C11: Defying Gravity

Druili felt hands grab at her from the sides, but she defiantly didn't recoil. She instead tried to bite the fingers that reached towards her. She and the company began to listen to the disastrous song the Goblin King had begun to chant and his eager crowd listen to, cheering and jeering.

"Bones will be shattered,
Necks will be wrung!
You'll be beaten and battered,
From racks, you'll be hung,
You will die down here and never be found!
Down in the deep of Goblin-town!"

The minions began to descend again and Druili was jostled and shook.
"Don't let them get to her." Dwalin hissed out and tried his best to stand his ground.
"I can look after myself," she turned to him quickly and made sure the others heard her also, "you lot...you lot protect yourselves for me. Do you understand?" She saw Kili grabbed suddenly and they began to shove and move him away. Her fists clenched in anticipation as another approached her.

Suddenly, a shriek and a loud clatter drew the attention away from the company, momentarily. The King recoiled close to his throne and his minions even backed away from the item that had been thrown on the floor.
Thorin' sword, the one that he would have discarded in the cave due it's Elvin origins, lay half unsheathed from its case.
"I know that sword!" The king's voice now shook with genuine fear, "It is the Goblin-Cleaver! The Biter!"

Suddenly, the minions 'playful' little shoves and jostling from earlier, turned into full force swipes and punches. Druili watched as a Minion with a smaller whip, began to hit Thorin and she screamed in anger.
As they approached and fought, Druili found herself again alone, with an enemy reaching out for her, their claws eager to draw blood.
She didn't have access to her hammer or her axes. But she didn't need them. Spacing her feet evenly apart, she drew back her arm and with a well-placed fist, punched the Goblin square in the nose. It'd body flew backwards and she turned as another came at her.
This time, she ducked the claw and tackled the creature down. Standing above the creature, she happily bought the heel of her foot down on its neck and gave it a twist, for good measure.

It didn't get back up.
"Watch your back!" Someone called to her from the side and she turned in time to see three creatures come towards her.
Hands grabbed at her and she desperately wished she was slippery like Bilbo. She had not seen him amongst the group since they had fallen into that cage and she only hoped he had gotten away. He was a good friend and she wouldn't blame him if he chose to save himself now.
She found it easier to beat these opponents when she used one of them as a throwing object. Most of the Minions were too busy fighting off the bigger members of her party to pay her any heed.

"The blade that sliced a Thousand necks!" The king continued to scream on, urging his army into a frenzy, "Slash them! Beat them! Kill them!"
Druili looked around and finally spotted Thorin, on his hands and knees, trying to stay upright. He seemed to have the upper hand, when suddenly, four of the creatures tackled him down to the floor. They pinned him down and another approached, it's crude and sharp weapon drawn.
"Cut off his head!"

Druili saw an opening. She ran and shoved her way by, ignoring the calls of her friends and family. Dashing behind two, and leaping the last distance, she wasn't spotted until she had landed atop of the pile. Her torso lay over Thorin' shoulders and her arms immediately covered his head, her head tucked against his own, shielding him from any harm.

"KILL THEM!" The King cried out one final time. Druili didn't want to look. Thorin' eyes were wide with fear and horror and she hated that. She shut her eyes tight and braced for the pain.
But it never came. Druili opened her eyes when a sudden, bright white flash of light, brighter than any of the lanterns or torches, shone from where they were fighting. The sound seemed to disappear. Druili could hear things breaking and being thrown and Goblins screaming but...it was all happening so far away. It was quiet but loud at the same time.

She looked down at Thorin, who seemed to be suffering from the same affliction. She could feel the force of the light, attempting to rip her off of him, but she clung on with her hands, buried into the wood below, her nails threatening to split and she held on for all that she was worth.
Then, as suddenly as it came, it stopped. Darkness remained, for the mighty blast had extinguished all the blazes around. Druili continued to stare at Thorin as the silence drifted on.

"Are you all right?" Her voice shook and she found herself still clutching his head, even though they didn't seem to be in danger anymore.
Thorin nodded and stared at her, agape and amazement evident. She reluctantly pulled back and turned around to view the chaos.
She could make out the huddled figures amongst and around them, but she couldn't tell straight away what was the bodies of the Goblins and who were her friends.
The King lay on the ground, his throne overturned and over him.
She turned back and moved aside, allowing Thorin space to sit up.
'But Who-'
From the path in which they had originally come...there was another being.

Druili, without seeing a face, colour or any other detail next to the outline, began to laugh with pure joy. A tall figure, with a long pointed hat, their sword drawn in one hand and their staff out in the other.
"Gandalf!" She cried, as the torches and lanterns, slowly began to light again, of their own accord (or so it seemed). She turned around and saw the Goblins and friends alike, clamber around, trying to shake off the after-effects of what had just happened. She scrambled to her feet and offered her hand to Thorin, though he was neglecting to look at her at all.

"Take up Arms." Gandalf's voice commanded. Druili had never heard him speak this way before and whilst it filled her with determination, it also filled her with a sense of fear. She made a note never to upset Gandalf.
"Fight."
She looked over at the chaos around her and spotted her beloved hammer.
"Fight!"

She scrambled over, grasped the handle with both hands and turned around. The entire company, roused by Gandalf's appearance and command, began to fight anew, the flame of hope ignited once more.
As Goblins scrambled up and frantically tried to quell their spirits, Druili felt a surge with her.
'Time for some fun.'

The first Goblin that ran at her, had not had the fortune of seeing her fighting with a weapon. She didn't even need to try very hard. Merely swung the hammer into its windpipe with half of the strength she normally used. It fell down, twitched for a few seconds and then proceeded to helpfully, expire.
Behind her, Gandalf swung both his staff and sword, duelling expertly with any Goblin that ran towards him. Druili couldn't help but turn and admire him. She'd have to ask him for pointers.

"He wields the Foehammer! The Beater!" The Goblin King, having thrown his own chair off of his backside, was pointing in horror at Gandalf, "Bright as daylight!"
The company by now, had each reclaimed their own weapons, strewn about in piles on the wooden floor. They were now expertly disposing of the Goblins, stabbing, cutting, smashing and in general, having a great time whilst doing so. Their fighting spirit and their cries of battle kindled a flame deep within Druili' heart.
She glanced quickly joined the fray, helping smash aside Goblins who attempted to make the fight less fair.

Fili had had two of the beasts on him and whilst he was a great swordsman, Druili helped dispose of both of them for him. She'd been aiming for just the one, but the body of the one she had hit, fell to the side with such force, it fell into its comrade's side with such ferocity, that it knocked the thing unconscious.
"Oi!" Fili granted his sister a small smile, "Get your own!"

Druili actually laughed and turned away, swinging her hammer with such joy, she felt like she was dancing.
She turned to see her Uncle, fighting off his fair share, but the sight over his shoulder is what drew her attention. He didn't see the king, with his great staff raised, come for him.

She didn't have to worry though. Nori, who had seen the attack coming before her, had rolled over to his King and held 'The Goblin Cleaver' in its sheath, up towards him.
"THORIN!" Nori cried and drew the man's attention. Thorin grabbed the hilt of his sword, swung around and with great strength, deflected the weapon of the Goblin King, causing the creature to lose Balance.

His minions gathered behind him and tried to keep him upright, but he fell backwards, his body too heavy to maintain the right balance, and tumbled over the edge of the platform. Down, into the darkness below.
Druili was stunned. She'd seen her uncle fight, but with that sword in his grasp, he had just taken down a creature, five times his size.
Soon, the company now outnumbered the Goblin's on the platform, only a handful remaining and standing.

"Follow me!" Gandalf led his way through the group, not bothering to stop and see if anyone questioned him, "Quick!"
Each member of the group hastily followed, Druili joining up with Bombur and Bofur.
"Nice fighting lads!" She couldn't help the smile spreading across her face, even if they were in a dangerous situation still.
"Remind me NEVER to make you angry!" Bofur looked back at her briefly and whilst she knew he was teasing, she was still pleased to note an edge of actual fear to his statement.
"RUN!" Gandalf called back and they began to sprint, full force along the narrow, wooden bridge.

"Quickly!" Gandalf called back to the half of the group who were still behind him. Somehow, in the madness of the rush, Four of their members had ended up in front of Gandalf, whilst the others were bringing up the rear.
"Faster!" Dori cried, glancing behind them at the oncoming Goblin army. Some were scurrying after them on the bridge. Others were somehow running along the walls, their clawed weapons allowing them the leverage to get about.
From some platforms above, others jumped down, desperate to join in on the chase for them. Desperate to satisfy their need and hunger. For Bloodshed. For sport.
For the flesh.

Up ahead, Druili, unable to see much when the bridge came round the side of the caverns, heard Dwalin scream, "POST!" and looked at Bombur.
"I think they're having fun up there without us!" She called back, glancing over his shoulder as she waited for Bofur to speed up. She turned back and caught a glimpse of a goblin, crawling vertically along the wall, headed straight for them.

"Oh, no you don't, you crafty bugger!" She hid her hammer until the last second, before bringing it up and smashing out the Goblin's teeth. It's grip on the wall lost, she had to stop suddenly as it came crashing down in front of her, it's body rebounding off of the boards of the bridge and springing over the side, plummeting to its doom with a weakened and pained shriek.
She felt Bombur' gut hit her back and was reminded that they were still being chased.

"Sorry, Bombur!" She jumped the few steps she'd missed, yelling back to him but not wasting more time in looking back.
The bridges connecting led away from the safety of the walls and soon, they were led over a bridge over a deep chasm, with no support from below or above, only the ropes of the bridge themselves connecting together.

'Don't look down, don't look down!' She forced herself to repeat, concentrating on the mantra in her head. She felt sick just knowing that one false step could send her hurtling down to the sharp, pointed rocks below.
Soon, back amongst the makeshift structures that were more stable, the goblins appeared again, climbing through ladders and swinging down to battle against the Dwarves. They found themselves on different paths of the bridge, not all being able to go the same way.
Each person, now standing side by side, had one or two Goblins at a time and they held their ground, battling it out. Druili managed to catch glimpses of everyone's fighting.

Thorin and Dwalin were obviously the best, Fili and Kili not far behind. But Balin, Ori and Oin surprised her with just how quick and hard their hits landed. In the flurry and wild weaving of weapons, more Goblins began to swing down. The company was spaced out, a few feet from the other person and Thorin turned to Nori and Dori, both who held blades with him. Druili had been distracted long enough and soon, felt a sword catch her side, her leather holster bearing most of the damage. She turned and instead of swinging her hammer, kicked the creature far off the side.
She turned back and heard Thorin call out.

"Cut the ropes!" His voice commanded and in sync, they sliced through the material of the bridge easily.
Druili heard the sound of wood breaking and splintering and watched in anticipation as the bridge ahead and above of her violently tilted and pulled away, falling towards the Goblins, whose ropes got stuck and snapped during mid-swing.
Ahead of her, a horde of Goblins came running, their crudely made bows at the ready and they began to fire on the person leading her current party: Kili.
"AHEAD OF YOU!" She called out, just in time to see Kili notice also. With each arrow fire, he managed to deflect a few, with merely a quick swipe of his sword. Thinking quickly he grabbed the ladder closest to him and held it up, just in time for an arrow or two to hit the wooden step where his eyes where. Bifur, Druili, Bombur and Bofur were behind him quick as a flash.

"You know that's got holes in, right?!" Druili pointed out, hoping her brother wasn't really using a ladder as a shield.
"Shut it and help me lower it!" There was no bite in his remark and soon, Bifur grabbed the other side and he and Kili stepped forward whilst still holding it, allowing the others the space to hold the back. Bombur and Druili held the bottom rungs and kept in step with the others as they pushed the goblins charging towards them. Some had already gotten stuck in the upper rungs of the ladder.
"HEAVE!" Druili shouted as she pushed and she fought through the pain that was now evident in her back, the whip marks finally catching up with her already bruised body.

"Get ready!" Kili warned them as they came up to a large gap in front, where their side ended a few feet away from the adjoining one. Lowering the ladder, letting the trapped bodies of the goblins fall out below, they created their own bridge to the other side
Just as he stepped onto it, he threw her a look over his shoulder, still running.

"The ladder! DRU!" Kili called back to her and she understood instantly. Jumping onto the stable wooden floor, she spun around, her hammer poised above her head and waited until the last one of her comrades was across.
"I got it!" Slamming it to the side of the top rungs that had been resting on the platform, the ladder skidded mid-air just as the first few goblins made it halfway across. She didn't stay to register their look of fear as they too joined their kin in the darkness below, choosing to catch up with the company.

She could just make out Gandalf leading them with his sword and staff whirling about the place in intricate circles and patterns, helping to clear a path as the stubborn creatures kept coming at them.
Nearing a dead end, she wondered if this was to be a defiant last stand for them.
But her brother had other ideas. Shoving her in front of him, he quickly hacked away the rope tied onto the bridge and Druili was puzzled for about two seconds.
And then, she felt the bridge move beneath her.
She struggled to maintain her balance as the rest of the ropes, tied on to the sides and front, swung the bridge beneath them, away from the platform and over a deep cavern.

She looked at Kili, who was actually smiling at her, still trying to maintain his balance.
"I HATE THIS!" She placed one knee and one hand on the wooden plank, not daring to look anywhere other than her brothers smiling face. She could have punched him if she had the guts to stand up.
"Get up, Toad!" He stepped forward and managed to grab hold of her arm, "we've got somewhere to be!"

As the bridge holding them swung away, it turned and shifted and Druili felt like she was going to vomit as she caught sight of the vastness of nothingness below.
"I could kill you!" She stood but grasped on to her brother, unwilling to let him go.
"Not until you've made this jump!" He shouted back at her, but his gaze was diverted elsewhere.
"What jump-KILI!" He more or less pulled her with him, over the side of the bridge. She just managed the leap herself, her body colliding with the stability of the wooden bridge that had appeared on the other side. She turned at the last moment and landed on her back, choking on a scream as her wounds grazed against the rough surface.

"Dru!" Kili was above her and pulled her up, not letting go of her arms as she steadied herself, "Are you all right?!"
She glanced up at him but turned quickly to the others, who were still swinging back and forth on the bridge.
"There's no time, later!" She pushed him away but winced as her arms pulled the skin on her back. She could definitely feel some blood coming out of one of the wounds now.

He looked at her again, his face full of concern, but she diverted his attention back to the bridge.
"Fili!" She called out as the final swing back towards them bought the last of the company, surrounded by goblins, closer to the platform drop. He hastily cut the rope that held the bridge up and lunged to the other side. Thorin was luckily there and caught his nephew.
"Is that everyone?!" Thorin looked around, his eyes going over the whole company.
"We need to move!" Gandalf pushed onwards and again, they followed. For their only other choice was waiting for the Goblins on the other side to begin climbing and scaling the walls and ceiling of the cavern.

Druili felt like she'd been running for hours. The structures had become more narrow and steep and the twists meant she had to keep suddenly stopping and turning at the last minute. Kili was now closer to her, his front protecting her back whenever she stopped and she thanked the stars he had some quick reflexes to stop himself just as quickly as she did.

The Goblins had appeared from the sides and jumped from the platforms above and now that her wounds began to ache, Druili found it harder and harder to swing her hammer. Instead, she held it in front of her, deflecting clubs, swords and all assortment of weapons aimed to bury themselves in her head, choosing to either push the creatures away or kick them clean off the edge.

She noticed that Bombur had somehow gotten ahead and was currently being swarmed on by smaller goblins. He kept running, however, towards a part of the bridge that had goblins careening towards him. She tried to reach him, but at the last minute, he jumped into the centre of the bridge. She watched as he fell, seemingly on purpose, through that and the platform below, until he rested on the sturdier, third platform. Now rid of the smaller goblins as well as those originally chasing him, he got up and appeared almost completely unscathed.

"The man is AMAZING!" She said more to herself than anything and continued to run, pushing and kicking goblins out of her way. He had soon jumped up with them again and Druili acknowledged his actions with a nod and a wondrous look. Bombur merely nodded back, but continued to run, not bothering to look arrogant or as if he'd done it on purpose.
As they neared the top of the steep bridge, Gandalf held aloft his staff and sent a powerful blast of magic towards a low part of the ceiling. It immediately fell and morphed into solid, round rock.

"Push!" Dwalin led the way as the others at the front helped him push the boulder in front of them, shielding them from the oncoming onslaught.
As they ran behind the boulder, it became faster than them and gaining momentum, practically flew in front, taking out every goblin in its path. As it ran out of path, it fell below and the Dwarves rounded the corner from the edge, onto more stable platforming.
Gandalf was now leading behind them and Druili took the moment to shout back at him.

"Gandalf!" She smiled and ran backwards quickly so as not to slow down, "you're fantastic!"
Gandalf, like Bombur, merely nodded his head and kept running. She had a feeling though, that both of them would smile about it later.
She turned back around and kept running, throwing Kili a grin when he looked at her as if she was mad.

They eventually came to a bridge, with no signs of goblins charging from the front and Druili felt that they would be out of the woods so-
The sudden splintering and explosion of wood in front made everyone stop. The Goblin King, having survived his earlier fall, had burst through the platform and was now literally blocking their path.

"Oh...Bollocks." Druili gasped out, frustrated that her train of thought had gone south.
He clambered out of the wreckage and stood, with his staff supporting him, leering down at the company. Now, his minions came fast, from both the front and the back of the party, blocking their exit and entry.
They were trapped.

"You thought you could escape me?!" The King opened his arms wide in front of Gandalf as if showing off his vast strength and power. Quicker than she thought possible, he brought down his staff and Druili watched as Gandalf quickly dodged it and the swipe that came after.
Falling off balance, Ori and Nori quickly caught the wizard, making sure he didn't fall.
Druili turned quickly to look behind, seeing the company awaiting the onslaught from behind. She turned back and watched the King, lean threateningly towards Gandalf.

"What are you going to do now, Wizard?"
Gandalf had an easy answer. Lunging forward, he propelled his staff violently towards the King, the end connecting with his eye with a satisfying squelch.
As he groaned in pain, Gandalf swiped with his sword and drew the blade quickly and successfully across the belly of the King, effectively bring him to his knees. As he clutched at his stomach, the King was silent for a few seconds, just looking at the group and then back at Gandalf.

"That'll do it."
Those were the last words he spoke, as Gandalf, incensed and done with this fight, drew back his blade again and swiped at the Goblin King's neck, cutting his throat.
"That'll teach ya'!" Druili shouted victoriously. Her joy, however, was short-lived, as the body of the King fell hard against the platform and she felt it quake under her feet. And it didn't stop.

"No...not again." She knelt down and braced herself for what she knew was coming. As the wood began to splinter and burst around the company, everyone attempted to maintain their balance, holding onto one another and the bridge desperately.
Finally, with one last satisfying crack, it gave way and they all screamed as they plummeted down, riding the bridge in its descent.
Druili just shut her eyes and screamed as she felt her body shift around on the unsteady wooden surface.

It connected sharply with the cavern wall as it fell and she opened her eyes as she felt her body lift practically off of the wooden platform. She immediately threw herself down and clung onto the side with one hand, her hammer resting in the other and helping to weigh her down.
She didn't look as they fell but could feel every bump against the wall and as the effects ricocheted through her body, she jolted each time with the renewed pain in her back.

She stole a few, quick glances around her and noted how some of the other party members were missing. She could see Gandalf in his robes and just make out Bofur but shut her eyes again when the world flew past her too fast and she started feeling sick again.
Eventually, the bumps and bangs intensified as they reached the bottom until eventually, the whole platform hit the cavern floor. On impact, her grip was lost and she tumbled, head first over the side. She rolled through the air, maintaining her grip on her hammer, reluctant to part with it again. Thankfully, she landed on her front, on some not so sharp and pointy bits of rock, a few feet from the top platform. She lay there, amongst the broken rubble and just enjoyed the feeling of not moving as fast.

She clambered up on all fours and turning herself over, sat back on her knees, her feet splayed out to the sides
"I don't want to do that again." She groaned out and shook her head, surprised with the amount of dust and bits of broken wood that flew out. She had a feeling, the next stream she came to she'd be dunking her head in it voluntarily, just to wash out anything that remained.

The group slowly stirred, the platform and connecting bits having collapsed together among everyone. Gandalf was the first to emerge.
"Let's hope you don't have to, my dear." He shook himself off as he approached her, his beard particularly full of dust and bits.
They both looked at the rubble and company and noticed Bofur' relieved expression.
"Well, that could have been worse."

Druili saw it approaching before Gandalf. She didn't have the heart to watch and shut her eyes tight as she waited for the inevitable noise. The loud crunch as the Goblin King's body fell from above, it's descent having been slower than that of the Dwarves. The collective groan of pain from everyone caught under the rubble still.
'Well...at least they're alive.' She thought to herself as she opened her eyes and noted everyone's flailing limbs were all still intact and not broken.
"Haver!" Dwalin cried out, "You've GOT to be joking!"

She carefully stood, feeling like a newborn deer as she steadied her legs. She quickly found a loop on her belt and tied her hammer to her side, unable to secure it as it was to her back for the time being. Her eyes searched out everyone and found the three she was looking for. She saw Fili squeeze himself out between two of the platform sections, the whole thing now effectively sandwiching everyone in. Kili lay next to Dwalin and seemed content to just groan and grunt for the time being. And Thorin sat himself up, quickly pushing away pieces of wooden planks, his face tired and worn.

"GANDALF!" Kili' cry of terror drew her attention back to him and she followed his gaze as he stared upwards. Approaching faster than she could have possibly imagined, was an army of angry, irate goblins, hellbent on avenging their fallen King. Or, at the very least, wanting to quell the bloodfest they'd be promised.
Druili immediately hobbled over to her closest brother and hoisted him up, pulling him back before he even had a chance to right himself.
"Come on," she called to everyone, "Get up! Move!"
"There's too many of them," Dwalin turned to Gandalf, "We can't fight them!"
"Only one thing will save us, daylight!" Gandalf didn't look overly worried, but still very stern, "Come on, here. On your feet, HURRY!"

Everyone who could walk unaided helped pull their friends along until they too could run without help.
Druili let go of Kili and went running ahead, but her legs still seemed like jelly and she too was struggling. Suddenly, Fili appeared in front of her.
"Come on, toad!" He didn't wait for a reply, instead, grabbed her around the waist, bent low and hoisted her over his shoulder. He turned and she looked up, into the face of Bombur who was hurrying behind. She weakly protested.

"Fili, go help the others!"
"Everyone else has the help they need, YOU need to get out of here with us lot," He tapped her on her behind with a small slap, "and stop complaining for once!"
She grumbled, but was so tired and worn, she allowed him to carry her as she got some more feeling in her legs. Her back was now screaming at her and she found, she didn't have the heart to complain at him, even if she wanted to.

"Quick, quick!" She heard Gandalf say from the front, "this way!" She could feel the air outside before she knew that he'd found the exit.
"Put me down here, please, Fe." She called to him, but she was so tired it came out as pleading. He stopped and quickly righted her, giving her one last look as if asking her if she was okay.

She nodded and turned around, continuing the journey out of Goblin-town on foot, her legs finally feeling like they belonged to her again.
A new day greeted her. She immediately shielded her eyes from the sun but continued to run the downwards slope as they exited the side of the mountain. She'd never been so happy to smell trees before.

As they ran farther from the danger, she took the time to look around, count everyone in front and behind her.
She had been right before...there was no sign of Bilbo.
She couldn't really blame Bilbo for leaving. If it wasn't for Fili or Kili, she would have probably left herself. At least, she hoped he had left. She hoped he was not still in there somewhere, lost in the dark. Far from home and surrounded by goblins.

Unbeknown to her, he was there. He was right behind the group, chasing them down the Mountain. But none would see him, even if they looked, for he was cloaked and hidden using his newfound treasure.