kiiblade

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

The night had been a long one. Kili barely slept; his conscious nagged him, he felt sick to his stomach and the pain only worsened. When morning came, he had to force himself to his feet. The company was rewarded with new clothes, armor, and weaponry. Such gifts should have brought pleasure to all, Kili could not share in the excitement, he merely followed the others down the dock, head hung low.

Upon seeing Saeril's cloaked figure, Kili looked to her with the faintest bit of hope that he might follow. To his dismay, she did not. "She isn't coming with...is she?" Heartbroken, Kili looked to his brother, and then Thorin clasped a hand to his shoulder in order to stop him.

“Not you." Thorin knew that this would crush his nephew, but he was left with no choice. Kili's health had worsened. "We must travel with speed, you will slow us down.”

Thinking his uncle to be joking, Kili smiled lightly. “What are you talking about? I’m coming with you.”

Thorin's mind had been made up. Bringing Kili would threaten his life more than it was already. “No.”

Kili's worst fears had come to pass. Swallowing hard, he attempted to move forward. “I’m going to be there when that door is opened, when we first look upon the halls of our fathers, Thorin.”

Thorin laid a hand to his shoulder. “Kili, stay here. Rest. Join us when you’re healed.”

In a state of shock, Kili turned away, his mind reeling.

“I’ll stay with the lad. My duty lies with the wounded.” Oin tried to see to the youngest's injury, but Kili pulled away, refusing treatment of any kind. This was the lowest Kili had ever felt. Thorin had forbid him to come, he had proved himself nothing more than a burden, and he'd even broken his promise to Saeril.

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

“I have the only right.” Thorin turned towards the man in charge. “I speak to the Master of the men of the Lake. Will you see the prophecy fulfilled? Will you share in the great wealth of our people? What say you?”

The Master fell quiet, and everyone waited with anticipation. Suddenly, he smiled and opened his arms to welcome them. “I say unto you...welcome! Welcome and thrice welcome, King under the Mountain!”
The crowd erupted in cheers, and Thorin climbed the stairs, facing Bard down. "We will need adequate supplies..."

Supplies were promised to them, and the guards went to retrieve what was needed. Kili moved to follow the others, careful to keep his distance. As of now, he felt too poorly to apologize to his godmother. Hopefully, she would understand why he broke his promise.

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

Thorin scoffed lowly. “You can listen to this naysayer, but I promise you this; If we succeed, all will share in the wealth of the mountain. You will have enough gold to rebuild Esgaroth ten times over!” This earned cheers from the crowd, and The Master of Laketown smirked to himself. Dwarves were not the only ones fond of gold.

As Thorin and Bard argued, The Master spoke up. "Now, now, we must not, any of us, be too quick to lay blame. Let us not forget that it was Girion, Lord of Dale, your ancestor, who failed to kill the beast!”
Alfrid was quick to agree. “It’s true, sire. We all know the story: arrow after arrow he shot, each one missing its mark.” The people turned on Bard, accusing him for Giron's failure to kill the beast.

Kili pulled away from the guard gripping his shoulder. From where the youngest Durin stood, he could barely see his uncle. In order to get a better look at what was going on, Kili attempted to stand on tiptoe, but the movement hurt, and he inwardly cursed his misfortune.
When Saeril arrived, Kili's heart sank. Like a guilty child, he attempted to hide himself from view, but it was too late. She'd spotted him. Face burning with shame, Kili dropped his gaze. He hadn't wanted to break his promise, but his alliance was split.

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

Kili lifted his eyes to meet his godmother's. The youngest felt comforted by her presence, and he leaned his face to her hand in appreciation of her so faithfully helping him. "Medicine?" In a town this broken, Kili doubted very much that anything worthwhile could have been found to heal him, but he had to cling to that hope. "Alright...I will," he managed a tired promise, nearly ready to fall asleep. Unfortunately, sleep never came. As soon as Saeril left, Thorin and the others put their plan into action.

Later, the company found themselves at the town armory. The building was no more than a shack, and the top window was open. Kili felt badly to have broken his promise so soon, but they'd needed his help. Together, the dwarves used one another to reach the top. Once inside, they were met with a wide array of weaponry.

"What about Saeril? How will she know where to find us?" Kili stayed put as Thorin handed him a sword followed by an axe. The weapons felt about ten times heavier than they should have, and Kili had to grit his teeth to prevent crying out.

"She will know." Thorin paused only briefly, his eyes on his youngest nephew. The lighting was dim, but Kili looked paler than ever before. "Kili...are you alright?"

Kili forced himself to stand taller. "I can manage. Let's just get out of here." Now with a full armload of weaponry, he moved towards the stairway. On the fourth step, his leg gave out. With a terrible crash, Kili fell down, the weapons spilling in every direction. The sound was more than enough to alert the nearby guards.
As Kili struggled to get back up, someone grabbed his shoulder roughly and held a dagger to his throat. At the same time, three others held swords and spears at the rest of the company. They had been caught red handed.

"Bring them to The Master." The guard forced Kili up, and Kili hissed a breath at the pain the action brought. With a rough shove, he was forced to follow the others outside and into the city.
"This is all my fault," Kili started to blame himself, but Thorin shook his head and motioned him to quiet.

"What is the meaning of this?!" The Master of Laketown left the comforts of home in order to meet with their captives. One of the guards started to fill him in, but Thorin stepped forward.
“We are the dwarves of Erebor...and we have come to reclaim our homeland." Despite their difference in height, Thorin held his head up high. "I remember this town and the great days of old. Fleets of boats lay at harbor, filled with silks and fine gems. This was no forsaken town on a lake! This was the center of all trade in the North. I would see those days return. I would relight the great forges of the dwarves and send wealth and riches flowing once more from the halls of Erebor!”

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

When Saeril approached, Kili was quick to move his hand away from the wound to his leg. For a brief moment, he worried that she may have reprehended him, but she didn't. Instead, she helped block his injury from the others. This was a relief. With a faint smile to show his thanks, Kili moved over a little so that she could sit down too if she wished it.

Thorin was in discussion with Dwalin. The plan had been made: they would sneak out from Bard's, steal the weaponry needed, then leave towards the mountains. There was no time to rest, no time to sleep. The sooner they arrived to their destination, the better. Time was something they no longer had.
"As soon as we have the weapons, we make straight for the mountain."

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

Thorin and Dwalin inspected their weapons, then looked at one another with matching looks of disgust. These would not do. At all. They would have to obtain better weaponry before setting forth.
Since he'd paid his way in coin, Gloin was riled, and he tossed a pike back to the table. “We paid you for weapons. Iron-forged swords and axes!”
"It's a joke!" Bofur agreed with him, and they all voiced their displeasure.
Balin rubbed a hand over his face wearily. “Thorin...why not take what’s been offered and go? I’ve made do with less; so have you. I say we leave now.”

Kili used the poor excuse of a weapon to lean on. Keeping on his feet proved to be a mistake, for he was hurting worse than before. Slowly. he used the weapon to lower himself to a nearby seat. Wincing, he examined the bandage on his leg, though made sure that no one was looking. He only needed to hold on a few more days...they were so very close, he could not give up now.

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

Thorin eyed Bard with his continual air of mistrust. “All dwarves know the tale. “You took our money. Where are the weapons?” Time was running out, and he knew it. The longer they remained in Laketown, the less chance they had to get into Erebor. Their journey would have been for nothing. This was something he could never allow; they had to get a move on.

Once given room to speak in private, Thorin turned towards his kin. “Tomorrow begins the last days of autumn.”
Balin gave a small sigh, holding his mug of tea to better warm himself. “Durin’s Day falls morn after next. We must reach the mountain before then.”
It was now that Kili spoke up. There was plenty going through his mind, and he made it a point to stand up straight in order to conceal the fact that he was injured. Reclaiming Erebor had been his lifelong dream, an arrow could not stop that. “And if we do not? If we fail to find the hidden door before that time?”

A Land of Wonder and Nightmare

"Fair enough. 'Course, I don't have any weight to pull right now...so if you change your mind, let me know." Ghent was mildly relieved she hadn't taken his offer the wrong way. Elayra's stubbornness surpassed even his own, and he had an inkling she was constantly making it a point to prove herself capable. The conversation switched to food, and Ghent couldn't help but remember there was a pizza joint two blocks down.
"Pro...what? What's a procure? Is that some sort of weapon?" Poor Ghent. Elayra's dialog was more advanced; he could have benefited from reading less comic books and more of the dictionary. The sidewalk he lead them down should have been familiar to all present. Intentionally, he was leading them back towards the park.
"Or was that what you wanted the cat for?"
"Are you actually suggesting that I'd eat William?" Ghent wasn't sure whether to be offended or to laugh. "I'd rather eat dirt! When it comes to food, everyone goes to Walmart. It's...like a giant marketplace, but all in one building. They sell everything, and a lot of the people there wear pajamas and crocs."
Ghent looked their clothes over, judging for himself whether or not their attire would have been appropriate. "No one would bat an eye if they saw you wearing that Middle Earth garb. Walmart's free game."
Another police siren went off in the far distance, followed by a barking dog. Their weaponry came to Ghent's mind, and he purposely cut through another alleyway in order to stay off the sidewalk as much as possible. "Oh, and no one hunts in the city. You'd get toted off to jail. Better keep that in mind -- I don't think two hundred dollars would be enough for your bail."

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

Sigrid looked to Saeril with curiosity, then nearly jumped in surprise as she saw the dwarves enter the home, one by one. “Da...why are there dwarves climbing out of our toilet?”
Tilda watched, finding this fascinating rather than alarming. “Will they bring us luck?”

Kili was helped out by Bifur, the pain in his leg never quite ceasing, nor giving him a moment to recover. The company was soaked clean through, and though the home was warm, they were half frozen. Sigrid quickly retrieved some blankets with her little sister, and one by one, they offered them to each member of the company and also Saeril.

Thorin remained near the window, his gaze settled upon a tower-like structure. “A Dwarvish Wind-Lance.”
Bilbo approached him, though was careful to keep his distance. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
Balin nodded, growing solemn. “He has. The last time we saw such a weapon, a city was on fire. It was the day the dragon came. The day that Smaug destroyed Dale. Girion, the Lord of the city, rallied his bowman to fire upon the beast.”
Thorin shook his head, then turned away. “Had the aim of Men been true that day, much would have been different.”

Hobbit-LOTR: Quests, Curses, And Guardians { Angel & Polarize }

"Where are we going?" Kili did what he could to match his uncle's pace. Lakedown was best described as a slum of sorts; there wasn't an ounce of greenery in sight, the area was cold, stricken with poverty, and dark. In all his life, Kili had never seen such a place. Neither had Bilbo. This was absolutely nothing like The Shire. It was difficult to comprehend such a loathsome place existed.
"Yes, where?" Bilbo was in agreement with Kili. Thorin hadn't said anything as he lead them around the house, and he was starting to feel a bit unnerved. "Is there a back door?"

"No." Thorin nodded towards the water. "There's another way in."
Bilbo exchanged horrified glances with Kili. This would not be pleasant.

Inside, Bard's two daughters ran up to meet their father. “Da! Where have you been?” Tilda hugged Bard, as did
Sigrid. “Father! There you are. I was worried.”