Here it is. Chapter 8 at last. You've heard all my silly excuses before, so I'm just gonna let you all get on with reading it.
Chapter 8: Splinter
The rest of their journey through Moria passed in a blur of exhaustion, fear and adrenaline as Boromir ran and battled alongside the Fellowship to escape the orcs and goblins that now infested the ancient Dwarven city. All of their nerves had been strained to breaking point ever since Pippin had dropped that stone down the well. From then on, every moment had been devoted to escaping alive.
As the Fellowship neared the Bridge of Khazad-dǔm, Boromir could hear Gandalf behind him, dimly calling out: "The Bridge! Fly!" Hastily, Boromir urged the Hobbits and Gimli ahead of him before he too began to charge across the narrow bridge that spanned the bottomless chasm below them. As he did so, he was nearly overwhelmed by a blast of heat and at the same time, Legolas let out a piercing shriek of agony. Boromir turned back to see Aragorn half-dragging Legolas across the bridge as the elf clutched his head, his face drawn with pain. Just beyond them, he saw Gandalf too, beginning to cross the bridge, chased by a monstrous being made of shadows and flame. Boromir felt a chill creep up his spine.
The Balrog of Moria.
He had heard whispers, stories that an age-old monster lurked in the depths of Moria, but he'd never truly believed them before. What would Faramir think, when he told him that he had stood face-to-face with a monster of legend?
"He'll never know if you don't get out of there now!" he scolded himself and continued to run, with Aragorn and Legolas close behind now.
It wasn't until they'd reached the other side that they realised that Gandalf had not followed them. The aged Wizard was still halfway across the Bridge, clutching his staff as if to block the Balrog's path.
"Gandalf!" Frodo's anguished cry made Boromir jump. He hadn't noticed that the Hobbit was still here, rather than with the others. He grabbed him just in time to prevent him from running to Gandalf's side.
"No Frodo!" he commanded as he lifted him, but he couldn't look away.
"Aragorn, what's happening?" He could barely hear Legolas's faint whisper. Gandalf's shout interrupted Aragorn's reply:
"YOU SHALL NOT PASS!"
There was a terrific crack as the bridge snapped underneath Gandalf's staff and then crumbled away, taking the Balrog with it. Boromir breathed a small sigh of relief as Gandalf began to head towards them.
And then it happened.
A fiery whip shot out of the chasm and snagged on Gandalf's ankle, dragging the old man to edge where he clung for a moment staring at them.
"Fly, you fools!" He called before being dragged down. Boromir went cold, horrified.
"Arrows!" Legolas rasped in warning.
Sure enough, arrows began to rain down on them as the goblins realised the Balrog was gone. They raced out to where the rest of the Fellowship was waiting and out into the daylight and fresh air. Boromir watched as grief began to overwhelm his companions, while he was frozen, numb with shock. Their grief was like a fog, encompassing the group and would have been clearly visible to an outsider. It blinded those within to everything else. When Aragorn spoke, it was like a horn blaring out into the fog, startling them all into awareness.
"Legolas, get them up."
"Give them a moment for pity's sake!" Boromir snapped, not giving Legolas a chance to respond. How could this man, this future king of Gondor, be so callous, so cruel?
"By nightfall, these hills will be crawling with orcs," Aragorn snapped back, his expression hard, but his own grief was mirrored in his grey eyes. "We must reach the woods of Lothlórien." He slid his sword into its sheath with a soft click.
Boromir's mind reeled. What was Aragorn thinking? He was trying to protect them by taking them to the Golden Wood? He stared at him, incredulous, as Aragorn helped Sam up, murmuring softly. He looked around, noting Merry and Pippin supporting each other and Gimli gently jabbing Legolas to his feet. Where was Frodo?
"Frodo!" Aragorn's voice rang out over the quiet hills. Frodo looked back at them, having wandered away while Aragorn and Boromir were arguing. Boromir felt his heart wrench when he saw the look of desolation and despair on Frodo's face.
The Fellowship began to head down after Frodo, each silent and withdrawn. Boromir found himself falling into step beside Legolas.
"Are you all right, Boromir?" Legolas said quietly.
"Yes, I'm fine. Are you all right?"
"No." Legolas shook his head. "I'm not. I don't know what we'll do without Mithrandir." Boromir looked at him, unsure of what to say.
"It's…hard to lose someone, I know," he said tentatively and then immediately regretted saying it. "I apologise-" Legolas cut him off with a wave of his hand.
"It's all right, Boromir. You were only trying to help. It was…kind of you." He shook his head. "I'll be fine."
Boromir nodded, letting the silence stretch between them again. Despite what Legolas had said, Boromir doubted any of them would be fine again. Every step he took screamed danger at him. They had already lost one member of their company and he couldn't help but wonder how long it would be until they lost another.
Again, sorry for taking so long, real life is a pain sometimes. And sorry for it being so short and kinda rubbishy. I've been away from writing for too long.