Final Battle

The flotilla that met them at Kotch was extraordinary. Hundreds of ships were ready to carry people and supplies to battle in Oerst. This was the second one. The first had transported nearly forty thousand; while they marched through the Norland heartland. It was even more extraordinary that there was no central funding for this. These were family-owned and built ships. All the tribes now acted in unison. Norland was now to join the rest of the world in a battle to save it. But, to Aepida's dismay, she was to lead them.

When they reached Oerst, the conditions in Prym had greatly improved. Though the city was still overcrowded with refugees, supplies from Suderland and Westine significantly reduced the suffering there. The flotilla could not reach the docks. But the Norlanders are resourceful. They lashed their ships together so that they could walk to shore. When they were done, there were three such walkways. The end ship, in each line, was moored to the end of a pier. They carried their supplies with them.

They were cheered by the dwarfs as thirty thousand Norlanders marched through Prym, led by a maiden on a dapple gray horse. Thousands of dwarfs joined them, begging for any weapon they could spare. By the time they reached the city's edge, their ranks had grown by another thirty-five thousand. It would grow even more as they marched toward the decimated Capitol City.

When they entered the capitol, they found hundreds of beaten, beleaguered dwarfs sheltering wherever they could. Some were critically wounded, and the dead lay where they had fallen. The first order of business was to tend the wounded. The second was to bury the dead. The third took care of itself. The dwarfs that could still fight jumped at the opportunity to join. All they asked for was weapons.

They marched on towards the mountains east of the city. They formed a horseshoe that separated the eastern plain from the continent. This was where they would create the trap to defeat the shadow creatures and send them back to the Nether. On the mountain that formed the base of the horseshoe is where Aepida, astride Apollo, would face the enemy. Hopefully, in defeat.

Mage Otto advised her that she should write a speech of encouragement to the troops. Aepida declined, but Otto reminded her that she was their leader, chosen by them, and they should hear from her. Aepida relented, and Mage Otto helped her.

"Men and women who have gathered here to preserve our world, our way of life. We are diverse people, and we each view life differently. Yet we gathered here to fight as one, forgetting our differences, accepting those differences, and even combining them to make us stronger.

We face an enemy that cannot be killed. It must not be killed! We must put the universe back in balance by sending our enemy back to the shadow realm from which it came, restoring the balance of light and shadow, lest they destroy the universe and themselves.

Our enemy cannot die, but it can be contained and balance restored. We cannot be contained! But, we can die, for many such will be the case. It breaks my heart to face such a reality. There is not a man or woman out there that is not aware of this. Still, you gather by the thousands, tens of thousands. You humble me. I do not deserve the faith and position you have elevated me to, for I am afraid for you. For what you must endure. I am amazed by your courage. I pray for every one of you. I pray for peace."

She read the speech to those in her vicinity as was cheered. Mage Otto and others translated into all the languages. It was received enthusiastically everywhere.

Every morning Aepida rode Apollo up the mountain so she could view the battle raging in the distance. Each day she watched as the enemy advanced closer to the trap. She mourned those who were taking the brunt of the fight. Goff had gone to join them. She wondered how he was doing. All the things that were happening to these men and women, she had led them here. Even pleaded with them to join. Guilt ravished her mind. She fought the feeling. It was not like anyone had a choice.

It is a tradition among the elves. At the beginning of a battle, a salute to the leader is to be given. It was a simple gesture of raised swords, knuckles touching. The ritual was carried up through the ranks to the highest tiers of the army. Aepida was the highest level.

Today she was to receive the salute from the rank below her. About fifty soldiers were waiting to bestow this honor upon her. Aepida mounted Apollo and rode to the top of the mountain facing in the direction of the enemy. One by one, a soldier would ride up on a horse facing the opposite direction, raising his sword and pointing it skyward. She would do the same while maintaining eye contact. Their knuckles touched. Swords were lowered. The soldier would return to the ranks.

It was routine until the thirteenth soldier approached and raised his sword. When she saw him, she forgot to raise hers. So he lowered his. She could not speak. She was choking back a flood of emotions. His eyes were so blue. His long blond hair hung from under his helmet to lay softly on his armor. His lips quivered as hers did when he tried to speak.

"Hans," she said barely more than a whisper. "I was so hoping you would not be here."

"Nonetheless, I am here," he answered.

The longing to be in each other's arms was apparent in both. They gazed lovingly at each other, letting their eyes say what words could not, and regret that this was how they were reunited. Their hearts were aching that this is how they must part.

Aepida raised her sword, and Hans did likewise and completed the salute.

"For peace then," she said.

"For peace," he returned.

Aepida completed the rest of the salute with a much weaker voice. She could not quell the emotions that Hans had triggered. Now the battle demanded her attention.

As the day wore on, the battle was going in their favor. The shadow creatures marched into the trap, thinking that victory was theirs. The reserve troops now blocked their retreat. The enemy was unaware of their presence until it was too late. The final lure was when the front-line forces of men seemed to break and retreat in a rout. The shadow forces had committed fully and now were trapped in the banishing region that the mages had conjured. The armies of the world had won!

Above the fray, the beast flew and watched as his forces went down in defeat. He rained fire upon his foes. Again the magic of the mages kept the damage to a minimum. The beast saw the person sitting on a horse watching the battle. He knew this was the source of his defeat. This was the creature he had sought for so long. He flew to Aepida and hovered over her. To her, he appeared as a starless night. His eyes glowed like burning coals. His mouth was only visible as his tongue slithered from it like a flame.

"You," he shouted, his voice echoing off the mountains. " You are my revenge."

She could not answer. He entered her mind, worming its way through, seeing her every want and desire, touching every emotion, and planting seeds of vile hatred, blood lust, and death. She wanted to scream but couldn't. But none of it took root. She fought it. Stood firm against it and finally rejected it.

The beast was surprised that she withstood him.

"You are a strong one, but I know your weakness." Then he flew off.

Aepida nearly collapsed from the effort of rejecting the foul creature. It took her a few moments to recover. But she was profoundly shaken by the experience.

The beast returned holding, by one arm, a limp figure of a man. He held out the man so that she could get a close look. Even with his head drooping lifelessly, she could tell it was Hans.

"You want this pathetic creature, come and get him," he hissed and flew to the mountain peak on her right.

Instinctively, she grabbed Apollo's mane as he galloped toward the mountain. The path was loose shale. Apollo could go no further. Aepida dismounted and struggled herself but finally made it to the top. Apollo changed to his ethereal form but found that the beast had blocked all but Aepida from entering with his dark magic. It was too late to warn her.

As she reached the top of the mountain, the beast was still holding Hans by the arm. It looked at her and growled.

"This will be your downfall. Come and get him if you dare."

It threw the figure to the ground with a flick of its wrist. Hans' helmet came off as he hit the ground. He lay there, not moving, with his face in the dirt. At first, Aepida just stood there in disbelief. The beast moved towards Hans.

"Maybe I should crush him into the ground like the annoying bug he is, and then I will do the same to you."

His threat of further harming Hans made her react.

"Nooo!" She cried as she leaped toward the beast drawing her sword. Aided by the enchanted armor and Szoren cloth, she brought the weapon down between the glowing red eyes. To her surprise, the beast screamed in agony. As the sword came in contact with the creature, it generated sparks like lightning bolts.

The rage and hatred for the beast blossomed in her. The seed the beast planted in her mind and heart now manifested itself against it. She attacked with even greater ferocity once she realized the pain it caused. Again and again, she struck, and the beast's cries of pain echoed through the mountains. The more pain she caused the beast, the more fierce her attacks. The beast showed no sign of injury, yet it cowed from her with every blow. She kept attacking until she cried with anger and vision of Hans' lifeless body. She wanted to, no, she was determined to kill the beast. The skies turned dark as clouds rolled in. The thunder cracked. And added its echoes to that of the beast's cry. Aepida's tears flowed freely now. The sky opened up and wept with her.

She was beginning to tire and lose hope of her ever killing this horrid creature when the beast began to shrink. When she realized it she doubled down on her attacks. slowly the beast grew smaller and smaller until it could threaten nobody.

She raised her sword over her head to strike the killing blow. On the ground lay an infant, naked, crying, with rain pouring down. This was still the beast that she wanted to kill. She was not sure how long she stood there deciding whether or not to kill it. She sheathed her sword, knelt down crying and picked up the infant. She cradled it in her arms and tried to comfort it. With the child still nestled in her arms she crawled over to Hans. She brushed the hair from his face. He lifted his head, looked at her, closed his eyes and let his head drop back to the ground. Aepida lowered her face to the back of his neck sobbing.

"I saved the world but I could not save you."

With that the world faded and she was swallowed by darkness that gently swept her away. She would never know how the troops searched for some sign of what had happened to her. she would never know how the dwarfs built a small pyramid on the mountain where she disappeared. She would never now how they buried there dead in the valley below. She would never know of the nondescript stone in the center of that cemetery with her name carved in every language of the world. In fact, she would prefer it that way.