And so our company escapes, but a burglar might be missing...
Never had Thorin been so relieved when his eyes fell on their savior. Indeed, the wizard had gotten them out of something once again. With groggy movements, he and the others managed to get back on their feet as Gandalf encouraged them to take up arms and fight.
His words seemed to have the desired effect, and without even telling them anything, Thorin saw his loyal companions do just as the wizard ordered them, making themselves a way through the mass of goblins all around them.
Getting to his feet steadily, Thorin made sure all of his company minus Bilbo were accounted for before urging them on, run to safety and freedom. He allowed Gandalf to take the lead, knowing it was better to trust the wizard right now than to argue leadership if they all wanted to escape.
Thorin cut down the few goblins behind him, who were too close for comfort, before closing the line of dwarves and running himself, refusing to stay a moment longer than necessary down here, they needed to get out of here and find Bilbo, wherever he was. As a leader, he should have been at the front of the company, he knew that and so did everybody else, but the wizard was their best guide at the moment. Maybe, if luck was on their side, they just might be able to find the hobbit along the way…
They all ran after Gandalf, their only light in this foul place, as they finally escaped the platform. With Nori, Dwalin and Gloin at the front, making sure no goblin would make it past them, the less experienced fighters or the elder ones huddled in the middle. Bifur and Bofur took the sides, keeping Ori, Dori, Bombur, Oin and Balin between them. Closing the group, Thorin and his two nephews, making sure nobody stayed behind or got trapped.
Down and down they went, going across less than safe bridges and trying to avoid flying arrows and sharp projectiles thrown at them from what seemed like every direction possible. Breathing was difficult in such an enclosed space, and coughing and spurting, they all tried their best to move along as fast as they could, well aware that this was their only chance of escape.
Goblin after Goblin they fell, but still Dwalin was not satisfied, they deserved much worse then what they were getting, but he couldn't afford any extra delay. With Nori right beside him, they both wiped out the lines coming against them, aware that it was their job to clear the passageway. At the moment they were both the strongest, both of them knowing that Thorin, while he hadn't been injured too badly, and thankfully hadn't gone through any of the devices that had been pulled up for them, had still acquired some bruises. All the thinking just served to fuel them up more, and with a renewed vigor, they swiped goblin after goblin out of their way, determined to escape this place as a whole company. Since they were at the front, it meant that Thorin trusted Dwalin and Nori to lead them to safety, and lead them they would, it was their duty. With Bifur, Bofur, and Gloin right behind them, they were assured nothing would get passed them anyway.
On and on they ran, and goblins kept appearing everywhere. Thorin had thought there was only so much a cave could hold, but he'd been proved wrong. His bruised arm was tired, having to use a sword and continuously swipe on one side and then another was getting tiring, but he wouldn't let any of them get near him, not again. He still swiped to his right however, when he felt any goblin too close for comfort, and urged himself on. He knew they all needed rest, it was why they'd stopped in the first place, but they'd only be allowed to rest once they escaped this place, which seemed like leagues away.
Kili took it upon himself to make sure his brother wouldn't fall behind, so he stayed by his side, swiping out with his own blade as those foul goblins approached him. He was angry, to put it mildly, and took it as an opportunity to let it burst out. Somewhere, he wanted to be angry at his Uncle, for refusing to talk and almost sending them to the awful devices that the goblins would have brought forward had Gandalf not arrived, because the state their captors has put his Uncle in clearly wouldn't have helped him to put up any form of resistance.
However, he also knew how much reclaiming Erebor meant to him too. Although he wasn't as mature as his brother, he recalled part of his Uncle's suffering and hardships in the Blue Mountains, which had never felt like a home to him. He knew how much a place he felt he belonged in meant to Thorin, and he knew his Uncle had gone on this quest to offer such a place to his nephews too, and for that he was grateful.
However, after some thinking, Kili concluded that had he been in Thorin's shoes, he would have given any information they'd required of him if the goblins had decided to torture any member of the company, family or not, and he could see now how it would also have been a possible wrong choice. Kili knew it was right to care for each member of the company, but he couldn't forsake the others for one dwarf, be it kin or not, he knew how devastated Thorin would have been if their encounter had cost one of his own, but was also aware that, as a leader, Thorin couldn't allow himself to favor one dwarf over another. It was hard.
He wasn't sure where his emotions lay right then. Of course he was scared, scared for what might have happened to them, and scared for the missing member of their company. Bilbo had still not been brought in front of them, so he concluded that he'd not been found by the goblins, which was a relief. Their leader hadn't said anything during the whole questioning, even when the blade had been mere inches from cutting his face, Thorin had still remained silent, but Kili saw how much pain he was in, and had stopped his ill will towards his Uncle. Had there not been so much at stake, he knew his Uncle would have given in immediately, however, it was not. It was a delicate situation, and honestly, Kili didn't even want to start thinking about what he would have done had he been in Thorin's shoes. They were all escaping now, anyway, and Kili was determined to make it out of here, alive and with all of the company accounted for.
Gandalf was still leading the way as they kept on moving. A spark of hope had ignited within the group, and the dwarves had finally allowed themselves to believe that they'd make it out of here. As they jumped off one of the swinging pieces of rotten wood they'd crossed upon, they managed to get a minimal amount of distance between themselves and the pursuing goblins, hot on their trail, as Nori and Gloin cut the ropes, letting their makeshift bridge fall and all the goblins on it too.
They could all feel as if they were almost out, they were almost free, they just had to hold on a little longer, and so they continued running, with those at the back of the group trying to catch up, so as to stay together. They had full trust in Gandalf leading them by now, and accepted him in the front, as he managed to get an enormous boulder to fall down, protecting them as they ran behind it. The old wizard might not have been the best with blades, but he was nevertheless quite resourceful. Running behind the tumbling rock let the dwarves give their arms a break, if only for a while, but it was most welcomed. And then they saw it.
After ducking through a narrow porch built out of the very rock of the mountain, they came to the last bridge, separating them from their freedom. It was theirs, they were going to make it, and Thorin pushed the dwarves on further. He was aware that he was asking too much of them, but with freedom just that much away from them, he couldn't help himself, and one by one, they all started to cross, Dori and Gloin in the lead.
They came to a stop however, as the Goblin King himself burst out from underneath them, standing in their way. He was about to go forward, but feeling Fili's shoulders tense under his hand, he decided against it, knowing that this was where he was meant to be at the moment, not at the front. Gandalf stepped up, determined to come to the rescue his smaller friends much needed. It didn't ease his nerves however, as giving a look around let him know that they were completely surrounded once more. Thorin desperately hoped Gandalf had a plan to get them out this time.
"You thought you could escape ME?!" The Goblin King raged, as he banged his royal scepter on the unsteady bridge and tried to strike Gandalf. Their wizard friend tripped back, aware that the distance the company had between each other was getting smaller and smaller. He had to do something.
"What are you going to do now, wizard?"
Gandalf was often mocked, as people often thought he was just an old man, a defenseless poor soul, wandering around Middle Earth, he'd become used to it, but right now, it was too much for his nerves, and he let his instincts get the better of him, hitting the Goblin King right in the eye with his staff, before slicing his belly across with his sword. He was aware it was probably a dangerous move, considering they were surrounded, but before anyone could move, the enormous dead body fell to the ground, and with the force it had hit, it destroyed the bridge Gandalf and the dwarves were on. Before any of them could register anything, they were falling.
The whole company of dwarves was certain they were about to die, once they would hit the ground, wherever it was, and they shut their eyes, unwilling to meet it. However, fall they did, and after a few seconds of respite, they were glad to find each and every one of them alive and well, except for the few bruises the fall had caused, Kili had a nice one blossoming on his forehead. They managed to move out of the debris just in time to see their Goblin host's body fall on top of where they'd been just instants before, silently thinking what state they would be in now had they not moved quicker.
Their moment of peace was short lived however, as looking up, they could just make out the whole of the Goblin King's followers swarming down, coming to meet them.
"We can't fight them!" Dwalin burst out, as he was urgently helping Nori back on his feet. They were all too exhausted, and with the many bruises they'd just acquired, they knew they wouldn't be able to put up a fight.
"Daylight!" Gandalf cried, urging the dwarves forward. He was aware that he was asking them too much, he was pushing them too far, but they needed to get out of here, and fast. Once they would be out, he knew they'd be safe, at least for a while, as goblins feared the sunlight. As he helped Ori up, he really was grateful that not one of the dwarves was complaining, they all set out to follow his orders, even Thorin, who he knew could get quite grumpy and stubborn at times. Making sure the dwarves were all accounted for, he ushered them into a maze of tunnels and down the mountain side, to the safety of the trees, only then did he let them catch their much needed breath.