Journey To Hellspost (TXT X READER)

  The doors were guarded on the inside, the stocky dwarves standing to the sides with their armour and weaponry. They looked at the company of six with fierce eyes, surveying their situation.

  "What is your business here?" One of the dwarven guards asked. He was no taller than any of their shoulders, and yet he held such power over them.

  "We wish to enter the mountain," Soobin spoke, taking a step in front of Yeonjun.

  "Many wish to enter," the dwarf stated. "What makes you special?"

  "One of our company is injured. We seek aid. We wish to seek shelter with a friend inside the mountain," Soobin told them, standing tall.

  The dwarf didn't move an inch. He simply shouted a command in Khuzdul to another dwarf guard behind him who responded in Khuzdul before turning on his heels and marching further into the mountain. The first guard stood unmoving, his gaze freezing the company in its spot. He rarely blinked and his brows remained lowered, his eyes sharp. His armour was pure gold, glittering elegantly in the light of the day. His golden armoured boots were thick and chunky and they had intricate designs, ones that weren't replicated on any of the other dwarves. He must've made his own armour. Dwarves prided themselves on their craftsmanship so it was not rare for them to be seen wearing garments made by their own hand with patterns only they could replicate. His chest plate was especially intricate, built like scales that covered his chest allowing for movement. His arms were covered in the very same metal and his weapon had an intricately carven wooden handle that rest in his hand perfectly. The patterns etched into the wood flowed from the top to the bottom like a waterfall. It seemed out of place considering dwarves were not people to bother using wood for any reason.

  Footsteps that had long since faded, now grew louder as they approached once again, the second dwarf marching beside the first.

  "The king will see you now," the second dwarf declared, swivelling to the side along with the first dwarf to create a path for the company to move through.

  "The king?" Beomgyu questioned. "We have no business with the king."

  "If you have business in the mountain, you have business with the king," the second dwarf responded, his tone firm, his gaze remaining in front of him. "Enter, or leave."

The company shared a quick glance, nowhere near long enough to communicate before Soobin stepped inside, the darkness from the mountain engulfing him.

  The second dwarf escorted them through the mountain. The bridge was made of a dark brick and the walls of splintered stone. The mountain pass was lit with torch light that lit only the bridge, leaving the dark chasm below an inky black abyss. They could hear the distant clinking of pickaxes on stone below them, no doubt the dwarves searching for gems in the walls of the mountain. The only other sounds to be heard were those of the metal armour of the dwarf that escorted them and the clicking shoes of the rogue on the stone bridge as they crossed. The further into the mountain they stepped, the closer the walls grew in, containing beautiful geometric designs that must have taken a long time to carve. The sounds of the pickaxes on stone had faded as they approached what must've been the middle of the mountain.

The path grew thinner and into sight came a great dwarven king in his throne, a throng of his men lined neatly by his side, arms folded in front of behind them.

"What business does such a group have in my kingdom?" The king asked, his gravelly voice travelling certainly over the space between them.

From their vantage point, the company could see the architecture of the mountain, the staircases that led to rooms or homes of the dwarves that travelled there. The dwarrowdams were stocky, but dressed elegantly as if they were the ones in audience with the king. Some had easily visible braids plaited in there hair, finished off by a small bead, one that typically signified a courting gift. There was one particular dwarrowdam whose hair beads matched those sewn into her dress. A courting gift from her beloved no doubt.