Chapter 33: The War of Varrock

I woke up about two hours later. I rubbed my head groggily, and sat up.

I looked at my surroundings. I was lying on a pile of white blankets, surrounded by wounded, moaning, or sleeping people. I saw Slinky going around, offering people food, drink and bandages. We were in Thessila's clothes shop. Thessila herself was piling more white blankets everywhere. I jumped up, and ran towards Slinky.

"What happened?" I cried. She smiled.

"A Black Guard knocked you out. You were bleeding, so I dragged you here. As you can see, I'm level 12, so I'm no good at fighting. The only weapon I have is a dagger, and I haven't used that for ages. So, I've been assigned a mission to heal people here. Thessila has closed her shop so injured soldiers can rest, and Mark and Osrie1 are guarding it." I nodded.

"Where is everyone, though?" I asked.

"You and I are here," she grinned. I heard a scream and a crash outside. "Osrie1 and Mark are guarding the shop, though Master Samuel is apparently not interested in destroying fashion. Aubury and Capablanca are using magic in the castle to fight. Amy11 is attacking the small possessed animals, such as rats, bats, goblins, and even zombies and skeletons. Creator is in the thick of it, battling it out with Delrith, and so is Haru." I bit my lip anxiously.

"Where's my bag?" I asked. She pointed in a corner, where my bag lay there, safe. I grabbed it, took out thirty or so runes, reloaded my arrow holder with iron arrows, and set out to battle.

It was pandemonium outside. Black Guard, Dark wizards, Monks of Zamorak seemed to be acting on their own free will. Creatures like zombies, skeletons, rats, bats, and even ghosts were possessed, fighting at twenty times their original strength.

Several zombies spotted me and went towards me. Moaning, with filthy, ragged clothes, and pale, bloodless skin, their ugly faces turned towards me. They walked towards me slowly, brandishing swords and daggers. Their red eyes glowed in the darkness that was the sky. I looked in the distance, and the black clouds stopped when they exited Varrock soil.

I sent a flame strike at one. It set fire, and fell backwards. Other zombies were attracted towards me, set to kill.

I attempted to kill them off, one by one. I shot an arrow through one's eye, I chopped off one of their heads, I set fire to them, but that didn't stop them. Level 21, and mad, they were relentless. I could only stall them. I sighed, and awaited a very painful death.

There was a flash of white light, and all the zombies were blasted back. They crumbled into dust before my very eyes. The person who saved me turned out to be a grinning Mark.

Several transparent ghosts glided towards us. They had two red dots on their upper bodies, showing that they were possessed. They howled with their pain and misery, and swiped at us.

I shot a water strike at one. It went right through its body, but it was obviously injured. Mark sent a water wave at them from behind me. All of them howled again, and swiped at me. I was blasted back, while Mark continued to fight.

I sat up, and ran into James. He sneered, and took out a faintly familiar mithril dagger. He threw it at me. I dodged, but it turned around and hit me in the bottom. I screamed with pain, and threw the dagger at James.

It hit him, but didn't do any damage. He sent purple flames at me. They formed into a giant purple demon made form the power of evil. He simply laughed as I struggled. I sent an arrow at it and it dissolved into dust at impact.

I spent the next ten minutes fighting off this demon. James made it harder by sending random evil spells at me.

After a final swipe to the chest, the smoky demon roared, and collapsed into dust.

James, snarling, stepped towards me, brandishing a staff of Zamorak. He sent several black spells at me, which I avoided. He sent one at my face, and I ducked at the last second. A searing sensation on my head signalled my hair had just been burned. I sent an arrow at James.

With a wave of his long-fingered hand, the arrow was burnt. He sent a fire wave at me. I dodged, and it hit a house behind me. I hit him with my scythe but it barely hurt him. Master Samuel had obviously trained him up well.

There was a blast of fire from behind, and Delrith was marching. His eyes were scarlet, and from his body, flames were spurting. James disappeared with a puff of smoke, yelling 'See you in hell!'

I dodged a burst of fire, and ran past Delrith. With an almighty roar, he swiped at me, sending me into the general store. I jumped up, rubbed my sore back, and sent an arrow crashing into a skeleton.

I battled valiantly with a horde of possessed zombies, I nearly got shredded by rampaging rats, and I even surprisingly took out several monks of Zamorak, but the war continued. The general store got blown apart by a burst of demon-fire, and I saw the bartender of the Blue Moon Inn get roasted alive. I searched for Master Samuel, but there was no sign of him.

Osrie1 ran past me, yelling. He was munching a meat pie with one hand, and battling ferociously with a purple smoke demon using a sword with the other. I chuckled silently, and ran ahead.

It was even worse in the castle! The Varrock guards were doing their jobs well, but it was falling apart now. Several rooms had been blown apart, and creatures and people alike scattered the castle. The empty thrones of the evacuated king and queen had been melted into a puddle of burnt slink and gold. Several zombies were feasting on screaming, dying chefs.

I went to the top tower. I looked below, and saw war and wreckage. It was sickening. But I heard an even worse voice from behind me.

A fireball flew past my shoulder. "Hot enough for you?" the voice of an insane master Samuel taunted. He was wearing his red robes, but his eyes were completely red. His skin radiated evil heat, and he held a fading Silverlight in his grasp. There were a dozen dark wizards, including James, behind him. He chuckled, and sent another fireball at me.

It was about to hit me, when Capablanca put it out with a water bolt. Capablanca then went into a furious duel with another five wizards. James, smiling wickedly, cast a dark spell at me. I ducked just in time. James jumped forward, brandishing his staff of Zamorak. I roundhouse-kicked him (a move Creator taught me) and he fell off the edge of the tower. Screaming, he fell into the flames and wreckage of war. I wasn't sure, but I think I saw a puff of smoke from where he used to be. I hoped he got roasted by the flames.

My heart and soul has been affected greatly by the war. I wanted to end it now. If only I could stop Master Samuel and Delrith, I could give Varrock a chance to rebuild itself. The world outside the sealed gates of Varrock, beyond barbarian village, didn't have any idea of what was happening. It was better that way, in my opinion. Master Samuel and the legion of Zamorak wouldn't reveal their plans completely for a while.

I'd bought a paper pad in the Varrock market. I'd kept my peacock quill and bottle of ink with me permanently now. I'd been writing down the evidence I'd gathered. So far, I know that it has something to do with a potion. Zamorak was a major part of it all, since all Zamorak supporters were part of it.

I swiped my scythe at Master Samuel. It was a very unwise move. He knocked the scythe out of my hands, and it fell into the flames below, licking at the tower.

I tried everything I could to do some amount of damage to Master Samuel. I sent spells at him, but they bounced from his skin back to me. I sent arrows at him, but they dissolved at contact of his body. I hit him on the head with my emergency bronze sword, for god's sake!

Master Samuel, looking bored, sent two dark wizards at me. They ran at me, teeth bared. At a completely random idea from Capablanca, I used the freeze emote. My body froze into a cool, friendly puddle. The Dark Wizards froze for a second. I pushed the ice statue Dark Wizards off the edge of the tower when I regained my unfrozen form.

Another wizard ran towards me, but when I used my trick emote he jumped out of his skin, and fell off the edge of the crumbling tower. Capablanca was on a very dangerous spot, trying to trick people into falling off the edge. The edge he was standing on was crumbling…. I jumped in and pushed him away. The rest of the dark wizards fell off the tower, screaming.

Master Samuel roared. He swiped at me, but it missed just in time. Capablanca hit him with his steel sword, but it bent in half and melted. Master Samuel clapped his hands. The tower burst into flames, and collapsed with us still on.

I screamed as I and Capablanca fell to our dooms. Master Samuel, still holding Silverlight, waved at us from the roof of a nearby house. I was falling…falling…..falling……..

Someone grabbed us by the waist, and carried us to the roof Master Samuel was on. His happy, smiling face soured up immediately.

"So, Ilookgood99, you've come to poke your nose in a bit deeper?" Master Samuel taunted. Ilookgood99, his robes swishing softly, nodded.

"If that's your way of saying 'saving innocent people', yes, I am being nosy," Ilookgood99 answered. Master Samuel guffawed.

Master Samuel sent a blast of darkness at Ilookgood99. Ilookgood99 sent a blast of light back. They collided in the middle, blowing up the house, sending all of us flying into the ruins of the general shop. Silverlight lay a foot away from me, while Master Samuel was sprawled under the smashed counter. Ilookgood99 was nowhere to be seen. Capablanca was being helped up by Creator, who had been attracted to the noise. I grabbed Silverlight.

The war in front of me stopped to watch. I held the cold, shiny sword in my grasp, amazed at what I accomplished, with a bit of help. I held Silverlight high up, and everyone that wasn't a possessed creature or a part of the evil side of the war cheered.

White light glowed from the core of the sword. The wreckage of war was illuminated by the most pure sword in the whole of RuneScape (maybe apart from the god sword). But the moment of glory was ruined by the roaring figure of Delrith.

His beady red eyes eyed Silverlight almost nervously. Master Samuel sat up, worry in his red, mad eyes. I ran forward, and stabbed Delrith with Silverlight.

Delrith screamed with agony. The huge demon stumbled back, scarlet blood pouring from his wound like molten lava. I hit him again with the sword. He roared again, and burst fire from his nostrils. I hit him in the eye with the sword. He began to crumble.

Red light came from his entire body. I stumbled back, frightened. The red light went flying towards a red, swirling portal that opened up in the stone circle. The energy form of Delrith roared a final time, before it was sucked back into its prison and trapped there forever.

Master Samuel ran forward. The red glint in his eye was disappearing. He was screaming. The truth hit me like a giant cart.

"You're mortal again!" I gasped. Then I grinned, and whooped. "YOU HEAR THAT, YOU LOSER? YOU'RE MORTAL AGAIN!" I jumped around in a victory dance, and did the Dragon-fire emote. Master Samuel's face fell. He turned towards the possessed animals and dark wizards and monks of Zamorak.

"Retreat now!" he yelled. The red glow in the possessed animal's eyes disappeared. The skeletons and zombies crumbled to dust, while the ghosts faded away. The rats squeaked, and were roasted. The Dark Wizards and monks of Zamorak were screaming and running away. Laughing Glory Troopers, guards of Varrock and citizens that stayed behind to fight tried to slaughter the escaping dark people.

Master Samuel had lost his evil glow. The energy matrix of Delrith had been sucked away as well. Master Samuel was his old, mortal self. It was most likely that the Dark Wizards and monks of Zamorak would go back to where they were, preparing for the next unknown step. One thing was for sure, though: we hadn't won. They had gotten essence of Delrith for the potion they wanted, and the war was only to make the most of the situation. The darkness would continue to come closer, never to stop, never to halt. Master Samuel was still alive to lead the 'plan'. Speaking of him now, he had just disappeared in a puff of the usual smoke.

I sighed, and happily put Silverlight on my belt. It had faded now. It wasn't really the pure sword it was a few minutes ago. That only happened to get rid of Delrith. Now, it was just a more powerful sword. I set off past the stone circle, where the dark wizards were regrouping. I went past the Champions place, which had been untouched in the war. I went down the stone path, and entered Lumbridge territory, to get a new scythe (again).