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The Misfits of Dametreos IIChapter 15: Duel Of The Fates
Sheath dove for cover behind a tall oak tree as arrows flew from all around.
“A trap...magabloks!” he yelled.
He was caught in an ambush at the Wolfpack borders. His mission was given to him by King Kath himself; get into Wolfpack Territory and find a breach in their guard for Kath's army to come through and crush the Wolfpack. But it all could end here, as the arrows flew past his makeshift-hiding place. Looking up the tree, he scouted out a path of climbable branches. Climbing, after all, was one of his specialties. He leapt up the branches like a monkey, all of his limbs working to balance his body. He could see down upon the archers now, they were low in the bushes and still thought he was at the base of the tree. Sheath stopped at a large branch and pulled his crossbow from his back. A bolt from his quiver went into the groove, and a split second later, a man in chain mail armor fell dead. Sheath quickly reloaded and aimed his weapon. Another Wolfpack guard went down as the others looked around to try and find him. The guard captain was the next to be shot down. The soldiers in his guard unit ran for cover as yet another man was killed by Sheath's deadly accuracy. He had driven off the ambush. But there was more to be done before his mission was over. He hopped from tree to tree and eventually set his eyes on the grand border fortress of Siastrahkan. It would be rough going from here on in.
Sheath climbed up the walls of the Wolfpack border city known as Siastrahkan. The walls were slightly sloped, making his ascent by grappling hook a little bit easier. He moved silently, and even the noise of the metal hook hitting the stone seemed quieter than it should. He was almost over the inner wall. It was almost midnight. The top tower of the tallest tower was near as he struggled up the now vertical surface. He climbed between the merlons of the tower, silently dropping to the floor at the top. A small torch burned near him as he watched for any sign of movement inside the fortress walls.
It all was too still for some reason, all too still. The view was magnificent, he could see across the forest from which he came, all the way to Classic LEGOland territory. A noise came from behind him, a clank of metal against stone. He peeked down the spiral staircase and felt his heart beat faster. He grabbed the hilt of his sword, which was in the holster at his side. Then a scream of pain broke the night silence: his scream. As if being tortured by an invisible force, he fell to the ground twitching madly. A shadow began to climb the stairs, the body not quite visible to Sheath yet. He feared it was an enemy soldier coming to capture him. But he couldn’t move, the invisible chains held him down. A man almost identical in appearance to himself came into view from the stairs. His face was covered in a black hood, his white teeth showed as he grinned.
“So the prophecy is true…” Sheath whispered as the figure seemed to stare at him.
“Don’t be afraid to talk.” said the man. “They’re all dead.”
Sheath’s eyes widened as he thought of this, four hundred men dead from one man?
The figure still smiled at Sheath, and he barely moved his lips as he talked.
“You’ve come to the end of your path, Sheath...the end of your path.”
He drew a sword from his hilt. The blade glistened with the power of light. Sheath screamed and tried to break the invisible force holding him down.
“It is useless to resist. Light will always win.” smirked the figure as he approached Sheath. “Even if the light isn’t all pure.”
Sheath was bound to the ground by his own fear of the light. The great prophecy he had learned in his life before birth was coming true. The figure approached Sheath from the stairwell, a golden sword in his hands as he prepared to end Sheath’s life. As he drew closer, Sheath could make out his face as he cringed in pain.
“Yariyikah…” he barely whispered. The figure stooped as the blade’s point came to rest above Sheath’s neck.
“Your destiny lies with me. You can’t win your revenge against me. The light will always win…” Yariyikah replied.
“We will see about that.” Sheath said.
With a swift motion, Sheath leapt from the floor, and Yariyikah felt the Dark Forces break his barrier of purity. Sheath drew his blade from his side and Yariyikah went into fighting stance. The two swords were identical, but Yariyikah’s glowed with the power of light, and Sheath’s with the shadow of dark. The two swords clashed above their heads. Sheath's blade made a C-sweep for Yariyikah's legs and missed as Yariyikah leapt into the air. He then dropped down behind Sheath and sliced upward, meeting Sheath's blade behind his back. Yariyikah stabbed for Sheath's groin and was blocked in an upward slice. Sheath then took advantage of his opponent's stance to lunge at his chest. He hit Yariyikah with his shoulder, sending him flying into the tower wall.
“The hunter always wins, Yariyikah. Always.” said Sheath as he raised his blade to Yariyikah’s neck. Yariyikah looked inside himself for strength. All he found was an image, an image of the two great gods of light and dark dueling. The two worlds were colliding; this could be the final confrontation.
Sheath’s sword neared Yariyikah’s neck in a long sweep to end the confrontation with the light. It all seemed to happen in slow motion. Dark swung at Light as the gods dueled. But then the scene stopped and Sheath's blade shattered before it could hit Yariyikah. Yariyikah could see Light rise back to his feet with his word at the ready. He was ready to follow the path laid before him and kill Sheath. But the image in his head confused him. Light didn't kill Dark. The two men formed one, the God Shadow was Born. Sheath opened his eyes and sprang up from the floor, grabbing his sword and swinging at Sheath. There was a look of horror on Sheath's face as the blade hit him in the stomach. The prophecy Yariyikah could see in his mind would come true on earth too. The blade in Sheath's stomach drained the dark energy from him...as the light stole the dark powers from within him. Yariyikah could feel Sheath's soul inside him...the purity from which his powers came from started to dim. The world would be forever changed. The impure light rose from the ashes of the battle.
Sheath’s body lay on the stone floor. Yariyikah jumped off the tower into the night. Dawn broke on a new day...a day of peace in the Wolfpack lands. One could only hope it would remain that way.
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