Chapter 16 Section 3 Doomsday Volcano

Sam slipped his tattered goblin cloak under his master's head, and Lorien's cloak covered them both.At the same time, his thoughts could not help drifting to that beautiful country, thinking about the extraordinary elves, and hoping that the clothes woven by their own hands might allow them to hide their whereabouts on this dead land.As the troops squeezed into Eshin's mouth, the cursing and shouting disappeared.Judging from this situation, in this chaos, no one noticed that the two of them were missing. Sam took a sip of water, gave Frodo a long gulp, and when his master had regained a little strength, he forced his master to eat the whole precious piece of dry food.Then, the tired two people didn't even have the extra strength to feel scared, so they just lay down on the ground and fell asleep.They didn't sleep soundly. The hot sweat turned cold, and the sharp stones made their bodies ache, and they couldn't stop shivering.Gusts of cold wind blew from the black gate to Sirius Gargo, constantly taking away the heat from the two of them.

In the morning, the sky turned white again, and the westerly wind was still blowing in the heights, but within the enclosure of the dark land, the air was almost completely stagnant, and the surroundings were icy cold, yet it was hard to breathe.Sam looked out of the crater, all the surrounding terrain was monotonous and lifeless, and the nearby roads were empty, but Sam was worried that there were still people watching over the nearby Essin Pass.The gloomy volcano stands in the southeast with a chilling aura, and a lot of thick smoke comes out of the mountain. Under the strong wind, it floats to the high altitude in the east, and thick black clouds emerge from its side of the mountain, covering the and the Ash Mountains a few miles to the northeast, looking as lifeless as gloomy gray ghosts; and the northern horizon was hung with low-hanging clouds, not less than the desolation of the ground.

Sam tried to guess the exact distance and the way to go. "Looks at least fifty miles away," he muttered, staring at the hideous volcano. "If it had taken a day, it might have taken a whole week in Mr. Frodo's state." He said. Shaking his head, he thought carefully, but a depressing thought gradually accumulated in his heart.In his strong heart, hope has never really disappeared. Before that, he was always optimistic that everyone had a chance to go home; however, now, he finally recognized the bitter truth: even in the last Optimistically, their supplies would only be enough to get them there; when the mission was complete, they would be alone in the middle of a dead desert with no food or water.They can't go back.

"So that's what I thought I'd do when I set out," thought Sam. "To help Mr. Frodo take his last few steps and die with him. Well, if it's really my calling, I must Finish it. But I should really like to see the Waterway again, and little May Carton and her brothers, and our father and Marigold. If Mr. Frodo never comes back at all, I'd rather Can't imagine why Gandalf sent him? When he died in Moria, everything went wrong. I wish he was still alive so he could at least do something." However, when Sam's flame of hope died At the same time, it has also transformed into a new force.Sam's ordinary little face became very serious, and a strong determination supported him behind him, and he felt a shudder in his whole body.He seemed to have turned into some kind of iron monstrosity that could not be disappointed, tired, and could not even flinch from the endless wasteland before him.

With a stronger sense of responsibility, he refocused his eyes back to his eyes, studying what to do next.As the light gradually increased, he was surprised to see that the original broad plain was covered with gravel; in fact, the entire Gorgoros Plain was full of potholes, large and small, as if there were holes when this place was still soft mud. Countless rubble fell all over the ground, making it uneven everywhere.The largest potholes are surrounded by a circle of rocks, and there are many cracks extending from the middle.The land did indeed allow one to pass from one cover to the next so silently that even the most conscientious sentinel would have difficulty detecting any intrusion here.At least, if the infiltrator is very strong and doesn't need to worry about diet, this place won't be too much of a challenge for him.Because, before the two reach the finish line, the fatigue and hunger they have to face will pose the greatest test to their spirit and will.

After thinking carefully several times, Sam returned to his master.He did not need to wake him, for Frodo, though still in his old position, stared up at the sky. "Well, Mr. Frodo," said Sam, "I have just surveyed the neighborhood, and thought it over. There is no one on the road, and we had better take our chances and get off. Can you hold on?"" I can hold on," said Frodo, "I must hold on!" and they set off again, this time taking care to conceal their tracks, going from pit to pit, but always to the north. The foothills of the mountains.The road didn't bend as they advanced, though, until at last it entered the mountains and disappeared into a shadow.Now, there are no traces of people on this desolate land, because the Dark Lord has almost completed the deployment of all troops.Even in his own country, he still timidly uses the night to cover everything, worrying that the outside wind will be against him again and blow away his veil; besides, the news of mysterious spies sneaking in and destroying makes him Don't be careless.

The hobbit walked for many miles before he stopped wearily, and Frodo was almost worn out, and Sam could see that he could not go on in this way any farther.Before that, they had to stoop forward, hide and hide, sometimes deliberately weave, and sometimes have to speed up the pace. "I think we should take the road before dark, Mr. Frodo," said he; "we must trust our luck! Last time we were nearly screwed, but it wasn't so bad. We can keep the pace A few miles, and then rest." He was at greater risk than he knew, but Frodo's mind was so full of struggles and the confusion of resisting the Ring that, in fact, he had almost given up all hope, Too lazy to come up with an opinion.They walked back to the side road and walked slowly along the road leading to the evil black tower.Their good fortune was right this time, and they met no one for the next day, and when night fell, their figures disappeared into the darkness of Mordor.The whole land is shrouded in a tense atmosphere of imminent rain:

Because the generals of the West have crossed the crossroads and set fire to the mouth of the Morgul Valley, ready to burn out all evil breaths. And so their desperate journey continued, the Lord of the Rings continued south, and the Banner of the Emperor continued north.For the hobbits, every day, every mile, was harder than the one before, as their power drained away and the ground grew more vile.During the day they met no enemies, and at night, when they dozed restlessly, they occasionally heard footsteps on the side road or the panting of whipped horses.However, what is more frightening than these is the sense of threat that has been approaching and hitting them like waves: that is sitting on the throne of darkness, contemplating and considering how to conquer the world. evil forces.It's getting closer, robbing people of hope, relentlessly approaching like the end of the world.

At last, the most terrible night came.The generals of the West were about to enter the lifeless realm of Mordor, and the two travelers were in a situation of utter despair.It had been four days since they had escaped from the Orcs' forces, but each day seemed to be a darker and darker nightmare.On this last day Frodo said nothing, but walked stooping, and very unsteadily on his feet, as if his eyes could no longer see the ground beneath them.Sam guessed that, in addition to the immense weariness that both of them had to endure, he had to endure the torment of body and mind caused by the Ring.Sam noticed that his master's left hand was often raised unconsciously, as if to block the attack or avoid the evil eyes that wanted to search for them; sometimes, his right hand would hold his chest, slowly, as he regained self-control After that, the hand will be taken away.

When night fell again, Frodo sat on the ground with his head folded, his arms hanging wearily to the ground, and his fingers twitching unconsciously.Sam looked at him until the night completely covered the figures of the two of them, he didn't know what to say anymore, he could only meditate silently.Though he was weary and frightened, his strength was not entirely worn away.There was something special about the elves' dry food, or they would have been lying down to die in self-pity, but it couldn't quite satisfy the appetite, and Sam's mind was sometimes so full of memories of food that he just wanted to be able to hold a normal Bread and meat, take a few bites.While the Elf's Ration is not perfect, its effect is all the more so when the traveler fills his stomach with nothing else at all.It strengthens willpower, increases stamina, and pushes muscles and bones to tests far beyond the limits of the average person.However, at this time they have to make a decision!They could no longer follow the road, for it led only to the stronghold of the Shadow; but the volcano was to their right, due south, and they had to turn their heads.However, between the volcano and them, there is still a desolate, poisonous smoke, and ash-filled broken land.

"Water, what about water!" Sam muttered.He'd cut his quota down to the bare minimum, and he felt like his tongue was swollen.But even though he was so meticulous and tried his best to endure, there was still not much food and water left in his hands. He probably only had half a jug of water left, and he still had days to go, and if they hadn't ventured down this road, they might have run out of water a few days ago.There are some temporary water storage tanks built on the roadside of this road, mainly for the troops rushing on the road in this water-scarce area.In one of them Sam found some sour, orc-muddy water.However, considering their current situation, the water wasn't too bad.The bad thing is that with several days of walking ahead, they are unlikely to find any more water. Finally, tired and worried, Sam put his worries aside and fell into a deep sleep. There was nothing he could do; the extreme stress left him half asleep and his head heavy.He saw things like glowing eyes floating about, and furtive black figures, and he heard the wailing of beasts or tortured creatures.When he woke up, he found that the surroundings were still empty.Only once, when he stood up, he was pretty sure he saw the glowing eye in his waking state; however, it blinked and disappeared at once. The night passed very slowly, and the following morning light was also quite weak, because as they got closer and closer to the volcano, the air became more and more polluted, and the darkness emanating from Sauron from the evil tower made the situation worse.Frodo lay still, and Sam stood beside him, with great reluctance in his heart, but he knew he must wake his master, and beg him to go on.Finally, he bent down and stroked his master's forehead, and whispered to him: "Master, wake up! It's time to go on again." Frodo jumped up as if he had been awakened by the reveille, and looked south.But, as his gaze swept across the volcano and the desert, he flinched again. "Sam, I can't do it," he said. "It's heavy, it's heavy!" Before he opened his mouth, Sam guessed that it was useless and would only be worse; He couldn't help but speak out of his compassion for his master. "Then let me bear its weight for you, Master," said he, "and I will gladly help you, you know, as long as I have strength." A wild gleam flashed suddenly in Frodo's eyes. "Back off! Don't touch me!" he yelled, "I told you it was mine. roll! ' His hand moved to the hilt of his sword.But then, his voice changed. "No, no, Sam—" he said sadly, "but you must understand that this is my responsibility and no one else can take it for me. It is too late now, dear Sam, you will never It helps me in this way, I'm completely controlled by it. I can't let it go, I'd go crazy if you tried to take it away!" Sam nodded. "I understand," he said, "but, I had been thinking, Mr. Frodo, that there should be other things we could give up. Why not lighten our burden? We must go straight to the goal," he said, pointing to the volcano. "There is no need to take anything superfluous." Frodo followed him, looking at the volcano. "Yes," said he, "we shall not need much on that road, and at the end we shall not need anything at all." He took the goblin's shield and dropped it on the ground, followed by his helm; then he threw back his gray cloak, unfastened his heavy belt, and let it fall to the ground...and the sword fall. In the end, he tore off the tattered black cloak and threw it away. "Look, I'm not a half-orc anymore," he yelled, "and I don't carry any weapons, good or ugly, come if you can catch me!" Sam did as well, removing all the half-orcs from him Throw away all the orc equipment, and take out all the things in the backpack.After enduring so many hardships and walking so far, everything in the backpack seems to have developed a special emotion and relationship with him.What makes him hard to part with is the kitchen utensils that accompany him through all this.The thought of throwing these things away brought tears to his eyes. "Do you remember the rabbit stew we cooked, Mr. Frodo?" he said. "We were with General Faramir, and I saw a mammoth that day!" "No, Sam, I think I don't remember," said Frodo, "I know these things happened, but I can't remember the details. I don't remember the taste of the food, nor the taste of the water, nor the sound of the wind, I don't remember what the flowers and trees looked like, I even forgot what the moon and the stars looked like...Sam, I stood naked in the dark, and there was nothing between me and the circle of fire. Even if I opened my eyes , can only see it, everything else seems to fade. ' Sam kissed his hand. "The sooner we get rid of it, the sooner we can rest!" he said hesitantly, unable to find better words to comfort others. "It's useless to talk about it without doing it," he said to himself, putting all the things to be thrown away into a pile.He would not leave these things in the wilderness for other evil creatures to discover. "Looks like that bastard has taken the goblin's clothes, I can't let him go with a sword! It's bad enough that he's empty-handed, and I can't let him ruin my pot!" said the words As soon as he finished speaking, he hugged all the things to a huge crack nearby, and threw them all in with one brain.For him, the crash of his precious pot into the center of the earth was a death knell. He went back to Frodo, and cut a little piece of the Elvish cord for his master's loincloth, and he put away the rest preciously.In addition to these, he only kept the water bottle and elf dry food on him, the thorn was still hanging on his waist, and the small box that Galadriel gave him was still hidden in the secret pocket on his chest. In the end, they turned to the direction of the volcano, no longer considered hiding their whereabouts openly, and only wanted to complete the only goal wholeheartedly.In this misty day, even in this suspicious land, not many people can find their traces unless they are near them.Of all the servants of the Dark Lord, only the Ringwraiths can forewarn him of this crisis: two determined little ones, step by step towards the heart of his kingdom.But the Nazgul, and their black-winged mounts, had only one purpose: they were assembled afar off, to scout and delay the forces of the Western General, and there was the whole will of the Black Tower concentrated. In Sam's eyes, the master seems to have squeezed out new strength today, perhaps not just because of their lightening of the burden. Their first journey was faster and farther than Sam had expected.The terrain here is quite rough and dangerous, but their progress is very good, and the images of the volcano are becoming clearer and clearer.But as the days went on and the light grew darker, Frodo began to stoop again, and his steps became more shambling than ever, as if the last of his strength had been drained from him by his hurrying. When they stopped at last to rest, Frodo only said, "I am thirsty, Sam!" and fell silent.Sam gave him a sip of water, the last sip in the jug.He himself refrained from drinking, watching the night of Mordor surround the two of them again. Sam's mind was full of water memories, and every brook, every river, every spring he had ever seen;He could feel the slippery mud between his toes as he soaked his feet on Linshui Road, with Jolly, Tom and Nibs of the Carton family, and their little Mei. "That was years ago..." He sighed, "It's so far away again. If there is a way to go back, it will be after that volcano!" He couldn't sleep, so he couldn't stop talking. talk to yourself. "Well, don't be discouraged, today's progress is better than you imagined!" He comforted himself and said, "At least the beginning is good, I think we are probably halfway there, just one more day will be fine. ' Then he paused for a moment. "Don't be silly, Sam Gange," replied his own voice, "if he could move, he wouldn't be able to walk another day. Besides, you gave him most of his food and water, and you yourself It's almost gone." "I can walk all day, I'll make it through." "Where does it go?" "To Volcano, of course!" "Sam Giangie, after that? When you get there , what are you going to do? It's impossible for him to do anything." Sam was saddened to find that he couldn't answer the question, and he had no idea what was going on.Frodo didn't explain this mission to him much, and Sam only vaguely knew that the Lord of the Rings had to be thrown into the flames. "Doom Rift—" he muttered, the ancient name popping into his head. "Well, even if the master knows what to do, you don't know." "Look!" said the voice, "it's all a waste of effort, he said it himself. You're the fool, keep holding on, keep hoping , have been patient, if it weren't for you being so stubborn, you two could have been lying down and waiting to die a few days ago. Looking at the current situation, you will still die, and maybe life will be worse than death, you might as well just lie down and give up now Everything, you can't climb up anyway!" "I will, even if I have only this stinky skin!" Sam said, "Even if it breaks my limbs, I will take Flo with my back. Get on your back Mr. Do. Don't talk about it!" At that moment, Sam felt the ground start to shake, and he could hear or feel the vibrations of the thunder imprisoned in the ground.A dull red light reflected off the low-hanging clouds and then disappeared, and the volcano seemed to be restless in its sleep. The last journey to Oroduin began, and Sam never thought he could bear such anguish.He was sore all over, and his mouth was so dry that he couldn't swallow any food.The sky was still dark, not only because of the smoke from the volcano, but also because it seemed that a storm was coming, and only the southeast sky still had a faint light.Worst of all, the air was filled with a foul smell, breathing became very painful and difficult, and the two became very unsteady on their feet, often falling to the ground.However, their will was unwavering and they still staggered forward. The volcano drew nearer, until at last, whenever they raised their heads, the towering and evil figure filled the sight; Let mortals just look at its smoky body in admiration.The day, which was indistinguishable from day to night, finally came to an end. When the real darkness fell, the two finally came to its feet. Frodo fell on the ground at once to rest, and Sam sat beside him, and he was surprised to find himself much lighter though tired, and his thoughts seemed clearer again, and there were no more doubts, no more doubts in his mind. argue.He already knew that in order to quench all possible reasons for his hope, he would not be swayed again.He knew that all the dangers would gather in front of him to a peak, and that the next day would be the finale of the end, the last scene of tragedy, and the struggle of the last day. But when exactly will it come?The night seemed to be endless, and the time passed by every minute, but there was still no change around.Sam began to wonder if the second overwhelming darkness had fallen again, and the day would never come again?At last he took Frodo's hand.The master's hands were icy and cold, trembling constantly. "I shouldn't have thrown the blanket away!" Sam muttered as he lay down and tried to warm his master with his body.Then, a drowsiness hit him, and he just fell asleep. The long-awaited day finally came. The breeze that had been extinguished before originally came from the west, but now it was blowing from the north, and its strength began to increase slowly.The invisible sun managed to penetrate the thick clouds and shine on the place where the two hobbits were hiding. "It's time! One last time!" Sam struggled to his feet.He bent over Frodo, rocking him softly.Frodo groaned, but struggled to his feet, but the last one wobbled and fell to his knees.He opened his eyes with difficulty, looked at the Doomsday Volcano in front of him, and began to climb forward using all four limbs. Sam looked at him, with tears in his heart, but his eyes had lost any fluid. "I say I'll carry him with a broken limb," he murmured, "I can do it!" "Come, Mr. Frodo!" he cried, "I cannot take the Ring for you, But I can carry you with it. Come! Come, Mr. Frodo! Sam will give you a ride. Tell him where to go, and he will go!" Frodo climbed onto his back, hands loose Hooked his arm, and firmly clamped Sam's waist with his legs.Sam stood up straight with difficulty, but was surprised to find that his master was not heavy. He was worried that he might not have enough strength to carry his master on his back, let alone bear the damned weight of the Lord of the Rings. However, the actual situation and his There is a great distance to imagination.Perhaps it was because of Frodo's torture along the way, the knife wounds on his body, the spider's venom, fear, sorrow and aimless trekking, which made him a lot lighter; perhaps it was the last reward for Sam in his desperate moment──Sam He picked up his master with ease, and he felt as if he was riding a horse and fighting with a child on the grasslands of Shire.He took a deep breath and embarked on the final journey. They had reached the point west of the north slope of the volcano, where the gray slopes were rough but not steep.Frodo was silent all the way, and Sam could only go on instinctively. He only knew to climb as far as possible before his will and body collapsed.He walked and climbed and climbed, sometimes having to make detours to avoid steep terrain.Finally, he became shambling, moving forward like a snail with a huge shell.When he could no longer arouse any thought of moving forward, and his limbs could no longer support him, he gently put his master down. Frodo opened his eyes and drew a breath.Their heights were free of the fetid smell and smoke, and breathing became easier. "Thank you, Sam," said Frodo in a hoarse voice, "how far?" "I don't know," said Sam, "for I don't know where we're going." He turned back to look The rear, and then looked up to the front, only to be surprised to find that the previous efforts had taken them so far.The isolated and towering situation makes the volcano look much taller than it actually is, but it is actually not much taller than Ifildus, which Sam and Frodo climbed. Its rocky base is about 3,000 feet high. , the volcanic cone on it is about half the height of the former, followed by the jagged crater that keeps emitting thick smoke.Sam had climbed halfway to the base, and the plains of Gorgoroth seemed rather small, all shrouded in smoke and shadow.When he raised his head to take a closer look, if his throat wasn't so dry, he almost wanted to yell in excitement.Because, on this rocky and uneven slope, he actually saw a road!It extends from the west, circles the volcano like a snake, and finally comes to the west of the volcano. Sam could not see exactly where the road was, for it was at the lowest point, hidden from his eyes by the steep slope.However, as far as he guessed, he could hit the road if he just went up a short distance.He had renewed hope that perhaps they could indeed climb to the top of the volcano. "Ha, there's a reason the way is there!" he said to himself. "If it weren't for that, I'm afraid I'd really be defeated." The road wasn't built for Sam, and he didn't know it. What is in front of you is Sauron's road from Barad-dur to Samathnaul, the Hall of Fire.The road started from the great west gate of the Black Tower, crossed the abyss by a great iron bridge, then passed two smoking pits, and followed the slope to the east of the volcano.From there, the route goes south and north around the entire volcano to a dark entrance in the upper part of the cone.It is still far away from the crater, but it can look directly at the most important window of the magic eye in Sauron Fortress.This road is often damaged or blocked by volcanic eruptions, but the orcs in large numbers will quickly repair the road. Sam took a deep breath, there was indeed a way in front of him, but he didn't know how to get over the slope, first he had to give his sore back a good rest.He lay beside Frodo, and both were silent.Slowly, the sky became brighter and brighter, but Sam suddenly felt an inexplicable sense of urgency. He seemed to hear someone shouting to him: "Hurry up, hurry up! Otherwise it will be too late!" He forced himself to stand When he got up, Frodo seemed to feel the call, and struggled to his knees. "I can crawl over, Sam," he gasped. Therefore, the two of them climbed up step by step like little bugs.They came to the road with great difficulty, and fortunately found that the road was paved with gravel and ashes, very flat, quite wide and easy to walk.Frodo stood up hard, but seemed to be lured by some kind of force, and slowly turned his head to look at the west.Sauron's shadow hangs high in the sky, but it seems to be disturbed by the wind blowing from the outside, or because of the chaos within himself──In short, the clouds in front of him begin to roll, revealing in an instant the extremely dark, towering, fortress of Balado. Steel Spire.The minaret only appeared for a moment, but it seemed that a dark red flame shot out from a very high place, it was the gaze of a blood-red evil eye.The evil eye is not looking at them, its target is in the north, on those western generals who dare to fight big with small things.All of its evil will is concentrated there, ready to deal the final, deadliest blow!But as soon as Frodo saw the sight, he fell as if mortally wounded, and his hand stretched involuntarily to the collar on his breast. Sam knelt beside him, and he could hear Frodo whisper weakly, "Sam, save me! Save me, Sam! Take my hand! I can't help it..." Sam took his hand, Close it up and kiss them.A thought came to him suddenly: "He has found us! It is all over, and soon. Sam Gange, this is the end of it all!" Sam picked up Frodo again, Let his hands hang on his chest, while the master's feet hang down weakly.Then Sam put his head down and fought his way up the slope.It's not as easy as he thought before. Fortunately, when Sam and Frodo were still in Sirius Ongol, most of the erupting magma flowed to the west and south slopes, and this side of the road was not blocked. block.However, there are still many falling rocks and huge cracks on the road. After climbing a certain distance to the east, it turned a big bend and continued to move west.The bend in the road cut right through a weather-beaten boulder, probably the result of a volcanic eruption countless eons ago.Sam, carrying a heavy burden on his back, panted around this big bend, and as he did so, he seemed to see something black falling from the boulder out of the corner of his eye, as if it had fallen from a cliff. stone. The sudden weight hit him, ripping the master's body from his back.At this moment, he immediately understood what happened, because a hateful voice came from his ear. "Damn master!" it hissed. "Damn master lied to us; lied to Sméagol, Gollum. He can't go over there. He can't spoil the treasure. Give it to Sméagol, hiss , Give it to us! Give it to us!" Sam stretched his hands and stood up desperately. He immediately drew out his sword, but he was helpless with the situation in front of him.Gollum and Frodo were entangled, and Gollum was tearing at his master, trying to hold on to the ring, and this was perhaps the only situation that could provoke a sluggish Frodo to fight back: the enemy's Attacking, trying to take the treasure from him.He fought back with a fury that surprised even Sam, and which even Gollum had not expected; but even so, it would not have made a difference if Gollum had been the same.However, Gollum had walked such a long and arduous journey under extreme desire and fear, and the torment brought by every minute and every second of it left traces on him.He became skinny, and only the loose skin around the skeleton was left on his body. There was a wild light in his eyes, but his strength was far from what it used to be.Frodo shook him off, and stood up trembling. "Get off, get off!" He cupped his chest, clutching the ring through his clothes. "Get off, you bastard, get out of my way! Your moment has passed.You can no longer betray me, or kill me! Suddenly, as in Eminmore, Sam saw the two men in a different form than they appeared: a cowering figure, a utterly defeated, pathetic creature with almost all life stripped from within. but filled with nothing but greedy desire and anger; and before him was a stern, unfeeling figure in a white robe, with a flame on his chest from which came an order voice──"Get out of here, don't hinder me anymore! If you dare to touch me again, you will fall into the flames of doom." The shrinking figure retreated, with fear in the twinkling eyes, but also At the same time full of incomparable longing. As suddenly as it had come, the image vanished, and Sam saw Frodo panting, hands on chest, and Gollum, kneeling on his hands, at his master's feet. "Watch out!" Sam yelled. "He's going to sneak up on you!" He rushed forward with his sword in hand. "Come on, master!" he said breathlessly. "Go on! Go on! There's no time. I'll deal with him, and you go first!" Frodo looked at him with a misty look in his eyes, as if he far away. "Yes, I must go on," he said: "Goodbye, Sam! This is the real end. On Mount Doom, the end will come. Goodbye!" He turned and continued up, head held high. "Finally!" said Sam, "I can deal with you at last!" He charged forward with his sword held high.But instead of rising, Gollum fell lower and began to groan. "Don't kill us," he sobbed, "don't kill us with that dreadful steel! Let us live, yes, just a little longer. Lost, lost! We're lost. When the baby is gone, We too will die, yes, will turn to ashes." He scratched the ground with his thin fingers. 「灰尘！」他嘶嘶的说道。 山姆的手开始颤抖，他愤怒的脑海中只想得起那邪恶的影像。杀死这个邪恶的生物并没有什么不对的，罪有应得的他根本早就该死许多次了，而且，这也是最安全的作法。但是，在他的内心深处似乎有什么东西阻止了他：眼前这个可怜兮兮、饱受煎熬、趴在地上的生物让他狠不下心。虽然只是短暂的几天，但他自己也曾经拥有过魔戒；现在，他勉强可以体会到咕鲁心身所受到的煎熬，他被魔戒所奴役，这辈子再也不可能知道什么叫作平安与祥和，山姆不知道该用什么话来描述现在的心情。 「喔，可恶，你这个臭家伙！」他说：「走开！离开这里！我不相信你，你还是赶快走吧。 不然我真的会伤害你，是的，用这个可怕的钢铁伤害你。」咕鲁四肢着地的退了几步，接着转过身；正当山姆准备赏他一脚时，他一溜烟的沿着小径逃跑了。山姆不再管他，他突然间想起了主人。他抬头看着眼前的道路，却看不见主人的踪影，他拔腿就跑，想要赶快追上佛罗多。不过，如果他这时回过头，就会发现咕鲁又转过身来，眼中冒着疯狂的光芒，疲倦但却快速地跟在后面，像是道阴影般敏捷地在岩石间穿梭。 道路继续往上攀升，很快的，它就往东又转了一次，沿着火山锥的顶部绕向山侧的幽黑大门，也就是萨马斯瑙尔的入口。太阳从远方升起，穿越了一切烟雾和障碍，发出暗红色的光芒；但火山四周的魔多大地却依然死气沉沉，彷佛都在屏息等待那致命的一击落下。 山姆大口喘气的看向门内，门内又黑又热，隐隐然有种沉闷的响声传出。「佛罗多！主人！ 」他大喊着，里面没有回应。他呆立在门口，心中忐忑不安，接着一头闯了进去，一个影子紧跟在后面。 一开始他什么也看不见，在这急迫的时刻，他抽出了凯兰崔尔的星光，但是，在他颤抖的手中，这东西不再射出足以穿透黑暗的光芒。他来到了索伦国度的核心，这是在他全盛时期所使用的熔炉，也是他力量最强大的地方，在这里，一切其他的力量都必须低头退让。他在黑暗中恐惧地往前走了几步，突然间一道红光往上冲，撞上了高处的洞顶。这时，山姆才发现自己原来是在火山锥中的一个隧道内，在前方不远之处有许多裂隙，这也是红光的来源。刺眼的红光有时大盛，有时又黯淡的退回黑暗中；同时，洞穴中还充满了彷佛是巨大机器运转的低沉隆隆声响。 光芒再度大盛，就在末日裂隙的边缘，站着佛罗多孤单的身影，他浑身僵硬、动也不动，彷佛已经被化为石像。 「主人！」山姆大喊道。 佛罗多抽搐了一下，用十分清楚的声音说话了；事实上，这声音比佛罗多以前所用过的声音都要清楚、都要有力。那声音在末日火山的洞穴中，以惊天动地的气势朗声说道： 「我来了，」他说：「但我决定不执行我来此的目的──我不做了，魔戒是我的！」突然间，当他正准备将魔戒套上时，他消失在山姆的视线中。山姆倒抽一口冷气，但他还没时间惊呼出声，因为就在那一瞬间，许多事情发生了。 在远方，当佛罗多戴上魔戒，宣布接收它的力量时，即使这是在黑暗国度的核心火焰之厅，巴拉多的力量也大为震动，邪黑塔从地基到塔尖都开始剧烈的震汤。黑暗魔君突然间意识到了对方的存在，邪眼穿透所有的阴影，越过平原，来到他自己打造的门前。一瞬间，他自己的愚昧和疏忽都显露在火光下，敌人的计谋也全都被揭穿了！他的怒火骤然暴升，但恐惧也如同致命的黑烟一般让他窒息，因为，他知道现在他命悬一线、权倾天下的国度可能在瞬间土崩瓦解。 他的意志从所有的计谋、一切的陷阱、四周的战场和将领的心中撤离了；整个国度都为此震撼不已，他的奴隶惊慌恐惧，部队停止前进，将领失去了鞭策、操弄他们的力量，只感到无比绝望，因为他们被遗忘了！魔王用来掌控、监视他们的全部力量，都转而投入末日火山中。在他的召唤下，戒灵们惨嚎一声，用比风还快的速度急速回防，绝望地想赶回这一切危机的根源。 山姆站了起来，他觉得头晖目眩，伤口中的血液流进他眼中，他奋力往前一扑，却看见了一个奇怪而恐怖的景象──站在深渊边缘的咕鲁，正在和一个隐形的敌人搏斗；他不停地前后摇晃着，在这么靠近裂隙的地方，他有几次险些摔落火山中。他摔倒在地上，立刻爬起来，接着又摔倒；在这段过程中，他只是不停的发出嘶嘶声，一句话也不说。 底下的火焰愤怒地苏醒过来，红光照耀着整个洞穴，四周全都被染得一片血红、酷热难耐。 山姆突然间看见咕鲁的手移近他的嘴巴，白森森的利齿一闪，迅即一咬──佛罗多惨叫一声，紧接着就现出身形，跪倒在深渊的边缘。咕鲁则像是疯了一般高举着魔戒，在深渊的边缘狂舞着，戒指中还连着一根血淋淋手指……魔戒发出刺眼的光芒，彷佛它是由纯粹的火焰所打造而成的。 「宝贝，宝贝！宝贝！」咕鲁大喊着：「我的宝贝！喔，我的宝贝！」正当他全心全意都在欣赏手上的战利品时，不慎一脚踏了空，在裂隙边缘试图保持平衡，拼命挥舞着双手；最后，尖叫着落了下去──从那深渊中传来他最后一声凄厉的宝贝，然后一切都消失了……一阵怒吼，和极为混乱的众多声响交杂在一起，火焰激射而出，舔食着洞顶；原先的波动成了惊人的巨震，整座火山不停地摇晃。山姆跑到佛罗多身边，扶着他奔出门外，就在那萨马斯瑙尔的门口，俯瞰着魔多平原的地方，他感到无比震撼与恐惧，呆立着望向远方──他的眼前掠过一道狂卷的乌云，在那之中是高塔和要塞，与山丘一样高，座落在一座陡峭的高山顶，俯瞰着许多的洞穴，有极大的广场和地牢，不见天日、犯人插翅难飞的监狱，钢铁和精金打造的大门……然后，一切都消逝了。高塔崩垮，高山落下，墙壁粉碎融化、跌落地面，浓密的烟尘和雾气冲天直上，直到顶端撞击到高空，又如同暴雨一般落洒回地面……最后，大地传来了闷响，渐渐转变成怒吼，地动山摇，平原炸开了多处裂口，欧洛都因喷发了！火焰从它的顶端直冲云霄，天空中雷鸣电闪，滂沱的黑雨如同洪水一般直灌而下……在这风暴的正中心，戒灵们像是利箭一般撕裂云层和浓烟，却如同大地一般剥落、熔融，消失在空气中。 「山姆·詹吉，看来这就是结局了！」一个声音从山姆身边冒出来，脸色苍白的佛罗多就站在那边，却已经恢复了正常，他的眼中只剩下祥和，没有压抑、没有疯狂、没有恐惧。他的重担已经卸下了，这又是山姆在夏尔时最亲爱的主人了。 「主人！」山姆大喊着跪了下来。在这天崩地裂的关头，他只觉得兴奋、无比的愉悦。重担毁灭了，主人得救了，恢复正常了，他自由了！接着，山姆才注意到那只流血的手。 「你的手哪！」他说：「我没有东西可以包扎，连上药也不行。我宁愿用自己的一整只手跟他换。不过，他已经走了，永远的离开了。」「是的，」佛罗多说：「你还记得甘道夫说的话吗？即使咕鲁，都可能还有他的使命要完成。 山姆，如果没有他，我根本不可能摧毁魔戒。整个任务可能会前功尽弃，甚至是落到悲惨的下场。我们就原谅他吧！任务已经完成了，一切都结束了。我很高兴你在我身边，山姆，这是一切事物的终结。 "