Screams could be heard as the golden figure flew through the sky. The stench of death was heavy in the air, with an organized massacre taking place. The order had been given to only kill those who could not be captured and those who refused to surrender, instead choosing to fight to their last breath. In the distance, there stood something that gave the people of Athras hope and the will to keep on fighting; The White Temple of Athras.
With pearlescent walls strong and thick, it occupied a large space. Its wide, thick columns seemed to reach the heavens, while its open space and towering presence was filled with many gardens and mysterious rooms. The building now gave off a bright, pulsing white glow, which animated Athras's warriors with a unique power. Their senses and skills were heightened, while their enemies weapons and armor became brittle and a weakness overcame them. In the midst of one of the open courtyards, among towering trees and colourful plants, blood flowed as the main battle raged on.
Wave after wave of invaders were being cut down by the defenders. At one of the main entrances to an important room, stood one warrior surrounded by carnage. His jagged, azure armor pulsed and gleamed, occasionally sent out small spirals of light, which upon contact with an enemy sucked out their vitality yet healed and reinvigorated his allies. His dark, spiraled weapons on each hand gleamed with their own light. Shaped like short branches from trees, with rectangular handles, they seemed harmless until making contact with an enemy, ripping through armor and skin alike. His crown like helm protected his dark head as he continued to slaughter enemies.
As some of his warriors managed to reach him and his weapons flowed back into his armor, he turned his eyes to the sky, where a golden light that was painful to look at blazed through the sky and suddenly impacted on the ground in a blinding flash. Bodies were flung into the air and cut into pieces by sharp bursts of light as the figure moved towards the warrior. As his soldiers moved to block this golden man, he spoke in a calm radiant voice; "No, this is my battle."
As he moved down the steps, the fighting slowly died down, till in a deep silence the two men stood opposite each other. Staring at the man who had invaded his kingdom, the king of Athras knew that this was the fight that would determine it all. "So, Kaeos, destroyer and supposed savior; come to meet your end at last?"
Smiling a sad smile, the golden man spoke; "Aran Athras, it wasn't supposed to be like this. Too much lost on both sides. Your lover and your daughter captured, yet still you fight. If only you had joined me and I had talked to my dear friend...; but now Athras must fall!" Then the two men rushed at each other.
On the silent battlefield the men clashed again and again, waves of energy roiling off of them bring some men to their knees. Every punch and kick were powerful blows that seemed to cut into the air as they were thrown. The soldiers could only stare in rapt fascination as their fate was determined.
Dodging a blow, Athras quickly leaped backwards and thrust his hand into the ground. Sharp spikes of rock shot out and flew towards his opponent who barreled through them. Just before he reached him, Athras gathered a massive amount of energy into his hand and swung it into his foes face. A loud crunch was heard as the man was sent flying backwards. Athras gathered energy into his legs and was about to leap into the air when he realized his opponent was cheerfully laughing. As the man slowly got up his laughter got darker and louder. "Looks like I snagged my hand on something." Wiping blood from his mouth, he raised his left hand which contained one of Athras's weapons. Eye's wide in shock, Athras looked to his chest where he saw his armor pierced and a last bit of energy leaving it to flow into the spiraled weapon his enemy now held.
Screaming in rage, Athras rushed towards his enemy, only to be thrown back by a blast of energy. His body contorted in pain as the other man fired blast after blast of power unto him. Slowly struggling to his knees, he summoned his remaining weapon and thrust it into the earth. The weapon begun to emit an azure aura which quickly covered him, rendering the beams of energy harmless. Round azure spots slowly begun to radiate along the ground away from him.
It was his opponents turn to stare in shock as the white temple begun to darken and pulsate. As his shock slowly faded, he sputtered, "How dare you? How... Damn you this ends now! No one else will use this planets power but me!" So saying, he trust the weapon he had stolen into the ground. The colors on his breastplate begun to move rapidly and a purple haze surrounded him. Gripping the sword, he spun it in a half circle, carving a purple groove into the earth, which nullified Athras's slow moving energy. Then he gripped the weapon's hilt with both hands and begun channeling the purple energy through it into the earth. A loud cry was suddenly heard from the direction of the temple causing everyone to turn and stare as a purple hue begun to take over the temples white color.
"No, No, you bastard! You don't understand the connections", shouted Athras. Turning towards his enemy, Athras watched as his opponent struggled to release the weapon that was draining him dry. Now was the perfect time for him to strike, but even as a shudder shook the whole city, he knew he would not have enough time. He would have to choose. With a weary sigh, Athras turned and begun to sprint towards the temple shouting for the soldiers to flee or perish. As soldiers abandoned their weapons and begun to ran from the growing mass of power coming from the temple, Athras's entire body begun to emit an azure light. Beams of energy tore through the earth, rushing towards him, yet Athras plowed through them and upon reaching the steps to the temple doors with his body radiating with power, he launched himself into the air and into the temple. The doors thudded shut as Athras vanished in an explosion of darkness and the sky immediately darkened, as lightning rose from the ground into the sky.
With a loud cry, the golden man was finally able to wrench his hand free. He fell to his knees and grimaced as he watched a growing purple hue surround the blade. Looking in the direction of the temple, he saw a slow expanding cloud of darkness, with flashes of lightening rippling out of the cloud.
As he slowly rose to his feet, he gathered his power and commented; "Very... Interesting to say the least. Yet, so falls Athras, in more ways than one." As the cloud begun to take on an dark purple hue, he took to the sky and flew towards the city's palace where the last remnants of an opposition were now surrendering.
Looking behind, he grimaced at what he saw. The area where he had fought was a mass of writhing purple energy. Amazingly, some warriors had managed to escape the burst of energy that had erupted from the ground, yet those caught in the energy's purple arms were frozen in midair. Their skins glowed with energy as their bodies pulsated in time to the slowly growing mass of magic coming from the temple. Looking beneath him, he saw a city in flames, with the last survivors on both sides either moving rapidly towards the direction of the palace or becoming enclosed in a slow moving purple fog. Staring ahead to the ruins of the palace which his army had destroyed upon arrival, he saw the leader of one of his armies standing vigil, awaiting his return. With a huge beat of his dark red magic wings, he surged forward and spoke, "It's finally time."
The remnants of the palace seemed to have begun to take on a darker hue & the people who were surrounding its base were jittery as they looked around. It's once magnificent walls and gardens had been torn down and razed. All that remained was a huge opening where the courtyard used to be, where, at the very forefront of the ruins, there awaited a strange, red man like creature.
Aurenas, General of the invaders army, stood awaiting his lord. His dark red skin stood out amid all the ruins and his fine scales rippled as he stood listening to the cries of the people who had gathered at the base of the palace. A grim smile seemed perched on his blockish face, yet even he was wary as he glanced back at his prisoners.
Two of them. The mate and child of Athras, had managed to kill a huge amount of the men in his army and would have turned the tide of the battle if Aurenas and some other Chitaurs hadn't managed to act in time. 'The two had even managed to kill some of his own brood, but retribution was coming!' The third prisoner he was more wary of, especially due to the deaths she had caused in her last bid for freedom. Standing tall and regal, even chained as the others were, her dark face showed resistance and held vestiges of her power.