The Demon Lord And The Truth Revealed

Tara'li

After finalizing the plans we go to the council meeting. It is weird to see the entire council in full armor, but what is even weirder is that both Dwarves and one of the Elves dropped the Rider armor in favor of the armor of their people. So they listened to me... it is strange. Then the leader starts the meeting. 'We got one person here with a request. Council member Tara'li?'

I step forward. 'All of you know we are preparing for one final battle. The Demon Lords palace is ahead. According to Tresh'ta, who will be coming to, the Demon Lord is powerful. I will need help with defeating him and I would like to ask... can you all come with me to face him?'

At first none speak. Then the two dragons nod. One of them speaks. 'Our Riders may not agree but we will come. We will face the Demon Lord.'

One of the Elves and one of the Dwarves look at the dragons and nod. The other Elf and Dwarf grudgingly say they will come. Surprisingly it is the leader and Celeste who don't respond. I turn to them. 'Celeste, leader, without you this battle is hopeless. I can still go to battle but I need you two to support me.'

The leader speaks softly. 'I won't be of much use in this battle, Tara'li. I'm not as powerful as I used to be.'

Celeste speaks to. 'Tara'li, you are the new generation Rider. You are in your prime, ready to strike at a moments notice. The leader and I are old. We are slow and not as battle ready as you are.'

I shake my head. I can't believe this. 'Both of you got powerful magics. Use those! You can still strike just in a different way. I need all of you!'

The leader again speaks softly. 'This battle I will be more of a hold up than a help. You should go without me.'

I break etiquette and walk straight towards the leader, putting a hand on his paw. 'You will only hold us up if you believe it. With both of you and Tera'shi to counter the Demon Lords magic, my squad to fight off the guards... I can fight the Demon Lord. All I need is a gap. A small hole to get a spear or sword through. We can do it if we all work together...'

Around me the council makes agreeing noises. Finally Celeste nods. I will do it. I will face the shadows of my past. I hope you all will forgive what you will learn...'

The leader looks at Celeste with a studying look and then sighs. 'I will face the Demon in my past as well. To get rid of the evil in this world, we not just have to face the Demons on the battlefield but also those in our past. All here will learn parts of our histories that are less than likable. I hope to have the courage to face all of you at the end of this.'

So both Celeste and the leader have something dark laying in their past. I wonder what, and why they don't share it now. Around me I see the other six wonder what as well. I close my eyes. 'The mage shared one piece of wisdom with me years ago that I think applies here. The sands of time keep flowing. As they shaped you in the past, so they will reshape you in the future as it becomes the past. Who we were in the past is not who we are now. People change, and I should know. Look at Tresh'ta. Her past is terrible yet she is now one of us again. Whatever your pasts hold, it matters little to what you are now.'

Celeste speaks softly. 'It does matter to those around us, Tara'li. After this battle you will never see me... or the leader probably, in the same light. Our path to redemption is still not fully walked. It never will be probably. You will know soon enough why. Please, none of you bother yourselves with it for now. Soon enough there will be time to talk it through.'

I nod. 'After this battle I do want to know the full story. Why things came to be the way they are and how you... redeem yourself. You made me curious.'

Celeste nods. 'I will tell you mine when we are alone. I cannot promise if you will know the leaders story as it is his to tell, as is it his secrets to keep. Not even I know his full story, though I do have some leads and guesses to what has happened in the times he and I were apart. After this battle... I will also tell you about your mom, before she became the queen.'

The four siege towers carrying a wooden and metal canopy between them slowly roll towards the gate. Instead of a battering ram the Dwarves beneath it push two carts. One with a big metal cylinder on top that is closed off on one end, the other a with bricks of some sort. When the canopy is in front of the gate the Dwarves load what they call the 'Boompowder" into the cylinder and start piling the stone blocks in a sort of wedge on the open end. Then they push the cylinder against the stone blocks and light the rope sticking from the open end.

A loud bang sounds and the metal thing careens forward into the gate, which shatters on impact. Then the Dwarves rush inside followed by some Orks. As the sounds of battle reach my ears I draw my sword. 'Time to end this! Over the walls!'

My entire squad takes to the air and dives behind the walls. Rashter is carrying Tera'shi, who seems to hate flying even more. Behind the walls Rashter puts Tera'shi down and lets both Tresh'ta and me dismount. As I draw my sword to rush into the battle from behind Tresh'ta stops me. 'That isn't part of the plan. We have to face the Demon Lord.'

I motion my head to the battle. 'King Derkley said we had to clear a path for some help reaching the Demon Lord.'

Two of the squads join in with the fight, which now escalates into a full on battle. Soon we find ourselves getting drawn in as well, unable to open the gates to the palace. With mother and Sha'iva covering my back I fight to survive. Around me my squad fights for all it is worth, but I can see we will be losing this battle soon. Then Rashter jumps forward and blasts the Demons with a flame turning a majority into ash, which is just enough for us to catch a breather and push a path to reunite with the Dwarves. The Dwarves push the strange battering ram back onto its wheels and roll it towards the higher up palace entrance. Then finally the council members land. About time they showed up.

After having done a similar process with the palace gates of bashing it down with the Boompowder my squad and I form a spearhead. Step for step we walk forward, Tera'shi and our dragons right behind us. We are in a well lit corridor leading straight towards what I suspect is the throne room. At the end of the corridor are five steps up, and a red carpet is leading up the stairs from the gate where we entered. The ceiling has silver chandeliers hanging down and the walls are covered with blank red carpets. Before we get far king Derkley stops me. 'Let me Dwarves lead. If yer Demons got any traps ye could lose yer lives.'

Several Dwarves rolling what seems to be weighted barrels in front of them go around us and push the barrels down the path. Slowly we follow them, making sure not to step outside the path where the barrels have rolled. It isn't twenty paces further that I'm glad I listened to the king because one barrel goes straight through the floor and plummets into some kind of trap. The Dwarf pushing the barrel nearly follows it. Thinking quickly I try to grab the wildly flailing Dwarves hand, missing it and instead grabbing his beard. I don't know what this Dwarf used his beard for but it feels like a beer filter in my hand. The Dwarf is yelling loudly. 'NOT THE BEARD!!!'

King Derkley is laughing loudly when he sees it and laughs even harder when he sees the look on my face when I realize how dirty the beard is. Thankfully mother grabs the Dwarves hand and pulls him up the final part. I sigh. 'Now we know they did trap the hall. Thank you king Derkley...'

The king slowly recovers from the laughing. 'Next barrel pusher!'

Another Dwarf with a weighted barrel comes forth and goes around the trap, slowly clearing the path further. Now the other barrel pusher, who saw what nearly happened to his friend and pushes his barrel with a bit more distance, loses his barrel to a trap. Yes this place is definitely trapped. Slowly and carefully we push on, listening for the slightest sounds indicating the activation of a different type of trap but hearing nothing. However we do reach the stairs and the Dwarves can't push the barrels up the stairs it seems. I step forward and using my sword to prod every bit of the ground in front of me before taking a step I slowly climb the stairs. Behind me king Derkley slams his hammer into every step, which tears up the carpet, before following me.

As we all stand before the doors I turn to them one last time. 'This is it. Remember and enclose in your hearts that the Demon Lord will want to sow division. Whatever is said, even if it is the truth, do not let it cause distrust with anyone. After the battle there will be plenty of time to uncover the truth. For now we have to harden ourselves. If we fall today, all of the free people will fall. We have to stand together and trust on each other at least for the duration of the battle.'

Then I open the doors to hear a laughter. A massive fat form is sitting on some huge golden throne in front of stained glass windows. Well stained glass... it is only red and black glass. The red carpet leads straight to the throne and again silver chandeliers lit up the room. As we all walk in with our weapons drawn the big Demon laughs. 'Well, well, well... if it isn't Tresh'ta, her daughter and the entire squad... the entirety of the so called "free races" hypocrisy...'

I put my shield away and grab moms blade. 'Just shut up and fight me already. None will fall today even if it kills me. Your rule is coming to an end now.'

The Demon Lord laughs harder. 'Ah, the fighter. The only one who isn't into any of the hypocrisy. Didn't you ever wonder... how this war came to be? One of your people knows. Besides your mother two of your people served me at one point. Yes... I know all of your secrets...'

I take a step forward. 'You may know the secrets but it will not make us falter. Today you will die.'

The Demon Lord gets up. 'Do you never wonder why none of your Riders dragons ever spit fire? Why they don't seem... fierce? Why they never share their names with anyone? Oh I will tell you. It all has to do with the Gliders, one of whom you got yourself, Elven queenie. All your so called Rider dragons were human and Elves once. You knew of one, but not of all...'

My next step is shaky. Then I steel myself. 'My dragon isn't. Not all rider dragons can be. I've seen them spew flames.'

The Demon Lord takes two steps forward. 'Ah yes, the Wild Dragons. Once sworn never to interfere with the Dragon Guard because they knew of the deception. Many have fallen. At least their children are real dragons and not fake humans with scales and wings they don't own themselves. It disgusts me they call themselves dragons.'

Rashter interferes my thoughts. 'He is right about it. However, we wild dragons can set things right. Let him talk for all he wants, because nothing he says has an impact on the future.'

I speak back to the others. 'It is the truth, but not the full truth. Do not falter. Stick to the plan.'

The Demon Lord summons a great sword with many spikes. As he leans on it he keeps going. 'Your little plan where you trust all the people you brought will do their parts? Have you never checked what they all are? Your Dwarven King friend for example. A half blood bastard son of a king long robbed from his royalty. Only king because he rules with an iron hand. So much so his own kin ran away from his kingdom. Yes, your two squamate friends are the kings sons. Fitting, isn't it? The sons of the Dwarven king in the same squad as the daughter of the old Elven queen?'

Oruk grabs his hammer and wants to charge in. I hold my sword out. 'Do not let anger reign, Oruk. We need to do this together.'

The Demon Lord cackles and continues talking. 'Then your Lamia friends. People so poisonous their own race is glad they are gone. Your centaurs... all of them former Elves. They gave up all they were to become more in tune with magic, to the point where they caused a Demon invasion in their precious home. Did you never ask your mother why they were banished?'

For a moment I look back at Tera'shi who seems to be crying. Then I turn to the Demon Lord. Come on, where is the diversion... The Demon Lord raises his sword to me now. 'And then your own Elves. Your own people. Never did you know they tried to become so tuned in with the nature around them they poison not just the forest they live in but themselves as well. The Emerald color isn't because the forest is healthy, but because the forest is oversaturated from magic. You Elves are all killing it.'

I grit my teeth and raise both blades. I will not falter. Not now. I will lead this charge. However the Demon Lord isn't done yet. 'And then one other thing, to crown all this. Your two fake dragons from your petty council. Your oh so loved Celeste, who once was a Commander under me. Some joined me because they had broken hearts or because they saw the world as it is. But she joined me because she wanted to grow in power. She just wanted to become the most powerful mage there was.'

I look at Celeste in shock. Celeste seems saddened but as she takes a couple of deep breaths she growls. 'And you betrayed me. You said you would make me more powerful than anyone else. But you had lied. I discovered your lie and tore my black heart out. True power isn't in conquering people, but in helping people. All you did was abuse my ignorance of my younger years.'

The Demon king cackles. 'Oh, you were so young and faithful. You could have become my bride. A demoness queen eventually. But you faltered in your path. And then your big friend. The no name leader. The one who unleashed the Demon invasion initially and joined me only shortly before you did. Yes, he is the cause we are all here today. He was messing with stuff he should never have messed with. All the deaths are on him. He may have killed himself to attempt redemption but his past will always haunt him. That I will make sure.'

Shock hits me. The leader is the one who caused the Demon invasion? How... and why did he do it? I shake my head. No questions now. Later. Then the arrow impacts the Demon Lord. I raise both swords. 'NOW!'

Another arrow hits the Demon Lord on which he screams and lashes out with the sword. Before anyone gets hurt I block it with both swords. The impact jars my arms but I manage to hold. Oruk and Noruk run past me and both attack one leg, though I can already see they don't hurt him. I jump up and run towards his arm on the blade. Behind me Sha'iva and Ra'iki took out their bows and shoot at the Demon Lords face. Good job guys. I slam both swords into the Demon Lords hand, which once again causes him to scream and he trashes his arm after dropping his sword. The ride is so rough it causes my grip to falter on my own sword but I hold on to moms sword with all my might. With one mighty swing the sword gets dislodged and he sends me flying.

By spreading my wings I manage not to crash into a black stone pillar but that is the end of my luck. I land right on the leaders head. He growls loudly at me. 'Get off now or I'm going to bite you into two.'

I jump off and grab my spear to replace my missing sword in my left hand. Then I charge in, hearing most of my squad following me. I jump with my spear raised above my shoulder and moms sword raised to strike. The Demon Lord responds by trying to bash me out of the air. By flapping my wings hard I gain just enough altitude to mis him, sadly I do overshoot him now. I circle around and throw the spear at his neck, diving in after it. Moms sword makes a cut in the Demon Lords neck, however undeep it may be. Below me Tresh'ta targets the big belly of the Demon Lord, who bellows it out in pain. As I grab my spear he hits me off, a loud snapping noice heard as he does it. I circle around and land.

Pain. My chest hurts so much where I got hit. I feel where he hit me and once again thank the Glider inwardly as I feel it is the outer bone armor that snapped. The Glider saved my life twice now. Then I notice one small spike falling down. One of the bone spikes on my back also snapped. Ok, I have to be way more careful. Another hit like that and I have no armor left. I grab my spear tightly and look around, seeing the leader finally starting to move. He brushes his tail in a circle on the floor, runes appearing where his tail moves. Finally with the rune circle in place he starts chanting, followed by Tera'shi and Celeste. The other dragons are just standing like frozen looking at their Riders fight, apparently either in shock about their origins or fearful of what the reveal of their origins means to their future.

Then I get an idea. This Demon is hidden in the darkness for a reason. It must hate white light to live in such a black room. I raise moms sword. 'Mom, if you are there, guide my sword please. Help me cleanse this Demon in your light.'

I don't get an answer but my mind does clear up and finally I realize I've been thick headed. 'Derkley! Cross weapons!'

We run towards each other with the Demon Lord distracted by both the magic battle and the normal battle he is engaged with. As we reach each other we cross our weapons like in his throne room. Like before a bright white light gets emitted from both weapons. I turn to him. 'That's it! These two weapons can hurt him! Only we can kill him!'

We both charge in, he on the ground and I in the air. As he slams his big hammer into the kneecap of the Demon Lord he roars in pain and falls down upon his knees. Then I dive in sword first, stabbing him in the shoulder. To my surprise and shock moms sword goes through the shoulder leaving a clean cut. The sword now keeps glowing white. This is why mom left me the sword. The Demon Lord turns his big, horned head towards me. I raise the sword once more. 'For my mother.'

Then I stab him between the eyes. The Demon Lord roars one last time, the roar fading into nothing as he drops down. With much effort I pull moms sword free and then my own sword from the cut off arm. The dragons of my squad seem to return to normal. I speak loud and clearly. 'Well done all. We defeated the Demon Lord. The land is cleansed.'

The leader steps up. 'Not yet. There is one last thing to do. One thing to finally redeem myself. The Demon portal has to be closed.'

He walks over to the throne and starts pushing against it. It isn't until Rashter starts helping that the throne slides aside to show some black arch with runes carved into it. The leader jumps down and grabs both sides. I walk over. 'Leader... what if this will kill you?'

The leader looks up. 'It will kill me. Or at least, it will kill my body. However it will redeem my soul so I can return once more. How and where, I do not know. But I will return if I do this. Now go, all of you. Don't get caught in the implosion.'

We all run out of there as we hear the leader strain and then a booming noice...

Later in the evening when everyone who survived returned to camp, Celeste walks over to me. 'I guess it is time to explain myself. How I fell and... tore my own black heart out.'

I look at the few remains of the palace and wall that surrounded it. 'What does it matter now? Many people died and you did what you had to do to fix your past...'

Celeste puts her tail around me. 'My history, and that of the leader, are intertwined. We both were mages. He was a human, I was an Elf. That palace... is was where he studied his magic. Back in those days Demons were but a legend. He had found an ancient tome which contained a summoning ritual for a Demon. He used it, not reading carefully that he needed a specific type of shielding. The Demon he summoned, the one you killed with your mothers sword, broke free and right away corrupted him. In those days he and I were but friends but when I came over he... told me how powerful I could become. We both fell for the trap.

Years later while practicing my magic I finally realized how much more effort it costs me to do magic if I'm corrupted by a Demon. I saw the evil I did and I carved a hole in my chest in front of a mirror to end it there. Then I saw the black lines... and found the Demon heart. I tore it out of my body. Using my magic I fought my way out of the palace.'

I lower my head. 'You redeemed yourself from his influences. You were stronger than anyone...'

She shakes her head. 'No. One is stronger. The leader. He was sent to hunt me but when he saw me, when we came face to face... he stuck his sword in his own stomach. It turns out he got the order from the Demon Lord to kill me or die trying and he preferred to die. After that we both ran away. We ended up in the mountains where you got your Glider and both got our own. The leader was the first to discover how to become a full on dragon with it, soon teaching me though I discovered how to prevent some issues he had.. Together we created the Dragon Riders with the ideal to fight the Demons...'

As she speaks not just my squad but everyone who was there gathers around. Then Rashter speaks. 'I think you should explain about the two types of dragon as some of the younglings here don't even know about their... parentage.'

Celeste turns around. 'So... when we started the Dragon Riders, the leader and I approached most of the Wild Dragons to ask if they wished to join us. Only one ever agreed. In response we went out and searched for those who dreamt of our wings. We found them and offered them the chance to become one of us, if they in turn became dragons for Riders. Everyone who agreed was taken to the mountains to get their own Gliders and then with the aid of the leader turned into a full dragon. Well, not full... they had short lives. Their lifespan was still humanoid. Only the kids of the original dragons, and then their kids... only those were growing older and older. With time the mixing of the bloodlines and the occasional Wild Dragons blood mixing in made the Rider Dragons more and more like real dragons instead of people with Gliders. All of you, all you dragons... are but one generation away from becoming full blood dragons with fire.'

It remains silent. Rashter is the first to speak. 'What she means with that is: with a Wild Dragons help you all can become full bloods. Now, to become a full blood you have to loose your... secrecy around your names. It was only put in place to hide the first generations anyway. I will take the lead as one of the Wild Dragons. My name is Rashter, dragon of queen Tara'li.'

He rises and spreads his wings to show his fiery looks. For a moment I look at him but then I think about something. I lower myself onto the grass and close my eyes. As I sense all around me I tune in on the tiniest consciousness. At first it just makes me confused but then when I compare Rashter with the others I finally see clearly. After returning to myself I get up. 'Rashter, you aren't the only full blood here. There are two more. Those two.'

I point at Sha'iva's dragon and Sha'nok's dragon. Both look confused at each other and then at me. Neither dares speak until king Derkley speaks. 'Many have been lied to, wether or not consciously. The truth came forth and now all know what truly happened in all yer kingdoms. Me kingdom will once again open for yer trade. All trade, including yer Riders. With the war now over, yer Riders should guard the peace. Let all travel to Celaris to finalize the details.'