Chapter 26: Chances
The next thing she feels after the air is rock. There is no telling where she is going as everything around her becomes a jumble of Dwarves, their cries and what seems to be a slope made for victims to fall down. She can't help but internally scowl at the number of scrapes and bruises that are going to come along with this fall – if they survive whatever is at the end of it.
It doesn't end. Heels overhead, and every other direction the body can be folded. Down and down, they slide, knocking into each other and the stone walls.
After an eternity, Edyth is graced with a short moment of air where she is doing nothing but falling through it before that peace ends with a hard thud against a wooden beam. The air in her lungs is pushed out with an ungraceful grunt which only continues as Dwarves continue to pour into the crate she has landed into.
Less than a second after the last body lands in the pile, a horrifying sound echoes through the mountain. It's animalistic, but nothing like the Wargs and Orcs she's encountered so far. Her head snaps up, eyes pinned on the only pathway available to them. A great horde of creatures is coming at them and coming fast.
They are slimy skinned, which wrinkles and folds in places that make it look absolutely hideous. The company only have seconds before the creatures are upon them. Her moment of disgusted wonder is torn apart as the Goblins reach the crate, climbing over each other in a frenzied state.
Edyth screams as one grabs her arms, dragging her along the ground and other Dwarves. She kicks ferociously at him, managing to get one good hit in the face which sends the Goblin screeching, clutching its eye.
Edyth scrambles backwards but it is fruitless as another two Goblins climb over Dwalin and then claw their way to her. Both of her arms are taken, pulled opposite ways. Her shoulder joints scream in pain as she is yanked, her legs barely able to hold her up, let alone fight back which leaves her to their mercy.
Around her, the same is happening to the rest of the Dwarves and Bilbo. The sword around her waist is yanked away but the small dagger under her vest remains hidden for now. "Arrgh!" Edyth twists and turns her body, yanking back against their hold and digging her feet into the ground.
What ends her fight is a hard kick to the back of her knees, sending her downwards. With a moment of advantage, the Goblins pull her in line with the rest. Their faces pop in and out of her view, growling and screeching. In front of her, Dwalin continues to fight, punching and screaming but a large group push him forward. She can't even see anybody else through the mess.
Edyth gives up resisting, reserving her energy as there is no point with the number of Goblins around her. They are led through tunnels and over bridges, their captors' grip never faltering.
They exit the tunnels and Edyth's heart stops for at least two beats. The mountain tunnel opens up into a cavern larger than anything she has seen before. It is filled with networks of bridges that made like they are lined from wooden scrapes and if she thought the number of Goblins around her were a great amount, she has sorely been mistaking. There are hundreds, no, thousands of them scattered around in a Goblin city. They are cheering as the Dwarves are brought in and Edyth can't help but feel like the game of a hunter.
There is no doubt who they are being led to because in the middle of the giant cavern, is a single Goblin that stands out from the rest. He is larger than any other she can see, a crown of bones sitting around his head as he sits on a large throne. In his hand is a long staff, the head of a beast planted on the top.
As they are brought in front of the leader, their weapons are tossed into a pile to the side. Edyth's arms are finally let go but there is no freedom as the Goblins surround them with their own weapons.
The Goblin leader leaps down from his Throne, leaning down. The skin under is neck is gruesome and hanging, boils and warts galore. "Who would be so bold as to come armed into my kingdom?" he sneers, spit flying from his mouth. "Spies Thieves? Assassins?" Edyth finds herself next to Fili, her fingers crawling towards his wrist and just under his sleeve to grip his arm.
A lanky Goblin steps forward. "Dwarves, your Malevolence."
"Dwarves?!"
"Found them on the front porch."
"Well don't just stand there!" The Great Goblin exclaims. "Search them! Every crack, every crevice!"
The Goblins crawl towards them again, hands reaching to defile their bodies. A few try to fight back but some such as Kili stand there, seething as his jacket pockets are pulled open. One hand plants on her stomach and the next thing she knows, her dagger, the only weapon she has left is taken from her as well. She glares at the small Goblin that skips away with her small blade. That may have been her only lifeline. She looks over her shoulder to Fili but even he is being ravaged by three Goblins, his clothes being almost torn apart as they search for all his weapons.
Her grip on Fili's arm tightens.
"What are you doing in these parts? Speak!" The Great Goblin commands. Nobody moves, the only sound coming from their mouths being ragged breaths. "Very well, if they will not talk, we'll make them squawk!" He opens his arms to his crowd who cheer as loud as they did when the Dwarves first arrived. "Bring up the mangler, bring up the bone breaker." With his staff, the Goblin points towards the company. "Start with the youngest."
At first, she thinks the staff is being pointed towards her; she is the youngest by a long yard, but the point is directed ever so slightly to her right. And that is when she realises that being small than the Dwarves, she is actually being hidden behind the one in front of her. And the Goblin is pointing at Kili.
"No!"
Edyth leaps forward, glaring up at the Great Goblin. She feels as breathless as she did on the chase near Rivendell. Fili's hands wrap around her elbows, pulling her backwards. The pair slink into the crowd but it is no use now that he has seen her. The Great Goblin straightens his back, pulling his lips into a mirthless smirk. "They have a female!" he cries to the audience. They holler and squawk as the leader laughs, circling around with his arms wide open. "Oh, this just made it even more interesting. Of all the glitters and gold, their women are more precious!" He leans down, pointing one eye towards her which squints. She may as well be unclothed with how strongly his gaze pulls her apart. "But you're no Dwarf," he muses, retreating slightly. His eyes drop down to the hands that have moved from her elbows to her front, tightly folded around her. "I don't think that will matter. Bring her to me."
The Goblins act immediately, their hands scraping across her skin. She is turned around, so her front is facing the other Dwarves, Fili's back now to the Goblin King. The pair are knocked in all directions, both races acting against each other. Hunched forward, her arms cover her head, whacking at anything that dares come near her while Fili just resists the Goblins' attempts to pull him away. "Get off her!"
"Wait!"
The attacks halt, Edyth's head snapping upwards. Thorin, with his head held high, slowly marches forward. She can't help but wonder if he had to contemplate whether he wanted to step in, and what changed his mind. The Great Goblin takes a step backwards, but not in fear. "This day just gets better and better," he chuckles. "Thorin, son of Thrain, son of Thror, King under the Mountain." He mocks a bow, a disgusting taunt that makes the Dwarves and Edyth's blood boil. "Oh! But I'm forgetting you don't have a mountain, and you're not a king. Which makes you, nobody, really."
The Goblin pauses with a glint in his eye that turns Edyth's blood to ice even though it is not pointed at her. "I know someone who would pay a pretty price for your head. Just the head, nothing attached." He saunters backwards, having caught the attention of Thorin well and truly. "Perhaps you know of whom I speak, an old enemy of yours. A pale Orc astride and white Warg."
Edyth brows pinch together. She knows the story of the Pale Orc but from the tale she has been told by Balin, he died long ago at the battle of Moria from a mortal blow dealt by Thorin himself.
"Azog the Defiler was destroyed," Thorin growls. "He was slain in battle long ago."
"So you think his defiling days are done, do you?" The Goblin turns to another small member of the race, one perched on a sling of sorts. "Send word to the Pale Orc. Tell him I have found his prize."
The Goblins begin to act as though they have all the time in the world. And by their own accounts, they do, only having to wait for the enemy which the Dwarves and Edyth believed dead to come claim them so the Great Goblin can reap his reward. The company are pushed and shoved about but all they can do is glare and shove back. The Goblins even begin to sing.
"Bones will be shattered,
necks will be wrung,
and 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."
Along one of the roads, two contraptions are being towed along in their direction. The first is enough to rattle her bones. There are leather ties for each limb in the middle section, the other which is currently lying flat has sharp spikes that would be able to cut through flesh as easily as a thin knife.
In Edyth's head, there is quite honestly, nothing left to lose. If they survive it will be via a miracle because Death is knocking on her front door. With that in mind, she lashes out, punching, kicking, scratching anything that comes within reach. It angers the Goblins who start coming at her with increased wrath, but she only matches it. Even if they are not coming at her she reaches for them, yanking them off Bofur and Ori. The only thing she does not do is bite them, purely because she knows they would taste horrid and have diseases lurking on their skin. Edyth runs on such an automatic that she whacks Fili whose elbow drives past her. As a silent apology, she digs her hands into the Goblin latching onto his head, digging her nails in far enough that the creature squeals, falling to the ground.
The singing and merry nature of the Goblins comes to an end as one of the minions sorts through their belongings, finding Thorin's Elven sword. It crows, tossing it to the ground. Every Goblin nearby scrambles away in fear of the blade, including the Great Goblin who clambers onto his throne, squashing his foot pedestals.
The attacks on them pause as everybody to watch the new commotion. "I know that sword! It is the Goblin-cleaver! The Biter! The blade that sliced a thousand necks!" He points to the Dwarves, no longer content to wait for their end. "Slash them, beat them, peel them, kill them all!"
The Goblins had only been having fun earlier. Instead of being shoved around like toys, the Dwarves and Edyth become prey. A few of the Goblins pull out chained whips, slashing at them without restraint. It becomes a mess to protect both themselves and one another. Edyth ducks out of the way of one, only to be pushed to the ground from behind. Curling her head to her chest, she pushes up, falling to the side but she takes to opportunity to yank at the legs of a Goblin about to strike Thorin.
The Dwarf king expects the strike that never comes, his hands covering his face. When it doesn't. he opens his eyes again, kicking away the already fallen Goblin. Edyth's leg is tugged on so she rolls onto her stomach, gripping at the ground to not be pulled further into the pit where Goblins climb over each other. Her palms scrap along the ground, finding nothing but flat stone.
Large hands clamp around her wrists as well, but they do not belong to a foe. Dwalin counters the Goblin's pull, heaving her to her feet and kicking at the Goblin's head who slinks back into the crowd.
"Kill them! Kill them all!"
Edyth spies Thorin who has just been thrown to the ground, numerous Goblin's crawling over him, holding down his arms and legs. Defenceless but determined, Edyth barges forward. He stepped forward to save her, no matter how much he might have debated it.
"Cut off his head!"
Edyth tackles to Goblin standing over him with a crooked knife, the pair skidding across the stone. She lands underneath it, or maybe it swung on top of her in that brief moment but now the Goblin stands over her, knife poised to strike right down at her chest. Edyth digs herself into the ground, staring up at the tip which hovers, the Goblin's snarling grin just behind it.
Just as the Goblin moves to strike, the entire cavern is encased in an energy so powerful, that her ears deafen. A bright, blue-hued light pulses from a source unknown to her but she already considers it a source of help as the Goblin is blow off her. Forced to stay on the ground, she can only watch the Goblins being blown away around her, leaving the Dwarves on the ground where they are.
As quickly as it had come, the pulses of light disappear, leaving the cavern in darkness. Edyth rolls onto her stomach, grunting as she lifts her head towards the centre of the light. A figure with a staff, sword and a pointed hat stands in the shadows. Gandalf.
Around her, the Dwarves and Goblins alike begin to rise, also wondering what has become them.
"Take up arms," Gandalf commands. "Fight. Fight!"
The Dwarves push to their feet, battle cries coming from the back of their throats. Gandalf slashes through anything that comes to him and so do the Dwarves as Bombur begins throwing them their weapons.
"Edyth!"
She doesn't know who calls her name but a familiar sword flies through the air. She jumps slightly to catch it, dragging it down through the air as soon as it sits in her palm. She slices through a Goblin that comes to her and it topples to the ground, squealing in pain as death takes it. Though it isn't much, she recalls the lessons that Fili has given her, keeping her feet in the right stance and watching her open points.
Left and right they come at her and for a brief second, she is able to watch the Great Goblin topple over the side of his won platform into the unknown below. A Goblin lands in front of her and instantly, one manoeuvre comes to mind. Her sword thrusts forward through its chest but to her shock, the front of another blade pokes through at her end. She pulls her own back at the same time as the other owner.
Behind the Goblin which falls dead, is Fili, standing in the same stance she is. "Hey," she breathes with a small grin. "You taught me that one."
Fili flashes her a grin, already swiping at another creature. "And you did it perfectly." Edyth lets herself soak in that moment of pride; a compliment from her teacher. But she cannot dwell on it yet.
"Follow me!" Gandalf exclaims. "Quickly! This way!"
They may just stand a chance.