So.. I found another AI.
I. Am. In. Love.

"- we shall rise." After he'd heard her whisper echoing through the hall, Obi Wan saw the queen of Valeria erupt with a blinding light, something that could only be described as pure energy following.

Before he knew it, the very ground he was standing on tore apart.

A force unlike anything he'd ever heard or seen before broke through the foundation of the planet and cracked the surface, a wave of what seemed like silver electricity expanding over the terrain. The walls that had once held up the most prestigious throne room he had ever witnessed were blasted apart like they were made of mere paper, crumbling outward and leaving nothing but dust behind. Even the buildings surrounding them evaporated in a single flash.

Through his fingers, which he held before his face in defence, he could see what had been left behind. The entire area around them had been flattened, with only the throne of Valeria left standing amidst the ruins.

The sky roared with fury as the cracks expanded through the city, through the hills beyond and then through the mountains on the far end. There, they erupted with the same wrath and exploded with gigantic clouds of smoke and dust. The rumble that followed had the earth shaking with such force that it threw the few structures that had remained standing over.

All that had taken but a split second. The entire city of Eagle's Fall had been reduced to ruins within a single moment and the chaos was only continuing to wreak havoc. The Republic ships in the sky rocketed and plummeted to the ground, unable to withstand the force of the queen's fury.

Obi Wan could only lean into the pure energy emitting from her, screaming against the power and hoping his skin wouldn't succumb under the pressure. With his arm lifted before him and his body bowed, he prayed that the planet wouldn't explode and take her with it.

For she, even though she'd been far away, had been the only reason he kept fighting when everything else was taken from him. She'd been the light at the end of the tunnel when his closest friends had turned on him, when his entire life had been destroyed by a single wrong choice. He couldn't lose her now without losing himself.

By some miracle, he wasn't harmed. He saw the marble beneath his feet cracking apart, saw the gasms forming in the surface, saw the stone melting underneath the heat but he remained protected amidst the chaos. Their bond, which was made from a force so primal that even all Vanir powers combined couldn't destroy it, kept him safe.

It all blew past him as if he wasn't there.

But if the planet was to be torn apart, there wouldn't be any way to protect them both from the consequences.

The mountains in the distance exploded, blowing great gusts of smoke mixed with spewing fire into the sky. Thunder roared and struck all around him, wind knocking down the already ruined buildings. The chasms that appeared in the ground showed the molten lava underneath, turning the entire city into a furnace.

All of it, the cracks in the surface, the circle of chaos and the eye of the hurricane, pointed to her. A network of destruction originating from the one person who'd tried everything to keep it all intact. To the person that held the power of the 4 founding families in the palm of her hand, standing amidst a gigantic web of her own agony.

The fury, the pure wrath that was tearing Valeria apart, it was all her. That was trapping the clone troopers in the streets and bringing down the ships in the sky, that was killing everyone and everything that had dared to step onto her planet.

It was the wrath of a queen who'd lost it all.

He felt her grief drowning her with sorrow as she relentlessly continued her rampage. The power only continued to build, to expand, until all he could do was hope that he wouldn't be torn with it, that he wouldn't be dragged into the same pit of despair. Everything in the vicinity had been destroyed already, the outbursts of the volcanoes soon to be causing a planet-wide cataclysm.

Still, she continued, and showed no signs of stopping.

Obi Wan screamed over the chaos and pressed his eyes shut. "LYANNA!" He yelled both physically and mentally, trying to grip onto her through the bond and pull her from the destructive trance she'd fallen into.

When he touched her mental manifestation, that embodiment of fire and life in the void of the force, everything halted. The wind fell and the thunder stopped. That blinding light disappeared and left him blinded for a few seconds. Even the ear-splitting thundering had halted, leaving an eery silence in its wake.

The jedi fell forward at the sudden loss of resistance, lifting his arms in time before he collided to the surface. He fell upon his knees and forearms, his auburn hair falling before his eyes. A gust of air fell over his lips as the wind was knocked from his lungs. The ashes descended to the ground around him, fell on his hair and matted to his clothes, mingling with the air he gulped down.

Obi Wan coughed as he looked up, trying to find her amidst the destruction. She had remained where she had been. "Lyanna?" He muttered, watching her figure bowed over the corpse. Her shoulders were shaking, her hands clawed into his armour, her black wings lying nimbly by her side. A blanket of ashes fell down upon her like a veil but she barely moved.

It was exactly like the vision she'd told him about all those months ago.

From there his gaze lifted to the blood-red sky, to the plumes of smoke he saw rising in the distance and the molten fire that spewed from the mountains. To the few ships that remained in the air but were sure to crash underneath the catastrophic weather, to the chasms he saw spreading as far as his gaze could reach that spewed smoke into the atmosphere.

His legs shook as he forced himself upon his feet. While the storm had died down, the earth was tearing itself apart. Within minutes the blast of the eruptions would hit them and the heat and destruction that would follow would kill even her.

Obi Wan carefully made his way towards her, his steps quick but cautious. The closer he got the better he could hear her quiet sobs, her soft murmurs. She was talking to the body, her thumb tracing soothing circles on his cheek as if he could still hear and feel her.

"The people are safe; you can rest now." He caught onto the last few words. The ship that he'd seen before, a gigantic one that had left the atmosphere protected by a beam of power, it had bore whatever was left of Valeria's people. "I'll join you soon, I promise."

His heart broke by the soft words, each mutter a dagger to his already ruined heart. When he was close enough he saw who it was she was holding. Even though he'd had his suspicions after hearing the prophecy, the sight still both hurt and startled him.

"Aidan." The jedi sighed deeply, tears he didn't know he still had to spare forming in his eyes. He lowered himself onto his knees on the other side of his corpse, his hand rising to the face of his friend.

The king of Valeria, gone. He felt the magnitude of the situation, the sacrifice the young man had made for his people. He'd probably done it without a doubt, too, and hadn't regretted the choice in the end. Yet, he had left the Valerian people without its king.

The jedi's calloused fingers wove away the single strand of dirtied hair away from his face. The grey eyes still stared up onto the sky, unseeing, the destruction there reflected in them. Even after that sacrifice, his kingdom still lay in shambles.

Obi Wan glanced back at the queen, laying his free hand upon her shoulder. "Lyanna, my darling, -" He whispered softly, the sadness and sorrow seeping into his voice. "- we have to go."

She merely whimpered in response and buried her head deeper into the crook of her brother's neck. "I just had him back." Her nails clawed into the silver armour, turning her knuckles white. He could feel her utter state of defencelessness and hopelessness, the way she was drowning in those emotions without a way to reach the surface. He had to build a wall around himself to prevent himself from falling into the same pit.

When another rumble tore through the sky Obi Wan quickly glanced upwards, noticing the first fireball from the eruptions coming for the city. Soon, there was to be an avalanche. He wanted to give her enough time to say goodbye but knew that they couldn't afford that luxury. He tightened his grip on her shoulders and leaned her way. "The city will soon fall apart, love. We have to leave."

She didn't respond for a while, her shoulders moving with the force of her sobs. "I can't leave him." Lyanna pleaded and tightened her grip on her brother. "I can't, Obi, please." His heart tore by the pure devastation he heard in her broken voice. "I can't do it." Her hand reached out for the left side of his chest, pressing against the spot his heart was supposed to still be beating. "He's my brother, my only brother."

For a moment Obi Wan forgot about his mission. "I'm so sorry, Lyanna." The jedi bend forward and placed a kiss against her temple, lingering there as he gathered himself.
There were thoughts trying to get into his head, the accusations he would point at himself, the thoughts that told him that this was all his fault. That if he'd trusted Anakin enough, that if he'd let him talk about their feelings like Lyanna had told him to, that all this wouldn't have happened. The empire wouldn't have had a chance to surface without the young jedi's help.

Above all, he wouldn't have lost a friend and with that, his entire world. He wouldn't have had to drag Valeria down with it, too.

He couldn't allow the guilt to get to him. At least, not before he'd done everything in his power to minimize the consequences.

"I'm so sorry." Obi Wan reluctantly moved backwards, using his fingers to gently shut the king's eyes. He watched him, looking upon his peaceful expression and the smile that lingered on his lips. To the youthfulness so evidently on display, his golden hair void of any grey tones, his skin untouched by the age that had wrinkles appearing on his own.

Aidan Stormrage had been far too young to die. His would've been a peaceful rule, a just one. He should've had years ahead of him.

Yet, so should have the younglings in the temple. Obi Wan closed his eyes against the images that threatened to appear and forced the despair away that came with it. His fingers tightened their grip on Lyanna's arm and pulled. "We have to go now." His voice sounded stern, sure, so unlike to what he actually felt inside.

"I can't leave him." The queen continued to sob as he pried her arms from around him. "He's my brother, I can't, please." Despite her protests, her hold on the body was easily broken. Obi Wan grasped onto both her arms, gently lifting her from the ground. "No, no, no." She pleaded but the man wasn't to be moved for she soon was planted firmly onto her feet.

The jedi pulled her into his arms and lifted her from the floor, knowing that her wobbling legs wouldn't be able to carry her far. "Please, don't make me." The moment he lifted her off the floor she buried her face in his neck and cried there, her tears wetting the side of cheek. "I can't do it."

"Hush now, darling." Obi Wan whispered into her ear and pressed another kiss against the side of her head. "Let me help you." She smelled of ashes, blood and fire, almost not a single trace of the usual foresty scent lingering. Her grip on him tightened, her nails digging into his neck and shoulders.

She felt so helpless. The queen of Valeria, who had saved her kingdom multiple times now, had been broken. It seemed so impossible to him that it felt like some strange nightmare he could wake up from at any moment.

"I've got you." The jedi took in a deep breath, forcing away the despair that was clawing at him. He was so close to breaking apart himself that he didn't even know if he'd make it back to his ship, much less listen to her broken pleas while doing so. It was only the knowledge that he was the only one that could save her that kept him from crying out and gave him the undeniable determination to move forward.

He took a step, and then another, and another until it was the only thing he could think about. The jedi forced himself to focus upon the path and to shut out everything else. He looked at the marble floor, tracing a path through the cracks and debris, ignoring the ruins, flames and broken pieces.

Ignoring the home that had been left in shambles. The future he'd been able to envision for but a few months before it was taken from him.

He walked down the stairs to the throne room and ignored the burning city in the distance, ignored the shouts of despair echoing through the streets and the last few Valerians that battled there. There were ships rising from the surface, trying to outrun the destruction that was soon to follow, bearing the few clones that had survived the previous onslaught.

Even the avalanche from the spewing volcano that fell down like rain upon the ruins and created earthquake after earthquake didn't divert his attention. He only clung onto her body, pulling it against his own and breathed in the scent of her to calm himself. To reassure himself that she was there, alive, and with him.

"We're almost there." Obi Wan whispered as he entered the streets outside the palace. This was where the real danger was, where the remaining troopers still stalked through the streets. He took a moment to take in his surroundings, to watch those eery ruins standing amidst the fire and smoke, to watch out for any adversary that could bound around the corner.

It all seemed eerily quiet. "Ssh, darling." He shushed another plea that had escaped her lips. He wasn't paying attention to the words she was saying, knowing they held the power to break him down with her. "Just a few moments longer." His footsteps echoed as he quickened his pace and walked down the main road and towards heroes' terrace, heart thundering in his chest.

It was all too easy. He'd been sure that the clones would be stationed there, for he'd known the way they fought after all these years. They didn't give up so easily.

"I can't leave." Lyanna's voice disrupted his concentration for this time the despair had left and been replaced by a surety. Her muscles had tensed and her fingers had dug their way into his tunic. He could feel the tips of her nails clawing into his skin, the pain pulling him back towards the present. For a moment he feared that he'd done wrong by shutting out her previous pleas.

The jedi glanced down towards the top of her head, his movement stilling. He'd seen the consequences of shock in different people and knew that this stage was one of the most dangerous. The stage where fury and despair took hold of all rational thinking.

"We can't leave him there!" She started thrashing, pushing against his chest and trying to force herself out of his hold. "We have to go back!"

"Lyanna, wait!" Obi Wan tried desperately to hold onto her but her strength had returned a thousandfold, fuelled by the rage consuming her. "He's gone, there's nothing you can do!"

Her body slipped out of his grasp and fell to the floor, making him stumble backwards. Their eyes, both widened with shock, locked as she lay there on her back on the ground. For a moment he stood perplexed as he watched those green eyes staring back, a light reflected in the deep of her pupils.

She flinched due to a reason unknown to him and swiftly darted to her feet. "Lyanna, don't, -"Just as quickly she bounded by him and pushed him aside, heading straight back to the keep.

At least, that was what he thought she was doing. He'd turned around before he'd heard the ear-splitting crash that followed. Fire engulfed his vision and his body was thrown backwards, rocks and debris flying through the air all around him. The shout of surprise he emitted was drowned out by the explosion.

He crashed to the ground a couple of feet further, the collision forcing the air out of his lungs. He gulped down the air quickly, forcing his lungs to expand, groaning loudly as a loud peep rang through his ears. The fire had burned down their surroundings but he had avoided most of the heat. Dust settled upon his body while he forced himself up, scanning his surroundings for the woman he'd come to save.

"Lyanna!" The jedi shouted when he couldn't see her through the dust that clouded the area. He clamped onto a destroyed wall, using the remains as leverage and lifting himself onto his feet.

"Lyanna, where are you?!" He screamed at the top of his lungs and darted in the direction of the palace in a panic, his heart thundering. His leg quickly gave out from under him and he stumbled over his feet, still recovering from the blast.

"Blast it." Obi Wan cursed, eyebrows furrowing. Breathe, Kenobi. He told himself as he took in a few measured breaths, forcing the fear that was trying to overtake his mind away.

When he heard footsteps to his right, he quickly came to his feet and activated his lightsaber, the light temporarily blinding his eyes. He flinched even as he fought to keep his eyes open, tears appearing as the dust settled on them.

He didn't have the time to process what was happening until he was being dragged away, a hand fastened tightly around his wrists. "They're here, hurry!" The queen's voice sounded before him, her hold almost painful.

He didn't dare complain, for that very touch confirmed that she was still there with him. With a quick rub on his eyes using his tunic he managed to clear the dust until he was able to see clearly again. Her fiery hair whirled in the wind before him, her black dragonscale armour now turned into a mouldy grey splotched with red.

The jedi quickly caught up and lifted her arm around his shoulder after noticing her unsteady steps. He held onto her hand tightly even though it was slick with blood. "My ship is close, but we have to hurry before they find it." He shouted over the noise, his voice barely audible above the chaos. When blaster shots grazed the walls beside them, each word was overpowered.

His blue eyes darted behind them to see the clones pursuing them, their surroundings flashing with the light of their attacks. "Hold on!" Obi Wan shouted and activated his lightsaber again. With his free arm he was able to deflect most of the shots, buying them another few minutes. They managed to clear another block until one of the clones grasped for a grenade on his belt.

It wouldn't be as easy to parry. "Get down!" Using his weight, Obi Wan threw the queen on the ground and shielded her with his body as the explosion followed.

It hadn't torn him apart like he'd expected it to. Strangely enough, he remained unharmed. His gaze flew back to the direction the clones had been, only to find the space empty with only shadows curling over the ground. He'd almost missed the shadow that shot over the ground and disappeared after.

His breath caught in his throat as realisation struck. "Obi Wan, are you all right?!" He felt her warm hands pressing against his side, against the place where he'd been wounded months ago. His eyes flew back to hers before he practically lifted her from the ground in a daze and planted her on her feet.

He didn't have the time to figure out what had transpired, he only knew who it could've been. "First, my clones. Now, a damned homicidal Valerian, -" The jedi cursed loudly as he pulled her with him, knowing that if he'd have to fight that man now too that they had zero chances of surviving. Lyanna stumbled behind him, tripping over her own feet, barely clinging onto his arm.

They sped through the streets and towards the Heroes' terrace, the grand square overlooking the waterfall of Eagle's Fall and bearing the statues of the most famous Valerian legends. Most of them had been ruined by the Republic's bombardment and the last few standing would soon end up on the ground, too, by the outburst of the volcanoes.

The jedi glanced at the area quickly. He could still vividly remember the last time he was there, when he'd held her dying body in his arms. Now, he would hopefully prevent the same from happening.

"We'll have to be quick, before they realise the ship isn't on their locks, -" Obi Wan explained as he pulled her down the stairs leading to the terrace, the ship coming into their sights, hidden behind the ruins of a statue. His gaze however was focused on his feet, trying not to trip even as the quakes shook the entire foundation of the planet. When Lyanna pulled on his arm however, he quickly glanced towards the end of the stairs.

There, he met a sight that had his heart halting in his chest. The jedi stood frozen, his body tensed with fear and sorrow, his thumb pressing against the button of his lightsaber.

A clone was standing at the end of their path, one with a familiar ochre colouring.

"Cody." Obi Wan Kenobi breathed, conflicted by the emotions the commander awoke. At first he was relieved to see him alive and well only to realise that this clone, his friend, had given the order to kill him.

"When have I ever let you down?" Obi Wan's lips flattened into a line. It were the last words he'd spoken to him, and now they rang through his mind incessantly.

Lyanna watched the emotions flicker through his eyes and felt them through their bond. For but a moment she forgot about her own loss and reached out for his hand, squeezing it gently to offer him all the support she could give at that moment. It wasn't enough, she knew, but it was all she could offer.

Cody merely watched from his position at the bottom of the stairs, staring up at the pair with his weapon clasped tightly in his hands. He was the only one left on the terrace. His men were scattered all around the city ever since the chaos started, most of them, if not all, lying dead beneath the rubble.
They had been his brothers. He'd lost more than he could count or bear within a few days' time and it was all because of the power the woman before him wielded. The woman that clung onto his previous friend's arm.
The two couldn't see his muscles straining, couldn't see the tears pooling in his eyes nor the emotions that whirled and battled there.

"Commander, listen, -" Obi Wan took a single step forward but only managed to scare the clone into a defensive stance.

"Stop right there!" The end of the blaster was pointed at his face within a second, the clone's finger edging over the trigger.

The jedi quickly flinched backwards. "All right, okay." Obi Wan spoke slowly and soothingly, keeping his eyes on his former trusted commander. He had to hope that somewhere deep down there remained a connection, for he couldn't find the will to fight him within himself.

The jedi halted and slowly lifted his hands in the air, letting go of his saber. The weapon clattered to the ground. At the sound, the clone tensed and tightened his grip. "Just let her go, Cody. Your problem is with me, not the queen."

A sharp intake of breath followed. "Obi, don't." She ordered and tightened her hold on him. "I'm not leaving without you."

The clone's gaze darted to the female that the jedi had pushed behind him defensively. She stood there, hand grasped tightly around his upper arm, her face covered with root and blood. Cody couldn't find it within himself to summon the wrath he'd previously felt for she was the same woman that had tended to his wounds uncountable times, that had drank with him in the middle of the night, joked and gossiped about their common friend.

His heart warmed at the thought as the fond memories returned bit by bit. She was his friend, one of the closest ones, one he didn't want to lose because of a war he didn't decide to fight in. But she had given him a decision. He could feel his determination rising, only to have it crushed by 3 single words.

Execute order 66.

It was the chant that had been plaguing him for days. The voice that had haunted him every single night since. The clone's head started to pound feverishly. So badly in fact that he wavered on his feet, his hand by instinct lifting to cradle his temple. The jedi noticed the shift and darted forward, trying to grasp onto the opportunity and disarm him before anyone else could get hurt.

He'd made the move too soon.

The commander's instinct took over, his muscles following the routine movements as his eyes pinpointed the threat and fired his weapon. The sound echoed through the city, almost subdued by all the other explosions and quakes happening simultaneously. To the three of them though, the shot was the only thing they could hear. The only thing that echoed in their heads afterwards, accompanied by the thud that followed.

"Obi!" The queen shouted in shock and knelt down before his fallen body, hands darting towards the spot he'd been hit. Warm liquid soon met the warm skin of her fingers.

"You're all traitors to the Republic." The clone hissed as he again pointed his weapon at the pair, trying to use his anger to cover up the confusement and turmoil that was tearing him apart from the inside. There was a part of him screaming in terror at the thing he'd done but he muffled the sounds and locked it up within the deepest, darkest crevice he could find.

"The emperor has ordered both your deaths." He watched with bated breath as the Valerian examined the wound on his shoulder, just a few inches above a spot that would've otherwise caused him to bleed to death. She halted in her movements even as the jedi groaned in pain.

The queen met their assailant's stare, realisation striking her before he himself even truly comprehended what had happened. His marksmanship had always been deadly precise, especially at this distance. This was the first time she'd ever experienced him missing such an easy shot.

It couldn't have been a coincidence.

"Cody." Lyanna spoke as she pressed her hand against the wound, making the jedi suck in a deep and pained breath. He bit on his lip and threw his head backwards, hands balling into fists. "I know you don't want to do this. I know you. I saw how you looked at me before the battle. Whatever has happened, whatever drove you to turn your back on us, it doesn't have to control you."

The barrel of the blaster slowly descended as she spoke. Cody's limbs shook, his vision turning blurry by the pain that was tearing at him. Something was pounding against his scalp, trying to force away the traitorous thoughts that had him wanting to leap into the ship with them.

"Cody, drop the blaster." The queen ordered softly, her free arm reaching out for him. "Let me help you."

Hope was blossoming in his stomach. A traitorous feeling, he knew, because he'd been the one to order his troops to attack his own General. He'd practically ordered his death himself. There was no forgiving that unless he'd been loyal to his ideals, to the one person they'd been serving this entire time. The one that was the reason he'd been created in the first place.

He couldn't do what his heart told him to, for it went against every order he'd been given. If he didn't have his loyalty, his morality, his position, his purpose, there'd be nothing of him left. He was his mission.

Cody shook his head to try and drive the emotions away, the gun lifting again to the head of his former friend. His arms shook with barely constrained feelings, making him let out a frustrated huff combined with a barely suppressed sob. His finger went to the trigger before his mind could betray him.

"Good soldiers follow orders."

"Cody, no!" The queen screamed in terror, even while the jedi had instinctively pushed her to the ground and covered her body with his, his entire figure huddled over hers. Both of them pressed their eyes shut as the shot rang through the air, their breaths mingling as they placed their foreheads against each other's in a final embrace.

Their bodies were frozen with fear, Lyanna's fingers clawed into the front of Obi Wan's tunic, praying that the shot had hit her and not him. Her finger she'd placed against a thin layer of skin, feeling his heartbeat thumping beneath, determined to feel every beat until it would halt to a drastic stop. She prayed to the gods she'd long forsaken, to her ancestors and the strange powers that played in the universe that they would spare his life.

Something, or rather someone else, answered.

A thud echoed over the terrace, followed by the ruffling of what could only be one of the largest pair of wings waving through the air. Their embrace tightened as their breaths quivered, waiting for whatever end was coming for them.

"What exactly are you planning on doing there?" A deep voice rumbled. "This is not exactly the right time to cuddle, little dragon."

Lyanna's eyes snapped open and she strained to look over Obi's shoulder, her gaze soon landing on Arthas's figure. He stood before a hopefully unconscious Cody, his thick arms crossed before his chest and his brows lifted. When her gaze darted to her side, she saw the pavement smoking a few inches beside her head.

"Well?" The Valerian inquired, shuffling on his feet impatiently. "You do realize the planet is dying?"

"Arthas, I, -" She felt Obi Wan's muscles tensing beneath her grip and felt him dart out of her embrace before she could stop him. He jumped for his lightsaber, rolling over the ground until he stood before her body with his saber lifted and activated.

"Not another step, Blackwing." He snarled and narrowed his eyes, using his free hand to lift the rubble surrounding him. "Or I will kill you." The rocks quivered and shook as they levitated, creating a shield of debris around them. Obi Wan didn't even feel the strain the force took on him as he did so, didn't feel his shoulder screaming out in agony as blood slowly trickled down from the wound.

Arthas lifted his eyebrows further and huffed, chuckling lightly as he considered him, unimpressed, despite the power he was showing. "You? Kill me? How exactly do you plan on doing that, jedi?" His lips widened into a grin. "By throwing rocks?"

Kenobi let out a sound that was strangely akin to a growl, the power in the air rising. The queen watched the both of them for a moment until her gaze landed on the body on the floor. "Obi, it's fine." Lyanna pushed past him after touching his shoulder reassuringly. "Arthas has sided with us." She explained and walked up to Cody's body, kneeling down before him and quickly checking his breathing. She didn't even spare the time to elaborate further.

Obi Wan followed her movements and then quickly glanced at Arthas to make sure he wasn't going to do anything, only to realize he wasn't even paying attention to him anymore. "What in the blazes, -" The jedi lowered his saber as he frowned, astonished, watching the way the ancient Valerian looked at his fiancée. His usual glaring red eyes had softened to a warm brown, a hint of a smile that wasn't mocking in any way playing over his lips.

The rocks around him clattered to the ground. If Obi Wan hadn't known who he was, what he had done, he'd have thought he considered her a close friend. Maybe even something... more. He didn't have the energy nor the will to figure out which one was truly the case.

The jedi straightened and schooled his eyes into a stern glare as he deactivated his weapon. "He's still alive." Lyanna told him, further examining the clone for any other wounds. "Suffered a blow to the head, it would seem. A rather hard one." She cast a glare to the older Valerian behind her.

Obi Wan sighed, nodded and started to walk towards her, only to be stopped mid-track by a large hand on his chest. He froze, anger arising, and looked into the unfamiliar eyes of the man who'd caused her death all those months ago.

Arthas glanced back towards her to make sure she wasn't listening before he turned towards the jedi, inching closer. "Take her off this planet." He ordered, his voice barely above a growl. "As far away from your Republic as you can manage." Arthas glared into the blue eyes of the jedi. The Valerian bit his lip as he pondered, hating what he needed to give up. "Give her the life she's always wanted."

Obi Wan's eyes widened. He cocked his head to the side slightly, taking in Arthas's features as if it was the first time he saw him. Most of it was covered with dirt, root, ash and blood but the part that was still visible shone with emotion. There was hurt there and love, an emotion he'd never thought he'd see in those dark eyes.

What in the blazes had happened when he was away?

Arthas tightened his grip and neared, his eyes narrowing into a glare. He didn't like to be examined this closely. "Jedi." He growled lowly, the shadow magic lightening up in his eyes, making them turn red. He covered his weakness with the familiar anger and hate but the jedi had already seen through the veil.

"I will try." Obi Wan nodded, sealing the promise. The anger vanished for a moment in Blackwing's eyes, relief and gratitude replacing it. He mirrored his movements and nodded, inching backwards until he didn't crowd him anymore.

"You need to leave immediately." Arthas spoke loudly, turning away from the jedi. "I'll cover your escape until you've left the atmosphere, but from there on out you're on your own." His steps pounded on the ruined pavement as he walked away, his black wings unwrapping from behind his back. The black shimmered in the lights, creating multiple colours in the dark hues.

"You're not coming with us?" The queen was on her feet within seconds. Her green eyes followed his track, filling with grief. "Arthas, Valeria is going down, you won't survive -"

"I know." He halted in his tracks but didn't turn around. His eyes remained trained on the mountains in the distance and the cloud of smouldering ashes that came their way. It would engulf them within minutes and evaporate their bodies. Within hours, the entirety of the planet's surface would be covered with it and all that was alive would be reduced to smoke.

"This is my home." Arthas spoke. "I won't abandon it."

"Arthas, please, -" Tears started spilling down her cheeks before she could stop it. She'd tried to go to him but Obi Wan had already grasped onto her arm, keeping her close.

"Darling, it's all right." He whispered softly. "We need to go."

She glanced his way for but a moment before she turned back towards the Valerian. "I've already destroyed Valeria and lost my home. Don't let me lose you too because of it." Her voice wavered. Arthas remained unmoving besides the tensing of his shoulders. The queen hated the fact that she could only see his back covered with plates, hiding his emotions from her. "Please, Arthas, I'm begging you. Come with us."

"I will not." Blackwing spoke clearly, the sound echoing over the terrace. His voice held a strange finality to it. "Farewell, Fireheart."

His black wings extended to their full length, ready to take off. Lyanna's heart, however, refused to bend. "NO!" She shouted, a wave of fire expanding from her accompanied by a deep rumble, only to be followed by a rope made of shadows wrapping around his wrist. It yanked on him, pulling him back down to the ground the moment he'd lifted.

The man stumbled on his feet but recovered his balance quickly. Arthas turned around to face her abruptly, fury expanding over his features. "You dare, -"

Finally, she could see his face. "I am your queen and I command you to come with me." She hissed and pulled herself free of the jedi's grasp. "Enough Valerians have died today and I refuse to let you become one of them."

He quickly gulped down the words he'd almost spoken. His quickened breaths slowed until his heartbeat had calmed to a steady rhythm.

Arthas studied her closely, the fury and determination he saw in her eyes, the unrelenting and fiery passion that shone there despite everything that had transpired. She was covered in blood and core, her body exhausted from days of fighting and her armour dented and shredded. She'd led the entire army of Valeria against a force so formidable that had never been seen before.
She'd commanded the 4 powers of the Vanir and had left intact, while anyone else would've succumbed under the pressure. Her limbs were covered with wounds but nothing of that seemed to stop her.

She was as wilful as ever, even in the face of annihilation.

He realised with a start that he'd grown to respect her, maybe even more than he'd cared to admit. He realised she had been the queen he'd been waiting for, the ruler he'd thought and hoped Anduin would've become all those years ago. She reflected all his best traits and had fought to conquer his worst ones in the few years she'd lived.

She, she was everything he had ever hoped for.

Arthas knew he would do anything in his power to make sure she would survive. He even admitted to himself that given the chance, he wanted to serve her and would be honoured to do so. He'd relinquish his own wish to take the throne if only she could take it. This favour though, he couldn't grand.

There was, however, one left for him to take.

He walked towards her with big strides until he was right in front of her and met her sturdy glare with one of his own. "You owe me a debt, Fireheart." Arthas growled.

Her eyes widened with anger and grief, her hands balling into flaming fists. She swallowed the lump that had grown in her throat, feeling like it was about the obstruct her lungs. "Don't." She ordered, shuffling on her feet as she tried to contain her sobs.

"We made a deal. One favour for the jedi's life." Arthas continued, nonetheless, even after seeing her reaction. "This is it." He confirmed her fears. She looked away from his gaze and clenched her jaw, a defiant tear gliding down her cheek.

"Let me go, Fireheart." He lifted his arm and caught the tear before it fell down.

The tender movement startled her. She met his gaze again as her breath quivered. "Arthas, please." She begged, knowing that she had to honour their agreement if and when he went through with it. In the end, it'd mean she'd ended up trading his life for Obi Wan's, while she'd always expected him to use it for his own selfish gain.

How wrongly she'd judged him, known him in the end. The realisation was a stab to her heart, one that twisted in the flesh and made the pain felt through her entire body.

Arthas smiled down at her and placed his hand on the side of her cheek, his thumb under her jaw so he could lift her face towards him. His deep brown eyes examined hers, darting between the two of them as he smiled. He bent down and placed a kiss on the top of her head, a soft and careful one that she had never expected from him.

It seemed that in the final moments, he was finally ready to show parts of himself that he'd kept hidden for so long.

"I'll find you, Fireheart." He whispered against her skin, a soft and tender whisper that she would continue to hear for months. "But in the meantime, live."

While she had her eyes closed and repeated his words, Arthas cast another meaningful glance the jedi's way, willing him to hold onto his promise. Lyanna only had the time to gather herself enough to open her eyes before he turned around abruptly and unwrapped his wings, lifting off the ground with one mighty swing.

The raven black feathers graced the wind. In their wake shadows slithered and danced over the ground, curling around the Valerian remaining there, wrapping around her legs as if to try and comfort her.

The queen watched the last Blackwing fly towards the sky and into the battle that raged there. Soon, his darkness crowded the blue and enveloped the ships that had tried to escape the queen's avalanche. Lyanna closed her eyes, letting the remaining tears fall as she bend her head.

"Lyanna, it's time." Obi Wan whispered in her ear and laid his hand on her arm. He'd lifted Cody's body onto their ship, hoping to take him away from the battle and the destruction that was to follow. What he was going to do with him afterwards, he didn't know. All he knew was that he couldn't bare to leave him behind. "We have to leave."

She looked up at him, into the deep blue ocean eyes she loved and cherished. The eyes that had pulled her from death before and that had continued to make her want to live, to fight. They were the ones that had made her laugh, blush, cry and scream. The ones that had made her live. It was only the life that they promised that had kept her from staying, from fighting till her very last breath for the planet she'd cherished.

So, she allowed the jedi to pull her into his ship. She accepted the bitter truth of what was to come. From there on out, everything became a blur. Her body had entered a strange automatic state where she didn't notice herself moving, where she didn't realize she was giving it the commands.
She let him start the engine and fly off the planet's surface, into the battle that raged above it. She could vaguely feel the shaking of the ship, the purring of the engine. While he concentrated on the danger, she only had eyes for her home down below and the Valerian that was still fighting for it.

It lay in ruins. The palace had been wiped off the surface, the throne now but a small golden speck amidst blackened ground. The palace walls were but lines of rubble and the guard towers spirals that stood amidst them. The buildings that had housed her people had turned into shells, cracked and broken, burning with a raging fire. The streets were covered with ashes and the bodies and blood of those they hadn't managed to save.

The forests were set ablaze. Big plumes of black smoke rose above them, the birds and gryphons flying over it in a panic and fleeing from the clouds of burning ashes coming from the mountains. The menacing cloud ventured closer and closer even as they fled as fast as they could. She watched as it swallowed everything she had ever known.

After, Eagle's fall had turned into a mist of black smoke, ashes and fire. In the end, that was to be her legacy.

The queen of Valeria swallowed, fighting against the lump in her throat and turned her gaze towards the front of the ship. She didn't want to remember it like that, didn't want to see the destruction she had wrought.

From the windows she saw the black shadows crowding them, encircling them, protecting them from the attacks of those around them. She even saw a speck of raven black feathers before they disappeared into the smoke, taking a part of her heart with him. The queen leaned forward in her seat to try and follow his movements, to get a last glance of the man that'd guided her through the hardest part of her life.

But Arthas Blackwing had already disappeared into the smoke.

The jedi before her pushed the pedal forward. Before she knew it the stars in the black sky turned into a blur. Her hands tightened around her arm seats, her heart hammering in her chest. Behind, she heard a deep rumble and then an explosion so loud that it shook the very ship. A light so blinding that she couldn't see appeared while the explosion tore through the space, alarming the ship's sensors. Alarms blared and lights flickered as she held in her breath.

"Hold on!" Obi Wan warned as his hands gripped the steering wheel tightly. The rumble of fire came closer and closer until even that heat would've engulfed them and melted them down to their bones but something had stopped them from being pulled into the planet's demise.

They'd entered lightspeed at the last second and left the planet behind.

It was then that realisation struck the queen.

Her kingdom, the planet of Valeria, had been destroyed.

Oh. my. lord.

That was... intense.

Gosh, I hope I haven't traumatized you guys for life, because I still have an epilogue to finish. It won't be as depressing, I promise! You'll smile, laugh and maybe even shed a happy tear.
At least, I hope you will.

I'm sorry it took so long for me to finish this chapter. As some of you have read, I had a hard time writing it. There has been this writer's block plaguing me for months now that I don't know how to get rid of. Maybe it's the fact that I've been feeling a little bit down myself, but hopefully seeing your reactions to this chapter will clear that up :)

I hope, as always, that you'll stay with me until the very end. And that ending, my darlings, will be an epic one.

I love you all.