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Chapter#6: Charred Remains

The next day Evangeline had awoken early and headed for the lake before the sun had even risen three inches over the horizon. She had meant to let Smaug sleep, but he was already wide awake when she passed the cave on her way, his eyes following the cart she pulled behind her. After he'd inquired as to where she was off to, he had risen to his feet and followed after her. She didn't mind. He took his spot by the bank while she lowered her pack to the ground, picking up a long spear that leaned against the bolder nearest her. With a small amount of questioning from Smaug, she explained to him that the best time to fish in these waters was early in the morn, before the morning sun had a chance to warm the waters up. The fish were slower and vaguely disoriented from the colder temperature, but even then they were a challenge to capture without a net, and hers had been torn. So, all she was left with was her wits and a needle-sharp spear.

Smaug thought the sight before him rather humorous. For a moment he wondered if she knew just how ridiculous she looked as she stalked the large fish. To him they were tiny, but compared to her one was about half her size. He'd nearly burst out laughing when one had evaded her strike and darted between her legs, nearly knocking her off her feet. It was unknown to him why she did not just hunt like she normally did, but he didn't comment on it. This was far too entertaining. At one point she had caught sight of his smirk, and she turned to him with a flat expression.

"Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Very much so."

"You're too big, and you're too close to the water. They can see you, and it's scaring them away."

He made a motion with his shoulders that was similar to a shrug, and she knew he wasn't going to budge. "Move down the bank."

She made a sound of disgust and shooed her hands at him in a dismissive fashion. He merely continued to smirk.

"Tell me about yourself, lamb," he said suddenly.

Having halted in her efforts for a moment, she looked up at him with an analyzing gaze. "I am a woodland Elf from Mirkwood."

"Elves do not commonly live solitary lives. Why do you live alone, may I ask?"

Her eyes remained locked with his, and he could see his question bothered her slightly. "I was banished."

His curiosity was sparked. Sitting up straighter, he tilted his head in an inquiring manner, brow arching. "Banished?"

"Yes."

It was clear by her tart expression and tone of voice that she was not particularly fond of speaking about this, but it was too late for that. She had ignited his interest, and now she was going to tell him about herself whether she wanted to or not.

"Tell me, what must an Elf do to be banished by her own kin?" he purred.

She kept his stare solemnly, noting his lack of restraint with vague annoyance. "I could tell you, but you would not believe me even if I did."

"Do try me."

She stared at him. "I was banished for attempting to save an egg."

His face showed his wonder. "An egg?"

"Yes. A dragon's egg."

A snort left him, taken aback. When he said nothing, she continued.

"I am older than I look. I was around when dragons still lived in numbers… when they were being hunted. One after one they fell, most of them young and relatively small… easier to pierce with weapons. Nests were destroyed." She licked her lips. "We found out a nest was not far from our forest. A group was to ban together and seek it out to destroy the un-hatched eggs. I did not want to take part in the murder of an innocent hatchling. It is not the Elven way to harm helpless creatures. I was one of the very few who did not wish to see the dragons perish. And so I did the only thing I could think of."

Smaug remained silent, completely absorbed in her story. The look he was giving her was almost similar to that of a child listening to their parents tell them tales of their adventures. She would have smiled at him if the story she told did not awaken negative energy within her.

"I set out a day ahead of the group. I did not stop even to drink until I located the nest. Luckily, the parents had not been there. The nest had been left unguarded, so I was able to find the egg and leave undetected. I walked through the water so as to not leave behind a scent or tracks. For days I remained with the egg, camped out in a cave with a constant fire to keep the hatchling warm. Only when I was sure my kin had given up the hunt did I move the egg to a new location."

"How could you expect an egg to survive without another dragon to care for it?" he scoffed.

"I left a message in the original nest where my kin would not find it. I remained with the egg for nearly a week before seeing the outline of the mother in the far distance. Knowing she would likely kill me should she see me with her egg, I left. However, when I returned to my home, I was promptly banished for treason. I was accused of endangering the lives of my kin for going behind their backs to save the hatchling."

"How did they know it was you?"

"Because I left the borders of the forest. Our ruler had found out what I had done, and she told me I could no longer live among them. She claimed I was a danger to my kin, and to all life on Earth." A long sigh escaped her as she was forced to recollect the memories of her past. "I have lived alone for nearly one hundred years, but I have grown accustomed to it. I am at peace."

"Do you not crave revenge against the ones who betrayed you?" he exclaimed.

"If anything, I was the one who betrayed them." She met his eyes. "I do miss my old home, but I do not seek revenge… nor do I regret saving the life of that helpless dragon chick."

He stared at her. To say he was shocked would have been a severe understatement. For a long time he did not say anything, and she had gone back to fishing. He was still amazed she had saved his life, but nothing blew him away more than the fact she had helped his kind once before—knowing she would suffer mass consequences for her actions. She had allowed herself to be banished for a dragon. Why was she so keen on saving a race that sought to destroy hers? Dragons had never done anything for her. It made no sense in his mind that she would go to such lengths while expecting nothing in return. Surely she must know her efforts were futile.

He watched as she managed to spear one of the fish, and she dragged its limp body from the water's shallows. Its slick scales shimmered in the morning sun as she laid it out on the cart. A small sweat had formed on her brow, but she seemed not to notice. As a matter of fact, her eyes were somber, and she looked a bit dismayed after their conversation. It was obvious she missed her kin, and she probably hadn't seen any of them since her banishment.

Suddenly, he got to his feet, and it caused her to look up at him, startled. The fish darted away from his shadow in fright, and her first reaction was to cast him an annoyed stare, but what he did next took her off guard. Standing to his full height, he turned towards the lake and suddenly reared up on his hind legs as his wings unfurled. Evangeline had to duck to avoid being struck by the appendage, and she watched with wide eyes as he took into the air for the first time since she had met him.

"Smaug, what are you doing?" she called after him, quite alarmed.

He soared low over the lake, looking much like a great bat as he skimmed over the water's surface with his molten gold eyes. She watched, half in interest and half in alarm, as he rounded about. A few fish jumped out of the water in their frenzied attempts to escape the immense dragon, and it was then she realized he was driving them towards her. He was helping her fish. Her eyebrows rose high on her forehead when he lowered his body so his feet skimmed along the water's surface, forcing the fish to swim in front of him. Then all at once he dropped down, smacking his tail down into the water. Evangeline watched in total amazement as he used his body to corral the fish between the two boulders near where she had been fishing, dropping his tail in front of one while his upper half rested against another bolder to the far left. This left the fish nowhere to swim, caught in a dragon-made corral.

She couldn't stop the laugh that escaped her at seeing the fish splashing about in the shallows, and she sent Smaug a smile before running to grab her spear. The next fifteen minutes or so were spent with her in the water throwing her spear and dragging the large fish back to her cart. Every other one she caught she would throw up to Smaug, who swallowed them whole. By the time she had a full cart, the sun had risen completely, blanketing the land in midday warmth. Once she had decided she had enough fish, Smaug had stood and allowed the remaining school to dart back towards the middle of the lake, happy to be away from them. He followed her back to the cave, where she started a fire and cooked one of the fish for herself. The others she would bring back to her home to salt and store.

By the time night had fallen, Evangeline had almost forgotten her earlier sadness as she packed up the cart. She had spent the afternoon talking with Smaug, who remained absolutely fascinated about her rescuing a dragon's egg. He made her tell him the details of the story, but only leading up to where she dropped the egg off at its new location. She had even recalled the color of the shell. He would never admit it, but he had grown to respect her for more reasons than one. It was not easy to gain his admiration, but she had proven herself exceedingly worthy. The little female had gone to lengths no other would dare go. Unlike any other, she respected his race, and not out of fear. He could sense it in the way she spoke of them, as a small smile tugged at her lips, and the way her eyes sparkled as she told him about a time she had seen a female soar over the horizon when she had been hiking the mountains; how her scales had shimmered—her wings translucent in the sunlight. Her heart held a genuine love for his race. He had never met another like her.

But he wouldn't realize just how fond he had grown of her until later that night.

Smaug rose into the shallowest realm of consciousness deep into the night. Evangeline had left hours ago, and he had gone to sleep shortly after. However, something stirred him from his slumber that night. Slowly, his drowsy mind stirred from a dream he'd been having. It had been about the unicorn—the same one that Evangeline had brought to him—and she had been whinnying loudly, her hooves pawing against the ground restlessly. It wasn't until a very shrill whinny did his eyes snap open, startled, and it was then and only then he realized… he had not been dreaming.

There she stood before him in the cave, stepping about nervously as she scraped her hooves against the ground. Her pearly coat seemed to give off an angelic glow in the moonlight, silver mane swishing about as she shook her head. Smaug lifted his head, eyeing her curiously and with no small amount of perplexity. For a moment he wondered if he was still dreaming. He watched as she tossed her head once again, and she reared up with another shrill neigh as if in a high state of panic.

"What?" he asked, not knowing what else to do.

Throwing her head, she snorted at him and ran from the cave, but he could tell she hadn't left the clearing outside. She wanted him to follow her, he realized. Not entirely sure why, he got up and slowly exited the cave to see the unicorn not ten feet away, still stepping about restlessly. That was when it hit him. His keen senses picked it up the moment he had stepped outside. Smoke. Lifting his head sharply, he looked towards the general direction of Evangeline's home, and he saw it. A cloud of smoke rose high in the air, blackened and growing. That was the moment he understood. Evangeline was in danger, and the unicorn had come to him for help.

Without even thinking as to why, he rushed forward a few steps and leapt into the air before he even realized he was flying. With his huge wingspan, it took him only minutes to reach the hillside that lead to her cottage, and he landed before looking down. There lye a cottage and small farm, which was being swallowed by bright orange and yellow flames. The wood crackled and groaned as it burned, and he could hear the shrill, panicked cries of the animals trapped inside the barn. But that was not all. There were people, but their skin was blackened and their faces malformed, looking as if they had climbed up directly from the pits of Hell itself.

Orcs.

Before he could even register the anger building inside him, he was stopped short when he caught scent of blood in the air. It mixed in with another scent that snagged his immediate attention. It was her scent. A sensation shot through his chest, and for a moment he thought it was his heart acting up. What he didn't understand was that it was panic. Where was Evangeline? His eyes scanned the grounds beneath the hill, but he could not see the She-Elf amongst the Orcs, who remained oblivious to his presence. Oblivious fools.

Then suddenly, a piercing scream rang through the air, and before he even saw her he felt his blood boil. Then he spotted her. She was on her back on the ground not thirty feet from her burning cottage, three Orcs surrounding her on their knees. They laughed, sneering maliciously as two of them held her down, the third between her legs, which she tried to keep closed and kick him away with. The sound of her sobs and the realization that they were trying to rape her only further ignited his rage, and at that moment all their fates were sealed.

The first thing Evangeline registered was that the Orcs had begun to scream; though she couldn't see past the three holding her down. But then she heard it; a booming, enraged roar that caused the ground to shake, and, more importantly, for her captors to snap their heads up in fear. Then they were off her, stumbling off at a run, and she saw him.

Smaug threw the Orc he had clamped in his jaws, landing him directly in the middle of the flaming cottage. He had soared down the moment he had spotted Evangeline, and now it was a matter of how many Orcs he could kill before they could run ten feet from the burning home. He had felt a wicked glee flash through him at seeing them flee in utter terror, and he let out a dark laugh. They were fools if they thought they could escape. He'd stepped on one when he'd landed, and his tail had taken out three more, the blow killing them even before they were sent flying through the air. It was a chaotic mess of claws and teeth, as the Orcs met their demise one by one, either being crushed under his immense weight or being speared by his claws and teeth. A few were flung into the fire, where their agonized screams rang out like music to his ears. He had seen a number were already dead when he had arrived, and it occurred to him Evangeline had not gone down without a fight. He stepped on them carelessly as he pursued the others, but it was hardly a chase. In a matter of minutes, he had run down every last one, feeling a sense of jovial exhilaration at feeling their blood stain his tongue as he listened to their screams of terror. Oh, how he had missed the sound of fear in his presence.

However, once he was sure he had killed every last Orc his attentions immediately shifted back to Evangeline. He looked to where she had been only to find her nowhere. Briefly, he thought one of the Orcs had taken off with her when he was occupied, but after a moment he saw her. She had run to the top of the hill, having watched him slaughter the Orcs, and her eyes were wide as she stared down at him. Wordlessly, he went to her, climbing the hill and coming to stand before her. He towered over her, the look of a fresh kill in his bright eyes, but she showed no fear. Not of him. Her tear-filled eyes stared up at him, and he stared back at her, not saying anything. He could decipher a mixture of emotions in her eyes, and among them he saw relief, fear, and a fair amount of shock. Yet the one that overpowered them all was the absolute grief that welled in her glistening, forest green orbs. Then, all at once, she was running up to him and collapsed against his hand, where she promptly broke down into uncontrollable sobs.

He stared down at her, shocked. Gratitude for saving her had been expected, but he had not been anywhere close to prepared for her to throw her tiny frame at him in grief. He could hear her crying as she hugged his hand, tears streaking down her face. It was easy to understand even for him. During his days, he had seen many tears from the survivors he had left after destroying the cities and towns they had lived in before he had desolated them. Their sorrow had meant nothing to him. He knew why they cried. It had never meant anything to him. Not until that night. This woman was different. Her screams had not induced pleasure in his mind, but boiling rage. Her tears made him wish there were more Orcs, so he could continue killing them in every way imaginable. Turning his head, he looked back down the hill at her burning home. By now the crying of the animals had ceased, and bloodied bodies lay scattered on the ground around the cottage. To him it was just a house that could be rebuilt, but he knew it meant more to Evangeline—much more—and for the first time ever he felt a pang of sympathy. His past victims had meant nothing to him. They still didn't, but this woman had saved him. Tears and screams had never mattered to him before—he enjoyed them—but not hers. Even when he tried to deny it to himself, a prodding instinct within him made him remember her gentle hands on his face and her soft voice as she soothed him the night she found him in the cave.

And so he remained where he was, allowing her to cry against his hand as he watched the cottage burn gradually to the ground, his eyes hard. At least she was alive, but he was hardly satisfied. He would be well enough soon. For now, the mountain could wait. The Orcs needed to pay.