(PTII)Defenders of Middle Earth: A Middle Earth Story(Book 4)

Chapter 24: The Two Kings

The deadly clash of swords rang through the smoke-filled air. The pain-filled screams of the dying mingled with the war cries of those few who still stood. Countless bodies littered the valley ground, piled high atop each other in grotesque and twisted positions of agony. The metallic odor of blood mixed with the sickening smell of burnt skin and smoke made the battlefield a truly horrific, hellish place. The sky was a dull red color, the sun hanging low and massive at the western horizon. The jagged foothills that were carved into that side of the mountain leered over the battlefield like gargantuan jaws, awaiting the battle's end to claim the dead.

King Dain stalwartly stood atop a pile of corpses, his mighty warhammer swinging to and fro. His eyes bulged from their sockets as he sought out foes, and no longer did he display the mad smile that he usually did when fighting. He was growing tired, his arms aching from the effort of hefting his weapon.

Brand fought as best he could beside him, his broken arm hanging limply at his side. Their wain protected their flank, shattered and broken where it had been crushed by a troll. That same troll lay beside it, its swollen tongue lolling from its mouth and its eyes looking lifelessly at the sky above. 

The enemy closed in all around them, but few were eager to step into range of Dain's mighty hammer. They had already seen what would happen if they did. Instead, many of the Easterlings jabbed mockingly with their halberds, dancing just out of reach of the exhausted dwarf. They knew that it was merely a matter of time before he slipped up... And then they would go in for the kill like wolves on an injured deer. 

"Watch out!" Dain shouted as he pointed at an Easterling who was attempting to attack Brand from behind. The king of Dale managed to just barely parry the strike, and sent a weak counterattack in the direction of the enemy warrior. But while his attention was diverted, another Easterling leapt forward, driving his halberd into the king's back. 

"No!" Dain cried, swinging his warhammer in a frenzy. The flat of the hammer connected with the Easterling's head, causing a loud crunch as his neck bent sideways at an unnatural angle and his helmet collapsed inward. As he fell to the ground, Dain ran to catch his friend. 

"Laddie, look at me! We're gonna get through this, I promise ya!" Tears began to sting the battle-hardened dwarf's eyes as he looked at Brand's quickly paling face. 

Brand smiled weakly and held up a hand, which Dain took. "My friend, we fought bravely. Is that not the most we could do?" 

"There's still more fightin' ta be done! More heads to sever! Don't make me do it by maself!" Dain thumped his chest and wiped a tear from his eye. 

Brand laughed, then coughed violently. "You enjoy it more than I... Do... Anyway. Rule Erebor well, watch... Over your people. You can still win. There's... Still hope." 

"Not without ya lad..." Dain's tears spilled into his beard, but he quickly rose to strike down an approaching Easterling. 

"Defend your mountain, Dain... Defend your gold, and your people... My friend." Brand let out a final rasping breath as the life left him, and Dain let out a cry of anguish. He slowly lowered Brand to the ground, and rose to his feet. The Easterlings jeered, mockingly waving their weapons around and laughing cruelly. 

Dain shouted in fury, shedding tears of anger instead of sorrow. He rushed headlong into the Easterling ranks, his hammer swinging to and fro. Easterling after Easterling fell to it, and Dain's strength grew with each strike. He roared in anger as he saw two Easterlings move towards the body of Brand, and with the speed of a tiger he covered the distance between them. His mighty swing felled both warriors at once, but in the process, the hammer shattered from the force of the attack. Dain quickly scrambled to grab an axe that a fallen dwarf was still clinging to, and narrowly deflected an attack from a charging Haradrim warrior. The Easterlings rushed forward, eager to claim the kill as their own. But Dain would not fall so easily. He quickly sliced the Haradrim tribesman in half, and with the same swing severed the legs of an Easterling. Brand's body lay at his feet, and he decided that this would be where he would make his final stand... Defending his friend.