The stones came tumbling down with a terrifying speed. They crashed in a relentless hail throughout the city. The defenders all fell to their knees and braced for the inevitable demise. However, before the stones crushed the survivors of the battle, a brief aura expanded outward. A powerful force briefly suspended the rocks in the air. Then, it set them aside from the defenders as they cowered.
“What the," Aiden said as he opened up his eyes and uncovered his head. “What was that? We should be dead!”
Desmond and Maeve were coughing and brushing off the dust that covered them. After a moment of silence, Cynthia smashed through a pile of stone that had buried her. She immediately put her fists up, ready for a fight, but there were no enemies to be found.
“What happened?” Cynthia asked as he was out of breath and in shock.
“I guess we are lucky,” Desmond said, raising his hands in a shrug.
Aiden scoffed, “I would not call being thrown around by a bunch of crazy mages lucky.”
Amongst the rubble, the group heard a weak cough. Maeve and Desmond scrambled to move the stones to uncover the person they had hidden.
"Cynthia,” Maeve shouted as they struggled with a large slab.
The large woman stepped forward and gripped the slab. She shook it out of place with a grunt and threw it to the side.
The stone moved to reveal Gloria. The proud woman’s legs were crushed under some rubble. She was coughing up blood and desperately clinging to life as she lay there.
Without a word, Maeve ran by her side and grabbed her hand, “Gloria! Do not move.”
The paladin tried to move the stones, but the woman winced in pain. She then put out her hands and closed her eyes. Green light started to emit from them onto the master of the White Hand.
Gloria smiled as she grabbed Maeve’s hand. The paladin stared at her curiously, but Gloria only smiled and shook her head.
“Graham tried to save me. He did his best to break from her control, but that staff is too powerful,” Gloria looked down at her midsection, which was bleeding. “Even if these stones had not gotten me, I suspect that I would not have survived.”
“Was it you that saved us?” Desmond asked astonishment. “We are forever in your debt.”
Maeve nodded, “That was as noble of an act as anyone has had in their last breath.”
Aiden walked up to the injured mage, "Come on. We can save her. There's got to be another mage around here somewhere.”
Aiden and Cynthia rifled through the rubble, but there was no sound. No other figures stirred amongst the destroyed spire and small fires that kept up around them.
“Over here,” Cynthia suddenly yelled from a ways away, “There is someone here.”
Aiden and Desmond got up and rushed over to her voice. Maeve would not leave Gloria’s side. The two men hurdled a pile of broken bookshelves and turned a corner around a broken pillar. There, they saw a small figure. It was a woman with long brown hair. She drew in her cloak and cowered before the three companions.
“Get away from me, please don't hurt me,” she pleaded.
“We are not the bad guys,” Cynthia said. “They are gone, but we need your help.”
The woman put her hands up and drew further back into the rubble.
“We do not have time for this,” Cynthia said as she reached in and grabbed the young woman. “Come on you.”
She slung the woman over her shoulder and started back to Gloria. As soon as they got close, the woman saw the master of the White Hand and squirmed out of Cynthia’s grasp.
“Master!” she cried as she fell by the woman’s side.
She rushed over to Maeve and Gloria. Tears fell down her eyes as she frantically scanned Gloria’s body. Then, she held out her quivering hands and closed her eyes.
“Nia,” Gloria said. “I have already told them that it is no use, I am, I am finished.”
Nia wiped her nose as she tried to hold herself together, “What am I supposed to do now? You and the hand were the only family I had.”
Gloria wheezed as she grabbed the woman’s hand and said, “You must go with these people. They are good people. You must go with them and help them to stop Astrid.”
“Stop that crazy witch?” Aiden scoffed. “I don't think you saw what we saw, but it does not look like she can be beaten.”
“If not that, then what?” Desmond said, “What is left other than to try to find her and confront her.”
“You mean her and Graham,” Aiden pointed out. “Our best chance is we go back home, gather what we can, and try to survive for as long as we can. We know they want to conquer the kingdom, maybe the world. As soon as they know we are alive, I am sure we will be at the top of this kill list.”
Gloria coughed, and she pulled herself up a bit more. She stared directly at Aiden with a grim look.
“Look here, I saved you all for a reason. If anyone is going to save Hailgalad, it is going to be your group. You can get to Graham. Turn his mind back to the light. Then, you can take on Astrid. I saw her; she was conflicted.”
“Graham was certainly under some control of himself when he saved Gloria,” Maeve added. “We have to try.”
Astrid and Cynthia looked unsure, but Desmond stepped forward and said, “She is right, we have to try.”
Aiden shook his head and walked away. He kicked a few rocks as he made an audible sigh. Cynthia crossed her arms with an unsure look on her face.
Maeve grabbed Gloria’s hand and held it tightly. She smiled as she nodded and said, “You have our word. With whatever breath we have left, we will use it to stop Astrid and Graham. Dyurkan will not be allowed to bring his power over our world.”
Gloria smiled as she led back and closed her eyes.
Nia cried as she said, “Don’t go. You're the only family that I have left. The White Hand is gone.”
Gloria opened her eyes one last time to look at the young woman. She raised her hand and pushed back her hair from her face.
“The white hand I knew was gone long before this day. We lost our way, and we paid for it dearly,” Gloria whispered. “But, the order shall not end so long as you keep us in your heart. Stay true to your cause, and stay true to your new companions. Only through your good deeds can you keep our memory alive. Keep the good magic alive.”
Then, Gloria let out a few more wheezes as she breathed in one final breath. She gave a weak smile as she repeated, “Stay true to each other.”
The group watched as the last master of the White Hand faded from this world. Her body went limp, and Nia laid her hands across her chest.
“What do we do now?” Nia asked.
“Nia, is that your name? I am Maeve,” the paladin woman said.
“Yes, that is my name,” Nia said as she wiped her face. “You are the Defenders of Sol?”
Maeve said nothing but only smiled and nodded.
“Nia is asking the right question,” Cynthia said. “What do we do now?”
The group was there in silent thought for a while. All around them, fires burned, and smoke swirled in the air. They could barely see out of their clearing of rubble, but no other figures stirred. In the distance, they could hear shouting from the city.
“I think it is safe to say that we are the last ones of our orders,” Desmond said. “Do we go to the authorities or the crown? Maybe they can help us.”
Cynthia shook her head, “I am not so sure that is a good idea. It would take them too long to decide anything. Anyways, if you would remember any of our encounters with the royal army, we are not exactly the most popular.”
Nia stood up, dusted off her robe, as she looked around. She said, “This is a matter of life and death for the kingdom. Surely, we can all put any petty arguments aside and do what is best for the kingdom.”
Maeve shrugged as Desmond looked at her. “I do not know, but it is worth a shot. I am sure they already think we are crazy, but we need more muscle. Not to mention the resources to track them down in time. We have to hope for the best.”
“Well, we do not have to go very far to get their opinion,” Aiden said.
“Why is that?” Maeve asked.
As if to answer Maeve’s question, scores of silver armored guards poured into the rubble-filled area. They flooded in from all around in an orderly fashion as they circled the Defenders of Sol. They found every bit of flat area to form up small lines. They thrusted out their shields and pointed their long spears down at the survivors. None of them said a word, but they stood in watchful silence.
Then, a captain in black stepped forward. He looked to be in shock at the pure destruction of the spire. As he came closer, the defenders immediately recognized him.
“Captain Marshal,” Desmond called out with a nod.
“How did I know that it would be your four at the center of this disaster?” Captain Marshal called back as he shook his head.
“What is that supposed to mean,” Cynthia asked as she stepped forward with her arms crossed.
“Easy, easy there,” Marshal put his hands up and smiled. “I am simply calling out an interesting point. We are all on the same side, after all.”
“Sure,” Aiden said cautiously.
Marshal rolled his eyes, “You may not believe it, but I have spent my life working to keep this kingdom safe. After your commotion at the capital, I was assigned to follow your group. Now, I find you here amongst a ruined structure that had stood since before Hailgalad was founded.” Marshal looked around and raised his hands in exasperation. “Rather lively for a trip to research scrolls for academic purposes.”
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“I have had quite enough of this,” a man shouted.
A large man who was bald and had a black beard streaked with white stepped past Marshal. He wore a long cape that was the color of the royal army red. He was dressed in silver-plated armor and had his helmet in the crook of his arm.
“Who is this guy,” Aiden whispered as he nudged Cynthia.
“I am Harold, general of the armies of Javailty. You four are not citizens of this city. Explain yourselves at this moment, or I will have each of you in shackles,” the man bellowed as he stared at Aiden.
“It was not us that did this,” Desmond said. He tried to step forward, but the guards drew their spears in closer. He put his hands up and continued, “There is a group of mages that turned against the White Hand, and they…"
“Enough!” Harold yelled, “We saw your leader leaving the city after the spire fell. Graham, is it? By our reports, he went willingly, so we know you have a hand in this. Do you know the destruction you have caused? I have people all around the city rescuing citizens from toppled homes. Stones killed dozens of people all around here. All because of what you did here.”
“We did not do this we tried to stop it!” Maeve called back. “Graham is not himself. He is being controlled by a dark force. There is a dark mage who has an artifact that is controlling him. She came to this place to steal the other piece she needed to channel her power. We fought to keep her back, but she took it.”
“What type of power,” Marshal asked. “Who is this dark mage?"
Harold scoffed, “Do not entertain these hoodlums any longer. They are only trying to save their skin. This was clearly a robbery of their own gone wrong. Whatever power this ancient order kept for years within this spire must have backfired and taken them all out.”
“She was a member of the White Hand,” Maeve said, ignoring the general. “And she needed this artifact to conjure the power of Dyurkan. She aims to take over this kingdom in his name.”
“Dyurkan?” the general laughed. “Now, we truly have it, I was right. They came here and destroyed one of the oldest structures of our kingdom. Whether it was from a robbery or petty rivalry between obscure magical orders, they took it down. Now, they try to feed us this ridiculous story of an ancient dark god that no one has been bothered by for centuries. Either they are taking us for fools, or they are crazy. Their way, the royal army does not believe in fairytales.”
“He is real,” Nia said, to the surprise of them all. Her small voice rang clear as she stood angrily. “At least his power is real. We saw it firsthand as the dark mage took the tower down.”
“So, I think it is safe to say that you did not come here for academic purposes,” Marshal cut in. “Why weren’t you honest with us from the start, and how do you expect us to believe you now?”
“They are lying, solider, get that through your thick skull!” Harold barked.
“I would like to hear it from them,” Marshal barked back.
“You dare to defy a general in his own city?” the large man was losing his head as he got into the captain’s face. His towering body seemed to make Marshal look small, but he did not back down.
“I am here to investigate this group by order of King Edward and Queen Melanie,” Marshal said as he raised his voice. “Last I checked, Javailty was under the power of the King and Queen of Hailgalad.
The general stared at the captain for a moment. Then, he pounded his foot and started directing the additional troops to clean up the rubble and look for more survivors. Marshal turned to the defenders and gave them a nod.
“Well,” Maeve started. “There is so much going on that we do not even know. Our leader did not know anything about the artifact. Then, this woman comes along who desperately wants it from us. We thought we could handle this on our own.”
“And the fact of the matter was you could not,” The general lectured. “Even if you are telling the truth, it seems to me that this is your fault.”
“What do you want from us?” Cynthia cut in. She was furious. “We screwed up, okay? For years, we have been ridiculed and neglected by your army while we did valuable work to help our people. Where were you all? Nowhere to be found. We helped the people of our kingdom. I think you could forgive us for thinking your people would not be the most reliable to go to in our time of crisis.”
Desmond stepped forward again, with his hands up, “Just let us go. The woman left here with the staff she was in search of. This staff can conjure a power unknown to our time. Gloria, a master of the White Hand, gave her dying breath for us to survive so we could stop her. If you let us go, we will stop her and save our leader from the control they have on him.”
“You will not be going anywhere. Not after everything that you have been a part of the past few days,” the general said. He was a bit more calm as he drew himself up. “We are taking you in to see the governor. It is Elizabeth that will decide what is the best course of action.”
“We do not have time for this,” Aiden said. “There are crazy mages out there with incredible power at their fingertips. Before long, they will be bearing down upon us. As much as I wish to go and hide, my companions are right, and we need to be out there now hunting for them.”
“Well, there are only the five of you here. Even if we let you go, you would be outmatched if what you say is true. Tell us where they are, and we can dispatch an entire army to arrest them,” Marshal said to them.
"Against those magical forces, I doubt an army would do it,” Cynthia said. “From what we witnessed, you need us.”
“Tell us where they are,” the general growled.
“We do not know,” Desmond said. “ Our only lead was to come to the White Hand and to get their guidance about the situation. We do not know where they are.”
“Do you at least have a lead on where they could be?” Marshal prodded.
The group looked at each other and shrugged.
“No,” Desmond said.
“So let me get this straight,” the general said with frustration growing in him once more. “From what Captain Marshal and now you all have told me, your group came across this ancient artifact. It draws out a dark mage that has been looking for it for some time. You take her to your home for questioning. She then uses goblins that you employ to steal your leader and the artifact. Then, you decide to come to the White Hand, which happens to have a staff needed by the dark mage. She arrives right after you, with your leader, who is under mind control They destroy the spire and leave you all behind while killing all the leaders of the White Hand. Can you see from our perspective that the evidence does not add up? This dark mage has not been seen, but your leader has, and you four have been there at every turn.”
“Difficult or not, it is true,” Desmond said. “Now, we need to be working on a solution together.”
“We do, Desmond,” the general said. “We need to be looking at where those reported dark mages, led by the leader of your order, went. We also need to clean up this city that you damned mages nearly destroyed. We will work on a solution, but it will not be found here. No matter what else you say, you are not going anywhere. We are bringing you to the palace for questioning.”
Cynthia scoffed, "You see, it is typical to waste more time while people are dying. Do you know, general, how much blood, sweat, and tears that I have put into this kingdom? How many missions have we gone on to take out creatures that plague this kingdom? Creatures that you would only see in your worst nightmares. I will not sit here and be lectured by the likes of you.”
The woman picked up her warhammer and stepped forward. Her defenders joined her side as they looked ready to strike. The shining silver guards fixed their shields together and took defensive stances. The general unsheathed his sword and took a step back.
Marshal dropped his sword and put his hands up, “Hey, hey now, do not try anything rash. We are all on the same side. I want to believe you, deep down, I really do. I know that your order is a betterment for our kingdom. So many people are grateful for what you do. You have to see it from our point of view. Dark gods and evil powers are things that do not come up much in the world anymore. To most, Dyurkan is an ancient memory, if not a fairytale. Please, come peacefully with us to the palace. There, you can make your case for the governor, and we can work on a solution together.”
‘Quiet captain,” the general said. “They have made their choice.”
***
Cynthia ground her foot into the dirt. All the soldiers thrust their spears out more and took a step in. The whole area was tense in anticipation of what might happen. Everything went quiet as they all stared at one another.
"Stay close to me,” Maeve whisper to Nia.
“What is going on?” Nia asked nervously.
Without a word, Cynthia came with a sudden surge of speed and strength towards the general. She tackled him to the ground, and the Defender of Sol sprinted after her. She got up and smashed her warhammer into the ground. A shockwave of blue sparks shot out and threw the guards and Marshal to the ground. The defenders all ran as quickly as they could past the stunned soldiers and towards the crumbling exit of the compound.
“Sorry,” Nia called as they ran past.
The soldiers tried to scramble to their feet, but they were slow to follow in the uneven terrain.
“After them!” the general barked.
The group went running wildly through the exit that was crumbled by a large stone. When they got into the streets, they were shocked. Stones were strewn all around. They smashed through buildings and broke the streets. Books and artifacts from the spire were also all around.
The people of Javailty were aimlessly walking around, still in shock. Some were on their knees, mourning the loss of a loved one. Others were running around with water, trying to put out fires. Many guards were too busy to notice the defenders hustling through the streets.
“After them!” a guard pointed at the five companions.
“This way,” Nia said as she took the lead. “Down the alleyway.”
More guards entered the fray as they charged after the defenders. They poured into the alleyway after them.
“Where are we going?” Aiden called from the back of the group.
“We can lose them in the alleyways,” Nia said. “Then maybe we can leave the city.”
The high passageways snaked left and right. Nia made her decision on where to go without hesitation. Her strides were confident as she flew across the cobblestone path.
The guards were closing in as Aiden pulled out an arrow. Desmond looked back at him.
“Do not shoot that at anyone,” he warned.
Aiden knotted his bow and shot behind them. A puff of black smoke bellowed up and covered their way just as they made a sharp right turn at a fork in the path.
“Relax,” Aiden said. “As much as they frustrate me, I know they are on our side.”
The group could hear horn calls all around them.
“Are we sure we should be leaving the city?” Maeve said.
“What do you mean?” Cynthia asked as she huffed and puffed. “We do not exactly seem to be welcome here.”
“But the goblins came from the sewer grates. What if they are under the city?” she asked.
Before anyone could answer, they turned another corner to see a line of guards blocking their path.
“Halt, in the name of Governor Elizabeth,” one the of the guards ordered.
“Move out of the way,” Cynthia shouted. “I do not want to hurt you.”
The lead guard drew her sword and pointed it at the group.
“Do not worry,” she said. “You would be the one that gets hurt.”
Nia took a small step back, but Cynthia advanced. She had a smile on her face as she rushed the guard.
The guard was on the ground quickly as the others advanced to take the defenders down. A scrum ensued where more silver guards piled into the tight space. Each ground kept their weapons away and fought hand to hand. Desmond and Maeve stood back to back as Aiden slid between the guards. Nia was slowly backing away when another guard grabbed her.
With a quick reaction, the young mage threw both hands toward the ground and produced a purple flash. In an instant, all the guards fell to the ground unconscious.
“What the? Did you kill them?” Aiden asked in a shocked tone.
Nia looked down at her hands as she breathed heavily. Maeve went over to her and touched her shoulder, and she shuddered.
“Ah, uh, no they are not dead. They are only knocked out. I-I did not know that I could do that,” she stuttered.
Cynthia picked up her hammer and nodded to the mage. “Well, now you are one of us, welcome to the Defenders of Sol.”
The moment was broken by the sound of hurrying footsteps.
“I heard something this way, follow me!” a guard shouted.
“Yes, great, she is one of us now,” Aiden said. “Now it is time to go.”
***
The group continued through the seemingly endless labyrinth of alleyways. They went into homes and smashed through doors. They pushed past groups of people that were waling around, still confused by all the commotion.
Finally, they came out onto a main road. Nia turned left and continued onward to a gate that exited the city.
“All the guards must be either chasing us or helping out with the wreckage,” Desmond said. “It looks like the gate is empty.”
They ran on as quickly as they could, down the cobblestone street. They were almost to the broad opening the the stone walls when a hundred guards came out of the guard towers.
“You had to say something,” Aiden said.
“Back, back, everyone back!” Maeve shouted.
They turned around a saw another hundred soldiers running down he road from the spire and the alleyways. In short order, the defenders were completely surrounded. The guards locked their fields and thrust out their spears in every direction.
General Harold made his way through the shield wall, followed by Captain Marshal.
“Leave it to the rats to run at their first opportunity,” Harold growled. “Guards!”
A few guards advanced with binders toward the defenders. The five companions drew back, looking ready to fight once again.
Marshal stepped forward, but the general held out his arm, so he shouted, “If you are truly on our side, please come peacefully.”
Reluctantly, each of the defenders dropped their weapons to the ground and put their hands into the air.