The Wanderer

Chapter Seven

By the time me, Legolas, and Rieka reached the shore, the large orc and his party were already far ahead.

Legolas, having the reins of the horse, stopped at the end of the bridge that connected Esgaroth to the mainland. He fixed a hard glare on the orcs that were fleeing too fast and were too far off for us to catch up.

Being shorter than the prince, I had to peek over his shoulder to see the large orc leading the pack. The earth quacked once more, and I found myself subconsciously clinging to Legolas tighter, but I didn't care once I spotted what had made the earth tremble.

"Legolas," I whispered, my voice failing me. He turned to see what had bothered me, but what he saw made his muscles tighten.

Smaug was free from the mountain. And he was flying towards Esgaroth.

Legolas turned our horse and spurred it back towards the town, Rieka following close behind. He urged the horse to go as fast as possible, running towards a target I knew to be Tauriel. The realization left a twang of some sort of pain in my heart, but I had not the time nor the concentration to figure out way.

I jumped off the horse once we arrived in the town, Legolas swiftly following. Many of the townsfolk were fleeing the city by the bridge, while others were fleeing by boat.

Smaug's terrible roar blasted through the air as he burned down another building. My right hand tingled, as if remembering the pain it went through thousands of years ago. People ran past me, screaming and begging for the dragons mercy, but their pleas landed on deaf ears. I desperately wanted to help them, but my legs refused to move.

Visions of my past kept flashing in front of my eyes. Elves and men alike armed themselves against a fire wielding beast. Cities were burned to the ground. Children cried. Women fled. Corpses littered the ground. Fields were burned. People were starving. Fathers and brothers wielded fought against an impossible foe. Fire burned all around me. There was no escape, I was alone. Alone again.

~~~

I remembered that day, the third battle in the war between dragon and elf. Hundreds were already dead and more would join them soon. They city was burning, people were screaming, despair filled the atmosphere. It was the end for all. Nothing could save us.

Sobs racked my broken body. My sword, half melted, laid at my feet as I clutched my burnt hand to my chest. I collapsed to my knees, regret taking over my thoughts. It was my fault; my fault. I shouldn't have come, I was useless. I couldn't help them.

~~~

A sudden jolt brought me back to reality. Rieka had shoved me out of the way of a stream of fire shot from the mouth of the dragon. Others hadn't been so lucky. I turned away from the gory seen, blinking back tears. Now wasn't the time to reminisce the past; I was needed now.

"Thank you, mellon," I told Rieka, who then rubbed her nose into my side as a 'You're welcome.'

As I helped a fallen women stand up, I searched the area for Legolas. He had already taken off, probably to find Tauriel. Guess Rieka and I were on our own.

Smaug let out another booming cry, shaking the fragile structure of the town. I watched as the great beast used his claws to take out the top of a tower. The dragon flew past it, then circled back around. I saw two figures scrambling to get atop the tower as Smaug approached. A long, black weapon was held in the hands of one. A black arrow.

"Rieka," I shouted to my friend, then ran off towards the tower. Rieka followed loyally, easily able to leap across the rubble and catch up to me.

I kept a steady eye on the two people on the tower. They appeared to be positioning themselves in some strange way. The shorter one stood on the edge of the tower while the taller one balanced the black arrow on his companions shoulder.