When every human was shielding their weak and sensitive eyes from the strong, bright, radiant light emerging from out of nowhere. Azar was in awe by what he saw.

The light finally fainted, and on the battlefield, all eyes were on Sasha, standing tall, wielding a flaming longsword.

“WHAT THE !!!” Everyone all yelled the same words, either aloud or in their heads. Her wounds were healed, and Sasha had an angelic glowing aura simmering from her. Of course, all of the monsters’ focus was redirected to Sasha. They all ran at her at the same time, from all sides. Sasha took a step forward and swung her sword widely, as gentle and graceful as a performance artist. A wave of fire surged from Sasha and spread to all directions, reaching the Red Mist and Telemac armies. But as the flame touched them, it had different effects. For the Red Mist, it was an incinerating wave of destruction. Every undead creature that the fire touched turned into ashes. And for the few necromancer mages who had gotten in shared the same fate as their summons, vanishing into oblivion. But for the humans, the fire was like warm sunlight, giving them back the strength they had lost.

The tide had turned completely. Sasha led the charge and pushed the Red Mist army out of the gate. Each time she wielded the flaming sword, hundreds of monsters perished. At this rate, victory was certain for Tolemac.

While the human up in the castle was getting distracted by Sasha and her new power, Azar snuck away without anyone noticing. He casually walked out of the chamber door before vanishing when he was certain no human noticed him. There was something that he wanted to do now that he was certain the Red Mist legion would be demolished. Azar shifted into his other form, silver hair, wide jet black wings, long curvey golden horns.

Like a shadow, Azar flew toward Liam, who was still sitting at the backline of the undead army. Azar easily picked him up and flew both of them some distance away from Tolemac, deep inside the nearby forest.

“What the !!!???” Liam found himself flying in the air in just a blink of an eye. A brief moment of panic followed by heavy breathing; he had no idea how he got there. But everything was quickly answered when he saw Azar holding him by the neck, carrying him along.

“YOU !!!” Liam shouted.

“Be quiet, we’re landing right now !” Azar coldly replied. Azar put Liam down in an open area within the thick forest. And before Azar could speak a word, Liam pointed his finger at Azar and started shouting furiously.

“I should’ve won, if it wasn’t for your intervention !!!”

“I didn’t … well, not much. The girl did that on her own ….”

“Maybe not you personally, but your kind !” Liam kept shouting while Azar remained silent, “You thought you could hide it, didn’t you. But you didn’t know that I could share my vision with any undead creature I summon !”

“So that’s why you could command them so efficiently ….”

“I SAW HER WINGS !!!” Liam’s face was red with fury. “Even though she only showed it for a split second, I saw it. She is one of you !”

It was just as a surprise for Liam as it was for Azar. And he could not explain what he had just seen. Though it looked very similar to Azar’s, a pair of wide feathery wings. However, to Azar's knowledge, Sasha's wings were not physical. Rather, it was made of the light and fire which came from within her and the flaming sword. And Azar had examined Sasha closely after the wings disappeared. Physically, she was the same, except for a sudden surge of magic.

“I don’t know what she is. But she is not with me,” Azar firmly replied. “And you shouldn’t worry about that right now ….”

Liam jumped back and reached his hand sideward. A second later, his pearly white spear came flying to his side. Liam held the spear with both hands and aimed it at Azar, considering what Azar was telling him was a threat to his life.

“Oh please, if I wanted you dead, I would have done so already” Azar shook his head disappointingly. “I’m giving you a chance to live.”

“You're letting go !?! Just like that !!!???” Liam still kept his fighting stance.

“Yes …” Azar said calmly, “ But you have to answer me a few questions first.”

“Ask away !”

“What you told me, about your past and about what the current king did to you, is that true ?”

“I swear on my life. I did not tell a lie !”

“So, what will you do, after I let you run free ?”

“Rebuild my army, and do this all over again, until I win. ”

Azar shook his head; that was what Azar worried he might say. “Your vengeance is your vengeance. I can not judge you for that. But what you did to the people of Avalon. To your own kind, don’t you feel any remorse !?”

“As long as I get what I want, I don’t give a fuck about any of them.” There was no hesitation in Liam's voice.

Azar sighed. “Damn it, kid! Think! If You take over a nation like that! How will the surviving humans respond ?! How will the other nations respond? You think they were just going to let this go?”

“If they had anything to say about it, my army will silence them !” Liam smirked. “With an ever-growing army like that in hand, you think anyone would dare challenge my power !?! I can take over the world if I want to !”

“Don’t even think about it kid ! Your way will only bring more bloodshed and chaos. And that’s exactly what I need to stop !” Azar’s eyes turned more cold and threatening.

“What are you saying !?!”

“My mission, little human …”. Azar closed his eyes then whistled. A whooshing sound cut through the forest. And in a second, a black quill appeared in Azar’s hand. “I can’t let you wreck havoc like that, kid … just give me that spear, and I’ll let you walk away.”

“This is the only chance I have to fulfill my dream !”

“Listen, I don’t care if you raise an army of humans to invade Avalon and kill the stupid king. But not this way, not necromancy, you don’t know what your dealing with !”

Liam just shook his head slightly. Azar knew exactly what that meant

“Don’t think for a second that I won’t kill you for this” the black quill transformed back into its true form, the Soul Taker scythe. Glowing with a dark and dreadful aura, as red as roses, so sharp it could split a hair, the mere sight of the scythe was enough to send chills down Liam's spine.

“You saw what I can do. And you saw how powerful my weapon is. Give up, now !” Azar gave his last warning.

“Yes … and also remember … you bleed !” Liam dashed in like a wild animal. But Azar was done playing.

Liam thrust the spear at Azar’s head. He saw it; his spear could injure Azar, if he was lucky, if he caught Azar off guard like the first time, then maybe….

Suddenly, Liam found himself stopped on his track, unable to push the spear forward. That was because Azar had grabbed hold of Liam’s spear with one hand.

“You made your choice …” Azar yanked the spear, catching Liam by surprise. When Liam got to the right position, Azar punched Liam in both of his elbow joints, breaking his arms.

“AAAAAAAA !!!!!!” Liam shouted from the bottom of his lungs. But Azar wasn’t over. A merciless kick to the knee and both Azar and Liam could hear the crackling sound. Azar had just shattered Liam’s right knee.

Fallen on his good knee, both arms disfigured, and with a crooked limping leg, it was over for Liam.

“See you in Hell … freak …” Liam muttered the words.

Azar shook his head and raised the Soul Taker up high. “That's not where you're going ….”

The scythe cut down so cleanly and swiftly that no one could tell if it was cutting through the wind or a human neck. Liam’s head rolled over, and his broken body fell flat. Only then did Azar figure out the last secret of necromancy and its cursed power. Azar waited for a couple of seconds, but Liam’s soul was nowhere to be seen. It should have been dragged into his scythe and finished by now, but nothing was happening. Then he noticed something even more interesting. There was no blood coming from Liam, not a drop. Then, Liam’s body turned into ashes and was carried away by the wind. All those memories came pumping back to Azar, all those times he was close to Liam, and he never noticed. He could not hear a heartbeat. Liam died a long time ago …

“So, … this is the price for necromancy …” Azar spoke aloud as he examined Liam’s weapon. Just like he had been taught long before, each time someone used necromancy, part of their life shortened in return and part of their soul went with it. To be a mere human and command such a massive undead army, Liam would have to pay the ultimate price and beyond. But of course, Liam could never have achieved that in the first place without …

“Let’s see what makes you so powerful ..” Azar picked up Liam’s white spear and tested its power ... but he never got the chance. The moment Azar picked it up, a vision took over his mind.

Azar saw himself wielding the white spear, commanding an unimaginably powerful army of undead. A thousand times larger than the Red Mist, the summoned undead creatures did not just stop with humanoids or animals. Anything he touched turned into undead. Within his vision, it was just pure chaos. Smoke and ember covered the sky while the wind only carried the scorching heat and vile scent of blood and burnt flesh. The visions kept coming and coming, showing him more and more glimpses of what was to come if Azar took the weapon and used necromancy. Kingdoms fell, the humans scattered for survival, and Azar joyfully hunted down all of them. It was all so real to Azar, the sensation, the heat, the smell, the power …

Azar stood in the middle of the burning world, his world, and laughed uncontrollably. But then, he looked to the sky once more, and thousands of skeleton dragons roamed the sky, wrecking rampage down whatever they could. Almost immediately, Azar awakened from the hallucination. And the first thing he saw was a giant floating smoky white skull, growling, sucking the life energy from him.

“Big mistake …” Azar stared into the skull’s hollow eye sockets. And it just lunged down at Azar, hoping to kill him immediately. But from the glowing blood-red Soul Taker scythe on his right hand, a golden snake manifested and bit down on the skull, stopping it dead in its tracks.

“You almost had me there …” Azar clenched his left fist tighter and tighter, and the white spear started to crack. “Just one mistake, … never disturb the fallen dragons from their eternal slumbers !”

With full might, Azar broke the spear in half and simultaneously, the golden serpent cracked the white skull into pieces. And once what was left of the white spear touched the ground, everything near it withered and died, the grass turned brown, the ground as dry as sand…

Such a powerful weapon and such a powerful ability to master. If it was any other, Azar would have tried to control it. But not this time. If Azar learned anything from what he saw, it would be that necromancy was pure chaos, and nobody could control chaos, not even him. So, to make sure that no one, humans or dragons, could ever be tempted or manipulated by the spear's power, Azar had to destroy it for good.

“Well done .” Azar spoke to the serpent as it slithered itself back onto Azar’s arm and into the scythe.

“Thank you, master ….”

*******************

It was all over; Sasha had done it, somehow. The massive legendary Red Mist legion had fallen. The creature suddenly tumbled down like puppets having their strings cut, while others simply turned into dust and vanished. The few living humans associated with Liam and the Red Mist could not outrun the storm of arrows and lightning, a parting gift from Tolemac.

Victory, the indescribable sensation of pure joy, it was something that humans always dreamt about, and only a few could honestly say they had felt that before. But on that evening, when the humans of Tolemac had risen from the edge of annihilation, they shared that sensational feeling. For the soldiers, that warm feeling soon faded away the moment their eyes met their fallen brothers and sisters. Then quickly came the exhaustion. They had been fighting nonstop, from early morning to when the sun was setting, and their human body had had enough. Some tumbled to the ground, some completely blacked out, only a few could still stand on their feet.

Upon the high tower, the king and his councilors celebrated like wild animals. Their screams and laughs were louder than the roar of thunder. But the same couldn’t be said for Leona. She just felt scared and confused. So she walked quietly to the princess, pulled slightly on her long silky white dress and asked.

“Do you know where my sister's boyfriend is ?!?”

“Huh ???” Elly turned her head with pure confusion written all over her face.

Casually walking back to the castle, Azar unexpectedly felt the sensation of familiarity. The colour red splatters on every road, ember flying over his head, and the taste of blood lingered in the atmosphere. It all reminded Azar so much of his past, of all the wars and battles he had fought. The sweet taste of revenge was nowhere to be found. All Azar could feel when he saw humans, his enemies, suffering just like he once was, did not bring him joy.

“What’s wrong with me ?...” the cold and bitterness slowly crept upon Azar.

Lost in his own flow of thought, Azar was snapped back to reality by the sound of loud humans cheering and bragging. Azar suddenly realized he had reached the castle already, and the noise that woke him was coming from a group of loud human soldiers.

“I always knew those disgusting creatures couldn’t not win against us !”

“You’re right Captain ! This is Tolemac after all, our wall had never been breached for hundreds of years !”

It was closer to one man bragging while the other was blowing smoke up his big fat nostrils. Azar did not care about what they said, but from the few words he caught, one of those four was a captain, just like Sasha was, and they managed to take down an undead skeleton warrior and bragged about it to the others. Finally, something that Azar would not find if he was still the Dragon King. His soldiers were chatting, bragging about their small accomplishments right after the battle. They were just asking for trouble, and soon enough, trouble came knocking on their front door.

WHOOSH!

Seemingly from nowhere, the one that they were calling captain fell flat on the ground. Someone had sucker-punched him from behind.

“WHO DARE! …” The captain shouted. Standing in front of them was someone that was so familiar yet, at the same time, so different. Red hair, brown eyes, and a poor farmer's skin, he looked like Oliver, the poor young farmer that they left behind. But those eyes were far from the old timidness and obedience. They were cold but still illuminated with the blaze of rage, the eyes of the survivors.

“Holy fuck … you made it ?! ….” The captain scrambled to get back on his feet.

That also caught Azar by surprise. With the skills and experience that the human showed him, he shouldn’t have survived. But seeing how his armor was riddled with slashes and dents, how the color of blood and dirt painted his body like a piece of art, this human had fought to stay alive, and it was well deserved. Curiosity sparked within Azar, and he listened in to what they had left to say to each other. Their conversation went that way, Azar thought, nothing special. Oliver threw some accusations and curses while the captain and his gang denied them. Just when it seemed like Azar wasted his time for this mellow drama, it started to get spicy …

“Just wait until everyone hears what you did !!!” Oliver threatened.

However, the Captain and the rest did not look one bit frightened. In fact, they looked amused by what Oliver said. With smug smiles and irritatingly taunting tones, they responded to Oliver.

“You mean how we made a strategic retreat ?!?”

“Or how we managed to take down a vicious monster on our own !”

“Tell us, how many monsters did a weakling like you manage to take down !?!”

….

“Like how you and your bunch of stray cats ran and hid, getting lost from the squad in the process ?” The captain stepped one step closer and whispered in Oliver's ear. “Know your place, farm boy! Do you know who I am? I have people verify my whereabouts, and they will tell you the story of a bunch of deserted group of cowards, leaving my squad short-handed, and we have to retreat. And still, we managed to take down a monster ….”

“Get back in line, FARM BOY !” The human captain sneered, “You should feel lucky that you managed to crawl out of that shit hole alive !”

It was a sad fact in war, soldiers fought and died for the victories, yet their names were forgotten by the melody of history. This case was no different, Oliver had done more than anyone of those humans staying behind or threatening him at that moment, yet his bravery and sacrifice would go unnoticed. Azar could taste the bitter injustice in his mouth, and he could only imagine what that red hair human was feeling. Sometimes, it was how it was. A single lonely man could not shift the current of a mighty river. But sometimes, just sometimes, if he worked hard enough, if he wouldn’t let go, if he could go the distance, he could inspire others and make a difference.

“ I would keep my distance, if I were you” from behind Oliver, voices echoed. Waves of injured men and women, from soldiers to commoners, from an infant girl to a skinny old man, made their way back to the medical station located right in front of the castle.

“We don’t want those shiny armor of yours to get dirty and bloody !”

They were Allan, Kyle and Roney, leading a few dozen injured men and women back to safety.

“You all made it !?!?” the human captain gasped.

With eyes that were filled with fire and judgment, the injured survivors glared toward the captain and the rest of the shiny armor soldiers. Just like Oliver's captain, many other soldiers also ran away and never faced the light of battle. And they could not face the eyes of the survivors, the real warriors. Turning to their side, averting their eyes, their cheerful chatters suddenly went into silence.

Allan, Kyle and Roney stood right next to Oliver and faced their captain together.

“ I don’t know how many monsters we have slayed, because we did not count. We were busy with something else …” Oliver’s voice was like a blizzard sending sheer cold creeping up on the human captain's spine.

“But I can tell you how many we have saved.” Oliver looked back at everyone that he and his friends managed to save. And they looked back at him, nodding down knowingly. “And I can tell you how many that we have failed to save, because their faces haunt us with regret every time we blink !”

One by one, the injured soldiers walked toward Oliver and stood by his side, staring down the rest of the so-called brave soldiers, running away, refusing to perform their duty. And there was no way any of them could look at Oliver and the rest in the eyes. They were too scared, too ashamed …

The moment of silence was followed by a suffocating tension in the air. It felt like a fight would break out at any moment.

“You four made it … I’m impressed …” Azar slowly walked toward them and broke the intense silence.

All eyes went to Azar as he walked between the two groups.

“Do you know what’s the greatest sin anyone could commit after a battle such as this …”. Azar glared at all of the humans. “Dishonoring the fallen by spitting lies.”

“So which one of you here said you have seen Death in the eyes and survived !?!” Azar’s thunderous voice shook the humans’ ears, sending fear deep within their hearts.

None of them dare speak a word, not even that human captain who just a moment ago could not stop bragging about how he managed to take down a monster; they could not even meet him in the eyes.

“When you march into battle, and the only thing you care about is how many lives you can take, … you have failed as a soldier” Azar’s words were like daggers stabbing into the cowardly and cheating hearts. “What you should ask yourself is … how many lives I am fighting for, how many people can I save !”

“So …” Azar turned to Oliver’s captain and asked, “Answer me this, how many lives did you save ?”.

Sweat fell down on the human captain’s face like a river. He could not bear all of the attention weighing down on his shoulders, all of the judgmental eyes, and the cold and accusing tone from the young man with amber eyes.

“I don’t have to answer to your shit !” profanity, the kind of language one who used when they were out of their debt. “Who do you think you fucking are !?! HUH !!! Questioning a Captain! And what about you !?! What did you do? How many have you saved !? How many monsters did you slay !?! Or are you just a pretty rich boy trying to play the hero !”

“ I’m no …” Azar suddenly felt a presence slowly walking from behind him. A little human girl, looking at Azar with teary eyes, dirt and blood stained her dress. She hesitatingly made her way close to him before hugging him tightly.

“Thank you sir !!!” The little human cried as she held onto Azar. And soon enough, more and more human survivors recognized who Azar was.

“It’s him ….”

“The young man who saved me ….”

“The man with no armor, who has the eyes of the Sun ….”

“The shooting star, crushing his enemies ….”

….

Everyone stood up and made their way toward Azar, soldiers and civilians. And once they got there, one by one, they bowed down to him, paying their tribute to the man who saved their lives. Even Oliver, Allan, Kyle and Roney drove their swords to the ground and got on their knees as well.

“There’s my answer …” Azar smirked.

“Azar !?!” Just that moment, the princess's voice rang in his ears. And Azar knew it was not a pretty sight to be seen. Elly, along with her parents, and the rest of Avalon high council, were all with her. Azar saw it, the fear and envy in the human king’s eyes as he witnessed his people, his soldiers, kneeled down in respect and gratitude for another man, for Azar.

“Stand up, all of you …” Azar just wanted to disappear. This could only bring him more trouble, and he already had enough of that for a lifetime and beyond.

Oliver stood up and shouted.

“Listen up ! There are still many injured people inside the city and upfront. Anyone that is still capable, head back there right now !”. His voice reached everyone, yet still, he was only a mere simple soldier; who was he to give order …

“YOU HEARD HIM !!!”

“GET OUT THERE YOU COWARD !!! SEARCH EVERY STREET !!! LOOK UNDER EVERY RUBBLE ! THERE ARE PEOPLE STILL TRAP INSIDE”

“WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR !?”

Allan, Kyle and Roney were quick to Oliver’s aid. The slightly-injured soldiers were the first to react as they picked themself up and headed back to the city. And when those in shiny armor caught a glimpse of their eyes, the eyes of those who had stared Death straight in the eyes walked back, those cold, fearless, commanding eyes, they could not help but follow their order. So, they joined Oliver, Allan, Kyle and Roney, even their former captain; they all headed back to the city one by one. Normally, it would be such a heroic picturesque, the dazzlingly handsome and beautiful heroes in shining armors walking back toward the depth of the battle. But this time, those in bright shiny armors could not keep their head tall, and those who were bloody, dirty, normal soldiers shined the brightest.

“Who are they !?!” Henry could not help but gasp aloud.

“You should be proud …” Azar spoke to the human king as he took little Leona back from Elly’s hand. “They are your people, your soldiers, the poor farmers and lumberjacks, …”. Azar looked down on Leona then back at the king, “ The worthless unnames that you were ready to throw away …”.