PART XI
Evander trembled, like he had never fought in his life. Horror struck over him as he peered at the shadowy figure of Zodack. Zodack was levitating, his face completely black. Remora realised for the first time that he had never once seen Zodack face to face. The memory of Zodack killing Joshus was still very blurry in his mind.
Zodack let out a cackle of laughter
“The scarlet blade may be powerful, and it might be valuable. I obtained one, but do you see me holding mine? I think not, your weapon shall be useless.”
Ten Zodack’s appeared, side-by-side in a perfect line. Then he began to mutter the words that would only take affect if the Wizard was one of kind.
“Durah Sentay Tesla….”
Zodack began, one word after another, but never did the words repeat. It was like an alphabet of words. Remora charged at the duplicates of Zodack only to pass through them. Zodack stopped speaking, and the Zodack Remora had just tried to slash disappeared. Only one remained.
“Timate”
Everything stopped. Evander’s trembling now ceased and he just stood perfectly still, his eyes darting around frantically. Remora too was still now; he could move his eyes, nothing else. The wind stopped blowing, the clouds stop moving, the trees stopped rustling. It seemed everything had been paused. Then Zodack began to prowl around.
“The joys of watching the fear in your eyes. Ah the mighty Evander, you were a stupid child when I last hunted with you, and much remains the same. You Remora, thought ‘oh I’ll stop him’, like I was some sort of toy.”
Remora still could not move, as if he was enclosed in concrete. It could only mean one thing. Zodack had used Time Stop. Zodack stood in front of Evander. Zodack levitated so that he was a few inches from Evander’s face, and their eyes exactly on the same level.
“I shall see you in hell Evander. Decimus…Evander…Sinter!!!”
Evander’s eyes looked like they were screaming ‘No!’, but Evander remained still, his eyes just widened. From within the centre of him, was a loud force, which blew Evander apart. The disintegrate spell if used by a powerful Wizard could destroy small planets.
Remora began to cry inside, yet no tears ran down his cheek. Perhaps this was better since it spared Zodack the satisfaction. But soon enough, the tears began to build inside; the emotion began to rush through his veins. His blood began to move, his heart began beating. He started to shimmer. The shadow consumed him, and he darted to where Zodack still stood observing what was left of Evander.
Remora drew out his scarlet blade, and held it to his neck. Zodack, who had not heard him approach, remained still. Remora pulled back to strike, then Zodack conjured explosions everywhere; Remora was thrown back with force and fell to the floor. Only to recover once more. Zodack was causing comets to fall upon the battlefield, as well as setting explosive traps everywhere. He was a master of killing, and there was no doubt about it.
“Impossible for you to have stopped Time-stop. Perhaps I did not pronounce it right, nevertheless you shall perish now”
Remora would come within striking distance of Zodack before being thrown back, or shook to the ground between the various assortments of spells being thrown everywhere. Red eyes glowed out of the darkness, which was Zodack’s face. He then began to glow and he began to spam spells at a rate Remora could not keep up with. Despite in his shadow form, he could only dodge so many. Then at last, an explosion hit Remora head on.
Remora fell to his knees and resumed his normal stature. Zodack was already standing over him, with an enchanted staff of Death. He must have previously enchanted because they take over three months to properly enchant, and a further three months to link the staff to its owner. But now the black staff was in the hand of Zodack.
“To say I enjoyed it would be exaggeration, but to say I did not want this to happen would just be lying”
However, a bulky figure limped from the distance, he limped clutching his side. The light shone on his face, Baron’s square face emerged in the horizon. Blood stained clothes could be seen, yet no colour in his face could be.
“Ay Remora, ’tis me. Three stab wounds in middle left chest is not nice to wake up with, and I fear I do not have long left….but Zodack…Just to be near when he dies is worth dying for.”
Baron pulled out his giant axe, and charged at Zodack still clutching his chest and side with his other arm. He struck down Zodack, as Zodack’s Staff touched Baron.
Remora could see Baron still smiling as the death took over him. Baron fell cold to the floor, his hand still tight around his bloody axe, and a genuine smile on Baron’s face as his eyes closed.
The staff in Zodack’s hand then exploded. Zodack saw for a split second Remora appear face to face with him. Then a red scarlet blade cut through Zodack’s face, neck and chest. A dark red blood erupted from Zodack. He spluttered and shook on the floor, as the life drained from him. He muttered the disapparate spell, and Remora thought Zodack might have escaped.
Zodack then apparated a few feet from where he left, and fell to the floor. Blood floating in the air from where he disapparated. He was face down in the sandy grass. Then remained perfectly still.
Remora looked around. The dead body of Ghidrah, Baron, and Zodack around him. Evander’s bow still lay on the ground where he had died.
Remora was the only true fighter left. Every person he could ever call a friend was now gone, the memories of them would always remain with him. Joshus’ death now seemed a long time ago. He remembered Evander, Flare and Baron coming to his rescue. Meeting the mighty Turon, defeating the Shadow Dragon. Remora had had enough of all this torment, death and destruction.
A few hours passed in total silence as Remora remained on the battlefield, thinking about everything he could. All that he had witnessed, all those he had killed. However, these were just the traits of a truly elite warrior. One that would never stop trying until his heart did.
He spent the next day or so, returning to the caves collecting the bodies and remains of all those who had perished along his journey. He took every body into the Ashram Grasses; he made a grave for everyone who had died.
Bodies were side by side in the graves Remora had made. He got a flat piece of stone, and began to engrave.
‘Here lie the bodies of the best of the best.
Baron, Flare, Evander, Ghidrah, Turon, Zodack, Kenshin, ‘The Hunting Party’.
Remora then began to engrave the second stone.
“Here lies Joshus. Who will be remembered every time an arrow is released.
Remora placed the stones in the appropriate places, and buried the fighters. He reached into his pocket and took out the Star pendant. The pendant Joshus had worn all his life, and placed it on the grave.
He stood back and nodded at his work. He then turned and placed the Golem Helmet Turon had given him onto his head. He secured the Fire killer armour Baron had handed him back at the Polkan village. He set off into the mountains, the scarlet blade comfortably bobbing on his back as he walked. His next destination was the Polkan market. There was a certain picture on a wall that Remora planned on retrieving and leaving to rest at the graves…
——————————————————————————————-
——————————————————————————————-
My thanks to Josh for the artwork, and for spotting all my mistakes. To blacknwhite for not saying ‘what’s this fan fiction doing here?’. And my thanks to Cueball for ‘Kenshin’, and various little things 😉
This is where i should really say ‘The End’ 🙂
Best wishes,
Etruria
Farewell.
