Tranquil Darkness

War And Heartbreak

Kerrin stood as still as a statue in the midst of the battle. She had no weapon and knew that this was dangerous, but she couldn't move, for all her attention was focused on trying not to cry. Luke was striking out with his sword, felling all those who came near, defending her. She was ever so grateful to him... but all was still lost. They should have made a better plan.

Stop sulking and examine the situation, Kerrin finally told herself, and looked around at the battle. The Dark seemed to be winning. The new eighth elder turned out to be an excellent fighter, and felled many a soldier. Kerrin breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe the outcome would be happy after all.

Then she noticed something strange, that no one else seemed to have noticed: the eighth elder had not killed or even wounded a single soldier of The Light. The soldiers she was felling were all of The Dark.

All of a sudden, she smiled and tore off her baggy blue robes. Underneath, she wore a silken gown of white and yellow.

"Surprise!" she crowed, then a horrible evil cackle left her lips and filled the whole clearing. "Stupid people of The Dark! You really thought I was one of you, and the elders didn't even care to notice that someone new was among them! And all this time you thought I was fighting on your side... while really, I was killing your people!"

Kerrin's heart sank like a stone. Now she realized why the eighth elder had been so unfair towards her and her friends when they first tried to tell the elders of the attack. But she also realized that The Dark was not winning at all; it was losing terribly.

"But this was not supposed to happen!" the terrible woman shrieked. "There was not to be a fight! Integria was meant to be ours- and only ours - easily! With no fight!"

"But we would never let that happen!" roared a male fighter, and he pursued her.

The battle grew more and more intense by the moment, and soon reached its climax. Clashing swords and bloody bodies were everywhere. But this was short, and soon Kerrin and Luke were left facing each other.

It was up to them to finish this. The Dark versus The Light. It was up to them to decide who would win the battle.

I know what I must do.

Tears formed in her eyes. I can't do this. "I love you..." she whispered.

"I love you too," Luke whispered back.

"Let me finish this," said a voice behind him.

It was Adreana, and she had a sword. As Kerrin watched, she casually walked up to Luke and ran him through.