Chapter 29

"How many do you think managed to escape or weren't there in the first place?" Thorin asked.

"Hard to be sure but according to Nori's numbers, we're missing a handful or so of them," Dwalin said.

They stood outside the dungeon, having questioned the seven dwarrow that had survived the attack and weren't in the infirmary being seen by a group of stone-faced healers. They'd just spent the last few hours questioning those awake and coherent enough to talk as well as those in the cells deemed safe by Lira and Nori as long as trustworthy guards were stationed within the cellblock.

So far, everyone had the same story to tell. Jubral or one of those close to him had approached them with a proposition and promises of gold, restored honor, or revenge, depending on their need or desire for money or their opinion of the Royal family, Thorin in particular. Most of them just had to wait for a message to be sent to them of a time and place and they'd attack. Otherwise, they had no other part in the plot.

Those that Jubral had trusted more confessed to varying numbers of those loyal to their cause or they refused to talk at all.

The last one they questioned, a dam not at all dedicated to Jubral's fanaticism, sat back in her cell and offered to tell Dwalin everything she knew, as long as she wasn't charged for her crimes. She claimed to be privy to most of the details of the entire regicidal plot, including Jubral's whereabouts.

"Didn't care about the plot," the dam said. "I've got nothing against you or your consort, Your Majesty. I just needed the money is all."

What she needed the money for, she refused to say. Thorin had his suspicions. Not everyone that had returned to Erebor had come with the caravans from Ered Luin. Many came from settlements or towns where their families had settled after Smaug's attack. Not everyone had arrived with the benefit of the food supplies that accompanied the caravans. Many that came on their own came hoping to make a better life, one told of in stories when memories of Erebor were shared.

"I want Nori to talk to that dam," Thorin said.

"I do too," Lira said, her eyes on the door to the dungeons. "A dam like her, if you help her take care of her basic needs, give her an honest job, she'll be loyal for life. If she knows what she says she knows, I'd imagine she'd make a good spy."

"Where is he anyway?" Dwalin grumbled. "He should have been here from the beginning."

"Haven't you heard?" Lira asked. "There's a wedding tomorrow and all the decorations were just ruined by a band of inconsiderate regicidal maniacs. He's whipping together something to help fix the mess. He'll be here-"

"What'd I miss?"

"Right now," Thorin finished for Lira and looked over Dwalin's shoulder as Nori jogged up the hall.

He stopped next to Lira, wrapping an arm around her waist and burying his nose in her dark hair, pulling her close to him so she stood on the toes of her foot briefly before setting her back down again. "Hello, My Sweet," he murmured.

"Hello," Lira said and nudged him away from her shoulder. "We've finished the basic questioning. There's a dam offering to tell us everything in exchange for her freedom. I think we can bring her into work under us. Says she only did it for the money. I believe her."

"Really?" Nori asked, leaning back, interest captured.

"Recruit later," Dwalin groused. "Find a location for would-be regicidal maniacs now."

"Can't I find two gems with one hammer blow?" Nori asked.

"We need to," Lira said. "If we let her loose after she gives us her information, she'll disappear."

"We'll promise her freedom on the condition we find what she says we will," Thorin interrupted. "You can recruit her after."

"We should move her somewhere that seems a little less like a waiting place for execution too. Would you mind sending her to the guardhouse?" Lira asked, turning to Dwalin.

"I'll see it done after she gives us information," Dwalin conceded. "She stays there until after we bring in Jubral."

"Sure. Right. Just let me at her," Nori said as he headed toward the door.

Thorin fell in step with him but stopped when Nori shook his head at him. "Feel free to listen at the door, but having the king in there isn't going to do us any favors."

Grudgingly, Thorin stayed next to the door and waited as Dwalin let Nori into the dungeons, telling him which cell to look for. They'd moved her there to get her away from the other survivors of the attack, wanting her away from their influence in case they tried to scare her into not sharing her information.

"Hello there," Nori said and cloth rustled and metal clattered softly. Thorin could just picture him leaning casually against the corner between the cell and stone wall. "Why are you in the king's dungeons?"

"Considering which side of the bars you're standing on, I'll bet you already know." The dam sounded resigned.

"I know you helped in the latest assassination attempt, but I didn't ask you what you did. I asked you why."

"I've got my reasons," she said sullenly.

"Ah," Nori said as if he'd just found the perfect gemstone. "There it is. And how old are your reasons?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," the dam snapped and even to Thorin, she sounded far too defensive.

"Listen, lass, if you're going to lie to me, you need to get better at it," Nori admonished with only a little gentleness and a great deal of humor.

"If he's not careful, he's going to offend her and she's not going to tell him anything," Dwalin grumbled.

"She wants her freedom," Thorin reminded him. "She'll tell us everything for it."

"Would you two shush? I want to hear this," Lira snapped.

Dwalin cast a slightly apologetic glance at Lira and shrugged his shoulders.

They'd missed what the dam had said in response to Nori's correction. There was a drawn-out pause and then a grudging, "Sixteen and thirty-two."

"And how old are you?"

"Seventy-eight."

"Too defensive lass. How old are you really?"

Another pause. "Sixty-three."

Nori tsked. "Not even of age and already aiding regicide."

"He didn't tell me the job. Not a first anyway. I thought he was opening an illegal mine or recruiting thieves or something. I never thought he wanted us to kill anyone. I'm not a murderer. I swear."

"And after you found out who you were going to kill?"

"I couldn't get out. I already knew too much."

"How do you figure?"

Another pause. "Someone tried to run to tell the guards. He was killed the moment he left."

Thorin clenched his hands into fists. Another needless death. When would it stop? How many that had attacked today had been like this dam, unwilling but knowing they would die if they didn't?

"And your reasons? How would they feel if their - what are you to them anyway? Too young to be the oldest's mother."

"Sister."

"Sister got killed trying to bring them food?"

Thorin strained to hear the reply but it was too quiet.

"I get it, lass. Not much you wouldn't do for them."

"What do you know?" Thorin heard a sudden rustle and clang after the heated, snarled retort. A kick to the cell bars maybe? "You're one of the fabled Company, living in the lap of luxury, eating three square meals a day with all you could ever want. I don't need pity. Not from the likes of you."

"Ain't pity, lass. I've been there, only with an older brother and a younger to feed. Took to thieving. Took my chance with the Company to keep an eye on them but also to get at least a meal a day."

"Doesn't matter anymore anyway," she groused, her tone sullen again. "You're not going to let me go anyway."

"That's where you're wrong. I'm here to offer a deal. You tell us what we want and after we bring in the ring leader and all those loyal to him, we'll let you go. You can go back to your reasons then."

Her laugh was bitter and a bit panicked if Thorin wasn't mistaken. "You actually expect me to believe you're not just going to take what I know and leave me to rot?"

"Course I do," Nori said and there was a sudden jingling.

Dwalin looked down at his side and cursed. "Thief stole my keys."

"Let's go. We'll take you to the guardhouse. You can tell us what you know there where you can wait for us to finish doing our jobs." The cell door creaked. There was another pause. "Come on, lass. I haven't got all night."

A rustling of cloth and then footsteps. Moments later, Nori came out of the dungeon, the dam following behind him, tension and fear making her movements stiff as she hunched over, trying to make herself smaller. When she saw Dwalin and Thorin, her eyes widened and she jerked away, heading back toward the dungeon.

"None of that," Nori chided and grabbed her arm. "You do as we ask and they'll leave you be."

"But I tried to kill him!" she shouted.

"Did a piss poor job of it," Dwalin said. "Ori managed to disarm you. Ori, of all dwarrow."

"Did he now?" Nori said, a grin creeping onto his face. "Remind me to take him for a drink or something once the wedding's over."

"Worry about that later," Thorin said. He turned to look at the dam. "I'll stand by Nori's word. If you tell us what we need to know, we'll drop all charges against you."

She audibly swallowed and then nodded. Her eyes grew wide and she quickly dropped her gaze, dropping into a clumsy curtsey. "Yes, Your Majesty. I'll do just that. I swear I didn't want to-"

"That's enough," Thorin said gently. "There are many that may find themselves in difficult positions as you have. We must do more to help those like you so we don't have a repeat of this kind of situation. There is wealth enough in Erebor. No one should go hungry."

The dam nodded, still not lifting her eyes.

"If we're finished with the niceties, let's get a move on," Dwalin grumbled and started moving toward the nearest guard station.

Lira practically danced up to Dwalin's side. "What happened to making her give us the information before we moved her, you great softie?"

Dwalin grunted, not bothering to look at Lira who cackled.

"Does her story check out?" Thorin asked as he, Lira, Nori, and Dwalin gathered outside the guardhouse. Nori and Lira had spent a good half an hour talking to the dam, now identified as Huzmada, with Dwalin and Thorin standing off to the side, listening to everything she said.

"It matches what I found out," Lira said, glancing at Nori.

"It's common enough in the lowest classes. Desperation can make someone accept the shadiest of jobs, no matter how little information is given. It's the same story I heard a few times amongst Jubral's group."

Thorin resisted the urge to rub at his forehead, a headache starting to pound through his skull. "Did she give us anything new?"

"Jubral's location," Lira said. "I had my suspicions of where he was sneaking about, but I couldn't make sure, not without possibly being made. Not a lot of cover back there."

"We'll have to be quick to take them," Nori said. "If Jubral's still got a speck of sense, he'll be looking to move locations."

Thorin nodded and looked at Dwalin.

"Already have troops standing by," he said. "Just say the word and we'll go after the honorless son of an orc."

"We only have a few hours left before sunrise," Thorin said. "I would like to sleep a little before Fili's wedding tomorrow. Lira, stay with Huzmada. The rest of you , let's get going."

Dwalin broke away from them toward the yard where the troops waited. When they returned, Thorin nodded in approval. Instead of the heavy plate armor many dwarrow warriors preferred, they wore lighter leathers with metal plates sewn into them. The protection wasn't as good, but they were quieter by far. They kept their weapons strapped tightly to backs or hips and held them in place to avoid unnecessary sound.

"Lead on," Dwalin said, nodding at Thorin and Nori.

With Nori on one side and Dwalin on his other, Thorin started his way deep into the mountain to areas where they had yet to allow general civilians due to instability or other dangers, following the description Huzmada had given them. The deeper into the abandoned corridors and passages they went, the more uneasy Thorin felt.

"Do you feel that?" Nori asked after a few minutes, keeping his voice down so the soldiers behind them wouldn't hear him.

"I do," Thorin said, something in the pit of his stomach starting to churn. He swallowed against the taste of bile rising in his throat. "What is it?"

"I'm not sure," Nori said and looked at his shaking hands, his voice strangled. "I've heard tales of parts of mountains that put stone sense off-kilter, make you feel ill, but I've never experienced it before."

"Whatever it is, we need to move fast," Dwalin said. "My stone sense is average, compared to the two of you, and I'm starting to feel it." He glanced back at his troops. A few looked pale and one or two were starting to sweat under their helmets but no one seemed as badly affected as Nori. And they wouldn't be, Thorin thought. Nori had the best stone sense he'd ever come across.

They increased their pace. The feeling of discomfort and nausea grew and Thorin fought to keep from being sick. Beside him, he heard Nori swallow audibly more than once. Just before they reached the abandoned mine Huzmada had told them about, Nori darted to the side into a split in the rock wall. Thorin heard him gagging and breathing heavily. When Nori returned, he shook from head to toe, sweat matted his hair and beard, and a greenish tinge shone beneath his skin.

Dwalin took over their path from there, organizing his soldiers with hand signals, taking advantage of the dim light cast by inexpensive torches in the room around the next corner. Everyone moved quickly but silently into position. Finally, Dwalin looked to Thorin.

Tightening his grip on Orcrist, Thorin nodded and took a deep breath. He darted around the corner, feeling rather than seeing Dwalin take position on his right and Nori on his left. A roar of raging dwarrow followed him into the massive cavern in front of him.

Jubral and his cohorts stood around a large, half-rotted table with old grey paint peeling and chipping away from the surface. They scrambled for weapons as Thorin, Dwalin, and Nori fell on them, swords and axes drawn and ready for the grisly task ahead. Soldiers joined them a moment later.

Thorin knocked his first opponent back with a swift kick to the midsection. They fell, landing on the table. They crashed through the wood when it gave beneath them, sending up a cloud of debris and paint chips. Thorin stepped away from the mess, raising Orcrist to take the brunt of a weak swing from a chipped and pitted sword. He shifted and sent his elbow into his attacker's nose. Down they went with a grunt of pain and a splattering of blood. They wisely scuttled away from the fray, trying to leave only to be captured by the guards Dwalin had left at the room's entrance.

More of Jubral's dwarrow rushed through another door, wielding hastily drawn weapons. They fell just as quick as those in the main room.

The fight lasted little more than a few minutes, leaving a few wounded and all other would-be usurpers captured, including a struggling, spitting, and cursing Jubral.

"Would someone shut him up?" Dwalin asked without looking up from where he checked one of his soldier's wounded arms.

Nori lashed out, the hilt of one of his knives connecting solidly with Jubral's jaw. The tirade broke off mid-sentence and Jubral sagged in the arms of the soldier holding him. The soldier dropped him on the floor with a look of relief. Thorin moved to thank Nori only to come up short as Nori bent over double and dry heaved, gagging and coughing as nothing came out of his stomach.

"The faster we move out of here, the better," Dwalin said.

With the small burst of adrenaline draining from Thorin's system, he started feeling sick again. He left the room as fast as he could without seeming like he was fleeing the horrible miasma.

Thorin leaned against the wall outside of the dungeons and glared at the doors separating him from Jubral and the rest of his group. According to the information Huzmada had given Lira while Thorin, Dwalin, and Nori had been chasing down the honorless orc spawn, they'd captured all those that actually cared about the cause. Apparently, all those that didn't care about or wanted Bilbo and Thorin's deaths had fled after the attack in the Hall of Kings.

"Thorin? Are you all right?"

He straightened and turned. Bilbo dashed to him, wrapping his arms around him briefly before leaning back and looking him over from head to toe. "They told me you'd gone after Jubral. Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, Ghivashel," Thorin said, gently taking Bilbo's hands and kissing his knuckles carefully. "Dwalin and his men took care of most of the fighting. I barely managed to participate at all."

Bilbo sighed in relief and darted forward to wrap his arms around Thorin again. "Thank Yavanna."

"Have a little faith in us, Bilbo," Nori quipped, walking by with an arm around Lira's shoulders. His color had returned and he no longer shook uncontrollably. He still wouldn't eat anything and only drank a couple of sips of water.

Bilbo glared at Nori. "Remind me, how often did I have to swoop in and save the lot of you during the quest?"

Lira cackled and leaned against the wall Thorin had just vacated. "He's got you there," she said, poking Nori in the side.

"And how would you know?" Nori demanded, tone indignant. "You weren't there."

"We're friends, that's how," Bilbo said, slowly releasing Thorin. "She asked me to tell her my side of things, so I did."

Nori and Thorin groaned in unison. "We'll never have any respect again, will we?" Nori despaired.

"You never had it in the first place," Lira said happily. "Don't worry though. Not even knowing you couldn't escape Thranduil's dungeons without a hobbits help can make Mahal's will change. You'll always be my One."

"I'm so flattered," Nori deadpanned but leaned into the kiss Lira placed on his cheek, turning to try to capture her lips.

"Enough of that," Dwalin groused and smacked Nori lightly on the back of the head.

"You're just jealous," Nori said.

"Course I am. Chased you for years. One day you literally stumbled into her arms and suddenly I'm without a mouse to catch."

"You could always chase us both," Lira quipped, eyeing Dwalin up and down with a critical eye. "I don't usually appreciate the soldier type. Spent too much time around them when I was younger, but for you Captain, I think I can make an exception."

To Thorin's shock, Dwalin's face flushed as he grumbled something under his breath.

"Would you all kindly flirt later?" Bilbo asked, his lips thinned in discomfort. "Perhaps once we've dealt with the lunatic that's been trying to kill my husband?"

Dwalin cleared his throat and led the way into the dungeons. He headed deep down the halls. As they went, Thorin resisted the urge to groan. The cacophony cut off by the dungeon door grew louder with every step, leading them to an incessantly screaming Jubral. He'd woken up as they'd left the abandoned tunnels and had started screaming curses concerning Thorin and Bilbo nonstop ever since.

Dwalin unlocked the door to Jubral's cell. "Enough!" he snapped. "You are in the presence of your king! You will show him the respect he deserves!"

"Respect?" Jubral demanded. "That motherless swine doesn't deserve the respect owed to the lowest of orcs! He and that thrice-cursed halfling!"

"Hobbit," Nori and Lira chorused and glanced at each other.

"I'm doing us all a favor in ridding us of them!" Jubral ranted, ignoring Nori and Lira. "They're a plague on Erebor. The line of Durin is cursed. Their greed lost us the mountain to Smaug and then so many died in the Battle of Azanulbizar, including most of them! Then, after they unleashed the dragon on Laketown, they almost let orcs take her from us again! Only unholy halfling faerie magic healed them so they could continue to destroy our people!"

Thorin raised an eyebrow. Perhaps Nori and Lira's rumors of Bilbo's supposed heritage had worked a little too well if Jubral was delusional enough to think Bilbo had healing magic. What else did he think Bilbo could do? A glance toward Nori and Lira left Thorin rather perplexed. Why in Mahal's name was Lira stifling laughter? Regicidal maniacs weren't exactly amusing in Thorin's opinion.

"The curse must be lifted from our people. If we don't, they'll drive us to ruin again!"

Well, so much for revenge driven stupidity. Somewhere along the line, Jubral had apparently started to believe the dragon's dung story he'd been feeding those he'd recruited to his cause. Just what Thorin needed. Fanatics.

"They must be destroyed! You don't understand! I'm doing Mahal's will!"

Lira, apparently no longer able to contain herself, darted forward. "Mahal's will, huh?" she asked and tugged sharply on Jubral's beard. She came away with large chunks of hair.

"You were saying?" Thorin asked, tone level.

Dwalin and Nori started cackling at Jubral's dumbfounded expression, his mouth working like a landed fish.

"But- but- This can't be! He's cursed me!" He looked past Lira to glare at Bilbo. "He's part faerie. He's used his unnatural magic to curse me!"

"I'm no more faerie than you are," Bilbo said with a sniff. "Honestly. That silly story needs to stop being told. So Tooks like a little adventure every once in a while. It doesn't mean there is or ever has been any faerie blood running through their veins."

"No!" Jubral screamed. "He's lying. He's a faerie! He has to be!"

"You really shouldn't believe everything you read," Nori admonished, lifting the long lost book Ori had once brought to Thorin's attention.

"Especially if it's written by a Took," Bilbo added with a sigh. "That blasted book is more trouble than it's worth. I swear."

"Now where did you find that?" Thorin asked, reaching for the book. "Ori will be pleased you've found it."

"Jubral had it in his pocket," Dwalin said.

"Well, we can add overdue book fines to his list of crimes," Thorin said to Dwalin. "I assume the rest can wait until tomorrow? We do have a wedding to get to in a few hours after all."

They left the dungeons after Dwalin posted a set of guards he trusted implicitly on Jubral's cell.

"How did you know his hair would fall out?" Bilbo asked as they walked back to the royal wing, taking secret passages.

"Death rock," Nori said.

"What's that?" Bilbo asked, glancing furtively at the walls around them.

"A poison," Lira said. "Some mountains have it in areas. It's not found very often so most think it's an old dam's tale or don't know the symptoms. You don't need to worry about it in the main parts of the mountain. From the looks of it, Jubral will be dead in a matter of weeks if not sooner as will those that were in the caves the longest. Some may recover, most probably won't."

"We'll have the tunnels back there sealed off and the area added to the mining guild's records so no one tries to dig that way again," Thorin said. "Remind me after Fili's wedding."

"A little late for that," Nori said with a shrug when Thorin looked back at him. "I had everything removed from those tunnels and then Bofur and a few others destroyed the entrances. He'll make sure it's recorded for you before the night's over."

Thorin smiled. "Well done. Now, off to bed. I don't want to hear of any of you working until after Fili's wedding tomorrow. Am I understood?"

"If my king commands," Lira chirped. She linked her arm through Nori's. "Come on, Love. This is us." She pushed on a section of wall and it gave way, revealing the interior of her office. She and Nori stepped through. Before she moved the panel of wall back into place, she looked back at them. "You're welcome to join us, Captain," she said with a grin. "You up for a little dance before bed?"

Before Dwalin could answer, Thorin took Bilbo's hand and started pulling him along. "I don't want to know the answer to that!" he called over his shoulder.

Nori and Lira's cackling and Dwalin's vehement protestations followed Thorin and Bilbo as they rounded another corner, heading for the exit nearest their rooms.