Kaelor Vex's Arc

Chapter 10 of 5

The gold from the vault bought steel at last. Kaelor and Ruby worked through the night, handing out blades and spears to the farmers who had followed him. The panther paced among the fighters, its blue stripes glowing in the torchlight. Men touched its fur and stood taller. By dawn, Kaelor had an army. He looked at the distant palace and knew the time had come to take his throne. "We hit while he's still hurt," Kaelor said. He strapped his grandfather's war hammer across his back. "He won't expect us this fast." Ruby checked her borrowed sword. "Then let's not give him a chance to catch his breath." They marched at first light. The warlord's palace rose ahead, all pale spires and glowing domes. Kaelor's fighters spread across the open ground. The panther ran at his side. When the gates opened, the enemy soldiers poured out to meet them. The two forces crashed together. Kaelor swung the hammer and broke a shield, then a man behind it. Ruby fought close on his left, quick and fearless. His fighters held. For the first time, the numbers were his. Then Zar'thuul appeared on the palace steps. His skull face caught the morning light. His wounded arm hung stiff, but his staff still burned red. He raised it, and flame swept across the field. Kaelor's soldiers scattered from the fire. "Ruby, back!" Kaelor shouted. He drove toward the steps, hammer high, cutting a path through the panic. Ruby turned to follow him. A wall of the warlord's soldiers surged between them. She fought to reach Kaelor, but the flame drove one group left and the spears pushed another right. She was caught in the middle. A blast of red fire tore across the gap. Ruby dove sideways and a falling soldier crashed onto her. She went down hard and did not rise. "Ruby!" Kaelor's voice cracked. He forgot the throne. He forgot the warlord. He hammered through the soldiers between them and dropped to his knees at her side. Blood streaked her red hair. Her eyes were shut. Kaelor pressed his hand to her chest and felt it move, faint but steady. She was breathing. She was not dead. Around him, the battle broke apart. Zar'thuul's flame had scattered Kaelor's army into the fields. The soldiers fell back to the gates. The panther stood over Ruby, growling at the smoke. Kaelor lifted her in his arms. On the steps, Zar'thuul watched. He did not press the attack. He simply turned and walked back into his palace, letting Kaelor carry her away. "I had him," Kaelor whispered. His army was broken. His enemy stood untouched behind his gates. But Ruby breathed against his chest, and that was the only thing he chose to save. He carried her from the field, and the war ground to a halt behind him.