Hunter of the Rings

Chapter 21

Maddie never stopped moving. Not until she was far enough away from Gondor; she couldn't trust herself to not turn around and return to the safety and comfort of her friends. But when she did pull River to an eventual stop, it was after many hours of travel; they were growing closer to Mordor, but the poor horse refused to continue any further. Regardless of how much the girl insisted and pushed, the bloody thing wouldn't budge. Letting out a sigh, Maddie jumped down from the animals back and patted him on the back "can't say I blame you" she muttered as she threw her bag over her shoulder. Stroking the beautiful creature's mane, the sixteen year old pleaded for River to return to Gondor safely as she embraced him, realising that would be the last of any kind action she would receive for a long while. Giving a small swat to his behind, Maddie watched as her animal friend rode off the very way they had come; she sighed as she turned to face the direction she was to continue. Her eyes fell upon the distant sight of a glowing sky above the largest of mountains. "Mordor - the one place in Middle Earth no one wants to see any closer" she spoke to herself, finding it a strange comfort after having been travelling with company for such a long time to now herself "trust it to be the one place I'm trying to get to, but the question is how?" she wondered as she glanced around at her surroundings. There were many kinds of paths for her to take, all difficult and not quite 'paths' per-say as the only simple way of getting to Mordor was by going pass the White Wizard's tower where the Eye of Sauron could be found. Not even the Gods themselves could help the girl if she was spotted by that bloody thing! Taking a deep breath, Maddie tightened her bag around her shoulder before she started climbing; Aragorn had always told her to find an advantage point when unsure as to where to go or lost. So that's what she was going to do!

Poor Maddie was bloody exhausted! For longer than she certain, she had been climbing her way up and over mountains and dangerous cliffs after more mountains and dangerous cliffs; she had reached the previously mentioned advantage point, only to find it be close to pointless! It showed her the direction she needed to go of which she had a brief idea of, yes, but no definite path could be found and shown to aid her lengthy journey. She had to crawl and climb her way over the tough terrane, finding herself with scrapes, bumps and bruises as she continued on through both dry skies and thundering storms; it was as the sky grew dark a second time since leaving Gondor that she realised and had to admitted that what she was doing was not working. Finding a small cliff face large enough to somewhat safely fit her, Maddie lit a small fire and heated up some of the chicken soup she had taken from the kitchens of Gondor's palace; she had eaten some the night prior and found it rather delicious, excited for her next evening meal. Enjoying her greatly awaited supper, the teenager glanced around at her surroundings as a foul stench reached her nose; it was the same one that she had continuously caught a whiff of for the last day or so, yet every time she looked around or took a quick sniff of her armpits, she found no explanation for such a strong odour. Finishing off her food quickly, Maddie stoked the fire one last time before turning in for the night; she wasn't too worried about orcs finding her as she was far too high and out of reach on the difficult to reach mountain for them to be roaming around...right? Using her bag as a pillow, she covered her small frame the best she could with her cloak acting as a blanket before gradually easing into slumber, clutching the One Ring in one of her hands as she slept with difficulty.

Unbeknown to the young girl, however, that foul stench would grow worse and worse as the creature it belonged to crept closer; it silently crawled along the cliffs above, moving closer and closer as it muttered to itself. "You thief! You thief...you filthy little thief!" it spat, glaring at the sleeping girl below; the creature took in the girl's small form, visibly searching as worry and fury consumed it even further "where is it? It stole it from us - my precious" it cried before resuming its vicious glare "we hate it! It's ours, it is...and we wants it!". Reaching down, the creature outstretched its arm to grab for the girl, but it was quickly beaten to it. Having been the light sleeper she was, it didn't take much for Maddie to hear the creeping creature's dialogue; she gripped onto its arm and yanked as hard as she could, pulling it down to the small shelf of a cliff she had been using to rest. The creature landed with a thud, yelping in fright and pain as the girl swiftly knelt over it with her dagger pressed firmly against its neck; she glared down at the thing with annoyance and anger, recognising it after a few seconds of thought to be Gollum. The very same Gollum that had been following the Fellowship all those months ago! It had still been following them, even after all this time. "I should kill you right now for following me and trying to attack me while I slept!" she threatened, tightening her told on its arm "or maybe I should throw you down there for the orcs to find and do as they please!" she nodded towards the edge of the cliff, watching as the fear intensified within the creature's eyes as it shook it's head, wriggling to get away from both her grip and blade. "It burns! It burns us! It freezes! Take it off us!" it pleaded. Raising a brow, Maddie couldn't deny her surprise at the mere fact that Gollum could speak; Gandalf had made it seem the creature was more or less like any other vicious beast, no longer the Hobbit it once was. She'd be lying if she said that didn't change her thoughts of killing it. If anything, she felt herself pity the thing.

"We swears to do what you wants. We swears!" Gollum exclaimed, begging for its life; Maddie huffed out a bland laugh at its words, certain there was no promise it could make that she could possibly trust. Seeming to read her mind, Gollum glanced around as it thoughts raced, trying to think of something - anything! - that might convince its captor. In that very moment, however, its eyes caught sight of the flash of gold handing around the sixteen year old's neck; it stared in awe, recognising the ring immediately of course. Gollum's first and foremost thought was undoubtedly to reach up and take it then and there, but quickly having a small flash of senses, backed out and opted against such a thought. Not now. But the sight of the ring did give it an idea! "We swears to serve the Mistress of the Precious!" Gollum declared, startling the girl as she hadn't been expecting such a sentence "we will swear on - on the Precious!" it promised once more, almost eagerly. Confusion consumed the girl as she wondered what on earth the creature was talking about. What was "the Precious" he was talking about constantly? Casting her mind back to her discussion with Gandalf, she recalled the wizard telling her of Gollum's obsession with the One Ring. That was it, right? Surely. It had to be! Uncertain she could yet trust the creature, Maddie couldn't deny that the offer of help could be beneficial; the tainted creature clearly knew these mountains better than she did and ever would, which would come in handy for her journey. Pressing the blade deeper into Gollum's throat but not enough that she might draw blood, Maddie warmed how the Ring was treacherous "it will hold you to your word" her voice was stern as she presented her warning, in which appeared to frighten the creature lying beneath her. Gollum nodded it's head violently, insisting it knew this and still meant its words wholeheartedly and willingly.

"Do you know the way to Mordor?" the sixteen year old questioned, having yet to release her strong and dangerous hold "have you been there before?" she pressed, earning a single and simple nod. Though reluctant, the teenager hesitantly pulled the blade away and moved from the creature, climbing to her feet while keeping a tight hold on both the ring and her dagger; Gollum flipped itself over till it was sat up, its knees bent while placing its hands out in front of itself while watching carefully. "Then you will lead me to the Black Gate" she ordered before letting out a sigh "but first we rest" she muttered before holding up her weapon in the direction of the creature, her eyes strong and firm "but I swear, if you try anything - anything at all - you'll find yourself down there with the orcs!" she warned, motioning over to the edge of the cliff once again. Nodding its head in understanding, Gollum merely curled up where it was sat; Maddie never took her eyes off of the creature until its eyes closed and its breathing evened out, indicating it was asleep. Letting out yet another sigh, Maddie shook her head at herself as she took a seat beside her belongings; she was God damn crazy for this plan...but what other choice did she have? She needed to reach Mordor soon, otherwise her dear friends and the rest of Middle Earth would pay for her tardiness. Unsure of if she'd be able to sleep with the sudden new camp mate, Maddie remained sat up but eventually leant her head back against the stone; she would have to rest, her body and mind demanded it, but she was bloody thankful for how light of a sleeper she was. Never easing her grip on the ring in one hand and her dagger in the other, Maddie final thought was on her friends, wondering how they were doing and wishing them well. 'I hope you lot are doing better than I am' she wished.