Authoress Note: Welcome to Chapter 18 of Seven Wonders. I want to thank those who have left reviews for this story. It does mean a lot to me that you guys are enjoying this story. It makes me ecstatic that you guys love it. I hope that you guys continue to enjoy this next chapter. Without further ado Chapter 18. ENJOY!

Chapter 18

Rain fell around them and lightning. A storm caused them to be all soaked.

"Hold on!" THorin yelled.

Bilbo walked slowly but the stone beneath his feet was beginning to give way.

Dwalin caught Bilbo before he could fall.

"We must find shelter!"

"Watch out!" Dwalin shouted.

A large boulder was hurtling through the air hitting the mountainside above them.

They pressed themselves against the mountain trying to not fall.

"This is no thunderstorm! It's a thunder battle! Look!" Balin shouted pointing out that they had walked into something very dangerous.

A giant ripped a massive boulder from the top of the mountain.

"Well bless me, the legends are true! Giants! Stone Giants!" Bofur yelled in awe.

"Of course, this plan was oh so well thought out!" Yelled Artemis as she pressed her body against the wall.

"Take cover! You'll fall!" THorin yelled.

"What's happening?" Kili asked scared that this was going to end badly.

The rocks at their feet began to give way. The company began to split apart.

"Kili grab my hand! Ki…" Fili yelled for his younger brother.

Artemis put her arm out in front of Bilbo as the stone giants continued to fight. Artemis's eyes grew wide as their ledge was heading toward the mountain crashing right into it.

"NO! NO! KILI!" Thorin yelled trying to move forward.

The ones that had not been smashed into the mountain rushed over to where the giant smashed in.

"We're alright! We're alive." Dwalin yelled looking up at his king.

Artemis was hanging over the edge with one hand and the other reaching down to Bilbo.

"Where's Bilbo? Where's the hobbit?" Bofur asked scared.

"Artemis is missing too," Fili yelled.

"There!" Ori shouted pointing them out.

"Get them!" Dwalin shouted.

"Don't you dare let go of my hand Bilbo!" Artemis shouted down to him.

Ori dived trying to reach them.

Artemis's hand began to lose grip.

Thorin swung down over the side. He got Bilbo up first to the company.

Artemis's hand slipped and Thoring quickly grabbed onto hers before getting her to safety as well.

Thorin almost fell but Dwalin brought him up to safety.

"I thought we'd lost our burglar and our magical healer," Dwalin said thankful that the company was all together in one piece.

Artemis leaned against the wall of the mountain taking deep breaths to calm her nerves.

"He's been lost ever since he left home. He should have never come. He has no place among us." THorin said looking disappointed in the hobbit.

Artemis looked at him. Anger grew in his brown eyes. "He has every right to be here as much as I do." She hissed at him. Her hand was killing her from catching the rock and then catching Bilbo with her other hand. She was tired of Thorin putting the poor hobbit down like he always did. She slowly got up to her feet hiding the cut on her hand from the group. She wasn't about to have them worry about the cuts that were there now on her hand from catching the mountainside to save Bilbo from falling to his death.

"You could have died," Thorin yelled at her.

She rolled her eyes. "At least he's alive. You are going to need him more than you think." She said brushing past him. "We need to find shelter. We can not continue with a storm raging like this."

They found shelter for the night in one of the caves in the mountain pass.

Artemis removed her soaked blue cloak wringing it out of the excess watch that had gathered from the rain. She hissed a little as the fabric of her cloak brushed against the cut that she had on her hand.

"Dwalin," Thorin called out to his friend.

"It looks safe enough," Dwalin said looking around.

"Search to the back. Caves in the mountain are seldom unoccupied." Thorin said with a nod of his head.

Dwalin went searching in the cave with the lantern. "There's nothing here."

Gloin dropped a bundle of firewood onto the ground. "Right then let's get a fire started."

"No. No fires. Not in this place. Get some sleep. We start at first light." Thorin ordered Gloin.

"We were to wait in the mountains until Gandalf joined us. That was the plan." Balin said looking at his friend.

"Plans change. Bofur takes the first watch."

Artemis placed her bag down on the ground carefully next to her feet. She looked at her hand carefully and saw it was still bleeding "Damn." She whispered to herself. She went through her bag and grabbed one of the handkerchiefs that she had and put it onto her hand trying to stop the bleeding.

A few hours later Artemis sees Bilbo gathering his things up. She slowly sat up running her hand through her hair.

Bofur saw Bilbo getting ready to leave. "Where do you think you're going?" Bofur asked softly trying not to wake the others.

"Back to Rivendell," Bilbo said slinging the bag over his shoulder.

"No, no, you can't turn back now."

Bilbo turned and saw Artemis was awake. "You should come with me Artemis."

Artemis got up to her feet. "I can't. I signed the contract just like you had. I have to see this through." She told him softly trying to not wake the others.

Thorin listened in on their conversation. He didn't want Artemis to leave because she was needed by the rest of the company.

"Thorin doesn't treat us like we are a part of the company," Bilbo said softly.

Artemis shook her head. "No, I can't leave. Sorry, Bilbo… this is the only way I can return home. YOu signed the contract too. You need to stay as well."

"She's right you know. You're part of the company. You're one of us." Bofur said looking at Bilbo hoping that whatever Artemis had said would have him stay.

"I'm not though am I? Neither is she with the way he has been treating her." Bilbo said pointing to the young woman.

Bofur looked down knowing that was true. Thoroiin had not been treating the brown-haired woman so well.

"Thorin said I should have never come, and he was right."

"Thorin is an asshole," Artemis stated shaking her head. "He doesn't know how much you can truly help on this quest and nor do you. You haven't even tried yet to see what you can do yet." She was hoping that Bilbo was going to remain true to what she knew.

"He's right though."

Artemis let out a sigh.

"I'm not a Took. I'm a Baggins, I don't know what I was thinking."

Artemis looked down at the ground and ran her hand through her hair. "Probably the same thing I thought." She said softly but knew Bilbo hadn't heard her.

"I should never have run out my door."

"You're homesick, I understand," Bofur told the 50-year-old Hobbit.

"No, you don't, you don't understand. None of you do. You're dwarves. You used to… to this life, to living on the road, never settling down in one place, not belonging anywhere."

Artemis jerked her head towards him. She had been torn from her home to help them. She was taken far more forcefully. Bilbo could return whenever he wanted to and she had a chance that she couldn't return home.

Bilbo realized what he had said was wrong. "I'm sorry, I didn't…."

Bofur shook his head. "No, you're right. We don't belong anywhere. I wish you all the luck in the world. I really do." Bofur said patting Bilbo on the shoulder with a smile.

Bilbo turned to walk away.

"Bilbo," Artemis said softly.

"What's that?" Bofur asked seeing the blue glowing light.

Bilbo pulled his sword out to see it was glowing blue. His eyes widened.

Thorin heard strange machinery noises. He sees the sand beginning to fall. He sits up. "Wake up! Wake up!" He said trying to wake everyone up.

The company wakes up, but before any of them can react they fall through the ground, down the chute through a tunnel, and into a giant wooden cage.

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This is the end of Chapter 18. I hope that you guys enjoyed this chapter. I tried my best to write this chapter out. I've tried my best to edit this chapter out. I can't wait to show you guys what happens next. Please leave a review and let me know what you think of this chapter. Reviews help me keep going when it comes to writing. I hope to have the next chapter out soon. Until next time.