Not that it is a bad thing, but this felt like an Epilogue to Dragon-Bound rather than a story within itself. It was believable, entertaining and tied up plots nicely without unbelievable deviation from the original texts, yet I felt my heart sink at its lack of length. With time, effort, and dedication could it be it’s own story? Definitely. Yet fate leaves us with the unfortunate restrictions of time and what we may devote it to. I know you are working on different stories, and if rumors prove true one is about a dragon series you have yet to write on, yet I cannot help but long for a more profound end to a well-written story. With time perhaps this will prove true yet I know that you aren’t bound by anything but your own will and desire to continue writing this particular story. I hope to read further stories in future times and hope that this time is well within reach.

Can I make a suggestion? After seeing Saphira tell her side of the story I would love to see how you would make a actual story about how the Dragon Rider and the Fellowship of The Ring shook things up in the War of The Ring especially for this idea for a fight in the story.

Dragon, Wizard and Dragon Rider versus Balrog!
Durin’s Bane had better bring his best. Also maybe we could see Thorn and Murtagh also shake things up in Middle Earth and possibly being invited to Valinor.

Or the Dragon and Dragon Rider could be the Riders best hope and represents hope to Middle Earth.

Please make a happy ending. Make smaug and saphira reunite and stay alive forever and together with their children please

Nice new chapter - I was quite pleased to read the further details about how the War of the Ring ended. :) :)

Reading the Dragon-Riders' isolationism and considerations of abandoning Middle-Earth in response to the Fort Arngor I could really feel a grey cloud of loss of hope hanging in the air, not least in spite of the poor timing - it seemed like a really despairing moment, seeing them start to pull back in the War of the Ring like that. :o :o I also briefly feared it would damage the Dragon Riders' won positive reputation with the Free Peoples that they didn't answer those requests for aid during that part of the War. :o :o I loved reading the Eagles-like way the dragons and Riders drove back the clouds and slaughtered the fell-beasts when they became the cavalry for the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, and also reading their bloodlust when Saphira promised them a feast of Mumakil flesh. :) Also, I rather like the image of the dragons and Eagles, who were opponents in the War of Wrath, fighting side-by-side in the War of the Ring's last two major battles. :) :)

I'm always loving seeing new details and small-print about the Dragon Riders' relations in and effects on Middle-Earth dropped, and that sentiment extends to their relationship with Rohan - I can smell and love Saphira's exasperation at their absolute faith in their horses' instincts. :) When you described the Witch-king's death; I'm not sure if it's an error or a change you made from LOTR canon, or just the Riders getting the Rohirrim's genealogy mixed up, but Eowyn is actually Theoden's niece rather than his daughter. x) I love your new detail that she got a sword from the Dragon Riders for the Battle of the Pelennor Fields, it makes it seem like her shieldmaiden duties are going to continue after the War of the Ring - alternatively, it made me wonder if in this universe, Eowyn becomes a Rider after the war (surely she has the kind of spirit that a bound dragon would hatch for). :) :)

I was surprised by the return of both the traitor Riders and the now-mindless traitor dragons in the Battle of the Black Gate - I'd assumed they'd probably died offscreen or been killed or discarded by Sauron once they were no longer of major use - and I rather like how the six traitors' final deaths in that battle seems to symbolise for Saphira the War of the Ring's close. :) :) One small criticism I have is, despite the Dragon-Rider traitors' role being confined to the textbook-narrative recounting of the War of the Ring, I feel they're relevant enough characters to warrant being given their own names and perhaps some description of what they look like and of the greedy two Riders' personality. To be honest, the horror-fan in me really wants to know what the traitors all looked like by the Battle of the Black Gate after being twisted and subsumed by Sauron, to know how they compare to the Mouth of Sauron. :) :) Saphira's line to the traitors when killing them was really badass. :) :)

At the end of this chapter, I feel like we've got to see in the first few paragraphs of the next (or otherwise through the characters' thoughts in the present Fourth Age time-setting) what happened immediately after the fall of Barad-dur with the Dragon-Riders. (The jokester in me asks, did they bow with everyone but the hobbits at Aragorn's coronation begrudgingly? x) x)) Just a thought, but I wouldn't mind finding out a bit about what happened with King Fili and with the dwarves' kingdom in the Blue Mountains after the first book, and I wouldn't mind seeing if Bilbo and the Alagaesian crew saw each-other one last time before Bilbo left for the Undying Lands. :) (That's actually just made me wonder if Murtagh is still around at Fort Arngor in the present time or if he and Thorn were invited to depart for Valinor. :O)

A nice new chapter, and I look forward to seeing what'll happen when Smaug and Saphira see each-other again and seeing what happened after the end of the War of the Ring for the Order of the Dragon-Riders. :) :)

Strange ideas.

Good to see this updated, and good to finally end the war. Now things can hopefully pick up in the present time.

Updated after...how long has it been? Nice. Keep it up man

Mount Doom is a badass name!

Oh...left me intrigued and wondering. Love the story so far! Keep up the great work and I hope you're safe and healthy

A good update, summarizing the events of the war. Good work balancing the two sides, ensuring that the war was not largely one sided despite in favor of the heroes.

Thanks for the update I hope that Saphira will go and see Smaug soon. keep up the good work and I look forward to the next chapter I hope you will be able to update again soon please.

Last history lesson, I hope.

Cause I’m eager to get into the meat of the story.

omg I need more. You are truly a talented author.

Well dang you actually went and continued it, the madman! I'd be lying if I said I'm so happy! It looks like Smaugh has finally broken out of his bounds! I only wonder how he has changed? I mean, is he still relatively the same? Is it a big change, small change? Bad change or good change? Dangit I don't know. But I can't wait to see how you continue this! I honestly don't care much about learning of what happened in middle earth after all this time except through small mentions and hints. I'm very accustomed to reading in between the lines, so I don't need everything from history explained in detail haha. It is the present that I care more for. But anyway, write however you want! Doesn't matter to me. Do what suits you best! :D but seriously though you made me fall in love with Smaug's development as a character and I need to see him again! Cry. But thank you for the chapter and can't wait to see what you've got planned next!

So so happy you decided to make a sequel. I can't wait for the next chapters.