The Element Table

Chapter 24: A War Is Coming

"Morgaine!" Ryia smiled approaching the young woman "You're ok"

Morgaine nodded with a smile "I am"

"How'd you get here?" Philip asked

"The passageway," she said pointing to the torn portrait before turning to Alianor and Jacqulyn "I remembered how you two got past the barrier and I knew that was the only way I could get away"

"From Caine?" Alianor asked

"Yes," she answered "He attacked the town in the north. I ran before I could see the damage he did. I'm sure it's devastating by now"

"Who's this?" Alistair finally spoke, "Is this a friend you made?"

"Grandfather, this is Morgaine, Merek's great-granddaughter. She's the new Sun Queen"

"She is?"

The young woman in question pulled the pendant from her covered chest, where she had been hiding it. The former Guardians and King smiled at the sight.

"Well it's pleasure to meet you, your highness," the King said as he and others bows

Morgaine shook her head nervously "You don't have to do that" she said

"Oh we have to, you're the Sun Queen, you rule the kingdom," Zoricus said

"Your authority is far beyond mine" King Francis said

"So, I can tell you what to do?" she asked

"And I have to obey" the King nodded

The straight-haired young woman eyebrows rose, she had power over everyone? Even the King?

"So what now? Do we go after Caine?" Henry asked

"You do, it's your destiny" Alistair answered

"But how?" Alianor asked

"In case you didn't know, we haven't fought in a war before" her best friend added

"Well lucky for you, the three of us have," Zoricus said pointing to himself, his best friend and the King

"So what do we do first?" Morgaine asked

'"First we get an army" Zoricus smiled

"Then we make a plan" Alistair added

The King spoke the last words "And first thing tomorrow morning, we attack!"

°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°

"A flying boat?!" Caine questioned

The shadow warrior looked up and nodded nervously.

"They got away in a flying boat?!" The Moon Guardian shouted, "How could you let that happen?"

The warrior was about to answer, but before it's mouth could make the usual incoherent speech, it's body was thrown against the nearest building.

"Get him out of my sight," Caine said lowering his hand

A few more warriors showed up and helped their fellow comrade off the ground. Abdul appeared next to his master.

"What do we do now?" he asked

"We prepare to fight!" Caine said through gritted teeth

°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°

Down in the South, things started out with the new and old guardians walking around asking people to join their army. To their surprise, everyone wanted to help. Those who couldn't fight wanted to help in whatever other ways they could.

As the knights taught the newcomers some trick and tactics for fighting, Alistair and Zoricus taught the new guardians about their new found powers. Though the older men were more equipped to help their granddaughters, they tried their best to teach the others what they knew about their grandparents' powers. There wasn't much that could be taught with the little time they had, but they hoped that it would be enough to defeat Caine and his warriors.

Morgaine had no one to teach her but relied fully on what the book was telling her. As the hours went by, more secrets were revealed to her, secrets she knew would help them in their fight against Caine.

Once night fell, preparations were moved indoors. The guardians, old and new, Morgaine, the King, his sons and the head knight were all gathered in the King's study room, planning their strategies for the next day. By midnight, a solid plan was set and they all went to bed with the impending battle on their minds.

°~°~°~°~°~°~°~°

It was the morning of the battle, and Morgaine stood between two houses, on the stone street, staring at the tall wall in front of her. Behind that wall, was the magical barrier. Behind her stood the new guardians, behind them, the old. Then there was the King, his sons and his grandson, then the knights and the army of citizens. They wear clad with protective wear and armed with weapons, ready for battle.

The young Sun Queen was told she had to make a speech, one that would encourage her fighters. But she wasn't good at speeches, then again, she had never done one before. Alistair had seen her nervousness when she was informed and told her it would be best if she did it from the heart.

She took a deep breath before turning to the crowd behind her. Her heart started to beat quickly, and she was starting to sweat. She quickly regretted wearing so much as armour. Her gold and black armour hugged her upper body. There were gold and black coloured cloth attached to the front and back, almost touching the floor. Her trousers were thicker and her boots heavier than she normally had them. And to top it all off, a cape was attached to her top piece, something Jacquelyn said would make her look more like a queen.

She took a deep breath as looked over at the former water guardian, who gave her an encouraging nod.

"A few days ago, everything changed. An enemy came back, ready to finish what he had started years ago. The five before me were destined to be new Guardians, and I, the new Sun Queen. At first, I wasn't quite sure I could do this. I was never the leader type, never saw myself as a Queen and I never expected I would be the one to lead a war. But over the past few days, I've seen the way people looked at me. I've seen the way you all trust me. And that's when I figured it out. Being the Sun Queen is more than just having the power and the tile. It's about being good, treating others right, having your people trust you with their lives, and being willing to lay down your own for them. You all have taught me that, and I promise to never live it down"

Smiles and claps came from the crowd, exactly what she needed at that moment.

"The Queen before me predicted that this day would come. She knew that Caine would be back. But she also knew that a new Sun Queen and new Guardians would rise to defeat him. We know what she says to be true, but that doesn't mean that we do not try in this battle. Let us fight as hard as we can because everything depends on it. We may lose this battle, but we know the war is ours to win!"

The crowd cheered, and Morgaine couldn't help the big smile that appeared on her face.

She turned back to the wall, raising her hands as her eyes closed. The crowd grew silent as they waited. Soon there was a rumbling and then suddenly the fraction of the wall that was in front of them collapsed, revealing the lavender opaque barrier behind it.

"Pariete Abierunta" The Sun Queen said, repeating the spell Alianor had told her

At her words, the barrier began to ripple, its waves spreading high and wide. They soon got clearer and clearer, and the trees behind it became more visible.

Within a minute, the entire length of the barrier had completely vanished.

Morgaine turned back to the crowd, then raised her swords to them.

"Let's fight!"