The Red Maiden, Part Sixteen
The Red Maiden
Disclaimer: This is a work of fanfiction, as none of the content is my original work. The characters are created by Stephen King and J.R.R Tolkien. The content belongs to MGM and Screen Gems, as the 2013 film remake of Carrie was directed by Kimberly Pierce and produced by Kevin Misher, and additional production is through MGM, Screen Gems, and Misher films as well as distributed by Sony Pictures releasing.
Lab Rat in a Maze
Carrie did not know if it was a miracle or the pure adrenaline in her veins, but she kept going. It was courage, maybe even insanity, that kept her running in the twisted caverns. The determination to find the company kept Carrie on her feet in spite of her head injury. It allowed her inner strength to compensate for her loss of power while she wandered in the caves. However, the deeper she went into those caverns, the more she began to fear she was going in circles.
Her fears were confirmed as she reached a few dead ends at each pathway of the inner caverns. Carrie gave a small groan of frustration knowing she was searching on borrowed time, the panic growing as she saw no sign of her friends. Fate did not appear to be in her favor as the caverns stretched on for endless miles. Without her telekinetic senses to aid her within the surrounding darkness, finding the company was an impossible task. The growing panic made her dread the worst possible outcome.
“Oh, Thorin, where are you, please hang in there,” she thought. She looked around in a wild manner hoping she could get some sort of sign that her friends were still alive. It began to seem hopeless that she would ever find anyone in the pitch-black darkness. She was close to despair until she heard a faint growl in the distance and snapped her head towards the source of the sound. At that moment Carrie remembered her training with Thorin in Rivendell and clutched her weapon close to her side.
Carrie instinctively knew that following the sound was her best chance of finding anyone in the company. She clutched the weapon tighter, preparing herself for whatever she may find. The effort paid off as the growling became a chorus of menacing beastly noises. It reminded her of a pack of wild hyenas eager to chase down their prey. She hid behind a cave wall. The growling was close enough to send shivers down her spine in this underground hell.
“Come on, let’s get out of here,” she heard an all-too-familiar voice yell. She let out a silent sigh of relief. It did not take a rocket scientist to know that the voice she heard was Dwalin. It was enough to reassure her that everyone in the company was safe and somehow managed to escape the goblins. However, her troubles were far from over, knowing if she so much as made a sound or left her hiding place she was doomed. She could feel her heart beating as if it were about to leap from her chest. She was doing everything she could to remain calm.
“Find them, find them all, find Thorin Oakenshield, do not let the red maiden escape!” She could hear one of the goblins yell as she stayed in that spot. If there was anything Thorin Oakenshield made certain to pass on to Carrie in training, it was that the element of surprise and knowing when to attack would save her life even without her powers. Knowing that she was at a major disadvantage with the swarm of goblins in earshot she stayed put. The seconds behind the cavern wall felt like hours, as she tried to determine how she could sneak away under the nose of the goblin swarm.
After the longest minutes of her life, Carrie was lucky enough to spot a side crevice within the wall. It was her moment to escape and she slid through the crevice as quietly as she could. The sound of the goblin growls began to fade with every cautious step she took with her weapon never leaving her side. Once she noticed the fading sunlight peek through an opening, Carrie’s footsteps quickened, hoping to dear God that the company was on the other side. Reaching the other side of that opening was enough to help her run as fast as possible, eager to be free of the cutting caves.
It did not take long for her to find every single member of the company at a small clearing within the sea of trees. Relief and exhaustion coming down from fading adrenaline overcame her once she saw that everyone was safe. The relief soon turned into fear as she saw no sign of Bilbo among the company. How could she possibly have missed Bilbo within the caves? Was he still inside with the goblins? Did he survive and escape, far away from everything while he had the chance? Carrie ran through numerous questions in her mind, hoping against all hope that he was fine, even if he was already on his way to Rivendell as planned.
Tears sprang to her eyes as she heard Gandalf frantically inquire about Bilbo. How no one in the company noticed Carrie standing nearby was not her concern. Carrie felt a pit of fear and dread open in the deepest part of her heart and soul, immediately blaming herself for not even thinking about Bilbo’s safety. For all she knew, she abandoned Bilbo and left him there to face the goblins alone. Had she sealed Bilbo’s fate by leaving him there? It was the worst feeling, only a close second to letting her anger and pain murder her classmates at prom.
The thought of Bilbo’s doomed fate was more than she could handle, standing there motionless and frozen while Gandalf and the company were in a puzzling debate over where Bilbo was. Before she knew it a small agonized scream came from her, finally bringing attention to her presence. Everyone seemed shocked and relieved to see her there. A stunned Thorin was interrupted from offering his opinion on Bilbo’s whereabouts. None of that mattered now as Thorin pull Carrie into his arms and hug her tightly. She began to sob into his chest as she unconsciously held him close.
“I killed him Thorin, I killed Bilbo Baggins. He’s dead because of me. I left him there,” she managed to squeak out not wanting to let go of him. She could hear him whisper words of comfort in the dwarvish language. The fact Thorin was setting aside his initial doubt and mistrust of Bilbo to comfort Carrie gave her a small amount of relief. However, no matter how many times Thorin tried to soothe Carrie, the fact that Bilbo was not here with everyone left an empty feeling.
She cared too much about her dear friend Bilbo, wishing she could hear his voice once more.
“No, you didn’t leave me,” Bilbo said. Carrie gave a small gasp of surprise, leaving Thorin’s embrace to see Bilbo standing by a nearby tree. Everyone including Gandalf was in awe and relieved to see him alive, and seemingly unscathed except for a few missing buttons from his vest. As numerous members of the company desperately wanted to know how Bilbo survived and got past the goblins, Carrie noticed one of his hands deep inside a pocket of his coat as if holding onto a small item. She pushed the observation to the back of her mind and didn’t hesitate to hug him close, thankful that her close friend returned against all odds.
