Chapter 20: The Battle for Cloud Tower and Rightful Heir
On Magix, the army of Lighthaven had made it thru the swamp, a large part of the force had come to besiege Cloud Tower, while the rest of the Army waited at camp to prepare for an attack on Alfea. Lord Templar De Lande now stood at the front of the army he had been given command of.
Earlier that day… Lord Templar De Lande was alone with the Grand Templar, Arsonious had requested to speak to him, and him alone. "Lord De Lande, your actions have been heard throughout the camp, the lives you've saved and your deeds in battle have been demonstrated, however that is not why I speak to you" Arsonious stated.
"What do you ask of me Grand Templar?" De Lande asked.
"I have decided to make you my successor, and before you object to this decision I make it of my own accord, of the Lord Templars here your efforts have born the most fruit, however I speak to you on another matter, you worship heavily Lady Eolia, the goddess of mercy and kindness, you are a righteous man you refuse to shed blood needlessly and if you must you grant a merciful death, but your skills in war are not why I've chosen you De Lande" Arsonious stated.
"Why have you chosen me" De Lande asked.
"Because you don't desire war, the Crusade of Light ended years ago, I've been looking back, and doing so I've realized I've done some reprehensible things, the worst of all is that I waged war against those who couldn't fight back, but I tire of war, as no doubt many of us do, I've seen thousands of years of war, and for once we had peace and again we must fight, there is only one measure De Lande, you desire peace and you are man of it, therefore you are best fit to rule, most of all you forgive the scars of the past" Arsonious explained.
"But what of you my lord" De Lande asked.
"I saw a vision of Eolia, she stated I was not long for this world, that this battle ahead, the battle for Alfea would take my life, I know in my heart this is true and I intend to face my death with dignity, this is my fate" Arsonious stated. "Now that I have explained these things to you, I have orders, this war has been needless and too many have died in it, most on our side, therefore I am putting you in charge of taking Cloud Tower, your orders are to take it, do not destroy it and capture all you can especially the Witches, the Lady Eolia wills that they be given the chance to repent and atone for their sins, take those you capture to Lightrock Monastery it is near here and will reform those sinners into faithful worshipers of the Lord of Light Elrath and his children, these are the orders I give you fulfill them" Arsonious ordered, De Lande nodded, then went to a division of men.
Present time… the army of De Lande was 60,000 strong, the army of Lighthaven now numbered only 250,000, the numbers had been lost to attrition, but more to the poison, the Goblins had poisoned their most of their food and water supplies, when the meal came after the poison had been prepared, tens of thousands of warriors fell dead. The army consisted of infantry, all heavy, as the flagellants had long since fallen to the last, the Sentinels and Warrior Monks made up the bulk of the force, with Crusaders, Battle Priests, Inquisitors, Battle Brothers and Templars bringing up the elites of the army with 500 Armored Ogre Crusaders being the strongest to contend with, with 50 War Giants ready for battle, the cavalry were not present being useless in the siege battle, the Griffons had been likewise held in reserve as their numbers were fewer than anything else they had. De Land was in front of this army with a large Ogre named Gaston Vorgar standing next to him alongside his ward and student the Templar Brother Jason Karel, both were clad in the white and gold heavy armor of Lighthaven, Karel carried his helm in his hands while Gaston wore his and carried a banner indicating a ceasefire, right now they had come under the flag of negotiation which had gotten the Witches attention as they expected them to attack outright.
From the outer wall of Cloud Tower Icy Trix looked down at the force in front of her, Stormy and Darcy on either side of her alongside their crack team of witches, they had been given command of the main force; the Trix and the other witches wore armor over their traditional witch form garb. Icy noted that an Ogre carrying a banner accompanied by two men in armor, one looked rather young with golden blonde hair, he was about as old as she was, the other man was young but was older in appearance then the youth next to him. The older man came forward. "Witches of Cloud Tower I am Lord Templar De Lande, I come to parley with you, I have been given orders to take your school but not destroy it, all of your number are to be taken alive at all cost, I offer you a chance to surrender freely, now, if you refuse we will be forced to give you battle: I offer you this in Name of Eolia the Lady of Mercy, I implore to please, I don't desire the blood of those here both on my side and those on yours, I ask this, for Eolia's sake" De Lande explained.
"What do you think sis" Stormy asked, Icy studied the man, he seemed genuine, but Icy wasn't going to hand over Cloud Tower to anyone, much less an army of crazy religious fanatics.
"We will not surrender, defeat us in battle and you may take us captive, but we won't give up Cloud Tower, our school without a fight" Icy responded.
"I understand, if you wish to meet us in a battle then may the best warriors win!" De Lande commented.
"Well he seems decent at least" Vera commented.
"Are you sure about his words Icy?" Darcy asked.
"I'm not sure, but if we are defeated remember what Nathan said: let them take us captive" Icy stated, she then turned to the witches behind her as well as the campus security who were ready. "We stand as the frontline, we will hold the line, you've heard their commander, we join to battle, yield if you are overwhelmed but importantly don't let them thru the gate!" Icy ordered.
Meanwhile…. The ship carrying Erasiel and company had arrived on Coltaris, they were given an escort to the nearest landing platform. Erasiel disembarked followed by Bloom, Riven, Stella, and Nimeria: Bloom for obvious reason and others to represent the three colleges, they wore whatever outfits Erasiel had in his fashion emergency bag; something he kept in case he brought people to a formal event unprepared, Erasiel himself wore regal orange and purple robes and soft shoes which were velvet padded inside, he wore a circlet of silver with the figurehead of a dragon in the center the dragon had amethysts for eyes. "Alright ladies carry yourself with grace" Erasiel commented, the ladies bar Bloom wore formal gowns of the kind you wore a royal ceremony or ball.
"I look ridiculous in this" Riven remarked, she was wearing a pink gown with silver threading.
"Well I gave Nimeria first dibs and Stella refused" Erasiel commented.
"I swear if it weren't for the fact I love you and that we are on a foreign world under diplomatic protocol I would punch you in the nose" Riven stated, Erasiel kissed her on the cheek.
"I love you too Riven, let's keep things diplomatic, I know your parents struggled to teach you anything on the subject, but I know you are capable of keeping up a diplomatic grace, also if you want to vent and blame someone; blame Stella" Erasiel remarked.
"Hey!" Stella quipped.
"You had to pick the purple one didn't you!" Riven retorted to Stella.
"Well I had to, and it is purple and orange and those are my two favorite colors" Stella replied.
"Hey, they are mine too Stella" Erasiel commented, they were soon approached by a man in garb of a herald he was accompanied by two armored swarthy warriors carrying Laz-Halberds.
"Lord Darkar, Prince Torandar has gathered the Princes and Dukes, there is a large crowd awaiting your arrival" the Herald stated. "Which of you is Princess Bloom" the Herald asked.
"That would be me" Bloom stated, she was surprised the Herald had to ask she was only one in armor and with a crown on her head, or rather her helmet, also the only one with 3-foot sword at her side, not to mention her shield which she thought was quite elf-like in design.
"My apologies, this way" the Herald stated. They were lead to a large balcony in which about 10 men and 10 women stood and it overlooked a large multitude, they wore heraldic clothing with armor and some silver diadems. At the center were three men in particular, a tall man in blue and orange clothes with a thick-black beard who wore a diadem he had a nice pleasant expression on his face, Bloom couldn't read the aura's of him or the other nobles, but she could see the auras of the audience. The other two men were of different moods, one was had the face that would've justified a "I really wish I weren't here right now" Button, this man had brown hair a Fu-Manchu style mustache and wore green and yellow clothing, the other man was had the face of someone who was eager and curious and hopeful all at the same time he wore silver and blue clothing and had a jolly beard and resembled Santa Claus. The other men and women were of mixed moods, some of interest, some of annoyance, and two should couldn't gage because they had their helmets over their faces.
"So, this is the one Lord Darkar" Prince Torandar, the man in orange in blue stated.
"Yes, she is the one: she is Princess Bloom, the second Daughter of King Oritel and Queen Marion; by right of inheritance the absolute cognatic law of Domino, she is the heir to the throne" Erasiel stated.
"And how do we know that; this could be anyone, look at her she carries herself like a commoner" the annoyed man stated in a French accent or Bloom thought it was French.
"Give her a chance Duke Sartorous" the Jolly man stated.
"What of it Prince Carandas, she is but a girl probably a common girl a concubine of Lord Darkar dressed up as a warrior" Duke Sartorous said condescendingly.
"She is no such thing and I have a way of proving it; Bloom your sword please" Erasiel stated, Bloom handed him the sword still in its sheathe. "Behold Valruost the Blood-Drinker, sword of the ruling family of Domino" Erasiel stated.
"A fabrication" one of the Nobles stated a stern woman with glasses and in blue and orange gown.
"Really" Erasiel stated then held the blade by its sheath. "Anyone here willing to see if they can touch the hilt of this blade without burning themselves let alone draw it" Erasiel challenged, the unconvinced nobles went over to draw the blade; first being Duke Sartorous; the moment he touched the hilt he screamed in pain and held up his hand which had been branded, a few others tried these held on and attempted to draw the sword, they were burned too and couldn't draw it either. "Now Bloom you try" Erasiel stated, Bloom stepped forward wrapped her hand around the hilt and gracefully drew the sword, its blade had a blood red tint and had a number of runes engraved on it included the figure of dragon.
"How!?" one of the nobles asked incredulously.
"Bloom if you would attempt to sheave your blade and demonstrate to them it cannot be sheaved until it has drawn a great deal of blood" Erasiel commented, Bloom attempted to sheave the sword but sheathe glowed purple and blade refused to go in no matter how hard she tried.
"This is the sword of my Father King Oritel and his father King Grattion before him and it goes back 300 generations; with this blade my Grandfather battled Grand Templar Arsonious of Lighthaven and died in the fight, this blade has seen millennia of war and it thirsts for blood; specifically, the blood of Grand Templar he has returned and is attacking Magix! He must be stopped, or countless innocents will be burned on their bonfires! I was only an infant when my Guardian Vanessa took me to the world of Earth, my sister Daphne sacrificed herself so that I could escape, now after 16 years I've learned of my true heritage, I was against asking you all for help because I didn't want people to die because of me; however I've realized that being a leader you have to make some hard decisions; I feel I can make them now; look at me, I've studied hard at Alfea to become a great fairy, I've braved the ruins of Domino, I've seen things that earlier this year I could have only seen in my dreams, as I grew up an world where magic is regarded as myth and fiction; but now I'm ready to accept my position as a leader: I only ask you to fight for me, then you can go back to living your lives as you had before, people of Coltaris and of the Kingdom of Domino what do you have to say" Bloom spoke, first there was silence then there was a cry that went up from the multitude of "Long live the Queen, For Domino and Queen Bloom!" Bloom was surprised.
"My apologies your majesty, I had no way of knowing what Lord Darkar said was true; but now having seen you speak for yourself and felt the burn of Valruost; I know you as your Father's daughter" Duke Sartorous stated, "Long live the Queen!" he shouted drawing his sword holding it in the air, this caused the crowd and other nobles to draw their blades as well and shout out the same.
"Now what do we do?" Bloom asked.
"We make ready for war" Erasiel stated.
Meanwhile…. At Cloud Tower De Lande's army had breached the wall and pushed back the defenders; so far the Magic from the witches had left and large swath of dead Lighthaven warriors, Darcy had even managed to cause one of the giants to run amok by blinding it, the giant had turned on its own side and trampled a number of Lighthaven warriors underfoot before it ran off into the woods yelling. Right now, they had been pushed inside the main gates of the school and giants were trying their best to breach the gate. Icy stood with her sisters and her elite team of witches; Vera, Ivey, Samantha, Shilly, Rubis, Cersei, Lindsey, Lucrezia, Karen, Lynelle, and Sabrina, also with her were the three fairies: Lolina, Emily, Kaie, Arabel, and Eleanor, the specialists were in front of them, alongside the phalanx of Cloud Tower's campus security warriors as well as the war gargoyles that Griffin had summoned to war and the other constructs besides them. "Whatever happens next we don't let them past: leave the leader to me and my sisters; also leave no witch behind or fairy or anyone! We fight for Cloud Tower! We Fight for Magix!" Icy shouted, her eyes flashed red as she tapped into the flow of magic. Soon the gates crashed open, a surge of attacks from defenders dropped the giant that broke the gates open. Sentinels came marching thru the gate then charged, the blasters of the security team opened up on them, some fell to the firepower, but others soldiered on their blessed armor allowing them protection from the deadly weapons; however, these soon fell to magic, Stormy loosing lightning bolts that chained thru the armor to lethal effect, leaving the smell of melted armor and charred flesh in the air. Vera sent out a cascade of lead bolts from her palms these bolts acted as bullets and the amount she put out was equal to a shotgun blast mixed with a machine gun's rate of fire, these projectiles were extremely lethal. Ivey mixed in poisons with her twin's metal attacks, those not felled by the magical bullets collapsed to the ground in agony to die death deadly poisoning. However, thru these attacks De Lande, Karel and the other templars were unscathed as their wards were too strong for the attacks to penetrate, suddenly the defenders were pushed back, up the stairs. It was then that one of the attacks of a campus guard missed and dropped a large statue down on some of the defenders, not killing them but pinning them and breaking some bones, among these were Shilly, Vera, Cersei, Arabel, Eleanor, Kaie, Lindsey and Samantha, as well as number of campus guards and two specialists the defenders fell back save the Trix and Ivey.
"I can't leave you behind Vera I refuse" Ivey stated attempting to move a statue part off of her sister.
"Please I'll be fine" Vera stated.
"No, you aren't I can tell, you've broken a leg: you had that same face when you were six and fell down the stairs and broke your right leg, now your left is the same!" Ivey stated indignantly as she inspected her sister, both legs had been broken by the rubble. The other defenders had fallen back as planned, the Trix stood their ground in front of the trapped injured as a wall of spears stood against them; De Lande, Karel, and Gaston strode forward. "I give you option to yield; you will not be harmed, and we will tend to your wounded" De Lande stated.
"Well Icy it's your call" Darcy stated.
"Your call sis, I'll go with it even if I hate it" Stormy stated. Icy looked at De Lande, then her sisters, then at Ivey trying to help Vera, in her mind Erasiel's words. This point the lives of those people were in her hands, the Lord Templar had proven his strength even with the power of Dragon flame neither her or her sisters had managed to land a serious injury on him. "Erasiel was right when he said the Dragon Flame wasn't the most powerful magic source in the universe: come on Icy, the lives of these people are at stake, the only way to save them is to surrender and hope De Lande lives up to his word: I trust him but I'm not certain about his men" Icy thought. "How do I know your men won't rape us and take us to a pyre and burn us!" Icy asked.
"I won't allow such a thing, in fact I will go out of my way to escort you and the others to Lightrock Monastery" De Lande stated. "All those I choose for this are those who follow Lady Eolia like myself, mercy is her greatest trait" De Lande stated.
"If you will guarantee no harm to me or my sisters or to anyone here who's injured not withstanding those we've killed, I will surrender" Icy stated.
"I will guarantee that" De Lande stated sheathing his sword, his warriors followed suit. "Men here are my orders: lay your arms down, any man who lays a hand cause harm to these people will have answer to Grand Templar Arsonious himself: bring forth healers from our back lines, Gaston you and the other ogres lift up that broken statue; everyone else reform outside; assume a siege camp until my return" De Lande stated.
"One more thing De Lande, don't bother to continue the attack, going up those stairs will lead your warriors into the halls of confusion, it is a defensive measure to keep out invaders, once your warriors enter there is no way out: you won't be able to continue your assault also you would best leave Cloud Tower be, you may have defeated us but friends of ours are coming to our aid, this fight is done" Icy explained.
De Lande's healers came forth and healed the injuries, soon everyone was bound with magical shackles that restrained their magic; the Templars carried them and the others off to Lightrock where they would stay until they had, according to Lighthaveners, been reformed. As they left Night fell and the Lighthaveners broke off their attack on Cloud Tower