Chapter 31 - Army Of Darkness

Zvire knelt down onto the recently restored green grass. “Do you think it‘s a sign?” he said, turning to Imunzo who was standing some metres away examining the new buds on what was not long ago a charred tree and now boasted new leaves and had its natural colours breathed back into its trunk. “It is possible” Imunzo said, turning away from the tree and walking toward Zvire. “But the more important question is what is it a sign of?” Imunzo said as he came up behind Zvire, who nodded in agreement. The sudden change in the greenery around Imunzo and Zvire had startled them at first, witnessing an army of green marching over the blackened grass until all the plants in the area had been returned to their natural colours. “We must be moving along, we do not have time to waste” Zvire said as he got to his feet and the two began walking. They had been trekking since the early morning, some hours ago now and the journey to where Legia castle once stood would still take them through all of today and parts of tomorrow, if the journey was swift enough. Zvire was enjoying the resurgence in colour of the scenery, having lived in the forest most of his life it pained him to see the trees a burnt black and was feeling in higher spirits that they were no longer this way. The path the two were walking along was a relatively straight one, with Wajem being directly north of Legia castle the journey would not involve travelling along any winding roads and could be done in a moderately short time. To the left of the track was a small dense forest, which Imunzo and Zvire were only a few minutes away from clearing as it ended just over the hill they were about to go beyond and to the right of the track was a hill, raised too steeply high above the track to climb upon, on which there was a region of small caverns. Imunzo kept a firm grip on his katana blade as he walked even though he knew that if his hand were not on the sword he could still draw it before anything had the chance to attack, Imunzo wanted to be prepared for anything. Imunzo suddenly stopped walking suddenly and began to examine their surroundings. “What’s the matter?” Zvire said, alarmed at Imunzo’s abruptness of stopping. “Something is not right, I cannot place it. I will need silence” Imunzo said, continuing to scan the area. Imunzo stopped and closed his eyes, it was clear that he could not see what was out there so he heightened his other senses to see if they could pick it up. Imunzo’s eyes suddenly opened and he spun around on his heels and tossed a dagger just above Zvire’s head. The dagger crashed into the neck of a Zaokum, a heartbeat away from slicing Zvire in two with its blade. Zvire turned around to see the Zaokum crash to the floor and drew the sword of Chalhor. “Who‘s there” Zvire called “Show yourself, Kaiazal we know it‘s you” Zvire shouted as he slowly paced around the area, looking for anything suspicious. “I‘m afraid he is busy, so you‘ll have to deal with me” came a voice from the hilltop above them, Orscyar’s. Orscyar jumped down to the floor and was standing for no less than a split second before Zvire tackled him to the ground and punched him hard in the face. “Do you mind? your pathetic attempts at pain are a waste of your time as well as mine” said Orscyar, suddenly standing behind Zvire. “What do you want?” Imunzo said, tightening the grip on his katana.
“I‘m afraid the time has come to kill you, no more games. How I'm going to enjoy this” Orscyar spoke with overconfidence, something which made Zvire‘s blood boil.
“You have had numerous opportunities to kill me and you have not been able to, I am one man. What makes you so confident of killing the two of us” Imunzo said, almost smugly. Orscyar smiled wide and in the blink of an eye, Imunzo and Zvire were surrounded by an army of Zaokum. “There are exactly three hundred Zaokum here, not even a warrior of the Djiani can overcome those odds”
“Maybe, maybe not.” said Imunzo as the Zaokum began to close in on him and Zvire.
“Only one way to find out” said Zvire, looking around and holding the sword of Chalhor so tight it would take a million years to prise it free.
“Indeed” said Imunzo nodding, still not having drew his blade.
“I knew you would choose to fight, it‘s what makes this so much better. I will be watching” said Orscyar as he disappeared over the hilltop above. The mass of Zaokum surrounding Zvire and Imunzo stood motionless as they watched them. Zvire turned to Imunzo and smiled nervously “doesn‘t look good does it ?” he said, almost jokingly.
“No. But then that's the way I like it” said Imunzo, and then he drew his blade.

It had taken Sierra much longer than anticipated to find some horses to take them to Legia castle and she arrived back in Kastellion some hours after leaving. The first thing she saw when she arrived was the repulsive figure of Valandt standing on the path, with an aggravated look on his face. “What's the matter with you?” Sierra said as she dismounted and began to walk toward Presto.
“Planning on telling me your leaving plans were you? I don't mind at all. You leaving is the best thing that has happened in a long while” he said, anger filling him.
“You‘re coming with us” she said, refusing to look at him.
“Well I've got news for you, we‘re coming with...” he paused as he realized what Sierra had just said, “Did you just..?” his voice trailed off in disbelief but Sierra got the gist of his question.
“Count the number of horses I brought back” she replied, her voice full of disdain. Valandt looked over and for the first time realized that Sierra had come with four horses, he then walked away from her in embarrassment. Sierra shook her head and smiled as she continued to approach Presto, who was sitting with Astral. “There, now you‘re getting the hang of it” said Presto, upon Astral finally getting the hang of what he was teaching her. With things getting more and more dangerous, Astral has decided that she would need to protect herself and had asked Presto to teach her some more magic. Astral allready knew a small bit of magic, the ability to float and the ability to produce a defensive blue ball of energy being her magic repertoire, Presto however was teaching her more offensive tricks. Astral flicked her hand once more and a blue flame emanated from her palm, her hand then began to burn and she started shaking her hand around vigorously. Presto smiled sympathetically and calmed her down, putting his palm on hers and doubting the flame. “You‘ll get the hang of it eventually, all you have to do is focus your energy and mind. You allready have the gift of magic so the rest will follow, eventually”
“Can you show me how you do it once more please Presto?” she pleaded, still cradling her hand and rubbing it free of pain.
“Very well. I see we shall be moving along soon so this shall be the last time” replied Presto, acknowledging Sierra’s presence. Presto extended his palm, face up and a bright red flame began to hover in the middle of his palm, he let it burn for a few seconds and then closed his fist around it, putting it out. “Presto, why is your flame red and mine blue?” Astral asked as Presto stood up.
“Different places have different magic colours. Palestar‘s colour is blue, as a wizard I am able to transform the colour of what I conjure to whatever I want” as Presto finished, he extended his palm again and the flame began to burn once more. The red flame in Presto’s hand then began to change from red to orange, then to yellow, it then changed to green, blue, purple, white and finally black. “See?” said Presto as he closed his fist over the flame once more, to which Astral nodded understandingly. Sierra caught up with Presto as he made his way to the horses that she had arrived back with and he greeted her with a strained smile. “Teacher now then are we?” she said, sensing his solemn mood at leaving his home town once more and trying to drag him away from the subject.
“Things are going to get a lot more dangerous from now on, she wanted to protect herself”
“But she has Valandt to protect her” Sierra said sarcastically.
“You of all people should know that women can defend themselves rather than relying on a man” replied Presto, as if Sierra had been serious.
“Fair enough” Sierra replied .
“How far away is Legia castle?” said Presto, changing the subject.
“On foot, a day, maybe two. On horseback, maybe a couple of hours” Sierra replied. By now Astral had walked over to where Valandt stood and Valandt gave Astral to mount her horse as Presto and Sierra approached the four horses which would take them on their journey. “Well this is it” said Sierra, looking all around and meeting with Valandt’s eyes. Valandt returned Sierra’s cold stares and mounted his horse. “Let‘s go!” called Valandt as he finished mounting his horse and with that he pulled on the reins and the four horses began to speed off, almost right into the fire that had appeared out of nothing. Valandt and Sierra’s horses, who were at the front just about managed to halt before they ran straight into it, both horses going on their hind legs and almost causing Valandt and Sierra to fall off. “What the?” said Presto to himself as he looked around and discovered that they were surrounded by a ring of flames. After Astral got close and examined the fire, she saw that it was at least five metres thick, so there was no way past it and jumping over it would be too dangerous. “Only one thing that could be the cause of this” said Presto as he looked around and searched for a safe passage out of the ring of flames surrounding them.
“Kaiazal!” exclaimed Sierra and Valandt at the same time, then after they exchanged looks of malice to each other they saw the instantly recognisable figure of Kaiazal walk through the fire that was all around them. “With the survivors of Wajem enough for Goreoth to play with, there is no more need for you. Time to die fools” rasped Kaiazal, and instantly the ring of fire all around them dropped to the ground and they were surrounded by an army of Zaokum, which made all four of them slowly back off. Without thinking of the consequences, Valandt and Sierra instantly dismounted, drew their swords and stood their ground, watching for the Zaokum to make a move. Presto looked around at the army that not only surrounded them but was beginning to close in on them and shook his head in disbelief. “If I die, I am so gonna regret this” he mumbled to himself as he leapt off his horse and began to hurl balls of fire at the Zaokum. Presto made sure that as his fireballs hit the Zaokum, the fire dispersed over a wide area and was powerful enough to knock the strongest of men flying. Presto knocked back three columns of Zaokum before he realized that they were not dying but instead getting back up, looking for revenge on Presto for attacking them. “Nothing‘s working!” Presto cried over to Sierra and Valandt as they were hacking away at the Zaokum with precise and deadly aim, however they too were only slowing down the Zaokum and not able to kill them. “Ha” mocked Kaiazal, watching the battle unfold from not too far away.
“The joke’s on you Kaiazal” said Astral standing behind him, with a cunning smile on her face. “Forget I can fly over your troops did we? well now you‘re mine” she said sternly.
“What can the lowly queen of Palestar going to do to me?” replied Kaiazal, insultingly.
“How about this?” she said, a split-second before sealing him in an energy bubble, only big enough to contain him.
“You foolish girl, you cannot kill me like this” Kaiazal’s voice was under pressure as he spoke, Astral began to close the energy ball around him, suffocating him.
“I know you cannot die like this, but I‘m enjoying watching you squirm. Now, tell me. How do you kill the Zaokum?” she said with an sense of victory. Kaiazal spoke nothing initially so she closed the energy around him even more to which he began to cough and splutter. “Alright, alright. The head, you have to cut off the head” he said, his voice desperate and weak, a moment before the energy bubble burst and he crashed to the floor. “You will pay for that” Kaiazal hissed as Astral ran off back in the direction of the battle. “Little help here!” came Valandt’s voice from inside a huddle of five Zaokum as Astral ran to help, extending her hand and concentrating on what Presto had taught her the past few hours while they waited. A blue line of energy grew from her palm and crackled like lightning as she got close enough to strike, striking the blue streak of energy through the air like a whip and severing the heads of three Zaokum that surrounded Valandt. “Thanks!” said an almost crouching Valandt as he dived out of the gap now created in the huddle around him, he then got to his feet and stood for a moment to catch his breath. “So, how exactly do you kill them then?” he said to Astral as a group of six advanced on them. “Sever the head, simple” she said moments before taking down another Zaokum with her energy whip. Valandt sighed, looking at his blade which did not have all the shine it once did and felt that Astral had the slight advantage in weaponry. “Simple, yeah” Valandt said as a Zaokum launched at him, causing him to jump back catlike. Then as the Zaokum had its guard down, he thrust his blade deep into its neck. Valandt then forced his sword to the left, clearing the blade out of its body and spun around, to follow through and tear the neck of the Zaokum in two. Sierra meanwhile had overheard Astral on how to kill the Zaokum and danced around them, extending the sword of Drakahor at precise moments and being able to take out several Zaokum in one move. While Presto was keeping the Zaokum at bay he noticed how to kill the Zaokum then set out on taking care of the masses that remained. Presto stood, his back against a tree and began to conjure flaming disks in one hand and throw them with deadly accuracy at the Zaokum, with one disk being able to take the heads off numerous Zaokum. The numbers of the army were decreasing all the time, with only dozens now still roaming. Muscles began to ache in the bodies of Sierra and Valandt, who were having to keep on their toes and not stay in the same spot for more than a heartbeat to avoid the blade of one of them and swing a hefty blade around with precision, the beads of sweat drenched Valandt’s face. Astral continued to lash her lightning like energy whip through the air with lethal results. There then came the final Zaokum in Astral’s sight, she struck her whip through the air and then was alarmed to see the Zaokum put up its left arm to block it. The Zaokum continued to advance on Astral as the whip severed its left arm, still swinging its sword in the other. Astral then found herself backed up against a tree as it continued to advance on her. She closed her eyes and froze with fear as it raised its blade, then unexpectedly heard it come crashing to the ground. “Thought you could do with some help, like I did earlier” said Valandt as he pulled his sword clear from the back of the Zaokum’s neck, to which she responded by hugging him tight. “That‘s the last of them then” said Valandt, turning around to examine the hoard of Zaokum corpses that lay all around the area. “Where‘s Kaiazal?” said Sierra suspiciously.
“I don't know, he must have just disappeared, as usual” Presto replied, from behind Sierra.
“No” she said, shaking her head. “Kaiazal never disappears without letting us know. Something isn‘t right. I don‘t know where Kaiazal is” she said, then continued “but wherever it is, I wouldn't like to be there”.

The instant Imunzo’s katana flickered out of its scabbard the Zaokum began to charge in on the two grossly outnumbered warriors. “Remember, severing the head is the only way to kill them” Imunzo said, turning to Zvire and making sure he knew what was required. Imunzo began to swipe away at the advancing Zaokum, causing three to drop to the ground instantly due to the lightning speed with which Imunzo slashed his blade through the air. Imunzo then followed this through by swinging back the other way, this time slicing the necks of four Zaokum. Imunzo kept his mind was clear of all emotions and began to advance into a mass of Zaokum, spinning around with his katana extended and flooring all the Zaokum around him within range. Meanwhile as the Zaokum began to get occupied with Imunzo, Zvire was allowed the time to move about the ranks of Zaokum and punish them with the sword of Chalhor, using his power to sever their necks cleanly. Imunzo was by now surrounded by Zaokum, who had him entrapped in a cluster but could still not get close enough to damage him. The concentration on Imunzo’s face was intense as he sliced his sword in and out of the Zaokum, slicing it deep into their necks and pulling it clear with great effort. Above them on the hilltop was Orscyar, who was looking down with a look of discontent on his face. “The Djiani must die, now” came a voice from behind Orscyar, an unexpected visit from Kaiazal almost made Orscyar lose his footing and fall down the hilltop.
“It is in hand” said Orscyar, regaining his composure.
“It will be out of our hands before too long, he is now protected by the Djiani God. Deal with him quickly before he becomes too much of a problem” said Kaiazal before disappearing, just as quickly as he had arrived. Orscyar gave a slight moan of displeasure as more Zaokum fell at the hands of Zvire and Imunzo and decided to take action. “Lets see how you like the cavalry” said Orscyar with a scheming smile as three hundred more Zaokum appeared from below the ground. “What the?” exclaimed Zvire as he suddenly found himself surrounded by a fresh crowd of Zaokum. Zvire continued to swing his blade through the air, swiping it down upon the necks of four Zaokum before he found himself caught by the edge of a Zaokum blade from behind. Zvire groaned with pain as the Zaokum lifted him high into the air and threw him against the rocks laying beside them and knocking him unconscious. The Zaokum then turned away from Zvire, ignoring him and all closing in on the lone Djiani. Imunzo had by now made his way toward the trees enabling him to swing upon and from them, something which the Zaokum could not. Imunzo jumped from tree to tree, every now and then dropping down a branch and chopping off some Zaokum heads. A large number of Zaokum began to crowd around the trees and chop them down, the tree Imunzo was standing being cut down causing him to fall to the ground. The crowd of Zaokum backed off as Imunzo hit the ground, they then all lifted their blades in the air simultaneously and then the blades came down. A heartbeat away from the numerous blades opening Imunzo’s flesh, they were repelled by a strange purple light which made all the swords shatter as they hit it. Imunzo felt his body taken over by a strange force, although once it had entered his body he felt comfortable with it. Imunzo stood up and felt nothing as Zaokum blades came raining down on him. The purple glow which was all around him then began to grow and he felt stronger with it. The glow had now taken a form around him, that of Djogun the Djiani God. Imunzo felt power surge through his body and he felt himself lose all control as he became possessed by Djogun. Djogun used Imunzo’s body to advance on the Zaokum, slicing Imunzo’s katana through the air with perfect accuracy and causing the Zaokum to fall one by one, all of them powerless to do anything to harm the glowing Djiani warrior. The more Zaokum that fell, the more power Imunzo felt flow through his veins and it soon got to the point where his muscles bulged to the point that they ached more intensely than they ever had. Still watching atop the hill Orscyar grew anxious at the destruction that the dual combination of Imunzo and Djogun were doing to his army. “I warned you” came Kaiazal’s voice from behind him once more. “I guess I will have to take care of this personally” he continued, moments before dismissing the remaining Zaokum with a flick of his wrist. Kaiazal then jumped down to stand away from the Djogun possessed Imunzo. Kaiazal gave a look of disgust to the glowing Imunzo and fired three green fireballs in his direction, a split second later Kaiazal found himself as their target as the possessed Imunzo had casually parried them back with his sword. Kaiazal’s pale hand extended further than it usually did as he stood watching the stationary Imunzo, a sword with a strange red glow then appeared in Kaiazal’s hand. There was a instant where Imunzo looked into Kaiazal’s eyes and Kaiazal into Imunzo’s before they both leapt at each other, clearing a distance of some metres in less than full seconds. Imunzo moved faster and hit harder than he ever had, the strain on his muscles was incredible as he and Kaiazal went at each other, the movements of both weapons became a blur they were both moving so fast. The repeated sounds of clashing weapons resonated around the air as they fought at lighting speed, with both of them having reacted to something before they even had time to register it. Still with each blow, Imunzo began to feel something building up inside him, he was groaning in pain as Djogun continued to use his body at ten times the pace Imunzo ever had. Imunzo began to feel faint as his body continued in its whirlwind battle against Kaiazal, Djogun had complete control over Imunzo’s body and it was stretching him to his physical limits. As the blows became more intense, sparks began to emanate from the two swords clashing against each other, the sparks getting bigger with each more powerful attack. Even Kaiazal was feeling the strain of the battle now and beginning to feel faint, he had never experienced such opposition and could barely keep up. Imunzo meanwhile was struggling to stay conscious, his body being used more intensely than it was ever made to be. The blurred figures of Kaiazal and Imunzo continued to fight and the sparks continued to get bigger and bigger until each spark was like a bright light. Kaiazal could not go on any more and Imunzo faded into blackness as they clashed weapons one more time, the spark this time a blinding light. Imunzo to the floor and breathlessly got to his knees, the purple glow around him had now gone and he had control of his body once more. Kaiazal was also nowhere to be seen. Imunzo struggled to his feet and looked around for Orscyar. “Drop it” came Orscyar’s voice. “throw the katana away, now!” he repeated only this time Imunzo saw Orscyar, holding a dagger to Zvire’s throat. Zvire struggled to break free of Orscyar’s grip but even if he used all his might he would still not move. Imunzo looked to Zvire and sighed “don‘t do it!” Zvire cried “forget about me”.
“I cannot see you die here, you are too valuable to our cause” said Imunzo, lowering the sword to his side, he then threw it with precise aim directly into the trunk of a tree some twenty metres away. “Now let him go!” Imunzo said sternly.
“Okay” Orscyar said with a smile, then plunged the dagger into the left corner of Zvire’s chest and dragged it down to the bottom right corner of his stomach, he then dropped Zvire to the floor. Imunzo’s jaw dropped as he saw Orscyar advance on him. Orscyar stopped suddenly and his face turned pale, he then cradled his chest which had just been pierced by the sword of Chalhor. Orscyar fell to the ground and his skin and flesh instantly melted away, leaving his skeleton lying on the ground. Zvire had, with his dying breath, hurled the sword of Chalhor through Orscyar’s body, killing him once and for all.