Mystra and Shar had never been on good terms. They were both gods of magic, and the natural rivalry between the two had ensured that only one could survive.
Shar had been thought fallen in the Final War, but sheâd actually managed to escape the destruction of her divine kingdom with serious injuries. Some amount of luck had allowed her to flee to the astral plane, stumbling upon the Shadow World.
Mystra, on the other hand, had established the Weave to gain the support of worshippers and other gods. Sheâd become the guardian of the Weave, and the other gods had moved the channeling of their powers to complement the system.
Even having become a greater god Mystra was still cautious of the Goddess of Shadows. After all, Shar was the one god that could take over her position.
The Shadow Weave was a counter to the Weave, and it had allowed Leylin to deal with Mystraâs silverflame and escape with ease. Since it was but one of his many trump cards, Leylin hadnât been afraid of revealing it.
âKukulkan⌠SharâŚâ It was like a bridge had been connected in Mystraâs mind, âThat fear of death, was it because of Shar? Kukulkan managed to find some clues about her, so it gave me the feeling that he would bring about my demise?â
Although this conclusion was only logical, Mystra had underestimated the situation. She didnât even realise that Leylin possessed another horrifying ace up his sleeve, once that could truly end her life.
âItâs not a big deal that the God of Massacre escaped,â Tyr reminded her, âThe important thing now is to kill all these avatars. Our true bodies are already engaged in battle with GruumshâŚâ Gruumsh was fighting crazily ever since he discovered that his pantheon had been ambushed. Their true bodies would not be able to hold him back much longer.
âI understandâŚâ Mystraâs face darkened, and the silverflame strengthened once more. Even without Leylinâs domain pressuring them, the orc gods couldnât dare to act recklessly.
The silverflame net began to close in on them, and try as they may Ilneval and the others couldnât stop Tyrâs ambush with Eicherâs Thorn. Shargaas was the one unfortunate enough to be struck by it, killing the avatar and inflicting serious injuries on his main body. Only then did the silverflame crush all the other avatars to death.
âMystra!â âTyr!â Many roars of hatred rang out from the large wasteland that was the combined divine kingdom of the orc pantheon, causing many worshippers and even petitioners to cower in fear.
No voice came from Shargaasâ divine kingdom. Having suffered the most damage, heâd directly been put to sleep. As for Ilneval and Yurtrus, they were a bit better off. However, theyâd lost multiple avatars as well, and wouldnât dare act recklessly anymore.
*Woooo!* A mournful and immense bugle horn note sounded in the wasteland as two orc figures wreathed in golden light appeared in mid-air.
âGruumsh is summoning us,â The male frowned, âMystra and Tyr declared war, and summoned their subordinates as well. But right nowâŚâ This god was Bahgtru, the Lesser God of Brute Strength.
The orc pantheon was rather special. Although Gruumsh was their only greater god, and the rest of them werenât even intermediate gods, many of them excelled in combat. However, Shargaas, Ilneval, and Yurtrus were amongst the fighters, and Bahgtru alone wasnât enough to fill their shoes.
âDo you have any plans?â he asked the woman beside him helplessly. Although his mother didnât excel in fighting as the Goddess of Fertility, she had other remarkable abilities that fell under her domain.
âShargaas was injured by Eicherâs Thorn. Even if life and healing come under my domain, his true body has entered a slumber now and I canât heal him. On the other hand, Yurtrus only lost a lot of his energy. I can aid him in a swift recoveryâŚâ Luthic was extremely solemn, âBut Iâm not sure weâve given this opportunity to recoverâŚâ
*Wooooo!* Another horn sounded, this one more drawn out and more frantic than before. The sound seemed to be filled with restlessness as it spread across the plains.
âIndeed, we wonât have the time to heal him. We can only stop them for nowâŚâ Bahgtru smiled wryly, âIâll send all of my avatars over. Iâll leave managing my worshippers and petitioners to youâŚâ
Several golden streaks flew out of Bahgtruâs divine kingdom, joining the large army in the prime material planeâŚ
Mystra and Tyr had been plotting to attack the orcs for a while. Leylinâs push had finally let them deal severe damage to the orc pantheon, and theyâd even managed to cripple one of their gods. If they didnât press the advantage now, what were they waiting for?
War sprung up on both fronts. The Silverymoon Alliance attacked even as a war raged in the upper planes. Several subordinate gods like Azuth joined with hired hands from the good alignment to wage war on the divine kingdoms of the orcs. This was their chance to teach the orcs an unforgettable lesson!
âŚâŚ
Within the Moonwood.
The battle between gods and those of legendary might had already ruined half the region. The forest of twisted dark trees had ceased to exist, replaced by a sea of burning flames. The dismembered bodies of werecreatures dotted the landscape.
The legendary battle was now drawing to a close. With Malarâs avatar dying so quickly, the werecreatures hadnât been useful in the battle between gods. Now, they were facing the paladins. The leaders and shamans hadnât wanted to engage in a fight to the death, and theyâd used Garaâs demon army as a distraction as they fled.
Even if Shaman Gara had maniacally summoned an army of demons, the relentless attacks of the paladins had reduced their numbers until only the balor was left, fighting Rafiniya. The other paladins had joined Karal to chase down the fleeing werecreatures.
âHeheheâŚâ Even if it wasnât a flame balor, the balor Rafiniya was facing was already at the legendary realm. It peppered her with heretical spells as its greatsword struck towards her with speed and precision. A common legendary would not be its match.
However, this balor was up against a paladin. On top of that this was Rafiniya, the Holy Knight, the Lady of Hope! She was resolute in her attacks, and even as injuries covered her body she didnât take one step back. Her manic behaviour struck fear in even the demonâs heart.
Rafiniyaâs armour had already been shattered, and the balorâs sword had broken in half. The demon had also lost its whip in the midst of battle.
âHehehe⌠We shall meet again, paladin!â the balor sniggered as he opened a portal. Even if he could still utter such words of pride, he was far too injured to act arrogant. Even though demons were chaotic, instinctual creatures, powerful ones like this balor still had some amount of intellect.
The paladin was nearly burnt out as well. She had to rely on her sword to stay up, putting her weight on it to keep herself from collapsing. However, her eyes lit up as she saw the demon about to leave. The light was peculiar, difficult to describe in words. I contained law and chaos, good and evil.
âFor justice!â she howled, burning up the last of her energy as she leapt into the flames. Even at the cost of letting the abyssal flames encroach upon her, she thrust her sword into the balorâs heart.
âYou!â the balor collapsed halfway into the portal, terrified. However, a sardonic smile then appeared on his face, âHA, now I understand! Your power isnât of purity. Itâs the power of our rivals, the devils! In that caseâŚâ
The demon used all his strength to push Rafiniya away, using a stump of a right hand to dig into his heart.
âHehehe⌠Here, take my Root of Evil!â A burning heart was suddenly thrown at Rafiniya, and having expended all her energy the paladin just couldnât block it. Filthy blood coated Rafiniyaâs entire body, and a pure power of evil was immediately absorbed by it.
âWhatâs happening? Why can I absorb this energy?â Rafiniya stood up once she discovered her body was recovering, stupefied. However, the balor had been burnt to ashes, and nobody would be able to answer her question.
âThe church. The mission. And supportâŚâ Rafiniyaâs face was blank for a long while, before she collapsed to the ground.