All I've ever known

30

Gloin sat down and rubbed his hands together,"Right! Let's get a fire going!" Thorin shook his head,"No fires, not in this place." Dwalin seemed confused,"It looks safe enough." Thorin still shook his head,"No fires." He looked around at his company,"Get some sleep, we leave at dawn." Balin furrowed his brow,"I thought the plan was to wait for Gandalf in the mountains?" Thorin answered gruffly,"Plans change."

The rest of the dwarves stay silent and try to get comfortable on the hard stone floor. Thorin laid down with his back towards the group and listened to them talk. He heard Kili say to Fili,"I can't believe she's gone." Fili patted his brothers shoulder, but didn't say a word.

Bofur clapped his hands,"Now come on lads! She wouldn't want us moping about! I'm quite certain if she saw us now, she'd hit us all in the back of the head." This earned a few breathed laughs from everyone. Bofur nudged Dwalin,"Remeber that time when she tried to leads how to wield an axe?" Dwalin scoffed,"She nearly took my head off!" Everyone laughed at this, even Thorin chuckled a bit.

They continued to talk and laugh more with memories of Mivera. Eventually, everyone became tired and went to bed. But Thorin couldn't sleep. Every time he closed his eyes he saw Mivera's eyes, and how frightened they were. He looked at his hands, the hands that failed to save her. If he had just been quicker she could be next to him right now.

He was torn from his thoughts when he heard Bofur's voice,"Where are you going?" Thorin was going to look to see who he was talking to, but Bilbo's voice echoed slightly in the small cave. He turned to face Bofur,"Back to Rivendell." Thorin sighed lightly, he knew the hobbit would eventually leave.

"No you can't! Your apart of the company!", Bofur said attempting to reason with him. Bilbo pushed him off,"No I'm not am I? Thorin said I was a burden, and he was right." Bofur nodded,"You're homesick, I understand." Bilbo shook his head,"No you don't, you're dwarves! You all are used to this life, to living on the road, never staying one place, not belonging anywhere!"

Thorin lowered his eyes, he would never show it, but that hurt him. Bofur cast a sad look over the his sleeping friends,"You're right. We don't belong anywhere." He turned back to Bilbo and smiled,"I wish you all the luck in the world. I really do." He pats Bilbo's shoulder and as Bilbo turned to leave, something caught Bofur's eye."What's that?" Bilbo looked to where Bofur was referring to and saw his blade was glowing.

Thorin heard a low rumbling and quickly lifted his head. His eyes saw the sand falling through the ground, showing the crevices beneath them. He jumped to his feet,"Wake up! Move!" Everyone was in a sleeping daze and Thorin's warnings were acted upon slowly. The dwarves yelled and shouted when the floor they were standing on fell inwards, and they began plummeting down a long tunnel.

The fell hard on a slab of stone and groaned when other members of the company fell atop them. Goblins came running towards them up a path. The pulled and yanked every dwarf into a single file line and dragged them off.

Thorin's nose crinkled, he smell of rotting and decaying flesh filled his nose. The goblins kept pushing them and pushing them until finally they were in front of the goblin king. His eyes gleamed with anger and he came of his throne, stepping on lower goblins beneath his feet.

His giant goiter swung back and forth and spit flew from his mouth,"Who would be so bold as to trespass in my kingdom?" He looked around wildly,"Spies? Thieves? Assassins?" A meek goblin looked up,"Dwarves, your malevolence."

The goblin king was shocked,"Dwarves? Search them! Every crack every crevice!" The goblins once again came onto the dwarves. They took every weapon they had on them and threw them into a pile in front of the grotesque throne.

The goblin kins swung his staff,"What are you doing in these parts? Speak!" When none of the dwarves responded, the king smirked,"If we can't make them talk, we'll make them squawk! Bring up the mangler, bring up the bone breaker!" He smiled and pointed at Ori,"Start with the youngest!"

"Wait!", Thorin shouted. He stepped forwards and lifted his eyes to see the king. The goblin king acted awe struck,"Oh my look who it is! Thorin! Son of Thrain, son of Thror. King under the mountain." The goblin king bowed mockingly and tapped on his chin,"Oh but I'm forgetting, you don't have a mountain, which makes you nobody really."

The goblins kings head snaps up and a mischievous smile. His eyes flickered over to Thorin,"Your mistress took a rather nasty fall didn't she? Loud mouth woke me up." Thorin set his jaw and clenched his fists, Dwalin and nori had to hold him back.

The goblin king smiled with triumph and stood up straight,"I know someone who would have paid a pretty price for both of your heads, but I guess one will have to do. I suppose you know of whom I speak." Thorin just looked at him and the goblin king continued,"The pale Orc, astride a white Warg!"

Thorin lifted his head in disbelief,"Azog the Defiler was killed in battle long ago!" The goblin king said smugly,"So you think his defiling days are over?" He turned to one of his scribes,"Send word to the pale Orc, tell him I have his prize." The small ugly goblin nodded and sent himself sailing off on the rope.