[Imladris]

Lira crawled on hands and knees through the pipe, eyes fixed on Lumiel’s head. The elf was full of a quiet, joyous confidence that never seemed to diminish. Lira smiled. The elf had a good heart -- hopefully she would not fall in this mad rescue attempt.

The tunnel reeked of filth and the putrid, rotting remains of leaves and other plants. Pale, limpid roots clung to the top of the iron pipe; spiders scurried amid the fungus that clung to the tunnel’s sides. They crawled on slimy muck that layered the pipe, like soured icing upon stale, hardened bread. She could feel the squishy mud ooze between her fingers; heard it cling to her knees with a gasping sound, that would release with a squeak-like sigh as she crawled forward. Cobwebs, the burial ground of unnumbered insects, stretched across the pipe like dead, wispy curtains.

She could vaguely hear the clank of prisoner’s shackles, the harsh chortling of their guards as they mocked and insulted them. She shuddered, wondering if the place within was as filthy as the pipe.

The opening of the tunnel came in sight. Guards paced back and forth, shadows flickered on the walls from a sickly fire.