The Final March of Illur Andi

***The Final March of Illur Andi*** also known as ***The Guardian Rises*** in North America is the tenth and final novel of the ***Starhiker*** series. The book was released on November 10, 1969 in the United Kingdom by Bloomsbury and November 28, 1969 in the United Statea and Canada by Scholastic, ending the series that began in 1956 with the publication of The Starlight Child. The novel chronicles the events that took place seven months after the events in The Legion of the Nightmare Bands, and the final confrontation between Henry Moonstone and Illur Andi (Dark Lord Annix Bismuth). As well of revealing the previously concealed backstory of several main characters. The title of the book refers to the rise of Henry Moonstone and the final breaths of Illur Andi's reign of terror as well as the defeat of Emperor Dragonquark at the hands of his own master. Major themes in the book are death, revenge, the battle for freedom versus authoritarianism and how the galaxy lives under a ruthless strongman. This story also reveals the origins to ongoing Thousand Years' War. As well as how Emperor Dragonquark became most feared sorcerer in the galaxy and the most powerful being. The back stories of five characters have been revealed; Another major backstory also reveals how the infamous Legion of Nightmare Bands came to protect the embattled Emperor Dragonquark while protecting the Orb of Invincibilty which makes Dragonquark even more powerful while acting as an armor to protecting his gigantic bio-mechanical suit that conceal his true form. The Body of Dragonquark and the Ear of Dragonquark. The Battle of Earth which features a climatic battle between Moonstone and Dragonquark taking place the same time as Battle of York occurring in the period of eight days.

## Plot

### Background

Throughout the ten novels in the series, the protagonist Henry Moonstone has struggled with his adolescence along with being referred as the "Starlight Child" (the "Little Young Guardian" in American prints). Moonstone has also struggled with the fact that Annix Bismuth was his real father who tried to protect Zaea Moonstone, from being captured and killed by her captors because of her role in the Second War. More details about the early life Ulod Mursa better known as the "Horned Serpent Goddess" has been revealed. Annix Bismuth has been left in charge of protecting Zaea's offspring for a thousand years while a part of Zara's soul that would become Henry Moonstone was incubating in a mirror. Further revealing that Moonstone was born as the Second War ended with his mother dying from complications of childbirth, but was born on Earth at the request of Annix to keep the child safe, these events have led to leaving Qivvitoq to raise him as his mother.

### Summary

#### 3. Bismuth's Unexpected Visit

4. Arriving at The Khan's Palace

5. An Unwelcome Gift

6. Not Once But Without The Twice

7. Tourmaline's Heist

8. Paying A Heavy Price

9. The Entranice of Moonstone

10. The Maccabees Attack

#### 11. Elyria Has Fallen!

12. Koba's Offer

13. Hiding at Peckish Willow

14. Discombobulation's Agenda

15. Purity is Might!

16. Operation Valkyrie Commences

#### 19. Tourmaline's Worst Memories

20. The Start of Vengeance

21. Aima's Warning

22. The Destruction of Mitsupi

23. Inuq's End

24. The Advice from Jidamoo

25. The Last March to Earth.

#### 28. The Resistance Briefing

29. Looking Back Into The Past

30. Argutema Prang

31. The Ballad Of The Serf From Crown Mountain

32. Explaining the Prophecy and Weaknesses

33. The Nightmare Bands Strike

34. Escape from Polygon 935

35. "Fine, Then I Will Settle This Myself."

36. Execution of Final Orders

37. The Earth Has Fallen

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#### 43. A Flawed Confession

With the death of Wangohan, Dragonquark's forces make their final march into the city center in jubilation. Illur Andi carries the lifeless body of Sard Discombobulation while the rest parade the dead bodies of Wangohan, Tybalt, Colonel Trillium, Wexis, Koda, Wallok, Kethtrok, Springbok and Yorrick carrying Pijiw pretending to be dead. Sterling Burgess, Julie Moonstone, Tourmaline, Iqaliak and all of the fighters of York come out in grief. Dragonquark announces his victory over the Resistance and the Lilac Bandits leaving the citizens shocked in disbelief, Dragonquark announces that a New Order has been proclaimed and orders all citizens to bring Moonstone over to him to have him executed. Dragonquark decides to sack Abnis', relieving his post as executioner, believing that he is no longer needed for his services. Nextly, Dragonquark kills his own executioner for failing to hunt down Moonstone, leaving himself confused about his whereabouts until Henry Moonstone finally appears sending the fighters and the citizens cheering until he demands silence. Dragonquark informs Dragonquark that the rebellion against the Celestial Empire has been defeated, he leaves Moonstone two choices to either confess for the murder of the Horned Serpent Goddess so that he would be spared and his friends would have to be tried for rebellion against his empire and killed, or that if he failed to tell the truth he would be killed but his friends would be spared. Henry Moonstone decides to confess only if he does what Annix requested to do. By doing so, Henry decides to tell the truth publicly reveal that the real killer of the Horned Serpent Goddess none other than Dragonquark himself. Stating that the only reason the Horned Serpent Goddess was killed was to keep her from bringing a peaceful end to the ongoing war and saving the Celestial Empire through democratic reforms. This truth causes Dragonquark to become furious that he was responsible for the assassination because he feared being tried for war crimes, treason, desertion and was afraid that the Celestial Empire was doomed to collapse should any democratic reforms take place. Dragonquark begins to finally realize that the Celestial Empire was doomed to fail from the start, and that his reckless actions ranging from propping up semi-colonial authoritarian regimes. To taking his own anger on his own planet of origin for being a den of the resistance. Proving his undoing, Moonstone reminds him that his efforts to take over the Galaxy for his own personal gain has failed. He also tells off Dragonquark by saying "On the contrary! The war isn't over yet, and you will still have to fight".

#### 47. The Prophet's Final Duel

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#### 49. A Victorious Hanukkah

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## Major Themes

### The battle for freedom versus authoritarianism

Many journalists, scholars, academics and political analysts have developed other interpretactions of the themes, some of which have alluded to the pro-war and anti-war themes that have been prevalent during the late 1960's. The main theme in the series is the democracy versus authoritarianism analogues. Because of the themes of Henry Moonstone dealing with the galaxy's rebellion against Emperor Dragonquark's dictatorial rule across the galaxy, which was inspired by Rosecliffe's opposition to British involvment in World War II, and the abandonment of his children after being evacuated to Canada, occurring alongside with the death of his first wife during the Battle of Britain. The more politicized nature of the novel involves an Earth-born human teenager, Henry Moonstone going through his adolescence; dealing with survival, oppression, warfare, tyranny and a bureaucratized Celestial Empire of the Milky Way Galaxy located on the city planet of Llao and the secondary capital on Malsumis.