Hey, everybody. Back with another chapter.
Let's get to it.
Chapter 24- Battle is Joined
The sun is slowly rising over the lands of Dale and Erebor. However, it does not rise on a peaceful land. Spread out before the Gates of Erebor is Thranduil's army of 10,000 Wood Elves, all arrayed in perfect formations. Mixed in about halfway through is half of the 3000 Men of Lake-Town that have been enlisted to serve as the militia.
Mixed in among the front ranks of the Elves are Steve and Bucky, trying to stay hidden among the Elves, waiting to see how the events they know are planned will play out.
Standing atop the barrier that has been erected in place of the Gate are those of the Company who have been in Erebor. This includes T'Challa, though he is doing so reluctantly, and mostly trying to stay off to the side to try and make it seem he's not totally behind Thorin's choices. He has noticed Steve and Bucky, and exchanged several looks with them, but mostly seems to not be looking at them.
From behind them, Steve and Bucky can hear the sound of the Elves moving. Glancing back, they see Thranduil and Bard riding through the ranks of the Elves towards the Gate. Riding through the front ranks, they continue onto the path leading up the moat outside the Gate. Thorin, not the slightest bit intimidated, decides to try and intimidate his perceived enemies, and raises a bow, shooting an arrow towards the two that hits the ground right in front of Thranduil's elk. Both Thranduil and Bard halt their rides, and Thranduil glances down at the arrow before looking back up at Thorin.
Throin glares down at Thranduil as he draws back another arrow and calls out to his opposite, "I will put the next one between your eyes." The other Dwarves on top of the barrier cheer and jeer at the Elves in response to Thorin's words.
Thranduil looks up at Thorin, then slightly bows his head. At that signal, hundreds of Elves behind Thranduil pull out their bows, draw arrows, and aim their arrows at the Dwarves. The Dwarves instantly duck down, except for Thorin, who doesn't move an inch. After a few moments to drive the point home, Thranduil raises a finger, and the Elves lower their bows and put their arrows away. While it may seem to some like Thranduil backing down, both Steve and Bucky know that it is the agreed upon start of their planned attempt to get Thorin to back down.
"We have come to tell you that payment of your debt has been offered and accepted," Thranduil informs Thorin calmly.
Thorin looks at Thranduil, confused as to what Thranduil is talking about. "What payment? I gave you nothing. You have nothing," Thorin responds to Thranduil's statement, trying to maintain his sense of superiority in the situation.
Thranduil looks back at Thorin for a split second, then looks over at Bard to signal him to make the next move. Bard obeys, reaching into the coat he is wearing over his chain mail and pulling out the Arkenstone, which he lifts up into view and declares, "We have this."
Thorin's eyes widen in shock, and he slowly lets the bow in his hands lower as his shock magnifies with every second. Beside him, Kili mutters, "They have the Arkenstone." Then, moving to yelling so he can be heard, "Thieves! How came you by the heirloom of our house? That stone belongs to the king!"
Bard smiles slightly as he says, "And the king may have it. With our goodwill." As he finishes, he tosses the Arkenstone up and then catches it, before slipping the Arkenstone back into his coat. Seeing the Arkenstone disappear from sight makes Thorin's heart fill with anger. Bard, after putting the Arkenstone away and waiting a few seconds, looks up at Thorin and declares firmly, "But first…he must honor his word!"
Thorin is silent for a moment, then mutters to his followers, "They are taking us for fools. This is a ruse. A filthy lie!" Then, he shouts to Bard and Thranduil, "The Arkenstone is in this mountain! It is a trick!"
"I-it's no trick."
The sound of that familiar voice makes Thorin and the rest of the Dwarves freeze. From beside T'Challa, Bilbo takes a few steps towards Thorin as he says, "The stone is real. I gave it to them."
Down on the ground, Thranduil and Bard look at Bilbo with worry, not having realized that Bilbo had left Dale and returned to the Mountain, and worrying what Thorin might do to Bilbo in his anger. This worry is only amplified in Steve and Bucky, who now fear for their young Hobbit friend.
"You?" Thorin finally asks in disbelief.
"I took it as my fourteenth share," Bilbo explains calmly after a second.
"You would steal from me?" Thorin demands, still in shock at this betrayal.
"Steal from you?" Bilbo asks indignantly before saying in defense, "No. I may be a burglar, but I like to think I'm an honest one." He smiles ever so slightly, pauses for a second, then finishes his rationale, "I'm willing to let it stand against my claim."
"Against your claim? Your claim?" Thorin asks mockingly, before starting to shout, "You have no claim over me your miserable rat!"
Bilbo takes a step backward, then says, "I wanted to give it to you. Many times, I wanted to, but-"
"But what, thief?" Thorin demands with malice in his voice.
"You are changed, Thorin," Bilbo shoots back at the king, now determined to not only stand up for himself, but also for the Thorin he knows, "The dwarf I met in Bag End would never have gone back on his word! Would never have doubted the loyalty of his kin!"
"Do not speak to me of loyalty!" Thorin snarls at Bilbo before he looks around at the rest of the Dwarves and orders, "Throw him from the rampart!"
None of the Dwarves move an inch to carry out Thorin's order. Since first meeting him, the Dwarves had come to regard Bilbo as one of their own. To them, he is as good as one of their kin, and after all he had done for them, killing him would destroy their honor beyond repair, and unlike Thorin, they still care about their honor.
Thorin looks around, then grabs at Fili as he shouts, "Did you not hear me?" However, Fili pulls out of Thorin's grip, looking pleadingly at his uncle.
Thorin whips back around to face Bilbo, then declares, "I will do it myself!" as he lunges for the Hobbit. However, right as he is about to grab Bilbo, he finds his wrist in a firm grip. Looking up, he sees T'Challa glaring at him fiercely before he shoves Thorin back.
"You touch him, I kill you," T'Challa says angrily, glaring at the dwarf he's become good friends with over the last few months.
"Not if I kill you!" Thorin bellows, drawing his sword. However, before he can do anything, T'Challa raises his foot and kicks Thorin onto his back. He stands above Thorin and lets out his claws, his anger swelling as he readies himself to attack the Dwarf king.
"ENOUGH!"
Everyone on the field and on the rampart freezes and looks in the direction of the voice, and sees Gandalf striding out of the midst of the Elves. Following a few feet behind him are Steve and Bucky, feeling its time to show themselves. As he sees Gandalf and his two fellow Avengers, T'Challa feels his anger subsided and some shame rise for allowing himself to get so angry.
"If you don't like my burglar or the Black Panther, then let them go, or we are all doomed!" Gandalf bellows to Thorin.
Thorin glares at T'Challa before he snarls, "Get out of my kingdom!"
T'Challa stares silently back at Thorin for a moment before turning back to Bilbo and saying, "Let's go." Bilbo nods and hurries to a rope that he throws over the side to climb down, as T'Challa just leaps over the side and lands on a boulder in the moat.
As T'Challa and Bilbo leave the rampart, Thorin regains his feet. Looking over the edge, he bellows, "Never again will I have dealings with wizards, or Shire-rats! And no one called an Avenger is welcome in Erebor!" Steve and Bucky feel a pang of sorrow to see how far Thorin has fallen, but maintain their calm facade.
"Are we resolved? The return of the Arkenstone for what was promised?" Bard asks, trying to prod Thorin a little bit more.
Thorin begins to pace, looking every so often to the hill to the east. After a few moments, hoping to further twist the knife into Thorin to get him to give in, Thranduil turns to Bard and says, "Keep the stone. Sell it. Ecthelion of Gondor will give you a good price for it. Or, perhaps, King T'Challa will give you a hefty amount of vibranium in exchange for it."
This just seems to anger Thorin. "I will kill you! By my oath, I will kill you all!"
"Your oaths mean nothing!" Thranduil shoots back at Thorin.
As this is happening, T'Challa has returned to his two friends. Steve and Bucky welcome him back with a clap on the shoulder. "Good to have you back, T'Challa," Bucky says. T'Challa just responds with a nod.
"Are you alright?" Steve asks in concern.
"I believe so. Thorin and I have clashed many times, and it has begun to wear on me. Furthermore, I fear the dragon sickness that lies over this place is affecting me," he says. Both Steve and Bucky feel a bit worried, but see that T'Challa seems mostly alright, and decide to trust that he's fine.
Steve now decides to step into the effort. "Are your friends so easily cast aside?! Is this treasure truly worth more than your honor and your people, Thorin?" he shouts up to Thorin.
Thorin bows his head slightly, not looking at anyone, his mind racing over the situation. Bard, hoping to get Thorin to tip over the edge to them, calls out, "Give us your answer. Will you have peace or war?"
Thorin keeps looking down, now feeling frustrated and disappointed, and perhaps that it might be worth it after all. Then, a raven flies down and lands on the rampart before Thorin with a loud caw before looking very intently at Thorin. As he sees the raven looking at him, Thorin's heart swells with hope and dark satisfaction. Slowly, he turns his head towards the hill just to the east and says, in a voice low enough only those Dwarves on the rampart close to him can hear him, "I will have war."
Within seconds of those words leaving Thorin's mouth, a clanking of bootsteps begins to be heard as a dark line of figures appears on the top of the hill. It quickly resolves into an army of armored warriors, marching over the hill and down it towards the armies gathered before the Gates of Erebor.
The Dwarves of the Iron Hills have arrived.
The Dwarves of the company cheer loudly as they see their kin appear. The army has marched nonstop since receiving Thorin's message. Now, 6,500 of the Iron Hills' best infantry and 500 cavalry mounted on goats are ready to assist their kin.
Thranduil reacts quickly, not about to let the Dwarves of the Iron Hills stand between him and his goal. "Ribo i thangail!" he shouts as he reigns his elk around and rides towards the newcomers. Immediately, the Elves do a right face and begin marching towards the Dwarves to prepare a defense against them.
The Dwarves start to slow up as they move down the hill, but their leader does not. Beside Gandalf, who is walking towards the Dwarves, the three Avengers see that their leader is a Dwarf wearing slightly different armor and mounted on a massive pig.
"Who is that? He doesn't look very happy," Bilbo asks Gandalf.
"It is Dain, Lord of the Iron Hills. Thorin's cousin," Gandalf replies. The three Avengers sigh upon hearing this, having heard of Dain during their travels with the Company, and already knowing that Dain can be a bit hotheaded.
Bilbo knows nothing about Dain. Seeking to understand a bit about him, he asks Gandalf, "Are they alike?"
Gandalf is quiet for a moment as he stops, then mutters, "I've always found Thorin the more reasonable of the two."
Dain rides his massive pig onto a small rocky outcropping that overlooks the Elves and Lake-Men. As he does, he begins to speak in his customary coarse, arrogant, and blunt tone, "Good morning. How are we all?" He pauses, then asks, "I have a wee proposition if you wouldn't mind giving me a few moments of your time. Would you consider…just sodding off?! All of you, right now!"
The Lake-Men begin to shuffle backwards a bit at Dain's loud threat. Bard, however, is intimidated by Dain, and calls out, "Stand fast!"
"Come now, Lord Dain!" Gandalf shouts as he walks out of the midst of the army, trying to get Dain's attention.
He succeeds. Dain immediately notices Gandalf. "Gandalf the Grey," he acknowledges Gandalf. As Gandalf gives a respectful bow, Dain says almost snidely, "Tell this rabble to leave, or I'll water the ground with their blood!"
Gandalf raises his head and stares down Dain, hoping that unlike Thorin, Dain might be convinced of the truth. "There is no need for war between Dwarves, Men, and Elves. A legion of Orcs march on the Mountain, led by a terrible foe! Stand your army down! We must unite!"
Dain, however, with his famous stubbornness, is not having it. "I will not stand down before any Elf! Least not this faithless Woodland sprite!" he replies angrily, pointing his hammer at Thranduil to specify the subject of his anger before adding, "He wishes nothing but ill upon my people. If he wishes to stand between me and my kin, I'll split his pretty head open! See if he's still smirking then!"
As Dain is ranting, Thranduil is watching Dain with contempt, a contemptuous smirk on his face. Thorin refusing to give in and Dain's rant has only reinforced his opinion of Dwarves, and that their deaths would not be something to lose sleep over.
"He's clearly mad, like his cousin," Thranduil dismisses Dain's threat.
Dain takes that statement as a declaration of war. "You hear that, lads? We're on! Let's give these bastards a good hammering!" he shouts back to his army.
Dain's second in command is his son, Thorin Stonehelm. Stonehelm is the operational commander of the army, responsible for seeing Dain's orders are carried out. As he hears his father's shout, he shouts several orders in Khuzdul. The Dwarves begin to form into a phalanx, ready to charge, as the cavalry prepares to charge and the Dwarves manning engines of war prep their weapons. At the same time, the Elves prepare to meet the Dwarves, the archers withdrawing behind a forming shield wall and preparing to fire their arrows.
Dain raises his war hammer to signal the attack. Stonehelm begins to shout orders to charge, but as he does, his voice is quickly drowned out by a different sound. A deep rumbling, sounding as if it's coming from underground. That sound is soon also mixed in with the sounds of some kind of creature. Everyone on the battlefield freezes, their attention drawn towards the sounds they are hearing. Gandalf, who is just as fearful of the sound, correctly recognizes the sounds.
"Were-worms!"
Seconds later, the earth erupts upwards in five places in the hills to the south-east, not far from Dale. The were-worms, an ancient creation of evil, resemble massive rainworms that are about a tenth of a mile long and over fifty feet wide. Their signature ability is the ability to burrow through virtually any surface. Sauron had managed to conscript five to create tunnels for his forces to use to get to the Lonely Mountain. As the were-worms finish eating through the earth, they retreat back into the tunnels, their job done. Now, it is time for their leaders to step into action.
Under cover of darkness the previous night, Schmidt and Azog had made their way to the ruined fortress on Ravenhill, where they had set up a command post, as well as a massive horn and signal pole to use to signal their forces different commands. Now, Azog bellows in Black Speech, "Now! Come forth my armies!"
An Orc blows the horn, the sound echoing through the entire valley as the Orcs working the signal pole arrange the pole properly. At the sound of the horn, thousands of orcs begin to pour out of the tunnels, shouting war cries as their bootsteps echo through the valley.
Shock echoes through the valley, followed by fear. The arrival of the armies of Dol Guldur has thrown the entire situation into chaos.
Dain is the first to recover from the shock of the arrival of Sauron's forces. "The hordes of hell are upon us! To battle! To battle, sons of Durin!" The Dwarves of the Iron Hills begin to shout their war cries as they begin to charge down the valley to meet the armies of Sauron, while the cavalry on their goats charge along the mountains to attack them from a different direction, except for those pulling war chariots.
Dain and his infantry are quickly in the valley between the Elves and the Orcs. Upon Stonehelm's shouted orders, the Dwarves begin forming a massive shield wall in the path of the Orcs, their spears sticking out of the gaps in their shield wall.
However, even as the Dwarves are preparing to defend themselves, the Elves are completely motionless, not moving to help the Dwarves. Bilbo notices this, and asks, "The Elves. Will they not help?"
Gandalf agrees with Bilbo. He turns in the direction of Thranduil and shouts, "Thranduil this is madness!" Thranduil just looks in the direction of the charging Orcs, torn on what to do.
The Dwarves prepare to stand against the Orcs as the Orcs close in. Then, a massive volley of arrows flies over them and cuts down over a hundred orcs as, simultaneously, several hundred Elves leap over the Dwarves' shield wall, slashing through the Orcs charging at the Dwarves, scything through the Orcs like a sickle through wheat.
Stonehelm grins as he sees the advantage that the Elves have given him. Stonehelm shouts an order to charge. The Dwarves break their shield wall and form into a phalanx before they charge into the Orcs, their spears killing every orc in their path.
Steve looks at Bucky and T'Challa, then says, "Bucky, stay with the Lake-Men. T'Challa, let's help the Elves and Dwarves."
T'Challa nods in response. He raises his hands a bit and lets out his claws as Steve deploys his gauntlets, and the two start running through the ranks of the Elves, charging towards the battle as it begins to unfold. As they run, the Elves watch in amazement at their incredible speed.
Finally, the two reach the front lines. Leaping over a phalanx of Dwarves, Steve comes down on a pair of Orcs and drives a gauntlet through each Orc's head, while T'Challa tackles an orc to the ground and slashes open it throat. The two Avengers then begin their attack, punching and slashing their way through everything in their path.
Atop Ravenhill, Schmidt pulls out a telescope he had crafted while in Dol Guldur. As he looks down at the battle, he smiles as he sees Steve and T'Challa assisting the Dwarves and Elves. "Good. We have drawn out Rogers and the Wakandan. Now, we must keep them busy," he mutters. He then turns to Azog and orders, "Send in the trolls."
Azog nods before bellowing, "Send in the war beasts!" The horn is blown as the signal pole is re-arranged. At that signal, the trolls that had been held in reserve make their way forward. Some are armored and armed with massive hammers, while others have spiked balls on chains attached to their wrists and chains implanted in their eyes, with an Orc on their back using the chains to guide them.
Steve and T'Challa turn towards the trolls as they hear the sounds of them crashing into the lines of the Elves and Dwarves. Steve reacts quickly and says, "We've got to hold them off, or they'll crush our allies! Let's take 'em!" He starts sprinting towards the trolls, T'Challa following close behind.
Steve reaches the trolls first. One troll sees him approaching and roars angrily, swinging his hammer up. Steve jumps aside to avoid the blow, then leaps up and punches the troll in the face. As the troll falls onto its back, Steve picks up a spear from a fallen orc, leaps up, and drives the spear into its eye.
As Steve kills the troll, T'Challa sprints towards another. The troll tries to swing its hammer down at him, but T'Challa jumps up, then runs up the troll's arm, swings around his neck and slashing open its throat before jumping off the troll as it falls down dead.
Atop Ravenhill, Schmidt grins as he watches Steve and T'Challa engaging the trolls. "Now we can make our move," he says. He turns to Azog and nods once.
Azog, understanding the signal, turns to the Orcs manning the horn and signal pole and says, "We now make our move. ATTACK THE CITY!"
As the horn's blast echoes across the valley, and the signal pole is re-arranged again, part of the army of Dol Guldur that has been waiting turns towards the city of Dale and begins marching towards Dale, chanting as they march.
Bucky, who has been watching the events, sees the army marching towards Dale. "S***! It's Schmidt. He's trying to divide us. He's sending his army against Dale. He's going to slaughter the civilians!"
Bard, only feet away on his horse, feels fear lance through him, fearing that his children may be killed by the Orcs. "All of you, fal back to Dale!" he shouts. The Men of Dale follow their leader as he begins to ride back towards Fale. As they go, Gandalf, Bilbo, and Bucky follow. Bucky is quickly leading the pack, running as fast as he can, Anguirel still in its sheath.
As Bucky and the Men of Dale race towards the city, from his position on Ravenhill, Schmidt grins wickedly as he watches the battle unfolding. He feels very confident that even with the assistance of the three Avengers, victory will be his. The reign of the Red Skull is drawing close, he thinks to himself.
And, I'll end the chapter there. I hope you liked it. I'll probably split the battle into at least three chapters.
Next chapter will be up shortly. Until then, leave a review, and stay tuned!
