-last edited on Nov 15, 2017 22:34:37 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 15, 2017 22:34:12 GMT
Chapter 297
Homefinder bucked as a bolt of red light tore through three elven soldiers to Legolie’s left. She managed to regain control of the horse, but it was a close thing. Many others had already lost their steeds, unseated when the animals panicked at the magical attacks. Many more had lost their lives. Legolie knew that if they were to win this battle, they had to take care of this sorcerer. She called to Link, and he rode up alongside her. “My queen?”
“Take some men and distract the sorcerer. I’m going to finish this.”
Link looked at her appraisingly for a moment and then nodded. “Right away.”
Several agonizing minutes passed as Legolie waited for Link’s signal. With each of them, she was sure, another dozen of her soldiers fell. At last, the horn sounded. Sword raised, Legolie spurred on Homefinder and charged straight towards the sorcerer. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Link and half a dozen others doing the same thing from the opposite side. A handful of white-clothed soldiers stood in her path, and she took them down. The way was clear. She was just feet from her target when Link’s eyes met hers over the sorcerer’s shoulder. And then her friend was gone, in an explosion that left a ringing in Legolie’s ears. Homefinder bucked again, and this time she couldn’t bring him back under her control. Before she could even react, Legolie was in the air, and then she was on the ground, sporting what would soon be a fresh set of bruises all along her back. Hazily, the elven queen tried to stand up, but her limbs felt heavy and would not respond. Through the smoke and wreckage, a figure walked up to her- the sorcerer. A thin face with sunken eyes and a thin beard peered out from the hood of his black-and-white robes. Legolie could only stare up at him. “You…”
“Me. And this time, there is no Septimus Merlinsson to defend you and the rest of your pathetic friends.” The sorcerer raised his hand, red energy building up around it. “Say hello to that fool of a witch for me.”
-last edited on Nov 16, 2017 22:21:03 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 16, 2017 22:20:57 GMT
Chapter 298
For a moment, everything was still, almost eerily so. Though the battle still raged below, the three figures on the mountain ledge simply stared at each other, none sure what the next move should be. Then, Skrag’s eye met Elisa’s and she gave him an almost imperceptible nod. At the exact same instant, the two of them lunged at Zelfern, weapons raised to strike. It seemed at first as if they had managed to catch the half-Vampyre off guard, that this would finally be the end of him. But it was not to be. Before they even grew close, and though he still stood motionless, Zelfern smiled one of his twisted smiles, and Skrag knew they had lost. Slowly, the half-Vampyre brought up his curved sword to meet Skrag’s dagger. The blades clashed once, and then, with a twist of Zelfern’s wrist, Skrag’s weapon was sent flying out of his hand. It soared through the air and landed a few feet from the edge, skidding along to come to rest right on the very precipice. It teetered back and forth for a moment, and then fell to the ground far below, lost forever. Before Skrag could do anything, the tip of Zelfern’s sword was at his throat, and he had to stop suddenly to avoid its reach. His eye slid over to Elisa- with Zelfern’s sword on him, the half-Vampyre had no way to stop her before she reached him. Indeed, she almost had. Just as she raised her knife for a downwards strike, Zelfern smiled and Elisa suddenly dropped to the ground like a marionette with its strings cut.
Zelfern turned back to Skrag, waving his sword in a signal for the half-breed to move away. Reluctantly, Skrag obeyed- he had no weapon and his side was burning again. Once they were a safe distance apart, Zelfern calmly sheathed his sword. “Did you truly forget about my abilities? Still, it was an admirable effort. You managed to smash my best lieutenant and it only cost you two lives. And it saves me the trouble of dealing with him later.”
-last edited on Nov 19, 2017 20:41:24 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 19, 2017 20:41:07 GMT
Chapter 299
“You… you were going to smash him?” Skrag gritted his teeth against the pain in his side. He was having trouble concentrating.
“Of course I was. He was at the Arena as much as you were, and, despite what he may have thought, helping me smash the rest of you did not give him a free pass. Actually, now that I think of it, this is perfect. The rest of our former gladiator friends are gone. It’s just you and me now, Skrag, as it should be.”
Skrag forced a smile. “Not quite. Isabel still lives.”
“Shadowwrath. He… he sacrificed himself to save her.” Skrag found himself struggling to keep his eye focused on the half-Vampyre.
“Well, I shall deal with her after my business here is done. I can get the details then. Speaking of which, I believe we have wasted far too much time here. My army is not faring as well as I would have liked, and I am eager to finally see the end of you and the pale-skinned fools who believe themselves so safe in their ancient hiding places.”
“No… I’m going to… to stop you, Zelfern.” Skrag shuffled forward half a step, forcing himself to stay upright.
Zelfern laughed. “Look at yourself. You’re not going to stop a wingless mosquito in that condition. You’re as helpless to stop me as you were to stop the smashing of your friend the dragon.”
“Don’t talk about him.” The rage brought on by the mention of Zargan helped Skrag keep his attention on his enemy.
“Why not?” Zelfern asked with a grin. “Would you deny the painter the right to display his works, or the author the ability to tell his stories?”
It took a long moment for Skrag to comprehend what the half-Vampyre was saying. “It was… it was you. You smashed him!” The realization caused the flames of fury in Skrag’s heart to burn brighter than ever. An intense feeling of loathing filled his being.
“Of course I did! Harrox would never have done something so drastic without an impetus- in this case, a sizable sum of gold. I needed to hurt you like you hurt me, to take away what you loved. It does appear I succeeded.”
-last edited on Nov 21, 2017 23:02:17 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 21, 2017 23:01:56 GMT
Chapter 299
“You… you were going to smash him?” Skrag gritted his teeth against the pain in his side. He was having trouble concentrating.
“Of course I was. He was at the Arena as much as you were, and, despite what he may have thought, helping me smash the rest of you did not give him a free pass. Actually, now that I think of it, this is perfect. The rest of our former gladiator friends are gone. It’s just you and me now, Skrag, as it should be.”
Skrag forced a smile. “Not quite. Isabel still lives.”
“Shadowwrath. He… he sacrificed himself to save her.” Skrag found himself struggling to keep his eye focused on the half-Vampyre.
“Well, I shall deal with her after my business here is done. I can get the details then. Speaking of which, I believe we have wasted far too much time here. My army is not faring as well as I would have liked, and I am eager to finally see the end of you and the pale-skinned fools who believe themselves so safe in their ancient hiding places.”
“No… I’m going to… to stop you, Zelfern.” Skrag shuffled forward half a step, forcing himself to stay upright.
Zelfern laughed. “Look at yourself. You’re not going to stop a wingless mosquito in that condition. You’re as helpless to stop me as you were to stop the smashing of your friend the dragon.”
“Don’t talk about him.” The rage brought on by the mention of Zargan helped Skrag keep his attention on his enemy.
“Why not?” Zelfern asked with a grin. “Would you deny the painter the right to display his works, or the author the ability to tell his stories?”
It took a long moment for Skrag to comprehend what the half-Vampyre was saying. “It was… it was you. You smashed him!” The realization caused the flames of fury in Skrag’s heart to burn brighter than ever. An intense feeling of loathing filled his being.
“Of course I did! Harrox would never have done something so drastic without an impetus- in this case, a sizable sum of gold. I needed to hurt you like you hurt me, to take away what you loved. It does appear I succeeded.”
Shout out to my only newest reader, Essa Kryze ! You arrived just in time for the end of the story.
I just finished the last part. It goes to Chapter 305, plus four chapters of Epilogue. Now all that's left is an Author's Note (alternate reality, anyone?) and a few other miscellaneous things.
-last edited on Nov 24, 2017 19:17:23 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 24, 2017 19:17:12 GMT
Chapter 300
Fortunately for Jayden, Caisara had decided to follow his advice. She stayed at the very edge of the battle, unnoticed in her silent movements, as Jayden followed close behind, trying his utmost- though not truly succeeding- to mimic her quietness. Every so often, she would stop and fire an arrow into a group of soldiers, careful not to be seen as she did so. Jayden, for his part, had no interest in getting himself smashed, so he kept a little farther back on these occasions.
They were climbing a tree to avoid a group of combatants that had spilled into the forest when the explosion came. Looking for the source of ear-shattering sound, Jayden saw the sorcerer now standing in the middle of a ring of scorched earth, blacked forms crumpled all around. A figure near his feet, far less damaged than the others, tried and failed to move. Squinting and leaning a little farther out, Jayden recognized her- it was Legolie, queen of the elves, someone he only vaguely remembered from his time in that land. He looked at the battle before him, and then back at her. Something deep within him stirred. Taking a deep breath, he said, “Caisara, I’m about to do something very stupid. I need you to cover me.” With that, Jayden jumped down from the tree and ran towards the teeming mass of soldiers.
As the sorcerer prepared to attack, Legolie tried once more to push herself up, but the effort was futile. She closed her eyes, waiting to be blasted away into nothingness- but the attack did not come, only a cry of pain that seemed to come from the sorcerer. Legolie opened her eyes to see what had happened, and found the robed man with an arrow through his right forearm. “Who dares?” There was no response. Then, the elven queen saw a brown-haired elf, one she didn’t recognize, pushing his way towards them. The sorcerer laughed. “So, we meet again, Jayden Crow. I had not expected to find you here. Was it you silent friend who shot the arrow? She will pay for that.”
-last edited on Nov 26, 2017 21:57:21 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 26, 2017 21:56:49 GMT
Chapter 301
For a second, Jayden didn’t recognize the man who stood before him. And then it clicked. “You… you’re the one who was with the hook-handed man, aren’t you? Orrolc, isn’t it? You and your boss ruined my life, you know. We had a good thing going on with the baron, and you came along and destroyed it.” Not giving the sorcerer time to reply, Jayden grabbed his spear and threw it as hard as he could. Mere inches from its target, it bounced off some invisible wall and skidded to a stop some feet away.
“Nice try,” said Orrolc, “But you know nothing of my power. I will crush you like an insect, Jayden Crow. And then when I am finished, I will do the same to the queen here, and anyone else who stands in my way!” He flicked his wrist, and Jayden was flung to the side, landing on his back with his sword trapped under him. Calmly, Orrolc strode towards him, kicking aside the charred remains of some poor soldier.
As Jayden tried his best to twist into a position where he could draw his sword, a cry rang out through the battlefield, seemingly originating from somewhere on the mountain. Orrolc’s attention turned to that direction as a concerned look came onto his face. “Zelfern…?”
Suddenly, he stumbled backward as an arrow landed in his throat, and another one struck him in the chest. He fell to the ground, a look of surprise forever frozen on his face. Caisara emerged from behind, a concerned look on her face as she signed something at Jayden. He hurt you?
Jayden shook his head. I’m fine, but I don’t know about her. He pointed at Legolie, who was once again trying to stand up, with little success.
The silent woman reached down an arm to help, and the elven queen took it gratefully. “Who are you?”
Caisara shook her head, and Jayden, slowly getting to his feet, answered for her. “Her name is Caisara. She doesn’t talk. I’m Jayden Crow, by the way.”
“I heard. You knew him?” She gestured towards the smashed sorcerer.
“No. I only met him once. The man he works for, he’s a monster. If this is his army, they need to be stopped.”
Legolie nodded. “They were losing before the sorcerer showed up. I don’t think we took too many casualties to beat them now.” She glanced over at the green-clad form of Link lying face down in the dirt. “But we could still use all the help we can get. Care to join me?”
“Happy to. But when this is all over, we’re leaving. Right, Caisara?”
Caisara gave him a warning look. We’ll see.
Jayden laughed, and drew his sword. “Let’s finish this.”
-last edited on Nov 27, 2017 22:36:04 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 27, 2017 22:35:52 GMT
Chapter 302
Even as Skrag screamed out his rage, it was still growing in his heart. The magnitude of what Zelfern had done slowly became clear, and as it did Skrag’s focus narrowed to a single point- he must have revenge for his friend. The pain at his side no longer bothered him at all, pushed to the very back of his mind, secondary, like everything else, to his singular goal. Unthinking, he barreled towards Zelfern, still screaming. The world around him blurred as he locked onto his target. And then, seemingly in the same instant, he was lying on his back, on the ground at the hook-handed man’s feet. The half-Vampyre lowered his hand from where he had knocked the half-breed away. “You cannot hope to stop me. I let you beat me once. It will not happen again.”
As Skrag stared up at his foe, still a little disoriented from his fall, he felt the anger in his heart fading. What had once been a raging fire was now reduced to mere embers- the heat was still there, just as strong, but buried beneath other things. And with this, those other things began to resurface. Skrag gritted his teeth and clenched his trembling fists against the pain in his side that flared up once again, seemingly taking the place of the anger as an overpowering force. But other things rose as well. An epiphany came to Skrag then, a sudden knowing that granted his vision new clarity. Taking a deep breath, he forced the pain back down and spoke. “You know something, Zelfern? We are the same, you and I.”
The half-Vampyre frowned, the joy of triumph snuffed out in an instant. “What are you talking about? We are nothing alike.”
Skrag could only smile, overcome by his revelation. “It’s true. Just think about it. Both our families were destroyed, to our eyes, by our adopted peoples, those who helped raise us, however poorly. We both lost our homes and our flesh at the hand of the other- for you, the Arena and your hand, for me, Zargan and the Riders, and my eye.”
-last edited on Nov 28, 2017 22:42:19 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 28, 2017 22:42:00 GMT
Chapter 303
“Shut up!” The raw hatred in Zelfern’s voice chilled Skrag to his very core, giving him momentary pause, but he continued, unperturbed. A new energy had worked its way into his limbs, overpowering the pain.
Carefully, the half-breed stood up, shaky but determined to see this through. “We’re both half-breeds, Zelfern. We’re the same. I know it, and you do, too.”
The hatred burning behind Zelfern’s red eyes mimicked that which had been in his voice. Skrag, still in the throes of his new-found clarity, met those eyes with ease, and it was the half-Vampyre who broke the contact. Unable to look up, muscles trembling with rage, Zelfern reached into the pouch where he had stored the red gemstone, and withdrew it. “We are not the same! You’re too weak to smash me, but I will destroy you like the insect you are. He held out his clenched fist. A red light glowed faintly from within.
Skrag watched as a small green weed, the only plant growing on the barren rock, shriveled into dry, brown nothingness. But he himself felt nothing.
For several seconds, they both stood in place, stock-still, trying to understand why nothing had happened. As Skrag watched Zelfern’s hatred twist into confusion, he had his second realization of the past few minutes. “The Dragonsbane,” he said, almost surprised to hear the words come out of his mouth, “Harrox used Dragonsbane arrows to smash Zargan. One of the same arrows took my eye. I’ve been cut off from magic, Zelfern, and that means you can’t hurt me.”
Zelfern sputtered, trying to find a response. The gemstone fell from his hand. At last: “There are other ways.” His now empty hand closed around the hilt of his sword as his smile returned.
The glare of the sun glinted off of something and caught Skrag’s eye- Elisa’s kitchen knife. He dove to the ground as Zelfern lunged at him with sword drawn. Desperately, Skrag reached out for the knife, and his hand closed down on the blade. Wincing, he pushed past the pain, and pulled the knife towards himself, twisting to avoid Zelfern’s next attack as he did so. The half-breed grabbed the knife handle with his right hand and pulled the blade free from his left. As he flipped over onto his back, he found Zelfern’s blade bearing straight at him. Thinking quickly, he shot his foot out and rammed it into the half-Vampyre’s shin. Zelfern reared back, and Skrag followed, driving the knife home in his opponent’s stomach. The half-Vampyre stumbled backward a few steps, a look of shock frozen on his face, and then fell. Skrag lied back down on the ground, panting from exhaustion, and dropped the knife.
-last edited on Nov 29, 2017 22:34:49 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 29, 2017 22:34:30 GMT
Chapter 304
Skrag lied there for a long time, unthinking, unmoving, the pulsing of the wounds in his side and his hand keeping time with the beating of his heart. He felt the world grow faint around him as he closed his eye. He was so tired. He just wanted to rest. But it was not to be, not yet. Something called him away. To distract himself from those longings, he sat on the edge of the stony outcrop and watched the battle far below. Zelfern’s men were making a last futile stand. The sorcerer was nowhere to be seen. Skrag smiled. They had won. Zelfern had been stopped, and his army had been stopped, and they had won.
A thought came to him- if Go, Royale, and Palangein were smashed, no one knew he was up on the mountains. Eventually, someone would find him or he would make his own way down, if he had to, but he couldn’t take Baj and Elisa with him and something felt profoundly wrong about just leaving them there until someone who could move them arrived. He would have to do something.
First, he decided to move them to an empty part of the ledge, away from Garfell and Zelfern, and together. His muscles felt weak, weaker than they had ever been, and with each time the pain in his side flared up anew to greater heights. But he managed, eventually. Once the two of them were lying next to each other, he carefully closed their eyelids. By the time he finished, but battle was over on the ground below. The last of Zelfern’s army had surrendered or been smashed, and the Elves and Iron Wolves had begun gathering their own fallen.
Skrag looked down on Baj and Elisa. They seemed so peaceful. He longed for the same feeling. Briefly, he considered finding a way to cover them up, but there was not enough dirt or loose stones on the mountainside to do so. In the end, he simply tore some strips of cloth from Garfell’s shirt and used them to cover up the ses and bruises visible on his friends’ arms and faces. The rest of Garfell he left, only making the small courtesy of closing the enormous man’s eyelids.
That left only Zelfern, smaller and paler than he had ever seemed in life. The half-breed knelt beside him. “You were right, Zelfern. We’re not the same. All the terrible things that happened to you- to both of us- you let them control you. You gave in to the anger, and the fear, and the hate. I almost did, too. But I had friends, people I love, to keep me in a good place. I’m sorry you never did. Maybe if you had, we could have been friends, like Zariana said. Maybe we would both have been happier.”
Shout out to my only newest reader, Essa Kryze ! You arrived just in time for the end of the story.
Lol, don't worry I'm a fast reader. And I have a habit of, shall we say, archive diving. I love to go back into the histories and beginnings of any place.
-last edited on Nov 30, 2017 21:35:59 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Nov 30, 2017 21:35:37 GMT
Chapter 305
Wincing, Skrag straightened his legs and shuffled over to the side of the mountain, intending to lean against it and rest. Before he arrived, though, he felt something smooth and hard under his foot. It was Zelfern’s stone, the one he had stolen from Septimus, the one that had enabled him to smash so many people. Angrily, Skrag slammed his foot onto it, meaning to destroy it once and for all. It came away undamaged. Thrice more and still nothing. At last, the half-breed leaned, down, picked it up, and hurled it as far as he could into the mountains. If it didn’t shatter when it hit the ground, at least it might be hidden from any who wished to use it.
His tasks finally complete, Skrag rested. He looked up into the deep blue sky and he was at peace. The pain in his side had gone strangely numb, his whole body had. He felt weightless, lightheaded, free. A darkness entered the sky at the corner of his vision. A flock of birds? No, a flock of people, people with wings. Terra’s Falkrions. They were beautiful. Skrag smiled. He would have to meet them when he got down from the mountains. He couldn’t wait to see Terra again, and Hithrol, and Olifin, and all the rest. He hoped someone would find him soon. He was so tired. Skrag closed his eye. So tired. The shadows called to him, and he fell away into the void.
Far below, Legolie and the Elves busied themselves cleaning up the aftermath of the battle. As they dragged the bodies to the pits, Legolie came across the one she had most hoped never to see. Link’s face was gone, but his clothing was unmistakable. She stared at him for a long time. When at last the Elven Queen returned to the waking world, she found Jayden and Caisara standing by her. The dragon-slayer spoke. “We’re going to go now. It’s time for us to move on.”
“Wait. I want you to do one thing first.” Caisara nodded her agreement, and Jayden followed suit. “I need you to climb up that mountain and find whoever it was that made that scream. I think it may have saved all of our lives.”
Jayden and Caisara did as she said, but by the time they got there it was too late. Five bodies lay on the mountain, and no one to say what had happened there.
-last edited on Dec 2, 2017 19:44:39 GMT by RuleJJ
Post by RuleJJ on Dec 2, 2017 19:44:13 GMT
Epilogue- 1
By silent agreement, they decided to do the job with their own hands, unaided by magic or by dragons. They spent the better part of a day chopping down trees, splitting the logs, and stacking them together to form the pyre. Alis helped for a while, and the other Riders stopped by, but mostly it was just the three of them, the three who had been with the Riders since the beginning when they were still the Dragon Riders, the three who had been there when he had first arrived so many years ago- Hithrol, Terra, and Korin. When they were finished, they brought the still form of their friends and laid it carefully down on the pile of logs. Panting from the effort of those many long hours, they stood back and waited for the others to arrive.
Skirj was the first, a glowing orange portal signaling his appearance. He greeted the three Riders and their respective dragons warmly, but solemnly, the half-smile on his face doing little to disguise his inner grief. It had been a long time since he had seen his brother, but it was clear he had been as hard-hit as any of them by the news.
Isabel made her entrance shortly after, dressed in the dark cloak she had worn as a gladiator in the Arena, a symbol both of mourning and of remembrance.
The eight of them conversed in hushed tones- purely out of respect for their fallen friend, as there could be no practical reason for this- until the final guest arrived. Legolie slowed Homefinder’s pace as they drew close, but the horse was clearly exhausted. The rider was, too. Her eyes were ringed with purple and they had a distant look to them, as if she was having trouble focusing. “Sorry I’m late. There’s just so much to do back home. I do have a kingdom to run, after all. And the ceremonies for Link and everyone else we lost in that battle.” Her voice choked up as she said the last sentence, and she had to turn away.
Hithrol walked over and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “It’s okay. No one could blame you.”
The elven queen nodded her thanks as she joined the rest of the group. “The Arachnidians send their regards, but they couldn’t make the voyage in time. This is from them.” She took a pouch from her belt and dumped its contents onto the pyre. “All the Dragonsbane they could find. They think it might be the last of it. Once we light this fire, it will never hurt anyone again.”
I love to go back into the histories and beginnings of any place. 
