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Echoes of the Gods

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Chuk

Chuk

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Aletayr sat up, running his fingers over his chest. The wound he remembered suffering, one surely fatal was gone. Only a the shredded edges of a hole in the middle of his tunic gave evidence to the injury. Looking down, he found that the skin did not even appear scarred. He looked up at Keryz and Veril who were grinning down at him. Xaran lay not far off, eyes not completely closed, but unconscious.
"What…How is this possible?" Aletayr asked, looking from Xaran up to Veril and Keryz.
"Xaran did it; I don't know how, but he did," Keryz responded.
"When you called him, it broke the hold that Zamorak had over his mind. He saw you, recognized you and realized what he'd done. Apparently he had learned whatever healing magic that kept him from death two years ago," Veril added. "You're damn lucky he knew how to reverse the effects of that dagger of his."
"I wondered how he lived," Aletayr said. "I guess I know now. Anyway, where is everyone else? They didn't all die, did they?"
"I don't know. None of 'em have come back, but they probably just got far enough away so that they don't know we won."
"Okay. Then we'd better find them. The city's not safe just 'cause their leader's suddenly turned good again. Can you two see if you can get them back here? I wanna hang around in case *aran wakes up."
The two older men acquiesced and disappeared in opposite directions, calling softly through the trees. Aletayr sat down by his old friend with a mixture of pity, hate, gratitude and horror swirling in his heart. He remembered Xaran as he had been at the Academy -- a good, responsible kid, if high-strung and prone to impulsive actions. How had he fallen so far, Aletayr wondered, so far and so fast?

24-Jul-2010 00:16:13

Chuk

Chuk

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Only a year or two out of Saradomin's most prestigious training grounds and he was one of Zamorak's highest generals. Then he had led an attack on Falador, a city he had sworn to protect; he had even killed Keran, who two years prior had been among his best friends. It seemed impossible, yet it was all too real.
At that thought, tears welled in Aletayr's eyes and he turned slightly, staring at the place where his friend had vanished in a fiery flash. He could almost imagine he saw a small mound of ash piled on the ground, but even as he watched it seemed to blow away on a soft breeze.
Aletayr turned back to Xaran, tears still trailing down his cheeks. He grabbed one of Xaran's wrists, turning it slightly for a better view of the unholy tattoos. At his touch, however, Xaran stirred and Aletayr drew back, trying to decide if he should ready a binding spell. He decided otherwise and watched as Xaran woke, blinking and rubbing his eyes. When he saw Aletayr, he seemed to focus.
"You're alive," Xaran whispered.
He struggled to sit up, and Aletayr -- against lingering reluctance -- reached out to help him. They sat in silence for a few moments, Aletayr too scared of what might come from his mouth if he opened it, and Xaran gathering his thoughts. After some time, when Aletayr began to wonder if he should go ahead and speak his mind, Xaran broke the silence******- That…It was Keran, wasn't it? That I--" he swallowed, "--killed?"
Aletayr nodded.
"I - I thought so. I remember his face, now* now that," he swallowed again and wiped the corner of his eye, "that he's not here anymore."
Aletayr still did not speak, not really understanding.

24-Jul-2010 00:16:43

Chuk

Chuk

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"He…Zamorak was in my head, Aletayr. He controlled me. He made me forget who I was. When you said my old name, my real name, you brought me back. Somehow. I knew who I was again, but he was still there, fighting with me, telling me that I had to kill you."
Unable to contain it any longer, Xaran broke down, his grief all the worse from his knowledge that he brought it on himself. Watching him weep, Aletayr finally felt the hate that still clung to his soul lose its hold and wash away, overcome by pity.
"You can explain later," he said gently and placed a hand on Xaran's shoulder. "And there'll be time for grief, too, but now we need your help. There's still an army around Falador's walls."
Xaran sniffled and wiped his eyes, but a few moments passed before he could reply. "What can I do?"
"Is there a way you can command the army to stop attacking, or better yet, just kill 'em all at once?"
"I don't know. I used to be connected to them somehow, so I could order them without being near them. That's gone, though, along with the rest of Zamorak's evil hold. There might be something else, though. Let me think."
Aletayr waited. Some dozens of Verils' men and a few of Aletayr's thirty elites trickled from the trees. They gathered a short distance away. More came, swelling the numbers to almost a hundred. Still Xaran thought and Aletayr waited. The sun crested its apex and began to fall to the west. More soldiers arrived, and at their rear, Keryz and Veril returned. Aletayr began to wonder if Xaran had drifted into sleep or lost focus in his grief. He decided to give him a few more minutes without interruption, and that proved well; only a few seconds later, Xaran spoke.
"I think I have it," he muttered.
"What?" Aletayr demanded.

24-Jul-2010 00:17:03

Chuk

Chuk

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"This will only work on the demons," Xaran said, "but I think I can make them kill each other. There's this noise in pitches beyond human hearing that Zamorak sometimes uses to control his monsters. If I alter it a bit, make it a little higher, it should drive them mad. I hope, anyway. It's all I can think of. I'll need your help, though, to get enough power to project it across the battle."
"If that's all you can think of, let's give it ago," Aletayr told him. "Give me a few minutes, and then we can do it."
Aletayr spoke quietly to Veril and Keryz, explaining what Xaran had said. Keryz agreed to also help with the magic. They talked for a few more moments and then Veril called for the gathered Saradominists to follow him. They readied themselves for battle and followed him into the trees, jogging towards Falador. The remaining three waited for some time before Aletayr spoke.
"They should be close enough now. What do you think, Keryz?"
"Yeah, should be. We might as well do this and get it over with."
"Then let's do it. I hope it works."
Aletayr and Keryz crushed dozens of air runes, gathering the air and wind. A swift breeze began to whistle towards Falador. Xaran took two death runes and crushed them, keeping the dust in his hands as he cupped his hands to his mouth and began to hiss. In seconds the sound passed beyond the range of human hearing, but it carried on the wind.
Around Falador, demons harkened to the unbearable sound. They began to scream, tearing at their ears. Then they began to claw at each other and began to kill.
- -- - -- - -- - -- - -- -

24-Jul-2010 00:17:19

Chuk

Chuk

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An ethereal silence fell across Falador as the last demons passed to oblivion. The remaining Zamorakians looked across the sudden gaps in their ranks, staring at each other in horror. The defenders reaction was the opposite. Around Colonel Dulse, shock faded from faces to be replaced by hope and joy. What caused this sudden, they didn't know. They didn't care. All that mattered was that now, maybe, they had a chance of defending their city.
"To me!" Dulse commanded. "Form ranks!"
Any Saradominist who heard his cry heeded his call, not just Elites. Within a few minutes, he had several hundred men at his command. Hope shone from their faces in the afternoon sun. The Zamorakians, too, regrouped, but they had fallen back from the city and were outside the wall.
"To the hole!" Dulse called. "Drive them back!"
With a great battlecry and swords raised high, the Saradominists charged. They passed through the gap and smashed against the Zamorakian ranks. Swords flashed and sliced and Zamorakians fell. They recovered, though, and soon spells flashed from the mass of red and black and their bows sang. Crimson blood stained blue tunics purple. Screams and cries filled the air. Their charge quelled, the Saradominists began to fall back once more, still outnumbered by their foes even without the demonkin. They had almost reached the wall with Zamorakians on their heels when a great shout echoed across the battle, drowning out even the clash of steel and agonized screams.
Veril charged from the trees, his sword flickering in the sun like fire. Behind followed nearly a thousand Kryman survivors, hell-bent on revenge. The Zamorakians, focused on Dulse's soldiers, did not notice the charge on their rear until Veril's war cry rent the air. Then they turned, as fast and orderly as they could, to find the stampeding Krymans upon them.

24-Jul-2010 01:09:34

Chuk

Chuk

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The Saradominists picked up Veril's cry as they fell upon the Zamorakians in fury. Dulse led his men forward from the wall once more. Caught between the two battalions, the Zamorakians broke. Leaderless, they lost all resemblance of order and fled. Some threw down their weapons and begged for mercy and some fell into a maddened rage, determined to kill as many of their enemy as they could before they, too fell. Others just ran. I mattered little. The furious Saradominists slew anyone they could reach, whether they were armed or not. Vengeance blinded them to all but blood.
Aletayr, Xaran and Keryz paused at the edge of the trees, looking out at the carnage. Aletayr saw one Zamorakian fall to his knees, pleading with a Saradominist who stood over him, laughing. The Saradominist let his enemy plead for his life for a full minute, then lay his sword aside. Instead, he pulled out his belt knife and shoved it into the Zamorakian's eye. Aletayr turned away, his knees weak. Beside him, Xaran vomited. Keryz, having seen worse, only shook his head in sorrow.
By sundown, no Zamorakian remained alive within sight of Falador. Veril led the Saradominists back into the city. The men behind him were weary beyond anything most had ever felt, and they hardly noticed the citizens of Faldor lining the streets to welcome them home with cheers and praise. At the back of the column walked Aletayr, who had left the trees only after the battle was over. Beside him, wrapped in a blue cloak with the hood pulled up, was Xaran. As the other defenders filed into the barracks, Aletayr and Xaran continued onto the castle with Veril, hoping to speak to the king.
- -- - -- - -- -

24-Jul-2010 01:09:56 - Last edited on 24-Jul-2010 01:47:27 by Chuk

Chuk

Chuk

Posts: 14,177 Opal Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
The three men found the king preparing to make an official announcement to the citizens of Falador that they were indeed safe and Saradomin had protected them once again. Veril said he would make a full report when the King had time and bowed away. The king hardly paid him or Aletayr any attention until Aletayr brushed his sleeve.
"My Lord," he said, "I would appreciate a chance to speak with you as soon as possible in private. Tonight, if you can manage it. May I wait in your audience chamber?"
The king sighed and nodded, turning back towards the balcony before Aletayr began to bow.
More than an hour later, the king returned and found Xaran and Aletayr waiting in his antechamber. He gave Xaran a single raised eyebrow before saying, "I thought you said 'in private', Captain?"
Aletayr kneaded his hands in his lap and replied, "My Lord, this is Xaran Faeria. He's what we needed to speak of, and I believe he should be present."
The king sighed and sank into a chair across the room. "So you'd best get on with it, Captain. What do you have to tell me that is so important?"
"Ah, yes, my Lord. Xaran is the reason we won."
"Oh really? I was told it was you, Captain Chaelom. That is what the rumors say, at least."
"Ah, yes, that's what we - ah, myself, and General Strind - decided was best for the time being because… uhm, I'm not sure how to say this, I guess, but… Well, Xaran was also the Zamorakian general behind the attack, my Lord."
Silence filled the room for five seconds, then ten. The king stared hard at Aletayr, then looked at Xaran sitting in the corner with his head bowed. He looked back at Aletayr, closed his eyes and sighed again. "So this man is of Zamorak, one of his leaders, huh? Did he save us by complete stupidity then, or did you somehow torture him into submission? You will explain, I hope?"

24-Jul-2010 01:47:44

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