Surely the delicate faced Day-Walkers were an improvement upon the species. Without hesitation, the army and the queen engaged the Krethans with everything they had. The vengeance burning inside their hearts fueled the fire behind their swords, an intense will to obliterate the less skilled Krethans.
But as one wave had been extinguished, another was making their way over the wall in what seemed an endless parade of Krethans. It was clear what the strategy of the weaker opponent was. To overwhelm the queen and her army by sheer number.
However, the unsuspected surprise for the Krethans was that the army appeared to be up to the challenge. Soon, the sun was peaking over the horizon and the Castle walls with the promise of a few moments of rest in its wings. But, the queen and the army were soon roused to contend with a fresh line of attack from the Day-Walkers. For nine straight days, the relentless well-coordinated efforts of the vicious Krethans by night and the equally crafty Day-Walkers at sunrise, left the queen and her army of now just twenty-seven with little time to rest, let alone to grieve. Hoping that a strong show of strength and resolve would deter the vigilant aggressors, they pressed on.
Yet, the aggressors appeared to be coming more emboldened. With each new attack the number of the queen's army began to dwindle, going from twenty-seven, to twenty. Hungry and weary, during the quiet of the middle of the day, the queen sent a few out into the nearby forest to scavenge for food, but they ended up returning with little that would sustain the nourishment needs of strong warriors. They were also running out of time.
The queen and her army could only last another three days of daylight before effects of direct sunlight would began to weaken the effects of the Talek. After each passing day, if they weren't able to sacrifice in blood, their bodies would slowly begin to take on mortality. Their special strength and speed would be no more.
Two more days of continuous battle would ensue. Observing her soldiers carefully, it was obvious that fatigue was beginning to set in. But there wasn't much that they could do. If they attempted to leave from behind the high walls of the Castle, she was sure they would be facing unknown dangers in the forest.
Understanding their dilemma, she sent two soldiers to spy out the surrounding forest for Krethans and Day-Walkers. Hours later, the two scouts returned with their account. The armies of the Krethans were advancing from all sides. "How many of them are there?" she asked.
"Roughly two, possibly as much as four, thousand, advancing from the south and west," one said.
"From the east and north it looks to be the same," the other added. “It appears that they are sending the very city of Corra to defeat us.”
Corra, now the capital of the Krethans. She sought the eyes of Marlon. For a brief moment, he appeared uncertain of what to say.
"We shall fight as long as our queen shall command us to," he said. However, the courageous words belied the loss of vigor and conviction in the eyes of the valiant warrior. The blood of their people had long since dried upon their worn faces, leaving dark streaks that cracked and flaked. Observing the remaining warriors, her heart was bursting with pride. They would have fought another eleven days, one hundred and eleven, had she allowed it.
But the decision to press onward wasn't theirs to make, but it rested solely on the shoulders of their queen. She turned away to ponder a decision, or even a plan that would lead to victory.
She observed the beautiful buildings that graced the grounds, the works of art that sat outside the castle of Twells. The tall, wonderful trees that played host to many of the children of the Castle, including herself at one time.
She bit her bottom lip as it trembled violently at the thought of the voices of merriment and joy that once graced the city's square, now forever silenced by the cruel hand of the Krethans. She walked along the tall, marble, fifteen foot statues of the Patriarchs of Twells. Since the day the land was shared by the Twelve Kings, Twells had been blessed with a unique honor. It had never fallen to an invading army. Never had an invading army been bold enough to scale the walls. Not in the days of King Gorrin, King Cush, nor his son King Nor, nor his son King Odonnah. Not even his daughter, Queen Karlise.
Now, not only had Twells been invaded, its villages plundered and its people slaughtered. The walls, had been consistently breached for the past eleven days and nights. But around the fifth day of the invasion, there was a lull in the fighting.
Possibly sensing this moment, the queen had soldiers remove all of the gold and treasure from the coffers, along with the two large, smooth stones of the Talek, hiding them deep inside a cave not too far from the forest.
Once the cave was sealed, they returned back to Twells to stand side by side with their queen and fellow soldiers. Now whatever remained worth saving of Twells was stored away inside their hearts.
Silently she observed the replication of the strong, larger than life statue of the man whom she had never known. She placed a hand lovingly on the leg of the statue of Odonnah as she studied the handsome face commemorated in marble. Always told by those who knew him that the statue was an exact replica of her grandfather. She moved slowly to stand at the statue of her mother, lowering her knees to the ground, bowing before it. She blessed the feet with her tears, offering a gentle kiss.
As she rose to her feet, she wandered as she sized up the other statues with her eyes. The heroes and great warriors of Twells. Would they have come to the same decision she had just made? Her eyes drank deeply of the magnificent splendor of the Castle of Urswic, the largest structure in all the land standing majestically over its rivals. She headed slowly for the city square, where the remaining army stood ready to defend Twells to the death. All weary eyes followed their queen as she approached Cleftus.
She motioned towards the watchtower with her head. "Get up on the tower and alert us when they are upon us. Then, come down and stand with us," she said. Cleftus simply nodded, then quickly scrambled up the tower.
Standing in the midst of the defiant warriors, they quickly formed the battle circle, with their queen in the middle.
All eyes were upon the walls in every direction. Suddenly, Cleftus ran down from the tower, taking his place on the circle. "Here they come," he announced.
"Get ready," Marlon shouted, as they quickly removed their swords from their sides. Soon the first wave began to scale the walls, quickly heading towards the city square from every direction. This time there were even more of them.
The queen slowly raised her sword high above her head. Just a little longer. Soon the advancing menace was rushing towards them, trodden over the slain bodies of citizens and soldiers, shouting at the tops of their voices. A few more steps.
"Army of the crown," the queen shouted loudly over the clamor of the advancing Krethans. "Abandon Twells!"
Soon, in unison, all eighteen took to the black sky, disappearing like crows high above and over the thousands of Krethans. They could hear the Krethans as they began to celebrate beneath them. The once mighty Twells, the last kingdom of the original twelve that never once had been overtaken, had now been surrendered to her enemies by its last queen.
