March of The Dead (MotD)

A calm wind blew through the flags and banners, stoking the flames that now brushed against them. Their light dyed the night sky in a brilliant orange.

This fortress, that the Demon Army had quickly constructed atop a hill, upon receiving news of the Undead Army marching in their direction, now lay in ruin. They had decided to fight to the very end, and used fire in an attempt to harm the Undead.

Their end was quick and without ceremony.

Alaster stood at the top of the hill, where the General had attempted one last stand, and looked out at the crumbling wooden fort and the dense forest beyond. His Undead stood still throughout the fort, unmoving among the rubble and bodies.

Alaster glanced up and saw the clouds begin to block out the moonlight. It would soon rain.

Yet he did not move. Instead, he waited for his guest to arrive. Alaster had sensed him coming from over five miles away. His guest was not trying to conceal himself.

It only took a few minutes for him to finally arrive. He walked through the broken gates and saw the bodies of his people as he walked to Alaster.

"It has been a while, Belgroth." Alaster did not turn to face the Argalon to his left.

Belgroth turned his attention from the bodies laying in the mud or burning rubble to Alaster, "It has."

"What do you want?"

"Is that all you have to say to me after two years?"

"Its all I have to say to you while you wear the colors of her murderers."

Belgroth looked down at the tabard he wore over his light chainmail. He had forgotten he wore it.

"One man killed her. A man you have already eliminated. Why continue to vent your rage upon others?"

"Because that man was only here on the orders of your War Masters, which I hear you are now a part of."

"They were forced to give me the seat due to my prior position as a Guardian of our People."

"So you go from preaching peace to me, to commanding armies to murder innocents."

Belgroth scoffed, "You of all people have no right to speak of innocents. You know that. So don't try to play that card. And I am only a War Master in an attempt to pursue peace. That is why I am here. I am a final attempt for that goal. Because while the rest of the War Masters could negotiate peace among our races, it would mean nothing if you did not also acknowledge it."

Alaster said nothing as he continued to watch the wind shift the branches of the distant trees. For several minutes he said nothing. When he finally spoke, he turned his head to Belgroth, "I will accept the peace on one condition."

Belgroth struggled to keep the smile from his face. He had thought his old friend to be too far gone in his maddess to consider peace. Perhaps he could be saved after all.

"What is your condition."

"The War Masters and the Generals. If they want peace, then they must be willing to pay the price of war. I want the War Masters and Generals to stand before me and give their lives to me."

Belgroth sighed, "How will this help?"

"They are the ones who started this war. A war that has cost the lives of millions of innocents. A war that cost the life of my fiancé. If they want to end it, they must pay for it. And don't be shortsighted. Nothing that is put on paper, however magically enforced, will last. There is too much hatred between our Races. But if the leaders of the Invaders were to sacrifice themselves to ensure the end to the war, then it would have true meaning behind it.

The Humans would have the lives of their citizens, the Coalition would have the lives of their Generals and respected leaders. With the weight of those lives weighing on the shoulders of either side, neither will wish to pursue further conflicts. At least not for a long time.

Which if I am not mistaken, time is something your People do not have much of."

Belgroth sighed, "You are not wrong. But I'm not sure if I could convince them to do such a selfless act."

"You had best try your best, because until the time when their heads roll at my feet, I will continue to hunt down and exterminate the vermin that is your People. And if you cannot convince them to do this, that will include marching my army through that portal in Zolis and slaughtering the innocents of your Species.

You certainly killed enough of mine.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

Now if that is everything, leave. I am headed for Krilla, where I hear there is somewhere around twenty thousand Demons Garrisoned, including the seventy to ninety thousand that are nearby and will likely reinforce the Garrison the closer I march.

Best hurry if I were you."

* * * * *

Belgroth flew as fast as he could through the night sky, he had one chance to save the lives of over one hundred thousand of his people. If he was too slow, or they refused, all those men and women would be consumed by the Undead, only to stand back up to join their ranks.

Thunder cracked the sky as lightning sparked through the clouds. Rain pounded the world below, drenching Belgroth, but he refused to let it slow him down.

He made it back to Zolis in record time. The numerous Guards recognized him and quickly stepped aside to let him pass. He did not spare them a glance as he ran through the twisting halls until he reached the deep chamber of his peers.

"Open the door!" He shouted ahead at the Guards stationed there.

They obeyed his command, and opened the door just in time for him to rush through without slowing down.

"You are back already Belgroth? I must admit, I thought you would still be fighting that Necromancer." One of the War Masters said, looking up from the various papers laid out before him.

"There was no fight." Belgroth said, his chest huffing.

"Ah so you managed to convince the madman to surrender."

Belgroth looked at the chairman with confusion, "Surrender?"

"Yes. That was the point of these ridiculous peace talks were they not? 'Surrender now or face destruction'? The Three Kingdom Alliance to the East has already agreed to lay down their arms in return for their Nobility to retain high positions in our Empire."

Belgroth's eyes widened as his heart sank, "You absolute fools. I demanded these peace talks not for surrender, but to end the war! Have you even seen the battlefields?

The Gilaen Empire is nearly fighting our forces to a standstill, we are crawling forward at a snails pace, losing thousands for every inch.

The Zalar Front has not moved a single inch forward in over three months! Even our surprise amphibious assault was repelled after only gaining a few hundred yards.

The Armies fighting against the Necromaners Legions and the Tauras Diarchy have actively been engaged in fighting retreat for the last week.

The only area we have seen continuous progress is against the Three Kingdoms. Everywhere else, we have been stalled or repelled. And to add onto that, everywhere Alaster Ashborn goes, our Armies cease to be. They don't retreat, they are wiped out!

We could win through attrition against all the Kingdoms, but we don't have that much time. Was I the only one that received the message from the Guardians protecting our people on the other world? The bugs have pierced through the wards and veils and are actively on the world.

What Empire are you talking about? If we don't evacuate our people and close the portal in the next few months, we won't have a people to make an Empire with!"

"Belgroth, you will lower your voice when you speak with the War Council." The Chairman warned.

"Fuck you." Belgroth said in perfect clarity, "Tell me, you all received a seat on this council not just because of you power, but because of your devotion to the survival of our people, correct?"

The War Masters, stunned by his language, could only nod.

"You would do anything to protect our people? Would you not?"

They nodded again, with a few quietly voicing their affirmation.

"Even if it meant giving your own life to protect them?"

This time they all firmly voiced their oaths.

"Good. Because I managed to convince Alaster to accept a peaceful end to this war. And if he accept it, so too will the other Kingdoms. However he demands the heads of all Generals and the entire War Council. So tell me, do you still hold to your oaths to do everything in your power to protect our people? Even if it meant your own deaths?

Because until his demand is met, the war is still on going and he is headed for Krilla right now. Until his demand is met, he will continue to wipe out every one of our People. So if you do not agree to sacrifice yourselves, it will not just be our Species that you are condemning later on, but it will also be the one hundred thousand that are about to die in just a few hours."

"Silence," The Chairman decreed, "We will not kill ourselves just because one Human demands it. We will instead move out to meet him in combat. If he is dead, his army will vanish and disperse. We will conquer the Deep within a few weeks, and then we will move the Armies below to assist the ones above. We will wipe out the Humans and return the world back to our people."

"And how many lives will that take? Not just Human lives. How many Argalon lives? How many Devil lives? How many millions more will have to die, when you could end it all, giving our people a safe home with their loved ones, all for the cost of what, two hundred lives, including your own?"

"That is what has been decided by the War Council." The Chairman stated with a stern voice.

"Good! Though I imagine you will need to convince our People that the lives of a several million of their fathers, mothers, brothers, and sisters, are not worth your own."

"What are you talking about?"

Belgroth held up the hand he had been hiding beneath his tabard. In his palm sat a small glass orb containing a cluster of bright yellow Mana. The Council recognized the orb immediately. It was a toy all Argalon had grown up with. A simple Enchanted glass orb that could record sounds and play them back.

"You will destroy that recording immediately, or you will be executed for treason." The Chairman demanded, finally standing up from his desk.

With a smile, awfully reminiscent of Alaster's own, Belgroth took out his other hand from his tabard, holding a metal cone with runes carved into it. The very same device the Chairman himself used to convey news of the war back to their People on the other world.

The Cone was not sensitive enough to catch any word not said directly into it, but the Orb was sensitive enough to record any sound in the room. All Belgroth had to do was set it to play the recording as it was recording, basically mimicking any sound it picked up, directly into the Cone.

Belgroth continued, "I imagine our People are rioting right about now. And soon, word of what you just said will pass back through the portal and reach the Soldiers already in this world. So what will you do now? Our own People have lost all respect for you. They will refuse your orders. So what will you do? Will you attempt to force their compliance like the dictators we so viciously wiped out throughout our histories? Or will you join me in sacrificing ourselves? One last act to redeem yourselves? One single act that will save our People?"

The Council sat stunned, frozen in place, unsure what to do. But the Chairman stood at his desk, glaring at Belgroth, chest heaving, face changing color as power radiated out, splintering the desks.