The Destiny of Amalah (99 page)

Michael and Amara were now alone in her room. The meeting had long since dispersed and everyone had gone to do whatever it was they needed to. Some had left the palace almost immediately to make their way to the north, while others had prepared whatever they needed before they retired and left at first light. Michael and Amara had worked hard in preparation for the next day and now they were relaxing in her room.

‘Michael,’ Amara said.

‘Yes.’

‘If I don’t survive this…’ she started to say.

‘Amara do not talk like that,’ he said vehemently.

‘I have to,’ she said simply. ‘If I do not survive, I want you to know that I am in love with you and that I love you so much and I always will.’

‘Amara,’ he said, clearly pained at the thought of her dying.

‘Michael, I do not want to die,’ she said looking into his eyes. ‘But more than that, I do not want to die without you ever having loved me.’

‘I do,’ he said tenderly.

‘Without you having made love to me,’ she said softly as she still looked at him.

He brought her closer to him and kissed her passionately and she kissed him back with a new found passion. The two of them wrapped themselves up in each other’s arms and kissed and caressed each other and felt themselves get lost in the other. Michael kissed Amara’s neck and ran his fingers through her hair and she felt herself grow hot from his touch. She caressed his arms and his chest and moved in closer still to his body.

He continued to stroke her hair and kiss her neck and he ran his other hand up and down her back and she let out a small gasp of pleasure. Michael suddenly scooped Amara up into his arms and carried her to the bed; he knelt forward and placed her on it and when she was on it, she grabbed hold of him and pulled him towards her and kissed him. He leaned forward until both of them were once again entwined in each others arms and legs as they lay on the bed kissing, he ran his hand down the side of her waist and took hold of her silk top and brought it upwards. She sat up and he removed her top and when he had, he pulled her back down and began kissing her bare skin. The two of them kissed and stroked each others bodies and removed each others clothing until they were both completely naked and their bodies were pressed tightly together. He cupped her breasts in his hand as he kissed her and from there, the two of them kissed and touched every part of the others body before they made love for the first time.

Amara never knew her body could give her such pleasure and she was happy that she was sharing it with Michael – and Michael – in Amara, found pleasure, happiness and the peace that had evaded him for so long. When their lovemaking came to an end, they kissed gently for a while and looked into each other’s eyes and smiled happily. Michael enveloped Amara in his arms and she gladly went, he caressed her back and kissed her on the head and she smiled as he kissed her. The two lovers caressed each other a while before sleep came to both of them and they drifted off happily, not thinking about what the next day held.

***

Garrick and Häkan made their way to the temple of the gods and waited for the soldiers to arrive. All but a few soldiers would be marching north now, as they knew not when Rakan and the others would be making their way into Amalah. Garrick and Häkan sat on the outside of the temple and talked as they waited for their soldiers.

‘Garrick, I noticed all is not well with you,’ Häkan said to his friend.

‘I fear the gods have abandoned us today,’ Garrick said sadly, as he looked out to the distance. ‘I lost one son at the hands of another and now I have to march to the north of this nation to find that son and capture, or even kill him.’

‘It is a sad day indeed for you my friend,’ Häkan said with great sympathy.

‘A sad day for us all Häkan, I do not know if we will win this war.’

‘We have to,’ Häkan said emphatically.

‘I know we have to,’ Garrick said. ‘But still, neither one of us can be sure of the outcome. That was true of the last war we fought.’

‘Yes, I know. After the war, I never thought there would be another. I know we feared what had become of the others; Kai and Michael more so – but even then, with those in mind – I thought there would be peace to my dying day and beyond.’

‘I really hoped there would be too. And worse, it kills me to know my son aligned himself with Adriel,’ Garrick replied sadly. ‘This time is very different, look how far they got.’

‘I do, but I know we cannot let them get any further,’ Häkan said adamantly.

‘No, we cannot,’ Garrick agreed.

The two men rose to their feet and walked towards the guard, when they were reached them they walked among the soldiers. They spoke with their officers and before long all of the soldiers who were leaving with the two guard commanders were gathered at the foot of the temple. They too were armed to the teeth and they wore the battle dress of the guard. Black metal helmets, breastplates and battle skirts, although the officers wore trousers and knee-high boots. Those who held rank had it marked on their helmets and breastplates.

Some of the islanders had chosen to join the ranks of the guard and they too wore the uniform, those who didn’t wore their own uniform or battle dress, but wore a blue band around both arms to signify that they were on the side of the guard and Amalah.

The guard stood to attention and Garrick and Häkan stood facing them and Garrick addressed them. He had a deep and powerful voice and he raised it so that all of the guard could hear him.

‘You all know why we are here. Nation by nation has been attacked and fallen at the hands of the enemy. YOU are here to stop them. You are here because you are our last hope. The fate of the world rests on the soldiers and everyone in Amalah tonight – make no mistake about that. We all know that those who started this war were children of Amalah, one of those children is my very own – know this – you cannot treat them any differently as you would the enemy; capture or kill them if you have to and do not hesitate because we only have one chance to stop them and that chance is now.

We won’t all survive, that is the grim reality of the predicament we are in but your sacrifices will have helped to save the nations and will never be forgotten – long after this war has been fought, you will all be remembered. I pray for our safe return and for our future and for this war to end swiftly!’ Garrick looked at the men and few women that were in front of him and paused for a while before he spoke again. ‘Victory will be ours! Victory will be ours and a new day will dawn on Amalah, and all of the nations. A day, where we can live in peace and prosper once again and watch our children grow. Victory will be ours because it has to be,’ he said, before he stepped back and looked at Häkan.

Häkan looked at Garrick and the two men nodded at each other, before Häkan stepped forward to speak and he too had a powerful voice that boomed when he spoke:

‘I agree with everything the guard commander has said. Your enemy is skilled and trained, but they are also vicious and ruthless and they will show you no mercy, for they know not what mercy is. If they win that is what the world will be – forever! A place of darkness, a place where there is no love, no laughter, no mercy and no hope – darkness and everything that comes with that darkness.

You have been taught to fight. You have the skill and the knowledge to be good soldiers and you have the physical strength to endure this battle. You must now take your strength and skill and have courage and grit. You must be relentless in your fight and defend Amalah with your very last breath if need be – I expect nothing less; for WE, YOUR GUARD COMMANDERS, will be fighting by your side and we too, if necessary, will defend Amalah with our very last breath. The time is upon us now and I pray the gods be with us, as we go to fight our enemies. TO VICTORY!’ Häkan said finally, before he stepped back and stood by Garrick’s side.

The guard commanders gave the word to their officers and the officers began to march their soldiers out troop by troop. The guard on horseback moved out first and then the guard on foot followed. When all of the guard were on the move, Garrick and Häkan mounted their horses and rode to the front of the convoy. The guard moved quickly through Amalah and headed northwards, each and every one of them wondered if they would survive this battle and they wondered if they would ever see their loved ones and home again. The soldiers had marched through the night and at first light they had arrived in the north of Amalah and settled in their positions.

As first light appeared at the palace, Michael and Amara awoke, at first they smiled and looked at each other lovingly but then thoughts of what was to come filled their minds and their expressions changed. Amara’s face became a mixture of sadness and worry and when Michael saw it, he pulled her closer to him. She put her arms around him and buried her head in his chest and he stroked her hair.

‘I know what awaits us,’ she said in a grave tone. ‘When we rise from this bed and walk out of that door, death awaits.’

‘Maybe not for us,’ he said.

‘Maybe not for us: but for many.’

‘We have no choice.’

‘I know Michael, I know, but still it is a bitter choice indeed.’

‘When this war ends Amara, and it will end. I promise you that we will remain in Amalah and help to put the nations back together. And then, we will live and love and laugh again – I know it.’

‘I hope so,’ she said wistfully.

‘We will,’ he said vehemently. ‘And I will stay with you until the end of time,’ he promised her.

‘I am glad,’ she said lifting her head up to look at him. ‘I want you by my side Michael – always. I love you, I’m in love with you and I always will be and your words and actions make me stronger and give me hope –
you
make me stronger and give me hope,’ she said softly.

The two remained in bed and in each other’s arms for a few minutes longer but all too soon, the time came for them to rise and face what lay ahead. Amara began to get dressed and Michael returned to his room to do the same. Amara donned a cotton trousers, a top that were specially padded and the tiara that Gaerwen had given her and then she put on the pendant that her mother had given her and then she made her way out of her room and towards the council room. While on route, she met Seth who handed her the black cloak that he had made.

‘I could only make the one,’ he said with regret. ‘I tried but…’

‘Then one will have to be enough,’ she told him. Amara began to put the cloak on and Seth helped her into it. ‘I can feel that the cloak has power.’ She said.

‘It should be just as powerful as the ones my father made. It took all the strength I hade to make it but I think it will be enough.’

‘It will,’ she said, as she pulled the cloak’s hood over her head and looked at Seth who gasped slightly as her face disappeared before his very eyes and a black void appeared in its place. ‘What’s the matter, Seth?’ She asked him.

‘It’s a frightening sight to see Empress,’ he answered. ‘Seeing your face disappear like so.’

Amara removed her hood and smiled slightly. ‘Thank you Seth, with this cloak our chances of winning this war will almost certainly have increased. Amara turned and made her way to the council’s room and as she moved, she looked at Seth. ‘Are you coming?’ she asked him.

‘Yes Empress, I shall come.’

Michael had returned to his room and began to put on his battle dress; he had stared at it for a long while before he began to put it on. He thought of the last time he had worn it for a war and he was deeply saddened that he had to wear it again and yet another war, had been thrust upon him. “Two in my lifetime,” he thought, feeling deeply pained. “I cannot survive another.”

Michael got dressed and when he was in full battle dress and fully armed, he made his way out of the room, consciously not looking in the full-length mirror as he passed it. Michael made his way to the council room and when he arrived, everyone was already there. He acknowledged the Empress and princess before acknowledging everyone else and then Amara looked around the room and everyone in the room looked to her.

‘Is everyone ready?’ she asked them and they all nodded their heads and said yes in response. ‘You have all shown your leadership, strength and courage over the months and I thank you for it; but now is the time to show even more of it. There can be no failure on our part, the fate of the world rests with all of us and if we lose, we will suffer a fate that I have no doubt will be worse than anything we could possibly imagine. I pray to the gods that we succeed and that we will one day very soon return to our homes and loved ones. Now though, now is the time for us to fight and for us to make sacrifices and for some – the ultimate sacrifice will be their life. Let us go now, let us go and meet Garrick, Häkan and the guard in the north and stand by their side,’ she said finally.

‘I am ready,’ Michael said solemnly.

‘As am I,’ said Callan Knight.

‘And I,’ Ellora said.

Amara looked at them and nodded and as she gazed ahead, everyone in the room rose to their feet, and as she made her way to the door and stepped out; everyone followed behind her. Fifteen minutes later, everyone who was going to battle stood in formation at the front of the palace gates. There in the early morning and ready to go to war; stood an army of people ready to defend Amalah, the nations and everything they stood for – they were ready to fight and they were ready to die.