Another Man's Trash by Uvatha the Horseman

Chapter 2 - Enchanted Foundations

Chapter 2 - Enchanted Foundations (not)

Barad-dûr loomed just beyond the slender bridge. Saruman longed to enter the Tower, right this minute, and search for the the last bit of Ringlore that he, for all his skill, hadn't been able to discover on his own.

One thing held him back. He didn't trust Tower to remain standing. It was heavier than the bedrock beneath it could support, so it sat on enchanted foundations. With the enchantments broken, the Tower shouldn't be standing at all. If he could see the foundations up close, he might form a sense of the risk.

"Worm, I need to look at something."

He led the way across the bridge, carefully looking not to look at the drop into the chasm below. At the foot of the stone steps, he veered off to skirt the base of the Tower, stepping around and over the many boulders that blocked his path.

The day grew warmer, and the space between the Fortress and the cliff narrowed until it was barely wide enough to walk on. Saruman put a hand on the wall for balance. It occurred to him that he was actually touching the walls of Barad-dûr. It gave him a thrill.

Saruman didn't know what to expect of the foundations. He imagined them as made of steel. As a smith, he'd often cast the spell to turn fragile iron into strong and flexible steel. The spell was easily broken by putting the piece back in the fire, leaving it too soft to hold an edge or as brittle as glass.

The foundations should have warped or shattered by now, heaving the walls out of alignment or knocking them down entirely. Yet the base of the Tower looked solid and undisturbed. Saruman studied the walls for cracks. There were none.

They reached the westernmost tip of the promontory. The western wall perched on the edge of the cliff. Saruman judged the westernmost wall to be the least-well supported part of the Tower's base. If the foundations failed, they would fail here.

Saruman looked deep into the earth beneath the Fortress. As an earth spirit, he could see through soil and rock. He peered beyond the sand and gravel into the layers of rock under the Tower. The deepest layer, an ancient basalt, appeared dark gray when viewed though the younger rock above it.

The foundations, level slabs set into the bedrock, were an unhealthy color, like the flesh of a sea creature. They looked as if they were rotting. The unimaginable weight of the Tower had sunk into them like a thumbprint in clay, but the massive structure hadn't begun to tip.

"I think it's safe to go in," said Saruman.

They retraced their steps to the bridge. Saruman trudged in silence. Thorn bushes grew between the boulders. Every few minutes, he had to yank the hem of his robe free of them.

He knew he'd have no trouble recognizing what he'd come here for. He read magical notation as easily as text, and he'd have no trouble recognizing Sauron's handwriting. Anything Sauron had written about Ringlore would jump out at him.

The problem was, the base of Barad-dûr was big as a city, and he didn't have a map. He'd never even heard anyone describe how it was laid out.

His eye traveled up the pillar of stone that rose high above the rest of the Fortress. The top of that watchtower would be an excellent place to house a Palantir since they saw furthest from a great height. Until his own Palantir was lost, Saruman had spoken with Sauron on the Palantir most days.

It was safe to assume Sauron spent hours a day at the top of the watchtower. And since it was virtually inaccessible, he might have used it as a place to store his most important papers.

He had a plan. It was simple, and almost sure to work. He'd go inside, climb until he reached the top of that slender pillar, then look for Sauron's notes on Ring-making. While he was up there, he'd take the Palantir to replace the one he'd lost.

The bridge appeared around the next turn, and then they were on the stairs leading to the main gates. Excitement rushed over him.

"Come on, Worm. We're going in."

Worm froze on the bottom step. Saruman gripped his servant's arm and tried to pull him along. Worm struggled to get loose.

"You can't make me go in there. It's creepy."

"It's Barad-dûr. Of course it's creepy." Saruman released his grip. Worm wrenched free and backed away. "Fine. Leave me. Go set up camp." He pointed up the slope. "Do you see that flat patch? Make camp there."

"Why so far away?" asked Worm.

"Because if the Tower comes down, we don't want to end up under the debris."

"You mean it could fall on the Elvish encampment? Aren't you going to warn them?" asked Worm.

"Maybe later."