The LupeGelert Stone II: Part Two

by kirinki

The Demise

Mystic beat her blue wings powerfully as she and her friends wove in and out through the puffy white clouds, opening their mouths to suck in the cotton-candy like particles. It was like paradise. For a moment, she forgot why they needed to be there and flew gracefully upwards, then dove down into a cloud and sat there for a while.

"Hey, Mystic! Let's race!" Moonlight landed beside her.

"OK! All the way to that group of clouds shaped like a group of flying Scorchios! One, two, three, GO!" They took off into the air, beating their wings fast and strong. RedFlame joined in and they flew all the way to the 'cloud'. When they got there, they found out they were REAL cloud-painted Scorchios.

"Hi, mates! The name's CloudSkimmer and here's my gang. Nice weather, eh?" The leader greeted them cheerily.

"Hi! We're on a quest! Do you want to come?" Mystic asked, somewhat unsurprised.

"Well, sure! I'd be glad to aid you. Scorchio Patrol, air navigators and wing-fighters at your service!" The comical Scorchio grinned and gestured to his friends to follow.

The six flew and finally, with CloudSkimmer's navigation skills, they reached the Dark Cavern. It was full of scrap metal and jewels. Akkor crept in followed by RedFlame, Moonlight, Mystic, Walzak and bringing up the rear, CloudSkimmer. Suddenly, red eyes appeared all around her. Out came 200 or more Black Lupes, led by the Assassin. He was smiling evilly, holding his sword in his teeth, daggers at hand. His warriors held simple weapons: spears, daggers, rusty blades, slings, rocks, one even had a sack full of frozen snowballs.

"LET'S GET THEM!!!" The Black Lupes shouted in a frenzied battle cry.

"TROPICAAAAAAAA!" Walzak and the Scorchio Patrol yelled.

"SALAMANDASTRON!" Akkor shouted.

"LUPEGELERRRRRTS!" Mystic, Moonlight and RedFlame growled. The battle raged as they fought, tooth and claw, fangs and paw. Weapons thrust into bodies, weapons snapped, weapons stained with blood. The Questers were winning. Akkor fired double laser beams at the Black Lupes while flying, CloudSkimmer and his gang slapped one Black Lupe after another with their powerful wings, RedFlame powerfully swung his sword into the Black Ones, Mystic used her wand, Walzak chanted spells that sent enemies flying and Moonlight used her Moon Charm to attack and defend.

The Black Lupes fought in a frenzy, swinging,stabbing or striking with their weapons at any moving thing. The Assassin slowly made his way to Akkor, who was trying to hold off 50 or so Black Lupes by firing lasers at them. He raised his tail and struck down on the surprised and terrified Aisha's neck. Her wide-open eyes clouded over with the mist of demise as she fell to the ground, a a fatal cut on her neck. The Assassin took the blasters off her wings and marched off with his troops.

"Never, ever, mess with the Assassin." He growled, touching his dead eye, which Akkor had caused so much pain too.

"Revenge is sweet, eh, master?" Threeclaws, one of his soldiers, asked him.

"Yes, yes. So it is." The Assassin smiled evilly.

Threeclaws cringed. Whenever his master smiled, the Assassin would get more evil.

The five friends wept as they knelt beside the fallen Akkor. " Why, my friend, why did it have to be you?" Walzak sobbed as he covered up the sickly hole with a leaf.

What was left of the Scorchio gang dug holes for the burial of their fallen friends. They beat their wings while lowering Akkor into the pit. RedFlame, Moonlight and Mystic followed the LupeGelert tradition of covering the forever sleeping with giant Zeeana leaves while Walzak and the Scorchios placed little gifts and jewels from the cavern wall upon the leaves. The Scorchio Patrol gently covered up the hole with dirt and melted a piece of scrap metal with their fire breath to seal the grave. CloudSkimmer blew sparks to engrave the word "Akkor" into the metal. He also engraved this:

Here, our fallen friend lies, slaughtered by Evil Lupes. She will always have a place in our hearts and souls, forever guarding us. This was Akkor, the brave Aisha who risked her life to save us all, who used magic to defend us and who helped us to understand war.

The other Scorchios buried their fallen, engraving each name into the metal cover. They scornfully burned the bodies of the Black Lupes with the help of RedFlame's Fireball.

"Is this how this quest will end? Demise and destruction?" Walzak wondered.

"It cannot be," RedFlame replied.

To be continued...