The King and Dragon Lord

Ch. 18

{ Nex's POV }

"Hold on, Eldaerenth." Fafnir jolted forward, or upward?, anyways, and started running up the big pile of rubble that was caused by the avalanche. Which I assume was also caused by the Orcs.

Things were being thrown at us and arrows were being shot, I was for sure this was going to be my death bed, this valley.

An orc shot Fafner in the back right leg, not injuring it because of the scales though the force was strong enough to knock its leg off balance and Fafnir stumbled. It gripped hard on the avalanche wall and straightened out its body. "Go!"

"What?!" I yelled at Fafner and then it felt as if orcs were throwing things on its legs to pull it down. "Fafner!" My scream cracked in fear.

"GO!" Its voice was a deep growl and then I got the courage to quickly climb from Fafner to the wall, though unfortunately I felt it fall right out from under me.

"FAFNER!" I turned my head and screamed toward the direction of which I felt its body be pulled. An arrow barely missed me and I jolted, almost falling myself but then a voice appeared in my head.

"Eldaerenth"

It sounded almost like a whisper. The sound of my actual name being said by a familiar voice gave me enough strength to continue climbing the wall. The higher I climbed the fainter the sound of the orcs became, unfortunately some were still close enough to be shooting arrows.

My right hand slipped and at first I thought it was just mud, but upon feeling the spot again it felt like a hole with water pouring out. This could be my way out..! I pulled myself over and climbed into the hole. At first I thought I wouldn't fit through but luckily I did.

There was surprisingly enough space for me to stand but I didn't stand long. I looked in the direction of where I came and a sudden wave of anger, confusion, sadness, and many others came over me and fell to the ground and started sobbing.

Why me? Why do I have to bear this god-forsaken gift that's horrible and always has been? Why is it once I find the thing I want to stay and live for, it gets ripped from me?

So many questions that couldn't be answered and so many more to come. During my breakdown the voice came back, but much clearer.

"Eldaerenth"

"La- Lady Galadriel?" I sniffed and closed my eyes.

"May it be a light to you in dark places, when all other lights go out"

A wave of flashes filled my brain. I remember Lady Galadriel telling me this when I first wanted to train at Rivendale and I never thought I'd fit in. She had always saw the best in me. Said that my life is what kept me going. It's what kept me alive. And..

"Thorin.." I whispered to myself and held back more tears. No. No more crying. I will fight for my life and my life is him.

My body was weak from climbing but I forced myself to get up and follow along the tunnel. There were little flicker of lights showing through cracks here and there the more further I went. Eventually I hit the end and fell to my knees. The air felt good, so did the ground. I just hoped I didn't have to walk much farther.

I got my bearings after a bit of taking a breather and surveyed the area. Nothing seemed to be of interest except for a dune up ahead. Much dryer than the rest of the area. "This must be it," I took a deep breathe and continued onward to what I assumed was the Northern Waste.

My arms were very weak but I needed to hold them up so dirt wouldn't fly up in my face. This didn't seem much like a dragon breeding ground.

I felt lost, disappointed, and helpless. Maybe Gandalf was right. What if Smaug was the last known and very last dragon to exist? My heart wanted to look around more but my brain said there was nothing left. Instead of listening to my heart I listened to my brain and decided to leave. This was all for nothing..