Amneris stood on the edge of a cliff, looking down into the deep gully below her. This was a place of very powerful energy. She could feel it all around her as her own power danced in response to its song. It was no wonder the Dreamas had relocated to this world after their original one had been destroyed only a few thousand years ago. She had not been alive when the world suffered that disaster, but she had heard the story enough times.

The energy she was sensing was very old. It was possible it was older than most of the worlds throughout the multiverse. This was, after all, the oldest surviving universe. It still had a few million years left in it before collapsing in on itself and being reborn. She wondered what would have happened to all the people by then, quickly dismissing the thought as insignificant. If the multiverse was destroyed in the oncoming months, it would not matter.

Someone called her name from behind. She turned, jumping down from the high stone she was standing on, and made her way towards one of the soldiers who had called her name. She was led towards an old friend she had not seen in a long time. Ray Cross. Tylwaerdreath was her homeworld. She had been a member of Amneris' Court when it was first staring out but left to peruse her own goals.

The years had been kind to her old friend.

Ray looked almost identical as she had millennia ago. Her body chose a good time to settle, Amneris decided. Her long white hair was in a neat braid down her side and her eyes were still the same bright blue as they had been so long ago. She was dressed in Dreama battle clothes: silver pants, boots, and thin jacket. All the material had a slight glow from the chain mail which was infused with it. The jacked was unzipped enough that Amneris could see the only new feature her friend had: a silver star on the hollow of her throat. A bow and quiver were looped over her shoulders, both with the symbol of the Dreams sticked into the fabric.

Ray pulled her into a tight hug. "You never come visit!" she joked.

Despite all that had happened, Ray somehow managed to stay her old self. Amneris could not help but wonder how long it had taken her to move past Kissa's death which, in a way, had been her fault.

Amneris managed to smile in response. "Sorry I couldn't come under better circumstances, Ray-Ray."

A wave of a hand. "No problem at all. It was only a matter of time before another insane Terpolite came around, right?" She frowned a little at her attempt at a bad joke, the mood between them during dark in an instant. "I was hoping it would not happen in my lifetime."

Unlike the current members of her Court, the old ones – including Ray – had not been given immortality. That power had not yet been accessible to Amneris and she still did not understand how she had got it in the first place. Ray was still alive after five-thousand years because her species had a naturally long-life span. Not as long as the Lyriumians, of course, but still long enough for some peoples to think of her species as immortals.

"You'll still have thousands of years after this is done," Amneris assured her, "And I really am sorry to bring you back into this whole thing."

A shrug. "You gave us the crystal. It was going to happen sooner or later." She gestured behind her. "We've been preparing for this day for the last five thousand years."

Amneris glanced behind Ray to where the Dreama army was standing. They were all dressed similarly to Ray, but all had their own subtle differences that, on close inspection, would have brought out each individual man and woman's personality. There was a myriad of weaponry between them.

She turned towards Leo who had, at some point, come to stand behind her with a gaping Jay. She gave him a flat look. "Why didn't you bring my army?"

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Leo snapped out of his daze. "You mean my army. I am the General."

"And I'm the Queen. I outrank you by far."

He huffed, suddenly very interested in his swords.

She knew why they had not come – she had asked them not to – but could not resist having a go at her best friend. The only people Amneris had brought with her were Leo, Nikki, Jay, Kayla, Colt, and Hathor. The others had stayed on Lyriumia but were prepared to be called up should back up be required. Carmin had warned her before leaving about what would happen if she brough her own troops. Things would go quite wrong. The Dragonoid woman had seemed paranoid when she told Amneris this. She kept asking her not to go and instead stay in the palace. It was never explained why.

A golden eagle soared towards them. It shifted back into a Fae moments before landing. Amneris and Ray ran to Nikki. Neither of them needed to ask what was on their minds before the Shifter started speaking. "Tara's coming up fast. I mean fast. She has a massive army with her." She spread her arms wide at the words.

Jay, who had come up beside them at some point, gestured to their own army questioningly. Nikki shook her head. The Fae male whistled. "Remind me again why you didn't bring our army," he said to Amneris who only sent him a withering glare in response.

"They won't be here for at least an hour," Nikki continued, "But they're moving pretty quickly for their side."

Amneris swore. Jay groaned loud enough for the entire planet to hear. Leo raised a hand to his head. Ray only sighed.

Amneris tugged the end of her braid. "Right. Okay. Not a problem." She rubbed her hands together, feeling the sudden urge to begin pacing.

Leo placed a hand on her shoulder and led her a few metres away from the other two. He raised an eyebrow at her.

"I haven't done the whole large-scale battle thing in thousands of years," she hissed at him. "I mean, I've been in a large-scale battle, but it was only me at the time. I hadn't even met you when that happened!"

Leo rolled his eyes. "Do you really think I came with you for no reason?" He pressed a kiss to her brow. "Try to chill out. You can go crazy when the battle actually starts." With that, he wandered back to Ray who led him towards the troops.

Amneris fingered the golden dagger she always wore on her belt. Its weight still comforted her even after five thousand of years. It was almost as though her adoptive father had placed a spell on it to do just that. It would not have surprised her if he did. She had been only a child back when the dagger was given to her. Oh, how things had changed since the day she went to Kemet. Sometimes she wondered how things would be if she never had. Somehow, she knew the multiverse would be facing some kind of disaster no matter what she had done. It would never truly be at peace, no matter what people said nor how hard they tried. That was just how things were.

A deep rumble sounded across the fields. Amneris could feel a dark power slowly approaching her and her people. It was a strange darkness. Familiar. Where had she seen it? It came to her moments later. It was the same darkness that surrounded her the day she died; the power of that woman who had been standing beside her husband. The one with the white hair and the dark eyes. Amneris could feel her power begin to sing. Somehow she knew the dark power was the sister to her own. She could only hope the welder was not a member of the Terpolite army.

She closed her eyes, listening to its sound. The dark power was singing a song of remorse. Sadness. The same song her own power had sent among the stars so long ago. Almost unconsciously, Amneris raised her hand to her scarred eyes. You have a dark twin wandering the worlds. Watch out for them. That was what she had been told when she was still young. Was the woman from back then who she had been warned of and, if so, was she still alive today? It was possible, but she hoped that was not the case. There was enough to worry about without some dark power stronger than that of her own or the Dark King's out there.

Kayla calling her name pulled her from her thoughts. She was helping with the final checks over the warriors, making sure all weapons were sharp and that everyone was strong enough to fight. She would be staying back with the group of healers Ray had bought along with the army. That was the main reason Kayla had been brought. Her healing power was strong, but it was far from its peak. This would provide a good opportunity for it to grow. Of course, Amneris had not actually told Kayla this and had instead made up an excuse of needing someone to keep the healers in check.

Amneris was brought to the front of the crowd. As she overlooked them all, she remembered she was standing in front of mortals who had been brought into the War. Most of them, she believed, did not want to be there. Who really does? Pulling herself together, she called attention to herself and spoke. She was unsure of what she wanted to say. Even so, the words seemed to flow through her. By the end of her speech, she could not remember what had been said. Whatever it was, it was enough to make the crowd before her roar.