Flames

2.11

As they ran, Azalea thought of something. She should be dead. With as much blood as she thought she'd lost, she should be dead. The cuts felt pretty deep. So why wasn't she dead? As other dwarves set up the forges, she twirled the Tree of Gondor on her necklace around her fingers. She remembered when she got it. It was just before she'd left.

"Azalea, I want you to have this," Arathorn said, handing her the chain.

"Why?" she asked, not taking it.

"It will protect you. As long as you wear this, no injury will kill you," he explained.

"Yeah, like I'll need that."

"Just take it. Please."

Now, there she was, three bleeding gashes in her face, and she was still alive. So, she had her father to thank for her life. She thought she could feel the cuts beginning to heal already. That didn't change the fact that her face was still covered in blood, and a huge gash spread across her eyes. The only thing it did change was that she was standing in the forges instead of lying dead in the vaults.

"I want to help," she announced, her voice significantly stronger than before.

"Thorin specifically told me not to let you move from that spot," Kili replied. Out of spite, she shifted over a step. Kili chuckled. Footsteps pounded on the tile below. Azalea hoped it was Thorin. The dragon growled nearby. Thorin began to taunt it. A feeling of foreboding settled in Azalea's heart as the taunts grew more daring.

Then, heat exploded in front of her face.

"What's going on?!" she exclaimed.

"The forges are lit!" Kili replied. Azalea laughed triumphantly, which sent pain ripping through her wounds.

She had no idea what was happening around her. Every sound seemed to be magnified ten times. The roars of the dragon, the crackling of the flames, the yells from the dwarves, it all pounded against her eardrums, threatening to deafen her. She pressed her shaking hands against her ears, which helped. Out of nowhere, someone grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the room.

"What the hell is happening?!" she yelled.

"We're leaving the forges. Just trust me!" Thorin yelled back.

Azalea knew she trusted him. So, she let herself be dragged along.

After a while, they stopped running.

"Where are we?" Azalea asked, her voice echoing. 

"Not far. Stay here."

Azalea was tired of hearing that. She also heard footsteps receding. She realized something.

Did he just leave me?

Loud crashes and clangs echoed throughout the cavernous room. Worry pounded in Azalea's heart. She instinctively pulled an arrow out of her quiver and notched it into the bow. She found herself feeling ridiculous. She was blind. What good could she do with a bow?

Then, it went deathly silent. All except for the sound of breathing. 

"Where are you, Man?" Smaug growled.

If she thought her mind was racing before, that was nothing compared to how it ran now. She tried to calculate where his face would be.

"I know you can't see me," he continued, "but I can see you quite clearly."

He's right in front of me.

She pulled back the arrow and let it fly. He roared loudly, and she knew she'd hit him. She felt for a hiding place and hid behind a banister. Fire roared around her. She covered her head with her hands.

"Hey!"

Smaug turned his head. Azalea stood up and notched another arrow. She was ready to take down this dragon if she needed to.

More fighting sounds reached her ears. A loud crash echoed through the hall, then it was silent. Something that sounded like rushing water filled the room. More silence.

A loud boom resonated, crashed into Azalea's eardrums. Smaug's thundering footsteps pounded behind her eyes. His voice ripped through the rest of the sound. 

"Revenge?! I'll show you revenge!"

Another loud crash. Azalea followed the sound, holding out her hands to feel for anything in her way. She ran as quickly as she dared.

"I am fire! I am death!"

Azalea froze and covered her mouth with her hand. She wanted to cry, but she didn't think she could anymore. She sank to the floor, leaning against the wall.

"What have we done?" she whispered.

END OF PART TWO