AN: It's been so long since I posted anything, but here we go, another chapter of Monster Hunters. Thanks for being patient, and for all the reviews. It means a lot to me.
Chapter Twenty One: Final Battle.
I do not own TD.
Scott lay in his bed with Dawn wrapped in his arm, and sleeping. It's been a day since the attack by Mal, and the entire guild was so worn out, they had to all be flown home by Sunny, and Leeren, after everyone had been found that is.
Bolt was severely injured, but is very much alive, thanks in large part to Tyler's flute, although the magic he had left could only help so much, as Tyler had been fatigued, as well as injured from the fall off Bolt's back, after Mal's punch. The dragon master was currently tending to Bolt's jaw in a shelter, that was originally a horse stable.
Trent broke his left arm, but everyone else received only minor injuries from the Shadow Wave. The rifleman was currently practicing his shot with only his right arm, behind the guild hall, with Gwen watched him, just to make sure he doesn't over exert himself.
"Aghh!" He shouted in pain.
"Don't hurt yourself!" Gwen shouted at him, as she pulled the gun away, and placed an ice pack on the bruised shoulder of the broken arm. His broken arm tried to move instinctively.
"Sorry, babe." He said, and smiled lightly.
"You need to take it easy." She said, as she rubbed his cheek.
"I can't, you know that. We have to get back out there, to find Duncan, and I can't do it with one arm."
"You're gonna kill yourself! Just stop it." Gwen shouted.
Scott heard Gwen's yell, and felt Dawn move.
"Good morning." He said, and she smiled, however her smile quickly turned into a frown."What's wrong?"
"What are we going to do?" She said solemnly.
"I don't know." Scott said, and then thought of something. "Dawn?"
"Yes?"
"Why do you think Mal threw Tyler, and Luther, then made a beeline for you?"
"Well... I honestly do not know."
"But then what was that pressure pushing Duncan to the floor?"
"I may be responsible for that."
"How so?"
"It may be because Duncan is my familiar, therefore he is bound to my command."
"Then maybe Mal knows that, and he wants you out of the way." Scott said, as he sat up.
A knock rang from the front door, and Scott, having the room right above the door, looked out his window to see Zoey, and Courtney.
Cameron answered, just as Scott, and Dawn were walking down the stairs.
"Oh, Hi Zo-" He stopped suddenly, when he saw Zoey's new hair color.
"It doesn't matter, we've got bigger issues." She said, noticing his eyes looking towards her dark shaded hair.
"So, Mal had Zoey attack you, which kept you away from the battlefield." Scott said.
"And he went after Dawn as soon as she started commanding Duncan?" Courtney added.
"It's got to have something to do with you two, and your relationships with Duncan." Cameron said, as Tyler walked down the steps with a bandaged up Bolt, and Sunny by his side, and Trent, and Gwen walked in from the back door in the kitchen.
"Whoa, Zoey. Nice hair." Gwen said.
"If you're gonna ask why, let's just say it's Mal's fault."
"Okay, back to our discussion. Is it possible that Dawn could break Mal's hold on Duncan?" Courtney asked.
"It seems to be the most likely reason for his sudden interest in Dawn." Scott said.
"So, all we have to do is get Mal out of the way, long enough for Dawn to release Duncan?" Zoey asked.
"But we can barely get near him, let alone hit him, and we all saw that giant wave of shadow magic, there's no way we can beat that." Trent said.
"I may know a way." Everyone looked over at Dawn.
"How?" Courtney asked.
"We will have to travel to my home, the Fairy Kingdom."
Leeren flew to the Fairy Kingdom, with Dawn, Scott, Zoey, Courtney, and Cameron on his back. As they approached the entrance, the guards drew their weapons.
"Princess Dawn, you have brought too many visitors, we cannot allow you to enter." One of the guards said, and everyone pulled out their weapons. Both guards quickly froze up, then moved away from the entrance.
The dragon flew directly into the castle, and the king was astonished that his own daughter would break the laws of their land.
To bring one outsider into the kingdom would be a punishable offense, if it weren't for Dawn being who she is.
"Why have you brought these people, daughter? And where is your familiar?" The king asked.
"Father, I need to speak with you on a very important matter, involving my familiar."
"What matter is this?"
"Duncan has been forced to serve under a demon."
"Hah, I knew he could be no familiar to a member of the Lumina family."
"He did it to save us, all of us." Dawn said, gesturing to her friends standing behind her.
"That is no matter to me, leave my sight at once, and take these common humans with you."
Dawn was getting upset at her father, little did he know, she had one more card to play.
"Father, may I ask you a question?"
"I suppose."
"Do you realize what is happening outside of our kingdom?"
"No, and I do not care."
"A demon is plotting to destroy the entire country of Clandia, which could also include the Fairy Kingdom."
"We will not be so easily defeated by a single demon."
"This single demon created an army, who's numbers neared one thousand in three days. Imagine if he were to take three months?" Dawn said, and the people in the throne room gasped.
"What nonsense is this? It is not possible to gather that many, when you are but a single entity."
"He did it, father. We all saw it, and we all fought it."
"You went to war alongside these humans!" The King shouted, as he stood from his throne, but Dawn held her ground.
"Yes, and I would be alongside them many more times, because they are my friends, but that is beside the point. As it is now, this entire country will be destroyed, if we continue to hide in our own little world."
"This little world, as you call it, has kept our kind safe for centuries. We will not throw our defenses to the wind to save a mere werewolf."
"He is not just a werewolf!" Courtney shouted, as she walked up to the king, having become fed up with the kings words, but stopped when Zarron stood in her path.
"Father, if we do not act now, we will all perish." Dawn said, then turned around, and spoke directly to the royal council. "If we do not lead ourselves through the problems of this country, and continue to avoid them, humans, fairies, werewolves, and all other species alike, not a single one of us will survive." She said, and the council whispered amongst themselves. "If there is one thing I understand about most humans, it is that they are not the arrogant beings we think they are, they are actually a very kind, and just people, who will not hesitate to help others in need."
The king thought to himself, but ultimately decided to allow Dawn to continue. "What do you need to defeat this demon?"
"I must ascend the throne." Dawn said, and the royal council stood in shock.
"Why?" The king asked.
"Ascending the throne gives the queen, or king an incredible power does it not?"
"And you plan to use this power?"
"Yes."
"It solely amplifies your magical abilities ten fold, and only a member of the Lumina family can be granted such a power."
"Precisely."
The king read his daughter's face for a moment. "Very well." He said, and stood from his throne. "I, Terras Vett Lumina rescind my crown to my daughter, Dawn Alas Fee Lumina. Does anyone object?"
No on responded, and the kind removed the crown from his head.
Normally the passing of the crown involves a five day ceremony
Dawn walked up to the throne, and he placed the crown on her head.
The crown suddenly began changing into a thinner, more feminine style, and its once blue gems all around it, had turned into a single purple stone in the center, as she turned to face the crowd in the room.
Dawn herself felt an amazing rush of magical energy running through her body. The leaf shaped marks on her arms, and legs became bolder, and brighter, and her wings had grown a bit, and had developed a shiny flair to them.
"Now that you are queen of our kingdom, how will you defeat the demon?" The king asked.
"I will raise an army of our finest warriors, and alongside the army of Vantage City, we will take the down the demon known as Mal, and bring peace to this land." She said as she faced the people in the throne room. "Anyone in this room who is willing to volunteer, step forward." Dawn said.
Dawn waited patiently, but no one seemed to be willing to join the Queen on what most in the Fairy Kingdom would consider a suicide mission. After acting as an enclosed country on its own for such a long time, the citizens of the Fairy Kingdom would not easily follow a queen, who is unproven, and was literally crowned a few minutes ago, regardless of her family lineage.
"Lord Terras?" Leeren said.
"Yes?"
"I believe Princess Dawn, and her friends are more than capable of leading an army to defeat this demon."
"The army will not even follow her to battle, let alone defeat the demon. I see no point in handing over the crown, if our people do not even trust her." The now Lord Terras said.
"But I trust her, and I will follow her as part of the army." Leeren said, then flew to Dawn's side. The members of the royal council seemed shocked, while Dawn looked relieved.
"As will I." Zarron said, as he walked from his spot by the throne to Dawn's side as well.
Then after a few moments, a veteran guard stepped forward. "I volunteer." He said, then the entirety of the Kingdom's small guard contingent of one hundred members followed their captain, out of respect for him.
Soon after this, magic users, and self trained warriors of the Fairy Kingdom arrived at the castle, all of them wanting to join Dawn's army. Word had spread quickly, as the news of Dawn becoming queen, and creating an army were definitely something to talk about. The fact that the former king's own familiar, and his finest warrior were joining the army proved to be a point of interest to other prospective warriors.
Within the day, Dawn had an army of three hundred fairies, made up of warriors, guards, and magicians who were willing to give their lives for the safety, and freedom of their country.
Dawn, and her friends discussed their plan in her father's study.
"How is all this going to help us defeat the demon?" Heather asked. "You saw what he did to Tyler's dragon. It would be impossible to actually go at him head on."
"We have a plan." Dawn announced
"It's a long shot, but it might work." Scott said. "Using Dawn's new abilities we can transfer some of her light energy into my sword, and it should help us kill Mal."
"And if it doesn't?"
"Then we're screwed."
"But what if you do actually wound Mal, what do we do if he runs away?" Courtney asked.
"There's a backup to this plan. If he runs, we can tail him using a spell I learned, back when Duncan, and I were kids." Scott finished.
"How are you going to even get near him?" Zoey asked.
"I will be the bait." Dawn said. "It is obvious that Mal does not like my control over Duncan, and he will be furious, when he finds out how much stronger my control will be."
Heather, Courtney, and Zoey looked at each other uneasily, as if they knew both plans would fail already.
A knock was heard and, Scott opened the door, and in walked Dawn's father.
"Daughter, I must speak with you... Alone."
The others left, and Dawn's father locked the door.
"Dawn, now that you are queen, I feel I must tell you these secrets."
"What secrets, father?"
"With my power transferred to you the spirits from the sky will begin watching you."
"Spirits from the sky? Like the stories you spoke of when I was a child?"
"Yes, the next secret, is that your familiar, Duncan, will be able to drain magic from your body in order to protect you, and those he deems precious to you."
"Is that not a good thing?"
"Not at this moment. Since he has been taken over by a demon, he may be able to drain magic from you to use for evil. You must watch yourself very carefully."
Dawn thought for a moment. "I will be careful father." She said assuredly.
Sera, Crowe, and Louis had spent the entire day getting people into the hunters council building for their safety. The three council members had deemed a second attack by Mal to be unavoidable, and decided to open the councils doors to women, and children seeking shelter.
"We've got nearly all the women, children, and elderly in." Sera said, as she closed, and locked the doors to the council hall once again, then place her shield on the door, utilizing its magic to keep the door closed.
"What of the men?" Louis asked.
"They will have to fend for themselves, or fight alongside us. We need all the help we can get." Crowe said, before leaving swiftly to the watchtower at the gates of the city.
"I should take my leave as well. I have to make sure the defenses at the bay are fortified, in case of a nautical attack." He said, then left for the docks.
"I will join Crowe at the docks." Sera said to him.
Several hours later.
The Fairy army had arrived in Vantage City, and quickly set into their places at the gates of the city, knowing their enemies could be arriving at any moment.
"Once Mal is here, we'll need to strike, it'll be our only shot, and if it works, we will have nearly defeated. Is everyone clear on the plan?" Scott said, and everyone saluted.
A shadow formed in front of the gates, and stretched wide open, revealing Duncan, the wolves, and the shadow army, though Mal was no where in sight.
"I think this party needs some livening up." Duncan said, as he and the wolves morphed.
"That's funny, I didn't even know you could think." Scott said.
"Ohh, the witch speaks, does he?"
"Why don't you go lick your owner's feet, like the groveling dog you are."
"You wanna go?"
"Oh yeah."
"Let's go!" Duncan said, then charged at Scott, and the spellcaster did the same.
Scott pulled out his sword, and blocked a strike from Duncan.
"You've gotten faster since we we started hunting, I'll give you that... But a few days isn't gonna make a difference." Duncan said, then rushed Scott, grabbing him by the throat, and lifting him into the air.
"Stop." Dawn said, and Duncan began feeling the pressure from before.
The new queen walked over to her former familiar. "Please come back to us." She whispered in his ear.
Duncan dropped Scott, and jumped back. Visibly shaken by Dawn's mere words, that seemed to be his bane.
"Get them!" He shouted, at his wolves, and shadow creatures, who then charged at the army, while he shifted into a shadow, and disappeared.
Duncan retreated to the very top of the Hunter's Council, where his master was surveying the battle from a far.
"What happened?" Mal asked.
"Nothing." Duncan said, as he caught his breath. Dawn's words felt similar to a rope being throttled around his neck. "It wasn't this bad before." He said to himself.
"What wasn't this bad?" Mal asked, and Duncan's eyes went wide.
"Uhh, nothing."
Mal raised his hand to Duncan's face, and instantly saw everything the werewolf had seen in the past twenty minutes.
"Let's go." Mal said.
"Where?"
"To get rid of that nuisance, once and for all."
Mal, and Duncan both appeared amidst the battle raging in front of the gates once again.
Mal began walking into the fray, easily taking down any who tried to attack him. He sights were set firmly on Dawn.
The Fairy seemed to be holding her own, using her newfound abilities to great effect, by healing the wounded, and even fending off attackers, with a new attack called Vibrablast, which sends a concentrated blast of wind from her wings against her enemies.
Once Mal got close enough, Scott quickly called on the entire army.
"Protect your queen!" He shouted, as he charged at Mal, along with many of the soldiers.
Mal quickly threw a blast of shadow magic, knocking all of the soldiers away, except for Scott.
The Spellcaster continued his charge, having blocked Mal's attack with his magically charged sword.
Scott quickly slashed at Mal, who dodged easily. Another slash came, but Mal simply shifted into a shadow then reappeared.
Scott quickly turned on the absorption of his sword. "Dawn!" He shouted.
Dawn shot a blast of light energy using her newfound abilities at Scott's sword.
The sword glowed with a white aura, and Mal felt physically weakened by it.
"What in the-" Mal started, but was cut off when Scott slashed at him with the blade again, this time wounding the demon.
Mal stood shocked, as he looked down at his own chest to see a wound that would not heal like before.
Duncan quickly ran up to protect his master, grabbing Scott's sword by the blade, and punching the spellcaster with so much force, it sent him flying.
"Duncan!" Courtney shouted, as she ran towards the werewolf.
Mal shifted into a shadow, and disappeared. Duncan began running towards the shadow.
"Duncan! Don't leave!" Courtney shouted, and stopped in her tracks.
The werewolf looked back at her before following his master.
"Courtney, let's go!" Scott shouted.
"Right." She said.
The plan all along was to lure Mal to the battle using Dawn as bait. Once he arrived Scott was to attack him with his sword, charged by Dawn's newfound energy, and hopefully leave a wound, and subsequently plant a small amount of light magic into Mal, which would act as a tracker, when coupled with a spell Scott had yet to use called Arc Tracer. The plan had a fifty-fifty chance of failure, but the warriors went through anyway, and came out on the positive side.
Scott, Courtney, Dawn, Zoey, and Heather followed Mal's trail, while the others stayed to fight off the shadow army.
The Arc Tracer spell lead them all the way to the council hall.
"It won't budge." Heather said, as she tried to push the door.
"Sera's shield has a force field that blocks all types of attacks. I guess it works well as a lock too." Courtney said.
"Let's pull the shield off then!" Zoey shouted.
"Why would they even retreat here?" Heather asked.
"So Mal can heal himself, and then return to the battle." Courtney answered.
"Guys! They're on the roof!" Scott shouted irritated by their ideas.
"Oh." They all said in unison.
"Let's start climbing." Heather said.
"Wait." Dawn said, then turned around. "Leeren!" She shouted.
As quick as lightning, the dragon appeared before them. "Yes, my queen?"
"Take us up to the roof." She said, and everyone climbed on Leeren's back.
"Shit." Duncan said, as the others jumped down on to the roof. "Master!" He shouted.
Mal was at the corner of the roof, trying to heal himself, but to no avail. "What!?" He shouted back at Duncan, before turning around and realizing they had been found already.
All at once everyone charged at Mal, who easily dodge them all, but took extra care in dodging Scott and Dawn's attacks.
"Duncan!" The demon shouted.
"Right." Duncan said, then morphed into his werewolf form.
He set his sights on Scott, and charged.
Scott readied himself for Duncan's attack, and parried Duncan's strike, then struck back at him. Duncan wasn't easily taken, and the werewolf grabbed the blade like before, and this time threw it off the building, and to the floor, stories below them.
Scott realizing he had just lost his weapon, used his lightning bolts to keep Duncan at bay.
The girls, and Leeren hit Mal with everything they had.
Zoey tried to use her newfound strength, but began feeling weaker by the minute.
"Zoey, are you okay?" Dawn asked.
"Im fine, I think." She answered, as her hair retuned to its normal color, and a shadow phased out of Zoey, and flew towards Mal, leaving her weakened.
"I was wondering where I left that." Mal said, then smiled evilly.
Leeren charged at Mal, but the demon shifted into a shadow, then grabbed the dragon by his horns , and slammed his head into the ground, and threw him off to the side.
Courtney, and Heather attacked Mal simultaneously, much like Tyler, and Luther in the first battle.
Heather went high, and Courtney went low. Mal seeing their teamwork, shifted into the shadows to dodge, then punched Heather square in the jaw, sending the girl flying near the edge of the roof.
"Heather!" Courtney shouted, then gritted her teeth in anger, and continued the onslaught.
Dawn took the opportunity to speak with Duncan, while he battled with Scott.
"Duncan." She said, and her former familiar froze up.
"Duncan will you please come back to us."
The werewolf's body began cracking the roof of the hall. He was trying to resist her words, but it wasn't working.
Mal noticed Dawn, and quickly tried to shift but Courtney stopped him.
"Where do you think you're going!?" She shouted at the demon.
Mal said nothing, but pulled her scythe away from her, and threw it over the roof.
This did not deter Courtney.
She grabbed Mal by the shoulder, and tried to punch him, but the demon caught her fist.
"Why do you continue to fight?" He asked.
"I'll kill you, if it's the last thing I do." She shouted, as she swung her other fist at him, but Mal stopped it with his free hand.
"Is it because of the werewolf? Do you actually want to save him?"
"I'd do anything for him!"
"That's a lie. You don't really care about him. You're just waiting for him to slip up, so you can kill him yourself."
"You don't know anything!"
"My spells only worked on you because of your underlying hatred for Duncan. I make the evil intent come out more. You could say, you'd love to kill him."
Courtney's strength began to wither. The things Mal was saying didn't seem to be too far from the truth, the more she thought about it.
Why had she begun dating Duncan?
Was it because she found herself attracted to him? Or was it something else?
Jealousy? Envy? Did she actually want to kill Duncan? Was it because she couldn't stand the fact that he could be better than her at anything if he tried?
"Foolish Girl." Mal said, as he began to over power Courtney.
"Duncan." He said, but looked over to see his servant on his knees before Dawn, and in his human form.
Dawn speaking to him enough had nearly broken the werewolf from Mal's control.
Mal quickly pushed Courtney away, and made his way towards Dawn.
"Get back here!" Courtney shouted, as she charged at Mal.
Mal turned back towards her, and levitated her body into the air. "You fight with so much heart, let's see how you fare without it." He said, then raised his other hand towards Courtney, and began making a squeezing motion.
Courtney was suddenly short of breath, and her chest began to throb
Duncan, Dawn, and Scott all looked towards the two.
"What's he doing?" Scott asked.
"He is hurting her!" Dawn shouted.
Then Mal clenched his fist.
All at once, Courtney went limp, and her breathing ceased.
Mal dropped her lifeless body to the floor, and turned his attention back towards Dawn.
Scott grabbed Heather's katana, and immediately charged at Mal, taking several slashes at him, before the demon got the upper hand, and hit Scott with a shadow blast, but he was not easily defeated, and quickly got back to his feet, and charged again.
Duncan crawled over to Courtney's lifeless body. At a loss for words, the werewolf pulled her into his arms, and squeezed tightly.
"Wake up..." He finally said. "Please... Wake up."
The werewolf was still teetering on the brink of breaking from Mal's control, when he finally realized that the one he loved was truly gone.
Then he snapped.
"No!" He shouted, which turned into an elongated howl.
Magic energy began flowing out from Dawn, and into Duncan, dropping her to the floor in a weakened state, much like Mal did to Zoey.
Duncan's shadow self withered away, showing his original from, then he transformed.
Instead of his normal werewolf transformation, he turned into a pure white wolf.
The sky began to darken, lightning could be seen, and thunder was heard.
A large beam of energy shot down from the sky, and hit right where Duncan was standing.
Mal, and Scott had both ceased their battle, and looked towards Duncan, completely confused as to what was happening.
When the beam disappeared, Duncan's physical form had changed slightly, with several golden streaks now laying in his white fur, and pure white eyes, but a new energy was felt coming from the werewolf. It was something more powerful than anyone had ever encountered before..
The werewolf stepped forward, and as quick as a flash, charged Mal, and had the demon's throat in his grip.
Mal blasted Duncan with a shadow blast, before he could do anymore damage.
The werewolf let go, but then charged again.
Mal shifted into a shadow, but Duncan reached in, and pulled him out, shocking Mal again.
With his only means of escape not working, Mal decided it was time to end this fight.
He levitated Duncan's body into the air, and tried to do the same thing he did to Courtney, which only angered the werewolf, who broke free from the hold, and grabbed the demon's raised arm, then he swung Mal into the air, and slammed him into the ground.
The werewolf kneeled, and began punching Mal repeatedly.
The demon looked frantically for some form of escape, and eventually blasted Duncan with shadow again, then shifted while the werewolf was distracted.
Mal raised his hands in the air, and, started his Shadow Wave, in hopes it would take down Duncan's newfound strength.
Mal concentrated the attack onto Duncan, and launched it.
The werewolf merely smacked it away, and into the sky, as if it were nothing. The disbelief in the eyes of Mal, Scott, Dawn, and Zoey was easily evident.
Duncan got into a semi crouching stance, and began concentrating.
Mal tried to shift once more, but Duncan clapped his hands, and the shadow Mal was using disappeared.
A feint light could be seen coming from the werewolf's mouth.
"What in the hell are you!?" Mal shouted, having finally lost his confidence.
Duncan opened his mouth, and let out a gigantic blast of light energy.
The energy hit Mal dead on, and vaporized the demon from Mike's body.
Mike fell to the floor in an intense amount of pain. "Zoey..." He whispered.
"Mike?" She said, as she struggled to get up.
The girl frantically made her way over, but fell right in front of him. After raising herself to her knees, she caressed Mike's face with her hand.
He opened his eyes. "Hi." He said, then coughed.
"Hi." She said through tears.
"Zoey, I just want to tell yo-" He stopped after pain shot through him. "I love you." Then his breathing ceased.
"Mike!" She shook him a bit. "Mike!"
At the gates of Vantage City, the battle was over, when the shadow creatures disappeared, and most of the creatures returned to normal, and fled back to their homes.
"Did we win?" Tyler asked.
"I guess so." Trent answered.
"That means they did it, right?" Cameron asked.
The army began cheering for the defeat of Mal.
Duncan walked over to Zoey, holding Mike's body and stared.
"Duncan?" She said looking up at the werewolf, while crying.
"I am not Duncan." The werewolf said, in a deep, and ethereal voice that echoed.
"What?" Zoey asked, suddenly frightened by the voice.
"Who are you then?" Scott said to the werewolf as he held Heather's katana in a battle stance.
"You have no need to fear. I am not here to harm any of you. I am merely here to rid the world of this accursed demon."
"Are you a spirit from the sky?" Dawn asked, as Scott helped her stand up.
"Yes."
"How did you know?" Scott asked her.
"My father used to tell me stories about them. He said they're great powerful beings, who's light will shine down on those they deem worthy."
"So, Duncan?" Scott asked.
"Yes." The werewolf said. "Your friend Duncan has amazing power, but he has much to learn still. All this power is his own, I simply took over, and awakened it."
"But why did you come down when you did? You could've saved Courtney, if you came sooner!" Scott shouted.
"I was not supposed to interfere. I willingly came down to aid you in defeating the demon. As we speak, my punishment is being decided."
"Punishment?" Dawn asked.
"It is against our rules to meddle in the affairs of the creatures of this world, but I could not stand idly by, and watch this demon known as Mal destroy you all, especially Duncan."
"Why Duncan?" Scott asked.
"He will have to face many trials in the near future, trials that will threaten this entire world much more than this demon could have." The werewolf said, then looked towards Courtney's body. "She is the one you speak of?"
"Yes." Dawn answered.
"I will revive all that have been killed because of Mal, just this once." He said, then raised his hands into the air.
A light began glowing from his hands, and shot off into the sky.
A large breath could be heard from Courtney's body, then she sat up, breathing heavily, and holding her chest, much to the shock of everyone.
"What happened? I'm alive?" She said, looking at her own hands, then she spotted Duncan's new form. "Duncan?" She said, then quickly got up.
Zoey looked down at Mike again, but there was no sign of life. "What about Mike?" She asked the werewolf.
"He is not with us in my world."
"What does that mean!?" She shouted.
"It means, I cannot revive him. His soul is not in my world."
Zoey started crying again.
"If you're not Duncan, then who are you?" Courtney asked.
"Do not worry about who I am, I revived you, and the others killed by Mal to help Duncan in the future. He will need all the help he can get for the trials he will face in the future, and having a queen, and a princess of two different nations allied with him will be a great asset."
"Wait, what princess? Dawn is the queen." Scott said.
"My mistake, having a queen will be a great asset." The werewolf corrected. "Do not let Duncan know what I have done, otherwise he may stray from his path." The werewolf said, then faded from Duncan's body.
Duncan returned to his human form. "Courtney?" He said, then almost fell to the floor, but Courtney quickly caught him, and held him up as best she could.
She held his head against hers. "I missed you." She said.
The next day, was possibly the hardest day in Zoey's life.
A funeral for Mike was held at the Hunter's Council. The official statement is that Mike was possessed by Mal, but sacrificed himself to help release Duncan from his control. The werewolf and the others then destroyed the demon. Sera is the one who decided on this statement, to hopefully quell the rumors that Ma survived, or that Mike was acting of his own accord, and no possession ever took place.
Mike is now buried in the graveyard behind the hall located passed the courtyard, and outside bar area. He is laid only a few plots away from the grave of Tauren the Silverback.
After the funeral nearly everyone from Vantage City attended a speech by Governor Wrett.
"It is with a heavy heart that I say thank you to Michael of the Fallen Angels for his sacrifice, were it not for him we would not be standing here today. My thanks on behalf of the citizens of Vantage go out to the Fairy Kingdom, its army, and most of all its queen, Dawn Alas Fee Lumina, as well as our Hunter's Council who stayed to fight, and the guild members who followed them. At this time we now know that there are forces of evil that would like to see our civilization fall, but with the help of our new ally, we shall over come them." He finished, and the entire crowd cheered.
Heather left to the hotel she, and her guild had been staying at, although she was still a bit sore from the fight with Mal. she was admitted to the hospital the day Mal was destroyed, along with everyone else involved in the battles.
She opened her door to find someone had packed her things. "Who's here!?" She shouted.
"Where have you been?" A voice called, as the source stepped out from the restroom. It was her mother Blaineley.
"Mom?" Heather said shocked, by her dead mother's appearance.
"Who did you expect?"
"But... But you're dead."
"Dead? Why would I be dead?"
Realizing her mother was back to life somehow, Heather quickly embraced her in a hug, which surprised Blaineley.
"Are you feeling well?" Blaineley said. "Heather, you have a huge bruise on your cheek."
"I got into a fight." She said, as a single tear came down her cheek. Though she never showed it, she realized how much her mom actually meant to her.
DJ, Cameron, and Gwen checked in on Owen, and Chris McLean.
"Oh thank god, finally someone came to rescue me." McLean said.
"You're lucky Blaineley is alive McLean, so I wouldn't push my luck if I were you." Gwen said.
"Blaineley? She was dead?"
"Uhh, yeah, you killed her."
"What are you talking about?"
"Uhh, guys this might be a good time to tell you that Mal was controlling Chris when he blew up the mansion." Owen said, and all three looked at him angrily.
"I blew up my cottage!" Chris shouted.
"Cottage? That was a mansion." Gwen said.
"Cottage. Mansion. Same difference."
"No it isn't."
"Whatever, all I know, is you assholes owe me a cottage... mansion... whatever!"
Scott, and Dawn spent the rest of the day together, knowing that they would have to separate for some time, when she returned home.
The two had gone out for a walk in the forest, where Scott had first seen Leeren.
Not much was said, the two just enjoyed each other's company.
They sat against a tree, Dawn's head against Scott's shoulder, just like the wagon ride home, when Dawn first joined the guild.
"Hey." He said, and she looked up.
"Yes?"
"Next time you come around, let's get married."
"What?" She said surprised by Scott's statement.
"Uhh... Uhh... I mean... Uhh nevermind..." He said, thinking he may have overstepped his boundaries.
Dawn sat up, and turned towards him. "Give me your hand."
He complied, and she entwined her hand in his. "Do you Scott, take Dawn to be your wife?"
"Huh?" He said confused.
"Do you?" She reiterated.
"Yeah."
"And do you Dawn take Scott to be your husband?" She nodded, then answered herself. "I do." She raised their hands in the air. "Then by the throne of the Fairy Kingdom, and its queen, I pronounce you husband, and wife. You may now seal your marriage with a kiss."
She leaned over towards Scott, and he did as well. They shared a kiss, and officially became husband, and wife.
"You can do stuff like that?" He asked, as they got up to head back to the guild hall.
"I knew I was to be queen in the future, so I took the liberty of reading the books in my father's library. One of them told of the governmental powers of a queen. I can unite two people in marriage, even if one of them is myself." She smiled, and kissed him.
Zoey was taking Mike's death quite well, even after he was buried. She realized that Mike would want her to be strong, even in hard times, and decided she would change her outlook on life as it were.
Although her memories of Mike always came back to her, when she saw something that reminded her of him.
She decided it would best to leave the city for a while, and thus set out for the guild hall to collect her things.
When she arrived at the Fallen Angels guild hall, she walked in to find Sierra, and Cody making dinner.
"Zoey! You're back!" Sierra said, as she embraced her in a hug.
'Hi, Sierra."
"How are you holding up?" Cody asked.
"Cody!" Sierra shouted.
"It's fine, Sierra. I'm hanging in there, but I do have some news. I'm gonna be leaving Vantage, and the guild for a while."
"Why?" Sierra asked.
"This city reminds too much of Mike, and I don't think I can heal, if everywhere I look, there are memories of him."
"Okay, I understand. Do you need help packing your things?"
"Yeah, that'd be great." She said, then the door to the guild hall, could be heard slamming shut.
All three walked out to find Courtney breathing heavily, as if she gad been running.
"Courtney?" Zoey said.
"Hi, how are you holding up? Their guild leader asked.
"I'm fine, but are you?"
"Why do you ask?"
Then a knock was heard at the door. "Courtney?" The voice of Duncan could be heard.
"Shit." Courtney whispered. "Tell him I'm not here." She said, then ran towards the stairs.
"Why?"
"Just do it!" She shouted, then covered her mouth, and went up to her room.
Zoey opened the door. "Hi, Duncan."
"Hey, Red, is Courtney here?"
"No, she's not."
"Dammit, where could she be?" He said turning around. "I wanted to know if she wanted to hang out, before I leave."
"Back to the Fairy Kingdom?"
"Yeah."
"Umm, I need a favor."
"What?"
"Can I come with you to the Fairy Kingdom?"
"Why?"
"I can't stay here anymore."
Duncan understanding Zoey's plight, easily granted Zoey her favor. "Yeah, you can come."
Duncan, and Courtney's reunion was not as heart warming as Dawn, and Scott's union. It could be called the opposite completely.
Duncan had gotten out of the hospital, and searched for Courtney, however she was no where to be found.
Courtney was actually avoiding Duncan as best she could. After Mal was defeated, she remembered the things the demon had told her, and she couldn't bare to look Duncan in the face, because she feared the moment she did, she would realize those things were true. She tried hard to not think about the things Mal had said, but to no avail. She almost didn't show up to see Dawn, Duncan, Zoey, and the Fairy Army off. She had no intention of going, that is until Arch Queen showed up to her guild hall, and dragged her along.
When they arrived at the Gateway to Hell guild hall, Duncan was outside waiting.
He quickly grabbed Courtney in hug, lifted her off the ground, and kissed her. She instantly melted into his arms, but then focused, and pushed him away.
"What's wrong, Courtney?"
"Duncan, I... Don't think I can handle this anymore."
"What?"
"This." She gestured to herself, then him.
"Is it because I'm leaving?"
"It's not just that." She huffed. "I think I need some time to figure out my feelings, okay."
"Are you breaking up with me?"
"Duncan, I just-"
"No, I get it." He cut her off. "I'm gonna be gone a while, so I'm gonna give you the time you need. I want you to know that I do love you, and I'll still love you when I come back, even if you don't want me, because I know my feelings for you will never change."
Courtney could feel tears coming from her eyes, she wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him. "I'll be waiting." She said.
AN: Damn... The Mal arc is finally over... On to the next! The next two or three chapters will be in-between chapters, that happen during the two year time skip I'm doing. I think I might end up posting all three chapters on the same day if I can get them done by next week. Thanks for the support guys, I'm trying my best to update, and I'm glad I still have some readers.