Thank all of you new followers, it's great knowing that this story has somewhat grabbed your attention among all of those out there, I hope I'll be able to live up to what people are expecting for this. I'm aware that I've sort of strayed away from what I'd originally intended this to be, so I'll try and go back to my first plans from now on if I can, don't know if I'll be able to keep up a coherent story though ^^'
Well, I think we're almost half way through, and I'll try and get Bilbo into action soon, because our favorite hobbit can't just sit around, can he?
Without further delay, I hope you'll enjoy the next installment :)
The implication of the howl had just settled in Thorin's nerves. They were being chased, somebody knew of their quest! Somebody who wanted them dead by the looks of it. But how-How was it possible that they be spotted so soon? He hadn't let word slip of this quest, safe to people he could trust his life with. There was no way he could have been betrayed! And yet… Things only got worse when he heard a distressed cry from Ori.
"The ponies are gone, they bolted!" Now of all times! They needed them if they were to outrun the beasts, who had surely caught their smell by now. This was not looking good.
"We've got no choice, we must move on Thorin!" Gandalf cried, anxious himself, and hoping he could push the dwarves on. He knew of a place in which they may be able to find shelter, but they needed to go out into the open first, and even if it was sure to attract their pursuers attention, it was their only chance. Otherwise, they were going to be trapped between the trees, where the beasts would surely close in on them.
The wizard led the company out of the shelter the trees had offered them, spotting a first great rock among many others that seemed to be scattered all over the plain, far beyond sight even. It wasn't much but they may be able to hide behind it. Urging the dwarves and Bilbo to follow him, they made it safely to the first one. It was a start.
Bilbo's blood was pounding in his ears. Wargs! They were being chased by wargs and orcs! He'd grown up on enough stories about them to know he did not want to be facing one. Even if he was surrounded by warriors, there was just no way he could convince himself that any of these dwarves could take on one of those beasts! They wouldn't survive it! Not even Dwalin, who was by far the strongest here…
Gandalf peered out from their hiding place, seeing the wargs run off straight ahead of them, to the north. Good. They might just pass unnoticed if he got them to move fast enough. Indeed, this was going to require a lot of speed on the taxed dwarves' part. He felt awful for pushing them so much, but the situation didn't leave him any other choice.
"Come on!" he beckoned them, as he took a deep breath before going out.
And so they made their way, running from rock to rock amidst the terrible howling and grunting of the beasts around them, just hoping they would manage to escape. They still tried to use the nature around them to hide them, when they could, and Thorin desperately hoped none of his companions would fall behind.
Casting a quick glance to them, he saw Gloin and Bofur among the first, who were just behind him. A little gap and then followed Bombur, Balin, Oin, and Bifur with the hobbit among them, Dori and Ori were side by side, then Kili, Dwalin and Nori and Fili closed the group.
Although he could see that his eldest nephew was having a hard time keeping up with the others, as if running were in fact painful for him. As Thorin took cover behind another rock, he saw him cough up, and figured that he was actually pushing himself to catch up.
He suddenly felt a knot of dread settle in his stomach. He'd seen how his nephew had been rather quiet lately, even acting a little off, but he'd thought it was only a phase, that he'd snap out of it. He couldn't bring himself to think that something was wrong with him. But seeing the blonde dwarfling just struggling to keep up with them, when he clearly should be one of the fittest, something was wrong, he knew it. Thorin bit his lip, sensing Fili's suffering, and promised himself that once he got the chance, he'd have a talk with him, and he'd get Fili to tell him whatever the matter was, whether he wanted to or not. He was his Uncle, he should be looking out for his family as well as all of them here.
Looking back ahead, he skidded to a stop just in time to see wargs pass them by, not a short distance away, but luckily not spotting them, and on Gandalf's advice, he got the others to gather around him, not wanting to lose any of them. If they stayed together, they probably would have better chances of getting out of this with just minor scratches than if they spread out.
They turned back on their tracks, they ran anew, and made it to another hiding spot. They managed to all stay covered, safe for the young Ori who skidded passed them. Luckily, Thorin's reflexes jumped in, and he managed to catch their scribe before he be spotted by their predators. None had time to catch their breath however, Gandalf urging them forth once more, and as his eldest nephew passed him, Thorin noticed how he kept on coughing. Anxiety rising again, he looked desperately at Fili's retreating form, wanting to talk to him right now, but knew he couldn't. It tore him, as he'd promised to himself that he wouldn't let anyone's health come second to their quest, but he couldn't do anything right now.
"Where are you leading us?" He asked to Gandalf apprehensively, not entirely trusting the wizard. He'd brought them out here, where they were now chased by beasts twice their size, was he planning on getting them all killed?
Being a wizard, and being a complicated one at that, Gandalf just gave him a look, but didn't answer. Thorin was frustrated, how could he trust their guide if he couldn't let him in on what the wizard was thinking? Regardless, he followed, eager to be out of danger's way.
After much panting, Fili and his brother had made it to the next rock, and he leaned against it, not caring in the slightest about the wargs anymore. His lungs were killing him, he couldn't go on much longer, and his stomach was protesting violently against the running. He couldn't even catch his breath properly, and kept coughing as he tried to fill his lungs with air once more. Kili had rested a hand on his shoulder, and had been looking over him, concerned, and Bilbo was giving him an inquisitive stare, but Fili couldn't explain anything right now, they had much more dangerous things to worry about, like wargs for example. He felt his breath catch in his throat as he heard the distinct footsteps of one of those creatures above them, slowly climbing the rock they were currently leaning against, probably trying to spot them in the distance. They were going to be caught!
The entire company fell silent, deathly silent, after seeing just how close one of those foul beasts was to them. They couldn't move either though, risking to be pranced on if they so much as took a step in any direction. It was Thorin who found a remedy to their problem, as he eyed to Kili, telling him silently to shoot the creature down with his bow. The younger Durin eagerly obeyed, and before the orc's beast could register what had happened, it was sprawled dead at the dwarves feet, Dwalin and Bofur finishing off the orc mounted atop of it. He regretted the decision instants later when he heard more howling closer than he would have liked, and urged his companions on on Gandalf's command once more.
Fili felt like he was carrying weapons for a whole army, he couldn't keep up for much longer. He was already at the end of the line. His body felt too small to contain the amounts of air he needed, and if they didn't find shelter soon, he was certain he'd drop dead, regardless whether he could continue or not. His lungs were about to burst, and he didn't have the energy he needed to keep up with the others. His throat was raw, as if he'd been screaming for hours, and the precious air that he kept taking in felt as if it stuck to his throat instead of making it's way down to his lungs.
Thorin kept going forward, hoping beyond what was reasonable that the wizard would be able to get them out of this one, but lost all of it when he heard countless howls from all around him, knowing they were surrounded. Each dwarf had tried a different direction, and they'd all came back, forming a circle, and drawing their arms out. They wouldn't go down without a fight.
This was it, Bilbo thought, they were going to die, devoured by a pack of orcs. Gandalf could no longer be seen, and he felt (much like the others) utterly helpless without him. He'd thought he'd at least make it to the mountains, that he'd at least make it to Erebor. Maybe he wouldn't have lived to see the dwarves heritage, but he'd thought he'd at least see the outside of their kingdom. But he'd been wrong, they were going to meet their end out here, where nobody would ever find them, lost to the world.
He heard Kili's arrows fly. He heard Dwalin's war cry as he readied himself. He heard Fili cry that they were trapped as he was the last to join the little group they'd formed. He heard Kili shoot another arrow. He heard the others yell in dismay as they saw that Gandalf had abandoned them. He saw Thorin rally his loyal friends, as he summoned them to hold their ground. But they were not going to make it.
"This way, you fools!" Gandalf! So he hadn't left them!
Eagerly, Thorin urged all of his followers and kin to run towards the wizard, desperately wishing that he'd found some means of escape, and indeed he had. Making sure they all made it safely between the opening the rocks formed, Bofur, Bilbo, Balin, Gloin and all the others, he looked around one last time, before calling back both of his nephews who'd stayed behind to hold off the animals.
Kili made it to him first, panting, and Thorin pushed him into the crevasse, making sure he was safe. Fili came next, coughing up again, and his Uncle pushed him by the shoulder, trying to be gentle, before sliding down himself, and entering the darkness of the small grotto.
Gandalf led the way and one by one the dwarves followed. However, Thorin held on to Fili's arm at the end, noticing his nephew was still coughing which clearly wasn't normal.
"Fili? Are you okay?" He knew his nephew wasn't, it was a silly question, but he needed Fili to know he could talk to Thorin if ever there was a problem.
"I'm fine Uncle, please don't worry yourself" the blonde replied quietly after catching his breath. They needed to move on and get away from the immediate danger if they were to keep on, and he gently moved back, letting Thorin take the head of his company once more. The leader made his way back to his place, but not before swearing to himself that once they got a minute of respite, he'd see to Fili personally.
They all stopped however as they heard horns from above, but they were not human horns, that was certain. Each one of them stood deathly quiet, just waiting as the ruckus passed and as they heard horse hoofs fading away in the distance after a while, they were about to go out again when a corpse fell right through the hole making the entrance to their hideout.
The dead orc rolled to their feet, and everybody took a step away, disgusted at the remains that had fallen through the dust. Thorin walked forward however, noticing the embedded arrow in the flesh and pulled it out… only to throw it away as he realized that it was elven made, meaning they'd been saved by those creatures. Gandalf gave him a look, but right now he couldn't bring himself to care about what the wizard thought of his feelings towards the woodland beings.
They all started moving again as Dwalin found a path carved into the rock. He felt unfamiliar with this kind of mineral, and kept looking around, hoping he could find some sense of direction, figure out where they were heading, but the dwarf king could not. He trusted they'd be able to face any obstacle if the need arises anyway, and kept moving forth. Soon enough, they indeed found the end of the passageway, and all laid eyes on the spectacle offered in front of them.
Thorin thought he would have killed Gandalf right there. It had always been in his plan. Imladris. Didn't the wizard just understand that he wanted nothing to do with the elves? Why bring him here then, of all places possible!
"This was your plan all along! To seek refuge with our enemy!" Thorin spat. Didn't Gandalf understand anything?! He couldn't trust the elves, not anymore, not after Thranduil's betrayal a lifetime ago.
"You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield. The only ill-will to be found in this valley is that which you bring yourself."Their guide corrected sternly. Of course Gandalf had known that if he'd asked Thorin about seeking Elrond's home as a refuge, he'd have refused, being a stubborn person. But he also knew that if he were to get information out of the map Thorin possessed, he'd need the help of the elves. Besides, they all needed rest, and a place certain to be devoid of foes couldn't be too bad for one night.
"You think the elves will give our quest their blessing? They will try to stop us!" Thorin was getting more and more angry by the minute. He was half thinking he'd rather face the orcs again than go to the elves, but deep down he knew the others needed rest, and wouldn't put their health on the line if he could help it.
"Of course they will. But we have questions that need to be answered." Gandalf argued, and as always he won. Thorin could see the reasoning behind the wizard's actions, and despite not wanting in the slightest to meet elves, he couldn't deny he needed their help. He sighed, defeated, and followed the others as they made their way down to the elven kingdom. This was indeed going to be difficult.
Bilbo was unconsciously biting his lip in worry. He'd heard Gandalf and Thorin arguing, and quite frankly, he'd started having enough of the problems that kept appearing in this company of dwarves. He knew their leader was a reasonable person, but how would he possibly react in the company of elves?
He followed last, behind Nori and Fili, who'd trailed at the end of the company, and once again, the hobbit's concerns rose. Now that he had the chance, he was definitely going to speak to Thorin, even if it were to cost him his hobbit locks.