With Durin's Gate now open, everyone was finally able to enter Moria. The Dwarves were the first to step inside, their faces alight with a mix of awe and anticipation. However, Smaug was far too large to fit into a space box, and Moria itself was riddled with numerous long, narrow tunnels, which would hinder his movement. Luke wisely decided to send Smaug to fly directly to the East Gate on the other side of the Misty Mountains. He recalled that the Balrog had appeared near Durin's Bridge, which was close to the East Gate. It would be much easier for Smaug to enter from that side. They would then join forces to confront the Balrog together. As for the Giant Eagle Súlond, Luke simply instructed him to guard the West Gate, ensuring no orcs could escape that way.
After entering the gate, Gandalf solemnly warned the Dwarves: "Be careful. There is an evil creature here, even older than the Watcher in the Water. It lurks deep underground. Do not awaken it until we are absolutely certain!" The Dwarves' initial excitement at entering Moria vanished instantly. They had all, naturally, heard the legends of the Balrog, and they immediately fell silent, gripping their weapons tightly and looking around vigilantly.
Moria contained countless intricate and complex passages. Without someone familiar with the layout to guide them, it would be easy to get lost and never find their way out. Fortunately, among their group, Gandalf had been here before and possessed an excellent memory. So, everyone followed him up a grand stair-corridor. Along the way, they passed countless bottomless mines, relics left behind by the Dwarves of Khazad-dûm who once mined mithril.
Even on the stone walls of the corridors, veins of mithril ore shimmered with a bright silver luster when illuminated by light. This kind of mithril ore, worth a fortune outside, was once so common to the Dwarves that they had no interest in mining it, believing its mithril content was too low. But now, the Dwarves looked at the surrounding mithril ore with burning eyes. If they hadn't known the seriousness of their mission, they would have eagerly pried the ore off with their weapons.
They reached the end of the stair corridor, arriving at the 21st Hall on the seventh level of Moria. Moria had a total of twenty-one halls. The first hall was closest to the East Gate, followed by the second, the third, and so on, all the way west to the twenty-first hall, which was closest to the West Gate.
The Dwarves of Khazad-dûm had once mined mithril from the east, building halls as they went, eventually digging through the Misty Mountains to create a passage that ran straight through them. According to Gandalf, it would take four full days to walk straight from the West Gate of Moria to the East Gate. The fact that they were able to dig through the Misty Mountains, which Morgoth once used to block the armies of the Valar, truly showcased the Dwarves' astonishing digging ability.
The 21st Hall was a vast space supported by massive stone pillars and flanked by doors leading to various locations. Also within the 21st Hall was the Chamber of Mazarbul, which housed Dwarven records and books. This was the tomb of Balin and the place where the last dozen or so Dwarves were killed by orcs in another fateful storyline.
"The Axe of Durin!" Balin suddenly exclaimed, spotting an axe on a stone table. He rushed over, picked up the axe, and examined it carefully, his face alight with surprise as if he had found the greatest treasure. It was no exaggeration to say that the Axe of Durin was indeed a treasure to Durin's clan. It was the weapon of Durin I and, as a family heirloom, had always been a symbol of Moria's rule. Balin was ecstatic at obtaining the Axe of Durin.
Luke looked around, assessing the Dwarf library. It was a pity that, due to the long erosion of time and the destruction wrought by the orcs, the precious records and books once stored by the Dwarves had turned to dust. Not even a repairing spell could restore them.
Suddenly, a hidden arrow flew through the air, targeting Balin, who was holding the Axe of Durin. Balin was completely unprepared. Seeing the arrow about to strike his neck, Luke immediately raised his hand and cast the Iron Armor Charm to block the projectile. Balin stared at the arrow, which had stopped mere centimeters from him, and took a deep, shaky breath, still trembling with lingering fear. "Luke, you saved my life!"
Gandalf immediately drew his sword and shouted solemnly, "Prepare for battle, it's orcs!" The Dwarf warriors became instantly alert, quickly pointing their weapons towards the doorway.
Inside the vast, empty caves of Moria, bursts of drums echoed through the mines, accompanied by the guttural roars of orcs. Luke chanted a spell and conjured a dazzling ball of light, sending it soaring into the air to illuminate the entire mine outside the 21st Hall. Outside, they saw a dense horde of orcs frantically rushing in from the four doors of the hall. The Dwarf warriors, well-trained, swiftly divided into four groups, blocking each of the four gates to engage the attacking orcs. There were thousands of orcs, far outnumbering the Dwarves, and among them were hundreds of Trolls, several meters tall. War was imminent.
As the first orcs surged through the gate, the Dwarven warriors charged forward, swiftly dispatching the incoming orcs in a brutal, efficient manner. Although outnumbered, the Dwarves held the advantage of terrain, forcing the orcs to funnel through only four narrow gates. They were then killed in batches by the Dwarves, a situation reminiscent of a single man holding off a thousand. After the initial wave of orcs was repelled, they quickly sent forward their enormous, highly defensive Ogres to serve as living shields and siege weapons, clearing the path for the other orcs. An Ogre used a massive hammer to instantly smash open the stone wall of the gate, preparing to charge in and attack.
"Confringo!" Luke cast a spell, knocking the Ogre away. Then he called to Balin, "Let Gandalf and I deal with the Trolls, and you concentrate on the orcs!" Balin nodded, entrusting the most dangerous Trolls to Luke and Gandalf, relieving the Dwarves of that burden. He immediately took up his newly acquired Axe of Durin and worked with the Dwarf warriors to fell the orcs that rushed into the hall.
Luke and Gandalf focused their efforts on battling the Trolls. The Ogre was not only colossal in size but also possessed strong magical resistance. Even Luke's full-strength Shattering Charm couldn't entirely defeat it. But Luke was not in a hurry. With a wave of his wand, he brought to life a long row of statues carved on the north and south walls of the hall.
These statues, crafted by the Dwarf kings of Khazad-dûm or by skilled artisans, were several meters tall, roughly the same size as the Trolls. The statues broke free from the wall and stepped down, kicking away the orcs that blocked their path, then engaging the Trolls in battle. Several statues surrounded an Ogre.
Even though the Ogre was strong, it was entangled by the statues and fell to the ground. Upon seeing this, Luke immediately drew his Divine Spear, Aiglos, and nimbly leaped onto a statue's shoulder in a few steps. He instantly pierced the Ogre's head, turning its brain to pulp.
Seeing that the number of orcs was increasing, Luke simply released the Basilisk Herpo from its box and instructed it to guard the West Gate. He and the animated statues guarded the North Gate. Gandalf and the Dwarves were responsible for guarding the South Gate and the East Gate respectively. The power of Herpo the Basilisk was immediately apparent. He stood guard at the West Gate, his yellow eyes staring out. All the orcs and Trolls who came in through the West Gate died instantly, without exception. Orcs who luckily didn't meet the Basilisk's gaze still retreated in fear. For a moment, the orcs at the West Gate dared not attack again.
And at the South Gate, Gandalf stood firm. Beside him, five hundred Dwarf warriors battled against the orcs. He took the lead, holding his staff in his left hand and a sword in his right, dodging the Ogre's attacks with remarkable agility. He then used his staff to release a shock wave to repel the Ogre, immediately following up with his sword to finish it off, swiftly slaying it. At the East Gate, Balin and the remaining 500 Dwarf warriors also successfully resisted wave after wave of attacks from the orcs. The Dwarves were well-equipped, covered in armor meticulously crafted by Dwarven artisans, and the orcs' weapons could do no harm to them. As for the North Gate where Luke was, the animated statues fought for him in the front, and he was only responsible for finishing off any attacks from behind.
The battle lasted for a long time. The attack did not cease until most of the orcs were either killed or wounded. With a rapid beat of drums, the orcs retreated into the darkness once more. Seeing this, the Dwarves cheered in triumph. This time, they had killed twice as many orcs as they had! Luke then carefully put the Basilisk Herpo back into the suitcase and stored it away. The Basilisk was useful, but its eyes could kill anyone who looked at it. Like a sharp, double-edged sword, one had to be extremely careful. When the Dwarves saw it, they were overjoyed, but then a somber realization set in. So, when there were many people around, Luke tried his best to keep the Basilisk from being unleashed.
After the battle, everyone was a little tired. The Dwarves pushed the piles of orc and Troll corpses deeper into the mine, and then took a short break. When they had rested enough, they set out again.
Led by Gandalf, the group walked eastward, passing through the 20th Hall, the 19th Hall, the 18th Hall... Each time, they were attacked and blocked by small groups of orcs. The Dwarf warriors handled all the orcs without Luke and Gandalf having to take action. Luke and Gandalf were both conserving their strength, and the closer they got to the center of Moria, the more serious their expressions became.
When they arrived at the Second Hall, they encountered an unprecedented attack from the orcs. Thousands of orcs swarmed towards the Second Hall. The orcs became extremely frenzied and aggressive, attacking everyone fearlessly. There were also countless Cave Trolls, some holding weapons such as large iron clubs, some carrying slings, all trying to trap them here. Faced with so many orcs and Trolls, the group became very solemn. Even these orcs were very cunning. To guard against the eyes of Luke's Basilisk, they had deliberately blinded the eyes of the Trolls, and then had orcs ride on the Trolls' backs to control their attacks. The orcs themselves also closed their eyes. They had lived in dark caves for a long time; even without sight, they could still rely on hearing and smell to perceive their surroundings.
Faced with so many orcs and Ogres, attacking frantically and fearlessly, even Luke and Gandalf dared not underestimate them.
"Confringo!"
Luke cast a spell directly at the stone wall above the mine, causing it to collapse instantly. Countless huge stone fragments fell, crushing countless orcs into pulp. He also destroyed the stairs, corridors, and other passages, leaving no way for the orcs to attack.
"In the name of the Valar, evil be averted!"
Gandalf also struck the ground hard with his staff, releasing a dazzling shock wave that knocked the orcs and Trolls away. After briefly repelling the orcs, neither of them had any intention of getting further entangled. Gandalf looked as if he was facing a great enemy, and said to Luke in a deep voice:
"Luke, do you feel the temperature around you getting higher?"
Luke nodded and looked at him seriously. "Our real enemy is coming!"