The White Knight

Chapter Seventeen--The Final Battle

 
The next morning Geoffrey, Michael, James and the remaining knights made the final preparations to leave for the Plains of Musglove.  All horses were ready, except for one.
         Michael approached Chilowna several times and backed away each when the horse reared up.
         Geoffrey said, “Leave him.  He is wild once again.  The only one who can handle him is Maria.  He senses that she is gone.”
         “Do you think that she may return?”
         “It is possible,” Geoffrey replied.  “I truly hope she does,” he added to himself.
         With the knights ready they rode towards the west, knowing that there was no hope.

         All through the night, Maria rode on the Gammataur’s back.
         “Do you know where we are going?” it asked in her head.
         She replied back, “I believe the Wise Ones are the answer.  We must go to the Great Desert of Utofamia.”
         “There I shall take you.”
         They flew through the air until dawn.  The Gammataur landed in front of a group of shacks.  Maria got off the creature’s back.  “How can I ever thank you?”
         “By defeating Melisande.  Before you go, I had the pleasure of stopping at her castle.  I believe these are yours.”  The Gammataur opened another wing and her chain armor fell to the ground, along with her shield and sword.  “You may need these.”
         “Thank you!”  Maria exclaimed throwing her arms around the Gammataur’s neck and embraced him.
         “You should find the answers in the shack.  I shall return tonight.”
         Maria entered the shack, thinking that it would contain nothing other than a rustic table, worn furniture and a dusty bed.  However, she was surprised.  Not only was the inside of the shack decorated in a rich fashion, with gold and silver trimmings, it also was larger on the inside than the outside.
         She went from room to room, taking in the details of each as if she was in a museum.
         Still there was no one in sight.  Walking through another door, she entered into a large library, even bigger than King Alexander’s.  She noticed a book sitting on the table.  Picking it up, she noticed that it was one of the many volumes of The History of Utofamia.  She opened it and began to read.
         After a minute, she glanced up in shock, “This cannot be!  It is about me!”
         “I take it you are looking for something,” a girl’s voice sounded behind her.
         Maria jumped at the voice.  She turned and saw a young girl, around fifteen years of age, standing a few feet away.
         “I am sorry,” Maria began.  “I thought this was one of the shacks of the Wise Ones.”
         “There is only one Wise One left.  I will get Draymah.”
         A few minutes later the girl returned with an ancient man.  “We finally meet, Maria,” he said smiling.  “I see you met Teelah.”
         “I shall return with some tea and food,” the girl said.  “You must be hungry after your long journey.”
         “There is only one Wise One left?”
         The old man nodded his head.
         “What happened to the others?  Were they killed?”
         “No, they went back to living normal lives.  When they realized that they did not own the key, there was nothing more they could do.”
         “Am I the one to destroy Melisande?”  Maria looked at the Wise One closely.  For some reason he did not look as old as he first appeared.  He even appeared to be growing younger each second.
         “Yes, Maria, you are the one.  I see you notice that I am growing younger.  Give me a few minutes and I hope I can get you to understand.”
         Maria continued watching Draymah as the years melted away from his body.  The wrinkles on his face slowly disappeared.  His disheveled white hair became neater, the grayness leaving and being replaced by brown.
         “It can not be,” she said as she stared at the handsome man. 
         “You have seen me before,” the man said.  This was a statement rather than a question.
         Maria could never forget the picture that she had left behind when she came to Utofamia.  The man standing in front of her was the man in the picture, her father.
         “It cannot be.” she whispered softly.
         Teelah returned with a tray of food. 
         “Set it down there, dear.  Maria and I need to have a talk.
         “You see, Maria, you were the chosen one from the start.  For your safety we had to hide both you and your sister on Earth.”
         “I thought the prophecy was that a person not of Rem’s worlds would be the one to destroy Melisande.”
         “The full prophecy was only known to the Wise ones.  We felt with you safely in a different world, you would be protected when the time came.  However, the only way for you to return was to come close to death.”
         “Maria shuddered when she remembered Luke’s fingers around her throat.”
         “What about my mother and sister?”
         “You will be reunited with them soon.  Since we had twins, we were not sure which one of you was the one the prophecy mentioned.  So you both were in the orphanage.  When we found out it was you, your mother went to be with your sister.”
         “So I am a lot older than I think I am?”
         “No I was the last of the Wise Ones.  You are your true age.”
         “Why wasn’t I told all this in the beginning, when I first came to Utofamia?”
         “You would not have been able to do it.  First of all you needed to learn to be brave.  You have shown that in the battles and your first encounter with Melisande.
         “Even though the fighting was in your blood from the day you were born, you had to learn the warrior skills.  Did you ever wonder how you picked up those skills so quickly?  All citizens of Utofamia have it in them to fight.
         “You needed to show loyalty to Bellerophon and Utofamia.  You displayed that many times.
         “It is time for you to destroy Melisande.  However, it is not a simple task.”  Draymah was silent for a second, “in fact you may be killed in the process.  Are you willing to sacrifice yourself if needed?”
         “Yes, I am,” said Maria.  “I grew to love Utofamia.  I will do anything to help the land.”
         The girl returned with a long black spear.  “Thank you Teelah!  As always, you know what I need.”
         Maria looked at the girl, thinking that she was her sister.  However, she was younger than her and did not look anything like her.
         “I had adopted her, since it got lonely for me in the desert.  I had to fill the void in my life when I had to leave both you and your sister years ago.”
         “I understand everything now,” Maria said.
         “This black spear is the only thing that will kill Melisande.  You have to get close enough to her to thrust it through her heart.”
         “I know I will be able to do it,” Maria said taking the spear.
         “After everything is done, we will be together as a family once again.  The Gammataur will return for you tonight.

         “Geoffrey!  I am so glad you made it back!”  King Alexander embraced the Kingsbane.  “I got your message and I am thankful to see you again.”
         Geoffrey did not say a word.  The king turned to Michael.
         "Well, is the task done?" King Alexander asked, looking at him.
         "Yes, King Alexander," Michael answered humbly.  "The task is done."  It had taken the remaining nights two days of travel to reach the Plains of Musglove.
         "The Gammataur took her," Geoffrey said. 
         King Alexander shuddered.  Even he would not have suggested that sentence.  An arrow in the heart would have sufficed.
         "The Gammataur loosened her chains and let her go free.  She is miles from here."  In all the time he had known the King, this was the first time Geoffrey had no respect towards him.  He could even say he hated the King.  The woman he loved would probably no longer return to him.
         "You let her go free!"  King Alexander thundered.  Then he was silent.  "The Gammataur only frees innocent people.  I was wrong about her.  I am sorry Geoffrey.  I pray that Maria finds it in her heart to forgive me."
         The hatred and disrespect slowly disappeared.  He now felt sympathy for the King.  He was responsible for the very lives of his men.  With the smell of battle in the air, the chances of any of them surviving Melisande's onslaught were slim to none.

         Melisande had laughed when the only survivor from the ambush returned.  Sure she lost some men; but these men where disposable.  She still had more than enough knights to destroy every single inhabitant in Utofamia.          
         She had more uses for the female knight.  Yet, know she was a prisoner in King Alexander’s tower.  “This is funny; the female is accused of being a spy.”
         “Is she still a threat to the Red Knights?” Idres had asked.
         “No,” said Melisande.  “She is out of the way.  Once we get through with the Knights of King Alexander and King Christoph, we can get her out of the tower.  Better yet, we will just leave her in the tower and she will starve to death.  This is so funny,” she laughed evilly.
         Idres yelled over his shoulder, “Melisande there are White Knights coming this way.”  He pointed and she looked towards the east.  “There are only three of them.  Why, I believe that is King Alexander.”  She laughed, “He is waving a white flag in surrender.  Put your swords away; allow them to approach.”
         She started to walk towards the trio.  “Melisande!” Idres yelled.  “This could be a trap!”
         “I know King Alexander.  He is too honest for his own good.  Let him have his say then let him go on his way peacefully.”
         She walked and met with King Alexander.
         “All I want,” the King said, “is for you to leave us alone.  You and your knights are more powerful than my people.  You outnumber us.  We stand no chance against you.  I am willing to give you the land.  Just let the knights and the citizens of Utofamia live in peace.”
         Melisande laughed, "So fitting to see you beg.  I want Utofamia for my men, the Red Knights and the Death Bearers.  Nobody else will live in this land.  I may be willing to allow some of your men to join my band."
          King Alexander looked Melisande squarely in the eye.  "So be it.  We fight in forty-eight hours.  We will fight until every last of my men are slain.  We will not succumb to you."
         King Alexander turned sharply and left.

         The Gammataur landed near King Alexander’s castle.  This is where I leave you.”
         Maria hugged the creature.  “Thank you for all you have done for me.”
         “I thank you in advance for destroying Melisande.  Maybe one day I do not have to fly judging people.  Remember me in times of peace.”
         “I will do that,” Maria said.  “I even have a name for you.  It is Gamma.”
         “Gamma,” said the creature, chuckling.  “I like that.”
         He flew off.  Maria watched the Gammataur as it grew smaller and smaller in the distance.  Before he disappeared from view, it lifted its wing and waved at Maria.
         Maria looked around the Hunting Grounds.  “This place looks deserted,” she thought to herself.  “Everybody must be at the Plains of Musglove.”  She heard a whinny coming from the stables.  She ran over and found Chilowna, the only horse in it.  He saw her and whinnied louder.
         She patted his back.  “I came back for you.  We are going to war.”
         Soon Maria had the horse ready and they were heading towards the Plains of Musglove.  The black spear was secured tightly to her side.

         The dawn dawned with its gloom; dark clouds blanked the sky, threatening rain at any minutes.  It was as if the morning was preparing the White Knights for a final battle that would lead them to their doom.
         “Geoffrey!  Hold up a minute!” King Alexander yelled.  The Kingsbane were heading to the edge of the forest to prepare for the first part of the battle.  As previous battles, they would begin the assault by shooting arrows at the advancing enemy knights.  He walked towards the King.
         We are not going to do the usual assault.  The Kingsbane are going to be in the charge.  I believe that is the only way to have a chance, everybody charges at once.  Hopefully we can take out many of the first enemy in the first one.
         “Yes Sir,” Geoffrey replied.  Either way they had no chance; each individual would have to take out at least ten of the enemy.  The odds of doing this were slim to none.
         Sir Michael came bringing some villagers.  “They have come to help with the cause.”
         “We have been getting more and more people each day,” said King Alexander.  “Every little bit helps.  Unfortunately, we have run out of armor.”
         Geoffrey looked at a young lad standing near him.  He was about his size.  He quickly started taking off his armor.  He was standing there in his trousers and shirt.  “You can have mine.  Quickly put them on.” 
         Michael turned and saw a female approaching them.  “I want to help,” she said.  Michael also removed his armor and gave it to her.  All around the battlefield, knights began giving their armor to the villagers.
         “Line up!” King Alexander ordered.  “The enemy will be here shortly.”  He prayed silently to Rem, “Please protect my people.”
         “Somebody approaches!” a knight yelled.
         “It is only one person.  It is a white knight!”
         “It is Maria,” Michael yelled.
         The King looked at the approaching knight.  “Thank you, Rem.”
         He, Michael and Geoffrey rushed to meet with the approaching knight.
         “I am sorry for the way I treated you, Maria,” King Alexander said humbly.  It was as if she was the ruler and not him.
         “I think it had to be that way,” Maria said.  “I do not know I would have found the answer to Melisande’s destruction.”
         “Were you successful? Geoffrey asked after hugging her.
         She held up the black spear that Draymah had given her.  “I have to get close enough to trust this through her heart.”
         “We will stay near you,” Michael said.
         “I will pass word to the other knights to protect you, Maria,” Geoffrey said.
         “Also tell them about the spear.  If I get killed, somebody else has to complete the task.”
         Geoffrey was silent for a moment.  Then he turned to pass the message to the other knights.
         Jacob had found a place in line with the other knights.  When he saw Maria approaching, he turned his head so that she would not recognize him. He strapped his helmet to his saddle.
         "Aren't you going to put your helmet on?" Nils asked Jacob.
         "I see better without it."
         "Well, be careful.  We do not want to lose you again.
         The clouds opened up with full fury.  Lightening flashed and thunder sounded seconds later.  Through the sheet of rain, the knights soon saw the approaching enemy.
         “This is it,” King Alexander thought to himself.  When the enemy covered half the distance, he yelled “Charge!”
         With a cry, the White and Black Knights rushed through the never-ending rain and mud towards the enemy.  Half of the allied forces were slaughtered during the first rush.  If only Maria could find the target soon, maybe the battle would end.
         Michael, Geoffrey and several other knights surrounded Maria, protecting her. 
         “Where is she?” cried Maria.
         “She is ahead,” yelled Michael.  “She is using her powers to help the enemy.”
         Sure enough, flashes of light were seen and Melisande used her power to destroy the knights.
         At King Alexander’s yell, Jacob rode towards the tree line during the rush.  With chaos all throughout the battlefield, nobody noticed.
         “I know Melisande’s promise that I would be recognized if I did not wear my helmet.  However, I am not taking any chances.”  Within the safety of the trees, he watched the battle.
         Jacob stared in amazement at how quickly the battle was turning in the Red Knight’s favor.  Of course, it was no wonder; the enemy outnumbered the White and Black Knights immensely.
         “There is no way they can win,” Jacob thought.  However, he was not excited as he was when Melisande had let him go as a spy.  In fact, he felt sad.
         When he reunited with the Black Knights, they were jubilant to see him.  Even the White Knights welcomed him with open arms.  Nils became a very good friend to him and offered to help him out in any way he could.
         “I am paying them back by doing this?  I am not helping them in this battle.  Melisande will turn on me when she is done here.”
         “Yet, they were cowards; they abandoned the brave knights who were killed.”
         Jacob cried out as he saw Nils fall from his horse with a spear jutting out of his chest.
         Tears started running out of his eyes and rolling down his cheeks like a waterfall.
         "No," Jacob said, crying.  "I was wrong.  They are the brave ones.  I am the coward.  I should have helped the female knight; but I did not.  Lord Bellerophon, Lord Rem, please forgive me for my wrong doings.  I will right my wrongs."  Jacob put his helmet on his head and rode into the midst of the battle.
         “She is about twenty yards ahead!”  Geoffrey yelled.
         “Geoffrey!  Watch out!”  Michael yelled.  The warning was too late.  A Red Knight ran up and thrust his sword through Geoffrey’s back.  Without his armor protecting his, the Kingsbane was dead before he hit the ground.
         “No!”  Maria cried.  She pulled up on Chilowna’s reins to stop the horse.
         “It is too late for him!” Michael yelled.  “Think about what you have to do!  Seek revenge and kill Melisande!”
         Wiping the tears from her eyes, Maria continued riding towards where she last saw Melisande.  She spotted the sorceress directly ahead of her.  She kicked Chilowna to go faster.  Grimson charged her from her left, with Idres approaching from her right.  A Black Knight ran directly into Grimson and knocked the Death Bearer off his horse.
         “You traitor!” Melisande screamed and shot fire bolts out of her fingers at the knight.  For an instant, Maria recognized the knight without the helmet.  Then Jacob became a pile of charred remains and crumbled to the ground.
         Not having the time to ponder his redemption, Maria continued her charge for Melisande.  Idres turned his horse so that he was now in front of the sorceress.  There was only one chance.  She stood up on Chilowna’s back and jumped.
         She flew over Idres’s head and thrust down with the black spear.  At the same time, Idres trust his sword up and impaled the White Knight through her heart.  With what strength she had, she threw the spear at Melisande.  It found its target.  With a cry of dismay, the spear jutted from her chest.
         Both Maria and Melisande fell to the ground; the sorceress dead and the brave one dying.
         There was silence on the battlefield as Melisande’s life was extinguished.  Maria had fallen with a thud and lay still.  Her wound was too great; her last breath would be drawn shortly.  Through a quickly thickening cloud of haze she saw two knights approach her, one in black armor and the other in dull gray.
         The one in dull gray armor got to Maria first.  Somehow she knew it was Grimson.  He knelt down and removed his helmet.  No longer was his face deformed; this was a handsome knight looking at her.  He caressed her face gently with his hand.  “Thank you, Maria. The curse is lifted,” he whispered hoarsely.
         The second knight approached her.  “Maria you did it!  You killed Melisande!”  Maria, now unable to see, recognized Michael’s voice.  She feebly lifted her hand and felt his cheek, wet with tears.  He picked Maria up in his arms and carried her to the trees.
         Grimson stood back up and yelled, “Brave Maria has slain Melisande!  We are no longer Death Bearers!  We fight for Bellerophon and his knights!”
         There was a loud cheer from the Death Bearers and each removed their helmets.  No longer deformed, they were all handsome.  “For Bellerophon!” they shouted as the battle started up again.
         Maria up.”was close to drawing her last breath.  Michael was by her side, “Hang in there, Maria.  You can not die” he said sobbing.  “Please, Bellerophon, heal her.  All the Conchiva has been used up.
         Maria could faintly hear Michael speaking.  She wanted to reach out to him, to tell him that she would be fine.  Soon she would be with Geoffrey in the Realm of Bellerophon.  She heard a voice yelling; “That sounds like Marcus,” she thought, remembering the Red Knight she had helped once.
         The Red Knight yelled, "All the Red Knights who are for Bellerophon, throw aside your helmets and fight against the enemy!"  There was a loud cheer as over half of the Red Knights removed their helmets and threw them to the ground.
         The tide was beginning to turn in the battle.  With the former Death Bearers and the converted Red Knights, the enemy was no longer dominating.
         “This is my last breath,” Maria thought as she exhaled.  Then there was another cry as Bellerophon shouted, “All you wounded, your wounds are healed!  Arise!  Rejoin the fight!"
         Maria quickly sat up, instantly healed of her wound.  She looked at Michael and embraced him.  “Shall we join the battle?” she asked.
         “Let’s do it,” Michael said happily.
         The battle continued as the allied forces bore down on the enemy.  Even though they still outnumbered, they were fighting with renewed strength.  Maria felt more powerful than before.  Then she realized what had happened, the enemy was not even getting close to wounding the knights.  They were all protected from the blows of the swords.
         There was a loud crash of thunder and a voice sounded throughout the battlefield.  “Enough,” yelled the voice.  "All you brave souls that have been slain; you have been recalled to life.  Come forth and finally defeat the enemy who has ruined your lands!"
         People instantly appeared everywhere within the Plains of Musglove. 
         “Good going, Maria,” a woman stood next to her.  Osondria pulled her sword and rushed into the confusion.
         Sir Peter and Astaire embraced happily and joined in too.
         “Forgive me, Maria,” another knight appeared next to her.  She turned and was facing Jacob.
         “You are the one who protected me from Grimson,” this was a statement rather than a question.
         “Let’s just say that I had a change of heart.”
         “It is never too late for anything.  You are forgiven.”
         He smiled at her and returned to the battle.
         A familiar figure approached her.  “They now know that I am not an enemy.  May I introduce you to my family?”  A group of centaurs surrounded Blackadar.  “Now we have something to do.”  The centaurs rushed into the battlefield and with thrashing hooves stuck the enemy down.
         Geoffrey went running to Maria.  “You did it!  I knew all along you would do it!”  They embraced and kissed.  “Once this is over, we will have our whole life ahead of us!”
         “Let’s finish with the Red Knights.  Then we will talk about plans for our future.”
         “After you,” Geoffrey said.
         Everywhere people appeared and looked for some sort of weapon, even bending down and picking up a large rock.
         The battle raged on.  With the enemy’s numbers drastically reduced, the Red Knights stood no chance against this new army.  While they still tried to hold their ground, they were unable to strike down one knight.  It was as if the allied forces were protected by Rem.
         King Alexander glanced over to his right.  “It is about time you showed up,” he said with a laugh.
         “Shall we join them?” King Christophe asked.
         “I think we will just watch.  They can handle this on their own.”
         Maria found herself face-to-face with Idres, the one who failed at his attempt to save Melisande.  Michael came up to her side.  “This is my fight,” she said, glaring at the Red Knight.  Michael held off and fought another knight.
         Idres swung his sword at the White Knight, which Maria blocked.  She heard cries throughout the battlefield.  “The enemy can not touch us anymore!  Rem is protecting us!”
         Maria continued swinging at Idres with powerful strokes of her sword.  Eventually, he tired and fell to the ground exhausted. 
         He looked up at her with pleading in his eyes.  All around the battlefield, the enemy was lying on the ground dead, wounded or dying.
         “Get up,” Maria said, “You will be judged by Bellerophon.”
         “Enough!” yelled the booming voice once again.  “The Red Knights are no more!  They will be returned to their world to await final judgment!”  The bodies of the Red Knights, both the living and the dead disappeared from the Plains of Musglove.  Only the Red Knights who fought for Bellerophon and Utofamia, along with the former Death Bearers, remained.
         There was a loud rumbling in the distance.  “Melisande’s castle has been destroyed and has fallen into the sea!  No longer will that be a place of evil, but rather a place for people to live in peace!  The Red Knights will never plague Utofamia or any other world!”
         Maria glanced over to the body of Melisande.  She had not disappeared along with the Red Knights.
         “Bellerophon, come claim your wife!  Melisande is no longer in her body!”
         Roman Marlena slowly sat up and looked around.  Standing up, she glanced to Maria.  “Thank you, Maria.  It has been too long.”  She watched happily as Bellerophon and his wife embraced.
         “Maria!” Geoffrey yelled, running towards her.  She headed towards him and then stopped.  It was like a force field was blocking her.  Geoffrey stopped approaching and looked at her in shock.  “What is happening?”
         Maria looked at the Kingsbane as he seemed to get further and further away.  He seemed to be melting in front of her eyes.  Within a few seconds, it was impossible to see him through a thick fog of haze.
         Then everything became black.