IX. In which songs return

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Rána silently cursed the Dwarven sense of stubbornness as she realised they had entered the caves. Thorin was supposed to wait until I caught up with them, so I could prevent this from happening. She thought solemnly upon realizing the Dwarves, and the Hobbit too, had fallen into the hands of the Goblin King.

Walking into the cave, one she remembered fairly well, she searched for the cracks in the floor. Specifically the crack in the back of the room, one she could use to open a small hatch by turning a stone. One with a ladder beneath it. She had used the same ladder to get out a few years back, so she figured it would still be there. And it was.

After she climbed down she looked around. Goblin town was still the same. A mess of ladders, ropes, and wooden platforms everywhere you looked. And sometimes some of the Goblin's even got creative and decorated the wooden poles with skeletons, mainly skulls though. Right, find the Dwarves. She reminded herself, and started lithly down the bridges.

Halfway across a particulary narrow bridge she heard humming, and then screeches, and then a voice. No...not the songs! She thought in dismay as the Goblin King's voice echoed through Goblin Town.

Crush, smack! Whip crack!
Smash, grab! Pinch, nab!
You go, my lad!
Ho, ho! my lad!

The black crack! the back crack!
The black crack! the back crack!
Down down to Goblin-town
Down down to Goblin-town
Down down to Goblin-town
You go, my lad!
Ho, ho! my lad!

Goblins quaff, and Goblins beat
Goblins laugh, and Goblins bleat
Batter and jabber and whip and hammer hoooooo!
You go, my lad!
Ho, ho! my lad!

Below, my lad!
Ho, ho! my lad!

The black crack! the back crack!
The black crack! the back crack!
Down down to Goblin-town
Down down to Goblin-town
Down down to Goblin-town
You go, my lad!
Ho, ho! my lad!

"Down, down, to Goblin town..." Rána muttered as she climbed up a ladder, and clambered up a platform. There they are! She thought as the Goblin King's back came into view. Oh, look at that. I'm behind the ugly's throne. She thought with a grin, wanting to scare the Goblin King. And then the next song started up, and Rána let out a soft chuckle.

Bones will be shattered
Necks will be wrung
You'll be beaten and battered
From racks you'll be hung
You will die down here and never be found

The Goblin King twirled and cackled, and then he went to finish the song. And Rána came out, standing beside the throne. "Down in the deep of Goblin Town." She uttered loudly. The Goblin King whirled around and shrieked in suprise. "Hello, King Ugly, it's not so nice to see you again. Not that it's nice to hear you. I mean, you were certainly not mother's most lovely singer." She said with a grin, and then realised she had succesfully managed to stop the Goblins from chopping Thorin's head off. "Wanderer" the Goblin King hissed, "Breaker of oaths" he continued as Goblins began circling Rána. "One without loyalty," Rána snarled at that, but got pushed down by the Goblins, "Vras." The King snarled, calling her an assassin in his language. "Rog-votak," he snarled, his word for bodyguard, as she had been Legolas' and Thranduil's once. "Dagul," the next word was, meaning demon. "Ari," by this word, evil spirit, Rána was worked to the ground and pinned down. "MARGIM!" The King shouted the last word, and Rána flinched. This word meant exile, and was by far one of the worst things she had been called in a while. Her head was pulled up, making her look into the greedy eyes of the Goblin King. "I shall enjoy watching you die!" he cackled and sat down on his throne.

Thorin's eyes widened when Rána's head got pushed down again, hitting the floor with a sickening crack. "Make her suffer!" The Goblin King cried out with glee. Rána's head got pulled back up again, and slammed back down. Over and over, until there was blood rushing down her forehead and forming a slight pool around her head as the Headsmasher stepped back and allowed one of his friends to take over. A whip was brought forward, and Thorin winched as it came down on Rána's back.

Rána met the Dwarf's eyes and muttered "Don't, let me be, go, run." And when Thorin understood what she had said, had mouthed to him, he frowned. And then the one with the whip stepped back. Fresh cuts were littered on Rána's back, blood pooling beneath her. But her cuts slowly began to heal. Thank the Valar for my unusual blood clotting ability. It was true, Rána was a most peculiar Elleth, as her blood was made for war. It clotted so fast she could hardly bleed out, of course it was still a possibility if her foe decided to leave the weapon in the wound, because then the blood wouldn't clot. And she would bleed out just as fast as a mortal.

"Well, no screams yet, Margim?" the Goblin King asked tauntingly. "Let's see if you scream for your friends." And with those words a few Goblins dove for Ori, dragging Thorin out of the way when he tried to protect the lad. And then Orcrist dropped. "AAEEEEEEH!" The Goblin King cried out, leaping back into his throne. "I know that sword!" he started, but Rána tuned him out as she struggled to get back on her feet. Once on her feet, after falling down two times already she was blinded by a bright light. Her hands quickly fumbled to get her weapons as she dropped to her knees yet again. And when she finally had her weapons she heard a familiar voice call out "Take up arms! Fight!" And so she smiled, Gandalf had come. "Fight!" Taking up her sword with new found power she swiftly made for Gandalf's side. "Rána my dear, run along, we will catch up." Gandalf told her with a soft smile as the Dwarves rushed to their weapons. And so Rána did as she was told, and ran ahead.

After a while of running Rána slowed down to a walk, only to be passed by by Gandalf, making her run again.

Running side by side with Gandalf they soon reached a bridge. And suddenly the Goblin King burst through the wooden boards beneath them, causing them to stumble back. "YOU REALLY THOUGHT YOU COULD ESCAPE ME?!" The Goblin King roared, tauntingly. Rána swiftly stepped in front of Gandalf. "What will you do now, Margim?" Rána uttered an elvish curse and hit him over the head with the flat of her blade, and then sliced his stomach. The Goblin King roared in pain before falling to his knees. "That'll do it" he muttered. "The name," Rána started "is Rána" she finished as she sliced her blade through his neck.

The Goblin King fell down, making the companies half of the bridge groan before it eroded away and was sent falling. It was sliding down the rock face, destroying other bridges before smashing down on the ground. The company groaned and cursed, and Rána and Gandalf slipped out from beneath the wood. "Well," Bofur muttered, "that could have been worse." And with that he crawled out from beneath the first layer of wood. Then, the body of the Goblin King fell down and squashed the wood and Dwarves beneath it. Dwalin cursed as the others groaned. "You've got to be joking" he growled before he struggled and got up. Then they set on helping the others. And once everybody was up Kili muttered "Rána...look up." And she did. And then she yelled. "Gandalf!"

A giant amount of screeching, sliding Goblins were rushing down the cliff face to get to the company. "There's too many, we can't fight them" Dwalin said as he dusted himself off. "Only one thing can save us now," Gandalf muttered. And Rána finished it, "daylight, run!" And so the company started running.

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