Everlast

Chapter 26;The Nightling kingdom.

The journey to the Nightling kingdom took another several days and the wait for Grimble's armies to arrive took several more; three weeks to be exact. And in the meantime, they waited on the borders of the kingdom, hidden by the trees and trying not to draw attention to themselves.

It was during this time that Ajay  was thinking of Emmer; of how unfair it was that her life was cut short. Of her lover back in her homeland who was looking forward to seeing her and now never would. Of her family and friends who would miss her. 

Then, in between thinking, Ajay would quietly practice his magic. Weaving spells, bending elements, studying incantations. Committing the spells to mind and trying the stave off the impending feeling of responsibility that loomed before him. This was it. He had come to the end of the road, to the last leg of his journey. Now the fate of this world depended on him. The lives of so many rested on his shoulders; their blood would be on his hands if he failed.

Swirling a wisp of fire around his finger, Ajay pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind. No. He could not start doubting himself now, not when so much depended on him. He could do this, for his friends, for Emmer.

Plus, he DID have a sword, so everthing should be fine.

Ajay was just about to practice another spell when Dagon's voice suddenly broke the silence.

"I am so bloody sick of waiting!" the goblin prince groaned, his slender body stretched out leisurely on the ground as though he were a cat. Thistle sat next to him, poking at him.

"You just want to fight someone." Jareth commented from where he hung upside down by his legs in a tree.

"I do. I really do. My father specifically." he paused, letting Thistle tilt his head back so she could begin braiding his hair. "When do you think the armies will get here?"

"Dagon, it takes a bloody long time for thousands of men to journey across that much land." Ajay butted in.

"So what am I supposed to do? Just sit here and let Thistle put flowers and twigs in my hair?"

Jareth grinned. "It does rather suit you."

"Shut up."

Chuckling, Ajay let the two mock-argue for a bit, wondering if he should let Thistle braid his own hair. It had grown longer from when he had first come and now it hung in raven-black strands down to his jaw. 

Sighing softly, he looked up and out over the horizon, where the sun was just beginning to set. And upon gazing at the hills, stained golden by light of the evening, he caught a glimpse of something moving toward them.

Springing to his feet, Ajay pointed, shouting, "Look!"

The others drew up beside them, narrowing their eyes at the shapes slowly marching toward them.

"What is it, Thistle?" Jareth asked, "You've got the best sight of any of us here."

Ajay watched as the fae girl peered at the advancing shapes. Suddenly, she began squealing and jumping up and down like an excited puppy.

"It's Grimble!" she yelped, her eyes shining.  "And he's brought an army!"

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The army, as it turned out, was much smaller than Ajay would have liked.

"I did all I could." Grimble said darkly once the tearful greetings had all been taken care of and they had gotten down to buiseness. "But on such short notice, only the Southern Clans of the Moors were able to journey the distance. There are more coming, but it shall be a few more weeks at least and I dare not wait that long. We may be discovered and I shudder to think what will happen."

"So we are outnumbered then?"

"To the goblin king's army? Severly outnumbered."

Ajay sighed. "We'll lose."

"No, we won't." Grimble replied, wacking him gently on the top of his head with his staff, "We have you."

Ajay grinned. "And I have a sword."

"That you do, lad!" Grimble's laughter echoed in the air. "Now then, why has Emmer not come to greet me? Surely she would want to see her old mentor."

Immediately, Ajay's grin melted off his face, replaced with a grim expression. "I thought Thistle or Jareth would have told you."

Grimble frowned, his face going slightly pale. "Told me what?"

"Emmer is... dead."

For a moment, Grimble said nothing, then he quietly rose, a pained expresion on his face.

"Forgive me, lad. I..."

Ajay could only nod, watching as his teacher stumbled away, leaning heavily on his staff and looking as though he had aged fifty years in a mere two minutes.

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Later that night, plans were made to march on into the old Nightling kingdom with declarations of war.

They were outnumbered, to be sure, but most agreed that the Chosen One would be of great aid to the battle, should there be one, and they had the goblin prince as a bargaining piece.

And while during the entire meeting, Grimble portrayed no sign of his earlier grief, Ajay could tell he was hurting terribly on the inside simply by the lack of luster in his eyes. The tone of his voice. The way his shoulders slouched.

But unfortunately, the dead would have to wait. It was the living that needed Ajay most and it would only be mere hours till he met his fate.

Thus, once the meeting was over, Ajay found it almost ludicrous to attempt to sleep. So instead he sat a little ways outside camp, getting lost in his head until Jareth came and sat beside him.

"You should be resting." the Nightling said softly.

Ajay snorted, "It's not as if I could, even if I wanted to. Jareth, my insides feel as though they've turned all inside-out and upside-down! My hands won't stop shaking."

"I know the feeling."

Ajay shook his head, "You won't be fighting the goblin king tomorrow."

"No. But I will have to bring my kingdom back to life. Raise it up from the ashes that it was reduced to. Find the bones of my mother and father and bury them properly. And all this I do alone."

Ajay felt guilt swarm him, laying a heavy hand on his chest and adding to his overall miserable-ness. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean--"

But Jareth waved his apology aside. "Nay, do not be sorry. It is rightful of you to be scared, though you should not let fear cripple you."

Looking up at the stars once more, Ajay took a deep breath, feeling some of the anxiety ebb away slowly.

Jareth was right. He could do this and he was not alone. And though the worries and fears still kept him up for the rest of the night, there also was a sense of calm. Thus when the sun rose over the horizon and chased away the shadows of the night, Ajay found a resolve that he had not known he could have within him.

True, he might die today. But he would not die without a fight.

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