Chapter 37½ - The Last Battle.
They arrived at the rendezvous point, Llewellyn, and his team, plus Marley.
“Where are the troops?” Llewellyn asked.
“They are all here and around us. We have taken camouflage and light absorbing clothing to a new level. There are Wizard Guards within six feet of where we stand, and when I pull my cloak around me and my hood up, I too will just merge into the background.”
Marley rearranged his long cloak, placed a black balaclava over his head, upped his hood and vanished into the growing dusk.
“Okay, let’s spread out and move out.”
Llewellyn, Gwen, Flintock, Faraji, Jonathan, Glynda, Thomas and Samuel, the magnificent seven and a half, all dressed in their version of light absorbing black. Barely visible, but nothing like as invisible as the Wizard Guards.
“Why didn’t we think of balaclavas as well?” Tom asked no one in particular.
“Because, as I told your dad earlier, you’re not as devious as me. Here, I have a couple of spares, who wants one?”
“It won’t work on me, as soon as I pull out Dragon Slayer, it would turn white.”
“Here, Tom, you and Jon have one each.”
“Thanks.”
“Thanks a lot,” Jon echoed.
The flight in was quick and over in a few minutes. The Wizard Guards dispersed silently.
Marley whispered to Llewellyn, “The camp has been cleared, thirty seconds and the thirty-eight will be gone as well. If there is any who manage to escape, I will let you know.”
He had hardly finished the sentence when he spoke again. “All gone, Muenda’s on his own now, but doesn’t know it.”
“Thanks, are you hanging around for the confrontation?”
“If you don’t mind.”
“Please do.”
There was about four hundred yards of clearing between the edge of the copse they were hidden in and the cave entrance, the only way to approach was to just step out and walk towards him. As soon as Dragon Slayer was removed from its scabbard, Muenda would know they were there, as Glynda would be transformed instantly.
They stepped out and had approached about a quarter of the way before Muenda looked up.
“Oh, my, my, if it isn’t Llewellyn the loser and his little gang again. Well, this time it’s a little more even, hidden around me are several hundred exceptionally fine wizards, all of whom are on my side,” Muenda said, exaggerating the figures to try and put them on edge.
“We are also not alone; we have five hundred Red Dragons ready to join us in combat should they be needed.” Llewellyn also overstated the odds.
Even as he spoke, a thunder of red dragons could be seen and heard circling above the clearing. Llewellyn had already scaled down his original request from a few hundred to a couple of dozen. But it sounded better keeping to the original quantity.”
“First, my other friends.”
Muenda raised his hand and out of the cave flew hundreds of the Abaddon, frost crept across the open space. Samuel reached into his pouch and lobbed one of Glynda’s light grenades high into the air, there was a crack and a mighty flash of pure white light; the Abaddon vanished. He then hurled one down into the entrance of the cave, a muffled bang, the cave filled with a blinding light and screams came pouring out of the black hole as the Abaddon retreated.
“Brother wizards! Attack!” shouted Muenda, “ATTACK!” he shouted.
But nothing happened.
“I expect the sight of a girl frightened them away,” Llewellyn answered.
Muenda didn’t wait any longer. He threw a massive bolt of energy at them, aiming at no one in particular, as they were so spread out. They all had energy shields in place except Glynda and Samuel. Glynda called Dragon Slayer out and was immediately surrounded by an aura of light.
“Aha, something to aim at, thank you.”
He shot a bolt towards Glynda, Dragon Slayer blocked the spell and absorbed the energy.
“Try this then!”
Tonnes of boulders, some as big as cars rained down upon them, no one came to any harm. They continued their walk towards Muenda.
“Stop!” he shouted, “let’s do this the honourable way, one on one combat, man to man, winner takes the spoils.”
“What spoils do you get?” Llewellyn asked.
“My freedom to leave and never return? Who do you nominate?”
Llewellyn stood for a moment thinking about the offer, but before any could answer, Glynda had stepped forward.
“I will fight you, one on one, no interference from the rest of the team.”
“Glynda, come back!” shouted Tom.
“Glynda, NO!” Llewellyn added.
But she kept on walking towards him and before anyone had a chance to stop her the sparks began to fly. Raw blue energy flowed out of Muenda’s hand towards her, the purest white energy was returned from Glynda’s hand. Backwards and forwards went the energy. Sparks flying in every direction setting fire to the grass around their feet, Muenda was standing his ground as best he could but was already on the back foot and rocking all the time, Glynda just stood there, unmoving, as steady as a rock.
“Oh, that’s novel, no wand, clever girl,” he said condescendingly.
Muenda was trying to look cool and in control, making sarcastic remarks, but beads of sweat could be seen running down from under his hat. Glynda’s aura just glowed white, lighting up the whole theatrical spectacle, getting brighter as time moved on.
He flicked his other wrist and again tonnes of rock flew across the open area towards Glynda and the others, all landed safely apart from one, a rock the size of a van landed bang on top of Samuel.
That was not in the plan, Glynda now saw red.
“You’ve just killed my friend!” she screamed, “I thought you said an honourable fight, one on one!”
“I said man on man, when you stepped forward you changed the rules, which means I can change them too,” he snarled.
Glynda put her hand down and just strode up to where he was standing, Dragon Slayer absorbing all his energy. He stopped and lowered his hands with a shocked look on his face, Glynda did not falter, she raised her sword and brought it down right in the centre of his head, it continued down, splitting him completely in half. The two pieces fell, one to the left and one to the right. It was over. As she did it, Faraji stubbled forward a step and then recovered.
She turned and walked over to the others, as she walked, she spoke.
“Are you all right? I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to kill your twin,” she was speaking through her tears and still shaking with rage.
She stopped in front of him, tears running down her cheeks, then she brought her blooded sword up sharply and cut him straight up the middle the other way.
“Glynda!” Tom shouted, “What are you doing.
They watched as if in slow motion, the two halves parted and fell in opposite directions.
“It wasn’t him, Muenda apparated Faraji out of his clothes and into his a split second before I struck, but it was too late,” she sobbed.
“How do you know?”
“As he fell, I saw a wand in his hand.”
She then burst into tears and fell sobbing into Gwen’s arms.
“I’m so sorry Flintock, I didn’t mean to kill anyone, but when he killed Samuel, I just lost control.”
Flintock just stood motionless and without emotion, as if waiting for his own demise.
“Jon, take the rock off Samuel, we can’t leave him there like that,” Tom said as if to keep busy and take his mind off what had just happened.
Jon pointed his wand at the massive boulder and lifted it into the air and set it down beside the body of Samuel.
“About blooming time and all, I thought you’d forgotten about me!”
“Samuel, your alive!” Glynda shouted.
“Well of course I am, a few tonnes of rock can’t hurt a dwarf with a magic axe.”
Glynda let go of Gwen and ran across, fell on her knees, and embraced her favourite dwarf, as she had never hugged him before. Actually, she had never hugged him before; dwarfs don’t do sentimental stuff.
“Gerroff!” he exclaimed, pretending to be grumpy, “you know I don’t do hugs.”
As they spoke, Songhai Chen appeared; he now had the appearance of a young man. In a few weeks he had lost the look of a six-year-old child and now appeared before them a handsome and well-toned lad in his late teens.
“Greetings Llewellyn Jones, family Jones, Funsan Osei, Glynda Guilliams-Erwood, Samuel Rhioganedd, and my Lord Marley McFee. Glynda has done exceedingly well. Gwen, our brother has fallen, you know what we now must do.”
“As soon as Faraji fell, I was expecting you; Glynda, come close.”
“What do you mean?” Glynda said nervously.
“This is Songhai Chen, whom you have not yet met,” Gwen said by way of introduction, “Songhai, Faraji and I, were the last of an ancient order of wizards called The Guardians. There were seven of us, but now Faraji has gone, we are but two, Songhai and me.”
“Now we are three again. Glynda, we anoint you as Guardian.”
Gwen held out a talisman on a chain, “Glynda, we name you Guardian, and in recognition of your position, we place this talisman around your neck as a symbol of your calling and status. Wear it for your ongoing protection for as long as you shall live. A Guardian Wizard is a high but often lonely office given only to those of the greatest power and noblest of heart. Wear it with internal pride, but with external modesty, a guardian is an office never sought, only given.”
Gwen placed a talisman with the emblem of a Golden Dragon around her neck.
Songhai Chen then spoke, “This talisman will protect you and give you strength, wisdom, and guidance throughout your long life, may you live in peace with yourself and others, and may the Maker be with you always.”
Songhai Chen then faded back into the background and disappeared.
Everyone was quite emotional about what was said and even the normally hard-faced Marley looked dewy eyed.
Glynda turned to Flintock, “I am so sorry, I didn’t mean…”
“Stop, it was fate, we cannot alter fate or even fight it, only let it be.” Flintock hugged her as well.
They collected the bodies and apparated back to the city, there was no reception committee, no cheering crowds, the whole operation had taken place under the strictest secrecy, not even the council members knew what was happening or when. They would all find out in the morning. But without any details being divulged.