Taking charge of the Fellowship (comprising nine representatives of the free peoples of Middle-earth, "set against the Nine Riders"), Gandalf and Aragorn lead the Hobbits and their companions south. After an unsuccessful attempt to cross Mount Caradhras in winter due to harsh conditions, they cross under the mountains through the Mines of Moria, though only Gimli the Dwarf is enthusiastic about that route. In Moria, they discover that the dwarf colony established there earlier by Balin has been annihilated by orcs. The Fellowship fights with the orcs and trolls of Moria and escape them.