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Saving the Saviour: Chapter 9

(BAIN)

"Something's not right," Bain says. Sigrid's eyes tell him that she feels the same way too.

"Go to the Treasury, and ask for the elf guards' help. Tell them I'm at the southern quadrant. Ask them about father too!" Bain instructs his sister. The gut feeling that he has is telling him something's wrong is stronger than ever now.

"But you'll be alone. Where will you find Tilda?" Sigrid voices out her worry.

"That's why is I need the help of the elves. They'll track my footprints. They'll find me if I get lost. And they'll find Tilda."

"I'm scared. What if I lose you too?"

"You won't. We're probably overreacting to this. Everything will be fine, Sigrid," Bain says, looking into Sigrid's eyes. He is scared out of his wits himself. But he can't stay strong for Sigrid, they will both fall apart.

Sigrid nods and leaves, her feet click-clacking in the moon-lit night. Bain stands in the middle of the street and thinks. He begins at the spot where the little boy Caelen said he last saw Tilda. In his mind, he sees children scampering away from the boy, finding a hiding spot. Where would Tilda go? Bain walks on until he sees a dark alley. He turns into it and examines his surroundings. Old ploughs and tools for farming and fishing and metal works are piled against the wall of a small establishment, looking like some kind of a work shop. He sees barrels arranged against the wall. Bain's heart jumps out of his ribcage when he sees one barrel, lying on the ground, out of alignment from the others. There is a gunny sack near it and an aggressive pounding on the ground that resulted in a large centipede crushed to bits. The details are too distracting for Bain to ignore. He finds that the barrels lead him to a door. From the gap between the wooden planks Bain sees that the room is lit with fire light. It is occupied by men, all standing with their backs to the door.

He can hear every word that they are saying.

(BARD)

Alfrid's voice is an echo in his drugged mind. Bard fought his hardest to stay awake as long as he could even though his body has given up. He lost it in the end but now his senses are coming to. He thinks he mustn't have been out of it for too long.

"Tie him up. Wrists and ankles," Alfrid orders as soon as they reached the ironsmith workshop.

"Bar the door."

Alfrid stops short when he sees another figure seated at the corner of the ironsmith shop, the head covered and her extremities tied up. Bard's vision is still blurry. He still can't move his hands or even turn his head. But he can hear really well right now.

"Who is this?" Alfrid asks the three other men on guard. They did not answer so Alfrid walks over and pulls the hood. Alfrid's face shows a moment of deep terror. In front of him is a tearful face of a little girl of eight winters, easily recognisable to Alfrid as the Bargeman's youngest daughter.

"I specifically told you not to involve the children!" Alfrid yells at his men.

"She overheard us!"

"Unlucky for her," Alfrid's face changes. He is no longer afraid but resolute.

"Let's finish this."

At that moment, Bard's senses and bearings come to completely and he starts struggling against his bound wrists and ankles.

"The drug wears off to fast. I was planning to kill you in your sleep," Alfrid says in annoyance.

"Son of a –" Bard is about to launch into a tirade of anger when he sees his little daughter seated across the room from him, her eyes filled with tears and her mouth gagged. He puts his temper on hold. He can't risk her daughter's life just to get off at Alfrid.

"Let her go, Alfrid. Your quarrels are with me. She has nothing to do with this," Bard begs. Alfrid sighs and pulls out a dark, wavy blade, orc-made obviously from his sleeve and steps towards Bard.

"So, I will spare you the pain seeing your daughter hurt," Alfrid says.

A crashing sound interrupts Alfrid's moment. A young boy, barely a man, stumbles into the room like a drunkard because of the force that he used to break the barred door with his body. Alfrid turns with his knife, looking at the intruder.

"Bain! No!" Bard warns his son.

But Bain is already on his feet. He throws his whole body into Alfrid, knocking the man to the ground. The two fall in a heap, Alfrid underneath and Bain on top.

"NO!" Bard yells, to no avail because he regretfully, with dark and deep fear in his soul, knows the outcome of this altercation.

"Get off me!" Alfrid says in annoyance and pushed Bain off him. Bain rolls off Alfrid with a dazed expression.

"Son? Bain?" Bard speaks to his son. His eyes inadvertently are focused on Alfrid's hand. The man still has the blade, there is blood on Alfrid's hand.

"Now look at what you have done,boy," Alfrid says.

Fear strikes Bard like lightning. He sees Bain holding on to his belly, still lying on the ground. Bain holds up his hand to his face and sees his own blood on it.

"Da!" Bain calls out in panic. Tilda is crying, but there is no sound escaping because of her gag.

(LEGOLAS)

"Tauriel!" He whispers to his Captain, seeing from far a girl running towards the two of them. Tauriel takes her on-guard stance, arrow on bow.

"Help! Have you seen my father? My sister is missing. My brother is searching for her. I fear for their safety, " the girl says in-between breaths.

"You're the Dragon Slayer's daughter," Tauriel says, recognising Sigrid instantly.

"We assumed that he has gone home," Legolas offers. Sigrid shakes her head.

"Help us, please!" Sigrid pleads. Tauriel nods but Legolas turns to her.

"Don't leave the Treasury. I'll take care of this, Tauriel. This could be a ruse to get to the dwarves' gold."

Tauriel nods. Legolas feels warmth spreading in his neck as he sees Tauriel believes him to handle the situation that will help all.

"Where is your brother?"

"In the southern quadrant," Sigrid says.

Legolas takes off, his feet barely touching the ground. The lay of the city comes naturally to him, as he sees the night in sight, sounds and smells and the circles of energy that only the elven kind can see. In the blink of an eye of a human, Legolas is led to the location of the Dragon Slayer's son. As Legolas slips into the room fraught with the energy of evil and cruelty, a heavy feeling tells him that he is too late. He comes with his arrow ready at the string of his bow.

His millennia-trained eyes recognised the men posing threat and he fires his arrows at them with precision. One by one they fell, injured but alive because he thinks that men like them deserve judgement and suffer the consequences of their actions. They do not deserve a quick death.

Legolas sees the Dragon Slayer's son lying in fetal position on the ground, his shoulders heaving as if he is crying. Legolas sees the fearful face of the man whose dark energy is pulsating like a whirpool and strikes him square in the head with his bow. Alfrid Lickspittle falls like a log to the ground.

"Legolas! Untie me!" The Dragon Slayer calls to him and Legolas does as requested. Sigrid, who has fallen many steps behind Legolas barges into the workshop and stands there amazed.

"See to your little sister!" Legolas orders her. Sigrid unties Tilda, undoes the gag and holds her tight. Tilda weeps. Sigrid has tears falling off her face.

Bard slowly takes his son's hand away from his wound. Legolas can see it is deep, to the left of his navel, nearer to the hipbones but not quite there. Bard holds his son's pale face.

"Look at me, Bain. Look at me," Bard says, as Bain is overwhelmed by pain. Bain seems not to be able to find his father even though he is right in front of him.

"I'm here, son. I'm right here."

"Da, it hurts," Bain moans, finally his eyes met his father's.

"I know, son. But you're safe now," Bard says, pressing on the wound. Bain gasps in pain.

"Sigrid, give me your scarf," Bard says to her daughter. Sigrid hands it to her father and Bard presses the scarf on Bain's wound.

"Bring your son to Tauriel. She's at the Treasury," Legolas tells to Bard.

"She can help your son. I'll see to that these evil men are locked up."

Bard picks up Bain in his arms, the young boy's head cradled against his chest and Bard runs to the treasury with his son in his arms.

A few concerned citizens have emerged in the streets, following the boy Caelen's story that Bard the Dragon Slayer's little daughter is missing and they have come out to see what they can do, albeit it is too late.

"These men have hurt innocent children because of greed. Lock them up until they can be judged," Legolas announces to the gathering crowd. Men begin to shuffle busily to take the criminals into custody. Thus, the first arrest in the history of new city of Dale happens.

Legolas slips away from the crowd. He takes a horse and takes a ride out of Dale.

(TAURIEL)

Tauriel stands at her post, as taut as drawn bowstring, her senses completely in tune with her surroundings. She hears quick footsteps and heavy breathing. She never doubts Legolas' fighting prowess and his wisdom, but she worries about him sometimes. They are both far from home, the balance of the world barely hanging on an uneven fulcrum, there might a few lose orcs here and there. Tauriel readies her bow and arrow and takes aim.

But it is Bard the Dragon Slayer, with his son cradled in his arms.

"Help me, Captain. My son is stabbed by orc blade," the man pleas in between breaths. Tauriel keeps her weapon.

"Take him inside," Tauriel orders as she opens the door to the treasury.

"Light the fire," she says and Bard does as she says. Bard sets his son on the floor and pillows his head with his folded coat.

"Hold his hand when you're done," Tauriel advises softly. The fire is lit. Bard kneels next to Bain, and grips his hand.

"Da, I feel cold."

"It's winter," Bard jokes. Bain smiles weakly.

"But I'm here and I'll keep you warm," Bard says and softly touches his son's hair, and wiping the cold sweat on his forehead.

Bard looks into Tauriel's eyes. Tauriel wishes he doesn't see the fear in them.