Gora:
"Hang in there, master!" Someone pleaded. I couldn't tell who it was as my vision was blurry, and my ears rang. I fought to stay cou nous, but my body was fighting back. Although the void armor numbed the pain, it couldn't help the exhaustion. I was also almost out of mana and doubted I would survive. ( At least I stopped that smug bastard.) I thought to myself. Then something hit me.
I shot up quickly so that I was now sitting up. I had to make sure I had actually killed Lite. Dark Elves were known to be quite resilient. I looked over to the grey-skinned man a few feet away from me. My black sword sticking out of his chest. I aimed for his heart but was unsure if I'd hit my target. I breathed a sigh of relief when I noticed the man wasn't moving.
"Master!" Frons said as she hugged me tightly. I didn't even realize that she and Canis had been so close. I smiled and looked at them both. Tears fell from The Jackal's eyes as he kneeled before me. I put my hand on his shoulder as my other arm hugged Frons.
"You guys did well." I coughed. Blood dripped from my mouth, and I wiped it with my hand. I noticed that the void armor was slowly disappearing. I saw the hammer a few inches for me and my guardians. The Warhammer stood straight up on the ground. I had to admit that the weapon was a God-sent. Without it wouldn't have been able to win.
"Hey, enough celebrating! If you don't pick me up, you'll surely die." The hammer spoke. The fact that Frons and Canis didn't move meant I could only hear it.
"Stop looking around like some idiot and pick me up before you die. Just my luck, my new master might actually be a moron." Libra scolded, causing me to roll my eyes. Even that small act was painful. I pointed at the hammer since it was hard for me to talk. I was hoping my guardians would understand what I meant. Both turned their heads, spotting the object I had been pointing toward.
"You want the hammer? Frons asked. I shook my head, yes, but before I could explain anything else, Canis got up and attempted to raise Libra. The hammer didn't even budge. The Jackel struggled for a second before trying two hands. It didn't help, but it did make me giggle a little, which hurt my wounded stomach. I spoke to Frons with telepathy, asking her to help me reach the hammer. She tried her best to lift me independently but was too injured. She did manage to lift me to my feet, but we almost fell when she tried to move.
"Hey, mutt! You wanna stop embarrassing yourself and give me a hand." Frons yelled at Canis, who was still trying to lift the hammer. Canis shook his head at Frons words, but he did what she had asked. It was hard to stay standing, and I felt terrible that I was putting most of my weight on my two guardians. Fortunately, it didn't take long for us to reach the weapon. I grabbed Libra with my artificial hand and lifted it a few feet off the ground.
I watched as the void armor began to move. In seconds the inky substance that had once covered me head to toe made its way to my abdominal wound. The pain disappeared almost instantly, and I could stand on my own.
"This is all I can do for you. I doubt you will last the night with the mana you have left." Libra spoke in my mind. I might have been mistaken, but it sounded as if he felt bad. I highly doubted that, though. He must be disappointed that his new wielder would be gone soon after so many years of waiting.
"Thank you!" I said out loud, talking to both guardians and Libra. Without them, I wouldn't have made it this far. I still felt a little bad that I didn't reach my goal of getting to the top of the mountain. Nevertheless, we did a good thing. There was no telling what kind of havoc Lite and his army would have caused if we had lost. ( At least this time, I'll die doing something good.) I thought while looking towards the top of the mountain. I couldn't help but shed a tear.
"Master, are you okay?" Canis questioned. I turned to the Jackel and smiled, fighting back tears. I looked him in his dark brown eye and touched the scar on his face. My trusty hound who had stuck with me through the roughest time. Even when he lost his sister Canis never gave up on me. I owe the beast my life and then some. I turned to my left to look at Frons. The beautiful woman had become one of my most loyal followers and lover. I gave her a loving grin before kissing her forehead.
(Damn you, fate!) I thought as I stared at the horizon. I was just starting to truly live with the ones I loved. I had many plans to make the Beast Glades a better place for my followers. I was finally going to make a place where I belonged.
"I love you both with all my heart. It was truly an honor to have met you two." I said as I looked at both of my guardians. A puzzled expression formed on their faces but only for a second. They both realized that I didn't have much time left.
"No! Master!" Frons was the first to speak. The woman broke down in tears, and her cries echoed throughout the now-quiet battlefield. Canis simply turned away, trying to hide his tears. Their cries made my heart ache, and it took everything in me not to break down myself.
"No, No, NO! I won't accept this!" Frons griped my already torn clothes. I felt her pore what little mana she had left in me. I started to stop her, but then I felt another foreign energy enter my core. I turned to see Canis, the tall man, refusing to look at me. (You two!) I thought. I knew they were wasting their time; they would both run out of Ki quickly. Before I could stop them, I felt something brush up on my back.
"Shadow?" I mumbled as I spotted the panther behind me. The black cat was covered in minor wounds, but nothing looked severe. He, too, began to channel his Ki into me. Slowly but surely, the remaining beast approached me and started supplying me with mana. I could only count about ten, including the newly evolved beast. It means that the rest must have perished. I prayed for the souls of my fallen comrades. The ones that did survive were covered in wounds. I thanked them all for their service, but no one said anything. They were too focused on healing me or couldn't hear me over Frons crying.
"They have bought to some time, although a long shot you may just survive this," Libra exclaimed. He almost sounded happy.
"Don't jump for joy just yet," I said while closing my eyes. Time went by as we sat in our huddle. Some of the team started to drop off as they ran out of Ki. Lucky Frons was the first to pass out. She had been crying none stop. Now the only people still awake were Canis, Shadow, and me. The rest were all too exhausted to stay up.
"Master, you can rest now. I'll stay on guard." Canis said, looking at me with his bloodshot eyes. He had been crying so long that his eyes were now puffy. I put my hand on his shoulder, grinning. My little Jackel had grown up so much. I only wish his sister was here.
"I'm fine. You should...." I began to speak but was cut off by the sound of footsteps. Shadow and Canis both perked their ears up. I struggled to stand using the hammer as a makeshift cane.
"Master, it sounds like a group of around tweleve," Shadow reported as he walked forward. I order him to go into the shadows and be on standby. He had a small amount of mana left, so he couldn't stay hidden long. Canis was in the same boat, but he was the only one awake, so I had him stay on guard.
"You should run, you might have stocked up on Ki but you want last long if things turn sour." Libra announced. I ignored him while looking at the pile of sleeping beasts. They weren't in any shape for a retreat. (Why is my luck so bad?) I thought as I gripped the Warhammer tighter. My heart began to beat faster as the footsteps got closer. The sounds were coming toward the fallen Elvan camp, so the odds of them being friendly were low.
Tense seconds went by, but the newcomers finally began to show themselves. Shadow was right. I counted around 12 men, all ranging from level three to five. Most of them were men; however, a few women were mixed in the group. Five archers and five swordsmen wearing greenish-brown leather armor. They seemed well organized. Two men were leading the group. One wore a white plate armor identical to Lite's. The other wore a long green robe with gold trimming. The shocking part about it all was the faces. They all had long pointy ears like the dark elves. The only difference was their chalky white skin, the same color as the snow on the mountain.
The group stopped when they noticed us and their archers leveled their bows at us. Canis growled as he readied his sword. I gave him a look so he would stay calm. The last thing we needed was to start a fight. I could see the Elvs talking among themselves. It looked like they were just as surprised as us.
"You might just be in luck. Those are the Elvs ive been protecting for all these years. The one in Front is named Nirva." Libra said smugly.
"They must have come down the mountain when I released the barrier." The hammer continued.
"Nirva!" I yelled, pointing the hammer at them. The man with a green robe appeared before me in the blink of an eye. My eyes almost popped out of my head when I noticed the man's level. (Layer nine.) I thought with a hint of fear. I didn't let it show on my face, however. I guessed that the man before me was Nirva. He seemed to be in his late 50s, but I knew he was much older than that. Nirva had long grey hair braided in the back. The Elvan wore a black headpiece made out of some strange dark twigs. His deep blue eyes stared at me intently before he shook his head. It looked like he was deep in thought.
"A demon? I assume you got my name from the hammer, but how can your kind wield it? Nirva asked as he tapped the Libra. The man was speaking in the devil's tongue. Probably learned it during their war with the demons.
"It would seem that Im am half Elvan. In fact my mother is from this moauntain." I said while putting the hammer down. Nirva looked at me strangely for a long second before speaking.
"That's impossible. Demons and Elvs can't reproduce. No child has ever survived birt.." Nirva cut himself short. Something had caught his eye.
Snap!
The old Elv snatched my necklace off my neck. It happened so fast that I couldn't even react. Canis started to move, but I put my hand on him. Shadow appeared behind the man, bearing his fangs. Nirva paid them no mind as he looked at the purple heart gem on the necklace.
"Where did you get my daughter's pendant? Speak now, demon!" Nirva said, releasing a bale of killer intent. It was powerful enough to wake the rest of my troops. I emitted my own blood lust as I gripped my hammer tighter.
"That necklace belong to my mother. Its the last thing I have of hers, so Id apretiated if you gave it back!" I growled. We stared daggers at each other for a long minute before we both realized what we had said.
"You're my Grandpa?" " You're my Granddaughter?" We both asked in confusion.