Part 68: Finale

*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*



Joe Moore: Well, looks like Command was right. The Archotral shells smashed the Gate into rubble, for all the good it'll do us.
Habitually Red: At least the fuckers are stranded here. What do we do now, though?
Mael Radec: We carry out our mission.
Sigrún Raske: How, though? It's a Titan. We've heard Karedan-Ka's intelligence. Conventional weapons don't do shit to it. It can wipe out whole divisions without slowing down. How the fuck do we beat that?
"Doctor" Snark: Maybe it can. They've never had to face modern weaponry before, though - magic-enhanced or not. None of the legends say what happen when you shoot one with a high-yield Archotral warhead.
T. Hinman: You think our weapons may be effective against the Ti-tan weapons platform that the enemy uses?
"Doctor" Snark: Honestly? No, Sigrún's probably right, we're probably fucked. We've got to try, though, and if we fail, maybe we can at least take the Dark Lord and his asshole wizard friends with us.
Anil E. Hilated: I get what you're saying. Even if it's too late for us to win, we can still make them lose.
Emil Västerström: Been a hell of a ride, hasn't it? For a while it seemed like we actually had a chance there. Let's make our last fight one to remember, huh?
???: It's not over for us just yet.



Mael Radec: General Alexander? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be back on the command ship?
John Alexander: I'd hardly be any safer there if this mission ended in failure, would I? You've all risked your lives at my command countless times. This is the battle that will save or doom our world. Now, if ever, is the time to put myself on the line.
Gordon Frohman: Wait, that thing you're holding. Isn't that-
John Alexander: The Darksword, yes. I intend to use it to kill the Titan. Your mission is to get me there.
Patrick Gallagher: How, though? Even with the darksword, didn't it take a god wielding to stop the Titan last time?
John Alexander: It did, but the Titan was at the height of its power then. Though the Titan has awakened, it's only just come out of a hundred thousand year slumber. The enemy will need to keep supplying it with magical power to strengthen it. It's still too weak to move - and maybe, just maybe, weak enough for an ordinary human using the darksword to stop it.
Mael Radec: Well, General, you've gotten us this far. We're behind you.
John Alexander: I knew I could count on you. Now, let's get going. We, the Drunken Slavs, must finish this alone.
???: I must disagree.



Ka-Tugrag: General Alexander. My orcs and I were among those fighting Murdanur's forces in South America. When we learned that you had begun your push toward the enemy's last remaining stronghold, we set out to meet you. Now four hundred of my best orcs, personally chosen by me, stand ready to assist you. If you'll allow us to join you in this final battle, then whether we win or die, this will be the greatest day for the Free Orcs. Will you grant us this?
John Alexander: It'd be an honor, Chief Ka-Tugrag. You may be orcs, but we couldn't ask for better comrades.
Solaus: _{Goddamn trogs spoiling the moment} So unless there's no more surprises, we're ready, right?
John Alexander: Almost. Radar teams, do you have a fix on the location of the enemy headquarters?



Charles C Thuluu: Well, assuming that their headquarters are where Murdanur is, and where the Dark Lord is, and where the Titan is, then yes. Looks like a straight shot east of here.
Vlasta Devínská: Just a matter of how much is between here and there, then.



John Alexander: Let's move! That Titan's getting stronger by the second!



Patrick Gallagher: Predators south! They're gonna flank us!



Basil: Not if I can help it!



Svetlana Aliyev: From the east, too!
Stephen Smith: Ka-Tugrag's hit! Is he alright?




Ka-Tugrag: Don't worry about me! Push!



Bob McKenzie: You all heard the orc, eh!



Cholmondely: We have ourselves some bomber birds to the southeast!
Anil E. Hilated: Nothing to worry about, you guys can-



Griff: Jesus, Anil's gone! His whole unit's gone!
Solaus: Artillery fire! Quick, find it before it hits us again!



Patrick Gallagher: There it is. Heavily defended against air attacks, too.



Patrick Gallagher: But our Terminators can hit them from the ground!



Gregor: Gregor shows them who is best at ranged combat!



Basil: Don't forget the birds!



Svetlana Aliyev: We clear? Okay, good, we don't have time to waste!



Sigrún Raske: A dragon! I was starting to think we'd seen the last of them.



Sigrún Raske: It's not too late to make that happen, though!



Roger Murtaugh: Okay, now the angels!



Doug McKenzie: Demon summoner all by himself, eh!



Uzgob: 'e ain't alone anymore, boss!



Erik Spanner: Angels down. Any of 'em still feeling brave?



Michel du Boulogne: Yeah, Fortress coming from behind us!



Stephen Smith: We need help up ahead, too!



Svetlana Aliyev: Help has arrived, boys.



Hulk Hogan: NOTHING GETS IN THE HULKSTER'S WAY!



Patrick Gallagher: Alright, I'm in position! Got the rear covered!



Patrick Gallagher: Oh shit, that one came up from right under me!



Pusher Bot: Fire! Fire!
Patrick Gallagher: I'm trying, still taking aim!
Pusher Bot: Correction for syntactic ambiguity: this unit is on fire!



Charles C Thuluu: AAAAAARGH!
Mael Radec: Pat, get your shit together! You're the only one between those things and-



Roger Murtaugh: Jesus Christ, we're all gonna die!



Aethereon Darkfyre: The fire rains down upon me, fire as though to herald the apocalypse!
Stephen Smith: Wow. For once, Darkfyre's not being hyperbolic.
Reginald P. Linux: But he's talking like he always does!
Stephen Smith: Reality finally caught up with him.



Cholmondely: Keep calm and carry on, chaps, I've sighted the enemy. All you need do is shoot!



Solaus: Thanks, Chol. Just be careful. This thing's almost over, we don't need more of us dying now!




Erik Spanner: I guess it'll be my job to cover the south. Sounds like better odds than driving straight toward the god-giant.



Roger Murtaugh: Skies are clear again. Let's hope they stay that way.



Uzgob: Why 'ope when you can do somefin' about it?



Aethereon Darkfyre: Oh, terrible blows! An enemy mobile fortress bears down upon me, the shrieking of its guns splitting the air!



Stephen Smith: Darkfyre, you're actually getting pretty shot up, I think you'd better pull back!
Aethereon Darkfyre: No! My friends, I will take the blows meant for you! I have no regrets as long as I die saving you!



Stephen Smith: ...Well, I've gotta give him credit. He walked the walk.



Reginald P. Linux: Everyone hold on! They're not done yet!



Mael Radec: ...but they will be!



Bob McKenzie: There's the Fortress, eh!



Reginald P. Linux: Got it!



Svetlana Aliyev: Along with a couple things nobody cares about.



Basil: Okay, I think we can breathe now. Looks like the enemy's letting up on this side.



Basil: I'm heading up to join you guys! Erik, give me a yell if things get hairy to the south.



John Alexander: I'm moving up! Make sure the path's clear!



Griff: Doesn't get any clearer than that!




Griff: ...Okay, maybe it does!



Doug McKenzie: Nothing we can't handle, eh.




Svetlana Aliyev: Path's open! Move!



Bob McKenzie: Enemy's got plenty of Death Knights to spare, eh!



Bob McKenzie: Oh, those aren't Death Knights.



Uzgob: You people know da drill! Take out da summoners firs'!



Reginald P. Linux: Summoners down! Someone take out the demons before they can hit us!



Grandalt Noddington: Tally-ho! We won't reach the Titan in good time if we let a single Demon bother us.



Vlasta Devínská: Just a bit further! The target should be in visual range within minutes!



Svetlana Aliyev: Just bagged the last demon! We've taken control of this hill! And...



Svetlana Aliyev: This is it. We've made it. The enemy's got nothing left. General, it's time to get in there and finish the job.



John Alexander: Well done. All of you. Your duty in this war is over now. Now it's time to fulfill mine.



The path couldn't have been more than fifty meters, but the walk seemed to take an eternity. With a sword I had never swung and whose capabilities I barely understood, I was to slay three of the deadliest enemies humanity had ever known.



To my shock, when I arrived, I found one of my foes had killed another, then fled himself. The mere sight of the Dark Sword approaching was enough to make the Dark Lord retreat. Before he did, however, he had executed Murdanur as punishment for his failure. The Forces of Darkness, already on their last legs everywhere they still held out, were now deprived of all leadership and magical support.





But the greatest threat of all still stood before me. The Titan had awakened, and it sought to destroy all before it.



As soon as it saw me, it reared back, then blew a flaming breath at me. It was everywhere in an instant. I couldn't possibly hope to avoid it.



Luckily, I didn't need to. The Darksword repelled the fire and the heat, causing it to flow harmlessly around me.



The next thing I knew, it emitted a blinding burst of light.




When I could see again, I barely dared believe it - the Titan was falling, once more driven to its slumber in the Earth's core.

The war was over. The Alliance had won.

KILLED IN ACTION:

Anil E. Hilated
Charles C Thuluu
Patrick Gallagher
Aethereon Darkfyre



The war may be officially over, but the months following the final battle have hardly been restful. In the immediate aftermath, my first priority was to contact Central Command and inform them that the Dark Lord had escaped. He has, in fact, evacuated through the destroyed Andes gate - the connection between the worlds apparently held just long enough for him to do so before it was severed.

Over the next few weeks, the remaining Forces of Darkness were utterly crushed. They no longer exist as an organization on Earth. We still find ourselves menaced by the occasional undiscovered Harpy nest or roaming Predator swarm, but they rarely survive long after Alliance units engage them. I can testify that the operations are more akin to pest control than to warfare, as The Drunken Slavs have taken part in a few.

Already the World Alliance is breaking apart, becoming less of a unified force and more of a formality by the week. The occasional magical monster attack is not enough to keep us unified. As the nations of the world turn to the task of rebuilding their shattered cities and battle-scarred landscapes, they've begun to fight over the pieces in the hopes of having enough to put back together. The US, Russia, and China in particular, having been the largest contributors to the war effort, have all begun to push the smaller nations among them for compensation.

They've each attempted to get me involved in their push for dominance, offering me money and positions and a cushy retirement if I'll just stand at a podium and tell the media that they're the reason the Alliance won. I'm an international hero now, after all. The man who struck the blow that ended the war. It's all nonsense. It took a lot of blows to win this war; mine just happened to be the last. The only official statement I've made is one that none of them asked for, where I encouraged them to support the fifty thousand Free Orcs who now live on Earth and welcome them among us. I made my case by recounting the role Ka-Tugrag and his unit played in the war, and how they fought by our side until the very end. I just hope they listen.

The Karedan-Ka are gone now; with the Forces of Darkness no longer threatening our world, and the Dark Lord still out there to threaten their own, they didn't want to stay and deal with what they called our "internal politics." I can't say that I blame them. They'll probably disband The Drunken Slavs once the monster attacks drop off enough. I think I'll return to Slovakia once that happens. It's my home, after all, and with the way the political landscape is turning out, it's going to need all the help it can get.

-J. Alexander