Meanwhile, Frodo and Sam have become lost among the pathless hills of the Emyn Muil. They realize that Gollum is following them and manage to capture the corrupt creature. Despite Sam's misgivings, Frodo bargains with Gollum for guidance to the Black Gate of Mordor. Gollum agrees and leads them out of the hills and through the Dead Marshes, a haunted swamp. When they reach the Black Gate, Frodo and Sam despair of passing the constant guard but resolve to make the attempt. Gollum, however, begs them to take another way — a secret passage that only he knows. Desperate, Frodo agrees, and they turn aside from the gate.
Traveling toward the pass of Cirith Ungol, the hobbits discover a surprisingly pleasant countryside. When they pause for a stewed rabbit dinner, however, they find themselves in the middle of a battle between an army journeying to Mordor and a company of Gondorian men. Gollum sneaks off, but the hobbits are captured by the men. The Gondorians lead them to a secret base, where they learn that the men's captain is Faramir, Boromir's younger brother. Faramir realizes their quest and their burden, but he does not attempt to take the Ring from Frodo. With Frodo's help, he does capture Gollum, an action that breaks the fragile trust that had begun to form between the two Ringbearers. Faramir advises the travelers against the path they have chosen, but he can suggest no alternative ways into Mordor.
After leaving Faramir, the hobbits make their way past Minas Morgul, the home of the Black Riders. They take a hidden path into the mountains behind the fortress, a path made of steep staircases and tunnels bored through the rock. At the top of the stairs, the hobbits find themselves in a reeking tunnel clogged with tough webs. This is the lair of Shelob, a giant evil spider with an insatiable appetite. Gollum hopes to recover the Ring from the remains of Frodo and Sam, after Shelob has eaten them. With the aid of Galadriel's gift, a phial containing the pure light of elven stars, they escape Shelob's tunnel, but she attacks again from another angle and stings Frodo. Sam drives her from Frodo's fallen body, but he finds his master cold and lifeless. Nearly incapacitated by grief, Sam forces himself take the Ring from Frodo and continue the quest.
