The Fallen Guardian tgc-2

by Steven R. Burke

  The griffins and their riders flew high into the air to help rally the troops and to encourage them to scale the sides of the cliff. As soon as they reached the precipice, several ballistae launched magically enhanced arrows at the griffin’s defenseless bodies. At the same time, the giant beasts had unleashed a powerful shriek that moved toward defenses of the elves and giants. The sound wave could not penetrate a magical barrier that had been put in place. One of the creature’s had not been fast enough to avoid one of the giant arrows and was hit full on in the head. The eagle-like head was engulfed in a blue flash of light as the magic was released from the projectile. Its head exploded violently and sent its rider falling to his death. Lieutenant Linfilian was dead before he hit the ground with a sickening thud! He had died at the same moment that his griffin’s head had exploded because of the magic released from the massive arrow.

  General Dukker rushed to the front of the army of high elves as they paused at the base of the cliff. The griffin’s carcass fell on top of one of the soldiers, killing him instantly. His spider steed was crushed to its death as well. Ignoring the unfortunate turn of events, the enraged warlock charged up the side of the mountain at an unbelievable rate of speed. Before he reached the top of the cliff, he uttered a powerful counter spell to remove the magical barrier between himself and the elves. With the wall down, the griffins and their riders resumed their attack with much greater success. As Dukker crested the cliff’s edge, his steed shot out a cloud of green gas from his wicked maw. Several elves died instantly from the poisonous attack. Dukker looked behind to see the entire army following him up and over the wall.

  The elves were pushed back initially, but they dug in and would not budge from their defensive positions. They directed their attacks at the spiders in an effort to equalize the battlefield. Several of the elven magicians took control of the beasts’ minds and had them attack one another. Chaos was about to consume the high elves’ efforts, and then the giant spider brought his spawn back to their senses. The wicked beasts used their legs to stab elves and their pincers to cut them to pieces. As they continued forward, they laid piles of webbing that contained lethal gas for anyone unfortunate enough to inadvertently release the toxic fumes. This trap was designed to ensnare their victims while they were slowly poisoned to death. The process was slow and extremely painful. The giants rushed forward to assist their little pointed-eared friends.

  At the South Gate, the orc armies crashed against the gate with such terrific force that it toppled over, crushing several elves to death. The wolves went mad when they engaged the well-prepared elves. They had erected several towers high over the battlefield so that they could rain down arrows on the exposed orcs. The wolves were not affected by the piercing arrows, which caused some concern among the elven soldiers. As the orcs continued to advance through the newly constructed gauntlet, a thunderous boom echoed through the air and flashes of lightning lit the darkened sky. Rain started to pour down the next instant, which caused the orcs substantial difficulties as they tried to traverse the incline at the South Gate.

  The wolves were not deterred one bit by the muddied ground as they continued to press forward deeper into the plains. They grabbed any soldier near enough to them and rent them in twain. The elves had been unable to stop or even kill one of the wolves before the bears came to the rescue. As the bears rumbled down the gauntlet toward the wolves, the elven foot soldiers retreated to higher ground outside the path of the rampaging bears. The gigantic beasts roared as they neared the wolves that, for the first time, looked frightened. As they neared each other, it was hard for the elves in the towers to not take notice of how the bears looked like a massive tidal wave that was threatening a much smaller wall. The clash between the two titans erupted like a volcano. The ground shook tremendously as they collided. The giants also went unnoticed as they sent deadly projectiles flying through the air.

  The bears swiftly killed several wolves and their riders as though they were nothing more than an annoying sapling. Blood soaked the ground as the violence escalated to the point of absolute pandemonium. While the battle for South Gate raged on, the northern cliffs and North Gate were under siege as well. The defenses held while both sides fought with such power and strength the likes of which had not been seen in the land of Tuwa for many millennia. Lake Lachlan became engulfed in an unnatural mist as the soldiers of Aran waited for something to happen. In the west, Mistress Kana unleashed her substantial powers on the defenses along the western cliffs. Her dragon sent fire lancing out in all directions as they tried to disrupt and weaken the defenses. The rain put out the fires started by the dragon and Kana’s magic. After an hour of unleashing hell on the army of Aran, she left the fray heading in a northerly direction. The war of the races had begun, and no one would be safe from its wrath for very long.

  Unspeakable Carnage

  General Yukio and his army had gone undetected by the enemy’s spies as they prepared for battle. They had been given horses by King Leroy so that his soldiers could ride as cavalry in the north. The horsemen of Landen would take on the much larger orc armies in the south, so Yukio was left to help the giants defend against the wicked high elves. The general’s army had been reduced to just twenty-five thousand strong, but this did not faze him or his men. They were determined to repay the vile and wretched witch and her accursed high elves. They were encamped by the northeastern shore of Lake Lachlan as they awaited the signal from General Lang and Lord Marcello to ride out. The giants had consolidated their forces in the north so that their army was unified along the northern cliffs and the North Gate.

  The giant army had about seventy thousand soldiers in the north, so they were much stronger in numbers and strength than the high elven army. The other half of their army was spread out along the other borders of Landen. The disadvantage was that they only had one real magic wielder among them, and the men of Nairi had General Yukio and his abilities. The high elves knew this and thought that this gave them an advantage. They should have realized that almost all magic would be useless against the massive brutes, but they were learning that lesson the hard way as they giants and high elves exchanged blows. General Yukio was dressed up in his kingly attire that he had been given by the high elves when he married Queen Kira. The memory of his murdered wife made his blood boil. His ability to restrain himself from joining the hot battle was waning as he sat there brooding on his valiant steed.

  “Lord Marcello, is it time yet?” yelled the general impatiently.

  The massive wizard nodded slowly to the general’s question and set his heart racing at the thrill of joining the battle. Yukio made sure he had his sword ready along with a javelin. He then checked his armor for any looseness, as well as his horse’s armor. Once he was reassured that he was completely ready to go, he looked back at his men who had been following his example. A loud booming sound shook the heavens above as lightning lit up the dark sky. Then as the general motioned his troops forward, the rains came down in blinding sheets. The armor made tinkling noises as the heavy downpour pounded them as they began to trot toward the North Gate.

  As they reached the gate, General Yukio bellowed, “Charge!”

  The horses plowed into the high elven foot soldiers and knocked them over like they were nothing more than blades of grass. The high elves retaliated quickly with their archers who were stationed on a little knoll two hundred feet away from North Gate. Their first barrage of arrows killed several dozen riders and horses alike. This enraged the general so much that he began to glow an eerie red color as though he were about to explode. Then, without warning or any foreknowledge on any of his soldiers’ part, their general sent a massive red shock wave toward the archers on the knoll. The wave knocked over everyone and everything in its path. As the magical blast reached the high elven archers, there was little they could do to avoid it. They were thrown bodily from their perch.

  Reaching down, the general grabbed one of the high elves by the scruff of his neck and pulled hi
m upright while he remained on top of his horse. His right hand that had a hold of the soldier’s neck burned bright red as he gripped the poor fellow. With strength surpassing anything that his men had seen him display, he ripped the high elf’s head from his body. Blood gushed from the instant corpse as the general raised the head into the air. Even his troops were shocked momentarily by the carnage of their leader. They knew that he would do anything to lead them to victory, but they had not seen this side of him before. They also had no idea that he could do magic.

  General Yukio let some of the blood pool in his left hand and then smeared it across his forehead and then on his cheeks. In a loud voice he said, “Let the blood of my foes run like the rivers until at last we are avenged! Remember Queen Daria! Repay those fiends who wronged us!” His right hand ignited the dead soldier’s head into a magical red ball of fire. He then thrust it at the high elves that were just getting back to their feet after being knocked over by the shock wave. The burning head burst into flames as it hit one of the high elves in the chest. The flames spread from one person to another like it was poisonous cloud. Above the sounds of battle, and the pounding rain, the mad cackling emanating from General Yukio could be heard. He had a maddened look in his red eyes as he urged his steed forward. His soldiers followed his lead in every way. They did not hold back as they battled on and many tried to match the intensity their general was displaying.

  General Lang watched the crazed General Yukio as he ruthlessly slaughtered the high elves without trepidation. He had not known that the general had magical abilities let alone such powerful ones. He was a little concerned by the display of blood lust, but he merely attributed that to the battles he had fought for his wife and queen who were both dead. I certainly am glad that he is on our side. Who knows what he will do next. As long as it is against our common enemy, I do not care. Lord Marcello walked up to the general with a purposeful look in his eyes. He leaned close to Lang’s ear so that no one else would be able to overhear them.

  “I worry that this heightened display of merciless aggression by our friend Yukio will inspire some of our warriors to follow suit,” whispered the massive wizard.

  “I share your concern, but we may need that kind of aggressive behavior before this war is over. For now, however, I do concur that we should discourage our soldiers from following in our friend’s footsteps,” replied the general wisely.

  The giant wizard nodded his approval and went back to the front of the battle. As he reached the edge of the cliff, he noticed that the high elves were completely distracted by the new magical attacker. Yukio was shooting red fire every which direction and continuing to rip peoples’ heads off and then using them as fire balls. This is not how a war should be fought. However, I must do what I can to make the most of the attention that the mad general is drawing to himself.

  Lord Marcello raised his staff high into the air and muttered a spell under his breath as he pointed his war staff at the bulk of the high elven magicians. Purple lightning struck repeatedly into the mass of magic wielders. Several were burnt alive before they could summon counter measures. They did not possess the strength of the giant and could not attack in such a grand fashion, but that did not stop them from trying. They immediately made a mad dash toward the fray where General Yukio was engaging the high elves who were trying to break through the North Gate. Marcello did not continue his attack for fear of killing his allies. He returned his attention to the high elves that were scaling the cliff walls using magic ropes.

  General Yukio saw the horde of magicians heading his way and immediately turned his attention to them. Before they were able to throw up sufficient defenses, Yukio sent another shock wave that knocked everyone flat within a two hundred foot radius. This gave him the leverage he needed to unleash his fury on the vile betrayers. He raised his sword high above his head where it was clear that the blade burned a sickening green color. He chanted some complex spell under his breath and aimed the blade at the fallen wizards. He then reared back and threw the blade into their midst. It sunk into one of the high elves backs as he lay on the ground. Immediately a green flash of light went out from the blade, and everyone within the blast area of twenty square feet died instantly. Then a thick green cloud formed over them about ten feet in the air and began to move about the battlefield. Those who were exposed to the wicked cloud became violently ill. They did not die, but they were too busy vomiting uncontrollably to defend themselves.

  Yukio’s men stayed back until the cloud had dissipated, and then they rushed forward to take down the sick remnants. In a span of thirty minutes, General Yukio and his men had killed five thousand of Queen Kishi’s soldiers. The high elves only had thirty-five thousand soldiers left, but the tide of this battle was about to take a turn in their favor. A massive white wolf came bounding through the ranks toward Yukio and his men. Atop the gigantic beast sat Queen Kishi with her staff in her right hand. She had come to join her soldiers on the front line and to confront her former brother-in-law. Their eyes met briefly, and she raised her staff into the air. When she lowered it, a blast of cold air shot out with great force. Several combatants were frozen immediately and then shattered from the force of the spell. She continued this attack until nearly two hundred men had fallen. Yukio spurred his steed on to engage the little witch.

  “I swear by the great creator that you will die by my hand, you vicious wench!” blasted Yukio when he was within earshot of Queen Kishi.

  She raised her staff again to cast a particularly nasty spell at Yukio, but he beat her to the punch. He placed his left palm facing up while his right palm was vertical and met his other hand in a right angle. He made a pushing motion with his arms, and the queen was sent flying through the air. She landed several paces away with a sickening thud! The only problem with the spell was that it did not take her giant wolf as well.

  Growling, the white wolf known as Rolon charged the general so quickly that his horse could not move out of the way. The giant beast wrapped its mouth around the front legs of Yukio’s steed and ripped them from its body. The poor beast neighed so loudly that many of those fighting around them stopped to watch the confrontation. The general was thrown bodily from his horse and landed on top of several dead high elven magicians. He got up as quickly as he could to only see the limp form of his brave stallion in the massive maw of the now-bloodied white wolf.

  He charged the beast as the horse was bitten in two and thrown clear so that Rolon could defend himself against an even more enraged Yukio. As he ran toward the bloodied beast, he wrenched his sword from the back of the dead soldier and charged down the giant wolf. As nimbly as an agile cat, the wolf jumped over the charging general and kicked him in the back as he landed. Yukio was smashed into the ground, and his sword fell by his side as pain seared through his body. Rolon bounded off in the direction of where Kishi had landed. Yukio lay there in the mud mixed with blood, racked with unbelievable pain.

  “General Yukio, can you hear me?” There was a familiar voice in his ear.

  “Who are you?” asked the general into the muddied ground.

  “You are not safe here; you have been injured. Let me take you back to North Gate so that you can have your wound looked at,” pleaded the all-too-familiar voice.

  “Aiden, is that you?” asked Yukio dumbly.

  “Yes, old friend, it is. You are safe now,” replied Master Aiden calmly.

  “Where is my sword? How am I hurt?” asked the general stubbornly.

  “You sword is on your right; your right shoulder and arm appear to be broken in several places.”

  General Yukio mustered up as much strength as humanly possible and pushed himself upright with his left arm. He then stood up and bent down to pick up his sword with his left hand. He looked down at his damaged arm and muttered a healing spell that seemed to fix the broken bones, but there was muscle damage that did not heal. He winced from the torn muscle in his shoulder and motioned for Aiden to help him. The master swordsman came to his
aid by fashioning a sling out of some cloth torn from a dead soldier’s raiment. Yukio nodded his thanks to his friend and then hefted the sword in his left hand.

  “It has been years since I fought left handed. I hope I still remember how.”

  He then yelled a Nairian battle cry and went charging back into the battle. Aiden was right behind him as they engaged the unsuspecting high elves, who had thought the general was dead or severely injured. They immediately ran into General Jaali, who was killing riders and horses without hesitation. The high elven general had never liked Yukio and could somehow sense his presence. He whirled about and engaged Yukio and Aiden with his sword. Sparks flew as blades clashed in spectacular displays of swordsmanship. Master Aiden was clearly far superior to the other two, but General Jaali was quickly joined by a handful of other swordsmen. Aiden took on the new comers and left the two generals to duke it out.

  General Yukio was much better than he had remembered with his left hand and was able to hold his own. This gave him the opportunity to penetrate Jaali’s mind while he was focused on their duel. His mental defenses were weak, and Yukio was able to gain access to his mind with very little effort. Once inside his head, he took control of it. He commanded Jaali to chop his own head off. There was considerable resistance to this order, but with a fancy twirl of his sword, General Jaali sliced his own head clean off. The body of Jaali fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes. General Yukio snatched the head before it hit the ground and howled in triumph. He let the blood drain onto his armor and then ignited the fallen general’s head into a blue ball of fire and threw it into the twelve soldiers that were fighting with Master Aiden. The master swordsman recognized what was going to happen and leapt to safety behind a pile of dead soldiers.