Fate of the Empires

Ethan has anticipated our every move. He has bombarded us with everything in his arsenal yet we continue to prevail. I am not about to let a spoiled noble like Jared Ackart stand in my way. We actually grew up at the castle together. He’s always had a quicker mouth than a sword arm. He is a solid fighter, but overconfident. If he had ever encountered Slade on the battlefield he wouldn’t have lived to tell the tale. Normally, I would just embarrass him to teach him a lesson. However, today I am feeling particularly ill tempered.

He attacks using a unique two-weapon style that involves a lot of spinning and circular motions. If nothing else it looks very menacing. It actually takes me a few minutes of parrying and evading his strikes before I see the opening in his defense. Sometimes I indulge in toying with my opponents, but I’d rather not let him think he’s doing well. He swipes with the long sword. I guide it away from me with my blade. He follows up with the short sword. I slash upwards catching him on the wrist of his off-hand. It’s not deep, but enough to make him drop the weapon.

Jared recovers quickly and switches to a single-weapon style. This one is very different than the previous one. His strikes are mainly thrusts. Easily avoided. This fight is over. I switch my sword to the underhand position. He thrusts. I sidestep to the left of the blade. I go into a spin, kicking his wrist with my left leg. He drops the long sword. I continue with my momentum crossing under his sword arm, slicing into his side with a reverse-cut. I come up directly in front of him, slashing through his armor plating up into his chest. I hold the blade there a moment. “Give my regards to Slade,” I say as I pull my sword away.

I look around. The elite guards have been defeated, but at a high cost. Tanus has only two clerics left. Three Athusian soldiers and four of my soldiers survived as well. All of us look pretty battered, but there is one final challenge. Ethan awaits us in the next room. He is the last before this comes to an end. There will be no capture. No trial. My judgment has already been made and I will carry out the execution with the same mercy Ethan would show anyone else. My father’s blade will taste his blood today.

I gather everyone together. “I know we are all tired, but there is one more thing I must ask of you,” I say, “In order for Ethan to become king he must eliminate the Lords of the East and West. There is probably action already being taken to accomplish this, but we cannot let them die. Magnus, have you ever been to the court of Lord Fyremane?”

“Once,” Magnus replies, “When I was still an apprentice with the Black Flame.”

“I need you to open a gateway to Callux if you can.”

“Alright.”

“Cleric Tanus, if you will take the remaining soldiers and go to Callux. I believe the Brotherhood of the Blade may be paying Lord Fyremane a visit.”

“Say no more, we will handle it,” Tanus says.

“All of my men are fluent in the Athusian tongue and will follow your orders,” I say to Tanus.

“Very good,” he responds, “Are you certain you don’t need help with Fenholm?”

“Thank you for your concern, Cleric,” Draccus says, “But he’s all ours.”

Tanus nods. Magnus steps back from the group. He closes his eyes. After a minute the gateway starts to open in front of him. It expands until it is large enough for the average person to walk through. The outer gates of the castle at Callux can be seen on the other side of the portal. The soldiers and clerics wish us good luck before passing through the gate. Cleric Tanus is the last to enter. “I expect to see you all again,” Tanus says before walking through the portal.

The gate closes behind him. If we are not already too late, Fyremane has a fighting chance. If Darkwynde is gone, I would see Fyremane as king before I ever let Ratheburn within an inch of the throne. If Ratheburn is sided with Ethan, he is only being used. Ethan will kill him once he has outlived his usefulness.

The throne room is before us. We all stare at it. This is it. No turning back now. “I hope everyone has saved their best feats for last,” Magnus breaks the silence.

“Let’s kill this traitor,” Draccus says.

The four of us enter Lord Darkwynde’s throne room. This majestic room should never see bloodshed upon its smooth granite floors, but I fear we are too late to prevent that. Ethan sits on Lord Darkwynde’s throne. There is something on the vacant queen’s throne that is covered by a satin cloth. Both the thrones are carved of marble with elegant cushions on the seat and backing. Ethan looks at us with his hands folded. “I was beginning to think you weren’t coming,” he says.

“You have no right to sit on that throne!” Leaia shouts.

“That is where you are wrong. The king is dead and there is no one else.”

I knew he wouldn’t take any chances by leaving Darkwynde alive. “What of the other heirs?” I ask.

“Well, Lord Ratheburn was on my side. Unfortunately the poor fool thought I was going to let him run the country. When I explained that he could have a place at my side instead…well, he was furious to say the least. Being two men of noble stature we decided to talk it out and I think he saw reason.”

Ethan pulls up the satin cloth to reveal the disembodied head of Lord Edmond Ratheburn. His face is twisted. He died very painfully. “You are a sick man,” Leaia says.

“So I’ve been told.”

Ethan stands. He walks down the polished stone steps to the red carpet where we are. He looks at the four of us for a moment before shaking his head. He laughs. “The four of you have caused me so much trouble. You’ve killed Deacon. You’ve killed Slade. You’ve destroyed my chances at having Densetsu under my rule…and now you are here to stop me.”

The four of us spread out around Ethan. “I don’t get it. I really don’t. When I picked you four for this, you were all loners. Outcasts. People that didn’t work well with others. And somehow you stand united before me. Why? You were supposed to tear each other down so I could pick you off one at a time until only Jun was left to kill his father! Years! Years I’ve spent arranging my takeover for you all to come along and stand in my way. I run this nation from the shadows anyway. All I wanted was to make it official.”

“Sorry to have messed up your plans,” Magnus says sarcastically.

“Don’t be so cocky. Nothing has changed. I will kill the four of you and then I will be king.”

“Not while Lord Fyremane lives.”

“A valid point and something that is being handled as we speak. You see when I killed Ratheburn I took control of his assassins and well…I think you know where I’m going with this.”

“I do,” I say, “And we’ve already intervened.”

“What?!” Ethan is surprised, “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t worry about that,” Leaia says.

“Worry about us,” Draccus says.

Ethan’s frustration turns to an evil laughter. He knows as well as I do not to attack in anger. He’s laughing to make us nervous. To make us attack first. It won’t work. We have the advantage and he knows it. Ethan grows silent. “Alright,” Ethan says with a sigh, “Let’s see what you’ve got.”

Without even a wave of his hand the ground around Ethan comes to life! Sections of the stone floor rise up. The large chunks of granite reform into golems. Four stone warriors, each one twice the size of an Orrock. They don’t bleed and they don’t feel pain. The golems advance on us.

I set my father’s sword down. It would only be destroyed against these creatures. A golem swings at me. I duck under the large stone arm. I get behind the golem. I have no strategy here. Stone golems have no weaknesses that I am aware of. All I can do is stay away from it. I didn’t know Ethan could use such strong magic.

Draccus attempts to fight the stone monster. His swords are shattered over the golem’s head on the first attack! Draccus tosses the two hilts away. He grabs the golem by the arm in an effort to overpower it. That backfires horribly as the golem lifts Draccus off the ground and throws him into a wall.

Leaia attacks a golem with her energy blade. The holy sword is powerful enough to leave marks on the golem and even push it back a foot or two, but overall it is almost as useless at a regular sword. Leaia knows this is getting nowhere. Her eyes become solid white. Her armor takes on the appearance of that worn by Arus himself in ancient paintings. Suddenly she moves faster than the eye can blink and every hit she delivers sends the golem stumbling.

Magnus tries a variety of spells against his attacker. Nothing seems to have a lasting effect. He eventually gets annoyed. He blasts the stone creature with a stream of intense heat. Flames so hot they can be felt on the other side of the throne room. The golem pushes towards Magnus, but starts to move very slowly. The stone is melting! The golem sinks into the ground about half way. Magnus stops the flame spell and instead blasts the golem with ice until it hardens once again, trapping what is left of it in the ground.

I divide my attention between the golems and Ethan. I cannot let him get away. At first he does nothing, however, as soon as the first golem is defeated he goes after Magnus. I break away from my golem to intercept him. I leap into a spinning sidekick, hitting Ethan in the back as he casts an energy blast at Magnus. Magnus shields himself from the attack, but it knocks him down. Ethan faces me. “You cannot defeat me,” Ethan boasts, “I taught you everything you know.”

Ethan comes at me using a martial style that I have never seen before. The initial strikes are easy enough to block, but he actually counters the blocks. If I block I still get hit. One of the main principles of Suang Tai is adaptation. I study Ethan’s moves, taking the punishment at first. Once I have an understanding of his technique I begin to effectively avoid his strikes.

Magnus joins the fight. He has summoned his magus staff. Ethan creates one to fight back. I take a hard hit from his staff and step out of the fight. I need my sword. Ethan and Magnus battle each other with their energy staffs. I make a dash for my blade. Where did the golem go?

I look across the room to see Draccus in between two golems. They are both a good distance from him. He looks to be taunting the stone giants. They both charge at him. At the very last second Draccus jumps straight up into the air. He actually clears the height of the golems and they slam right into each other! The force of the collision sends both golems crumbling to the floor.

Leaia continues to lay down punishment on her golem. With every strike she takes out chunks of stone. The golem starts to crack from the constant hammering of her immortal strength and energy blade. Large pieces begin to break free until the golem cannot support itself and collapses. It shatters into lifeless rock as it hits the ground.

I pick up my sword from where I left it. I turn back to go after Ethan only to find that I took my attention away from him for too long. He’s already casting. Before I can react a shadow shoots from Ethan’s hand. The black tendril! It is the strongest of the shadow spells. I am helpless. I brace for the hit that will no doubt rip me in two. Just as the devastating attack is about to hit me, Magnus jumps in front of me and takes the blunt of it! The tendril tears all the way through Magnus, still striking me. I am knocked away.

Ethan wastes no time in going after Draccus and Leaia. I pick myself up and rush to Magnus who lays lifelessly on the ground. The attack went through his abdomen. There is blood everywhere. “Magnus!” I cry.

His eyes open slowly. “Why did you do that?!”

“You’re…more important…than I am. You have a country…that…needs you.”

I fight back tears. “You said you wouldn’t be selfless again. When did you start caring about my country?”

“It’s not as…bad as I make it out to be. It just needs…the Athusian touch…and since you are…half of one…I figure you can…spice it up.”

The constant joker, even in the face of death. “Hold on, Magnus.”

“No…it’s too late. Don’t worry…I’m used to it at this point. Jun…give me your…hand.”

He takes hold of my right hand. He whispers something in the arcane tongue. I feel a burning sensation for a second and then it fades. “This is my…dying gift for…Ethan. Please…see that he gets it.”

“I will, my friend.”

Magnus grins one last time before he passes to the underworld. Magnus…no… No! Ethan!!! Aaaaggghhh!!! I jump up and charge blindly into battle with my sword. Ethan fights Draccus and Leaia with his magus staff. He seems to easily fend them off. As I get within melee Ethan releases a charge of energy that arcs out knocking all three of us into the air. Draccus and Leaia hit the ground hard. I land on my feet and rush at Ethan again.

I am a fool! I am attacking in a rage. All I see is hate and Ethan exploits that. He knocks my sword down with his staff before hitting me in the gut. He uses my momentum to flip me over him. I hit the floor and feel shards of granite dig into my back. Ethan picks up my father’s sword. He stands over me and slams the sword down into my stomach!

Draccus and Leaia are back up and on the move. They rush Ethan again. Ethan throws a black tendril at Leaia. The attack doesn’t go through her, but is strong enough to knock her through one of the stone walls of the throne room. Draccus gets into range and surprises Ethan with some Suang Tai strikes. Adding an Orrock’s claws into the attacks makes them even more deadly. Draccus gets a couple of good hits on Ethan, tearing into his flesh. Ethan teleports away from Draccus. By the time Draccus sees where Ethan went it is too late. Ethan hurls a spell at Draccus. A cage of electricity forms around him, shocking him until he drops.

Ethan looks around, pleased with himself. And why shouldn’t he be? He has us at his mercy. He will kill us, but I know Ethan. He will want to gloat first. He walks back over to me. He looks down on me, grinning wickedly. “Well, that was just too easy,” he laughs, “Would you like to beg for your life now? No, you are probably too proud for that. Just like father and your mother.”

My entire life has been lies. What is one more? “Please…don’t kill me,” I beg quietly, “I will do anything you want, please…”

Ethan is enjoying himself immensely. He kneels down beside me. “It would be a waste of talent to kill you. I’ll tell you what. If you swear your allegiance to me, right now, as your king, I will consider letting you live.”

He is close enough. I lift up my right hand. I have something for you, Ethan. A gift. “I swear,” I start, “I swear…”

“Go on.”

“I swear to kill you!”

I grab Ethan’s face with right hand. I release energy from the Imperial Seal into a hot flame that burns its image into Ethan’s flesh. He screams and jumps back. “That was for Magnus!”

With his concentration broken, the cage around Draccus disappears. Draccus slowly picks himself up. He is still weak, but he charges the distracted Ethan. He tackles Ethan to the ground and proceeds to punch him over and over again. Ethan uses a magical shock wave to knock Draccus off of him. Draccus is in no shape to put up much of a fight.

Ethan stands. He has a faint impression of the Imperial Seal seared onto his bloodied face. His attention is solely on Draccus. It takes every ounce of strength, but I manage to pull my father’s sword out of me. I stand. I’m bleeding all over. If I am to die today I am taking Ethan with me. I rush up behind him as he approaches Draccus. I shove the sword deep into his back! He cries out. He spins around with the sword sticking out of him. He lands a palm strike to my chest that sends me back to the ground.

“Is this the best you can do?! I thought I trained you better.”

Have we really failed? Was everything we did in vain? No. It’s not over yet! Leaia steps back into the grand hall through the hole in the wall created by her departure. She is covered in blood and dirt. She is seething. Ethan doesn’t see her and continues to boast about himself. “Don’t feel bad, Jun. It would take a god to stop me.”

“How about a half of one?” Leaia says from behind him.

Ethan quickly spins around. “You should be dead!” Ethan is actually shaken, “No mortal could’ve lived through that.”

“Exactly,” Leila says, “Wrath of Arums! Holy judgment!”

A beam of holy light from Caeleum rips through the top of the castle, surrounding Ethan. He tries to free himself from it, but he cannot move. “What is this?!” Ethan shouts.

“It is your end,” Leaia says, “And it’s going to hurt.”

The beam begins to pulse with energy. Ethan drops to his knees. He covers his ears. “No, no!” he screams, “Get out of my head! Leave me alone!”

His screams grow louder as heat emanates from the light. His flesh begins to melt from his body. Not even in the deepest dungeons have I heard cries of such agony. Such suffering. I almost feel sorry for him. No man should die like that, but Ethan was no man. He was a monster.

The light intensifies. It becomes too bright to see into the beam. The screaming fades. When the light retreats back to the heavens Leaia collapses. She is injured and exhausted from the use of her new powers. I look over to see what has become of Ethan. There is nothing left of him. No blood. No body. Nothing. He is gone…for good. It is finally over.

There is no victory if one must fight. It takes weeks before the warring completely subsides. Ethan had many factions and noble houses under his thumb and they continued to cause trouble after his death. Tanus was successful in stopping the assassination of Lord Fyremane who has reluctantly filled the role of king for the Athusian people. The country still mourns the loss of Lord Darkwynde. His bloodline had given Athusia its greatest rulers, with him being the most benevolent. He will be missed by all.

Lord Fyremane’s first act as ruler was to disband the Brotherhood of the Blade. I can’t blame him for that. At his coronation, he appointed Cleric Tanus as the new Lord of the East. A sound decision in my opinion. Tanus serves the light and should not be easy to corrupt. Lordhood over the West went to Caden Ratheburn, son of Edmond. Hopefully he will not follow his father’s footsteps to greed and betrayal.

Lord Fyremane honored Magnus with a festival of magic. Mages from all over the nation came together for the first time ever. Magnus would’ve have loved winning the magic contest they held. Magnus…I am sorry that you had to die for all of this. I will never forget you, my friend.

A memorial was going to be held at the festival, but Magnus’ body mysteriously vanished a few days after his death. Guards reported seeing a woman and a young girl that looked curiously alike. Both Fyremane and I have people looking into this matter. I had them start in Cove. I know Alarra brought Magnus back from death once, but why would she steal his body now? Does she mean to do it again?

Athusia and Densetsu have a lot of rebuilding to do. Both physically and mentally. The faith of the people in their leaders has been shaken very badly. Only time and good leadership may change their outlook. Lord Fyremane and I have just signed a new peace accord between our nations. I don’t think we have to worry about the threat of war again…at least from each other. The fates of our empires are in our hands now. May we rule with same strength and compassion as those before us.

I have remained in Athust since Ethan’s death to ensure that things went smoothly until Lord Fyremane was completely settled in. I have spent far too much time away from my own people. It is time I return to Densetsu and take my place as their emperor. Draccus, Leaia, and I meet outside of Athust to say our goodbyes.

Draccus rides up on an urruk. He has been outside the city for weeks and has fashioned some new coverings from animal hides. He also forged a new sword. It is a big as his old, but he borrowed the design from the Densetsun curved blades. He wears a dark piece of cloth tied on his arm. It is a piece of Magnus’ robe. Some see it as mourning. We see it as honoring our friend who gave his life to help save two nations.

Leaia sits atop a large white war-horse. She wears her traditional Arusian armor with an Arusian sword at her side. She too wears the cloth on her arm. All three of us do. Leaia has been busy with her order since they placed her in charge of the temple and I haven’t seen her much. She is in my dreams, but it never compares to the real vision of her splendor. The sun glistens off her fiery hair making my heart race.

I approach them on my steed. I wear the standard black uniform of an intelligence agent. In Athusia, I am still only a spy. The others dismount as I ride up. I climb down to greet them. “Jun, you look well,” Draccus says.

“You also, my friend. I am glad you stuck around.”

“Me too,” Leaia adds.

“I could not leave without saying goodbye,” Draccus says.

“Where are you headed?”

“To Windfall,” he says, “I have a promise to keep.”

“Are you going to ride all the way there?”

“Yes. I’ve had enough magical travel for two lifetimes.”

“Say hello to Emily for me,” Leaia says.

“I will do so, Priestess.”

“Remember Draccus,” I say, “You are always welcome in Densetsu.”

“I know. Don’t worry, I am certain that I will see you two again someday.”

There is an awkward silence. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to be alone with Leaia. We exchange glances. “I believe it is time I go,” Draccus says as he climbs atop his Orrockian mount.

Draccus shakes his head. “Humans,” he says, “There are some things about you I will never understand.”

Draccus rides away leaving Leaia and I in silence. Hmm…now that we are alone I have no idea what to say. Why does she do that to me? “So…you are going to the south?”

“Yes,” she answers, “We are setting up a new temple and I need to oversee its construction.”

“How long?”

“A year, maybe two. There is a lot of work to be done. The south has been without the blessings of the gods for a long time. I want to bring hope back to the people.”

“If anyone can do it, I know you can.”

“Thank you.”

There is another awkward moment. What is she thinking? I used to be so good at reading her. What happened? I should say something before we just stand here forever. “Leaia, I-”

I am interrupted by a kiss. It is a long kiss. Our last kiss. The feel of her soft lips makes all the troubles of the world just disappear. How I wish it could last, but there is no such thing as eternal happiness. There are only moments of pleasure that make you forget the pains of your existence. And as the kiss ends so does the happiness I have found in the pleasure.

“So this is goodbye,” I say.

“You know it has to be this way.”

“I do. Will we ever see each other again?”

“I would like to say yes. I would like to say that we can meet occasionally and share quiet moments, but I’m afraid I cannot endure that. The thought of you would distract me from what is truly important. I am not the first woman you have touched on this level and I refuse to be another Sasha Rose.”

Ouch. I had a feeling she saw that when she looked into my mind. “You wouldn’t be.”

“You say that now, but we both know the reality of the situation. There are too many people depending on us.”

“I know…I was just thinking with my heart instead of my brain. I’m not used to it.”

Leaia takes my hand. “That is not a bad thing,” she touches my chest above my heart, “You will always have me in here, just as I will always have you.”

She smiles at me. I kiss her hand before helping her up onto her steed. I bow dramatically. “Farewell, my lady,” I say with a smile.

“It is I who should bow to you, Emperor Fang,” she says playfully, “Farewell, until we meet on the beaches of Caeleum.”

And with that she rides out of my life. I watch her as she gallops towards the horizon. There will always be an emptiness in my heart without her near, but life goes on. And if the gods have a plan for us mortals I have yet to see what it is. I climb back on my horse and ride back towards Athust.

As much as I would like to take a scenic boat ride back to Densetsu, I need to get back as quickly as possible, which is by magical means. I have received recent reports that the warlords have gone against my order. They are fighting for power. I should have expected it. The remnants of the Kodasai have been gathering recruits and supplies for something big. I believe they still have Kwon Zhang’s ambitions of seizing the Imperial Seal which they will have to cut from my dead hand. Jinsei is virtually defenseless right now and the army needs rebuilding. I have so much work ahead of me. I wish I could say that this tale was done, but it is only just beginning.