This was his chance. With everyone's attention on Frodo, Merry slowly backed away from the group, made his way to the remains of the cockpit, climbed in, and began to search. He had watched Aragorn bring the globe here and leave without it, so it had to be... with a sigh of relief, he spotted the round shape, wrapped in a spare cloak, hidden under the pilot’s seat. He quickly drew it out and sat next to it. He pulled off the cloak. On some level he knew that something unknown was approaching the camp, and that he should be with the others. He knew that Frodo meant to put on the mysterious Ring... and might be in danger. But there was no other thought in his head other than looking into the globe’s depths once again; nothing else mattered.
~*~
Foliage bent and the ground shook, but the Company could discern nothing before them. Suddenly all was silent, and Gandalf felt Frodo start to tremble, the hobbit’s breaths growing short and quick.
“Tell me what you see,” Gandalf urged, but the hobbit did not speak. “Frodo, you must tell me!”
“You are wrong,” Frodo whispered suddenly. “You will have neither the Ring nor me!” Seconds passed, then the wizard felt the invisible hobbit go limp. At the same time, the unseen creature was heard moving back into the jungle from whence it had come, until there was silence once more. Gimli, Aragorn, and Boromir lowered their weapons without ever having seen what had been approaching them.
Quickly, Gandalf found Frodo’s left hand and drew the Ring off the small finger. The hobbit was suddenly visible once more, apparently unconscious. The wizard hastily shoved the Ring back into one of Frodo’s pockets.
Aragorn ran back to the shelter and sat next to the unconscious hobbit cradled in the wizard's arms. “Sam, see if that water’s boiled yet. Quickly!” He pulled one of the fresh leaves from his pouch and whispered something, then crushed it in his hand. Into the steaming pot that Sam carefully set before him, the Ranger dropped the leaf.
“Oh,” Sam whispered. “That smells like...” He took a deep breath of the fresh, living fragrance. “It’s like the Shire on a warm spring morning.”
“Frodo,” Aragorn murmured. “Come back to us, now.” He held the steaming pot near Frodo’s face, and was relieved to see Frodo’s breaths deepen, and color begin to come back into his face. The hobbit’s eyes fluttered open, and he looked about, confused.
“That’s it,” Aragorn said quiely. “Deep breaths...”
“Help!” There was a sudden yell from the direction of the fuselage. “Someone help!”
“That’s Pippin,” Boromir said. He ran towards the remains of the plane with Legolas close behind him. Disappearing into the cockpit, he soon emerged carrying Merry. Legolas followed, leading a shaken Pippin by the hand.
"He was looking into that globe thing," Pippin said, "when he... he..."
“Set him down,” Aragorn said. “Whatever has occurred, this steam might do him good.” Merry’s eyes were open and staring, but he was completely unresponsive as Boromir lay him on the blanket. Pippin sat down between his cousins and Sam, looking frightened, and Gimli and Legolas exchanged puzzled glances. What had happened to Frodo and Merry?
Gandalf knelt at Merry’s head. “I should have realized that this might happen,” he sighed. Then, in a strong voice, he cried, “Meriadoc Brandybuck, come back!”
Merry shuddered and closed his eyes, then slowly opened them as if awakening from sleep. “Aragorn, forgive me,” he whispered, looking up into the Man's eyes.
"There is nothing to forgive," Aragorn said gently.
“You could not help yourself, Merry,” Gandalf said. “We will take better care to conceal the stone from now on.”
“What is happening here?” Boromir burst out. “An invisible creature, an invisible hobbit, and now these two are apparently suffering from trauma of some kind. I demand to know what has occurred!”
“I can tell you some of it,” Frodo said. He felt his pockets for the Ring, then relaxed when he located it. “Merry, are you all right?”
“Yes,” Merry replied. He turned to Pippin, sitting white-faced beside him. “I’m sorry I frightened you, Pip.”
“What did you see, Frodo?” Sam asked. “Why did it leave?”
Frodo turned to Sam with a small smile on his face. “Sam, you won’t believe it... it was an oliphaunt.”
“Truly?” Sam grinned with delight.
“An oliphaunt?” Pippin squeaked in amazement.
“A what?” Boromir asked.
“A story, so I thought,” Frodo explained. Gandalf sat him on the blanket next to Merry. “We have a rhyme, Grey as a mouse, big as a house, nose like a snake, I make the earth shake---”
Aragorn nodded. “They are called Mûmakil in the south, Boromir,” he said. “I thought them to be legend.”
“They exist,” Frodo insisted. “I’ve never imagined any creature so large. A Man was riding upon it as if on a horse. But he wasn’t the one who...” He frowned, trying to remember everything. “The thoughts of another person came through him. The Man was only a servant of someone named Saruman.”
Gandalf sighed. “That is the wizard of whom I spoke. So he is here, as I feared.” He looked at Frodo. “Is it the Ring he desires?”
“Yes,” Frodo replied. “He sensed that I was aware of him,” he continued. “He saw us through some kind of globe, and was using it to project his thoughts through the Man who rode the creature. Such arrogance, Gandalf! He revealed so much to me, believing it made no difference to his plans.”
“Tell us,” Aragorn urged.
“He did this,” Frodo murmured, pointing to his injured leg. “When the plane came down, he used his magic to hurl broken metal toward me. He tried to... to pierce my heart with it,” he whispered.
“To what end?” Boromir asked, appalled.
“He felt...” Frodo looked up at Gandalf. “He believed that if I was injured or killed, the Ring would be revealed.”
"That murderous villain," Sam muttered.
“So this is the source of your fever,” Aragorn said thoughtfully. “The metal shards that pierced your leg carried Dark Magic with them."
“Yes,” Frodo agreed. “He wanted me dead, or too weak to resist when the Ring was taken.”
“But he’s not come to take it,” Sam said, puzzled.
“My thoughts exactly,” Legolas concurred. “If he controls an unseen creature, and has Men to serve him, why have we not been attacked? We would be hard pressed to defend ourselves against an invisible foe.”
“He didn’t think he’d have to,” Frodo said hesitantly. “He said... he had trusted that, by now, the Ring would have been revealed, and someone would have taken it from me and fallen under its spell. Perhaps a Dwarf, out of lust for gold... or a Man, out of lust for power. He was surprised that it had not yet occurred.”
“Nonsense,” Gimli snorted. “I have pledged to protect you with my life.”
“Does he believe Men to be so weak as to betray someone who cannot defend himself?” Boromir asked contemptuously. “I hope to meet this coward in battle.”
"Hobbits may not be warriors, Boromir, but we can defend ourselves at need," Merry said quietly.
“What else did you learn, Frodo?” Gandalf asked.
“He sees our 'alliance' as a fragile one." Frodo looked up at Legolas and Gimli. "Saruman believes that Elves and Dwarves cannot dwell in harmony, and that you will turn on one another."
"Then we will prove him wrong," Legolas declared. "Do you agree, my... friend?" he asked Gimli.
"I do," the Dwarf nodded slowly. "Our fathers found no common ground, but we must."
Frodo smiled, then looked at Gandalf. "He said that you are of no consequence, since you are unwilling to use Power as it should be used."
"He has truly fallen," Gandalf said grimly.
“Perhaps we should consider leaving this area,” Aragorn said unexpectedly. “Legolas and I discovered a cave that would be easier to defend than this open stretch of beach.”
“We cannot!” Boromir frowned. “Your Elvish ship may or may not be coming, Gandalf,” he continued, “but my father is surely on his way. We must remain where we can be seen by rescue.”
“If there is a cave, there may be much I can do to fortify it,” Gimli offered.
“But there’s fresh water here,” Pippin said, confused, “and fish.”
Frodo’s eyes widened in alarm.
“Stop arguing!” Sam glowered at everyone.
“Sam is correct,” Gandalf said. “Saruman wishes for dissention amongst us, above all else. We must not allow ourselves to be split up.”
Frodo suddenly looked weary, and leaned against Sam. "Saruman gloated that he knew the weakness of each of my ‘protectors’, and would draw each of you away until I was alone," he murmured. "He was about to do... something... when he was distracted. I don't know what new thing he saw, but suddenly his thoughts were no longer directed to me, and... everything went black.”
“I believe I know what distracted him,” Aragorn said thoughtfully. He looked at Merry, and everyone’s eyes turned toward the young hobbit.
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