A/N: I'm so sorry! I didn't forget about this, but I had massive writers block. Couldn't write a thing! Here's an extra-long chapter and some tissues.

: Thank you so much! Next chapter will have some conversations, it will indeed be a 'walking day'. Glad you like it!

Chapter 7: Bridge of Khazad-dûm

Again, he took position at the rear of the group, making sure no one was left behind. After all, for one of his long strides, the hobbits had to take almost three.
They made it out of the chamber, but he could already hear the typical 'skrieeeeh' noises that Goblins make. The sound was deafening; it had to be made by several hundreds of them.
No one had to encourage another to keep running; it was clear that they couldn't take them in battle. Their only hope lay in getting over the Bridge.
Aragorn's heart skipped a beat, when Gandalf skidded to a stop. They were surrounded and they hadn't even made it halfway!

Just when he thought they were going to be slaughtered, a roar reached his ears. He turned quickly, noticing the Goblins chattering in fear, to see what it was. Far behind them, at the opposite end of the Great Hall, was an orange light. It shifted, and filled the entire opening between two pillars.
His muscles tensed, especially when another sound came and the orange light grew darker, and suddenly the Goblins were racing to get out.
Aragorn simply knew something bad was going to happen. His fingers moved slightly, to get a better grip on his sword, before he cast a glance at the others. Legolas looked pale, and he had a feeling it wasn't caused by the wound. Gandalf's expression, however, almost shocked him. The Wizard knew what was coming! Was this... was this the reason why he had been so reluctant to take this road? Was this the secret he'd kept, ushering them to stay as silent as possible, while travelling to reach the other end of Moria?
"A Balrog," Legolas mumbled and he looked frightened.
"Yes. A demon of the ancient world. This foe is beyond any of you. Run!"

They quickly jumped into action, all of them a bit shaken by the way Gandalf spoke. They made it safely to the other side, a dizzying staircase waiting for them.
Aragorn, who was the last to get there, hesitated to go on. His light eyes found Gandalf with a worried look. He was certain that the man hadn't looked so exhausted a few minutes ago. Was this... Balrog, draining the Wizard's powers?
"Gandalf..."
"Lead them on, Aragorn."
Aragorn looked at him in disbelieve. No! He wouldn't abandon him.
"The Bridge is near," Gandalf continued with a nudge of his head. They both fell quiet when the Balrog roared again, this time much louder. He stepped up, trying to get past the Wizard. As if the man had known Aragorn would attempt such a thing, he grabbed him hard by the shoulder.
"Do as I say!"
And with that he was pushed backwards.
"Swords are of no more use here."

Though Aragorn didn't agree with Gandalf's decision, he had to trust him on this and the two of them joined the rest of the group.
Legolas and Boromir took the lead now, quickly descending the many steps. The further down they got, the warmer it became and not just because of the exercise. Deep down, Aragorn could see flames, casting a warm glow on the surroundings.

A gap in the stairs made them stop. The Elf was, of course, the first to jump, followed by Gandalf. The rumbling from the Balrog gained in strength and as if his roaring was some sort of sign, some Goblins decided to show up, at the far left of the immense staircase, and started to shoot arrows at them.
Boromir quickly grabbed Merry and Pippin, and, with them close to his sides, he jumped.
Another sign of his strength, Aragorn thought, when all three of them reached the other side safely. Then the earth started to crumble, and the steps where Boromir had stood disappeared in the abyss!
He turned, beckoning Sam. He tossed the Hobbit across, into the arms of Boromir and turned again to do the same with Gimli.
"Nobody tosses a Dwarf!" He rejected, full of pride, and attempted to jump the distance himself. Gimli barely made it, getting saved by Legolas' quick reaction to grab his beard and pulling him onto the stair again.

The Balrog was coming closer, and the signs telling that he was weren't pretty: the earth shuddered, masses of stone broke loose and the orange glow behind them grew brighter.

He glanced at Frodo and then at the gap. After Gimli had jumped, again parts of the stairs had crumbled, making the gap too big to leap across. Even tossing the Hobbit would be too great a risk. When the roars of the demon grew louder, he could feel his clothes sticking to his back. Fear of the monster made him sweat, and Aragorn had to focus on his breathing to come to his senses again.
Suddenly, the ground shook beneath his feet, and they started to shift. He held Frodo close, both leaning forward, in the hope that their weight would determine where they would shift to. Indeed they slid towards the others, and Legolas and Boromir pulled them to safety. Seconds later the entire flight of steps behind them crumbled and fell into the deep.
There was, however, no time to catch their breath; they weren't over the Bridge yet!
More stairs followed, until they reached a lower level, which lead to the Bridge. Behind them, flames were appearing and the worried look on Gandalf's face was enough to keep everyone running.

The Bridge of Khazad-dûm was small, they would have to cross one by one. This time, he went first, waiting at the end to guide them to –hopefully- the last flight of stairs before they got out.
Gandalf turned, mid-bridge, and Aragorn almost cursed the man for his stubbornness. Why wouldn't he run?!

"You cannot pass!"
The Balrog took that as a challenge, revealing his full length and spread his fiery wings and cloaked himself in flames.
He heard Gandalf mumble something, but the Wizard's voice grew louder with almost every word:
"[...] the Secret Fire. Wielder of the flame of Anor. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udun."
A monstrous sword appeared in the Balrog's hand, smashing down. Gandalf protected himself with some sort of spell, which shone brightly around him, parrying the hit.

Aragorn had his hand on his sword hilt, though he knew in his heart that his was not his fight. Shock made him stay where he was, unable to look away.

"Go back to the shadow," Gandalf ordered, at which the Balrog stepped upon the Bridge. His sword was nowhere to be seen; this time he had a fiery whip with many thongs. He lashed out and Aragorn found himself drawing his sword and crying out to Gandalf.

"You shall not pass!" the Wizard cried. With great force he brought his staff down at the Bridge.
The Balrog snorted, almost as though he thought the man in grey was funny, and stepped forward again to assault Gandalf.
At that moment, the Bridge broke, right at the feet of the Balrog. For a moment the demon wavered, but then -while bellowing loudly- he plunged down.
Aragorn let his breath go, he hadn't even realised he was holding it. Was it done? With his eyes fixed on Gandalf, he beckoned him to come, he saw an orange flicker out the corner of his eye.
Just when he had thought it was over, the falling Balrog lashed his whip once more; the thongs wrapped around Gandalf, causing him to fall and dragging him towards the edge. Gandalf was able to catch the ledge and held on with his last strength.

"Fly, you fools," he said, looking Aragorn directly in the eye. Then, the Wizard let go, falling into the depths.

"No," he whispered, unable to move or to process what had happened. Vaguely, he heard someone yelling his name. Tears clouded his eyes, making everything look blurry. Only when Boromir called out again, he turned and hurried up the stairs, casting one last look at where Gandalf had stood. An archway led them outside.

The sun shone. The sky was blue and cloudless. The land was quiet though, as if it knew what had happened. Aragorn looked at the sunlit hills, gathering his strength and the will to go on.

Wiping Orcblood off his sword, he looked at the remaining members of the Fellowship. Merry and Pippin were silently crying together, Sam just sat there sobbing, Legolas looked pained and had -just as himself- trouble believing that Gandalf was gone. Frodo had wandered off, and Boromir and Gimli... well, he couldn't quite see, but he heard the sobs from the Dwarf. Aragorn knew what they all felt, for he felt so, too.

"Legolas, get them up."
It took his friend some effort, but then he moved to Merry and Pippin.
"By nightfall these hills will be swarming with Orcs. We must reach the woods of Lothlorien," he explained when Boromir clearly didn't agree with his order.
"Come." His voice softened. "Boromir, Legolas, Gimli; get them up." He walked to Sam and lifted him from the stone. "On your feet, Sam."
Aragorn didn't look the Hobbit in the eyes, knowing all too well Sam wouldn't understand his rush to move at this moment and he didn't want to see his pain.

He had to be the leader now and Aragorn softly swore that he wouldn't rest until they were safe.