The Princess of Erebor (A Hobbit Story)

The Chase is On

Out of the trees came a wild-looking man on a wooden sled. The things pulling the sled were the least expected creatures. Rabbits. Big rabbits, yes, but rabbits nonetheless. Gandalf seemed to know who this crazy man was, and they walked off from the group a bit to talk.

"He seems a bit... odd," Lauranna muttered.

"Odd is an understatement," Kili replied. "More like completely insane."

"Kili, be nice to the poor, old man," Lauranna scolded.

After a few minutes, the two Wizards returned. At that moment, a howl ripped through the air.

"Was that a wolf? Are there - are there wolves out there?" Bilbo asked.

"A wolf? No, that was not a wolf," Bofur answered, looking around.

A large wolf-looking creature stood on the top of the hill. The difference; it was a lot bigger and meaner. It started down the hill but was shot down by Lauranna. She was laying down, but she still managed to shoot it. Bofur finished it as another creature jumped down. This time, Kili shot it with Dwalin delivering the final blow.

"Warg Scouts! Which means an Orc pack isn't far behind," Thorin said.

"Orc pack?" Bilbo asked, terrified.

"How did you tell of your quest beyond your kin?" Gandalf asked Thorin.

"No one," he answered.

"Who did you tell?!"

"No one, I swear! What in Durin's name is going on?"

"You are being hunted," Gandalf answered.

"We have to get out of here," Dwalin said.

"We can't. We have no ponies. They bolted," Ori called out.

"I will draw them off," Radagast said.

"These are Gundabad Wargs. They will outrun you," Gandalf informed him.

"These are Rhosgobel rabbits. I'd like to see them try," the Brown Wizard replied with a smirk.

Without waiting for a response, Radagast jumped on his sled and took off. Lauranna groaned, knowing that running was going to be involved. Thorin chuckled and held her in a way that would cause the least amount of pain possible. Gandalf motioned for the two to get to the front of the group. Thorin moved forward, careful not to hurt his daughter any more.

"Stay near me and those two," Gandalf instructed, nodding his head at Fili and Kili.

The two brothers heard this and moved to stand on either side of Thorin and Lauranna. Bofur stood behind them. The others made a protective circle around their leader and his daughter. Gandalf nodded approval and peered out around a rock.

"I hate running," Lauranna grumbled.

"But you're not going to be running," Fili pointed out.

"I know that. But the moving is going to not feel good. You try being squeezed half to death, break at least five bones, kill two Trolls while injured, get thrown into a rock, and knocked unconscious and see how you feel. Any movement hurts. I'd like to see you have the strength to do what I did and not complain. I'm barely holding myself together right now," she told him.

"Let's go," Gandalf said, preventing any more from being said.

They ran across the open ground, looking around them for any threat. Lauranna had her eyes shut tight and face screwed up in pain. Thorin tried to make her more comfortable, but eventually, she took it out of his hands by forcing herself to stand and run. Her eyes held a strong determination in them that made anyone who tried to help her back off. She held her bow in her hand, loaded and ready to be fired. A few times they saw Radagast run in front of them with the Orc pack behind him. He seemed to be having the time of his life, laughing and taunting them. Then, one Orc and Warg jumped on top of the rock that they were hidden behind. Thorin looked at Kili, nodding to the bow. Before Kili could do anything, however, Lauranna had stepped out from behind the rock and shot both the Orc and Warg in the face. They fell down and landed a few feet from the girl. The Dwarves instantly attacked and killed the pair. They didn't die silently, and howls alerted the Company to the fact that they were now being followed.

"This way!" Gandalf shouted, taking off to a more hilly section of the plains.

No one questioned it and followed the Wizard. Lauranna had a good idea as to where they were going. Gandalf had mentioned the Hidden Valley before he had stormed off. He must be leading them there. He had said to continued on to the Valley. That must mean it is close by to their current location.

"There they are!" Gloin yelled, pointing to a pair of riders on a hill not to far away.

"Quickly!" Gandalf snapped at him.

They were finally cornered at an out jutting rock. Lauranna happened to be on the outside of the protective circle, and she started to kill anything that came near her.

"Where's Gandalf?" Dori asked.

"He's abandoned us!" Dwalin growled.

"This way, you fools!" Gandalf shouted, appearing behind the rock.

One by one, the Dwarves and Bilbo made their way over to the rock. Lauranna was the farthest away and was injured. She pushed herself beyond her limits and managed to fall into the gap. She slid down the slope and ended up at Bilbo's feet. But the energy she had used to run across the plains and to get the rock had left her with nothing. The last thing she saw were fourteen worried faces staring at her. Then it all went black...