It was there, near the
entrance to High Pass that
the leaders of the two armies
met, face to face. The forest
seemed to groan and the very
earth trembled. Cruel
laughter was heard echoing
through the trees.
Lord Tephys raised his mailed
fist into the air and swore
aloud, "By the grace of The
| Mother, you will be stopped
Child of Hate! Your cursed
army shall go no farther then
where I stand."
Lanys's derisive laughter
seemed supernaturally loud
as it rang out, almost
hurting the ears of those
around her, "Old fool, you
feel such hate for me and
in that I am glad. This
|
|
only proves the strength
of my father and his power!
However, the hate you feel
toward me is nothing
compared to the sheer
depths of hate I hold
toward you and your kind.
Prepare to feel the full
force of the power that is
hate itself!"
And with those words, the two
| armies clashed. Lanys
seemed to close the gap
between herself and Lord
Tephys in but a single
leap and struck at the old
Paladin with a viscous
fury. Like a hammer unto
an anvil, Lanys's swords
struck again and again
against the upraised shield
of Lord Tephys. The Paladin
struggled valiantly under the
|
|
harsh blows of the Child of
Hate. The attacks were
relentless and only seemed to
become more violent as they
continued.
Finally, the shield of the
old Paladin failed him and
Lanys landed a blow squarely
upon the aged shoulder of the
holy fighter. Dropping his
shield, he staggered backward
| but clutching his wound as it
bled freely he whispered for
aid from Tunare. His hand
glowed a soft blue as the
wound healed and he smiled
to himself as he felt the love
of The Mother. His smile
quickly faded as he looked up
to see Lanys's hands glowing
as well, a cruel smile upon
her face.
|
|
Shouting out words in Ancient
Teir'Dal, Lanys made a
sweeping gesture toward her
enemy, great streams of
magical energy coursing from
her outstretched hands and
enveloping the High Elf.
Lord Tephys clutched at his
chest as his whole body was
wracked with incredible pain.
Stunned from the sudden and
unexpected blow, Lord Tephys
| failed to block as Lanys
struck a final terrible blow.
Lord Tephys fell quietly to
the ground and into the bosom
of the Great Mother.
Meanwhile, a much different
battle was being waged. Two
seasoned fighters, leaders of
men, both ancient and both
veterans of countless battles
squared off against each
|
|
other. Like a deadly game of
chess, Laarthik K'Shin and
Galeth Veredeth circled one
another in a deadly ballet of
thrusts and parries. Both
were opponents of equal skill
but Laarthik, through the
dark power he practiced, had
the body of a young man.
Galeth on the other hand,
though in excellent physical
shape for his age, was still
| very old.
Lowering his guard ever so
slightly, Laarthik allowed
Galeth to bash him square in
the chin with his shield.
Striking like a serpent,
Laarthik's hand shot forward
enveloped in a blaze of fiery
magical energy. Stepping
inward and snaking his
blazing hand under the
|
|
upraised arm of the High
Paladin's shield, Laarthik
touched the chest of the
Galeth as the fire left the
hand of the Teir Dal and
enveloped his mortal enemy.
A cry of shock and pain
erupted from the lips of the
elder fighter. But with a
speed that one would not
expect from an old man he
| quickly jumped back and
laying his hand upon his
blistered and still smoldering
skin, the wound disappeared
completely though the smell
of burning flesh was still
heavy in the air.
Galeth smiled briefly at his
mortal enemy and laughed, "It
appears we are still even my
worthy adversary." Then
|
|
feigning surprise, he raised
his eyebrows and taunted, "Oh
wait, I see your lip is
bleeding now! Perhaps it is I
who have the upper hand!"
They resumed their deadly
dance.
| |
Planes of Power