Archimus suddenly feels an intense and sharp pain in his chest, as if his heart was just stabbed. He felt each and every shade be sent back to whence they came.
“How does it feel?” asks Teeca as her presence becomes darker and more intimidating. “How does it feel to be on the other end, to have something that means so much to you taken away?”
As the pain in his chest begins to subside, his face takes a different form. It is subtle, but it almost appears to display a fraction of what might be conceived as human.
He then says in a voice that no one has heard in six hundred years, with no stutter or slithering tone, “I feel nothing.” Teeca is taken aback, and momentarily halts her buildup of power as Archimus continues, “I have felt nothing but blind obedience for ten lives of men.”
Teeca softens her tone, as she replies, “I know who you once were… I know the young man called Archy.”
The very mention of that name causes the Shade Lord’s face to completely renounce its look of hatred and malice, and turn into the face of a twenty-year-old farmhand from a small village south of the capital. The word Archy teleports him almost six hundred years in the past to the center of a corn field. There he stands, youthful and vibrant, holding a rusted old scythe.
His younger brother, Kale, is messing around instead of tending to his portion of the field.
His remembered mortal self then said, “Come on Kale, father wants this quarter picked before they get back from the capital.”
Kale tossed his head in the air in annoyance as he replied, “Oh, give me a break Archy, we still have plenty of time, and besides, it’s not like it’s going anywhere.”
“I’m just trying to…”
“…Ya, I know, you’re just trying to show dad that you can handle things while he is away.”
“That’s not true…”
“…Yes, it is! You can’t stand that he likes me more than you!”
Archy began to grow annoyed, but didn’t want to further the argument, and ended with, “Just… finish your work.”
He didn’t show it, but those words cut him that day. Deep down he knew Kale was right, and Kale never missed an opportunity to remind him of it. It wasn’t moments later that Cheyanne, back then a buckskin mare, ran off into the forbidden forest. Kale chased after her, and Archy didn’t see him again until he returned as a Keeper. Archimus then sees his family… his mother, father, and baby sister Mary, then flashes forward to their decrepit and shriveled bodies after he murdered them. He was once good, and then became evil, just like that, without transition or evolution, just good to evil. Why? What happened between Kale running off into the forest, and him murdering his own family, then becoming the Lord of the Shades? Then he sees it... he sees Alvane claim his soul for his own. He possessed his soul that dark day six hundred years ago, and Archimus has been a slave to his will ever since.
Teeca, noticing the effect, says, “I can free you from his hold… save you from his torment.”
Archimus, who might only be momentarily lucid, looks into her eyes as a scared twenty-year-old who doesn’t know where he is, or what he has done, and says with begging eyes, “Please… save me…” Tears begin to fall as he continues, “…Before I kill anyone else.”
Teeca’s eyes begin to swell with emotion, and she turns and looks at Savannah’s quiet and restless sleeping body. She sees the future, and the child just beginning to grow inside her womb. Tears fall because she knows that she will not be able to give Savannah’s child a rose when the time comes. She then looks back into his eyes, and says no more. Instead, she gently pulls his body towards hers and embraces it. The boy once named Archy embraces her in return, and closes his eyes. Slowly, their bodies begin to illuminate in a growing light. Teeca closes her eyes as they continue to grow brighter and brighter. Nearby, Savannah awakes from her induced dreams, and sees Teeca and the Shade Lord, though barely through the blinding light. It becomes too much for her eyes, and she has to cover them with her hand. Teeca begins to feel her life slipping away, as did he. Together, their souls begin to break apart, and spread away from them. At the peak of the brightness, they can no longer be seen through the blinding and magnificent light. Savannah struggles to keep her eyes open as suddenly, the light combusts into an explosion of power, throwing Savannah several feet into the air and knocking her unconscious. As the light dims, and the dust settles, millions of light specks weightlessly float through the air until they extinguish. The Lord of the Shades has been dissipated into nothingness, and with him… the Angel of the Forest, who in her final act, defeated the single worst enemy the free peoples of Kranos have ever seen.
Back in the Kain’s capital, as the battle escalates into the first and second levels of the city, Lorkath feels several hundred invisible knives stab him over the entirety of his body. He instantly falls to his knees and grasps his chest. He knows right then that the Lord of the Shades has been defeated, and with him, a part of his soul.
“This… cannot be!” says Lorkath to himself. “No… NO! You will NOT take this away from me!”
He then regains his strength, and reveals the Peacekeeper.
“I ALONE will finish this and defeat the Kain, ONCE AND FOR ALL!”
He then holds the Peacekeeper above his head, allowing it to build with dark power. He then sent out an invisible lifeforce from the sword down to the fields of battle. As it reaches the many fallen drakes, now lying dead, their muscles and tendons begin to reanimate, bringing them back to life as shade beasts. Once they were back on their feet, they all turned in the direction of their new master, Lorkath.
He looks down at his new minions, grins with unearthly hatred, and screams, “KILL THEM ALL! EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM!!!”
The countless undead drakes then turn in the direction of the second level, and take flight. The many Drykans manning the upper levels are frightened of the risen drakes, and cower as they fly past them, one of them being Calthrog. Just as they pass him, his brother Bargokk lands in front of him, and quickly turns into his human form.
“Brother, why are you not aiding me?!” yells Bargokk he walks up to Calthrog’s face.
Calthrog looks as if he doesn’t have an answer. He instead looks around at his people, and says “Do you not see what we have done? What we have become, what YOU have become?!”
“No,” answers Bargokk with disgust, “all I see is what you have NOT become… the leader the Dragonkin REALLY need!”
“We are NOT Dragonkin!” screams Calthrog, now only inches from Bargokk’s face. “We are DRYKANS!”
Lowering his voice, Bargokk replies, “That is where you are wrong, brother, I am the Red DRAGON, and I will do what I must to defend OUR people, the DRAGONKIN!”
He then leaps into the air, and transforms into a fast-moving haze of smoke.
In the lower levels, full-fledged war has erupted between the three races of the world. The Griffins of the Skyborn rain down on the city’s outer wall, targeting the catapults and Dragonkin archers lining the top. The White Queen hovers above the harbor and instructs flyers where to strike. Down on the ground, the Kain have successfully breached the wall and entered the lower level of the city. The more skilled horsemen stay on top of their Trueborns and attack the Dragonkin and undead with their bows, but most of the Kain resort to ground combat. The Kain are much more seasoned fighters than the Dragonkin, so they are able to quickly kill many of them, spilling their blood on the already blood-stained cobblestone. They slowly start to push them back towards the second level, which is sealed off by a large reinforced wooden gate.
“We need to push them to the second level!” Daane yells to Nathian. “The entrance from the Mines lead to the second level. We need to meet Sadja and continue to push them up through the levels of the city. There will be less room for the drakes to attack on the ground!”
“Yes, my King,” replies Nathian as something causes him to turn his attention to the upper levels. Looking up towards the pinnacle of the city, Nathian notices several hazy black a
nd gray figures approaching from all around the city. He then yells to Daane, “My King! LOOK!”
Daane turns and follows the direction of Nathian’s terrified eyes, only to see countless drakes flying once again towards them.
Daane then yells as loud as he can, “KRENDWEIL!!!”
The leader of the Skyborn hears the faint sound of his name through the noise of battle. He looks down and sees the King frantically waving his arms in the air.
“THE DRAKES!!! ATTACK THE DRAKES!!!”
Krendweil can barely hear his shouts, but is able to decipher the word ‘drake.’ He then looks up towards the upper levels, and sees a massive cloud of shades descending towards the Kain.
He then turns to Kalorah and yells, “MY QUEEN!!! THE DRAKES HAVE BEEN RISEN!!!”
Kalorah turns to the leader of the Skyborn, then towards the city. She also sees the attacking shades and yells back to the leader, “ATTACK THEM NOW!!! LEAVE NONE ALIVE!!!”
Krendweil obeys his Queen and signals for the rest of his tribe to turn their attention to the undead drakes. As she starts to move her mighty wings and head towards the city to aid the Skyborn, she is interrupted by Bargokk’s returns. Knowing he must take her by surprise, he reaches her in his celestial form to ignite her feathery wings in terrifying flames. As he leaps into the sky, he transforms into his mighty dragon form directly in front of her. As his transformation completes, he immediately lets lose an inferno of fire.
Kalorah is caught off guard, but still has time to quickly dive and fly under the flames. She then flies back up and around the Dragon. Bargokk quickly turns around and follows the Queen, releasing wave after wave of fire. Kalorah flies down and up, weaving through the flames. She cannot shield them with her staff the way Glammdreing can with his shield. She then flaps her wings hard against the air, hurtling herself higher in the sky. The Red Dragon follows as they continue to ascend. Then, they stop, and hover in the air, high above the war below, facing each other.
Bargokk then speaks, “There is NO use in running anymore, my QUEEN! You will NOT survive this FIGHT! WE have grown TOO strong, and you TOO WEAK!”
Kalorah does not respond, and instead closes her eyes. She speaks to Glammdreing inside his head.
Bargokk then says, “I will END you White WITCH, the same way YOU ended so many of MY PEOPLE… WITH FIRE!!!”
As he arches his neck back to prepare the flames, the Warrior Angel returns to the skies in between them, and holds up his golden shield. Bargokk releases his flames, and as they meet the Angel’s shield, they once again spew outwards and up.
Glammdreing lowers his shield, and says, “The only one of us who is going to end, is YOU, DRAGON!!!”
Glammdreing’s mighty wings then disappear as he freefalls towards the ground. Bargokk follows his with his head before turning his gaze back to Kalorah. As he does, her wings are once again bathed in white fire, with her staff raised above her in one hand, and her other outstretched towards the clouds above them. He looks above her, and sees that the red clouds above have intensified, and spiral around like a hurricane once more. She then looks down directly at the proud General, and lets out a small smile. Just as he prepares to once again breath fire down on her, Kalorah directs a hundred fireballs from the conjured cloud directly down on him. As the balls of fire meet him, they pierce through the leathery skin of his wide wings, creating many holes. Bargokk panics as he tries to dodge the rain of fire, but fails to do so. With each flap of his singed wings, the holes grow wider, causing him to no longer maintain his flight. He dives in an attempt to get away from the Angels before they take advantage of the upper hand.
Back on the ground, Dathian and Ethan momentarily pause their fighting to witness the Red Dragon falling from the sky. Smoke billows from behind him as he crashed through several buildings, collapsing to the ground. As the dust settles, Dathian looks at Ethan, and needs to say nothing. He summons Cheyanne and gets on her back, then helps Ethan up behind. They each have a score to settle with the Red Dragon, and together, they take flight atop the White Mare to where his broken body fell. It only takes a few moments to reach where he fell. As Cheyanne lands, Dathian and Ethan or met by a thick cloud of dust from the Dragon’s fall. Dathian looks hard to try and see through the dust, and though barely visible, a dark figure becomes apparent. As it grows clearer, Bargokk is revealed, armed with his enchanted ax. Dathian unsheathes his sword as Ethan draws his. Bargokk sees the two teens, and says nothing at first. He looks affected by his fall, but not how one would presume. Instead of pure rage, a look of sadness and defeat is painted on the proud General’s face.
“So…” he finally says, “you have come to finish me off, is that it?”
Dathian, not sure of his intentions, replies with simplicity and poise, “Yes.”
Ethan says nothing, and can only stare back with hate driven intensity.
Bargokk takes a step towards them. They both flinch slightly, still intimidated to an extent, for after all, he is still a powerful Guardian. He continues towards them as the teens stand guard, ready to enter combat. Bargokk then raises his ax above his head. Dathian and Ethan prepare for him to strike down at them, but instead, the menacing blade hits the cobblestone, as Bargokk then releases it.
“She has taken my wings… I have lost the only thing that makes me who I am. Do what you must… I am ready to die.”
Before the teens can react, Bargokk’s body is suddenly thrown across the ground, and as he hits a stone wall, he is knocked out cold. The teens both look to their right, and see the outstretched fist of Sadja, Keeper of the Sword.
“No… he doesn’t get to die… not by his choice,” says Sadja with a drone voice.
He then reveals his Sword, and directs it at the General. As he does, a light blue spectrum of light races towards his and begins to wrap around his body, placing him in magical binds that only the Keeper can release.
Sadja then turns to Dathian with genuine empathy, and says, “Look, I know he killed your mother, but he must stand trial for his crimes, it is the way of our people.”
Dathian, whose rage has returned, replied, “He didn’t just kill my mother… he killed his entire family!” He motions towards Ethan as he continues, “He has murdered countless Kain, AND Ela, and you want to let him live?!”
Sadja then says as sadness enters his eyes, “You don’t have to remind me of what he has done… I relive it inside my head day after day,” referring to the death of his son at the hand of the Red Dragon.
Dathian doesn’t know what the Keeper was selectively insinuating, but knew that he is much wiser than he, and trusts his judgement.
He then said, “If you say it is so, then I will listen...” Cheyanne walked up from behind as Dathian mounted, and added, “…Doesn’t mean I want to. I hope you know what you are doing.”
Ethan, who this entire time hasn’t moved, struck with speechlessness due to the Keeper’s presence.
Dathian notices, and says, “By the way, this is Ethan. You know, the one that monster orphaned.”
Sadja looks at him with sympathy, as Ethan exclaims, “It is an honor to meet you, my Lord, you have been my hero since I was a little boy.”
Sadja nods, then says, “I am sorry about your family. In the end, you will have closure… I promise.” He then turns, and leaves to rejoin the King and his forces in battle.
“Wow… the Keeper of the Sword…” says Ethan, still awestruck.
Dathian, always surprised by Ethan’s endless optimism, says, “Come on, let’s go, there is still a lot of fighting to do.”
Ethan couldn’t help but smile at meeting his lifelong idle, and got on Cheyanne behind Dathian. She then took to flight, carrying the teens back to Daane and the others.
Back in the lower level of the city, the undead Irondrakes have arrived. One by one, they pick up Kain soldiers and Trueborns, flying them high into the air just before dropping them into the harbor.
Daane yells to his archers, “AIM FOR THEIR UNDERBELLYS!!!
BRING THEM DOWN!!!”
The archers take aim and fire, but the drakes are too fast, and their hides too thick.
Then, Krendweil and his Skyborns arrive, and meet the drakes in combat. One Skyborn leaps off his Griffin, landing on a drake. He takes out two daggers and slits the beast’s throat, just before jumping back off and landing on his awaiting Griffin. Other Skyborns use their bows to send a volley of arrows down on the drakes. Some of them strike true in their necks, causing them to fall. Krendweil uses a long and slender sword to slit the throats of drakes as he flies under them, black blood spilling on him in the process.
Daane watches as one by one, the undead drakes start to lessen in numbers. A sound then comes from behind, causing him to turn around. As he looks up towards the screeching sound, he sees Alandra atop Moonshine, soaring towards the lower level of the city. She already has her bow revealed as she takes aim for the drakes. Her enchanted blue arrows can strike through any hide, even the Irondrake’s. Ayden sees her, and cannot help but smile. Ready to show off, he wastes no time in killing every nearby Drykan soldier. He then makes his way over to Daane and Nathian.
Daane then says, “We MUST push them to the second level of the city! Bring that gate down!”
They all respond and continue to push the attacking Dragonkin towards the gates of the second level. Dathian and Ethan return, glad to see their friend Biix safe, and fighting strong. All three then continue to fight side by side as they make their way towards the King.
“Oh good… you’re still alive son,” says Daane as he smirks.
Dathian replies, “Yes, sorry, we were a little busy imprisoning the Red Dragon.”
Daane smiles in disbelief, and says, “Whatever you say son, just keep yourselves safe, and stay behind the front lines. Once we breech the second level, we will meet up with the other Keepers and continue to push them up the levels of the city until they are all defeated. The Generals must be hiding in the Throne Room.”
“I just said…” Dathian tries to interject.
Ethan stops him, and says, “Let it go, just… let it go.”
The Reclaiming: The Keepers Saga: Volume Two Page 36