Tunsten sighed. Today would be the first, and the last day when someone could finally end it all. And it had to be him. He had to stop it. The old man had turned too powerful.
He glanced at the village. Modred had himself brought together most of it. The old tower served like a control center where the magician worked day and night to complete his evil scheme. The village was a supply of everything he needed. He was going to miss it. The streets, the people, the flowers, the sweet water and most of all, the person whom he loved. It seemed like the other day when they had met, in the garden. She had been plucking flowers, when he simply couldn't look away...
He turned away from the thoughts. It was too painful to think anymore. The courage he had mustered could all simply vanish any moment. There was no other way. If Modred succeeded tonight, then it would be all over. He had studied it enough to be sure. There was no escape.
A slight noise made him turn in a flash. Rayina stood in the doorway, a lamp in one hand and a book in the other. Behind her golden hair, he could clearly see her swollen eyes.
'Must you, Tunsten?' she said in a broken voice. He couldn't reply. Instead, he simply embraced her.
'It has to be stopped, Rayina' he said after a couple of seconds. 'There is no other way. The Darkthrop linage has to end'
She sobbed.
'But...' she whispered. 'What if you weren't the last of the Darkthrops?'
'But I am...' Tunsten said slowly. 'I have no siblings, and we have no children'
She didn't reply. For a minute, they stood like this. A clock rang midnight somewhere.
'Take care, Rayina' Tunsten said.
She didn't let go. As Tunsten struggled a bit, she looked into his eyes.
'Tunsten Darkthrop' she said. 'You are a better person than I'
Tunsten couldn't make out what he could say. Instead, he simply kissed her. A minute later, they separated. Without speaking a word, before his heart betrayed him, Tunsten took to the staircase, leaving Rayina in the old room.
All the years of living in the tower had made him habitual to the squeaks and creaks, but it seemed frightening tonight. Slowly, as he made way to the top, his heart raced. He was afraid that it would burst before he could finish what he had to do. As he reached the top, he realized that a steady wind was blowing now, which carried the unmistakable sounds of chanting to him. Pushing open the trap door, he saw what he dreaded. Mordred, crouched over the orb. As soon as he came forward, Mordred stopped chanting and looked at him.
'Go back in Tunsten' he said grimly.
'Stop this madness, father' Tunsten said, without a quiver. 'This has to end'
Mordred grinned menacingly.
'And who will stop me?' He shouted. 'You? What powers do you have?'
He laughed aloud. Then it happened in a second. Tunsten swiped his hand, and Modred was thrown off the ceiling onto the floor below. He looked up, a gash on his forehead and murder in his eyes.
'You thought you had it all' Tunsten said softly. 'But I watched, and I learned'
'We could have ruled the world' Mordred said. 'Why are you doing this?'
'It's for the greater good' Tunsten said as he moved towards the orb.
Meanwhile, Rayina was running down the staircase. She had to make it out of the village as soon as she could. She had made a grave mistake, but there was nothing she could do. As she stepped out the tower, the chilling wind hit her like a knife. Shivering, she walked towards the village.
Barely a minute later, she gasped. The entire earth was shaking. She turned around towards the tower, afraid it would collapse. On the top, she could see two figures. She feel to her knees. A huge bolt of lightning struck the tower. When the dust cleared, the earthquake had ended, the figures had vanished and Rayina was in tears.