Ok guys sorry for the long break. I am out of town and there is no wifi near my house. Anyways, read and review!
"Warrior… he croaked. "North Wall…Cutters…" He said as he passed out. Gregor sat there in belated shock.
"Gregor! What does he mean?" Angelina asked, terrified. Gregor regained his composure and took a deep breath. "It means," He said. "The Warrior is back."
Gregor immediately got up and walked out into the hallway, followed by his unknowing friends. His mind moving at incalculable speeds, he considered options. Words struck his mind like lightning. Fight. Flee. Compromise. As he considered plans of action, he heard words, unintelligible ones. No doubt coming from his companions. I have no time for this. He thought angrily. Coming to a conclusion, he subconsciously redirected himself, breaking into a full on sprint.
Weaving in and out through corridors, passageways, and stairs as fast as he could, Gregor watched as the torches and people became blurred, like the lights in New York traffic at night.
Seconds were wasting. Precious seconds. Seconds he needed to save lives. Lives of ones he cared about. The Cutters had numbers, large, flabbergasting numbers, and even Ripred could not hold them off alone. Skill was a factor for the Regalians, and despite the undoubted fact they had obtained this life sustaining trait, they were lacking the overall quantity with those single fighters who had it.
Gregor finally made the last turn into the armory, but pulled up short. The once organized and diverse room was in complete disarray, picked over from the previously mobilized soldiers. Gregor yelled in frustration. Now he had to go to the wall completely unprepared. What were his other options? As he turned to go back to the High Hall in search of a bat, something hit him, causing him to stumble. Then another blow causing him to fall. Larry and Angelina lay on top of him, having followed the whole way here. Gregor moved out from under them, and began to run again, but a voice stopped him in his tracks. "Gregor!" Angelina cried. "Why are you fighting for these people?"
Gregor hung his head for reasons he did not quite understand. "Stay in the Palace. It's the only safe place in Regalia. I can't protect everyone." With that, Gregor was off.
Luxa watched longingly as Gregor walked out of her room with Hazard. She remained in her place for a few moments, waiting to see if Gregor would come back, which he never did. Getting to her feet, Luxa departed to the Royal Washroom, where only her family could use. A happy but embarrassed look flashed across her face as she realized that she wanted Gregor to use it with her. The Washroom was just down a corridor, it took a grand total of ten seconds to walk there. Luxa was right about to enter when a gold streak curled in front of her.
"Aurora?" Luxa asked, a bit startled, having been daydreaming about Gregor.
"Luxa, we must make haste to the North Wall. Scouts report the Cutters are on the move." In a split second, Luxa went from a joyful girl into what she really was: Queen of Regalia. The gears in her head were spinning so rapidly, smoke could be blowing out of her ears. "What of the squadron we sent to destroy the entrance to Queenshead?" Luxa asked. Aurora shook her head.
"We have no knowledge of their return." Luxa nodded, not missing a beat.
"Then we are to assume they perished at the hands of the Cutters." Luxa looked around. No one was in the halls, so there was no noise to be made.
"Have we mobilized?" Luxa asked in a hushed tone. Even though no one was appeared to be around, there was always risk of spies.
"We'll have to see." Aurora whispered, getting the implied message. Luxa nodded, and raced towards the High Hall, Aurora fluttering along behind her. Few people crossed their path, but few people are allowed on the Royal Wing. Luxa was already thinking of strategies to hold of the ants when she remembered one of her biggest advantages remained in the dark about the oncoming invasion. Skidding to a stop, Luxa ran the opposite direction, almost leveling her bond.
"Luxa!" Aurora called after her. "We must fly to the wall!" Luxa stopped and shook her head. "No! Gregor might be needed now! The appearance of the Warrior might make the difference in this battle!" Before Luxa could run off on her again, Aurora stuck her wing out, making a furry barrier in the middle of the hall. Luxa glared at Aurora.
"Why do you stop me?" she said, voice rising in anger.
"I shall return for him once you are at the wall. You are needed more there as a commander than you are running throughout the halls wasting time!" Luxa blinked a bit, surprised at Aurora's outburst. It was very rare that she is so adamant about something, and when she was, it was always with perfect reason. "Very well." Luxa said. "Let us go."
After the short argument, Luxa and Aurora managed to get moving again. Making it to the High Hall at last, Luxa threw herself off the edge and plummeted toward the ground. As quick as she fell, she rose as Aurora dove beneath her and slowly leveled out, letting the combined momentum carry them quickly to the North Wall. Luxa looked out over her city, still being rebuilt after the calamity that was the War of Time. Scaffolding and masonry tools were scattered everywhere; abandoned in the hope to find safety. In situations like this, the Palace would usually open to refugees, being the stronghold of the city. However, the Palace lift could only carry so many, and the amount of Regalians with fliers that could airlift was not particularly large enough to be completely sufficient.
Nearing the wall, Luxa saw farmers quickly steering their carts away from the wall. Luxa huffed grimly. They would need all of the food they could get if they were to be under siege. Aurora's golden wings rustled against the air, but stayed strong and sturdy under the pressure. Ever since she was seven, Luxa had ridden on Aurora for fear of the ground. Flying with a rider for longer than most bats, Aurora's wings were much stronger than the average, and she was much more acrobatic and could endure longer flights than her comrades.
Upon arrival, Luxa saw Ripred and Mareth discussing combat formations at the forefront of the wall. The wall itself was three stories high; built for the longevity of Regalian defense. Aurora coasted in, allowing Luxa to flip off and land a pace away from Ripred. Making a sharp u-turn, Aurora flapped her wings wildly to go retrieve the Warrior. Luxa quickly approached the veterans. She asked her question, stopping whatever conversation had been going on.
"What is our proximity?" she asked, right off the bat. Ripred didn't even bother to look up. "They are about three and a half clicks away. As of right now," Ripred directed attention to the map between himself and Mareth. "We plan to use a flank assault from the right side. I will personally fight the center for those who survive." Mareth took the break in speech to bring up his own thoughts.
"I sent Andromeda to scout the numbers. She estimates about four thousand Cutters march in this force. We no longer have the time to properly destroy the entrance to this tunnel without possibly causing a rockslide." Luxa nodded, absorbing all of the information. "Very well then. Aurora is on her way to bring Gregor here. Should we place him in the air or on the ground?" Ripred thought for a second.
"Place him with me. We have no fliers to spare at the moment, and he would be of more use on the ground." Mareth nodded ascent.
"With both Gregor and Ripred, we should be able to hold off the assault until the Cutters retreat." Ripred grinned smugly.
"Or die."
Gregor had just reached the entrance of the High Hall when he saw Aurora curve over the edge. "Overlander!" she exclaimed. "We must hurry! The battle shall start briefly!" Gregor didn't even respond as he quickly swung himself up onto Aurora's back. Hurling herself off the end of the Hall, Aurora carried what she knew may very well be the human's last hope. Again.
A wave of red engrossed the stone beneath it as it rapidly came towards the North Wall. Luxa gazed with dismal eyes out at the scene. The wave never seemed to end; more and more Cutters just continued to propel themselves along with the hope of human annihilation. Ripred bowed sarcastically to Luxa and Mareth. "Well, Lady and Gentleman, I shall take my leave. I have enjoyed your eloquent and most enjoyable acquaintance." With his signature mocking attitude, Ripred, the Peacemaker, slid down the wall, and ran towards yet another battle.
Luxa watched as her bond ran to engage the Cutters, and protect the humans once again.
But must he do so in such a mordant manner? She asked herself. Mareth seemed to read her mind, and chuckled. "My Queen, your bond seems to fancy belligerent theatrics." Luxa moved her hand to her face, wondering how such a wise being, and experienced fighter could be as obnoxious as Ripred.
The red wave continued closer and closer. Regalian soldiers were mobilized and ready for combat. Lonely, only time stood between the clash of the two Underland superpowers.
Ever so slowly, Time ticked down.
Larry and Angelina watched as their friend ran off to battle. Eventually they both got to their feet, still burned from Gregor's words. "I can't protect everyone." What exactly did he mean? Who else did he need to protect? However, it was like Gregor to want to protect everyone. Even when they were younger, Gregor always stood up for Larry and Angelina. Whether it be playground bullies or snobs at school, he was always there for them.
"Where does he get off doing that?" Larry growled. "We can help him! Can't we?"
Angelina shook her head. "Remember the arena?" Images of Gregor fighting the guards with ease flashed through Larry's mind. "Still!" Larry persisted, fists balled at his sides, refusing to believe that he couldn't help his friend. "I need to help him, Angelina. I can't let him go out there by himself! He'll get killed!" Angelina bit her lip. Larry might have a point. If Gregor died, she could never forgive herself. Coming to the conclusion that she agreed with Larry, she did something that changed her life.
"Come on, let's go help."
Gregor and Aurora arrived at the wall, landing next to Luxa and Mareth, who were watching the advancing army. Mareth was the first to respond; by nailing Gregor with a hug. Gregor grimaced at the painful yet pleasant tradition ever since his second decent into the Underland. Awkwardly hugging back, Gregor realized how great a friend Mareth was.
After bruising Gregor's ribs, Mareth pulled away to notice his Overland friend's lack of a weapon.
"Gregor, we must get you outfitted. Come, I have a surprise for you." Gregor nodded, and glanced at Luxa. She smiled wanly, knowingly though too. The Cutters were a very formidable enemy. Even a Rager could be outnumbered.
They held each others gaze until Gregor had to tear his eyes away to follow Mareth. The wall had a small room housing a column of stairs leading below the top, to an armory. Even this one was picked over, but a lone section sat untouched. A full suit of armor was hung on the wall, made of black metal. It was his armor from five years ago.
"It was repaired after you left." Mareth said, understanding Gregor's feeling of de ja vu.
"When you arrived, we added some things to it. Would you like to see?" Gregor nodded, completely captivated by the armor. "Due to your back injury," Mareth stated, removing the back panel from its hooks. "We had this reinforced by two leather pads, and a small metallic alloy to fill the remaining space." He handed the chunk of metal to Gregor, who then began to strap it on his back.
"The arm pieces we elongated, but also thinned out the upper arm pieces for any added muscle. This will improve your swinging speed. For the lower arm, we added some metal hooks in case you fight an opponent with a sword." Gregor had put on almost all of the armor. "Two last additions were made. The helmet now has a visor to protect your eyes. Your feet, in case you lose your sword, have been sharpened at the toes." Gregor finished armor suiting up (lol), but noticed that there was something missing.
"Where's my sword?" he asked. Mareth went over to a rack, and pulled out one that was heavier at the hilt; the same style that Gregor had first used in his training.
"I know it is not the same caliber as your last one, but hopefully we may make do." Mareth said. Gregor swung the sword around in circles around himself, feeling a bit like a ninja. "Yeah," Gregor said, feeling the buzzing inside him. "We can make do."
Mareth smiled, and clapped a hand on Gregor's shoulder. "Let us go, then."
Larry and Angelina ran around the palace, hopelessly lost. "Ok!" Angelina exclaimed.
"This isn't working!" Larry nodded and huffed a breath.
"What should we do?" Angelina stood cockeyed, with a hand to her head.
"Ok," She said. "Do you remember what end we entered from?"
Larry held up a few fingers, as if counting. "The… South! We entered from the South!" Angelina smiled a little weirdly. "Um, yeah! Ok! Do you remember how high we were?" Larry responded quickly, shuddering a bit. "Two hundred feet." Angelina nodded.
"All we need to do is find a window." Larry perked up.
"There was one down the hall a few minutes ago!" he said, excited he could help. Angelina's eyes lit up. "What are you waiting for? Let's go!" Grabbing Larry's hand, she ran off. After a few backtracks and dead ends, they found the window Larry was talking about. They both looked out the window, trying to gauge the distance between them and the lift.
"Ok! We're not that far off! Let's just—" Larry said, before crumpling to the ground. Angelina gasped and looked behind Larry in time to see a shadowy figure slash down toward her before she fell into oblivion.
Make sure to review guys, I see the traffic stats. So many people read this every week, but I only get a few reviews, which really makes it hard to continue writing. The more reviews I get, the more it makes me want to keep writing, which means I can post chapters quicker.
