General Kull stood at a distance from me, yet his figure towered my own as he looked down on me. I was completely frozen. He didn't show any emotion, but I felt a sense of dread just being near him. He was too powerful for any of us combined. And I was alone. An undead bat flew past me and perched itself onto the bottom of a mushroom-top. Then when I looked around, there were armies of undead bats flying above me. They were silent. But then all at once, they screeched a deafening noise.

I picked up my electric crossbow and aimed it at General Kull, but before I was about to fire, he lifted up his bronze arm. If I had fired, he would have redirected it and perhaps shot it back at me. I put away my crossbow and pointed my blade at him instead. He put down his bronze arm. He stood there almost defenseless, but I knew what he was capable of. I saw it firsthand in the sewers. Was he just taking his time? I was aware of his sadism. He enjoyed thoroughly putting people on pikes and making sure they felt every last painstaking cut. I knew he could just do that to me in an instant, but he didn't.

I slowly began to circle around him with my blade still pointing at him.

"Traitor," I said, "Why would you betray the Queen?"

He smirked and replied, "I'm no traitor."

I remained calm, but it was hard to maintain my composure.

General Kull continued, "All I'll tell you is that the world is in chaos. And I plan to rise above the chaos."

"I don't understand."

I could tell he was disappointed. He replied, "I was planning on having you die as a martyr - a hero for my own personal gain. It's not too late. I could kill you right now and set it up so that you were killed surrounded by hundreds of dead rebels. You would be a hero - a legend for the other roaches to strive for. You see, I respected you. That also means that I see you as a rival. That's why I had to kill you. The other roaches would rather follow you than me."

He paused for a moment and continued, "But now that I look upon you, I don't really see the point. You've become more of a shell of your former self. You were something else after the dragon incident. Now, you're nothing more than a small bug."

I continued to circle around General Kull as he continued to face me. I didn't know how I would be able to defeat him, but I had to. If I died, then nobody would be able to warn the Queen of his treachery.

The general smiled and said, "I could squash you right now like the bug you are. But I'll give you a chance. If you decide to attack me, I'll kill you. If you run, I'll give you a headstart of thirty seconds. Then, I'll have my army of soldiers attack you. Many undead creatures controlled by my magical collars will hunt you down. It'll be more fun that way to watch you cling to life rather than crushing you right now."

My sword shook. I finally was able to circle around him. In front of me was General Kull. And behind me was a forest of mushrooms. If I ran behind me, I could keep running until I was out of this shadowy dome.

"As for your friend, Viking," General Kull continued, "He is fighting very valiantly. He's currently killed around a hundred of my soldiers. Even as his whole body is full of blades - bleeding and burned all over - he's still fighting. Not to worry, though. My new Bronze-Riders will handle the matter in the end. I would have called them bronze-wraiths, but it didn't quite roll off the tongue."

I shivered. Even if I wanted to, my legs were frozen. I couldn't move at all. He looked at me annoyed. "You're still here, "he said, "Perhaps, I should give you a countdown."

A second passed and he counted, "1..."

As soon as he said that, I ran. I ran as fast as I could as if my body was jolted awake by an unnatural force. I had to run. I had to keep running. I couldn't die here. I needed to let the Queen know. I ran as tears flowed out of my eyes.

"Damn it," I muttered, "Damn it."

As soon as I started running, General Kull stopped counting and walked away. I don't think he actually sent anybody after me. If he had, I didn't encounter any. But I didn't look back. I just kept running.