May it Be | THE LORD OF THE RINGS 🖋

.16. Speak Friend and Enter...

Deirdre's POV

The lake had us all concerned. I watched the ever still surface with caution, only looking away once to notice that Aragorn had also not taken his eyes off the water; even Boromir seemed to notice something strange about the dark body of liquid.

'It's a riddle!' I heard Frodo say from a distance. Not looking at the hobbit, I watched as ripples began to form upon the lakes surface, only to quickly turn to waves. 

'Speak friend... and enter,' Frodo spoke again, 'What's the elvish word for friend?'

The ripples began to move towards the shore.

'Mellon,' Gandalf replied.

Suddenly, a loud cracking noise emanated from the stone wall as the door into Moria began to open.

Gandalf chuckled, clearly pleased with himself, as Gimli removed his pipe from his mouth and looked around in awe; any fool could have noticed that the dwarf was happy to finally be heading into more familiar territory.

I was just happy to be heading in a direction which was away from the mysterious lake.

Everyone gathered their things and stood up, awaiting Gandalf to make the first move. He placed a crystal into the top of his staff and began to venture forth in to the heart of the mountain and in to the darkness that was Moria.

Everyone followed; the idea of warm food and a comfortable place to sleep was a welcome thought, but really most of us where just happy to be finally putting the lake, as well as the cold, behind us. Still, I watched as Aragorn looked backwards, at the water, before entering.

'Soon Mr. Elf, you will enjoy the fabled hospitality of the dwarves,' Gimli said cheerfully to Legolas, 'Roaring fires! Malt Beer! Red Meat off the bone!'

I couldn't help myself but begin to salivate as Gimli spoke of the hearty foods the Dwarfs often overindulged in.

As we slowly entered into the mountain I noticed a crushing sound under my boots as we walked; Boromir and Aragorn too noticed and we looked at one another with unease.

A head of us, I could just make out Gandalf blowing on the crystal which he had placed in his staff. The clear stone began emit a slight glow which was slowly becoming brighter.

'This, my friend, is the home of my cousin Balin and they call it a Mine! A Mine!' Gimli's loud voice echoed through the dark chamber just as Gandalf's light became bright enough to illuminate that room.

I stared in horror as I witnessed the reason of the crushing sound beneath our feet; the stone floor was littered with the corpses of fallen dwarves.

'This isn't a mine,' Boromir said as he took in the sight before him, 'It's a tomb.'

I inspected a nearby skeleton to find multiple arrows had been the cause of death and by the looks of the rest, they had all suffered the same fate.

Gimli ran to one of the bodies, as is he was hoping that they were simply a trick of the mind and not real.

'Nooooo! Nooooooooooooooo!' He wailed as he it dawned on him that his kin had indeed be slaughtered.

Legolas crouched down by a skeleton not far from me. He too inspected the body before removing one the arrows to look at it more closely. He looked at it with disgust before passing it me.

I looked at it carefully, 'Goblins?' I asked, passing the arrow back.

'Goblins!' He replied nodding his head and trowing the arrow in anger.