankful that We got to see you again, Mako, Cyborg, and Bolin," agreed Raven. "But… What about Robin? Will we ever meet up with him again as well as the others?"
"When will we meet Robin and the others again and when will you meet Korra again ," asked Pidge.
"…Who knows missies… who knows? I hope Korra's okay?"
"We're not sure, Raven and Pidge?"
"I think we will meet him in Rivendell?"
The travelers continued their journey even further as the hobbits were getting out their cooking utensils. Strider objected to this, "Gentlemen, we do not stop until nightfall."
"What about breakfast?" asked Pippin.
"You already had it."
"We've had one yes," said Pippin, "what about the second breakfast?"
But Strider kept moving. He clearly doesn't want to stop till it gets dark.
"Second breakfast?" wondered Beast Boy, Lance, and Hunk in shock. Mako, Cyborg, Bolin, Raven, and Pidge were shocked as well.
"Geez, you hobbits are really hungry, aren't you," said Mako.
"Yeah, you already had your first breakfast," said Cyborg.
"Can't you hobbit wait for tomorrow morning breakfast," said Bolin.
"Well Mako, Cyborg, Bolin," said Frodo, "that's hobbit life for you three."
"Yes, Mr. Mako, Mr. Cyborg. Mr. Bolin," said Sam, "we've been like this throughout our lives."
"Yeah," opined Mako, "you're short, and you're all barefooted!"
"Why are you hobbits barefooted!" said Cyborg."
"You hobbits are not wearing any shoes!" said Bolin."
The Hobbits started to pick up their cooking utensils as Merry and Pippin had a conversation about Strider.
"I don't think he knows about the second breakfast, Pip."
"What about elevenses…? Luncheon? Afternoon tea? Dinner? Supper? Surely he knows about them, doesn't he?"
"I wouldn't count on that," said Merry.
Then an apple came out of nowhere and Merry caught it. He patted Pippin on the back and gave him the apple. Another apple then dropped onto Pippin, which caught him by surprise.
"Pippin," Merry called out.
Meanwhile, in Isengard, Saruman held out his hand over the palantir, which showed Sauron's fiery eye on it. Saruman communicated to Sauron with his thoughts, '…the power of Isengard is at your command… Sauron, lord of the earth…'
Sauron muttered black speech to Saruman and then spoke clearly in his eerie, frightening voice…
"…BUILD ME AN ARMY, WORTHY OF MORDOR."
Sometime later, Saruman sat in another room, with his arms crossed on his chest, looking as if he were haunted. Orcs came into the room…
"What orders," said an Orc, "from Mordor, my lord? What does the eye command?"
"We have work to do," Saruman said, grimly.
