Chapter 27: The Black Arrow

Gailien and Bofur find refuge in an old shack. There are a few farm animals that come in through the night to share the shelter as well but if anything, they provided an extra warmth (even if they stink). Bofur has expressed an idea of taking another boat out to catch up and Gailien told him that if he wanted to, he should. She isn't going to stop him from going to the mountain but told him that she must stay.

He does try to persuade her to come and eventually, Gailien knows that she has to explain to somebody before the both of them burst.

"Bofur," she sighs. They are walking through a quiet part of the town, only a few people taking the backstreets as they are. Today is Durin's day and tonight they would be entering the mountain.

"Lass," he answers.

Gailien stops walking. Bofur takes a few more steps before realising. His eyebrows raise but he doesn't make any sort of humorous comment as he may of. The glint in her eye tells him that it is not a time for jesting. "They're going to awaken, Smaug, Bof," she states simply. "They're going to awaken him and he's going to attack Lake-town."

Bofur's face contorts into a series of different expressions before he finally settles on his mouth hanging open. "I'm sorry…what? You mean you know they're going to release the dragon and we're still here?"

"I didn't get left behind, I chose to stay," she explains. "You remember the story about the Black Arrows?" Bofur nods feverishly. "Well there is one here somewhere, and my wager is that Bard knows. I don't think there was ever a possibility that we weren't going to awaken Smaug, but we have a chance to kill it. I've been trying to figure out exactly when I should go to Bard and I think I have to now."

"Shouldn't we tell the town?" Bofur asks as he follows Gailien who starts walking again.

"We need Smaug to be in range of the bow," she argues. "Which means that he needs to be attacking the town. I hate it too, and I'm going to try and give them as much warning as possible, but we will be defenceless if he attacks us on the mainland."

"Does Thorin know? Do any of them know?"

"No. I…I don't think it would have done any good."

"But are they going to survive? They're going to be in the mountain!"

Gailien pauses walking for a moment, her face grave as she stares at Bofur. "I really don't know," she answers truthfully. "But we have to think about our own lives first."

Xx

It is the mid-afternoon by the time they reach Bard's home. Bofur stands behind her as Gailien rapidly knocks on the wood of their door. He has been pestering with questions that she really doesn't know the answer to, but she tells him all she knows.

Gailien bounces her weight from foot to foot, her nerves really getting to her as the day goes on. The Dwarves are already likely at the mountain, waiting for the day to end.

After an agonising wait, the door finally opens. Bard's already stern face deepens. He shakes his head in disbelief. "I've already told you; I don't want anything more to do with you." He begins to close the door but Gailien holds it open once more.

"You won't have a choice in a few hours," she states. "Something you don't know about me is that I am a Seer, Bard. I can see glimpses into the future, and I think you'll like to hear what I have to say."

Bard's eyes narrow at her in scrutiny but he realises that there is no reason for her to lie about that. And it would make sense to why she has come with the company. "Why do you need to tell me? Surely you would be more use to your friends."

"I'm still helping them from here, but you know something that I don't and have skills that are more finely tuned than my own."

Bard thinks a little more, his teeth clicking together as he looks between the Dwarf and woman. Huffing, he opens the door further. "Come in then," he grunts.

"Actually," Gailien hesitates. "I don't think this is a conversation that you would like your children to overhear just yet." This doesn't do anything to settle the agitation in Bard's bones, but he agrees, nonetheless and steps outside, closing the door behind him. Gailien rubs her hands together, breathing deeply. "Alright, this is going to be a long explanation so just wait till the end if you have any questions."

"Alright," Bard agrees.

"As I said, I'm a Seer. A Prophet if you will. And I have foreseen the dragon awakening – ah!" She cuts him off as his mouth begins to open. "We can't stop the Dwarves. There are events happening around Middle Earth that even I don't understand just of yet, but this dragon will do more than destroy a town on the lake if he is recruited by evil. In my vision, I saw a Black Arrow and you were holding it. I know that you know the whereabouts of one and we are going to need it. Smaug is going to attack tonight and we need to be prepared. We need Smaug in range so we can't evacuate the town so we can't warn them until the last minute unless we want to be completely defenceless. The stories are true, under his left-wing there is a missing scale – a weakness in his armour."

Bofur nods once as Gailien finishes her speech. "Any questions?"

Bard's mouth hangs open in shock. He looks past them to the mountain peak. "We need to kill that dragon," he breathes.

Bofur looks to Gailien in shock. "He caught on a lot quicker than I was expecting." Gailien nods quickly, a little surprised but not at the same time. Bard rushes back inside, leaving the two standing outside until he returns.

Inside, Bard grabs the Black Arrow that he has had hidden in his roof for as long as he can remember. Gailien and Bofur enter as Bard inspects the arrow, the dust slowly falling down from the wood.

"Da? That's a Black Arrow! Why'd you never tell me?" Bain asks.

"Because you did not need to know," his father answers.

"Da, what's happening?" Sigrid questions, her hands pulling Tilda close. "Why do you need that?"

"Bofur can stay with them," Gailien offers as Bard is silent for a moment. How are you supposed to tell your children that they are going to be facing a dragon? Bard glances at Bofur sceptically but nods, nonetheless. Bofur nods also, stepping forward.

"I'll take care of them, by my life," he swears.

"Are we going to die?" Tilda gasps.

"No, darling," Bard coos to his youngest. "I need you all to stay together and keep safe."

Bain's brows scrunch together, and he steps closer to his father. "But what's happening? Does it have to do with the mountain? With the dragon?"

Gailien watches quietly as Bard debates with himself. She wouldn't want to tell them yet – actually, she would. She wants them to get as far away from here as possible but Smaug would just follow them wherever they went.

"Yes, Bain," Bard answers gravely. "Stay with your sisters and Bofur."

"And what are you going to do?!"

Bard looks at the large obsidian arrow in his hands, the sense of duty washing over him like a tidal wave. "I'm going to do what our ancestors could not. I'm going to kill that dragon."

All present know that there is no time to waste and Gailien rushes forward, hugging Bofur tightly. "Stay safe. When the dragon gets here, get the children out. I'll be with Bard."

Bofur smiles sadly. "You too, lass. Don't make me be the one to deliver terrible news to the others."

"I have every intention of staying alive."

With a final nod to each other, Bofur and Gailien parts way, the woman joining Bard's side and Bofur turns to the children, doing his best to keep them calm. Gailien and Bard march outside, her feet having to take very quick steps to keep in pace with his much longer legs.

"We need to get to the Wind-lance," she speaks aloud. She knows he is probably on the exact same track of thought, but she can't help but make sure. There is no room for mistakes, they only have a few hours until sundown then there is no telling how long Smaug will be in the mountain for until he leaves.

"That's the plan," Bard grunts. His eyes dart around the town. Gailien notes his jittery nature and glances around herself but she doesn't find anything to cause such nerves. Both hate not being able to warn the clueless people who are still going about their daily lives, but Bard knows the truth behind her words. They need Smaug in range and they cannot do that if they escape. It would be pointless. "You said something about an evil growing."

"Yes," she says between heavy breathes as they march through the maze of streets. "I don't know exactly what, but it has something to do with Mordor and the Ring of Power."

"That hasn't been seen in many years from I've heard."

"I don't doubt someone has it," she says absent-mindedly. "Or it is somewhere easily found. But unless you have something other than human blood, you won't be alive for its events."

"No, but my children or theirs may be."

"It's going to affect the entirety of Middle Earth, Bard. Everybody's children will be. There's no escaping it."

They continue storming through the town. Even though she knows they have plenty of time, her ears constantly strain to hear anything that might hint to Smaug's awakening. But they won't even be in the Mountain yet. Her head is turned to the side, looking through an alleyway when Bard's stiff-arm extends out in front of her. Her pace stumbles as Bard ushers her into the alleyway she was just looking down.

"Braga," he explains.

"I don't think he likes you," Gailien muses as she peeks out around the edge. Sure enough, Braga and his men are patrolling through the town along the path that they need to go down.

"That's an understatement," Bard mutters. "He's going to think I'm up to something if he sees me with this."

"We're going to have to sneak around then," Gailien notes, leaning back into the alleyway. "Do you know of a better way?"

Bard looks at the arrow then to Gailien. Her eyes widen as he thrusts the large arrow into her arms. "You'll be sneaking." Gailien blinks rapidly, holding the arrow close to her chest to manage its weight. "I'm going to start a goose-chase. Take it to the tower, I'll meet you there."

"What?" Gailien hisses but Bard doesn't answer, and he walks back out of the alleyway with faux confidence. Or maybe it is real confidence – she'll never know. Holding herself tight against the corner, she watches as Bard casually walks down the road, nearing Braga and his men.

Braga and his men turn their attention to Bard. Her breathing almost stops as they talk, the words not reaching even her ears, but she can see Bard's feet shift slightly. One moment he is standing there, and then he is sprinting. Braga cries out, ordering his men to follow Bard who leads them away from Gailien's path.

She checks down the road for any other guards but there are none. Quietly she moves out of her hiding spot. The Black Arrow is almost twice as long as she is, the metal a heavy weight against her small frame. It is cold against her hands and she has to move it around a few times to keep it from dragging along the ground. Maybe it would have been better is she provided the distraction.

Her head constantly snaps over her shoulder as she runs, her breath fogging in front of her as her body warms from the movement. The tower is well in sight now, only a few more blocks of buildings standing in her way. There is no telling what has happened to Bard but she hopes that he will meet her as she said. They only have one shot and there is no way she could take it.

Her ears hear the sound of guard's orders being yelled from behind her. She turns around, falling back to a fast walk as she slowly tries to fall back into the shadows. But the guards do not come for her from behind.

Gailien slowly turns back around just as at the end of her road, another section of the Master's guards turns down her road. "There she is!"

Gailien curses loudly. With her secrecy gone Gailien moves back into the middle of the road where she has the most room for the arrow in her arms. She begins sprinting back the way she came. She rounds the corner but there are more men waiting for her. Her feet skid across the ground and she starts sprinting back the original way.

There has to be some sort of way out. Maybe she could use the boats and cross the lake to her right. But the arrow is going to weigh her down even more. And she will not outrun them with speed alone.

The two sections of guards close in on her from bother directions and she is forced to stop in the middle. A heavy force knocks into her side and Gailien is knocked to the ground. The arrow rolls out of her arms along the road. Her arms stretch out, clawing to it as her stomach scraps against the ground. But the arrows doesn't stop rolling. It rolls and rolls until one end suddenly tips upwards and it slides down, sinking into the water.

"No."

Another heavy force hit her again, this time sharper and direct. A sword hilt smashes against the back of her head, jutting it forward and the front of her head smacks against the ground, knocking her out completely.

Xx

A heavy, unladylike groan vibrates through her throat. Her head pounds, every heartbeat causing a new string of blood to push against her skull. Her eyes squint open with the expectation of being met with bright light but instead, they are met with a roof.

The pounding doesn't go away but Gailien pushes herself up, slowly looking around. She is in a small room, three thick walls of wood, and one of metal bars. She's been thrown in a cell. But that isn't what scares her the most.

No. What terrifies her is that there is one window on the outer wall, and instead of sunlight streaming through, the moon has replaced it. And the Black Arrow is at the bottom of the lake. Her hands grip the bars on the window, looking out into the town. But there is no fire, no screaming. The dragon has not yet been woken.

A deeper groan comes from behind her and Gailien moves away from the window towards the man on the floor. Bard's eyes slowly peel open, not feeling any better than the woman who stands over him. "Where's the Arrow?" he croaks.

"It won't be found by them," she answers. She holds her hand out with a blank face, and Bard takes it and pulls himself to his feet. "Do you know how to get out of these cells?"

"I've never been in them before."

Gailien eyes the size of the bars with doubt, but there is no harm in trying. Bard watches as she turns her body to the side, poking her shoulder through. But that is as far as she gets. She may be of thinner frame, but not so much as to slip through them. "Worth a shot," she mutters, silently cursing the extra helpings she had this past week. She looks down at herself – if only she had been born a male…

Then they hear it. The first sound that the dragon has made in sixty years, for all of Lake-town to hear. "Curse those Dwarves!" Bard cries. He kicks at the metal bars, but it does nothing. "Let us out of here!"

For two whole hours the two kick, scream, threaten and plan their way out of the cell. But the guards in the room nearby pay them no heed, no matter the warnings she sends them. And there is no escaping through the window unless they find a heavy weight to pull the entire thing away.

The dragon is coming, and there is no stopping it and they will certainly perish if they do not find a way out of this forsaken cell. Gailien presses her face against the window bars, looking out at the mountain. She cannot see or even hear anything but there is no doubt about the activity going on inside it.

Then a flash of blonde hair shows in the corner of her vision. "Legolas?" Gailien whispers, then realises that her sight does not betray her. "Legolas!" She strains her voice to be heard but it is done so with success. Legolas' head snaps towards her and his graceful sprint across the town halts. She breathes hard as he stands there for a moment.

Legolas looks to the orcs that he is chasing, then back to Gailien's face behind the metal bars. He is no fool, he heard the dragon's cry. His feet point either way, not yet with a decision made but his guilt wins out. With a grunt of frustration, his direction changes and he runs towards the building that Gailien is being held in.

Gailien can hardly believe it. She watches him until he disappears underneath the cell which seems to be overhanging the water. Her feet swivel and she runs to the front cell door. "Who were you calling to?" Bard questions.

"Hopefully someone that can get us out of here," she answers. Her heart thuds against her chest, her head moving back and forth slightly as she waits for any sign of her old friend. There is nothing for a good minute of so but then she hears his voice.

"You will let your prisoner go, by order of the Prince of Mirkwood."

"Prince of Mirkwood?" One of the guards huff. "We take our orders from the Master, blondie."

Gailien pokes her face through as much as she can to see into the other room but they have partially closed the door and she can only see three of the guards standing there. Bard soon joins her. One of them is pulled forward and she can hear the sound of a quick scuffle. The two remaining guards jump back, there hands rising in surrender.

"I would like the keys, if you will."

The guards don't say anything more, but one reaches down to their waist, pulling the ring of keys off and holds them out. They are snatched out of his hands and Gailien's smile grows as Legolas kicks the door open. He scans the keys, pulling one out in particular and shoves it into the lock. There is a satisfying click and the prince pulls the door open.

Gailien runs out first, engulfing him in a tight hug. "Thank you."

Legolas swallows, not one for physical affection but slowly his arms wind around her shoulders. "You could escape Mirkwood's cells but not these?" he taunts. Bard and Legolas share a stiff glance at one another. Gailien scoffs, pulling her arms back.

"Yes, you should work on your security." She shakes her head. "We don't have time for this. But I'm sorry, for leaving and for how we met again. I don't wish to be anything other than your friend."

"Then it seems we have the same intentions," Legolas answers. "You should leave, the Dwarves have awoken Smaug."

Not wanting to argue, especially at a time like this, Gailien nods, sending Bard a quick glance. "We are. And thanks to you we can. Once again, I owe you my life," she says with complete truth. "What are you even doing in Esgorath?"

"Chasing that Orc party that has been on your tail."

"I would thank you, but I don't think you're doing it for my benefit," she snorts.

"It is more than for you, than you think. And I hope to see you again after this, mellon." He gives her an Elvish farewell, nodding once to Bard before he sprints off just as fast as he came – he still has orcs to catch up to after all.

Gailien turns around to Bard. "I know where the arrow is, I'll meet you at the Wind-lance."

They run outside, straight past the guards who don't bother trying to apprehend them. Bard takes his own path, already knowing his destination but Gailien is facing a lack of orientation. She takes the right, having a somewhat idea of the town's layout. If she is right, then the place she was captured should only be about ten blocks away.

Her arms pump against her side as she runs, her head aching with each step. The people are still going about their day, carrying their groceries, gossiping. Though they had a little stint in their plan, things look like they might just turn out alright. As long as she can find this arrow.

But as she runs, the people around her begin to talk loudly, pointing up to the sky. Gailien spares those people a few glances as she runs but after it happens the fifth time, she turns around to see what just has their attention.

Her stomach drops and dread trickles through her – teasing her with how slow and agonising it is. In the night sky, there is a large shape gliding towards the town. Its chest glows orange. This is her first-ever time seeing such a beast and she will be glad to never again. The people begin to scream as they realise.

Gailien turns back around, her feet slapping the ground harder than they ever have before. People run around her, screaming and crying but she cannot waste energy on trying to understand them.

Because the only thing able to put an end to this, is sitting somewhere below meters of freezing water, and she is the only person that can find it.

Alright, that's a wrap for Part 2 - Part 3 coming tomorrow as per usual. I'm honestly a little proud of myself for writing so much when I think I start writing in June. I also just want to say thank you again to all the comments and reviews you guys leave - I usually wake up to them so it is always a beautiful way to start my day and I have never felt so encouraged to continue writing.