Chapter 3 The One Ring
After Bilbo's disappearance and Gandalf's departure, life went back to normal for Mariell and Frodo. Frodo took care of the property
while Mariell took care of the house. At night Frodo would go out with Sam and Merry and Pippin, while Mariell remained at home with
a book or practiced with the sword Gandalf had given her. This particular night she had found it too hot to stay indoors and so she
slipped outside to the garden. From under the window ledge she retrieved Navia, the long silver sword that Gandalf had brought her on
her fifteenth birthday. Bilbo had been shocked by the gift. She could still hear him voicing his protests.
"Good heavens Gandalf. Why would you give a lass such a thing""It's a dangerous world Bilbo and Mariell cannot always depend on some man to protect her"
"But when will she find a use for such a thing in the Shire?"
It was a question that Mariell had often wondered about. But nevertheless, Gandalf had insisted that she keep it and learn to use it. When
he was in the Shire Gandalf had given her lessons and when he was not Bilbo taught her. Always at night and always in the garden where
no one could see. Now that Bilbo was gone she had no one to practice with so she practiced alone. She unsheathed the sword and lifted
it above her head and swung it around at an imagined foe.
"So you want to hurt me, eh?" she said to no one. She swung her sword back and forth as though to block her opponent.
"Come on, then. Show me what you've got." She battled until she was hot and tired. She stuck her sword into the ground and leaned
against the hilt. She hoped that the day would never come when she would actually have to use Navia against another being. She could
not imagine hurting someone, or worse yet taking another being's life. It was a dangerous world out there as Bilbo had told her many
times. While she knew she did not belong in the Shire, she could not imagine leaving it and going out into the big dangerous world. With a
sigh she slid Navia back into its sheath and walked back to the house. She slid the sword back into its hiding place before entering the
house. She stepped inside and gasped as a wild looking Gandalf threw his staff into her face.
"Gandalf?" she said to the wizard. "What are you doing?" It was then that she noticed that Frodo was on his knees behind Gandalf digging through an old trunk.
"Here," Frodo said holding something out. It was the envelope with Bilbo's ring in it. Gandalf snatched the envelope from Frodo's hand
and without saying a word to either of them, marched to the fire and threw the envelope in.
"What are you doing?" Frodo gasped as he and Mariell followed him to the sitting room. The wizard did not answer as the envelope burned away to reveal the gold ring.
"Frodo what is going on?" she whispered.
"I don't know," Frodo said. Gandalf reached into the fire with a long set of tongs and pulled out the ring.
"Hold out your hand, Frodo. It's quite cool." Frodo held out his hand and Gandalf dropped the ring into his palm. "What can you see? Can you see anything?"
Gandalf said standing with his back to them. Frodo looked at the ring. Mariell was very confused and she too looked. She did not see
anything unusual. The ring looked exactly as it had.
"Nothing," Frodo said, "there's nothing." Gandalf seemed to breathe a sigh of relief but then Mariell saw it. Markings on the band. It was
a form of elvish that she'd never seen.
"Wait," Frodo said, "There are markings. It's some form of elvish. I can't read it"
"There are few who can," Gandalf said. "The language is that of Mordor, which I shall not utter here"
"Mordor?" Mariell gasped. She'd heard stories of the dark city from Bilbo and the name sent chills up her spine.
"In the common tongue it says one ring to rule them all, one ring to find them, one ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them"
"I think need to sit down," Mariell said. They sat around the table and while Frodo made a pot of tea Gandalf told them of Sauron, the
dark lord, and of the battle for Middle Earth so many ages ago. He told them of Isildur, the King of Gondor who took the ring from
Sauron's hand and how it betrayed him to his death. He told them of Gollum who they already knew of, from Bilbo's tales of his
adventure in the Misty Mountain.
"This is the one ring," Gandalf said. The ring now lay on the table staring at them. "Forged by the dark lord Sauron in the fires of Mount Doom"
"Bilbo found it," Frodo said. "In Gollum's cave." Mariell stared at the ring. It was amazing that such a small thing could be so evil and so powerful. And to think it was right there in Bag End all these years.
"Yes," Gandalf said, "for sixty years the ring lay quiet in Bilbo's keeping. Prolonging his life, delaying old age. But no longer. Evil is
stirring in Mordor. The ring has awoken. It's heard it's master's call"
"But he was destroyed," Mariell said, "Sauron was destroyed." Gandalf looked at her sadly.
"No Mariell. The spirit of Sauron endured. His life force is bound to the ring and the ring survived. Sauron has returned. His orcs have
multiplied. His fortress at Barad-dur is rebuilt in the land o f Mordor. Sauron's needs only this ring to cover the land in a second
darkness. He's seeking it. Seeking it, all his thought is bent on it. The ring above all else yearns to return to the hand of its master. They
are one, the ring and the dark lord. Frodo, Mariell, he must never find it."
"All right," Frodo said snatching the ring from the table and going into the hall.
"We put it away, we keep it hidden, we never speak of it. No one knows it's here do they?" From the distressed look on Gandalf's face
Mariell knew that it would not be that simple. Frodo turned to look at the wizard.
"Do they Gandalf?" The wizard sighed.
"There was one other who knew Bilbo had the ring. I searched everywhere for the creature Gollum, but the enemy found him first. I
don't know how long they tortured him. Amidst his screams and inane babble they discerned two words. Shire. Baggins." An icy hand
clutched Mariell's heart. The enemy knew where the ring was. They would be coming here to find it. They would not hesitate to kill her
and Frodo to get to it.
"Take it Gandalf!" Frodo cried thrusting the ring at Gandalf.
"No Frodo," the wizard said. Mariell watched helplessly as Frodo tried to give the ring to Gandalf. She wanted him to take it. Take it as
far from here as possible.
"You must take it"
"You cannot offer me this ring"
"I'm giving it to you"
"Don't tempt me Frodo," Gandalf snapped. "I dare not take it. Not even to keep it safe. Understand, I would use this ring from a desire
to do good. But through me, it would wield a power to great and terrible to comprehend"
"But it cannot stay in the shire," Mariell cried.
"No. No it can't." Mariell's eyes met Frodo's across the room. They formed a silent bond with their eyes.
"What must we do?" Frodo asked.
"You must leave," Gandalf said. "Leave quickly." They sprang into action. Mariell raced to her room and grabbed her pack. She shoved
a clean tunic and a pair of trousers into the pack. "Make for the village of Bree. I'll be waiting for you at the Inn of the Prancing Pony."
She stuffed a few apples from the pantry into the pack and then ran outside to retrieve her sword. "You must leave the name of Baggins
behind you, for that name is not safe outside the shire. Travel only by day and stay off the roads. She grabbed her green cloak from the
hook on the wall and clasped it around her shoulders. Finally she strapped her sword to her belt and pulled her pack onto her back.
"We can cut across country easily enough," Frodo said slipping the ring into his pocket. Gandalf was smiling at them.
"You both are really amazing. I could learn everything about you and yet you can still surprise me." A sudden noise outside the window
startled them.
"Get down," he ordered them. Mariell and Frodo both dropped to the floor as Gandalf approached the window. He shoved his staff out
and hit something.
"Oof," came from the creature that Gandalf had just struck. Mariell breathed a sigh of relief. She knew that voice. Gandalf reached out
the window and in one swift move lifted Samwise Gamgee out of the grass and onto the table.
"Confound it all, Samwise Gamgee!" Gandalf yelled. "Have you been eavesdropping"
"I have been dropping no eaves sir," Sam stuttered fearfully, "I was trimming the bushes under the windows." Mariell and Frodo stood
up and shook their heads at Sam. Anyone with half a brain would know Sam wasn't trimming bushes. And Gandalf had more than half a
brain.
"A little late for trimming the verge?" Gandalf said.
"I heard raised voices"
"What did you hear?" Gandalf demanded. Sam didn't say anything for a moment.
"Speak!" Gandalf ordered him.
"Nothing important. That is I heard a great deal about a ring and a dark lord and something about the end of the world but please mister
Gandalf don't hurt me. Don't turn me into anything , unnatural." Mariell couldn't help smiling. Sam was so innocent it made her want to
cry. But he wasn't innocent anymore. Now that he had heard everything he would have to come with them.
"No, perhaps not," Gandalf said. "I've thought of a better use for you.