Chapter 3:
Running through the night, their hearts hammering and nothing but hope blinding driving them onwards, the dwarves ran to the opposite side of Laketown, to the shore closest to where the great dragon had fallen beneath the unforgiving water. There was a sharp chill in the air despite the heat of the dragon fire that still burned through Laketown. Now that the dragon had been defeated people were beginning to return to their homes and organise attempts to combat the flames. That's where Bard and Bain were, the dwarves had run past them on their way to the shoreline but they had not stopped even when Bard's two daughters had asked them where they were going.
The people of Laketown were rejoicing but Kili felt only heaviness in his heart. Neither the dragon nor his prisoner had resurfaced and Kili was beginning to feel an ice cold vice clamp around his chest. Surely Tauriel couldn't have died like that; she had been so brave and strong, like a drop of pure starlight from the heavens guiding him back to the light and life. His leg was beginning to ache again and Kili's head was swimming, he felt sick and was sure he would faint soon. But he pushed himself forward, leaning more and more on his brother for support. He wasn't sure why he was so eager to get to the shore; he knew he would never miraculously find Tauriel there, safe and waiting for him. But he felt that after all she had done for him he at least owed it to her to try, to hope.
The freezing water enveloped her, crushing her with the pressure of a thousand tons of ice. Struggling to pry open the iron bars of her cage, Tauriel felt her lungs straining for breath. Her head was spinning as she sank further and further into the inky blackness, pulled down into the deeps by the bulky weight of the dragon's lifeless form. Dizzily, she tried to shake the talons that held her prisoner but it was in vain. Clutching the curled claw, Tauriel strained her eyes as she looked up, watching the fading blue light becoming dimmer and dimmer as she sank to her watery grave at the bottom of the lake. Her heart was hammering loudly against her ribs, begging her lungs for oxygen that they didn't have. Tauriel's memories seemed to flow calmly in her mind, contrasting the desperation of her thoughts. 600 years was almost nothing to an elf, she was so young and had so many years left to live. But strangely, Tauriel was not panicking over what had occurred that night, regretting the choices she had made that had led her to be where she was, sinking to the bottom of the lake in a cage of Smaug's last dying malice. She had a feeling of pride swirling in her breast; she had helped Bard to save the people of Laketown. And the dwarves, surely now the dragon was dead they could continue their quest peacefully and regain their homeland.
But this peaceful reflection did not dim the spark Tauriel savoured in her soul. She may have been proud of her actions but her desire to live was still shining as brightly as the stars somewhere high above her head, now unseen to her, so her struggles did not cease. Fighting against her prison, her exhaustion and the enclosing darkness that threatened to claim her forever, Tauriel struggled on in the deeps. A small part of her whispered quietly that she would never make it out of this dungeon Smaug had created for her alive, but her body refused to give up and she worked continually, attempting to pry open the dragon's talons. But to no avail as Tauriel grew weaker as she sunk ever downwards and the bars of her prison seemed only to harden in the freezing cold. Her last thought before the darkness claimed her was that her greatest fear had come true; she was dying alone, away from the light.
Upon reaching the shore, the dwarves waded to the water, all the time searching the sand for any sign of Tauriel or her tracks. But there was nothing. The fires of Laketown still blazed brightly and the whole lake seemed to gleam a murderous red, proudly pronouncing the death of Smaug and his reign of terror. The ripples and waves in the lake made it seem to Kili as though the lake itself burned auburn, and the light of the bright moon seemed to shine sadly on it as the winds howled around them screaming songs of sadness for the bloodshed that night.
Staggering forward alone, Kili began to attempt to take off his clothes, fumbling awkwardly in his weary state.
"Kili, no." Bofur said sadly, putting his hand on the young dwarves hand to stop it. "She's gone. There's nothing we can do."
"We have to try!" Kili insisted weakly, swaying as his limbs rebelled against his control and almost caused him to fall. Looking to his brother with hope, Kili silently willed him to understand. "She saved me; I can't just let her die like that. It's our fault this happened, she stayed to heal me and now she could be…" He trailed off, unwilling to admit out loud what they all were thinking.
Staring at his little brother, Fili realised just how important this she-elf was to him. He was barely able to stand, swaying in the breeze like a young sapling, and yet he was using the last of his strength to take his clothes off, to try and go after her, even though he knew it was impossible and that he would probably die before he even reached her. Looking in his desperate brothers eyes, Fili realised what he had to do. He could not allow his brother to go after her, to risk his life like this by trying to save her. But he also could not allow her to die like this, not when she had saved Kili. He owed her a debt and Fili resolved in that instant that he would pay it or die trying. She had saved Kili, so he would save her.
Turning to Bofur and Oin, Fili took charge. "Hold him back, don't let him follow." He commanded, quickly taking off his weapons and clothes.
The others stared at him in dismay, as if unable to believe what he was doing. But Fili ignored their stares, knowing Bofur and Oin would never allow Kili to hurt himself by coming after him. Taking off everything but his thin underclothes, Fili picked up one of his swords and waded out into the freezing water. Walking until his neck was just about under, Fili took a deep breath and dived down. He had always loved swimming as a child, mainly due to the fact it was something Kili enjoyed and they could both do together. Their mother had taught them how to swim, and although many other dwarves did not think it a necessary skill, Fili had always enjoyed himself and that night, pushing himself deeper and deeper down into the murky, cold water, he felt thankful he had.
His eyes straining against the lack of light, Fili just about made out some movement in the shadows below him. He pushed onwards, ignoring the strain of his lungs and the pressure of the water on his head. His one mission was to find Tauriel, dead or alive, and bring her back to the surface. He would not allow her to remain down here on the floor of this god forsaken lake, slowly being feasted on by the fish and worms that could not pierce the dragons tough hide. Forcing himself to focus, Fili kept swimming ever downward until his hands, stretched out in front of him, hit something hard and, surprisingly, quite warm. Feeling it tentatively, Fili realised with a surprise that it felt like a scale. He had found Smaug! Now all he had to do was figure out which bit of him it was and how to locate his back claws. Widening his eyes as much as he could so that his pupils could collect all the pitiful amount of light that was available, Fili realised he was at the neck of the beast. Following the neck down, Fili pulled himself along, silently cursing that it was taking so long. His lungs ached for air but he sharply remind himself of when he and Kili were children and they had used to have competitions to see who could hold their breath the longest. He had always been so good at that, his record being around 7 minutes. Meaning he had about 3 left to find Tauriel and get her out of the lake.
Kicking out against the dragon's lifeless form, Fili noticed a dim, almost unnoticeable, glint of red to his right. Thanking Durin for his excellent eye sight, Fili swam over to where he thought it had been and found himself in front of the dragon's claw. There, inside, the unconscious Tauriel was floating. Feeling a surge of panic, Fili started manically pulling at the dragon's claws. He had swum all this way, found her and now he was damned if he was going to let her die on him. Remembering his sword, Fili berated himself, if the claws had been able to be pulled apart so simply Tauriel would have been able to free herself and now his stupidity had cost them most precious seconds. Sliding his sword in between two of the talons, Fili pushed down with all his might to try and lever a gap that might be big enough to drag the lifeless elf through. Using all his strength, Fili pushed but somehow, whilst trying to force the sword, Fili lost his footing where he had planted his feet on one of the lower talons and the sudden jerk was enough to turn the sword in his hands and force it blade down into the dragon's talon. The force appeared to be enough as the talon was cut off and Fili started in surprise. Grabbing hold of Tauriel's hand, he pulled her through the hole in the bars he had made and wrapped one of his arms around her waist.
He was about to kick off when he realised taking the claw would probably be a good way to prove to Thorin that the dragon truly was dead, providing Thorin himself had survived. Sliding his sword into a sheath at Tauriel's side, Fili picked up the talon and pushed off, moving his legs as quickly as he could to get back to the surface as his lungs were screaming out for oxygen. Slowing down considerably before he reached the surface, Fili broke it tentatively before looking around him. He was shaking with the cold of the water and the effort of his enterprise had sapped his strength considerably. Shaking the hair out of his eyes Fili could see the burning wreckage of the parts of Laketown Smaug had destroyed and winced. The fires were still blazing and the smell of burning flesh seemed to hang heavy in the air.
Shouts seemed to echo across the water and Fili turned to see his brother, Bofur and Oin stood on the shoreline, waving and signalling to him their location. Groaning, Fili realised he was further out than he had originally thought. Making sure Tauriel's face was above water at all times, Fili somehow managed to swim back to shore, ignoring his protesting muscles. The water was choppy, making it more difficult to get back but he did eventually, throwing himself onto the sand and coughing up a lungful of lake water.
Oin immediately leant down to see to Tauriel while Bofur helped to bundle Fili up in an attempt to get some warmth back into his aching limbs. Kili went to his brother first of all, to check he was unhurt, but Fili soon waved him away and gestured to Tauriel.
"Help her; I didn't nearly die just so you could worry about me getting a cold."
Smiling his thanks, Kili went over to Tauriel and looked to Oin for instructions. Oin pumped her chest furiously, every now and then stopping to listen at her chest for any activity. Looking at Kili, Oin murmured some instructions to him that Fili didn't quite catch. He was so cold he was shaking and Bofur had resorted to hugging him in an attempt to try and combat the cold. Kili blushed bright red but nodded fiercely, clearly set on doing whatever needed to be done to help the elf. Visibly steadying himself, Kili waited until Oin had finished pressing down on Tauriel's chest before he took a gulp of air, leant down and blew into her mouth, carefully pressing her nose as he did so. For a few seconds there was no change but then, as if by magic, Tauriel's eyes snapped open. Realising this, Kili sat back up and grinned at her, opening his mouth to make some happy exclamation. But he never managed to get the words out as Tauriel's hand whipped up and slapped him round the face, echoing loudly in the eerily quiet night air.