Well, here it is, the LONG overdue final chapter. Hope you like it and dont hate me too much for taking almost a year. Enjoy and comment if you wish, finally its done.

Larka stood with Liam and WhisperWing at the head of their army as the clouds in the nighttime sky grew heavy and the winds picked up speed. Larka was outfitted for battle in her boots, gauntlets, and ebony and leather bodice, her long silver hair drawn up in a twist, Krillan's war axe glowing by her side and her battle magic slightly sparking in wait at her fingertips. Liam held his Katana loosely by his side and had a Netch leather shield strapped to his arm. WhisperWing held one of Larka's wakazashi's unsurely in her hand and wore a set of Netch leather gauntlets, cuirass, and greaves, her magic sparkling at her fingertips, ready for use. She looked extremely nervous and scared but in her eyes there was a determined look, the same look that shown on Liam's calm face and the same look every soldier in Larka's army wore.

Larka went over their strategy once more with Liam and WhisperWing and directed them to their various points of command, Liam to the foot soldiers who were in front, WhisperWing to the archers and spear carriers who waited in back, and Larka to her Reapers who stood in small hand picked groups, comprised of those who worked together to their best advantage, awaiting Larka's instruction. Larka stood before her Reapers, the best fighters in her army, females of the highest rank and a smile played at her lips. This is what I have created, she thought, I have created an entire army; I have formed my place in the world.

"My Reapers!" she called in a clear ringing voice. "Tonight we go to battle against an enemy far greater than us. And yet here we stand, ready to fight, and we will fight the hardest we have ever fought! This is the final battle and there is nothing to lose! So go forth tonight before your ancestors and fight to the death! Fight for our honor and our legacy, and kill all you can!" Larka yelled, to a responding battle cry from her Reapers that rang out over the hills of the Ashlands and sent chills down everyone's backs. Battle cries from Liam's soldiers and from the archers soon followed and Larka quickly interspersed her Reapers throughout the army, leaving her best and most deadly at the back to be the final blow to the Empire's army. Larka strode to the front of her army just as the first few drops of rain fell from the night sky.

Larka reached the head of the army to find Liam there already gazing out into the distance to where the Empire's army was. Larka stood beside him and gently put a hand on his shoulder. His hand reached up and covered hers and he smiled warmly, though his eyes never strayed from his gaze outwards.

"This is going to be the end isn't it?" he said softly.

"Yes, yes it is." Larka said after a time just as softly.

"You know, I've never feared death or dying, it's just the awful permanence of it that scares me. The thought of it all being over." He said.

"Nothing is permanent Liam." Larka said reassuringly. "I've glimpsed briefly into the depths of Oblivion and there are new adventures and wonders awaiting us there, and old friends to be reunited with and Gods at work and destinies that are shaped in the void. When we die we become part of that Darling. We become Oblivion." Larka said firmly. She drew Liam in for one last passionate embrace, standing before their army and their brethren as the rain poured down in torrents and the wind began to howl.

At long last they drew apart and Larka was glad that it was raining so that he could not see the tears in her eyes. She looked lovingly at him for a second more and then turned away and set her gaze into the night.

"Warriors! My brothers and sisters in arms! We must overtake the enemy swiftly and in the darkness, this is our land and we will use it to our advantage! Obey the orders your captains have given you and fight as hard as you can! No mercy this night! Now RUN!" Larka shouted, her voice ringing clear over the sound of the wind and rain. At once she, Liam, WhisperWing and the entire Ashlander army surged forward in a swift run through the night towards their quarry.

They ran through the darkness as swift and silent as ghosts. Larka sprinted easily over the familiar terrain and she made sure to stay at least 50 paces ahead of her pack, she wanted to be the first one to be seen by her enemy and she vowed to herself she would be the last one many of them would see before the night was over. She gave herself over to the darkness as she ran, clutching Krillan's axe fiercely. She thought of her dead friend, murdered by these men and of all the others that had fallen before the blade of the Empire, and those that had fallen before other blades as well.

Larka ran through the night and the pouring rain and as she went she allowed the darkness and the vengeance, the hatred and the passion she kept dammed up deep inside her to explode outwards and into her. The power she felt inside herself surged through her veins and sharpened her senses. Larka could see the hill that looked down upon the Empire's camp and with a feral howl of rage she came to the crest and looked down upon the mobilizing army.

Larka stood at the top of the hill, a lone black figure in the night outlined by the repeated lightening bolts that coursed through the sky. Larka thrust Krillan's shock enchanted axe into the air and a blinding bolt of blue lightening struck it with a loud crack. The force jarred her body as the axe absorbed the power and she heard a shout go up from the army, meaning they'd seen her. Larka saw them scramble into attack formation and she stood there at the top of the hill, war axe at the ready a defiant smile on her face as Liam and her army crested the hill.

Larka heard the shouts of alarm and anger as she and her warriors charged down the hill shrieking Ashlander war cries as they went, Larka laughing maliciously as she ran, axe ready to strike. The two armies met with a split second crash and the chaos and brilliance of carnage followed.

Time seemed to slow for Larka as she fought enemies from all sides. The Empire's army was great and she could see her warriors falling under its strength. She slashed at a soldier and saw beyond him one of her reapers go down with a sword in her back, uttering a final death curse Larka had taught her, the curse hissing out and wrapping it's inky blackness around the soldier who had felled her, suffocating him. Larka ducked and dodged two blades aimed at her, twisting elegantly and bring her axe down into a soldier's head with a crack. She spun lightening quick and shouted a fire spell at three men attacking WhisperWing who was barely holding them off with a summoned specter and her own fire magic. The wise woman glanced her thanks at Larka before bringing her wakizashi up to meet a soldier's longsword, parrying him and decapitating him. Larka had to give WhisperWing credit; she was more deadly than she looked.

Larka shouted fought her way to a vantage point on the field and shouted instructions to her nearby Reapers as she killed those who came up against her. She chopped a man in two as he tried to block her axe and without turning kicked her leg out high and to the back, crushing the windpipe of a soldier who had rushed up behind her. Larka did a quick roundhouse kick, felling two men with one sweep and chopped at another with her axe. Seeing Liam struggling with one of the captains of the Empire's army Larka surged towards him swiftly, aiding a Archer who had been forced to draw her knives at close quarters, and throwing a poison ball at four men who her besetting one of her best male swordsmen. Larka reached Liam and drawing one of her daggers she knifed the captain in the back and twisted the blade, making him howl in pain.

"How does it feel huh?" she spat. "Does it feel heroic and noble to die you fucker?" She wrenched the blade out and got a scream in response. Before he could fall to the ground Larka slit his throat and kicked him down. "Doesn't feel very good I'm guessing." She said with a laugh, turning to bring her axe up into the stomach of another soldier.

She saw Liam a short distance away, a nasty gash on his arm and a dent in his cuirass, but otherwise alive and kicking. Larka too had received some nasty hits, none that weren't successfully parried but many that hit hard and her arms were aching from the unfamiliar weight of the war axe. She looked around and saw more of her Warriors fall, some saying the death curse, others too weak or killed too quickly. Larka knew that while they had killed many soldiers they were still badly outnumbered and needed to draw closer.

Briefly coming up beside Liam and placing her hand on his arm to stop the bleeding from his gash with a quick spell and to exchange a quick glace she withdrew to her vantage point and let out the cry to draw closer together and for her Reapers that had lain in wait to join the fighting. Larka heard satisfied war cries from her Reapers as they surged forward and Larka resumed her fighting, blocking a soldier's axe with her own and knifing him in the gut at the same time. Larka saw that Daedric creatures had been summoned to join the fighting and she clumsily dodged a frost ball from an atronach and threw a fireball of her own at it. And still the rain poured down around them and the battle raged on.

A time later the fighting was still at a fever pitch and as Larka plunged her shock enchanted axe into a Clannfear she heard a scream to her left, a scream that sent a feeling of cold dread through her. Larka turned around and saw WhisperWing, her eyes wide with pain and fear and a sword run through her chest. Larka let out a howl of rage and leapt through the mass of fighters to reach her dear friend and catch her as she crumpled to the ground. Three nearby swordsman kept the enemy off her as Larka held her friend whose eyes were glazing over in pain.

"WhisperWing." Larka said softly, almost pleadingly.

"It's alright Larka." WhisperWing choked out. "Just keep fighting, keep fighting…" she said softly and with one last gasp went limp in Larka's arms.

Larka stood and squared her shoulders lifting the axe once more, however, she halted. Swiftly she lowered the axe and fastened it to her belt and picked up her wakizashi, that WhisperWing had been using, from the muddy ground and raised it lovingly. This is the weapon I was meant to die using she thought with a smile, rushing towards a group of spearmen who were clashing with her Reapers.

The rain had let up some and Larka could see the vestiges of dawn peaking through the clouds on the horizon. She and her warriors were fighting desperately now as they became more and more outnumbered and had to draw closer and closer together. They were lasting, but Larka knew it wouldn't last for long. Finding Liam in the throng Larka came to stand back to back with him, the two lovers fighting in desperation together. Larka saw two more of her warriors fall and though they were working to keep a tight circle of fighters as more and more fell everyone became more vulnerable.

The rain slowly became a trickle and the eerie light of dawn descended as Larka and her tribe struggled to survive. She slashed and parried and kicked and dodged quicker than she had ever before, pushing her very spirit to the limit just to keep the enemy off her. Behind her, their backs touching occasionally, Liam fought just as hard, but Larka could sense him weakening slowly, just as she could see every one of her warriors begin to falter and slowly succumb to the formidable might of the Empire's army. Larka saw them one by one give themselves over to defeat and be struck down and Larka fought with in fierce desperation now.

It was imperative that she keep them back, even for a few seconds longer. She had to keep fighting. One mess up would be fatal. She had to keep Liam with her. To kill just one more man. To survive even when she had already accepted death. To kill just one more before it was too late.

Larka could feel Liam become separated from her as the soldiers descended upon him. Larka turned to look at him with sorrowful eyes as he met her gaze one last time and then turned to meet a soldier's blade. Larka felt him go and her heart felt as if it had been wrenched from her body with the sadness. She knew that she was the last one standing now. All others had accepted death and now it was just her.

Larka fought with all her fury and hate and love and passion in the eerie light that was dawning on the final day of the Anazimabrah Ashlander tribe. She was like a whirlwind of anger and strength as she lashed out one last time at her enemies. Liam was gone now, she felt she had already died, had died with her tribe, now there was only a matter of time, a matter of bodies before she was completely finished.

Larka fought back another surge of soldiers and as they pushed forward again she stood up straight, held her head high, let her sword fall to the ground and with a defiant smile she spread her arms wide and turned her face upwards to the rays of brilliant sunlight peaking through the clouds. And as the cold hard metal pierced her armor and the skin beneath and white hot pain bloomed within her she sank to the ground, kneeling as the soldiers backed up slowly, mesmerized by her. Her blood poured out of her and she felt grayness at the edges of her vision as she knelt and kept her gaze fixed upon the sunlit sky above her, her arms stretched upwards as if to welcome the light into her arms.

As her eyes began to cloud and her body began to go numb she gazed out at the world around her, everything was now merely shadows in the dark to her. And as the life left her body Larka lowered her head and looked straight ahead to where her old friend Tyrade was striding toward her, a smile on his face.

"You never fail to disappoint my dearest. Strong till the end and beyond." He said, his expression bursting with pride. "I am proud of you. Now come child." He said holding out his hands which Larka rose to take. "There are a few people here who are most anxious to see you. And that Breton fellow just won't shut up about you, he never leaves off…" Tyrade said happily.

Larka turned to look one last time out into the world. She gazed at her body lying among her fellow warriors as the sun fully rose throughout the Ashlands and she smiled mysteriously as she turned back to the darkness of Oblivion.