"The Treaty"
By Deltara and thew40
"Here they come," Man-at-Arms whispered. "Let them get well within range before firing. Avoid casualties where you can. If they leave you no choice, take them down."
A chorus of voices responded. Hundreds of troops were concealed around the three Towers. Attack-traks, battlerams, and ground troops awaited the approaching snake hordes. Two squadrons of Wind Raiders awaited the command to take to the skies to strafe the enemy from above.
They could hear the approaching serpents though they could not yet see them. King Hiss wasn't making any great pains to hide his forces or conceal their destination. After hearing of He-Man's departure for the Planet Primus in some future time, King Hiss assembled all of his snake armies for one massive assault against the Great Towers.
Snake Men slowly appeared over the horizon marching in massive formations across the northern region of the Sands of Time. As the hordes approached, the smell of fear began to rise from the hidden human defenders. They knew King Hiss had a massive army, but now, for the first time, they were getting a good look at it. Most were foot soldiers armed with swords and shields. Many carried pikes over four meters in length usually used against infantry charges. Somewhere in that living mass of marching serpents were King Hiss and General Rattlor. They were the key to defeating the army. Knock them out and the army would fall apart. Crush the head of the snake, and the body dies. Finding them would be no easy task. Defeating them would be even harder.
Duncan and Teela examined the approaching enemy through electrobinoculars. Mekaneck issued continuous reports on what he saw from above. His view was even worse. They didn't have enough to defend the Great Towers. All they could do was inflict as much damage as they could. The call had gone out two days ago for help from their allies once King Hiss' intent became known, but to date, no one had come. With the serpent army now on the horizon, the coming battle looked grim, indeed.
King Randor hunkered down in the entrance of the Central Tower, laser rifle at the ready. Every able-bodied man had been turned out and armed for this fight. Even so, their numbers were pitifully few. Avions. Insectoids, Cats, and Bears. All of these races could have bolstered the defenses, and bettered the odds against the nearly two thousand Snake Men marching on the Great Towers.
But they weren't here.
King Hiss' army continued to march on the Great Towers. Hours dragged on as the force closed on its target. At last, just before dusk, the army halted. Almost immediately, those carrying spears began thumping them against the barren terrain of the Sands of Time while the array of serpents worked themselves into a frenzied rage. The plan was simply to overwhelm the defenders with shear numbers no matter the cost. King Hiss anticipated a quick victory. Once the Great Towers fell, Castle Grayskull would be next.
Soldiers all along the lines transitioned from nervous to uneasy to just plain terrified as the Snake Men continued to work themselves into the killer rage necessary to overwhelm them. Men sweated bullets anticipating the assault just minutes away.
Suddenly, a laser bolt lanced out of the gathering dark. It exploded against a cobra-like Snake Men in the front rank near the south end of the line. Everything ceased as if a switch had been thrown. The chanting and thumping stopped. Humans and snakes held their collective breath. Even the nightlife quieted down ominously. The dead serpent toppled with nary a whimper, hitting the dusty ground like a sack of potatoes.
Up and down the line Snake Men roar, spat, and hissed impatiently to be about destroying the humans, and capturing the Great Towers for their master. King Hiss climbed atop a large bolder near the front of his formations. Clutched in his left hand was his scepter with a cobra coiled around it with its head capping it off. The rod expanded to over a meter in length as the leader of the Snake Men thrust the gauntleted fist clutching the rod forward. King Hiss issued a mighty roar to his army.
Serpents of every type a description surged forward eager to please their master. The human defenders held their fire until, though many itched to begin firing. The closer the enemy got, the harder it would be to beat them back. Duncan counted down the numbers, as the enemy continued to close the distance unmindful of the defensive fire they knew was about to be unleashed.
Duncan had to scream into his mike for the defenders to hear his order to open fire.
Red laser bolts boiled through the dusk air. Scores fell in the opening barrage, but their bodies did not hinder those coming up from behind. They simply trampled the corpses of the fallen in an effort to get to the humans defending the Great Towers. Those on the extreme left flank defending Viper Tower were the first to come into contact with the raging serpents. The line commander on that end ordered his men to draw swords as the creatures slammed into their lines. The fighting lowered to the most primitive level as human defenders sought to keep the enraged serpents away from Viper Tower.
A new sound filled the air as the screaming snake hordes drew steadily closer to their objective. Explosions rippled through the ranks of snakes awaiting their shot of the annoying humans. Many of the siege engines being moved up from the rear exploded raining flaming debris everywhere. With the noise the Snake Men made winding themselves up to a killer frenzy, no one heard the Wind-Raiders light off their engines and roar into the gathering night sky. Now, they made their presence above the battlefield known in a surprisingly dramatic fashion.
Glowing red drives marked the passing of the Wind- Raiders as they executed one staffing run after another. Nothing seemed to make a dent in the army despite the blazing infernos marking destroyed siege engines. Attack-traks and battlerams soon engaged the enemy on their left flank.
Hiss ignored these new threats, and pressed the attack against the Central Tower. He could see King Randor cowering in the entrance blasting away at the enemy slowing closing in to destroy him. Once all resistance had been swept away, this planet would once again belong to the Snake Men.
Despite valiant attempts to keep them away, the serpents still closed the distance on all fronts to close range where they were the most lethal. Duncan rallied those Heroic Warriors who could disengage, and fell back on the Central Tower. Ram Man hefted a blood-splattered battleaxe. Teela joined him at the entrance with Stratos, Mekaneck, Man-E-Faces, and Orko. All looked haggard from the grim fighting, but were still determined to deny the towers to King Hiss.
"Father, we can't hold out much longer. We've been inflicting heavy casualties, but they just keep coming," Teela said, struggling for breath. She, like all the others, was rapidly reaching the end of her endurance.
A grim-faced Man-at-Arms stared at the serpent hordes nearly at their doorstep. "I know. We have to keep fighting. Someone will surely come to our aid."
King Randor countered, wearily, " Do you really think so? This battle is nearly lost. Many brave men have lost their lives this day. And for what?"
Before anyone could respond, King Hiss led the final assault that would win him the Central Tower. Troops stood in his way, and were promptly engaged by his trailing hordes. The remaining Heroic Warriors were engaged and drawn away from the entrance, which left only King Randor and a few soldiers to deal with.
"Your forcessss are defeated. Leave the Great Towers to me and I will allow what little remains of your forces to live," King Hiss invited, snake staff held at the ready.
"As your slaves?" Randor invited, and Hiss nodded. "Never!"
The Eternian king drew his sword, and charged the serpent king. Hiss blocked the human's overhead strike with ease, but he didn't count on the follow-up strikes. The aging king still possessed quick reflexes. King Hiss found himself being driven around by his opponent when it should have been the other way around. Hiss dodged another horizontal sweep from Randor's razor-sharp blade, and struck back instantly. The snake staff snapped out and around to Randor's right and slammed into the back of the right knee. Already off balance from the missed sweep, the knee buckled, and the man was dumped to the floor. Randor landed hard on his back, shoulders jarred so badly he lost his grip on the sword. Hiss stood over his prey with snake staff held high ready to impale the king with the pointed end.
A commotion outside stayed Hiss' hand. The fighting around the Great Towers had ceased for some unknown reason. Definitely out of the ordinary considering the Snake Men had the battle all but won. Deciding the king could wait a few minutes more for the oblivion of death, King Hiss stepped outside to see what was happening.
To his complete surprise, the snake armies were turning around. Something was happening in the rear of their army. Wind-Raiders soared overhead to get a better look and report back. Exhausted and splattered with blood not his own, or even human, Duncan was at a loss to explain the sudden behavior of the snake warriors, and demanded information from anyone in a position to report it.
"Report! What do you see?" Duncan demanded once again. Teela and Mekaneck joined him. Despite the blazing fires of the destroyed siege engines, Mekaneck could not see anything through the smoke.
"There appears to be something going on at the rear of their formation," a pilot reported. "I'm going in for a closer look." There was a pause as a Wind-Raider shed altitude and speed. "It looks like the Snake Men are being attacked from behind, but I can't –" Another pause. "I don't believe it!"
"What?" Duncan demanded angrily. "What do you see?"
"They came!" the pilot reported.
"Who?" Randor demanded before Duncan could.
The excited pilot exclaimed, "Cats, Bears, Insectoids, Avions – they all came!"
The same report was just reaching King Hiss as King Randor stumbled to the entrance of the Central Tower.
"Looks like the tide has shifted, Hiss. Now what are you going to do?" Randor said, tired from battle, but still holding a whimsical glint in his eyes.
There was only one thing Hiss could do. He had the Great Towers, but his forces were nearly exhausted from fighting while a fresh enemy force was attacking his rear. Storming away from his prize, Hiss sought out General Rattlor and Kobra Khan.
"Sound the retreat, General Rattlor."
Rattlor looked like he'd just been sucker-punched by He-Man. "But, My Lord! The Great Towers are ours! We've won!"
"Yes," King Hiss agreed, frustration boiling over into fuming anger. "But those forces attacking our rear are coming in fresh! We've both won and lost this day. Retreat with what warriors remain. The towers are not going anywhere. Besides, we have done as much damage to the humans as they have to us. Let ussss take comfort in that. Now sound the retreat." Eyes blazing with the anger boiling withing, King Hiss stalked off to rally his surviving warriors for a fighting retreat.
"I can't believe it," Teela muttered, totally astonished but the sight of the races mopping up the remaining Snake Men still willing to fight. "I thought they were going to just sit in their own realms and leave us to our fate."
"Though it looked grim, Teela," King Randor replied, "I never lost the hope at least one of them would come to our aid."
Duncan mused, "They must have finally realized that if Hiss defeated us and took the towers, and even Castle Grayskull, no one on or under Eternia would be safe."
The three silently agreed on that point, and settled down on the steps of the Central Tower with the remaining Heroic Warriors and the surviving Royal Guard to await to arrival of their saviors.
King Hiss stared in annoyance at the face that greeted him as he and his armies emptied into the Valley of Storms. Evil Lynn grinned, mockingly, at the lord of the Snake-Men.
"I heard about the battle."
Hiss grunted. "I had no doubts. If you had backed us up . . ."
"It would have made no difference, King Hiss. You were outnumbered. And in the end, you were doomed."
"The alliance between the humans and their allies has only gotten stronger. After everything they've been through . . ."
"He-Man's departure has forced them to realize that the Light Hemisphere must stand together. No more muscle-bound hero to keep watch over them. Just as Skeletor's own departure has created schism all across the Dark Hemisphere." Evil Lynn walked evenly with King Hiss to the throne room.
"Our agreement still stands, though."
"It has been in effect for seven months. It won't change now. We share Snake Mountain and its resources. But we both pursue our own goals," Evil Lynn recounted. The agreement had been one of necessity. Skeletor's absence triggered great chaos with those that had maintained peace with him. Battles had been breaking out since the moment he left.
King Hiss sat down in one of the bone-fashioned chairs. "I still say we join forces. Between my Snake-Men and your Centurions, the Great Towers would be easy to claim. And so would Grayskull . . ."
"Grayskull? No. Skeletor grew obsessed with Grayskull. It was his undoing."
"Skeletor lost sight of the true goal. Now, he's chasing He-Man across time/space."
"My point. No, Hiss, we don't strike where heroes are the most fortified. We strike where they live."
"I can't believe it. I just can't. We did it. And we did it good. We had a little help, but we took on the Snake-Men. Without He-Man." Ram-Man took a huge gulp of his beer. "It's pretty freaking amazing."
"You're too proud of that," Teela replied "The fact of the matter is, we really could have used He-Man today. We didn't need him, but he would have helped things." Teela said this with a smoldering anger. She was still a little mad at He-Man and Adam for leaving. She understood why, but that didn't mean it didn't affect her feelings for the two of them.
Both Ram-Man and Teela were at the B.T. Pub in Eternos. Many of the Heroic Warriors had decided to spend a little time honoring the dead and their victory with a few rounds.
As Teela was about to join the Heroic Warriors in a toast, her communicator went off. It was her father.
"Yes?"
"Teela, we need you back at the Palace for a de-briefing."
Teela nodded. "On my way."
On the other side of the star system, Hordak looked out upon Etheria from the top of Doom Tower. All save the Whispering Woods were now in suspended animation, awaiting the day when he would claim all the life-forces on the planet and their power to his own. Until then, however, there was business to attend to . . .
Holding the Sword of Deception firmly, Hordak joined Shadow Weaver and Mantenna in one of the lower chambers.
"Prepare the portals, Weaver. Set the coordinates for Snake Mountain."
Teela joined Man-At-Arms, Queen Marlena, and King Randor in the throne room a few minutes after receiving the communiqué. Despite the late hour, the entire city seemed awake and alive with the news of victory streaming in. After wrapping up the reports and the paper work, King Randor moved on to another subject.
"Etheria."
Man-At-Arms glanced at Teela.
"Still darkened. As last reported, only the Whispering Woods and the Fright Zone seem to be unaffected," Man-At-Arms reported.
"Have you been able to make any sort of contact with the Great Rebellion."
"No. I'm sorry. There's some kind of energy disruption. Even Gwildor is finding it impossible to calculate the correct tones to get there."
"And the Sorceress? Has she been able to reach She-Ra?"
"The Sorceress has not been seen or heard from since He-Man left."
Randor groaned. "I know it's late. I know we're all busy with the fallout from this battle. It's just . . . She-Ra is a champion of Grayskull and she should have been here. And Adora, too. The Horde was dealt a heavy blow before Adam and He-Man left for Primus. They should have been there. It would have saved lives."
"Your majesty . . ." Duncan started, but stopped. His best friend and his king was not in the mood for sympathetic excuses.
"Duncan, what about a ship?" asked Marlena. "What if we flew a ship over there?"
"Sounds like a good idea," Teela followed up, though she was too tired at this point to really give any sort of input.
"It would take some work, but maybe," Duncan answered. "Right now, however, I think we all just need some sleep. It's late. This was a big day. We won the battle, but the cost was high."
Randor nodded. "Well said."
Mekaneck, Sy-Klone, Man-E-Faces, Ram-Man, and Fisto finished off their last beers and decided it was time to head off.
"A good victory. A very good victory," Fisto congratulated once more.
"Yeah. It would have been better had He-Man not run off, though," Sy-Klone muttered.
"You don't really mean that, do you?" asked Ram-Man.
"I do, actually." Sy-Klone looked up at the shining stars. "It would have been so easy to just take us with him. Had he done that, we could have taken care of those Mutants and come back by now."
"And leave this all open to King Hiss? I don't think so," Mekaneck countered.
"We would have been back in time. We both know it. If He-Man took all of us with him, that little war of his would be over by now." Sy-Klone sighed. "Instead, we get left behind."
"He-Man knew what he was doing. By leaving us here, he has guaranteed a definite peacekeeping force," Fisto argued.
"No," Man-E-Faces said. "He-Man was wrong to leave. I agree with you, Sy-Klone."
"Good to hear I'm not alone."
"You're both full of it. He-Man was countin' on She-Ra to fill his shoes," Ram-Man butted in.
Sy-Klone shook his head. "And a heck of a lot of good it's done us. All we know, she could be dead right now."
"Yeah," Man-E-Faces agreed. "And whatever is happening with her and Etheria, He-Man could have helped fight it."
"I think you both have had too much to drink," Mekaneck chided. "Let's just get some sleep, huh?"
"I agree," Fisto added.
Sy-Klone shrugged. "Maybe. It's just how I feel, anyway. I'll catch you tomorrow."
"ENOUGH!" the king of the Snake Men roared. "Enough of this bickering."
General Rattlor, Snake Face, Squeeze, Evil-Lyn, Tri Klops, and others were gathered in the throne room of Snake Mountain's former ruler, Skeletor. The argument had been raging for over ten minutes about how best they can retake Palace Eternia, and push on to the Great Towers. In an uncharacteristic move, Hiss argued against a renewed offensive. They had simply lost too many warriors when the other races rallied to King Randor's defense.
Tongue Lasher persisted, "We must strike back. We must make them pay for our defeat at the Great Towers."
"Strike back? Randor now has a formidable army made from all the races of this planet. You propose we strike back and give them the opportunity to finish us off entirely?" King Hiss responded patiently. His bursts of anger were just that, a burst that died as quickly as it was born.
"I still don't see why we shouldn't strike now," Snake Face said, clearly confused.
Evil-Lyn answered for King Hiss. "Because they are looking for it. With the denizens of Eternia now united, we'll never get near the palace or the Great Towers or Castle Grayskull."
Arguments ensued once more, but were quickly cut short by the appearance of a shimmering oval portal. The gathered serpents and humans waited anxiously for whoever, or whatever was on the other side to appear. Tensions rose to the breaking point with nothing to relieve it on. Suddenly, a figure stepped through the portal. Clad in shining silver armor, the bipedal figure stood over six feet in height. Black rubber filled the gaps between pieces of armor; an energy rod was clutched in both hands, and a domed helmet capped the suit. Red eye slits glowed brightly as the helmet swiveled to survey the chamber.
More armored figured stepped through the portal. The serpents tensed knowing a battle was at hand. The first soldier turned to face King Hiss. For the first time, the serpent king saw the bat wing symbol adorning the breastplate. And he recognized it immediately.
"Hordak," King Hiss spat.
All hell broke loose at that point as more portals began taking shape. The first arrivals took aim with their metal rods capped with spheres on short, thinner rods, and fired. Three Snake Men fell. Whether they were dead or only stunned could not be determined. Evil-Lyn threw up a shield to protect herself while Tri Klops launched energy blasts from his visor. Beast Man roared and dove into the invaders like he was wading through waves crashing upon surf. They quickly discovered they were fighting robots, and tore into them with renewed vigor. Within minutes, the portals closed and the throne room was cleared of invaders. That was not the end of it, however.
Reports started trickling in from around the mountain of portals opening and disgorging Horde troopers in squads before closing. A squad by itself was not much to worry about. Hundreds of such appearing the span of minutes was another matter entirely. An all-out invasion of Snake Mountain was underway, and the defenders were too weakened in terms of numbers to stop it. King Hiss led the charge though the mountain going from one trouble spot to the next rally support and freeing trapped and separated Snake Men.
Battles raged throughout the mountain as Snake Men and Skeletor's former minions battled to save their home. But it was a hopeless battle from the very start. For each trooper felled, three more took its place. Slowly the numbers of the defenders dwindled as fighting progressed from chamber to chamber, corridor-to-corridor, until at last the remaining warriors still functioning were backed into the throne room once more. Only a handful remained, yet portals continued to open allowing more and more troopers to arrive.
King Hiss with his handful of fifteen warriors stared grimly at the encircling robots. A six-foot no-man's-land surrounded the defenders. Any robot that dared enter that ring was blasted into scrap. The continuous fighting had taken its toll, however. Evil-Lyn looked haggard as ever from the strain of using her magic for such as prolonged period. King Hiss had not put his own magic to the test in countless ages, thus he looked ready to drop from the exertions of fighting a long, running battle. This was likely to be their end, but Hiss was determined to make it such an end as to be worthy of remembrance even to the denizens of Eternia, which he so despised.
Rows of troopers charged up their weapons, the sounds echoed hollow and ominous in the throne room. The first line dropped to one knee and took aim. The second line drew a bead on the closest target, and prepared to fire.
"Hold your fire!" cried Hordak from behind them all.
The mass of Horde Troopers lowered their weapons. King Hiss looked over at Evil Lynn, who shared his curious and cautioned expression.
"What is this, Hordak?" the vipers that comprised Hiss's body questioned. "Last we heard, your forces were on the run and Etheria had gone dark."
"Yes," Hordak said with a grin. "Thanks to this." He revealed the Sword of Deception. Hiss stepped back, amazed.
"How did you get that?" he asked.
Evil Lynn raised an eyebrow. "What is it? It looks like Skeletor's sword . . ."
"It's one of the blades of Grayskull," King Hiss returned. "Very powerful. So, Hordak, you destroyed Etheria."
"Not really, Hiss. Suspended animation. When the time is right, I shall absorb the life energies encased there. However, the time is not right quite yet. So, as of this moment, I am starting a new invasion of Eternia."
King Hiss snarled. "NEVER! ETERNIA IS MINE!"
"Troopers - prepare your weapons!" Hordak commanded. Hiss reared back, snake-heads growling.
"What isssss it you want, Hordak?" questioned King Hiss.
Hordak took a breath and a sudden air of arrogance surrounded him. He sheathed the Sword of Deception and rested his hand on the end of the hilt. His left hand produced a map.
"A treaty of non-aggression. We do not enter your lands, you do not enter ours."
Evil Lynn plucked the map from Hordak's hands. She looked it over. "We would hold the Valley of Storms, the upper Pawa, the southern Crest of Sharlan, and the western ridge of Clawbeak canyon." She looked up at him. "A significant amount of land, Hordak. Not very like you."
"What is the catch, Hordak?"
"The deal is quite simple, actually. Skeletor and I had a brief exchange a few years ago. He has technology that allows him to mass produce robotic warriors. I want that technology back."
"No," King Hiss stated defiantly.
"Horde Troopers, prepare to - "
"NO!" yelped Evil-Lynn and took two strong steps forward. "We'll give you the technology. But why not just kill us and take it?"
Hordak grinned. "You would make a horrible enemy and an even worse ally. Therefore, I intend on keeping you neutral. There are several races on Dark Hemisphere that could be coaxed to the Horde and to lose you would only divide them even more. My goal here is to conquer the Light Hemisphere, tame the Dark Hemisphere and build a new Horde Empire. So, for now, Snake Mountain and a number of other kingdoms on this side of the world are neutral. Also, your life is in my hands and while I most definitely outnumber you now, I will even moreso very shortly. You options are severely limited."
Evil-Lynn considered this. She turned to King Hiss, who was looking doubtful with all those snake faces.
"We have no choice, really," she told him.
The forces of Snake Mountain signed the treaty.
King Paw and his entourage arrived at the meeting point in the old village. He could smell the Bears coming, despite their attempt at coming in downwind of the village. A couple minutes later, the group of Bears being led by King Jade arrived.
"Who else is coming?" Jade asked of Paw, bounding over to him.
"I am not sure," King Paw replied, sniffing at the air. He narrowed his eyes curiously at the smell. King Jade followed the same scent.
Entering from the southern end of the village were Widgets. Biro, Cando, Laura, Smudge, and Squinch came into the village, led by the Mayor of the Widgets, the man known as Jacob.
"Not very often we get involved in this sort of thing," Jacob said as they joined the Cats and Bears. "Where's Randor? I'd thought he'd be here."
"He will not be," a stern voice said from behind them all. King Shron of the Elves. By his side was his son, Prince Lorn. "None of the kingdoms of Men will be here. Nor shall Avion, Insectia, Aquantica, or even the Lizards. This meeting is for only us."
"Why is that? They have all been our allies," King Jade questioned.
"Because it is none of their concern." Now, Granamyr himself appeared with two other Dragons and number of Trolls. "It is yours, however, and there is a strong reason why only your people were called to this meeting."
The Widgets shifted nervously in shadow of Granamyr, but old Jacob held his course. "Then let's have a palaver and figure this out."
Jacob and Biro, King Paw, King Jade, King Shorn, Granamyr, and Loxx (the head Troll) all sat down. This village had long since been abandoned and was most likely the home of Men who perhaps fled during the Horde war. The previous Horde war.
"Hordak has returned," Shorn said promptly. "He has amassed a considerable army and this army will only grow larger. An attack will begin shortly. All of Eternia in under threat."
Granamyr picked up the thread. "We have foreseen great trouble for your peoples. Eternos, Avion, Insectia, the Lizardia, and Aquantica will be able hold their own against the Horde. You shall be massacred, though."
"How dare you imply our weakness!?" snarled Paw.
"Calm yourself, King Paw. It's not a matter of strong over weak; it's a matter of who is stronger. And right now, the Horde will be stronger."
Jade perked an eyebrow. "So, what do you intend on doing about it?"
"We propose to take your people off of Eternia and into another world until the war has resolved itself," King Shorn answered.
"And abandon our allies? That makes no sense," King Paw protested. "We are not turncoats."
"No one said that. No one implied that. We are offering this for your own safety."
Jacob grunted. "There's got to be another reason. You two are pretty high and mighty. Surely you could help stand against the Horde."
Granamyr nodded. "At the cost of both our peoples lives, yes. We could. However, teleporting you all off Eternia would be safer."
"And less costly," Jade considered deeply.
"Are you actually thinking about joining them?!" spat Paw.
"Ancients preserve me, yes I am. Although, Jacob does stir a point . . ."
"What do you mean?" asked the dark-haired Elf called Shron.
"You are both strong enough to hold against the Horde. Why are you leaving?"
The group went silent. Until, at last, Granamyr spoke.
"There is another reason. There was something that occurred nearly a millennium ago. Something shattered relations between the Elves, the Dragons, and the Humans."
"What was it?" Jacob asked.
"An act of grand manipulation. Manipulation that changed the course of Eternia . . . forever . . ." Shron looked over at Granamyr.
"And when we finish with this tale, you will want to join us."
Deltara has also written Behold, The Horde; and Eternian Trap.