Heart Of Stone

Chapter Twenty

Fawn kills an orc and Fang tears into another. A troll approaches them and she jumps off Fang's back, right onto the orc's shoulder. She dodges the orcs flailing arms and slices it's throat as it falls Fawn jumps and lands beside Thorin who Thorin defeats an orc. He calls out to Dain, who is not far away

"Dain!"

"Thorin!" He kills an orc. "Hold on! I'm coming!"

They continue killing orcs, all the while getting closer to each other, Fawn close by Thorin.

"Hey cousin, what took you so long?!"

In a brief respite, they are able to meet and hug and Fawn kills orcs approaching them. "OKay, you can start killing now." She groans. Dain looks at her. "Who's the badass?" Fawn smirks as she swings her blades in fluid motions. A few orcs manage to strike her with their blades. But her skin was never pierced. Thorin looks to her and she looks at him, fearful of what he'd label her as. "Her name is Fawn the Golden Hearted." Fawn smiles and beheads another orc.

Dain and Thorin return to fighting and Fawn sighs in relief. Fang tackles an orc beside Dain and Dain beheads it. "There's too many of these buggars, Thorin. I hope you've got a plan."

Thorin looks up and Fawn follows his gaze and they see the hilltop on which Azog's wooden machines are signalling orders. "Aye - We're going to take out their leader!" Fawn grins evilly and hops atop Fang's back. The warg snarls and runs toward Azog's location.

Dain looks to the hilltop. "Azog..."

Fawn looks behind her-as Fang climbs a steep, rocky hill, and sees Thorin, Dwalin, Fili, and Kili, each on a goat. Dwalin nods his head to her. "Lead on!" She nods and faces forward. She shouts a command in elvish and Fang picks up speed.

They reach some ruins on top of the hill, killing orcs along the way; there is a frozen river between them and where Azog is. Fawn hops off Fang as he tears orcs apart. Once having defeated all the enemies at present, they all look out across the river at the ruins in which Azog was last seen; his wooden signalling machines are visible through the mist. Fang snarls and Fawn lets out a cry of frustration.

Thorin growls in frustration. "Where is he?"

Kili looks around. "Looks empty. I think Azog has fled!"

Thorin shook his head. "I don't think so...Fili, take your brother. Scout out the towers. Keep low and out of sight. If you see something; report back, do not engage - do you understand?!"

"We have company; Goblin mercenaries. No more than a hundred." Dwalin informed Thorin.

They look back the way they came to see goblins running over the ruins toward them.

Thorin turns to Fili, Kili, and Fawn. "We'll take care of them. Go! Go!"

Dwalin bares his teeth at the goblins. "Come on!"

As Kili, Fili, and Fawn run towards the river, Fang, Thorin, and Dwalin face off the goblins.

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Thranduil walks slowly through the city, seeing the fallen bodies on the ground, many of which are his own elves. Oh, by the fates. His commander comes running up and Thranduil merely glances at him. "Recall your company." The commander blows a horn. Gandalf comes running up and Thranduil looks to him.

"My lord, dispatch this force to Ravenhill! The dwarves are about to be overrun. Thorin must be warned."

Thranduil snarls. "By all means, warn him. I have spent enough Elvish blood in defense of this accursed land - No more!" Thranduil walks away haughtily and angrily. He intended to find Fawn and drag her to Mirkwood with him. Away from harm and into safety.

As Thranduil and his elves march through the city, Thranduil searching for Fawn incase she entered Dale, as they killed orcs. Please be alive. Please. They stop abruptly as they see Tauriel standing in the middle of the lane ahead of them, looking resolute.

Tauriel she glares at Thranduil. " You will not turn away - not this time!"

He glares. She is in my way. He needed to hurry up and find Fawn before it was too late. "Get out of my way!"

"The dwarves will be slaughtered!"

"Yes, they will die. Today, tomorrow, one year hence, a hundred years from now - what does it matter? They are mortal." Now move so I can find my hybrid.

Thranduil has slowly as he speaks. "Move Tauriel." Suddenly, Tauriel whips out her bow and nocks an arrow, pointing it at Thranduil.

"You think your life is worth more than theirs, while there is no love in it? There is no love in you!"

Thranduil looks at her angrily for a moment; suddenly, he whips out his sword and slices Tauriel's bow in half. As she drops it in shock, Thranduil lifts the point of his sword to her neck and speaks angrily. She knows nothing! His heart was filled with love. For Fawn. For his son and only ever them and right now this bitch was in the way of him finding his hybrid. Yes, he loved Fawn. Loved her beyond belief and he needed her. Needed her safe. Alive. "What do you know of love?! Nothing! What you feel for that dwarf is not real! You think it is love?! Are you ready to die for it?"

Suddenly, another sword, Orcrist, is laid atop Thranduil's. Thranduil looks to the blade's holder. It is Legolas. He pushes Thranduil's sword away.

Legolas speaks to him in elvish. "If you harm her, you will have to kill me."

As Thranduil stares at him in shock and anger, Thranduil turns to Tauriel. She turned his own son against him. His own flesh and blood. I should have killed her when I had the chance.

Legolas looks to Tauriel. "I will go with you."

They hurry away together and Thranduil watches them. Tauriel pauses and looks over her shoulder at him. "Fawn is on that hill." Thranduil's heart drops and dread fills his body. "No..."