14. Fire and Water
The river runs gold. The fire-drake forges death in Lake-town. Vainly, grim-voiced Bard rallies the fight.
A thrush flutters. Wondering, Bard – of the line of Girion, Lord of Dale – understands and lets fly his final hope. The Black Arrow speeds straight.
A shriek that splinters wood and stone sunders the air. Smaug falls into the quenching water. The news travels fast as flight.
The Lake-men lament the loss of home and hero. Yet King Bard lives! And discovers men are hard to rule who must sleep on hard earth.
The Elves bring succour, before the march to the Lonely Mountain.
A thrush flutters. Wondering, Bard – of the line of Girion, Lord of Dale – understands and lets fly his final hope. The Black Arrow speeds straight.
A shriek that splinters wood and stone sunders the air. Smaug falls into the quenching water. The news travels fast as flight.
The Lake-men lament the loss of home and hero. Yet King Bard lives! And discovers men are hard to rule who must sleep on hard earth.
The Elves bring succour, before the march to the Lonely Mountain.
This is a work of fan fiction, written because the author has an abiding love for the works of J R R Tolkien. The characters, settings, places, and languages used in this work are the property of the Tolkien Estate, Tolkien Enterprises, and possibly New Line Cinema, except for certain original characters who belong to the author of the said work. The author will not receive any money or other remuneration for presenting the work on this archive site. The work is the intellectual property of the author, is available solely for the enjoyment of Henneth Annûn Story Archive readers, and may not be copied or redistributed by any means without the explicit written consent of the author.
