A/N: *peeks out from behind real life* I'm alive and kicking! Reality has been demanding lately, hence my long absence. I hope to make up for it by getting this story back on track! Thanks for sticking with Thorin, Ariana, and me as we continue to adventure! xx

Without further ado, welcome to the angsty arc. Brought to you by darkness and despair.

Chapter 8: Concussed and Confused

Dark dreams plagued Ariana's troubled sleep. Hundreds of hideous faced grinned at her. Arms grasped at her, sharp claws shredding her clothes and tearing her skin. She tossed back and forth in a sea of black blood. The strong current had her at its mercy, thrashing her where it would. Howling monsters and shrieking specters called to her from the red clouds above, chortling as her strength failed. She descended into the water, surrendering to dim oblivion.

"Ariana!"

Thorin's voice echoed through her head, tearing through the dream and jolting her into wakefulness.

Ariana jerked, her eyes flying open and her pulse instantly racing. The stars above her blurred as the world slowly came into focus. Blinking rapidly, she felt exposed lying flat on her back. She attempted to sit up, but quickly fell back as her head began to pound fiercely. A groan rumbled through her throat. It felt as though Thor's hammer pounded a rusty nail directly into her skull. A soft ringing echoed through her ears, but gradually faded as she fought for awareness. Disorientation slowly ebbed away, leaving her panicked and confused.

Ariana's last memories trickled back into her mind before the floodgates were opening and realization crashed over her. The woods, Thorin, the yellow-eyed wolf, black blood, clawed hands, and falling. The images flashed rapidly behind her eyes. Despite her ability to recall events, Ariana still was unsure of what had happened. Surely it had been a vivid dream gone wrong, but the blaring headache said otherwise.

Ariana reached to push herself into a sitting position, but froze when her hands would not move properly. Confusion rose as coarse ropes scratched against her wrists. She began to panic, attempting to separate her hands. Glancing down, she noticed that her ankles were bound as well. Her breaths were coming quickly now causing the pressure in her skull to increase.

"Well, well." A nasal, malicious voice drawled. "The bait's finally awake."

Ariana froze, a small squeak of surprise and terror sneaking past her lips. Her eyes widened and her mouth fell open.

Four monstrous creatures, orcs, she remembered they were called, huddled around a small campfire. The light danced across their features, casting shadowing that made them appear even more grotesque than they already were.

Dear reader, you are far cleverer than our heroine. You will have already realized that she is, in fact, in Middle Earth, having fallen with the warg and orc much the same way that Thorin fell down the hill and into our universe. You will also know that she is the captive of the orcs, a horrible breed of beasts known for their alliance with villainous characters. However, you must remember that Ariana is concussed and scared, which is a terrible combination for correct inferences or clear thinking.

Thus, Ariana was so flabbergasted and so shocked that she responded in an entirely unpredictable manner. She laughed. It was not a short bark of amusement, or a soft giggle. The laugh rattled on far longer than what was appropriate. Tears streamed down her face as she chortled about the ridiculousness of her situation. It indeed must have been a dream, or an elaborate prank. The creatures yelled for her to stop, but this only made her laugh even louder.

With a snarl one of the creatures leapt for her, one hand grabbed a fistful of hair to jerk her head back to expose her neck to his glinting blade.

"Quiet!" The orc demanded. "Or I'll carve the smile off your pretty face."

"Why should I?" Ariana snapped, feeling emboldened by the implausibility of her situation. "This isn't real. You can't hurt me."

The orc cackled deep in his throat, sharing his amusement with his comrades. "Let my blade taste your skin, then we'll see how real I am, eh?"

Red flames reflected on the dark steel as it came to rest at the corner of her mouth. The press of the metal onto her bare skin flooded her veins with cold terror, instantly cooling the warmth of detached amusement.

Just as the curved knife began to bite, a voice boomed from outside the ring of light. The voice spoke in rough, guttural tones, yet its deep, powerful tone made her skin crawl. The harsh foreign language made her shudder.

All eyes turned to face the heavy footsteps. Pale skin glowed as a massive creature approached the fire. It reminded Ariana of the orcs around her, but was far larger and looked far more deadly. It towered over its comrades and seemed to have authority based on the way the knife left her face.

"Bolg!" The orc exclaimed, rolling away from her. He bobbed his head pathetically as the lead orc approached.

A conversation followed, likely containing an explanation and a rebuke. All Ariana could gather from the little orc's whining and the bigger orc's growls were their stations. The large one was obviously in charge, and he was not pleased with the little one's treatment of her. Her brow crinkled as she tried to discern anything from their words. None of it sounded remotely similar to English, leaving her at a loss. The talking ended all too quickly because then the large pale orc shouted a command, which send the pack into a flurry of activity.

Ariana shrieked as the lead orc picked her up and slung her over his shoulder. She just missed impaling herself on the bear claws that were tacked onto his armor. Disgust rolled through her, but the urge to flee took over her actions.

"Let go of me!" Ariana flailed hysterically as the lead orc approached a huge warg. "No! Put me down! Right now!"

A growl rumbled beneath her at her antics. If it was mean to silence her, it did not attain its intended propose as it only increased Ariana's drive to escape. She wriggled and writhed, trying to slide from the orc's grip. She screamed directly in his ear, trying to make as much noise as possible. Anything to annoy the monster and let her escape.

Instead, the lead orc tossed her onto the back of the warg. The air whooshed out of her lungs as she landed heavily on her stomach, draped over the warg like a limp deer. Before she could recover, the orc was seated behind her. Wedged between the warg's neck and the orc's body, a wave of stench rolled over her. The reek of rotten meat incapacitated her for a moment, but served as good fodder for her continued thrashing.

The orc bellowed authoritatively behind her.

Ariana nearly fell of the warg as it leapt forward, only a strategically placed, armor-covered knee kept her from tumbling to the ground. The sudden movement elicited an inhuman screech from her throat. The grass ran in blurred rivers below her face. The jostling movement of the running warg made her stomach roll uneasily. Her headache had now evolved to a painful game of pinball, as if a porcupine banged around in her skull.

The blur around the edge of her vision encroach with a roar. The world slowly returned to darkness as Ariana fell again into the depths of her mind as unconsciousness took her.

The ghoulish faces grinned. Their haunting cries of delight made Ariana quake. They relished at her return to their dark dominion. She began to run, but her legs refused to move. Each step stole an eternity as the shades surrounded her. Hands leapt from the void beneath her, grabbing her ankles with inhuman strength. Her mouth opened to scream, but the sound remained locked her in chest. Desperately, she clawed at her throat as if to dislodge her voice. It must work; she needed to call for help or else the shadows would devour her.

The grip on her ankles tightened, dragging her to their endless pit. The hands multiplied, slowly covering her in their fingers and nails. She reached up, pleading silently for rescue. This, however, did not stop the progress of the hands. The darkness closed in as hands reached her eyes. Soon only her right hand was exposed, still straining towards freedom. The instant a gnarled hand clamped around hers, a spark ran through her body.

A brilliant light leapt from her hand, causing the specters to retreat. Instantly, the claws released her, retreating to the dark emptiness. She breathed deeply, life flooding into her lungs. As quickly as the light came, it was gone.

Instead of floating in inky black, Ariana now stood in a softer darkness. It reminded her of the sky at twilight, the time between the reign of the sun and the moon. Whips of smoke curled lazily around her fingertips. A deliberate, winding dance. Ariana smiled lethargically as it caressed her hands and trailed up her arm. It enveloped her into a gentle embrace, safe and billowing around her. The smoke pooled onto the floor and multiplied before arching into new shapes. Colors seeped into the hazy form, creating a shifting picture. Trees. Moonlight. Dark waving hair. A blue hood. A man walked through the woods. Ariana's memory tickled, but her sluggish mind failed to comprehend why he was familiar. It itched of a half remembered dream, the frustration as understanding hovered just beyond reach.

As quickly as the image came, another one replaced it. The smoke swirled to create faces. So many faces. She knew there were fifteen without pausing to count. Too many faces huddled around a table. The merriment had stopped. Beards wagged in agreement. The same man with the blue hood and the dark hair sat at the head of the table. A candle flickered over a map. A key. A quest perhaps, but for what purpose?

The light of the candle grew until it blotted out the scene. The brilliance of it made her wish to close her eyes, but she remained transfixed. Slowly, the light shrank to the dance in a fireplace. The merry crackling of the fire was disturbed by a low hum that reverberated through the smoke causing it to plus. The note resonated in her body, raising gooseflesh. Slowly other notes joined the first. The haunting melody pierced deep in her consciousness. It felt like cracking open a book that has long since been finished. Reading it is still enjoyable, but the ending is already known.

A single voice broke from the others to begin singing in low, rolling tones. The dark haired man leaned an elbow onto the mantle, a pipe clutched in his hand. His lips moved, letting the rich sound flow from it. Voices joined his chorus, while others remained fixed in their steady hum. They sang of a far off home, its destruction and their hope to reclaim it. A longing for soaring mountains and cavernous halls filled her heart. Even stronger was the desire to remember the man. The memory of him so palpable, it was painful.

Burning flecks floated from the fire. They drifted lazily up the chimney and settled into the dark sky. Red turned to blue; embers became distant stars. The pale lights spiraled around her as she fell. Her stomach fluttered dangerously as the air grabbed at her hair. Just before she hit the ground, a voice called out for her, "Ariana!"

Air rushed into her lungs as Ariana gasped. Her heart pounded. Her chest rose and fell dramatically as she gulped the air. Immediately, she noticed her body ached. She laid awkwardly, half on her side and half on her back. Cord tied her wrists and her ankles, the reason for her uncomfortable position. Cold air brushed against her skin. A shiver ran down her spine. Her head throbbed, making each thought sluggishly raw. She moaned, shutting her eyes. When they opened again, thousands of stars winked back.

The images from her dream returned. The panic of the nightmare and the figures in the smoke flooded her mind. Air hissed past her teeth at the onslaught. Images flitted behind her eyes: ravenous darkness, blinding light, beards, and a face.

"Thorin!" Ariana inhaled. The man from her dream had been Thorin! His was the voice that she heard before being torn from the world of dreams. Satisfaction and annoyance swelled together in her foggy mind; satisfaction because she was pleased to have remembered of whom she had dreamt, annoyance because she was not entirely sure she wanted to dream about him. The dreams felt odd, as if they had been dropped into her sleep from somewhere else. It seemed to her that they were not her own. But she had no more time to consider the peculiar quality of the dream, for her blurt had drawn unwanted attention.

A clawed hand gripped her hair. Ariana yelped as she was stood on her feet. The owner of the hand cackled and twisted her to face it.

"Looks like the little bird finally decided to wake up." A warped smile did nothing to improve the little orc's face. It was the same pitiful creature that had threatened her with his sword. A couple other orcs stood just behind it, grinning mischeviously.

Ariana's nose flared as the orc's stench rolled over her. His rancid breath elicited a reaction gag. She struggled to keep her composure, despite the overwhelming throbbing in her head.

"Now little birdie," the orc sneered into her face. "Barash needs you to settle a little disagreement. What is it?"

There were far too many creative ways to answer. Ariana's muddled brain settled for a mediocre response. "Your worst nightmare," she rasped.

It seemed to disregard her comment as it prattled on with the others. "No, it's much to ugly to be an elf."

"A halfling!" Another one shouted.

"No!" The third growled, shoving its companion. "Its ears are all wrong. Rounded like a human's."

The second orc scoffed, pushing back. "Too small to be a measly human. It's a halfling with wrong ears."

The other two orcs shifted back to their harsh language. After a few more snarled insults, a scuttle broke out between them. Ariana watched dispassionately, as her sluggish mind struggled to comprehend their confusion.

"Must be a dwarf," muttered, the one called Barash thoughtfully. He pulled Ariana's head to the side, as if to look at her from a different angle. "A pathetic beardless dwarf!"

Ariana's temper flared at the word. "What do you mean what am I? Isn't it obvious? Or are you too stupid to even manage that? I'm human, you moron!"

The orc threw back its head and laughed. The sound grated against her ears. "Perhaps we hit it too hard last time. Little bird can't remember what it is."

Barash dropped her unceremoniously. She cringed, but managed to bite back a yelp. He, Ariana had decided it was male, turned back to join the others.

This conversation seemed all too familiar. However, the last time, Ariana had tried to convince a massive man that he was a human. Thorin, of course, had insisted that he was a dwarf and she had eventually dropped the issue.

Ariana groaned, putting her head between her knees. This, unfortunately, did not stop the world from spinning. Thorin had been telling the truth. The entire time, he was honest with her. His circumstances, his quest, even his race! The realization should have been humiliating, but it was more sickening than anything else since she wasn't ready to accept his reality. A reality filled with smelly evil creatures.

Her last conversation with Thorin floated hauntingly into her mind. "This is a warg and its rider is an orc. They are evil filth from my world. These are the type of foul creatures paid to find and kill me."

"Thorin, you ass," Ariana muttered darkly, staring at the mark on her hand. "What kind of trouble have you gotten me into?"