A Tale of Old: Part Three

Panic flooded through the once quiet and peaceful forest, creatures crying out in fear and trying to run away from the mass that was approaching. Taron stood by the lake, fearful eyes watching the army approach, hoping that they would turn back. They did not. On they came, like a violent storm, ready to destroy anything that opposed it with a deadly blow. The Uni could sense that this was evil, he could sense that they intended to no good. The other guardians were in the same state, shocked at the thought of their home would be destroyed, that it would be ruined. Taron saw that they were coming closer to the forest every passing second, closer to destroying the beautiful forest. He did not know why the army wanted to do this, but he also knew that he couldn't let his home be destroyed. Taron turned toward the other guardians.

      "Guardians, now is the time that we must fight. Now is the time we must defend our home and prove our duty as guardians of this ancient forest. We may die, but a guardian must give their life if it means saving this precious land. If some of us survive, our stories will be carried on by our descendants, and we will not be forgotten. If we die, we shall go down with honor."

      The guardians feared death, but they knew they must fight.

      ~~~

      Saran could see that they were almost there, that revenge was only a few feet away.

      "Onward to victory!" he shouted, galloping down the path that lead to the forest. The troops let out a war cry and followed the Lupe, ready to fight to the death.

      ~~~

      Taran could hear the drumming of hooves and the pounding of feet as he watched Saran's large army approach.

      "Guardians, we must protect this land, now!" he cried, racing off toward the army, heart beating loudly in his chest. The other guardians followed, hoping that they would win. Each knew that they might not return from this war between them and the army that was quickly approaching.

      Dranes leaped on one of the soldiers, who cried out in pain as the Kougra's claws dug into his back. He laid still, not moving. None of the guardians wanted to kill, but they had to defend the land. The shadow Kougra let out a roar, striking fear in the hearts of the soldiers, who pulled out their weapons and tried to defeat the Kougra, but he easily knocked the swords out of their paws.

      Rilan flew in the air, blowing wind at the soldiers, causing them to fall on the ground. Erina lashed out with her strong tail and bit with her sharp teeth, injuring some of the soldiers. The other guardians fought bravely, trying their hardest to defeat the army with what they had. Sometimes they were wounded, but fought on, despite the intense pain that they felt. Dranes's fur was stained, showing that the he had been hit a lot of times by the sharp swords. Soldiers fell and the fight grew more serious as hours passed. All of the guardians had been injured, and the winced in pain.

      "Why did it have to come to this?" Erina asked outloud. Never before had she seen a war like this. There was too much fighting, but she was a guardian and had to fight. It was her duty to protect and guard the creatures and the forest, like all the other guardians. She could see Taron and Dranes fighting off the rest of the soldiers together. The guardian of light and the guardian of darkness had joined to fight the evil, to protect the land. Taron's pure white fur was now stained. The Uni stood beside the guardian of darkness, breathing heavily. He had never been this close to Dranes before. Usually the Kougra disliked him, but it seemed that he understood that they had to work together to defeat the true enemy.

      A soldier charged at Taron, and received a heavy blow from the Uni's horn, making him fly across the ground and lay there. Another attempted to attack Dranes, but was swiped away with the Kougra's paw.

      "Very good. You have managed to defeat my soldiers, but you will fall, guardians,"

      Taron and Dranes turned, facing a red Lupe, bearing a few cuts that he had gotten from some of the guardians.

      "What do you want?! Why did you attack this forest?! We did nothing to you!" shouted the Uni. The Lupe's eyes narrowed.

      "You don't remember, do you?" Taron was confused. What did this Lupe mean?

      "You don't remember killing my father?!" screamed Saran, clenching his blade in his paw. Taron never remembered killing a Lupe before. Then it came to him. He remembered when he was only a few years old.....

      Swords clashed against the guardians that fought against the army, trying to save the land which they were to protect. One battle in particular was going on between a Lupe and a Uni, with another Uni, smaller than the other one, watching from behind a tree. The fire Lupe tripped over the ledge of the cliff, hanging on with one paw.

      "I will help you. Get on my back," said the large Uni, stepping toward the Lupe.

      "Never! I would rather die than be saved by you!" spat the Lupe. Then the part of the cliff started to crumble, and the Lupe fell down. The Uni tried to save him, but it was too late. The Lupe had already fallen.......

      "I did not kill your father!" shouted Taron.

      "Lies guardian, lies!" Saran shouted back, swinging his sword at the Uni. Taron avoided the first swing, but then the king made another attempt to kill the guardian of light. A black blur rushed by and roared in pain, holding his side.

      "Dranes!" screamed Taron, looking at his friend. The guardian of darkness stared at Taron, a softened expression on his face.

      "It is my time to go, my friend," whispered Dranes falling to the ground, no longer living. Taron's face showed sorrow, then anger at the death of his friend.

      "You have killed my friend, Lupe! I shall not let him die in vain!" Taron exclaimed, charging toward the king. Saran raised his sword in front him to block the attack, sparks jumping out of the blade as the Uni's horn collide. He tried again, this time making the king drop his sword and fall of his steed. Taron stepped over him, horn pointed down at the Lupe's chest.

      "Leave," whispered the Uni, anger burning in his eyes. The king did not obey, trying to kill the Uni, although he had no weapon to attack with. Taron struck the king with his horn, and that was the end. Two soldiers that had survived gazed up. They were free. Shatar and Ranar were no longer under Saran's control, but they looked at what lay before them. Bodies lied on the ground, splayed out. They felt pity for their companions that had died.

      ~~~

      Taron stood mournfully over the pit in which Dranes had been buried. A large beautiful tree stood over the grave, watching over it as if to keep it from being disturbed. A tear slid down the Uni's cheek, and dropped on the ground. Why did he have to die? he thought. He had only then discovered the bond between him and the shadow Kougra, then he had lost it. Erina silently walked over to him, and placed a claw on his shoulder.

      "It's alright. He lies in peace now," she said, staring at the grave. She missed Dranes too, even though the might have not gotten along well. The Krawk saw a poem engraved on a flat rock.

      Light and darkness had combined

      To save the forest of ancient past,

      Although in precious time,

      One life did not last.

      Sword and claw clashed and rang

      And the song of war was sung

      About one who made the sacrifice

      To have the other see the sun.

      Strong was the bond between them,

      Strong was the undying friendship that grew.

      Although most thought it to be unlikely,

      The two soon found out and knew

      That the strongest thing they had

      Was the friendship they had started anew.

      When the other's time had come

      And sharp sword had pierced his side,

      He knew that he had done the right thing

      To let his friend abide.

      In precious memory may he rest,

      And may his soul fly,

      To soar through the pure white clouds

      That hang in the light blue sky.

      "Why did he have to die, Erina? Why?" asked the Uni, tears forming in his eyes.

      "He died for you, Taron. He died to save you," she whispered. The other guardians watched silently, along with Shatar and Ranar, who were allowed to live in the forest, along with the guardians. If you looked close enough, you might have been able to see a shadow Kougra, standing next to the Uni.......

      "That is the story. Now you know the ancient tale of the guardians," said the yellow Gelert, who sat on the ground, surrounded by six pets.

      "Did that really happen, Ranar?" asked a shadow Kougra, looking up at the Gelert with wondering eyes.

      "Yes, Dranen, that did happen," replied the old Gelert, patting the shadow Kougra on his head.

The End

That's the last part. If this got into the Neopian Times, I'm giving Adam free asparagus...., if he hasn't gotten over it already. Thanks for reading this. I would greatly appreciate any comments! This series was inspired by someone on the RP boards that I did a Fantasy RP with. I thank that person.