The Dwarf Prince

Chapter 17: The Dragon

A day earlier...

In Laketown, a siren rang loudly, echoing throughout the town of Men. All around, the townsfolk loaded whatever they owned into boats. Among this group was of course, the Master of Laketown. He watched as his servants carried his various priceless possessions away from danger.

"I warned you," he said. "Did I not warn you what would come out 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!" he bellowed as he pulled a candlestick in the wall, which happens to be a lever that enabled him a quick escape. The bookshelf nearby fell backwards, revealing a hidden staircase where the Master's boat was already waiting for him. 

"Faster now! I'm trying to evacuate myself here!" he instructed.

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

"The town is lost. Save the gold!" the Master snapped.

Dutifully, the guards followed his orders.

While everyone was fleeing the town because of the dragon, Tauriel stood outside of Bard's house, her elf hearing allowing her to hear Smaug approaching. It doesn't take long for a giant shadow to swoop overhead. Tauriel went straight back inside upon seeing this.

"We have no time. We must leave," she told the others.

"Get him up," Bofur said, referring to Kili, who had recovered slightly from his injury.

"Come on, brother," Fili encouraged, helping him up.

"Come on, come on. Let's go," Bofur said hurriedly.

"I'm fine," Kili insisted. "I can walk."

"As fast as you can," Tauriel said.

Bain stood firmly and looked at the she-elf. "We're not leaving. Not without our father."

"If you stay here, your sisters will die," Tauriel reasoned. "Is that what your father would want?"

When Bain had given in to Tauriel's reasoning, the small group rushed over to a boat that was at the back of the house before setting off down the canal. Over the town, Smaug unleashed fire from its mouth, flame burning raining down on the townsfolk as many of whom were unlucky enough, died in the inferno.

Meanwhile, Bard who had just escaped jail because of the unfairness in the Master's justice, ran towards the bell tower where he would be closest to the dragon. Using the arrows he already had, he shot one at the beast, but because the dragon's hide is tough, it merely bounces off Smaug's scales. On the boat, Bard's children immediately realised that their father was the man at the bell tower.

"Da!" the children called out as Bard shot another arrow in vain.

"He hit it, He hit the dragon!" Kili said.

"No," Tauriel said solemnly. "His arrows cannot pierce its hide; I fear nothing will."

Something pops up in Bain's head, and determinedly, he swung himself off the boat.

"What are you doing?" Bofur asked incredulously.

"Come back!" Fili shouted. "Bain, come back!" But the young boy kept running.

At the top of the bell tower, Bard reached for another arrow, only to find that he only had one last arrow. He grabbed it, feeling even more pressured, as he aimed at Smaug once again. This time, Bard was able to graze the dragon, but not enough to even break through the scales. From behind him, Bain appeared.