Kili-(Ered Luin- Middle Earth)
It was not the best of days. The rain slanted sideways and the wind made his teeth chatter when it blew his way. Nevertheless, Kili was determined and focused as he ventured out into the bad weather. Water dripped from his leather overcoat and made little pools below him as he walked. Mud clung thickly to his boots and he had to put more effort into picking his feet up off the ground.
Even through the rain, the mountains behind him were still breath-taking. A subtle blue colour tinged the rock face. A quality befitting most of the stone in Ered Luin, it was derived from a mineral within the ore itself.
It was home.
Kili was not alone on his traipse through the cold wet forest. A blonde dwarf trailed behind him, not quite as pleased to be out as he was.
"Tell me again," Fili paused briefly, flicking water from his eyes "Why we are walking through the woods and slowly drowning in the first place?"
"I've told you I need to practise as much as possible," Kili sighed, slightly annoyed, he'd told his brother multiple times now.
"I get that, but couldn't we do that when it's not raining?" said Fili
Kili reached a hand up to his chest where his bow string lay. In one swift move he removed the bow from his back and balanced it in his hand. He traced the geometric carvings along the body with his thumb, while his other hand worried at the bow string.
"I have to be ready for anything. Come rain or shine," Kili said, his voice nearly drowned out in the wind "I can't give Uncle any excuse not to take me on this quest."
The quest.
Thorin had announced it to them a couple of months ago. They were going to reclaim the dwarven homeland from under the dark rule of a dragon. Thorin had only entrusted a select few with this knowledge. It wasn't too long ago when Fili and him were pushed out of the room while the adults spoke about 'Grown-up topics' so he was so happy that he was included in that few.
But even though he was given the privilege of knowing about the quest, his Uncle was still hesitant about letting Fili and Kili join the company.
Kili gripped the bow tighter. He had to go. This was his homeland. Even though he had never seen it, he would do anything to take it back. He just needed to prove to Thorin that he was worthy enough to go. That involved trailing through the woods, in the rain, for some target practice. It wasn't always going to be bright sunny days on this quest, he needed to adapt to all weather conditions.
If he could show his uncle his skills with a bow then he'd have to let him join.
Fili looked on at his brother, understanding painted his face. He knew where Kili was coming from. "Well then, when you put it like that it seems I should get some practice in too,"
He then reached behind him and withdrew the sword from the scabbard on his back. With deft skill he twirled the sword in his hands. Water spun off the edges of the blade as it cut through the air.
"You practise with your bow and I'll practise some of my sword drills," Both of them grinned at each other as they reached an understanding.
Kili decided to try some stationary targets to start off with. The branch of a tree or the knot on a trunk. Fili practised his sword movements next to him. The dwarf moved his feet in well practised sequences and swung his sword at key moments.
Fili would call out different targets for his brother to aim at. If Kili hit the right target they would both cheer. When he missed, Kili grumbled to himself and looked downtrodden. Fili would merely laugh and tell him not to be so disheartened.
This continued for a while, both of them working simultaneously on their own drills. Kili then decided that stationary targets were too easy and he needed to attempt some moving ones. After all, an orc won't stand still for you when you need to shoot it.
He informed Fili and his brother agreed to follow him further into the forest. They didn't have to be too quiet as the rain mostly covered the sound of their footsteps.
There weren't too many animals around with the weather being as bad as it was. Most would be holed up somewhere waiting for the rain to blow over. Kili was still reserved to find something though. He held his bow aloft, an arrow strung and balanced on his hand. He swung the bow in whichever direction he was facing as he scanned the landscape. Fili followed closely behind.
Just as they were ready to give in and head back, the soft silhouette of a doe trotted into view. Quickly, both of them bent into a crouch behind a bush, hoping to Mahal it had not heard them. Thankfully, the deer remained oblivious and continued its slow trot across the forest floor. Kili held his breath, his body on edge. If he brought down a whole deer on his own his Uncle had to see that he was good enough.
Kili slowly released his held breath and readied himself. Turning to look at Fili he signed, in Iglishmek, for him to follow but stay low.
They both got up from their crouched position but stayed low enough to be mostly covered by the brush. As silently as possible they followed after the doe. Kili kept his bow primed and ready. When the doe seemed to get wary, they would duck behind a tree until it settled down again. Kili kept second guessing himself about when he should take the shot. He didn't want to miss and scare the deer off.
The deer reached a small clearing. The ground was flat for a few metres but then dropped steeply down. It created a sheer drop of about 20 metres to the forest floor below. Kili decided that now was his chance. Though he needed to be careful, if he misjudged the shot he could send the deer careening off the edge. That would just end up with more problems. They would have to climb down and drag the deer back up. An effort none of them could really afford.
He signalled for Fili to stay where he was and drifted off to the left. When he got to a tree with a wide enough trunk to cover him, he stood up to his full height. Bringing up his bow, he levelled it at the doe, tugging the bow string back all the way to his cheek. The bow string dug into the grooves of his fingers and his arm strained with the effort. Kili grit his teeth, determined.
With both eyes open, the way his teacher Narfi had taught him, he aimed at the deer's neck. He breathed in slowly and on his out breath he loosed the arrow. It whistled through the air and landed right at the juncture of its neck. A clean kill. The deer went down and landed on its side. Still firmly on the ground and not plummeting 20 metres down.
I did it!
A bewildered grin spread across his face. His arms reached up into the air and he cheered "YEAH."
Fili joined him quickly. His arms circled Kili and lifted him up.
"By Mahal Kili," he said as he put him back down "you downed it in one shot, that was amazing."
Kili couldn't believe it either. "Just wait until Uncle sees it. He'll have to see how useful I would be."
"Of course he will, Kili," said Fili, clasping Kili's shoulder.
Fili then looked up towards the sky, still steel grey and pouring with rain. He frowned at the moisture hitting his face. He wiped the water out of his eyes and looked over to the deer.
"As amazing as that was, I'm not looking forward to dragging that thing home with us."
"Oh we'll be fine brother," said Kili, too excited to let that dampen his mood.
He separated from Fili and made his way towards his kill. The rain came down harder as he stepped out from under the cover of the trees. Getting down on one knee, he gripped the arrow shaft and pulled. It came free with a bit of effort. He stood back up and wiped the arrow against his coat to clean the blood off.
Just as he was about to place it back in his quiver something stopped him. Instinct had him freezing and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. It was no wind that caused the sensation.
He heard it before he saw it. A low, guttural growl cut through the clearing, coming from within the forest.
Kili and Fili both wheeled around towards the source of the noise. The sight they found was enough to make anyone pale.
A wolf
No. It was no wolf.
Whatever grace or beauty it may have shared with such a creature had long been bred out of it. Instead, its mutated monstrous form was made to strike fear into the hearts of anyone who came across it. Its maw was mutilated with a huge chunk missing, revealing the sharp teeth inside. Long strands of spittle dripped out of the cavity and onto the ground below. The fur was a mottled grey broken up by bald patches and long pale scars. Its paws were already stained umber, with what Kili could only assume was blood.
It was a warg. The kind that orcs rode into battle. Infinitely more dangerous than a mere wolf. It must have scented the deer but now Kili was in its way. All of its muscles were primed and ready to pounce.
"Kili!" his brother shouted and drew his sword with practised speed. The fear in his voice was palpable.
This jarred the warg and it snarled loudly, showing off all of the deadly sharpness of its teeth. In a split second it had made its decision and jumped and bounding its way towards Kili.
Kili's blood turned to ice in his veins. He fumbled with the arrow in his hand and took aim.
He didn't draw the bow string all the way back as there wasn't enough time. The blood stained arrow soared through the air towards the warg. However, the warg was clever and threw itself to the side to evade the shot. Instead of landing right between its eyes, like Kili had intended, it embedded itself in its shoulder. This only served to anger it further as it roared in agony.
Fili was close enough to it now. With a roar of his own he swung his sword down onto the creature's back legs. He just managed to clip its right leg but this did not stop the warg and its continued trajectory.
Kili tried to reload his bow, his hands just about grazed the feathers of an arrow in his quiver. But it was too late. The creature was already upon him. He attempted to jump out of the way and he raised his bow to strike. But the warg got there first and its great maw clamped down on Kili's arm.
Its teeth cleaved into his arm with such ferocious strength. He felt his bone snap beneath its jaw. Its claws raked down his other arm, tearing straight through the leather coat and into his flesh. The bow slipped from his now useless hand. He didn't even get a chance to cry out in pain as the momentum from the warg's jump pushed both of them over the edge.
The last thing he heard was his brother yelling for him as he plummeted to his death.
