Chapter LXXX: The Sunserpent Shines

Chiz’s eyes widened as a fist suddenly came within inches of his face. There was a blur of motion, and the tattooed man vanished from the spot where he had been standing. Kkel Solaar’s bare knuckles broke through the rock, shattered stone raining down to the ground below. Tearing his hand free, he turned to find Pixel’s abducter several feet away, clinging to the rock and still gaping in amazement. He saw instantly that Chiz’s hasty escape had cost him something quite dear.

On the ground below Kkel, looking up in open-mouthed astonishment, was Pixel. Chiz had dropped her, and now the Sunserpent stood between them. The development was not lost on either of them.

“Dammit!” Chiz spat, grinding his teeth. “This is impossible! It’s not supposed to happen this way!”

Kkel had no words to respond. Instead, he shot out his hand, and a crack of black lightning sliced forward. It struck only basalt, blasting the rock face apart. The blonde Elvaan lowered his hand in anger. Chiz was gone, melted into the shadows. Not a trace of the tattooed Hume remained.

Their antagonist's escape did not seem to overly trouble the Serpent General. His focus was elsewhere.

Pixel was clinging to him, tears openly streaming down her face. He kneeled down, embracing the Tarutaru and holding her in a close embrace. "I, I never thought . . . " she looked up at him with glittering eyes. "I never even hoped," the Bard gripped him tightly. "It's impossible. Once a Blue Mage turns, they . . .how . . . how did it happen?"

Kkel smiled at her warmly, turning to look at Jinxie. The Red Mage had managed to rise, wavering unsteadily on her feet. Her face and hair were streaked with ash, and she felt like she looked. Every ounce of strength was gone from her, and it was taking everything she had left just not to fall over. Even in her weakened state, she still looked over at Kkel in disbelief. The terrifying fiend which she knew him as was gone. In its place stood the proud Elvaan soldier she had seen in the images of Pixel's Gjallarhorn. And now he was looking at her with the same sense of wonder Pixel was directing at him.

"It was you, Jinxie," he marveled at her. "That moment, fighting Cerberus, I could feel my humanity slipping away. The power was taking me over, but then . . . " he stopped, looking at his hands. A fierce smile broke across his face. "Something reached out to me. Something with overwhelming purity gave of itself willingly. It felt like seeing a lighthouse beacon in the middle of storm in the black of night." The Serpent General had made his way back to her, and now kneeled in front of her in admiration. She stared down at him in surprise. "I followed that light, your light, and it guided me through the darkness. It brought me out of that nightmare and back to myself." Now he rose, brushing a streak of ash from her cheek. "You've done the impossible, Jinxie. You rescued a Soulflayer."

She offered him a weak smile. It was all she could manage. "I'm so happy, Kkel," she breathed, "but I wouldn't want to do it again."

He gave a hearty laugh, embracing the Red Mage tightly. When he released her, she looked down to find Pixel smiling up at her. "Thank you," she said simply, "Thank you."

Kkel began glowing with a soothing white light. A breeze rushed over Jinxie, carrying away her wounds. She sighed, the pain in her joints subsiding, but she still felt as if she hadn't eaten in days. "A trick I picked up from the Dhalmels," he told her, and then turned resolutely to the east, clutching his robe tightly. The garment had appeared blacker than night itself when he had been a Soulflayer, as if made of woven shadow. Now it was simple cloth, and made for a being twice the size of the one currently wearing it. "We've got to get back to Al Zahbi," he stated.

"What's wrong?" Pixel asked, catching the note of warning in his voice.

He put a hand out, indicating the empty battlements around them, scarred by the battle with Cerberus. "There are no Trolls," the Sunserpent observed ominously. "They only leave this area for one reason."

The Tarutaru gripped Gjallarhorn tightly. "They're attacking the city."

Kkel nodded. "Jinxie, can you walk?" She took a halting step, and almost fell. Wasting no time, Kkel suddenly scooped her up in his arms, nodding to Pixel. The Bard played a lively, fast-paced mazurka, and the spellsong wrapped around the duo. "Let's go, Pix!" Jinxie could feel the excitement emanating from both of them. She realized this was the first time in a very long time that the two were facing a new adventure together. She would have smiled if she could find the energy.

Propelled by her song, the Bard and the Blue Mage sped back through Mount Zhayolm. They were back through the enormous iron gates before Jinxie knew it, and moments later were rushing by the barren wastes where the Wamoura flew. Within minutes, they were back at the portal they had come in from. Jinxie felt the same dizzying sensation as she was enveloped in a purplish glow, and her surroundings rapidly altered.

She staggered as Kkel set her down. Blinking, she examined her surroundings. This was the Hall of Transference, she realized. They were back in Whitegate. Surprisingly, she found her bearings had returned, as well as some semblance of balance. The Red Mage was able to walk down the stairs as Kkel marched out in front of her, greeted by gasps from the Hall's attendants.

"G- General Solaar!" One of them blurted out, dumbfounded.

"Where did you come from?"

"The Sunserpent! He's back!"

"Did you kill the Soulflayer?"

"General Solaar!" A Tarutaru Jinxie recognized as the one whom had been gibbering in the corner when she came through here the first time shouted. "General, General! The city is under attack! You've got to help us!"

"Enough!" Kkel threw out a hand, his blue eyes gleaming. The attendants fell silent in an instant. From the smile on his face, Jinxie could tell he was enjoying this a great deal. "Somebody go find my armor. And it sure as hell better be red!" He stopped, turning on his heel. He and Pixel shared a look of untethered excitement. "Ready, Pixel?"

She nodded. "Always."

"Then let's go save the Empire."


Rughadjeen swung his double-bladed sword like a hammer, battering back Gurfurlur the Menacing. The Troll angrily bellowed at the Skyserpent as the algol swept over his bark-like sin. Gurfurlur hastily defended himself, but the Serpent General’s unforgiving assault was quickly proving more than the Troll had bargained for. Rughadjeen was relentless, weapon a blur as it repeatedly sliced into him. A thick, orange blood was trickling out of a dozen different wounds on Gurfurlur’s body. Behind them, the battle was raging as the Imperials fought to beat the Trolls back. Spurred on by their leader’s bravery, the Empire’s soldiers were managing to regain the ground they had lost.

Gurfurlur shouted an obvious threat in Trollish, and then tore a piece of the street from its foundation. With impeccable accuracy, he hurled the chunk of Al Zahbi’s firmament at the Serpent General, striking him in the chest. Rughadjeen skidded back several feet, leaving a scar in the ground as the algol scraped across it, slowing his momentum. Shaking off the impact, the Elvaan tore his weapon free and ran forward, blade meeting Gurfurlur’s fists. Ignoring the stinging cuts inflicted on his own knuckles, Gurfurlur met the Skyserpent’s swings with ferocious blows. Rughadjeen pulled back for fear that he would drop his weapon in the face of such power.

Taking advantage of the Elvaan’s momentary lapse, Gurfurlur smashed his fists into the ground at Rughadjeen’s feet. A tremor plowed forward from the point of impact, throwing the Serpent General from his feet. As he sailed through the air, the Troll King ran forward, muscles going taut, and released a devastating haymaker on the airborne Skyserpent. Like a cannonball, Rughadjeen shot into the gates to the Residential quarter, disappearing behind a wall of debris as he broke through the brick and mortar. His soldiers reacted in shock, swarming defensively towards the site of impact. They need not have bothered.

Only seconds after careening through a brick wall, Rughadjeen came roaring back out again. Dust fell from him in a cloud as he broke free from the mass of fallen stones, cutting through the Trolls before him in seconds. Gurfurlur growled in surprise and anger, but then, with a cry of victory from its owner, the algol was in the air. From the Serpent General’s blade, a blinding flash of energy radiated out into the Troll ranks. They howled as Rughadjeen’s energy sliced through them, leaving those which survived sightless in the aftermath. Gurfurlur the Menacing howled as he struck out blindly, fists searching for the body of his opponent. He roared in Trollish with a voice full of fury.

“The Boss says you’re too scared to fight him fair!” The Moblin at Gurfurlur’s side was shouting angrily, hopping up and down. “He says he’ll tear you apart when he can see you!”

“Megomak!” Rughadjeen raged over the sound of battle. “This is your doing! Criminal scum, I’ll put an end to you right here!” The Serpent General surged forward, beating through the Troll ranks with fire in his eyes.

“N-n-no!” Megomak faltered in the face of Rughadjeen’s anger, stepping back behind Gurfurlur. “I – I’m just the middle-Moblin! P-p-protect me, Gurfurlur!”

The Troll King was still blinking spots from his eyes, his world a dim blur. The Skyserpent was rushing towards the both of them, pulling back his sword with intent to skewer the beastman on its dual ends. Megomak crouched down, simpering as Rughadjeen inexorably closed in upon him.

A great cry of confusion suddenly spilled out across the battlefield. Rughadjeen never reached Megomak or Gurfurlur, and the Moblin opened his eyes at the sound of a titanic clashing of blades.

The twin heads of Gulool Ja Ja hissed at General Rughadjeen. From the north, an entire column of Mamool Ja had broken off from the fighting in Ulthalam’s Parade Grounds and gone to reinforce the Trolls. The Imperial units were now swarmed under by two consecutive waves of beastmen. Assaulted by Troll and lizardman alike, they were pushed back almost immediately, leaving Rughadjeen alone to battle Gulool Ja Ja and Gurfurlur the Menacing on his own. Gulool slashed down with his twin blades, and Rughadjeen leaped backwards. A spray of broken stones assailed him as the ground was smashed apart by the Autarch’s swords. He landed, the algol held upwards protectively, as Gurfurlur stepped forward to Gulool Ja Ja’s side.

And the Skyserpent knew why they would take such a risk, weakening their main unit to support the secondary offensive. Because they knew as long as he stood, the door to their treasure would never open.

Faced with the lords of two beastmen hordes, Rughadjeen was forced to wonder how long even he could hold out.


“I will not allow this atrocity to take place,” Razfahd snarled at his soldiers. The Immortals were lined up en masse before him at the Imperial Palace. Aht Urghan’s crack Blue Mages shared uncertain glances between them as their Grand Vizier detailed his orders to them. “We will ourselves join the battle and teach these animals what it means to trespass on the Empire’s land.”

“But – Grand Vizier,” one of them said uncertainly, “The palace . . . “

“The palace will not fall under attack,” Razfahd asserted. “We can leave it unguarded for the time it will take to clean up this mess.”

“Sir, with all due respect, the Empress will be undefended. We cannot simply abandon our most important duty!” Somewhat bolder than the rest, the Immortal’s words stirred a murmur of agreement from their ranks.

Razfahd glared. “And what of the Empress should the Astral Candescence fall into beastmen hands?” he demanded. “Tell me what you would make of duty then, Rishfee!”

“My job is to defend the Empress, sir,” the Blue Mage told him coolly, “not to clean up after your mistakes.”

A hush fell over the room as the Grand Vizier stared at the Immortal. Rishfee kept his eyes forward, Razfahd’s burning gaze washing over him in the uncomfortable silence. To the astonishment of all gathered, Razfahd turned away, his back now to the Imperial Guard. His voice was hushed, and tinged with a regret they had never before heard from their commander.

“You don’t understand,” it was almost a plea, “I’ve got to set things right. I must defend the Empire. No matter what.”

Glances were exchanged between the Immortals. Most were aching to get outside and fight the beastmen, but their duty to the Empress came first. None were sure what to do.

The silence was suddenly broken by the sound of boots slapping against the marble floors. Razfahd’s head darted up as a messenger suddenly swung open the doors to the Imperial chamber. His uniform was ragged, and he appeared totally winded as he panted his way towards the Grand Vizier. Razfahd drew himself up, the fire returning to his eyes at the intrusion.

“What is the meaning of this?” He demanded.

“Sir – sir, news from the battlefield!” The soldier stopped, bending over and panting raggedly. Waving a hand to beg for a moment to recover, he soon took a gasp and stood up straight. “Sir, the Undead Swarm!” He breathed out heavily, and it was obvious he must have sprinted clear from Al Zahbi to the palace.

“What of them?” There was alarm in Razfahd’s voice. “Are they attacking Whitegate? Are they approaching the palace?” He ground his teeth as the soldier shook his head rapidly. “Then speak, man! What are you trying to tell us?”

He stood at attention again, spitting out his words in a great deluge. “The Lamiae are retreating, sir! They’ve left the field of battle and the Mamool Ja have split their forces in half and now they have no reinforcements on the front lines and – “ he took another deep gasp, his face turning red.

Razfahd, however, was already speaking over him. “Retreating?” He gaped. “Why would they . . . there’s no time to wonder about that now.” Rounding on the Immortals, he raised up his hands imploringly. “There will be no better opportunity than this. We will strike now and drive them back. With the Lamiae gone we will not need the entire palace guard – some of you remain here and defend Nashmeira! The rest of you, with me to Al Zahbi! Let us eliminate this menace!”

A fierce cry went up from the Immortals. Swords were drawn into the air as a circle of them were quickly chosen to stay behind and the others rushed forth into battle. They charged past the messenger, who feebly attempted to regain their attention. His breathless voice was lost beneath their rallying cries and boots clapping against marble floors. By the time he was able to finally get out the rest of his message, the hall was empty.

“Wait!” He cried feebly. “You didn’t let me tell you –“ he trailed off as he realized there was no one left to hear him. “ – about what happened in Whitegate . . .”

His words reached no one as he finally collapsed, the sound of his labored breathing echoing through the palace.


General Rughadjeen sailed through the air, straining to stay conscious. He went limp, landing back-first against the Al Zahbi streets and skipping like a stone upon them until he hit a wall. Groaning, he struggled to his knees, using the algol for support. A bloody gash had opened up on his cheek, mixing with the dust and sweat covering his face. The Elvaan strained, rising to his feet again as a booming sound began growing steadily closer. Bracing himself, Rughadjeen faced down Gurfurlur, charging at him like an enraged Wivre. The Skyserpent stood his ground, meeting the Troll’s fists with his sword. His muscles strained to keep his grip on the hilt as the Menacing’s gargantuan fists tore into his flagging defenses.

A moment later, the ground lurched as Gulool Ja Ja smashed down from a spectacular leap. Rughadjeen quickly slashed at Gurfurlur’s massive frame, causing the Troll to leap back. Just in time, he was able to swing the algol around, meeting Ja Ja’s blades with his own. He parried the lizardman’s stroke, the ringing of steel on steel echoing in his ears. With a heave, he pushed the Autarch away, returning his attention to Gurfurlur. The two exchanged fearsome blows, but the Troll’s strength won out. A shattering punch caught Rughadjeen square in the chest, and the Serpent General collapsed, gasping for air. An indentation of Gurfurlur’s fist dented his breastplate, and he stared down at it as he struggled to breath.

He looked up again. Neither beastman commander was attacking. Their attention had been diverted by something else.

“Where are you going?” Gulool Ja Ja’s wizard head demanded of someone Rughadjeen could not see.

“Stay and fight!” the warrior head ordered, brandishing its sword threateningly.

Something suddenly brushed by him, and he gagged on the stench of swamp gas and stagnant water. A Merrow, he realized, seeing its muck-covered tail slide past him. Then the clatter of bones rattling against one another filled his ears. The Skyserpent finally caught his breath, looking up to find the undead swarm in full retreat. Medusa gently swayed her hips in front of an incessant Gulool Ja Ja, her expression bored and dismissive.

“We have what we came for,” she told him. “Our dance is complete.”

Gurfurlur roared at her in Trollish, and Megomak leaped up and down simultaneously. “This wasn’t part of our deal, Medusa! You’re going behind our back!”

She smiled, revealing a mouth full of pointed teeth. “What a funny little two-legs,” she said, and Megomak quickly scrambled behind Gurfurlur. “My Lamiae have won the day. The tide of battle is turning, and we will not dance when we cannot lead.” She glided onwards, leaving an irate pair of beastmen behind her.

“Pay for this, you shall!” Gulool Ja Ja’s warrior head promised.

“Our lines shall surely crumble without their support,” the wizard head warned.

“No, no, no!” Megomak stomped his feet. “The Astral Candescence was supposed to be ours!”

Rughadjeen was on his feet now. Their attention was off of him, and their defenses down.

Gurfurlur growled, and Gulool Ja Ja shook his swords menacingly. “Have Medusa’s hide, we will . . . “ the lizardman swore.

“We can still win this,” Megomak insisted. “If we swing all of our forces towards the Hall of Binding now . . . “

The Skyserpent saw his opening. In a flash, he ran forward with all the speed he had left, swinging the algol in a perfect spinning arc, aimed directly at Gurfurlur the Menacing’s back. Rughadjeen’s speed and skill were both formidable, greater than that of any of the other Serpent Generals they had faced today.

Yet he was still not the equal of Gulool Ja Ja, who lashed out his hand like a whip. Before the algol had so much as creased Gurfurlur’s skin, the lizardman’s sword hit Rughadjeen like a whirlwind, driving him back into the wall from whence he had came. The algol fell to the ground in a clatter. The Elvaan’s head cracked against the stone wall of Chocobo Alley, and his helmet dropped from his drooping head. He struggled to rise, one last time, but a shadow fell over him and he knew the day was lost.

Gurfurlur’s fist smashed Rughadjeen into the ground. The Serpent General’s body cracked the stones, and a gush of blood shot from his mouth. He gave a final twitch, an involuntary spasm which rocked his whole body. Then he went still, sunken in to the streets of Al Zahbi by the Troll King’s power, a red puddle forming around his head. There was nothing left in him to give. Skyserpent General Rughadjeen finally fell.

Gurfurlur took no time to appreciate his handiwork. A roar of triumph broke from his lips, and the ground shook as he began running north. Soldiers were fighting near the Bastion - the Mamool Ja had been nearly completely pushed from the Ulthalam Parade Grounds. It mattered little to Gurfurlur. He simply pushed aside anyone in his way, rampaging forward and nearly creating a new front all by himself. The beastmen in the southern sector began charging north again, spurred on by Gulool Ja Ja. This was the distraction he needed.

With Rughadjeen down, the seals upon the Hall of Binding were broken. The Astral Candescence was in their grasp.

The soldiers of the Empire knew it, too. They were striving to head north towards the Hall and defend the doors, but the Trolls were harrying them from the south. In the confusion, the Mamool Ja gained a new edge, locking the soldiers in combat at the Bastion. Gurfurlur met practically no resistance on his way, and what he did encounter the Troll King easily smashed his way through. He was practically frothing in anticipation. He encountered a narrow gateway, and plowed his way through, widening the entrance with his fists. The scarred gate left a trail of rubble behind him, obstructing the path of any in pursuit. The Hall of Binding lay before him, practically undefended. Megomak ran at his heels, barely containing squeals of glee as he saw the gate in front of him, the seals which had frustrated them so many times in the past now gone.

Clenching his fist, Gurfurlur gave a mighty howl, and then let loose upon the Hall of Binding. His punch was enough to make the thick gates swing open, all locks upon them snapping like twigs. The path to Hall lay open for the Troll King. Wasting no time, he rushed inside.

The sensation of being completely hurled from his feet by a force greater than his own was not one he encountered often. Thus Gurfurlur the Menacing lay on the ground in shocked surprise for quite a few more moments than he had actually been stunned. Haltingly, he planted his hands beneath him, sitting upright and staring at the trail he had made when he was thrown backwards. When his body was thrown backwards, he left a trench in the street from the force. A confused sound escaped his lips.

The doors to the Hall of Binding had shut themselves up tight.

A warding seal blazed brightly above the five which had been extinguished.

“We got here just in time,” Kkel told Pixel, and the Tarutaru nodded with a smile, bringing Gjallarhorn to her lips. From his place atop the Hall of Binding, the Sunserpent General leaped down to confront the strongest of the beastmen.

His red-and-black armor shone brightly in the Aht Urghan sun as he took to the air. The gloves and boots he wore were black with golden inlayings identical to those Razfahd had been sporting. The rest of his battle raiment, however, was uniquely his own. A thick red corazza protected his body, and bore upon it his crest – a blazing sun. When he landed, he straightened with an excited grin. Drawing two curved blades from either side of his waist, Kkel Solaar attacked.

He thought of the oversized rams which roamed Caedarva Mire. The rush of blue magic charged through his body, augmented by Pixel’s spellsong. Unheard of strength flooded his limbs, and he charged forward as one of the beasts would do to one if its foes. Impact doubled Gurfurlur over, striking him the stomach. Kkel deftly avoided the Troll’s attempts to grab at him, slicing his blades at its midsection as he leaped back. He was thinking of the Mamool Ja, an easy task with so many in the city, using their evasiveness against his foe.

Gurfurlur roared angrily, charging forward. Kkel thought of the Puks wandering Bhaflau Thickets, and the confusing images the giant dragonflies created with their rapidly beating wings. The Menacing flew directly past the Sunserpent, already sidestepping his clumsy strike and leaving a phantom image in his way. No sooner was Gurfurlur past him than he began thinking of Imps. The Menacing howled as Kkel unleashed a three-fold strike on his exposed back, ripping into him as the fierce claws of one of the dark messengers would. Gurfurlur swung his arm out, and again the Blue Mage dodged it easily. His swords sang as he brushed them against one another, daring the Troll King to attack him.

Enraged, Gurfurlur ran forward, drawing back his fist. The mammoth Troll’s muscles bulged unbelievably as he tore the ground apart with every stride. With unforgiving power, he smashed his fist into the side of Kkel’s head, whipping it sideways as his other fists rocketed forward, tearing the Sunserpent from his feet as it caught him the ribs. He flew high into the air, his body limp, and came down with a resounding crash.

Gurfurlur swung his gaze about excitedly, and then growled in a tone befitting of the title “The Menacing.”

The seal was still in place.

Kkel Solaar stood up behind him, diamond-hard skin cracking as his thoughts shifted again. “I took that one from you,” he smiled, and Gurfurlur roared in response. Kkel ignored it. He was thinking of the red dragons of Mount Zhayolm.

Blue magic created a crater as the Sunserpent leaped into the air and then came spiraling down. His mass increased exponentially, and when he landed a great upheaval rippled out from the ground. Gurfurlur was nearly torn from his feet as the concussive wave shook him. Kkel stood before his opponent, eyes gleaming the color of his namesake as Pixel played on. The spellsong in the air enervated him, bringing him to new heights of power. Atop the Hall of Binding, the Tarutaru was giving Kkel everything she had. Gjallarhorn’s music was more beautiful right now than any symphony the Serpent General had ever heard.

His mind traveled to trips abroad, and the Manticores of Zepwell Island’s desert sprang to mind.

First there was a billowing of smoke from his nose, and then the aura of blue magic around him went red-hot. Kkel inhaled deeply, the air heating up around him. With a tremendous exhalation, a wave of flame shot from the Blue Mage’s mouth, sweeping over Gurfurlur the Menacing. The Troll King howled as he was overtaken by fire, made all the worse by Pixel’s song changing to swift threnody directed at the brute. With the spellsong making him even more vulnerable to fire, Gurfurlur cried out in pain as Kkel’s heat breath engulfed him.

A final trickle of fire dripped from the Sunserpent’s lips as he cut off the stream. Pixel’s song went silent, and they both watched the inferno before the Hall of Binding as it burned Gurfurlur down. A simpering whine behind him turned the Blue Mage’s head, and he found Megomak watching the scene in terror.

“So, the Martial Maester himself walks in Al Zahbi’s streets,” Kkel said mockingly, his voice still bearing the qualities of a burning fire. “You must think you’ve come quite far.” His aura flared up around him, and a number of thoughts raced through his head. The Moblin was one of the Empire’s most wanted criminals, even since before Solaar had left. It was his money which had purchased the services of the Troll Mercenaries, often for the single purpose of opposing the Empress. If a deal were negotiated between the beastmen and Chiz’s organization, Megomak was almost assuredly the one behind it.

And now, he was in Kkel’s clutches. The Moblin gazed at him questioningly as he sheathed one of his swords. Then he started blubbering when the black lightning of a Soulflayer began crackling in the Sunserpent’s palm.

“P-p-please!” he begged, blubbering at Kkel. “I’ll tell you everything! You’ve got to know I have secrets! Just don’t kill me! Don’t kill me, please!”

“I’m going to put you out of a lot more people’s misery than just your own,” the Sunserpent promised, and the Moblin fell to his knees with a miserable cry as Kkel leveled his blast at him.

“Kkel! Look out!”

Pixel’s voice reached him too late to stop the massive fingers encompassing his skull.

Gurfurlur rose from the flames with an ear-shattering roar, snatching Kkel’s head and swinging the Serpent General about as if he were weightless. He felt his body smack against the door to the Hall of Binding, reflected by his own seal. Gurfurlur ground him into it, and then angrily tossed him aside into a wall. The impact shook his other sword from his hand, leaving him stunned. He came back to his senses just in time for the raging Troll King to wrap a mammoth hand around one of his ankles. Gurfurlur swang Kkel like a club, bashing him into the ground three times over.

Writhing, Kkel’s mind flashed to Lamiae, and he desperately released a sudden burst of blue magic which slapped the Troll across his face. He let go of the Sunserpent, stunned, but not long enough. No sooner had Kkel come back to his feet than Gurfurlur’s fist buffeted him back against the door. He let loose the crackling bolt of lightning he had brought forth for Megomak, but Gurfurlur took it full in the chest and kept right on coming. His enormous arms swung out, and he brought them down like clubs to batter the Sunserpent into nothingness.

Kkel filled himself with Gurfurlur’s own power, and caught the Menacing’s fists in the air. Even as his skin hardened, he could feel the Troll King’s awesome power bearing down on him. The ground quavered at his feet, and then broke apart. The Serpent General began being pushed into his own grave as Gurfurlur’s impossible might crushed him. He wagered he was at least as resilient as a diamond at the moment. As Gurfurlur’s hands wrapped around his arm up to the elbow, it became clear the Troll could crush diamonds in his palm.

“That’s right!” Megomak yelled, and Gurfurlur started bellowing at Kkel in his native tongue. “Gurfurlur says he is the mightiest! All your magic tricks are meaningless before him! Gurfurlur is mighty!” The Troll King barked out a string of words, and Megomak gleefully translated. “Gurfurlur says he will take Al Zahbi when he is done! He says if you are the strongest they have, then this city is done for! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Nothing is stronger than Gurfurlur the Menacing, Imperial! What do you think about that, huh? What are your last words for your better, Gurfurlur?”

Kkel ground his teeth, straining to stay focused. His arms were about to be snapped off at the elbow, if he wasn’t crushed up against the ground first. Blue eyes glared into Gurfurlur’s bulging red as the Sunserpent struggled with all he had to get out his next sentence.

“Tell him. . . “ he grunted as the ground sank in again, the pressure being brought against it more than mere stone could stand. “Tell . . . him . . . “ Kkel Solaar’s brilliant blue aura suddenly flared up higher than it had been yet, before suddenly collapsing down, gathering just in front of his chest.

“Tell him I’m thinking of Wamouracampa.”

A cannonball-shaped sphere of pure energy ripped out of Kkel Solaar’s being. Gurfurlur choked on his orange blood as he was struck. It tore through his body, punching through him as he had done to so many others. It erupted from his back, a fountain of blood pouring out as chunks of dense Trollish bones sailed through the air. Gurfurlur the Menacing, leader of the Trolls, staggered backwards uncertainly. He gaped at the sucking wound in his chest, burned clean through to the other side. Gingerly, he reached one hand up to touch it, and then looked at Kkel, confused. The Troll King took a step forward, mumbling something in his own language, and then his eyes rolled up into his head.

The tremor shook the area before the Hall of Binding as Gurfurur the Menacing fell, collapsing dead on the streets of Al Zahbi.


“Cowards, you are!” Gulool Ja Ja screamed as the Troll Mercenaries broke and ran. They had all seen Gurfurlur fall, and the sight of the greatest among them being killed was too much for even the stalwart beastmen. The Mamool Ja were quickly finding themselves alone against an increasingly emboldened enemy.

“We’ve come so far!” The warrior head shouted. “We can defeat these smoothskins, we can!”

“Mamool Ja, fight!” The wizard head ordered. “Not the end, it is!”

The lizardmen began regrouping, staving off the Imperial forces now threatening to surround them. One more push and they could break into the Hall of Binding, and then they would see how this Elvaan fared against an entire army.

Gulool Ja Ja howled as explosions suddenly rocked the ground at his feet. His soldiers began bursting apart, spilling green blood in torrents as they were blasted limb from limb. The bombardment targeted their front lines, pulverizing the strongest amongst them in seconds. A demoralizing wave of fear swept through them as in droves they began to break and run.

“Yar har har har! Lookit how they run, Akisu!” Arvin laughed as he set off another round of cannon fire. “It was well worth th’ time it took t’ haul these up th’ walls, don’t ye agree?”

“Absolutely, Captain!” Akisu agreed, running across the line of the Proteus’s heavy armament now situated on the walls of Al Zahbi. “The Captain wants another barrage! Load them up, men! Let’s show these snakes that you can’t beat a pirate!”

“You can’t beat the Imperial Army either,” a voice on the ground warned, and Gulool Ja Ja turned to find Razfahd standing before an entire company of Blue Mages. “Surrender!” He demanded, and Gulool Ja Ja hissed at him defiantly.

“Never, smoothskin!” retorted the Autrach, brandishing both his blades.

“You’re finished!” A woman shouted at him, and he saw to his south the Imperial Army had regrouped. Isset and Shoki stood at the front of an invigorated Imperial troop, along with Speed, who appeared completely focused.

And then the gates of Whitegate flew open, and Autarch snarled at what he saw next.

Jinxie strode out from behind them, and at her feet came the assembled citizens of Whitegate. Spurred on by the call of the Sunserpent, hundreds had leapt to volunteer in his name. Brandishing everything from miner’s picks to family heirloom swords, the people of Aht Urghan assembled to stand with their fighting men and woman.

“Your allies are gone and your legions are in disarray,” she declared in a strong, resolute voice. “Leave this city, Mamool Ja,” she drew her sword forth, and hundreds of weapons rang free in response, “while you still have the chance.”

Immediately, the lizardmen began throwing down their weapons. Gulool Ja Ja roared at the soliders as they ran, shaking his swords at them and shouting dire threats.

“What are you doing?” The warrior head shrieked. “Advance! Adva –“

His voice was cut off as another series of explosions shook the ground at his feet. Arvin’s laughter rang out in unison with the shock of cannonballs peppering the ground.

“Mamool Ja, retreat!” The wizard head had seen enough. “Retreat!”

Melting away like a serpent shedding its skin, the last of the beastmen forces fled from Al Zahbi. A resounding cheer went up from their forces. As Gulool Ja Ja himself turned tail and ran from the Empire’s might, even Razfahd allowed himself a moment of exultation. The celebration only grew when Kkel and Pixel emerged from the site of their battle with Gurfurlur. Shouts of victory rang through the streets as the citizens of the Empire relished in their triumph. Their strongest foes had assailed them, and had found themselves lacking.

Jinxie allowed herself a moment to soak it all in. Her weakness was beginning to fade, and she was thinking with perfect clarity. She had done it, everything she had to and more. Now the Empire would assist her with the horror of what was happening across the ocean.

Finally, finally, she could go home.