Date: TA 2941

Thorin: 195 years old

Lina: 192 years old

The terrain had changed little since Lina had last visited the mountain fortress Kira used as her base of operations. Perhaps the brush had grown up more or the rocks shifted, but little else seemed to have changed. Neither female had any difficulty in picking their way through the foothills. The journey had been uninterrupted since parting ways with Gandalf a day earlier.

So why did Lina feel uneasy? Her eyes roamed restlessly over the landscape, searching the shadows beneath bushes and rocky overhangs as if an army were to come charging out at any moment. Her war hammer rested over one shoulder instead of being slung across her back as it usually was when she travelled. Something about the silence of the land had her ill at ease.

Nes appeared to feel the same. The assassin did not leave her companion's side for even the briefest of moments. Though none of her weapons were drawn, Lina doubted it would be more than a split second before at least two were bared in her hands. Whatever had the linebreaker on edge, it had her more sensitive companion on high alert. Yet neither could identify what it was that put them on edge.

The land showed no signs of battle and few signs of habitation. At least a year had passed since the brush had been cut back from the narrow cart tracks the army used once to bring supplies in from the east. The ground was dry with only the small pockmarks left by a light rain passing overhead. No footfall had disturbed this land in some time.

Within the hour, the fortress appeared beyond a low hill. Silence greeted the pair. The gates were sealed, presenting a solid surface in the side of the mountain. Small statues of dwarven warriors to either side of what Lina knew to be massive stone gates were all that indicated anyone had made this mountain their home. The gates showed signs of battle, but they were old, likely remnants of the fight to take the stronghold away from the foul creatures which had previously held it.

Lina and Nes halted just outside of bow shot. There was silence from within the mountain. No guard called out at having sighted the pair. Lina knew well how sound could echo through the area if one was not extremely careful. Hefting a large rock over her shoulder, the warrior tossed it against one of the large boulders littering the field before the gates.

Both females winced as the rocks crashed together, the sound bouncing about the plain and reverberating off the mountain itself. Yet, as the sound died away, there was no response. Nothing about the fortress shifted even the slightest bit.

"I don't like this," Nes growled, crouching instinctively with her back against the rock. Everything about the scene screamed at them to run. The crashing of the rock should have brought at least a scout out to investigate the sound. Yet there were no signs of life in the stronghold.

"Either the fortress is empty completely or those inside are too few to be willing to investigate the disturbance," Lina reasoned. "If there was anything hostile in there, the noise alone should have brought forth some sort of response."

Lina glanced at Nes. The younger female was anxious. Her brother was supposed to be here, just as Kira was. Yet neither had responded to any messages sent. The only way they were going to find answers would be to attempt entry into the fortress.

"We have no option but to get inside," Lina said finally.

"Agreed." The assassin quickly stashed her pack in a crevice beneath the rocks and adjusted her weaponry. Lina followed suit, pulling on her armor and readying her weapons. It would not do to be caught unaware.

Using the massive boulders scattered before the gate as cover, the pair crept closer. A few signs of life appeared as they neared the fortress. A few individuals had, within the last few days, emerged from the fortress into the boulder field. Yet they never appeared to venture very far from the entrance. This was the only area the brush had been cleared from. Someone clearly still inhabited the fortress.

Lina ran her hands over the rough stone, feeling for the small catch that would tell her where exactly the door was. Her fingers caught it. If anyone was in the fortress, they would now know someone was at their gates. A narrow opening appeared in the rock.

"State your business," a voice called gruffly from within.

"I am Lady Firehammer, here to see Kira. I've sent messages and warriors ahead. They should have arrived by now," she informed the guard.

"Let her in, oaf!" a female voiced snapped. Almost immediately the stone door appeared and opened.

Just inside the entrance stood two rather tired dwarves. The male stood half a head taller than Lina, while the female was only a finger width taller. Neither appeared to have slept well in the last few days. Dark rings surrounded their eyes and their hair and beards were unkempt.

Nes quickly retrieved their packs and darted into the fortress behind her leader. As soon as the assassin returned, the stone door sealed shut behind them. The natural light vanished, leaving them in the gloomy light cast by one smoking torch. The guards shifted uneasily from one foot to the other, trying to decide who should speak first. Lina solved the dilemma for them.

"Where's Kira and where are my people?"

"We don't know, my lady," the female admitted finally. "No one does."

"Care to explain?"

"We have to keep watch here, but Kira's Second can explain," the other replied. He gestured down the torch lit passage.

Frowning, the warriors made their way along the corridor. The fact that Kira was missing bothered Lina more than even her missing band. Neither of the guards indicated that the band ever reached the fortress. So it was entirely possible that a force of orcs had come upon them and wiped them out. Yet Nes insisted she would know if her twin brother was dead.

A red-haired dwarf met the pair as they stepped into the central hall of the stronghold. He wore Kira's insignia on his shoulder, denoting him as her Second-in-Command. Lina recognized him as one of the original members of the small army Kira and Lina had built in Belegost. The male dwarf was a miner by trade, but was so skilled with an axe that he was readily accepted when he requested to join their group.

"Lady Firehammer, it is good to see you again," he intoned, saluting. "We have been hoping you would arrive."

"What happened? Where is everyone?" she asked, looking around the quiet hall. A few dwarves moved in between the columns, going about their business. The numbers did not come even close to what Kira had only a year earlier.

"We don't know."