Chapter 3

The next day, evacuations began, Fadron and company, along with the rest of the fellowship escourting them to the great city, a large white tower, with a downward spiral expanding into narrow yet plentiful vistas of inhabitants.

The kings men greeted the group heartily with much praise of the group's combat prowess, telling them the Steward, Denethor awaited their attendance at dinner.

Dinner was a veritable theatre as Denethor was fascinated by Fadron and his companions, asking to examine them and hear their tale, their stories entertained the old man immensely.

The group ate well and were sent to bed.

"We're gonna beat em up...right buddy?" Gallend's head lolled to the side as he lay in bed, looking at Fadron, who was stroking his wife's hair slowly while she slept.

"Yea...we're going to get them to where they need to go...and then hopefully get us back home to Fandalin."

It wasn't long after that, that Fadron was called away from his sleeping companions by a familiar voice.

"ash Nahz..." Fadron poked his head into the room Frodo was sleeping, over him knelt Denethor, in his arms was a burning sphere that he held close to him, while his other hand slowly reached for the ring.

"The weapon of the enemy will be mine..." he heard Denethor whisper, only for Fadron to stride in and seize hold of the flaming sphere, throwing Denethor away.

The group awoke as Fadron's mind was overrun by an evil pressence, "I see you...' Was a deep voice that thrummed through his artificial thoughts, and Fadron was not phased much, "You're the BBEG?"

Sauron paused, then resumed, "I have seen you, you are powerful...but all that power will be for naught in the face of the force I now command! You will serve me, Machine, or You will die."

Fadron chuckled, as a Warforged he was immune to fear effects or any sort of physical sensation of pain, so to him, Sauron was simply a very angry voice, inundated with so much magic that he was glad couldn't effect him.

"Someone's just angry that their tricks don't work on me or my friends."

There's a growl from Sauron, "WHAT POWER DO YOU COMMAND!? WHERE DO YOU COME FROM!? TELL ME!!"

Fadron looked square into the palantir, "I command The power of Ligma and come from the magical land of Nunya, deep in the Fuckoff mountains across the sea of nope."

An angry shout filled Fadron's mind and he tossed the palantir out the window!

Aragorn stood in absolute shock as he watched this happen

"NO! My eye! My sight!!" Denethor was struggling to stand when Fadron walked over go him, "By the Iron in my body, and the water in yours, I protect your mind from the voice of evil." The power Sauron had over the old man was so strong that the spell Fadron cast snapped Denethor into unconsciousness and Fadron carried him back towards the throneroom, where he sat Denethor in his throne. He turned to see the guards forming up ranks around him as the rest of the fellowship looked into the throne room from the hallway.

"The king felt ill and he fell unconscious...he's asleep and I don't know where his bedroom is." He explained.

The guards looked unsure, "Your voice is steady, but your countenance is frightening and unfamiliar, unhand the king!"

Fadron held his hands up and behind him, Denethor let out a loud snore and a satisfied groan, shifting in his chair for all the guards to see, "You see?"

The guard who admonished him looked slightly abashed, but stuck to his guns, "You may have been telling the truth, but this is still highly irregular, you are to go back to your chambers, and should you leave your room before morning, I shall have your entire party arrested."

Fadron nodded, "Understood."

The guards let Fadron go back to his quarters, but posted a guard to make sure nothing else happened late in the night.

The next morning was one of lengthy goodbyes, tears and gifts were exchanged, one such gift was a gift from the King of Rohan's niece who gave Fadron a double wide reinforced leather and chainmail backpack, with room for 4 of the 5 hobbits.

Not too surprisingly, Sam volunteered to walk.

And so they began their trek, taking the road from Minas Tirith to Osgiliath, from where they would board a boat and ride it to land where Fadron was told they would walk to the black gate.

"And just...walk into mordor?" Chuckles Peony, "sounds great, don't know why we didn't think of this in the first place."

Frodo crosses his arms, "Well that was my plan, let's hear yours!"

Pippin raised a hand, "Why don't...we sneak in? There's gotta be a backdoor somewhere, everywhere's got one, a garden path someone forgot about...a secret door, something..."

"Hey, there's an idea.' Merry smiled, sam scoffed from beside Fadron, "what? You think Sauron has a garden path? Or an unlocked basement door somewheres? Come on, this isn't the shire."

Gallend hiccupped, "Pippin isn't wrong though, every castle and bastion, no matter how sturdy, has at least one back door...may be worth looking into."

Sam sighed, "Maybe, but it's getting dark and if we're to continue like this...we need to stop and make camp."

Fadron brought the boat to a coasting stop, running it aground and helping the group set up camp between two rocky crags, tents were pitched as the Halflings all ate dinner and started winding down.

Fadron sat, watching as his wife laid in her own little tent, sitting outside himself, tending the fire and watching the stars, and the veil of smog just, JUST beyond the next rise that signaled they were at least close to the beginning of the right trail

As he sat and watched and waited, he heard a whisper in the dark, "Blasted hobitses...curse them..."

Fadron sat absolutely still as he listened to the no longer unintelligible mumbling grow closer.

"Stupid baginses...we will kill them, take the precious, yes, GOLLUM...and be done with them..."

As the voice got closer, Fadron heard a similar, yet slightly softer voice as well, "And then we goes back home!"

"SHHH!" He heard the harsher voice, "That big one may still be awake, my precious..." growls the deeper voice

"Which one does it speaks of, my precious?" Whispers the lighter one

"The one in the cloak, his eyeses glows like ours, my precious..."

Fadron's eyes looked up to one of the many crags of the hills they rested between, seeing a tiny creature, no bigger than the halflings, eyes ablaze with green light as the moon sat high in the sky, "Is it awake, my precious? Does it stir at our presence?"

Fadron did not move, he only stared as the creature sat there, considering the consequences of it's actions should it descend, then it spoke in the harsher voice, "No, it looks to be asleep, my precious...it doesn't move...like a statue..."

And with slow, creeping motions, it began to descend the rocks, Fadron could discern hooked toes and flattened fingertips, this creature used to be a biped but had been twisted by some dark magic, it almost resembled a Nothik, but was not nearly as large, and it still had both eyes, it was reaching for Frodo and Sam's tent.

In a flurry of sudden movement, Fadron stood and grabbed the creature by the head, flipping his torso in a complete 360 to slam the little thing into the ground with a wet smack, where the creature lay completely still, alive but no longer conscious.

There Fadron held him til morning when the hobbits began to wake up, Fadron stood with the creature's head still firmly clutched in his massive hand, sitting back down on his rock as the thing stirred as well, freaking out and hissing only to realize he was well and fully trapped in a vice.

"The hell's that noise?" Grumbled Peony as she got out of her tent, only to gasp in shock as she saw what her Husband held in his hand.

Madeye flapped his wings from her shoulder, "BAUGH!!"

"Honey? What's that?"

Fadron looked up at her, "I was just going to ask it the same question...what are you?"

The other hobbits slowly extricated themselves from their tents and Frodo gasped, "That's gollum!!"

Fadron looked up at Frodo, "Gollum?"

Sam nodded, "Nasty bugger's been haunting us since Moria! Dogging our steps, he wants the Ring! Kill him!"

"No!! Dont kills us!! Please!!"

"Wait!" Frodo held up a hand, "He knows the way into mordor...don't you, Gollum..."

Gollum's massive eyes lit up, "YES! Gollum will shows hobitses and nice, metal master the way! Where do hobitses want to go?"

Gallend sat up and took a swig from his tankard, "what's this now?"

Fadron held up his free hand, "You're the ring bearer, where do we go?"

Frodo looked at Gollum's eyes, still trapped behind Fadron's massive metal fingers, "Take us to the black gate."

To be continued...