The Hatred of Sauron

Chapter Seven: Great smoke towers

I stepped out of the alleyway for a second before stopping. Thump, thump. The tremors of a dragon. I hopped up onto the roofs quickly, which is where I saw it; the dreaded dragon Smaug. I jumped back down and ran to people's doors, banging on them and shouting as I went. Some began to poke their heads out in annoyance. 

'Flee! You must flee! There is a dragon upon you, Smaug is here!' I shouted at the top of my voice. There were a mixture of expressions upon their faces when I glanced back at them as I ran past. Some were scared, some were confused, but many of them laughed.

'Feeble elf-maiden are you lost?' a guard mocked.

'There is no dragon, the dwarves will kill it and we will-' another man was cut off by a sudden burst of fire hitting him in his chest. He screamed in pain, fleeing to the water, cursing the dragon. 

The foul, smog-filled hurricane swooped past swiftly, and many of the townsfolk looked at me in disbelief. I had to act fast before they were all burnt to a crisp.

'Quick into the boats! Women and children first!' I yelled over the roaring winds. I untied ropes to the boats and helped escort as many women and children onto them as possible. When they were ready I kicked the boats hard, propelling them away from the burning town.

'Go! Avoid all buildings as you go, you will be more safe on the open water,' I instructed them. Another woman who was preparing another boat to go spoke up. 'But where shall we sail to?' she asked.

'To the nearest shore, now go!' I cried with urgency, helping her set the boat off with her and some children. I turned to look at the destruction behind me, buildings were just beginning to collapse around me so I lead the next group of people to another small boat and set them off. But Smaug was quick, and was already circling back around the town to breathe out another furious firestorm. I hurried them along, though another burst of flame whooshed down the centre of the town, filling in the gaps where there were no buildings. I shielded as many people as possible behind a nearby building from the fire, but many were crossing the middle to the other boats. 

None survived that blast of flame, and I barely breathed as I watched those people turn to ash in front of me. I needed to be more careful when guiding them. I checked the skies again to locate where Smaug was, and ensured the surviving people I had shielded made it to the boats on the other side. I remained behind to find more people, I had to help them.

I began scouting the outer buildings for any sign of life, I heard a few screams and wails so went to search as many buildings as I could. I pulled out old men and young children and heaved them onto boats. Many of them were unconscious due to the smog and smoke that had choked them. I was beginning to feel it as well. The air was thick and heavy, so much so, that every breath felt like hard labour, as the air was not the fresh aroma I was used to. I could not last long, not in my normal state anyway. I had cleared as much of the available area around me, as the only people left were dead, their deafening screams turned quiet.

I needed to leave now before I fainted or worse, suffocated. I ran to a corner as I spotted a piece of wood on the water that I could use to propel my way to the shore. As I was about to move to it there was a loud thud; Smaug has landed on the city. He audibly sniffed and huffed, his breath pungent even from a distance. 

'What is this I smell? An elf. An elf who hides in the shadows, come now where I can see you,' Smaug hissed. I stared at the floor. I had to move either way, he would have found me if I stayed where I was. I slyly peeked my face around the corner, in order to locate Smaug's position. But I was instantly met with a wave of fire, which caught the right side of my face.

I recoiled back and stumbled onto the ground, as the searing pain filled my head. My face was on fire, it felt like it was melting, disintegrating into my hands. I screamed terribly, no longer able to hold it in anymore.