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dernwyn
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Jan 9 2024, 11:23pm
Post #26 of 44
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But after Pippin looks in the Palantir
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and they are discussing what to do, a Nazgul flies overhead, and Gandalf's words indicate that this is the first time a Nazgul has crossed the River. He knew what it was, unlike here, where he felt it but did not know what it was.
A Fell Beast without a Wraith, perhaps, but not a Nazgul in flight.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 10 2024, 3:06pm
Post #27 of 44
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Tomorrow in Middle-earth.
There's a lot going on over the next couple of days; so let's spread it out a bit since there's nothing specific to January 10th.
pre-January 11, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The journey to Caradhras.
(not from the appendices)
..."Gandalf snuffed the air and looked back.
...'Winter deepens behind us,' he said quietly to Aragorn. 'The heights away north are whiter than they were... ...Tonight we shall be on our way high up towards the Redhorn Gate. We may well be seen by watchers on that narrow path, and waylaid by some evil; but the weather may prove a more deadly enemy... ...What do you think of your course now, Aragorn?'
...Frodo overheard these words, and understood that Gandalf and Aragorn were continuing some debate that had begun long before. He listened anxiously.
...'I think no good of our course from beginning to end, as you know well, Gandalf... ...And perils known and unknown will grow as we go on. But we must go on; and it is no good our delaying the passage of the mountains. Further south there are no passes, till one comes to the Gap of Rohan. I do not trust that way since your news of Saruman. Who knows which side now the marshals of the Horse-lords serve?'
...'Who knows indeed!' said Gandalf. 'But there is another way... ...the dark and secret way that we have spoken of.'
...'But let us not speak of it again! Say nothing to the others... ...not until it is plain that there is no other way.'
...'We must decide before we go further,' answered Gandalf.
...'Then let us weigh the matter in our minds, while the others rest and sleep,' said Aragorn.
...In the late afternoon, while the others were finishing their breakfast, Gandalf and Aragorn went aside together and stood looking at Caradhras... ...Frodo watched them, wondering which way the debate would go. When they returned to the Company Gandalf spoke, and then he knew that it had been decided to face the weather and the high pass. He was relieved. He could not guess what was the other dark and secret way, but the very mention of it had seemed to fill Aragorn with dismay, and Frodo was glad that it had been abandoned....
......Laboriously they climbed a sharp slope and halted for a moment at the top. Frodo felt a soft touch on his face. He put out his arm and saw the dim white flakes of snow settling on his sleeve... ...before long the snow was falling fast, filling all the air, and swirling into Frodo's eyes. The dark bent shapes of Gandalf and Aragorn only a pace or two ahead could hardly be seen.
...'I don't like this at all,' panted Sam just behind. 'Snow's all right on a fine morning, but I like to be in bed while it's falling. I wish this lot would go off to Hobbiton! Folk might welcome it there.' Except on the high moors of the Northfarthing a heavy fall was rare in the Shire... ...regarded as a pleasant event and a chance for fun. No living hobbit (save Bilbo) could remember the Fell Winter of 1311, when white wolves invaded the Shire over the frozen Brandywine."
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 10 2024, 4:01pm
Post #28 of 44
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After Frodo overheard their debate, Aragorn makes a suggestion:
'We must decide before we go further,' answered Gandalf.
'Then let us weigh the matter in our minds, while the others rest and sleep,' said Aragorn.
I get the feeling they're going to continue their conversation silently, privately, mind-to-mind, and not just sleep on it. Like Gandalf, Galadriel and the others did on their return from the War.
"Often long after the hobbits were wrapped in sleep [Elrond, Gandalf, Celeborn and Galadriel] would sit together under the stars... ...they did not move or speak with their mouth, looking from mind to mind and only their shining eyes stirred and kindled as their thoughts went to and fro." [Many Partings]
We have been there and back again.
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dernwyn
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Jan 10 2024, 5:18pm
Post #29 of 44
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That Aragorn was referring to a fully mental conversation.
Can we assume that with Gandalf present, even though Aragorn is mortal, that bit of Elvish in his heritage would make him capable of communicating this way?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 10 2024, 6:07pm
Post #30 of 44
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The "Should I" stuff will get you!
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There's another indicator of something spooky happening that I had several years ago.
I was driving the family home late at night from a hang-out day at a Lake Michigan beach… daughter riding shotgun, kids in carseats behind her, with [then] son-in-law sitting behind me. I kept the music off because everyone was asleep. It was a 2.5 hr trip and dark, driving through empty farmland and woods on a winding road nearly the whole way. On one of the longer straight stretches through some sugarbeet fields, I caught a single round headlight to my left out of the corner of my eye halfway across the field just above the plants. I glanced over at it then looked ahead again when it registered…. there's no road over there, no houses, nothing but field. I looked over again and saw it was pacing me for a few seconds, then disappeared. As I was "he thought he saw-ing" and "could not be sure'ing" to myself, son-in-law behind me whispered, "That was weird."
..."Did you see it, too?"
..."Yeah…. I was looking right out there when it appeared… then disappeared."
I just kept driving… a little quicker. The next day I checked online to see if there were any reports in the area. There were newspaper articles and reports coming from all over the place! Either there was more than one, or it was showing up throughout the county all night.
*raises hand* I swear… true story!
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 10 2024, 6:33pm
Post #31 of 44
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Elvish in his heritage AND being raised in Rivendell might have had some mojo rub off.
I've often thought that Frodo, having been a Ring-bearer and his injuries/experiences making it possible for him to see the Nazgul in their true forms, that he was able to converse or at least connect in much the same way if he wanted to. He was able to read much about Galadriel at the mirror and had visions of Gandalf (he thought dead)... even as Gandalf the White would reach out for Frodo in his mind.
We have been there and back again.
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Otaku-sempai
Elvenhome
Jan 10 2024, 6:35pm
Post #32 of 44
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and they are discussing what to do, a Nazgul flies overhead, and Gandalf's words indicate that this is the first time a Nazgul has crossed the River. He knew what it was, unlike here, where he felt it but did not know what it was.
A Fell Beast without a Wraith, perhaps, but not a Nazgul in flight.
That could be, but maybe Gandalf the White just had a better sense for what was flying overhead compared to Gandalf the Grey.
“Hell hath no fury like that of the uninvolved.” - Tony Isabella
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CuriousG
Gondolin
Jan 10 2024, 8:25pm
Post #33 of 44
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Nothing that odd happens to me in Boston now, but I grew up in a rural area in Colorado, and there were various strange things like what you experienced in fields, on country roads, etc, similar to Aragorn saying (paraphrased) "If that's just a cloud, why is it moving against the wind?" And even stranger, they are usually one-offs, so if it never happens again, how do you get witnesses and prove it?
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Kimi
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Jan 11 2024, 4:44am
Post #34 of 44
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Re that mind-to-mind communion
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specifically regarding Aragorn: some excellent discussions on this in Ethel Duath's latest thread in the Reading Room.
The Passing of Mistress Rose
My historical novels
Do we find happiness so often that we should turn it off the box when it happens to sit there?
- A Room With a View
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 11 2024, 2:10pm
Post #35 of 44
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January 11, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Snow on Caradhras.
(from the appendices)
..."Gandalf halted. Snow was thick on his hood and shoulders; it was already ankle-deep about his boots.
...'This is what I feared... ...What do you say now, Aragorn?'
...'That I feared it too,' Aragorn answered, 'but less than other things. I knew the risk of snow, though it seldom falls heavily so far south, save high up in the mountains. But we are not high yet; we are still far down, where the paths are usually open all the winter.'
...'I wonder if this is a contrivance of the enemy,' said Boromir. 'They say in my land that he can govern the storms in the Mountains of Shadow... ...He has strange powers and many allies.'
...'His arm has grown long indeed,' said Gimli, 'if he can draw snow down from the North to trouble us here three hundred leagues away.'
...'His arm has grown long,' said Gandalf.
......The wind whistled and the snow became a blinding blizzard. Soon even Boromir found it hard to keep going. The hobbits... ...toiled along behind the taller folk, but it was plain that they could not go much further, if the snow continued. Frodo's feet felt like lead. Pippin was dragging behind. Even Gimli, as stout as any dwarf could be, was grumbling as he trudged.
...The Company halted suddenly, as if they had come to an agreement without any words being spoken. They heard eerie noises in the darkness round them. It may have been only a trick of the wind... ...but the sounds were those of shrill cries and wild howls of laughter. Stones began to fall from the mountain-side, whistling over their heads, or crashing on the path beside them. Every now and again they heard a dull rumble, as a great boulder rolled down from hidden heights above.
...'We cannot go further tonight,' said Boromir. 'Let those call it the wind who will; there are fell voices on the air, and these stones are aimed at us.'
...'I do call it the wind,' said Aragorn. 'But that does not make what you say untrue. There are many evil and unfriendly things in the world that have little love for those that go on two legs... ...yet are not in league with Sauron, but have purposes of their own. Some have been in the world longer than he.'
...'Caradhras was called the Cruel, and had an ill name,' said Gimli... '...when rumour of Sauron had not been heard in these lands.'
...'It matters little who is the enemy, if we cannot beat off his attack,' said Gandalf.
...'But what can we do?' cried Pippin miserably. He was leaning on Merry and Frodo, and he was shivering.
...'Either stop where we are, or go back,' said Gandalf. 'It is no good going on.....'
...'...And it is no good going back while the storm holds,' said Aragorn. 'We have passed no place on the way up that offered more shelter than this cliff-wall we are under now.'
...'Shelter!' muttered Sam. 'If this is shelter, then one wall and no roof make a house.'"
[league = 3 miles]
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 12 2024, 1:25am
Post #36 of 44
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a Fell Beast without a rider sent to search for Nazgul... or could it be the Eye itself doing a search?
We have been there and back again.
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dernwyn
Forum Admin
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Jan 12 2024, 1:50am
Post #37 of 44
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But what a creepy idea! *shudder*
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 12 2024, 2:07pm
Post #38 of 44
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Today in Middle-earth
January 12, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Snow on Caradhras—it's unrelenting! (from the appendices)
..."A great sleepiness came over Frodo; he felt himself sinking fast into a warm and hazy dream. He thought a fire was heating his toes, and out of the shadows on the other side of the hearth he heard Bilbo's voice speaking. I don't think much of your diary... ...Snowstorms on January the twelfth: there was no need to come back to report that!
... But I wanted rest and sleep, Bilbo, Frodo answered with an effort, when he felt himself shaken, and he came back painfully to wakefulness. Boromir had lifted him off the ground out of a nest of snow.
...'This will be the death of the halflings, Gandalf,' said Boromir. 'It is useless to sit here until the snow goes over our heads. We must do something to save ourselves.'
...'Give them this,' said Gandalf, searching in his pack and drawing out a leathern flask. 'Just a mouthful each—for all of us. It is very precious. It is miruvor, the cordial of Imladris. Elrond gave it to me at our parting. Pass it round!'
...As soon as Frodo had swallowed a little of the warm and fragrant liquor he felt a new strength of heart, and the heavy drowsiness left his limbs. The others also revived and found fresh hope and vigour...
......though they had brought wood and kindlings by the advice of Boromir, it passed the skill of Elf or even Dwarf to strike a flame that would hold amid the swirling wind or catch in the wet fuel... ...reluctantly Gandalf himself took a hand. Picking up a faggot he held it aloft for a moment, and then with a word of command, naur an edraith ammen!, he thrust the end of his staff into the midst of it. At once a great spout of green and blue flame sprang out, and the wood flared and sputtered.
...'If there are any to see, then I at least am revealed to them... ...I have written Gandalf is here in signs that all can read from Rivendell to the Mouths of Anduin.'
[and later]
...'...If Elves could fly over mountain, they might fetch the Sun to save us,' answered Gandalf. 'But I must have something to work on. I cannot burn snow.'
...'Well,' said Boromir, 'when heads are at a loss bodies must serve... ...The strongest of us must seek a way. See! Though all is now snow-clad, our path... ...turned about that shoulder of rock down yonder. It was there that the snow first began to burden us. If we could reach that point, maybe it would prove easier beyond. It is no more than a furlong off, I guess.'
...'Then let us force a path thither, you and I!' said Aragorn.
...Aragorn was the tallest of the Company, but Boromir, little less in height, was broader and heavier in build. He led the way, and Aragorn followed him... ...and were soon toiling heavily. In places the snow was breast-high, and often Boromir seemed to be swimming or burrowing with his great arms rather than walking.
...Legolas watched them for a while with a smile upon his lips, and then he turned to the others. 'The strongest must seek a way, say you? But I say: let a ploughman plough, but choose an otter for swimming, and for running light over grass and leaf, or over snow—an Elf.'
...With that he sprang forth nimbly, and then Frodo noticed... ...though he had long known it, that the Elf had no boots, but wore only light shoes, as he always did, and his feet made little imprint in the snow.
...'Farewell!' he said to Gandalf. 'I go to find the Sun!' Then swift as a runner over firm sand he shot away, and quickly overtaking the toiling men, with a wave of his hand he passed them, and sped into the distance, and vanished round the rocky turn."
[furlong = .125 miles or 220 yards]
We have been there and back again.
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(This post was edited by grammaboodawg on Jan 12 2024, 2:08pm)
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cats16
Gondolin
Jan 12 2024, 11:03pm
Post #39 of 44
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And it all plays so well into JRRT's usage of having characters falling asleep/waking up as chapters end and/or begin. It all has a waking dream quality to it, and you sort of catch yourself - not unlike the characters - thinking "did I see that or imagine it?"
And am with you re: spooky/odd things in rural places - it doesn't help that in places like that, you don't have any of the "city glow" that light pollution gives you, so the effect is that rural places are truly pitch black without headlights revealing whatever is ahead of you.
Join us every weekend in the Hobbit movie forum for this week's CHOW (Chapter of the Week) discussion!
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 13 2024, 1:50pm
Post #40 of 44
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Today in Middle-earth
January 13, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. Attack by Wolves in the early hours.
(from the appendices)
..."'Since our open attempt on the mountain-pass our plight has become more desperate, I fear. I see now little hope, if we do not soon vanish from sight for a while, and cover our trail. Therefore I advise that we should go neither over the mountains, nor round them, but under them. That is a road at any rate that the Enemy will least expect us to take....' [said Gandalf]
......The hobbits said nothing. Sam looked at Frodo. At last Frodo spoke. 'I do not wish to go... ...but neither do I wish to refuse the advice of Gandalf. I beg that there should be no vote, until we have slept on it. Gandalf will get votes easier in the light of the morning than in this cold gloom. How the wind howls...!'
......Suddenly Aragorn leapt to his feet. 'How the wind howls! ...It is howling with wolf-voices. The Wargs have come west of the Mountains!'
...'Need we wait until morning then?' said Gandalf. 'It is as I said. The hunt is up! Even if we live to see the dawn, who now will wish to journey south by night with the wild wolves on his trail?'
...'How far is Moria?' asked Boromir.
...'There was a door south-west of Caradhras, some fifteen miles as the crow flies, and maybe twenty as the wolf runs,' answered Gandalf....
...'...I wish I had taken Elrond's advice,' muttered Pippin to Sam. 'I am no good after all. There is not enough of the breed of Bandobras the Bullroarer in me: these howls freeze my blood. I don't ever remember feeling so wretched.'
...'My heart's right down in my toes, Mr. Pippin,' said Sam. 'But we aren't eten yet, and there are some stout folk here with us. Whatever may be in store for old Gandalf, I'll wager it isn't a wolf's belly.'"
2. The Company reaches the West-gate of Moria at nightfall.
(from the appendices)
..."'Well, here we are at last!' said Gandalf. 'Here the Elven-way from Hollin ended. Holly was the token of the people of that land... ...they planted it here to mark the end of their domain; for the West-door was made chiefly for their use in their traffic with the Lords of Moria. Those were happier days, when there was still close friendship at times between folk of different race, even between Dwarves and Elves.... ...The doors are shut and hidden, and the sooner we find them the better. Night is at hand...!'
...'...I once knew every spell in all the tongues of Elves or Men or Orcs, that was ever used to such a purpose. I can still remember ten score of them without searching in my mind... ...The opening words were Elvish, like the writing on the arch: that seems certain.'
...He stepped up to the rock again, and lightly touched with his staff the silver star in the middle beneath the sign of the anvil.
Annon edhellen, edro hi amine!
Fennas nogothrim, lasts beth lammen! he said in a commanding voice. The silver lines faded, but the blank grey stone did not stir.
...Many times he repeated these words in different order, or varied them. Then he tried other spells, one after another, speaking now faster and louder, now soft and slow. Then he spoke many single words of Elvish speech. Nothing happened... ...the doors stood fast.
...Again Gandalf approached the wall, and lifting up his arms he spoke in tones of command and rising wrath. Edro, edro! he cried, and struck the rock with the staff. Open open! he shouted, and followed it with the same command in every language that had ever been spoken in the West of Middle-earth. Then he threw his staff on the ground, and sat down in silence.
...At that moment from far off the wind bore to their listening ears the howling of wolves. Bill the pony started in fear, and Sam sprang to his side and whispered softly to him.
...'Do not let him run away!' said Boromir. 'It seems that we shall need him still, if the wolves do not find us. How I hate this foul pool!' He stooped and picking up a large stone he cast it far into the dark water.
...The stone vanished... ...at the same instant there was a swish and a bubble. Great rippling rings formed on the surface out beyond where the stone had fallen, and they moved slowly towards the foot of the cliff.
...'Why did you do that, Boromir?' said Frodo. 'I hate this place, too, and I am afraid. I don't know of what: not of wolves, or the dark behind the doors, but of something else. I am afraid of the pool. Don't disturb it...!'
...'...Why doesn't Gandalf do something quick?' said Pippin.
...Gandalf took no notice of them. He sat with his head bowed, either in despair or in anxious thoughts. The mournful howling of the wolves was heard again. The ripples on the water grew and came closer; some were already lapping on the shore.
..."With a suddenness that startled them all the wizard sprang to his feet. He was laughing! 'I have it!' he cried. 'Of course... ...Absurdly simple, like most riddles when you see the answer.'
...Picking up his staff he stood before the rock and said in a clear voice: Mellon!
...The star shone out briefly and faded again. Then silently a great doorway was outlined, though not a crack or joint had been visible before. Slowly it divided in the middle and swung outwards inch by inch...
... '…I was wrong after all,' said Gandalf, 'and Gimli too. Merry, of all people, was on the right track. The opening word was inscribed on the archway all the time! The translation should have been: say "Friend" and enter. I had only to speak the Elvish word for friend and the doors opened. Quite simple. Too simple for a learned loremaster in these suspicious days. Those were happier times. Now let us go!'
...He strode forward and set his foot on the lowest step. But at that moment several things happened. Frodo felt something seize him by the ankle, and he fell with a cry. Bill the pony gave a wild neigh of fear, and turned tail and dashed away along the lakeside into the darkness. Sam leaped after him, and then hearing Frodo's cry he ran back again, weeping and cursing. The others swung round and saw the waters of the lake seething, as if a host of snakes were swimming up from the southern end.
...Out from the water a long sinuous tentacle had crawled... ...Its fingered end had hold of Frodo's foot, and was dragging him into the water. Sam on his knees was now slashing at it with a knife.
...The arm let go of Frodo, and Sam pulled him away, crying out for help. Twenty other arms came rippling out....
...'...Into the gateway! Up the stairs! Quick!' shouted Gandalf leaping back. Rousing them from the horror that seemed to have rooted all but Sam to the ground where they stood, he drove them forward.
...They were just in time. Sam and Frodo were only a few steps up, and Gandalf had just begun to climb, when the groping tentacles writhed across the narrow shore and fingered the cliff-wall and the doors...."
3. Gollum begins to trail the Ring-bearer.
(from the appendices)
..."Frodo began to hear... ...something else; like the faint fall of soft bare feet. It was never loud enough, or near enough, for him to feel certain that he heard it; but once it had started it never stopped, while the Company was moving. But it was not an echo, for when they halted it pattered on for a little all by itself, then grew still."
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 14 2024, 1:50pm
Post #41 of 44
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Today in Middle-earth
January 14, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. During the night and into the day in Moria.
(not from the appendices)
..."Pippin felt curiously attracted by the well. While the others were unrolling blankets and making beds against the walls of the chamber, as far as possible from the hole in the floor, he crept to the edge and peered over... ...Moved by a sudden impulse he groped for a loose stone, and let it drop. He felt his heart beat many times before there was any sound. Then far below... ...there came a "plunk," very distant, but magnified and repeated in the hollow shaft.
...'What's that!' cried Gandalf. He was relieved when Pippin confessed what he had done; but he was angry, and Pippin could see his eye glinting. 'Fool of a Took!' he growled. 'This is a serious journey, not a hobbit walking party. Throw yourself in next time, and then you will be no further nuisance. Now be quiet!'
...Nothing more was heard for several minutes; but then there came out of the depths faint knocks: tom-tap, tap-tom.... ...They sounded disquietingly like signals of some sort; but after a while the knocking died away and was not heard again.
...'That was the sound of a hammer, or I have never heard one,' said Gimli.
...'Yes,' said Gandalf, 'and I do not like it. It may have nothing to do with Peregrin's foolish stone; but probably something has been disturbed... ...better left quiet. Pray, do nothing of the kind again! Let us hope we shall get some rest without further trouble. You, Pippin, can go on the first watch, as a reward,' he growled, as he rolled himself in a blanket.
...Pippin sat miserably by the door in the pitch dark; but he kept on turning round, fearing that some unknown thing would crawl up out of the well. He wished he could cover the hole, if only with a blanket, but he dared not move or go near it, even though Gandalf seemed to be asleep.
...Actually Gandalf was awake, though lying still and silent. He was deep in thought, trying to recall every memory of his former journey in the Mines, and considering anxiously the next course that he should take; a false turn now might be disastrous. After an hour he rose up and came over to Pippin.
...'Get into a corner and have a sleep, my lad,' he said in a kindly tone. 'You want to sleep... ...I cannot get a wink, so I may as well do the watching.'
...'I know what is the matter with me,' he muttered, as he sat down by the door. 'I need smoke! I have not tasted it since the morning before the snowstorm.'
...The last thing that Pippin saw, as sleep took him, was a dark glimpse of the old wizard huddled on the floor, shielding a glowing chip in his gnarled hands between his knees. The flicker for a moment showed his sharp nose, and the puff of smoke.
...It was Gandalf who roused them all from sleep. He had sat and watched all alone for about six hours... '...And in the watches I have made up my mind,' he said. 'I do not like the feel of the middle way; and I do not like the smell of the left-hand way: there is foul air down there, or I am no guide. I shall take the right-hand passage. It is time we began to climb up again.'"
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 16 2024, 7:38pm
Post #42 of 44
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Today in Middle-earth
January 15, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The Bridge of Khazad-dûm, and the fall of Gandalf.
(from the appendices)
..."… there came a great noise: a rolling BOOM that seemed to come from depths far below, and to tremble in the stone at their feet. They sprang towards the door in alarm. DOOM, DOOM it rolled again... ...Then there came an echoing blast: a great horn was blown in the hall, and answering horns and harsh cries were heard further off. There was a hurrying sound of many feet.
...'They are coming!' cried Legolas.
...'We cannot get out,' said Gimli.
...'Trapped!' cried Gandalf. 'Why did I delay? Here we are, caught, just as they were before. But I was not here then. We will see what----'
...DOOM, DOOM came the drum-beat and the walls shook.
...'Slam the doors and wedge them!' shouted Aragorn. 'And keep your packs on as long as you can: we may get a chance to cut our way out yet....'
......There was a blow on the door that made it quiver; and then it began to grind slowly open, driving back the wedges. A huge arm and shoulder, with a dark skin of greenish scales, was thrust through the widening gap. Then a great, flat, toeless foot was forced through below... ...Boromir leaped forward and hewed at the arm with all his might; but his sword rang, glanced aside, and fell from his shaken hand. The blade was notched.
...Suddenly, and to his own surprise, Frodo felt a hot wrath blaze up in his heart. 'The Shire!' he cried, and springing beside Boromir, he stooped, and stabbed with Sting at the hideous foot. There was a bellow, and the foot jerked back, nearly wrenching Sting from Frodo's arm. Black drops dripped from the blade and smoked on the floor. Boromir hurled himself against the door and slammed it again.
...'One for the Shire!' cried Aragorn. 'The hobbit's bite is deep! You have a good blade, Frodo son of Drogo!'
......but even as they retreated, and before Pippin and Merry had reached the stair outside, a huge orc-chieftain, almost man-high, clad in black mail from head to foot, leaped into the chamber... ...With a thrust of his huge hide shield he turned Boromir's sword and bore him backwards, throwing him to the ground. Diving under Aragorn's blow with the speed of a striking snake he charged into the company and thrust with his spear straight at Frodo. The blow caught him on the right side, and Frodo was hurled against the wall and pinned. Sam, with a cry, hacked at the spear-shaft, and it broke. But even as the orc flung down the truncheon and swept out his scimitar, Andúril came down upon his helm. There was a flash like flame and the helm burst asunder...
......DOOM, DOOM went the drums in the deep....
...'...Now!' shouted Gandalf. 'Now is the last chance. Run for it!'
...Aragorn picked up Frodo where he lay by the wall and made for the stair, pushing Merry and Pippin in front of him. The others followed; but Gimli had to be dragged away by Legolas: in spite of the peril he lingered by Balin's tomb with is head bowed. Boromir hauled the eastern door to... ...it had great iron rings on either side, but could not be fastened.
...'I am all right,' gasped Frodo. 'I can walk. Put me down!'
...Aragorn nearly dropped him in his amazement. 'I thought you were dead!' he cried.
...'Not yet!' said Gandalf. 'But there is no time for wonder. Off you go, all of you, down the stairs! Wait a few minutes for me at the bottom, but if I do not come soon, go on! Go quickly and choose paths leading right and downwards.'
...'We cannot leave you to hold the door alone!' said Aragorn.
...'Do as I say!' said Gandalf fiercely. 'Swords are no more use here. Go!'
...'...I am afraid Balin is buried deep, and maybe something else is buried there too. I cannot say. But at least the passage behind us was completely blocked. Ah! I have never felt so spent, but it is passing. And now what about you, Frodo? There was no time to say so, but I have never been more delighted in my life than when you spoke. I feared that it was a brave but dead hobbit that Aragorn was carrying.'
...'What about me?' said Frodo. 'I am alive, and whole I think. I am bruised and in pain, but it is not too bad.'
...'Well,' said Aragorn, 'I can only say that hobbits are made of a stuff so tough that I have never met the like of it. Had I known, I would have spoken softer in the Inn at Bree! That spear-thrust would have skewered a wild boar!'
...'Well, it did not skewer me... ...though I feel as if I had been caught between a hammer and an anvil.' He said no more. He found breathing painful.
...'You take after Bilbo,' said Gandalf. 'There is more about you than meets the eye, as I said of him long ago....'
......The ranks of the orcs had opened, and they crowded away, as if they themselves were afraid. Something was coming up behind them. What it was could not be seen: it was like a great shadow, in the middle of which was a dark form, of man-shape maybe, yet greater; and a power and terror seemed to be in it and to go before it....
...'...Ai, ai!' wailed Legolas. 'A Balrog! A Balrog is come!'
...Gimli stared with wide eyes. 'Durin's Bane!' he cried and letting his axe fall he covered his face.
...'A Balrog,' muttered Gandalf. 'Now I understand.' He faltered and leaned heavily on his staff. 'What an evil fortune! And I am already weary.'
...'Over the bridge... ...Fly! This is a foe beyond any of you. I must hold the narrow way. Fly!' Aragorn and Boromir did not heed the command, but still held their ground, side by side, behind Gandalf at the far end of the bridge. The others halted just within the doorway at the hall's end, and turned, unable to leave their leader to face the enemy alone....
...'...You cannot pass... ...I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor. You cannot pass. The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udûn. Go back to the Shadow! You cannot pass.'
...The Balrog made no answer. The fire in it seemed to die, but the darkness grew. It stepped forward... ...and suddenly it drew itself up to a great height, and its wings were spread from wall to wall; but still Gandalf could be seen, glimmering in the gloom; he seemed small, and altogether alone: grey and bent, like a wizened tree before the onset of a storm.
...From out of the shadow a red sword leaped flaming.
...Glamdring glittered white in answer.
...There was a ringing clash and a stab of white fire. The Balrog fell back and its sword flew up in molten fragments. The wizard swayed on the bridge, stepped back a pace, and then again stood still.
...'You cannot pass!' he said.
...With a bound the Balrog leaped full upon the bridge. Its whip whirled and hissed...
......Gandalf lifted his staff, and crying aloud he smote the bridge before him. The staff broke asunder and fell from his hand. A blinding sheet of white flame sprang up. The bridge cracked. Right at the Balrog's feet it broke, and the stone upon which it stood crashed into the gulf, while the rest remained, poised, quivering like a tongue of rock thrust out into emptiness.
...With a terrible cry the Balrog fell forward, and its shadow plunged down and vanished. But even as it fell it swung its whip, and the thongs lashed and curled about the wizard's knees, dragging him to the brink. He staggered, and fell, grasped vainly at the stone, and slid into the abyss. 'Fly, you fools!' he cried, and was gone."
2. The Company reaches Nimrodel late at night.
(from the appendices)
..."'Lothlórien!' cried Legolas. 'Lothlórien! We have come to the eaves of the Golden Wood. Alas that it is winter...'
...'...Lothlórien!' said Aragorn. 'Glad I am to hear again the wind in the trees! We are still little more than five leagues from the Gates, but we can go no further. Here let us hope that the virtue of the Elves will keep us tonight from the peril that comes behind....'
...'...Here is Nimrodel!' said Legolas. 'Of this stream the Silvan Elves made many songs long ago, and still we sing them in the North... ...All is dark now and the Bridge on Nimrodel is broken down. I will bathe my feet, for it is said that the water is healing to the weary.' He went forward and climbed down the deep-cloven bank and stepped into the stream.
...'Follow me!' he cried. 'The water is not deep. Let us wade across! On the further bank we can rest, and the sound of the falling water may bring us sleep and forgetfulness of grief.'
...One by one they climbed down and followed Legolas. For a moment Frodo stood near the brink and let the water flow over his tired feet. It was cold but its touch was clean, and as he went on and it mounted to his knees, he felt that the stain of travel and all weariness was washed from his limbs."
[league = 3 miles]
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Jan 16 2024, 7:42pm
Post #43 of 44
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Today in Middle-earth
January 16, 3018 (S.R. 1418)
1. The Fellowship makes its way through Lothlórien
(not from the appendices)
..."The morning was still young and cold when the Company set out again, guided now by Haldir and his brother Rúmil. 'Farewell, sweet Nimrodel!' cried Legolas. Frodo looked back and caught a gleam of white foam among the grey tree-stems. 'Farewell,' he said. It seemed to him that he would never hear again a running water so beautiful....
......They went back to the path that still went on along the west side of the Silverlode... ...But soon Haldir turned aside into the trees and halted on the bank of the river under their shadows.
...'There is one of my people yonder across the stream... ...though you may not see him.' He gave a call like the low whistle of a bird, and out of a thicket of young trees an Elf stepped, clad in grey, but with his hood thrown back; his hair glinted like gold in the morning sun. Haldir skilfully cast over the stream a coil of grey rope, and he caught it and bound the end about a tree near the bank.
...'Celebrant is already a strong stream here, as you see... ...and it runs both swift and deep, and is very cold. We do not set foot in it so far north, unless we must. But in these days of watchfulness we do not make bridges. This is how we cross! Follow me!' He made his end of the rope fast about another tree, and then ran lightly along it, over the river and back again, as if he were on a road.
...'I can walk this path,' said Legolas; 'but the others have not this skill. Must they swim?'
...'No!' said Haldir. 'We have two more ropes. We will fasten them above the other, one shoulder-high, and another half-high, and holding these the strangers should be able to cross with care....'
......The Company passed over, some cautiously and slowly, others more easily. Of the hobbits Pippin proved the best for he was sure-footed, and he walked over quickly, holding only with one hand; but he kept his eyes on the bank ahead and did not look down. Sam shuffled along, clutching hard, and looking down into the pale eddying water as if it was a chasm in the mountains.
...He breathed with relief when he was safely across. 'Live and learn! as my gaffer used to say. Though he was thinking of gardening, not of roosting like a bird, nor of trying to walk like a spider. Not even my uncle Andy ever did a trick like that...!'
...'...Now, friends,' said Haldir, 'you have entered the Naith of Lórien... ...a spearhead between the arms of Silverlode and Anduin the Great. We allow no strangers to spy out the secrets of the Naith. Few indeed are permitted even to set foot there.
...'As was agreed, I shall here blindfold the eyes of Gimli the Dwarf. The others may walk free for a while, until we come nearer to our dwellings....'
......This was not at all to the liking of Gimli. 'The agreement was made without my consent,' he said. 'I will not walk blindfold, like a beggar or a prisoner. And I am no spy. My folk have never had dealings with any of the servants of the Enemy. Neither have we done harm to the Elves. I am no more likely to betray you than Legolas, or any other of my companions.'
...'I do not doubt you,' said Haldir. 'Yet this is our law. I am not the master of the law, and cannot set it aside. I have done much in letting you set foot over Celebrant.'
...Gimli was obstinate. He planted his feet firmly apart, and laid his hand upon the haft of his axe. 'I will go forward free... ...or I will go back and seek my own land, where I am known to be true of word, though I perish alone in the wilderness.'
...'You cannot go back,' said Haldir sternly. 'Now you have come thus far, you must be brought before the Lord and the Lady. They shall judge you, to hold you or to give you leave... ...You cannot cross the rivers again, and behind you there are now secret sentinels that you cannot pass. You would be slain before you saw them.'
...Gimli drew his axe from his belt. Haldir and his companion bent their bows. 'A plague on Dwarves and their stiff necks!' said Legolas.
...'Come!' said Aragorn. 'If I am still to lead this Company, you must do as I bid. It is hard upon the Dwarf to be thus singled out. We will all be blindfold, even Legolas... ...though it will make the journey slow and dull.'
...Gimli laughed suddenly. 'A merry troop of fools we shall look! Will Haldir lead us all on a string, like many blind beggars with one dog? But I will be content, if only Legolas here shares my blindness.'
...'I am an Elf and a kinsman here,' said Legolas, becoming angry in his turn.
...'Now let us cry: "a plague on the stiff necks of Elves!"' said Aragorn. 'But the Company shall all fare alike. Come, bind our eyes, Haldir!'
...'I shall claim full amends for every fall and stubbed toe, if you do not lead us well,' said Gimli as they bound a cloth about his eyes."
January 16, 2020
1. Christopher Tolkien sails into the West.
…Salute to Christopher Tolkien to honour him on the anniversary of his passing at the age of 95. TORn's squire shared a wonderful tribute to the son of J.R.R. Tolkien… the one who carried the torch for us all.
… "[Gandalf] paused, and then said slowly in a deep voice: 'This is the Master-ring, the One Ring to rule them all. This is the One Ring that he lost many ages ago, to the great weakening of his power. He greatly desires it—but he must not get it.'
… Frodo sat silent and motionless. Fear seemed to stretch out a vast hand, like a dark cloud rising in the East and looming up to engulf him. 'This ring!' he stammered. 'How, how on earth did it come to me?'
… 'Ah!' said Gandalf. 'That is a very long story. The beginnings lie back in the Black Years, which only the loremasters now remember. If I were to tell you all that tale, we should still be sitting here when Spring had passed into Winter." – The Shadow of the Past: The Fellowship of the Ring
CT did his best to do that…
We have been there and back again.
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Elvenhome
Jan 17 2024, 2:06pm
Post #44 of 44
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Today in Middle-earth
January 17, 3019 (S.R. 1419)
1. The Company arrives at Caras Galadon in the evening.
(from the appendices)
..."That night the Company slept upon the ground, much to the satisfaction of the hobbits. The Elves spread... ...a pavilion among the trees near the fountain, and in it they laid soft couches; then speaking words of peace with fair elvish voices they left them. For a little while the travellers talked of their night before in the tree-tops, and of their day's journey, and of the Lord and Lady; for they had not yet the heart to look further back.
...'What did you blush for, Sam?' said Pippin. 'You soon broke down. Anyone would have thought you had a guilty conscience. I hope it was nothing worse than a wicked plot to steal one of my blankets.'
...'I never thought no such thing,' answered Sam, in no mood for jest. 'If you want to know, I felt as if I hadn't got nothing on, and I didn't like it. She seemed to be looking inside me and asking me what I would do if she gave me the chance of flying back home to the Shire to a nice little hole with—with a bit of garden of my own.'
...'That's funny,' said Merry. 'Almost exactly what I felt... ...only well, I don't think I'll say any more,' he ended lamely.
...All of them, it seemed, had fared alike: each had felt that he was offered a choice between a shadow full of fear that lay ahead, and something that he greatly desired... ...and to get it he had only to turn aside from the road and leave the Quest and the war against Sauron to others....
...'...To me it seemed exceedingly strange,' said Boromir. 'Maybe it was only a test, and she thought to read our thoughts for her own good purpose... ...I should have said that she was tempting us, and offering what she pretended to have the power to give. It need not be said that I refused to listen. The Men of Minas Tirith are true to their word.' But what he thought that the Lady had offered him Boromir did not tell.
...And as for Frodo, he would not speak, though Boromir pressed him with questions. 'She held you long in her gaze, Ring-bearer,' he said.
...'Yes... ...but whatever came into my mind then I will keep there.'
...'Well, have a care!' said Boromir. 'I do not feel too sure of this Elvish Lady and her purposes.'
...'Speak no evil of the Lady Galadriel!' said Aragorn sternly. 'You know not what you say. There is in her and in this land no evil, unless a man bring it hither himself... ...But tonight I shall sleep without fear for the first time since I left Rivendell. And may I sleep deep, and forget for a while my grief! I am weary in body and in heart.' He cast himself down upon his couch and fell at once into a long sleep.
...They remained some days in Lothlórien, so far as they could tell or remember."
We have been there and back again.
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