~Nine~
~Barrel Riders and Orc Slayers~
Splash!
Bilbo pulled a lever and the floorboards beneath them tipped, and and the barrels were dropped right into the rushing river below that ran beneath the Elven kingdom. Dahlia instantly saw the genius of Bilbo's plan - the river would carry them right out of the kingdom and far away.
Splash!
Moments later, there was another splash and Bilbo himself, with no barrel, landed amongst the Dwarves' barrels bobbing in the water.
"Well done, Master Baggins," Thorin congratulated him.
Bilbo just waved away his praise, looking much less than pleased at their current situation.
"Here, Bilbo, grab on-" Dahlia extended her hand out to the Hobbit, pulling him towards her barrel, which he clung to the side of, hanging on for dear life.
The current carried them out of the cellars and soon out of the palace itself. The midday sunlight was blinding after being locked away within the dim cells.
A horn blast carried out - the Elves must have noticed their disappearance, not that it would have been difficult to miss.
This was confirmed when, up ahead, a lever was pulled by a guard and the gate in their path was swung closed.
"No!" Thorin's barrel bumped into the gate as it swung shut, sealed closed, cutting off their escape route. Soon all the barrels bumped together, lodged under the bridge.
Swish!
One of the guards gave a cry as he was suddenly struck by an arrow - and it was no Elf arrow...
"Watch out! There's Orcs!"
"Get under the bridge!"
The Orc pack had caught up with them - now they were surrounded by two enemies.
The Orcs were led this time, not by Azog himself, but by the Pale Orc's vile son, Bolg.
The Dwarves were unarmed so the only weapons they got were from any fallen Orcs or Elves. Those who didn't catch hold of a weapon had to result to throwing punches at their Orc attackers in order to defend themselves.
Luckily for the Dwarves, the Elves now had more of a problem to face rather than some escaping Dwarf prisoners, and they were distracted. However, this also meant the Dwarves were facing a greater problem now too - they didn't have to worry about being attacked by the Elf guards, but now had to worry about being killed by the Orcs. Now if only they could open the gate...
Kili was on it - he leapt out of his barrel and climbed up the wall, making for the lever.
"KILI!" screamed Fili suddenly.
Ki had been struck in the leg by an Orc arrow, one shot by Bolg himself.
An Orc fell into the water, splashing the Dwarves, as it was struck by an arrow - this time an Elf arrow.
The blond prince and the red-haired captain, leading some guards, had arrived on the scene.
Despite being injured, Kili must have gotten the gate open, for the doors opened and the current pushed the Dwarves back out into the rushing river. And so the chase began - the Dwarves fleeing from the Elves and now the Orcs as well, the Orcs pursuing the Dwarves, and the Elves chasing the Dwarves and the Orcs.
The barrels were swung around by the current, tossing and turning - Dahlia was nearly dumped out into the river multiple times.
Under other circumstances, this may have been exciting. It may even had been fun. Instead, the current thrashed them around, the Orcs in hot pursuit.
Luckily for them, the Elves very efficiently took care of many of the Orcs, and didn't even continue the chase once the barrels passed out of the borders of Mirkwood. The current was faster than the Orcs, and soon they were in the distance again - but not for long, if their previous catching-up with the Dwarves again and again said anything.
"Anything behind us?" Thorin called.
"Not that I can see!" Balin returned.
"I think we've lost the Orcs!" cheered Bofur.
"Not for long, we've lost the current. Make for shore!" Thorin ordered.
They all paddled their way over to the bank of the river, everyone emerging soaked to the skin and dripping wet.
"We've lost Dahlia!" Bilbo cried. An empty barrel bobbed nearby, but the Lady of the Iron Hills was nowhere to be seen.
"Dahlia! Find her!" Thorin ordered. Everyone began searching nearby. The thing was, they had traveled a great distance - she could be anywhere between here and the kingdom borders.
"Over here!" It was Gloin's call that brought everyone's attention to the body pushed up against some rocks. Her red hair spilled out around her head, appearing blood-like in the water.
"Dahlia!"
"Lass!"
Thorin and Dwalin dragged her out of the water and Thorin lay her on the bank. He held his ear above her mouth to try and hear if she was breathing.
First Kili, and now her - and a second time. She was still recovering from her run in with the Warg.
"Dahlia - Dahlia, please-"
Silence, then-
SPLAT!
Her entire body stirred violently as she coughed up a mouthful of water - spitting it right into Thorin's face above her.
Fili and Kili would have laughed hysterically at this were they not concerned over Kili's wounded leg.
Thorin wiped his face with his sleeve, not that it did much good for his sleeve was soaking wet as well.
She rolled over, hacking up more water, Thorin rubbing her back, his hand warm through her soaked clothing. "Ugh, I feel like I've swallowed half the river-" she spluttered, leaning against the rock Kili was perched on.
"You all right?" he asked her.
"Aye, just need to catch my breath. You?" She nodded to his bloody leg.
"I'm fine, it's nothing."
"Doesn't look like nothing," she mused.
"She's right." Fili knelt at his brother's side, examining the deep cut made by the arrow.
"We need to keep moving, on your feet," Thorin ordered.
"Kili's wounded, his leg needs binding," Fili told him.
"We have an Orc pack on our tail, we have to keep moving."
"And go where?" asked Balin.
"To the mountain, we're so close," said Bilbo.
"There's a lake between us and that mountain," Balin informed him. "And we have no way to cross it."
"Please don't suggest we take the barrels for another spin," Dahlia said, still catching her breath. "Once was more than enough."
"Then we go round." Bilbo was certainly determined, there was no denying it.
"With an Orc pack behind us? They'll run us down, sure as daylight. And we have no weapons to defend ourselves," Dwalin reminded.
"Bind his leg, you have two minutes," said Thorin to his nephews. His tone was stern, but behind the seriousness, one could tell there was deep worry and concern for his nephew. Of course, with the press of time and the end of autumn growing steadily nearer, he was understandably growing impatient.
Quests like this one, especially with the time constraint, did not allow for any setbacks like getting captured, chased, and even wounded. And yet, at the same time, quests like this were always full of uncertainty, and therefore filled with those setbacks - and more.
Their two minutes ticked by, and it was two minutes too long. No one noticed the armed figure approaching until it was too late.
I've watched that barrel chase scene so many times! It's so much fun to watch!
Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! :)
