Here you go as promised, two WHOLE chapters. So please, please review. :'(
Chapter Fifteen
"Release them." Faramir commanded.
"But sir, you know the laws of our country, of your father. If you let them go, your life will be forfeit!" someone cried.
Frodo looked solemnly at Faramir, who surprised him by saying, "Then it will be forfeit."
"Thank you." Sam breathed as Faramir led Gollum and the hobbits to a large drain type thing.
"I hope I am doing the right thing here." Faramir mused.
"You have shown your quality, sir; the very highest." Sam beamed.
Faramir smiled. "Where will you go from here?"
"Gollum says there is another, unknown path into Mordor." Frodo explained.
Faramir thought for a moment, before pinning a nervous Gollum to the wall.
"Cirith Ungol? Is that its name?" he cried.
"No, no." Gollum garbled. Faramir's hand tightened and he wailed "Yes, yes!"
Faramir released him and threw him to the ground in disgust. "Frodo, they say a great evil dwells in the pass above Cirith Ungol."
"It is the only way!" Sméagol cried. "Master says we must get into Mordor, so we has to try!"
"I must." Frodo sighed
"Then go with the good will all men."
"Thank you, Lord Faramir."
They set of into the tunnel, and Faramir hissed to Gollum: "May death find you swiftly if you bring them to harm."
Gollum sauntered through the tunnel after Sam, who turned around.
"You know Mr. Frodo didn't mean for those men to hurt you. He was trying to save you, see. So no hard feelings, okay?"
"Save me? No, no hard feelings."
Sam looked suspiciously at Gollum, and they all disappeared into the tunnel.
"Is she, Gandalf?" Legolas pressed.
"Not yet, but this won't be pleasant for any of us. She has some salt in her bag, and a strange bottle which is filled with water. Can you mix them?"
"What!"
"We must get the poison out of her system."
Legolas paled when he realised what Gandalf was hoping to do, but Gandalf was already shaking Ello's shoulders firmly.
She murmured something incomprehensible, and her eyes fluttered open.
"Ellora, you must listen to me. To get the poison out of your system, you must do something repulsive."
She groaned, and Gandalf poured the salty water into her mouth. Instead of spluttering, Ello swallowed, and Gimli and Aragorn arrived just in time to see her sit up suddenly throw up violently between her knees. Then she groaned again.
"Théoden said that a healer would be here in a few minutes." Aragorn stuttered, watching Gandalf begin to bandage her wounds.
Ello groaned again as the sharp pain of the poison left her body, leaving only the searing pain of the bite, which too was fading.
"Aragorn?" She whispered. "Am I going to die?"
Aragorn looked at Gandalf, who smiled slightly. "I don't think so." Aragorn murmured.
She sighed. "Is the pain supposed to be fading?"
"Yes, Ello, there was one of the painkillers that you showed me earlier in the salt water. I was hoping that it would work."
"So what happens now?"
"We ride to Isenguard! We have urgent business there."
Two days later, Gandalf, Aragorn, Legolas, Gimli, Ello, Théoden, Éomer and a small party of guards emerged from the woods to see Merry and Pippin, sitting down smoking.
"Welcome to Isenguard!" Pippin cried.
"You little mischief makers! You had us on this wild goose chase, while you're sat here, drinking, and smoking!" Gimli cried.
"We are sitting on a field of victory, enjoying a few well-earned comforts," said Pippin, "the salted pork is particularly good!"
"Salted Pork!" Gimli huffed, and Ello giggled. Legolas smiled to hear her laugh and Merry and Pippin looked at her in surprise.
"Who are you?" Pippin cried. "I haven't seen you before!"
"Pippin!" Merry hissed, "What he means miss, is to ask, are you a hobbit?"
Ello laughed again. "No, sir, I'm a leiveia. It's like a weird type of mini elf."
"Oh," Pippin's brow was furrowed in confusion.
"Hey, I have this..." Ello rummaged in her bag and drew out her last bar of chocolate and split it in half, giving half to each hobbit. "It'll blow salted Pork out of the picture."
Pippin took a bite, and his eyes lit up. "Do you have any more?"
"I'm sorry. That was the last bar."
"We must make haste, my friends. We must settle for the evening; we speak to Saruman tomorrow and Ello, you need to rest, you are young and not fully healed. The part you must play tomorrow is vital."
They set up a large fire, and for a while, Ello entertained everyone by telling stories about her world, until Gandalf interrupted her.
"You should know, Ello that you are not the only person here to have stayed on Earth. I have, once for a while. I went there looking for someone, and made a mistake that has haunted me ever since." He paused, and the companions looked at each other, shocked and confused, even more so when Ello's eyes widened.
"Go on Gandalf," She whispered, "What was this mistake?"
Gandalf sighed, and when he spoke, his voice was softer than usual, and he would not meet Ello's eyes "One night, I found the wizard I was looking for. He had a small girl with him, about five years old, maybe his daughter; they looked related. I remember she had big blue eyes, and curly blonde hair. The wizard was taking her home from a party, and I stopped him on a dark road. The girl looked at me like I was a strange animal she had never seen before; intriguing, but dangerous. I told the wizard that he must come back to Middle Earth, that I needed his council, and he got angry with me. We lost our tempers, and started to shout. The girl began to cry, she was afraid; and I shot a spell to knock the wizard off his feet, but-"
"His reflexes were too good." Ello interrupted.
"Ello, what are you doing, let him-" Éomer began, but Ello sliced across him too.
"The man leapt out of the way, didn't he Gandalf? But he forgot that he was holding the little girls hand, and he accidently dragged her in the path of the spell. The spell hit the girl right under her right arm as she tried to turn away, and it left a mark that would never fade, whatever happened. The girl cried harder, and the man told you never to talk to him again, picked up the girl and ran away. Is that what happened?"
Gandalf looked at her and nodded. "The wizard forgave me when he returned two years later. He said he had to straighten out his priorities. Forgive me."
"How does she know this? I thought you said it showed if she had a vision!" cried Éomer.
"I do not know this from a vision. I know this because I was there. I was the little girl. The man was my father, I was five, and he did disappear two years later. Gandalf, that has something to do with tomorrow, doesn't it?"
"Ellora, if I told you that that man was once the head of my order..."
"No!" she gasped, "No, that's impossible. Oh my God." Ello shut her eyes and began to rock backwards and forwards.
"What does that mean, Gandalf?" asked Pippin.
"It means that Saruman is her father."
Frodo and Sam walked through a beautiful wood, and Sam told Frodo of his contemplation. "I wonder if we'll ever get put into poems, or tales."
"What?" Frodo laughed.
"People would say; 'Let's hear about Frodo and the ring!' and they'd say 'Yes, that's one of my favourite stories. Frodo was really brave wasn't he dad?' 'Yes my boy, and the most famous of all hobbits, and that's saying a lot'"
"But you've left out one of the main characters." Frodo said in mock horror. "Samwise the brave. I want to hear more about Sam. Frodo wouldn't have gotten far without his Sam."
"You shouldn't tease, Mr. Frodo. I was being serious." Sam frowned, unsure of what to make of Frodo's comment.
Frodo smiled fondly at Sam. "So was I, Sam.
At dawn the company at Isenguard set forth to speak with Saruman. They were on horseback; Legolas and Gimli rode a white steed, Gandalf rode Shadowfax with Ello behind him, and Aragorn took Merry and Éomer took Pippin. They approached the tower at a steady pace and Ello twitched nervously.
"Easy," murmured Gandalf as the horses rode through the deep water; it was up to the horses knees. Then Gandalf raised his voice.
"Show yourself, Saruman!"
The company watched nervously as Saruman appeared at the top of the tower, and Ello took a deep breath.
"You have slain many men, Théoden King, and you have made peace afterwards. May we also have peace?"
"We will have peace." Théoden's body shook with anger. "We will have peace, when you answer for the burning of the west fold, and for the children that now lie there dead. When you hang from a gibbet, then we shall have piece."
Ello flinched and Saruman growled. "And what do you want, Gandalf? The staffs of the seven wizards? Or maybe the keys of Isenguard?"
"Saruman, you have ended many lives, and now thousands more are at risk. You have the power to save them," said Gandalf.
"So you have come here for information. I have some for you." Saruman smiled, "tell me, what words did you give the Halfling before you sent him to his doom?"
Gandalf hung his head, and tears welled in Ello's eyes as she stared at Saruman.
"And that exile will never become King."
Aragorn looked away, and Ello stared at Saruman angrily. "What do you know about that anyway? Can you see the future?"
"And who is this, Gandalf? Have you stooped so low as to get little girls to do your bidding?"
Ello hissed, but Gandalf shushed her. "She looks after herself; she is no one's responsibility. She is here purely of choice; she is a victim of the attack on Helms Deep. And she is your daughter, Saruman."
Saruman stiffened. "Impossible. My daughter is in another world."
"I used to be. But you buggered that up, didn't you? When you left, d'you even care what happened? Probably not. But you should know that Jam had to do all of the tax stuff, which was way above his knowledge. Gel did all the cooking and housework, and I had to look after the twins. I was seven and I had to be a mum. Because our mum went crazy. She's now a drug crazed alcoholic. I had to work, as well. I acted in the local theatre, they abused me, they used me, they were sick twisted freaks, but they were my bosses, and I couldn't speak out, and lose my job. I had to stop school."
"You are lying, making that up. You are lying. You are some she-devil Halfling actress making up lies!" Saruman's face was pale, and Ello kept going.
"Okay," she began to chant in a soft tone.
"Stop!" Saruman cried, "Ellora, Listen, I am sorry. Please, join me. Come up here, I have missed you so much."
All of the company at the base exchanged glances.
"What, so I just have to follow your example and betray my friends? I don't think so. But, you can help us. Please, this wasn't how I remembered you. Or has every trace of my father died?"
"Ellora, this isn't Star Wars." Saruman chided.
"I know; I'm not stupid. That's obvious. But please, help me."
Saruman sighed. "I will tell you where your fate shall be decided-"
"NO!" Gríma cried, and he stuck a knife into Saruman's back.
Ello gasped and fell off the horse in shock, not moving when her head was scare above the putrid brown water.
As if in slow motion, Saruman's body fell, and landed on a spike of a water wheel. Everyone flinched, but Merry was the first to notice Ello. She was staring pale face and wide eyed, and as the wheel turned slowly, she didn't move.
Merry slid off the horse and dragged her up out of the water. She began hyperventilating, and on the other side of the horses, Pippin picked up the Palantír, and gave it to Gandalf.
"STOP! Legolas, ready your bow, Ello...there is someone you should see." Gandalf ordered.
Ello looked blankly in the direction Gandalf pointed, and then she shrieked in delight. She sprinted through the water as fast as the water resistance allowed. A figure was standing at the very base of the tower. He was obviously a Leiveia; he had straight jet black hair that swept across his eyes, and he had a beautiful face. It was Jam.
"JAM!" Ello shrieked, repeating his name over and over again as she ran into his arms. He held her in his arms tightly murmuring over and over again
"Gríma," cried Gandalf, "come down. Give us information you know, and you will be spared."
"You will not spare my life, Gandalf. You forget my power." Gríma spat.
Gandalf's face suddenly showed a deep fear. "Merry, Pippin, back on the horses, now! Ello-"
Ello screamed as a large invisible forced slapped her face, and Jam watched in horror as she disappeared underwater
"ELLO!" he cried and he sighed in relief when she came up spluttering.
"MERRY, GET ON THE HORSE!" Aragorn cried, but it was too late. The invisible force that had hit Ello had wrapped around Merry and he was dragged underwater.
"Merry!" Pippin yelled and Legolas readied his bow but Gandalf cried "STOP!"
"Gríma may not be wise or skilled, but he has a natural power within the water. He is able to manipulate it almost as if he had giant tentacles. If you shoot him it will be impossible to free Merry. No magic I know can work against this. Nobody get into the water. There is nothing we can do without securing Merry's death" Gandalf mourned, and Éomer had to wrap his arms around Pippin to restrain him from diving into the water.
"No!" Pippin screamed, grief wrenching sobs from his numbed body.
"Gandalf," cried Jam "we can swim!"
Gandalf's eyes lit up with a small spark of hope, and he nodded anxiously. Jam turned to his sister.
"Do you trust me?" he asked, and Ello nodded. "We have to swim it. To save Merry. He can't breathe underwater. We can."
"I know" Ello whispered, and as Jam squeezed her hand reassuringly, they dove into the watery depths.
The water was hard to see through, but Jam let his nose guide him. Gandalf had explained to him that in many cases his nose would serve better than his eyes. He led Ello through the rubble, and though they swam quickly, they could not see Merry anywhere. Ello began to lose hope.
Suddenly, a cold hand clasped around her ankle, and she tensed to fight. The hand pulled, and suddenly she was confronted with a smiling face; Gel.
He took her other hand and they propelled themselves forward, towards Merry, and away from the surface.
Legolas scanned the water nervously, but even with his elf eyes he could see no sign of Merry, or Ello and her brothers. Gríma was smiling smugly, and Legolas was so tempted to shoot him through his head.
"Gandalf, you know if the Halfling is not already dead the water pressure should crush him in about a minute, and you will never know when I move to my next victim. Or have I already moved on? Is your precious Halfling already dead?"
Pippin gave a strangled cry as Gríma started counting down.
"3, 2...what?" Gríma groaned and pushed down with all his might.
Ello, Gel and Jam gave another tug on Merry's legs and they felt him slip a little from Gríma's grasp.
"NO!" Gríma cried as he realised what was happening, and he picked up a sharp shard of rock from the tower floor and hurled it towards the water.
Gel shouted in pain. The rock that had broken his nose and sliced his cheek open had also burst the bubble he used to breathe. Ello felt Gel jerked upwards, and he pulled Jam with him, who pulled Ello, who wrenched Merry from Gríma's grasp and they all rocketed towards the service.
Aragorn exhaled loudly as he saw the two leiveian boys fly out of the water, followed by Ello, who had her arms wrapped around Merry.
"Legolas, now!" Gandalf cried, and Legolas's arrow pierced Gríma's chest.
Ello looked at Gel in alarm as she saw the blood spilling from his nose.
"It's okay, it's just my nose, and head wounds always bleed a lot. Never mind me, is Merry okay?" Gel asked, trying to stem the flow.
Ello quickly searched for a pulse. Then she hung her head. Merry was gone.