"Karabast mountain, Karabast Kanan" Zeb mumbles, then stepping in deeper show, falls flat on his face and mumbles "Karabast!" into the snow, Ezra and Sabine helping him to his feet.
As Zeb regains his footing Frodo begins to fall backward, tumbling down the hill until Sabine and Ezra grab him. Frodo gets up and franticly pats his chest, trying to find the ring.
They all look to see the ring in the snow several feet away and watch as Boromir picks it up saying "It I such a strange fate that we should suffer such fear and doubt over so small a thing, such a little thing."
"Boromir!" Aragorn's voice rings out startling Boromir, and Aragorn says "Give the ring to Frodo", Boromir walks slowly over and reluctantly hands the ring over, saying "As you wish, I care not" then laughs and ruffles Frodo's hair. Sabine noticing that Aragorn only now removes his hand from his sword hilt.
They continue up the mountain, with those from the Ghost having some trouble, Hera and Ezra's jumpsuits were not made for snow trekking, Sabine's armor was not insulatd, and Zeb…well he hated snow. Kanan was ok, his clothing somewhat adequate while Chopper, being a droid, didn't feel the cold at all but had a hard time traversing the terrain.
After some time the fellowship is on a narrow ledge while a fierce snow squall swirls around them, Ezra, Sabine, and Hera are all shivering when it happens. Sabine's hearing sensors in her helmet pick up a faint chanting. "Hey" she says "Does anyone else hear…chanting?"
The fellowship stops and, straining their ears, begin to hear chanting. "It's Saruman!" cries Gandalf as a small avalanche falls toward them, Ezra and Kanan using the force to buffet it away from the ledge.
"He's trying to being down the mountain, Gandalf we must turn back!" Aragorn shouts to which Gandalf shouts "No!" and begins chanting of his own. Ezra and Kanan feeling a battle of wills taking place, one a clean pure light, Gandalf, and the other a dark pale corruption, no doubt Saruman.
Then as the dark chanting reaches a crescendo a bolt of lightning hits the top of the mountain and a larger avalanche falls toward them, Legolas snatching Gandalf from the edge as Ezra and Kanan futilely try to halt the snow.
They all end up being buried, though they poke up and out of the snow after a few moments with Boromir yelling "We have to get off the mountain, make for the gap of Rohan, and take the west road to my city!" Aragorn replying "That path takes us too close to Isenguard!"
Then Gimli says "If we cannot pass over the mountain, let us go under it, let us go through the mines of Moria." Gandalf looks deep in though for several seconds then says ominously "Let the ring bearer decide", looking first at Gimli then Gandalf Frodo says "We will pass through the Mines" and resignedly Gandalf says "So be it."
After a several hour trek back down the mountain they come over the crest of a hill and Gimli gasps saying "The walls…of Moria" with Ezra replying "All I see is one big rock" and Gimli lets loose an insulted huff saying "Why of course it's a rock, we dwarves are great miners and craftsmen, just one big rock he says" Kanan walks up to Ezra saying "Try not to insult Gimli" making Ezra smile sheepishly back.
They trek closer to the 'rock' and Gimli says "Dwarf doors are invisible when closed." And begins tapping the wall with his axe, looking for hollow spots.
"Yes Gimli their own masters cannot find them, if their secrets are forgotten" says Gandalf, "Why does that not surprise me?" says Legolas loudly enough for Gimli to hear.
The area looks more and more unfriendly until Gandalf pauses between two massive gnarled trees and says "Now, let's see…Ithildin" Gandalf says moving his hand over the stony surface.
"It mirrors only starlight…and moonlight" Gandalf says as the most ironically dark cloud passes from the moon and its light streams down upon the rock below, Revealing two beautiful white doors in the stone.
"Finally some true art! Needs color though…" exclaims Sabine upon seeing the intricate dwarven doors.
Gandalf points to writing above the doors with his staff and says "It reads 'Doors of Durin- Lord of Moria, Speak Friend and Enter'", "What does that mean?" asks Zeb impatiently.
"Oh, it's quite simple if you are a friend you speak the password and the doors will open." Gandalf says with a self-assured smile, then placing his staff upon the doors chants dramatically…nothing happens, Gandalf tries again then pushes the doors to see if they will open.
"I once knew every spell in all the tongues of men, elves and orcs" mutters Gandalf, flummoxed. "What are you going to do?" asks Pippin, "Bash your head against the doors, and if that does not shatter them. And am I allowed a little peace from foolish questions, I am trying to find out the opening words." Retorts Gandalf, exasperated.
Sabine says "I could blow them open" as she palms a thermal detonator, to which Kanan replies "We're trying to make nice with these people, not bust down their fancy door" at that Sabine sighs putting the detonator back in its pouch.
An hour passes as Gandalf continues to periodically try new strings of words, everyone else settles in for a long night.
Later Ezra and Merry are having a contest to see who could skip a stone the farthest, suddenly as Ezra pulls back his hand to cast another Aragorn grabs it and says "Do not disturb the water.", hearing this Kanan walks over and says "Something the matter?". Aragorn replying "something lurks in those waters, leave what sleeps to sleep." At that Kanan reaches for his saber, looking at the water with narrowed eyes.
"Oh, it's useless!" cries Gandalf, sitting down, suddenly Frodo's face lights up and he says "Gandalf! What's the elvish word for friend?" to which Gandalf replies "Mellon…"
Everyone hears a large cracking sound as the doors finally open, Zeb sighs with relief, finally they can get moving again!
All members of the fellowship enter the dark passageway, and with a magic still unknown to the offworlders Gandalf takes out his stone and places it in his staff, before blowing light into it.
"Soon master elf, and my foreign friends you will enjoy the famed hospitality of the dwarves, roaring fires, malt beer, ripe meat off the bone." This has Zeb's stomach growling as Ezra says "But I don't drink." and Gimli continues "This is the home of my cousin Balin!" the happy dwarf finishes "and they call it a mine, a mine!.
Looking around Boromir says "This is no mine, it's a tomb" as many dwarven skeletons come into view, "Oh, no! No!" Gimli wails at the sight of his kin's fallen forms, everyone taking up battle stances.
Legolas pulls an arrow out of one corpse and says "Goblins!" with disgust, and Aragorn and Boromir unsheathe their swords, Kanan and Ezra igniting their lightsabers. "We make for the gap of Rohan, we should never have come here!" Boromir says.
Suddenly Frodo is yanked backward, the Hobbits look back to see a large grey tentacle pulling Frodo toward the water, "Strider!" Sam yells, getting the attention of the whole fellowship.
As they race to free Frodo am manages to hack off the tentacle which retreats, only to be explosively replaced with five more! This time lifting Frodo well above the murky surface of the water.
Sabine and Hera begin to shoot the flailing tentacles, while Kanan, Ezra, Zeb, Aragorn, and Boromir hack away freeing Frodo just as a massive monstrous face comes into view, "Into the mines!" cries Gandalf, "Legolas!" "Sabine!" cry Boromir and Ezra respectively and as the fellowship darts inside the pair shoot the monstrous thing in both eyes, causing it to howl in pain.
The thing crawls out of the water, pulling itself with its tentacles, grabbing the doors and caving them in, trapping the fellowship in the dark.
All is silent and dark until Gandalf slams his staff, creating light and intones "We have but one choice, we must face the long dark of Moria. Be on your guard, there are older and fouler things than Orcs in the deep places of the world.", Kanan looking over the crew and asking "everyone ok?" they all reply that their fine, though Zeb mumbles "Karabast".
As they emerge into a large open cavern Gandalf says "Quietly now, it's a four day journey to the other side, let's hope our presence goes unnoticed". They must now indeed face the long dark of Moria…