Hey peeps, we're back with Sophia and Aiden Saturday! As the title says, we are indeed in for a wild dragon chase today, one that will end in Laketown. Thanks again to all who are still reading this and to you new followers, I appreciate all your support as you know by now.
Review responses;
The Hand of Section XIII It seems like it, doesn't it. Let's hope he can get out of this alright. , ,
FlowerChild23 – So do I.
Memo – They will be soon, don't worry x
Eohirrim Girl 2187 – Yes, so am I. Although, I don't think I'll be having anything too serious happen between them. As you've said, Sophia's already been through too much with an abusive man before, I couldn't put her, or Aiden, through that again.
A Wild Dragon Chase
In the mountain, I run through the corridors, hoping to get Bilbo out of there before something happens to him. Walking out onto an overhang, I stop, my eyes going wide in awe as I look at the mountains of treasure all around. I never seen a sight such as this in my whole life.
Shaking my head, I run down the closest stairs, now is not the time for that. I smile in relief as Bilbo suddenly appears around a corner, almost bumping into me.
"Sophia!"
"Bilbo!" I immediately pull him into an embrace, he embraces me back and I can feel his arms trembling slightly. "Are you alright?"
He pulls away. "Yes, but we can't stay here."
I nod and push him on ahead, both of us running up the stairs I came from. To my surprise, Thorin is standing there, watching as we run up.
"You're alive!" he exclaims in relief at seeing us.
"Not for much longer!" Bilbo huffs as we reach the overhang and go to run out, but Thorin stops us.
"Did you find the Arkenstone?"
"The dragon's coming!"
"The Arkenstone!"
As Thorin blocks our way, I just watch as they look at each other for several seconds. Looking at Thoorin, I see something in his eyes that I don't like, something that I can't explain, but I do know I don't like what I see.
"Did you find it?"
They continue stare at each other for several seconds, panting heavily.
"No. We have to get out."
Bilbo tries to enter the tunnel, but Thorin swings his sword across it, blocking the entrance. He presses the blade against Bilbo, and Bilbo stumbles back, the sword still touching him. Thorin steps forward, forcing Bilbo to step back.
"Thorin!" I exclaim in shock and horror, pulling Bilbo behind me. "Thorin, stop this, this isn't you!"
He stops and looks to me in surprise for a moment. As I open my mouth to say something, I stop as something catches my attention out of the corner of my eyes. Looking over, my whole body freezes as I see it. I had seen dragons in TV shows and movies before, but never in my wildest dreams had I thought to see one in real life, and never will I want to again. Smaug is terrifying! His whole body covered in red scales, golden, piercing eyes glaring at the three of us as he slowly stalks towards us and his large wings sprouting from his back as his long tail swishes behind him. I had never thought I'd be relieved that Aiden isn't with me right now.
Thorin also looks in Smaug's direction and I see his body tense as he turns from us to face the dragon fully. Reaching behind me, I take Bilbo's arm and pull him with me behind Thorin. That's when the other dwarves come charging in with a battle cry, all of them stopping at the sight of the dragon.
"You will burn!" the dragon's deep voice bellows as he stalks faster towards us.
Just as Smaug bellows fire at us, the dwarves, Bilbo and I turn and jump off the staircase behind us. We tumble down the pile of treasure and land near the entrance to another tunnel, which they run into.
"Come on, Bilbo! Sophia!" Dori calls out as he helps us both up.
Angrily, Smaug breathes fire in all directions. As we all reach the room at the end of the tunnel, I turn back in time to see the light of dragon fire reflecting on the stone walls of the tunnel and Thorin rolling to the ground, his coat caught on fire. Before I can say anything in worry, he jumps back up, said coat now on the ground.
"Come on."
Taking my hand, Thorin leads us all out the door and through the halls of the dwarven city.
At Bard's house, Tauriel washes and tears apart the Kingsfoil in a tub of water held by Tilda. Fili, Oin, and Bofur pick up a moaning Kili and lay him on the table and try to hold him down.
"Hold him down." Tauriel orders.
Fili and Aiden hold down each of his shoulders, Oin his legs, as she approaches with the bowl of water and examines Kili's wound. Seeing how black and festered it is, she looks away in worry. As the others look on, Tauriel closes her eyes and begins chanting in Elvish while she kneads the soaked Kingsfoil in her hand, then presses it to Kili's wound, causing him to scream out and writhe more, causing Fili and Aiden to put more pressure on his shoulders, Bofur having to help the lad.
"Menno o nin na hon i eliad annen annin, hon leitho o ngurth."
Kili screams and thrashes in pain, and Sigrid jumps in to help hold him down, pressing down on his good leg to keep from kicking out. She calls her sister to some help as well.
"Tilda!" The young girl rushes over to help.
Tauriel continues chanting; Fili looks at her strangely, and Oin listens in amazement through his fairly dented hearing trumpet. Kili begins calming down. In his hearing, it seems as though Tauriel's voice has become echoing and all-encompassing. To his vision, she appears to start glowing like a star. He stares at her, glassy-eyed.
Everything is quiet and dark as the dwarves, Bilbo and I run through the halls. Even in the danger we are currently in, I can't help but look around in awe at the city. This must have been such a beautiful place when dwarves were living here, it is a sight that I would love to see happen once again. We emerge out of a tunnel and approach a stone bridge over a chasm. Thorin raises his hand and quiets us.
"Shh. Shh."
We near the foot of the bridge and Thorin peers around the edge of the tunnel, looking for any sign of Smaug.
"We've given him the slip." Dori whispers.
Dwalin shakes his head. "No, he's too cunning for that."
"So where to now?" I ask as I take Thorin's arm.
He looks back to us all. "The western guardroom. There may be a way out."
Balin looks to him. "It's too high. There's no chance that way."
"It's our only chance. We have to try."
Quietly, we tiptoe across the bridge, looking all about. Suddenly, a coin falls to the floor right behind me, ringing loudly. I freeze and look back to see Bilbo who frantically checks his jacket to see if some coin had been stuck in a fold. Looking to his feet, I see a single coin laying there.
Hearing another coin fall, we look up and I put a hand over my mouth to stop myself from screaming as we see Smaug crawling along just above us, looking for us. He hasn't seen us, luckily. The coins that fell came from his chest and legs, where several coins and gems have embedded themselves into his scales after years of him sleeping on them. Thorin motions for us to keep moving and we soon go through the door at the other end of the bridge.
At Bard's house, Tauriel binds Kili's leg with a clean cloth. Kili lies on the table with his head in a basket of walnuts. Oin, Fili and Aiden are in the kitchen, watching a pot of water boil.
"I've heard tell of the wonders of elvish medicine. That was a privilege to witness." Oin says.
Kili slightly opens his eyes and looks at Tauriel.
"Tauriel. . ."
Tauriel smiles at the dwarf. "Lie still."
"You cannot be her."
The elleth looks up in confusion.
"She is far away. Sh- She is far, far away from me, and she walks in starlight in another world."
Tauriel looks at Kili.
"It was just a dream."
Kili slowly raises his hand and entwines his fingers with Tauriel's.
"Do you think she could have loved me?"
Tauriel is silent for a few moments, then opens her mouth to speak, but she just closes it again and continues what she's doing..
Following Thorin, we run through a hall and along a corridor.
"Stay close." Thorin says before turning left into a room.
We all stop abruptly when they see that the guardroom is full of rotted, dust- and cobweb-covered corpses. I put a hand over my mouth as I look over at all the death.
"That's it, then. There's no way out." Dwalin says, his voice full of defeat.
It seems like a landslide or something has blocked the exit, trapping the dwarves in the past in the room to die.
Balin looks over the bodies, his eyes full of grief and sadness. "The last of our kin. They must have come here, hoping beyond hope."
Stepping past Thorin, I kneel beside the bodies, almost hearing the screams of terror each and every one of these dwarves must have given. I can feel tears falling as I look at them, falling even more so at the sight of the corpses of children, one dam holding a little babe in her arms. I cannot help but think of my own son and could imagine the feeling of helplessness these dams must have felt at not being able to keep their children safe, to get them out in time.
Hearing Thorin stand next to me, I lean my head back into his leg, feeling him place his hand on my head, his fingers gently running through my hair.
"We could try to reach the Mines. We might last a few days."
"No. I will not die like this. Cowering, clawing for breath. We make for the forges."
Looking around as I feel him move, I see him looking to the others. I get to my feet, Thorin taking my hand as he helps me.
"He'll see us, sure as death." Dwalin points out.
"Not if we split up."
Balin steps forward. "Thorin, we'll never make it."
"Some of us might. Lead him to the forges. We kill the dragon. If this is to end in fire, then we will all burn together."
The rest of us all look at one another before nodding.
"What is your plan?" I ask as I take Thorin's hand.
Thorin, Bilbo, Balin and I soon run out, back onto the bridge from earlier.
"This way!" Thorin calls out.
A booming sound comes from nearby, and we all stop as Smaug appears.
"Flee, flee! Run for your lives! There is nowhere to hide."
Smaug moves towards us, but he turns at another sound. Dori, Ori, and Bombur are running on another bridge beflow us and yelling to distract Smaug.
"Behind you!"
Smaug looks at them, then lunges toward them. They turn and run.
"Come on!" Dori yells as they run.
When Smaug's back is turned, we continue to run on across the bridge, listening as the other are distracting the dragon.
The three of us, after a while of running, are soon moving along a large hallway when Balin runs into a side tunnel. Bilbo, Thorin and I don't notice as we continue on.
"It's this way! This way! Come on!" Balin yells out.
I stop and look back to see him at the entrance to a tunnel, Bilbo right behind me. Looking ahead, I see Thorin still going on.
"Thorin!" I call out.
He stops, turns and begins to go back towards us, but stops suddenly, looking behind us. Turning, we see Smaug at the end of the hallway. Thorin looks to Bilbo and I.
"Follow Balin!"
"Thorin!"
I feel Bilbo grabbing my arm and pulling me back.
"Come on!" I hear Balin's voice, before feeling him suddenly pulling Bilbo and I into the side tunnel.
Just as we get through, I feel the heat from Smaug's fire on my back. Turning, I see Smaug stalking past, chasing after Thorin.
"Thorin!"
I go to run out, but Balin grabs me and pulls me back.
"There's nothing we can do from here, lassie. We need to move on!"
I nod after hesitating a moment and follow Balin and Bilbo through the tunnel, down a few staircases and along a few more halls until we reach a very large hall and we're standing in front of several massive dwarf furnaces, or at least what I think are furnaces, each at least 10 yards high.
As I'm looking around, I know this hall is very familiar to me, but I know I have never set foot in this hall before. Looking up at hurried steps, I breathe a sigh of relief as I see Thorin running through some pillars along with Dwalin and Nori. He pulls me into his arms as I run over to him. I just hold him close, not wanting to let go.
"Are you alright?" Thorin asks, worriedly, causing me to nod into his shoulder.
"The plan's not going to work." Dwalin begins as Thorin and I pull away. "These furnaces are stone cold."
Balin nods in agreement. "He's right; there's no fire hot enough to set them ablaze."
As he says this, an image of Thorin goading Smaug appears in my head, taunting him until he breathes fire into the hall and lighting up the furnaces. I have no idea where that came from, but I plan to go with it.
"Have we not?" I ask as I turn back to where Thorin and the others came from.
Thorin looks to me in confusion for a moment, before he looks back through the pillars as he hears Snaug's growling. A look of understanding appears on his face as he catches my gaze and nods before stalking over to the pit, putting a hand on each pillar as he reaches them.
"I did not look to see you so easily outwitted!"
Smaug's claw emerges from the pit, his body following it. Thorin continues taunting him.
"You have grown slow and fat in your dotage."
Smaug snarls at Thorin in anger.
"Slug."
I look to him in surprise, those taunts were the same ones that I heard and saw in my head. How is that possible? As Smaug snarls and advances, Thorin gets behind a pillar and looks back to us.
"Take cover. Go!"
We all rush to the pillars, all of us getting behind us just as Smaug unleashes his flame. I close my eyes from the brightness of it and can feel the heat all around me. It only lasts for a few seconds, but it felt so much longer. Opening my eyes when the flame dies, I smile as the plan worked. The furnaces are now lit and are glowing. Thorin and I grin at each other as we run from the pillars just as Smaug begins battering at them with his head. They are immensely strong, like a latticework of metal, but they begin to bend under Smaug's tremendous strength.
"Bombur! Get those bellows working. Go!" Thorin calls out.
"Alright!"
Bombur runs and leaps onto a chain next to a forge. The chain slides down with his weight, and he lands on the handle of a massive bellow. The bellows compress and blast air into the furnaces, which exhumes bright blue flames. On top of the furnaces is a massive pile of unrefined gold, at least 10 yards in diameter.
Thorin turns and sees the latticework continue to bend from Smaug's bashing.
"Bilbo! Sophia! Up there, on my mark, pull that lever."
He points toward a lever high up on a mound, and we run toward it. I stop as I feel Thorin take my hand, looking back to him, I see his eyes fill with hope before he puts his free hand on the back of my neck and pulls me into a deep kiss. In that kiss, I can feel him giving me reassurance, we're going to make it out of this. Pulling away, I smile at him and squeeze his hand before following Bilbo.
Thorin watches as Sophia follows the hobbit. He will make sure she at least will make it out of here, even if he doesn't. He's not about to leave Aiden without a mother.
He's pulled from his thoughts as he hears Smaug bang again and looks back to see the latticework begin to break. Thorin grabs Balin.
"Balin, can you still make some flash-flame?"
"Aye. It'll only take a jiffy."
Balin grabs Dori and Ori to help him, and they run into a side room.
"Come on!"
As Balin runs off, Dwalin looks at the latticework, which is bending dangerously from Smaug's blows.
"We don't have a jiffy."
Under the force of Smaug's onslaught, the latticework finally gives way and falls to the ground. Smaug storms into the furnace room. He looks about, growling.
In a storage room nearby, Balin and some other dwarves frantically mix together various powders into jars to make flash-flame bombs.
Balin looks around. "Where's the sulfur?"
"You sure you know what you're doing?" Dori asks.
Bilbo and I clamber up some steps and reach the lever mounted high on a tower.
"Now we wait for the signal." I say.
Feeling Bilbo freeze next to me, I turn and see Smaug walking towards us. Pulling Bilbo behind me, I face Smaug head on.
Balin chuckles as he pours a vial of powder into empty jars.
"Come on!" Dori calls out.
Balin drops some small ball into each jar.
Smaug raises his head and looks me in the eyes. At that point, not even my ex-boyfriend could have frightened me in that moment. I clench my hands to keep myself from shaking as Smaug gets closer, then looks to the side and sees Thorin standing there. My eyes go wide as Smaug turns and snarls at Thorin.
"Now!" Thorin suddenly yells.
Bilbo jumps into the air and pulls down on the lever just as Smaug lunges toward Thorin. I duck back in surprise as huge jets of water burst out of carved faces in the wall behind Bilbo and I and slam into Smaug, knocking him off balance and quenching the flames he was beginning to blow at Thorin.
Smaug slides into the side of a furnace from the force of the water, and the glow in his chest disappears. Roaring in rage, Smaug flaps into the air and begins thrashing about madly. The jets of water cause a watermill to begin turning some gears, which causes the various rope conveyor belts to begin operating. Some of them are full of heavy chunks of rock and ore.
Bombur continues going up and down on his chain, pumping the bellows and turning the furnace fire blue. Atop the furnaces, I watch as the solid impure gold begins to glow and melt. Smaug begins crawling toward Thorin again. Above him, I see Gloin and Bifur have arrived on the bucket conveyor belt. I catch Thorin's eye before he turns to watch as Smaug approaches him.
Suddenly, I have to cover my eyes as there is a flash of blue light on the side of his head. Looking down, I see Balin, Ori, and Dori are throwing flash-flame bombs at Smaug. However, Smaug is not at all fazed by them and continues toward Thorin.
Above Smaug, Gloin raises his axe and cuts the rope of the conveyor belt full of heavy rocks below him, dropping tons of rocks on Smaug and making him fall to the ground, roaring.
The gold atop the furnaces is completely melted now. Thorin runs over to a furnace and pulls on a chain, opening a gate which allows the molten gold to flow out of the furnaces and through troughs built into the ground.
Smaug, tangled in the ropes of the conveyor belt, thrashes about and hits the rope of the conveyor belt Gloin and Bifur are in, breaking it and knocking it to the floor.
"Gloin! Bifur!" I cry out as I watch them fall.
Thankfully, they miraculously land on the ground unhurt, rolling away from Smaug's large feet. Beneath Smaug, rivers of molten gold flow through the troughs on the floor. I hear Thorin shout something, but can't hear what he says over Smaug's growling and snarling.
As Smaug thrashes about, one of the heavy metal buckets tangled on him goes flying toward Bilbo and I on top of the mound. We both yell and duck as the bucket misses us, but takes large chunks out of the wall behind us.
We continue watch Thorin grabbing a wheelbarrow and running while pushing it, dodging Smaug's thrashing limbs. Smaug's tail smashes into the base of the mound, cracking it and worrying the both of us as the tower staggers slightly. I pull on Bilbo's arm.
"We need to get down, now!"
He nods and we turn to run down, but the tower we are standing on begins to crumble and fall. We scream and grunt as we hit the ground, rolling a little from the impact. I crawl to him to help him up.
"Are you alright?"
He nods. "Yes. You?"
I nod as I stand, staggering slightly from having the wind knocked out of me. We freeze as Smaug sees the both of us, snarling at us.
"Keep going, Sopha, Bilbo! Run!" Thorin calls out to us.
Taking hold of Bilbo's hand, we run off, with Smaug in pursuit. Pushing Bilbo ahead, we leap onto a large stone slide. I cry out as I hear snap of Smaug's jaws right behind me, feeling his breath on my neck, as I evade him in time. Smaug also slides down after us, demolishing all the stone structures nearby with his wings.
Once we hit level ground, Bilbo and I run through a doorway and into a massive hall adorned with banners hundreds of feet tall. Just as we run in, the wall above the doorway explodes as Smaug jumps through it. We run frantically from the flying rocks. Looking up, I grab Bilbo and we both drop to the ground, my body covering his from any debris. Luckily, all that falls on us is one of the banners. Smaug leaps to the floor and shouts angrily.
"You think you could deceive me, Barrel-rider?"
Bilbo and I peak out from the edge of the banner.
"You have come from Laketown. There is- is some sort of scheme hatched between these filthy dwarves and those miserable cup-trading Lakemen. Those sniveling cowards with their longbows and black arrows!"
Smaug is talking to himself, and his voice breaks in both anger and fear when he mentions the black arrows.
"Perhaps it is time I paid them a visit."
I freeze as he says this. Aiden is in Laketown! And Fili, Kili, Bofur and Oin! Along with Bard and his children. I scramble out from under the banner and run towards the dragon. Any other time, I would have questioned my sanity at what I'm about to do, but my mothering instincts come through, my wanting to keep him safe.
"This isn't their fault! Wait! You cannot go to Laketown!" I shout at the dragon.
Hearing this, Smaug stops for a moment, then turns towards me. I stop as he gets closer, my heart quickening as he holds my gaze with his yellow eyes.
"You care about them, do you? Good. Then you can watch them die."
Smaug turns and strides off down the hall.
"No! Wait! Please spare them!" I shout out, my panic for my son coming full force, but I am ignored.
"Here, you witless worm!" Thorin's voice suddenly calls out from another end of the hall.
Smaug stops in his tracks, snarling and squinting in anger, before he turns toward Thorin.
"You."
"I am taking back what you stole."
Smaug slowly stalks toward Thorin.
"You would take nothing from me, Dwarf. I laid low your warriors of old. I instilled terror in the hearts of men. I am King under the Mountain."
His head is level with Thorin now; who I see is standing on top of a tall stone structure. Bilbo and I watch from an adjoining hall.
"This is not your kingdom. These are dwarf lands, this is dwarf gold, and we will have our revenge."
As Thorin speaks, Smaug's chest and neck glow with fire, and Thorin slowly reaches up toward a rope above him. Just as Smaug opens his mouth, Thorin yells something in Khuzdul before he yanks on the rope, and a pin behind the stone falls out, releasing heavy wooden bands and chains that had been wrapped tightly around the stone. Smaug rears his head in confusion.
I see the other dwarves pull mightily on their chains, and more pins similar to the first are pulled out of the stone. The stone structure, which is now revealed to be the mold into which the liquid gold from earlier poured into, falls apart and reveals a massive statue of a dwarf king, made entirely out of solid gold. Thorin swings away on a rope to escape the falling rocks.
Smaug looks at the golden statue, which is even larger than him, in awe and desire. As he approaches it, his mouth opens slightly in greed. Suddenly, the gold around the statue's eyes warps and then explodes outwards into liquid; the gold in the statue had not yet fully solidified, and the entire statue collapses and explodes into burning hot liquid.
Smaug roars in anger as the statue melts, and scrabbles backward to escape the gold. However, he cannot move fast enough and the tidal wave of gold hits him and knocks him over. As he roars, he is entirely smothered and drowned in the gold, which fills the entire hall in a layer several feet deep.
"Did they do it? Did they kill him?" Bilbo asks from next to me.
I don't say anything, hoping beyond hope that he is dead, Aiden and the others will be safe. My heart drops straight into my stomach, as Smaug leaps out. He is entirely covered in gold, and he screams in anger and pain.
"Ahh! Revenge?! Revenge! I will show you REVENGE!"
As the dwarves, Bilbo and I look on in shock, Smaug runs down the hallway and takes off in flight. Running after him, I watch with wide eyes as he breaks through the great doors of Erebor.
"AIDEN!" I scream out before running towards the doors.
Running through, I see him spinning in the sky, causing the remaining gold on him to fall off in a golden shimmer. He then flies off toward Laketown.
Standing on some rocks away from Erebor, I watch in despair as he flies.
"What have we done?" Bilbo says from next to me.
What have we done indeed, Bilbo. Well, just over half of the company have managed to survive so far. . .next chapter, we'll see how the rest fair. Please send your prayers for little Aiden, the dwarves and Bard's children. Though, with Tauriel guarding them, I'm sure they'll make it through this. . .I hope. Stay tuned next week to find out and keep your reviews coming, I love hearing from you all xx
Translations;
Menno o nin na hon i eliad annen annin, hon leitho o ngurth. - May the blessing that was given to me be sent from me to him, may he be released from death.