Hi everyone, thank you so much for checking out my story. This is my first fanfic ever so it is bound to be a bit rough in places. I am hoping the real finesse will come with practice.

Just a quick disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, they are the creation of J.R.R. Tolkien and he deserves the credit for such amazing characters.

Let me know what you guys think after you've read it and please feel free to leave reviews, ideas, and especially criticisms. They may not always be fun but they will definitely help my writing and will make for a better story. Enjoy!

"Keep up you two," ordered the dark-haired dwarf leading the way through a small tunnel. "Yes Uncle," chorused the pair of younger dwarves as they hurried to catch up. The princes, Fili and Kili, took in the sights of a new pass found recently within the mines of the kingdom Erebor.

Thorin, ducking under a low-hanging rock, couldn't help but grin in amusement at the look of amazement glowing in his nephews' eyes. His amusement only grew as both princes ran right into the rock he had just passed under, grunting in pain as they emerged on the other side, Fili rubbing his forehead and Kili his nose.

Eleven months had passed since Thorin Oakenshield and his company had won the Battle of the Five Armies and finally settled down within the city. Many others had also journeyed back to the mountain after hearing the news of Smaug's death and that the city had been reclaimed by the rightful King Under the Mountain. Now that months of hard work put in to reconstructing the dwarves' long lost home were coming to an end, no one could deny that Erebor was once again a place of great beauty. Mining had only recently began to pick back up and Bofur, the dwarf in charge of all mining operations and one of Thorin's most trusted friends, discovered a new tunnel with a promising vein of quartz stretching far back into the wall of the mountain. Upon hearing the good news, Thorin took this opportunity to take his prince nephews, and future heirs, inside to begin learning about the mining process.

"Okay, take a look at this wall and tell me what you see."

"A large white streak," answered Fili, slightly lost.

"And why is the streak important?"

Both princes looked at the streak and then back to their uncle, confusion covering their faces.

With a sigh, Thorin told them, "Within these streaks, or quartz veins, lays the gold and silver our mines produce. This particular vein is large; therefore it should produce a good amount."

Understanding replaced the confused looks from the princes' faces and Kili asked excitedly, "can we help mine this tunnel uncle?"

"Perhaps, but it will still be a few weeks before Bofur has it stable enough to do any mining in this pass," Thorin answered, pleased to see that the two were interested in trying the trade that made their city wealthy beyond compare.

A faint rumbling sounded within the tunnel, causing Fili and Kili to shuffle closer together.

"Thorin, what was that? The tunnel's not collapsing is it?" Fili asked nervously.

"No Fili, that was thunder from the storm outside, this pass leads straight towards the side of the mountain. Bofur said that once it has been mined dry they plan to use this pass as an emergency route in case of cave-ins."

"Oh, okay," Fili replied, looking quite relieved that the ceiling wasn't going to fall on him.

"Okay, let's carry on," Thorin said retrieving his torch from Kili. All three held a flame in case one was to go out or someone should get separated from the group. As Thorin rounded the corner, another rumble, this time louder, caused a shower of dirt to cover him, taking his light out with it. The king brushed the dust out of his hair and attempted to relight his flame with no luck.

"This torch is covered with dirt. Until it can be cleaned it is of no use."

Fili, always eager to help, came forward taking his uncle's extinguished light and said," You stay here with Kili and I will trade out your torch with that one back at the entrance of the tunnel."

"Okay but be careful Fili," Thorin replied, "and watch out for that overhang!"

A grunt followed by a string of curses in Khuzdul sounded from Fili's direction, too late.

Kili chuckled at his brother's clumsiness while Thorin turned back to the wall with a good natured smirk.

Running his calloused hands across its surface, Thorin gazed at the vein of quarts before him. It was an impressive nine inches wide along the majority of its visible length and stretched farther back than the limited light from Kili's torch allowed him to see. No doubt this vein would deliver when Bofur started mining it. Kili, taking his uncle's lead, also started admiring the streak along the wall. He ran his fingers over the cold, slightly rough quartz.

The rumbling began again, startling the youngest prince. He looked around to make sure nothing was going to fall on him or his uncle and seeing everything was safe, returned his gaze to the wall.

With his attention on the wall and the sound of Fili's footsteps, signifying his return echoing throughout the tunnel, Thorin didn't notice the change in the atmosphere of the pass. The air seemed to crackle with electricity making the hair stand up on his arms. The realization of what was happening hit Thorin too late. Before he could warn Kili, a pain unlike anything he had ever felt before shot up his arm through his fingertips and traveled his body. A force stronger than the blow of an orc's blade against a shield hurled the two dwarves against the opposite wall. Thorin grunted in pain and his vision went black. By the time he had slumped to the ground his mind had went blank and he knew no more.