The Bloody Battle
We never stopped moving, all one thousand plus soldiers, all of us armed. Many were mounted on reindeer, and some hit their shields in time with our marching. We made it over the hill and saw that Ur awaited us all.The great armies of the dead were at the ready; dead thralls at the front with the heavily armored husks towards the middle and the great undead monsters at the rear and sides with Necromancers riding them. The taint was so powerful and so thick that you could taste death on your lips. The air was thick now, and no fog of war coated the field, only the dust coming up from the earth of the thralls beginning to come at us. There was thousands of the mindless dead and they formed the biggest front, all with tooth and claw at the ready.
The seafaring people all readied their weapons, the maidens and their people as well. The reindeer cavalry readied to charge, lances and spears at the ready, and the followers of BFEL were all ready with their weapons, him at the ready with his armor. Bain, Chiad, Dastot, Mastacheese, BFEL, Toady and even Tal were at my side as we moved towards the tower. As we went down the slopes, the thralls sped up, coming up to a trot. As they came to the root of the hills, I sounded Dastot’s horn again, and then nothing but a cry of war echoing over the field as we ran down the slopes. Then the sounds of metal and wood meeting flesh and bone sounded as our forces met. The thralls fell quickly under our might, but the oddness was they didn’t rise back up. They STAYED dead. Maybe Ur’s taint wasn’t focused on that? The seafaring people then set the bodies on fire, and more thralls died as arrows of fire ripped apart the sky, torching the fields. I slashed and stabbed, killing all undead before me, as a great storm of metal. We kept on, and we managed to destroy many of the enemies as we moved on ahead. The husks then began advancing as did the undead monsters. Bears, giant praying mantises, and even wolves were there. Arrows of fire kept on, and flames grew higher and higher as the chaos continued.
I heard a shout of war as Mastacheese led the valiant charge into the enemy, cutting down the thralls and breaking off to meet the undead beasts as the husks advanced. No one will sing of this day, and no one will remember this day, for this day we fight to destroy the death lord himself. When we kill the enemy, we free someone, and when we die, we are returned to the curse here. We fight, we kill and we die; none will stop our suicidal attack. The husks made it to us, and then the fighting was halted as the fires began to grow higher. We were stuck where we were and husks clashed their weapons with us. The seafaring people let out great war shouts as they fought the husks and destroyed them quickly as they did out at sea. Axes split skulls, swords split open stomachs, and decayed insides spilled across the fields. A rank stench filled the air as dead began to pile up and burn. Smoke coated the field and my eyes began to burn. I then cut my way through the husks, and the reindeer cavalry returned, trampling over the husks and the monsters. The theadromancers began to come, but they were cut down by arrows and thrown weapons. Some fallen allies got back up, but they were cut down as well. Suddenly, deep roars from deep below were heard, and from the distance, twenty undead dragons came out and flew towards us. More fire engulfed the field, torching everything in their wake.
I could never explain the chaos in that moment and onwards. Undead wurms began to rip apart the earth as they emerged, and a great mass of ravens came out, creating a black cloud over the tower. They then descended upon us, ripping apart our forces as they devoured our flesh. I felt several bits of flesh come off before I unleashed flurry after flurry of spells. Lightning, fire, ice and even the earth itself was under my command. It was too much… I felt the magic consume me like it was trying to do when I was standing on top of Necrothreat. Flames engulfed the fields and the ravens were all gone now. The dragons fell down, but then a great roar was heard as the largest dragon I have ever seen took wing. It was larger then the one I fought days earlier. It then swopped down and began eating the dead. “Nhiddog! The dead eater takes flight!” the seafaring people cried. What were these monsters that they knew names for? Arrows filled the air again and bounced off its scaled flesh. It didn’t breath fire, but it didn’t have to; the dead that dropped from its maw killed enough. It landed and ate more of the dead and began to move towards us. There were little forces on the field of war now, but the wurms and the dragon were destroying us all. I charged towards the dragon, his roars deafening my ears. I cut down many husks and thralls before the dragon was before me. It went to bite down on me but I plunged my blade into his mouth. It glowed brighter then before as it dug into his flesh. His teeth didn’t touch me and his jaw didn’t close. It roared in pain as I began to cut into its body as I did again.
I stopped at its neck and began to cut through his neck and the beast roared. I saw the flames through the walls of flesh, and in seconds, the beast’s head lay down before me. I climbed on top and saw the wurms being slain. I let out a victory shout as the thralls and husks retreated to the tower. The last of the reindeer cavalry charged as did the rest of us. All of us marched to destroy that tower, and then we butchered the thralls and husks as they fled. We ran them down, and then we made our way towards the tower. The leaders were at my side as we were covered in blood, gore and sweat. The last of our armies made our way towards the tower. And that was when the gates of the tower broke open and the greatest legion of dead, threadromancers and undead beasts poured out to greet us. I charged and cut them down, the other heroes fighting by my side did the same. Death was at its strongest here, and the air was so thick with it you could feel it seep into your bones.
I pushed my way in, the others fighting the waves that came down. I made my way up, receiving cuts from the sheer numbers but not even a single more then a scratch. I slaughtered many dead, and even more husks. I went up, floor after floor, and I heard cackling as I cut through the enemy lines. I had to release magic as I got four floors up, quickening my pace. Slashing and stabbing I cut through the enemy dead, and slaughtered them as they dropped. I burned even more dead, several times clearing an entire floor. I killed more and more, and I heard my allies making it up here as well. I knew I had to aid them. I then kept going, floor after floor after floor. I asked myself how many I went up; how many floors had I cleared? How high was I up now? It felt like miles up, as if I made it three times the height of the tower. I made it to a part of the tower where no dead roamed.
The room was strange, holding many symbols of birth. I then saw that there was signs of carvings used for the birth of a boy. I looked closer and saw my name. I ignored it as I went up again. It showed me then more signs about myself, my past life as I trained with a sword back in the first necrothreat. I went up another floor and I saw the horrors I saw at the slaughter at Glidesnarls. Another floor and I saw my first days at Necrothreat with its signs. Was the tower trying to make me loose my mind? I walked up another and saw more of my time at necrothreat. Each time I went up, it showed me more of my past until I made it to the fall, where on the next floor, a man in black and red robes stood before me.
“You’ve come Highmax… You said you would destroy me one day… Perhaps it is today… Perhaps it won’t happen. But even if you kill me, you won’t stop my forces; I’ve already dispatched thousands of threadromancers to the above world, you cannot stop all of them!” Ur laughed.
“Above world?” I asked. “You didn’t figure it out? You are aware of what happens when you hit the cursed ores at its peak? You find a portal to the world of hell. And your worlds hell? Is this world… Yes, your new home is just plastered on top of the old world. Armok thought he trapped me, but he failed! I had many forces survive, and my death in the first years of time gave me power so great, nothing can stop me! Kill me now if you wish Highmax, nothing can save your precious world! The High Lord Threadromancers that lead the thousands of threadromancers will take over for me!” He laughed and threw his head back. I charged and stabbed my blade deep into his heart. I looked into his shocked face as I twisted my blade. “I cannot stop your will… But I will kill you here and now…” I pulled my blade out, and everything went to hell then. The tower swayed, and it began to break apart from what I heard. I ran straight downstairs and heard crashing. I saw an opening rip on the side of the walls and saw that I was higher then I have ever been in my life. I never thought anything could be built so high up, but I kept on. I made it back down to the floor where my birth was symbolized and saw another opening in the wall; the tower literally was collapsing on top of me. I went down another floor and saw a portal opened. I knew I would die if I didn’t go in, but I jumped in anyway, and darkness surrounded me.
I was falling down in the darkness around me, but I then saw a figure in the shadows below me. There stood Ur, in his dark glory, blade in hand. He wasn’t finished with me, I knew that. But I would stop all the madness here. I may not stop the dead plaguing Necrothreat, but at least I can kill their patron god. I landed and my sword was still in my hand. He charged at me, and I blocked, the blow staggering me from how hard the attack landed. I slashed back, his blade blocking with ease. This was indeed the hardest battle I will and have ever faced. His strength and skill was far greater then mine, but I had to defeat him. I began to channel my magic, using it to try and get an upper edge, and then he began ot do the same but almost better. The darkness was all that was there, but we fought on. I slashed, cut and stabbed as he returned in kind with the same, blocks stopping every shot. He cut me a few times but they were minor wounds. I then saw an opening and I took it with my blade. He then broke my sword, and stabbed me with his blade. I dropped down to my knees. I will not die this day! I swung my blade as I jumped up, slashing his throat, blood splattering me. As he stepped back stunned, I plunged my blade into his heart. And then severed his head with magic extending my blade hilt. The symbol of the lesser god glowed now, and an aspect of the deity stood before me.
“I am proud of you Highmax. You finally destroyed the enemy of all gods and the living. I can give you one wish, but you must be careful, and you cannot wish for his will to be undone.” I paused for a second and then came up with my wish: “I wish the dead that were in hell went to their heavens, and all that died in the land of the living would go to their heavens as well. No longer will they suffer the curse of undeath, and no one else will.”
The god nodded and then light surrounded me. I saw Toady One and the others before me. They all beckoned me to join them in the Valhalla that awaited me. But I shook my head at them. “I need to protect the world of the living. Someone has to save the people from the armies of Ur. And someone has to tell them that the death god is slain. I will go; you all enjoy yourselves in the afterlife.” They nodded, and went their way. I turned around and saw the portal to the land of the living. There would be no eternal slumber for me; not as long as Ur’s forces lived. But now that that hell is gone, we can finally die and live our lives without fear of suffering eternal pain. I stepped forward and found myself back in the halls of Necrothreat, where Th4DwArfY1 stood in awe, tears in his eyes and face of shock.
“You’ve come back…” He said. I nodded. “There is work to be done now that Ur lies dead. Come, I’ll tell you all that has happened…”