(After the calm fade-out, we are jolted back into the story with a sudden fade-in to Zeno in the heat of battle! My guess is that the fighting will be primarily in the courtyard, at least that’s where Zeno is. He’s owning fools, and this will probably go on for at least a minute or so with no dialogue. Eventually, a familiar dead body comes into frame. It’s Daphne.)
Zeno: Wha….Daphne? (pause) Daphne! Daphne, wake up!
(no response, duh)
Zeno: Daphne….you…you can’t die…not yet...
Voice: I wish I could say this was a surprise.
(Zeno turns around. It’s Enkur)
Zeno: Enkur…you’re….with them?
Enkur: Of course I am, you fool. Ovito and Wisel are here somewhere too.
(pause)
Enkur: You could be fighting alongside us right now….and instead we have to meet on the battlefield like this.
(pause)
Zeno: I don’t want to fight you….but I couldn’t have done things any other way and been true to myself.
Enkur: Ugh, you haven’t changed. Always that starry-eyed dreamer nonsense. Look where it’s gotten you, Zeno! These upstart crusades like Blacksteele’s do nothing but lead the way to certain death.
Zeno: What are you trying to convince me of, Enkur?! That it would have been easier to do things your way?! Yes, it would have. But easy isn’t always right! I won’t sell my soul just because it’s more convenient that way!
Enkur: Then you will die like that pitiful woman there.
Zeno: You insult her again and I’ll send you back to your knighthood in a box.
(Enkur charges Zeno and the battle begins. Enkur is fighting full-on, but Zeno is reluctant to slash at him. Instead he dodges the attacks and uses punching/kicking to keep him at bay. This goes on for a while.)
Enkur: Don’t you toy with me!
(Then finally Enkur lunges quickly and Zeno’s face is slashed! One eye bites the dust)
Zeno: Arrrgh!!
(Zeno now strikes, hitting Enkur in the side of the head!)
Enkur: *gasp*
(Several painful moments pass, then Enkur falls. Zeno staggers back in agony. The sounds of battle quiet down, and Stoic begins to narrate)
Stoic: I had dealt my friend a terrible blow….Daphne was gone…and I could barely stand up. I didn’t think it could get any worse, but I was wrong.
(pause. The fighting stops as the warriors look in one direction)
Stoic: That was when we heard the announcement. Volrath was dead.
(long pause)
Stoic: Truth be told, our knighthood was holding its own. The combination of combat skills, magic and our diverse membership was just as potent as we had hoped. We might have won that battle…but without him, we just…gave up. I looked around and saw my companions drop their weapons. The Solendians looked quite relieved.
(pause)
Stoic: I had written off our conversation the night before as just nervousness. But he knew…somehow.
(pause)
Stoic: For all the things we had said about the Solendians, they were not total barbarians. Once we surrendered, they brought the fight to an end. They knew enough to realize that this conflict had done enough damage to their reputation, they weren’t about to make it worse by striking unarmed soldiers. Our weapons were taken from us, and we were dismissed like children who had misbehaved. Completely humiliating, but we had more to worry about than pride.
(pause)
Stoic: Something inside all of us died that day. We believed that if we just trusted in the inherent strength of our ideals, that would be enough to get us past all the obstacles in our way. Now we all knew how foolish that was. All of the virtue in the world didn’t change the fact that Volrath was dead…that too many of our allies had joined him…and that we had failed.