A Sacrifice To Save You

Shelob, spawn of evil

Muffled voices and screams circled Myra´s head, the smell of sweat, iron, and blood invading her nostrils while she tried to make out her surroundings. Excruciating pain hit her every nerve earning a deep quiet growl escape from her when she attempted to move to lift herself up. She felt incredibly dizzy, barely able to open her eyes Myra forced her legs under her but as she did, a burdensome weight landed on her back pushing Myra back down. Shaking her head Myra glanced over her shoulder narrowing her eye when the blurry figure came clearer and she saw the biggest fell beast snarling at her, pinning her to the ground.

Compared to Myra, it was still puny but after crashing down from the air, the hard impact had knocked all air from her lungs, Myra was feeling shaken and weak for a moment.

“Kill the dragon, feast on her flesh,”

Myra heard the eery voice of the ringwraith commanding his beast to finish her off and the next thing she felt was the fell beast´s jaws wrapping around her neck but because of the size difference, the fell beast struggled to get good hold of her muscular, scaly neck and that gave Myra the extra minute to recover.

A deep, angry growl emerged from her throat, inhaling Myra stoked the fire in her belly while pushing herself slowly up as the beast tried to stay on her back and bite down Myra´s neck.

With a vicious snarl, Myra shook herself like a dog, frills swaying from side to side, her tail hitting the ground and then she stepped strongly to the side shifting her enormous body causing the fell beast to lose balance and the grip on its jaws loosened.

Twisting her neck Myra reached back opening her mouth closing her jaws around the beast´s tail with a strong bite making it howl in pain while the ringwraith cursed as he fell to the ground next to Myra´s feet.

Biting continuously Myra was able to move the fell beast deeper in her mouth and with a crunching sound when she crushed the animal´s spine, impaling the lungs causing a gurgling sound to emerge from the beast, Myra then tossed the dead body into the air toward the orc army that was currently fighting off the elves. Landing onto the unexpected orcs the limp, heavy body of the fell beast managed to kill several of them helping the elves to take a short breather before countering the next enemy wave.

Turning on her feet, Myra´s tail swept the dust on the ground her frills rattling as she let out a furious roar that was so deafening orcs, elves, even the dwarves were forced to cover their ears for a moment. Two of the beasts had landed little further away from her when she had crashed and were now eyeing her flashing their teeth.

Myra lowered her head expanding her wings with a growl, her eyes shining brightly. She was ready for round two with those creatures when Myra felt someone hitting her leg with a sword. Turning her head Myra gazed down seeing the same ringwraith standing next to her huge clawed foot trying to injure her.

Folding her wings lightly, a quiet growl traveled up from her chest as she watched the ringwraith realizing he was being watched. Turning to face her, the ringwraith saw how Myra´s eyes narrowed dangerously.

Watching each other, the cobalt blue dragon and the servant of evil, time slowed down between them, the air felt heavy, almost electrified. Even the smallest tricker could make it blow up like a wildfire, armies around them didn´t have a clue they were surrounding the ticking bomb.


***

Thorin watched the scene below as the dust finally settled, heaving a relieved sigh when he saw Myra was standing looking at something on her right but Thorin couldn't make out what it was.

“Let´s go! She needs our help!” Thorin barked his order, turning on his heels unshielded the orcrist while rushing down the stairs toward the gates leaving his comrades to look baffled at his back before leaping into action.

A giggle escaped from Kili as he followed his uncle, Fili, Balin, Dwalin and the rest of the company right behind him.

“What´s so funny?” Fili asked taking two steps at a time wielding his double swords.

“Dragon needs our help….”Kili giggled again trying not to start laughing out loud.

“Your point?”

“A dragon….a huge, fire breathing, ancient, the celestial beast needs the help of dwarves….that is funny as hell,”

Corners of Fili´s mouth twisted as he twirled the thought in his mind and had to agree, it sounded rather hilarious.

“Don´t tell Thorin that,” Fili chuckled leaping the last two stairs running after Thorin who was nearly at the gate not bothering to look if anyone was following him.

“I´m not suicidal,” Kili muttered dashing after his brother sword in his hand.
The whole company was following their king into combat crying out their battle shouts.

When Thorin ran out through the gates, he saw Haldir with Elrond fighting off a group of Uruk-hai, swinging their swords with deadly accuracy. Like that wasn´t confusing enough sight to see, next glance to further ahead Thorin witnessed Thranduil with his son, Legolas defending the front line with a small army of rangers.

“What the…” Thorin muttered but didn´t have time to process what he was seeing when another vicious screech traveled through the air. But it wasn´t Myra.

Thorin´s worried gaze roamed across the battlefield settling on the big looking creature, recognizing the form all too well and his brows furrowed.

“Oh Mahal no…” Thorin groaned.

Kili, Fili, Dwalin, Balin, Gloin, Bombur, Bofur, Bifur, Dori, Nori, and Ori halted behind Thorin staring eyes as the size of a plate, their mouths loosely open at the distance where the huge, hideous looking spider was crawling downhill toward the center of the battlefield.

“Tha…is that one of the spiders of Mirkwood?” Ori whimpered taking a step closer to his brothers.

Dwalin frowned looking closely at the spider gritting his teeth.

“No, it looks much, much bigger and far older than the eight-legged weaklings in Mirkwood,” he muttered gripping his ax firmly in his hands.

Out of nowhere Gandalf appeared next to them breathing heavily as he gazed at the old enemy he knew well, straightening himself against his staff, the grey wizard´s expression was mixed of worry and disbelief.

“Gandalf? Where did you come from?” Fili asked a little startled and confused how the wizard always managed to pop up when least expected.

“No, that most certainly isn´t one of Mirkwood´s spiders but it is a spawn of Ungoliant nevertheless,” Gandalf ignored Fili´s question staring at the new enemy.

“Ungoliant? What was she, a big ass spider?" Kili repeated shifting his blue eyes Gandalf´s face before looking back at the spider who was approaching the army of elves who were far too busy fighting against Uruk-hai warriors and orcs not noticing the spider behind them.

“Yes and no. She was a primordial taking the shape of a gigantic spider. The true origin of Ungoliant is unknown, even Valar doesn´t know where she came from. It is said that she came from the Darkness itself that lay about Arda and was once an ally of Melkor. What you are looking at right now, is her distant daughter…Shelob,”

“Shelob?” Balin muttered furrowing his brows, he had read from ancient books about a spider with that name.

“Why is it here? I thought she lived in the deep caves of Mordor,” Balin turned to look at Gandalf who was as perplexed about it as he was.

“She was…so long that her senses have darkened. How is she able to walk in daylight is a mystery to me,”

“I don´t care where did it came from! All I care is that it is going after Myra!” Thorin barked a wild look in his brightly shining blue eyes as he glared at Shelob.

All of them snapped their gaze at the spider who had changed her path targeting Myra who was currently facing the ringwraith.

”Dragon, give us your soul, join with Sauron and the world will be yours,” the ringwraith spoke with raspy, nearly foreign-sounding voice, earning Myra to narrow her eyes into slits growling and exposing her sharp teeth.

“I wouldn´t join with Sauron even if my life depended upon it, servant of evil,”  Myra snarled stiffening her frills like a cat raising its fur to look bigger.

Lowering her head Myra´s snout was only inches away from the ringwraith when a strange, tangy odor invaded her nostrils causing her to strongly blow air out and shaking her head she lifted it up to see what was the source of that vile smell.

Twisting her long scaly neck Myra gazed slightly behind her and her electrick blue eyes landed on the spider crawling toward her surprisingly fast.

Her every muscle tensed up, tail stiffened as a deep warning growl traveled up her throat. Myra looked under her scaly lids at the spider slowly turning and forgetting the ringwraith´s existence at that moment.

Standing firmly on her spot Myra extended her wings wide letting out a roar aimed at Shelob who screeched in response speeding her approaching.

“NO!!”

Myra frowned when she heard agitated deep bellow far across the battlefield and glancing around briefly she saw Thorin and his company standing in front of the gates of Erebor horrified expressions on their faces.

Thorin met her gaze pleading silently her not to take on the spider while shaking his head but Myra merely smiled at him before breaking the eye contact and leaped into the air sending a whirlwind full of small pebbles into the air. Whoever was near enough was forced to cover their faces so the dust wouldn´t go to their eyes blinding them.

“MYRA!!!”

Thorin´s pained shout echoed across the plains as he watched her flying high above the clouds before turning, pressing her wings against her sides and diving down straight toward Shelob who had lifted her enormous and heavy body upright, four of her legs spread open getting ready for the impact.

“DON´T!! JUST COME HOME WITH ME!! LET SOMEONE ELSE FIGHT HER!! MYRA!!” Thorin cried as loudly as he could while sprinting into action, running toward the spider his men right behind him.

Fili and Kili charged forward ready to defend their uncle and Myra but Shelob was bigger than those spiders they had encountered in Mirkwood, it would be a difficult task to defeat her. But no one thought giving up, Dwalin´s eyes gleaming with fire as the thrill of battle affected him.

Myra locked her target tossing any other distraction out of her head as she was getting closer, sneering at the spider while inhaling deeply summoning her dragon fire. Like this, it was unlikely she would burn her fellow warriors fending off the enemy.

But Thorin´s words echoed in her mind stubbornly. It oddly warmed her heart, it had been so long she had thought about it.

It was a word she never thought she would say again. “Home.”