alright... Remember this is a work in progress and Mewnish is helping me edit it... That said, I would appreciate feedback if you have it.
The clash of battle was beginning to dim down after hours and hours of fighting. The city’s streets were flowing red as the remaining elves on both sides of the combat were struggling to push their enemies back. Great winged dragons, the reds, whites and blues fighting the blacks and browns, were still locked in vicious combat in the sky even as the sunlight faded and gave way to night. A few tumbled to the earth only to continue the combat on the ground in their mortal guises. An explosion rocked the land as a blast of magical energy smashed into the ground and took a hundred screaming elves with it.
And all through this Kaiden Shale watched his brothers palace closely. If he could get up the mountain city to the top where the shrine to Lizkala lay he would find his brother their casting his magics on the soldiers below. He growled as an elf screamed and rushed through the lines at him. He drew his short blade and parried the wild strikes then stabbed the stranger through the throat. The enemy groaned, coughing up blood that suddenly welled through his throat as he continued to push forwards to finish off the enemy general. He hissed as the man’s sword deftly plunged into his heart, stopping his forwards movement and, within moments, killing the sad wretch.
“Soldiers!” the young elfling yelled. He was young compared to the rest of his kind, barely two hundred, but he held all their respect. And not simply because he was one of the two strongest mages of his age. He held their respect because, unlike many other mages, he didn’t hold himself above fighting alongside the warriors who were weaker in magic than their mageborn kin. “We must push to the top! Jaken awaits us!”
With the mention of his treacherous brother the others swarmed quickly around him, pushing into the hordes of enslaved elves. Their enemies eyes held a lack of any kind of emotion, showing that they had been completely dominated by the mad mage. Kaiden growled angrily as he made sure his blows struck the brain or heart, lesser blows would never kill these maddened elves.
Bringing his small sword to bear proved sometimes difficult, but he cleared the way to the parapet. He knew that his brother would expect him to come, especially since those he dominated shared what they saw with him instantly. The fighting grew more and more vicious as they closed onto the top of the mountain and the ancient fortress within. He winced as he saw a group of one hundred elves waiting for them in front of the last barrier to the fortress. He held up his fist and thrust it forwards quickly, intoning a few words to empower and shape the raw mana, and watched a gust of wind smash through the barred metal gates. Demolishing the barrier, and blowing away those few guards who were closest, as if they were made of straw.
The blast had knocked down a handful of the elves and caused the group to be able to rush up and finish many of them off before those who hadn’t been thrown had rushed back to the frontlines. Kaiden brought out not only his blade but one of his enchanted knives and fought through the rush of elven berserkers. He brought his thin blade up to block a blow and finished the enemy with a knife wound to the brain or heart to stop the zombie warriors from overwhelming them. He killed them effortlessly, dancing and flowing around them in a macabre ballet.
The remaining elves were quickly overrun as they tried to push the emboldened invaders out of their temple to their god. As they entered the courtyards many elven soldiers rushed to meet those who would desecrate the sanctuary of the living god. The twenty remaining soldiers stayed at the steps that lead to their god, guarding his inner sanctum from these intruders with their lives. Kaiden, enraged by the death his brother had wrought, pulled on some of his remaining magic. He tried to conserve as much of it as possible for what he had to do and teleported himself to the main steps halfway up the temple past all but the vanguard. None of the warriors on the ground worried, since they all shared their sight with not only their master but the other enslaved elves as well.
The young elf growled again as he brought his weapons up to defend himself. Those who remained knew of his skill, mostly from the shared knowledge of their fallen fellows, and they thought themselves ready. Before the first two managed to close, however, the elven lad threw a pair of his enchanted daggers and killed them. The first man fell with a blade buried in his skull and the second felt his heart pierced with the blade as he fell to the ground.
Another closed quickly and he brought his blade up, drawing another enchanted dagger. The knife blocked the oncoming weapon while the sword cleaved through the warrior's’ skull. It crumpled to the ground as the first handful continued their march upon him. He chanted quickly as he shot a bolt of lightning into five of the elves, incinerating their hearts with the pure force of the blast. The second group to come upon him was a group of four, two with swords, one with a scythe and another with a pair of sacrificial knives. He growled and brought his weapons up, trying to come up with a solution when the answer presented itself. A dragon blasted the area with its fire, disintegrated eight of the remaining vanguard of elves and burning the others. They howled in agony as they rushed the elven lad on the stair well. He looked up for a moment to see a massive red dragon swooping down quickly to the stairs. It landed in a flash of light as it changed into its elven guise and drew its bladed staff from its back.
“I am in your debt Grimmsandyr,” the elf said with a grimace. He still didnt trust the dragons, his kind and theirs had been at war for generations. It had only taken the threats of a mad tyrant to cause them to join forces.
“Young elf,” the dragon said, its glowing red eyes glared at him. He shook his head with wry amusement. “You must hurry and defeat your brother.”
Another pair of dragons landed, a black and a brown one. They took their own mortal guises and stood in the way to the emperors’ chambers. Although not brainwashed they had been convinced, one way or another, to join his brothers’ forces. Oddly enough it was the fact that the browns and blacks had joined that had convinced the others that they should join the fight as well, although there was no word from the yellows, purples or silvers.
“Aggshardyr,” the dragon breathed angrily as he eyed the pair. “And Jashhymiil. What are you two cowards doing here?”
The elf held his ground although every instinct screamed at him to run. The pair in front of him weren’t more powerful than he was, but they were the leaders of the blacks and browns. Grimmsandyr, on the other hand, was only a consort to the dragon leader of the reds. Sure the young elf had enough power to take on one of these dragons but he’d be in trouble if he used up all of his magic before he reached his brother.
“Run, youngling,” the dragon hissed as it positioned himself between the young elf and the other two dragons. “I can handle these cowards.”
“You really don't think we’ll let the lad get away, do you?” Aggshardyr the black growled. It hissed in anger at the thought. “We’ll kill the both of you and end this farce. And then we’ll kill Darshyrdiil, your lovely queen.”
“She’ll make a lovely treat,” Jashhymiil, the brown, said with a wicked looking grin. She looked relaxed, as if this was all a game to her. She hissed and the young warrior winced as he tried to figure out what to do. Jashhymiil had a reputation for being a sadistic monster, killing anything that crossed her path for the simple pleasure of it. “Once we’re done here we’ll have her as our plaything.”
“If you can leave,” a voice above them growled as it landed. A giant white form morphing at the last moment to land gently on the ground in his elven form. “Like I’d let the pair of you get away after hurting my flight this badly.”
“Shrandathdyr,” Aggshardyr growled angrily, its loathing was obvious in its tone. The other dragon had taken the browns’ eye in a fight and there was always a score to settle amongst dragons when it came to hierarchy. “So you finally brave my wrath and come before me? Not going to use your flight to soften me up first?”
“Only the craven would use such a tactic,” the white replied simply, standing easily but still giving off the sense of being ready to spring at any moment, like a loaded trap. “I on the other hand am not like you and yours.”
“Craven you say?” Aggshardyr growled again. “Twas not I who was fool enough to let my enemy continue to live. Besides, Graecyviil is already dead, I crushed her skull like an egg.”
A moment of completely dead silence fell upon them. Then the white bellowed in pure rage and rushed forwards, locking in combat with the brown. The red began fighting with the black as well, keeping Jashhymiil from engaging the other pair of dragons. Noticing the boy was staring at them Grimmsandyr growled.
“Go on! You must stop him before his plan comes to fruition. We will not live as slaves!”
The mage rushed forwards, ducking below the blows of the few guards that remained. He slashed sideways with his twin weapons, quickly killing a pair of guards and beheading another before getting approached by the last warrior. The last one, its skin a deathly pallor, seemed to grin wickedly at him. It held a bastard sword easily in one of its hands and seemed to flow forwards as it tried to take his head off.
The young elf ducked under the blow, turning the attack from him to the side as he closed. He jabbed the knife in, trying to take the heart only to be stopped by cold dead hands that viciously gripped his wrist. Hissing the creature in front of him grinned as it increased the pressure on his wrist. The boy howled as he felt his wrist snap, causing him to lose hold of his sword as it clattered to the ground. He knew what this creature was, it was a blood-drinker, nightwalker, Vampire.
The lithe soldier ducked as his undead enemy brought his sword back to take off his head. He dodged now, since his opponent hadn’t let go of his hand. He rolled again, dodging as he threw the dagger he had in his other hand. It hit home, striking his opponent in the gut. No blood leaked from the wound, continuing to reassert that his opponent wasn’t one that was living.
“Come now boy,” his opponent said with a laugh as he brought his blade back again. He was going for the killing strike this time. “You should know by now that a blow like that wont kill me.”
“Of course I do,” the elf said with a grin. “Gorro-Selendus”
The hilt of the blade glowed like red-hot steel in a forge as the Vampire shrieked in agony. The blade itself had become living fire, causing his opponents form to begin to crack. Red light glowed through the fractures that cut through his form as he screamed in agony. He was being torn apart by the flames from within.
One final scream resounded before the creature exploded in a fireclap. The soldier went flying backwards and slammed into the railing on the stairs, his momentum continuing to fling him over. He grasped desperately at the metal, trying to check his fall as he began the long descent to the battlefield below. He barely grasped it with his good hand as he felt his body jolt at the sudden stop. He hissed in pain as he felt the strain on his body as he tried to pull himself upwards, his arm screaming its denial as his muscles wanted to give out.
The dark haired elf noticed the blood trailing down his broken arm and grinned, maybe he had his way out of this mess afterall. He held his broken arm against the wall and began painting with his blood, causing his limb to scream in fresh pain as he put pressure on it.
“Segundarus-Toride-Nomine-Gustaka” the young man growled through the pain as the blood began to glow. Suddenly a djinn flew from the hole in reality and grabbed him. Its glowing purple skin seemed to flicker as it held him suspended above the battlefield.
What do you wish of me, the otherworldly voice slithered in his skull, making him shake. He was powerful enough to control a spiritual being of this caliber, but without the proper seals and while hanging suspended in the air he was at the vicious creatures’ mercy. Why have you called me here mortal?
“I called you,” Kaiden growled, keeping his voice calm as he felt the other creatures will try to eat at his own. If he could keep himself from slipping and allowing the creature in he would win. It couldn’t reap him anyway, at least he didn’t think that it could. “To aid me.”
Your kind always wish us to meddle in your affairs, the creature hissed, increasing the pressure on its preys’ mind. And you know I cannot. Your gods do not allow me to interfere with you and yours. I’m merely an observer that reaps those ready to pass on.
“Then reap,” the elf growled angrily as he pointed to the other Vampires rushing about the field. The victory they’d gained was quickly turning to a rout and the mortal was hoping to convince one of deaths gatekeepers with their hatred of the undead, those that had escaped deaths embrace through their curse. “You’ll find plenty to feed your hunger here.”
The Djinn growled angrily, its purple skin turning a red color as its anger simmered and boiled over. Its mouth opened wide, burning red hot like a blazing furnace and just as hot to his exposed skin. The young elf quickly climbed up the Djinn and jumped just as the creature rushed forwards to destroy the undead before it.
Barely making over the ramp his legs caught on it, causing him to flip headfirst into the ground. He winced as he felt himself smack into the cement. Groaning he picked himself up as he limped away, looking over his shoulder for a moment to inspect the Djinn’s work. It howled angrily as it began turning on the Vampires as it rushed from fight to fight to reap their souls. Even a Djinn would find itself hard pressed against so many, but maybe it could buy enough time for the Elven forces to turn the tide.
Kaiden grimaced as he walked over to the palisade that his brother was holed up in. His limp made his entrance far less impressive than he’d wished and the stairs themselves made him grit his teeth with the pain they brought. As he approached the great gilded doors of steel and silver looked like giant slabs set up to block passage. The young mage growled again as he pushed the doors wide open. He felt the cold rush of wind is it rushed outwards from the him felt like the breath of the grave. He felt tingles rush up his spine as if clammy fingers were grasping at him, trying to drag him down back into death. He knew he’d felt death before, he’d felt it hundreds of times.
That didn’t mean he liked the feeling.
Growling he shook off the sensation, drawing on his magic to burn it away like clinging cobwebs. He pushed the hands away, grinning as he felt the wailing of the damned when they were denied their feast. He walked past, tongues of fire swirling around him as he made his way towards where his brother awaited him.
As the young soldier walked into the antechamber where the traitor was waiting. A sudden sound of clapping threw him off and he jumped, holding his sword ready towards where the sound seemed to be coming from.
“Well done, dear brother,” a voice said, seeming to come from everywhere as the sound bounced off the walls. “Its been too long since I last saw you, why don't you come and see me anymore?”
“Jaken,” Kaiden said with a hiss as he spun, he was trying to see through all the shadows around him, trying to spot where his brother was hiding at. “Come out and fight me. Unless you’re too scared.”
“Scared?” the sinister voice replied. Suddenly a presence appeared from one of the shadows, a strange purple colored lightning sparking around his fists and arms. “Why would someone like you scare me, little brother?”
Swinging his fist towards the first brother he shot a bolt of the strange lightning at Kaiden, who barely blocked with a psychic shield. The shield itself held but had some severe cracks remaining in it. The younger brother dropped the shield and rushed forwards, using his magic to accelerate his body faster than was normal. Slashing he struck for his brother as he tried to kill him, the monster that was wearing his siblings’ skin.
“Why do you try this against me?” Jaken said, blocking the sword strikes with his own psychic shielding. He sidestepped quickly and shot another bolt of lightning, trying to gain the advantage in their duel. “You know its pointless. This “Empire of the Elves” is a fetid corpse left too long in the sun. The sickness of the noble houses has poisoned it far too much to be saved. Join me and we can recreate this, we can rule it together.”
“And what happens,” Kaiden growled as he empowered his strikes with fire mana, consuming the aberrant lightning in a sweep of flames. He ducked under another lightning strike, rolling to try to flank his opponent. “When you get tired of me? Will you kill me like you did our parents? Like you did the council?”
“The council was weak,” Jaken hissed angrily shooting two more bolts of lightning rapidfire at his brother. “They commanded us to kill off the dragons, then allowed us to be slaughtered in pointless battles against them.”
“We were holding our homes against them,” the younger brother said as he spun around the lightning only to get hit by the second blast of lightning. He was pushed backwards by the force of the attack. If his fire hadn’t been active he would’ve been knocked out or killed by it. “We had to keep them from killing us. We were winning.”
“WE WERE BEING SLAUGHTERED!” Jaken screamed, releasing more purpled lightning to bash against Kaidens’ shields, staggering the younger opponent back. “We were sent to destroy them for pointless reasons. We could live peacefully with them and the council only had jealousy in their hearts towards them. Only wanted their lands and jewels.”
Kaiden grunted as he struck with his sword, slashing through his brothers mental shield. The outburst had weakened his defense. The blade slid through the barrier, cracking it and causing it to shatter. He brought his wounded arm up, even if it hurt he needed to knock his brother back. The arm took the man at the chest, knocking his older brother backwards as he fell on his back. His own sword slipped from his grasp and slid along the floor, barely out of reach.
The younger brother growled as he held his sword up, pointing it at his brothers chest as he got ready to do the final blow.
“I’m sorry brother.”
Suddenly, a blade went through Kaidens back, stabbing him through. He gasped as he dropped his own blade from nerveless fingers. He shook as the realization that he’d been stabbed, that he was dying and that he hadn’t even realized that his death was coming down on him. He tried to look behind him, strained to see who had taken his life.
“Jashhymiil,” his brother howled angrily, rounding on the Dragon in front of him. The dragon kicked Kaiden off of her blade, causing the younger brother to drop to the ground.
Once he was free of the blade the younger brother began to fall forwards slowly, everything seeming to crawl as he felt himself fall. The ground slowly rose up to meet him as he collapsed, smacking into the stone floor. He felt his wound send a fresh lance of agony up his veins as he hit, causing him to gasp in pain again.
“I told you he needed to be taken alive!” he heard his brother say. Time around him was flowing slower than normal, causing his brothers’ words to distort as he said them, making them almost unintelligible. “You weren’t to kill him.”
“You don’t rule the Dragon Flights,” Jashhymiil said with a hiss as she rounded on his brother. She brought her blade up and began to attack his brother. “And you never will, we only joined your war to free ourselves of you Elves. Now, if we can kill the leaders of both groups we’ll have free reign here.”
She slashed forwards, flowing into her strikes. Jaken quickly brought his blade up, blocking the blade. He jumped backwards, casting more of the purple lightning at the dragon. She hissed as she lunged forwards, allowing herself to get burned by the attack but stabbing through her opponent.
Jaken gasped as he too was stabbed, then he grinned. He looked at the Dragon that had killed him.
And he smiled.
Jaken growled as his eyes suddenly glowed a black color. He grinned wickedly as he let the power that was locked within overflow out of his body. Jashhymiil stared in shock, she’d never seen something like this happen before. She tried to draw her blade from him, tried to retreat, only to have strange black metal chains rush from the older brothers’ wrists, grasping at the young dragon. It howled as the metal dug into her skin, writhing below her flesh as it ate away at her essence and consumed her life force.
“I am the creator,” a voice spoke through his brothers mouth. “And I bring judgement. You and yours are found wanting. Your judgement is... death.”
The chains spread out from the dragon, smashing through walls as screams resounded outside of the walls. Kaiden couldn’t see outside but he could make out the screams of those that were being consumed like the dragon in front of him.
“Brother...” Kaiden gasped, trying to get through to his brother. Obviously The Destroyer had decided he’d won, but the younger brother still had hope he could win. “Please, brother. Stop. Show mercy.”
“Mercy?” the unearthly voice hissed as it stared at the fallen elf. “Would you show an ant mercy?”
“They aren’t insects for us to play with,” the younger man gasped as he pushed himself up. He managed to stand on his will, even though the wound was screaming at him. He gasped, holding his side with his broken hand and holding onto one of his magicked daggers. “They have worth brother.”
“You still stand against me brother?” Jaken said, as if from a distance. It was as if something was ruling his body and he shook as he struggled against it. “Our petty fight doesn’t matter anymore. They have their judgement.”
“Not if I stop you.”
“Brother,” Jaken started before Kaiden threw his blade at the man. It flew straight, but the older brother blocked it with his own blade. It bounced off with a clang and he turned back to his other brother to see him rushing forwards.
The grey haired older brother hissed as he slapped away his brothers hands only to feel a heat grip him.
“No! NOOOOOO!” the creature controlling his brother howled angrily as the chains glowed a purple color. Light shone from the chains as they began to shake rapidly. The spell was being changed, ever so slightly.
“They won’t die out today,” Kaiden whispered as the backlash from the spell tore at him. He saw a ball of light begin to coalesce around them and felt the intense heat burning through his skin, layer by layer. He and his brother were going to be cooked alive in a flood of light
The explosion ripped from the center, tearing them apart as they flew from ground zero and went through the walls of the grand mausoleum. He felt, more than actually could tell, that he came to rest in the ground nearby. He sighed as he felt tired, more so than he’d ever felt. His lids slowly began to get heavier and heavier as he watched the light rapidly spread and bath him in luminescence and heat. He smiled slightly as he felt it fall upon him and allowed himself to let go of his shattered body as the destructive forces of the spell finally ripped him apart.
“Brother...”
WC:[4265]
Prologue:
The clash of battle was beginning to dim down after hours and hours of fighting. The city’s streets were flowing red as the remaining elves on both sides of the combat were struggling to push their enemies back. Great winged dragons, the reds, whites and blues fighting the blacks and browns, were still locked in vicious combat in the sky even as the sunlight faded and gave way to night. A few tumbled to the earth only to continue the combat on the ground in their mortal guises. An explosion rocked the land as a blast of magical energy smashed into the ground and took a hundred screaming elves with it.
And all through this Kaiden Shale watched his brothers palace closely. If he could get up the mountain city to the top where the shrine to Lizkala lay he would find his brother their casting his magics on the soldiers below. He growled as an elf screamed and rushed through the lines at him. He drew his short blade and parried the wild strikes then stabbed the stranger through the throat. The enemy groaned, coughing up blood that suddenly welled through his throat as he continued to push forwards to finish off the enemy general. He hissed as the man’s sword deftly plunged into his heart, stopping his forwards movement and, within moments, killing the sad wretch.
“Soldiers!” the young elfling yelled. He was young compared to the rest of his kind, barely two hundred, but he held all their respect. And not simply because he was one of the two strongest mages of his age. He held their respect because, unlike many other mages, he didn’t hold himself above fighting alongside the warriors who were weaker in magic than their mageborn kin. “We must push to the top! Jaken awaits us!”
With the mention of his treacherous brother the others swarmed quickly around him, pushing into the hordes of enslaved elves. Their enemies eyes held a lack of any kind of emotion, showing that they had been completely dominated by the mad mage. Kaiden growled angrily as he made sure his blows struck the brain or heart, lesser blows would never kill these maddened elves.
Bringing his small sword to bear proved sometimes difficult, but he cleared the way to the parapet. He knew that his brother would expect him to come, especially since those he dominated shared what they saw with him instantly. The fighting grew more and more vicious as they closed onto the top of the mountain and the ancient fortress within. He winced as he saw a group of one hundred elves waiting for them in front of the last barrier to the fortress. He held up his fist and thrust it forwards quickly, intoning a few words to empower and shape the raw mana, and watched a gust of wind smash through the barred metal gates. Demolishing the barrier, and blowing away those few guards who were closest, as if they were made of straw.
The blast had knocked down a handful of the elves and caused the group to be able to rush up and finish many of them off before those who hadn’t been thrown had rushed back to the frontlines. Kaiden brought out not only his blade but one of his enchanted knives and fought through the rush of elven berserkers. He brought his thin blade up to block a blow and finished the enemy with a knife wound to the brain or heart to stop the zombie warriors from overwhelming them. He killed them effortlessly, dancing and flowing around them in a macabre ballet.
The remaining elves were quickly overrun as they tried to push the emboldened invaders out of their temple to their god. As they entered the courtyards many elven soldiers rushed to meet those who would desecrate the sanctuary of the living god. The twenty remaining soldiers stayed at the steps that lead to their god, guarding his inner sanctum from these intruders with their lives. Kaiden, enraged by the death his brother had wrought, pulled on some of his remaining magic. He tried to conserve as much of it as possible for what he had to do and teleported himself to the main steps halfway up the temple past all but the vanguard. None of the warriors on the ground worried, since they all shared their sight with not only their master but the other enslaved elves as well.
The young elf growled again as he brought his weapons up to defend himself. Those who remained knew of his skill, mostly from the shared knowledge of their fallen fellows, and they thought themselves ready. Before the first two managed to close, however, the elven lad threw a pair of his enchanted daggers and killed them. The first man fell with a blade buried in his skull and the second felt his heart pierced with the blade as he fell to the ground.
Another closed quickly and he brought his blade up, drawing another enchanted dagger. The knife blocked the oncoming weapon while the sword cleaved through the warrior's’ skull. It crumpled to the ground as the first handful continued their march upon him. He chanted quickly as he shot a bolt of lightning into five of the elves, incinerating their hearts with the pure force of the blast. The second group to come upon him was a group of four, two with swords, one with a scythe and another with a pair of sacrificial knives. He growled and brought his weapons up, trying to come up with a solution when the answer presented itself. A dragon blasted the area with its fire, disintegrated eight of the remaining vanguard of elves and burning the others. They howled in agony as they rushed the elven lad on the stair well. He looked up for a moment to see a massive red dragon swooping down quickly to the stairs. It landed in a flash of light as it changed into its elven guise and drew its bladed staff from its back.
“I am in your debt Grimmsandyr,” the elf said with a grimace. He still didnt trust the dragons, his kind and theirs had been at war for generations. It had only taken the threats of a mad tyrant to cause them to join forces.
“Young elf,” the dragon said, its glowing red eyes glared at him. He shook his head with wry amusement. “You must hurry and defeat your brother.”
Another pair of dragons landed, a black and a brown one. They took their own mortal guises and stood in the way to the emperors’ chambers. Although not brainwashed they had been convinced, one way or another, to join his brothers’ forces. Oddly enough it was the fact that the browns and blacks had joined that had convinced the others that they should join the fight as well, although there was no word from the yellows, purples or silvers.
“Aggshardyr,” the dragon breathed angrily as he eyed the pair. “And Jashhymiil. What are you two cowards doing here?”
The elf held his ground although every instinct screamed at him to run. The pair in front of him weren’t more powerful than he was, but they were the leaders of the blacks and browns. Grimmsandyr, on the other hand, was only a consort to the dragon leader of the reds. Sure the young elf had enough power to take on one of these dragons but he’d be in trouble if he used up all of his magic before he reached his brother.
“Run, youngling,” the dragon hissed as it positioned himself between the young elf and the other two dragons. “I can handle these cowards.”
“You really don't think we’ll let the lad get away, do you?” Aggshardyr the black growled. It hissed in anger at the thought. “We’ll kill the both of you and end this farce. And then we’ll kill Darshyrdiil, your lovely queen.”
“She’ll make a lovely treat,” Jashhymiil, the brown, said with a wicked looking grin. She looked relaxed, as if this was all a game to her. She hissed and the young warrior winced as he tried to figure out what to do. Jashhymiil had a reputation for being a sadistic monster, killing anything that crossed her path for the simple pleasure of it. “Once we’re done here we’ll have her as our plaything.”
“If you can leave,” a voice above them growled as it landed. A giant white form morphing at the last moment to land gently on the ground in his elven form. “Like I’d let the pair of you get away after hurting my flight this badly.”
“Shrandathdyr,” Aggshardyr growled angrily, its loathing was obvious in its tone. The other dragon had taken the browns’ eye in a fight and there was always a score to settle amongst dragons when it came to hierarchy. “So you finally brave my wrath and come before me? Not going to use your flight to soften me up first?”
“Only the craven would use such a tactic,” the white replied simply, standing easily but still giving off the sense of being ready to spring at any moment, like a loaded trap. “I on the other hand am not like you and yours.”
“Craven you say?” Aggshardyr growled again. “Twas not I who was fool enough to let my enemy continue to live. Besides, Graecyviil is already dead, I crushed her skull like an egg.”
A moment of completely dead silence fell upon them. Then the white bellowed in pure rage and rushed forwards, locking in combat with the brown. The red began fighting with the black as well, keeping Jashhymiil from engaging the other pair of dragons. Noticing the boy was staring at them Grimmsandyr growled.
“Go on! You must stop him before his plan comes to fruition. We will not live as slaves!”
The mage rushed forwards, ducking below the blows of the few guards that remained. He slashed sideways with his twin weapons, quickly killing a pair of guards and beheading another before getting approached by the last warrior. The last one, its skin a deathly pallor, seemed to grin wickedly at him. It held a bastard sword easily in one of its hands and seemed to flow forwards as it tried to take his head off.
The young elf ducked under the blow, turning the attack from him to the side as he closed. He jabbed the knife in, trying to take the heart only to be stopped by cold dead hands that viciously gripped his wrist. Hissing the creature in front of him grinned as it increased the pressure on his wrist. The boy howled as he felt his wrist snap, causing him to lose hold of his sword as it clattered to the ground. He knew what this creature was, it was a blood-drinker, nightwalker, Vampire.
The lithe soldier ducked as his undead enemy brought his sword back to take off his head. He dodged now, since his opponent hadn’t let go of his hand. He rolled again, dodging as he threw the dagger he had in his other hand. It hit home, striking his opponent in the gut. No blood leaked from the wound, continuing to reassert that his opponent wasn’t one that was living.
“Come now boy,” his opponent said with a laugh as he brought his blade back again. He was going for the killing strike this time. “You should know by now that a blow like that wont kill me.”
“Of course I do,” the elf said with a grin. “Gorro-Selendus”
The hilt of the blade glowed like red-hot steel in a forge as the Vampire shrieked in agony. The blade itself had become living fire, causing his opponents form to begin to crack. Red light glowed through the fractures that cut through his form as he screamed in agony. He was being torn apart by the flames from within.
One final scream resounded before the creature exploded in a fireclap. The soldier went flying backwards and slammed into the railing on the stairs, his momentum continuing to fling him over. He grasped desperately at the metal, trying to check his fall as he began the long descent to the battlefield below. He barely grasped it with his good hand as he felt his body jolt at the sudden stop. He hissed in pain as he felt the strain on his body as he tried to pull himself upwards, his arm screaming its denial as his muscles wanted to give out.
The dark haired elf noticed the blood trailing down his broken arm and grinned, maybe he had his way out of this mess afterall. He held his broken arm against the wall and began painting with his blood, causing his limb to scream in fresh pain as he put pressure on it.
“Segundarus-Toride-Nomine-Gustaka” the young man growled through the pain as the blood began to glow. Suddenly a djinn flew from the hole in reality and grabbed him. Its glowing purple skin seemed to flicker as it held him suspended above the battlefield.
What do you wish of me, the otherworldly voice slithered in his skull, making him shake. He was powerful enough to control a spiritual being of this caliber, but without the proper seals and while hanging suspended in the air he was at the vicious creatures’ mercy. Why have you called me here mortal?
“I called you,” Kaiden growled, keeping his voice calm as he felt the other creatures will try to eat at his own. If he could keep himself from slipping and allowing the creature in he would win. It couldn’t reap him anyway, at least he didn’t think that it could. “To aid me.”
Your kind always wish us to meddle in your affairs, the creature hissed, increasing the pressure on its preys’ mind. And you know I cannot. Your gods do not allow me to interfere with you and yours. I’m merely an observer that reaps those ready to pass on.
“Then reap,” the elf growled angrily as he pointed to the other Vampires rushing about the field. The victory they’d gained was quickly turning to a rout and the mortal was hoping to convince one of deaths gatekeepers with their hatred of the undead, those that had escaped deaths embrace through their curse. “You’ll find plenty to feed your hunger here.”
The Djinn growled angrily, its purple skin turning a red color as its anger simmered and boiled over. Its mouth opened wide, burning red hot like a blazing furnace and just as hot to his exposed skin. The young elf quickly climbed up the Djinn and jumped just as the creature rushed forwards to destroy the undead before it.
Barely making over the ramp his legs caught on it, causing him to flip headfirst into the ground. He winced as he felt himself smack into the cement. Groaning he picked himself up as he limped away, looking over his shoulder for a moment to inspect the Djinn’s work. It howled angrily as it began turning on the Vampires as it rushed from fight to fight to reap their souls. Even a Djinn would find itself hard pressed against so many, but maybe it could buy enough time for the Elven forces to turn the tide.
Kaiden grimaced as he walked over to the palisade that his brother was holed up in. His limp made his entrance far less impressive than he’d wished and the stairs themselves made him grit his teeth with the pain they brought. As he approached the great gilded doors of steel and silver looked like giant slabs set up to block passage. The young mage growled again as he pushed the doors wide open. He felt the cold rush of wind is it rushed outwards from the him felt like the breath of the grave. He felt tingles rush up his spine as if clammy fingers were grasping at him, trying to drag him down back into death. He knew he’d felt death before, he’d felt it hundreds of times.
That didn’t mean he liked the feeling.
Growling he shook off the sensation, drawing on his magic to burn it away like clinging cobwebs. He pushed the hands away, grinning as he felt the wailing of the damned when they were denied their feast. He walked past, tongues of fire swirling around him as he made his way towards where his brother awaited him.
As the young soldier walked into the antechamber where the traitor was waiting. A sudden sound of clapping threw him off and he jumped, holding his sword ready towards where the sound seemed to be coming from.
“Well done, dear brother,” a voice said, seeming to come from everywhere as the sound bounced off the walls. “Its been too long since I last saw you, why don't you come and see me anymore?”
“Jaken,” Kaiden said with a hiss as he spun, he was trying to see through all the shadows around him, trying to spot where his brother was hiding at. “Come out and fight me. Unless you’re too scared.”
“Scared?” the sinister voice replied. Suddenly a presence appeared from one of the shadows, a strange purple colored lightning sparking around his fists and arms. “Why would someone like you scare me, little brother?”
Swinging his fist towards the first brother he shot a bolt of the strange lightning at Kaiden, who barely blocked with a psychic shield. The shield itself held but had some severe cracks remaining in it. The younger brother dropped the shield and rushed forwards, using his magic to accelerate his body faster than was normal. Slashing he struck for his brother as he tried to kill him, the monster that was wearing his siblings’ skin.
“Why do you try this against me?” Jaken said, blocking the sword strikes with his own psychic shielding. He sidestepped quickly and shot another bolt of lightning, trying to gain the advantage in their duel. “You know its pointless. This “Empire of the Elves” is a fetid corpse left too long in the sun. The sickness of the noble houses has poisoned it far too much to be saved. Join me and we can recreate this, we can rule it together.”
“And what happens,” Kaiden growled as he empowered his strikes with fire mana, consuming the aberrant lightning in a sweep of flames. He ducked under another lightning strike, rolling to try to flank his opponent. “When you get tired of me? Will you kill me like you did our parents? Like you did the council?”
“The council was weak,” Jaken hissed angrily shooting two more bolts of lightning rapidfire at his brother. “They commanded us to kill off the dragons, then allowed us to be slaughtered in pointless battles against them.”
“We were holding our homes against them,” the younger brother said as he spun around the lightning only to get hit by the second blast of lightning. He was pushed backwards by the force of the attack. If his fire hadn’t been active he would’ve been knocked out or killed by it. “We had to keep them from killing us. We were winning.”
“WE WERE BEING SLAUGHTERED!” Jaken screamed, releasing more purpled lightning to bash against Kaidens’ shields, staggering the younger opponent back. “We were sent to destroy them for pointless reasons. We could live peacefully with them and the council only had jealousy in their hearts towards them. Only wanted their lands and jewels.”
Kaiden grunted as he struck with his sword, slashing through his brothers mental shield. The outburst had weakened his defense. The blade slid through the barrier, cracking it and causing it to shatter. He brought his wounded arm up, even if it hurt he needed to knock his brother back. The arm took the man at the chest, knocking his older brother backwards as he fell on his back. His own sword slipped from his grasp and slid along the floor, barely out of reach.
The younger brother growled as he held his sword up, pointing it at his brothers chest as he got ready to do the final blow.
“I’m sorry brother.”
Suddenly, a blade went through Kaidens back, stabbing him through. He gasped as he dropped his own blade from nerveless fingers. He shook as the realization that he’d been stabbed, that he was dying and that he hadn’t even realized that his death was coming down on him. He tried to look behind him, strained to see who had taken his life.
“Jashhymiil,” his brother howled angrily, rounding on the Dragon in front of him. The dragon kicked Kaiden off of her blade, causing the younger brother to drop to the ground.
Once he was free of the blade the younger brother began to fall forwards slowly, everything seeming to crawl as he felt himself fall. The ground slowly rose up to meet him as he collapsed, smacking into the stone floor. He felt his wound send a fresh lance of agony up his veins as he hit, causing him to gasp in pain again.
“I told you he needed to be taken alive!” he heard his brother say. Time around him was flowing slower than normal, causing his brothers’ words to distort as he said them, making them almost unintelligible. “You weren’t to kill him.”
“You don’t rule the Dragon Flights,” Jashhymiil said with a hiss as she rounded on his brother. She brought her blade up and began to attack his brother. “And you never will, we only joined your war to free ourselves of you Elves. Now, if we can kill the leaders of both groups we’ll have free reign here.”
She slashed forwards, flowing into her strikes. Jaken quickly brought his blade up, blocking the blade. He jumped backwards, casting more of the purple lightning at the dragon. She hissed as she lunged forwards, allowing herself to get burned by the attack but stabbing through her opponent.
Jaken gasped as he too was stabbed, then he grinned. He looked at the Dragon that had killed him.
And he smiled.
Jaken growled as his eyes suddenly glowed a black color. He grinned wickedly as he let the power that was locked within overflow out of his body. Jashhymiil stared in shock, she’d never seen something like this happen before. She tried to draw her blade from him, tried to retreat, only to have strange black metal chains rush from the older brothers’ wrists, grasping at the young dragon. It howled as the metal dug into her skin, writhing below her flesh as it ate away at her essence and consumed her life force.
“I am the creator,” a voice spoke through his brothers mouth. “And I bring judgement. You and yours are found wanting. Your judgement is... death.”
The chains spread out from the dragon, smashing through walls as screams resounded outside of the walls. Kaiden couldn’t see outside but he could make out the screams of those that were being consumed like the dragon in front of him.
“Brother...” Kaiden gasped, trying to get through to his brother. Obviously The Destroyer had decided he’d won, but the younger brother still had hope he could win. “Please, brother. Stop. Show mercy.”
“Mercy?” the unearthly voice hissed as it stared at the fallen elf. “Would you show an ant mercy?”
“They aren’t insects for us to play with,” the younger man gasped as he pushed himself up. He managed to stand on his will, even though the wound was screaming at him. He gasped, holding his side with his broken hand and holding onto one of his magicked daggers. “They have worth brother.”
“You still stand against me brother?” Jaken said, as if from a distance. It was as if something was ruling his body and he shook as he struggled against it. “Our petty fight doesn’t matter anymore. They have their judgement.”
“Not if I stop you.”
“Brother,” Jaken started before Kaiden threw his blade at the man. It flew straight, but the older brother blocked it with his own blade. It bounced off with a clang and he turned back to his other brother to see him rushing forwards.
The grey haired older brother hissed as he slapped away his brothers hands only to feel a heat grip him.
“No! NOOOOOO!” the creature controlling his brother howled angrily as the chains glowed a purple color. Light shone from the chains as they began to shake rapidly. The spell was being changed, ever so slightly.
“They won’t die out today,” Kaiden whispered as the backlash from the spell tore at him. He saw a ball of light begin to coalesce around them and felt the intense heat burning through his skin, layer by layer. He and his brother were going to be cooked alive in a flood of light
The explosion ripped from the center, tearing them apart as they flew from ground zero and went through the walls of the grand mausoleum. He felt, more than actually could tell, that he came to rest in the ground nearby. He sighed as he felt tired, more so than he’d ever felt. His lids slowly began to get heavier and heavier as he watched the light rapidly spread and bath him in luminescence and heat. He smiled slightly as he felt it fall upon him and allowed himself to let go of his shattered body as the destructive forces of the spell finally ripped him apart.
“Brother...”
WC:[4265]
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