Loyalty, Honor, and a Willing Heart

Chapter 16 - A Nest to Rest

They cheered up at the sight of the Lonely Mountain, but then Kili looked around searching for Ellen, as she was not with the group and he was sure she saw her riding an eagle too. He saw her sitting on the stone ground with her head down, pale, embracing herself by the waist.

“Ellen!” He ran to her. “What’s wrong?”

She shook her head.

“I’ve got an arrow, the leather corselet hold mostly of the damage, but I think I’m bleeding.” She held up her right hand, and it was smeared with blood. He urged her to lay down.

“How did it happen? I was close to you all the time!”

As if being at one’s side could create a force shield around them, Ellen thought.

“The orc archer pointed to your back, then I ran.” She stated, simply.

“Are you crazy? You could have been killed!”

“There was no time for anything, too much noise to warn you, I thought I could defend us with my swords as I saw you doing back at the goblins’ den. But it seems the orc arrows fly faster than the goblins’.” She smiled weakly. “It is a little more than a scratch, I deem. The point wasn’t even hooked, it fell down when I touched it.”

The others came to see what was happening, and Óin looked worried.

“Sometimes their arrows are poisoned. We must clean this wound as soon as possible. The eagles will come back to carry us down, Gandalf said they are counseling among themselves deciding how far their help will go. Let the blood wash out the wound, it is better to shed some blood than to keep any poison inside of you.”’

Lily helped to take off the leather corselet as to give her more comfort to breathe and let the wound open to bleed. It was far more than a little scratch, by the way.

“I’m so sorry, Aunty, my first aid kit was in the backpack, and it was all lost inside the mountain.”

“I will be fine, but I’m worried about Thorin. What if that bloody warg had the rabies? And his wounds are far more than mine, I deem.”

“Yes, it worries me, too. Animal bites tend to fester, they must be very neatly cleansed and I should find something that can prevent infection.”

“And a painkiller, too, for them both.” Complemented Óin.

Kili caressed Ellen’s forehead, worried.

“You are bleeding too much for a wound this size. How are you feeling?”

She pressed his hand against her face and winced a smile. “Have been better!”

“Hmm, it cannot be willow bark tea for you, then; it favors bleeding.” Stated the dwarf-lass.

“Are you a healer, Aunty Lily?” Asked Kili.

“Aunty is your past, your brat!” She knocked his head. “Well, I’m a curious. Father is biologist and loves botany, he prefers to use medicinal plants than allopathic medicines, so we have a lot of them at home, and I learned how to use them.”

“What is an allopathic medicine?”

Lily laughed and tried to explain.

“Hmm, salves and potions made with the things the plants and other things have that can cure diseases, but don’t have the whole of the plant in it. I think I can’t explain any better. Me and Óin will see Thorin now, if he lets us.”

He was in pain, but stubborn enough to want to wait until the eagles took them away from there. It was soon, and they gave them a smooth flight to the feet of the rocks where they had their own nests. There was a stream nearby, where the men got to replenish themselves with water and cleanse as they could. Not all of them had water bags with themselves when the goblin trap opened, but some had, and brought water back to the makeshift camp. The elf was thirsty, and Kili gave her water in small sips, as Gandalf told him to, cradling her head in his lap. Lily went with Thorin to the stream bank to help him to wash the warg bite, what he refused, grumpy.