~0~0~0~

Three hours later…

"Gorluk, I think that Smeagol gave us the wrong directions," Faroth said slowly. Gorluk shook his head. "I'm sure that he gave us the right directions. He seemed to know these tunnels well," he insisted. Faroth didn't dare to argue back. He could sense that Gorluk was worried about where they were going, but yet he seemed more determined then ever to keep moving forward.

Gorluk had told Faroth everything that he knew about the strange group of people, but yet Faroth still couldn't understand his interest in them. Sure there was a Wizard among them, but Faroth was certain that he had seen one in Mirkwood. Sure there was an Elf among them, but Faroth saw Elves attack his pack all the time. He couldn't understand why Gorluk called them friends either. He never even spoke a word to them, and they never even saw him. There was one thing Faroth did already understand; Gorluk's definition of friendship was much more different then Faroth's. Growing up, Faroth always thought that friends were Wargs that knew each other very well and went hunting together (which is sad to think, since no one ever went hunting with Faroth; he was a very bad hunter).

Faroth was worried about where they were going because they seemed to be making no progress. For hours, the tunnel that they were walking in seemed to go deeper and deeper. He wondered if it was possible to go into the center of the earth, because that seemed to be where they were heading.

Faroth suddenly stopped. Gorluk glanced at him in confusion. "What is it?" he asked. Faroth sniffed the air. Something seemed to be tickling his nose. "I'm not sure," He said. "But I think that I can smell something burning." Gorluk started to look perplexed. "Are you sure? It might be coming from this torch." He held up the torch he was carrying. "I may be well known in my pack for being a bad hunter, but I'm very well known for being born with an excellent sense of smell. I'm certain that the smell is from a distance," Faroth insisted. Gorluk patted him on the shoulder. "I'm sorry," the Orc said. "Just the thought of something burning underground doesn't seem right." Faroth nodded in agreement. "I just hope that it's not a giant bonfire."

They continued walking. The smell started to get stronger in his nose, and as Faroth was about to tell that to Gorluk, he saw something up ahead; a red glow. They both stopped and stared at it for a while, while Faroth sneezed. "I think we should see what it is before turning around," Gorluk said. Faroth wasn't so sure, but he was too busy sneezing to object.

They slowly continued walking. It started to get brighter, and at the same time, hotter. Sweat was beginning to streak down Faroth's fur, which was very uncomfortable. Just as he couldn't take it anymore, the tunnel suddenly opened up into a giant cave. Gorluk and Faroth stopped and looked around in awe. Faroth guessed that the ceiling was eighty feet high, but he wasn't able to calculate how far away the wall in front of them was. Probably a hundred yards away. Gorluk suddenly nudged him by the shoulder. When Faroth looked up at him, Gorluk was starring straight ahead, and his face seemed frozen. "Faroth," he whispered. "What on earth is THAT?"

Faroth looked around until his eyes met the corner of the massive room. He too, froze. It appeared to be a massive pile of burning coals. But it definitely was the source of the burning smell that had been bothering Faroth. But yet, he still had absolutely no idea what it was. This made Faroth very curious. As if by instinct, he began to trot towards it at a normal pace.

"Faroth! What are you doing?" Gorluk whispered. He stayed exactly where he was and didn't follow him. "I'm just going to see what it is," Faroth called back, and kept walking. With a sigh, Gorluk briskly walked after him.

As they came closer, Faroth could have sworn that the pile of coal seemed to be shaped like a figure lying down. After they were ten yards away from it, they stopped at the same time. "Do you think we should touch it?" Faroth asked. It was probably the most ridiculous question he ever asked, but surprisingly, Gorluk cautiously stepped forward. Faroth stood behind him as they slowly advanced towards it. Gorluk had an extra stick that he was going to use as torch later in his hand. They were now only three feet away from it. Gorluk held up his branch like a sword as he slowly poked it.

And that was when everything went wrong.

First, they both heard a noise that sounded like a roll of thunder. Faroth and Gorluk stood side by side in horror as the pile of coals began to move upward. There was a flash, and they saw a giant flame before them, except that the flame was more like a giant person. In one hand, it held a stabbing blade, and in the other, a whip of many thongs. On its head were immense horns. For a moment, they both starred at the giant creature with dread and did not move. The monster rolled his head back and roared so loudly, that the ground trembled and rocks fell from the ceiling. Gorluk suddenly screamed, "BALROG!" and with that, he turned and ran. Faroth wasted no time to dash after him.

Instead of running back to the tunnel like they should have done, they ran towards the opposite direction through the giant halls, carved by the ancient Dwarves of long ago. But the Balrog still pursued after them. The ground shook with its stomping, and they ran in terror.

Faroth turned around, and realized that Gorluk was falling behind him. Faroth slowed down until he was running next to him. "Gorluk!" he panted. "Jump onto my back!" Gorluk only glanced at him as he continued running. "What? Are you crazy?!" he shouted. "Gorluk, Orcs ride on Wargs all the time because we're faster runners!" Faroth yelled back. "Trust me!" Gorluk took a deep breath and sprang towards Faroth's back. He landed safely, and Faroth realized that he was surprisingly light. Gorluk clung onto his fur for dear life as Faroth sped down the halls.

The Balrog roared, and Faroth heard its whip snap through the air. At first, Faroth thought that it didn't touch them, but Gorluk suddenly cried out, "Your tail! Your tail is on fire!" Before Faroth could respond, a fiery pain shot through his tail, and he knew that Gorluk was right. "Put it out!" Faroth yelped in agony. Gorluk Quickly smothered the flames from his tail, but his tail was still throbbing. He did not let that slow him down, however.

Gorluk suddenly yanked his fur back. "Stop!" he shouted. Faroth did stop, and he saw that they had come to the edge of a tall cliff. Faroth ran to the left. Up ahead, they saw a few bridges that connected to the other side. "Which bridge should we cross?" Faroth panted to Gorluk. Gorluk pointed towards a small one that seemed to lead towards another tunnel. Faroth ran towards it, and was just about to cross, when Gorluk cried out again "Stop!"

Faroth halted right in front of the bridge, and Gorluk climbed off his back. The Orc pointed towards another bridge fifty yards away from them, and cried out "It's them!" Faroth looked, and saw that it was the travelers that were running across the other bridge. But Faroth also saw that the Balrog had noticed them too, and was chasing after them. As they watched in dread, all of the travelers crossed the bridge safely, except one; the Wizard.

He had his sword out, which gleamed cold and white from a distance. The Balrog stayed at the other end of the bridge and snapped his whip, flames coming from its nostrils. But the Wizard stood firm, and undaunted.

"You cannot pass," Gandalf said. "I am a servant of the secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. You cannot pass. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun. Go back to the shadow! You cannot pass."

Gorluk and Faroth watched, mouths agape, as the Balrog stepped forward and spread its massive wings. It held up a flaming red sword.

Gandalf's gleamed white in answer.

Within a few seconds, the two swords clashed, and the Balrog fell backwards, its sword broken in pieces.

"You cannot pass!" Gandalf shouted.

And with that, the Wizard thrust his staff to the ground, and the bridge crumbled at the Balrog's feet. With a roar, the Balrog fell into the abyss. Right before Gorluk and Faroth could sigh with relief, a flaming whip shot out from the darkness and wrapped around the Wizard's feet. With a cry, Gandalf was pulled through the cliff, but he grasped vainly at the edge.

"Fly you fools!" he cried, and he let go.

Faroth and Gorluk stood frozen in horror. Was he dead? He had to be.

Faroth nudged Gorluk. "We need to get out of here," he said urgently. Faroth saw Gorluk's face scrunch up like he was about to cry. But he still turned, and together they ran across the bridge, and through the tunnel. Unexpectedly, Faroth felt wind on his face, and for the first time in days, he saw the sky. As soon as they were outside, Gorluk fell to the ground and sobbed.

~0~0~0~

And that's how the Balrog was awake in the first place… Gosh that part in the movie always makes me cry… *sniff*

I have an important announcement: This is the END!

(I'm just kidding, I just like the way that Bilbo said that at his birthday party. I will never abandon this story. Never!)

What I mean is, I will not be updating for three weeks. The reason is, I will be very busy with testing, writing a testimony for the church, and other things. BUT I still will have enough time to answer review questions/PMs, so don't be shy!

(I guess that some of you have noticed that I did this chapter through Faroth's point of view. Should I do this more often? I need your opinion.)

~Tatharwen