Chapter 7 New Plan
The next morning Sharod tells them everything.
The Dragoon Warriors are just sitting there, in the library, with their heads low, absorbing the words.
Saphir shakes his head...
“So... Minion is going to bring back all three of the remaining Four at the same time? But... that's just not possible. I've done the research... the other three were put in dimensions which do not even EXIST at the same points in time. The only way he'd be able to do it is if he...”
Saphir's eyes spring wide... he rushes toward a shelf, and pulls a thick book down. He opens the book, flipping quickly to the page he wants, and throws it down on the table.
The other Warriors stare at the book while Saphir waits for understanding to dawn on them...
... a polite cough from Justin reminds him that the other Warriors can't read ancient Trafalgeriatrion demonic script...
“Right... okay then.
Minion's going to the Dimensional Nexus. It's a place of true, random chaos. All dimensions are accessable from it, but not by portals... a small piece of each and every one of the infinite dimensions actually exists within the Nexus. It is the one and only place that he could pull this plan off... and it only becomes accessable,” Saphir checks his wristwatch, “In about twenty hours.
The rituals he'll need to perfrom in order to find the right parts of the right dimensions will take, I'd guess... about two hours.
If we're going to stop him, it's gotta be soon. In twenty two hours, the world ends.”
Everybody turns their attention over to Arrowny... he sorta wishes they wouldn't. But, everybody does in the end. It's not that he's the only one capable of making the big decisions... Brad, Justin, and Saphir have each proven time and again that they can carry the team.
But, years ago, it was decided that Arrowny would be the leader. At the time, it just had to do with the fact that the others had no place to stay, and he had a big house.
He's the leader... he's got to decide.
Arrowny stands... looks each of his comrades in the eye... and turns to go down to the basement.
“Meet in the library in seventeen hours.”
That's all they hear before his bedroom door slams shut.
* * * * * *
Sixteen hours and fifty-nine minutes later, Brad, Justin, Saphir, and Sharod are all sitting in charis around the library table, with Arrowny standing at the head of the table.
They all had a good meal... got some sleep... had another meal... got cleaned up... that kind of stuff... and now they're all ready to hear the plan.
Arrowny lets out a breath...
“It's not enough to just take out Minion. We have to destroy his armies as well. With the big bad off doing his spell thingy, we might be able to kill off all the generals and their followers BEFORE we hit Minion.
The problem is, in order to avoid getting totally destroied by a gigantic army of Maylor, Hetron, and Knights of Human Purity... we're going to have to split up.
Here's the plan... we wait for five more hours, to make sure that Minion is doing his thing. Then, we kill stuff.”
Brad claps.
“Saphir... you take on the Maylor tribe. You're the most familiar with their species. Skree is the main target, but you need to make sure none of them are in a position to do any major fighting.
Brad, you and Sharod will go after the Hetron... simple orders... kill them all.”
Again, Brad claps.
“Justin will take on the Knights of Human Purity.”
Justin slowly nods... Brad and Saphir look a little surprised... Arrowny shrugs.
“It's gotta be you. I know they're human... and I know you aren't as murderous as Brad or I... but I need them all dead... every last one of them.”
Justin nods slowly...
“While all this is going on, I'll be taking on Morning Star.”
“Mercury...” Saphir points to an open book on the table. “Morning Star actually dies if you kill him with a weapon coated in mercury.”
Arrowny nods...
“Good to know.”
Ryan glances at his watch...
“Okay guys... I want to get together in four hours... until then, I don't want to see a single one of you. Go, do your own thing... relax... make peace with your creators... whatever. Live life one last night... 'cause we're all probably gonna die very, very soon.”
* * * * * *
Justin closes the door to his computer room silently, and takes a seat in front of the many, many moniters that line almost every free space in the place... three on the desk, and at least four more hanging on the walls, or on shelves in the corners.
It's a confusing system, but he has no trouble using it... he shouldn't, as he built it himself.
He sits back, contemplating how the fight is going to go... he... Justin, the technomage... will finally kill a human being... actually, not just a single human... but an entire army of them.
It's something he's avoided ever since he came here. Sure, thanks to Joseph's twisted uses of his technologies, he's responsibal for a great many deaths... but this is different.
This will be with his own two hands.
Arrowny was right to ask him, though. Justin understands that much. It's not really that he's the best suited for this particualr job... it's just that everybody else needs to be where they are going to be, and he sort of got left with the short end of the stick.
Either Arrowny or Brad could take out this army, without any kind of moral issues... but Arrowny is going off to fight Morning Star... and Brad is teaming with Sharod... well... they're both needed elsewhere. Saphir is the only one with knowledge of the Maylor... so he has to fight them...
It all makes perfect sense... and Justin is left to become a murderer.
He shakes the thought from his head, and turns his attention elsewhere.
In case something happens, he needs to let the others know how to use his computers. He turns on one of the moniters, opens a word processor... leans back, and allows the words to form. The notes flash across the screen, faster than any human could type... all through his own force of will.
* * * * * *
Brad cracks open another can of Pepsi... his fourth since the meeting in the library ended, and the other three were gone between the kitchen and the living room.
He dumps the others (six or seven) on the couch, and looks over toward his DVD collection. He flips through for a little while, before deciding on an old favourite.
It is an english dub of an anime show... the only series that the Warriors have ever found that is actually better in the english version.
He pops the DVD in, lays back, and takes a drink. When the sceen selection comes up, he picks the one he wants, and presses play.
The show cuts in on two teenage guys, one with long brown hair, the other with black, sitting in what appears to be a jail cell.
The black haired one is studying a projection on the wall, which appears to be plans for some sort of fighting robot.
The other, who is just sitting on the bench, looks over at him.
“What are you doing? We're never going to need those things.”
“When we get out of here, we will need to know how to fight.”
“Fine... then you sit there and hope for the best. Me... I'm just gonna throw in the towel, okay?”
The brown hair one folds his arms behind his head, and lays back on the bench. He takes a content breath, then kicks the floor.
“Oh MAN! I can't believe I'm going to die like this!”
Brad laughs... opens another can of soda, and hopes that everything works out for them as well as it did for Duo.
* * * * * *
Saphir sits there... gazing out over the Bay of Fundy from the top of Cape Split. He's going off to fight the entire Maylor race... just him... alone. It doesn't seem like something that can lead to the happy land of puppies and chocolate... but it's what has to be done.
He can't help but think of what his life would be like if he haddn't run into Arrowny on that night... both of them were hunting the Dragonite demon... both ended up being saved by Brad... he's still not sure how that happened.
What would have become of the Saphire Warrior of the Poirier family? Would he still be fighting the good fight, or would he have died that night? How many demons could he have faced before on got the lucky shot in?
All in all, he feels happy. He's done more good for the world than any member of his family for ten generations... not since the last of the peace treties was forged with the last hostile demon race in Canada... he's done a lot of good.
Although he might have lived longer, and he wouldn't have had to fight against Joseph, and Bastian, and the Children... and Jove... he wouldn't have the times spent in the library, yelling at Arronwy and Brad for trying to drink pop at the table with open books. He wouldn't have the memory of he and Justin being the only ones to get the 'smart person' joke...
As he watches the sun reflect off the individual waves in the Bay... watching the light dance across the surface of the water... he realizes... no matter what happens... live or die... this is where he is meant to be.
* * * * * *
“After you enter the Nexus, Arrowny will attack Morning Star. Saphir will attack the Maylor, Justin will attack the Knights of Human Purity, and Brad and I will attack the Hetron.”
Minion laughs... Skree and Morning Star join in. Samuel just listens intently. All the generals of Minions Army are standing in the center of the temple of the Hetron. Sharod has taken his 'do something before we all go and die' time to inform his master and comrades about the Dragoon Warriors' newest plans.
Sharod holds up a hand to get the laughing demon's attention.
“Arrowny knows that a weapon dipped in mercury can kill Morning Star.”
The Chaos Lord grunts.
“He'll need to HIT me frist!”
This causes another round of laughter. Eventually Minion stops laughing, and as all good generals should do, the others imediatly cease.
“Sharod... you will wait with the Maylor until the time comes that you are to meet back with the Warriors. Make sure they are ready to take any magics that Saphir can use, so that the mage is sure to die. When you and Brad return to this temple to attack the Hetron, turn on him, and kill him. Morning Star will kill Arrowny... and the Knights will kill Justin.
It is a simple plan... if they cannot reach me in the Nexus, they cannot stop me.”
“And you shall revive the Four... and the world will belong to the demons!”
Minion, Sharod, Skree, and Morning Star all have a rousing cheer, while Samuel quietly backs away from the group, and slips through the guards at the entrance to the temple.
* * * * * *
Ryan takes a deep breath as he stands over her grave.
Years ago, he failed to save her... twice.
He had to burry her... twice.
As he looks down at her grave marker (a simple stone with her name engraved on the front) he has a sudden realization.
“I'm a coward.”
He speaks it without meaning too, but the sound only serves to make him feel that the statment is actually true.
“I can face demons, and hell gods, and anceint sorcerers... but the whole thing between us... I couldn't deal with it.
I'm told that this is the last time my name appears in any prophacy... once this fight is done, I'm finished... I've completed my Protector duties... I've died for the cause... and when I beat Minion, it's all over.
The problem is... I don't know what to do when it's over. I've been figthing the good fight since I was just a kid... I have no idea what else there is in the world for a guy like me.
I was always too afraid to face the 'real life' aspect of living. Guess I still am.
You kept telling me that everything I did could lead to a perfect future for this world...
I hope you're right... because in a little while, I'm sending all of my friends into fights that they have very little chance of living through. Not only that, but the main part of my plan involves us gaining up on the big bad four on one, and that's only supposed to happen AFTER we each destron a general and an army, all alone, with no help from each other.
I think we're all screwed...”
“I agree!”
Arrowny's head snaps around, and he sees Justin standing behind him. Ryan sighs.
“Time to go already?”
Justin nods.
“Yeah. It's been one hour since you gave the 'go do your own thing' order. Everybody's where they're supposed to be. If we're really going to do this, we need to get Plan 'Kill Ourselves in the Most Obvious Way Imaginable Part One' out of the way now.”
Ryan looks confused.
“Dude... who picked that name?”
“Brad, Saphir and I voted on it. Why, no good? What would you have gone with?”
Arrowny shurgs...
“Plan 'Snowball's Chance in Hell' pretty much sums up my feelings.”