Shattered Kingdoms | Book 2 ✔ (REWRITING AS 'THE EXILED KING')

Chapter 31 - The End of the Beginning

It was the end of the beginning. No longer had Dargon been falling to pieces, with the second Demon War around the corner. The fragile structure of the kingdoms was collapsing, shattering into sharp pieces that cut the feet of those who tried to walk the path back to prosperity...

It was the end of that frozen state before the war.

The war had started, and Dargon wasn't going to be the same again.

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As his demon armies arrived through the portals, Garyth gave a small smirk. Everything was about change. Fate could go and hang itself; He was going to take things in a different direction.

Garyth didn't care if he'd been fated to lose - destiny could be rewritten. Those brats had proven that time and time again.

This time, he wouldn't lose...

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"Lirya! Did you hear that?! He wants you!" Jason shouted, "Get to safety! We'll hold him off!"

For someone who'd been unconscious for a few days, Lirya looked surprisingly fresh. She only walked with a slight uncertain step and only grabbed onto something every once and awhile. Her face had some colour and the bags under her eyes were fading.

"No, Jason. I belong on the front lines with you guys!"

"You don't! You're the leader, not the commander. You direct us... you don't fight with us! We're supposed to protect you, but we can't do that unless you listen and get away from the fighting. You've been moderately good at archery, but you have no skill with your stave, nor close combat fighting. You're... not fit for the front lines!"

"I want to help!" She said stubbornly.

Jason sighed, then said, "Maybe you can heal us? From the back," He specified, "Or relieve us of fatigue? We'll need that to battle this army."

At that moment, one of the demon catapults rolled out of the portal, drawn by four muscular demons. Immediately some of the smaller demons ran forward and began to load smoldering fire rocks into the catapult. They began to wind it up, and then pulled the lever, sending the load right towards Jason and Lirya.

"Lirya, get behind me!" Jason said, looking back only to see that she wasn't there.

"Lirya?!" He shouted, looking around frantically.

She walked straight into the battlefield and away from him. The demons parted and made a path for her, leading right to Garyth.

"Lirya! Wait there... we have to protect you! Please get back here!"

She turned around and gave a small smile, "I finally know what I'm supposed to do. I'm the figurehead... the martyr. Jason, I now know... that my sole purpose is to sacrifice myself for you guys!" She said sadly, "That was why I never gained any true powers... I'm not supposed to be the Keyguard; there is no Key for me to guard anyways."

"That's not true! Don't say that, Lirya!" Jason yelled.

Lirya replied quietly, "Can you really say that? Even after you've witnessed my lack of skills? Even after you had to save me?"

Jason opened his mouth, but closed it again without saying anything.

"I didn't think so. It's alright, Jason," She said, "But I'm leaving the rest in your hands. I trust you'll do what needs to be done."

She turned around and looked straight at Garyth.

"I'll go. I'll give myself up to you, Garyth, if you let my companions go unscathed!" Lirya said fiercely, "So please... don't hurt them anymore! You've done so much to hurt them already - Killing Aelron, twice... making us turn on each other. Don't do it anymore! Withdraw your armies and I'll come without a fight," She begged.

"Lirya! No! Don't do it!" Jason yelled, dropping a demon with a quick slash of his sword and running towards her.

"I'm sorry, Jason," She whispered as Garyth strode over to her with a wide smile.

"No!" Jason cried, willing his legs to move faster, to reach her. To pull her free of the darkness clinging to her. She was too pure to be tainted by the man who called himself her family, he thought, as his breath became ragged and his steps faltered.

The armour sure was cumbersome, Jason thought, immediately wondering why he'd think that.

Everything was fuzzy and darkening around the edges of his vision as he focused solely on his objective - liberating Lirya before she became a victim of Garyth.

I need more speed... more power... more strength!

Still he ran as she took a step away from him into the shadows beyond, where he couldn't reach her.

"Lirya!" He shouted and stretched out his hand to try to reach her.

Jason's step faltered and he fell, but used his hand to get back on his feet, barely missing a step.

Stay with me! There's so much more we have to do... together!

All those fun moments... little laughs... everything. It couldn't all end here... it couldn't!

His dirt caked face betrayed his emotions and his eyes glinted as bright teardrops fell freely.

As Jason chased Lirya's fast retreating form, his armour glowed and panels by his shoulder blades slid free, revealing the clothing he had under. Bright golden sparks spread around his form and a searing pain spread through his shoulders. His clothing tore and out of his back, wings sprouted. Not delicately beautiful feathery wings, but thin membrane stretched between bones. Scales covered the wings and a curved talon grew by the joints. Over some parts of the wings, pieces of interlocking metal plates formed protection.

A large gust of wind blew and the wings caught the draft, driving Jason's whole body into the air. He was so surprised that he nearly dropped his new sword, that Taryn had kindly lent him, and he swerved upwards. It took everything he had to keep the wings straight as he soared straight at Lirya.

"LIRYA!" He called, and she looked up.

Garyth scowled, then quickly raised his hand and a barrier around him and Lirya formed, wavering like a bubble.

"Ugh!" Jason crashed face first into the barrier, hung there a moment, then slid downwards.

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Completed: 17/07/2020

First Published:

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