Knights End

by Brad Clark

  “How far to the castle?” Denn asked. His eyes watched his men fight, and he itched to move back into position to help, but as the leader, he had the responsibility to first plan their next move.

  “At least a mile,” Conner replied. “Maybe a little less.” He glanced around him and added, “Too far.”

  “No!” Marik yelled. “Not too far!” His sword finished burying into the skull of a goblin, and he had yanked it out, sending goblin brain remnants splattering across Conner and Denn. He turned and growled angrily, “We push forward. One step at a time.”

  “What if we doubled up on the horses and ride out of here?” Conner shouted back.

  Marik shook his head. He stepped away from the fight, for he knew he could not converse with Conner and still concentrate on staying alive. “Many more Hurai than Knights. With three on a horse, none could fight. It would be hard enough with two.”

  “But your horses could carry three?”

  “Easily, but we’d have to be in the clear.”

  “We double up,” Denn said. “Those that are left will hold the perimeter long enough for you and half our number to mount up. Then you break out through their ranks just like you did when you came in.”

  “Half your number will die,” Conner said.

  “Half our number will survive,” Denn corrected. “And all of yours. It was a valiant effort, to try and save us. But now, it is our turn to return the favor.”

  “We don’t have to go all the way to the castle,” Marik said. “We get far enough away, drop off those that we carried out first, then we return.”

  Conner didn’t know why he said it, but he did. “I will stay.”

  “No!” Marik responded instantly.

  “I am fresh, unlike these Sak’Hurai. They fight hard, but I can see they are tiring. We will hold the perimeter long enough for you to return.” He looked hard at Marik and continued, “These are my people, and I’m not going to let them be slaughtered.”

  “We have a bigger battle to fight,” Marik said. “If we must lose one in order to win the last, then we must lose the first. Not to mention, you have a wife and a child coming.”

  “We have achieved our destiny,” Denn said. “We are warriors committed to protecting life, but we know that death could come at any time. We have all prepared for this moment from the time we first took up our swords. I know of you, Conner. Princess Nikki has spoken well of you, and although you may be one of the Hurai, you are not Sak’Hurai. You do not need to sacrifice yourself for us. If you must, let your sacrifice be for those that you love. When the time comes, you will know it. For us, this is our time.”

  Conner’s instincts were telling him that he needed to stay and help defend the last of the Sak’Hurai, but the wisdom of his fellow Hurai was convincing. With a resigned sigh, Conner relinquished.

  “We are running out of time,” Marik said. “We must do this, now.”

  Conner looked at Glaerion, who was furiously slicing up goblins with his daggers. They locked eyes for only a moment, then he gave a quick shake of his head. He did not move from his spot holding the perimeter.

  ***

  Hallendrielle let out a stream of curses. The Knights had disappeared into the mass of goblins some time ago and had not reappeared. Since the goblins were still there, she knew that there was still fighting, and the Knights were still alive. Glaerion was still alive. Her words were full of anger but also fear. What Glaerion did was the right thing to do, and she would have done it herself. She also knew that there was a good chance that one, or neither, of them would survive this battle. Even as she was resigned to that fact, she still did not like the idea of her husband putting himself into a suicidal position.

  “There is only one working wagon,” Paen, one of the Elves with her, said. “Twenty, maybe thirty at most can fit on it. If we had more time, we could fix others.”

  “We have no more time. Hitch the horses up.”

  The rest of the Elves with them were already strapping the wagon’s harnesses onto two riding horses. They were smaller than the warhorses and not as powerful, but they did not need to carry the wagons across the country. They only needed to race them one mile there, and one mile back.

  Hallendrielle jumped onto the wagon and grabbed the reins. Behind her, the wagon was filled with Elven archers, each with quivers full of arrows. The horses knew what to do and started trotting. With a quick slap of her reign, Hallendrielle drove the horses into a run. She almost lost her balance as the horses accelerated. They could sense the fight, and although they weren’t warhorses, they were ready to join the fight themselves. Her heart beat fast to the rhythm of the horse’s hooves pounding on the ground. With each passing moment, she feared that none would come out alive.

  ***

  There were five more horses available than when they arrived. Marik did not let himself think about what that meant, other than more Sak’Hurai could escape on their first attempt. The perimeter had been large enough to accommodate all the horses, who managed to not charge out and into the fray. They were trained well enough to know when to fight, and when to be still. As soon as Marik and the Knights started to mount them, they became fidgety, knowing that more fighting was soon to come. As the Knights pulled themselves out of the fight, the fighting became more intense. The goblins sensed weakness and pushed forward, trying to exploit it. However, they were hobbled in their ability to attack due to the number of goblin bodies and body parts strewn across the field. They not only needed to contend with the sharp and fast swords of the Sak’Hurai but also with climbing over the bodies of their brethren.

  Sir Marik shouted one last command, and those Sak’Hurai selected to ride first sprinted towards their horses and scrambled atop. They each held on to their partner Knight with one hand, and the other held one of their swords. They would have to kill as many as possible on their way out. The perimeter was beginning to shrink, and if the Knights didn’t get moving, it would soon collapse.

  Conner was the last to climb onto a horse, right behind Marik, who would ride out last. With half the defense gone, the many goblins raced into the perimeter and jumped at the line of Knights waiting to charge out, but each was sliced down before they could do any damage.

  “Charge!” Sir Marik screamed.

  The entire line of Knights moved at once and trampled over the dozen goblins that leaped through the opening at the front of the perimeter. As designed, the remaining Sak’Hurai shrunk the perimeter as the Knight’s charged through. This allowed the goblins to leap over the dead bodies and jumped in force at the Sak’Hurai. With renewed vigor, the Sak’Hurai and Glaerion held the perimeter, knowing that if the Knights didn’t return quickly enough, this would be their last stand.

  ***

  Hallendrielle pulled back on her reins to slow her horses, who were breathing heavy at exerting themselves even for a short run. Fortunately, no more goblins were coming from the main army, so she and her fellow Elves didn’t have a steady stream of reinforcements to deal with.

  She looked back at the archers and yelled, “Dismount!”

  As one, the twenty archers that had squeezed into the back of the wagon all jumped off gracefully and continued to run alongside the wagon. A hundred yards from the mass of goblins, they all stopped, some dropped to a knee, while others stood with their bows. Hellendrielle kept her wagon pushing forward while the archers launched their arrows.

  The archers aimed their arrows for one spot, and the goblins fell in droves. Hallendrielle had hoped that they could clear a lane for the wagon to plow through, but as quickly as the goblins fell, they were replaced by more goblins. Above the throbbing mass of goblins, she could see the heads of mounted Knights. The archers saw them, too, and adjusted the flights of their arrows, so they did not inadvertently strike down an escaping knight.

  The Knights burst out from the goblins mass and changed course to head right for Hallendrielle and her wagon. Many goblins started to follow, but they were struck down by arrows. Hal
lendrielle stood up, looking for Glaerion sitting behind one of the Knights, but he was nowhere to be seen.

  Marik rode right up to her and Conner slid off the horse’s back.

  “Where’s Glaerion?” Hallendrielle shouted.

  “You might have saved all their lives,” Marik said. “Follow us.”

  “Where?”

  Conner had jumped up onto the wagon and stood behind her. “Back into the goblins. Go!”

  Marik had already spurred his horse back around to lead the charge back into the goblins.

  The Sak’Hurai who had escaped joined together with the Elves to attack the ranks of goblins that had rushed at them. The last arrows flew, then the daggers came out. The two forces met together, but this time, the Sak’Hurai were not surrounded and trying to protect themselves. They were free and clear to swing their blades and slice the goblins apart.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “What are you going to do to me?” Marila asked. She was back in her Human illusion, with her legs tucked up to her chest, sitting on a bed of matted straw. Hargon had led her through the castle, and they ended up in the quietest spot they could find. All the horses were out of the stables so there would be no need for stable hands, at least until the fight is over. For the time being, they should have no interruptions.

  “Nothing,” Hargon replied, looking down at her. It had only been a few minutes since he had last seen her in her real form, and he could not get past the thought that what he had seen was really who she was and that what he saw now was but an illusion. He tried to sense the magic that she was using to give her the illusion of being Human, but he could feel nothing from her. Whatever it was that allowed her to cast her illusion was not magically tied to the Web of Magic as he knew it. It made him wonder if there were others like her in the world, or even worse, in the castle.

  He pulled out his necklace from under his robes, and she immediately shrank away. She could feel its power, and she remembered how much it had hurt when she had tried to steal it from around his neck.

  Holding the necklace out from his body so he could see the empty space where the black gem was supposed to be set, Hargon said, “The Ark of Life is powerful, as you know. With it, I can do many things. I can heal more than I could heal before. I can cast more powerful spells and more often. I do not need as much rest after casting spells with it around my neck. I can also sense that the other half of the Ark of Life is near. The Deceiver is near. Soon, his army will descend upon this castle, and his goblins and other creatures from hell will run over the walls.”

  She looked up at him with unfeeling eyes.

  He smiled down at her. “Unless, of course, I can get the other piece of the Ark of Life, first.”

  “If you kill the Deceiver, then the war will be over,” she said. “I thought you had a weapon that could kill him.”

  He laughed. “You are so naïve. Let me tell you a story. I was once the emperor of the greatest nation this world had ever known.”

  “So I’ve heard,” she said dryly.

  He ignored her comment and continued, “My empire was constantly at war with the small kingdoms around us. They were jealous of us, or they had something that I wanted, or I simply had an itch to fight a war. Regardless, my Centurions were always somewhere fighting a battle. There is one such war that has been going on for decades. It’s been so long, I can’t even remember when it started, or why it started. The war was against a tribe of barbarians to the north of my empire, and they were a persistent and hardy people. They were simple, but they fought hard, which is why this war lasted so long. Most often, I let my generals fight the wars, and I did my emperor duties in Tara City, far away from the fighting. Being an emperor is a tough job, and I could not spend all my time along the front lines of my wars. But, I was always the curious sort, so when I was much younger and did not quite understand the limits of my own mortality, I visited one of the battles against the barbarians. They were led by an enormous man who looked more like a grizzly bear than a man, especially when he was all dressed up in his furs. He led the barbarians from the front lines and fought harder and stronger than any two of my Centurions. However, he wore no armor, so when one of my crossbowmen was able to get a clean shot at him, he was taken down by a single crossbow bolt. Plop! He fell right to the ground, face first. I thought for sure that his army would fall to their knees and beg for mercy, or maybe even they would all turn and run. They did not. They fought just as hard after their leader fell in battle, and maybe even fought harder. It took twice as long as it should have to win that battle, and we lost twice as many Centurions as we should have.”

  “What’s your point?” Marila asked sharply.

  “With the Deceiver dead, we could eventually win the war, but this battle we are about to fight could be something that we could lose. I not only want to win the war, but I also want to win this battle and save as many of us from dying as possible. You see, I have many friends that I would like to see survive this war.”

  “Friends?”

  He lowered himself down to a squatting position so that his face was at the same level as hers. “Friends. Acquaintances. Subjects. All the same. If all these people are dead, who will I have to lead? When this war is over, this world is going to need a leader to rebuild.”

  “There are others, too. King Illichian. Queen Elissa.”

  Hargon dropped his head and let out a chuckle as he shook it left and right. “King Illichian is ruler of the Elves. Not Humans. He is a good man, but he could never be the ruler of two races. Queen Elissa is still a child. She is smart and strong, but she is way over her head. She has good people around her, and before this war is over, many of those good people will likely be dead. In order to rebuild our nations, we will need an experienced and wise Human leader. There is no one other than me that fits that description.”

  He stood up and brushed loose straw from his robes. “The last time we spoke, I told you I would come for you and you would help me to get the Ark of Life gem. This battle is about to start, and there will be much chaos and confusion. Now is the perfect time for you to take me to the Deceiver so that I can kill him and take what is rightfully mine.”

  Marila let out a short burst of a laugh. “Take you to him? He is surrounded by an army. You think you are powerful enough to face the army alone? You can certainly try, but I’m not going with you.”

  “You have the power of illusion. Did you not cast an illusion that deceived the Deceiver?” She glanced away while he continued to talk. “Why do I have the feeling that you can do more than just cast an illusion on yourself? Your illusion is more than just your body. It is your clothes, your hair. Everything around you. I know I can do some pretty amazing things with my magic, but I also know that what I can do is just a tiny bit of what I am capable of. What if you could push your illusion farther than yourself?”

  She remained silent, her eyes focused on nothingness in the distance.

  “You want to prove that you are not on his side? Help me get past his army and then help me kill him. When I have the gem and put it in my necklace, I will have the power to wipe the entire army out.”

  “And if I don’t?”

  “I don’t think you need me to answer that, do I?”

  “No.”

  She turned to look at him. “You may not believe that I am on your side. I hate the Deceiver and what he has done to this world. He abandoned me, and then I spent some time with your kind, and I realized what living really was. That’s what I want. I will help you, but not to prove anything to you. I will help you because it is the right thing to do.”

  Hargon held out a hand.

  She looked at it for a moment before taking it.

  With a firm, but gentle pull, he helped her to her feet. Her hand was warm and comfortable in his grasp.

  “Do I feel you, or do I feel the illusion?”

  “What do you want to feel?”

  His bright white teeth showed through his smile. “I want to feel what y
ou really feel like.”

  “Close your eyes.”

  His smile grew, and then he closed his eyes. He continued to hold her hand, feeling her warm and soft skin. He waited for several heartbeats for the feeling to change.

  “Okay,” she said.

  He opened his eyes and looked into her real eyes. She had dropped her illusion, and he continued to hold her hand, feeling nothing different. He put his other hand onto the back of hers and gave a gentle squeeze when she tried to pull away.

  “See enough?” She asked, breaking her gaze from his.

  “There is nothing wrong with your true self. When this is over, you should not be afraid to show who you truly are.”

  Still looking away, she shook her head sharply. “I know how I look. In this world, I am an ugly creature of the Deceiver. A monster. I know that. When I take the illusion of Marila, it makes me feel like I am of this world. Marila is who I am, now, and I don’t want to lose that.” In a blink, her Human illusion returned.

  “If you say so, but do not be afraid of who you are.”

  “You surprise me. I thought you were a selfish and conceited person.”

  He laughed. “That I am! But I do still have feelings.”

  “What now?”

  “Can you do as I think you can? Can you cast your illusion beyond yourself?”

  “If we are touching, then I can.”

  Still holding her hand, he replied, “Then we sneak out of this castle and make our way through the goblin army.”

  Her face showed no emotion. He wondered if that was how she felt, or if that was the illusion. There was a chance she could be leading him into a trap, but he had to take the opportunity. There was really no option to them winning this battle without him having the entire Ark of Life. There were too many creatures of the Deceiver for them to hold off for longer than a day or two. With unlimited power, he would be able to easily wipe them out.

  She glanced behind them and asked, “Out the secret door?”

  “No, we’ll test your illusion and walk right out the front gate.”