"Kaslow! Send the word — everyone disrupt the wyrm, give Bard a chance!"
"Right! And tell the lads… they're brave as hell, so watch your backs," Roland called after Kaslow, grabbing him before he could leave.
"Tell them to aim at the left flank below — scales are loose there. And remind them, don't hold back — use the best star-silver steel armor-piercing arrows!" Roland shouted as Kaslow's back disappeared.
"Honestly... you don't act like a lord... more like a nagging old lady with a thousand things to say," Bard said, watching Roland with a weird look.
"As the last lord of Lagrand... I gotta take care of my people!" Roland replied firmly.
"But where is Lagrand, anyway?" Bard asked, curiosity getting the better of him.
"Far off in the East... it's gone now..." Roland clearly didn't want to talk about it.
Bard saw the silence and assumed it was painful memories. He knew losing your homeland hurt. But really, Roland just couldn't explain it — how do you tell Bard: Hey, dude, the Lagrand Empire was this Fourth Age thing ruling all of Ruen and most of Lovanian?
"I hope your aim's good — otherwise, we'll just have to chop him up!" Roland said, eyeing Bard drawing his Dragon-slaying sword.
"What's that?" Bard gawked at the blade shimmering with light.
"An heirloom... this sword has sliced through countless dragons. Not like Smaug, that flying lizard," Roland said, looking at Bard like he was some bumpkin.
"Let's go dismantle the dwarven spear launcher," Roland suddenly said.
"What, you wanna throw that thing by hand?" Roland pointed at Bard's black arrow.
...
"Heave ho!" Roland and Bard struggled, hauling down the dwarven spear launcher with ropes.
"Hide it well — if it breaks, we're done for," Roland patted the heavy crossbow with four bow arms.
...
"I am fire, I am—death!" The furious Smaug screamed, diving toward Lake-town.
"Dragon incoming!" a Bardani archer yelled from the lookout.
"Fire!" The archers around shouted in unison.
Whizz whizz whizz~ Star-silver armor-piercing arrows flew screaming through the air toward the beast.
Clang! Ding! Sizzle! Several arrows bounced off, but one lucky shot slipped through the gaps between two scales.
"Roar! Damn pests! You actually wounded me!" Smaug growled. A meter-long armor-piercing arrow could pierce dragonhide but never reach vital organs. To the massive wyrm, it was like a mosquito bite. But to Smaug, it was humiliating—his proud defense trampled by tiny human archers.
Whoosh~ Scorching flames rolled forward in a column tens of meters high.
"Scatter!" The archers dove from the wooden towers, some diving into water, others ducking into alleys.
"Shoot!" Smaug swooped low over Lake-town; a dozen archers seized the chance to attack.
"Arrgh! Pull back! His hide's too thick!" One Bardani archer shouted, waving at others as Smaug turned to dive again.
Boom! As they retreated, a wall of dragonfire engulfed their spot.
"Boss! This thing's impossible to kill! Flying dragon? More like cheating dragon!" Kaslow returned, black scorch marks on his armor showing he'd just taken a blast of dragonfire.
"Wanna try your luck up close?" Kaslow whispered.
"Do you think you're proportional in size? Going up there just to be target practice?" Roland looked at him like he was a fool.
"Tell the lads — once the arrows are gone, fall back!" Roland ordered.
"Sticking around just makes things worse — these arrows don't reach deep enough," Roland sighed, watching Smaug rage in the sky.
"Bard! Don't be reckless!" Roland pushed him back as Bard tried to load the heavy crossbow.
"Now's not the time!" Roland grabbed him.
"We've got only one shot — Bard!" Roland said sternly.
"We need to bring him down! Remember your ancestors! Only if he falls do we have a chance!" Roland sighed.
"Damn it!" Bard punched the wall in frustration.
...
"Look at what we've done," Bilber said, staring at the burning ruins of Lake-town.
"The poor people..." Barin whispered.
Behind them, a group of dwarves sat or leaned against walls, faces full of pain. The fires lit their faces in the distance. But thanks to Roland, Lake-town fared better than history — no common folk perished under dragonfire.
Only Thorin stared toward the Lonely Mountain, lost in thought. Bilber frowned but said nothing.
...
"My quiver's empty!" A frenzied Bardani archer reflexively reached back for an arrow — nothing.
"I've got two left!"
"Mine's gone too!"
"I still have five, share 'em!"
This scene played out all over Lake-town. Archers ran to the outskirts, grabbed hidden rowboats, and slipped away under cover of night.
"Looks like the archers are out of arrows..." Kaslow said, watching the thinning arrow fire.
Smaug still vented his fury in the sky, flames boiling water in the town's canals.
"Boss! All the archers should be gone!" Kaslow found Roland and Bard.
Roland looked closely — only three Bardani archers were left with Kaslow; the rest either fled or died in the flames.
"Bard! String your bow! Let's draw Smaug's attention!" Roland patted Bard's shoulder and led the group from the alley.
Smaug was covered with hundreds of sharp arrows; his wing membranes were torn to shreds. Though battered, the wounds were mostly superficial.
"Shoot him!" Roland commanded.
Clang clang clang~ The arrows hit scales, enraging Smaug. He turned and lunged at Roland and the others.
Boom! He crashed down heavily, crushing a row of houses, stomping angrily toward them.
Whoosh~
Several Bardani archers circled Roland and Kaslow, firing nonstop, but suddenly ran out of arrows. They unslung their bows, drew swords or armor-piercing hammers.
Shing! Roland drew his Dragon-slaying sword, standing with the few remaining fighters.
"Oh? Tiny humans? No more arrows, huh? What now?" Smaug sneered, his slit pupils mocking.
"These are your followers? I'll burn them to cinders right in front of you!" Smaug snarled.
Roland quietly waved to Bard hiding nearby. Bard pushed the dwarven spear launcher into position, while Smaug stalked toward them, unaware of the black arrow aimed right at him!
Bard spotted a missing scale patch on Smaug's left wing and grinned. He quickly nocked a black arrow.
"For the honor of the River Valley Lords! For humanity! Die, Smaug!" Bard shouted.
"Go!" Roland and the others dove into an alley as fire swept over their old position.
Whoosh! The black arrow flashed cold light as it flew toward Smaug.
"Aaargh!" The dragon's breath faltered suddenly.
"Aaargh!" Pain erupted in his heart, Smaug writhed violently, flapping feebly before crashing down hard...
...
"He's down?" Bilber watched from afar.
"I saw it with my own eyes!" Barin exclaimed.
"Smaug is dead!" Cheers erupted from the lookout.
...
"Nice work!" Roland emerged from the rubble, slapping Bard on the back.
"He's dead?" Bard couldn't believe it.
"You did it! You reclaimed your family's honor!" Roland praised.
"Too bad Lake-town's wrecked..." Bard sighed, looking at the raging fires.
"But at least the folks are alive, right? As long as we live, things can get better!" Roland smiled, stepping into a small boat.
"Coming?" Roland asked.
"Of course, wait up!" Bard jumped in.
"Oh! Almost forgot — gotta scavenge from Smaug's corpse!" Roland dashed toward the dragon's body. Big flying dragons make for prime loot.
"Congrats, host, you completed the quest: Battle of Smaug! Reward: Temple Guardian Priest *1."
Note: Priest ranks go from Apprentice, Priest, Temple Guardian Priest, Cleric, High Priest, to the ultimate title — Saint.
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