(A/N:  Many, many thanks and kudos to my beta, Nieriel Raina, for overseeing this most difficult chapter.  I appreciate your reviews and comments, and will respond accordingly; for now, my muse is horribly awakened, and I am ready to write again.  -- Le Rouret)

25. Baiting a Worm

“My point is,” said Vé irritably, digging through a brass-bound oak chest and casting vambraces and faulds everywhere, “you can’t just say, ‘I think I’ll kill a dragon,’ and then kill a dragon.  It takes a tad more work than that, though I must say I admire your confidence.”

“Confidence has very little to do with it,” said Legolas mildly, holding up a cuirass to see if it would fit.  “It is distractingly ironic, Gimli, that we brought my armor all this way, and yet are unable to get to it when I need it.” 

“If by ‘ironic’ you mean ‘maddening,’ then I would be compelled to agree,” said Gimli.  He banged and clattered around for a moment, then said, “Wait, Legolas; I think this will fit you.”  He turned and held up a silvery mail coat, studded with precious gems; it glimmered and sparkled in the firelight.

“O how pretty!” exclaimed Tamin, clapping his hands with delight.  “O put it on, do, Master; I want to see how it looks on you!”

“Pretty!” snorted Vé.  “It’ll be more to the point if it’s effective – which it won’t be, Legolas; Muhk’s jaws are mighty powerful.”

“’Twill be better than naught,” said Legolas, struggling into the mail.  “And should a fang graze me, at least the mail shirt will stop it.”

“Are all Elves this optimistic?” Vé complained to Bandobras, who was likewise rooting through a pile of armaments.

“Not all of ‘em,” said Bandobras; his voice was muffled, for his head was obscured in a deep trunk.  “Meivel’s all about the gloom and doom, he is.  And Elrohir, well, I just wanted to smack the fellow.”  He straightened, holding a narrow cuirass.  He frowned at it a moment, turning it round about, then he brightened and said:  “Ho, Tamin!  Come along here a moment, will you, me dear?  Think this’ll fit you proper-like.”

Legolas turned quickly, his face like a thundercloud.  “What!” he exclaimed.  “No, Bandobras!  My Tamin will not have any need to wear armor; he will not be going anywhere near that dragon!  I forbid it!”

Tamin, who had rushed to Bandobras’ side and was fingering the cuirass appreciatively, looked at his Master in dismay.  “But – “ he said, and Bandobras, said, “Now, look here – “, and Gimli said, “Legolas – “  But it was Vé who stood glaring at him, his hands on his hips, and said sternly:

“Forbid it!  I like that!  We’re few enough against a dragon, and you propose to cut our strength by a fifth?  A fifth?  Well, it’s a good thing you’ve got a proper general in Dol Galenehtar, Legolas, because it’s obvious you haven’t got the sense to conduct your own campaigns.”

“I have enough sense to recognize when a child is in over his head,” Legolas said angrily.  “Send my little esquire out to fight a dragon?  My Tamin, my Little One?  Never!”

Both Tamin and Bandobras began to expostulate, but Vé shouted them down.  “Never?” he exclaimed.  “Never?  And what about Melima?  How old was she?  Wasn’t she little more than a child herself?  And Renna’s children – from what I hear tell, the eldest was little more than nine years old.  Was he over his head?  Or any of the other kiddies?  Or what about all the old folks, the one Malbeach lined up and forced down the dragon’s passageway to be eaten?  You think they were old enough?  Or you think they hadn’t loved ones who would’ve done anything to keep them from being eaten?  Look!”  He strode over to where Dúrfinwen lay bundled, and pulled the blindfold from round her head; she stared round, terrified.  “What about her?” Vé demanded, pointing down at her.  “Think she was in over her head when those men tortured her?  How old is she?  Was she old enough to be over her head then?”

“Enough,” said Legolas weakly, holding out his hands in protest.  “Enough, enough!  No; I do not think the children Muhk ate were old enough – no one is ready; no one is capable of this – “

“Least of all you,” snapped Vé, covering Dúrfinwen’s face again.  “Look at you!  Scrawny, pale, can’t hardly think straight.  And you propose – “ He marched up to Legolas and poked him, hard, in the stomach with his finger, emphasizing his points “ – to cut our strength by a fifth – a fifth, mind you – never mind attacking a dragon is madness to start! – just because you don’t think your esquire is either ready or willing or able to risk his life to prevent that – “ he pointed back at Dúrfinwen – “happening again?  Is that what you’re saying?”  He put both fists on his hips and glared up at the Green Knight, his eyes blazing and his jaw set.  There was an awkward silence then, broken only by the crackling of the fire, and the faint soughing of air high above them.  Legolas looked helplessly down at Vé; then he turned to Tamin, who stood gazing beseechingly at his Master, holding the pretty burnished cuirass in his hands.  Legolas swallowed hard, moved his lips soundlessly a moment, then whispered:

“Tamin – are you – can you – will you do this?”

“I will, Master,” said Tamin stoutly.  “I want to, truly I do.  O let me do this, Master; please; I do not want what happened to Dúrfinwen – “ he cast a pitying look at the woman, and shivered  “ – or Melima or the girl in the stables to happen to anyone else, I don’t, truly, Master, and if by my life I might aid in taking down this vile beast and so prevent further mischance upon the innocent, well then, Master, what other aim in life shall I have?  Otherwise I might as well abjure my spurs and take up crocheting.”

Legolas choked on a sob, and with a cry Tamin flew to his Master’s arms; as Legolas embraced him Tamin said with a muffled voice:  “You must allow me to be the Black Knight eventually, you know, Master.”

“Yes,” said Legolas, weeping.  “I know.  But why now – why now?”

“I have no answer for that, Master,” said Tamin honestly.

“I did not expect you to, Little One,” said Legolas, kissing the crown of his head and releasing him.  He wiped away his tears and said with forced cheer:  “Well, then, O Vé!  Since I am apparently incapable of running mine own campaign, what do you suggest?  What is the lay of the land like hereabouts, and how might we best creep up on this dragon unknown?”

“Don’t ask much, do you?” grumbled Vé.  “You don’t ‘creep up’ on dragons, you know, Legolas.”

“You must have,” said Gimli.  He gestured to Vé’s treasure.  “How did you come by this?”

“Oh!  That’s different,” said Vé, surprised. “Well – stop up the lassie’s ears, will you?  If Muhk’s listening through her, I don’t want him knowing what I’m about to tell you.”  He waited until Legolas had put thick padding round Dúrfinwen’s ears, and bound her head again, and removed her a ways away; then satisfied he continued:  “It’s a small crack, and you must crawl, crawl, crawl through there – “ he pointed to a dark fault against the far wall, scarcely two feet high.  “It’s all covered in mud, and you can’t even crawl when you get to the end of it – you’ve got to pull yourself along on your belly.  You come out east of Muhk’s cavern, in a little dark hole; then you crawl through another passage, and climb up a ways, and crawl some more; then pop!  You’re in his store room.  Heaps of treasure he’s got, lads; it’d make your head spin, really it would – well, maybe not;” he amended, scratching his head thoughtfully.  “Likely you’ve already seen Stonehelm’s goods.  But if you go out the store room, and round a corner, and up a bit, you’re practically right on top of Muhk.  And let me tell you, he’s got mighty good hearing, he has.”  Vé grinned.  “I was lucky – first time I tried it, Muhk wasn’t at home.  That was how I started pilfering his goods – thought I could get away with a couple of things; then, you know, once you start … “ He shrugged.  “I thought, why not? Why not take back for a Dwarf what belonged to the Dwarves?  Made him mad as the devil, when he started noticing the pile shrank.  But I didn’t care.  Served him right, the nasty creature.”

“How did you get the larger pieces back?” asked Bandobras curiously, picking up a shield.  “From what you’ve said, something this size wouldn’t fit through that there tunnel.”

“I took my chances, and came round the other way,” shrugged Vé, straightening his crown.  “Out the big entrance way, up the side of the cavern wall, and down my chimney-chute.  I’d have brought some furniture for myself, but I can’t fit a bedstead down the way you came in, and he’s eaten all the bolsters anyway.”

“Is he always hungry, Vé?” asked Tamin, wide-eyed, standing still while Bandobras fussed with his cuirass.

“Always,” said Vé grimly.  “If he can’t get game, he eats kine; if he can’t get kine, he eats people; and if he can’t get people, he eats whatever he can get his jaws round.  Saw him swallow a divan whole, and spit out the feather-cushions.”

“Bandobras!” said Gimli suddenly.  “Look!”

The Hobbit turned from where he was tying the points of Tamin’s cuirass, and when he saw what Gimli held aloft he laughed.  “A blue set of armor, Gimli?” he asked gaily.  “It must’ve been made for a child – I’ll bet you anything that’ll fit me fine.  Now, that’s a sign from above and no mistake!  I’m the Blue Knight for certain-sure!”

“If you fellows are planning to use the crawl-way, you’re likely not going to be able to wear much of that,” Vé cautioned.  “You, maybe, Bandy; but Tamin, if you want to wear that cuirass, and you’re coming through the narrow channel, you’ll have to push it before you, and put it on when you get to the back chamber, hoping like the dickens Muhk doesn’t find you first.  You should be all right, Legolas,” he added, looking the Elf up and down.  “Worn down to a minute, you are; I don’t suppose you’ve had a square meal in a month.”

“There are many worse off than I,” smiled Legolas.  “Very well, then; I shall attempt to reconcile my mind in your eyes, and propose a plan:  Most of us shall traverse the narrow crawl-way, coming upon Muhk in secret; one shall come round the other way, and challenge the dragon from the entrance, so distracting him, so that the others might surprise him from behind.”  He paused, and watched the others ruminate upon this; he added apologetically:  “I know it is not much of a plan; but it seems to be all the plan this poor stupid Elf-prince can concoct at such short notice, especially since he is without his general at the moment.  A good thing too,” he added, “since I strongly suspect Meivel would have my head for getting us into this mess.”

“Well, it’s not a bad plan,” admitted Vé thoughtfully.  “And it might work; but we’ll have to break up our little party the right way, so as to break up Muhk’s on a permanent basis.”

“What do you mean, Vé?” growled Gimli.

“Well, just this,” said Vé.  “We need to send the folks most likely to kill Muhk up the crawl-way, and the folks most likely to rile him up round the front entrance.  That way, see, he’ll have his attention fixed on the big threat, and ignore the small.”

“Makes sense,” said Bandobras.  “I propose then that me, Gimli, Tamin, and Vé go up the crawl-way, and you, Legolas, get him from in front.  He seems to know you, see; he’ll smell you coming, or something; and mebbe it’s his dreams you’ve been having anyway; so he’ll be all het-up about you, and not notice us a-creepin’ up behind him with our nice, sharp, pointy things.”

“Ah!” said Gimli with a grin.  “That will not set well with you, will it, my friend?  For now I have a greater chance to slay a dragon than you; and that, I fear, shall place you several barrels of wine in my debt!”

“I am so far in your debt that all the wine in Gondor could not pay it,” said Legolas with a faint smile.  “But I concede your logic, my Bandobras; certes it is the worm seems most focused upon me, so that if I come to him as challenge he shall set his energies upon destroying me; in that way you might come at him unknown and so slay him.”

“That was the general idea,” said Vé.  He looked around and rubbed his hands together.  “Well!” he said with a smile.  “Looks like my skulking days are over, and if I’m going to die, I might as well die trying to revenge my friends than starve to death on a gold bed.  But on the off-chance this works, I guess I’d better find something to protect myself, eh?  Come along, friend Gimli; you’re stouter than me, and there’s a mighty fine scale-shirt somewhere in this pile over here.”

“And you and me mought as well not get dressed quite yet, Tamin me dear,” said Bandobras, removing the boy’s cuirass.  “If it’s as tight as Vé says in that there tunnel, there’s no sense putting it on and then taking it off again, only to put it on when we get there!”

“I’ll go find the greaves and pauldrons, Bandy!” said Tamin eagerly, and flitted over to the trunk whence Bandobras had found the cuirass.  The Hobbit smiled after him, his hands in his pockets; then with a sigh he went to Legolas, looking up at him with pity.

“You had to let me grow up, too, you know, Legolas,” he said.

“I know,” said Legolas softly.  “But you were never so innocent.”

“P’raps not,” Bandobras admitted with a grin.  “Caused a bit o’ trouble in my time, haven’t I?”  He sobered and then said under his breath:  “Don’t go a-worrying over Tamin, now, Legolas.  I’ll be sure to keep my eye on him, and make sure he doesn’t go of doing something stupid.”

“Make sure of that for yourself, too, my Bandobras,” said Legolas soberly.  “I am not so overrun with friends that I can afford to lose one as dear as you.”

“Pah!” said Bandobras.  “I’m a Took, I am, and don’t you go of forgetting it, now!  I’ve got the blood of Peregrin Took of the Tower in my veins; and you know, if old Mad Baggins could get on the other side of a dragon, why, so might I!”

Legolas laughed.  “Why, so you might!” he said gaily.  “And I thank you, my dear Bandobras, for your most timely reminder!  Now,” he said, lowering his voice:  “Do you shadow him, my dear Little One; Tamin shall be your responsibility whilst I am about my task of baiting the worm.”

“You can count on a Took!” said Bandobras with a wink, and sauntered off to help Tamin pick out his greaves.  Legolas watched him go; watched him stand by his esquire, and point out gravely to the boy the especial benefits and detractions of this or that piece of armor; Tamin listened with sober interest, his bright winsome face grave.  Tamin was so dirty, thought Legolas; so dirty, and bedraggled, and afraid, and tired, and hungry; but still the daffodil-child glowed with cheer and hopefulness, his tangled golden hair brighter than Vé’s treasure, his eyes lit within like the lights of the Arkenstone itself.  Legolas thought of returning him to his mother and father, of delivering him safely back to Dol Galenehtar and its shining towers and white walls, its leaping cataracts and lush vineyards.  “But not me,” he thought; he heard the whisper of wings, and looking up beheld the nightingale fluttering weightless above him; it regarded him with expressionless black eyes.  “The Hornet stings the Worm. But the bird eats both.  I will not return to Dol Galenehtar, or to Eryn Lasgalen.”  Then his thoughts were arrested by Gimli’s voice, and blinking he beheld his friend stumping up to him, holding a beautiful helm with a camail shimmering behind it; he was grinning.

“Let us get this on you, Legolas!” he said cheerily.  “A pretty trinket, is it not?  See the rivets, the reinforcing plate!  The inlay on the cheekpiece!  The gems along the nose guard!  And the camail is very fine too; very tough and flexible.  It should turn arrow and blade and spear, and perchance fang; but Vé is right I fear:  Should Muhk fix his jaws upon you he shall crush you; a hauberk and camail are little help to you then.”

“If Muhk fix his jaws about me, ‘twill be his fangs I dread the most,” said Legolas, smiling.  He let Gimli affix the mail shirt to him; and then casually, as though he thought nothing of saying it, Legolas spoke:  “O Gimli – should I fail to return from this mission, would you please do me the favor of bringing Tamin and his little white horse to Éomer?  I think the King of Rohan would be interested in the steed.”

Gimli’s hands froze on the camail,  and he glared up at Legolas through his brows.  “O no you don’t,” he growled.  “There will be no histrionics or heroics here!  We are here to kill a dragon, and go home.  We will deal with Malbeach and Éomer and our fathers later.  But there shall be no talk of should you fail.  You will not fail!  You cannot; I expressly forbid it.”  And he struck the helm angrily with his palm; it clattered against Legolas’ forehead.

“Dear me!” exclaimed Legolas, raising his eyebrows.  “You expressly forbid it?  I am not allowed then?  Very well!  I shall succeed simply to please you, my friend!”

“See that you do!” muttered Gimli, turning away and wiping at his eyes.  “The alternative is … unacceptable.”  And he stomped away, shouting at Bandobras to find him some armor.  Legolas watched him go with a fond smile.

“Dear Gimli!” he thought.  “What should I do without you?”  He sobered then and thought, “And what shall you do without me?  Ah, no!  I shall not think of it, ere my sad errand o’erwhelm me, and I displease him in my failure to slay a dragon.”  The enormity of his task visited him then, and he saw in his mind’s eye his small weak form menacing Muhk’s mighty mouth and coils; far from fearing though he laughed at the thought.  “How presumptuous I am!” he thought merrily to himself.  “Me, slay a dragon!  It is well I have my friends to do it for me.  I just hope they remember to kill him after I am eaten!”  And whistling he went hunting for some greaves to protect his legs.

It took all of Legolas’ soothing words, and Bandobras’ terse commands, and Gimli’s and Vé’s assurances the mountain would not eat him, to impel Tamin into the hole.  It was low and triangular, and had a thick ridge running down the bottom of it where Vé’s elbows and knees had dragged in the slimy stinking mud; it was horribly dark, and smelled awful.  Tamin trembled from the top of his shining golden head to the tips of his shoes, and the tears stood out in his bright gray eyes; but with a last injunction from his Master that “I will be waiting with the dragon for you when you come out,” Tamin swallowed heavily, and with a sob darted into the crack after Vé.

Bandobras followed, grumbling about Elves and their prejudices; Gimli paused ere clambering after, and taking Legolas firmly by the elbow he said:  “Now, Legolas, remember what I told you:  Do not be foolish!  Go round carefully, for Muhk may lay in wait for you; creep down as best you can, and keep him occupied – speak to him if you must, and give us time to come round behind him.  But do not do anything he says!  Fight his compulsions and wishes!”

“I hope that I can!” said Legolas heavily.  “But his will is far stronger than Malbeach’s; I fear if he let the full weight of his mind upon me I shall not be able to resist him.  Hurry then, O my friend!  I will watch for you in the shadows behind Muhk’s vile back!”  He embraced Gimli, and Gimli roughly returned the caress; then without another word the Dwarf slid into the narrow crack, and vanished.

Legolas wished to stand and collect his thoughts, for the son of Glóin was dear to him, and he wished to bring to mind all the fond remembrances of their friendship. But time pressed upon him, so he ran to Dúrfinwen then, and lightly loosened her bonds.  “In this way,” he thought, gazing with pity upon her spare form, “she might in an hour or two loose herself, and be able to escape; if we all perish, I would fain have her die slowly here.  But if we are successful, it may take her long enough that we may restrain her ere she finds her way out of these ropes.”  When he had finished, he lay his hand upon her stubbled head in benediction, though she twitched away from his touch; then sadly he hurried back up the cleft.

Vé’s trail was fresh, and Legolas had a better feel for moving underground than most Elves, for he had been raised in the caverns of his sire’s home.  He clambered round rocks and up shelves and down cracks, ever pressing upward; and when he gained the steep chimney-slope to the opening above him he paused, and listened for the dragon’s breath, or for any other sound that might alert him the way was watched.  But though he peered through the crack above him as hard as he might, he saw naught but stars speckling a dark sky; and though he listened, and smelled, and cast about anxiously, he perceived naught but the dark, dank sounds and scents of a barren night.  So cautiously he crept up the chimney, wishing the chain mail didn’t jingle so; and slowly peered out of the cleft.

The night air would have been fresh had it smelt clean; but though the air was clear and cool it held within it ever the pervading stench of decay; and upon Legolas’ head he felt Muhk’s evil pressing down upon him.  But he clambered out of the hole, and as silently as he could he stole down the side of the hill to the entryway of the dragon’s lair.  He saw that the guards’ bodies had been devoured, and shuddered; “But at least,” he thought, “these men were dead when Muhk ate them.” 

It was terribly quiet.  Nor bird nor beast nor chuck of water disturbed the awful silence, and from within the cavern breathed the heavy oppressive weight of Muhk’s will.  Clinging to the slimy walls with his back, Legolas slid the length of the main passageway, descending down, down, down into the darkness; the flickering firelight was his only guide – that, and the sense of the worm’s presence, mocking him, drawing him ever closer to his doom.  When he reached the final turning he groped for his sword and drew it as quietly as he could; it gleamed bright in the darkness.  Legolas studied it soberly.  “Irmatenagar!” he thought, running his finger along the blood groove.  “What blood shall you taste tonight, blade of my grandsire?  O that he would see your work upon the dragon, if I am allowed a blow; O that he would know his sword tasted the blood of Morgoth’s foul brood!  How pleased he would be, to think his grandson labored to protect his son’s kingdom!”  He thought then of his father’s ring, taken from Renna’s hand; with a sigh he fetched it from his inner pocket, and placed it upon his own finger.  “My Lord Father!” he thought, looking down upon the pale white stone, like a small moon in a devilish darkness.  “Whatever weaknesses they preyed upon, know that your son shall answer them, as best he can; not that he is stronger than you, Ada, but that he is simply better prepared.”  So he took a deep breath, and straightened his shoulders; and wishing mightily he knew where Gimli and the others were at that moment, he rounded the corner.

Muhk was coiled round his fire, glistening with slime, and his black eyes were fixed upon the Green Knight.  The long black tongue flicked in and out, in and out; drops of dark spittle sprayed from it as it went.  Legolas had planned to stand firmly before the vile beast, to raise his sword; to speak commandingly, authoritatively.  But a wave of nausea struck him and he nearly buckled over; the filthy tatters of Muhk’s will crept over him, winding round his head, whispering in his ears, surrounding him like the thickest and most stifling fog.  Through this dimness Legolas heard the dragon speak.

“Ah,” he hissed; his voice was deep and sonorous, and Legolas could hear his breath steaming from his nostrils.  “The Little Yellow Hornet.”

“Muhk,” he gasped, scarce able to draw in breath; he wondered how long he could hold off ere his friends arrived.  

The dragon laughed.  It was a terrible sound.  “So why have you come?” he asked silkily.  “Not to remonstrate me for trying to eat your stunted little friend, I hope!  How insulting he was!  It is every dragon’s bounden duty to seek revenge on those who offend us.”

“Is it?”  There were half a hundred clever things Legolas could have said, but he could not seem to force any of them up his throat or out of his mouth; he felt his gorge rise and swallowed it as best he could.  “I – apologize – for my friend’s behavior – you know Dwarves, O Muhk – they are – rather indignant where treasure is involved.”

“So they are,” the worm purred, flicking its tongue out again; its great black eyes were fixed on Legolas, and he realized the dragon’s head was advancing – the dragon was approaching him, sliding on his slimy belly round the fire, his great muscular coils rippling and dripping with ooze.  The stench nearly overwhelmed him, and Legolas had to touch the wall to brace himself; his fingers cringed from the sludge that coated it.  He stared at the dragon’s eyes, his legs like pillars of stone; his feet seemed to have frozen to the earth:  he could not move.  Still Muhk approached, undulating, his gleaming wet head weaving back and forth; in his eyes burned a contemptible fire that pierced Legolas through, like a pin affixes a moth to a board.  “What a pretty shirt,” the dragon said; Legolas struggled to clear his head, but Muhk’s will overwhelmed him.  “Wherever did you get it?  Not from my storehouse, surely!”

“I – “ Legolas stammered; his tongue clove to the roof of his mouth, and the hand holding Irmatenagar loosened.  “I – “

“Now, now,” chuckled the dragon; he could smell its breath now, heavy and disgusting, like an open grave.  “What is it, Little Yellow Hornet?  Ushtâk said you liked to talk.  Do you not still like to talk?  Talk to me, Little Yellow Hornet; you owe me this at least, for you took my servant Ushtâk from me ere he could penetrate your father’s defenses.”

The implications of this would have staggered Legolas, had he been capable of coherent thought; however he was entranced by the dragon’s eyes, and could not move or even blink as the huge head lowered itself to him.  Slack-mouthed he stared into the deep black eyes, the dark fire flickering within, calling him, repelling him.

“But I got what I wanted eventually,” Muhk said; his voice sounded hollow, as though it echoed in Legolas’ skull.  “Belias only broke so far – only told us of the password through the river into your father’s keep.  It took Malbeach quite a while to wrest the password itself from Belias’ beloved … Belias’ beloved, in whom he confided all his secrets … his beloved, whom Renna hated, for she could never be as lovely as she … his beloved, your mercer.”

His words were awful; Legolas needed to speak, to cry out, but he could not.  Muhk saw him struggling and seemed to find it amusing, for he gave his awful gurgling laugh again, spraying slime all over Legolas as he did so.  “O yes!” he said.  “And Malbeach’s men shall go in, claiming to be from Dale and therefore allies – and they shall put all the warriors to the sword, and defile all the women – and when they have done, they shall empty the coffers, and drive your people out, and your father shall at last be at Malbeach’s mercy, as my servant has so long desired, the miserable wretch.  And then they shall burn – burn – burn the forest! Burn the trees, right down to the ground!  I have no need of fire-drakes, you see, O Little Yellow Hornet; I have men, and men can set things aflame as well as my cousins, you know.”  He chuckled, watching the dismay and fear grow on Legolas’ face, watching the prince battle his coercion.  “Fight all you like!” he hissed, and drew his face ever closer; the reek nearly overwhelmed Legolas, and his legs trembled; his arms were like lead.  “The forest shall burn – and when all has been driven from the flames to me – Elves and men, children and maidens, stags and rabbits and bears – I shall eat them – O yes, I shall eat – and eat – and eat!  I shall eat until I vomit their bones, and then I shall eat some more – I shall never go hungry – never!”  He roared with laughter then, and Legolas’ vision dimmed; he saw the mouth open round him and thought:  “This is it then.  This is the end of me.”  But then Muhk’s head jerked back, and he howled in pain; Legolas heard a familiar voice, and with it all the fog burned away; though his legs were still weak, and his knees felt like aspic.

“Gimli!” he cried in relief, shakily raising his sword and looking round.  Sure enough dancing round the fire were his friends, Vé and Gimli wielding great war-axes, and striking at Muhk’s slippery scales, chipping them away and laughing when the dragon recoiled; then Bandobras bounded in, clad in a brilliant blue cuirass, his eyes shining; his little sword pierced Muhk’s skin and drew blood, and the dragon twisted and roared.  Then Tamin darted forward; he saw the worm’s soft underbelly, and more quickly than Legolas thought the boy could move Tamin dashed right in to the beast’s coils, and with a mighty thrust he drove his sword into Muhk’s side.

This hurt the dragon far more than either axes or Bandobras’ small sword; and Muhk rose his full height, black blood dripping from the wound and bellowing furiously.  But Tamin still held his hilt, and was pulled upward, startled and afraid; then Muhk turned heavily, and threw himself upon his side, with Tamin beneath him.

Legolas heard his esquire cry in pain, and was certain he could hear the bones break.  Horrified he stumbled forward, his legs numb and unfeeling, swinging his sword desperately, and he cried:  “Tamin, Tamin!”  The dragon rolled over and turned its head, and there Legolas saw crushed in the detritus and debris of Muhk’s domain his poor Little One, twisted and writhing, his leg bent and broken beneath him.  His sword had been wrested from his hands, for Muhk bore it yet in his skin; the dragon hissed and gnashed its jaws, and lunged down to snap the boy up.

Legolas staggered desperately, but he was too far away; he could not get there in time.  But then he saw something blue flash into his vision:  Bandobras, face white and set, swinging and slashing and crying:  “Dol Galenehtar, Dol Galenehtar!  The Blue Knight for the Green!”  And Muhk started back, nonplussed.

But then Bandobras looked up, and beheld the dragon’s face; the black eyes held his, and he went suddenly still.  “Bandobras!  No!  Do not look at him!” cried Legolas, his heart turning to stone.  “Bandobras!  No!”

“Yes,” hissed Muhk.  Bandobras dropped his sword, his face very blank.  Muhk smiled then, and drew his head back, his tongue flicking out.

“Bandy!” cried Legolas in a terrible voice.

Muhk’s great jaws snapped down.  Gimli screamed, and Tamin screamed, and even Vé screamed; but Bandobras Took made not a sound as he died.