SATRIANI
Meanwhile, on the planet Satriani, a world that was colonized by the Skrulls, who were part of the Skrull Empire and the agency S.W.O.R.D. and ruled by S'Byll, Exile had been wandering across the snowy mountains in search for the Cosmic Cube alone. That was when he was confronted by a group of Skrull Guardians that were protecting the area and the Cosmic Cube that was been held somewhere within the mountains.
"Turn back," The Head Skrull Guardian warned. "You will not find what you seek."
"I will not leave until I get what I want," Exile responded in a threatening tone. "Your lucky that your world won't have to suffer, but it will soon enough once the Deceiver has what he needs."
"Our people have guarded the Cosmic Cube for thousands of years," The Head Skrull Guardian said. "We will never give it up to you or betray our people."
Exile could tell that the guardians were in fact protecting the entrance of the Great Temple of S'Byll, for which the Cosmic Cube was stored.
"Well it seems you already have," Exile grinned and prepared to fight the guardians.
ARDA
For the next couple of days, the Shire Conspirators continued to follow Strider and Lincoln Slade since they haven't gone that far when they left the last straggling pools and reed-beds of the marshes behind them. The land before them began steadily to rise again. Away in the distance eastward they could now see a line of hills. The highest of them was at the right of the line and a little separated from the others. It had a conical top, slightly flattened at the summit.
"Wow," Doctor Foster stated in awe at the ruined tower.
"What is that?" Burnett asked.
"This was the great watch tower of Amon Sûl, but in the common tongue it is known as Weathertop," Strider said.
"Wow, its very odd," Burnett said, tightening his belt. "Considering that there is actually a good deal less of me. I hope the thinning process will not go on indefinitely, or I shall become a wraith."
"Do not speak of such things," Darcia responded quickly, disliking his jokes.
"I wonder who made this path, and what for," Bangs said as they were heading towards the ruined place.
"Strider told me that the rangers or the people of the West did not live here, though in their latter days they defended the hills for a while against the evil that came out of Angmar," Linc explained the history about Weathertop. "This path was made to serve the forts along the walls. But long before, in the first days of the Northern Kingdom, they built a great watch-tower on Weathertop."
"And now it has been burnt and broken, and nothing remains of it now but a tumbled ring, like a rough crown on the old hill's head," Strider responded, as if a sign of depression struck him upon staring at the old ruins. "Yet once it was tall and fair. It is told that Elendil stood there watching for the coming of Gil-galad out of the West, in the days of the Last Alliance."
"The Last Alliance?" Mockingbird asked.
"It was the time when mortal and immortal beings rallied together to fight Sauron," Linc answered.
"There's a lot more," Samwise added. "All about Mordor. I didn't learn that part, it gave me the shivers I never thought I should be going that way myself!'
"Going to Mordor?" Pippin sounded a bit concerned. "I hope it won't come to that."
"Let's not speak that name so loudly," Rifleman insisted for Samwise to keep quiet about that name.
"Sorry," Samwise apologized.
"No worries, mate," Rifleman said, giving him a pat in respect.
It was already mid-day when they drew near the southern end of the path, and saw before them, in the pale clear light of the October sun, a grey-green bank, leading up like a bridge on to the northward slope of the hill. They decided to make for the top at once, while the daylight was broad Concealment was no longer possible, and they could only hope that no enemy or spy was observing them. Nothing was to be seen moving on the hill. If Gandalf was anywhere about, there was no sign of him. On the western flank of Weathertop they found a sheltered hollow, at the bottom of which there was a bowl-shaped dell with grassy sides.
On the top they found, a wide ring of ancient stonework, now crumbling or covered with age-long grass. But in the centre a cairn of broken stones had been piled. They were blackened as if with fire. About them the turf was burned to the roots and all within the ring the grass was scorched and shrivelled, as if flames had swept the hill-top, but there was no sign of any living thing. Standing upon the rim of the ruined circle, they saw all round below them a wide prospect, for the most pan of lands empty and featureless, except for patches of woodland away to the south, beyond which they caught here and there the glint of distant water. Beneath them on this southern side there ran like a ribbon the Old Road, coming out of the West and winding up and down, until it faded behind a ridge of dark land to the east. Nothing was moving on it. Following its line eastward with their eyes they saw the Mountains: the nearer foothills were brown and sombre behind them stood taller shapes of grey, and behind those again were high white peaks glimmering among the clouds.
"This place looks deserted," Agent Fortunov claimed upon seeing the ruined watch tower for the first time.
"It has been deserted for a very long time," Strider told him. "No one has ever thought to reclaim the watch tower during these dark days. I told a lot of stories about it to my young companion of mine."
"He's a great teacher," Linc remarked.
"I didn't know Lincoln was your apprentice," Rifleman sounded like he was surprised.
"There doesn't seem to be any water or shelter," Doctor Selvig said, checking the place around.
"So how far is Rivendell?" Meriadoc asked, gazing round wearily.
"I don't know if the Road has ever been measured in miles beyond the Prancing Pony, a day's journey east of Bree," Strider answered and began to state something as he stared at the land. "Some say it is so far, and some say otherwise. It is a strange road, and folk are glad to reach their journey's end, whether the time is long or short. But I know how long it would take me on my own feet, with fair weather and no ill fortune. It will be twelve days from here to the Ford of Bruinen, where the Road crosses the Loudwater that runs out of Rivendell. We have at least a fortnight's journey before us, for I do not think we shall be able to use the Road."
"A fortnight?" Burnett asked, surprised. "I guess a lot may have happened in that time."
"It may," Strider said as he bends down and unwraps some small swords and hands them out to the hobbits. "These are for you. Keep them close, Lincoln and I going to have a look round. Stay here when we return."
"Hold it!" Rifleman exclaimed by pressing his hand on his chest to stop him. "Remember the part that we still don't trust you."
"Ah Hunter c'mon, haven't you already gotten the message from me?" Linc sighed, annoyed by Hunter's distrust over Strider. "Why don't you trust him?"
"We're going with you and your so-called friend to make sure he keeps his end of the deal," Mockingbird said. "Look I get you trust him in a way, but what happens if he planned to double-cross you and us. He would try to reach Frodo. Besides, we're not too foolish enough for someone to wonder away and try to alert the enemy where we are."
"You can't be that serious?" Linc scoffed.
"Well we are," Pat said. "Look, I may not you that much, but we really need to be sure whether he's trustworthy or not."
"Agreed, cause if he runs, he's a dead man," Bangs warned.
Strider wasn't afraid of her ability or her threat, and do he answered back. "Its alright Lincoln, they can come along."
"I'll go too, you'll need me and Bangs as backup just incase if those freaky no-face wraiths are around," Agent Fortunov said.
"Hey wait, if you five are going, what'a we suppose to do?" Darcia asked, worried if something terrible might happen to them.
Lance Hunter took a deep sigh and handed her his gun. "Take it sweetheart, if you need it more than me, I'm okay without it."
"I don't need a gun, I got my taser," Darcy rejected Hunter's offer in taking the gun and took out her taser.
Doctor Jane Foster sighed and snatched the gun from Hunter's hand. "Then I'll take it. Jeez."
Hunter turned to Bobbi and gave her a whisper. "I like her."
"She's got guts," Mockingbird whispered with an amused smile.
"Incase if those Ringwraiths try to ambush you all, where do we have to go next?" Doctor Selvig asked.
"Follow the trail from the eastern side of the tower," Strider instructed. "It will lead you directly to Eregion. Elves occupy that land. They will help you."
"Good enough for me," Doctor Selvig cleared his throat. "If you don't return, I'll be damn lucky to lead the rest of you all to Rivendell."
"Will be back before you know it," Mockingbird said, giving the others a promise. She then sighed and started to say something that might not make them happy. "However, if we don't, its up to you all to reach to the city. Find your way there if you can."
"We won't let ourselves down if comes to that," Doctor Foster smiled nervously.
During the long night, Darcia Lewis, Erik Selvig, and Joey Burnett were fast asleep while Frodo Baggins and Jane Foster were awake, and the two stood for a while silent on the hill-top, near its southward edge. In that lonely place, Jane was walking sideways and tried not to worry if Strider did not double-cross or even had Lancelot Hunter, Barbara Morse, Pat Smith, Jerry Fortunov, and Soo-jin Smith killed. Frodo for the first time fully realized his homelessness and danger. He wished bitterly that his fortune had left him in the quiet and beloved Shire. He stared down at the hateful Road, leading back westward to his home. Suddenly, the two began to smell something. It was smoke, but where was it coming from. They ran down the steps, and at the sight of shock, they saw that Meriadoc Brandybuck, Peregrin Took, and Samwise Gamgee were huddling together and cooking tomatoes, sausages, and bacon over a small fire.
"Oh my tomato's burst," Meriadoc sighed in disgust.
"Could I have some bacon?" Pippin asked.
"Want a tomato, Sam?" Meriadoc asked.
"What are you guys doing?!" Doctor Foster cried out in a panic and bewilderment.
Meriadoc smiles and points directly at the food they were serving for dinner. "Tomatoes, sausages, nice crispy bacon."
"We saved some for you, incase if you're hungry," Samwise said, offering a plate to Jane.
"No, put it out!" Doctor Foster cried out in anger. "Put it out!"
"What?" Pippin responded in confusion.
Frodo dashes forward and kicks dirt desperately to put the fire out as he cries. "Do as she says you fools!"
"Oh that's nice, ash on my tomatoes!" Pippin complained.
"Do… not… cook!" Doctor Foster exclaimed her three words.
"But why, we're just having our dinner, our second dinner," Pippin said.
"Second dinner?!" Doctor Foster scoffed in absolute anger. "There are Ringwraiths out there. If we were spotted with the light here, we would be…"
Her words were cut off when a loud terrifying screech was heard through the darkness, causing Joey Burnett, Darcia Lewis, and Erik Selvig to wake up suddenly in a gasp. They quickly get up from the ground and together, the group look over the edge and see the nine Ringwraiths striding towards the Watch Tower when they spotted the light.
"What was that?" Burnett gasped, waking up suddenly.
"How did they find us?!" Darcia exclaimed.
Jane turns her head sideways and shouts. "Go! What'a standing for? Go!"
"C'mon, this way!" Doctor Selvig signaled the others to follow him up the steps to the top of Amon Sûl.
"Those things must've got them," Burnett cried. "We're doomed."
"Shut up and just keep running!" Doctor Foster yelled.
Without hesitating, they run up to the very top of the tower and stand in the middle of the circle of pillars back to back. Looking around frantically, each of them gaze into the shadows that encircled them and prepare to strike against the enemy. Suddenly, Frodo stops and looks between two pillars. One of the Ringwraiths slowly advance between them, causing Frodo and Jane to look horrified. Jane held her gun out front and pointed directly at him, but she soon realized that the other Ringwraiths slowly emerged with the first one and began to look down on them. So black were they that they seemed like black holes in the deep shade behind them. When the lead Ringwraith draws his sword and holds it before its face, the other ones do the same thing and prepare to strike at their enemy. The nine now walk slowly towards the Jane Foster, Darcia Lewis, Joey Burnett, Erik Selvig, Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gamgee, Peregrin Took, and Meriadoc Brandybuck, who held their weapons locked in combat. As they get closer with their swords out pointed towards the group, the Conspirators were slowly walking backwards.
"Back you devils!" Samwise cried in defense and the was first to openly charge at them.
"Sam, wait!" Doctor Foster cried.
It was already too late, as the brave hobbit takes a swipe at one of the Ringwraiths with his sword, but the leader swipes back at him, even knocking him back into a rock.
"No!" Darcia fearfully cried out in shock.
"Sam!" Doctor Foster cried out in horror. In a fit of rage, she fires her shots at them, but with no effect, and once she had no bullets, she realized she was in trouble.
The leader did the same thing by tossing her aside. Darcia fired her taser at the leader, but with no effect, she too was shoved. Joey Burnett grabbed a stick to defend himself, but one of the Ringwraiths struck his stick in half and was shoved aside. Erik Selvig, Peregrin Took, and Meriadoc Brandybuck stand in front of Frodo to protect him, but their efforts were foiled when the Ringwraiths shoved them aside too, leaving Frodo the only one to face them. Frodo was deeply terrified than his companions, dropping his sword and turns to run, but collapsed himself to the stony ruined floor. His terror was swallowed up in a sudden temptation to put on the Ring. The desire to do this laid hold of him, and he could think of nothing else. That was when the leader of the Ringwraiths, known as Er-Mûrazôr, hears the Ring and walks slowly towards Frodo when he drew out what it appears to be a Morgul-Blade. Frodo scrambles backwards until he finds himself against a rock when the other Wraiths follow their leader from behind. Not with the hope of escape, or of doing anything, either good or bad, he simply felt that he must take the One Ring and put it on his finger to escape. He could not speak. He shut his eyes and struggled for a while, but resistance became unbearable, and at last he slowly drew out the chain, and slipped the Ring on the forefinger of his left hand.
Immediately, though everything else remained as before, dim and dark, Frodo looks upon the Ringwraiths and sees that their shapes became terribly clear. He was able to see beneath their black wrappings. The nine tall figures were all but wispy and ghostly in appearance, dressed in long Grey robes, with white hair, and pallid, ruthless faces. Upon their grey hairs were helms of silver in their haggard hands were swords of steel. That was when he saw someone else that the riders did not even notice from behind. It was a young human man, all is hair was blond, and was wearing a strange-looking robe that was bronze colored. It was Daniel Thomas Rand, the Iron Fist of K'un-Lun. None of the Ringwraiths, including their leader, didn't notice him or even bothered to turn around to see him at all, yet Frodo was the only one who saw him, much to both their confusion. Daniel turned to stare at the Ringwraiths and Er-Mûrazôr was planning to reach for the One Ring. Frodo noticed that the One Ring was glowing and whispering telepathically in Black Speech as a sign to allow the Witch-King to take it. Frodo tried to keep himself away from the leader, but he saw that his hand was being drawn to the hand of the Ringwraith. Before Er-Mûrazôr was this close in claiming his master's prize, Frodo resisted and pulled the ring away from the Witch King's hand. Er-Mûrazôr was infuriated of this, and so he stabs Frodo in the right side of the shoulder with the Morgul-Blade he carried.
"YAAAAHHHH!" Frodo screamed, feeling the pain he felt. "AAAAAAHHHHHH!"
"NOOO!" Daniel-Kai roared in absolute horror.
Er-Mûrazôr wasn't willing to give up his prize, and so he continued to reach out his hand once again and take the One Ring by force as Frodo laid wounded. Before he was this close in achieving his goal to appease his master, he pauses for a moment until he hears someone shout. He turns around and sees Barbara Morse, Lancelot Hunter, Pat Smith, Soo-jin Smith, Jerry Fortunov, Lincoln Slade, and Strider, who then emerge from different corners of the ruins with their weapons and burning torches, and openly engage him and the other riders in combat. While the Ringwraiths were trying to scare them away, Frodo continued to groan terribly in the sight of pain and used the might of his strength to remove the Ring.
"AAAAAAHHHHHH!" Frodo continued to scream in pain when he took the ring off and slipped it in his pocket.
"Frodo!" Samwise cried out, seeing his friend hurt and scrambled to his feet to reach Frodo and knelt down swiftly at his side.
"Oh Sam," Frodo cried quietly.
Jane crawls over to Frodo when she heard him scream and cried out in horror while staying at his side. "Oh my god, are you okay?"
"It hurts!" Frodo cried in agony. "Aaah!"
"Sssh, I'm here," Doctor Foster whispered, holding his hand. "I'm right here."
Barbara Morse, Lancelot Hunter, Pat Smith, Soo-jin Smith, Jerry Fortunov, Lincoln Slade, and Strider continue their fight against the Ringwraiths and their leader, and do as much to overwhelm them. They set light to the clothing of each Ringwraith one by one with their torches, scaring them away from the Watch Tower, whilst Jane Foster, Samwise Gamgee, Darcia Lewis, Peregrin Took, Joey Burnett, Meriadoc Brandybuck, and Erik Selvig huddle around Frodo to keep him safe from harm. From behind him, Barbara grins when she senses the last Ringwraith looking around to defend himself. This gave her a chance to throw her burning torch into its face. The Wraith was terrified of the fire and ran away, leaving the group to focus on Frodo, who continued to moan in terrible pain.
"Strider!" Samwise called out.
"Oh my god," Agent Fortunov muttered as he rushes over to the group to see what happened.
Immediately, Erik Selvig, Pat Smith, Darcia Lewis, and Jane Foster quickly take a moment to examine Frodo's shoulder and saw the stab wound with their own eyes.
"Oh that looks bad," Doctor Foster breathed in shock. "Really bad."
"I need something to mend that wound," Doctor Selvig ordered. "Get me a kettle or something!"
"Here," Pat offered something to him.
"Get me some bandages or something that could help seal that wound," Doctor Foster hastily ordered.
"What the hell happened?!" Rifleman exclaimed in confusion. "What happened?!"
"Frodo put the Ring on and got stabbed by one of those ugly no-face freaks!" Darcia cried out in pure horror.
"Is he okay?" Bangs asked.
"I don't know, but he's in real pain," Pat continued to examine the wound and do anything to help have it sealed.
"What kind of blade was it?" Linc hastily asked.
Strider found the Morgul-Blade on the floor and picked it up to examine it. "He was stabbed by a Morgul-Blade." As he finished saying those words, the blade suddenly burns up and disappears into ash.
"What's a Morgul-Blade?" Mockingbird asked, starting to panic.
"A poison," Strider answered.
"What?" Doctor Foster breathed in shock.
"Oh god," Darcia sounded even more terrified than before and covered her mouth.
"It was this accursed knife that gave him that wound," Strider told them about the blade. "Few now have the skill in healing to match such evil weapons. But I will do what I can."
"Is there anything we can do to help remove the poison?" Burnett asked.
"So far there's none, this is beyond my skill to heal," Strider explained in a hast. "He needs elvish medicine."
"And what about those Wraiths?" Pat asked. "We scared them off didn't we?"
"I don't think they expected to be resisted," Strider said. "They have been drawn off for the time being. But not far, I fear. They will come again another night, if we cannot escape."
Bobbi understood and gave Hunter a nod. "Hunter."
"Alright, you," Lancelot pointed at Joey. "Help me carry him."
"Right," Burnett complied.
Joey Burnett and Lancelot Hunter gently pick Frodo up and begin to carry him as he groaned in pain. Frodo dozed, though the pain of his wound was slowly growing, and a deadly chill was spreading from his shoulder to his arm and side. It was time for the group to leave Weathertop as soon as possible. After rushing out of the tower in a very quick hast, the Shire Conspirators follow Strider into the forest, hoping it was chance to get away from the Ringwraiths. Strider led the group the way with his torch and continued to move as quick as possible when they heard the sound of the Ringwraith screeches from a far.
"Hurry!" Strider yelled, telling them to keep up with him.
"Man those no-face freaks aren't giving up," Agent Fortunov said in a hastily tone. "We're leaving a trail for them to follow."
"At least maybe we can find a way to distract them," Pat suggested.
"It doesn't matter what either of you say, we're still a few days from Rivendell!" Samwise argued. "He'll never make it!"
"And that's why we're moving, now keep up!" Mockingbird ordered fiercely.
"Gandalf," Frodo moaned as he was being carried by Hunter and Ian.
"Hold on mate, we're gonna get you there," Rifleman whispered out his promise to his little friend. "I promise."