Silver Cathedral Saga (32 page)

They bought
some time, as the next wave was a little distance away; which is
what the Swan Knights were always meant to do.

The front
lines gathered their strength, and it seemed to grow better and
stronger with the Battle-casters ( also known as the Swan Knights).
There was so few left, that the king worried in mind, but never
showed it out in the open; or he had hoped he never did.

The king of
Astora saw his wife fight for the first time. He had never done so
in the past, but had heard from others that she was an impressive
force; and what they said was not an exaggeration. He did not
expect his wife to be such a great warrior; one who looked as if
she could easily rival him. He actually felt a little inferior from
watching, before he swooped down near, her face exposed from her
helmet being thrown aside in the passion of battle. She handled the
last of a rather large group of their enemies, until the next wave,
which would take about another four or so minutes to reach striking
distance.

The queen
turned and jumped at the War Swan being so close to her. She smiled
with an intense beam before speaking: “You almost scared the god
dam magick out of me.” The king smiled, never hearing her curse or
talk like this before. It may not have been the best time to smile,
but is there really ever? He was just so grateful to see her
alive.

The War
Swans all landed near the front lines, and all put their wide wings
away, getting a breather before the next fight.

“It seems
as if this may be the end of us,” said a soldier on the ground to
the king and queen.

The queen
answered, as the king paused, not knowing what to say. “Not today,
Spell-caster. Today—we have a secret power on our side.” She winked
and tried to give the man a little hope. The king didn’t know what
she was talking about, but figured it was just to raise their
spirits; seeing no truth in it now, as there is little truth in
dire wars.

The prince
was behind the king. He gestured his head to his wife to the back
of him, where Prince Etch laid upon his War Swan.

“Looks like
we have a family activity,” said the king, trying to lighten the
mood.

“Then let
us hope it is one we do not see or do again for a long time after
this. I am proud he had the courage to be here. Let me guess, you
made him come,” she said.

“No, not at
all this time. He practically begged me to let him come. He was
really determined to right a wrong, and prove his worth,” said
Almare.

“Then it
seems he is very much like his father before him,” said the queen
lowering her sword at her side in a moment of vulnerability. “Which
means there is nothing to worry about when he does become
king.”

It seemed
as if a burden was lifted from the prince behind, hearing this, but
pretending that he didn’t.

“You ready
for the next wave, son?” asked the king.

“Oh, yes,”
he replied, with a bit too much enthusiasm roar inside.

“I think we
all are,” replied the queen. “We are all anxious to get our world
back to the way it once was.”

The
Shadows were only about a minute away when the queen decided to
move and stand in the front lines again. Her husband pushed her
back a little with his War Swan’s wing. She tried to move it, but
it was too heavy for any Astorian to have done so, like her.

“I will not
watch you being beaten,” said the king. “Even though he had such an
immense feeling that she might be the best fighter on the
battlefield.

“I know you
won’t,” replied Snowbridge. “You will watch me beat them.”

All the War
Swans were now either at the front line or at the very back, ready
for the king’s next move he had strategically planned to do so.

“Get
ready,” screamed their leader.

All their
swords were ready; or their individual weapons. Some also had
shields, these being the long range Spell-casters, holding onto
small rounded shields; these were either in the middle or back of
the few lines left. There was only six lines, but it was not as
wide as it was deep any more.

The
Spell-casters all tensed up. This time the Shadows didn’t come in
another small wave. It was every single one of them—at once.

The Cold Touch

“We are
nearly there,” said Ematay upon the War Swan, shouting to the other
two swans. One which held Eleanor and Christian, and another
holding the two Edeolon Warriors, seeing the darkness of the
Shadows trying to get near the city.

They all
looked a little flustered, and the exhaustion sent them into a more
surreal time in which everything couldn’t be taken in, or even felt
real anymore.

The sight
of fire and ice, and also the sound of raging yells signalled their
reality. It was a time when this surreal period wore off, and it
woke them all up quickly, and in a state in which they were more
prepared than they thought. The adrenalin had pumped through the
veins for about a minute flying over all the Shadows, and they
landed near the back of their battalion lines.

The front
line was so busy fighting. Rangers hurled elemental magick, killing
the Shadows with one strike; but even all this done very little
with how few they were.

Ematay
landed the swan, and noticed all the other Swan Knights staying
there with their birds.

He then
suddenly heard the king yell, “to the city. We cannot hold them
here. Swan knights you know what to do.” They all nodded, as if the
king could see them, but he couldn’t.

The
ninety-eight swans took off; as the prince and King’s stayed near
the front lines still continuing to fight. Almare moved to the
third line behind him, and noticed there was only one guard now,
instead of three. The king saw one dye as he moved back, and killed
the Shadow who done so.

The king,
queen and prince were all fighting with some of the stronger and
talented Battle-casters on foot who had survived. Including the
king, queen and Prince themselves, there must have been just over a
hundred left. Some of the Spell-casters had headed for the doors of
Swansie, and asked to open it, as it moved.

The noise
sounded heavy as the doors opened, the thick wood creaking as it
swung.

Almare took
a close observation of his son, and could see he could handle his
own with a sword and his mind magick. But when he noticed the
queen, she seemed to be on a whole other level than any other.
Snowbridge seemed to move much faster than anybody else her husband
had seen in combat in all his days. She seemed to be able to
anticipate the Shadows next moves, and even when the king was about
to save his wife, the queen blocked a sword thrust at her from the
behind by bending her back, then twisting her torso slightly; as if
she knew something no other person could have, and could do even
more.

“Time to go
now,” said the king. The rangers from inside the city were throwing
elemental magick still, but from atop the walls. Water which
blasted Shadows, froze them, like statuesque ornaments carved to
give an effect of a being in motion. Fire sent others to the form
of black dust. The king’s swan spread its wings whilst the others
fled, and it cut through them, time after time, so they wouldn’t be
able to catch up with them all as they ran. As the enemy seemed to
be as fast as any humanoid, maybe more so in some situations.

Prince Etch
pulled his mother onto the swan and one other Battle-caster, as
that was all the War Swans could fit upon it. He then flew to the
safety of the walls of Swansie. Though how long this safety would
last is not known or has never been tested for quite a few
lifetimes now.

The Husband
and father then flew away as he saw some Battle-casters plummet
into the Shadows as a sacrifice to make sure he would get away
safely. He shouldn’t have paused to think about it, but this
circumstance made him do so. His heart felt heavier than he could
ever remember it, beating hard. He flew to the safety of the walls,
like the remaining Astorians, and his family.

He got of
the swan and held and pushed the door from the inside, trying to
stop the enemy coming through. The crowned man then turned to
notice a familiar face.

“Ematay,”
said Almare with some happiness in his face again. “Did you
succeed?” said the king, hoping for some relief. The door just
began to buck.

“We did, my
king. Thanks to the help of two Edeolon warriors and two very smart
children. It seems the Spell-casters that journeyed with me . . .
were not on our side. They fell to the enemies darkness.”

“Then they
betrayed us all,” said Almare wincing as the door was being banged
against again. “Edeolon warriors?” said the king. “Some still
exist. Thank the gods.”

“Yes my
king,” said Ematay. “And we also have reinforcements from the
Pirates of the Shade Sea. Three hundred are on their way to aid as
best as they can.”

“They have
polluted your mind,” said the king. “Never trust the words from a
creature of the cold.”

“No, they
want to strike a deal with you if they aid here today. I said it
would be put forward by me if they helped now.”

“Well if we
do survive this from their help, then I will give pretty much
anything, well—within reason. We still need a home and such.”

“With the
help of the deep spirits, we can win this. And with the Edeolon
warriors, we can make even quicker work of them. Water spirits can
only be killed by fire. No metal nor arrow with kill them like it
would you or me.”

“I know
their weakness,” said the king. “If they come to our aid, we might
lose some numbers, but will live through the night that comes at
us. Right now,” he said as his back was banged against from the
Shadows trying to get in from the other side.

He could
see the darkness not only cover the Shrin Plains, but also the sky.
There was only a little light showing from the west, and that was
gradually fading and leaving them.

“They are
coming from a water portal in the centre, where the Shade Sea water
fountain lays. They should be here any minute now,” said
Ematay.

“Well I
hope they do as they say,” said the king as another bash smacked
upon him and seven others keeping the door closed. Most of them
absorbed the kinetic energy, but the kinetic energy that can be
dampened from the other side won’t stop them from getting in.

Selphira came forward from the cowering crowd farther away from the
door. She then looked to Oddius, to back her up with what she was
about to do. He then left the crowd, and there was them two alone
near the people stopping the door from being barged open, and she
said, “Move aside,” before she ran to them and morphed and grew
into the tall being that made all of the Astorians here, or to be
more precisely, all of their ancestors. She became an earth made
Astorian once again. And her strength alone now was more than
enough to keep the Shadows at bay at the door.

“Now that
that is sorted, we need to plan a way to get these people out
safely,” said the king. He then saw the two faces that came to them
for a new home in the Silver Cathedral not long ago. “Eleanor,
Christian,” said the king. “What in the name of Emae are you doing
here. It is dangerous enough just for us adults.”

“This
danger is something no one can run from,” said Eleanor.

“Well it
seems as if we have a bright girl in our midst,” said Snowbridge,
as she and Etch came to the kings and Ematay’s side. “My king, you
wont be able to hold the door forever, the Beast-caster will grow
tired at some point.”

“
Oddius will be able to
hold quite a few of them at bay if he reverses the gravity on the
ground,” said Ematay. “Maybe the War Swans can take out a fair few
when they can’t move from the Warrior of Faith.” All of the War
Swans were at and near the back of the city, out of the way until
their next command.

“Sounds
like a plan,” said Oddius listening intently to the conversation.
“Just let me know when. We can get our very own Original to throw a
few about then too.”

“Do
it,”said Almare. As he issued the command and were about to put it
into action, a character come to them, rushing through the crowds.
A female.

She came to
Almare and spoke. He clearly recognised her, and glared as if he
saw a ghost.

“Captain
Mileena here. With five hundred soldiers. Almost all of our eastern
numbers, sire,” said the Water Spirit. He then noticed the very
numbers coming down from the centre (where the water fountain was)
as she told him this.

“You’re
timing and help is much appreciated captain,” replied Almare. “I
know just where to put you. And when this is over; We will help in
whatever way we can to make a fair deal.” His eyes looked sincere,
as if his past ways were trying to cause amends for what he had
done and allowed himself to do.

“Do you
have weapons?” asked Christian to the captain, as he saw none in
her arms or none in any of the others lining and forming up in a
block formation behind the frightened crowd.

The woman
laughed. “You mustn’t know much about our kind,” said Mileena. “Our
weapons are our body. A simple touch to our skin will cause the
most deathly chill. We are but magick beings with magick hearts.
Our magick is pure and old, unlike yours, we were born with
it.”

Not one of
the people said anything in reply. They were just grateful of what
they now had on their side at this time.

They
all set up and planned out what was to happen with each other.
Selphira as a original Astorian was hardly trying to keep the door
closed, but that wasn’t the worry. The worry was about them finding
other ways in, and it wouldn’t be too long before that happened,
although, to their luck, they didn’t seem to be the smartest of
beings, and went on trying to pound in the door to Swansie.