A Thousand Miles[Thorin Oakenshield Love Story]

[Chapter Twenty Nine]

Alyndra made hast down the halls of the mountain. She could feel the heat burn her skin as the hall lit up. All she knew was that she was getting closer to the treasure room. The only thing she was unsure of was the fate of the hobbit. Thorin was ahead of the others. He knew these tunnels like the back of his hand. "Alyndra!" Thorin shouted for her. The dwarf braced himself against the wall as the hall he was in lit up, he could feel the pressure of the heat blow against his skin but he wasn't going to stop until he found the skin-changer.

The dwarf dashed out of the hall into the treasure room. His face filled with awe at the sight before him. He remembered his Grandfather had tons of gold, but their appeared to be more than he remembered as he starred at it with such longing; forgetting the real reason why he had come running into the mountain in the first place. The dwarf was soon brought out of his haze when he heard someone coming up another set of stairs and he held his sword at the ready, until he saw who it was. " You're alive!"

"Not for much longer!" Bilbo stated, as he climbed up the last few steps with haste, heading towards the nearest tunnel where Thorin stood in front of it.

" Did you find the Arkenstone?" Thorin asked.

"The dragon's coming." The hobbit warned, but none of this seemed to phase the dwarf at all.

"The Arkenstone." Thorin demanded angrily this time. Neither spoke and the silence grew and all they felt was the breeze that blew passed them. "Did you find it?" The dwarf finally spoke. Bilbo still didn't answer, taking note of the fact that the leader was acting rather odd, like something was taking hold of him.

"No. We have to get out of here." Bilbo urged and he went to walk pass the king to enter the hall when Thorin suddenly swung his blade across it, preventing the hobbit from going any further and Bilbo gave the dwarf a confused look and noticed straight away that his friend, didn't appear to be himself. Alyndra; having incredible hearing, had overheard Thorin's voice and Bilbo's and she turned down another tunnel, their voices getting louder. She could hear the fear in Bilbo's voice, begging Thorin to stop what ever he was doing. The skin-changer made it to the entrance and stopped in her tracks to see the dwarf had the hobbit at the edge of the platform at sword point.

" Thorin. What are you doing?" Alyndra questioned from behind him. Thorin turned his head slightly at the sound of her voice but did not face her.

"Stay back Alyndra." Thorin warned, still looking at the hobbit with no emotion on his face.

"Thorin no, please don't do this." She begged him, tugging him at his shoulder, but he shoved her away like nothing, when she sniffed the air and caught the sent of something her kind feared and she froze in the corner of the wall she was up against. The hobbit suddenly glanced to his side, making Thorin narrow his eyes, when he heard the rumbling of heavy footsteps and realized they weren't alone. The dwarf's head turned to the side to see the dragon smaug in midst and the beast snarled at him. The skin-changers eyes widen at the sight of the monster. The rest of the company came bursting in, with their weapons and axes at the ready. Thorin had his sword in front of him when he saw the woman and the fear that covered her face and he yanked her behind him.

"You will burn!" Smaug roared as he charged at the company wildly.

"Run!"

The company jumped off the edge of platform, and stumbled across the gold as the made hast for closest tunnel. The dragon breathed fire in rage as it filled the treasure room. Everyone got through the hall, Thorin was the last to enter when the back of the dwarf's coat caught on fire and he drops to the ground . Alyndra screamed in horror when Thorin gets the clothing off and Dwalin stomps on it and put's the flames out.

"Come on!" Thorin pressed, as he took the woman's hand and the rest of the dwarves followed their leader down the hall. It felt like hours, they have been wandering the halls and hadn't seen or heard from Smaug since their first encounter. Which only put the dwarves on edge, wondering he was just waiting behind every corner to rip his teeth through their flesh. Thorin saw they were approaching a stone bridge over a chasm and the dwarf raises his hand and 'shh's' them to keep quiet and he peered around the column for any sings of his nemesis.

"We've given him the slip." Dori whispered.

"No. He's too cunning for that." Dwalin stated, knowing their mere escape was nothing but dumb luck, it was going to take more to out smart this dragon.

"So where to now?" Bilbo finally asked quietly.

"The western guardroom. There may be a way out." Thorin pressed as he looked at the others.

"It's too high, there's no chance that way." Balin argued

"It's our only chance. We have to try," Thorin hissed. The dwarf prince was the first to slowly begin to walk across, looking every which way and motioned the others to follow. No one had noticed the skin-changed had remained in the hall, until Dwalin looked behind him to see the woman still standing their.

"Alyndra, come on." Dwalin urged quietly and the skin-changer shook her head. Her kind feared this beast. The warrior dwarf looked at the others were were nearly halfway across and he walked back over to Alyndra. "Come on, we have to catch up to the others." Dwalin insisted.

"I can't...I can smell him...he's close." The skin-changer admitted, Dwalin could hear the terror in her voice. Dwalin could tell the woman was trying not say something she would regret, ever since he attacked her and nearly killed her in the process she has been terrified of him. The dwarf admitted to himself that he was wrong about this woman intentions, coming on this quest and knew how his leader felt for her and that she felt the same, he wasn't about to let her get left behind now. "Lass, come on." Dwalin urged again, giving her a slight nudge to get her moving. Thorin looked behind him to make sure everyone was still close together when he saw Dwalin and Alyndra were still at the beginning of the bridge. He watched them nervously, as he grew more tense then he already was but soon relaxed when it appeared the dwarf had no intentions of hurting her. Suddenly they heard the sound of a coin clang on the bridge and everyone of them froze.

Bilbo began searching his person, fearing that a few of the coins had got stuck in the fold of his clothing, but it appeared to not be the case when they hear it again and they all look up above them to see Smaug crawling over the stone bridge on the upper level. Thorin motions once again for the dwarves to continue on past him and he took the woman's hand and the two of them followed behind the others until they were safe again the tunnel.

"Are you alright?" Thorin asked her quietly. "Did he hurt you?"

"I'm fine...and no he didn't hurt me." Alyndra stated.

"The guardroom is just down the hall and around the corner." Thorin pointed out and he began running down the hall with the others behind them. "Stay close," Thorin urged when they all came to an abrupt stop as they laid eyes on the horrifying sight in front of them.

"That's it, then. There's no way out." Dwalin pressed, as he stood by the entrance they had just come through. Alyndra let a few tears stream down her face as she looked upon the sight. Seeing the many dead dwarves that never made it out and children who barely had a chance to live, broke her heart even more.

"The last of our kin." Balin said, letting out a long sigh. "They must have come here...hoping beyond hope." all of them looked on in silence, doubting they would every get out of here alive now. " We could try to reach the mines. We might last a few days." he suggest, but Thorin would not die this way.

"No." Thorin finally spoke and stepped forward. "I will not die like this. Cowering, clawing for breath." He continued and turned around to look at his company, a plan forming in his mind. He had no idea if it would work, but it was worth a shot. "We make for the forges."

"He'll see us. Sure as death." Dwalin argued.

"Not if we split up." Thorin countered.

"Thorin, we'll never make it." Balin pressed, stepping towards the prince.

"Some of us might. Lead him to the forges. We kill the dragon. If this is to end in fire...then we will all burn together."