A.N. Well, it's NaNoWriMo here in the US (National Novel Writing Month), and a part of me wants to do it, but I also want to keep up with the stories I'm posting here, especially since I've been so bad about updating. Besides that, I don't even have any ideas flushed out enough to start a novel. Guess I'll try again next year. Anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter!
Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and plot points.
Part way down, Danica realized that she had no idea where she was going. She had just sprinted toward where she had seen Bilbo run, and then followed any light that came up. The further down she went, the stronger the smell of sulfur became. When it became so strong she nearly gagged, she stopped breathing through her nose. That only helped a little, as the air was so thick, she could practically taste it. Adrenaline was all that kept her moving.
A sudden roar, and blast of heat had her spinning into a wall to protect her face. So intense was the heat, that she could feel it searing through her clothes. Once it abated, she breathed Bilbo's name, and began running in panic, only to barrel into something, and go crashing to the floor. She heard someone else grunt as well, and felt a stone slide against her arm.
"Danica! What are you doing here?!" Bilbo reappeared, and shuffled over to her.
"I came for you," she rasped when she got her breath back. "You dropped this, by the way,"
He completely froze, staring at the Arkenstone in her hand. She wanted to yell at him to grab it and hide it, but by the time he reached his hand out, it was too late.
"You found it," Thorin's tone was reverent, and he stared with barely concealed obsession. "Give it to me,"
Just as Bilbo had, Thorin held out his hand. Bilbo took the stone, but didn't otherwise move. Tensions rose, and Thorin's eyes darkened.
"You would steal from me as well, Master Burglar?" the voice was not his own. It was dark, and dangerous.
"He should keep it for now," Danica spoke quickly, grasping for a believable excuse. "After all, he has his ring. If need be, he can become invisible, and escape,"
Thorin's eyes never left Bilbo. "Hand it over. That is the king's jewel. It belongs to me,"
"You are not yourself," Bilbo stood his ground. "The dragon is coming, and we are not safe here,"
"No one leaves until that stone is in my hand," voice raising, thorin slightly lifted his sword.
"Thorin!" Danica gasped, appalled. His eyes slid to her, but she witnessed no real change or recognition in them. She meant to say more, but the ground rumbled beneath her feet.
All three of them looked to the end of the hall, where Smaug made himself known. He squinted his eyes, and a deep, growling sound rose from his chest.
"Run!" Danica yelled, struggling to get to her feet.
To her relief, Bilbo disappeared from view. Finally gaining traction, she shot to her feet, but was a moment too slow. Even as Thorin took her hand, and yanked her around the corner, she felt her left arm explode in heat and pain. Thorin practically had to fling her into his arms when her knees buckled from the pain. Boiling hot tea was nothing compared to this. Every nerve ending in her body screamed from the fire. Though she tried to keep from screaming herself, the pained cries forced their way through her lips.
"Hold on, Ibinê," Thorin pleaded. "Mahal, I am so sorry,"
She couldn't respond with anything other than a deep groan, keeping her eyes squeezed shut against the pain. Burns had always been the worst type of wound for her. Aching and stabbing pains ebbed and flowed, but burns never ceased in their agony.
"Oin, please," the absolute desperation in Thorin's voice was like nothing Danica had heard before.
"I can temporarily ease the pain, but we'll need to peel her clothes off before I can fully treat her,"
Danica was only somewhat aware of her feet touching the ground as Thorin knelt.
"Do what you must," he said. "Bilbo! If you are here, I need your help,"
Something cold splashed down Danica's arm and side, causing her to write, and cry out. Once that subsided, a soft tingling sensation slowly made its way across her skin. It had a slight numbing effect, for which she was grateful. Estellia's wings blew a soft breeze across the burn as she landed beside Danica's head.
"Bilbo, I swear that I have no interest in that stone. Only helping my wife,"
Able to open her eyes, she peeked out, and saw Bilbo, brow deeply furrowed. Someone had lit a torch, as the moonlight was not much to see by.
"What can I do?" the hobbit bore a grim countenance, his shoulders set with determination.
"I am sorry to send you into danger again, but there is only one plant that can give her relief, and it grows within this mountain. Balin, do you remember?"
"Aye. I'll lead him as far as I can. Hopefully the crop hasn't died,"
Both Balin and Bilbo looked down at Danica.
"Hang in there Dani," Bilbo said, then took off with Balin.
"Isn't there something else you can give her?" Fili asked Oin when Danica let out a whimper, cringing into Thorin's chest.
There was no audible response, but there was the sound of jars clinking. A moment later, Oin rested a hand on Danica's injured leg.
"This will not taste good, Lass, but it will give your body some rest,"
She reached out to grab the little jar, only then realizing how badly her body had begun shaking. Shock. Thorin took it instead, and helped her drink the contents. For a moment, the bitter, milky substance distracted her from the pain. It took a couple of tries to get it past her gag reflex, and then it almost came back up. Twice. Once down, its effects were immediate. Her eyes dropped, and her brain grew fuzzy.
"Please forgive me, Ibinê,"
Her mouth tried to form words, but her tongue was too heavy.
'Just relax. I'll help you sleep, and when you wake, things will be better,'
Somehow, she would have to remember to thank Estellia, and let Thorin know that she held nothing against him. Peaceful darkness took over then, and she knew no more.
"What happened?" Kili demanded after Thorin set Danica to lay on the ground. "Did you find her too late?"
How could he answer? He had a hard enough time accepting his failure. How could he speak it aloud? Everyone had their eyes on him, waiting for an explanation. Only two pairs seemed to have somewhat of an idea.
"It was the stone, wasn't it?" Fili's voice was low, edged with disappointment and fear. Thorin could only nod. "Bilbo found it, and you were so focused on getting it, you left Danica in harm's way,"
"Easy lad," Dwalin warned at the note of disgust in Fili's accusation.
"No, he's right," Thorin looked down at Danica, taking a breath to steel himself against the emotions threatening to drown him. "I had hoped that I would prevail against the sickness in my blood, but the moment I saw the Arkenstone, and gold beyond the hall, everything else faded. It wasn't until I saw Danica in danger that my mind cleared. By then, it was too late to keep her from the fire. Because of my weakness, she could carry scars for the rest of her life,"
Everyone was quiet, occasionally wincing when Oin cut and peeled away charred clothing. There was enough left to preserve her modesty, but the burns on her left arm and shoulder were extensive. It was a miracle her hair hadn't caught on fire as well. Estellia stood beside her, gaze mournful. Thorin wondered if there was anything the guardian could do, but didn't want a repeat of her earlier death.
"What's done is done," Dwalin declared. "I can see that the treasure's influence no longer has hold of ye, so let's make Smaug pay for what he has done,"
Fili, Kili, and a few of the others moved closer, weapons in hand. Letting go of the guilt, Thorin allowed his anger to rise to the energy of his kin. He gave a grim smile, and clapped Dwalin on the shoulder.
"We will show him that Durin's folk never forgive, and never forget,"
Grabbing Orcrist, he led the way out, and was strengthened when he felt Estellia's claws on his shoulder.
'She will be fine,'
Thorin started a little at the voice in his mind. 'Did you help her?'
'Only a little,' Estellia sighed. 'I allowed her a deeper sleep, so she will feel no pain. She is strong though, and the burns are not as severe as they could have been,'
'Thank Durin for that,'
'Do you still feel the sickness within you?'
He pressed his lips together, frowning. 'I wish I could say no. The treasure still calls to me, creating a terrible lust within. Thinking of Danica keeps it at bay, and reveals it for what it is; sickness,' but he hated himself for the weakness of even struggling. 'I know that without Danica, I would have already fallen victim, the same as my father, and grandfather,'
'You are not them,' Estellia said firmly. 'Danica would not have fallen in love with you otherwise,'
It was true. Both of them would never have negotiated with Thranduil, or even allowed the Company to stop in Rivendell. He doubted they would have let Danica join the quest in the first place.
"What is the plan?" Kili asked quietly.
"There is a mining cavern behind the forges," Thorin began, "above which hangs a pully system. Hooks should still be attached to the chain. We lead him to the forges, and while a couple of us distract him, the others will drop a collar of that chain around his neck, and hang him over the cavern. The hooks will catch in his scales, making it that much more difficult to free himself. Once he's trapped, we can use bows to render his wings useless. Only once he is crippled beyond doubt do we drop him into the abyss,"
"A lot can go wrong," Dwalin pointed out. "Those chains are very old, and haven't been tended to in over a century,"
"All we can do is try," Kili retorted.
Much to Thorin's dread, both of his nephews volunteered to climb the pully systems, and prepare the collar. After dropping it, they would jump to one of the other systems, moving down to safety. Once they got to the forges, Thorin had Ori and Nori grab as many bows and arrows as they could from the armory. To his surprise, they also brought back spears to throw, hoping they would be enough to maybe find a weak spot in the dragon's scales, or do further damage to his wings. It was nothing more than a fool's hope, but Thorin wasn't about to dash it. The mountain suddenly shook again, alerting them to Smaug's coming.
"Maybe we won't have to lure him here," Nori muttered nervously, looking at the large metal gate of the forge as if it were made of paper. "Seems as though he is already on his way,"
"He is," Bilbo breathed, appearing out of thin air. "We ran into him after retrieving the plant. In order for Balin to make it to Dani, I taunted Smaug, making him angry enough to follow me. I went invisible, but I'm sure he will be here soon,"
Letting a breath out through his nose, Thorin nodded. "Thank you, Bilbo,"
"We're ready," Fili called down.
Dwalin cracked his neck ferociously, the sound reverberating off the walls. "Let's do this,"
Heavy footsteps came first, loosening decades' old dust, and loose stones. The ground beneath them felt more and more unsteady as each footstep got closer.
"Make him think we're working on something else," Thorin whispered, leading the way to a few mechanical hammers.
"Well, well," a deep, gravelly voice teased. "Like rats to rotten flesh. You think you stand a chance against me? You think your insignificant minds are a match for my cunning?" Smaug chuckled, slithering into view beyond the gate. As if playing a game, he sent a few streams of flame after them, laughing more when they scrambled for cover. "You are nothing compared to my ancient power and might. King Thror could not defeat me with all his influence and wealth. What chance do you think you stand, dwarf welp? You, who has nothing. A greater disappointment to your ancestors there has never been,"
Again, Smaug sent fire, his dark, malicious laugh vibrating within their very bones. Thorin's jaw clenched painfully, and he drew Orcrist. The sword hummed, as if it, too thirsted for dragon blood.
'Keep your wits,' Estellia warned. 'He is doing this to draw you in, so you will be easy prey. Play his game, but remember your own,'
Easier said than done, Thorin thought with a growl. But when he looked above the gate, he saw Estellia perched and waiting to ambush.
"You speak of greater ancestors, and yet, despite your proud speech, you are the least of all recorded dragons," forcing himself to calm, Thorin leaned casually against one of the giant forges. Smaug's lips curled, but Thorin had only just begun. "After all, one of your predecessors was the size of a mountain, was he not? That is what the tales say. Here you sit inside of one, likely the size of one of his droppings. Perhaps all of your threats and boasts are nothing more than compensation. Strange, since such size occupation has only been seen in insecure men,"
With a scream of fury, Smaug unleashed a wall of flame, which had everyone sprinting behind walls and machines. A quick look from behind his own forge showed Thorin that everyone was alright. Miraculously, Fili and Kili had managed to avoid being burnt. A deafening bang came next, followed by the high-pitched groan of bending metal. Smaug was now loose in the forge. Primal fear had every nerve in Thorin on high alert, but a lifetime of battles and training kept him calm and in control. Estellia waited until Smaug neared Fili and Kili before launching her own attack. Talons out, she went for the eyes. Howling, Smaug swiped at her, stumbling, and sending fire everywhere. Fili and Kili couldn't avoid harm for much longer.
"Now!" Thorin called.
His nephews tossed the hooked chain over Smaug's head. Whether from skill or lucky, it was a perfect shot. Smaug thrashed to and fro, but Thorin and the others were already pulling on the chain that would drag him over the edge. Thorin expected the dragon to keep blasting fire at them, but it never came. Instead, Smaug turned his attention to the chain above him. As Thorin watched, the metal quickly began glowing.
"Stop him!" not knowing if anyone would really be able to help, Thorin left the others, and picked up a bow and some arrows. At the same time, Estellia renewed her attack. Both efforts were futile.
Smaug reached the cavern, but instead of hanging in a vulnerable position, the chain holding him snapped under his weight. With a great gust of wind from his wings, Smaug floated above the abyss, then flew over his would-be captors.
"Watch now as I show you how great my power is," he boomed. "When I have finished with the inhabitants of Laketown, you will be next to taste death!"
The silence that followed his departure was heavy, and unsettling.
"No," Thorin breathed, but then roared, "NO!"