THOCK!
The arrow found its mark in the skull of a Krull soldier. A sticky splash of blood splattered onto the grass. Even as the soldier's lifeless corpse was falling to the ground, the sky blackened with a rain of arrows.
The front line went down; yet they kept coming. There must have been hundreds of them. Dressed all in black leather and mail, the Krull army was an intimidating presence. The calvary was in front, flags waving and lances shining. They were followed by the infantry, weilding mornac blades and battleaxes.
High in the main tower, the elven council was in turmoil. Amidst the the voices, one voice spoke out.
"Please, my brothers and sisters. Listen to what I have to say," said the Queen of Eldamir. The voices died out as the others turned their attention to the high queen.
"We must decide, and it must be soon. We can't hold out much longer against a force this powerful. Of course we might keep their footsoldiers away from the stronghold with our arrows, but what happens when the quivers run dry? We are not invincible."
"But surely there must be another way," one of the elders said. "It is not possible that this can be the only way to defeat Khan's forces."
"I'm sorry, but the prophecy clearly states that there is only One who can defeat Khan, and unless I'm mistaken, there is no such One amongst us. Now we must choose; what is your decision?"
The screams of the dying rang out across the battlefield. The Krull invasion swept across the plain towards the fortress. Only one man stood in their way. As he watched the army of monsters rush at him, Darius thought of his wife and son. He pictured in his mind the faces of his family, and the way they died at the hands of Khan's men. He saw his sister's face as she cried out in anguish as they tortured her. And it was all because of him. He was responsible.
"No, It's not my fault," he thought. "It was Khan who ordered the executions. It was he who is to blame for their deaths." With that thought, Darius let out a cry of rage and met the onrush headon. Swinging his mithril blade with precision, Darius cut through the footsoldiers like warm butter. As the bodies fell around him, he released his body to the fire within. He was a warrior of Eldamir, defender of light. He saw nothing but the shapes of his attackers. As he thrust at a Krull on his right, he noticed a sudden flash of motion to his left flank. He turned to parry, but he was to late. The tip of the sword ripped through the silk sleeve, and cut deep into the flesh of his arm, glancing off the bone.
Darius let out a scream of pain, and decapitated the Krull footsoldier in a single blow. But doing so cost him a split second of concentration, and he felt the sickening feeling of steel cutting through the flesh at his waist, just below the armor. He turned he could feel a warm, stickiness running down his legs, and realized he would not make it through this battle alive. He thought once again of his wife and child, and uttered one last phrase. "Live for me," he whispered to no one.
He heard the sound of a blade whistling through the air, and felt a splash of blood on the side of his face. He soon realized it was his own, and felt himself falling to the ground. As he lay there alone, he saw the bodies littered around him, and as he saw the monsters moving in on him, he knew his death was honorable in the eyes of the Light.
The high queen of the Elves of Light watched the dark forces climbing the castle walls. She couldn't believe what she had to do, but she knew there was no other way. The council was in agreement.
She stood high in the tower of the Elven Stronghold, the bodies of her companions around her. The decision had been unanimous. To destroy the dark forces, they must destroy their home. They must undo what they had accomplished over the past millenia. To think of all the memories set in these forests, the martyrs who had died to defend it. All would soon be no more.
As she stood in the councilroom, she thought about her life, and what she had accomplished throughout her 746 years. She thought about the decisions she had made along the way, and what might have been. She knew such thoughts were futile, but she couldn't help thinking just the same.
She was brought back to reality by the sound of splintering wood. She looked up and saw a number of Krull raiders charge through the broken oak door.
"In the name of the Light, I carry out his command."
With that exclamation, the High Queen of Eldamir released a final, powerful blast of energy. There was a brilliant flash of light, then an earthshaking roar as the wave of invisible force swept through the Krull ranks. Screams of anguish rang out as the black army disentigrated in the stream of light. Then there was silence. The formerly beautiful landscape was turned into a barren wasteland. Nothing remained of the tower, the Elves of Light, or the Krull. The darkness was no more.
The arrow found its mark in the skull of a Krull soldier. A sticky splash of blood splattered onto the grass. Even as the soldier's lifeless corpse was falling to the ground, the sky blackened with a rain of arrows.
The front line went down; yet they kept coming. There must have been hundreds of them. Dressed all in black leather and mail, the Krull army was an intimidating presence. The calvary was in front, flags waving and lances shining. They were followed by the infantry, weilding mornac blades and battleaxes.
High in the main tower, the elven council was in turmoil. Amidst the the voices, one voice spoke out.
"Please, my brothers and sisters. Listen to what I have to say," said the Queen of Eldamir. The voices died out as the others turned their attention to the high queen.
"We must decide, and it must be soon. We can't hold out much longer against a force this powerful. Of course we might keep their footsoldiers away from the stronghold with our arrows, but what happens when the quivers run dry? We are not invincible."
"But surely there must be another way," one of the elders said. "It is not possible that this can be the only way to defeat Khan's forces."
"I'm sorry, but the prophecy clearly states that there is only One who can defeat Khan, and unless I'm mistaken, there is no such One amongst us. Now we must choose; what is your decision?"
The screams of the dying rang out across the battlefield. The Krull invasion swept across the plain towards the fortress. Only one man stood in their way. As he watched the army of monsters rush at him, Darius thought of his wife and son. He pictured in his mind the faces of his family, and the way they died at the hands of Khan's men. He saw his sister's face as she cried out in anguish as they tortured her. And it was all because of him. He was responsible.
"No, It's not my fault," he thought. "It was Khan who ordered the executions. It was he who is to blame for their deaths." With that thought, Darius let out a cry of rage and met the onrush headon. Swinging his mithril blade with precision, Darius cut through the footsoldiers like warm butter. As the bodies fell around him, he released his body to the fire within. He was a warrior of Eldamir, defender of light. He saw nothing but the shapes of his attackers. As he thrust at a Krull on his right, he noticed a sudden flash of motion to his left flank. He turned to parry, but he was to late. The tip of the sword ripped through the silk sleeve, and cut deep into the flesh of his arm, glancing off the bone.
Darius let out a scream of pain, and decapitated the Krull footsoldier in a single blow. But doing so cost him a split second of concentration, and he felt the sickening feeling of steel cutting through the flesh at his waist, just below the armor. He turned he could feel a warm, stickiness running down his legs, and realized he would not make it through this battle alive. He thought once again of his wife and child, and uttered one last phrase. "Live for me," he whispered to no one.
He heard the sound of a blade whistling through the air, and felt a splash of blood on the side of his face. He soon realized it was his own, and felt himself falling to the ground. As he lay there alone, he saw the bodies littered around him, and as he saw the monsters moving in on him, he knew his death was honorable in the eyes of the Light.
The high queen of the Elves of Light watched the dark forces climbing the castle walls. She couldn't believe what she had to do, but she knew there was no other way. The council was in agreement.
She stood high in the tower of the Elven Stronghold, the bodies of her companions around her. The decision had been unanimous. To destroy the dark forces, they must destroy their home. They must undo what they had accomplished over the past millenia. To think of all the memories set in these forests, the martyrs who had died to defend it. All would soon be no more.
As she stood in the councilroom, she thought about her life, and what she had accomplished throughout her 746 years. She thought about the decisions she had made along the way, and what might have been. She knew such thoughts were futile, but she couldn't help thinking just the same.
She was brought back to reality by the sound of splintering wood. She looked up and saw a number of Krull raiders charge through the broken oak door.
"In the name of the Light, I carry out his command."
With that exclamation, the High Queen of Eldamir released a final, powerful blast of energy. There was a brilliant flash of light, then an earthshaking roar as the wave of invisible force swept through the Krull ranks. Screams of anguish rang out as the black army disentigrated in the stream of light. Then there was silence. The formerly beautiful landscape was turned into a barren wasteland. Nothing remained of the tower, the Elves of Light, or the Krull. The darkness was no more.
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