There's too many men
Too many people
Making too many problems
And not much love to go round
Cant you see
This is a land of confusion.

Chapter 23: The Dragon Reborn

The head of clan Jolly Rogers looked out through the view port that was at the front of his bridge. His Hammerhead-class capital ship was the center of a small fleet of starships that he commanded. Though a pirate, he rarely attacked ships that were carrying users in the game. Player Killing attracted too much attention and more trouble then they were worth, so he stuck to raiding and capturing ships that were controlled by NPCs.

Lately though, he had had his work cut out for him. In this remote part of DreamLand things were happening with increased frequency that could only be described as highly unusual. It made him nervous, very nervous. He had considered pulling out of this sector, but he was miles away from anywhere where he and his band of pirates would be recognized and attacked on sight. He had not been making friends around here lately, but the loot he had would set up his clan nicely else where.

Leaning back in his chair, he glanced out of the portside view at the Challenger class USS Armstrong that was hovering in place next to the Hammerhead-class ship. It had been sitting there undergoing repairs ever since the last clash with a small group of scouting ships that had appeared out of nowhere from space.

Alarms rang and the entire bridge area flashed bright red. An automated computer voice blared, "Warning! Proximity alarm has been triggered. Multiple ships have entered the sector…"

"Computer, end recording," the captain commanded. He was the only person logged in and on the bridge at the moment. Not that he wanted to still be logged in, his time should have expired two hours ago, "Show me," he commanded.

On a small computer console in front of the captain flickered to life and a live streaming feed coming from his foremost ship, a small scouting shuttle that was on automated patrol so that way his personnel could be more productive, appeared on the screen.

Gaping at the sight, the captain sat down to closer inspect the image. More and more ships were appearing from what had been empty space into real space. Hundreds were already there, and hundreds more were appearing each second. Suddenly his own fleet seemed smaller then he could have imagined. What struck the captain as odd, however, was that the ships themselves were like nothing he had ever seen before. They did not seem to be made out of any metal that he could see, and their designs were extremely random and organic, not at all like the ships he usually saw.

"Captain," came a voice over the intercom, "Are you seeing this?"

"Yes," he answered automatically, "Any idea who they are?"

One of his other ship captains answered first, "No idea, sir, but I think that this must be the start of some major event in DreamLand. I hadn't heard about any new events starting up though."

The captain of the USS Armstrong spoke up, "Sir, I think I know who they are."

"Oh really? Would you care to enlighten us?" the Jolly Roger's leader asked, his voice rising as the space around them began to fill up with more and more ships.

"The Yuuzhan Vong," the Armstrong's captain replied, and it sent chills down everybody's spines.


The user named Lei Shu anxiously thrust forward with his spear, piercing the armor of the warrior across from him. He and his clan were currently attached to Liu Bei's forces, re-enacting famous battles across Three Kingdom's China. Or at least, that was what they had been hoping to do. Lately, things had changed from what had been the original timeline, what with the unexpected disappearance of Wei's leader, Cao Cao.

Ever since then, he and his clan had been locked in battle after battle with the forces of Wu and whatever was left of the splintered forces of Wei. Chaos was truly the rule of the day in Three Kingdom's China, and there seemed to be no way to escape it. Every time Lei Shu attempted to log out to escape the madness, he found that he was sealed in.

Shu ducked another blow from a sword man who had gotten too close just as his friend managed to put his own sword between the man's armor, saving him.

"Hey Lei Shu!" his clan mate said, "Where the heck did this ambush come from?"

"Heck if I know!" Lei Shu shouted back, "But I'm starting to think that the people who left had the right idea! We should try to get off this planet!"

"Nonsense!" his friend said as he cut off the head of another soldier before standing back to back with his friend, "This is exactly what I signed up for!"

"Yes, but don't you find it odd that we can't sign out anymore?"

"Who cares?" his friend replied, "It's not like I have anything better to do!"

Lei Shu was about to argue some more but decided against it, "Where is Lord Zhang Fei?" he asked instead.

"Last I saw him, he was dueling with Wu's champion, Taishi Ci, should we assist him?"

"Yes," Lei Shu said curtly, and the two began to move through the chaotic battle to find Lord Zhang Fei. It did not take long to find the two leaders, dueling each other in a circle about twenty feet in diameter surrounded by fighting men on all sides.

Zhang Fei was using his considerable mass and momentum to continue to bash his spear into Taishi Ci's weapons, but Taishi Ci appeared content to block, waiting for an opening.

"Quickly Lei Shu!" his friend said, "We must help Lord Zhang Fei!" and without hesitation, the two ran into the empty space and began striking at Taishi Ci from the sides with their own weapons. The hero of Wu sneered in annoyance at the two seemingly generic foot soldiers and made to strike them down, lashing out with his two large rods in an attempt to smash both of the interloper's skulls. That was when Zhang Fei stabbed at Taishi Ci with his spear, forcing the powerful man backwards.

"You can't possibly win here!" Taishi Ci shouted at Zhang Fei, "Soon all of China will be under the banner of my lord, Sun Ce!"

"Ha!" Zhang Fei snorted loudly, "We'll never concede! He may be the little conquer, but he's is no match for the three brothers and Zhuge Liang!"

Lei Shu was about to advance again, when suddenly the sunlight that had been coming down out of the sky darkened. Looking up, he noticed that dark clouds were beginning to form in the sky with remarkable speed. Lightening flashed in the clouds, and then began striking the ground all around the two clashing armies. Men screamed and died as the world around them was turned into flames and thrown earth.

"What sorcery is this!?" Taishi Ci shouted, "This is your witch, Zhuge Liang's work!"

Zhang Fei looked up into the sky with wonder, "If it is, I had no idea he was capable of such magic…"

Then the lightening stopped and the clouds parted , and a single man appeared in the clouds with a strong muscular build, a prominent nose and flaming red hair. As he descended from the clouds, Lei Shu noticed that the man wore strange black armor that he had never seen in his time in DreamLand, but he knew that his arrival was not a good sign.

"Crud," his friend said, "I know who that is…"

Lei Shu turned and gave his friend a questioning look, "Who is he?"

"His name is Ganondorf, a very powerful villain, and probably the reason we've been hearing so much about Hyrule's demise lately."

As Ganondorf hovered a few feet off of the ground, he began to study the faces of the men who were looking up at him, and then a nasty grin appeared on his face.

"Oh crap," Lei Shu said as Ganondorf threw his hands up into the air and more and more lightening began to pour out of the sky into the assembled troops, killing hundreds in an instant.

"We gotta get out of here!" Lei Shu's friend shouted.

"No, really?!" Lei Shu shouted back sarcastically, and he looked back at the suspended red haired man. He was laughing madly now, and appeared to be flinging fireballs at the men on the ground from his hands, burning them to cinders.

Turning, Lei Shu and his friend began to run out of the battlefield as quickly as possible, running past the assembled soldiers and wounded and dying. Finally reaching the edge of the battlefield, both of them pulled up short their jaws dropping at the sight that awaited them.

A legion of darkly armored creatures stood at the top of a low ridge, a collection of eagle's beaks, goat's horns, and cloven feet. Fear suddenly gripped the two users, who realized only too late as the hordes of trollocs descended on them, that they were not going to make it out of this slaughter alive.


As the DreamLand epidemic grew around the world, the world leaders began to appear on television and radios to address the concerned populations about the problem.

"I have every faith that the dedicated men and women at DreamLand Industries will resolve this issue with little hassle and no damage," the American president said as part of his address to the nation.

"This crisis will end shortly," came the confident reply from the British Prime Minister, "John Call knows more about that system then anybody alive!"

"The Americans know how to fix this problem," the Russian president announced on a radio address to his nation, "And I have every confidence that they will resolve the problem shortly."

"I urge you to be patient!" the Australian Prime Minister said seriously, "This is merely a small glitch that has happened with a relatively new piece of technology, it should be no surprise to anyone when the program has small problems. More so when foul play is involved, which is what DreamLand Industries says is happening."

John Call watched each of the statements impassively, but on the inside he was grinning. They had said exactly what he had wanted them to say, but he would have been much happier of DreamLand was not falling apart at the seams, and if that blasted Jedi Ta'veren was in his possession. He had no idea what that fool had told the Jedi, but he knew that he must have been responsible for the deteriorating conditions in DreamLand.

A knock sounded on John's office door, and a very badly ruffled Todd Jacobs entered the room. He had not slept in two days, living off of coffee and whatever he could grab out of the vending machines. He had been too busy working to resolve the issues that had been plaguing DreamLand in the past few days.

"I've got bad news," he said, "Three Kingdom's China has been trashed, just like Hyrule."

"How?"

"You're not going to believe this, but it was another horde of trollocs, only this time lead by Ganondorf."

"You're right, I don't believe you," John said as he plopped back down into his chair, "Any luck finding the people responsible for taking the Ta'veren?"

"No sir, but we do have agents and other administrators sitting on all of the remaining ones, so there's no way they can destabilize the game anymore."

"We'll see. Have the agents been upgraded?" John asked.

"yes sir," Todd said looking down into a folder he was holding, "But there's something else."

"Yes?" John asked tensely. Todd had been delivering very little good news lately.

"An event is happening that nobody programmed, but something we were planning on doing in another six months or so, the Yuuzhan Vong have apparently begun their invasion of New Republic space."

John threw up his hands, "Alright, I'm going in myself," he said angrily.

"Are you sure sir?" Todd asked, "If you go in we don't know if we can get you out, until this whole thing is resolved."

"People are going into comas, Todd. I have to keep as many people from dying in the game as possible. An invasion from a new enemy will kill thousands, I'll deal with this myself," he replied, and hopefully catch that Jedi and those Ta'veren snatchers while I'm at it!

"Alright sir, I'll see that you're not disturbed," Todd said as he made for the door.

"Todd?" John asked, and the head of operations turned around.

"Yes, Mr. Call?"

"Get some sleep, that's an order."

Todd hesitated, but did not argue, "Yes, sir," he replied.

"Sweet dreams," John called after him as he left the room.


"There!" Carth pointed to a large structure at the center of the city, "That is where we'll find the Dragon Reborn."

"How can you be sure?" Squall asked, peering up at the domed roof with is elegant balconies.

"The Aiel are standing guard," Carth said pointing to one of the doorways.

"Where?" Larry asked.

"Try sensing them," Carth suggested, and Larry reached out with his mind into the Force, only then did he see where the two figures were sitting in a squat holding spears near the entrance.

"Why couldn't I see them?" Larry asked.

"Because they didn't want you to see them," Carth replied.

As they approached the door, Carth smoothly dismounted from his horse and Larry and Squall awkwardly followed suit. Carth confidently approached the front door of the house and made as though he was going to walk in unmolested. Of course, both of the Aiel guards sprang to their feet and pressed their spears into Carth's chest.

"I'm here to see the Car'a'carn," Carth said calmly, "He's expecting me."

"So he is, Carth Underhill, but not these two spares that you travel with," one of the masked figures said, and to Larry's surprise he realized that it was a woman talking. Aside from Tex, he had not really met very many women who were competent fighters, but the Aiel held themselves like they knew how to kill all three of them ten different ways before he could blink.

"They're with me, and will not cause any problems," Carth replied confidently.

The two warriors exchanged looks and flashed their hands at each other in some sort of sign language. Clearly, they used it as some form of communication, because the one who had not been speaking ducked in through the door, dropping the veil that hung across her face that had made it so hard for Larry to realize that they were women.

"Gai'shain will come and get your horses, and you will leave your weapons with the Far Dareis Mai that will come to take you to the Car'a'carn," the first woman said, her fierce green eyes promising punishment if they had decided to do anything foolish.

"Far Dareis Mai?" Larry asked.

"Maidens of the Spear, in the old tongue. It's the same language that the word Ta'veren comes from. The Maidens are a warrior society within the Aiel who are made up of women, most of them are as tough as the men, if not tougher. Don't try anything dumb in there, or we'll be dead in seconds. The Aiel are especially jumpy lately, what with Tarmon'gaidon approaching."

"Tarmon'gaidon?" Squall asked darkly.

"The Last Battle, and event that's scheduled to occur soon, all the more reason that convincing the Dragon Reborn to join us," Carth said as about five people dressed in white robes appeared to take their horses.

"What do you mean?" Larry asked.

Carth rolled his eyes, "I guess you should know. The Dragon Reborn is supposed to die at the Last Battle to save all of mankind from being overrun and ruled by the Dark One, sort of a satanic figure in this world. If the Dragon Reborn is not at the Last Battle, then the people of this world will be enslaved or destroyed for sure."

Larry was shocked, "What? Why are we taking this man then, surely there must be another way!"

"Look at it this way, if we don't stop John Call, then real people will be at risk, not just computer programs."

"What's that about computer programs?" Squall asked, "There people are real too."

"Uh, right, of course," Carth said, "But if we stop John Call, then we can stop the Dark One too, we just need to convince him to join us."

The door opened again and a servant dressed in darkly colored livery stood in the doorway. Larry caught a glimpse of the other Aiel woman as she darted back into her position next to the door. Her veil was down now, and for some reason it made Larry feel more at ease, though he was not sure why.

"This way," the servant said promptly and turned on his heel, when Larry got closer he realized that the man was clearly sweating profusely. Probably not used to the weather here, Larry reasoned.

The trio walked through the door, only to be quickly surrounded by more women who were dressed in the same robes and skirts as the ones outdoors. These one's had their faces covered and their spears pointed at the three guests.

"Your weapons," one of the masked women ordered, "Drop them."

Carth produced Hyperion and carefully set it down on the ground, and Squall and Larry followed suit. Only after they had been thoroughly searched and disarmed were they allowed to continue, onward down the hallway. The building was clearly well maintained, as Larry's boots slid smoothly down the well polished tile work. Paintings and small carvings sat in small out coves that were carved into the wall, speaking of extremely high quality.

The hallway curved, and a group of unveiled maidens was standing at the entrance of two very large double doors. The maiden at the head of the formation that had surrounded Larry and the other two motioned to the maidens around the doors and the doors opened smoothly. Beyond the entrance was a large spacious bedroom, with colorful carpets and blinds over the windows, which were open now to flood the room with bright sunlight.

But it was not the room's immediate surroundings that had Larry staring though; it was the man who was sitting slouched in a chair facing the door. Standing around him were two women and one man dressed in a dark coat buttoned up fully, despite the heat.

"So you've returned," the seated man said, "But you've brought company," he said, studying them with an intent gaze.

"Yes, my Lord Dragon," Carth said respectfully, "Have you thought on what I have told you?"

Larry took the time to study the man carefully, from the crown made of small daggers to the red hair and gray eyes. One of the women who was nearer to the Dragon Reborn was a younger woman, who was slim in figure and studied Larry with large dark eyes, but something told Larry that she was seeing more then just his face. The other woman was a much older lady, but the only way Larry could tell that was by the grey hair that she had, when he focused on her face he found he really could not tell just how old she was. She had many gold ornaments worked oddly into her hair, which Larry found odd. The last person in the room was the tall man with dark curly hair, he wore a dragon shaped badge on one side of his collar and what looked like a silver sword on the other.

The Dragon Reborn peered suspiciously into the eyes of Larry before moving on to Squall for a moment, and then he said, "Yes I have been thinking about what you said when you were here last. I have a hard time believing it though, truly the Last Battle must be here, at Shayol Ghul, it is where I must…"

He cut off with a look at the younger woman, who frowned at him and looked like she wanted to say something but kept silent. The tall dark man shifted slightly, and the older woman's expression did not change, but she stared more intently at Carth.

"The battle will surely end at Shayol Ghul, where the Dark One is bound, but that does not mean that the battle will start there. The armies of the Dark One are traveling through an ancient Ter'angreal that connects them to different worlds. Already the noble kingdom of Hyrule now remains in rubble and…"

Larry suddenly felt sick and a wave of intense nausea went through him as he slumped to the ground.

Carth took immediate notice, "Are you alright?"

"It's…nothing," Larry said, still not sure about the strength of his stomach.

"Sure it was, I felt it too, now tell me what you thought that was," Carth insisted.

Larry thought for a moment, and then concentrated on the sickening feeling in his stomach, "People are dying, a lot of them. All at once," Larry stammered.

"How can you possibly know that?!" the gray haired woman demanded.

Larry looked up, staring the woman in the eyes, "I just know!" he snapped back. The younger woman near the Dragon Reborn jerked slightly before whispering softly in the Dragon Reborn's ear.

After that, the Dragon Reborn go up and said, "It's alright, Cadsuane. I believe him. Where are my manners? I am Rand Al'Thor, the Dragon Reborn. This is Cadsuane Melaidhrin, an Aes Sedai of the Green Ajah, Logain Ablar, an Asha'man, and this is Min," Rand finished pointing to the younger woman behind him.

"Aes Sedai?" Squall said somewhat startled as he glanced at the gray haired woman, "More of them?"

"What do you mean by more of them?" Cadsuane demanded.

"They were locked up in the White Tower's dungeon when I took the liberty of liberating them," Carth said placidly.

"How did you get out of the White Tower?" Rand, the Dragon Reborn, asked curiously, "I thought it was under siege."

"I employed the help of one very willing novice to open a gateway for me," Carth said grinning, "I believe you know her. Her name is Egwene."

"That's impossible," Logain blurted, "She is the Amyrlin Seat."

"She has been captured and put back into novice white," Carth said calmly.

"My Lord Dragon, I will volunteer to lead a rescue to the White Tower of Asha'man who are ready to rescue her," Logain offered quickly.

Rand looked curiously at the shorter man before shaking his head slowly, "No, Egwene must weave her own way through the pattern, as I must weave my own way. Now who is dying?" he demanded of Larry.

"I…I don't know." Larry admitted, "But they died violently."

"It the same as with Hyrule, my Lord Dragon," Carth said, "The legions of the Dark One's trollocs have overwhelmed another world. The Last Battle has already begun, and you must be there to fight along with all of the worlds' heroes."

Rand turned to look at Carth sadly, "If you can offer me proof of your claims, I will follow you to the Last Battle on three conditions."

"Name them," Carth said, crossing his arms.

"First, that I am still able to help these people here as best as I am able, to set save them…after the battle," Rand said.

Carth nodded, concern flashing in his eyes, "Of course," he said solemnly.

"Secondly, you provide some way for me to communicate with my people here, to help coordinate things here. Something tells me that where we are going is beyond a pigeon's flight range."

"Also done," Carth said, though curiosity gleamed in his eyes as to the third guess.

"And lastly, my armies stay behind to protect these lands from the thrust that will come out of the Blight. Whether or not the Last Battle starts here, it will end here. They need some protection against that inevitable end."

Carth blanched visibly at this request, "All of them, my Lord Dragon?"

"The Maidens will not like this," Logain cautioned.

Rand looked at the door, behind which the maidens of the spear were diligently standing guard, "No, they will not," he agreed solemnly.

"They would be more useful then you can realize," Carth prodded, "Though a significant force should be left behind, it would be unwise to come completely alone. What about the Leigon of the Dragon, and some more Asha'man?" he said hopefully.

Rand looked indecisive, "Can transport for such a large number of soldiers be made ready?" he asked.

Larry looked in surprise at Carth's nodding head. How was he transporting anybody? They were marooned on this planet with no way out, short of a Stargate.

"Very well, but you still offer me no proof," Rand said sternly and everybody looked at Carth expectantly.

"Squall, could you remove your shirt please?" Carth asked after a moment.

Squall was extremely surprised at the request, "Why?" he demanded.

"Because there is something on your chest that proves everything," Carth said patiently, "Now please, your shirt."

Reluctantly, Squall unzipped the leather jacket he always wore and set it aside. Then he pulled up his shirt, showing a very well sculpted body, and almost to mock that overtop of it ran a long diagonal scar similar to the one that marred the man's face.

Larry heard a gasp and he turned to see Min with her hand up to her mouth in shock. Rand looked even more surprised, and his hand went immediately to his own chest, while Carth turned toward the Dragon Reborn and the Aes Sedai and unwound the robe he was wearing to reveal an identical scar across his own chest.

"How is that…possible?" Rand stammered, "It is identical."

"Yes, and I am willing to bet that you have no idea how you gained the one on your chest either," Carth said calmly as he put his robe back together.

"So you were right then," Rand said as he sat back down in the chair he had been sitting in, "We are all tied together."

"That's right," Carth said, "And we must move quickly, or else suffer the result of our slow actions."

"I don't get it…" Larry started when from outside came the sound of rapid bursts of machine gun fire.

Squall quickly put back on his jacket and Larry reached for his lightsaber, only to find it missing. Carth turned toward the door, almost unconcerned as though he had been expecting it.

"What in the name of the Creator was that?" Rand asked, picking up on Larry and Squall's alarm.

"Not the God Killers!" Larry said desperately, "We can't fight them here!"

"Those fools do not use guns," Carth said just as calmly, "but they use weapons of a more dangerous kind."

More gunfire sounded from just outside the building and then was silent for several minutes, and then the door opened, and a large number of Maidens of the Spear walked in veils up and very dangerous looking. In the middle of the formation stood a large number of people that Larry recognized, and he started in alarm.

"You!" Assim said in surprise, "Figures we would find you here!"

"Harrod!" Section said in surprise, "You're alive!"

In the center stood Assim, Section, Beyond, Tex, Red, and Leo, all disarmed and looking very upset at being so. What caught Larry's attention the most though was the black caped man who was trying very hard to sneak back into the shadows, only to be prodded forward again by one of the maidens with a thrust of her spear.

"Outlaw?" Larry said surprised, "What are you doing here?"

"Me!" Outlaw said, now pushing to get in front of Assim, "I am simply here to…"

"Shut up," Tex said punching Outlaw in the stomach, "He started shooting at us the moment we showed up. We were sent here looking for the Dragon Reborn by Nikita. Seems that Gregory knew where to find this Ta'veren exactly."

"I am the Dragon Reborn," Rand said standing up, "Friends of yours?" he asked of Carth.

"Why yes," Carth said with a small smile, "They are how we are going to get to the battle."

"Battle?" Assim demanded, "What battle?"

Carth sighed, "If it would please the Lord Dragon, I would recommend that we all go somewhere more accommodating and then I can explain everything to everybody."

Rand nodded, "Yes, I would like that very much."

"Car'a'carn," one of the Maidens at the head of the formation spoke up, "The man dressed like da'tsang attacked these travelers first, it would be best to keep him separated."

"Very well, search all of them and remove anything they have on them. Then inform the kitchen that we will be having a late lunch."

"Very well, Car'a'carn," the Maiden said, and with that all of the maidens dropped their veils, before beginning to push everybody out of the room.


"Let me GO!" Yuna screamed as she pounded the walls of her prison.

"Will you be quiet?" Cao Cao sneered from his own plush prison.

"Be quiet and what? Die!?" Yuna screamed back at him, "They killed my family, my friends!"

"And what will screaming about it accomplish?" Cao Cao sighed.

"It will accomplish something!" Yuna said as tears began streaming down her face.

Cao Cao sighed again and rolled back into his cushions, suddenly aware of his hunger. As though his cell understood his need for food, a basket full of baozi appeared in front of him, freshly steaming as though they had just been cooked. Eagerly picking one up, he began eating away at it hungrily.

As Yuna continued to sob and Cao Cao munched away hungrily at his baozi, the door opened and a blonde haired woman glided into the room. Suspended in the air in front of her was a teenager a few years younger then Yuna with dark hair and wore black robes. He was unconscious, and the blonde haired woman did not bother to look into the cells that Yuna and Cao Cao were occupying.

Cao Cao continued to eat hungrily, but he watched the blonde haired woman like a cornered wolf, coiled and ready to lunge for her throat. Yuna's eyes continued to leak tears as she glared at the woman with anger as she passed by carrying the limp boy.

Going down the line, the woman and the boy stopped at another cell. This one was decorated with tables, squashy red armchairs, and a roaring fireplace against one wall. On the floor was a carpet, giving the cell a very cozy appearance and useful for studying. The blonde haired woman flicked her wrist, and the boy landed unceremoniously in an armchair.

As she turned to leave, Yuna called, "Why are you doing this!?"

The blonde haired woman tilted her head slightly as she passed to regard Yuna before saying, "You are going to help us kill a God, one which would see you dead."

"What?" Cao Cao stammered, "A God?"

Without any other word, the blonde haired woman began to glide smoothly out of the room, leaving the two Ta'veren more confused then before.


Rand was silent for a long moment, clearly thinking over everything that had been said. Finally he bent forward and asked, "How much time do we have?"

Carth leaned forward, stroking his beard in thought, "I don't know, but it will not be much time now, we must move quickly or else the out come will be…severe."

"You have stressed that enough already," Cadsuane said sternly, "But I still do not see any reason to believe your outlandish tale. The Dark One is just some small lord compared to a greater evil that exists? Nonsense!"

"I believe him," Rand said quietly, "And that's all that matters," he looked up to where one of the maidens by the door were sitting, "Spread this message: I want five hundred out of every warrior society ready for travel as soon as possible. In addition, the Legion of the Dragon should be ready to march immediately. Cadsuane and Logain, I want all Asha'man and Aes Sedai that can be gathered here in two hours. Go to the Black tower if you have to, Logain."

"That will not be…easy," Logain said darkly, "Tiam…"

"I know about that," Rand said, cutting Logain off, "But we'll need as many men who can channel as possible if this battle is going to be as terrible as it sounds. Tiam is not to know I am leaving though, for all he knows I'm fighting the Seanchan."

"Very well, my Lord Dragon," Logain said formally, though Larry could easily tell he was not happy with the assignment.

"You," Rand said pointing to Assim, who was sitting at a long table along with the rest of the Clan Hunters, "You will report to your commanders, and let them know what has happened here, and arrange for us to travel properly."

"I liked Link a lot better," Assim muttered, clearly unhappy with being told what to do, louder he said, "Actually, Harrod is our squad leader, I was just brought in because of Harrod's abduction, we're surprised to see him here."

Section and Tex nodded, while Beyond just looked big and content with being so big. The Maidens who were guarding him had called him an Ogier at first sight of him, whatever that was.

"I'll be ready to leave as soon as my forces are assembled," Rand said.

"Good, because I regret to say that we will not be staying," Carth said, "Squall here will show you the way to the battlefield, he knows the way."

Squall turned and glared at Carth as he took back Lionheart, "What do you mean by this?"

"You were planning on bringing what was left of SeeD to the battle to stop John, were you not?" Carth said matter-of-factly.

"Yes," Squall said, "But how did you know that?"

"Forget about that," Carth said, "You know how to work the Stargates, and that will be how you will travel to the battlefield, you already know where it will take place because you were there before. Remember?"

Squall stared darkly into Carth's eyes, and then began to nod his head slowly, "Lead the forces of SeeD and the Dragon Reborn there, because without them all hope will be lost."

"There's one other thing," Larry said, speaking up for the first time, "We still have that SeeD interpreter onboard the Pride."

"You have one of my soldiers?" Squall said coldly, his gaze directed at the Clan Hunters.

"We took her at Nar Shaddaa," Larry explained quickly, "I'm sure we can get her released…"

"Do it," Squall ordered, "Or else I bring no soldier to any battlefield."

Carth sighed , but nodded his head, "Assim, see if you can get the prisoner released too."


Number six was not happy, "Someone is gathering the Ta'veren as well," she said angrily, "Who could this be?"

"Our brother?" Number Three suggested, "And whoever killed Number One?"

"Yes…" Number Six said running a finger through her blonde hair, "We'll have to go and collect the Ta'veren from them."

"Time is working against us," Number Four said as she flicked her dark hair over her shoulder, "Already the NPC forces within the game are growing more bold. The Yuuzhan Vong are advancing, the Covenant are searching for their sacred rings with more determination then usual, and the trollocs and half-men are not only ravaging the lands, but they are getting ready for the Last Battle."

"Then we must move quickly," Number Six said, "Find the Clan Hunters as soon as possible."

"Yes…it will be done," Number Five said deceitfully.