Walking In Starlight

Battle Of The Five Armies ~ 29

Bells are ringing, people are frantically loading their possessions into boats, wanting to get away from the town as soon as possible. In his house, the Master of Laketown is overseeing his soldiers and servants carrying boxes containing his gold and valuables,

"I warned you" the Master said "did I not warn you what would come of dealing with dwarves?! Now they’ve done it! They’ve woken the dragon. They brought the apocalypse upon our heads! Come on! Quickly! Quickly!"

The Master pulls a candlestick in the wall sideways; which turns out to be a lever to a secret passageway, and a nearby bookshelf falls backward to reveal a hidden staircase and boat, landing with the Master’s boat waiting,

"Faster now!" The Master ordered "I’m trying to evacuate myself here! Careful, men. Never mind the books! Get on, get the rest of it!"

"But Sire, should we not try to save the town?" One of the guards asked

"The town is lost!" The Master shouted back "save the gold!"

"You heard him" another guard said

The men load all the gold and other valuables onto the Master’s boat. The townspeople frantically paddle their loaded boats through the canals, wanting to escape the wrath of the dragon. Tauriel watches the sky ominously, with her elf-hearing, she can hear Smaug approaching and roaring, a huge shadow swoops overhead. The great dragon had arrived. Tauriel enter’s Bard’s house and prepares the dwarves and Bard’s family to leave,

"We have no time" Tauriel said "we must leave!"

"Get her up" Bofur said

"Come on, sister" Merius said softly

Zikras gently picked her up in his arms, being careful of her leg, which was still healing, one arm tucked in the crook of her knees, the other around her back while her left arm curled around his neck,

"Come on, come on!" Bofur added "let’s go"

"I’m fine" Ryneela said "I can walk"

"We are not taking that chance" Zikras replied, tightening his hold on his sister "not just yet, you're still healing"

"As fast as you can" Tauriel said

"We’re not leaving" Bain protested "not without our father"

"If you stay here, your sisters will die" Tauriel replied "is that what your father would want?"

Bard is in the prison, and all the men guarding him are gone, clutching the cell bars,

"Open the door!" Bard shouted "do you hear me!"

He stops as he sees Smaug flying high above the town, then frantically tries to break the lock. When it doesn’t break, he rushes to the other side of his jail cell, which is on an arch of a building overhanging a canal. Tauriel, the dwarves, Men of Evantree, Ryneela and Bard’s family get on a boat at the back of the house,

"Give me your hand" Fili said

"Come on, we gotta go!" Bofur exclaimed

"Quickly now!" Tauriel said "hurry!"

Zikras gently sits Ryneela down, the others making sure they have everything that they need, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear,

". . . I approve" Zikras said softly

Achrigan gave Ryneela her bag, they set off down the canal, poling the boat through the floating chunks of ice. Smaug swoops low overhead, and the townspeople scream as he soars high above and away from the town, then turns and dives steeply toward the town, building up fire in his chest. As he gets over the town, he unleashes his flames, and he breathes his fire in a line all the way across the town. People scream and fall and die in the inferno. Bard smashes at his cell’s bars with a pail, but to no avail. Smaug breathes fire over another section of the town, a man, on fire, falls out of his house and into the water.