The Dwarf Prince

Chapter 11: Azog

Suddenly, there was a dreadful howl from a distance, followed by several other howls. Upon hearing this, the Company went on full alert, realising that they weren't as safe as they thought.

"Out of the frying pan..." Thorin muttered as they stared at the approaching pack of Wargs.

"And into the fire," Gandalf finished. "Run! Run!"

The Company didn't hesitate and they ran as fast as they could, making sure to put as much distance between them and the Wargs. But the Wargs were faster and they soon caught up.

A Warg leapt at Bilbo and it pounced on him. In defence, Bilbo pulled out his sword and much to his surprise, the charging Warg impaled itself with the head of the sword and fell to the ground, dead. The Company kept running and they ended up at the edge of the cliff where trees grew. They were cornered.

"Up into the trees, all of you!" Gandalf bellowed at them. "Come on, climb! Bilbo, climb!"

A few of the dwarves managed to climb up, with the others attacking the Wargs. Bilbo tried to pull out his sword from the dead Warg's head but he remained unsuccessfully as the sword was stuck in its head.

"They're coming!" Thorin shouted.

The dwarves continued climbing and Gandalf himself climbed to the very top of the tree. Bilbo finally managed to pull out the sword and quickly, he climbed up the tree. Dozens of Wargs surrounded them by now, snarling and growling at the Company. Gandalf reached out his staff and picked up a moth that was on the same tree as him. He brought the moth close to his mouth and whispered something to it before he blew gently and it flew away. The Wargs stopped their growling and out came a White Warg with Azog on its back. Thorin looked at him in shock.

"Azog?!" he said in disbelief.

"Nuzdigid? Nuzdi gast?," Azog said ominously. (Do you smell it? The scent of fear?) "I remember your father reeked of it, Thorin son of Thrain,"

Thorin looked strickened with grief, realising his father's fate at the hands of the disgusting orc in front of him.

"It cannot be," he said.

Azog turned to the Wargs. "That one is mine," it said, referring to Thorin. "Kill the others!"

At his command, the Wargs pounced forward and tried to climb the trees, scratching the trees with their claws and breaking apart branches with their jaws. The tree shook, making it very difficult for the Company to hold on.

"Drink their blood!" Azog shouted with an evil grin. The weight of the Wargs, becoming too much for the tree to handle, caused the tree to be uprooted and those who were on the tree quickly jump to the next tree. But like a stack of dominoes, the uprooted tree fell on the next tree and that tree fell on the next. The Company were left perched in the last tree on the very edge of the cliff. Gandalf surveyed his surroundings and his gaze fell on a pinecone. He grabbed it and used his staff to set it on fire. He then threw it down on the ground where the Wargs were and they retreated in fear of the fire. Seeing that it was indeed effective, Gandalf didn't hesitate to light a few more pinecones on fire.

"Fili!" Gandalf yelled and threw the cone at Fili who then threw it at the Wargs. Gandalf lit many more pinecones, throwing them at the dwarves who then threw it at the Wargs. All around them, the trees and greenery were on fire, creating a barrier in between them and the Wargs. Seeing that they got the Wargs to retreat, the Company cheered, only to be brought to a halt when roots of the tree started to give way. The tree fell over and the Company held on for their lives. The tree hung at the edge of the cliff and the Company are left stranded on the tree with nothing but a massive drop below them.