Chapter 64 - The Battle For Chateau Meso Part 2 (2/2)

After Le’Vieux had cleared the goo and stuffed a few vials down the duke's throat, it looked like enough life had returned to his face for a conversation.

“Grand Marshall Le’Vieux.” The duke asked. His voice was hoarse, raspy, and broken as if he had caught a deadly flu. The slow, delayed way he spoke made him feel like an old man upon his deathbed.

“Aye, it’s me. Your old friend Hauxwell is here, too.” Le’Vieux replied.

The duke’s face lit up like a beacon on a night before he moved his eyes around and smiled. “Ah, it’s good to see you again.”

Hauxwell nodded and stepped ahead. “Likewise. We thought you might have perished with the rest of the Meso Knights.”

The expression on the duke's face changed to one filled with sadness. “It took us a couple of generations to build the Meso order up from the ground. It’s a shame it all fell within weeks due to one man’s greed.” When he finished speaking, both Hauxwell and Le’Vieux huffed deep sighs.

Hauxwell cleared his throat. “We’ve taken care of Sudfield and the army of monsters he had created from the remains of your Knights. Our only regret is that we weren’t able to save anyone from the effects of that evil which took over their bodies.”

Le’Vieux nodded before interrupting. “The only one that remains now is the big one in the courtyard. We would be grateful if you could tell us how to get you out of this mess and advice on defeating that thing.”

The duke coughed up some dark phlegm, clearing his throat. “I’m afraid you won’t be able to help someone in my situation. I’m too far gone; the magical barrier I erected will soon fail and let that evil thing overwhelm me.” He paused momentarily, taking some heavy breaths filled with frustration. “We got word from the northern border that one of our fortifications had been fallen. Word was sent out to rally the soldiers and knights, but it was all for naught. When we arrived, the entire northern province was overrun with fairies.” He glanced at Quicksilver with a dirty look as if it was all their fault.

Quicksilver shook his head and grunted. “My people, the ones you fought, were also victims of this decay.”

Ignoring the statement, the duke continued, “After a week of bloody fighting, and at the cost of most of our men, we were victorious and managed to defeat every last enemy. That bastard Sudfield purposefully delayed his entrance till the last moment and used his then-superior forces to turn coat and seize power. We were either butchered or imprisoned.”

Le’Vieux looked like he was about to punch something. “I always told you to get rid of him, but with all your grace, you always kept giving him second chances for his transgressions against yourself and the people of Meso.”

“What’s done is done. There is nothing we can do to go back and change things.” Hauxwell muttered before asking. “Oh, before I forget, how did he become infected and use it to create his undead army?”

“I don’t know. He went out one day and returned with that monstrosity you see in the courtyard. It was much smaller then and could lay eggs, which were used to infect most of my men and knights. Those who created barriers to protect ourselves were thrown in the cells and encased in this slime, slowly eating away at our defenses.”

Looking around, Le’Vieux nodded. “It doesn’t look like there’s any other survivors apart from yourself.”

“Speaking with you has taken away the last of my reserves. Before I pass, you should know the creature in the courtyard has become like that to generate vast magical energy. This world has never seen the likes of which, and from what I've heard, it will use it to open a portal.”

“A portal? For what exactly?” Le’Vieux questioned.

“To bring forth an army of creatures from whence it originated from. This world and all its peoples will cease to exist if you don’t destroy it before that.” The duke explained.

“As I said, I doubt neither conventional weapons nor magic will work.” Le’Vieux reiterated.

While that conversation transpired, Ben went into deep concentration a few times and tried to figure out what was happening. He cleared his throat to grab everyone's attention. “That thing is squeezing what energy it can from down here. If we cut it off from this source, we might be able to cause some damage.”

Le’Vieux shrugged. “I don't see how that’s going to work.”

“From everything I’ve noticed with these creatures, they become vulnerable momentarily whenever they cast powerful spells. By cutting it off, we may be able to trigger it into casting that portal spell and give us our opening. We give it all we’ve got.” Ben explained.

Le’Vieux motioned towards the duke. “Doing that will surely mean his death, will it not?”

The duke croaked a few coughs. “I’m as good as dead, and you’ll be doing me the favor of a merciful death when compared to what I will become when that thing takes the last of me. I beg you to save yourselves and burn everything here to a crisp. Make them pay for what they’ve done to us.”