_Six more parts until the series has the finale of Book I: The Star... As I'm looking ahead to Book II, I'm wondering what suggestions you would like to make not for the content of my posts, but if you'd like a different schedule of posting or other stuff related to how I do the stories that you would like changed for Book II...

Part XXX: Over Plain

Date: Amanela 17th, 114 A.U.

A small slick enclosed cruiser that was a bit bigger than the hover cars that were commonly used before the Great Upheaval, and was also better armored and manned with guns, flew ten feet above the grassy plains of the Renior. Inside of the vehicle were two goblins and a Sla’ad.

“These plains used to mark a constant feuding point between the elves and the humans,” Reynyagn was saying. “The elves’ lands were to the west, while the humans in the east, and this was where their boundaries met and intermingled. Usualy it was only diplomatic struggles as opposed to wars, but it was still a constant feud before…” Reynyagn paused.

“You know a lot about this sort of stuff,” Flek casually remarked while moving a piece in his game of Regicide against Reklen. Reklen was the only person that Flek could really call a good friend, and thus he was the only person Flek wanted to bring with him. Reynyagn was watching the game and sometimes commenting on their moves.

“I should,” Reynyagn said bitterly. “I watched the whole drama play out of the elves’ attack, though in prison.”

“In prison?” Flek asked.

“It was the only reason I escaped the Great Massacre of the Sla’ad,” Reynyagn said. “I watched Falshorn and all of my companions die; they only took me hostage, having scattered and destroyed all the other Sla’ad, for specimen use I suppose and such. Fortunately for my sake, I suppose, after capturing me, they didn’t do much with me except to leave me alone.” There was heavy bitterness in his voice. “Sometimes they came to talk with me or question me, but not often. Only one human seemed to care about me, and she was specially targeted and killed by the elves for her high government position.”

“I’m sorry,” Flek said, making a move.

“Do not be overly sorry for me,” Reynyagn said. “I may have been in prison, but they gave me a fair amount of freedom in how much information I could absorb. It was because of the readings and studies and watchings of the affairs of them that I got a foundation to be able to lead the scattered Sla’ad. Without that, I do not think I would have been able to keep us alive and under the threat and watching eyes of the elves in the sky.”

“Well that’s all good, I suppose then…” Flek said, pondering the position on the board.

“Where do you think the star leads?” Reklen asked, his enjoyment of his advanced position in the board obvious.

“I have been trying to track it,” Reynyagn said after making sure that the vehicle’s automatic straight course would still be going well. “According to my estimates, it appears to be pointing north to the mountains.”

“Wonder what we’ll find there,” Reklen said. “The other members of your prophesy team?”

“That’s what I’m hoping,” Reynyagn said. “Back in the old days, the dwarves had control and rule over the mountains. Mayhaps we will still find some of them in the North. I pray that they have not been completely exterminated by the elves. If we find no one, then I suppose that we’re just going to have to set up camp there and wait until we find someone. The prophesy said that the star would bring all of the members together, and I trust the prophesy to eventually bring them all here. Depending on how things play out, I’m hoping to hit the mountains in four days or so. If my memory suffices me, though, I think there’s a good bit of jungle around the mountains, so we’ll have to see how that is.” At that moment, a beeping noise began. Reynyagn moved to the controls as Flek made a move on the board.

“Flek!” Reynyagn said. “Reklen—come up here.” The two moved up to the front to see some sort of air ship in the distance.

“An elven craft?” Flek asked.

“And not just any elven craft,” Reynyagn said. “Look at the size of it that’s on the radar! That isn’t any of their flying cities, and for it to be that size and not to be one of their cities means one thing: the Mothership.” A chill ran down Flek’s spine. He had heard many stories about the Mothership, the head of the Imperial Fleet of the Elves that roamed the skies searching for any survivors down below to either kill them or enslave them in one of their work cities.

“It’s coming toward us by the looks of it,” Reynyagn said. “And there are usually a lot of smaller vehicles flanking it and looking for people. So there is no way that we are going to let ourselves get anywhere close to that beast. So we’re going to turn to the east away from them and pray that they don’t notice us on the radars.”

“This machine has our radar-scrambling signals,” Flek commented.

“Mayhaps it will lead them off,” Reynyagn said. “Mayhaps it won’t. You forget that they now know that your people live in the forest and that their signals aren’t reaching them. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve already figured out that somethings wrong.”

“Wait!” Flek said. “You don’t think that the Mothership is heading towards-”

“You can pray that they don’t,” Reynyagn said. “The Mothership would indeed be useless for its ship since the trees in your forest would block off them using the Mothership to attack—at least—it would very much slow it down, but the amount of men on it…” Reynyagn seemed to ponder it. “At the very least, I’ll send a message to Lord Freglak,” he said, sitting down at the computer. They’d gotten an operating system to correspond with Lord Freglak through a satellite in space that had been put up before the Great Upheaval and had been since long-forgotten. “Although I’m not sure if there’s anything he would do. In the Mothership’s one hundred and fifteen year history, it hasn’t lost any battles. And it’s won huge battles, and razed great cities. When thinking about the Mothership, remember this. It is because of that monstrosity that the elves were able to conquer Arquenia. And it is with that that they rule the skies.”

Question of the Week:What would you like changed about the method of posting?

_And onto the part... this part is best read while listening to the Imperial March from Star Wars Episode V. If you can, read it while listening to it. If you can't, shame on you for not having the soundtrack for the Imperial March. And if you want to hear more about the main villain of the series, I plan on writing a good bit about him in Book II: The Northlands. (See here, I just came up with the name for Book I a couple posts ago, and I already know the name for Book II...)

Part XXIX: Emperor Jaigran

Date: Amanela 12th, 114 A.U.

“All Hail Emperor Jaigran, Duke of the Upper Skies, Lord of the Lower Earth, First of the Supreme Elves, Highest of the Flyers, General of the Imperial Army, Emperor of Arquenia!” the herald called out, and all those present in the throne room fell to their knees to bow down to Emperor Jaigran of the elves, all except the two erect rebel elves, who only stood the taller. Before them, Emperor Jaigran sat upon his throne, two pure white wings bursting out behind him.

Flyte genes ran throughout the elven race, and one to two out of every thousand elves was gifted with wings, which began to grow when they were three, and came to fruition when an elf came of age at ten. They then stayed with the elf the whole life before withering, decaying, and falling off around the age of forty five, which was shortly before when an elf generally died of old age. Emperor Jaigran was an exception to this rule, having already lived nearly one hundred and fifty years and still showing no signs of old age. Many rumors abounded to why he had not yet died, but it was clear that he wasn’t planning on dying anytime soon.

Emperor Jaigran rose from his white ivory throne and slowly strode forward. He was small for an elf, being only four feet high and thus a dwarf to the usual-seven foot elves. However, his size did nothing to lessen his intimidating presence. As he walked down the aisle toward the two chained rebels, elves and orcs moved to the side, not wishing to be anywhere close to him. They had all heard stories of his rage.

“So,” Emperor Jaigran said as he strode forward. “You would not bow down to your Lord and Emperor?”

“I would never bow to one as murderous as you until I lost complete sense of my body,” the male elf spat, although Emperor Jaigran noticed a twinge in his eyes. Emperor Jaigran noticed many things.

“Have not my men worked on you throughout the night?” Emperor Jaigran asked, seeing the bags under their eyes. “Tell me, do you really want to endure that again?” Both elves subconsciously winced, and fear was evident upon their faces.

“We got much information from these two rebels,” Unyihi Garum said in a gravelly voice. “By the time we were done with them, information was spewing out of their mouths to keep their wretched skin untouched by our methods.”

Emperor Jaigran noted the shame on their faces and laughed. “Come now,” he said. “There is no point in denying the fact that you fell to it. What shame is there in telling the truth when all your companions have been destroyed? Your cause is hopeless and your lives are in the palm of my hand.”

“You can break our bodies, but you can’t break our spirits,” the female elf said softly.

“Can I not?” Emperor Jaigran asked. “If you spoke the truth, then why did you give in to our torture? Your words may speak one thing, but your actions speak another.” He laughed and put his hand on the female elf’s chin, despite her struggling. “What is your name?”

When she refused to speak, Unyihi Garum answered. “Her name is Cortna, zar,” he said.

“Cortna,” Emperor Jaigran said, a touch of honey flowing from his soft-speaking lips. His voice was soft, even though the words he spake were not. “I could break you, do you know that?” Cortna averted her gaze. “Ah yes,” he continued firmly. “I could break your body and spirit so that you were in total subjection to me. You could not resist it. I could make you so that you no longer knew what reality was. Do you think you could resist it? Of all the people I have tried it on, only one woman resisted it, a past companion by the name of Astrid, and she was unusual.”

Emperor Jaigran watched her eyes. “Do you wonder that I admit my one defeat?” he asked. “It would appear that you think me as a lying scoundrel. But that is untrue. Truth is the one thing that keeps the world alive. Truth reigns supreme under my domain, and while I speak with you, I will not lie, and neither will you, unless you want your skin flayed and bloodied. Tell me, Cortna, do you want to be broken?”

A slow tear trickled out of Cortna’s closed eyes, and she did not answer.

“Swear allegiance to me,” Emperor Jaigran said. “Or I will first slowly deal with your friend here, and then I will deal with you. I will break your spirit if you do not relent.”

A sob burst out from Cortna’s throat and then she began to weep. She made as if to collapse, but the guards on either side of her held her up.

“Already you have lost your resolute spirit,” Emperor Jaigran softly murmured. “What is the point of this prolonging agony? Swear allegiance to my name!” He turned to her companion. “And what of you? Will you follow the same fate as her?”

The elf kept a stoic face. “You claim to want truth above all else,” he said firmly. “And yet you threaten to make it so that we know no truth by threatening to cause us to no longer know what is reality. But you underestimate us, elf. We are the same kind as you, and we are the same with our brethren down on the earth, and even with these orcs, who you secretly treat as underlings. We are not the Master Race, and you are the lowest creature ever to be born, and to the dust will you die with a wretched death.”

Emperor Jaigran smiled. “Really,” he said. “Your confidence betrays you. If you have not already in the night’s ordeal, you will be recanting your words quicker than your mouth can move.” He turned to Cortna. “Well?” he asked. “Swear allegiance, or think about the methods that you experienced last night. And play them in your mind again, but seven times worse, and done to your companion before your eyes. What will it be?”

Cortna sobbed and slowly looked up, tears falling down her face and trickling down. Another sob escaped her mouth and she spoke. “I…” she said, and then she began to further sob as Emperor Jaigran and all of his men watched. Behind Jaigran, some elves laughed mockingly.

“I swear allegiance,” Cortna softly whispered.

“Louder,” Emperor Jaigran commanded. “And fully.”

“I swear allegiance to Emperor Jaigran,” Cortna said louder, as tears trickled down her face. “Duke of the Upper Skies, Lord of the Lower Earth, First of the Supreme Elves, Highest of the Flyers, General of the Imperial Army, Emperor of Arquenia; I swear allegiance and bend my mind, my spirit, and my full being to his one and supreme will, this I swear.”

There was silence before Emperor Jaigran spoke. “Well done,” he softly said. “But not good enough. Ah yes, I can see your face, and I can see through your eyes, those twin gateways to the mind. There is yet resistance in you, is there not?” He paused. “Guards!” he yelled. “Take the two of them back into the doctoring cells. I care not for the life of the male elf. Use him to break her completely and totally to my will. And when she is broken, bring her back to me. Thus saith the Emperor.”

Question of the Week:Which literary character does Emperor Jaigran most remind you of?

_Jroldin is really starting to grow on me... sure Flek is awesome warrior and Zarien isn't that bad and Astrid has these interesting moral problems and what not and I like all my characters, but, you know... When Jroldin is just able to tick off his assailants to the nth degree, ya know... There are just things like that that make you just want to laugh out loud at and with Jroldin. I suppose this part could be summed up with a couple words: Jroldin is awesome.

Part XXVIII: Separate Too Long

Date: Amanela 18th, 114 A.U.

Oldin hung up his coat as he shut the front door, walking into the kitchen. For the first time in ages, he was home on time and would be able to talk with Jroldin. The next day was to be his Naming Day. Oldin rubbed his head. He had taken out a lot of his busy work schedule, what with Astrid trying to get deeper in her spy network and more investigations and all, but he had gotten everything set up at the Cathedral and had gotten all of the nearby relatives and such. For some odd reason, the priests there had recognized Jroldin and said that he’d been coming quite often to the Great Cathedral as of late and had been talking with some of the priests. Oldin didn’t quite know what to think of that.
Jroldin had been acting strange as of late, what with the circlet he thought was on his head and all. It was probably long due for the two of them to talk, both of recent events, and of what Jroldin wanted to do in the future. Oldin felt guilty; he hadn’t talked with Jroldin at all about what Jroldin wanted to do after Naming Day. At the very least, he had been able to pull some strings to have the whole day of tomorrow off.

“I’m home!” Oldin called out, while opening a cupboard to where he had stashed away some food to have dinner with Jroldin. He had actually managed to go to the store and grab some stuff earlier. Oldin overturned the pot to where he had hidden it, but was met with nothing. Jroldin had found it first. Oldin sighed, and laughed a bit, before turning around.

“Jroldin?” He was met with the silence of the house. Oldin frowned and cocked his head. He would have thought that Jroldin would have been here by now. A beep emitted from the answering machine and Oldin walked over. Oldin pressed the button on the answering machine to listen.

“Greetings Jroldin, this is Governor Astrid,” the voice began. Oldin looked at it in shock. Governor Astrid wanted to speak with Jroldin? “A new expert came in who wanted you to see the new star; he said that because the prophesy spoke of it, he thought that you should see it. We also brought in the elf, and thought it would be best to see it together. Brother Tomas will be over to pick you up around midnight. I apologize for the late time, but to see the star, it will take a while to get through security and stuff to get outside. If there are any problems with this, please call me or Brother Tomas. Thank you.” And with that, it ended.

Oldin leaned against the wall, trying to comprehend what had happened. Not only did Jroldin seem to have met with Governor Astrid and some priest, that he seemed to know, but they were also arranging him to go outside the mountain to see some star. And a prophesy! What the heck did Jroldin have to do with a prophesy? Jroldin hated those things… And to go outside the mountain… Oldin had never done that, and he didn’t want to think about all the strings that the Governor would have to pull to get Jroldin out there. And Governor Astrid was doing all this for Jroldin? Oldin put his hand on the phone. He had been apart from his son too long. It was time to call Governor Astrid.



“Ah, Master Jroldin…” the man said. “Please, sit down in front of me…”

Jroldin looked at the man sitting behind the desk and then, slowly sat down in the chair. “What do you want?”

“I am the one asking the questions here,” the man said sharply. “And you’re the one who’ll be doing the answering.” A beeper in front of him buzzed, and he quickly looked down. “Ah good,” he said. “It appears that Astrid has checked her mail box… but never mind that for now.” He looked back up at Jroldin. “What do you know of the prophecy that you seem to be a part of?”

“You seem to know a lot about me,” Jroldin said. “You trying to write an article for some celebrity magazine?”

The man’s eyes narrowed. “This is no time for jokes!” he snapped. “My business is of no concern to you.”

“I’m hungry,” Jroldin said. “Could we perhaps stop this interrogation for a bit so that I can eat? I always think better on a full stomach.”

“No,” the man snapped. “What do you know of the prophecy?”

“Well, the Governor recites it every year, so you should know the prophecy,” Jroldin said. “And you already know that I am a part of it. What are you, a stalker or something?”

The man leapt up, banging his fist against the table. “You are being an impeccable idiot!” he snapped, seething, and then calmed down a bit to go back to his still voice. “You will answer my questions or there will be consequences,” he said firmly. “So how about I get a bit more specific. Are you going to go along with Astrid and the prophesy?”

“Why shouldn’t I,” Jroldin said. “If I do, that means I get to be part of a team beating bad guys. You are a bad guy, right? I thought it might be fun to get to beat you up with a big group of friends and all, and-”

The man drew up a gun from beneath his deck, and slowly placed it on the table. Jroldin stopped midsentance. The man acted like nothing had changed. “What do you know about your dad and his case?”

“What’s the gun for?” Jroldin asked. “You trying to threaten me by its presence.”

The man glared at him. “Why-”

“Yeah, my dad trained me to be too smart for you,” Jroldin said. “He knew that sometime I would be kidnapped to use against him... You do know he has a tracker on me, don’t you?”

The man looked surprised. “What?”

“Aw, crumbs,” Jroldin said, snapping his fingers. “I forgot to mention it when your goons kidnapped me. Yeah, he has a tracer on me so he can always find me if I was kidnapped. He’s probably coming to get me with all his big guns and stuff.”

“Stupid tracer,” the man said and swore, pressing a buzzer.

“Trying to get it off me?” Jroldin asked. “My dad will still be able to find my last location and find your all-too secret hideout. Kind of fun, huh? Anyways, if you want my tracer, it’s right behind my ear. Figured might as well save you the trouble of looking so this gets over soon.” Two men came in the room.

“The kid has a tracer on him,” the man behind the desk said. “He says its behind his ear. That probably isn’t the only one. Strip him and search for any other tracers, then put him and the priest in a car. We have to leave the hideout. I have other business to take care of. Now move on it!”

“Yes, sir.”

Question of the Week:What would you do if you were Jroldin? (Whoever gives the best answer gets 5 extra comment points.) Key is to give a funny answer that matches Jroldin's personality.)

No internet during Christmas break doesn't help this to be posted...

Part XXVII: Exterior Conflict, Interior Conflict

Amanela 11th, 114 A.U.

Number 994 slowly tried to regain conscience slowly. There was a terrific pain in the back of his head, and for a bit, Number 994 couldn’t remember what had happened. And then he felt the burn down the center of his palm and remembered all—leaping after the elf in the escape pod, being shot through the arm, getting his gloves taken away, and then shoved backwards to hit his head against the floor. Must’ve knocked him out.

“ATTENTION!” a loudspeaker blared from outside. “THE ELF REBEL AND THE ORC 994 ARE COMMANDED TO CEASE AND DESIST THIS REBELLION!” What? I’m not helping the elf!

Rule 3: Never, ever give up, no matter what the odds

Quickly standing up, trying to ignore the pain in his hand, Number 994 leapt forward at the elf. So what the elf would crush him in physical combat. Maybe he could dislodge him enough so that the chasing defense force would get him. At least, Number 994 assumed they were chasing him—he couldn’t think about what else was shooting at them. Falling through the air, Number 994 grabbed the elf’s neck with both hands and squeezed.

The elf jerked back and grabbed his gun as he fell back, trying to twist around. “Get off of me, you idiot!” he yelled. Number 994 knew he couldn’t win it with the elf having the gun, so as the elf fell, he leapt forward, moving his legs apart to jump over the elf, and reached out for his gloves so that he could conduct electricity to nullify the elf. Unfortunately, the elf was too quick.

Number 994 felt the elf grab the end of the shirt and pull back. Not strong enough to resist, Number 994 halted in his motion and fell back, landing hard on top of the elf. With a quick move, the elf kicked the orc off of him, scooting back and pointing the gun at the elf, aiming at his head. And then an explosion racked the pod.

Number 994 flew against the side as the escape pod spun, while the elf’s hand snaked backwards to grab the wheel. He seemed to be trying to steer but to no avail—the shot had broken the controls. Number 994 smiled coldly as he stood up.
“THE ORC AND ELF HAVE NOT STOPPED. THEREFORE, THEIR LIVES ARE FORFEIT AS TRAITORS TO THE MOTHERESCAPE POD AND WILL BE DESTROYED!”

“I’m not a traitor!” Number 994 yelled.

“They can’t hear you,” the elf snapped, keeping a close eye on the orc while he tried to steer the vehicle away from the chasing defense force. “Dang it! The thing’s broken!”

“I can fix it,” Number 994 said. “I’ll get us away from here.” Number 994 inwardly grinned. This elf was going to die.

“Why would you suddenly help me!” the elf said, frantically spinning the wheel as it quickly descended. Another explosion was heard in the back of the escape pod.

“You heard them—they think I’m a rebel and my life is forfeit with them,” Number 994 said. “Figure might as well try to live.”

The elf gazed at him suspiciously. Number 994 moved forward. “We’re going to crashland,” he said, and grabbed his gloves. The elf didn’t resist, but merely pointed his gun at him as Number 994 placed his gloved hands on the controls. Sending electric probes through the metal, he moved his hands to create link points to the controls and sent a surge of electric current to it, instantly connecting mind and motherboard. Removing one hand, with the other he readjusted and reflowed electricity around the broken points to his hand to steer. He mentally thought and the airescape pod shifted to the right, narrowly avoiding being blown up. Number 994 was in charge of the escape pod. And then, without looking at the elf, he briefly stopped controlling the escape pod to send a thundering bolt of lightning at this rebellious elf. He missed with the bolt, but a sidecurrent of lightning still caught him.

The elf gave a cry as he was flung back against the cabin. Number 994 quickly looked back. The elf’s head was bleeding and his gun was worthless at this point. Regaining control of the escape pod, while keeping an eye on the elf, he steered more to the right and worked to avoid the gun bullets while slowly trying to mentally turn on the loudspeakers. Finally, he found their electronic point and turned them on.

“THIS IS NUMBER 994!” he cried out. A huge gust of wind suddenly hit him from behind, but Number 994 thought nothing of it. “I HAVE REGAINED CONTROL OF THE ESCAPE POD FROM THE REBEL! I AM NOT ASSISTING THE REBEL. I NOW SEEK TO RETURN THE TRAITOR TO THE MOTHERESCAPE POD!”

“I’M KIDDING!” the elf roared. Number 994 swore heavily and turned around to see the elf, having grabbed the two emergency jet packs, wearing one, and having the other in his hand. He was standing near the wide-open escape hatch, and Number 994 could see the Motherescape pod defense force pouring down upon them. Blood trickled down the elf’s head. The elf grinned and the Number 994’s heart seemed to freeze, as he realized that he should have been paying more attention to the torrent of air that had been hitting him.

“Good bye!” the elf said, and, dropping the extra jet pack, flung himself out of the back, quickly descending from sight. Too late, Number 994 saw a barrage coming toward the underside of the escape pod. With a huge explosion, Number 994 felt an elephant thunder through his mind as all of the electronics he was connected to were violently disconnected and broken. It was as if someone had ripped his mind in two.

Number 994 was flung back against the glass windshield of the escape pod as it plummeted, no longer able to be in control. Number 994 slammed back against the wall and looked up just in time to see another barrage coming toward him. And then the escape pod hit something in the front of it. The glass shattered, and Number 994 fell, seeing a tree above him and the escape pod. The escape pod exploded in a ball of fire. And then Number 994 hit the ground.

Question of the Week:What do you think about Number 994?

_Anyways, on to this part, where Monty has a tendency to get easily distracted.

Part XXVI: Confession

Date: Amanela 19th, 114 A.U.

Monty twisted the wheel sharply and moved into his drive way. Parking the car next to Astrid’s, Monty got out and walked up to the front door, a bit concerned for why Astrid had been so eager to talk to him, and about the tone in her voice.

Entering the house, he came to his small living room to find Astrid sitting on a chair drinking a cup of tea. Monty noticed remnants of tears in her eyes, but what he was more concerned of was the tea. Tea! How in the world did she get tea? Monty knew for a fact that he hadn’t bought any tea, and he was pretty sure that Astrid hadn’t gone out to get some… The nearest place selling hot tea was twenty minutes away or so, and Monty didn’t think Astrid had brought it from her house, so how in the world…

“Monty,” Astrid said, acknowledging her brother’s presence, and her voice cracked.

Thoughts of where the tea had come from instantly left Monty’s mind. “Astrid,” Monty said, concerned. “What’s the matter?”

“You know that something’s the matter then,” Astrid said.

“It’s kind of obvious from your expression and how you’re acting,” Monty said, his line of sight drifting towards Astrid’s cup of tea. No. Don’t think about the tea.

“I guess so…” Astrid said, and stared at the cup of tea for a bit, Monty joining her in doing so. Did she bring little packets of tea with her and then she heated it up here? But she couldn’t have boiled hot water—the oven had nearly blown up after that kitchen experiment, and he still had to call a repairman for that, and the microwave, which had been broken for a year. Wait; no. Not tea. Don’t think about it. Astrid has a problem, and-

“I killed a man,” Astrid suddenly blurted out.

Monty sat up more upright. “You what?”

“I killed a man,” Astrid said, and Monty fell silent. “I secretly murdered him at the hospital.”

“But…” Monty began, his mind racing. “Why…”

“Two weeks ago,” Astrid said. “Two weeks ago, a man died at the hospital from a heart attack. And this heart attack wasn’t a normal attack.” Hold on… Thoughts began quickly connecting together inside Monty’s head. “I was going to report it to a head doctor, but before I could do it, a man threatened me.”

“You’re our informant?” Monty burst out, his mouth dropping open. “My own sister was the informant, and Oldin didn’t tell me? No wonder…”

“What?” Astrid asked, her train of thought obviously lost. “How do you know Oldin, and how did you know—wait—are you?”

“Suppose I just spilled the beans there,” Monty said. “Yeah; I’m not really a guard for Astrid, except at ceremonial times to maintain my illusion of being one.”

“You’re part of the FRI,” Astrid said.

“I am,” Monty confirmed. “But wait—why?”

“If you knew anything about my going-ins and going-outs as an informant, you would know that I offered the man that I would help him in order to get closer to what was really going on,” Astrid stated. “That was yesterday. And I got home to learn that he had accepted my offer. My first job was going to be to go into the hospital and to secretly kill a man with poison that they had failed to kill.”

Monty tried to keep a calm level composure and not flip out like he was tempted to do. That would make Astrid real mad for him to flip out like that. Monty bit his lip and tried not to show much of a reaction.

“I did it,” Astrid stated bluntly, and tears rose to her eyes. “I didn’t want to do it, Monty! I didn’t want to do it! But he said if I didn’t then he would kill me and then they’d go along and finish the job themselves, so it wasn’t like I’d be saving this man’s life, or anything, and—oh Monty…” Astrid burst into tears and her grip loosened on the cup of tea. Too late to do anything, Monty washed it fall, tea sloshing out of it, and then smash. It broke all over the carpet. And it was Monty’s favorite mug too.

Astrid stopped. “Oh…” she said. “I-“

“Never mind the tea,” Monty said. “So… What do you think then about this? If you don’t think there’s any higher being or reason for the morals-” Too late, Monty realized that that statement was unwise of him to say at this time.

“Shut up about the higher being stuff,” Astrid snapped, and then her composure slackened. “I feel awful, Monty!” she said. “At this point I wish that I hadn’t done it; I wished that they’d just have gone along and killed me. Would’ve been better then this.” She paused. “I’m going, Monty. Unless you can convince me otherwise—which you can’t—after talking with you, I’m leaving. I’m leaving Araelia and going who knows where. As far as I can away from here, the espionage, and the hospital. I’ll start a new life elsewhere. And you’ll never see me again.”

Monty was a bit shockened by this. “Where are you going?” he asked. “I mean, you’d kind of stick out like a sore thumb in all those dwarven cities.”

“I don’t care,” Astrid stated bluntly, and then she was silent.

“So…” Monty said, trying to think of what to say. “I mean, I can kind of sympathize with you, Astrid. Once you’re in that position when you know that the man’s going to die either way, and it’s up to you… It’s not a very good position to be in in the first place… and after having done the deed, your feeling of guilt is understandable… I… I don’t know what to say, Astrid.”

“You always have something to say about things like this,” Astrid said.

“Yeah, when it’s a random person in the paper that we’re discussing about in relation to theology,” Monty said. “But not when it’s my own sister, I…. I’m kind of speechless, Astrid, but…” He squinted. “No; you shouldn’t go.”

“Why not?” Astrid snapped.

“You can’t run away forever,” Monty said delicately. “You won’t be able to escape your remembrance of the deed, Astrid. It’s going to follow you like a ghost, continually haunting you. Even when you think you’ve escaped the guilt of your sin, you’re not going to be able to until you confront it head on. Until then, you’ll just be being chased by the remembrance of it. You might be fine in a new place for a couple weeks, or months at the most. But you won’t be able to escape it, Astrid. You can’t run away forever.”
“But then…” Astrid asked, looking desperate. “What can I do?”
“Repent,” Monty said. “Realize the guilt of your action, and –“ And, suddenly, Monty heard a foot step behind him. And then there was a sound of a gun being loaded.
“I suggest that you don’t try any funny moves, either of you,” a voice said. “Or else you’ll get a taste of this.”

_A pretty important part today to really stimulate the part... which needs to happen given that I only have eleven more parts before the curtains draw on Book I: The Star (and yes, I actually named Book 1!)  This part is also rather fitting what with the adventurers called by a star and the wise men too, so...  Some nice parallels can made there, analogies and allegories and that stuff...  Let's get on to see this important part of the Arquenia Saga.

Part XXV: Called by a Star

Amanela 13th, 114 A.U.

“You said you wanted to speak to me?” Freglak leaned back in his chair as he looked at the shadowy figure.

“Aye, you and Flek,” Reynyagn said, slowly sitting down.

“What of?” Freglak asked. “Of our battle? Those elves won’t know what hit them.”

“A strong scout force it may have been, but it was still a scout force,” Reynyagn firmly said. “This is only going to be the beginning of a long conflict, which doesn’t help my request.”

“What request?” Freglak said, suddenly sitting upright.

Reynyagn seemed to dodge the question. “Have you seen the bright blue star in the north sky?”

“Who hasn’t?” Freglak asked. “But what does that have to do with anything?”

“There’s a certain prophesy that you may have heard of,” Reynyagn replied. “Have you ever heard of Xavier’s Prophesy?”

Freglak pursed his lips, and then suddenly nodded. “Ah yes!” he said. “There was that group of people during the war against your people that said they were chosen by Xavier’s Prophesy, was there not?” Freglak was happy he remembered his history lesson from long ago.

“Yes…” Reynyagn slowly said, and he paused. “It’s a famous prophesy that describes a team that would fight against the greatest evil to come upon the land.” He paused. “There was a group that thought themselves to be the prophesied back then. Now it is found though, that there is a greater evil.” He paused again. “I believe that Flek and I are both members of that prophesy.”

“What?” Flek asked, suddenly alert, and surprised.

Freglak had a perplexed expression on his face. “What?” he asked.

“To go deep into the prophesy at this point would be unwise,” Reynyagn said. “But it speaks of certain people. “A goblin with great expertise. A Sla’ad that would lead the group. Another part speaks of a warrior who seeks to lead, presumably Flek, and one who saw a great slaughter, which I did at the massacre. It speaks of a burning ember in the sky that will call the team together. For decades, I’ve believed that the prophesy spoke of the elves and a team to stop them, but I awaited a clear sign.” He cleared his throat. “We now have it.”

There was silence for a bit. “Ok…” Freglak said. “So… What’s the point?”

“My point,” Reynyagn said, and then he stopped, and sighed. “My point is that I would like to request of you permission for Flek and I to go North to follow the star to join the rest of the team.” Freglak’s mouth dropped open.

“You want to do what?” Flek asked.

“I know it is asking much of you,” Reynyagn begin.

“Well it sure does!” Freglak said, a bit ecstatic. “You expect me to let my best strategist and my best warrior to just run off North, without any sure indication that I will see them again!”

“Correct,” Reynyagn calmly said, and Freglak stopped, still flabbergasted. “I ask much of you,” Reynyagn agreed. “Especially with the elves sure to be preparing to chase you down for attacking them. And yet I still ask it.”

“But-“ Freglak began.

“Put as many guards as you want with us to make sure that I won’t escape,” Reynyagn said. “And I swear that, if either we aren’t the members of the prophesy, or if we fulfill it, that I will come back to you and serve the rest of my six months helping you.”

There was silence. Finally, Flek spoke. “What is this team supposed to do?” he asked,

“Defeat the elves once and for all,” Reynyagn said. Again, there was silence.

“I don’t know…” Freglak said.

“Look,” Reynyagn said. “We all want the same thing here: to destroy the elves. Believing the prophesy, I think it’s the best, and dare I say? The only way to destroy the elves. To refuse to let us go would be… would be probably cutting off the only means of defeating the elves.”

“I still don’t like it,” Freglak said glumly.

“I know,” Reynyagn said. “And I do sympathize with your plight, but I think it must be done. Do you believe it? Do you believe the prophesy?”

“I’d never even heard of it before…” Freglak murmured.

“I think I have…” Flek said. “I mean, I don’t know exactly where or how I learned it, but… I don’t know… It’s just like I intimately know it some how, I…”

You wonder how you know the exact wording of the prophesy, Flek? The voice in his head laughed, and Flek suddenly froze, an icy chill going down his spine.

“I beg of you,” Reynyagn said. “Because of my oath I swore to you before, I will not leave without your permission. But I beg of you, Lord Freglak, I beg of you! Let us go out so that we can fulfill the prophesy. And when I am able, I will return to serve my months.”

Freglak was quiet for a moment, and then he slowly exhaled. “What choice do I have?” he asked. “Am I going to allow my own pride and selfishness keep you here when I could be destroying our only chance of victory?” He slowly shook his head. “I can’t do it. I don’t want to. But what choice do I have?” He slowly nodded. “Go then, Reynyagn. I’ve never heard of this prophesy before, heck, I don’t even believe in prophesies. But I know this one is true. Don’t ask me how, but I do.” He raised his head. “Go then. Go with Flek, our fastest airship, and as many goblin warriors as you want. Follow the star. And when you are done your mission, return here. Oh…” And he turned again to Reynyagn and Flek. “And be safe. And destroy those blood-thirsty elves once and for all.”

Question of the Week:Will you remember to read the Arquenia Saga during the holidays?

_Think that Jroldin's part, though many of you like him, has the most boring part? Think he never has any action and that I forgot about the bug placed on him (though the latter MIGHT be true)... Think again! He finally gets some action... and, IMO, proves himself to be by far the funniest of the characters we're following... I mean, who else has just been (Removed Because It is A Spoiler) and just calmly snacks on a bag of chips?


Part XXIV: Kidnapped

Date: Amanela 18th 114 A.U.

Together with Brother Tomas, Jroldin walked away from the capitol back toward home. Jroldin still hadn’t been able to tell his father about his affairs with Astrid and being a member of the prophesy. Oldin continued to come back from work after Jroldin went to bed and elave before Jroldin awoke. Jroldin was considering writing a note tonight.

That day had been a lot of bustle about perhaps finding another member. Apparently there was some “ambitious” elf who was an outcast from the rest of the elves that lived in Araelia. Jroldin knew that the elf, Rider, was one of the few elves that safely lived in Araelia, and he supposed it was about time that they began to gather other members of the prophesy. Brother Tomas had explained that there were actually two elves in the prophesy, making the seven people work—there was an ambitious elf, and then a pair of an orc and an elf that would come together.

“So,” Brother Tomas said. “It would appear that you are indeed a member of the prophesy!”

“No kidding…” Jroldin murmured. According to the scouting party that went up above the mountains, the exceedingly bright blue star had appeared. Jroldin mentally remembered the lines of the prophesy that Brother Tomas had recited. He wasn’t exactly sure why Governor Astrid hadn’t included these lines in the Remembrance Ceremony, but she hadn’t.

A sign will arise in the sky to call the team together
A burning ember dark will rise and proclaim an emergence
The sign will gather together the team to rise to fight
To fight for good, to fight ‘gainst evil, to fight against the darkness

And now a hope is here!
And now a hope is here!

Far North the party now must go if it wants to succeed.
The trials that will try the group will bring it to the brink;
Despair must run o’er them before the culmination comes.
And then the party will be ready to go forth to war.
And purified with fire it will stand against fire.

And now a hope is tried!
And now a hope is tried!

Brother Tomas had been grilling him both on this and also the other words of the prophecy during the breaks during the endless interrogations and questionings of the Governor Astrid and her experts. Between lots of work today and the day before, they’d gotten a lot of work to do since Brother Tomas was resolved that Jroldin memorize the prophecy since he was convinced Jroldin to be heir of the prophecy. Forasmuch as Jroldin didn’t particularly enjoy memorizing the prophecy, it was a much-need relief for a lot of information being dumped into his head about the prophecy and its fulfillment and explanations for why it was true and all that other stuff that the experts told him.
Jroldin still wasn’t exactly sure about the prophesy—but he was considering it, and he did find the ways facts seemed to be lining up with the prophesy kind of odd. At the very least, Jroldin publicly accepted the prophesy, as he did with accepting the Great One. But deep inside his heart…

“The second line of the fourth stanza!” Brother Tomas suddenly said.

Jroldin thought a bit before speaking: “A warrior wants to lead and yet it won’t be granted him,” he recited. “Right?”

“Close enough,” Brother Tomas said. “Now-“

Suddenly, a car screeched around the corner and squealed to a stop nearby. “Someone’s in a hurry,” Jroldin casually remarked, walking closer to it to see who was inside. Suddenly, two men leapt out of the car from each side, each of them holding a gun.

“Ru-“ Brother Tomas yelled and turned to run, but a man grabbed him first, just as another grabbed Jroldin, levering guns at them. ‘

“Get in the car,” one of them snapped. “Now!”

“But-“ Jroldin began.

“Now!” the man said, and shoved Jroldin into the car. Sliding on the seat, Jroldin moved to get out, but Brother Tomas was shoved next to him, and then the armed men sat on either side, shutting the car doors, doing everything as easy as it were clock work. The car’s engine revved, and suddenly the hover car shot forward, moving again into the busy streets.

Jroldin looked from side to side, and then took a bag of half-eaten crumbled chips from his pocket. He had no idea where that came from. Maybe from the cafeteria that he had lunched at with Governor Astrid… Sticking a chip into his mouth, Jroldin looked at the guard next to him.

“Where you taking us?” he asked, his mouth full.

The man looked at Jroldin with disgust. “None of your business,” he snapped. “And what are you eating?”

Jroldin stuck another handful of chips into his mouth. “None of your business,” he retorted.

Raising his hand, the man brought it down, smacking Jroldin on the cheek and snatching the bag of chips from his hand in the same move. Rolling down the darkened window, the man threw the bag of chips out the window before rolling it back up. Rubbing his smarting cheek, Jroldin turned to Brother Tomas, who was folding and unfolding his brown robe.

“Brother Tomas,” Jroldin asked. “Where do you think they’re taking us? And why?”

“I don’t know,” Brother Tomas solemnly replied. “Although I suspect that-”

“No talking amongst the prisoners!” one of the guards snapped. Jroldin sully fell silent. Stupid guards. Stupid kidnapping. But it probably wouldn’t matter in the end. His father would save him. He had put a tagger on him a couple years ago after some of his father’s enemies had tried to kidnap Jroldin to use him as insurance against his father. So his dad would be able to save him in due time.

“Put the blindfolds on,” one of the men said. “Can’t let them know where I’m taking them.”

“But-“ Jroldin said.

“No buts!” one of the men rebutted. And with that, despite Jroldin’s initial struggling, the blindfolds were put on. And Jroldin continued the journey there in blindness and silence.

I apologize for not posting Saturday....  was a pretty busy day.  Anyways, because of that I'm posting Saturday's post late today and plan on posting Tuesday's tomorrow...

And now for a good, old-fashioned chase scene... except you soon realize that chase scenes are hard to write and that it would be so much "easier" and better in a movie, but oh well.. chase scenes are still fun...

Part XXIII: The Chase is On!

Date: Amanela 11th, 114 A.U.

Zarien pressed his foot hard against the pedal and turned his body some to move the hover motorcycle around curve. If he could only get to the 7th District of the Mothership, he could get to the escape pods and get the heck out of the Mothership. Where he would go, Zarien did not know. But he knew this much. There was nothing for him left here. All of his companions were dead. There was nothing left for him.

He heard a noise behind him and swerved to the side to see a bolt of lightning rush past him and smash into a hovercar ahead. Debris went flying and Zarien ducked his head down as he moved past the explosion before keeping his eyes ahead on the road. He didn’t have much time.

Swerving to the side to avoid other cars, Zarien looked behind him at the orc navigating after him, and tried to make out the number on the golden band around his head to see how good he was. But Zarien couldn’t make it out from this far of a distance. And he didn’t want to get any closer to that orc than he already was.



Number 997 swerved past the cars as he kept his eye on the elf up ahead. He couldn’t let him get away; Unyihi would have his head for that. A car moved up in front of him, blocking his way. Number 997 nearly panicked. Slowing his motorcycle down and shooting out a web of electricity, he quickly hijacked the car’s system to move it to another lane before stepping down again on the pedal to speed up past the car and after the fleeing elf. Number 997 wondered where the elf was trying to get. He wouldn’t have much chance alone in the Mothership.

The communicator on Number 997’s wrist buzzed. “Number 997, this is Unyihi Garum. The rebels have been destroyed. Where are you? Over!”

“Number 997 to Unyihi Garum, zar!” Number 997 replied. “I’m chasing the last rebel down the high way! We’re currently passing through District 5 right now upwards through the districts. Backup would be appreciated. Over!”

“Back up will be sent. Keep your eye on that elf, over!” Unyihi responded. And then the communicator was silent.

Rule 74: Always keep your full attention on your target.

Keeping his eyes locked on the fleeing elf, Number 997 swerved from side to side to try and catch up with the elf, but he couldn’t get very far. The elf kept maneuvering so as to keep out of his grasp. Number 997 gnashed his teeth. The elf had probably had plenty of experience with this, and he—he had none. And Number 997 feared Unyihi’s rage.


Unyihi kicked at the elf’s body and the elf groaned. Unyihi gestured to two elves, a male and a female elf and snapped his fingers. “Take these two to Emperor Jaigran for questioning!” he snapped. “Everyone else clean up this place and look for other information! I’m going to go take down that last elf!” Quickly leaving the rebels area, Unyihi made for the District Three Transit Station. Each district had a transit station where a super-powered train ran through quickly transporting people from district to district.

Normally, although it was speedy, it could be a long wait depending on the schedule, but Unyihi didn’t care. He could tinker with the train’s machinery to get it to come to District Three fast enough. And it would be the way that he’d be able to catch up with Number 997 to take down the last elf and to crush the rebel’s opposition once and for all.

Finally, Zarien flew by the sign for District Seven, having survived multiple attacks from the orc, including one from the orc electrically controlling a car to try to send it crashing into him. The orc had almost gotten attacked by the inhabitants of the car for that, but, unfortunately, he’d managed to get away.

Spinning the wheel, Zarien flew down a side road that had a sign of leading to the escape pods. He just had to get in one of the escape pods and get away—and fast. Zarien drew his gun. Shooting madly, he shot down the two surprised guards and whizzed through the open gate, looking at the lines of hatches to the escape pods. Quickly deciding what course of action he would take, Zarien brought his legs around and leapt off of the motorcycle, nearly falling face first, but barely managing to level himself on the side walk. Zarien dashed over to an escape pod and hit the button, opening the door, as the orc flew through the gate on his motorcycle.

Leaping into the escape pod, Zarien barely avoided a bolt of lightning and made for the controls. He would start by shutting the doors of the escape pod, but he knew that the orc would too easily reverse that with his lightning powers. He just had to get out of the Mothership and leave. And fast.

Zarien’s hand hit the blast off button as he heard a noise behind him. As the escape pod’s engines roared, Zarien suddenly gave a scream and arched his back as electricity pulsed through him. His quivering hand barely managing to keep a hold of his gun, Zarien shot backwards and the pulsing electricity stopped as the escape pod dropped, having left the ship, and plummeted down through the air.

Zarien spun around as he grabbed for the wheel to see the orc a bit dazed. The orc pointed his finger at him, but Zarien shot first, the bullet breaking through the orcs glove and into his hand. The orc gave a cry, and fell back as Zarien leapt forward, unheeding the quick descent of the escape pod, and grabbed the orcs other hand, twisting his other glove off. Without his gloves to conduct his powers, the orc was helpless. Zarien turned back toward the controls, ignoring the dazed orc, whom Zarien thought might possibly come in handy if he was chased, though probably it would more be when they were chased. Zarien put his hand on the steering wheel and looked forward before beginning to control the escape pod. He was free from the Mothership—but Zarien was sure that their battle was far from over.

Question of the Week:What is your favorite thing about the Christmas season?

_Part XXII: Murder

Date: Amanela 19th, 114 A.U.

Astrid flashed her ID card and the sliding doors opened. She stepped forward, feeling the weight of the item in her pocket and bit the inside of her lip. As she walked through to the ward, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a man dressed as a doctor pass by and look at her. And her blood chilled. It was him.

Astrid turned to keep her gaze forward and breathed heavily. If she didn’t kill him, she would die herself and they’d find another way to kill him. It wouldn’t be wrong of her to kill the man! He would die eventually—less people would die this way. She couldn’t truly save his life! Any rational person would have made the same choice as her in this situation. There was nothing wrong about it.

Opening the door, Astrid entered the ward to where the man lay, sleeping, on the bed. She was supposed to check his blood pressure and other readings. Slowly, Astrid checked the man’s blood pressure and then looked at other readings while she slowly drew the shot out of her pocket. She stared down at it and almost felt like throwing it away from her, but she only clenched her fist around it.

Astrid slowly walked over to the man and drew the covers back to reveal his arm. Astrid slowly lay the point of the needle over the man’s vein and her breathing quickened. Murder. She was going to kill a man. Her pursuers could probably blackmail her about this later to make sure that she kept with them. Once she killed him, there was no going back.

Astrid swallowed hard and gripped the side of the bed to steady herself. Focus, Astrid. Focus on the assignment. Slowly, Astrid slightly raised the needle up a bit, and then she jabbed it into the man. Ok, now focus. Just push it down and inject the fluid.

Astrid bit her lip and tried to will herself to inject the fluid into him, but she still didn’t press it in. Her heart beat faster. She knew that she had to do it now. If someone else came in and saw her, she would be in huge trouble. The note on the needle said it would be untraceable. No one would know that she did it. And if she didn’t do it, she’d just find herself dead the day later.

Astrid’s breathing quickened, and she closed her eyes, feeling the blood pulse through her veins. And then, gripping the side of the bed, Astrid tightened her grip on the shot and pushed down on it, injecting the fluid into the man. Astrid felt her legs nearly give way, but she held herself up until it was all injected.

Opening her eyes, Astrid breathed hard as she lifted the needle up. Her hand shook and the needle dropped, clattering and rolling on the floor. Biting back a curse word, Astrid knelt down and snatched up the needle, shoving it back into her pocket. She had just killed a man. She, a nurse, had just killed her patient.

Astrid’s whole body quivered and she suddenly collapsed to the ground, tears running down her face. How could she do this? How could she have just murdered a man? She had become like the people she had been trying to stop! She had just murdered a man. She was a murderer.

Bile rose in Astrid’s throat, and she vomited on the ground, coughing it out and mingling it with her tears. After a couple minutes she slowly stood up and swallowed hard, lifting up her tear-stricken face. It was over. It was all over. She couldn’t be a nurse anymore—no, not after what she’d done. She’d leave, run away somewhere away from all this conspiracy, and she’d never return. She no longer had any place, no longer had any life here again. She couldn’t stay here. She couldn’t live with herself. A guttural cry of lament left Astrid’s throat, and she moved forward, making for the door.

Suddenly, the door opened, and Astrid leapt back, almost screaming before she saw who it was. And then her jaw locked. Him.

The “doctor” looked at her and cocked his head. “You finish checking him, yet?” he asked, sending a glare at her.

Astrid slowly lifted the needle out of her pocket. “It is finished,” she whispered.

The man smiled. “Ah, well done, well done…” he said, and nodded. “I’ll be seeing you around.”

The man put his hand on Astrid’s shoulder, but Astrid shoved him off and pushed forward ,leaving the room and nearly running through the corridor, not thinking of anything but to be able to escape the hospital before anyone could discover her deed.

As she ran through the waiting room, she heard someone call her name, but Astrid ignored them, running down to the parking garage and getting in her car. Inserting and turning the key, she backed the car up and then drove out of the parking garage, turning down the road and riding as her thoughts twisted and turned. It would have been better to die than to do that.

Slowly, Astrid pulled out her cell phone and swallowed. She didn’t want to. She wanted to leave without talking to anyone again. But she knew that she should. Slowly flipping open the cell phone, she dialed Monty’s number.



Monty was getting ready to drive off to go to guard Governor Astrid, as was his duty as a member of the Araelian Guard, when his cell phone rang. Opening the front door to leave, he flipped open the cell phone and put it against his ear.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Monty?” a voice said. Monty recognized it as Astrid’s voice, but there was something different about it; Monty could tell! He wasn’t sure what it was, but Monty knew something was wrong.

“Yeah, this is Monty,” Monty said. “Astrid?”

“Monty!” Astrid said. “I need to talk to you! Now! Please!” Astrid’s voice cracked. “Can you take some time off of work or something? I need to talk with you now in person.” Monty bit his lip and stared at his watch but then he sharply jerked his chin up. His sister needed him, and from her voice, Monty knew that something was deeply, terribly wrong.

“Uh, yeah,” he said, and then more confidently. “Yeah, Astrid,” he said. “Just come over; I haven’t left yet. I’ll just call in and tell them that I will be preoccupied for a bit today.”

“You sure?” Astrid asked.

Monty nodded before remembering that Astrid couldn’t see him. “Yeah, I’m sure,” he said. “You sound like something’s wrong, don’t you? Some things are more important than my job.”

“Thank you!” Astrid said and Monty heard her sob. And then the phone clicked.

Question of the Week:How do you think Book I is going to end?

Lol, you are so worried about losing you dream about it ^_^  I'll send my story to you when I remember *which probably means close to never

Back to the story, we can have a fun battle scene... Given the trend of naming things by the armies such as plants vs. zombies or pirates vs. ninjas, today we can have elves vs. goblins... epic...

Part XXI: Elves vs. Goblins

Amanela 12th, 114 A.U.

Sirens went off and red lights flashed as the goblin’s radars picked up several large aircraft coming their way—fast. Leaping out of bed, Flek ran as fast as he could toward the goblin capitol, hoping he wouldn’t be late. Ten minutes later, he burst into Freglak’s chambers where Freglak was hurriedly making plans with Reynyagn.

“Flek; you’re here!” Freglak said. “Good—they’ll be upon us in another five minutes if they continue on at the same rate they’ve been going this far. Thankfully our radar stretches out pretty far. Just stay here and be ready. So what were you saying?” He turned to Reynyagn.

“They most likely have several smaller scouting aircraft searching way out in front of them,” Reynyagn said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve already found us. But that matters not. Are the missiles ready?”

“Yes, everything is ready for us to use,” Freglak said. “We’ll shoot them down as soon as they get close enough.”

“Be ready for anything,” Reynyagn said. “I’d expect them to have some tricks up their sleeve that we don’t know about—anything could happen.”

“Then again, they weren’t planning to come across a whole city and fighting force…” Freglak said. He walked over to the window and watched the sky. Reynyagn and Flek walked with him.

“Should be any minute now…” Freglak muttered. Suddenly, a powerful search light lit up the sky and there were muffled explosions as they saw missiles began to coast through the air at some dark aircraft.

“It’s a mild attack force,” Reynyagn snapped. “I hadn’t expected them to send this much. If I know them-” Suddenly, one of the aircraft dove toward the ground as the missiles hit the other aircraft, causing explosions to fill the night air.

“It’s a transport ship!” Reynyagn said. “They’re landing an attack force!”

“I’ll take them,” Flek said. And with that he rushed out of the room.


Are you ready?

Of course I am.


Flek leapt in the air, higher than any other goblin could, as he saw a sleek small elven aircraft coming his way. The machine was open to the air and the elements, and was twelve feet long. About eight feet in from the front, the elf sat, controlling the cruiser.

Flek landed neatly on the elven cruiser and leapt forward before the elf could do anything. His corsha blades silently whipped through the air, cutting off the elf’s life, as Flek jumped up to grasp a tree branch and use his momentum to propel him forward. Landing on the ground and running through the brush, Flek emerged in the clearing where the elf craft had landed. Armed elves were pouring out of the transport. They were ready to battle. Flek heard a noise and spun around to see Reklen beside him.

The small goblin grinned and Flek nodded. “Let’s get to work.”

Ignoring the fact that they were far outnumbered, Flek and Reklen burst out, Reklen scampering along the ground, Flek running toward them, using the time detraction the corsha weapons mysteriously gave him to block all the bullets. Out of the corner of his eye, Flek noticed more goblin troops running in.
Flek quickly met up with the first group of elven troops that ran toward him. The corsha blades illuminated the night air as they sliced through the elves. Flek leapt in the air and spun, laughing as he cut through them. This was so easy. By him, Reklen leapt up to tackle the head of one of the elves. The elf gave a cry as Reklen clawed at his face. Flek turned to go back into battle—but turned too late.

Flek gave a cry as piercing pain rippled through him and Flek was thrust ten feet backwards as lightning crackled in him. Flek noticed the corsha weapon drawing a lot of the lightning into itself, but it wasn’t enough. The lightning came from a blue orc, surrounded by his elven comrades. By him, goblins lay on the ground, unconscious.

Out of pure instinct, Flek suddenly thrust his corsha blade into the air to block a bullet and stood up. The orc sent a bolt of lightning crackling toward him. Leaping into the air, Flek let the lightning pass right unto him before quickly making a zig-zag course toward the orc, blocking the bullets with his corsha weapon, avoiding the lightning with his body.

His comrades were not so lucky. All around him, Flek could hear the goblins dying as they tried to do the moves that Flek was making and failed at doing so. Flek wasn’t surprised at their failure. Few could match his power.

Suddenly, a figure appeared as if out of nowhere right next to the orc. A long thin corsha blade slashed through the shocked elves guarding the orc. The orc sent a barrage of lightning against his mysterious attacker. Blue lightning crackled around the figure’s sillhoutte. Flek saw the mysterious being arch his back, but he said nothing. Bullets shot right through the figure. The being slowly lifted its corsha sword as it arched its back, and then it fell. The orc’s limp body fell over.

Flek sprinted over to come to this being’s aid. It was indeed Reynyagn. As the elves learned that Reynyagn couldn’t be hurt by the bullets, Reynyagn and Flek fell upon them, cutting them to pieces. They stood no chance. Flek leapt into the air, his corsha blades rotating through the air to stop all shooting bullets, and came down in the midst of the elves, quickly cutting them to pieces before they could do anything. This was too easy… Then again, few goblins were as good as him.

A loud noise filled the air and Flek turned to see the transport ship trying to take off. Oh no you don’t… Flek sprinted toward the ship and leaped high to grab on, but it was too late. Even as he jumped, he saw that it would not be far enough. The transport ship flew up past his reach, and as it did, Flek saw a star far off in the distance. The bright blue star shone brighter than the other stars, making the stars that should have been close to it unable to seen. Flek blinked, thinking it was a nearby light. But no. It was a star—a bright blue star. And its presence engulfed all the other stars.