"The Strongest Elspeth"

"The Strongest Elspeth"

by:

Virgilio F. De leon Jr. 

She had a hard time using her spark. She could traverse the planes but it felt so hard that she did not want to do it any longer. She wanted to find peace but she woke up in this room that seemed to go on forever. Her eyes began to focus in the darkness and she saw from the far end a place she never wanted to see again. She saw the once mighty Castles of Bant beginning to crumble from abandonment. The decay that the plane of Grixis carried when these 2 Shards of Alara collided was seeping into the once tranquil plane. Elspeth closed her eyes and breathed the air around her. This air was familiar too. The smell of metal and blood was strong in her nostrils. She could still sense the presence of Phyrexia in the plane once known as Mirrodin. She did not know why she was here. She only knew that these 2 planes reminded her of her failures. She was unable to save them. Bant Fell. Mirrodin Fell. She was followed by failure wherever she went. She began to sob.

She felt the other minds begin their own descents into sadness as well.

"Who is there?" Elspeth asked the gloom. The answers came in rapid succession.

"We are you and you are us"

"We are Elspeth...

...Knight Errant"

...Tirel"

...Sun's Champion"

Elspeth knew who she was and who they were instantly. They were all her. Her past  , present and future all existing in this room of 2 planes. She heard a power thrum that spread from where she stood. She instantly knew that there would be no way out of here and the only way was to get through her other selves. Knowing who she was  , Elspeth braced herself for the fight of her life.

I have waited long for the 3rd reincarnation of Elspeth so that I could write this Planeswalker Mirror fight. To  compare the 3 Elspeths  , Knight Errant and Sun's Champion have an edge over Tirel because of early token creation.The former could create tokens without compromising their loyalty counters. In a battle of these 3 versions the key would be get creatures on the board early and able to deal damage to the weakest opponent. Elspeth Tirel is in a distinct disadvantage because the life she gains does not add to her loyalty counters. Since Knight Errant and Sun's Champion could create early board domination they would be the first planeswalkers to survive.In the ensuing battle the Sun's Champion could make tokens much faster but the victor will be decided by the Knight Errants' 2nd skill.

The Sun's Champion looked at her opponents. She knew the tricks up their sleeves but she did not know in what way that they would use them. She began to summon 3 Soldiers to her side. She felt herself glow a little bit more as if she was becoming more real in this existence. She saw that the Knight Errant was glowing much in the same way but she was only able to summon a lone Soldier on her side. Elspeth Tirel was also able to summon 3 Soldiers but in contrast she seemed to have weakened. As if summoning hurt her and she was fading. The Sun's Champion realized that the way to defeat her other selves was with the amount of soldiers that could be summoned. The Knight Errant  also realized that they could easily take care of Elspeth Tirel. 

Elspeth Tirel fell on one knee. She could not believe what amount of her life force summoning took. She knew she would be gone before she could recover. The first wave from her other selves sent 4 soldiers. 3 was able to kill her loyal subjects and 1 wounded her. She knew that her healing magic was useless and the lone soldier from the Knight Errant stabbed at her heart and she faded.

The death of the first Elspeth was felt by the last remaining 2. They both clutched their chests in pain and gasped at the same time. The Knight Errant was the first to recover and with her skill made her Lone Soldier receive the might of giants and the gift of Flight. The Sun's Champion was not able intercept the flying champion. Her Soldiers attacked the 1st of the three. She felt the slash of 3 swords but was not weakened. The Knight Errant on the other hand seemed to be fading and hope grew in her heart. She was not able to realize in time that even though the Knight Errant only had one champion she has enabled it to bypass her defenses. The Sword that decapitated the Sun's Champion glistened with her blood. In this place Heliod could not reach out to save her. In this place only one Champion will emerge undisturbed.

The Knight Errant began to weep at the loss of her other selves.It all seemed so senseless. She knew that they were destined for far greater things. She vowed that she would never rest until she found who devised this room. Elspeth felt the enchantments around the plane disappear. Though it felt like she was peeling her skin she began to open a rift of white mana. She was preparing for her travels in the Blind Eternities seeking knowledge about what really transpired here.