Prince Bellum sneered.

He now believes with absolute certainty that there is a link between the boy he took as hostage to the way Ronin reacts towards him. The boy irrefutably means a lot to him, just as much as the Queen of the Forest. And yet there was no similarities between the two – Ronin is a well built tall muscular man compared to the scrawny lad whose features differed from him entirely. A step-father maybe? An appointed guardian? The Prince can only guess. There is definitely something more to this, he thought. Whatever it is, using him as hostage was all the leverage he needed. He had the boy's back right against his chest with both of them facing Ronin. He tightened his grip on the boy's waist. The dagger was starting to cut under his chin. Nod stopped struggling. He was getting exhausted. Tears trickled down the sides of his cheeks. He was terrified too.

Ronin glanced at Nod, his heart pumping so much it was strengthening every sinew, every muscle and every bone in his body. He knew he would never be able to forgive himself if anything happened to him. Keeping his eyes on Nod, he willed him to look up at him. Hang in there, son, hang in there. Ronin prayed silently. Just trust me on this one. Nod kept his body still. He gradually raised his eyes as though compelled to return Ronin's stare. An unspoken bond passed between them. Ronin told him something with his eyes. Suddenly fear left him. Renewed courage was returning. I can do this, his eyes reassured Ronin. Getting the response he needed from Nod, he replied without uttering a word. That's the spirit.

Ronin returned his attention to the Prince once more. He has never hated anyone this much before. The Prince is certainly up there on his hit list with Mandrake and the Boggans. But regardless of this, there was something else that Ronin felt at the same time. Overwhelming pity.

"What's wrong, Bellum," Ronin snarled standing to his full commanding height almost feeling sorry for the Prince: "You hide behind a boy and not face me?"

At that precise moment, despite being bound, Nod made use of the Prince's arm on his waist to support his upper trunk. He then tilted his hips forward and with as much strength as he can garner, he bent his knees then swung his legs backwards with such force that both his feet landed on the Prince's knee denting the steel guard against his kneecap, causing him to yelp in pain and drop him to the ground.

The blade at his throat simply nicked at his chin. The Prince was distracted. His concentration now hinges on the pain shooting up from his knee.

Ronin wasted not a second longer and literally hurled himself at the Prince, knocking him down to the ground. He was determined to finish him off once and for all.

All of a sudden, out of the blue, an almighty deafening roar was heard from the distance. Igneo's army stationed at the ridge nearby rose up in arms. They scrambled over the ridge, ran across the plateau, ready to come to the aid of their Prince.

Ronin was one man against hundreds. Yet he was undeterred. He continued pummeling at Bellum. His mind could only think of one thing: he will pay for what he did to my men, to Finn, to Nod and my Queen.

The swarm of soldiers stampeded towards Ronin, their thunderous yell echoing against the plateau. They were closing in on him who remained oblivious to their approaching presence.

"ENOUGH!"

The earth trembled. Land shattered as gigantic vines and gargantuan roots that laid dormant for years suddenly sprung to life, shooting out from the ground in droves. They pushed up against boulders and anything in their way as they whipped out from the soil. Mimicking a huge tidal wave, they threw Igneo's warriors away from Ronin's location as though shoving them to one side.

The soldiers, bewildered and scattered, jostled to get back on their feet. But they dared not move from where they were. They turned their faces to where the command came from.

Ronin growled, reluctantly letting go of the Prince from his grasp.

The regal Queen Tara emerged ethereal and floating in the air towards them.

Her long dark hair was loose around her shoulders with flowing strands drifting and waving along with the wind. Her slender arms were bare having torn her sleeves previously exposing more of her exquisite exotic skin. Her bodice made of flower stem coverings felt very much as though it was part of the mountaintop she landed on and her lengthy white iris-petal gown swirled softly in the breeze, contrasting heavily against the brown earth.

Everyone stared at her. In the stillness of that moment, they all stopped and thought they saw an angel descend upon them.

The Queen waved her hand. The vines and roots holding back Igneo's soldiers crawled back into the ground beneath them and the land knitted itself to how it was before. The soldiers dropped to their knees and bowed low to the Queen.

With another wave of her hand, the ring of fire diminished, hissing into the air as it evaporated like thinly veiled smoke.

Ronin was already on one knee: "Your Majesty…" He looked at her with trepidation and worry. The Prince struggled to get to his feet.

"Your Highness," The Queen said with authority as she neared him: "Let the boy go. Let my Leafmen go. After all, it is me you wanted, isn't it? Enough bloodshed has been spilled on my account. There is no need to add any more."

Prince Bellum could not believe what he was hearing. The Queen of the Forest, with powers he could not fathom, is standing right here giving herself up just like that. Queen Tara remained resolute, with her chin held high, looking at the battered and bruised Prince still trying to steady himself from all the knocks he sustained from Ronin.

He wiped the blood dripping from his mouth with the back of his hand and stretched his neck backwards and forwards creating rasping creaks as though setting his neck bones back in place. He looked at his soldiers already on their knees. He could just give the signal. He can still win this.

The Prince eyed the Queen suspiciously. "You are willing to come with me? You are willing to serve me?"

"I am willing to come with you, only if you let the boy and all my Leafmen go unharmed."

"Your Majesty!" Ronin got back to his feet. He was horror-struck. What is his Queen thinking? He felt his heart descend into the ground and shatter into a million tiny little fragments. He desperately searched her face. The pain in his eyes was plain to see.

Queen Tara gravely looked at him. She glided towards him and gently cupped his face looking at him tenderly with eyes that told him how much she loved him. She turned again to the Prince. "I am saying this one more time, Your Highness, let the boy go, and all my Leafmen. Your army is to leave them alone."

Igneo's soldiers did not hesitate for a moment. They did not wait for their Prince to give the order. They simply put their swords back in their sheaths and backed away.

The Prince was astonished. Already the Queen has earned their loyalty.

With obvious indifference, the Prince gave the signal to the riders on the lizards to let the Leafmen go. The riders nodded, hopped off their lizards and undid the lock to the cages. The Leafmen stumbled out one by one, unable to stand up. As soon as the cages were emptied, the riders went back on their lizards and guided their rides away from sight, dragging the empty cages along with them.

Ronin went straight to Nod. Taking a small dagger hidden from his shin guard he proceeded to cut off the bonds that tied the boy. As soon as he was free, he threw his arms around his waist as Ronin hugged him fiercely. Words could not express how relieved he felt to have Nod alive.

The boy looked at Queen Tara. She was smiling at him as she gently caressed the side of his cheek allowing again her healing powers to mend those parts within him that was hurt. Nod instantly felt very much alive and invigorated. He kissed the back of her hand while the Queen kissed the top of his head.

In a distance, the freed Leafmen gradually made their way towards Ronin and Nod one by one.

"A bargain's a bargain, Your Majesty," said the Prince as he held Queen Tara's elbow leading her away from Ronin and Nod who were now joined by Finn and the rest of the freed Leafmen.

"No, net yet." The Queen answered, raising her hands in the air. White light left her fingers, spun giddily into the atmosphere and softly surrounded her Leafmen starting with Finn, repairing what were once battered and broken. Restored to good health once more, her Leafmen dropped to their knees and bowed their heads.

She smiled to them and curtsied, knowing in all humility how much her Leafmen would stake their lives for her. She turned to face Prince Bellum and finally allowed herself to be led away by him.

Ronin, Nod, Finn and the Leafmen simply stared at her retreating back and felt nothing but immense sadness. They all felt that their world will never be the same again if their Queen leaves them. Ronin most of all sensed an inexplicable empty void. He shut his eyes. Emotional hurt was shaking him to his core and this time there was nothing he can do about it.

Prince Bellum however cannot let go of the impatient control raging within him, eating away at him and twisting his whole being.

The Prince could not allow Ronin and his men to get away that easy. For as long as these Leafmen and especially Ronin are alive, they will permanently be a thorn on his side, a thorn he would rather crush now rather than wait for another time. He may not have this opportunity again. Besides, he always gets what he wants, doesn't he? Always. And right now, he's got all of them exactly where he wants them to be. He also knew that Ronin will never truly let go of his Queen. There will be no way he would just allow the Queen to stay with him undisturbed let alone subservient to him. Oh, he will return all right. The Prince was very sure about this. And I really do not wish to see him ever again.

The time to destroy him once and for all is now. He has the Queen. He can always use the potion on her once more, this time to really make her do as he wanted. There was no need for the rest. Apart from this, he can make a great example of Ronin if he dies now. Every Leafman would be under his control if this one General is out of the way, including his second-in-command Finn.

Just as he destroyed his servant Asmodeus when he found out that he helped the General and the Queen escape as well as the betrayer Lady Leafman Reena, he can do the same damage to the very enemies he could never allow to live not even for another day.

No, he simply will not allow this chance to slip by. They all die now.

The Prince slyly looked sideways. He caught sight of Ronin. He looked so heart-broken. His head was bent down, his whole body frozen looking as if life held no meaning. For once, the great General was completely unaware. So this is his weakness. The Queen Tara herself. Now's the time to strike back when he is indeed at his lowest. The Prince smirked with glee.

Without any warning, he summoned all the power of the Fire residing within him. He turned around and with tremendous force created a vast massive ball of Fire from his hand which crackled and boomed with flames undulating like snakes and threw it with incredible speed towards the unsuspecting Ronin and all those standing next to him.

As though in slow motion, the Queen also looked back and cried with all her might: "Look out!" Her eyes were wide and full with terror and shock. Her intense feelings of impending doom burst forth powers greater than that of the Prince, rendering the earth, the sun and the wind to heed her warning call and respond immediately. The mountain itself instantly came alive. The humongous vines and roots that have since retreated sprouted out again this time with even greater speed, creating a wall protecting all in the line of the hurtling fire. Out from nowhere, the howling wind redirected the ball of fire away, distracting it briefly from where it was initially intended. Ronin instinctively covered Nod with his arms and back as he and his men tried to keep their footing firmly on the shaking ground.

Jagged razor-sharp rocks broke free from the earth, one of which pushed the unprepared Prince with intense energy that he was flung out and away from the mountaintop. He fleetingly disappeared into the heavens above reappearing again to land on one of their sharp edges impaling him to his death.

"No….no…" Queen Tara did not want this to happen.

She dropped to her knees and sobbed when she saw the body of the Prince. The earth trembled along with her. As though ashamed, the sun hid behind clouds that started to gather and rain dropped once more from the skies, obliterating any more flames and fires still burning. As her feelings subsided so too did the vines and roots. The mountaintop returned to its natural state. But the Queen remained in tears. She did not wish death to occur for she holds the Life force that heals, gives and sustains all life. She felt responsible even if part of her knew that the Prince did not abide by the hidden laws of Life, that whatever he puts out there comes back to him tenfold. The fact that he wished death on others meant that it is exactly what he gets in return. He brought this evil upon himself.

The Queen can heal. She can breathe Life into the Forest but she cannot bring him back from the dead.

Ronin, Nod, Finn and his men rushed immediately to her side. Even Igneo's soldiers gathered around her and the dead Prince. They all stood in silence.

Queen Tara gently put her hand on the Prince's chest. "Rest now, Your Highness, may your soul find that peace that has eluded you in your thirst for power and control." With that, the Prince's body turned to ashes and the wind blew all of it away.

Ronin helped his Queen back to her feet and embraced her tightly. He simply could not bear the thought of not having her beside him. The Queen in return clung to her General needing the security he gives in abundance to steady herself. Nod and Finn smiled broadly as they saw them together.

The rain ceased once more and the sun came out from hiding. Both Leafmen and Igneo's soldiers looked at each other. There was no need for words. They all understood that from here on in there is only one sovereign that rules them all - Queen Tara, the Life of the Forest.

So when all is said and done, Prince Bellum finally did get his wish, that of uniting his kingdom with Moonhaven.

THE END