Chapter Thirteen

Zarathel's POV:

I stared in shock at my father, who was now looking up. He smiled at me, and said my name. My heart was screaming "NO!" but my mouth couldn't make a noise. Suddenly, Dantenar raised her poleaxe and stood in her ready stance.

"You're not my father, monster! Resume your natural form!" Her face was set in hard lines, but her eyes looked a little damp in the dim light. "Gimbo Tel isn't allowed in the Dungeon, now drop his form!"

Kile looked at Dantenar, surprised by her courage, I think. My twin was still glaring at Gimbo, who bared his teeth and howled. I winced at the noise. It was high and piercing, with words mixed in. I couldn't understand them, and Gimbo Tel's body swelled and twisted, until he was a hideous creature with burning red eyes.

"Yahz'rod," I hissed. I held up my Feathered Scepter as a warning as the Emperor Abomination glided closer to me. He seemed to be hovering a few inches above the ground, probably showing off his magical prowess. I wasn't impressed.

Jaron, who had taken a step backwards in surprise, now walked quietly up until he was standing next to Kile. They held a hasty whispered council, in which I caught the words "Abomination" and "Crossbow." I had a feeling they were trying to figure out what to do so that Aileen could shoot the monster with her crossbow, weakening it sufficiently so that we could finish it off.

Aileen. I looked behind me to see her leaning against the wall of the Dungeon, trying to load her crossbow without the Emperor Abomination noticing her. Her side was dark with blood, and her face had a whitish tinge, but she was managing. After loading the bolt, she held the crossbow at her side, ready to shoot at a moments notice.

Kile and Jaron finished their council of war, and Kile stepped forward. "Monster, know that your time here on...this game is short!" I hid a smile. "We will kill you and anything else you might conjure up to have us fight."

Jaron rolled his eyes slightly, but then we all took an involuntary step backward as a dozen or so shapes appeared out of nowhere. Summoned Dire Wolves glared at us out of evil orange eyes, and I gulped. These were much larger than the wolves I was used to fighting. I hoped that I'd be able to defend myself against them.

With an chorus of howling, the wolves launched themselves at us. Dantenar and I bunched together, desperately trying to keep the wolves from Aileen, who only had enough strength for one shot and was saving it for Yahz'rod. Dantenar whirled her poleaxe and sank it deep into the skull of a nearby wolf, who was trying to sneak past us to get at Aileen. They could probably smell the blood and knew that she was wounded and not able to take care of herself as well. I brought my Fist Mace down on the skull of another wolf, killing it outright, and clipped the muzzle of a third with my Feathered Scepter. It whimpered and backed off, licking the wounded part. I was disgusted. Before the wolf had a chance to react, Kile had chopped its head off. Wolves were disappearing into sparkles left and right, and finally they were all gone. Not one had gotten past us to Aileen.

Yahz'rod gave an ear-splitting shriek of rage and spoke for the first time. Imbeciles! Weaklings! I shall eat your hearts for that! I shall make your deaths slow and painful, pluck your limbs off one at a time and keep you alive for the whole thing! His voice was low and rasping, and filled with menace.

I nearly gagged. "Not while we still live and breathe, Yahz'rod!" I shouted back defiantly.

Yahz'rod just gave a wheezing laugh and retreated to another room, throwing back a single comment: That's the point, Zarathel.

Dantenar's face was angry. "We'll make him pay for that. We need to have a better plan, though. If he keeps summoning creatures to fight for him, we'll never have enough time to distract him long enough for Aileen to shoot him!" She whispered in a fierce tone.

Kile's POV:

I was proud of my sister's courage, but I had to disagree. "If he summons creatures and watches them try to destroy us, it stands to reason that he won't have his guard up. If Aileen can just make that hit with her crossbow, we stand a chance."

Aileen got a very determined look on her face. "I'll hit him, don't worry. I just don't know if it'll be in the right spot. It's a small target, Kile, you know that."

Zarathel was still seething over Yahz'rod's last comment. "You're a good shot, Aileen. I know you can hit it." She smiled reassuringly at Aileen, who smiled back. "Now, let's go and get Yahz'rod," Zarathel finished. She led the way out of the room we were in and into a narrow corridor.

Dantenar made a strange noise, but when I turned back to look at her, she turned and smiled. "I'm fine, I just stubbed my toe on a raised part of the floor."

Reassured that my little sister was unhurt, I turned back to the front. We were in front of a door now, and Zarathel and I looked at each other, unsure of what to do next. "Open it, of course," Jaron said, and did so. He was the first one in, looking around warily and holding his Addertongue at the ready. "He's not in here," He called back, sounding a little put out. "It's empty."

Dantenar, who was still in the back, scowled. "Of course he's not in here." We all stared at her. "If he were in here, wouldn't the bottom of the door showed a slight red glow?" I nodded sheepishly. "Let's try the one down the hall." Dantenar led the way out of the room, walking down the hall and stopping next to a door with a faint red glow at the bottom. "I think he's in here," She whispered. She opened the door and went in slowly, keeping to the shadows. We followed.

Yahz'rod was in the middle of the room, chanting to himself with his eyes closed. The door closed softly behind us as Aileen shut it carefully. Walking up slowly, she leaned over to me and whispered in a low voice, "I don't think he's noticed us yet."

Suddenly, the door opened and shut again. Luckily the noise was soft, so Yahz'rod didn't notice. A black shadow stole up behind Dantenar, and I whirled into action. However, the noise of my sword leaving it's sheath brought Yahz'rod back to awareness, and the dim room got very bright. He must have used his magic to brighten it. I gaped at the shadow standing behind Dantenar, which was staring back at me defiantly. It was Dantenar.

Jaron's POV:

The look on Kile's face as he stared at the two Dantenars was heartbreaking, the picture of a loving brother who had no idea which Dantenar was really his sister. Dantenar 1 turned to Dantenar 2 when she saw what Kile was looking at, and also looked shocked. "Dantenar?" Kile managed.

"Yes?" Dantenar 1 and Dantenar 2 said together. Their voice was the same, their facial expressions the same, everything about them was the same!

"Does Dantenar have another twin?" I whispered to Zarathel, who shook her head vehemently.

"I'm the only one she has. Honest."

Yahz'rod was watching us from the center of the room, chuckling to himself. We ignored him. The Dantenars were facing each other now, their weapons drawn. I stared at them, scrutinizing each one. There had to be a way to tell them apart! Dantenar 1 began circling Dantenar 2, who was staring at her double with a calm expression on her face.

"Monster," Dantenar 1 hissed. "Pretender! Go back to where you came from, fake! Everyone knows I'm the real Dantenar." Dantenar 2 didn't answer, and the first Dantenar went on. "I'll kill you like the monster you really are!" Dantenar 1 lunged forward with her spear, but the second Dantenar dodged nimbly. It was then that I realized which Dantenar was real, and I whispered which one it was to Kile, who nodded.

Dantenar 1 was panting now, having exhausted herself in multiple fruitless lunges at Dantenar 2, who was having no problem avoiding the blows. Dantenar 1 stumbled slightly, and that was when Dantenar 2 made her move. She darted forward and chopped down with her poleaxe, severing Dantenar 1's head neatly from her shoulders. Yahz'rod roared with anger as Dantenar 1 dissolved into sparkles. I felt vaguely satisfied, since I'd guessed right.

Kile hugged his real sister, who was staring at me. "Dantenar," He whispered fondly. "I should have realized it wasn't you."

"Yes, you should have," Dantenar said, but she was smiling. She looked back at me and raised her eyebrow, proving that she was the real one. I'd seen that expression to many times to be fooled by an imitation. "Why are you smiling?" She asked curiously.

My smile broadened. "I guessed right," I said simply. Dantenar rolled her eyes and shook her head in exasperation.

Fools! Yahz'rod roared in anger. You shall pay for that dearly! And he lashed out with a burst of magic.

Kile's POV:

A wave of purple magic came at us, and we all hit the floor. I covered my sisters as best I could, but they'd managed quite nicely to avoid the magic. I stood warily when it had passed. The others were standing as well, with the exception of Jaron, who was on the floor, unmoving. Dantenar looked at him with a worried expression.

Then Jaron sat up. His gaze rose to mine, and I stepped back involuntarily. His eyes were the same glowing red as Yahz'rod's, and as he stood, the monster was laughing. He is mine.

Dantenar stepped backwards, the pain on her face mirroring the pain I'd felt when there were two of her. "Not for long," she muttered in response to Yahz'rod's single line. She turned to me. "He's the real Jaron, we can't kill him!"

Aileen and Zarathel nodded in agreement. "She's right, it would be wrong. There has to be a way to free him without killing him." Zarathel looked at Aileen approvingly.

Kill them. Make their death's slow and painful. Yahz'rod's voice was triumphant. Jaron grinned evilly, raising his Addertongue and advancing on us. Dantenar took another step backwards, her eyes wet with unshed tears. Looked like Zarathel was right; Dantenar liked Jaron.

I raised my sword and stepped in front of the girls. Aileen was squinting at Yahz'rod, probably trying to get an idea of where the target was, and I had to keep Jaron from her so she could concentrate on killing him. "Stop, Jaron," I said in a loud voice. "Don't you remember us? You've spent the last three weeks with us, do you really want to kill us?"

"My master wishes you dead," Jaron said. His voice was the same low, raspy voice that Yahz'rod used. "I will listen to my master." Evidently Yahz'rod had a good hold over his mind. Jaron was too strong-willed to be controlled by anything less than a master magician.

I leaped forward, stabbing at Jaron with my sword. I didn't want to hurt him, but I didn't want him to hurt my sisters or Aileen, either. Jaron dodged and blocked, and we backed up again, circling each other warily. Dantenar and Zarathel were standing next to each other, Zara with her arms around Dantenar, who was hiding her face. Jaron glanced at them, and for a brief second I thought I saw recognition in his eyes. But it was gone again just as soon as it had appeared.

The next time I went around, I saw Dantenar and Zara whispering to each other, Aileen listening and nodding. Jaron darted forward, and we locked swords. "Come on, Jaron, remember!" I whispered in a fierce tone.

"My master wishes you dead!" Jaron said in return. He pushed, hard, with his sword, making me stumble backwards. He came in for the kill, but was stopped by a soft, feminine voice from behind him.

"Jaron." Jaron turned, and I followed his gaze. It was Dantenar. She was unarmed. Jaron started towards her, and she smiled. Taking a few steps forward, she stopped again. Jaron stopped about two feet in front of her, looking unsure.

What are you waiting for? Kill her! Yahz'rod was livid at his hesitance.

"Master, she is unarmed."

Dantenar smiled again as Jaron turned to Yahz'rod, then took one step towards him, put her arms around his neck and kissed him, making him drop his sword in surprise. Jaron's eyes opened very wide, but they slowly lost their red glow and went back to their normal hazel color before the lids lowered. Almost hesitantly, he wrapped his arms around Dantenar's waist.

Yahz'rod roared/shouted, obviously enraged that he'd lost his minion. And that was when Aileen brought up her crossbow, took careful aim and fired. Yahz'rod roared again, this time in pain. Zarathel grabbed Dantenar's spears, and shoved both of them deep into Yahz'rod's body, making him roar a third time. I drove my sword into the Emperor Abominations body until it wouldn't go in any farther, then did the same with Jaron's Addertongue. Dantenar dealt the finishing blow with her poleaxe, leaving a dazed Jaron standing with a confused look on his face.

With a final groan of pain, Yahz'rod the Emperor Abomination keeled over and died. We cheered, all of us (even Jaron, who was recovering from Dantenar's unexpected move) and the game started to run and melt. I looked around in surprise, then the world went black.

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A/N: THE FINAL CHAPTER!! Now all I have to do is write an epilogue. That shouldn't take to long, probably within a week or so I'll be posting it. So what did you think? Review!!

Thanks to my faithful reviewers almostinsane and Measha of Clomati. I love you guys!