Chapter 246: Azog the Destroyer, a Different Time
Gandalf glanced at the golden ring, his expression instantly turning solemn before quickly recovering, and he smiled as if nothing had happened: "That's not important, he's back."
"He won't run off halfway this time, will he?" Aaron asked meaningfully.
"He won't."
"I want to know, why did you come back?" Thorin looked at Bilbo, puzzled.
When he was in the cave, he didn't stop Bilbo from leaving because he felt he wasn't suitable for the expedition, and leaving early would be beneficial for both sides.
He believed Bilbo thought the same, but his choice to stay now left Thorin a bit confused.
"I know you've always doubted me. I miss Bag End, and I miss my books, my chair, and my garden. That is where I belong.
So I came back because you don't have a home.
Yours was taken away, and I am willing to help you get it back."
Clap! Clap! Clap!
Aaron clapped enthusiastically, then gave Bilbo a big hug. "Heart-touching. I knew you wouldn't disappoint me."
Thorin fell silent, and the other Dwarves were also inexplicably moved, even a little touched.
Sensing the atmosphere in the team shifting for the better, Gandalf also smiled with relief.
Just then, a wolf howl suddenly came from a distance, and everyone's heart skipped a beat.
"It must be Warg scouts." Aaron rubbed his head, feeling weary. "I almost forgot, the Orc King spread the news that we were captured.
Although the news is outdated, it's not too late for Azog."
"It's truly one wave after another," Gandalf murmured, then shouted for everyone to run.
The wolves rushed down from the mountain; the forest was their battlefield, and they quickly caught up.
Everyone fought in haste and soon fled to the edge of a cliff.
Aaron looked at the several giant pine trees on the cliff edge and climbed up without a word.
The others also showed their agile physique, quickly climbing to the treetops, even the fattest Bombur was no exception.
"Wolves can't climb trees, but Orcs certainly can." Aaronlooked at Gandalf with a solemn expression. "You have to think of a way; we can't just sit here and wait to die."
"Ha ah!" Gandalf's eye twitched slightly. "Wizards aren't omnipotent. Now we can only improvise. I hope Lady Luck is on our side."
Aaron:... "Didn't you cast a very powerful magic when you were in the Orc city before? Can't you do it again?"
"If you think it's possible, would I still be in a tree?" Gandalfretorted. "I need time to prepare, and I can't deal with so many enemies."
Aaron was speechless. This grey Wizard was incredibly reliable when he was reliable, but completely useless when he wasn't.
Could it be that he really had to expose himself this time? But even if he did, he was no match for an army!
Moreover, he had already shown his face to several big shots on the righteous side. If he entered the villains' sight again, it would be a huge mess, and he might even be specifically targeted.
Thinking of this, Aaron shivered involuntarily.
But the current situation didn't allow him to hesitate. When it was time to act, he couldn't be ambiguous. He couldn't just watch these Dwarves be devoured by wolves!
Dozens of Wargs surrounded the pine trees but did not rush to attack.
Gandalf spotted a butterfly on a tree branch, his eyes immediately lit up, and he hooked it over with his magicstaff.
He whispered to the butterfly, then released it.
"What are you doing?" Aaron asked, puzzled.
"Nothing," Gandalf shook his head.
"I don't believe that!" Aaron secretly grumbled in his heart. At this moment, Gandalf would definitely not do anything meaningless.
"I just hope the Orcs who come are just minions, otherwise we'll really be in danger this time."
"Damn it! Just when you fear something, it happens."
A white Warg appeared not far away, and on its back was a pale Orc.
Although it was his first time seeing him, Aaron was very sure that the one who came was Azog the Defiler himself.
Not only because his skin color and physique were completely different from other Orcs, but also because his left arm was a black iron claw covered with barbs.
"Azog."
Thorin looked at the pale Orc in disbelief, national and familial hatred quickly surging into his heart.
Azog took a deep breath, lowered himself, and gently stroked the white Warg, "Do you smell it? The scent of fear.
I remember the stench of fear on your father, Thorin, son of Thrain."
Hearing this, Thorin's heart was struck by lightning, filled with gloom.
Although he also felt that his father was unlikely to survive the war in Moria, he still held a glimmer of hope, what if his father was still alive?
But now Azog had shattered that glimmer of hope in his heart; he was the only one left in their lineage.
"That Dwarf is mine," Azog said, pointing at Thorin. "Kill everyone else."
The Wargs received the order and frantically leaped onto the pine trees.
They charged forward, one after another, fiercely opening their mouths to bite.
Although they couldn't climb trees, their astonishing jumping ability made everyone miserable, as their fangs were constantly coming into close contact with their bodies.
Even worse, under the Wargs' siege, the pine trees were gradually pulled out of the ground and tilted to one side.
The members of the expedition quickly grabbed branches of another tree the moment the big tree fell, narrowly jumping onto it.
They dared not relax, for once they fell to the ground, there was only one outcome: being torn to shreds by the wolf pack.
After several difficult maneuvers, all the members of the expedition moved to the pine tree on the edge of the cliff.
"This tree was already overburdened, and now it's even more so," Aaron sighed.
"Stop talking nonsense," Gandalf looked at Aaron anxiously. "Do you have any ideas?"
"Don't overestimate me, I'm just a thirteen-year-old kid." Aaron subconsciously touched the magic carpet on his back, then took out his bow and arrows to shoot the wolves below.
Several Wargs were killed one after another, but their situation did not improve; instead, it stimulated the ferocity of the wolf pack.
The Wargs bit more savagely, breaking branches. This giant tree was quickly stripped of half its branches, and the expedition's footing became increasingly scarce.
"I only have two arrows left. If these are used up, I'll only be able to throw knives, swords, and hammers."
"No, we have other weapons." Gandalf picked a brick-sized pinecone, ignited it with his staff, and threw it into the wolf pack.
Wild beasts are very afraid of fire, and the ferocious Wargs all avoided the fireball.
The Dwarves immediately ignited the pinecones they had picked and threw them at the Wargs.
The flames quickly ignited the surrounding trees and grass, and dozens of Wargs were forced to flee in panic by the fire.
The Dwarves cheered, but Aaron and Gandalf remained worried, because they hadn't inflicted much damage on the wolf pack, and they would rush back to attack once the fire died down.
Whoosh!
Aaron took a deep breath, "Bilbo, give me a hand."
"What are you going to do?"
"You're so good at throwing chestnuts, so throw an ignited pinecone at Azog.
Aim carefully; this might be our chance to survive."
Bilbo looked at Gandalf; the grey Wizard was silent for a moment, then gave him an ignited pinecone.
Bilbo threw the fireball in his hand with all his might towards the pale Orc, and Aaron shot his second to last arrow at the same time the fireball was thrown.
The silver arrow burst the pinecone, and countless sparks exploded above the Orc's head, instantly igniting the trees around them.
The dozens of Wargs, startled by the flames, were frightened again and crashed around within the fiery encirclement. In the blink of an eye, a third of them had fled, and the remaining two-thirds were only prevented from escaping by the forced control of over twenty Orcs.
The white Warg also retreated a few steps, and Azog on its back roared in anger. Aaron seized this opportunity to shoot his last arrow.
The sharp whistling sound, covered by the raging flames, rapidly approached Azog the Defiler, aiming straight for his throat.
However, the opponent was, after all, a seasoned warrior. At the instant the arrow approached, his brain frantically warned him. Azog instinctively ducked and raised the iron claw on his left arm.
Clink!
Brilliant sparks exploded, and the silver arrow deflected half an inch, cutting a bloody mark across Azog's face.
"Ah!" Azog roared furiously, feeling a close brush with death, a sensation he hadn't experienced in a long time.
"Good shot, Gaius, an excellent shot!" Thorin was ecstatic; nothing excited him more than seeing his enemy rage in impotent fury.
Aaron, however, couldn't be happy, because his quiver was empty, and the last arrow had not achieved its intended effect.
Azog picked up the silver arrow from the ground, his expression ferocious, and stared at Aaron with cold eyes, "Elf?
No, you are not an Elf, nor a half-breed. Are you human?"
Aaron nodded sheepishly, "Aaron Gaius, an ordinary human archer."
"Is that so?" Azog sneered, pointing his weapon at Aaron. "Oakenshield and this human named Gaius are for me. I will cut off their heads and hands as trophies."
Gulp!
Aaron swallowed, "Nice idea, but unfortunately, you won't get that chance."
Just then, the pine tree beneath them suddenly swayed and began to fall towards the cliff.
Half of the pine tree's roots were exposed from the ground, teetering precariously at a forty-degree angle on the cliff edge.
Ori's hand slipped, but as he fell, he grabbed Dori's foot, barely saving his life.
"Mr. Gandalf!" Dori shouted; he was also struggling to hold on.
Just as he was about to let go of the branch, Gandalfextended his staff, timely suspending the two Dwarves in mid-air.
"You hold on for a bit, I'll go save them."
"How are you going to save them?" Bilbo asked anxiously. "This is a cliff; we don't know when we'll fall."
"Uh... my ancestors..."
"Now is not the time to talk about your ancestors, alright? Find another reason."
"I've learned rock climbing," Aaron said with some pride. "Although I can't guarantee climbing down the cliff, if Gandalf swings them onto the cliff face, perhaps I can find a foothold."
"Impossible," Gandalf gritted his teeth. "I don't have that much strength; holding them up is my limit."
Aaron:... "Why didn't you say so earlier."
Aaron rolled his eyes, climbed to the branch closest to Dori, and hooked his feet onto the thick branch, hanging upside down in mid-air.
"Ori, give me your hand, quickly.
Gandalf can't bear the weight of both of you, and Dori will fall sooner or later if you keep pulling him like that."
Hearing this, Ori no longer hesitated and tremblingly extended one hand.
With Aaron sharing the burden, Gandalf and Dori's pressure was instantly halved. Although it was still agonizing, they could at least hold on for a little longer.
At this moment, a figure caught Aaron's attention, and everyone else's attention as well.
Thorin, holding orcrist in his right hand and a wooden shield in his left, quickly charged through the fire towards the pale Orc.
"Stop, Thorin, don't be impulsive!" Aaron shouted anxiously, but with his enemy right in front of him, Thorin wouldn't stop.
"Foolish, utterly foolish!" Aaron cursed angrily. "I've never seen so few brainless idiots in my life."
"Didn't Thorin defeat Azog before?" Bilbo asked, puzzled.
"You said it yourself, that was before.
Azog's strength is not weaker than Thorin's, perhaps even stronger.
He has a desire for revenge, a white wolf mount, dozens of elite subordinates, and a pack of Wargs.
What does Thorin have? A sword, a broken piece of wood, and a mind clouded by anger and hatred.
The strength of the two sides is severely unbalanced. Unless a miracle happens, such stubbornness will only cost him his life."
Bilbo froze, then nervously turned his head to look.
Just as Thorin was about to reach Azog, Azog, riding the white Warg, pounced from above, knocking him to the ground.
Before he could stand steady, Azog returned and swung a hammer at his jaw.
The white Warg opened its bloody maw and bit Thorin.
Even wearing light armor, the sharp teeth pierced his waist and abdomen.
Listening to the cries of Pain!, Azog spread his arms and laughed triumphantly, savoring the pleasure of getting his revenge.
Thorin swung orcrist, striking the white Warg heavily on the head.
In Pain!, the white Warg flung Thorin aside, but he too lost his ability to fight.
Seeing Thorin's miserable state, everyone couldn't bear to watch, and Balin even shed tears in distress.
"Bring me his head," Azog said indifferently.
An Orc next to him immediately jumped off the Warg's back and walked towards Thorin with a great saber.
"Motherfucker!" Aaron couldn't help but curse.
Azog noticed him and sneered, "Don't worry, it'll be your turn soon."
"So damn arrogant." Aaron gritted his teeth. The contract hadn't been completed yet, and he couldn't just watch Thorin be beheaded.
"Ori, close your eyes, I'm going to throw you down."
"What?"
"Don't ask so many questions, just do it.
And Dori, you too. Next, we need the grey Wizard."
"You're not kidding, are you?"
"Of course not. Only if we free our hands can we save Thorin.
Trust me, you'll be fine."
Gandalf looked at Aaron thoughtfully, suspecting that he had guessed he had called for reinforcements.
But his reinforcements hadn't arrived yet. Was it appropriate to throw the two Dwarves down?
"You must save Thorin, please, Mr. Gaius," Dori said, then exchanged glances with Ori, and with a look of facing death, they released their hands.
The first thing Aaron did when he freed his hands was to reach for his back and throw down the dark blue magic carpet.
"This should be fine."
Aaron exerted force with his feet, flipped onto the tree trunk, and a black magic staff appeared in his hand.
Just as he was about to cast a spell to save them, he unexpectedly saw Bilbo, in the nick of time, knock aside the Orc who was about to behead Thorin, and then kill him.
The remaining Dwarves also swarmed forward, fighting with the Orcs.
Aaron blinked blankly at this scene.
Dori and Ori were thrown too early, and the magic carpetwas also thrown too early.