Thogen stood watch at the high stone walk ways of Gondamon, the stone slick with a layer of frost and ice, the high moon giving the land a luminous glow and the sound of wolves howling the in the distance filled the air, yet still he stood watch. A puff of blue smoke curled from the crafted stone pipe that hung on his lips, filled with battle scars. Etched runes and gold rings made this a piece worth a good deal of silver, again and again the blue smoke trailed from the stone bowl and faded to nothing in the slight breeze. Brownish-red eyes looked over the Vale, it was bright enough with the moons glow to see a distance away but anything that moved could not identified, a wolf could be a deer, a hobbit could be a goblin but there was one figure he could identify, the golden plated armour waving, the bow slung around the back, the pristine goat he rode, the Uzbad.
Uzbad Duinn came trotting into the center of Gondamon, his goat clicking its feet over the stone slabbed ground, his hand raised to order the personal guard around him to halt and with a smile he spoke "Duinn, son of Muninn, son of Frerin, Drakenbane! At your service Azaghalbad." Thogen had walked down the slippery stairway and bowed his head down with great respect, his braided beard with many iron and steel beads rattled along his chest plate, the War master spoke "Ah, Uzbaduh Duinn! The raven reached you in time it seems and with such a host of warriors you had brought! Welcome to Gondamon, welcome!" Thogen said cheerfully or as cheerful as he may have ever sounded. Hosgrim, Lustig and Byl dismounted their goats, the sound of rattling armour jingled a sweet tune of well crafted steel. Together the group rounded up the goats, Hosgrim took Duinn's after he dismounted and with a proud stride they put them away to the stables for fresh hay and brisk water. Asudrom, Hroskold and Thalamath joined Thogen's side, they had been stationed at Gondamon already and now came to the battle mustering. "We have brought some of our finest warriors, the letter you sent to Thorin's Hall has caught some attention, even now the elves of Duillond and Celondim have started to gather their house warriors." Duinn said, his long and well kept mustache shifted with grace after every word escaped his lips, he was a noble leader and a archer of renown skill. Thogen thought how his letter had started something far bigger then what he imagined, the war had started with Durin's Folk against the Evil in Sarnur but now it seemed Ered-Luin was soon to march to battle, one last time.
Over the past week the drills had been much harder for military folk. Zabads had been grinding the warriors so that only the will to survive remained, no doubt in their mind and muscle memory to carry them through battle. "Banners take position!" Thogen ordered with a mean growl. In unison the troops all started to march, the shield bearers marched to the front ranks, a sturdy wall if battled erupted, the hammer banner took next rank, death dealers and those who would strike over the wall, killing any in their paths and then archers in the rear, those who could place a well fired shot and support the fighting force. Thogen waved his axe around with signals and calls until the unit was ready as they had ever been "Let us march to the camp at Rath Teriag! Let us bring great pain to those goblin runts!". The unit started to move, Asudrom, the well voiced dwarrow he had been gave a called out tune for the troops to move their feet to "One two! One two! One two!" he bellowed. The sentries of Gondamon watched as the small unit of seasoned warriors traveled both down and up hills, through the vale and towards Rath Teraig .. and towards the battle field.
Smoke floated like mornings mist, not to far off the chanting and taunts of goblin hoards could be heard and iron beating iron rang like bells. Together the dwarves of Durin's Folk came to the forward camp of the Siege, a Guard Caption of Gondamon ran to meet them and saluted "Shamukh Azaghalbad Thogen!". The guard caption was about to continue before noticing Duinn and giving him a great bow, the guards beard sweeping to the dirt below "Shamukh, Zai dashunizu ra braufizu Uzbaduh Duinn!" he spoke with a softer tone. Duinn returned the greeting with a bow of his head, his golden armour glittering in the fires light. "Where are your troops? When I last recieved report you had over three dozen dwarves holding this post." Thogen asked with a stern look, the camp was empty, bed rolls opened wide, food left over the fires burning to a crisp and with all that not a single dwarf beside the lonesome caption. The guard caption spoke a bit nervous but he had the answer none wanted to hear "The Goblins War master! The petty dwarves had stirred all of Rath Teraig with the price of dwarven beards and now dozens of chieftains raise hoards and marched towards Gondamon! The troops went to meet them but none have returned yet, I am to hold the wall here and wait!".
Thogen took the words in for a moment before nodding his head, his unit of trained soldiers shifted from foot to foot to balance the weight of their armour and now after hearing about Goblins many of them tightened shields, knocked arrows and held weapons tight. Thogen nodded his head once more then spoke, "We will meet these advancing war parties and send them back to where they came if we cannot end them first. Any dwarrow we see we will return to hold the wall. Be ready master, for if we do not return you will face a much greater threat then a few goblin hoards." he said, and he wished he wasn't right. They had a single task, route the enemy or die trying. Sop they entered the battle with beards tucked into their belts, goblins cheered.
In times of peace the ground is filled with patch of bright flowers, thick grass and much wildlife but that is not the case in war, Durin's Folk had entered Rath Teraig and seen nothing but dead or wounded. Bodies littered the ground with blood and guts, some mewing cries for aid while others saying their final peace to Mahal. "Thirteen ... fifteen.." Lustig mumbled, he had been counting the dead while they passed, Byl grumbled and gave a bit of a snarl to Lustig "Those are your brothers, do not count them like they are sheep." Thogen raised his axe in the air before barking an order "Quiet, stay focused. You can bicker like women folk once we are back home around a table of ale." and he was right, in enemy lands you must stay alert, you lose focus for a slight second and you could fall into a trap, the enemy could be alerted or you could be killed. Deeper and deeper the unit moved, each banner staying in proper ranking and tight together, eyes looked from rock to road, flats to hill top but they seen nothing. Hroskold grew restless "Something ain't right Lords .. we should be knee deep in goblin filth by now." his grumbles were met by the common "Aye" of his people. Thogen had to reassure that they were doing the right course of action "They will come Hroskold .. give it tim-" Thogen cut off his chat and beat his axe quickly off his shield before shouting "Shield Wall! Goblin archers!". And at that the goblins arrived.
"Scouting party! I count six!" Lustig said, peaking his though gaps in the wall of shields every so often, his shoulder tucked close behind for maximum cover. Duinn took similar position before replying "I hope your right, don't get shot .. those arrows give a nasty infection!" The dwarven wall moved slowly, step by step towards a hill, the top held a half dozen archers who rained arrows down towards them. Dull thuds sounded as arrows dug into oak planks, bounced of iron rims or whistled past the soldiers. "NOW!" Thogen commanded and the shield wall lowered to a single knee leaving Duinn and Lustig standing tall. Both dwarven archers knocked arrows and sent four pointed tips towards the enemy with blazing speed, each of them finding its mark but only one going through the eyeball of a goblin and out the other side killing it. "Shields up!" Thogen ordered again, yet again the wall moved closer to the enemy like a well oiled machine of war. The dwarves knew exactly what one another were doing, they had been drilled so hard that this felt like writing to them, or even breathing, again an order was called. "Swine horn!" Thogen shouted and the wall split. The dwarves were ten feet away from the enemy and now Hroskold took center, the dwarves all filed on their side of him in descending fashion with weapons ready. They looked like a head of a spear as they charged and Hroskold howled his cry " SIGIN-TARAG!" axes hacked, blades slashed and hammers crushed. Hosgrim used his mighty axe to cleave a goblin from shoulder to hip while Thalamath caved in a goblins face with the iron boss of his shield and so the enemy was defeated, they had no time to run so they met a fate that sent them to what ever afterlife waited. "Duinn, Lustig! Take to the cliff and look out to the road, tell me what you see." Thogen ordered, he may have been ranked under the Uzbad but in War he was the Lord, he knew how the enemy thought and he was given the task to defend the land. Asudrom wiped his axe on a goblins clothing, the blood leaving streaks of blood, Byl and Hosgrim checking to see if every goblin lay dead. A voice yelled out towards the dwarves, Duinn shouted."Troll!"
Thogen and his company ran down towards the roadway, they raced close to one another and took to the path, metal plated boots clicking on stone. The group came to a halt at a narrow passage between a high boulder and the steep cliff, first the shield banner set up. "Shield Wall! Tight ranks!" Thogen orders, the unit pressing shoulder against shoulder and shield lapped over shield. "Hammers!" Thogen called again, Hosgrim and Hroskold stood behind the wall with giant weapons ready. "Sabaj! To the high pass" Thogen finished, Duinn and Lustig took place where they scouted the troll and with it a hoard of goblins.
It was quiet, the battle that waged on when the dwarves arrived had faded, Gondamon's troops wiped out, goblins held their tongues but a dull beating noised came in rhythm. The troll wielded two rounded tree trunks and used them to beat a drum strapped to its hips, every so often it would cry a terrible scream. Goblins surrounded the troll, they were a lesser bunch and not to battle hardened but they had the numbers, they moved like a swarm of black flies ready to cover their foes and attack the skin dry. "Let them come, my spear is thirsty Lord!" Byl grinned, he like few others had a thick battle lust. "Hold Byl, they will come .. " Thogen mentioned to him, they both had seen much battle in the past months and taken many injuries but still they fought in the war. Thogen beat his axe off his shield a few times and called an order "Loose arrows!". At the call Duinn and Lustig sent arrows whistling, the heads cut the air while feathers ruffled to direct the shaft to its target .. the chest and forehead of goblins. Again and again the archers let loose arrows to try and thin the hoard before they reached the shield wall but two archers could not bring down a a whole goblin hoard. The trolls drums beat faster and faster, the goblins charged.
Before two enemies meet there is a strange feeling the over comes the body, your blood is pumping, adrenaline flows like wild fire and your mind races. Every dwarf felt the rush and then they hit. The narrow passage way funneled the goblins into a small mouth and killing wall of the dwarves and like a cracking boom of thunder skin bashed against dwarven shields. Thogen gritted his teeth and voiced a command to his troops "Hold the wall until they break! Then we kill! Then we kill!". The dwarves held true, the goblins pushed one another but strong legs and sturdy stances kept the wall tight and straight. Hroskold and Hosgrim brought down long shafted weapons on the heads of goblins who poked over the wall, they would cry and fall. The pressure went on for a minute, either side not willing to give up a single inch but with such effort put into the action one side would give out, the goblins stepped back. "Now! Kill!" Thogen barked! The wall of bold shields launched forward a single step and those enemies front ranks were cut to pieces with a quick strike. Dhordur drove his heel down to a goblins neck who fell under the shield wall and before it could speak its spine snapped. More arrows were coming down from the high pass, Lustig laughed counting his kills while Duinn fired arrow after arrow and claimed life after life. Both archers found themselves taking the odd shot at the troll, its skin thick but some arrows drove true and pierced its skin. The giant troll raised its meaty arm to shield its face but out of rage dropped its clubs and took up two goblins who were near it. With a deafening scream the troll threw the goblins to the Uzbad, enemies were on the way.
Duinn knocked an arrow and shouted "Incoming!". With a squint of his eyes and the gentle touch of the arrows feathers at his nose he sighted in the first goblin. Its face was in a panic but there was nothing it could do. Snap, the sound the bow made when its bow string let free and the arrow sailed into the chest of the small creature and sent it dead into the stoned side of the high pass and down onto the goblin hoard. Lustig fired true also but the goblin landed on the edge of the high ground clawing its way to stay at the top. Quickly Lustig ran up to the crawling creature and sent a fierce kick into its nose and down tumbling to the dwarven shield wall. "Twenty!" Lustig cheered.
The battle was hard fought on the low ground but the dwarves were taking the much better of the fight, goblins were being hacked down and with a bit of spake Thogen called for the wall to open. Hroskold and Hosgrim pushed the strong wooden shafts of their weapons into the chest of the enemy as they charged giving them wide pockets to swing, both spinning and hacking down groups of goblins. "Hoho! Come! Another! Another!" Hosgrim shouted, his battle rage was claiming his mind and found himself well away from the shield wall. "Hammers return! Back behind the wall!" Thogen shouted, Hroskold slipped back in rank but Hosgrim did not. "Hosgrim! Fall back!" Asudrom shouted, Byl also called for his friend but again he did not return. "Duinn! Fire a path for Hosgrim!" Thogen ordered and soon both archers were firing arrows to enemies who jumped towards Hosgrim, his footing becoming much easier to back peddle and just in time did he return to the wall. Thogen reached his hand forward and grabbed the back of his chest plate thrusting Hosgrim back behind the wall but the goblins seen a gap and took the chance, they pushed the wall apart.
If a shield wall does not hold true then it leaves the group open to attack from all sides. Thogen felt a strong shoulder his under his axe arm and sent him tumbling to the ground, Hosgrim was also pushed back from the wave of enemies. The wall was split and now all members of the shield banner fought to get the wall back together, hammer members killed those around them and the archers fired arrow after arrow. "Thogen! Get up! Get the wall together!" Duinn called from up top, he had been thinning the enemy a great deal but now turned his fire to the troll who had taken up its crude clubs. The monstrous beast beat its drums a bit more before also charging to the fallen dwarves. Asudrom was closest to Thogen, his axe cutting down enemies who tried strike his fallen comrade, "Up! Or is that armour of yours so heavy?" He smirked, cleaving a skull of yet another goblin. Thogen grumbled before rising to his feet, with steel covered head bounced forward and bashed into a goblins face knocking it to the ground. It took a small bit of time but the dwarves once again formed the shield wall and at the right time as well, the troll hit. Goblins were thrown around and some even bashed by swinging tree clubs, the troll sent swing after swing to the shields of the dwarves trying to rush them into dust. Dhordur felt a bash on his shoulder but called out " Its knees! Get the knees!" and together the dwarves cut, axes hacked and the blood sprayed. Skin was peeling away as cold steel ripped into the trolls knees. It moaned and cried once more before falling to its rear on top of seven goblins. Lustig and Duinn took fire at the trolls face and made the beast moan a bit more. The giant clubs of rounded wood were left on the ground and now the troll had started to climb to the high pass were the Uzbad stood. "Bring it down! Bring it down!" Duinn shouted, he fired arrows plenty at the troll but still it climbed towards him. Lustig, the younger of the two took towards the shield wall and sprinted onto the trolls shoulder and hurled himself down to the rest of his company. Duinn was know to slay greater creatures, with fire in his eyes he charged the troll and sent a single boot to its nose and knocked an arrow same moment. With a mutter of Khuzdul he fired an arrow into the trolls head, it dove deep and the trolls eyes winced with pain. There was a large thud as the troll fell and landed on more goblins, their numbers so thin but even still the troll rose once again. "How much damage must we do!" Thalamath grumbled. The dwarves hacked and hacked and hacked untilt he goblins started to route, now it was the beards who were upon the troll. "Baruk Khazâd! Khazâd ai-mênu!"
Asudrom and Thogen took the flanks of the large beast. They had fought many times together and killed many foes and this troll would fall just as the rest had. Two axes took to the back of the trolls knees, skin peeling away like a swollen wound and blood running like flowing rivers. Thalamath hacked at the hands of the troll until it had a hard time lifting a finger. Hroskold and Hosgrim sent strike after strike to the front of the trolls legs and at that it fell much lower to the ground. Dhordur marched to the fallen arm of the troll and stood on it, bringing his shield down time and time again breaking and bruising the muscle and bone under skin. Byl now had his chance, the troll cried and cried some more and that made Byl angry. "Shut your foul mouth!" He roared before taking his spear and driving it into the moaning mouth of the beast. It struck deep and nearly came though the other side, that was until Asudrom dropped arms and gave assistance to his friend. A ripping noise sounded and soon the shaft drove clean through the other side of the trolls head, the eyes of the beast went simple and with a thud it fell.
Sweat dripping, arms throbbing and mouths gasping the dwarves stood there. This had been a great challenge for them, but with so much close victory in times past they now took this win with great pride, all held their heads high and none took serious injury. "Mahal had shielded us with his hammer today khazad. Smile, for we have won! Sing for we are alive! Cheer for our people are safe!" Thogen spoke to one and all, giving a nod and a look into every single dwarves eyes. Duinn and Lustig came around, they had picked off a few more who fled but now the company came as a whole and set back to Gondamon. They gave aid to those that they could and told healers where the dead lay. Gandamon lay safe .. but only a single tribe of goblins had been beaten, the war was not over yet.
