Epilogue : The Lost and the Found
Running past the carrier wreckage to her friends, Majhala glances over to the twitching body of the headless golden plated figure going through it's final death throes.
"Eww," she sneers at the oozing black puddle spilling from it's chest. "You two help him", she points to the injured hellsguard. Two female sea wolfs help the cringing mage up to his feet. "We need to get out of here now, they can't hold the stockade much longer."
Quick Shroud winces and whines looking down to see the still body of the miqo'te that took his arm, sighing at his lallafel ally wrapping the babe in a small cloak. "You sure you want to do this?" he groans almost passing out from the pain. "We don't exactly know what we're dealing with here."
Mimori playfully rubs the babe's nose, "This is no place for a child. Leaving him here could only prove more disastrous than taking him with us."
"You would risk us all playing nursemaid especially if it has the potential to become like that", Quick Shroud grunts, nodding at the child's mother.
"I think the risk has passed, but to assure your fears, I will retain the burden and will do what's necessary if needed," she retorts with a narrowed glare.
Not willing to debate her anymore, the roegadyn haplessly concedes motioning to his escort to assist him over to the stockade cargo lift.
Mimori stands and grimaces at Majhala bobbling the three faced head of her adversary, "What are you doing with that?"
"Souvenir," she winks, then with a look of amazement she shows Mimori the mechanisms and wiring for attachment. The two of them look at each other in disbelief slowly walking over to the convulsing Daegon.
Using an arrow to poke and pry away at the mangled torso, the two lallafels step back in horror at the image before them. Within the tangled mess of tubes, wires and ichor, the small form writhes spewing more fluids from a breathing mask. It's arms and upper body infused into the construct revealing familiar ears and emaciated veined facial features, cloudy eyes slowly turning to meet theirs.
"Such a lost soul," Mimori whispers in disgust.
A tiny arm rips from it's tendenous tube connections to clutch a small device at it's chest, twisting it releasing a ominous beeping sound. Majhala and Mimori jump back as red crackling lightning shoots from the body, gurgling laughter growing ever louder. The two of them look up as clouds begin to swirl over the courtyard, their faces pale at the mere thought of the oncoming destruction.
"Hurry up you two!" a familar voice yells out from around the makeshift stockade barrier. Looking up at the impending summons, Ola grunts under hear breath sarcastically, "Oh great!"
Bounding over the crates ducking rifle fire, the three of them rendezvue with the last of the remaining rebels. "Careful of the tripwire, I rigged that to explode when they come near", Ola points, stepping over the access path through the crates to the lift controls. She looks over to a passed out Quick Shroud in the arms of his two sea wolf caretakers. "Is he going to be alright?"
Mimori acknowledges and carefully protects the babe within her arms noticing Ola's eyebrows twitching in curiosity. "I'll tell you later."
With the lift cage closing Ola punches the button, gears and sirens churn when the platform begins it's descent. Looking over the dozen other exhausted and bloodied friends she instructs those that still have their tower shields to huddle and provide cover through the duration of transit. A smile creases over her face as yells and explosion come from yonder overhead, pieces of debris fall onto the shields covering the companions. Suddenly a violent rumble shakes the entire platform and the shaft around them begins to shake.
"Earthquake?" a midlander rebel moans.
"Worse," Majhala answers.
Reaching a halt, Ola instructs everyone off the platform letting her roegadyn assistant carefully guide others through the mined area of tripwires and booby traps intended for pursuers. "Is everything set?" she yells to Captain.
Boulders and stalactites dislodge from the cavern ceiling crashing around the piers and grotto pools surrounding Kerwyn's ship. "Onboard now!" he yells over to her while directing the recent passengers to cover and ordering his crew to cast off. Kerwyn heads to the railing noticing the lallafel attempting to sabotage the lift returning up to the surface. "There's no time for that now get over here!"
Cursing, Ola navigates her path to the pier climbing the rope ladder onto the Sojourn. Just as she reaches the final rung a large stalactite crumbles onto the deck scattering crewman and passengers prompting yells from the oarsmen below. Majhala runs over to pull Ola up to her feet when another loud crash booms from the stairwell.
"That's one entrance, gonna take them a bit to clear the rubble," Ola smirks.
Pulling her friend to her feet, Majhala asks,"How much did you rig?"Â
Wiping some soot from her face, "Most of the pier. I have enough incendiary to provide quite the show. This oversized piece of driftwood just needs to go faster." Ola boasts elevating her voice.
"Hey!" Kerwyn's defensive voice comes from behind the wheel.
The shared laugh between lallafel is cut short when cannon fire rockets past the bow. Squinting to see the through the smoke from the shaft, Majhala and Ola look to each other in despair as the hobbling, sparking wreck of a tank driven by an arrow laden crazed researcher ordering a squad of troops to intercept.
"We're sitting gobbues if that thing reloads! Get down and oar you loafers!" Kerwyn yells to any able bodied rebels running down below deck.
A dismayed look comes over Ola's face as three troops bypass a trigger that she knew should of fired. Another large explosion blinds them as one of the turret traps triggers. Gritting her teeth, Ola looks at the edge of the pier about to pass and climbs up onto the railing. About to jump a large familiar hand prevents her from proceeding. Returning a warm determined smile, her faithful roegadyn assistant picks her up and hoists her upon his shoulders, reaching for a tower shield.
Majhala and Mimori both run up to them, "Ola?"
"This is farewell friends. I'm not about to let the fireworks fizzle and doom us with victory so near," she sniffs with a tear rubbing the hair of her compatriot. Patting his head to proceed, "In the light of the Twelve.." she waves back to both of them, the roegadyn leaping onto the end of the pier. Racing toward the remaining turret, the two are met with volleys of gunfire. Using the tower shield to deflect what he can, the sea wolf lowers Ola down to find the malfunctioned trigger. Giving him a peck on the cheek, she hops underneath the pier watching a bullet round pierce her friend's shoulder still running to get to the upper deck.
Exiting the mouth of the grotto, the Sojourn oarsmen rowing choir bellows from under deck, large rocks still dropping from the crumbling cavern ceiling.
Kerwyn's shriek alarms everyone topside to get to cover when another tank round splinters one of the masts. Ducking from the occasional stray rifle fire, Mimori looks over the side to see the large form ascending the turret ladder, being peppered with bullets along his ascent.
Calibrating another charge, Korvus briefly catches the glimpse of the turret turning to his position, "Stop him!!" he orders desperately arming another round.
"Found you!" Ola stretches reaching over to the loose trigger. Smiling at the noisy chaos from the barrage of turret fire above, she mumbles a soft prayer to herself and toggles the trigger switch. "Godspeed to you all."Â
Cheers ensue topside as some of the oarsmen stumble up from below deck to witness the turret fire blast into the tank. All gasp in unison at the following sequence of incendiary blasts decimate the remnants of the prison docks. A billowing cloud of smoke rushing out the mouth of the cavern to meet them. While many rebels cheer at their victory, Majhala and Mimori tearfully look outward mournfully mouthing thanks to the sacrifice of their fellow sister in arms.
"Get up and fix that mast you dogs, we're not out of this yet!" Kerywyn yells visibly shaken at the swirling torrent of clouds and red lightning hovering above the prison. Throwing a boot at one his crewman to get below, "ROW! Row like your life depends on it! Where's the bloody wind?"
Limping up to a leaning position, Quick Shroud eyes widen to focus at the awe inspiring destruction of the summons manifesting above the prison. An enormous meteoric projectile then bursts through the dark clouds screeching toward the prison. Mimori holds B'jaern closely as she can with Majhala leaning in to provide additional cover holding onto each other, the gurgling laughter of the abomination echoing in their minds.
"Brace yourselves!" Kerywn yells, spinning the wheel, bringing the Sojourn about.
Streaking in cacophonous fury, the impact induces a tragic massive explosion with titanic pieces of the cliff face erupting into numerous landslides. The shockwave from the blast breaks the top of the main mast of the ship with deckhands and rebels falling overboard from the sheer size of the waves almost capsizing the ship. Tossing lifelines into the water, the crew pull up the remaining passengers and crewman thrown aside.
"Good riddance," Majhala chides back to the prison, plopping down sitting aside the railing. She tilts her head resting on Mimori's shoulder looking at the sleeping baby. "What's this mean for us now Mimi?"
B'jaern resting comfortably in his cloaked blanket barely stirs in Mimori's lap with the lallafel humming an old nursery tune. "I'm not so sure anymore," she pauses staring blankly then looking over her shoulder up to the fading hunter's moon. "I just don't know."
                                            Â
5 days later on the southeastern peninsula of the Black Shroud on the shores of the the Rothlyt Sound....
Four people empty from a small Sojourn dinghy, the oarsmen waiting patiently for the returning passengers to say their goodbyes.
"How many days till we get to Ul'dah Kerwyn?" Quick Shroud asks.
"We'll have to make port in Maslava to replenish supplies but after that should take another two weeks at least." he replies looking to his anchored ship from the shore. "You better have what's promised to me when we get there?"
Waving with his back turned "Don't worry, the brigade will compensate you handsomely." Quick Shroud meets up with the two lallafel exchanging embraces.
"Are you sure this is what you want Mimi?" Majhala leans back, hands still atop Mimori's shoulders.
With a tearful laugh, "After all this?" she pauses smiling as the one armed hellsgaurd approaches. "I think I'm ready for a different sort of adventure."
Quick Shroud kneels down using a finger to peel back the blanket covering B'jaern's sleeping face. With a deep sigh, "I sure hope you know what you're doing. He's going to want to know about his mother when he grows up. Are you prepared to tell him the truth of how his mother died?"
Palming and thumbing the tribal pendant, she tucks it around B'jaern's neck underneath his covers. "He doesn't have to know," she smiles back at him.
"Make sure to write us ok," Majhala tearfully hugs her one more time complying with the impatient captain waving to return to the ship.
"We'll make sure to come visit," Quick Shroud interrupts.
"Keep fighting the good fight," Mimori chokes up hugging him. Stepping back to look upon the two most trusted friends she's ever known another trickling tear falls down her face at the sight of them standing side by side in stance performing the Ala Mhigan salute. She returns the gesture with proud determination, watching the two enter into the small boat then slowly paddling back to the ship. She waves one more time to the both of them, picking up her duffle bag and swinging it over her shoulder, the sound of the waves spilling onto the shore with gulls over head, she looks up to the waning sun blending into the sea's horizon.
Turning to face the welcoming embrace of a copse of trees ahead of her, Mimori looks down and smiles to B'jaern, "Just you and me now." B'jaern returns a light giggle as the two of them slowly fade into the forest.
F I NÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
Running past the carrier wreckage to her friends, Majhala glances over to the twitching body of the headless golden plated figure going through it's final death throes.
"Eww," she sneers at the oozing black puddle spilling from it's chest. "You two help him", she points to the injured hellsguard. Two female sea wolfs help the cringing mage up to his feet. "We need to get out of here now, they can't hold the stockade much longer."
Quick Shroud winces and whines looking down to see the still body of the miqo'te that took his arm, sighing at his lallafel ally wrapping the babe in a small cloak. "You sure you want to do this?" he groans almost passing out from the pain. "We don't exactly know what we're dealing with here."
Mimori playfully rubs the babe's nose, "This is no place for a child. Leaving him here could only prove more disastrous than taking him with us."
"You would risk us all playing nursemaid especially if it has the potential to become like that", Quick Shroud grunts, nodding at the child's mother.
"I think the risk has passed, but to assure your fears, I will retain the burden and will do what's necessary if needed," she retorts with a narrowed glare.
Not willing to debate her anymore, the roegadyn haplessly concedes motioning to his escort to assist him over to the stockade cargo lift.
Mimori stands and grimaces at Majhala bobbling the three faced head of her adversary, "What are you doing with that?"
"Souvenir," she winks, then with a look of amazement she shows Mimori the mechanisms and wiring for attachment. The two of them look at each other in disbelief slowly walking over to the convulsing Daegon.
Using an arrow to poke and pry away at the mangled torso, the two lallafels step back in horror at the image before them. Within the tangled mess of tubes, wires and ichor, the small form writhes spewing more fluids from a breathing mask. It's arms and upper body infused into the construct revealing familiar ears and emaciated veined facial features, cloudy eyes slowly turning to meet theirs.
"Such a lost soul," Mimori whispers in disgust.
A tiny arm rips from it's tendenous tube connections to clutch a small device at it's chest, twisting it releasing a ominous beeping sound. Majhala and Mimori jump back as red crackling lightning shoots from the body, gurgling laughter growing ever louder. The two of them look up as clouds begin to swirl over the courtyard, their faces pale at the mere thought of the oncoming destruction.
"Hurry up you two!" a familar voice yells out from around the makeshift stockade barrier. Looking up at the impending summons, Ola grunts under hear breath sarcastically, "Oh great!"
Bounding over the crates ducking rifle fire, the three of them rendezvue with the last of the remaining rebels. "Careful of the tripwire, I rigged that to explode when they come near", Ola points, stepping over the access path through the crates to the lift controls. She looks over to a passed out Quick Shroud in the arms of his two sea wolf caretakers. "Is he going to be alright?"
Mimori acknowledges and carefully protects the babe within her arms noticing Ola's eyebrows twitching in curiosity. "I'll tell you later."
With the lift cage closing Ola punches the button, gears and sirens churn when the platform begins it's descent. Looking over the dozen other exhausted and bloodied friends she instructs those that still have their tower shields to huddle and provide cover through the duration of transit. A smile creases over her face as yells and explosion come from yonder overhead, pieces of debris fall onto the shields covering the companions. Suddenly a violent rumble shakes the entire platform and the shaft around them begins to shake.
"Earthquake?" a midlander rebel moans.
"Worse," Majhala answers.
Reaching a halt, Ola instructs everyone off the platform letting her roegadyn assistant carefully guide others through the mined area of tripwires and booby traps intended for pursuers. "Is everything set?" she yells to Captain.
Boulders and stalactites dislodge from the cavern ceiling crashing around the piers and grotto pools surrounding Kerwyn's ship. "Onboard now!" he yells over to her while directing the recent passengers to cover and ordering his crew to cast off. Kerwyn heads to the railing noticing the lallafel attempting to sabotage the lift returning up to the surface. "There's no time for that now get over here!"
Cursing, Ola navigates her path to the pier climbing the rope ladder onto the Sojourn. Just as she reaches the final rung a large stalactite crumbles onto the deck scattering crewman and passengers prompting yells from the oarsmen below. Majhala runs over to pull Ola up to her feet when another loud crash booms from the stairwell.
"That's one entrance, gonna take them a bit to clear the rubble," Ola smirks.
Pulling her friend to her feet, Majhala asks,"How much did you rig?"Â
Wiping some soot from her face, "Most of the pier. I have enough incendiary to provide quite the show. This oversized piece of driftwood just needs to go faster." Ola boasts elevating her voice.
"Hey!" Kerwyn's defensive voice comes from behind the wheel.
The shared laugh between lallafel is cut short when cannon fire rockets past the bow. Squinting to see the through the smoke from the shaft, Majhala and Ola look to each other in despair as the hobbling, sparking wreck of a tank driven by an arrow laden crazed researcher ordering a squad of troops to intercept.
"We're sitting gobbues if that thing reloads! Get down and oar you loafers!" Kerwyn yells to any able bodied rebels running down below deck.
A dismayed look comes over Ola's face as three troops bypass a trigger that she knew should of fired. Another large explosion blinds them as one of the turret traps triggers. Gritting her teeth, Ola looks at the edge of the pier about to pass and climbs up onto the railing. About to jump a large familiar hand prevents her from proceeding. Returning a warm determined smile, her faithful roegadyn assistant picks her up and hoists her upon his shoulders, reaching for a tower shield.
Majhala and Mimori both run up to them, "Ola?"
"This is farewell friends. I'm not about to let the fireworks fizzle and doom us with victory so near," she sniffs with a tear rubbing the hair of her compatriot. Patting his head to proceed, "In the light of the Twelve.." she waves back to both of them, the roegadyn leaping onto the end of the pier. Racing toward the remaining turret, the two are met with volleys of gunfire. Using the tower shield to deflect what he can, the sea wolf lowers Ola down to find the malfunctioned trigger. Giving him a peck on the cheek, she hops underneath the pier watching a bullet round pierce her friend's shoulder still running to get to the upper deck.
Exiting the mouth of the grotto, the Sojourn oarsmen rowing choir bellows from under deck, large rocks still dropping from the crumbling cavern ceiling.
Kerwyn's shriek alarms everyone topside to get to cover when another tank round splinters one of the masts. Ducking from the occasional stray rifle fire, Mimori looks over the side to see the large form ascending the turret ladder, being peppered with bullets along his ascent.
Calibrating another charge, Korvus briefly catches the glimpse of the turret turning to his position, "Stop him!!" he orders desperately arming another round.
"Found you!" Ola stretches reaching over to the loose trigger. Smiling at the noisy chaos from the barrage of turret fire above, she mumbles a soft prayer to herself and toggles the trigger switch. "Godspeed to you all."Â
Cheers ensue topside as some of the oarsmen stumble up from below deck to witness the turret fire blast into the tank. All gasp in unison at the following sequence of incendiary blasts decimate the remnants of the prison docks. A billowing cloud of smoke rushing out the mouth of the cavern to meet them. While many rebels cheer at their victory, Majhala and Mimori tearfully look outward mournfully mouthing thanks to the sacrifice of their fellow sister in arms.
"Get up and fix that mast you dogs, we're not out of this yet!" Kerywyn yells visibly shaken at the swirling torrent of clouds and red lightning hovering above the prison. Throwing a boot at one his crewman to get below, "ROW! Row like your life depends on it! Where's the bloody wind?"
Limping up to a leaning position, Quick Shroud eyes widen to focus at the awe inspiring destruction of the summons manifesting above the prison. An enormous meteoric projectile then bursts through the dark clouds screeching toward the prison. Mimori holds B'jaern closely as she can with Majhala leaning in to provide additional cover holding onto each other, the gurgling laughter of the abomination echoing in their minds.
"Brace yourselves!" Kerywn yells, spinning the wheel, bringing the Sojourn about.
Streaking in cacophonous fury, the impact induces a tragic massive explosion with titanic pieces of the cliff face erupting into numerous landslides. The shockwave from the blast breaks the top of the main mast of the ship with deckhands and rebels falling overboard from the sheer size of the waves almost capsizing the ship. Tossing lifelines into the water, the crew pull up the remaining passengers and crewman thrown aside.
"Good riddance," Majhala chides back to the prison, plopping down sitting aside the railing. She tilts her head resting on Mimori's shoulder looking at the sleeping baby. "What's this mean for us now Mimi?"
B'jaern resting comfortably in his cloaked blanket barely stirs in Mimori's lap with the lallafel humming an old nursery tune. "I'm not so sure anymore," she pauses staring blankly then looking over her shoulder up to the fading hunter's moon. "I just don't know."
                                            Â
5 days later on the southeastern peninsula of the Black Shroud on the shores of the the Rothlyt Sound....
Four people empty from a small Sojourn dinghy, the oarsmen waiting patiently for the returning passengers to say their goodbyes.
"How many days till we get to Ul'dah Kerwyn?" Quick Shroud asks.
"We'll have to make port in Maslava to replenish supplies but after that should take another two weeks at least." he replies looking to his anchored ship from the shore. "You better have what's promised to me when we get there?"
Waving with his back turned "Don't worry, the brigade will compensate you handsomely." Quick Shroud meets up with the two lallafel exchanging embraces.
"Are you sure this is what you want Mimi?" Majhala leans back, hands still atop Mimori's shoulders.
With a tearful laugh, "After all this?" she pauses smiling as the one armed hellsgaurd approaches. "I think I'm ready for a different sort of adventure."
Quick Shroud kneels down using a finger to peel back the blanket covering B'jaern's sleeping face. With a deep sigh, "I sure hope you know what you're doing. He's going to want to know about his mother when he grows up. Are you prepared to tell him the truth of how his mother died?"
Palming and thumbing the tribal pendant, she tucks it around B'jaern's neck underneath his covers. "He doesn't have to know," she smiles back at him.
"Make sure to write us ok," Majhala tearfully hugs her one more time complying with the impatient captain waving to return to the ship.
"We'll make sure to come visit," Quick Shroud interrupts.
"Keep fighting the good fight," Mimori chokes up hugging him. Stepping back to look upon the two most trusted friends she's ever known another trickling tear falls down her face at the sight of them standing side by side in stance performing the Ala Mhigan salute. She returns the gesture with proud determination, watching the two enter into the small boat then slowly paddling back to the ship. She waves one more time to the both of them, picking up her duffle bag and swinging it over her shoulder, the sound of the waves spilling onto the shore with gulls over head, she looks up to the waning sun blending into the sea's horizon.
Turning to face the welcoming embrace of a copse of trees ahead of her, Mimori looks down and smiles to B'jaern, "Just you and me now." B'jaern returns a light giggle as the two of them slowly fade into the forest.
F I NÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â
