Chapter 8
When she awoke the sun had risen high in the sky, Gloin had gotten a fire going and many of the dwarves lay scattered around the fire asleep. Thorin, Gandalf and Bilbo sat around the fire conversing silently. Nymeria did a double take.
"Bilbo!" she shouted in surprise, waking Kili as she shot up to go see him. Her back complained as she bent over to hug him.
"Master Baggins," Kili said from his place astounded, "We thought you were lost." Bilbo then went on to tell the story of how he had been overlooked when they had been taken captive and his adventure to get out of the mountain. Nymeria smiled at the hobbit. They are so small yet they hold such surprise, she thought, their commotion had awoken most of the dwarves. Many of them rose grumbling and wiping the sleep from their eyes.
"We should get going," Thorin grumbled, "We've lingered here far too long." Gandalf nodded, this time not challenging Thorin. However he still had Nymeria slip off the jacket so he could look at her wounds. She shivered when she took it off, she hadn't looked at it thoroughly but it was lined with fur and small. Unusually small for a dwarf. She could hear Gandalf muttering behind her in confusion.
"What is it?" she asked.
"This isn't right, your cuts should be almost nonexistent and your burns in much better condition than they are now," he muttered. Balin at the same time was unwrapping Kili's bandages and let out a yelp of surprise.
"How…this is amazing," he exclaimed.
"What is it?" Thorin strode over and Balin held up Kili's hand for all to see. The burn was sufficiently healed, not completely, but almost so. Gandalf glared at Nymeria.
"Foolish girl," he scolded, "You don't know what the consequences of your actions are. However you should be able to wear your armor without any pain." Balin was now slowly working with Kili's arm, judging its condition which was also amazing.
Nymeria smiled coyly to herself. Slowly she unwound some ivy from its tangled mess in a patch on the edge of camp. She began twisting it together to make a strong twine. She watched Kili pick up his bow, load it successfully, and shoot an arrow into the trunk of a tree. He dropped the bow with a yelp from a pain in his hand and Balin quickly rebound it.
"We should count our blessings that you can still shoot," he counseled moving to tend to Fili's cuts. Nymeria slowly began to tie her armor; she winced from the pain as the straps tightened across the burn and some of the deeper cuts. However she successfully managed to wear it, though her burn complained when she moved too quickly and the leather rubbed against it. She buckled her sword and knife on, and slipped into Bofur's coat. It fell to just below her butt, the soft fur inside felt soothing against her skin. She pushed up the sleeves around her elbows. She swung her bow and quiver over her shoulder, once more prepared for another day on the road, even if it lacked a meal.
Bruised, battered, and as tired as they were, the company pressed on into the woods. Nymeria walked next to Fili, a new appreciation had dawned on their relationship. She had saved his brother, and he had helped her get out of goblin town. It was a bond cemented through paid debts. But curiosity gnawed at her insides, eager to know who the mysterious "defiler" was. Thorin had looked close to terrified of the opponent, and Nymeria knew he was not one to be easily frightened. The dragon that lurked in Erebor did not scare him, but this mysterious creature did. Perhaps I should shake its hand. She chuckled to herself, Thorin was hiking along at the head of the group-as usual-brooding and frowning.
She quickened her pace to draw even with him. His eyes flicked to the side when she was next to him. She smiled at him but he continued glaring ahead.
"Do you ever smile?" she asked, "Frowning all the time will do you no good." His stare kept to Gandalf's back who was leading them. She sighed, "Who was the Goblin King talking about? Who is this 'defiler'?"
"Do you never stop asking questions?" he muttered.
"I'm going to live for quite a long time, and knowledge is interesting so I try to fill my life with it," she replied moving in front of him so he had to look at her. She walked backwards but his stare seemed to go right through her.
"It's none of your business," Thorin grumbled pushing her aside, gently but forcefully.
"You know my history, fair being fair I would be entitled to hear some of yours," she reasoned, he glowered at her again muttering something under his breath, "How about this, I get three questions. Each one you must answer completely, no fancy tricks."
"Tricks are for the elves, and I don't play games like this." He growled, Nymeria fumed for a moment in silence. Why is he being so difficult? It's a simple question! She thought, but then she recalled the betrayals he had gone through and how she herself also preferred to play her cards to her vest.
"Just tell me, is it likely I'm going to have to fight someone with a very strong grudge soon?" she asked.
"Yes."
"Then I shall have to learn more," she announced, "I make a point to know my enemy."
"He's not your enemy he's mine," Thorin rumbled.
"From what little I've gathered it sounds like if he found you he wouldn't leave the rest of our company to our business, and just settle his bitterness with you. Therefore as a member of my company it is my duty to defend those in my companionship and you as my leader," she specified, adopting his demeanor of staring straight ahead. She sensed him give in to her want.
"Azog the Defiler or-as others know him-The Pale Orc fought in the army of orcs that my people waged war with after we lost Erebor and tried to reclaim the Mines of Moria. That day he beheaded my grandfather Thror, who was King Under the Mountain. That day he swore to end the Line of Durin; my father went missing soon after we presume he is dead. Azog was quick to attack me but I fatally wounded him. We won that war and I presumed him to be dead," Thorin detailed, his voice was absent of any emotion, not that it ever had much anyway.
"He sounds a formidable foe. I pray that we will not have to face him," she murmured overcome by the tragedy of the story.
"Your prayers would do nothing; he will tear through anything in his way to achieve his vendetta." The words seemed to curl from his mouth like ominous smoke.
Kili couldn't believe the feeling in his arm. It had pained him terribly when they fled goblin town and his hand had been unbearable. When Balin had been bandaging his hand and shoulder he had warned Kili of the very likely possibility that his abilities with a bow would never be as they were. He had gone to sleep terrified of what the morning would have brought but he awoke with the aching in his shoulder gone and the burns on his hand painless and near healed.
For all his pains he could not imagine Nymeria's wounds. The Goblin King had been smart to use her, any longer and he would have given up anything. She was getting along better with Fili, he was glad to see the tension between them disappeared. Things were finally getting better, but he couldn't shake the feeling of foreboding that gripped his heart. The Goblin King's words had shaken his uncle; he moved the group along with an odd intensity as if he was running from something. Kili had not been born when the dwarves of Erebor returned to reclaim Moria but he had heard stories. When his uncle had fought Azog with a piece of an oak tree and a sword, and led his people to a costly victory.
"Is something bothering you?" Fili asked, "You're being very quiet, I thought you would be ecstatic about your arm."
"I am," Kili defended, "But what the Goblin King said is bothering me. The things he said about Azog the Defiler not being dead."
"Goblins lie."
"But, if he was telling the truth that means Azog could be hunting us right now! It would explain why those orcs attacked us on the road."
"Brother, you have never worried about things past, don't begin now," Fili said wrapping his arm around Kili's shoulders, "Besides, Uncle Thorin is not the last in The Line of Durin anymore. If the Goblin King was telling the truth Azog will have two more fighters to deal with." He playfully pushed Kili and for a moment the feeling left him. But it soon returned and lingered in his stomach. Kili watched Nymeria who was talking to Thorin up ahead. Her hair was in a bun instead of its normal free style. Kili longed to cradle her like the night she had a nightmare and run his fingers through her hair. She turned and walked back to stride at his side. Kili looked around, sadly they were too close to the head of the group for him to hold her hand, but he could sense her close to him. Every now and then her fingertips would brush against his.
"How is your burn feeling?" Kili asked trying to fill the silence that echoed between them.
"It stings every now and then but it's not too bad," she answered. He couldn't hide his guilt. It was his fault she had gotten that.
"Nymeria," she turned her neck to look at him, her eyes pierced him with a searching worry, "I'm sorry, it's my fault."
"Shut up," she said cutting him off, "It is not your fault; that lies with the goblin who wielded the bar. It's the goblin who took pleasure in his own dark duty," she murmured cupping his cheek and gently running her thumb over the cut on his cheekbone. Her skin felt so smooth; he leaned in to it. She dropped her hand, its ghost still lingered on his face.
"It never was and never will be your fault." He smiled at her and she returned it, but an ominous howl broke the perfect moment.
"What was that?" Thorin asked, the sun was setting now streaks of reds and oranges were filling the sky with their fire.
"A wolf?" Bilbo echoed.
"It's too early," Bofur called. Nymeria disappeared from Kili's side scaling a tree as if it were a ladder. He watched her prepared to catch her should she fall.
"Go! Run!" she shouted, nearly falling from her haste to get down. Kili felt her arm grasp his upper arm dragging him along.
"What! What is it?" He begged seizing her other arm, trying to hold her steady. She seemed like an animal backed into a corner the pieces of hair falling from her tight bun were not helping the look.
"Orcs on wargs; they're coming this way!" she cried. Kili looked at his uncle whose eyes were growing wide, he charged Kili and Nymeria. He tore Nymeria from Kili's grasp shaking her he shouted, "Who was leading them? Tell me who was leading them!" Then things grew very quiet, the sound of the wargs barking could be heard far off, but they were coming closer. But the only words anyone heard were the words that came out of Nymeria's mouth.
"There's a giant white orc on a white warg at the front of the pack," she said.
"We must hurry," Gandalf ordered, but the dwarves needed no other reason. Thorin closed his fingers around Kili's arm; they felt like talons as he began to run. The company bolted through the forest dodging tree and bush alike. The sound of the wargs just came louder and got closer and closer. Kili checked behind him and saw Bilbo falling behind, the small hobbit couldn't keep up with their pace. Thorin still had an iron grip on his arm, but Kili wrenched it free. He heard his uncle shout for him as he doubled back to the hobbit.
"Get on my back!" he shouted bending over. He felt the hobbit wrap his arms around his neck and he took off running. He could hear the wargs crashing through the undergrowth, but the sound pushed him to go faster. He raced ahead into the thick middle of the group. Gandalf hurried at the front but came to a sliding stop when the trees grew thin and dread gripped Kili's stomach. They were at the edge of a cliff.
The ground ended in a point extended in the air over a valley far below. A few sparse pine trees grew in the area and one held onto the edge only by the strength of its roots. Just then the sound of the Orcs guttural language could be heard faintly. To think we only just escaped the goblins to be torn to pieces by the orcs, he thought letting Bilbo down.
"Get in the trees," Gandalf commanded. He turned and began climbing one himself, Thorin looked at him like he was insane but Kili saw the pros of the plan. He and Fili began climbing the nearest tree. The bark scraped against his bandage making his burn flare up and the nettles rained down on his face, but he pushed on higher and higher into the tree. Nymeria followed him into the tree after pushing Bilbo in first. No sooner had her feet cleared the first few branches of the tree the wargs came bursting through the woods. Three of them charged the tree clawing at the bark, trying to climb up and reach them. He watched Nymeria's face turn feral as she leaned down and snarled at them. Something about her scared him when she turned her face; it was like a piece of the creature he loved was being replaced by some chaotic beast. As the beast retreated from her face she faced him, balanced so precariously on one branch, her hand darted out and gripped his. She leaned as close to him as she could without falling and he felt her breath on his face, her hair had become even more disheveled, it tickled his skin.
"If he calls you out please don't be brave, please," she begged, Kili was taken aback by the vulnerability but his thoughts were quieted when she pressed her lips against his. She pulled away after what felt like so few seconds. By now more wargs had come out of the woods and their orc shepherds on their mounts were making their appearances.
Then Azog appeared; his warg was a ghostly white with blood red eyes. The orc himself was unusually large, no doubt he was of the Uruk-hai breed. His skin was a sickly alabaster; deep running marks ran through his skin. His left arm ended at the elbow, a metal claw served for a hand. Kili checked on his uncle who shared Gandalf's tree that stood on the edge of the cliff. His uncle's eyes never left Azog, he watched him like a bomb that would go off any second. The orc surveyed the treed dwarves with amusement, he began speaking in his native language another language Kili had been forbidden to learn, but he heard the names of his grandfather and great grandfather. Coming from the orc's gravelly deep voice they sounded like vermin. Nymeria's eyes were growing wider in fear,
"What is it?" he asked, but her eyes remained focused on Azog, "Nymeria!" he shouted shaking her.
"I never should have learned that language," she whispered not looking at him, "I don't speak this dialect but… oh gods save us."
"What? What is he saying?" Fili asked.
"He's challenging your uncle, can Thorin speak orcish?" she asked, Kili looked to his uncle who, still in the tree, wasn't moving. Just then Azog raised his mace and pointed it at Kili's tree a malevolent grin spread across his face.
"Lovari," his voice echoed around the clearing. He barked an order to the rider-less wargs who resumed their attack on the trees. This time though they pushed at the trunks of the trees. Some dug at the stony dirt, unearthing the tree's roots. The tree that held Ori, Nori, and Dori went first. It began tipping over towards the next tree that held Bifur, Bofur, and Bombur. At that moment Kili's own world began tipping to the side. He braced himself as he leapt to the next tree that held Oin and Gloin. Fili followed and Nymeria swung Bilbo onto a branch before jumping herself. The force of their former tree turned against them, pushing their current tree over. Soon the entire company was in the tree on the very edge of the cliff.
Kili prayed they would be safe here but the wargs were relentless and began to push at the tree. Growls and yips of frustration filled the air when the roots would not budge. Suddenly something bright and flaming flew from high up in the tree. It hit the ground right behind a dark brown warg and exploded, burning the warg's back with blue fire. The creature let out a yelp of pain and abandoned his post, rolling around in the dirt to put out the flames. Kili looked up to see Gandalf performing some kind of magic upon pine cones. He dropped one down to Fili who immediately threw it. Soon they were raining fire down upon the wargs. Sparks and smoke filled the air and the knocked over trees began to catch fire.
However one brave warg charged the tree, slammed its body into the tree, and danced away before one of their pine cones could catch it. The last push was all the tree could take and with a great creaking it began to tip over the edge. Kili locked eyes with Nymeria for what he was sure to be the last time, but the tree stopped, hanging parallel to the valley floor far below. He wrapped his arms around the branch he had formerly been standing on, grunting from the weight of his own body threatening to pull him from safety.
He could hear shouts as some of the other dwarves struggled to hold on to the tree. He looked back to the clearing where Azog and the other orcs watched in amusement. Some of them even cackled at the dwarf's predicament. Smoke was stinging at Kili's eyes and making them water, Fili clung to a nearby branch. Kili felt his heart sink like a stone when his uncle stood up, cautiously he began picking his way down the trunk when his uncle stood on solid ground he drew Orcrist and it hit Kili what his uncle was about to do.
"No! What are you doing? Uncle, No!" Kili shouted fighting to pull his body up on to the trunk so he could stop him. His muscles screamed from the strain and he almost lost his grip on the branch that kept him from falling. His uncle raised Orcrist and his famous oak shield and charged the orc. Azog returned the challenge charging him whilst mounted. Kili watched in horror as Azog swung his mace catching Thorin's shield. The metal bit into the wood and flipped Thorin on to his back. It felt as though Kili was watching the events through water, everything moved much slower than it should; Azog turned his beast around and it clamped Thorin between its powerful jaws, tightly squeezing. It shook its head like Thorin was some kind of rag doll. Orcrist flew from his hand and his shield fell from his arm. With a great toss of its head the beast released Thorin sending him flying into the trunk of a tree. It felt as though Kili's heart was being torn to pieces as he watched his beloved uncle lie in a heap at the foot of the tree.
"Get up," Kili whispered with a boyish hope that his uncle would be alright. But his uncle did not move. Azog turned to another orc and issued a command. The orc dismounted and pulled a knife from his belt, approaching Thorin's body. But at that moment the orc screamed in pain as he fell to the ground. A small creature jumped on top of him and proceeded to stab him. When the orc lay dead Kili was flabbergasted to see Bilbo, small, afraid, gentle Bilbo, speckled with the black blood standing in front of his uncle's body, sword pointed at the orcs.
"I will use this if I have to!" he shouted his voice shaking. Kili heard rustling and looked to Nymeria who was dropping her weapons at the foot of the upended tree. She sprinted across the clearing her shape changing, face elongating. She quickly dropped to all fours and soon enough a silvery she-warg stood behind Bilbo standing defensively over Thorin's body. Her head curled over Bilbo's shoulder and a low deep growl accompanied the sound of the flames in the air. The firelight glowed off of her fur turning it a pale gold, making it look as if she wore golden armor.
Azog seemed angered by the two getting in the way of his revenge. He shouted an order to the rider-less wargs who, with a great snarl dashed towards Bilbo. Nymeria leapt over the hobbit, engaging the creatures in battle. The night soon filled with their snarls, one jumped onto her back exposing its teeth to bite her neck. With a quick shake of her shoulders the warg was thrown off her back and she finished him with a bite to the neck. Kili was in total awe; though outnumbered she matched each creature. Then a great screech pierced the air and giant eagles swooped down from the sky. Some attacked the orcs and wargs; Azog turned tail and ran into the woods his companions following.
"Coward!" Fili called. One of the eagles knocked the tree and all of the dwarves on it were shaken from their grip. Kili felt the air rush through his hair as weightlessness filled him. He reached out for his brother who grasped his hand. There are worse ways to die, he thought, but the brown feathered back of an eagle appeared beneath them, rescuing them from their fall. Kili whipped his head around to look back at the clearing. The colored fires still burned and Nymeria was diving off the cliff, weapons in hand. White wings exploded from her back allowing her to drift onto the back of another eagle. Every member of the company was saved, but whether the eagles were friend or foe was still a question to be asked and answered.
