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22thDay of Nova

128 I.E.

"Two days of skirmishing." Shinn panted as he took a flask of water from Rei. "And we've just been losing ground." He took a long draught of the cool liquid and passed it along. "Thank you, Rei."

Rei nodded her head, but didn't say anything. She was busying herself with trying to bandage a wound on her upper arm.

When that failed, Marida stepped in to assist her. "Let me help," she said. Marida had a mother's touch, and she wound the fabric around Rei's arm and cinched it tight. "You should put that in a sling until you can get it looked at by a healer."

"I'll be fine," Rei said stubbornly.

Arion was resting in the shade of a squat little building. In the distance he could hear the faint sounds of battle as they echoed down the empty city streets. Mage fire whistled over their heads and exploded as it struck a nearby building, and he brought his arms to protect himself from the flying rubble.

We aren't going to win this, Arion thought. We got rid of their giants but the cost was too high. They've just pushed us further back now with their reserves. All of our defensive walls have been destroyed and the Legion is marching in our city at their leisure.

Shouts and screams echoed down the streets, punctuated by the roaring of some terrible beast in the distance.

"What was that?" Rei asked.

"Sounds like someone's fighting a giant," Marida said. "Sounds like they're losing, too." The ursar shuddered as the crashing and screaming continued to fill the smokey air.

"What do we do now?" Shinn asked.

Everyone collectively looked to Arion for direction, but he simply stared off into space, unsure himself of what to do. He hadn't slept in days, choosing to instead watch over his allies as they tried to rest despite the bombardments going on around them.

Asuran was the first to speak when Arion didn't say anything. "Round up the survivors. Take the wounded and escape to the north."

Arion nodded his head and gave them the go-ahead to follow Asuran's orders.

"Are you alright, Master?" Hannen asked, concern showing on his tired face. He held Sionache close to him, and his daughter was trying to squirm away from his smothering grasp.

"I'm exhausted," Arion admitted. "I don't think I can keep this up much longer."

"That defeatist attitude is very much unlike you."

"This situation is very much unlike the norm," Arion retorted. He rose on shaky feet, pressing a hand against the wall of the building to support himself. "Not even the Gnoll Wars were this bad. Nor were they this hopeless."

A horn sounded nearby, echoing off the crumbling walls around them When Arion looked down the street he could see a group of orcs moving in on their position.

"Go now," he told his students. "I'll distract them long enough for you to escape."

"But Master!" Marida pleaded, but one look from Arion silenced her at once.

"Go!"

The ursar scrambled to their feet and started running. Hannen tried to pull Sionache along but the cub was standing and staring at Arion.

"Sionache, let's go!" Hannen urged her.

Arion met her gaze for but a second, and could see the worry in her eyes. He swallowed hard and turned to face the charging orcs. "Go. I'll hold them off." He got into a combat stance and added, "Trust me."

Sionache nodded her head and said, "Alright, Master. I trust you."

The ursar started running as fast as they could. Once they were clear, Arion dropped low and grabbed the first orc to reach him. He used his opponents momentum against him and flung him into a wall. Arion's foot was quick to follow as he delivered a swift upwards kick to the orc's jaw.

A couple of Legion soldiers tried to go around Arion to go after the fleeing Peacekeepers, but Arion threw up a barrier that stretched across the street, causing them to slam headfirst into the invisible wall.

"Your opponent will be me, not them," Arion said to them, regardless of whether they understood the Common Tongue or not. "I won't allow you to harm any more of my pupils!"

* * * * *

Gantors was shouting orders into the gemstone on his helm as he fought hard to keep the enemies at bay. "Get the reservists out o' here an' take the archery divisions wit' ye! They be no good anymore!" He blocked a sword aimed for his head with his shield. "Helga!"

"Lightweaver, grant us your aid in our time of need!" the dwarven priestess cried. The clouds above parted in answer to her prayers, and a pillar of light rushed down towards the ground with unparalleled speed. The edge of it caught Gantors' foe in the blast, as well as a large group of enemy soldiers. The light became more intense, until neither Helga nor Gantors could look at it anymore. All they could do was listen to the screams of the enemy as they were incinerated by the intense burst of light.

"Thanks hun," Gantors said.

"We need to pull back. Where's Arion? I haven't seen him since yesterday," Helga asked. She waved her hands and with a flash a bubble of holy energy enveloped the two of them, warding off an arrow fired by an elven mercenary that was aimed for her.

Gantors flung his hammer at the elf, taking him out and hitting with enough force to strike another mercenary behind him. "He can take care o' himself. I be more worried about us right now." The paladin turned his shield horizontally and reached behind it. Hidden within the metal was a long sword specially tailored to fit inside the shield. It's pristine, mithril metal had yet to taste blood, and it rang as it was drawn. With a wordless shout, Gantors charged forward to fend off his next opponent.

* * * * *

Trapped within the crumbling Market, Arion was fighting through the streets to find the Highlord. It was time for them to pull out. He only hoped that the paladin was okay.

Where's Bart? I haven't seen him either,_Arion thought as he tumbled out of the way of an explosion of fire. _I hope everyone is okay.

A loud howl rang out and its sound reverberating off the walls around Arion. He couldn't pinpoint where it had come from, but he easily recognized who it belonged to. They'd met several times before on the field of battle. Fippy Sabertooth was coming for him.

<Sabertooth!> Arion projected his thoughts out into the battle field. In response, the maddening laughter of gnolls rose up over the screams of the dying. The ursar wasn't looking forward to facing Fippy again, especially in such a chaotic environment as a war zone. He was a tough opponent years ago. There was no doubt in his mind that the gnoll had been training for the day when he could fight Arion again.

I need to get out of here before he finds me.

Arion raised his hand and telekinetically pushed at a group of orcs charging at him, knocking them over like a pile of child's blocks. Before they could get up, he pounced. One hand slammed into an orc's jaw while his other hand raised another off the ground and hurled her across the field to bowl over several other Legion soldiers. His claws raked and slashed at their flesh and then he was off, leaving a trail of dead bodies behind him.

A skeletal hand burst from the ground and grabbed Arion by the ankle. The ursar stumbled forward and smashed into the ground with all the force of a run away wagon. His teeth slammed against each other and he could feel the flesh on his chin split and begin to bleed from the impact with the gravel. He kicked and squirmed to get free of the skeleton's grasp as the undead began to lift itself out of the ground and grip his other ankle. Arion looked back, and saw the lifeless, rotting grin of the skeleton as the majority of its body remained within the earth.

"Well, well, well. What have we here? Did a little bear lose his way?"

Arion looked up to see Fippy standing over him, his kamas and parts of his speckled body spattered in blood. He was surrounded by a large host of his fellow gnolls, including a female in the typical black and red robes that marked her as a necromancer, and they wore equally amused expressions when they laid eyes on Arion.

"Sabertooth, why are you here?" Arion was doing his best to remain calm and suppress his anger, but it was slowly seeping through. He struggled to get himself free of the bony grip of the skeleton, but the abomination held on tight.

"It's simple, really. I was presented with a chance for revenge and I couldn't help myself!" Fippy kicked Arion in the muzzle with his foot-claws out, tearing away a piece of flesh and leaving three deep gashes across his face. "It only seemed fitting that I should come back to haunt you in your final moments, wouldn't you say?" He chortled to himself as he watched Arion struggle to free himself.

Blood covered Arion's lips, and he coughed on the ground. "I didn't want to kill you, but it was the only way to stop you from hurting anymore people."

"Your hypocrisy disgusts me." Fippy spat. He looked up as someone yelled Arion's name in a panic, and Fippy paused. He snapped a finger and several of his warriors ran forward to fight with Matsu and Kira from the Order. Arion attempted to aid them with his powers, but he was pummeled mercilessly by Fippy when he tried.

Arion could only watch as the gnolls descended upon them like vultures. Even though the ursar put up a good fight, they simply were not capable of fending off such a large number of opponents by themselves. Matsu and Kira were torn apart within seconds, and left to bleed out on the streets.

"Matsu!" Arion cried out. Even from his position and from this distance, he could faintly make out the wail that followed as the ursar expired.

<Master Arion... I'm sorry. Why did I have to die...>

"You should watch carefully, bear." Fippy nodded to the necromancer as she began to work her magic. Arion felt like vomiting as he watched the two recently slaughtered ursar rise from the ground. They looked at Arion with hollow eyes as they unleashed an unholy moan when they opened their mouths. The two zombies shuffled to stand next to the gnoll who had raised them from the dead.

"Massssterrrrrr," moaned the zombified Matsu. Arion had a feeling of dread deep in the pit of his stomach and shivered as he heard his former attendant speak.

"I don't want to kill anyone, I'm better than that! Every life is precious!" Fippy said mockingly, doing his best imitation of Arion's voice. "You had no trouble killing me, and my father before then! Did you think that your transgressions against the Darkpaw would go unpunished? The wrath of Traanix Sabertooth lives on through me, and I will see to it that you will pay for what you did to me. I was pulled back into this life, to live as a wretched undead. I will forever be cursed to watch those dearest to me age and die around me." He gripped Arion's wrist and looked him in the eyes. "Look and see for yourself, scum! See what will become of you after I am through with you!"

He could feel the cold, clammy grip from the gnoll as he touched his skin. It sent shivers up Arion's spine. He paused for a moment. Arion knew that looking into Fippy's memories would take less than a second to view them, yet that's all the time that the gnolls would need to finish him off.

"Look, Gods damn you!" Fippy snarled, tightening his grip so hard that his claws dug into Arion's wrist and drew blood.

Focusing his mind, Arion began to probe the gnoll's thoughts and memories. Images flashed before Arion's eyes as he saw the battle in Evergloom freshly in his mind. He stood a distance away and could see himself deal the final blow to Fippy. The memory of himself said something that Arion couldn't make out. It was fuzzy and garbled, and he knew that it was because Fippy's memories of the event were poor at best. He watched as the gnoll chieftain lay there, struggling to breath, while the memory of Arion was carried back to the nearby dwarven outpost by his fellow ursar. And there Fippy remained, alone, forgotten, his people not coming for him until he had expired, until it was too late to resuscitate him.

The next image that flashed before Arion was one of intense, freezing darkness. It felt safe and comforting. He was at peace, yet frightened at the prospect as everything went numb and he began to lose all sense of self. Was this what dying was like?

Eventually everything brightened into a blazing inferno of heat with the sun beating down on him. Then he felt nothing at all. There was no feeling of the temperature nor the feeling of being on the ground. He felt nothing but anger and rage and remorse as his eyes adjusted to his surroundings. Ritualistic circles surrounded his body as did several hooded gnolls. One of them, an old crone, presented him with a cup of water and raw meat.

It tasted like ash, and he roared in defiance and anguish, tossing the meat aside. He could hear fine, he could speak fine, but all the things that he once enjoyed were taken from him.

He was a ghoul, a living construct with the flesh and soul once again reunited. Everything pleasant had been taken from him.

Arion gasped as the real world returned to him. Though it had felt like hours watching the events in his mind play out, he could tell that only a fraction of a second had actually passed. He was speechless. His voice was caught in his throat as the terror began to set in. He did not want to exist as one of those abominations.

"No!" Arion cried, his eyes wide with fear. The gnolls merely laughed at him.

"You shall know suffering, bear, just as I have."

"I didn't want to kill you, but I had to! It was the only way to defend my friends and allies."

"You worthless pile of refuse!" Fippy shouted, cutting Arion off. Another foot slammed into the ursar, the claws nearly taking out his right eye. He raised his kamas and was poised to strike Arion. "I'll do what you did to me, and make you my servant in undeath! You shall never know rest!"

I have to move, now! I don't want to be one of those things! Arion planted his hands firmly on the ground and heaved with all his might, flipping himself first up, then somersaulting over with a spin. The skeleton restraining his legs went along for the ride, and came with a shattering crunch on top of Fippy, showering the ground with cracked and splintered bones that could no longer hold themselves together. The other gnolls rushed to their chieftain's side.

They were too slow. Arion caught one gnoll's wrist and pulled him forward to slam a fist into his nose, then threw him to the side. He caught a flail with his bare hands and tossed the spiked ball around to strike his foe in the head with it. One by one the gnolls fell around Arion. He back-flipped and kicked one in the jaw with the front of his foot, landed on his hands, and spring boarded up over a crossbow bolt before he landed hard on top of another gnoll.

"Save your soldiers lives and tell them to get out of here." Arion said calmly, trying to hide the fact that he was breathing heavily through his nose out of exhaustion. His heart raced in his chest as his eyes darted back and forth between the undead abominations and Fippy. His muscles screamed at him with every move that he made. "I won't ask again," he warned, and lowered into a brawler's stance. "I can see your moves," he remarked as he ducked and weaved under the swipes of swords and claws. "Please surrender. I don't want to kill you or your kin if I don't have to."

"Self-righteous troglodyte!" Fippy snarled, spit dribbling out his mouth. "Kill him! KILL HIM! I want his head!"

The gnolls ran to surround him, and Arion watched patiently as they circled around him. The gnolls appeared confident that they could win, he could see it in their eyes. They thought that he had no escape, but they were wrong. They had made a grave mistake.

Arion brought his arms in front of him and crossed them over his chest. He then raised them slightly as he brought in as much of his power as possible. With a shout, he thrust both of his hands out to the sides as the gnolls charged, and an explosion of psychic energy radiated outward, tearing up the ground as it travelled and sending the dog-men up into the air in a mess of screaming fur. Some were lucky, and were able to land safely a short distance away with only bruised bones. However, most of them were impaled on the weapons of fallen combatants or landed in a twisted, broken heap with a snapped neck.

Yet the surviving gnolls kept coming. Arion raised a barrier to deflect a series of attacks, then dug his foot paws in the dirt to kick up a cloud of sand, blinding his attackers long enough for him to finish them off. Kira joined the gnolls' fight while Matsu remained to protect the necromancer controlling him. The ursar's moves were sluggish, but he didn't need to be fast anymore. Undeath had granted him unbelievable strength that even Arion couldn't compete with as he tried his best to block and dodge the zombie's swipes.

His efforts were so focused on what was in front of him that he didn't see Fippy sneak up behind him and slice as his exposed back with his kamas. Arion screamed and arched his back in reflex. It felt like fire had exploded all along his spine, and he worried that he wouldn't be able to move his legs. Two quick swipes at his ankles insured that fear became a reality as Arion fell forward, no longer able to stand.

Fippy strolled casually around Arion and stood over him. He looked down at him with a self-satisfied grin. It didn't matter to the chieftain that the battle had cost the lives of many of his warriors, he had finally beaten the ursar.

"Any last words before I have you turned into a ghoul like me?" Fippy grinned, and Arion couldn't say or do anything. He was too exhausted.

This is it. Xenar, help my friends and watch over them where I cannot. Please, I ask this as your humble servant and teacher of your arts... don't let them die...

"This is the end for you!" Fippy raised his kamas, but had to double back as a blast of golden fire came screaming towards him. The blast seared the flesh on his right shoulder, but it didn't seem to bother him, and continued on to strike Kira in the chest. The zombie howled as its body was disintegrated. The force of the spell was enough to send Fippy sprawling across the ground, nearly cutting himself open on his own kamas. A second blast of light hit Matsu and purged the zombie from the world.

"Arion!" Helga shrieked, seeing the wounded state of the ursar.

"Fippy!" Gantors yelled and ran at the gnoll. "Ye'll pay fer what ye and yer kin have done here today!"

For the second time that day, Fippy had been denied his chance to take down Arion. "Gods curse you," he said, then shouted to the few gnolls that remained, "Pull back! We'll regroup." With a final look at the weakened Arion, he growled, "Still need your friends to bail you out, huh bear?"

With that, they were gone. The necromancer teleported away as the rest of the gnolls escaped to someplace else in the city.

Helga touched a golden, glowing hand to Arion's back and the flesh began to mend itself. "Are you alright, friend?"

"Exhausted, hurt... I failed to protect my precious students and Xenar only knows how many others." Arion said and looked to where his fellow ursar had fallen.

They were still so young! He closed his eyes tight to shut out the tears.

"Where have you both been?" Arion asked, "I've been looking for you."

"Just as we've been lookin' fer ye. We're gonna pull out," Gantors explained as he kept an eye out for enemy combatants. Helga continued to work her healing magics on Arion as best she could, patching up his flesh and easing the pain. "The city..." Gantors choked up a bit, but Arion knew what he was thinking.

"I know, friend. I know how it feels." He placed a paw on the back of Gantors' breastplate to comfort him, even if the dwarf couldn't feel his touch through the thick metal. "What's the plan?"

"We're destroying the Waygate and expending the last of our sorcery to kill as many o' the bastards as we can."

"Destroy the Waygate? Why? It would be easier to escape to somewhere safe if we were to leave it up!"The Waygates were important to the Freedom Coalition's prosperity and control of the continent. Arion didn't know much about how they worked or how they were built, but he did know that since there were only eight as far as anyone knew, it had to be very difficult to construct one.

"Aye, it would, but we can't risk the enemy using it to push an invasion force into the middle of Sanctuary. There's no room for argument here, the Council and all the civilians fled ages ago. The Lightweavers, Peacekeepers, and some of the regular army are all that's left here. It's time for us to take our leave as well."

"He's right, Arion," Helga chimed in. "As much as it pains us to do so, there's too much at stake if we don't go through with this."

"This wasn't how things were supposed to go," Arion said aloud, still on his knees and looking up at the sky, defeated. "I've had my homeland taken away from me, and then it was lost to the Legion. I can't believe I'm losing another home, and there's nothing I can do to stop it."

He had no idea where such an overwhelming enemy could have come from, and he felt nothing but remorse for his inability to help protect his new home and the ursar refugees from the Shadow Legion. Is Sytarel really backing this army? Xenar... why won't you help us? Are you gods so content to let one of your own play games with mortal lives!? There was no answer in his mind. There never was an answer, and Arion was frustrated. Why would one god interfere with mortal events but not another?

Sighing, Arion saw no other choice. He had to agree with what Gantors had decided to do. They had already lost most of the city. All around them, marauding bands of Legion forces swarmed the streets, searching for more to kill, more to pillage, more to destroy.

"Foreman Freeda?" Gantors asked, once again speaking to the gem on his wrist.

"Aye, Highlord?" a female dwarf responded. In the background, the sounds of fighting could be heard.

"Prepare to overload the Waygate. I want to take as many o' them out with its destruction as we can!"

That's it, thought Arion, the order's been given. There's no going back now. It would be a long march to Sanctuary, and chances are they would be harried by the Legion's forces. But there's no other way, is there?

"Aye sir!" the sounds fizzled out and were silenced once again.

Gantors shouted an order in Dwarvish over the city-wide communications system, "Prepare to evacuate! Rendezvous at the north gate, we're blowing the Waygate!" He repeated the message once more before shutting off the network and reverting back to the Common tongue. "Hopefully none o' th' enemy's troops can understand Dwarvish an' they won't call a retreat order. Come, we need to hurry."

"Right." Arion said getting up and running alongside his friends.

They didn't encounter much resistance as they crossed the city. Only a few roving bands of Legion troops got in their way, and the trio easily dispatched them. They also managed to pick up a large number of stranded Olaraan troops. Arion called out telepathically to his remaining Peacekeepers and slowly they all began to converge together until they were one large unit.

"Who's our fastest runner?" Gantors asked when they'd all regrouped.

"Shinn is one of the quickest of my order. Why, what do you need?" Arion asked.

"Tell him to run ahead to Sanctuary an' try to catch up with the refugees heading north. Get him to warn them to be quick and that we're blowing the Waygate behind us." Gantors told him, and Arion relayed the message telepathically.

"Done."

"Good," Gantors said, then turned to the rest of the soldiers present. "We need to move, now. It won't be long before the enemy is over-running our position and we need to get clear o' the blast. Let's move!"

* * * * *

Xellik strolled into the city at a leisurely pace, taking in his surroundings. All around him shattered buildings sat as chunks continued to crumble from their remains. A heavy smoke blanketed the streets like a thick, black fog and the bodies of both Legion and Olaraan forces lay scattered on the ground. The orc warlord grinned. The taste of victory was growing more sweet with every successful battle, and he loved every moment of it, basking in his own glory.

_Exhilarating..._he thought as he breathed in, tasting copper on his tongue as he inhaled the blood-tinged air.

There was a great humming coming from somewhere inside the city, and a beam of searing blue-white light shot up into the heavens, splitting the clouds above. A sudden wracking pain over-took Xellik as huge quantities of mana were being consumed and ignited all at once.

The ground shook and trembled. The roads began to split and crack. Xellik struggled to keep his balance. A ear shattering crack louder than a hundred thunder claps echoed down the streets and the beam of light began to explode at its base, engulfing Legion soldiers and the land itself in its hellfire.

As the blast rushed towards Xellik, the orc turned and ran, his feet carrying him as swiftly as they could, but still the explosion rocked the foundations of the earth and reached out for him.

Just as it was about to catch the orc, a pair of hands grabbed him under the arms and hoisted him up off the ground and carried him to safety.

"Don't let go, Lord Xellik."

"Nazridia!" Xellik shouted, recognizing the voice. "Where have you been?"

"Saving your baboon's butt, your Lordship!" she yelled back, her wings flapping furiously. "Now quit squirming, you're heavy enough as is!"

The blast began to settle. Below him, Xellik could see a huge circular crater where a portion of the city, and his own troops, had been not more than a few seconds ago. His fury spilled over and once he was on solid ground again, he began shouting obscenities about the situation.

"Your Lordship, it seems they destroyed one of their large teleportation rings. That's what caused the explosion." Nazridia explained. Her smugness seeped through like water through the cracks of a dam.

"I don't care what happened, I want them all dead! You hear me!? DEAD!" he shouted, tromped off to give orders to his troops.

Xellik returned to where Haij was waiting. His father was absent. "Haij! Fippy! Rothorn! Take your soldiers north and go after those cowards! Leave your necromancers here to begin raising the dead. I want my army to be stronger than before."

Haij saluted and sprinted off without any words.

Fippy, however, made sure to express his satisfaction. "I will cut those ursar down myself if I have to!" With a howl, he took off on all fours along with his fellow gnolls.

"Sir-" Napir began to say, but was cut off.

"Not now, Napir. You, Sorda, and I are going to lead the clean up operation here and finish off the dwarven kingdom. I want control of this entire territory."

"Yes sir!" Napir said and saluted, then went to round up the remaining soldiers.

"Warlord," Sorda called to him as he ran up beside him. "If we spread our forces too thin, we could leave ourselves open to counter attack. We need to take our time with this operation or we could ruin our chances of gaining control of the continent."

"If we wait too long, then the Freedom Coalition will mobilize against us," Xellik replied. "We need to press our advantage now while they're still reeling from this assault. I'm giving you and Napir one month to clear out the eastern territories, while I take my soldiers to the western territories. Meet again on the other side of Evergloom."

"Only a month!?" Sorda shouted, flabbergasted. "Sure, we secured the capital city in a couple days, but a whole month isn't enough time to wipe out any outlying dwarven villages."

"Just do it!" Xellik shouted. "Rest up tonight, then we move out first thing in the morning."

With a sigh of resignation, Sorda replied, "Aye, Warlord."

Muriaj will belong to Sytarel's children. We can't win if we don't wipe them out while we have the chance! Xellik thought, nervously biting at the skin around his fingernails, drawing blood.