The spiders began to swarm, I held my ground and braced myself for the fight. They came swiftly and I saw one go for Bombur. He managed to hold the creature off, but he would not last long. "Bombur!" I called out, signalling for the others to help me with the Spider. We took hold of the beasts prickly legs and pulled. I could feel its joints and bones tearing and cracking."More!" I shouted and with that, every one of it's legs were ripped in a different direction. It would only be moments before more would come. "We need to run!" I shouted at Thorin.
"Move!" He commanded. We bolted through the trees, trying to put as much distance between ourselves and the spiders as possible. "We're clear!" Thorin shouted, but just then a spider landed directly in front of us.
"Quite clear." I gritted my teeth and shot him a look.
"This is not the time for your remarks." He growled and readied his sword. In that moment, I heard something moving in the trees, not like a spider. They were quick and careful, more like... "Elves." I breathed. Thorin looked to me then followed my eyes. Then they appeared, moving swiftly and gracefully. Taking down the spider in front of us, the young Elf held an arrow to Thorin's head. We were surrounded. I exhaled nervously. There's no telling what could happen at this point.
"Do not think I won't kill you, Dwarf. It would be my pleasure." I knew the expression on my face matched Thorin's. I hated the Elves of Mirkwood as any Dwarf would, regardless of my ties to their kin. Kili's screams snatched our attention.
"Help! He called.
"Kili!" Fili cried. I could not see what was transpiring through the wall of men in my way, Elves and Dwarves.
"Move!" I shoved at Thorin. "Let me through!"
The Elf with blonde hair directed his arrow to my face, "You will be still," he hissed. Before I could say anything, I saw an Elf with red hair coming to his aid. She saved him, only to take him prisoner with the rest of us. "Search them!" The Elf commanded. The more I looked at him, the more he resembled someone I knew. They disarmed us, taking all of our weapon and belongings. I heard Gloin fussing about privacy. Fili was giving the Elven guard a run for their money on how many daggers one Dwarf could hide on their person.
"Thranduil's son..." I mumbled to Thorin. "He looks like his father."
Thorin snorted. "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." I said nothing else. That may be true enough. I was the only one who understood their Elven words.
"Are the spiders dead?" The Elf prince asked.
The Elf that saved Kili answered. "Yes, but more will come." She gave him a grave look. "They're growing bolder."
"What are they saying?" Thorin whispered to me.
"Seems as if they've been having a difficult time keeping their lands clear of darker forces." I told him.
Another guard called the prince over. "Legolas," is what they called him. The guard presented Orchrist to the Elf prince and he admired it. "This is an ancient Elvish blade." He spoke in Elvish. "Forged by my kin." His eyes looked to Thorin. "Where did you get this?" He asked in the common tongue.
"It was given to me." Answered Thorin.
Legolas peered at him before turning the blade on him. "Not just a thief, but a liar as well." He ordered for us to be taken. The Elven guard began to herd us like cattle through the forest.
Bofur turned to our leader. "Thorin, where's Bilbo?" He whispered.
We hadn't notice that he wasn't present during the altercation. We glanced about, looking for any sign of him. "He must've slipped off. I'm sure he is safe." I told him, hoping he would not think that Bilbo would abandon us again. "Better he be on the outside, than in an Elven prison." He said nothing. We were led deeper into the forest. No one spoke. There was nothing to say. We were caught and because of that, we might never reach the mountain. We were led into the city. This Elven city was like no other. It was not open and filled with light. No, it was dark, sealed off from the outside world. The only similarity that I could think was that, much like Lorien, it was built into the trees. But that is where the similarities end. Fire light lit the realm. We were led through pathways and corridors and into the prison, where we were shoved into cells. They were less aggressive with me, probably due to my being a woman. I was placed in a cell by myself. I looked to Thorin who watched me fiercely. I watched him be taken away from the cell block and I knew exactly where they were going. "This is not going to end well." I grumbled and plopped down on the hard floor.
Hello, everyone! I realize this chapter is extremely short and very long overdue, I want to apologize for that. I've had a very hectic past two months. Between school, holidays, my car breaking down and health issues, I just haven't had the time to dedicate to my stories. But, things are beginning to slow down a bit and I hope to be able to update more frequently. I do not routinely update my stories on certain days, and I probably never will. I don't want to make promises I can't keep, because life happens. I also wanted to thank all of you for sticking with this story. I appreciate all of your support and I love reading your comments. <3
