Hey guys, so remember when I said the plot ran away from me? Yeah I had to change the summary because of that. The evil ties into the Screaming Death, the Arkenstone, and hints at Sauron and his evil army. I won't tell you exactly how (mostly because the muse doesn't tell ME until I write it) but I just thought I should tell you that the plot did run away from my original idea...it needs to stop doing that.

Rated-T

Warnings

Abuse/torture

Some OOC-ness maybe

I might not get all of their talking entirely accurate so please bear with me

MAJOR AU

DON'T LIKE, DON'T READ!

Things you need to know

"Ereborians speaking in Khuzdul"

Disclaimer-I don't own the Hobbit or How To Train Your Dragon.

Here We Stand United

Chapter 18

The sun rose over the horizon, slowly creeping over the ledge and illuminating six humanoid figures standing there. As the light slowly spread over the land, the full destruction that occurred the night before was laid before them. Ruffnut Thorston worriedly scratched at one of her dragon's heads as she saw the fire on the lake. There were no buildings left; most of them had sunk into the lake and what little was still above water was on fire. Soon, it too would sink beneath the water and all the town's inhabitants would be left with nothing. Well, if anyone survived that is.

"I can't believe Thorin ordered us to stay within the mountain instead of flying off to help the people of Lake-Town," Astrid Hofferson fumed. "And no one said anything to contradict him! Dori didn't even speak up, and his brothers are there!" she continued to rant, pacing back and forth on the ledge overlooking the Desolation.

"I'm sure Thorin had his reasons. I mean, he did promise he would keep us safe, and let's face it, Smaug is different than the Red Death. If we had gone to help, we probably would have just gotten in the way or ended up dead, which is a bit contradictory to keeping us safe," Fishlegs piped up, trying to be helpful, and Ruff had to resist the urge to face-palm because now the brainy Viking was going to be suffering Astrid's wrath. As was her habit, Astrid turned furiously on Fishlegs, and he shrank back, expecting to be hurt, but Hiccup stepped between the two.

"Alright, that's enough. We probably need to go talk to Thorin. We need a plan for when Smaug comes back," Hiccup stated, and then turned to his Night Fury. The other Vikings went to follow his lead, but a shout stopped them. The Vikings turned back to see a Monstrous Nightmare land precariously on what little space remained on the ledge.

"Don't bother with that. Smaug is dead. He was slain by a man named Bard. They're calling him Bowman now. I think they wanna make him the new Master," Nori grumbled to himself as he jumped off his dragon's back. Ori followed his lead. The Vikings gaped very briefly in shock, because they'd thought the two Ereborians were dead. "Where is everyone?" the thief asked as he glanced around and saw only the Vikings present.

"They're all in Erebor. Everyone thought you guys were dead when Smaug destroyed Lake-Town, so they all went back into the mountain in hopes of barricading themselves in and keeping Smaug out when he tried to return. After that, Lydia gave Thorin the Arkenstone and they all went into the treasury. They've been acting pretty weird," Hiccup admitted. Weird was an understatement. Thorin had been shouting nonsense as they created a barricade at the gates, saying that if anyone survived the destruction of Lake-Town they would be at the doors of Erebor demanding money. That mere thought seemed to spur the others into action. It was all quite confusing. Their home had been destroyed, of course they would want money, and why shouldn't Thorin give it to them? It was kind of his fault for provoking Smaug unnecessarily, prompting him to leave the mountain to destroy Lake-Town and promising to return and finish what he started eleven years ago.

Nori and Ori exchanged looks when Hiccup said weird. "You don't think…?" Ori began, and then trailed off, his face troubled and uncertain.

Nori shook his head worriedly and hopped back onto his dragon with Ori following his lead once more. "I don't quite know what to think nadadith. It's too soon to tell. Besides, it shouldn't have set in so quick. Vikings, let's go. We might have another problem," Nori stated. Then he took off for Erebor and the others were quick to follow.

There was no reception when they arrived, no one to welcome them back as the dragons flew through the relatively small opening of the blockade. Not even Dori waited, and that was a surprise. The eldest son of Ri had been beside himself earlier, nearly inconsolable in his grief and worry. When the Vikings had left earlier, Dori had been hovering just in the shadows, calling after them to be careful and bring him a full report should there be any sign of his brothers. Now the hall was dark and silent, nothing moving except for the uneasy shifting of the Ereborian's dragons in the shadows nearby. They sensed something was off as well, and didn't like it. Lydia's Scauldron shuffled into the light and rumbled as it looked at them with pleading eyes.

"Ere, what's the matter with 'em?" Nori asked as he once again slid off his dragon's back. Ori hopped down as well and the Monstrous Nightmare didn't even hesitate to hurry towards his fellow dragons in the shadows.

"They must sense that something's wrong," Astrid stated as she looked sadly at the dragons huddled miserably together. Had the Ereborians even bothered to feed them? "Let's go. I think everyone is still in the treasury," Astrid continued, and they all moved through the mountain halls that stretched far overhead, tall enough that even Smaug had lived there comfortably for eleven years.

As they drew near the treasury, leaving their dragons behind, they heard raised voices, and then all fell quiet, before heavy footsteps came towards them. They rounded another corner, and came face to face with Thorin Oakenshield. In his hands was the glimmering gem, the Arkenstone. At the sight of the stone, Nori and Ori both fell to a knee and chorused, "Hail Thorin, son of Thrain, son of Thror, King Under the Mountain!" The Vikings quickly followed their lead. Thorin smiled gently at the sight, but Ruff noticed it didn't quite reach his icy blue eyes.

"Rise, my brothers, my allies. You needn't bow before me. I owe thanks to you for your help. A share of this treasure is yours as well." Nori and Ori immediately stood up, as did the Vikings, and Thorin bashed heads with the younger Ri brothers. "We had feared you were dead. Dori was inconsolable and Bofur was rather upset as well. Come, let us show them you are alive and well, and then we will celebrate," Thorin stated, sweeping an arm towards the treasury and leading the two Ereborians to the only room that was well-lit and glimmered golden. The Vikings followed, but Ruff held back, tugging on Hiccup's arm to get him to do the same.

"Hiccup, something's not right here. Thorin is acting weird. Did you see his eyes? There's something wrong with them. The others are acting strange too, really distant. Only Nori and Ori seem okay, but they just got here. I think we should leave," Ruff said, and Hiccup looked surprised by Ruff's statement.

Out of all of his friends, Ruff and Tuff were the most thoughtless, the two who always wanted to leap headfirst into danger. If Ruff sensed something was off, then it must be really obvious. So why hadn't Nori and Ori noticed yet? "We can't just take off, Ruff. We don't know anything about Middle Earth. We'll be fine for now. Until we can get someone to take us back over the Misty Mountains, we're just going to have to deal with it," Hiccup stated, and then dragged Ruff with him into the treasury, to be greeted by a strange sight. Only Bofur, Dori, Frodo, and Bifur seemed to have noticed Nori and Ori and greeted them appropriately.

The rest of the Ereborians were preoccupied with the gold piles. Dwalin was wielding a sword plated in gold, swiping experimentally at the air in front of him. Bombur was gathering up gold plates and cups while humming happily. Lydia had donned a silver gleaming shirt and several bracelets and rings. She was in the process of clasping silver and gold braid clasps into her hair. Gloin and Oin were gleefully shoving coins into their pockets and Balin seemed to be searching for something. Ruff's attention was pulled away when there was a commotion from another entrance to the treasury.

"Auntie Bilba do I have to wear this?" Kili whined, tugging at the tunic he now wore. Bilba slapped his hand and then straightened the tunic. "It's uncomfortable," Kili insisted, and then Bilba slapped her nephew upside the head. Then she turned to the elder of her nephews and slapped him upside the head for laughing at his brother.

"Stop fiddling with it. You'll get used to it. It is traditional for heirs of Durin," Bilba insisted. Thorin nodded approvingly as he went over to his wife and nephews. "The Royal Wing was relatively undamaged, and a lot of the clothes were preserved. We decided to tidy up a bit," Bilba explained, gesturing to her dress. It was a nice but practical dress. However, Ruff was confused as to why Bilba was barefoot as well. "Lydia, don't you want to try on a dress? Frodo, surely you would appreciate some nicer clothes, too?" Bilba called, and Frodo dutifully trudged to his mother's side while Lydia froze and then she dove, slipping and sliding down a particularly large pile of gold and disappearing from view. Bilba pouted and Thorin just chuckled.

"I don't think new clothes are necessary Mother," Frodo began, and the look on his face was just hilarious. However, Hiccup seemed to take pity on the prince, and he stepped up to Thorin and Bilba.

"Actually, Frodo promised he'd give us a bit of a tour of the mountain," Hiccup said, and Frodo shot him a grateful look. Bilba sighed and conceded with a warning to be careful, and Frodo hurried off with the Vikings before his mother could change her mind.

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"Thank you for that, Hiccup. My mother has become quite caught up in the idea of giving us a life of luxury and making us into model heirs to the kingdom. I must admit, I'm not much interested in the formalities of the kingdom. I'd rather visit the royal library," Frodo admitted with a small chuckle. Fishlegs latched on to one thing the Crown Prince said, perking up immediately.

"Library?" Fishlegs asked, and Frodo glanced at the stout Viking, and a small smile crept across his face.

"Yes, library. Would you like to-?"

"Yes please!" Fishlegs shouted, and Frodo leaned away slightly, surprise showing on his face at the Viking's outburst, and then that same subdued smile appeared on his face and without a word he turned and started off down one of the many halls within the mountain. Fishlegs followed close on his heels while Hiccup wasn't too far behind, actually quite curious about the royal library. Hiccup and Fishlegs quickly engaged Frodo in a conversation, and Astrid soon joined in, which was why none of them noticed Ruff, Tuff, and Snotlout slip away.

"Can you believe that? Who wouldn't be interested in being a king? I can't believe Frodo would rather sit in a dusty old library with some crumbling old books," Snotlout scoffed once the three were far enough away from the others to not be heard. "Anyway, where are we going, Tuff?" Snotlout demanded, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring slightly at the male twin.

"I don't know. Anywhere but the library, though. I saw some cool places when we were running for our lives from Smaug. We've got some exploring to do," Tuff cackled, and his sister snickered, nodding in agreement. Snotlout just sighed, knowing this could end very badly. But that didn't stop him from following the twins to a passage way that was even darker than the rest. Tuff paused just before they entered the tunnel, and then he said, "Uh, maybe we should bring Hookfang. I can't see anything down there. Snotlout, go get your dragon." Snotlout bristled at Tuff's command, ready to punch him in the face, but Ruff did it for him.

"Moron! Why didn't you think of that earlier?" she shouted, and Snotlout couldn't deny he felt a rush of affection for the girl. She was clearly the brains between the two. Why had he spent so long chasing Astrid again? He thought for another moment, and then had to admit there were some similarities between Ruffnut and Astrid. Well that the most confusing thing he'd ever stopped to think about. As he turned to go back for Hookfang, telling the twins to wait right there for him, he vowed he's stop thinking and just jump from now on. Thinking was for Hiccup and Fishlegs.

Snotlout meant to return to where they left the dragons, and he meant to go quickly, but he soon found himself lost. The dark-haired Viking became quite frustrated, cursing up a storm in his head as he stormed through the halls, his desperation increasing as he kept walking and found nothing at all. "You do know you've been walking in circles, right?" a voice asked, and this time Snotlout cursed aloud, spinning around to see Fili standing behind him, arms crossed and a mischievous grin on his face. "I saw you from up there," Fili said, pointing up, and Snotlout followed his gaze to see a ledge that was partially exposed to the outside, though whether or not that was purposeful or caused by Smaug was unknown to him. "You were walking for five minutes, just going in one giant circle. I finally decided to help you."

"Thanks. I was trying to get back to the entrance to find my dragon," Snotlout admitted grumpily. Fili just kept grinning at him and without another word, he led the Viking down a hall he hadn't even noticed earlier. Snotlout stomped after the blond. "What were you doing up there anyway, hiding from your Aunt?" Snotlout sneered, determined to try to regain some of his dignity.

"Partially," Fili admitted, and Snotlout smirked triumphantly. However, it seemed Fili wasn't finished yet. "Uncle Thorin also wanted me to send a couple of messages out. Nori told us Smaug was dead, you see, and like the prophecy said, the ravens returned to the mountain. So I sent a raven to the Iron Hills and then another to whoever might have survived the assault at Ered Luin," Fili explained. Snotlout sobered at the reminder of Alvin chasing them. He'd been so caught up in the adventures that they'd had across Middle Earth, Alvin and his Outcasts.

"Do you think anyone will respond?"

"Yes. I know Dain will, at least. The Iron Hills have been our allies for a long, long time, and most of the Ereborian refugees were given shelter there when the mountain fell eleven years ago. Now that the Worm is dead and Uncle once more holds the Arkenstone, they will honor the call and return to aid their king," Fili explained, his face somber and strong conviction in his voice. He didn't doubt for a second that the Iron Hills would respond, but said nothing of Ered Luin.

"What about Ered Luin?"

Fili hesitated this time. He thought for a moment, and then truthfully responded, "I couldn't say for sure. Our kin in Ered Luin lived in poverty even before Smaug took Erebor. They were very bitter and refused to accept refugees. Even with the Arkenstone in our grasp, they might not respond. That's to say in anyone survived Alvin's onslaught."

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"This is madness."

"What was Alvin thinking, leading on his wild goose chase?"

"We were the few who survived those swimming dragons and the battle in that stupid city, and now we're going to die in this forest?"

"I really wish we still had those dragons."

Alvin twitched irritably as his soldiers muttered quietly to themselves. Night had fallen over the forest that their stolen map marked as "Greenwood." At least, it seemed like night had fallen. It was impossible to tell with the thick canopy overhead. Greenwood didn't seem like an appropriate name for this place. Greenwood implied a bright, happy, peaceful place, and this forest was anything but. He'd lost some of his soldiers to giant, man-eating spiders earlier in the week, and before that they had lost all of their dragons to a strange phenomena that none of them could explain. It was as though the very wind had turned against them and sent them plunging into Greenwood.

"Do you think it'll be the spiders that get us? Or starvation? Or...something else?"

"This place does things to your head, lad. We'll be lucky to escape with our sanity intact."

"Would you all shut up already? I canno' hear meself think!" Alvin roared, and all of his men finally fell silent. Alvin breathed a sigh of relief, but then froze when he heard the rustling in the trees and the bushes all around their camp. It was as though they'd been surrounded by a large group of people. Then the whispering began. It was soft, quiet, but gradually grew louder, and it was a crescendo of a language none of them recognized. There were harsh trills interwoven, cackles, and high screams that had many of his men covering there ears. "Who are you? Show yourselves, cowards!" Alvin finally bellowed, and then suddenly everything fell silent. The rustling and whispers both stopped and the forest seemed to be holding its breath, waiting.

Then a blaze of fire burned all the foliage surrounding them, and Alvin shielded his eyes while his men ducked down, cowering in terror. White spots filled his vision for a moment, and it was difficult to tell as he squinted, but he thought he saw shadowy, disfigured silhouettes crouched low to the ground around them, formerly where trees had stood. Then his attention was drawn to a dark figure standing in the center. A rim of fire seemed to surround the figure, and Alvin squinted, trying to make sense of what he was seeing.

Come to me.

"W-What?" Alvin exclaimed as a loud, raspy voice seemed to echo in his head. His men recoiled when they heard it, and he internally scoffed at their cowardice.

I will give you the world.

I will give you power.

I will give you...Erebor.

Alvin smirked broadly at that. He liked the sound of that. He said as much aloud, and he sensed that if it could, the shadow would be smirking evilly. It sent alarms ringing in his head, but that instinct was buried deep and he didn't even have to try that hard to ignore it. His men slowly stood, calming themselves as they also heard what the shadow promised, greed lighting their eyes and grins stealing across their faces.

Yes...

Come to me...

My servants...

...

My slaves.

Ha! There! Finally, chapter 18! See, now this new plot is cooperating with me. The other one really wasn't. EasternWolf23, the Fili and Kili moments were for you! Anyway, guys, you know what to do.

REVIEW!

Rhettbutler/Victor- While the idea is a good one, I don't think I could ever rewrite this in a different version. In all honesty, this is a huge project, one of the longest fanfics I've ever written, and I really do not want to attempt something like this again because, as I've said, my plots have a tendency to run away. The only way I would ever do something like this again is if I were to go back and rewrite everything and I don't want to rewrite this one. Some of my earlier fanfics, yes, I will absolutely rewrite, but I really like where this one is going and how it is written so I have no intention of rewriting it or writing it in a different version. Besides, I try to avoid writing something with a similar structure. I am truly sorry if you did want to see this in a different version but I just cannot do it.