T.A. 2589
The mist was thick and wet and formed tiny droplets of water on the dragon's reddish-brown scales. Great wings of the same hue beat the gray clouds away from its long body.
As it continued its flight, its fiery orange eyes caught the sight of a single, solitary peak below. The mist began to dissipate as it came closer. In the sunlight, a large city appeared before the mountain. It was massive. The dragon sniffed repeatedly. It caught the scent of Men. A low growl echoed from its stomach. At the same time, the scent of Dwarves filled the air.
"Erebor and Dale," the dragon snarled. Long had he flown over these lands, always watching. He knew trade occurred between these two cities along with Esgaroth and the Men of the Lake. He was worried about the power that this corner of the land held.
"One day, each and every one will fall," the dragon said as he flew past the peak.
…
Quickly, the flat wastelands turned to forested hills. The mist was completely gone now, and Smaug could see for miles in every direction. The hills slowly grew higher into mountains and peaks. This was home. Several glints of silver light winked in the cover of the trees. Smaug became curious, but dismissed it. He flew to the northeast, where the forests became thicker and thicker. But as he ventured farther east and higher up, the trees began to disappear. Suddenly, Smaug dove over a blackened ridge.
He dove and flapped his wings, sending up black and gray dust from the floor of the valley. On either side of the large valley were two mountain ranges. This was the Withered Heath. The breeding ground and home of the Fire Drakes of the North.
There were only about twenty Fire Drakes left of their kind. Most had been decimated thousands of years before by Men and Elves. The ashen ground and numerous caves made breeding and raising young Fire Drakes easy. They were quickly multiplying. Smaug followed his regular path to a large cave on the south side of the Withered Heath. He crawled inside.
"Latha?" he asked to the darkness. His deep voice bounced off of the walls around him.
"Oh, Smaug! I thought you would never return!" Latha said with joy. The pile of gold before Smaug rippled and shook and a gray and lightly green tinted head emerged. The same fiery eyes met Smaug's and he smiled.
"How is Raug?" he asked as he slid into the pile of gold next to his mate.
"He is outside playing with some other young Drakes. I believe he is being watched by Old Grasga," she said as she huffed and buried herself back in the pile of gold. The two dragon-lovers went to sleep quickly, smoke puffing out of their nostrils and floating out of the cave, along with many others. It was sunset.
…
Smaug shook off the heavy gold over his head. He heard a strange sound coming from above the ground. It was barely nighttime. The strange sound was muffled by laughter. Smaug opened his eye and listened. He recognized the laughter as his only son, Raug. He grinned and shuffled and returned to sleep. Latha's steady breathing moved gold coins rhythmically. Suddenly, the loud sound of armor clinking and boots marching shook the cavern. Gold poured out of Smaug's cave in the vibrations. The marching stopped. Smaug lifted his head and spread his wings over Latha to protect her.
A loud and gruff yell rang through the valley. It sounded Dwarvish. A small scream from a Drake youth reached Smaug's ears. It was Raug.
Another yell went through the air. This time, shrill shrieks were heard. Smaug peeked out of the hole. Volleys and volleys of arrows were flying into the valley. He could see Grasga with his wings spread over the Drake youths. Several more dragons came out of their caves. They were mercilessly stabbed and speared with javelins and arrows. Smaug looked about in shock. Arrows could not pierce dragon hide!
"Stay here, Latha. Do not come out. I have to find Raug," Smaug growled and flew out of the cave. He quickly glided over the black earth to Grasga. He was already dead and lying on the ground. Raug and three of his friends crouched behind his silver body. The last surviving dragon from the First Age was dead. Smaug turned around and let out an ear-splitting roar of rage.
On the cliff before him was a great army. They were small compared to the size of Smaug, but they were heavily armored.
"Too long have you stolen from our people! Too long have you terrorized our lands and kingdoms! Now you will die! And your kin with you! The dominion of the Fire Drakes of the North ends here!" a voice cried. The Dwarf leader spoke boldly. "Dain I is dead! Your vile race of worms destroyed him at the doors of his house!" Smaug knew exactly what he was taking about. A Cold Drake had killed Dain the First farther west in the Grey Mountains.
"And I am glad that the filth has been killed," Smaug snarled and smirked. The dwarf let out a scream. More arrows flew through the air. By now, almost every dragon living in the Withered Heath was outside. There was no sign of Latha.
"Burn them! Defend our home!" Smaug screamed and flew silently into the air, dodging the fatal shafts. Behind him, dragons of many colors and sizes rose up and flew at the lines. Smaug felt fire burn in his chest. Just as he was in front of the line, he hovered and breathed out violently. Fire engulfed a great number of Dwarf soldiers. Screams were everywhere. A javelin whizzed and hit Smaug in the foot. The point shattered and fell to the ashen ground below. More Fire Drakes climbed and flew up the ridge, breathing fire on them all. Suddenly, a volley of arrows rose from the very back of the lines. Smaug fell into the firestorm below as arrows flew over him. In one instant, fifteen of the Fire Drakes fell to the ground with arrows in nearly every part of them. They were dead. Two-thirds of the last of the Fire Drakes were dead in one volley of arrows.
"Smaug!" Smaug heard the scream above him. In horror, Smaug watched Latha, his only love, receive a fatal blow to the chest and crash to the ground before him. Smaug was inconceivably overcome with hate.
"I AM FIRE!" he screamed wildly, his tail whipping legions of Dwarves off of the cliff. "I AM DEATH!" His golden-red fire burst onto groups of armored Dwarves. Another volley of arrows flew into the air. More dragons fell to the ground dead. There were two Dwarves left.
"You treasure your cities and gems! You are SCUM! You will BURN! You sicken me, Dwarvish usurpers and vile monsters!" Smaug recognized the leader and a foot soldier. Smaug slammed his foot over the Dwarf and crushed his body. Then, he turned to the leader. The hate flowing in Smaug's bones was hotter than the forges of Erebor.
"Apparently, you do not see the irony, worm. You just described yourself and your grand race of slithering snakes. YOU are the corrupted one," the leader said. He put an arrow onto his bow and pulled back. Just as Smaug's fire consumed his entire body, the arrow shot through the starry sky. Smaug turned around and roared in terror. The arrow pierced Raug's chest in midair. He groaned and plummeted through the air. His only child, and the only surviving Fire Drake aside from himself, was wounded on the ground, within inches of death. Smaug flew into the night air. Tears fell from his eyes. He let out a massive roar that shook the very trees. But, in the distance to the west, he saw the lit gate of the great Dwarvish mine. Hate coursed through his veins once more. Smaug had a tough decision to make: give revenge to those who murdered his entire family, or save his only son from dying. Smaug looked back at his suffering child.
"REVENGE," he growled and flew swiftly to the west. Raug was left to die. As his vision darkened, he saw his father Smaug flying away. He yelled for help, but no words left his mouth. His eyes were covered in darkness.