"Pretty, for a human."
Daniel jumped, instinctively covering the picture of Sha're with his hands. Gimli was standing next to him. He'd been so absorbed in the picture he hadn't even smelled the smoke from the dwarf's pipe.
"Your woman?" he asked, gesturing at the picture.
Daniel smiled, trying to keep it from looking wistful. "My wife, at least she was. Years ago. She died tragically."
Gimli nodded. "You will see her again, when your life's journey is over. In the meantime, it is time to return to the boats. We have a few more hours before we reach the falls of Rauros."
Daniel folded the picture carefully and put it back in his breast pocket. That done, he made his way back to the river. The picture was one of the few pictures he had of his wife. She was sitting on a dune, a sunset like those only the desert can produce at her back wearing nothing but a smile, her legs crossed and her arms covering her breasts. They'd traveled many miles to a small oasis that day, a few weeks after the Stargate had been buried. Because of the festival of Alaman no one had been there but them.
"You all right, Danny boy?" Jack asked as he climbed into the boat.
"Yeah," he answered, picking up the oars and pushing them away from the bank. "Just feeling old."
Jack laughed. " Don't I know the feeling."
Shaking his head, Daniel fell into line with the other boats as they continued down the Anduin. The first time he'd done this three days ago he'd almost knocked Aragorn and the hobbits out of their boat, then proceeded to bump against every little piece of debris that the fast running river threw their way. It had been years since he'd had to paddle in anything, and the Anduin was unlike to slow rivers of the Amazon. Since then he'd gotten a little better. Now he could at least steer clear of the larger objects that came their way.
"You wouldn't happen to have any aspirin, would you Jack?"
Jack turned around. "Aspirin?" He patted his pockets, and after a minute pulled out a slim, white packet. "You're in luck. My last ones." Without needing to be asked he ripped a hole in the packet and tipped the pills into Daniel's waiting mouth.
The archeologist winced at the bitter flavor, but chewed without pause. Hopefully the headache that had been bothering him would take the hint and go away.
Two hours later he was surprised by Jack's muttered "Whoa." He searched the river but didn't see anything. "Whoa what?"
Jack pointed up, and Daniel stopped paddling. Two of the largest stone statues he'd ever seen were up ahead. Statues? Monoliths would have been a better description. He longed for his camera. These were the two largest single carvings he'd ever seen. Two male figures in flowing robes flanked the river, their hands held out as if in warning, both clutching swords to their breasts.
"Whoa," he whispered. He looked around, and was relieved to see that everyone else was just as entranced with the monoliths as he was.
"It is Argonath," Aragorn called over the river. "We have reached the ancient northern border of Gondor. The falls are only a few more leagues south."
Good, Daniel thought. He needed a break.
He was tired of listening to Jack snore too.
Jack sighed when they finally hit the shore. His ass had gone numb about half and hour earlier, and he hated it when that happened. He associated the feeling with being trapped, unable to move.
"Land, sweet land," he sighed, stretching. He looked around, then frowned. "I thought we were supposed to be on the eastern shore," he said to Daniel as they moored the boat. Daniel just shrugged, not saying anything. Jack ran a critical eye over the archeologist. He hadn't been talking as much since leaving Lothlorien. Hadn't really been eating as much either. At first he'd hoped Daniel was just missing the place and that it would pass in a day. He wondered why he hadn't said anything sooner, but dismissed the thought. He couldn't watch Daniel all the time, could he? He was a grown man after all, more than capable of taking care of himself.
Jack shook himself. Daniel, take care of himself? In their short acquaintance the man had got himself killed more times that Jack liked to remember, not to mention stabbed, blown up, shot, and just about anything else painful that could happen to you. Then there was the fact that he wouldn't eat properly half the time if someone wasn't there to watch him. Take care of himself.
Right.
"Forgive me if I'm wrong, but aren't we on the wrong side of the river?" he asked loudly in Aragorn's general direction.
The ranger glanced at him before dropping the supplies he'd carried from the boat. "We cross the lake at nightfall. Hide the boats and continue on foot. We approach Mordor from the North."
Gimli scoffed. "Oh yes? Just a simple matter of finding our way through Emyn Muil, an impassible labyrinth of razor-sharp rocks. And after that, it gets even better. Festering, stinking marshlands, far as the eye can see."
Jack raised one eyebrow at Aragorn, but the ranger was looking pointed at Gimli, who sat in front of their small cook fire. "That is our road. I suggest you take some rest and recover your strength, Master Dwarf."
Jack fought the urge to laugh as Gimli bristled at Aragorn's remark. The dwarf hated it whenever someone commented on his age, or any mention that he might not be able to keep up with the rest of them.
"Does that answer your question, Jack?"
The colonel nodded. "Sounds like a plan to me."
He noticed that Legolas didn't look nearly as reassured. "We should leave now..." he muttered to Aragorn.
The ranger shook his head. "No. Orcs patrol the eastern shore. We must wait for cover of darkness."
Legolas looked towards the water, and even from a few feet away Jack could tell he was worried about something.
"It's not the eastern shore that worries me. A shadow and a threat has been growing in my mind. Something draws near - I can feel it."
Jack looked between the two of them, noticing that no one else was paying attention to the little aside. He'd come to trust Legolas's instincts. If the elf thought something was wrong, it wasn't good. He was just about to ask if they shouldn't take their chances when Merry spoke up.
"Where's Frodo?"
Jack took a quick head count. Carter, Teal'c, and Daniel started as well, and quickly stood. Gimli was seated in the same spot. Sam looked like he was about to panic. It wasn't until then that he noticed it. Next to Gimli Boromir's shield and spare sword were laying against the outcropping, but there was no Boromir in sight.
Oh shit.
"Legolas, Gimli, you sweep South. Jack, you go west with Teal'c. I'll start North. They cant have gone far," The ranger turned to Daniel and Sam. "Please stay with the little ones," he said to them. "Stay with Samantha and Daniel," he said sternly to the hobbits. The three nodded.
Jack didn't need any more prompting. Grabbing his short swords he trotted into the trees.
Boromir collected firewood, barely thinking on what he were doing. They were so close to Gondor he swore that he could see the glittering tower of Ecthelion in the distance. Once, the land he walked on had belonged to his kingdom, before it began to collapse in on itself. He would return his kingdom to its former glory. He only needed the means with which to do so.
He looked up when he heard soft footfalls, and smiled when he saw Frodo. What was he doing walking by himself? "None of us should wander alone, you least of all. So much depends on you." He picked up another piece of wood. Frodo had stopped and was staring at him. "Frodo?" he asked, but got no reply. "I know why you seek solitude," he began, almost to himself. "You suffer. I see it day by day. Are you sure you do not suffer needlessly?" He thought back over their journey. The hobbit had sunk further and further into himself as they made their ways towards Mordor. "There are other ways, Frodo, other paths that we might take."
"I know what you would say and it would seem like wisdom, but for the warning in my heart."
Boromir blinked. Why would Frodo need warning of him? "Warning! Against what?" The hobbit didn't look reassured, and he tried to calm him. "We are all afraid Frodo. But to let that fear drive us to destroy what hope we have... Don't you see? That is madness..."
"There is no other way." Frodo reached up and grabbed at his shirt.
The rush of anger Boromir felt was indescribable. The hobbit would destroy what little chance they had against the enemy because some doddering old fool and elves who thought of not but of their own skin told him to. "I ask only for the strength to defend my people!" he threw down the firewood. People who had known suffering for so many years that they could scarce remember anything else. People who had been beaten and left to die, forgotten by their allies. People who buried what was left of their children in small holes, because their wasn't enough left for a proper grave… "If you would but lend me the ring..." he started, moving towards Frodo.
"NO!"
Boromir stopped. "Why do you recoil? I am no thief..." he would take nothing from the hobbit that was not given. But if Fordo weren't in his right mind…
"You are not yourself." Frodo said gently, as if coddling a child, and that only increased his anger.
"What chance do you think you have? They will find you. They will take the ring. And you will beg for death before the end!" Couldn't he see? If Boromir held the ring he could protect it far better than the small hobbit ever could. He barely knew how to hold a sword, let alone defend himself against an attacker. Giving it to him was the only way to protect the hobbit.
Frodo shook his head and turned away. Turned away from him. Ungrateful wretch. They'd been breaking their backs to keep him safe, and this was how he repaid them? "It is not yours save by unhappy chance. It could have been mine. It should have been mine! Give it to me!" He tackled the hobbit and was reaching for the ring. He had to be around his neck somewhere.
"No!"
He barely heard the cry. He had to have it. Once the ring was his he would head to Gondor and mobilize the army. They would march on Mordor and destroy the dark lord once and for all. And then, when they were safe, he would destroy the ring, but not until they were safe…
In the blink of an eye Frodo was gone, and his hands grasped nothing but air.
Fordo had put on the ring.
Something bumped into him, but it was gone before he could grab it. "I see your mind. You will take the ring to Sauron. You will betray us. You go to your death, and the death of us all! Curse you! Curse you! And all the halflings!"
Suddenly his foot twisted beneath him, and he fell. It was like waking up from a nightmare, only to find that it had been real. "Frodo? Frodo?" he called, looking around, but there was no sign of the hobbit anywhere. "What have I done?" he whispered. You hurt Frodo, the most defenseless member of your party. You scared him so badly he ran from you, risked wearing the ring to get away from you. "Please, Frodo. Frodo..."
Staggering to his feet, he started running. Please, let me find him before something terrible happens…
Frodo ran, not knowing where he was going. The shadow realm was much different from the world he was used to. Everything seemed to move here, as if it were made of water. Objects ran into one other and merged. He didn't know how long he'd been running, but the sound of Boromir's ranting and ceased. The world around him was dark, he could hear whispering.
He was about to run to the left when he saw the light. It was coming towards him, and he sighed in relief when he recognized the shape of Jack. He would keep him safe from Boromir. Jack had never done anything to hurt him.
"Jack!" he yelled, pulling of the ring. The man stumbled to a halt when he saw Frodo, then he was in front of him on one knee, grasping him by the shoulders.
"Are you all right, Frodo?" Jack asked, looking him up and down.
Frodo took a breath. "The ring has taken Boromir," he said.
Jack's eyes hardened. "He didn't hurt you did he?"
Frodo shook his head. He was safe. "No, I ran away."
The colonel patted him on the head. "Good boy," he said, as if he were talking to his own son. Then he seemed to go still. "Frodo, where's the ring? Boromir didn't get it did-"
Frodo shook his head harder. "No. He tried to take it from me but I ran," he opened his hand to reassure Jack that the ring was still safe.
Jack looked down at the ring, and the hand on his shoulder tightened a little. "Good. Very good. We cant have that going missing, can we?" He stood up and began ushering Frodo away. "Maybe you should let me hang onto that for a moment, just to be safe."
Frodo was so relieved to be safe he almost handed the ring over without question. Just before it left his hand he stopped, and took a hard look at Jack. The other man was smiling, but it was forced, and his eyes were glazed.
Just like Boromir's.
"No," he whispered, and tried to back away, but one of Jack's hands was still gripping his shoulder.
Jack's smile left. "We can do this two ways, easy or hard," he whispered, and Frodo felt himself sink deeper and deeper into a panic. This was not the Jack he knew. This man looked like he could kill him without a second thought. There was no warmth in his eyes, no emotion. Nothing. "Either way, I get that ring."
The hand on his shoulder became painful, the long fingers digging into his scar.
"Jack," he whispered. Jack was still in there. Somewhere, he knew it. Boromir had been in there too, he'd heard it in that last desperate call of his name. "Jack, please."
He held his breath as Jack froze. It looked like the man was fighting a battle against something he couldn't see. The ring in his hand began pulsing wildly, sharp bursts of heat and cold that pounded against his palm.
"Go," the words were whispered, almost inaudible. "Put on the ring and run."
Frodo struggled out of Jack's grasp, but the man didn't move, he stood there, frozen hand grasping nothing but air, and Frodo had the feeling that if he moved he wouldn't be able to stop himself again. "Jack?"
"RUN!"
Frodo didn't wait. He slipped the ring on and ran, not knowing where he was going. How many more of his friends had the ring taken?
Samantha stared around their small group. They'd doused the fire the moment the others had gone to look for Frodo, and now they were waiting. It had taken a threat of hog-tying to make sure Sam didn't go looking for Frodo with the others, and Daniel was talking to the young hobbit, reassuring him that they would find Frodo in no time. She wasn't so sure though. The forest around them, which had been teaming with noise ever since they landed, had gone dead silent. She'd been camping, and she knew what that meant. Something dangerous was near, and it had sent every living thing into hiding but them.
She looked up when she heard the first distinct clang of metal on metal. "Sir?" she pressed the button on her walkie-talky. They hadn't used them much, and thankfully the batteries hadn't run down all the way yet. "Colonel O'Neil, do you read?"
There was no answer. She looked at Daniel. "Teal'c, you copy?"
"I read you Major Carter," Teal'c replied.
"Teal'c is the colonel with you?"
There was a long silence. "Colonel O'Neill managed to elude me once we were a short distance away from camp. I have been attempting to find him with no success."
Oh shit. The colonel ran away? "Have you seen Frodo?"
"No."
Double shit. Before she could say anything she heard a shout. A lot of people were fighting, and she was sure the odds weren't in their favor. "Teal'c head towards the fighting, me and Daniel'll meet you there."
She turned to the hobbits, who were huddled together, listening to the sounds. "Okay guys," she whispered to them. "Me and Daniel need to go help find our friends. You need to stay here, okay?" the hobbits nodded solemnly. " If you hear anyone coming that isn't us, hop into the boats and make for the other shore as fast as you can. When you get there, don't worry about securing the boat. Just hide. I don't care what you hear, do not go looking for us, okay? We'll find you."
The hobbits nodded again.
"Daniel, lets move."
The two of them started running, and Sam wondered what was going to happen. The colonel was missing, she had no idea where anyone else was, and she'd just left their charges alone.
The stopped once they were surrounded by the forest. The sounds were coming from all around them, and she couldn't make them out.
"This way," Daniel said suddenly, taking off northwest, his cape billowing behind him.
"You sure," she panted as they kept running.
The archeologist nodded. "I've spent half my life listening to echoes, Sam. Trust me."
At that moment she caught a flash of gold up ahead, a flash that was almost immediately swallowed by dark masses. Her heart lurched. Legolas was the only one who wore colors like that, and he was surrounded.
Legolas looked around him, seeing nothing but orcs. These were different though, more manlike, stronger. He fired another arrow, taking down two at once. He had lost sight of Gimli once they entered the fray, but he could hear the dwarf's battle cries, so he was still alive. He hadn't seen Aragorn either, and he wondered if his friend was already lost to them. He didn't know of anyone else in their party was even alive.
Something flew past him, and he turned just in time to see an orc fall backwards, the hilt of a long knife sticking out of its neck. Samantha ran past him, barely stopping to pull the knife out before facing another adversary, Daniel not far behind. He had just enough time to wonder what had happened to the hobbits before he was fighting again. He saw a blur of brown and felt a weight lift from him. Aragorn was still alive.
"Aragorn, Go!" he yelled. Frodo was still missing, and they had to find him before anyone else did.
Merry and Pip were running, where to, Pip didn't know. The moment Samantha and Daniel had left Sam took off in the opposite direction. Merry had tried to grab him, but succeeded only in getting a face full of dirt.
"Stay close, Pip," his friend muttered as they crept through the underbrush. The sounds of fighting were closer, but he didn't really worry. Orcs were supposed to be stupid, and there wasn't a creature alive that could find a hobbit when he didn't want to be found.
He was so relieved when they finally caught sight of Frodo running down a hill that he almost cried out. He would have, if Merry hadn't clamped a hand over his mouth and pulled him under a bush. At that minute a gang of orcs ran past, unaware of either them or their friend.
"Frodo!" Merry cried softly, motioning frantically.
Pip nodded. "Hide here, quick," Frodo didn't move. "Come on!" he yelled a little louder.
But Frodo wasn't moving. He looked…sad. Slowly, the dark haired hobbit shook his head, his eyes never leaving there's.
Pip went still. "What's he doing?" he whispered.
Merry was just as still next to him. "He's leaving," he said, no longer whispering.
Leaving? Frodo? He couldn't make it on his own. They were surrounded by orcs and who knew what else. They had to stick together, Gandalf had told them to, no matter what. Frodo couldn't leave, he wouldn't let him. He wasn't about to loose another friend, not if he could help it.
"NO!" he shouted, and was moving before he could think. He had to make Frodo see sense. He barely heard Merry call his name.
He was halfway to Frodo when he saw another group of ocs running towards them. He stopped so fast Merry slammed into his back, almost knocking both of them over. The orcs had spotted him, and they were running towards them. He looked at Frodo, who hadn't moved.
"Run Frodo," Merry said. "Go!" He barely had time to see Frodo begin running to the right. Then Merry was jumping up and down. "Hey you, over here!" he yelled, waving his arms. Pip did the same before they started running left.
"It's working," he said.
"I know its working… run!"
Jack was dying. He knew that because he knew what it felt like, sinking deeper and deeper into an inky blackness that didn't have a beginning or an end. He'd been here, once or twice, so he was more familiar with it than he ever wanted to remember.
You are mine… fight me and I will destroy you…
Yours? How many times had he heard that? Usually in the same voice…
The pain hit him hard, and he doubled over. Yeah, he was dying. At least Frodo got away…
He is mine as well… he has not escaped…none of you can escape…
Yeah, and fuck you too, Jack thought to the voice. He would have said it, but he couldn't draw air into his lungs any more.
For an instant the pain was gone. He was holding his son, running with him into the emergency room, feeling the warm blood spill over his arm from the hole in his chest, feeling his life slip away.
We can change that… he can live again…I can heal him…heal you…all you have to do is what I say…
He saw himself, walking up to Aragorn and killing him before the ranger could move. He had a few bullets left in his Glock. He could take out Teal'c and Legolas before they could blink. That would leave Carter and Daniel, and the dwarf, but they wouldn't be too difficult. And once they were gone, the hobbits would be next…
I have so much power to give you…all you have to do is beg…
It was rage the likes of which he'd only felt once in his life, when the doctor had informed them that his son, his only son, was dead. How dare this thing use his son against him? Mock him? Turn him against his friends…
He felt it falter for a moment. The pain stopped, and he drew a ragged breath. You are not going to make me hurt them!
"O'Neill?"
Jack looked up. Teal'c was standing over him. "Teal'c?"
"Are you injured?"
Jack thought for a moment. Was he injured? He didn't think so. So why was he curled up on the ground? "No," he answered, and winced when the jaffa pulled him to his feet. It felt like someone had been beating him with baseball bats.
"We must go, O'Neill," Teal'c said. A horn sounded in the distance. "The battle is this way."
Battle? Jack smiled to himself.
Payback time.
Sam was frantic. He had to find Frodo. He promised Gandalf that he wouldn't loose him, and if there was one thing a Gamgee did, it was keep a promise. He ducked behind a tree when a group of orcs ran past, wondering why they hadn't seen him. He was practically right under them. Then he looked down.
The cloak he was wearing blended in with the trees perfectly. He moved, and the light gold color it had taken turned a deep, murky gray. So that was why they made sure each and every one of them had a cloak. They were the perfect thing if you needed to hide.
"Hang on, Frodo," he muttered to himself as he climbed through the underbrush away from the fighting. Frodo wouldn't be there, he'd go somewhere safe, somewhere were no one would think to find him.
The hobbit jumped when he heard a horn sound, the loud noise blasting through the trees. That was Boromir, it had to be. The only reason he would blow the Horn was if he needed help badly. Sam fought the urge to follow the horn. Frodo first, then, if they lived long enough, he would find the rest of their friends.
Sam stopped. "The boats," he whispered, then began running in that direction. Frodo wouldn't stay here, not with all these orcs running around. Rumor said that orcs couldn't stand to cross water. The other side of the lake would be the perfect place for him.
Gimli laughed as the orcs rushed at him. Apparently they had no experience in fighting dwarves, for they were easy to kill. Dwarves fought dirty, there were no rules when most of your opponents were twice your height. A moment ago he'd seen Jack and Teal'c run past him in a blur, each one throwing themselves into the battle. In the glances he'd seen of them Jack fought like a man possessed, while his stoic friend fought with determination, looking like someone who was killing a horde of spiders. The ranks of their enemies was steadily thinning, and he could see almost everyone now, mopping up what was left.
A horn blared, and he turned to see more orcs swarming into a hollow away from them, following the sound as if it were a beacon. They would converge on Boromir. He stated running, hoping there would be something left of their friend once he reached him.
Aragorn kissed Boromir's head gently, the skin there already growing cold. With his lasts breaths Boromir had confided to him, told him of his betrayal, yet he could find nothing but pity for him. He had tried to correct his mistake, had given his life to protect Merry and Pippin. For that, if for nothing else, he would forgive him.
He heard a gasp and turned. Gimli, Legolas, Teal'c, Sam, Jack, and Daniel were standing behind him, all looking with the same blank states smeared with dirt and blood. Another of their number had fallen, two were prisoners, and he didn't know where Sam and Frodo were.
"Come," he said, rising, ignoring the ringing in his ears. "We will give him a warriors burial."
In short order they'd carried the man to the falls, and arranged him in a boat, his shield, horn and sword all the effigy he would have now. Silently, they pushed the boat into the water, and watched as it moved towards the falls. Aragorn tightened the gauntlets that bore the white tree and seven stars of Gondor that he wore now. He had run from his destiny for long enough.
"Hurry! Frodo and Sam have reached the eastern shore," Legolas was pushing one of the elven boats quickly to the water, but paused when no one moved. Across the lake he could see Frodo and Sam disappearing into the brush, but he didn't move. "You mean not to follow them?" Legolas asked.
Aragorn shook his head. "Frodo's fate is no longer in our hands."
Gimli sighed. "Then it has all been in vain. The Fellowship has failed."
Aragorn turned to look at the dwarf, then to the others. Jack was wrapping Sam's wrist tightly while Teal'c saw to a large cut on Daniel's face. They were paying more attention to him, though, than to what they were doing.
Not if we hold true to each other. We will not abandon Merry and Pippin to torment and death. Not while we have strength left. Leave all that can be spared behind. We travel light ," he watched as they began gathering their weapons quickly, taking was few provisions were light enough. He wiped his dagger and thrust it into its sheath when everyone was standing again. "Lets hunt some Orc!"
AT LAST!!!!!!! :writegirl does happy dance and holds up a net containing her muse Marla::
The little wench showed up earlier this week dancing around my head and started me on a Harry Potter fic, but I grabbed her!! Finally, done with the first movie!!!
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for reading all of this. You guys have been so great! Extra special candy cane thanks goes out to Linda U. rolo rooni (x2), Kain Gallant, dietcokechic (x2), Colonel Sho, Kieren Da Elf Shanna, Kolinshar Jackie-chan Benito (x2), NeilGartner, Shalemni, Kaitland, nefernetera, Amy C, Kits, Alexandra, Elwen half-elven (x2), G. Zan Obsidian, Vana Everyoung (x2) EmryldWing, Brianne, Vana Everyoung, Dootz, Queen Vegeta, Tinne, Shanna, Alynna, ElfguyLegolas, Kieren BloodBlade she-elf, and Taurendil for all your wonderful reviews!!! Thanks for your suggestions and encouragements. You guys don't know how much you mean to me!!!
So, that's it until the next movie comes out. I'll be working on some other stuff. Like Harry Potter ::glares at Marle, who just smiles:: and some other things that I've left hanging. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I've loved writing it.
Until the next movie then guys J