(A/N- start)
Hey everyone! Hope you had a fun weekend, full of anticipation! Now, it's time for the climactic moment: negotiations!
Or setting groundwork- which is where I got the chapter name from.
I don't own Prototype, Mass Effect, or anything written by Tolkein or his kin. If I did, I would be writing full time.
Hm... Maybe I should start a page.
Disclaimer still applies though.
Enjoy!
(A/N- end)
"Two people in a room can do more than a hundred."- Black Panther
"Unless you are trying to move a piano."- his father
"Why am I even here? And how did I get here!?"- Perfect Cell
There were no survivors.
Ch 10- Groundwork
Bilbo stood very still as Smaug leaned forward, carefully looking at them with a single large eye.
Gandalf was observed for a moment before the dragon nodded, once, to the old man, and turned his piercing gaze upon the elvenking.
Thranduil didn't flinch- rather, he slid down slowly off the buck, and met the burning gaze resolutely... Even as his hand reached for the sword at his belt.
"No need for that, Elvenking." Chuckled Smaug. "I will reward you the items you told my messenger of. Bard!"
"Yes, my lord?" The armored man tilted his head forward, and clenched a gauntleted hand over his heart.
"Summon your son- I need him to lead an escort into my hoard."
"It will be done." Bard snapped his fingers twice, and whistled a short patten. A small creature, roughly the size of an apple, zipped out of Erebor and landed on the man's outstretched hand. It resembled an odd little bird, one that had completely black feathers. After a quick whisper to the bird, it jumped into the air, and accelerated toward Dale at an insane rate.
There was a thunderclap, then it vanished from Bilbo's sight.
The massive head swung back towards the group. "Now... Elves, you may step back."
The elven contingent, almost as one, stepped away from the group- to the glares of their king, it would seem.
The head of the dragon king towered over them, as an eye as large as Bilbo's torso flicked from person to person.
"Now I have thirteen dwarves upon my doorstep. How... Fortuitous." Purred Smaug, tail swishing behind him. "Just when I need dwarves, they appear!" The burning gaze focused into a lance towards Bilbo- whose hand was inching towards his pocket. "And you! Small one that is not an elf, dwarf, or man... I do not remember smelling your kind before..."
The dwarves all took a step back from the hobbit.
"Who are you- and where do you come from, may I ask?"
"I come from under the hill..." Bilbo started, having trouble breathing as he felt that the attention of the dragon was focusing more and more on him.
"Underhill?" Prompted the dragon.
"And under hills and over hills my path has lead." Bilbo was gaining courage as Smaug, who appeared to be enjoying the banter. "And-and, through the air, I am he who walks unseen!"
"Impresssive..." Rumbled Smaug as a claw absently scratched a symbol in the sand. "Do go on."
"I am luck-wearer, riddle maker and chosen for the lucky number." Bilbo pressed on. "Evader of goblins and rider of Eagles!"
"Lovely titles indeed- but you have not said who you are." Stated Smaug.
"Never tell a dragon your name!" Gandalf snapped to Bilbo. "Names have power, and you shouldn't give yours without cause- especially to a dragon!"
"You wound me Olórin, child of Law and Starlight." Smaug smirked, then sneered. "I could feel your Fëa from a day's flight off, just as I can feel Marion, Curumo, Aiendil, and the bearers of the three elf-stars..." Almost in an aside to Bilbo, Smaug stage-whispered. "Maiar always choose to keep their name from others, yet knowing the names of all those around them." The glowing orange orbs narrowed. "As hatchlings we were taught how never to trust a Maiar- and I would bid you be silent."
Gandalf opened his mouth again, and the black knight was there, gauntleted fingers holding a black short-spear less than an inch from his eye.
"I wouldn't speak, Gandelf." The black knight commented idly.
"Eris, you shouldn't harm him." Admonished Bard. "And his name is Gandalf."
"Someone has to be more intimidating than you, Bard!" Huffed the black knight, whose spear folded into a panel that slid into a groove on the odd armor. Then, with a practiced movement, the knight pressed something on the jaw of her full face helmet, and it spit apart with a sucking sound, allowing writhing black hair to twist free from the back of her head as a pale, female human face was revealed under the black armor. Said face was glaring at Gandalf. "Well, Gandalf- if that is your real name, please be silent if Smaug the Terrible has stated that you should be silent. Do you understand?"
Gandalf sulked. Silently.
"While that is... Entertaining, my question still hasn't been answered." Smaug refocused on Bilbo. "Now, who are you, what are you, and where do you come from? No riddles now- I have not the time!"
"Bilbo Baggins!" Squeaked Bilbo as that voice plucked at some primeval terror in his tiny soul. "A hobbit of the Shire!"
"Hobbit?" The dragon's tongue flicked out, then back in like that of a snake- if snakes could have a tongue that weighed more than a man. "I have not met your kind before, and would like to speak with you after this audience. Bard will fetch you when that time is near. Now..." He looked amongst the dwarves, glowing eyes flicking from face to face. "Eldest dwarf, who is your leader?"
"I will not betray the leader of this company!" Shouted Balin.
"Betray?" Smaug laughed again, then stopped as he watched the dwarves huddle up. "You are not jesting? Why do you think you are here?"
"... I don't know." Admitted Bilbo, who was beginning to think that he was missing something.
"Then be informed: I, Smaug the Tyrannical, have been looking for some dwarves to help me map out Erebor, repair it, and turn it back into a profitable city." The dragon's massive head turned to look at a new arrival. "Bain! Welcome back. Please take a squad of mounted guards and escort the elven-King into my hoard- there is an item they have earned."
"Yes, my lord." The elven contingent, now encircled by seven armed and armored men riding on Silences walked into the mountain as Smaug turned back to the Dwarves.
The dumbstruck dwarves were more than a little surprised, and were trying to wrap their heads around what was just said.
"You... Want us to work for you?" Pieced together Balin.
Smaug looked incredulous at the mere possibility that his words may be doubted. "Of course! Erebor is a dwarven city, and you are dwarves!" He eyed them for a moment before smirking. "I need a few more than thirteen dwarves to do a mapping done properly, let alone reconstruction... How soon could you get more dwarves to come here?"
"More dwarves?" Choked Thorin, who couldn't believe this. Would it really be this easy to return to his home?
"Eris, are they just going keep repeating what I say?" Smaug muttered, to which Eris, and even Bilbo chuckled.
"I am sorry, oh Smaug the Tremendous." Balin took a few steps forward. "But an amiable meeting between our group and yourself was... Not really considered when we set out."
"That's an understatement." Muttered Bilbo.
"Be that as it may, now, what I need are more dwarves." Smaug rumbled. "How quickly can you get them here, and what do you need to do it?"
That snapped Thorin out of his mental orbit. "The Arkenstone! We need the Arkenstone to unite the separated dwarven clans."
The dragon drummed his fingers on a spur of the black substance they stood upon. "Ah, yes... That thing. While I could give it to you to take, it alone is valued as a great percentage of my hoard."
"I need it to reunite the clans!" Thorin plaintively explained. "Without ownership of it, I have little sway with the other dwarves."
Smaug thought for a moment, before an eye flicked over to look at Gandalf. "Do you have some suggestion, Olórin, to this problem?"
Gandalf started. "I... I would consul caution, in this case."
"I see..." Smaug returned his focus to Thorin. "In that case, your kinsmen there should act as messengers. Summon the clans- you may have possession of the stone provided that it never leaves my territory. Eris, would you send one of your thunder-birds to retrieve it?"
Her hair, which had to this point been flexing as if underwater, stiffened for a moment, before relaxing into the gentle swirling effect they had been occupying before. "Done. I think I've learned everything I can from it anyway."
"No!" Shouted the dwarves, almost in unison.
"The Heart must never leave the Mountain's sight- it may crumble into dust otherwise!" Balin exclaimed, but then there was a thunderclap above them, and another bird appeared- this one clutching a jewel almost as big as it was, wings beating madly.
Smaug held out a talented hand, and the bird dropped the stone into it before coming to rest, panting, on Eris's shoulder.
"The mountain, or the stone?" Rumbled Smaug.
"Yes!" Chorused the dwarves.
"Well then, best those who know the most should be the ones to hold it." Smaug extended the wing-hand, and the Arkenstone, towards the group. "But-" he pulled the hand a little. "You must agree not to attempt to depose me, to submit to my decisions, and to acknowledge me as the king of Erebor and associated territories. In return, you will be my... Vassals?" The dragon looked towards Eris, who nodded slightly. "Yes, my vassals. I will protect my territories from invasion, and keep those within prosperous and safe. I will allow a great deal of autonomy, but remember this, dwarves..." Steam erupted from the sides of his maw. "I could have killed all of you when I took Erebor- but I did not."
Thorin, who was looking slightly lost, looked to Balin, who nodded his assent, and quickly signed 'It's the best deal we're going to get'.
He knelt. "I, Thorin son of Thrain, son of Thror, hereby pledge my Oaken Shield and Axe, along with my service, to Smaug, High King Under the Mountain, as Dwarven King Under the Mountain."
"I, as High King Smaug, accept the service of the Dwarven King. So it is said, so shall it be." Nodding magnanimously, Smaug did something, and a bright flash of light blinded the onlookers for a moment. "By my power, it is said and complete. Also, High King?" The dragon grinned. "I love the ring to that."
There, on the doorstep of Erebor, King Thorin took the Arkenstone from the hand of High King Smaug, and planning began in earnest.
Several hours later, Bilbo was sitting in a tent. It wasn't an ordinary tent, but was constructed out of several ship sails that the townsfolk of Dale had supplied from their spare stores- and that Smaug had paid for.
Paid for! A dragon, paying for things- the concept boggled his mind.
The table also boggled his mind- but for several separate reasons.
The first reason, was that it was larger than the tent- specifically, there was a segment outside the tent specifically for Smaug... Appropriately sized for a dragon, of course, which made the entire thing colossal.
Then there was the fact that, while it was entirely made of wood according to Bard, the surface was coated in the same sort of material that made up the ground, or floor, of the doorstep.
Oh, and then there was the shape. Ignoring the dragon-sized budge outside the tent, the segment inside was missing. Instead, there was a series of fire pits, with cooks bustling from fire to fire cooking various animals- deer, sheep, goats, lots of fish, a pig, and something that apparently roamed the plains to the south and east of the mountain in large numbers. Eris called it a 'beeffalo', and there was much talk of trying to farm them- although Eris laughed when they talked about it.
Tasted somewhat like cow.
On top of everything else, a huge section of the table moved. Somehow, the innermost areas of the table were carved and separated into scale-like structures, each with rollers on the bottom side, which allowed them to slot together into a single, mostly seemless belt that wound around the table carrying platters of cooked meats from the various animals and vegetables that were being served.
It was turned by some men at a crank, who would switch out every half hour to allow the previous shift a break. A few of the dwarves even tried it, and Dwalin declared that it might make some young-ones more patient.
Fili and Kili looked a bit uncomfortable at hearing that, but as the feast continued, they became more and more mellow.
Bilbo picked up a piece of meat, and was about to take a bite- having just snagged some of it before the tray passed him by- when someone tapped him on the shoulder.
It was Bain. The two had been introduced at the start of the feast, but he had been whisked off to be introduced to the dwarves. "Master Baggins? High King Smaug wishes to speak with you."
Bilbo looked down at his plate, filled with more food then he had seen in the last two weeks traveling. The fact that he had eaten four previous plates of the same hadn't even crossed his mind. "May I bring food to the conversation?"
"I don't see why not- just ask if you may eat first. My lord is somewhat... Touchy about that sort of thing." Bain stated with some certainty.
Thoughts of what a touchy dragon entailed ruined what was left of Bilbo's appetite. "Never mind- I'm fine."
"Good." The two walked through one of the many overlapping flaps (the tent was going to be reused after all), and saw Smaug.
Bilbo had expected the dragon to gorge on meat, like some of the carrion-birds he had seen on these travels. Consuming as much in as short a time as possible.
But, in an odd contrast, Smaug ate delicately, using the razor-edge of a greatsword like a knife to disassemble the animal, then have the chefs in front of him roast the parts of the beeffalo quickly and efficiently. Not much roasting was happening, but enough so that he could stab the meat with a claw, which he would then delicately smell, then eat.
It was off-putting.
After consuming an entire beeffalo that way, and then finishing cutting up another one, Smaug noticed the man and hobbit standing beside him.
"Sit down little Hobbit. Your service is appreciated Bain." The dragon intoned regally- which was a feat in and of itself, since it was holding a greatsword like one normally holds a knife that's just a little too small.
Bain bowed, and withdrew back into the tent.
Now, High King Smaug focused his attention on the Hobbit, who was looking uncomfortable. "How was the food?"
Bilbo swallowed. "It was good, oh high king."
"Few know this." The dragon casually stated as it took another bite. "But we can feel lies!" Smaug's massive head darted down and stopped half a foot from Bilbo, who had frozen with fear. "Never lie to ME!" The head retracted as quickly as it came, and delicately took another bite of haunch. After a moment, he swallowed, and one eye glanced at the terrified halfling. "Now... Do you like the food?"
Bilbo took a shaky breath, and then, because of the lack of air, had to take another. "I-it was bet-t-ter than what w-we had on the road."
"True, but did you like it?" Repeated the dragon.
"Not much, oh High King." Bilbo closed his eyes, waiting for the flash of heat that would signify being burnt to a crisp, or the feeling of being impaled by a claw- or possibly even bisected by that greatsword the dragon was currently using as a knife.
"I see. Well, if you can suggest better recipes to the cooks, I think my subjects would appreciate it."
Bilbo risked opening an eye, and saw Smaug just... Talking.
"Eris has been collecting a great deal of knowledge since she managed to get Bard's mate to teach her the runes, and has been making so many lists- my subjects needed to empty a room of treasure just to fit the books in properly." Smaug rolled his eyes, although Bilbo could only see one. "Only a few days ago she had been ranting about how little there was around here that was unique or new- maybe some not-quite human recipes would help distract her."
"Distract?" Bilbo was now a bit lost- and he was beginning to resent that feeling.
"Yes. She's new to this world. But enough about me and my affairs- let us talk about you." The dragon took another bite. "What are Hobbits known for? What are you good at?"
Seeing the indecision, Smaug rolled his eyes again.
"I am not planning on enslaving, killing, torturing, or otherwise causing harm to you or your people." He deadpanned. "I need people that have specialized skills."
The dragon gestured towards the tent.
"It's why I need the dwarves. Men. Elves perhaps, although I do not know if even Eris could find a use for them." Smaug took another bite. "Without people there is no trade. Gold is important, my hoard as much so, but to see it doing work? Under my direction? That is worth a greater hoard. And to see it grow, I need people who are good at what they do. Now, hobbit... What are you good at? What are hobbits better at than anyone?"
Bilbo leaned back in his chair, and thought about it. "We like to farm. We like food, you see- and lots of it. Baking, brewing, searing, preserving... All of that is what we like to so. Well..." He amended. "Eat and smoke pipe-weed and enjoy time with our friends and loved ones."
Smaug swallowed the piece of meat he had been eating, and placed down the greatsword, eyes closing in contemplation for a minute or so. Then, after a little delay, his eyes popped open, and he grinned. "Well then Master Hobbit, how would you like a job?"
Ch 10- end
Hey everyone, I hope you enjoyed that chapter. I had a great deal of fun writing it, and I also hope that you are willing to leave a review.
I know this story hasn't turned out like my other ones, but I hope it is a pleasant tale nonetheless.
Let me know in your review if you think Smaug would help deal with the attacking army, or do something else entirely.
Hope your week has started well- and, as always, take it easy.