I would not recommend falling to your death.

Wind rushed up below where ground should have been, buffeting around me in a torrent that tore all sound away. The only way I could tell was screaming was from the burning they left behind. My stomach felt like it was trying to escape out of the top of my ribcage. The sensation got lodged somewhere in the divot of my throat and the searing urge to vomit rose alongside it. All thoughts were reduced to terror and screaming instict. I lashed out against the unrelenting rock face, arms and legs flailing, trying to find purchase on anything. The slick, rain-coated rocks slid straight out of my grip. Cutting palms. Grazing knees. Slicing arms.

There was nothing below me. Only a deep pervasive darkness; the mouth of a beast ready to swallow me whole.

I wanted the nightmare to end.

I did not want to land.

But land I did. The darkness peeled away just enough for me to glance at the rocky ledge moments before I smashed into the unforgiving stone feet first. The shock of the landing reverberated up my legs like a thunderclap. Quick and sharp and burning. My ankle snapped to one side with a crunch. The grind of bones and tearing of tendons whited out my vision and I fell backwards with a breathless scream stuck in my throat. Burning, lacerating, the pain shot its way up my leg and I couldn't breathe.

When I finally managed to gulp down a breath of air a howl of pain left me. There was no moving, no thinking, only this long, agonising moment I thought would last forever. My own version of hell played on a loop.

The dizzying height of the mountain above only worsened my misery. There was no way I could get back up there and they would never find me down here. But I still yelled for help anyway, screaming, begging, for anyone or anything.

I pulled on the bond, persistent, demanding as if I could force it into a physical reality and use it to climb back up to Kili. I don't know what I expected to happen. Kili couldn't help from up there, he'd more likely get himself killed–again–and send me down with him. But I was frenzied and hysterical, all rational thought swallowed by the pain in my ankle.

Kili pulled back on the bond. A bloom of warmth spread through my chest, breaking off my shallow cry. He did it again and again, each time soothing my frayed nerves. The sensation broke me free of the vicious cycle of fear and panic. I took a deep, stuttered breath in through my nose and out through my mouth. My heart was still a wild and racing thing but it no longer felt like it was about to bust out of my sternum.

I needed to move. Needed to think. Wallowing would just get me killed.

With gritted teeth, I hauled myself into a sitting position. Only to realise how close to the edge I had landed. A foot to my left would have been a straight shot down to death. I scrambled backwards, pressing myself as close to the wet cliff face as I could. My right ankle screamed in protest, but I managed it.

Had I broken my ankle?

With as much confidence as I could muster, I tried to move my toes. I hissed in pain and only managed a minute twitch. The movement felt hindered, wrong and burning. I wasn't a doctor. I couldn't tell what that meant. But if it was broken it was going to make my already tumultuous battle off this mountainside that much harder.

I howled my frustrations with a searing, expletive rant into the wind. My tirade went on for several minutes, varying in creativity, until I felt better. "Fucking piece of shit giant. Bloody bastard fuck!"

A faint groan rumbled in reply.

I cut off my rant with a sharp inhale. Was that real or a trick of the wind? The groan sounded again, somewhere below me and I remembered that I wasn't alone. Gloin had fallen alongside me. Something small and shaped vaguely like hope sparked within me and, using the wall as leverage, I sidled along until I could peer into the space below. Another ledge sprawled out about 5ft down, with a half-conscious Gloin lying in the centre of it.

"Gloin, are you okay?" I shouted.

All I heard was groans in return. Nothing looked broken from my vantage point, but I could see an alarming amount of blood leaving a trail across his forehead. He could be concussed or worse, I needed to get down to him and fast.

I pushed myself to the edge and let my legs dangle below me. I felt a twinge of nausea at the idea of dropping onto my injured ankle. It already pulsed angrily and there was no weight on it. But I reasoned that If I lowered myself down slowly onto my good leg, it would all be fine.

So I rolled over until I lay flat on my stomach. Then I gave myself a tentative shove and began working my way slowly off the ledge. My hands were spread wide so I could keep a good balance, and inch by inch, I moved down. It was going well, my left toes even brushed against the ground, but then the rock I'd been holding on to cracked under my weight, and I fell the rest of the way.

The drop was only small, but it was enough to take out my legs from underneath, flooring me for several moments. An acrid tang of acid burned its way up my throat, and I cursed the very concept of bones. If they were going to hurt this much when they broke, then I didn't want them anymore. At least an amorphous blob wouldn't be in the amount of pain I was in.

I blinked away the tears in my eyes and forced my breath out in deep pants to try and refocus. Gloin lay across from me, eyes moving under closed lids. The blood appeared to be coming from a particularly nasty gash across the top of his hairline. He must have smacked headfirst into the cliff face when he fell.

Did I have enough energy to heal him?

Though there wasn't really much of a choice. It was either get Gloin conscious or leave us both to die of exposure on a mountainside. I would take my chances with the former.

I screwed my eyes tight and swallowed thickly, concentrating on the magic swirling through me. My well wasn't as deep as I would have liked but it would be enough. I hoped. Willing the magic into my hands was a lot harder, and I had to fight more for it to stay in my palms and not snake back to my core.

I shuffled closer to Gloin in a kind of army crawl and placed my glowing hands on his head. The magic sank below the surface of his skin and sent out curious, probing tendrils. No damage was done to the skull, as far as I could tell. The dwarves' notoriously thick skulls undoubtedly helped him in this instance. But the skin still needed to reseal. So I willed the cells to reform. My vision began to swim in front of me. Gloin's face doubled, tripled before returning back to a single.

The wound was half closed when Gloin's eyes rapidly blinked open. He took one look at my strained face and shoved my hands away from him.

"Stop it, you daft girl, you're gonna end up fainting," he grumbled "I'm a dwarf. I'll be fine."

I wanted to point out that he hadn't really been fine a minute ago, but I was too tired to protest.

The rain lashed down, soaking through everything until the idea of dryness was all but a distant memory. We wouldn't last long out here. We needed to move, to find shelter, to feel for just a moment that we weren't inches away from certain death.

Gloin sat up and peered around him. His eyes lit up when he glanced at something behind me. "You know I think that might be a cave."

Oh, please be true! I spun to where Gloin was pointing. At first, I could not detect any hint of salvation. All I could see was dark rock, moss and rubble. But upon closer inspection, I could see a patch that was blacker than the rest of its surroundings like it went deeper into the mountain.

"Oh Gloin I could kiss you."

Gloin chuckled "I'm flattered, lass, but I will let you save your kisses for the fella you're courting when we make it back to him."

"Deal."

Gloin clambered to his feet with a grunt and started making his way towards the entrance. He stopped halfway there when he realised I wasn't following.

"What's wrong, Leah?"

I grit my teeth and tried to pull myself to standing. A truly miserable endeavour. "I think I might have broken something."

Gloin rushed over and caught me under the arm, redistributing my weight and allowing me to remain upright.

"Fucking hell!" he said, then a redness bloomed in his cheeks "Sorry for the swearing. I try not to, in front of ladies."

"Don't worry about it," I huffed a laugh, hobbling along with Gloin on my arm. "You should have heard my rant earlier. It makes yours look rather tame in comparison."

Gloin laughed, "Shame I missed it."

With my arm slung over Gloin's shoulder, we both hobbled towards the cave entrance. It was thin, with jagged walls and we had to sidle into it in single file. The rough edge caught on the edge of my bag, and I had to yank hard to pull it through, but we were finally on the other side.

The ceiling, I gauged, was about a metre or so above our heads, lessening the feeling of claustrophobia and the knowledge of a thousand tonnes of rock weighing down on us. It was a thin corridor of some kind leading further into the mountain. It was draughty, dark and just about wide enough for me and Gloin to stand next to one another. But the fact that we were out of the cursed rain and the temperature was at least a couple of degrees higher made the space almost welcoming. I just hoped that no goblins used this cave and spoiled it.

Gloin let me lean on him as we made our way down it. We only walked a few more metres before we stopped. The edge of the weak light from outside was where we would rest for a little while.

"Let me have a look at your foot, Lass," Gloin said, lowering me to the ground. "I've got some of Oin's things in my pack that might help."

I stretched my injured leg out in front of me. The lack of zips in elven boots would make this task harder than it needed to be. With concerted effort, I pulled at the shoe, swearing under my breath, until I managed to wriggle my boot free. Then I pulled the sock down, noting a significant swelling and a deepening bruise.

Gloin hissed through his teeth and grabbed my foot with a surprising gentleness. "Agh, that doesn't look good." He probed around the tender area with quick, sure fingers. I felt something shift beneath the surface. A nauseating, crunching sensation. "Aye, I think you might have broken something."

Fuck! What the hell am I supposed to do now?

"Can you not do that healing thing?" he asked.

"No," I stuck my bottom lip "Doesn't work on yourself, apparently. Which is just bullshit if you ask me."

"I agree with you there," Gloin chuckled, "Though I think elves are quite fast healers, so that might be okay in a few days." Then he reached into his pack and withdrew bandages.

"Do you know much about healing?" I inquired.

"Aye. You don't have a brother like Oin and not pick up a few things."

Gloin retrieved some kind of paste. It was thick, cold and laced with dried herbs. He slathered it onto my injured foot, careful not to press too hard. The temperature difference made me realise just how warm the skin had become. Then he began to wrap the bandages around my ankle tightly to support the bone.

"When Oin first got his apprenticeship with healer Kine, he would come home and tell me everything he'd learned that day. I'm quite a bit younger than him so it was often a bedtime story."

I smiled as Gloin reminisced.

He finished my ankle up quickly. It actually felt a little better with the added support.

Gloin sighed and sat down heavily "Now, we need to find out where the others are. And if they're even alive."

I pointed upwards, in the general direction of the bond. "They are in that direction, and I know that at least Kili is still alive." My hand ghosted over my chest where Kili's heartbeat was.

"How do you know that?" Gloin raised his eyebrow.

"When I brought Kili back, I tied his life to mine. Now we're literally connected. If Kili died, then I'd be dead too." I explained

"No, I knew that bit. I mean, how do you know where they are?"

"Oh, if I look hard enough, I can see a glowing line that connects me to Kili," I could see it snaking its way upwards.

Gloin stared at the air around me as if he was trying to see it for himself. Then he shook his head "Well, I don't think we can do much right now. We'll have to wait until morning so we can see."

A frown pulled at the corners of my mouth. "I don't think we have that long," I muttered "If they follow the same path as the story, they're going to get grabbed by goblins in the middle of the night. I was going to warn them, but we're stuck down here."

Gloin swore under his breath. "We'll still have to wait a while."

Okay good, waiting I could do. Resting might help my injuries and give me enough resolve to make it out of this mess. Gloin leaned back against the tunnel wall across from me. His head wound looked a lot better, but he was still covered in cuts and bruises. He must be in pain, but I knew he'd refuse my help again. Dwarves were stubborn, and Gloin was an old warrior. He'd probably had worse pain in his life.

We sat in silence for a few moments. Only the sound of our breathing and the distant drizzle of rain were audible. I hadn't spent much time with Gloin. He usually kept to himself or banded together with some of the older dwarves. This was probably the longest time we'd been alone with each other.

"So," said Gloin, "In this other world of yours, did it say much about me?"

I could tell that Gloin was trying to lighten the mood. Keep us distracted from our current insurmountable problems.

"There was a little bit," I said sleepily. "Uh, I think it said that you were a banker and dealt with money before this. Oh, and also that you're Gimli's dad."

"Gimli? my wee lad is in your stories?" Gloin asked, his eyes wide.

I realised then that I had probably said too much. In my tired state, Gimli's name had slipped out. There probably wouldn't be much harm in me telling Gloin a few things, though. I just wouldn't go into any details. "Yeah, he's a very famous dwarf. Or he will be in about 60 years."

"My lad, a famous dwarf," Gloin's eyes brimmed with pride. He really did love his son.

My eyelids started to droop. I tried to stay as alert as possible, but the day had taken it out of me. "You should rest, lass. I'll wake you if anything happens."

I wanted to stay up with Gloin, but I knew that there were at least a few hours until the goblins found the dwarves. A nap wouldn't be amiss.

Sleep claimed me with a surprising speed, dragging me down into its dark and dreamless depths. I had no concept of time. It could have been 3 minutes, it could have been 3 hours, but the next thing I knew, I was shooting awake by a sudden intense pounding in my chest.

I sat up, gasping. "I think the goblins have them," I panted.

"Oh bugger it," Gloin rushed into action instantly, climbing to his feet and swinging his pack onto his back. With strong hands under my armpits, Gloin hoisted me upwards until I could get my feet under me. My ankle still twinged fiercely, but I felt like I could put at least some weight on it now. I would still have to hop to make it any reasonable distance but it made me feel a little more hopeful I could make it out of this.

Gloin helped me strap my own bag securely onto my back, then reached for his axe. The oppressive darkness was anything but approachable but we knew we would have to venture further into the cave to have any hope of finding our friends.

"Come on, lass. We can do this."

I nodded, more grateful than ever for his presence, and took his offered arm to keep me steady as we walked into the dark.

"Lass, can you see?" Gloin asked, his whispered words bouncing off the stone walls like a shout.

Elven eyesight was thankfully far better than a human's. It meant that the darkness didn't feel too complete or all-encompassing. There was always something I could make out, even if it was only the vague shape of the walls.

"Just about, yes," I said, cringing at the way my own voice echoed.

"Good, 'cause I'm walking blind right now."

I realised the truth of his words when he nearly led us into the wall when the tunnel unexpectedly turned. With a gentle tug I righted our direction and led us both on. Gloin helped me to walk and I helped us to see. It felt like an equal exchange to me. The tunnel seemed to continue deep into the mountain. Which meant that we would hopefully find ourselves in the centre of it soon enough.

The darkness around us seemed to lighten minutely as we ventured closer. Soon the orangey light of a flame appeared in the distance and Gloin could finally see around him. The sounds of goblin town permeated the air and I shrunk inwards. Anything could alert the goblins to us, it felt like we were walking on a knife's edge.

The tunnel gave way to a towering cavern that took up the entire centre of the mountain. I could see shadows of goblins running above us. Great heaving clouds of them. If I concentrated too much on the vast number of enemies around us, I was likely to curl up into the foetal position, so I pushed it as far away from my mind as possible.

Thankfully, none of them had noticed us yet. They were too busy with their guests above us. I could hear the shouts from the company struggling in the heights of goblin town as they were assailed tooth and nail. Gloin hauled me to the side until we were flat against the wall. I just about covered my sound of surprise as a hunched-over goblin scuttled passed the opening of the tunnel. Thankfully, it didn't look back.

The centre of the maze of platforms and rope bridges was where all of the dwarves were being taken. I wanted to scream as I craned my neck to look at just how much we needed to climb. But before I could, a different scream split through the air, followed by the body of a falling Hobbit.

"Mahal, was that Bilbo?" Gloin whispered forcefully.

"Yes," I whispered back "Don't worry, he's fine."

"Fine! He just fell to his death!" Gloin argued

"No trust me he'll find his way out."

We wandered further into the cavern, heads on a swivel for any sign of movement. The comfort of a wall at our backs promptly vanished, replaced by the immense openness of vulnerability. It was a prickle at the back of my neck, yelling there was danger at every turn.

A mouldy rope ladder seemed to be our best shot up. It was tucked into a corner, and there did not seem to be any goblins around it. For now, at least. Gloin went first, the first rung splitting in two beneath his boot. He swore under his breath and tried again, aiming to keep his feet closer to the edges.

When he was a few feet above me, I took a deep steeling breath and went to follow up behind him. The ladder was coated in something slimy and gelatinous. It took everything in me not to gag as I placed my good foot on the rung and pulled upwards. Out of habit, I put my right foot on the next one and had to bite my tongue to stop crying out.

Well, that's definitely out of the question.

"Are you alright, lass?"

"Mmhm."

"I'll carry you on my back if I have to, Leah. We'll get out of this."

I nearly felt myself tear up at Gloin's offer of help. I quickly shook my head. "No, I can do this. Thank you though."

He nodded and started back up the ladder. I followed behind him on three limbs, the other hanging uselessly. But I soon found a rhythm and made good progress.

Once we neared the top we soon realised that the ladder didn't extend all the way. There was a gap where other rungs had deteriorated over the years and Gloin had to jump the last part. He scrambled against the platform, legs dangling, and dragged himself up with a grunt. I eyed the jump and an iron ball of dread sunk into my stomach. Could I make that?

Once Gloin was over, he gave himself at least three prolonged breaths before he twisted onto his stomach and leaned over the edge.

"Come on lass, give us your arm. I've got you." He stretched his arm as far as he could.

I swallowed, preparing to grab the offered hand, but before I could reach up, a shadow appeared over Gloin's shoulder. He didn't have time to react as the body of a goblin bore down on him. Its skin was a mottled green colour and covered in pustules. Gloin was all but trapped beneath, and the Goblin raised a knife.

My hand reached for the sword at my hip before my brain fully caught up with the movement. It slipped out of the sheath with a soft sheen, and with a foolhardy determination, I pushed upwards. I thrust my arm out, and the steel buried itself deep into the monster's skull. It never got the chance to cry out as black blood and brain matter slipped down its face.

The jump made me lose contact with the ladder completely. I would have been in freefall if it wasn't for Gloin's fierce grip wrapping around my wrist. The goblin fell forward, nearly pulling me and Gloin down with it. But blessedly, my sword slipped out of the creature's head, and it crashed to the ground alone.

The skin of my wrist burned with all my weight held up by it. For one devastating second, it felt like Gloin's hand was going to slip but then–narrowly avoiding the sharp edge of my sword–he managed to grab hold of my other arm and haul me upwards.

"Thank you," I said, heart pounding in the hollow of my throat.

"I think I should be the one thanking you for that one," he said, stretching his shoulder out.

Flat on my back, the maze of platforms sprawled above, and I cursed at the heights we still had to climb. It felt impossible from this vantage point, but we were determined to make it. So we ploughed ahead, making our way upwards, slowly but surely.

There was the odd goblin we had to dispatch along the way. More so the closer we got, but none of them got the chance to raise the alarm before their throat got cut.

We were so close now, and I could feel the presence of hundreds of goblins swarming around us. The boom of a twisted song echoed like the beat of a war drum, deep and full of malice. There was a small alcove that we were heading towards. It lay along one of the main paths and would help to shroud us. Gloin managed to make it there first. He turned back to look where I was, and his eyes went wide.

"Look out!"

I heard the shrieks of more than one creature and spun around, swinging wildly with my sword. One of them caught the end of my blade but there were more of them than I could feasibly fight off. They grabbed me with their razor-sharp fingers, ripping into my hair, pulling at my clothes. My sword was torn from my hands, like a lifeline cut away, and I was dragged backwards. I heard Gloin succumb to the same fate behind me.

Any resistance on my end only caused them to scratch and bite and pinch. My broken ankle scraped across the ground, and I cried out. It only seemed to enliven them. I was yanked this way and that, feet leaving the ground completely until, finally, I was thrown unceremoniously onto a wide platform. Multiple pairs of hands held me down before I could even attempt to stand up. A foetid stench blocked my airways. A thick miasma I couldn't turn away from. When I looked up, I found the Goblin King towering above me.

"Look what we found, sire."

"An elf."

"A Female."

Shrill voices rang through the cavern, and I wanted to curl up. Gloin was thrown in with the other dwarves. They caught him before he could crumple and set him on his feet. Only I had the luxury of the goblins' sole attention. The Goblin King looked down at me like Christmas had come early.

"It's been such a long time since an elf has graced my kingdom," The Goblin King reached down, a large rotten hand lifting up my chin. His skin was putrid, and I could feel a film of something slimy across its surface. The other goblins let go of me when their king approached.

The dwarves shouted in protest, but the Goblin king paid them no mind. He strained my neck up so that I had to look him in the eyes. I could feel the warmth of tears on my cheeks as I tried not to cry out. "They take longer to break, and their cries are the most exquisite. Let's see what our devices can do to that pretty skin of yours."

I heard the sound of the dwarves trying to rush forwards. An awful panic bloomed violently within me. It was only made worse when the goblins found Thorin's sword.

"THE GOBLIN CLEAVER," they howled.

Their anger reached a fever pitch, and then they swarmed. Ripping, biting, clawing. Pain and panic, and anger rose up like a pyre, and my magic rose with it. Bright, searing light burst out of me and shot out in all directions. The goblins in my immediate vicinity were fried and thrown off the sides, and the King took a big hit to the head. Half of his face was black and sizzling.

All sound was sucked up like a vacuum as everyone held their breath in shock. Before the silence could break, it was interrupted by a second blistering wave of light. Much larger than mine had been, blasting all the remaining goblins over the sides.

Gandalf emerged from the smoke with his sword raised. "Quick, gather your weapons. We must fly."

My head was swimming, and my ankle was screaming. The rotten wood swayed beneath my shaking hands as I tried to push myself upwards. A pair of arms grabbed me from behind, but it did not startle me. The bond pulsed happily, and I instinctively knew it was Kili lifting me up. He placed me on to unsure feet, and a lance of pain shot up my leg. I couldn't stop from crying out.

"What's wrong? What happened?"

"M-my ankle. I can't walk!"

I could see most of the other dwarves already speeding ahead. I was slowing them down, but I couldn't put any weight on my right leg.

Kili did not hesitate. He placed my sword, which he must have found for me, into the palm of my hand, then threw me over one shoulder and bolted after the company.

My new point of view took a few seconds to get used to, and then I wished I didn't. From Kili's back, I was front and centre to witness the descending horde of goblins. They crawled like a swarm of insects, threatening to devour you whole. Some got threateningly close, and I used the sword to keep them back. They made high-pitched screams as my blade made contact, but it didn't deter them. They still kept coming.

I honestly couldn't tell where Kili was leading me. We swung wildly around bends, dropped and climbed. A few times, I nearly slid off his shoulder, but another dwarf was there to shove me back on. At one point, we were airborne, and I had to cling to Kili for dear life. I had no idea how he remained upright, but I was not going to question it, not when was the only thing keeping me alive.

The company was fighting them off effectively until Kili stumbled to a stop. The momentum threw me off his shoulder and knocked the wind out of me as I landed on a bridge of some kind. The boards rumbled below me as the Goblin King dragged itself through. His face was blackened and oozing. Only one eye still worked. The goblin swarm then walled us in on all sides.

Gandalf fell backwards as the Goblin King swung for him. "You rats come into my kingdom and dare deface me!" Bellowed the Goblin King, "You are surrounded. What are you going to do now?"

Gandalf very kindly made his answer known. With his staff, he rammed it forcefully into the Goblin King's one good eye. Then, with Glamdring, he gored the king's belly and slit his throat. It happened in a matter of moments, and all I could do was stare. Both in disgust and morbid fascination.

The king let out a guttural death rattle before pitching forwards. Taking the rest of the bridge with him, us included. For the second time in a matter of hours, I was free falling down a mountain. My stomach was in my throat, and I felt nausea rise with it. The bridge crashed against the rock wall, slowing our descent. Sharp strips of wood shot out as they hit the sides. Some of the dwarves fell through the slats in the wood, falling into what had been the suspension part of the bridge. They grabbed the rotten wood and held on for dear life.

The board beneath Kili also collapsed, sending him sprawling through the bottom. I screamed and reached for him. My finger grazed his arm, but he fell further from my reach. Thankfully he caught himself below, wrapping his arms around a beam. I managed to stay on top. Probably because I was the lightest one in the group.

We landed at the bottom with a bone-shuddering crash. I was thrown from the top of the bridge and landed on the dirt below. It took a few moments before I could get my breath back.

"You need to move," I shouted.

"We're trying," I heard someone say.

But they didn't move fast enough, and the enormous body of the Goblin King landed on top of them, crushing them below the debris.

"You've got to be joking," I heard Dwalin growl.

Thorin was the first person out. He got up quickly, wiping off the dust from his coat and turned to help Dori. His leg was caught under a beam, and he had to lift it out of the way.

"Gandalf!" Kili yelled..

The goblins bore down on us from above. More pissed off than before.

"We must make for daylight! It is our only hope," Gandalf said.

My body was lifted by a strong pair of hands and thrown unceremoniously over a shoulder. Only this time, it wasn't Kili - who had just about extracted himself from the rubble - it was someone else.

"I apologise in advance for the bumpy ride." Bifur, my brain supplied, and then he was running.

I lifted my head so I could see where we were running. Light streamed in from an opening in the tunnel. It felt like the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen. All of us poured out into the forest, not stopping to rest until we were a considerable distance away from the cave entrance. I gulped down the clean air of the forest. Fresh and crisp, like a blessing after the stench of goblin town.

Bifur placed me onto an overturned log, and I sank heavily onto it.

"Thank you," I breathed.

"Ah, no worries, lass. It was the least I could do."

Kili ran up to me and wrapped me in his arms. I buried my face in his chest, the overwhelming urge to cry building up. So much had happened in such a short space of time. It all caught up to me at once.

"I was so scared when Thorin said you had fallen. He almost had to tie me up to stop me from climbing down the mountain to look for you."

I gripped his shirt "I'm here. We're here. We're together," I said, trying to convince myself that it was true

Gandalf started counting us all to make sure that we were all accounted for. "So that is all 13 dwarves and Leah," he muttered "But where is Bilbo? Has anyone seen him?"

"I saw him slink off when the Goblins took us," said Nori, his perfectly coiffed hair had started to come out.

Thorin's face twisted in distaste. He thought that Bilbo had deliberately left them.

"Actually," interrupted Gloin "Me and the lass saw Master Baggins falling deeper into the mountain. He must have been pushed off the side."

"Mahal!" Thorin swore, "He has gone and gotten himself trapped in the mountain."

"Actually, I found my way out." The sudden appearance of Bilbo from behind a tree shocked everyone. Well, everyone except me. He stood as if he was expecting to be reprimanded, but he held his head high. "There was a path that snaked underneath the Goblins."

Thorin's face remained stoic, but I could see a flicker of something in his eyes. "For a moment there, I thought you had found your chance and ran. You have been craving the comforts of home since you left."

Bilbo nodded "You're right, I have. I long for my books and my garden and some decent pipeweed," he chuckled "All of that is home for me. I have that to look forward to when I go back. But none of you have that. Your home was taken from you. So I am not going to leave until you get to go home too."

Bilbo had really grown to care about the people in the company despite some of the coldness that he had received. Thorin's face softened at Bilbo's words.

Bilbo's gaze swept over the company, and his face lit up when he saw me. "Leah, you're alive."

"Just about," I said as he rushed over for a hug. His frizzy curls tickled against my cheek.

We were shocked apart at the sound of a demented howl. It burrowed into my bones, bouncing off the already exposed nerves.

How had the orcs found us already? I just needed to rest for five minutes where I wasn't barreling towards death at top speed. The other dwarves had heard it, too and sprung into action, grabbing their weapons and readying to fight. High up on the hill, a huge pack of wargs and their orc riders crested the top. There was a barrage of black speech, and the wargs began to dart down the hill, heading straight for us.

"Run, RUN!" urged Gandalf.

We didn't need to be told twice. Kili grabbed me once more and took off down the hill. The slope slanted dangerously downwards, and I was terrified my weight would throw us off balance and send us both careening to the ground, but Kili caught himself against rocks and trees and used them to push us onwards. We ran until the slope came to a dangerous drop. Between the fall and the wargs, there was no way out. Both sides led to certain death.

"Into the trees!"

Everyone began ascending into the branches above us. They helped each other and launched people into the trees. Kili grabbed me around the waist, ready to hoist me up to the waiting hands above when a snarl erupted behind us. A warg had made its way towards us, strands of drool dripping out from its fangs. Its eyes were completely black and soulless as they burned into me. With a vicious growl, it launched straight for us.

I didn't have time to reach for my sword. My magic reacted for me, swirling up from deep within. It exploded out once more, blasting the creature backwards. It let out a strangled yelp, followed by the sound and smell of singed fur and burnt flesh.

All my energy left me at once, and I flopped against Kili's back. The world around me swam out of focus as I was hauled further into the tree by many hands. A body pressed me between them and the trunk so that I wouldn't fall. I fought my body to stay awake and take in great gulping breaths.

The wargs didn't stop when we got into the trees. They ran headlong into the trunk, tearing it out by the roots. The tree only lasted for a few moments longer before it listed backwards. A wave of vertigo hit me as the tree fell. I only managed to latch onto the other tree out of sheer luck and desperation.

A blaze of heat suddenly fell past me. The shock of it made me shy away, nearly losing my grip on the tree. The world was a swirl of orange flame and darkness as my vision swam.

The wargs' fur caught alight with surprising ease, spreading quickly. So quickly, in fact, that it spread through the trees. The flames began licking their way up back towards us. It ruined the integrity of the trunk, and a loud crack signalled the tree's descent. Ori and Dori were knocked out of the tree as it fell backwards. Only Gandalf staff managed to catch them. They both dangled over the edge of the cliff. Nothing but air below them.

My own legs were dangling over the edge, desperately trying to find purchase in the branches below. Adrenaline was the only thing that kept me going. It took everything not to fall from the tree.

The sound of black speech rang through the air. Nonchalant and mocking, and I knew that Azog had arrived.

Through the flickering flames, I saw him. His face shone with malice and unbridled glee. The sight of him brought bile to my throat. It was really him. The one who would kill Thorin.

Azog drifted his piercing blue eyes across the tree, relishing in our despair. His eyes landed on me, and a ravenous smile spread across his face. I froze beneath his stare. Sharp, biting words left his mouth and even though I could not understand what he said, they still cut through me.

Then Azog shifted his attention towards Thorin. His eyes lit up when he beheld the descendent of Durin clinging on for dear life. He levelled his sword at Thorin and taunted the dwarf. I prayed that Thorin wouldn't rise to it, but then I felt the tree shift.

"N-no, Thorin, stop," I stuttered.

Thorin didn't listen and ran towards the danger with his sword raised. Azog's warg reacted when Thorin got close enough, knocking him from his feet. He got up just in time to have Azog's mace slammed into his chest. I could hear the dwarves yelling around me. Dwalin tried to climb up, but his branch snapped, nearly sending him into the chasm below.

The warg then wrapped its maw around Thorin's torso, biting down and piercing his armour. He was thrown several feet and crashed onto a boulder. His sword flew from his grasp, and he could barely keep his head up.

It looked like all was lost as Azog sent his lackey to cut off Thorin's head. A sword lifted up Thorin's chin, readying for the killing blow. But just as he swung, he was attacked by a hobbit. The momentum sent both the orc and Bilbo flying. Bilbo stabbed at the orc, using some of the techniques Dwalin had taught him and climbed off the orc's back. Then he moved closer to Thorin. His lone protector.

I didn't see much more as a plume of feathers shrouded my vision. The suddenness of it shocked me and what little grip I had on the tree fell away. My body slipped through the air, falling for the third time that day. Strong talons lassoed their way around my middle, preventing me from tumbling into the forest below. Before I could make sense of what was happening, I was thrown on the back of a large bird.

The Eagles.

I nearly face-planted the bird as my body finally succumbed to tiredness.