Tales From Number Five: Legend of the Ghostkersword - The End

     "My Lord, the Seer would like to see you," one of his guards said.

     The Seer was a fortuneteller who would often make predictions about the future. Many thought she was just an erratic old Witch who should probably be given a cell next to Number Five's, but Lord Darigan trusted her ability to some extent.

     "Send her in," Lord Darigan said. Perhaps, just maybe, she had some information on that sword which had once ruined all for him.

     He waited, and then within a few minutes the old Zafara came in. She was wearing a cloak that was probably older than Queen Fyora, and some old robes. This did not concern Lord Darigan; it wasn't much different from what most people in the Darigan Citadel wore.

     "My Lord, I saw the most strange thing," the Zafara said.

     "Did it happen to involve a sword?" Lord Darigan asked. If it didn't, he probably wouldn't waste any more time.

     However, hearing this, the Zafara's eyes widened. "Indeed it did, and it was no ordinary blade, my Lord. It was a sword that few have ever seen. And guess who was wielding it? A Korbat."

     Lord Darigan had been listening intently, and then he said, "Thank you. You have done well. You are excused." The Seer quickly shuffled out of the room. When he was alone, Lord Darigan was lost in his trail of thoughts once more.

     Soon, he was going to have to face the sword. He had witnessed its unbelievable strength before, and now was the time to face it once more. It would be different this time. He had his weapon, hidden in a drawer that would now have to be opened. But that would not be enough.

     Lost in thought for a while, the idea struck him. He immediately called for one of his guards, and said he wanted something from the Citadel's potion reserves.

      * * * *

     Barallus had been flying over the clouds. At first, he enjoyed it, but quickly became bored of floating around with no destination in mind. He had to land.

     No sooner did the thought come to him than the Ghostkersword started going towards the ground. It finally came to a halt.

     Barallus's feet touched the ground. He looked around, and was surprised. It was his house. Yup, there was that crack he had made while trying to land, and was one of the reminders he had to never take off. How things had changed.

     It took him a moment to steady himself. After that, the first thing that he did was look at the sword. Even though Barallus was no warrior, he could tell that even a King would have trouble finding a sword as magnificent as this one.

     He had absolutely no idea what it was, though, or why it had helped him. No sooner had he thought that, that the blade began giving him thoughts, memories to explain what it was. It went on for over a minute.

     So, now Barallus had the most powerful sword in the world. If only his parents could see him now. Then, a new feeling emerged, perhaps due to the Ghostkersword. It was anger. He had gone to King Skarl for help. He had ordered his guards to attack him. He remembered what Lord Rikth had done to him.

     It infuriated him, made him mad. King Skarl had to be overthrown. Instead, there would be a better king, one who didn't spend all of his time listening to jokes. One that would do his duty.

     He would overthrow Meridell using the Ghostkersword.

     But still, Meridell was an entire kingdom. Just overthrowing the King was no guarantee of power. Then, his eyes found the Darigan Citadel. It was merely a black dot from his village, but Barallus had always known what it was. A smile formed on his lips.

     He was going to go to the Citadel, put Lord Darigan under a spell, and then force him to attack Meridell. Then, he would get his revenge.

     Then, he didn't wish, rather he ordered his sword to take him there. It was all that it was hoping for, an order from its true master. It took off, dragging Barallus behind.

     But no, Barallus thought. He wouldn't carry that name anymore. He would need a new one, one that inspired power. He immediately thought about his ancestors, and the answer came to him. Monk. Sunshine Monk, that would be his new title.

     And so, Sunshine Monk zoomed towards the Citadel.

      * * * *

     Lord Darigan could truly feel it. An immense power was making its way to the Citadel, all in the form of a blade. But no matter, he had opened his secret drawer. The weapon was now in his hands. He was going to call another one of his guards, when the attendant came back.

     "Sir, this is what you ordered for." The attendant gave Lord Darigan a small bottle.

     He smiled and said, "Yes, this is exactly what I wanted. Now, I want you to obey my orders closely." The attendant got a bit confused at what he was being asked to do, but didn't dare question Lord Darigan.

      * * * *

     Sunshine Monk made his way towards the Citadel. He could feel his bond with the Ghostkersword getting stronger, and with it he grew more powerful as well. It barely took a few minutes to reach the Citadel, and he walked in.

     Surprisingly, the front room was empty. Then, a voice from behind Sunshine Monk spoke.

     "Yes, I've long been expecting you." He whirled around and saw Lord Darigan. Good, that would make his task much easier.

     Sunshine Monk pointed the Ghostkersword at Lord Darigan, and willed it to place an enchantment on him. To his surprise, nothing happened. Lord Darigan laughed.

     "That blade may be powerful, but magic isn't its strong point. Magic is MY strong point."

     So, Lord Darigan was immune. But, if the Ghostkersword knocked him out, he could place the enchantment with ease. He swung the Ghostkersword, causing a massive gust of wind.

     The moment, however, that it reached Lord Darigan, it swirled around him and then faded. A bigger smile was on Lord Darigan's face.

     "Ah, that sword bested me once, but not twice." He revealed his hand, and Sunshine Monk saw a ring on it. "This is called a Tornado Ring. I kept it once I found it; I knew it would help shield me against your sword. The Ghostkersword is very air heavy. Various tales about it told me that," Lord Darigan explained.

     This didn't discourage Sunshine Monk a bit. He jumped up and then swung the Ghostkersword at Lord Darigan. Even though it was mostly wind-based, it was not completely dependent on wind, and was still greater than any mundane sword.

     Lord Darigan managed to block the blow with his sword, but the impact nearly jarred his arm. As he thought, the blade was still powerful. So, he put his fingers in his mouth and whistled.

     Then, twenty Darigan Pteris and fifteen Darigan Eyries immediately entered the room. They were all wearing heavy armour.

     "Another thing. My researches revealed that some species have an innate resistance to some kinds of attacks. Pteris and Eyries proved to be the most efficient of all of them," Lord Darigan said. "Now, attack him!" he ordered his guards.

     All of the Eyries and Pteris went to the air. Big mistake. The Tornado Ring could only shield Lord Darigan from a portion of the Ghostkersword. Even though they were slightly resistant, they were in the air, and Sunshine Monk was able to knock them back with ease.

     And so, all of them battled. No matter how much the others tried, they couldn't even touch Sunshine Monk, who kept sending powerful blasts of air at them. They were only partially resistant, not immune to his attacks.

     Lord Darigan was still fighting. None of the spells he had tried seemed to have any effect; they either missed or didn't work at all.

     Then, Sunshine Monk took advantage of an opening that had appeared and went to stab Lord Darigan. He managed to put up his shield just in time, and the Ghostkersword became embedded in it.

     Taking advantage of this, one soldier flew at him, claws open. Sunshine Monk merely kicked him, sending him flying back. While he wasn't looking, though, Lord Darigan uncorked his bottle, and then released the Ghostkersword from his shield by magic. He had done it. He corked the bottle again, and stood still. If his plan worked, if his theory was correct.

     Nothing seemed to have happened to Sunshine Monk. He merely lifted his sword again, and raised it. Then, his vision began to blur. Suddenly, he felt extremely drowsy. Then, he collapsed. Lord Darigan laughed.

     "I knew the Ghostkersword would transfer power between it and its owner. So, I poured some of this Drowsiness Potion on it, while it was stuck in my sword. It was a special kind, one that would be easily absorbed by metal, with the help of my magic. So, the effect of the potion was transferred to you." And so, Sunshine Monk fell to the ground.

     "Well, that's it," Number Five said.

     "Huh?" Meekel asked.

     "That's the whole story. You see, Lord Darigan couldn't execute Barallus, otherwise the Ghostkersword would be destroyed. So, he kept him prisoner, and then made copies from the original. They're all equally powerful, but will be destroyed if Barallus dies.

     "Which is why, the Ghostkersword is much less powerful than before. As its owner had been weakened, so has it; otherwise it would still be the most powerful sword," Number Five finished.

     Meekel backed away. Not a single word the Lupe had said could be true. It couldn't be. But, as he turned away, he saw some lines on Barallus' left ear. Almost as if a Kougra had clawed him there.

The End