Deke Brolin Rhol (45 page)

He pulled the chain toward him and lunged forward in the same motion.
Solharn had not seen it coming. As he stared into those eyes, he knew that it was over, at least for Rhol. He had misjudged the situation. He had created what would be their redemption. He had defeated himself. It was over, and he only realized it when he looked into her eyes. The boy no longer held the amulet, she did. She had predicted that Solharn would call on the Blackpool, to regain his dark energy and with it, the power he so desperately craved. She had patiently waited for that very moment, timing it down to the last second.

In the boy’s hands the energy of the amulet could be unleashed. In the hands of an angel, it became the opposi
te. It became a portal that separated positive energy from negative. In the hands of Elissa, the amulet became a portal that dispensed with the energy of the evil by sending it spiraling into the Black Abyss and one that replenished and redistributed the energy of the good.

Solharn watched
as the dark energy that he had conjured from the Black Abyss to form the Blackpool, to form his portal to this world, drained slowly from the lake and travelled through him, through his body. He had called for the darkness to come to him. He himself had conjured it, and then he had commanded it to consume the boy as only he could have.

He had not seen Elissa take hold of the amulet
. Unwittingly he had sent the darkness to her. He had commanded the dark energy and it had obeyed. It had travelled through him and found the most natural path to the boy, through the chain that Kiran had given to Deke to safeguard the amulet, but the boy no longer held the amulet, she did. She held the amulet and in her hands it was a portal. The portal could not be closed. Once the portal took possession of the energy it was connected to, it determined the final destination of the dark energy.

The
Blackpool was no longer. Its dark waters were whisked away through the portal leaving Shimmer Lake whole again. The last thread of darkness wound its way toward Solharn from the lake. He looked at Elissa. He still could not fathom how she, someone so inferior to him, had prevailed. The last of the darkness disappeared as it siphoned its way through his fingers, through him and finally through the chain. His time had come.

“The abyss cannot hold
me Elissa. This is not finished,” scoffed Solharn.  

“It is f
or Rhol,” she answered.

He could foresee what was coming next. He knew what he was
, but more importantly what he wasn’t. He no longer existed as he once did. He no longer possessed a soul. That was why he craved the souls of others. He was possessed with a dark malevolence and filled with nothing but the desire for power and supremacy. He was simply energy of the darkest kind and as such, he slowly evaporated into the Amulet of Rhol.

Throughout Leal, Aura and then further on to Tamon the light streaked through the dark skies illuminating them once again.

On Mount Kartago all the way through to Solace and right across Rhol itself, the light
that was the energy of the souls cascaded across the land, releasing the energy which Solharn had ensnared.

The storms and the squalls slowl
y dissipated. They had reveled in Solace, utterly astounded, as they watched the light roll across the skies toward the tornados that were destroying their world. It was staggering to look upon the light as it ripped through the very core of each and every twister. The bluish color of the energy of the souls intertwined with the dark energy, swirling around in a bitter fight to overtake one another was something to behold. In the end, the dark energy succumbed to the energy of the souls, leaving for what was only a few seconds, a blue tornado that stood stationary before becoming a mere breeze drifting gently over the vast terrain. 

The light
over-took the dark. The positive energy entrapped in Solharn’s shrouds of darkness was once again released from his control.

It would be something that nobody o
f Rhol would ever witness again, the positive energy fighting the dark negative energy. It was a battle of the souls, of good against evil. It was a battle that decided which way the balance would turn.

Elissa didn’t believe that Solharn
ever understood the power which Deke held, particularly since Solharn was not aware that Elissa had been there to guide Deke. But she had been there for Deke and she had told him of his power to unleash the energy of the souls. She had instructed him that for the plan to work, the power of the souls would have to be sent through Solharn himself. Because Solharn had created the storms along with the portals to the Black Abyss, only he could send the energy back to them. Elissa had instructed Deke that the amulet works through the body of whoever it was given to. Therefore, Deke had to give the amulet to Solharn, while still maintaining control of it to be able to unleash its power through Solharn.

It would all be for nothing however,
if the Blackpool remained. If the Blackpool was not destroyed, then Solharn would only return with more power and with more vengeance.

She
had hoped Solharn would try to regain his energy and knew the Blackpool would be his only source. She counted on his thirst for domination and power and it had worked. She had waited until the very moment when the dark energy had begun to stream through his body. She knew he would have to kill Deke to break the connection between the two, and in order to do that she knew that Solharn would have to send the dark energy to Deke. The only way to do that was to send it through the chain which connected them. The chain Elissa had given to Kiran almost a decade ago.

Elissa
had a mere second of opportunity, a flash in time to take over the amulet. If she grabbed it too soon the advantage of surprise would be lost. If she waited too long, the boy would die and all would fail. Her timing however would be impeccable. She had waited ten long years for that moment, ten years of suffering and torment at the hands of Solharn. She had waited patiently to see that moment, to see the look on Solharn’s face when he realized that he had just defeated himself. Elissa had savored the moment.

Ω

Spirits were high when word spread about the defeat of Solharn and the return of Queen Elissa, but not everything was cause to celebrate. Rhol had suffered greatly at the hands of his wickedness. Many lives had been lost and much of the beauty of Rhol had been destroyed by the storms, but Rhol would flourish again. They would rebuild their lands and their homes. Although their freedom had been regained at a great cost, it was worth it.

The Nightstalker
s had been freed of Solharn’s control once he was sent back to the Black Abyss. Elissa was able to use her powers to heal the wounded, including Delca and Issa. Sadly, she was powerless to help Solko. The rock that toppled on top of him had killed him instantly.  Queen Elissa herself informed Preta that Solko died a hero saving this world. Preta was crushed, but Elissa convinced her to come to Mount Kartago to grieve with her, and to become her confidant and protector. She accepted and over time her grief diminished.

In the days that followed, many gathered atop Mount Kartago, at the castle where Elissa had devised her strategy ten long years ago. They had been invited to share in a small memorial for all the br
ave warriors who died in battle, and for the heroes who would never return home, but whom they would never forget.

Following the ceremony, Jayden looked around
for Oisin. He had gone missing, along with Phanthus following the defeat of Solharn.  

“Issa, have you seen Phanthus or Oisin?” he asked.

Issa hesitated momentarily before answering. “I have not seen either. Not since the battle at Mount Sibileo. Kaelyn, have you heard anything from them?”

“No, nothing, b
ut I am sure they will be here. Let’s join the ceremony.”

It was the first time that all of them had gathered together in one place since the Dark Angel
’s defeat. It was a happy occasion and a time to reflect on the past. Palto now understood how the events had unfolded at Mount Sibileo, but he still did not understand why Elissa had not told him and the others of her plan.

She answered his question showing the utmost respect
. “I am sorry Palto. I am sorry to all of you. There was no disrespect intended, but our plan was risky enough. The more people that knew of my freedom, the greater the risk it would have been that Solharn would find out. If he had managed to take control or possess any one of you, he would have known what we planned and all would have been lost.”

Palto nodded to her. He understood her reasoning after seeing what Solharn had done to Jayden and the others.

Queen Elissa turned to Deke. “I would like to thank you, Deke, and you, Mary. If not for you and your paladins, Deo and Delca, Solharn would have fulfilled what he thought to be his destiny. You have saved our world. We of Rhol are indebted to you.”

Jayden shook their hands followed by Kaelyn. Duffy also thanked them before walking away in silence.

Although Duffy was trying to mask it, he was noticeably upset. Kaelyn could see that he looked alone and deep in thought.

“Duffy, are you alright?” she asked walking up to him.

“Oh, Kaelyn yes, yes I am fine,” Duffy answered.

“You should be proud
Duffy. Your valor played a huge role in defeating Solharn and his armies. You saved Preta, Mary and Delca single-handedly.”

“Thank you
, Kaelyn. You are very nice to say so, but that is not what troubles me.”

“What then?”

“My family...they are all dead. I have no relatives to speak of. Everyone I become close to ends up dying, and then Solko…I am afraid to become close to anyone,” said Duffy as he paused for a moment before continuing, “I just don’t know where my place is anymore.”

“It is with us
, Duffy. Come, let’s join the others. Orulla and Preta are here. Perhaps they will lift your spirits.”

“Yes, yes. Okay Kaelyn.”

They walked over and joined them in time to hear Deke asking Elissa what would become of Rhol.

“We will rebuild and we will nurture what we have left. Rhol will return to wha
t it once was, and it will prosper again. In many ways it is already better. The many inhabitants of Rhol came together to protect each other, and protect the world which they call home against the ravages of Solharn. They worked as one and hopefully, they will now live as one. That is what will sustain our world.”

“What
about the remaining Kaltaures, the Phits and the others who helped Solharn in his plan to destroy this world?” Deke asked.

“It will take many years for this world to become perfect but o
ne day it will happen, and then we will have accomplished what we were meant to achieve, what all of our worlds must achieve. Once that happens, the Balance of Five will be one with each other. Until that time we will have to slowly work on fixing the imperfections of our worlds. We will try to work with the Phits and the Kaltaures. We will try to deal with their issues until eventually, there are no more issues. There will be no short term solutions or easy fixes. All we can do is try to live with one another. Perhaps one day we will not have to worry about having enemies or about the existence of evil.”

“Well
, at least Solharn is no longer,” Duffy said cutting into the conversation.

A strange silence fell over the crowd. Palto looked toward Elissa. Most of them knew Solharn was far from gone but perhaps no one had told Duffy.

“He is only gone from Rhol, Duffy. He can and he will return through the Blackpools on the other worlds, and he will be much better prepared. This war is over for Rhol, but it is just beginning for the Balance of Five, of which we are a part of. If Solharn manages to completely destroy one of the other four worlds, then ours will follow. That is how the balance was designed.”

“Do the other worlds possess the power to stop him?” Duffy asked unaware of this gloomy revelation.

“Unfortunately, Beltic is only a year away from extinction. It barely sustains itself. The people of that world cling to a life in which they live in hiding, while being hunted down by Solharn’s armies. There is a small group that still fights for their world, but they have no chance of surviving without their ruler, Jobe the Seraphim who was sent to protect them,” Elissa answered.

“What happened to Jobe?” Issa asked.

“I am not sure, but he no longer possesses the Amulet of Beltic. A Seraph would never relinquish the amulet willingly. Rest assured Solharn was behind whatever has become of him.”

“How
do you know this Elissa?” Kaelyn chimed in.

“I have many ways of knowing things child but the obvious answer lies with the Sacred Amulet of Beltic. It is here.
”

“Where is it
, Elissa?” Duffy asked.

“It is safe. The people of Kilto protect it
, and they will continue to safeguard it until the person for whom it was meant retrieves it…or leaves it behind.”

Elissa was looking directly at Deke
. “You are that person Deke. It is your choice whether you continue on this journey or you return home. Because the Amulet of Rhol was found on Earth, I have the power through the Amulet to send you back there along with Mary.”