"RING OF DARKNESS" by Nick Perumov
A continuation of J.R.R.Tolkien’s "Lord of the Rings" – Middle-Earth 300 years later.
Book 1: "The Elven Blade"
Summary by Nadya Neklioudova. Version 1. Free translation; I tried as best as I could to keep up with the style but I apologize if it doesn't match or sound right... And please excuse all spelling mistakes, they will be corrected.
This is only a translation-summary of the book by a fan, for fans. It is written by Nick Perumov, as stated above. Published in Russian by "Severo-Zapad" ("North-West") in St-Petersburg, Russia in 1993. Please don’t sue me, I gave all the credits and I’m not copying the work, I’m only translating/summarizing it. But if anyone finds any copyright infringement on this and wants this offline immediately – please send email to kaoru-k@usa.net and I will take it off immediately unless some great disaster happens, but please don’t sue me. I AM NOT MAKING ANY MONEY OF ANY KIND OFF THIS. This is only a free translation/summary for fans, by a fan. And please don’t copy my work and say it’s yours either, or I’ll sue you. :)
Part 1
Chapter 2 – "In Search of the Pony" (SUMMARY)
Folco, who was peacefully sleeping in the Library, was awakened by his Uncle Paladin who began twisting his ear and reprimanding him with notations of how a Brandybuck should not lose a perfectly good pony. Thorin decided to take action when Uncle Paladin twisted poor Folco’s ear too hard and the hobit yelped. The dwarf blamed the disappearance of the pony on himself as it was he who scared it away when he bumped into Folco. After introducing himself, he grabbed Uncle Paladin’s arm and twisted it away from Folco’s crimson ear. Thorin, not too pleased, offered to pay for the pony – but of course, ended up paying four times the price of the pony because Uncle Paladin was just the money-grabbing scrooge Thorin hoped to avoid. Uncle Paladin, with eyes glittering at the thought of getting 6 gold coins, asked as politely as a fat old crab could what the "utterly-respected dwarf" is doing in the Shire. Thorin explained that he was sent here to sell the best and newest goods dwarves make to the Shire people, so he had to talk about prices with the elder of Brandy-Hall – only such a lie would get Uncle Paladin off his case. Thorin offered that when he and Folco find the missing pony, he would pay Uncle Paladin 4 gold coins for not scolding Folco, but Uncle Paladin jacks up the price to 6 gold coins because of "all the loss of honor his family would suffer for losing a pony like the peasants in Hobbiton." The dwarf paid the money more than unwillingly, and Uncle Paladin offers for Thorin to explain what "best and newest goods" he is selling at the Brandybuck Council.
Three hours passed before Thorin finally got away from the council, saying that "it is better to work with a pickaxe all day that listen to them." Folco complains about his swollen ear and says that "he’ll get even with his Uncle yet", and they leave in search of the pony.
The hobbit and the dwarf walked and walked to the north-east, as the landscape changed to having more and more forests. They questioned the hobbits there who knew nothing about the loss of the "much valued Brandybuck property", and Thorin "wished many times to himself that the foolish piece of meat would get into absent in the Shire wolves’ stomachs, and the sooner the better."
As the sun passed middday and the pony was not yet found, Thorin told the hobbit about his people, about the beautiful Annuminas, as they came to yet another ravine. They found the pony’s hoofprints in the mud by a river below, so they followed it upstream. The ravine led straight to the east, and Folco said that any minute now the Hedge will appear, and they only hoped to catch the runaway pony there.
After a quick lunch, Folco felt something or someone behind him and, while Thorin dozed off, caught a tiny thing not bigger than from a hobbit’s hand to his elbow. Thorin identified the thing as a Nidding (a small dwarf-like thing), as he knows their kind "well, almost too well", and explained that they live in old dwarven mines and sometimes even in orc caves. Some "not-too-smart dwarves use them as spies, but most dwarves wouldn’t give a penny for them." They sat the War of the Ring out somewhere in the Misty Mountains... at this Thorin decides to question the Nidding in his own tongue. He finds out (after deciphering many of the little critter’s lies and threatening him) that he was sent here, along with 5 others (who ran away at the sight of Thorin and Folco), to find any remaining orcs in Isengard, the ones ruled by the White Hand! Someone is collecting the remaining few of those who serve the Dark Lord (or Saruman..anything evil)!
They decide to carry the captured Nidding with them, and present him to the King’s Steward in Annuminas.
They finally come across the Hedge – but it’s in a pitiful state, half-broken and rotting, none of the hobbits bothered to keep it up. No wonder all these critters like the Niddings are coming to them unseen.
They stepped beyond the Shire border, and found the pony whose reins got tangled in a bush. They turned back, let the pony carry the bag with the Nidding, and on the way back wondered who could possibly be collecting the remains of evil, as evening descended upon the Shire. Folco gave the pony back to Uncle Paladin (who muttered for the first time that Folco isn't as useless as he looks) when they got back, and, after accommodating the thoroughly tied-up Nidding in a corner of his room, the hobbit fell asleep like a log.
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