CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Eleanor stood dressed in formal royal garb of a queen. The high priest and his faithful acolytes honored her before all the kingdom. Sir Fellis was at her side on crutches with his broken leg splinted. Analisa was beside Sir Fellis as his second. Valenor and Dog stood behind her. Sir Sendrick was opposite side of Eleanor from Sir Fellis and Analisa. The Vile stood among the clergy.

"Eleanor Laventha, princess of the elven kingdom, we have only just buried your father and are still mourning his loss. Your mother, the former queen has abdicated the throne and left the Great City. The duties of queen have been passed on to you by birthright." The High Priest stated loudly and evenly. He placed the crown upon Eleanor's head and stepped back, turning to face the kingdom with his new queen. "I give you, Queen Eleanor Laventha!" The elves cheered. Queen Eleanor raised her hands to silence the crowd.

"I am thankful for your loyalty and warm praises of my new status as your queen. I do not take on this title lightly. It comes with a great burden. War threatens our walls. Divine powers threaten our world. I swear to you that I will do all that is in my power as your queen to keep this kingdom safe." Queen Eleanor swore. The elves cheered. Queen Eleanor again silenced her people with a gesture.

"I want to take this time to honor our fallen. Fauna Elliester gave her life to save that of Analisa, my beloved. Rustan Gilean who we lost during our first battle against the dragon, Keltorilax. I want to honor the bravery of those who survived the second battle against Keltorilax, a servant of the Vermin Trinity. Analisa Letharon, Sir Captain Fellis, Sir Sendrick Slenifferrin and his brother Valenor Slenifferrin." Queen Eleanor said boldly. Dog barked to get her attention. She turned a friendly smile at her companion.

"I also want to honor, Dog. My faithful companion.," Queen Eleanor turned back to face her people and looked towards the clergy where the Vile sat with his deep wounds bandaged. "I also want to honor someone who joined us on our journey outside the walls, battled against his own kind proving that an innately evil species can change. The Vile you fought at our sides with your own life being threatened and selflessly remained faithful and true." Queen Eleanor motioned to someone in the crowd. A unicorn trotted up beside the Vile.

"The Vile, you are not like your people. You are not vile at all but pure in spirit and heart. Your innate evil that once kept you from getting close to me has faded away as you can see." The Vile noticed that the unicorn was beside him and reached out to touch her. She leaned in and he pet her main. The excitement he felt was seen upon his face with pure joy as he gasped.

"The Vile," Queen Eleanor called. The Vile turned his attention back to the queen. "I wish to give you a name that does not damn you. As Fortuna has already said, there is no evil in you and nothing vile about you. You are a hero; a gentle spirit. From this day on, you will be known as Cole!" The elves cheered and praised their heroes and newly crowned queen. There celebrations would be short-lived as they all knew what was to come and needed to prepare properly for war. There preparations the night before were done hastily. This time, they would need to make drastic fortifications and be ready for the minions of the Vermin Trinity.

*****

The gods glanced around the area as Thor did, wondering where massive seeker-titans and a god of madness could hide from them in plain view and within the godly realm of the Keeper of Secrets. A tentacle speared through the chest of the Keeper of Secrets. The demi-god looked down at the tentacle that writhed about and then to his allies.

"I've had worse," the Keeper of Secrets balked. A second and third tentacle pierced his chest and then ripped him apart in a violent explosion. The god of madness, Insanium hovered where the Keeper of Secrets once stood.

"How?" Odin gasped, but his sentence was cut short as four titanic beings stepped into view from some sort of alternate dimension out of thin air.

"Now that my secrets are safe. Who wants to willingly submit to me?" Insanium asked in his otherworldly, guttural voice. Kronos and his three children chuckled from above.

Apollo was full of rage, hating titans and having faced Kronos beside Zeus all those millennia's ago. He also had a new hate for this Forgotten One that was identified as an ancient True God named Insanium. He drew back an arrow and launched it at Kronos. Knowing he could be killed but would rejuvenate made Apollo livid. He was at least be pleased to have the knowledge from their long-ago ally, Prometheus about a ritual that allowed them to maximize the time it would take Kronos to reform. Severing his fallen body into seven parts and scattering them across the planes kept Kronos at bay for more time than they would need to find a way to destroy him permanently this time. Apollo wanted, if not end this war in one barrage of arrows, to at least end Kronos once more for another long period of time. The arrow struck with blinding speed and fierce velocity towards the heart of Kronos. Kronos didn't flinch. He caught the arrow with a single hand inches away from his body and snapped the arrow like a twig between his fingertips.

"Apollo," Kronos growled through clenched teeth.

"Send your children in first," Insanium ordered. Hoping his control over Kronos remained intact. Insanium did not know that the control between Kronos and his true form remained but not between the former avatar that had gained his own sentience. Kronos simply hated all gods and especially those that served his sons that rose up against him, Zeus and Poseidon. Even Prometheus had aided them. His rage was what fueled his choice to follow the orders of Insanium, not any control the god once held over him when he was still an avatar of the Forgotten One. Kronos could have squashed the former avatar like a bug but his blind rage did not reveal the truth to him.

"Destroy them!" Kronos shouted.

Odin and Zeus were the greatest tacticians and struggled with whether or not they should strike or retreat. Enamor and Viscus dove blasted divine energy at two of the seeker-titans. The seeker-titans were brought to their knees for a brief moment only to rise back up and charge the two greater gods. Death grasped at Viscus only for his hand to pass harmlessly through the incorporeal form of the wraith god. Viscus blasted the seeker-titan again. Death looked to his father.

Kronos was focused on his own upcoming fray. Zeus hurled bolts of lightning at Kronos. Poseidon struck hard at his father with his enchanted triton. Every demi-god seemed to focus their attention on Kronos. Thor flew up to reach the head of the towering titan and slammed his mystical hammer into the side of his head.

Bolnarg and the Justicar were the only two that leaped into action against Insanium. The gods and seeker-titans battled without realizing their surroundings were disintegrating. The god that had forged the demi-plane had been destroyed. His godly realm was collapsing and exposing the closest plane to them, the prime material world of Dark Athyx.

Viscus sensed his world in danger from their presence crossing over and became distracted. Death grasped him somehow and activated his power. Viscus laughed as he teleported them away from the world.

Enamor also realized that their presence would damage the world if they remained. Only the demigods could remain on the prime material world without damaging it. He grabbed the seeker-titan, Gladiguseus and teleported away in a flash of light.

Bolnarg and the Justicar struck hard. A tentacle speared both of the demigods and they were lifted into the air. Armco teleported beside them and severed the tentacles that held them aloft. Bolnarg ripped the tentacle from his wound and clutched it in his hand like a spear. He was mortally wounded as was the Justicar. Armco grabbed them and teleported them to safety before Insanium could finish them off.

Kronos crushed all four elemental gods beneath his fists as he slammed them down. The world of Dark Athyx rocked. The demi-plane was gone and all of the damage of their battles were affecting the planet.

The demon-god, Bael was slain by Assimilator. Kazart, the demi-god of kobolds fell beneath his barrage of attacks as well. Hercules slammed his great club into the shin of the seeker-titan and the sound of bone cracking echoed. The Tree of Life tried entangling Assimilator to hold him fast. Athena and Prometheus severed his heads together.

"With the Keeper of Secrets dead how do we learn how to kill the titans for good?" Athena asked. Prometheus tried to use his power of forethought to get the answers. Looking to the future he saw that he had acquired the power in the absence of the Keeper of Secrets. His power of forethought was suddenly empowered by the power of knowledge of divine secrets. Prometheus focused on the seeker-titan and saw his ritualistic demise.

"Hurtling them, any of them into Oblivion after severing them into seven parts will finalize their deaths." Prometheus shouted. Hades, Hecate, and Hera began severing the seeker-titan into seven parts before he could regenerate.

"Viscus is not here. Who else can survive the plane of Oblivion?" Athena asked.

"It does not matter at this point!" The Crimson Lady protested and touched the seven parts with her seven dragon heads. She teleported them away to Oblivion's Gate in a burst of fire.