Golden Sun: The Sands of Time
Chapter 14: Now for Ruin
Grisnakh strode up to the ruins of the gates. He saw Maelgrim standing there impassively, own his own two feet for once. His NightMare stood several feet away, pacing with restrained energy. He could see several elves retreating, heading back to the castle. Around them, the cry of "retreat!" sounded far and wide. The aerions were making short work of any elf that stayed behind, and most were already turning back to the castle.
"Enjoying yourself?" Grisnakh snarled at Maelgrim. The Dark Knight didn't seem to hear. Instead, he turned to the doorway of the castle, now beginning to close.
"That boy… that blue-haired one… he was an adept…"
Grisnakh grabbed Maelgrim by the shoulder. "Listen to me when I talk to you!" Before he could get further, he felt a sudden surge of energy and he was thrown backwards. Maelgrim turned his hood to face him, dark cloak fluttering in the still night air. "Don't touch me again, mortal. Or I shall personally ensure your death will be a slow and torturous one." Then he was gone, heading towards the gates, to destroy it.
Grisnakh stood and spat in Maelgrim's general direction. There was still much to be done before the fall of Anthis was complete. Turning, he strode into the darkness.
Isaac and Felix stood back to back, stabbing and slashing any karan that dared come close. They were in the center of a raging storm, a hundred thousand foes come to face them alone. And yet, the still lived.
They were moving, slowly but surely, to a side dorr in the castle, and the karan knew this. Attacks from all sides rained down on them. Several of them were wielding bows and arrows, and had begun firing at them.
"Granite!"
A yellowish barrier surrounded the two, and blocked all the arrows that had been aimed at them. Taking this momentary opportunity of near invincibility, the two venus adepts made a mad dash for the side door. The karan, roaring and yelling in anger that their prey had eluded them, gave chase.
Midway through the Scramble up the stone steps that led to the side wall, Isaac turned, sword at the ready, facing the oncoming karan. Felix halted, then turned. "Isaac, are you nuts! You can't fight them alone!"
Isaac merely shook his head. He could feel the Sol Blade pulsing with suppressed psynergy that was pleading to be released. Might as well grant that wish. Raising it the air, Isaac cried out to the night sky, calling the power of the sun.
"Meggido!"
A gigantic meteor streaked earthwards, blazing with Solar fire. Smashing into and completely demolishing the stone steps in front of Isaac, it effectively cut off the karan's pathway, and succeeded in knocking off the foremost one onto the ground below.
Isaac grinned, and continued running back up to the door, the cries from the enraged karan still shockingly loud.
Davion fired another arrow through the air, watching it stick in the throat of another karan. The warrior made a strangled sound, and fell back, to join the piles of corpses, both elf and karan, lying on the ground.
"Davion, come on. We need to turn back." Alex's voice was surprisingly clear beside him. Nodding wearily, he paused to shoot another karan climbing up the ladder before turning away. The gates were breached. The walls were no longer safe defense. Time to bring the fight into the hallways of Anthis castle, then.
Heading for the castle gates, were the last few soldiers were streaming in as well, Davion suddenly fell to his feet. His right arm and leg… they were going numb. What the hell? Then, he felt a sudden stabbing pain in his body. The poison! The elixir hadn't been enough to dispel it! Groaning, he sank to the floor. Pain wracked his body.
Alex immediately noticed Davion's condition, and ran over. Placing a palm on Davion's chest, he focused, trying to use the inborn power of water adepts to purge the poison from Davion's body. No such luck. He managed to halt it's flow, but the attacks came back with a vengeance. Cursing softly, he Warped Davion to within the castle. He needed time to combat the poison in private. And if he could find Mia, that would be an added bonus, considering she was far more adept in healing than he.
Behind him, the vast wooden doors of the castle clanged shut, trapping out, however momentarily, the vast hordes of karan outside.
Ivan stumbled about blindly in the drainage system deep underground. Where was Sheba? His only guide was Breath, constantly flitting forward, then back, anxiously crying for Ivan to hurry up and save Sheba. Muttering, he turned another bend, legs soaked to the bone.
At first, he didn't comprehend what he was seeing. It seemed to be a small mound, made of cracked slabs of ceiling, forming a roughly triangular shape. It was only after Gust flew down to the other side of the mound and started squeaking that he noticed the still form pinned under the slabs of rock.
Sheba!
Rushing over, Ivan knelt down, taking her limp wrist in his hand. No. There was no way- She- she couldn't- "Sheba!" He yelled. "Sheba, wake up!"
Sheba groaned softly and began to stir. Ivan let out an involuntary gasp of relief. She was alive! But she wouldn't be much longer, he noted, as he saw several elves holding their ground against a seemingly endless bunch of karan. Time enough for that later, though. Bending closer to Sheba, he began to pull out the potions and vials in his pack, trying to cure her wounds.
"No… water." Sheba gasped. "Water."
Ivan cursed. They had plenty of water rushing in along the drain, but he wasn't sure if it was clean. Not to mention he had nothing in the way of a container. Without thinking, he dipped his hand into the water next to him, cupping it, and bringing his palm to Sheba's face. Tipping it, he watched with some satisfaction as the transparent liquid found it's way into Sheba's open mouth.
This seemed to revive Sheba somewhat, and she stared upwards, for the first time realizing who had crouched down beside her. "Ivan?"
Ivan merely let out a tiny smile. " I promised, didn't I? I'll protect you. No matter what."
Sheba coughed, and looked down. "Ivan, there's no way I'm going to be able to get out of here. I can barely move. You have" A massive fit of coughing interrupted her words, and when it subsided, she continued, voice so soft Ivan had to lean in closer to hear. "You have to save yourself."
"No way." Ivan countered. "I promised you that everyone's getting out of this alive, and I intend to keep that promise." Casting Impact on himself, he began to lift one of the huge stone slabs that trapped Sheba. Or at least tried to. The enormous piece of rock barely budged.
Frowning, Ivan cast Impact yet again, and once again began lifting the rock. It was considerably easier this time, but still took a lot out of Ivan. Groaning with the exertion, he managed to push the largest piece to one side. The rest of the rocks were cleared out easier, but by the time he had finished, he could feel the effects of his earlier spells slipping away.
Panting for breath, he lifted his eyes to look at the prone form of Sheba, still lying on the ground. And gasped. There was an horrendous gash on here thigh, and Ivan could see bits of gravel and stone embedded in the flesh. Blood itself seemed to have seeped into her skirt, turning it a dull red. Fighting an urge to retch, he signaled for Breath to try to cure that wound, but he knew that even Breath's powers would do little for such a serious wound. Not fatal, but it would definitely hurt bad.
Sheba managed to lift her head to look Ivan in the face. Her face was streaked with grime, and she was beginning to look pale. Ivan would have screamed with frustration and worry, except he didn't want to attract the attention of the karan behind him. Dimly, he was aware of an elvish scream being cut short.
Crouching once more, he attempted to lift Sheba onto his shoulders without hurting her too much, failing miserably. Not to mention that they'd be sitting ducks for the karan once they broke through. Ivan begin to prop Sheba by the wall, trying to get her into a comfortable position. Once that was accomplished, Ivan glanced over at the battle. Only two more elves- one now, fighting.
"Gust, Breeze, Gasp, Gale, out. Now." Four purple flashes of light, and four djinni appeared, perched on various places on his upper body.
The last elven warrior fell, and the karan started towards Ivan. He grinned, and raised both arms to the air.
" I call upon the ancient God of Thunder. The epitome of Jupiter's might, the fury of the storms itself! Thor! Come to my side!"
From the air, an ancient rune carved itself, a triangle set within a circle, glowing with the might of Jupiter itself. Whirling, it slammed onto the ground, knocking the stunned karan back momentarily. The gigantic figure of Thor emerged, and from his hammer a river of irradiating lightning poured forth.
But Ivan knew that he'd never be able to kill all of the karan with his summon, powerful as it might be. More and more were already backed up at the entrance, trying to enter. And as blasts of lightning rained on the stunned attackers, Ivan directed Thor's will to something else. With a cry, Thor smashed his mighty warhammer into the top of the stone cavern, breaking it and raining down stones and rock on the stunned karan. This also served the double purpose of creating a barrier, trapping any karan still outside the drain itself.
When the smoke and dust finally cleared, Ivan could hear the karan moaning, their limbs and bodies crushed under tons of rock. But Ivan had more pressing matters at hand. Two karan had managed to get out of the way of the stones, and were now advancing on him. After just shifting several large slabs of stone, and utilizing a summon, Ivan wasn't even sure if he could stand straight, let alone fight. But he had to. Sheba depended on him.
Clumsily drawing his Tisiphone Edge, he got into a battle ready stance just as the first karan charged him. Blocking the blow, he jumped back, pivoting on his foot, before stabbing at his foe's chest. The karan laughed, before jumping back and bringing his sword down on Ivan's own. His weakened hand gave way, and the sword clattered uselessly to the floor, before being kicked away by the karan.
Laughing, the warrior leapt at him, forcing Ivan further back up the drain, and closer to where the silent form of Sheba sat, fighting for consciousness. Time for a djinni, Ivan though.
"Wheeze!"
A purple blast of light emerged from his hand, smashing into the karan, and dousing him in a cloud of poisoned air. The karan waved it away, coughing slightly, before leaping at Ivan again. He dodged, tripped, and ended up sprawling over a stone. Instinctively, he kicked backwards, and was rewarded with a cry of surprise. The karan, too eager to kill the young one, had been in midair when the kick hit him, and had fallen back, unelegantly, into the underground river. The other karan, lounging back and looking like a bored spectator, laughed out loud at this, and barked a few unintelligible words at the fallen redskin.
The karan knew the meaning of the words, evidently enough, as he snarled, and climbed to his feet again. Ivan got himself ready, and was about to defend himself, when-
"Storm Ray."
The utterance of this spell was barely a whisper, and certainly far too weak to harm to karan. But no one could blame Sheba for this, her strength and life nearly completely gone. She had been vaguely aware that Ivan had been fighting someone or something in the enclosed drain, and she knew she had to help. This last effort, however, had been too much, and her head slumped over as she slid into blessed unconsciousness. Not totally worthless the spell had been, however as it distracted the karan long enough for Ivan to act.
"Sheba!" He cried. Breaking into a short run, he grabbed the Clothos Distaff that had lain by her feet, and swung it in an upwards arc that caught the karan in the face, breaking his skull.
Ivan dropped the staff tiredly as he stared at the dying warrior in front of him. Just then, he heard the sound of metal boots tramping heavily on the ground, and looked up in time to see the second warrior charging for him. Before he could begin to move into any sort of defensive posture, the fist from his foe had caught him in the chest and sent him flying, to land in the river, now choking itself as it rushed into the stone barrier created by Thor.
Ivan gazed wearily at the air, the shock of the blow still lingering about him. Stepping into view, the karan warrior stared at him with malice in his eyes. Ivan let out a choked gasp as he watched the karan raise his sword into the air, intent on cutting out the young Jupiter adept's chest. And Ivan couldn't move, couldn't cast any spell, couldn't try to save himself.
"Sheba" He whispered. "So sorry… can't protect… "
The blade fell.
Garet jeked back as he felt a pair of hands reach through the door, trying to squeeze out his life. After bringing the battering ram to bear on the castle gates, it had fallen in short order, and the karan had streamed into the hallways of the castle. In this however, the elves, knowing the mazelike corridors of Anthis' castle, were able to set up ambushes all over the place, dismaying and confusing the karan. Garet was currently with a group that had ran smack into a battalion, and both sides were now busy trying to gain the upper hand in the battle. Stabbing forward, he managed to kill the karan strangling him, and felt his sore neck where the redskin had his fingers. Shuddering, he returned to the battle, Felix standing at the side, his Excalibur cutting a swath through the karan ranks. Isaac, near the front, was knocking away karan with Spire attacks, forcing them to try to take down Isaac first. Seeing as how Isaac's agility managed to allow him to dodge many blows while returning his own, Garet assumed Isaac would be alright.
Suddenly, the air seemed to change, growing colder and more suffocating. Glancing around, Garet noted a cloaked figure riding atop a black horse, with a runeblade at his side. Garet, however, didn't find that so worrying as the tiny army of zombies that were standing at the Dark Knight's side.
Especially, when they, with a horrible croaking scream, they began to charge.
"You'll be able to heal him?"
Mia crouched over Davion's shivering form. The poison was a powerful one. "Yes" She replied frostily. "Unlike some others, I practiced my healing magics faithfully."
Alex sighed. "Mia, I'd advise you to keep off arguments until the battle is over."
Mia growled softly.She couldn't decide what was most infuriating, Alex's condescending tone, his smug attitude, or the fact that he was right. Pushing all these pesky thoughts away like a fly, she focused, and bluish tinges of light surrounded her and Davion as she did her best to cleanse the venom from his body.
Just then, Aldos Firestar hurried by, his personal bodyguard in tow. When he saw Davion propped up against the wall, his expression softened for the brieftest moment. Then, steel-gray eyes hardened once again and drawing forth a Brand, he continued on to the battle.
Mia had not noticed any of this, and had succeeded in cleaning the poison from Davion's body through the process. Blinking, the elf prince looked up. "Mia? Alex? What-"
Just then, a scream resounded through the hallways, coming from the direction that Aldos had just went. Without a second word, the three defenders of Anthis rushed in the direction of the sound.
Aldos' eyes narrowed as he cut out the legs from another karan. They had appeared, so suddenly and without warning that the attack had to be an ambush. Hewan of his personal guard had already been slain, and Yslane was mortally wounded. Jumping back from a wild stab with a pike, he countered, and sent the karan flying back, minus his head.
The numbers of his elves were growing smaller, and they were now a tiny knot, surrounded on all sides. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Drunin fall silently. He had not made a sound all battle.
Suddenly, all around him, the karan stopped, and backed off several paces. Glancing around, he noted that he was the only one there still battle worthy. Narrowing his eyes, he raised his sword to the air, daring the others to attack him. No one moved.
Abruptly, the press of red-skinned brutes parted, and in the center of them, stood a karan warrior, decked in black-plated armor. In one hand he held a blood-red war-axe, raised above his head.
"I am Grisnakh." The karan spoke in a gravelly voice. "I am the one who planned this attack, king Aldos. See if you, old greybeard, can match me in single combat!" And almost before the sentence was finished, he had charged forward, war axe swinging in a wide arc. Aldos parried, and riposted, trying to cut out Grisnakh's legs from under him. The karan was too fast for that, however, and had twisted out of the way just in time.
Aldos continued the offensive, slashing, stabbing, whirling, never letting the karan gain footing.
Grisnakh suddenly ducked under a swing, and brought his right hand up in an uppercut, knocking the king down. Aldos quickly swung his sword in a blind strike upwards, and managed to swipe Grisnakh's knee. With a hiss of pain, the large karan stumbled back. It was not a serious wound, and already it was beginning to scab over.
Aldos scrambled to his feet, and aimed his blade straight at the charging warrior. No dice. Grisnakh had ducked under, and in a single, whirling slash, had cut a gash in the king's belly.
Aldos staggered, eyes displaying a mixture of shock and disbelief, and finally fell. Grisnakh let out a mirthless grin, much like a shark. Turning, he indicated for the rest of his horde to follow him, which he readily did. The hallway was silent
An instant later, Davion skidded around the corner, and stared at the sight which he had never imagined in a thousand years. His father, lying in a pool of blood… Dashing over, he crouched down.
"Father?" He whispered.
Aldos opened one eye, staring at the familiar face of his son. "Davion…"
"Father, I-"
Aldos shook his head, cutting him off. "No time for that. It's time to prove your worth, you who bear my blood. If you are to be worthy as king and my heir, you must defend the castle. To your dying gasp." Closing his eyes, he concentrated on drawing in another breath of air. Presently he spoke again. "I wonder… should I have been less harsh on you?" Aldos let out a grim chuckle, but coughed halfway and spat out blood. Davion couldn't speak, he could only stare at the ugly wound that stained his father's armor. "So little time for regret now." Aldos let out a long, slow sigh. "Funny how it's always when regret means the least that we begin doing so. No more time for words. Go… my son. Go."
And with that, Aldos Firestar, lord of Anthis, died.
Alex and Mia rounded the corner, to see the sight of Davion crouched down beside his father. Gradually, he stood, and the two mercury adepts took a step back. A fire was smoldering in his eyes, a fire that would have given even the Dark Knight pause.
"No time for words." He whispered. "Time only for swordplay." And he was off, running, running with all the speed of the winds itself. Battle loomed ahead.
"I smell something." Grisnakh muttered. Lifting his nose to the air, he took a long sniff. Beside him, one of his personal guards followed. "Gah! It's the stench of a curse!"
"An undead one." Grisnakh snorted out. " The Dark Knight. We go to his aid." A greedy smile spread across the visage of Grisnakh. "It would be a shame though, if someone accidentally killed him in the midst of battle, wouldn't it?"
The rest nodded.
"Very well then. To war!" Brandishing his axe, stained with the blood of Aldos Firestar, he led the ravenous hordes forward. To war.