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((Darn X/))

Sylvia breathed in as much as she could when his grip loosened slightly. "That is none of your business." As Sylvia was struggling with Gorash's grasp her Emrald gemmed ring slipped out of her finger gloves into visibility. The emrald was in the shape of a leaf and the band was golden.

"Then why should I be afraid of death? I only exist to kill him. When I kill him then nothing else matters. Nothing, not even death. You think I care about ruling over this pathetic world? I would see it made to dust for all I care. As long as I kill him, I shall be content. I would throw unlimited amounts of soldiers at himif only to get my one shot. If this is the only way to make him act then I shall do so." Reaper eyes gleamed with delight.

Marie became enraged at Elistral's words. "Enough, you shall die here!" Marie brought up her hand and a spike of ice formed there. She tossed it at Elistral and made more.

((Now I get what Gorash is. The dark side is a dragon. An ancient elder dragon. So that's what he is right? Right?))

Reaper smiled. "This is because I am not quite as mortal as most. My magical metallic body allows me to live for years longer than any normal human. My life span is shorter than an elves but longer than a humans."

Sylvia had coughed a bit when she was released. She had begun to feel dizzy after being held for so long. She had leaned against the wall to help her regain her senses when Gorash tripped her. In the confusion she fell backwards over the wall, towards the mass of the enemy. She stabbed the blade of her sword into the wall just before she passed the point of no return, past the barriers Jake had set up. She clung to the edge of the wall and the hilt of her sword. "Rore, help!"

Marie blocked the sword with her own. The magical blade slicing straight through her ice blade. Marie smiled at the hilt of her ice as the blade grew back a few moments later. She lunged at Elistral, her blade pointed at Elistral's heart.

((At Kii: Do I have to? XD You could always read the first PD, it's very interesting. I'll reread it and make a summary if you want instead. Then I'll explain PD 2 in a simpler way.
At Strider: In a way... =} ))

Elistral braced her sword horizontally to block Marie's icy blade, her left hand shaking from the unaccustomed weight and the right unable to feel. She kicked upwards at Marie as she stiffened her wings, beginning to drop.

Rore stiffened when he heard Sylvia's frightened plea, pausing after he kneed Gorash in the side. He threw himself in a roll, grunting as the dull ache in his face pulsed from the blood rush, and scrambled to his feet. Sliding to the edge, Rore reached down to Sylvia, pushing with his toes to scoot closer. "I've got you!" Blood trickled from his bleeding nose and dripped past her to the ground below. He managed to grasp her wrist just as something heavy fell on his back, and he gasped in pain.

Gorash laughed aloud in glee and stepped harder on his back, denting the protective armor from the force. "Ha-ha-ha, now I can kill the both of you!" He heard Rore begin to scream and his voice waver as the bent metal made it hard for him to breathe. Then all of a sudden his vision flickered and dimmed. "No! I won't let you do this!" He felt his foot lift from Rore's back and stumbled drunkenly around, bringing his hands up to his ears as if to block out the sounds around him. "I will not let my freedom go! Too long I've been suppressed!" Gorash backed away to stand at the opposite edge of the wall, the one over the fighting in Salim itself. "Stop it--Stop! Get out, get out!" Now he sounded like he was sobbing, maybe repeating the words would help. The heel of one of his feet tipped over the edge and his back arched in some unseen spasm, and he fell backwards down to the street.

Fenrir didn't smile back. "That's a lie, and you know it."

((Darn!))

Elistral alternated dodged the missiles and broke them with the flat of her blade. "Enough!" She cried at one point, the ice swirling harmlessly away from her as the wind about her twisted, aiming the dangerous spikes at the fighting Ravagers. Then it reversed directions and buffeted Marie in midair, just as Elistral flew back up to attack her, quickly darting from one direction to another as she sliced.

"I--" Rore squeezed his eyes shut as he struggled to breath in, his lungs and back burning. "...get you up..." He wheezed the fragment out and pulled Sylvia up. When that was done he gasped for breath, trying to sit up and undo the leather straps of his chest plate with shaking fingers. The back, he knew, had been caved in. If he didn't get it off too soon, he'd pass out and possibly die from lack of air.

Gorash found himself not at Salim after he reopened his eyes, but somewhere else. Something told him that he was in his mind, in a memory of his. He was standing on the wide path leading up to the castle he'd known for years. It was wispy, insubstantial, a gray-blue-black smokey image on a white sky. Something also compelled him to walk forward into the castle, his steps echoing eerily.

"No, not the long life," Fenrir replied. "The mortality bit."

((Un-asleep =D))

Sylvia took her sword and cut the straps and joints holding the breast plate to Rore's body, freeing him of the collapsed armor. "There, are you okay? Come on, let's get you to a healer." Sylvia hoisted the heavy man onto her shoulder to help supposrt him.

Marie blocked the slices with her ice blade, each time having to remake the blade to block again. She kicked at Elistral and flew backwards to get away from her. "It's useless brat! You can cut my ice all you wish but I shall just remake it. Face it, unless you can keep me from making ice you'll..." Suddenly a purple flash of energy shot through Marie's chest. She looked down at the gaping hole in her chest. "...Die." Marie fell to the earth as her ice blade crumbbled.

Seeing the spectacle Demios looked off in the distance. At first he saw nothing, then from the drakness he began to see a steadily growing light. Slowly a massive force of glowing elves arose on the nearby hill top. Behind them the light that had grown was the sun rising in the East. At the head of the army was a man upon a horse, dressed in red. "Strider."

As the sun rose all of time seemed to stop upon the battlefield. The dragons in the sky had stopped their assault, the ground forces grew quiet and watched the specticle, and the ones in the city looked on with awe. Strider rode up to the elven king. "Well it looks like we made it after all."

"Yes, let's not waste the oppertunity." He smiled at Strider. "Shall we?"

Strider nodded. "For Salim!" Strider had drawn his staff and as it changed it became a blade of solid light. As he drew it the sun rose over the horizon, blinding the dark elves and demons. Strider's army charged forward, their shining blades out stretched to meet the back lines of the enemy. With no general to lead them they were in dissarray. Some stood their ground but most attempted to flee. Strider brought down his sword upon the closest enemy, the sound of the blade searing through their flesh resounding as Strider slashed again.

Reaper smiled wickedly. "He's here. Now is the time to end this. Just as I was told. All will fall before he falls. All of my generals have fallen but now so shall he!" Reaper dismounted his horse and drew his guns. "So shall I split the very planet assunder to reach my goal. What terrible day hath come to bring forth the flame of creation? The flame of destruction?" Suddenly the casing of Reaper's guns were cast off to reveal two cores on the inside of each gun. As they began to spin the guns started to envelop his arms, changing them.

((You should remember this from somewhere X3))

((Exactly.))

Strider was stampeding through the ranks of the demons the incapasitated Elves. The light of the elves from the North appeared almost celestial. The purest of the elf race had descended upon the darkness. It was quite the sight. "Fight on brothers! Show them how bright we can be!" Strider's cheers were answered by over six thousand voices.

Reaper's arms continued to change until his arms had become twin cannons, one black and the other white. "Now, everyone dies!" Reaper pointed his cannons at the battle field and the cannons began to charge particles and a light filled the barrels of he cannons. The tips of the cannons spun inwards to a small hole where particles poured in. As Reaper pointed his guns at Strider a feeling washed over him, remorse? Regret? What did he regret? He couldn't tell. Maybe that he wouldn't kill him with his own hands? Yes, that was it. Regret that he'd never feel Strider's dead lifeless shell. Reaper growled. Telling himself to fire. But could he do it? Would he? He was fighting himself. "Argh!" He aimed up suddenly and released the shots. The cannons fired an immense ray of energy. he clouds parted to a bright sunny sky. The shots would have easily destroyed Salim, the armies, and the mountins behind it. He didn't know why he didn't fire at Salim, but he only had one shot. His arms changed back and his guns became regular guns again. He dropped to his knees and punched the dirt. "Damn it!"

Everything seemed to stop again. This time even the North Elves stopped their charge. "What the hell was that?" Demios was standing in awe as the sun could be clearly seen.

Sylvia had been standing outside the healing tent when the light streaked over head. She knew what was going to happen next. Something bad. She turned back to Rore. "It's nothing. Try to get some sleep." She turned back to the sky. Strider was going to have to fight now. She looked down from where the beams came and found the small hill from her vantage point. "I shall return after the battle to see how your doing. I'm going to go and help however I can." Sylvia went off in search of a horse. She wanted to do something.

"Damn, I hope that wasn't some trick of Reaper." Jake stirred beside him. "Oh Jake your awake. Are you okay?" After Strider had came he collapsed. Jake attempted to stand but seemed shaky. "Hey you shouldn't be moving like that yet, you need some rest."

"I gotta stop him. There's trouble. I can't let him get there." Jake continued to attempt to struggle to his feet.

"Woah, woah, woah, what? Stop who? What trouble? Your not making any sense." Demios held jake to help stabalize him. What's going on?"

"It's Strider. I gotta stop him from getting there or he'll be in trouble. I saw a vision." Jake wobbled again and almost fell over. Demios sat him down again.

"Strider? Stop him from getting to where?" Demios was genuinely confused.

"From getting to Reaper. Something bad going to happen. Please, Demios you must get there and stop him. Stop Reaper before Strider gets there. Or help him stop him. Just don't let Strider fight alone. Get Elistral too." Witht that Jake passed out again. Demios layed him down again.

Demios stood and looked to the sky. "Elistral." He unfurrled his wings and lifted off, flying into the sky. "Elistral!"

Reaper was huffing heavily. "It wasn't a matter of missing. I couldn't bring myself to kill him so cowardly." Reaper looked at his arms and could now clearly see his metalic skin under the rips in his synthetic skin, it made him glad he didn't bleed.

Demios put a hand over his already bleeding re-opened wound. "Never mind that, we have to stop Reaper before Strider comes. Jake said something about it being trouble. Just come on." Demios flew towards the small hill where he could see two shapes. Reaper and Fenrir.

Sylvia had taken a horse and had started the ride to the hill. It wasn't going to take very long. The horse seemed strong and it was only a short distance from the town. She didn't know what she would do, but she knew she had to go.

After the fighting restarted Strider was snapped out of his daze. He turned towards the hill where he knew Reaper was waiting. He had to go. He turned his horse towards the hill and rode through the masses of demons and dark elves. By now the dark elves had began to either flee or fall to the ground useless. It made it easy to ride through their lines.

"At first, yes. All I wanted was his death. But now i've decided i want him to die by my own to hands. Just like he killed my father back on Earth. He shall pay. Even if i must live forever and sacrifice my very body to do so." His arms riped their synthetic skin away and his metalic arms could be seen. A mask covered his mouth and made his voice sound more metalic. "I have now entered a battle mode. I am stronger and faster, as well as tougher. Him being mortal shall only improve my chances. I shall smash his skull inbetween my fingers."