The moment Legolas reacted, the others followed suit, weapons rising as one, every nerve on edge.
From the shadows came hurried, uneven footsteps, panicked, clumsy.
Legolas did not hesitate.
His bowstring snapped.
An arrow hissed through the air, and a startled cry rang out. A thin, short figure barely avoided the shot, rolling clumsily into view. It lay sprawled on the ground, pale-skinned, large-eyed, with sharp, uneven teeth, its body trembling violently.
Sam stared at the creature, unease creeping into his voice.
"What… what is that thing?"
The others shared his suspicion. Nothing about the creature looked human, and its sudden appearance so close to Mordor made it all the more unsettling.
Legolas frowned, his bow still trained on the figure.
"I remember it," he said slowly. "Decades ago, it appeared near the borders of the forest, searching for something. Our warriors chased it, but it escaped."
"Searching for something?" Frodo's voice grew cautious as he studied the cowering creature. "So it's Sauron's spy?"
Gimli snorted and raised his axe.
"Spy or not, we should end it now."
The creature recoiled in terror, scrambling backward on all fours."Don't kill us! Don't kill us!" it shrieked. "We're not Mordor! We came because the Black-Robed Wizard ordered us!"
"The Black-Robed Wizard?" Aragorn stepped forward, lifting a hand to stop Gimli. His gaze was sharp and probing.
"You mean Lord Sylas?"
The creature nodded frantically.
"Yes! Yes! That terrifying wizard!"
As if afraid they would not believe him, it stretched out a thin arm. Etched into the skin was a living mark, two intertwined trees, one gold, one silver.
"Look! Look!" it cried. "His mark! Only the Black-Robed Wizard owns this sign!"
The group exchanged glances. The symbol was unmistakable, the emblem of Hogwarts' White Trees. Their hostility eased slightly, though no one lowered their guard.
Frodo spoke carefully.
"You said Sylas sent you to guide us. Is there another way into Mordor, one that avoids the main gates?"
At Frodo's words, the creature suddenly stiffened.
Its eyes locked onto him, burning with greedy obsession.
"My treasure… my precious…"
Frodo flinched and stepped back instinctively.
In a flash, Aragorn raised Narsil, its blade gleaming faintly as it pressed against the creature's throat. Legolas and Gimli tightened their grips on their weapons.
The creature shrieked and scrambled away, terror replacing greed.
"No! No! We answer! We answer!"
Sam's voice was cold and sharp.
"Then answer properly."
The creature trembled, shrinking in on itself.
"Gollum… Gollum knows a secret way. A safe path into Mordor…"
Despite lingering doubts, after a brief exchange of glances, the group decided to let Gollum lead them, under constant watch.
Under his guidance, they bypassed Cirith Ungol and the heavily guarded passes, moving instead through treacherous mountain paths. The terrain grew steeper, darker, and more hostile with every step.
As Gollum scuttled ahead, his movements were quick and practiced, but his eyes kept darting back to Frodo, lingering with unmistakable hunger.
Aragorn and Legolas noticed immediately. Their wariness deepened.
Gollum muttered to himself as he led them onward, his voice barely audible.
"Take them to the spiders… let them be eaten… then the treasure comes back to us…"
Suddenly, his body stiffened. He clutched his arm, where the twin-tree mark pulsed and writhed beneath the skin.
"No… no…" he whimpered. "The wizard will punish us… hurt us…"
The mark seemed alive, roots spreading beneath his flesh. Gollum gasped as if stabbed from within, agony twisting his face. He had tried countless times to remove it, to flee far away, but the moment he even thought of betraying the wizard, the pain returned, sharper than before.
Two voices warred within him.
Fear… and greed.
At last, greed whispered louder.
A cunning glint flickered in Gollum's eyes as he muttered under his breath,
"We were only planning to lead them to the secret passage… We just forgot to mention the giant beasts nearby. That's not our fault, is it?"
The group pressed on through the mountains. Towering rocks rose around them like a stone forest, jagged and oppressive. Overhead, several flocks of crows and giant bats circled, their sharp eyes scanning below, but the group moved carefully, avoiding their notice.
As they drew closer to the lair of the great beasts, excitement, and impatience, began to surface in Gollum's expression.
Aragorn noticed it immediately.
He drew Narsil, its blade catching a faint, cold light, and subtly signaled his companions to remain alert.
"What's wrong?" Gimli asked in a low voice, gripping his axe.
Aragorn scanned the surroundings, his expression grim."Something isn't right. It's too quiet… and the darkness here is growing stronger."
Suddenly, he caught movement, someone trying to slip away from the front of the group.
Reacting instantly, Aragorn flicked his wand. A conjured rope shot forward, coiling tightly around the creature's wrist. Aragorn yanked it back and fixed Gollum with an icy stare.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Seeing the rope bound around his arm, and meeting Aragorn's cold gaze, along with the suspicious eyes of the others, Gollum panicked. He recoiled, eyes wide.
"Gollum was only checking ahead for danger!" he cried desperately. "Please, kind master, release Gollum! It hurts! It hurts!"
Aragorn showed no sign of believing him. He pressed Narsil lightly against Gollum's neck, his voice deadly calm.
"You'd better obey and forget any treacherous thoughts. One wrong move, and I'll take your head."
"And don't even think about running. Stay where we can see you. If you try to lead us into danger, I'll stop you first."
Gollum felt the iron certainty in Aragorn's tone. Terror flooded his face. He nodded frantically, agreeing again and again.
Perhaps the threat worked.
Instead of guiding them closer to the giant's lair, Gollum altered course and led them toward a nearby hidden passage entrance.
But fate had other plans.
This time, the group did not go looking for the giant.
The giant came looking for them.
With the great demon armies recently deployed elsewhere, resources in the region had grown scarce. Hunger and thirst drove the massive beast into a frenzy, greed and rage consuming it completely.
Unable to endure the emptiness of its lair any longer, the giant left its territory voluntarily, venturing out to hunt.
...
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