Imperials Vs. Sentinels- Verana's fate

Part 9- The empire's last stand

Emperor shadow brought his greatsword above his head, bringing it down hard on Xavier, who blocked it with his shield. The force of the blow made him stumble however. Xavier was having trouble blocking such a heavy weapon, and the power of the emperor's blows didn't make it any easier. He had an idea of what to do, however. His training had made him wiser over the years, and he had a plan that was almost guaranteed to work.
"If you won't fight back, you will die."
The emperor said to him. The emperor swung at him again, with Xavier simply blocking it. He knew what he had to do- he just needed more time.

After a few minutes, he found an opportunity. He had a chance, and he took it. His initial plan was to block the emperor's attacks until he began to tire, which was definitely happening. Taking the chance, he shield bashed him, sending him stumbling backward before striking at him. The emperor just managed to block while regaining his balance however. Xavier wasn't finished- he struck again, but the emperor blocked him. Finally, General Xavier managed to hit the emperor with a strike he failed to anticipate. It wasn't a bad cut, but it was Xavier who drew blood first. The emperor clutched the side that he struck, seeing the blood. Doing so filled him with anger, giving him a burst of energy. He struck at the General repeatedly, getting blocked every time. With one last hit, he struck the General's shield with so much force that it sent Xavier falling backward with a dent in his shield. Xavier was shocked, but he got up and continued to fight.

"You cannot defeat me, young one. You are too weak- I will cut you down where you stand."
"Stop talking about it and do it then, you coward."
He struck his shield again.
"You've been residing here while your troops have died for you. You simply cast them out as expendable lives for your own selfish desires. You were never fit to rule."
Xavier said, looking him dead in the eye.
"Don't lecture me, general. You're simply wasting your breath. We'll see what your army thinks of you when I take your life right here. There's no escaping your fate, and yours has brought you here, to be executed."
The emperor replied. After saying this, the emperor hit him with a strike he wasn't able to block across his left side, causing him to cry out in pain and fall to one knee. The emperor struck him again, being blocked, but sending him tumbling backward again.

Suddenly, there was a loud booming sound as the castle began to shake and fragments of rock fell from the ceiling. For a moment, the emperor and Xavier stopped battling and looked around. The sentinel catapults had moved within range of the castle and were firing upon it to bring it down.
"Your castle is about to fall..."
Xavier said.
"Shortly after you."
The emperor was filled with anger as they continued to battle.

Xavier found himself being pushed backward as they fought, being pressed against a wall. He found an opening, ducking under the emperor's sword and regaining a better fighting position. As they fought, their metal continued to ring as they collided with each other's weapons.

As the two battled in front of the window of the emperor's castle, a catapult rock smashed through it, sending glass flying toward the two. Xavier managed to block most of it with his shield and the emperor protected himself with his greatsword. Despite their best efforts, both were hit with shards of glass as Xavier was hit in the leg and the emperor took a few to the arm. Both grunted in pain as the pieces of glass embedded themselves in their flesh.
Xavier recovered first and began to run, needing time to regain his composure. The emperor pursued him, and Xavier stopped and turned around in a long hallway. He began to walk backwards, waiting for the emperor to catch up. They immediately got into fighting again, but as the emperor swung at him, Xavier dodged it, wrapped the arm holding his shield around his legs, lifted him up and charged forward into a wall, making the emperor drop his weapon. He then used the hilt of his sword to stun the emperor. The emperor was stunned and unarmed, and just as Xavier went to deal the killing blow, a catapult rock sent debris from right behind Xavier toward him, not only knocking him off balance but also pinning him under bricks and wooden beams. He lay trapped, grunting in pain and trying to move the rubble pinning him down. His shield was caught under the rubble, his arm still in it. Using his free hand, he tried to move brick after brick off of him. The emperor recovered from the stunning effect, got up and picked up his sword, ready to finish the general.
"Young fool... you should have known it would come to this."
He slashed his free arm, causing him to cry out in pain.
"You were never a match for me... I already knew it would end this way."
He watched as the general grunted in pain and struggled to get up.
"Only at the end do you understand..."
He got down to Xavier's level, looking him dead in the eye.
"You have payed the price for your lack of vision."
He cut his chest, causing the general to cry out in pain again. The emperor stood tall above him.
"And now, young general... you will die."
The emperor smiled evilly as he brought his sword above his head. He brought it down, only to be met with another blade. The emperor was shocked. He looked to see the owner of the blade, looking down on none other than Luca.
"Luca... You came for me?"
Xavier asked.
"Of course. No Pokemon left behind."
He replied, turning to the emperor.
"You're finished, emperor shadow. Give it up."
The emperor was burning up in anger.
"I will not yield to you. I will destroy you all!"
He began to battle with Luca, but it was clear Luca was struggling. He simply wasn't strong enough to keep up with the hate filled emperor. The emperor savagely struck him repeatedly, Luca struggling to keep up. With incredible speed, he emperor knocked him off balance, hit him with the hilt of his sword an struck him hard, causing Luca to fall. Xavier saw all of it. Suddenly, he threw the rubble aside, standing stronger than before. Both the emperor and General were breathing heavily, but they began to battle again nonetheless. The general was savagely swinging at the emperor, filled with anger and vengeance. With swift speed, the general dodged the emperor's blow and swung at the emperor's arm, cutting his claw clean off. The emperor dropped to his knees, looking shocked, defeated and in a lot of pain at his claw and the sword at his side. The general picked up his greatsword and looked down at him, ready to deliver the blow to end the war.
"Any last words, villain?"
He asked the emperor. Forgetting the pain, he looked up at him with narrow eyes.
"To hell with you."
"Hmph..."
The general replied.
"You first."
With that, the general impaled the emperor with his own greatsword, driving the blade right through him. The emperor let out a gasp as the blade impaled him, letting out a long, quiet groan as his life force slowly drained from his body before his eyes rolled back into his head. General Xavier pulled out the blade from his body, causing the emperor's eyes to slide shut and his body to fall forward as blood began to drain from his body. With that, General Xavier stood above the emperor who lay in a pool of his own blood, dead. The empire had been defeated, and the war was over.

Xavier got down to the emperor's level, feeling as though he had to say something before leaving. Despite everything he had said and done, he still wasn't able to kill without feeling a small amount of remorse, even for someone as villainous as the emperor.
"I'm sorry it had to end this way."
He said solemnly before getting up and walking to Luca.
"Hey, are you alright?"
He asked, helping him up.
"Yeah, I'm okay. I'll survive."
Luca replied. At that moment, Ryan and Zap ran into the room.
"Where's the emperor?!"
Ryan demanded.
"Over there."
Xavier pointed to his motionless body.
"Damn- I wanted to kill him!"
Ryan sighed.
"The point is, the war is over. We've won."
Xavier replied.
"Yeah, peace had been restored, and we can go back to our normal lives."
Luca replied.
The four began to leave.
"Oh- I forgot my shield. Go on without me- I'll catch up."
Xavier retrieved his shield, but on the way back, something caught his eye. A small, dark figure moved behind the corner of a doorway to his right. He entered and saw a Zorua, weeping.
"Are you alright over there?"
Xavier walked up to him and kneeled down near to him.
"Where are your parents?"
"My mother died long ago- my father is over there, but I think he's dead too."
The young Zorua continued to cry.
"Xavier! Where are you? Are you coming?"
Luca called.
Xavier turned around.
"I'm in here!"
Luca walked in shortly after, seeing the young Zorua.
"What's this little Zorua doing here?"
Luca asked.
"Luca..."
Xavier replied.
"I think this is the emperor's son..."