Thorodriel

Chapter 18 - Moria

Thorodriel: Chapter 18

"Let me risk a little more light," Gandalf announced, holding up his staff and bearing a torch upon the vast chamber. "Behold, the great realm and Dwarf city of Dwarrowdelf!"

A colossal room was revealed, with ornate pillars reaching up to the heavens stretching as far as the eye could see. For the first time since entering Moria, Aeweneth felt as though she could breathe. She was less claustrophobic now that the walls were no longer closing in on her and could finally let go of the breath she has been unconsciously holding since the doorway's collapse. She allowed her shoulders to slacken ever so slightly. They were still in danger - the darkness clung senses and fought against Gandalf's light - but the sudden wide expanse felt freeing. Turning slightly, the young elf caught Aragorn's eye and nodded to him in reassurance. She was grateful for his concern and vigilance but knew that from here on out she should be okay. The dark she could cope with when it wasn't so enclosed.

Her slight relief was seemingly shared by the rest of the Fellowship, who were gazing at the ornate columns with awe and fascination.

"There's an eye-opener and no mistake," Sam confessed, his voice echoing softly around the chamber.

After taking a moment, they soon began on their journey once more, trekking through the awesome, yet seemingly abandoned city.

Aeweneth felt eyes on the back of her neck and turned to see Legolas watching her closely and approaching cautiously with a questioning look etched onto his face.

"Fear not, mellon nin." She told him softly, "I am recovering now that the walls are not so confined. Although, the quicker we are out of this godforsaken pit, the better."

She watched as a soft smile graced his face in relief, and found her own lips twitching upward at the sight. Side by side, they followed the group through the vast chamber, glancing at each other occasionally in bashful encouragement. His mere presence soothed Aeweneth, and she felt her residual anxiety lessen with every fleeting glimpse. Moria, until this point, was almost a blur for her. From the moment the walls had collapsed, it was like she was behaving on auto-pilot – functioning at a bare minimum without fully realising or understanding her actions. What little she did comprehend was that he had been there, attentive and careful through it all. The thought made her feel safe and protected, something she was unused to after so many years alone. Even now, trapped in this endless hell, she was faring far better than she ever could have imagined. Feeling Legolas's cool fingertips brush against hers, she let the tension in her shoulders lessen further and realised she could be herself around him, open up without fear, and know that he would not judge. For Aeweneth, the feeling was rare.

She faced him with a sudden burst of confidence, her sudden movements causing him to glance up in alarm. The concern in his eyes gave her a burst of affection, and a familiar warmth bloomed in her heart.

"Legolas," She braced herself, ready to thank him for his support and voice her fears, when a sudden cry echoed through the chamber and broke her train of thought.

"Gimli!" Gandalf called to the dwarf who was running off in a state of sheer panic.

Aeweneth followed his path and gasped in desperation when she saw daylight seeping into the chamber through the slight crack of a door. As she broke through the entrance, she watched as Gimli fell to his knees in front of a decrepit crypt. Her eyes scanned the room, taking note of the ransacked chamber and scattered bodies. Subconsciously, her hands crept to her blades in caution. A single beam of light illuminated the aged tomb, and she took a moment to breathe, bathing in its natural glow and letting it chase away the darkness tearing at her mind. For the first time since entering Moria, she let her guard drop momentarily. Whilst they were still in immediate danger, she allowed herself to believe that they would make it out of the darkness and back into the daylight.

When she opened her eyes, she saw that the rest of the Fellowship had followed them into the crypt. Gimli was bowing his head in reverence for his fallen kin, and his grief echoed around the chamber whilst the group surveyed the cavern with wary interest. Noting the broken skeletons scattered around the room, Aeweneth steadied herself and unsheathed her weaponry.

"Here lies Balin, Son of Fundin, Lord of Moria" Gandalf read the Dwarven runes carved on the tomb. "He is dead then; it is as I feared."

Aware of their current danger, Aeweneth shifted closer to Frodo, twisting the blades in her palms and letting her eyes scan the shadows from whence they had come.

"We must move on, we cannot linger." She heard Legolas voice to Aragorn.

"He's right," She supported with a whisper, "something lurks in the dark."

The pair looked to her in alarm and reached for their blades cautiously as Gandalf read from a large tome he found in a corpse's grasp.

"They have taken the Bridge and the second hall. We have barred the gates but cannot hold them for long. The ground shakes. Drums. Drums in the deep." Aeweneth, again, stepped closer to the hobbits in apprehension as Gandalf's words mocked her fears, "We cannot get out. A shadow moves in the dark. We cannot get out. They are coming."

The sudden crash that followed jumped Aeweneth's heart, and her breath caught in her throat. Bouncing off the walls of a well, the skeleton's echo reverberated throughout the mine and shattered any hope of the Fellowship's secrecy. A pit of dread settled in her stomach and her teeth clenched with every bounce against the sides. When silence fell, the group held its breath in horror. Any hope of passing through Moria unnoticed was now crushed. After a few moments she felt the men breathe a sigh of relief, but a slight murmur in the air, just a second out of earshot, caused her stomach to clench in alarm. Catching Legolas' eye, she realised she was not alone in hearing it.

"Fool of a Took!" Gandalf cried, oblivious to the threat, "Throw yourself in next time and rid us of your stupidity!"

As the grey wizard turned away, Aeweneth heard the murmur grow and a strong beating began to reverberate around the cavern.

"Drums," She echoed her old friend's words from earlier. "Drums in the deep."

At the sound of a blade unsheathing, she looked down to see the ringbearer's sword illuminating the tomb in dull blue light.

"Frodo!" Sam gasped in alarm.

A familiar screeching reached Aeweneth's ears and she gripped her blades tighter in apprehension.

"Orcs!" Legolas cried.

She watched as Boromir ran towards the doors to get a visual of the enemy, before turning to the hobbits in concern.

"Get back," Aragorn told them, "and stay close to Gandalf!"

Aeweneth observed as fear settled onto their faces, and she realised this was probably the first time they had ever experienced a true battle. She settled her hand on Frodo's shoulder and looked him in the eye in encouragement.

"By my life or death, mellon nin." she reassured him, before grabbing some discarded weaponry off Legolas and joining the Gondorians in barring the door. She flung her weight against the rotting wood, and jammed an old axe across its seal.

"They have a cave troll." Boromir declared, and she allowed herself to laugh slightly at his sarcastic tone.

At her reaction, his face lightened and he glanced at her in pleasant surprise. In her eyes he saw grit, and the threatening grin that crept across her features spoke of an unpredictable yet familiar ruthlessness. As the door was battered and the sounds of Orcs thunderously crashed around the room, he quickly realised she had the face of a hardened warrior.

"What better way to break in a new pair of blades?"She chuckled fiercely.

The scared elf he saw when the mine collapsed was gone. Before him now was a seasoned fighter. She winked at him, boldly, realising they may eventually be on the path to trust.

Slowly, the group backed away from the battered door in alliance, pulling their weapons out in preparation. She heard Gimli take up the rear.

"Let them come." He cried from Balin's tomb, "There's one dwarf yet in Moria who still draws breath."

Aeweneth twisted the blades in her hands and lowered herself into a defensive crouch.

"Tol acharn" she whispered, as the Fellowship prepared for attack.