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Duo swung his scythe around with a slightly psychotic cheeriness. His enemies dropped around him, whether it be from fear or from some mortal wound. The Dead army followed, rolling through the enemy and leaving no trace of it being there.
The army ran, terrified of the manifested Death which was coming for them. After what seemed like hours, only small smoldering fires and weapons remained of the enemy.
Duo stared outwards, noticing the wind shift back towards them. Turning, he gripped tighter on his scythe and examined the ghostly soldiers.
"You have done your duty, I release you," he murmured in a voice that didn't seem to belong to him.
The dead soldiers nodded and seemed to condense into the mist. The wind took over, carrying it into nothingness.
Although the large makeshift tent was quiet, it was still extremely busy. The hurt and ailing occupied small blankets and cots and were tended to by experienced healers.
Heero, Trowa, and Wu Fei were surrounding a very small white cot in a seperate tent where the fourth member of the group lay, his skin paler than the white sheets.
He entered into the room, seeing the two bodies against the floor, their clothes reddened. Dark was standing over the young girl, still clutching at the sword.
The shadow glanced momentarily at him then motioned towards the prostrate blonde.
Take him. the shadow held out its paw and a darkened, blurred circle appeared against the wall. This will transport you to the edge of the battlefield. The pirates will be taken as well.
Heero bent down and gently pressed his thumb against Quatre's neck. There was a sudden soft red glow, and it seemed his pulse became stronger.
That had been a day ago. The remaining troops were being hunted down by Duo and the rest of the army, while the rest of the fighters were sleeping and tending to the wounded.
Trowa sat closest to Quatre's bed, gently cradling his still hand and staring, for the first time it seemed he was worried. Heero had his back turned, his eyebrows wrinkled in deep thought.
Two red eyes watched, but no body could be seen to go with them.
With Evil's heart the Light should fall.. The healer's hands are covered in blood..
The prophecy had almost been completely fulfilled, but one part was missing..
"It's me," he murmured softly to no one in particular.
Wu Fei and Trowa looked at him questionably.
"The healer's hands are covered in blood. I'm the healer." Heero answered in a perfectly simplistic tone.
"But the tapestry.."
"Is wrong," Heero replied as he stood up. "Obviously Duo is Death, Wu Fei is the Dragon.. Trowa is the forest, and Quatre is the Light, leaving only one more.."
Trowa nodded, still squeezing to Quatre's hand.
Now came the hard part. Many people would question what they were doing, but Heero was more intent on getting it done. "I'll need some water and fresh cloths."
The two nodded and departed, leaving enough breathing room for Heero to relax slightly. He had never called anyone a friend, but Quatre could be considered as an ally, and his estates were big enough to hide from the ever-present Relena Dorlian when he was feeling antisocial.
Carefully, he set his palm against the blonde's chest wound, unsure what to do. The red light appeared again, but this time it made him feel nauseated. A part of his own life was creeping away, and it took all his willpower not to pull away.
A few minutes later Quatre's body relieved a long-held breath and his pure blue eyes opened. Heero withdrew his hand as he realized the large wound was gone. Forcing the ill feeling away, he glared.
"I know," Quatre whispered weakly. "Idiot.."
Heero's eyes rolled towards the back of his head and he collapsed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Frederick stared silently at the image of the battlefield. Nothing remained of the Southern armies, nor of the woman named Elaina. He supposed the shadow had finally taken revenge for years of torment and slavery, although the truth would never fully be known.
The bright blast of light had purged the remaining evil, never to return in full strength again. For the first time, the powers were perfectly in balance. He had to admt the wisdom of the foolish decision; by the attempted suicide the blonde had purged the darkness within him, but hadn't taken to the light either. Both sides had become completely in balance.
The Fates had indeed chosen the perfect group to lead the land into a new age, and he was glad. Time could march on, with or without magical interference.
In short, he mused to himself, the good guys had won.
"We'll miss y'sir." Red bowed sadly. "We only wish ye could stay longer."
The pirates were ready to leave and return to the sea, but Heero declined going with them. They'd wiped out the entire black castle, proving the group was strong enough to be fearful.
"Hm." Heero grunted in response.
The pirates all seemed to suddenly grin. Heero hadn't time to think before he was caught in a tremendous bear hug, so tight it was becoming hard to breathe. Heero's expression changed from indifference to indignance and he shot his very best death glare.
The pirates grinned cheerfully then waved. "G'bye! Perhaps we'll meet again!"
Heero watched them leave, and the very faintest smile appeared on his face. He set his hand against his sword and walked back, ready for the final destination to the castle.
The dragons quietly bowed their heads as Wu Fei placed a hand against their nostrils. They let out a slight pleased puff of smoke and stepped back.
"They're going to follow us back to the borders," Wu Fei translated. "And," he glanced at the purple, whose face widened in a smug expression. "He wants to know if he can eat you." he glanced at Duo.
Duo jumped back several feet. "No way.."
Both dragons chuckled and stepped back, flapping their enormous wings. A loud rush of air flattened the grass under them as they lifted off.
Anne watched, still amazed that the great beasts had succumbed to the boy's will. In fact, she was still in shock at the way things had turned out. She followed Wu Fei back to the rest of the worn group, ready to take the final journey home.
Quatre rode next to Trowa, looking tired but stronger than the day before. Occasionally he'd offer lighthearted conversation, which was a good sign that he was recovering. The others rode in silence, deep in thought over the past events. Duo was the only extremely cheerful one in the group, annoying Heero and Wu Fei and swinging his scythe, nearly chopping off a few heads.
As they approached the castle gates, they noted how silent it was. In fact.. almost too silent..
The doors burst open and a mob of people ran out, excited and relieved of the safe return of their loved ones.
"You know what this means," Duo grinned. "Par-TAY!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Throughout the night, only the delighted cheers could be heard. Trowa settled down in the small courtroom, oblivious to the parties outside in the market. Quatre was still upstairs, sleeping off the remains of his battle. Neither he nor Heero had said anything about what had really happened, and he doubted they would. He sipped softly on a small drink and enjoyed the silence.
A faint giggle swept through the room. He stopped as he saw her bright green eyes staring at him. He jerked back, almost falling out of his chair.
"I told you you could do it.." Autumn smirked. "Thank you,"
Trowa nodded and tried to step back, but Autumn drew closer, nearly touching noses with him.
"HEY TROWA!" Duo shouted from the door. He blinked and did a double take as he saw the girl toppled over Trowa.
The girl instantly disappeared and Trowa jumped back to his feet.
"Wa.." Duo looked at Trowa again, then at his drink and shook his head. "Naaah." he shut the door and swallowed down more of the beverage.
Trowa stared, then fell back against the chair, his face completely red.
"It looks like things have calmed down," Quatre mused silently as he settled back in the chair, holding a cup of warm tea. He sat near the balcony, watching the exicitement and fireworks.
"Yeah." Heero replied in his usual monotone. The healing had left a strange, uncomfortable feeling in him, as if he'd become permanently bonded to the blonde. Perhaps in a way he had.
Quatre cringed slightly, still fully aware of the chest wound that he'd harbor for years. It hadn't been a wise choice, but the only one available to him. Now, he was losing what remained of his magic, and he had no wish to keep it. "I think we'll have to return soon,"
Heero glanced at the blonde as he took another swig of his drink. Quatre shifted uncomfortably in his seat and stared at the ground.
"I'm.. starting to miss everyone, Rasid.. my sisters.. Miss Noin," a slight reddish blush spread on his cheeks.
"Hn," Heero said.
Quatre's face grew even redder as he tried to turn around. He cringed painfully and set his hand against the wall.
"Sit down," Heero ordered, glaring. Quatre fell back into his seat while the brunette set his drink against the floor and walked out of the room, checking for the others.
"Dark, I know you're still here," Quatre whispered as he stared at the wall.
The shadow appeared, looking less than suprrised. You're ready to leave.
"As soon as the others get here." he replied softly. "They don't need us anymore."
And then you'll fade into legends, never to be seen or heard from again. Dark stared silently.
"That's fine." he smiled. "Someone must make the legend, and the others must pass it on. We've done our part." there was a noise and the door opened. Wu Fei, Trowa, Heero, and Duo came, followed by Anne.
"Ready?" Quatre quietly summoned up the remnants of his power into a very small whitened glow.
Duo grinned at Anne. "You know you're gonna miss me.."
"Like a goblin," she replied, casually resting her hand against his shoulder. "There will finally be peace and quiet again,"
"You two be quiet," Wu Fei snapped as he stared at the small beam of light that was filling the room. "It's time to go home!"
Duo walked within the glow and stared at his comrades. Sure, it had seemed weird to be there at first, but now it seemed strange to be leaving..
Anne and Dark watched as the glow disappeared, leaving a lingering silence.
She cursed softly, she was missing them already. The shadow just stared, silently bowing his head.
May your journey be a safe and prosperous one.. he turned and headed towards the wall, becoming semitransparent.
"They won't come back, will they?" Anne finally asked.
Perhaps. he disappeared through the wall. But they shall not be forgotten. Legends never truly are.
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*phew* Okay, yeah, that was long and kind of bad, but trust me, endings to fantasies are harder to write than they seem to be. Also, I wanted to finish it today because we're leaving for our Christmas vacation and I won't be back for a while.
First off, I want to thank my previwer Bean Burrito, the insane person who had to read and suffer through all of this first. (she also gave me an idea for part of this) Secondly, I want to thank every single one of my reviewers. I know who you are, and I'm reading your stories too!! Muaha!! (And I'm trying to review too.)
Third, thanks to everyone who read. Hope you enjoyed it!
Disclaimer for all the story: I don't own GW. I do own this story, and the other characters held within. Okay, so there were a lot of big LOTR and Zelda allusions but I somehow put this togther. I'm broke already, so there's no point in laying charges against me.