Laurna’s battalion was fortunate enough to have a wise, but arrogant Necromancer friend of her husband’s in their ranks by the name of Leolen. He had devised a way to slow the progression of the contagion by making another that feasted upon it. The gruesome side effect however was constant bleeding from orifices that people didn’t even know they had. Leolen stated there would always be a price to his work, and it was always blood. It seemed as if she could never have another moment’s peace again with her love. They grew up together betrothed, and were happily married. She chose to become a Ranger, and he a Warrior. Both had given in to their battlelust on the field many times, and this time she thought it had been the last. “Together we would fight, and together we would fall.” was her favorite saying, and how ironic it was now that she was so far from that fate. Now it was up to her and three others to warn the great Empire of Orr of what was to come.

The thing that hurt the most for Victo was the fact that he could not have given her what she had always wanted…to raise a child. His army was surrounded. There would be no hope of leaving this field alive, and he knew it. He stared at the Charr Elder Shaman nearly 1 clastron away for minutes pondering what made them do what they did. It stared right back at him slobbering, growling, and making guttural sounds that he could only assume were insults. That thing was the leader, and he would see him in again, he vowed. Victo’s tall berth and stern cold gray-blue eyes gave others comfort, and shook the mightiest of his foes, but not the one staring at him now.

“Commander Karstak launch a volley at that bone waving savage, and make it fast. I don’t want to lose eye contact when he realizes the pitch lands on him.” decreed Victo.

“But Sir…our ammunition for that is extraordinarily lo-“ the commander uttered under the staggering blow of a fist catching him in mid-sentence.

“I didn’t ask for your worthless opinion soldier, I want results. NOW!” shouted Victo, causing his Elite Guard to go for their hilts. “No worries boys, this one here was just having problems with his new promotion that’s all. Isn’t that right Karstak?”

“Y-yes Sir” Karstak stammered running off to tell his heavy artillery officers to make due with whatever they had to launch out of their badly damaged catapults.

Victo knew he and his ilk were going to die here, and now. It was better to make one last break for it, and setup a defense. Who knew how many lives might have been saved if he had decided to let them run sooner. It would not be more than what he had already sent away. Nothing could be more than that, nothing at all. He was farthest away from what mattered most, and that fact disgusted him greatly. He fought to fight, not to jump headlong into death missions. Emperor Jehnhardt had made the mistake of underestimating this force, and Victo had told him as much. Arrogant and pampered leaders made for poor soldiers, and even worse commanders. They had never seen death, or lost a loved one on the field, and yet were responsible for so many lives.

“The volley is ready Sir!” shouted the bewildered Karstak, whom two days ago was a meager Sergeant. Due to an unconceivable amount of deaths he was promoted on the field to Commander. At least the poor fool would be posthumously promoted to General thought Victo.

“Get that pitch on fire, with all we got, we have one shot. After that I want to see my Rangers raining hell on those flea-bitten mongrels!” Victo Turned to face what was left of his army. Two, maybe three battalions remained. He had no time to count, and certainly did not want to be disappointed by numeric odds anyways. “Men , women, soldiers….LISTEN well! I know you’re tired, and I know that you feel this is the end. My Mesmers tell me that there is only one point of exit in their lines, and in order to get through, we need a distraction.” Victo raised his platinum enchanted battle sword at the flaming pitch, “This is that distraction! Right here! Our Rangers will get our backs for a few moments, then catch up to us. This is not a flight, this is a fight. In order to live, we must push through them. After that we’ll try and form a line and hold it until reinforcements can come.” Victo knew that reinforcements would never reach them in time, even a whole army with flight spells given by Elementalists could not move fast enough to reach them.

Victo roused them for a few more moments, and made for his warhorse. His Elite Guard were Klas, and Gan and knew already what he knew. They looked at him, and both nodded in ascent with what would happen next. Klas opened a locket with a lock of hair from his baby daughter, and kissed it. Gan made a holy symbol across his chest, and blessed Victo with his most powerful blessing.

“Gentlemen, it has been a pleasure to have been protected by you. I grant you the chance to use those rings of teleportation the Emperor gave to you right now should you wish to get a twenty clastron head start on through the Charr. Maybe you’ll catch up to Laurna…” but Victo was now cut short by Gan.

“Sir, please, we’d always be with you. If we didn’t fight the last battle at your side, we’d surely be no better than the pig blooded Emperor himself.”

“My daughter wants her daddy to be a hero Victo. Today you’re going to make me one. You’re the reason she’s going to be the best damned Warrior this side of Orr!” declared Klas.

“So be it then,” mournfully Victo stated “and may your Gods watch over your souls!”

Victo made one last look at the Elder Shaman whom now was pondering why he and his ilk had gotten so much bluster in the last few moments of their dwindling existence. Victo didn’t have to wonder though, he knew, and shouted his reply.

“FIRE!”

The charge in the opposite direction of the pitch was led by a cavalry of Knights, and followed by the Magical Core of what he had left. Warriors brought up the rear, followed by the swift Rangers. Plowing into the fray the Knights thought they had the upper hand, until ten parties of now-visible Charr gutted them from both sides in a blood frenzy. Mesmers and Monks had been proficient at saving a few with quick castings, and light healing, but it was too late for the majority. Their charge had halted. Victo and his elite guard followed the casters into the fray and plowed through 3 parties single-handedly before even slowing. Platinum sword flaring with blue fiery radiance, Victo eviscerated a Charr Axe Warrior, and burned the corpse to a vapor in seconds. “NOW CAST!” shouted Victo at his remaining Elementalists, as waves of fire erupted from nowhere. Charr were combusting at an exponential rate and clearing a nice sized hole in which Victo’s army could fit through easily. The Charr on the fringe trying to escape were met with a shower of meteorites.

Mesmers dazzled and confused the Charr Shamans, and countered their spells with flicks of their fingers. A few had glamoured Charr into human soldiers, and watched eagerly as they began to be hacked apart by their own kind. Only after did the illusion fade did the Charr realize what folly had fallen upon them.

“CHARGE ON!” Victo commanded, and his army obeyed.

They fought and cast through the hordes of teeth and fang. Klas threw shards of ice and balls of lightning left and right to addle their retreat, and rangers from back supported him while he did so. Their blades were quickly moving throughout enemy ranks as if water were passing through a sieve. Gan delivered divine justice by way of faith, and illuminated all before him with all he had to spare. White fire erupted from his hammer, as it smashed the skulls of multiple Charr in a massive swing from his horse.

A thunderous boom again halted their retreat, and this time was not from the front, but from below. The ground began to quake below them, and as it did so it also began to crack. Victo began to shout to press on, but it was too late. A gigantic fissure opened up from the rear swallowing a few of the Rangers at a time, and steadily moving forward. Magma and steam poured in and surrounded the remaining parts of his army. The Charr were not retreating from him, but were trying to get out of the way. It was a perfect feint, and Victo had fallen for it. The supposed weak spot, in actuality, was their strongest line. The increasingly small land island in a lake of lava held Victo and what remained of his once proud force. Roars could be heard booming below where he stood, and chants of “Rouf” were heard erupting from the now cheering Charr army. What Rouf was did not matter to Victo. All he had to know was that it was death, and now was the time for him to let go. He dropped his sword, and got off his horse. He knelt and looked at the gray sky of Arah, and closed them.

“Laurna. I will always love you…” were the last words that Victo whispered to himself as a Magma Wyrm burrowed from below the surface and took him someplace elsewhere.

Laurna didn’t have to hear what the messenger was saying to understand what he had come to tell her. That messenger was Leolen. For the first time in his life, he felt so full of humbleness he could not even look Laurna in the eyes. Laurna was partly empathic, and felt what he felt even before he uttered the words. She moved her sheen brunette hair away from her bowing head and somber, yet simply beautiful face, to glance at Leolen’s facial expression.

“I…I…Laurna, he…” Leolen had tears in his eyes, and managed to blurt what he had to say “He’s gone.”

“I know, Leolen, I know. I just wish I could have told him…h-his son will be here in seven more months.” the tears ran freely now down her face, as her voice cracked into a sob.

“What?” Leolen stood back shocked, and unsure about how to keep his promise to his great commander. Victo had stated “If it’s a boy, train him in your art and with a sword. I want him book smart unlike his daddy. And please, take care of Laurna.”

“Please don’t look at me that way Leolen, you know why I didn’t say anything…I…” she started to sob hopelessly into his arms wishing all the time it was her love. Leolen almost had felt holding such a perfect creature as her was what he should have been doing instead of wasting his time with Necromancy his whole life. Coldness had been a mainstay in his life, but now something was living inside a great woman, and it was up to him to oversee its progress…and to love its creator.

“Its ok Laurna. Everything will be…” he swallowed back the compulsion the wail like she was “…ok.”

At the funeral the sky cried right along with Laurna, dampening the soil beneath her bare feet. The Imperial Guard carried Victo’s last bed to the coast of the Empire, and let him sail away into the land of lost dreams, and undying hopes. Leolen swore to make his son the Empire’s greatest Champion. One greater than any the people had seen, even greater than his father.

“Laurna…I...” Leolen looked at Laurna intently.

“I will, Leolen, I will.” she said somberly as she put her hands over his lips and kissed softly. “I will need some time though, but I know what he told you to do. I do not need a man to watch over me, or anyone else to…but…somehow I know he’d be happier with you there…someone for his son.”

“I won’t make you unhappy. I’ll honor you forever. I promise.” whispered Leolen.

“I miss him…and I’m glad he had one friend like you.” she whispered in reply.

She stared into the flames that the High Flamelord Elementalist had cast onto the flagship of Victo’s last journey. Laurna knew what to do next, and what would happen. This land would not be what it once was for her, or her people. This was the time to make the foretold Exodus.