8
chapter 8
Fíli POV
"So, we got him?" Kíli asked excitedly as Thorin walked in the door. Fíli nodded and pulled the chains off his wrists.
"Indeed. We did," he replied, rubbing his sore wrists.
"I'm very happy to hear that." Thorin said. "Now, let me explain what happened. We set up a trap outside the basecamp. We waited for the right moment, then we attacked. It was a full frontal assault. All of our forces attacked at once. We used fire to weaken their defenses, then poured through the breach we made. Then we hit them from all sides. We destroyed their main building and killed most of their soldiers."
"That's great. But what about the leader? Where is he?" Kíli asked.
Thorin sighed deeply. He looked very worried.
"He's dead. We found his body inside the main building. It appears he died defending his camp." Thorin said, sighing heavily.
"Oh. Well, that's good news, isn't it?" Kíli asked.
"Not exactly." Thorin said. "During the battle, we lost a lot of men. We're down to barely half our original force. We need more men. More than anything, we need a strong leader."
Kíli looked at his brother sorrowfully.
"I wish I could help you. But I can't." He said sadly. "I'm sorry."
"That's alright. You can't blame yourself for this. You couldn't have known that we wouldn't survive." Thorin said kindly. "I'm not blaming you for this. What matters is that we win this war. Do you have any suggestions?"
"Only one. I would suggest we try and infiltrate their camp again. This time, we should do it without being discovered. Take them by surprise, maybe." Kíli suggested.
"I like the idea. It sounds simple enough. Are you confident in your ability to lead?" Thorin asked.
"I am." Kíli responded. "I'm still young, but I've trained for this my entire life. I know what I'm doing. I'm sure I can do it. I'm confident that I can beat their leader. I just have to find him."
"Then let's go. I'll lead the attack, and you sneak in while everyone's distracted." Thorin said. "Meet me at the rendezvous point. We'll wait for nightfall then go into action."