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Fantasy Descension (C.DEX x Notorious)

"Probably when we get up to Veldard." Gunnar said, sitting up finally. "He does seem pretty bored... There's no reason for him to travel with us other than that we have trouble follow us. We're entertaining to be around at least." He started to laugh, shaking his sweat dripping head. "And I think me and you are pretty good for conversation. Slaw not so much but I get the feeling Sirius is a lonely guy. Not nearly as lonely as Coleslaw though..." Gunnar let out a sigh as he wiped the sweat away caked on his forehead. "It's nice having some others to watch our backs though. Sirius has proven himself time and time again to have our interests in mind... While Slaw just saved you."


"Is this a change of heart I see?" Dio said, noticing Gunnar was no longer saying Cheslaw's name so bitterly.


"Not a change of heart." He said to Dio out-loud, not caring to hide their conversation around Orin. "More... He values Orin's safety so he has my respect. Not my trust, but... my respect nonetheless." He looked over to his blind friend, smirking at him even though he couldn't see it. "I'm glad you're okay brother... I would have ripped that engine in half if you were under it." He let out a massive sigh of relief however, laughing a little as he recalled something Orin said recently. "Like you said the other day... This shit doesn't happen to normal people." He looked out to see Sirius rushing back up the hill with cables wrapped around his body. "Fuck being normal..." Gunnar stood up as Sirius arrived, beaming at the three of them.


"I got eight big ass cords here boys!" He cheered, throwing them all at Gunnar's feet. "Where did our little flightless sweetheart go?" Sirius cheered, "He go and put some ice on his fucked up ankle? I sure as hell ain't doing it. That's your job now Orin, you owe him."


"Nice." Gunnar said, looking down at the strong cables Sirius had retrieved for them. "Alright, I'm going to take the middle here. You two are just there to stabilize it, shouldn't be nearly as hard as pushing or pulling. Just gotta be careful or we might kill Slaw again. Or we all might mess this engine up then I'm gonna mess you all up." Gunnar said with a grin, beginning to wrap up the cables around the Molt engine securely. He ensured that there was going to be no slipping this time around as he secured the cables more tightly. He took the main brunt of the engine by taking multiple cables and wrapping them together before wrapping them around him. "Alright... Let's get this over with." Gunnar said, forcing Orin to stand up and get ready as well. When everyone was ready to go the three of them began pushing the engine down the hill before letting go of it, using the cable's tensions to slow the engine down by slowly walking it down the hill. The force from them pulling against the fall slowed down the descent, just enough so that no serious accidents would happen on the way down.


"We should have done this in the first place!" Sirius said pulling, using his weight to counter balance Orin's while Gunnar seemed to be in an equal amount of pain from exerting force from earlier. "How you doing big guy?"


"Shut up..." Gunnar replied, gritting his teeth. "Let's... move... this... fucker... down..."
 
"He's ... gonna ... bring the cell." Orin said, tired from the entire ordeal. He was sure that he'd never done as much exercise in his life - not when he'd been running, not when he'd been fighting, not at the Church, not ever. His muscles felt like hot fire just to walk. In fact, Gunnar was in a similar predicament. There was nothing that quite brought a bunch of folk together like excruciating labor. However, when they had gotten it to the bottom, they all had a similar reaction; a grin splayed on their faces. Gunnar and Orin practically collapsed, though throughout it all, Sirius had remained fairly well-to-do.


They had gone on for a little while longer like that, until Slaw had finally met them as they approached the area of the ship. He hadn't told them exactly where they'd even be bringing the engine, let alone what they'd be flying, but when they had come back, the area looked quite a ways different. Instead of being ruffled from nearly being crushed, Slaw had a thick coat of oil over his fur, eyes covered by Molt welding goggles.


"Changes have been made. Ship is ready to take the engine. Old one's gone; it might have worked for a single-passenger ship, but that's not what this is." Slaw said, leaning on another haphazard piece of metal he'd rolled and tucked under his arm.


"That's not what ... what is?" Orin asked.


"Bring it in the house. The bay is open." Slaw replied, pointing a wing back at his home. The pieces had slowly started to click together in their heads; he had intended on making his home airborne. Soon, his confident idea had turned ill in their minds. After all, the ship itself was halfway embedded in the ground. How could they expect it to fly at all?


"I hooked up the cell already. It's enough to keep us in the air for a little while. It's got a mana agglomerator that'll recharge if we're in a mana-rich environment, but you all won't have to worry about that; the cell's got enough of a charge to get us up to the Isles." he said. For the slightest moment, there was a hint of a smile on Slaw's face, perhaps due to the excitement of getting off of the ground for the first time in a long, long time.


"And ... you know how to fly a ship, right?" Orin asked Slaw, putting away the obvious question of how.


"Sure."
 
"Sure? I like your confidence." Gunnar asked, dumbfounded. The way he said it didn't exactly inspire confidence. "Luckily I've worked on ships some before. Usually jumping from them onto other ships but I know how to patch things together if needed. Won't be perfect, won't be pretty... But it should get you to some engineers up top to get your new ship polished up." Gunnar let out a long sigh, realizing that it would be up to the three of them to get the engine in place now since they were all standing outside of the ship. Since it was on flat ground it would be a lot easier but still, they were all beaten down and exhausted so for them finishing up the job felt like a herculean task. "Orin, take a rest. Me and Sirius got this."


"Oh sure, just take a break now Orin. Not you though Sirius, even though you've put in more than your share. I-"


"Okay." Gunnar said, interrupting Sirius' train of thought. "Do what you want." And with that, Gunnar began to push the engine on his own. Although he was strong and had an advantage when it came to having a Wraith he was still human. The engine moved across the ground slowly, agonizingly slow as Gunnar began to struggle incredibly hard as he actually made it to the opened bay inside the grounded airship. Eventually, Sirius bowed his head in shame as Gunnar was now pushing himself harder than everyone there. He had saved Slaw and carried the bulk of the work as it was, now Sirius although he didn't seem all that tired was stepping out. Finally he caved as he joined Gunnar the rest of the way, smirking slightly underneath his mask.


"I can't tell if you're something special or crazy, Gun." He said under his breath as he began to help push the engine, his strength allowing the job to go by that much easier. "You were really going to finish this without me weren't you?"


"Anything... For my family... My friends..." He groaned, pushing the engine into place after they had made it across the room. As it slid into place of the old engine it showed just how superior this engine was in every way even without it being installed. It was much larger, intimidating in every aspect of the word. It was a miracle they had even made it up that hill let alone making it all the way to the airship. By the time everything was installed and they were hopefully in the air it would be around suns set, this task taking almost the entire day to finish. "Sooner I get there the sooner I can make sure everyone is okay. Sooner that happens, sooner I can help down here." He said, revealing his intentions.


"What do you mean?" Sirius asked, "I thought you just wanted to get home."


"That was before... Orin and his people need me. More people than my own need me. I just... need to see my wife and let her know I'm alright. Then, I'll travel this world wherever that boy needs me to." He let out a long sigh, "That... and what Necras asks of me." With that, he walked back outside with Sirius who seemed to be deep in thought as they walked back out. "Engine is in place, Slaw." Gunnar said, taking a seat next to Orin. "Let me know if you need anything else... Need just a minute. I can keep going."
 
After the engine had been moved into place, Slaw descended upon it with a speed that had surprised the others. Despite his 'sure', he fastened wires, welded metal, and hooked up cable and piping until the massive engine block looked like it had always been there. Then, he hobbled toward the front of the ship. There was no view; though it was a repurposed Molt ship and a massive window sat in the front, scrap jutted through the broken glass and littered the front. It hadn't been cleaned in ages, dust and particles caking the surface. Slaw reached up, collapsing into the Captain's chair, wiping his hand over the spiderwebs and dust that caked the panel. It wasn't a sight that inspired great confidence, but nothing about their current ship had.


"Alright. Your guys' hard work is paying off. Mana cell is installed. Engine looks good. But we gotta pull this thing out, so ... hold on. Not to the engine." Slaw said, looking backwards toward Gunnar and Orin. Orin slowly stood, proffering a hand toward Gunnar. They climbed to their feet, finding themselves next to the wall. "You should be able to stand up and move around just as soon as we get out of the ground, but - for now, just hang on."


Orin wrapped his arm around the support bar, unsure exactly where to go in time for takeoff. In reality, the ship was a fixer-upper; there had been no real chairs that weren't nearly destroyed apart from Slaw's, forcing Gunnar, Sirius, and Orin to make do. Slaw gave them a few moments to situate themselves and grab onto something before his hands fell to the Molt controls. Then, the ship began to shake.


"Is this safe!?" Orin asked, panicked as it felt as if the ship around him would tear apart at any moment. They hadn't considered the fact that there may very well be issues past getting the engine itself.


"As long as you hang on!" Slaw shouted back, voice muffled due to the sound of the engine. They were all at an angle; dipped down due to how the ship had crashed in the past. If they had let go, the chance of flying out the window was a very real threat. As the ship continued to shake violently, trying to dislodge itself from the wreckage all around it, heating the room by the engine, the sound of screeching metal so undeniably loud that the possibility of even talking to each other from across the room was nil.


Then, as the chaos came to an utmost peak, their bodies were nearly ripped from their rooted places, everyone on the ship being painfully jolted. Their efforts had finally paid off, as evidenced by the wind on their face, they were in the air.


"Everyone okay? And still on the ship?" Slaw shouted, over the engine.
 
"Still on the ship! YES!" Gunnar called out, letting out a massive cry of relief as he seen what was happening. Wind filled the cabin but as they ascended it seemed to equalize, the airship getting use to not having a windshield so the winds began to calm down as did the engine as it was finally put to good use once again. "Never had a take off that rough before but damn if this doesn't feel good!" He called out, letting go of the hand hold he had desperately clung to only to walk up next to Slaw who was doing an excellent job of piloting a ship. He supported himself on his chair, looking out to see nothing but the skies and the seas. Sirius seemed to get the idea too, letting go of the hand hold now that they had managed to burst out of the ground successfully, walking over to Orin and patting him on the back. They had done the impossible.


The scene had looked like one out of a legend. The deeply rooted ruined ship had been in a lot better condition than Cheslaw had intended on showing anyone. Underneath the well placed rubble was a fully functioning ship, one that required heavy parts that he couldn't replace alone. So, he was unable to bring one of the most fully intact ships in the graveyard back to life. With the help of Gunnar and the others they had all done something so majestic the other scavengers all stood on hill tops of metal and debris to watch as they seen Cheslaw's home ship not only fly, but soar straight away from the ground and took flight. They all rejoiced as they seen such a miracle happen, the act alone causing them all to return to work with renewed vigor as not only did Cheslaw do the impossible, he did it with things from that very ship graveyard.


The ship had its creaks and its worrying sounds as it took flight but as the rubble cleared it and it began to soar it was truly a magnificent sight. The Molt ship Cheslaw had destroyed the other day may have been physically in better condition than the junker they were flying now but it didn't compare to its sheer speed and ability as the ship took to the skies. Sirius watched on as Gunnar and Cheslaw both had that very same look of excitement on their faces, the identical look of two people finally returning home. Despite their differences they managed to do this, starting off as bitter enemies but putting those differences aside for something great.


Gunnar was hours away from returning home.


"WOOOOOO!" Gunnar cried out, getting more courage as the ship continued on and walked over towards the exposed wind shield to look down. The very same water he had mistaken for massive lakes were beginning to disappear below them rather rapidly. "It's a lot faster falling down but I gotta say... This view is once in-" He seen Orin just smiling in the corner, not minding at all that he couldn't witness such a sight. Gunnar frowned for a moment, only to walk over to Orin. "Come." He said, helping his friend to his feet. "You have to see this."


"Not you too, Gunni!" Sirius cried out laughing. "I already went over this with Coleslaw, you can't tell a blind person to look at this!"


Luckily Sirius was drowned out by Gunnar walking his friend over to the edge, the wind rushing past and hitting them both in the face as Gunnar and Orin walked closer to the edge. "We are above the clouds." He said with a grin, surprising the boy as he began to describe just the sheer beauty he was seeing. He described the suns set, how one had already set while the others were illuminating their way as they ascended. He described the mountains they had passed over and how they were much higher than them now, he even told him that he could see the city that they had started in. "You won't believe how far we've come brother... How much distance we've crossed in this short time. Sinna would be proud to see you standing here, a stronger more well traveled man." Gunnar laughed, "She'd probably hate how I put you through all of this but when we see her again I'll let her know you're the one who got me out of trouble. As you do with your sidekick." He said, practically hugging Orin as he told him all what was happening.


Dio hadn't seen this side of Gunnar before, an older, brotherly one that spent his moment of pure ecstasy instead of taking it in alone he opted to share it with Orin. He hadn't hesitated before going out of his way for him, a new instinct he had picked up swiftly on their journey. The Wraith smiled, enjoying the ride. Although he couldn't physically feel it, he couldn't deny the view he was seeing through Gunnar's eyes. What he felt above however, worried him greatly. He decided not to ruin the moment, allowing them to have this one last luxury.


"You're a natural at this!" Gunnar said, turning to Cheslaw. He had finished describing everything to Orin, right down to the sparkle on the ocean and the deep greens of the land. "Don't tell me you ended up down here because you crashed one of these!"
 
"Let's just say that I've crashed one of these before." Slaw said, smiling. Again, his words inspired no amount of confidence, but that was beside the point. They were flying! They had the wind on their faces, they were only feet away from falling again given any stray bump, and the front end of their ship was banged up, but they were flying. "Ironically, I've never flown with Avar controls, so ... probably wouldn't be able to fly one of my own people's ship if it came down to it, but this ship uses the best parts of both. Mana agglomerater, runic thrusters ... it has a lot that either side would envy."


Orin couldn't help but grin as he'd gotten the closest thing to sight that he could truly be given. His skin prickled with goosebumps as he not only imagined what was in front of him in vivid detail, but he felt the wind on his face and the amazingly fresh air as well. It smelled lightly of moisture as they ascended, with the purity of ocean air, and the warming of his son as they grew closer and closer to the suns in the sky. He looked to Dio, registering a faint feeling of ... sudden dread? No, that couldn't be it. Not then. Not after all this work. Orin turned back to the open window of the airship.


"We did it, Gun." Orin said, beaming. It was more than enough to hear his friends be ecstatic, happy about their hard work. He could even hear the smile in Slaw's voice; it took a tinge that he hadn't heard before. Happiness.


And as Slaw looked sideways to Gunnar and Orin, he couldn't help but feel happy for their cause as well. As much as they had put him through - as much as he had put them through - there was an unmistakable bond between the two, and even Sirius. The regret for helping them - mostly representing as pain in his ankle - had gone away slightly as he'd quietly watched them. Then, he spoke up.


"When we first met I wouldn't say you deserved this, mostly because I assumed you'd be stealing my ship and making me do all the work. After you lifted an engine block off of me and dragged it all the way back to the ship, I think it's a fair observation. That you deserve this - not that you'd be stealing my ship." Slaw said, giving his best attempt at not being a total prick. "We should be up to the Islands in ... a few hours. If you all want to take a rest. Or you can stay up here with me, but I figure a few hours rest after moving a massive engine is rest well needed."


"I'll stay." Orin said. "I'm enjoying the view."
 
"I'll take a nap up here. The wind is relaxing." Gunnar said, plopping down next to Orin as he enjoyed the view. While Dio seemed troubled he knew Orin could see him so he waved at him, giving him some much needed entertainment as the Wraith flew alongside the ship and showed Orin just how high up they were by plummeting and flying about as he was unrestricted in his movements being a ghost. Gunnar let out a long sigh as he took a seat, his hair whipping through the air as he groggily looked over to the content Orin and Cheslaw. Sirius seemed to be less impressed but enjoyed the ride nonetheless, disappearing into the back end of the ship as he went for a nap himself. He gave a little wave to Gunnar before disappearing in the back, shouting at them as he did so.


"This is great and all but this wind is really messing my hair up!" He said, laughing as his mask and hood had barely budged since liftoff. Even then, Caelians didn't even possess hair making his comments even more outlandish. "Great work but I'm beat finally! Time for sleep." With that, the Rogue disappeared into the back without much more to say.


As Gunnar slumped down and quickly felt his fatigue catching up to him the viking was nothing but smiles as he began to drift off to sleep. The sound of the wind was the most relaxing thing to him and the fact that within just a few short hours he'd finally be home after such a long journey was nearly enough to keep him awake but the demanding physical labor had been too much. He looked over to Orin and chuckled.


"I thought I'd never get home." He confessed. "There was always something to do. Something new in the way. Whether it be bandits or golems or... strange rogues or..." He paused, smirking, "Avars I don't want to exactly punch in the face anymore for helping." Gunnar let out a long sigh, "We'll check in with Nora. Stay a few days.... Maybe get some replacement parts for Slaw's ship here if my people can spare them. Make this an easier ride on you." He said, passing the comment over to the Avar. "I won't steal your ship... purely off the fact that you selflessly pushed Orin out of the way of the engine. He would have been killed but you had a chance at making it out. It's why I didn't hesitate to save you, you earned my trust by putting yourself on the line like that for strangers who didn't treat you right from the beginning." Gunnar paused, "I'm sorry. For the ankle... and for how we met."


Normally Dio would offer Gunnar praise for such maturity but the Wraith was busy putting on a show for Orin, also he didn't exactly feel like speaking at the moment with what was to come.


"Orin... We won't spend long here. I just have to make sure my wife is alright." Gunnar felt like he had said that dozens of times a day but it was all that he could manage to think about. "Once Nora is for sure safe and my people are doing okay... we'll 'borrow' another ship. Head back down to the surface and go to that church Balor and Sinna are waiting at." He smirked, "They're probably pissed we aren't there. Bet they've had an uneventful time in that bunker. Shit... they're locked in with that crazy elf lady too. Probably gone a little crazy themselves." He let out a sigh, nearly fading completely to sleep. "We'll... pick them up. Give them a taste of this sort of adventure. If they don't like it we'll drop them off and go some place nice for a change. Not a beach, I'm tired of washing up into the ocean." Gunnar yawned, "Got any ideas? What have you wanted to do since you aren't chained to Balor or Sinna anymore?"
 
"Well... I've wanted to do a few things." Orin said, eyes instinctively wandering in his head as he went into thought. "Sinna once told me about Dwarven Steamlands in the Arctic - factories of steam that produce so much heat that the areas around them turn into a small paradise in the snowy wastelands, with greenery and magic. Forests that reach high, their trunks home to fairies. Civilizations on the backs of massive Giants. I'd like to see them all ... but just visiting them would be okay, too." He said, with a short laugh. "Are you sure that you'd want to leave Veldard, though? Do you think Nora would come with us? What will she think when she finds out that there's a whole world below the Isles, meant for people without flight?" He asked, excited at the prospect of meeting the woman that Gunnar had talked so much about.


His optimism was contagious, maintaining the lazy smiles on Gunnar and Slaw's faces.


"Sinna... Will want to come. She'll pretend like she doesn't, but she likes the adventure just as much as I do, you know? I don't know about Balor, but ... he's probably going to want to find a church, settle down, help the resistance and all. He loves us, but to be away from his studies and Prisma, well, I don't know." The Seer said, hypothesizing. "We should get back to them soon, then! I don't want them thinking I'm dead or having to wait too long for me." He said, excited at the prospect. "To be honest, I never thought I'd get out out that bunker ... that I'd spend most of my life in a dark, cold place. Never thought..."


"Bunker?" Slaw asked.


"I'm a Shade. We aren't exactly accepted on the main lands. This is the first time I've ever been in the air, let alone going to the Floating Islands. I've never been in a ship like this. The idea of living in one... is pretty cool." Orin remarked, smiling, staying fixated on Dio's form. Slaw went silent for a moment, never having anything he'd done described as 'cool' by any means.


"It's ... better now that it moves." Slaw remarked, unsure how to take the hidden compliment. He looked to Gunnar for a moment, thinking on his apology. He didn't feel hate for him, not anymore. But he also wasn't one for long-winded niceties. So, with a curt nod and a grunt, Slaw moved on. "I suppose I couldn't have gotten the engine back without you all as well. Or I'd be killed by it. Part of the reason why I didn't try. Look."


Slaw pointed out, finger directing them to silhouettes. Far in the distance, but still tangibly close, the Islands had come into view. They looked as if they had been ripped from the lands themselves, roots from greenery tracing the outsides. Waterfalls spouted off, water dissipating into clouds not a long way away from where they had started. All around them was white and blue, traces of the surface no longer in view in their entirety.


"There it is."
 
"I have never seen the islands from this angle before..." Gunnar admitted, looking up at the silhouettes high above the clouds. He then chuckled, "Well... I did once. The view didn't last too long though." He then shut his eyes, letting the silhouettes of the islands grow into more detail forms within practically a blink of an eye. Gunnar awoke with a jump, only to see the bottom of the islands clear as day as the many moons in the sky illuminated the lands clearer than one could imagine. The surface was gone and finally, for the first time ever before a Veldard viking had returned from the long drop. Gunnar was almost too choked up to speak, it had only been a couple of hours and sure enough Orin was still awake and Slaw was responsibly awake at the wheel as they made their ascent. "There it is." Gunnar echoed Cheslaw as they crested over the side of the Isles of Arcadia.


Being in a Molt ship it was safest to glide over a Molt civilization which luckily they were over. The viking stood up with renewed strength and quickly began to look around for a similar sight to give them a hint on where exactly they were. He looked at the hive like buildings built into the ground of the Molt people, the massive craters in the ground that served to be the landing pads for their ships. It was as if they were in hiding, the land scorched and in ruins after constant attacks from the Avars. Gunnar finally recognized where they were but couldn't believe it had looked this bad as he had seen this place only a year ago.


"Go north." He said to Cheslaw. "Veldard should only be an hour away... Then... I'll finally be home." Gunnar let out a long sigh, "This is going to sound insensitive... But I recommend you not come out of the ship when we arrive. We will be able to land just fine on the outskirts but they won't understand an... Avar helped me get back home." Gunnar frowned, "It also... looks like the Avars have been pushing forward. The front here is all wrong. I haven't been gone that long but... I was being held captive for quite a long time too." He confessed to Orin, not exactly sharing how he had been pushed off in detail or how it all happened. "There was an Avar... One that didn't seem like she belonged. A Seer." He said, crossing his arms as he looked at the scorched land. "If she hadn't arrived I think the Avars wouldn't have started pushing harder. They-" A twinge of panic began to dig its way in, eliminating the optimism Gunnar had completely. "Step on it Slaw... We don't have much time."


The airship began to tilt forward as Cheslaw used their momentum to gain more speed, the airship bulleting through the air as they passed over the Isles of Arcadia. What had previously been a peaceful, almost magical journey over the floating islands had became a frantic race to Veldard. One that had Gunnar white knuckling the railing near the broken windshield. They decided it was best to travel the perimeter of the islands rather than going though as it seemed as if the Avars had sprouted up checkpoints and other encampments in the way of here and Veldard. After a tense hour of flying they finally crested over a mountain to see a village in ruins beneath them, one that broke Gunnar's heart just at the sheer sight of it.


"Home... It's... Gone..." He said, his voice hoarse, his eyes watering as he seen the traumatic sight. Their walls were destroyed, smoke was rising from the ruins of the buildings. Several had completely been demolished while others barely stood in all of the chaos. It looked less like a take over and more of a mercy killing, the bulk of Veldard gone. They were situated on a small island of their own, literally half of the island simply blasted away. "It... This can't be real..." Gunnar said, his heart in his stomach as he starred at what had once been his beautiful home. "LAND!" He roared in pain, not believing his eyes.
 
Orin didn't have to be told what was wrong. He'd been watching, and he knew by the gradual send of sulfur and burning into the air that something was wrong. He knew the smell well. He'd only hoped that it wasn't from Veldard. By Gunnar's cries he'd assumed enough. And he felt it as well. He was back into a waking nightmare. One of burning and sulfur, but no fine details had come to him. His third eye was half-lidded, awoken to the possibility of death. Of the void.


"Okay." Cheslaw said, not even getting the instinct to argue with the Veldardian. He'd seen firsthand the wreckage and carnage that had occurred in front of him, the Floating Islands not at all like how he'd remembered them. He remembered them carefree, not stained with marks of blood and violence. He felt a heavy sinking in his chest. Did he want to be here after all?


Cheslaw pulled the ship downwards, sliding past the crumbling flat land designated as the airstrip, avoiding colliding with the other ships that laid wrecked. He knew well that Gunnar's advice was solid, but he couldn't help but feel obliged to come with. Help. He pushed the thought aside, knowing well that he'd only be a hindrance to their mission.


Orin had stood, having gathered up his own supplies while Gunnar had been sleeping. He had a small dirk on his back, in similar shape to the one he'd held in the city they'd been captured in. Only, it was significantly more dilapidated. He came to Gunnar's side almost wordlessly, knowing well that they would need to take action above speaking. "Sirius!" he shouted to the back. "We're going! Come on!"


The blind Seer placed a hand on Gunnar's shoulder, offering a small semblance of support. Then, Slaw had skidded the ship to a stop, looking back to the Viking and the Seer. He wondered briefly if he would see them again as soon as they left. And he wondered if his own home had looked the same. The taste of ash and fire in the air was enough. And to destroy the islands themselves?


"They never did this when I was on the Floating Islands ... to destroy the land completely? To take it out of the skies ... I didn't even know it was possible." Slaw said. "Be careful."
 
"I didn't know it was... possible either..." Gunnar said, his face pale as he readied his armor on and began to step towards the exit of the ship. "No one should bother you here Cheslaw. It looks like my people have more important things to deal with than a strange new ship. If I don't see you again... Thank you." He said before giving the Avar a firm nod. When he and Orin began to walk out they noticed that Sirius was no where to be found, the man not responding to their call. "Fuck him." Gunnar said, stomping his way onto the airfield with Orin in tow. "If he's knocked out somewhere we can reunite with him later. They need me." Gunnar's voice gave out at the end of what he was saying, the man breaking out into a full on sprint as he rushed towards his ruined town. He hardly recognized it even as he got closer, it was almost as if the destruction was so intense that he could barely make out what had once been his home.


They passed by wooden long houses, many that were burnt to a crisp. The closer they got the worse the stench got, several mounds of bodies littering the grounds as massive funeral pyres dotted the once proud lands of Veldard. The grass was burnt to a crisp mimicking the once proud long houses that were now rubble and ash. The air was thick and all of the living was frantic and quickly trying to work. There was a frightening lack of strong men left, most of those who were working being women and their children while a few male warriors remained. Those that were still with them were either heavily injured or had seen signs of a fight, the sorrow hanging over everyone there and suffocating them. A few looked to Gunnar and even to Orin, not even minding the fact that an outsider was there. It was forbidden to allow others inside the city, for them not to even care it was more evident that what had just recently happened was too devastating for them to even keep to tradition.


"NORA!" Gunnar cried out, frantically looking for his wife. "Warrior, have you seen-"


"Get the fuck off me!" The Viking warrior said, pushing Gunnar away from him as the disturbed husband got too close. "Where were you during the battle?" The warrior growled, pushing Gunnar again. "There is no wounds on you. You call yourself a Veldardian?..."


"What has happened here?" Gunnar asked, desperate for answers. "I was sent over the edge... By an Avarian Starseer. It's taken me nearly a month to get back but... I would have tried to get here faster if I had known..."


"If you had known our people would be killed? You would have actually tried to get back? Maybe without a small demon beside you?" The grizzled warrior said, shaking his head at Gunnar. "You think this is bad, do you? 'Brother'?" He mocked, looking down at Gunnar as if he was the enemy even. "We've been fixing the damage for days..." He grunted, "This is the best this place has been since the attack happened. Five days ago... An assault, led by an Avarian Starseer." The Viking shook his head, "You should have been faster. Maybe if you had sacrificed yourself and killed that Starseer with you then maybe we wouldn't all be dying or dead." The Viking spat on Gunnar, "You are no warrior... Traitor."


The Viking left Gunnar and Orin alone, leaving the poor confused Gunnar alone to figure out what had happened further. Adding salt to his wounds, losing his people could have been prevented if he had been able to do something against the Starseer who had taken him. Gunnar pushed deeper into town with Orin in tow, not pausing to speak with his friend about what was going on. The only thing that mattered now was finding Nora, he couldn't live with himself if she died because of him. Died because he hadn't been strong enough to fight off the Starseers or Avars.


He raced through town, or at least what was left of it until they reached where his old home had been. Gone. Gunnar dropped to his knees, seeing the very house he had built with his own hands was reduced to rubble. He let out a heart shattering roar as he looked at what he had lost, not comprehending what his body was doing anymore. The heartbroken Gunnar rushed over to the rubble and began digging through it like a starved dog, rapidly trying to dig his way through to see if Nora was there.


"You're wasting your time." A feminine voice called out. "She's not here." Gunnar turned around and nearly had a heartattack when he seen the woman standing before him and Orin. Familiar long red locks blinded his vision as he rushed over to Nora, only to realize she wasn't who she appeared to be. "You looking for Nora big guy? She's not home. Luckily." She smirked, "You family or something too? Haven't seen you before. I'm Astrid."


"Yes... She's alive?!" He exclaimed, barely taking time to breath he asked, "Can you please take me to her Astrid? I'm Gunnar." As soon as Gunnar said those words the fiery headed Astrid raised a blade to Gunnar's neck, causing him to back away slowly. She looked angry just hearing the name, as if he had done something unforgivable.


"You're supposed to be dead..." She growled, "Standing there... with a demon... How can I know yer not a specter? A demon yourself!" Astrid said, her face looking fierce as she nearly cut Gunnar down there.


"Nora is... my wife. I was pushed off the Isles about a month ago now by an Avar Starseer. There is a land underneath this one and... This demon here is no demon, but an Ifritian. My friend, his name is Orin. I just need to see my wife Astrid... please..." He begged, practically getting down on his hands and knees. "I haven't seen her in so long and I miss her more than anything in this world. Please... I will do anything to see her again." The way Gunnar had said those words moved something in the girl as she lowered her blade.


"I'm... not sure if she will want to see you... Gunnar." Astrid said, sheathing her knife as she looked at Gunnar with pity. "You've been gone a long time. And... she's been through hell and she's hurt badly. Come. I will bring you to Hakon, he is protecting her now." Gunnar had no time to question how she was hurt all he could think of was getting to her as quickly as possible. Astrid began to walk in the other direction but as soon as she seen how quickly Gunnar intended on following her she broke out into a sprint. The two of them rain ahead while Dio stayed behind with Orin, leading him carefully through town. Something was unmistakably bleak about the Wraith though.


He had known this was going to happen.


The three of them arrived in front of a small house on the far end of town, one that had been thankfully untouched by the horrors of the Avar attack. Astrid slowed down until she came up to the house, a white haired man standing out front with his arms crossed as he guarded the door. He looked to be about late fifties or early sixties though youthful for his age as he stood guard outside of the home Nora was being treated. Astrid walked up to him and hugged him.


"Is she... doing okay Hakon?" She whispered, trying to peak in through the cracked door. "She looked really bad yesterday and this... man wants to see her."


"Who is he?" Hakon said, his grizzled gaze looking up towards Gunnar and Orin. "He has a demon in his company. He isn't to be trusted. Tell him to leave."


"He says... That he's Gunnar." Hakon's eyes immediately went wide as he heard the name. He looked to Gunnar, then back to Astrid. "I know it sounds impossible... But he said he came back up from the world below."


"Grandfather told me of the world below..." Hakon spoke quietly, sharing that secret to Astrid that he had already known of it. "Stay out here. I'll let him see her but... This is going to get bad." Hakon warned, taking a moment to take in Gunnar as he walked up to him. "So you're... Gunnar huh? I've heard a lot about you from Nora. You should have came sooner..." He paused, "You could have saved her from a lot of pain if you had just hurried."


"Get the fuck out of my way..." Gunnar growled, starting to grow impatient with this game of cat and mouse. "I need to see my wife. NOW!" Hakon although at one point in his day would have struck at Gunnar for speaking that way to him stepped aside and gestured for Gunnar to move forward. The distraught Viking man pushed past Hakon and Astrid, desperate to enter the small little cottage only to not see Nora inside. There had been signs of other being treated inside the home but all he seen was a bunch of blankets, some food pushed to the side on a nightstand, several chairs all around a single bed.


And an old woman.


"Woman... tell me where Nora is!" Gunnar exclaimed, tired of frantically searching around for her. "She is about this tall-" He said, motioning with his hands. "Beautiful red hair, blue eyes. She is a mighty warrior and the love of my life. My wife." He said firmly, asking the old woman just where his wife was especially with the way Astrid and Hakon had led him here. "They said she was here but I do not see her... Has she been moved? Please... just.... just help me." He begged the grandma laying quietly in the bed who couldn't peel her eyes away from Gunnar.


It was as if she was seeing a ghost.


"You.... Bastard..." The old woman whispered, tears forming in her eyes. As soon as she said those words, Dio disappeared from Orin's sight. "You... left me here... to grow old... And die... Without you..." She croaked, looking at Gunnar in disbelief.


"What do you mean old woman?" Gunnar asked, annoyed with how she was speaking nonsense. "Take me to Nora!" He exclaimed, "I need to tell her that I'm alright... To hold her... She is my wife and-"


"I am Nora." The old woman said, glaring at Gunnar. It was like a punch to the stomach to Gunnar as he looked to her with confusion, he awaited for her to speak again but he really wished she hadn't. "It's been over sixty years... And you come here... Acting as if you haven't seen me only in weeks. Can you not recognize me any more Gunnar ? If that is even you."


"You... what?" Gunnar asked, getting more dumbfounded by the minute. He took a long hard look at 'Nora', only for his heart to sink further. "No....Nora?" He asked, taking a step closer only for the older woman to glare harder at Gunnar. It was her. "How is this? How is this possible?" He said, collapsing next to her on his knees. He looked closely at her and sure enough this silver haired woman had been his wife, the same woman that Gunnar had been preaching to Orin about her beauty, her ferocity, her loving nature. And now, she was old, silver, wrinkled and could hardly even look at Gunnar. "I've only been gone for a month... How is this... I don't understand..."


"You've been gone for so long Gun... And you haven't even aged a day." Nora whispered, getting over the initial shock of seeing her long dead husband appear before her. "It has been decades since those Avars pushed you off the side of the islands and into the unknown... I prayed... I prayed every day that you would come back to me. I prayed that you would come back for me and..." Nora began to tear up, even though she was so angry with Gunnar she couldn't help but feel all those emotions of grief coming back to bite her. "...And that you would be able to help raise our boy."


"Our boy?" Gunnar asked, shaking his head as tears began to stream down his face. "I'm... I'm a father?" He questioned, looking so confused and distraught he had all but forgotten Orin was a witness to all of this. "Nora... Baby... I'm... I don't know what to say."


"You missed... everything." Nora said, her anger fading as she reached out for Gunnar. She placed her old wrinkled hand onto his, "You missed our life. So much has changed here... When you fell I had found I was pregnant just days later... I thought it be a blessing from the gods, a sign that you would return or... at the very least you would live on in your son. He grew up fatherless for most of his life until I remarried." She confessed, "Then, I had many children with a man that loved me. A man that didn't leave me... A man that didn't die until we were both old and gray... a man that didn't return with his youth expecting his old life back." The old woman said, bitterly.


"Nora no..." He said, shaking his head. "I did everything I could to return on time but... I guess... I... I don't know whats happening." Gunnar confessed. "You... remarried? How long?... How long did you wait?" Gunnar asked, trying to come to grips with what happened. "Who was it?"


"Sigurd." She said, knowing that would anger Gunnar even greater but she was tired. Old, and incredibly tired.


"Sigurd?!" Gunnar roared, causing Hakon and Astrid to be alarmed. "My brother in arms? He was like a brother to me and you took him?"


"Yes." Nora said, sorrow long absent in her voice as she told Gunnar what happened. "He was there for me when you passed on. I loved him. Shared more time with him than the short time we had together. He was there... And you were dead... I grieved for you but you were dead, Gunnar. And with that, my love for you was buried. Why are you trying to uproot that and cause an old woman grief?" She said, unapologetic-ally ruining Gunnar. "Now that you are alive again why are you here? You are too late to save Sigurd, or any of those who were killed in the attacks. The one thing you could have done you weren't able to do..."


"I TRIED!" Gunnar roared, slamming his hands down on the bed. What would have scared a normal woman didn't phase Nora at all, the steely eyed old woman starring him down even harder now. "I tried to get back to you... To get back here to help in any way I could but I was... I was..."


"Dead." Dio whispered, shamefully reappearing. "Necras knew now was not the time for you to be his champion, but that you would be needed later. Without family attachments. I am... sorry." Dio said with so much shame he seemed to be fading away. "I've known for some time... Keeping you in a dormant state for decades until we were called again."


"You say he was dead... spirit?" Nora asked, alarming the both of them. "Don't act surprised..." She bitterly said, "I am one foot in on the other side as it is. I can see you specter..." She said, eye balling Dio now. "You are a champion of Necras now? And you were dead only to be brought back how you were?" The poor old woman couldn't help but cry now, openly weeping for what could have been but also for what had happened. "A god took you away from me and ruined our life together." As soon as she began to sob Hakon burst into the room. The older warrior drew his blade and pointed it at Gunnar, only for Nora to plead with him not to do anything. "Hakon! No." He began to sheath his blade, only to turn his back knowing what was going to come next. "Hakon... Dear... This is... your father. Gunnar."


Gunnar felt the wind knocked out of his chest as he gazed upon his fully grown son. One with a full set of white hair, a set of scars on his own. One that wasn't far behind Nora in age, one that had grown up without a father of his own. A bastard, one who had to teach everything to himself rather than learn from his father.


"He is no father of mine." Hakon said before stepping out of the small one roomed building. "If you were, you would have been here. You missed my entire life, Gunnar of Veldard. Keep your distance, I did fine without you in it. I'd like to keep it that way." As Hakon left Gunnar was beaten down with so much emotion he could hardly speak. Everything was so confusing, so insanely impossible that he was wondering if this was a fever dream or if he had actually died. He stood up and almost walked out of the room, no, ran out with how terrible things were currently. He could barely look at Nora, the old woman mourning not only her recently deceased husband of decades and decades but now the emotions of having to deal with a fresh out of the grave husband was doing a number on her head and heart.


"I... don't know what to say..." Gunnar whispered, "I... thought I had only been gone a few weeks... I have done everything possible to get up here to you Nora but..." He bowed his head in shame, "No matter how fast I would have gotten here it wouldn't have mattered. You would have already lived your life... Long forgetting about me and having a full life of your own I..." He stumbled to his feet, unsure of what to say to her. "I... hope you had a full one... Filled with love, happiness and..." He wiped his eyes, "I'm sorry for coming here. I can't... I will return later... I need to think..." Gunnar rubbed his head and stumbled past Orin who had been an unfortunate witness in this entire shit show. "I..." Gunnar paused, wondering if he should even say it. "I love you, Nora." He said, watching as the old woman curled up into a ball of sadness and dread as he spoke those words while she too sobbed. Gunnar tucked his head down and burst out of the house with Orin in tow, Hakon and Astrid watching as the viking fled into the woods to nurse his mental wounds.
 
As Gunnar tore out of the house, with Orin in tow, the blind Seer's eye continued to open. He felt whispers of the Gods in his mind, trying to stuff them away as he did with all of his nightmares. But they were living one. Gunnar's home, his family, everything he once had had been destroyed, down to the very foundation of his home. And there was nothing to do, nothing to say. There was no preventing it. His wife, his children, everyone had been gone. His dearest, beloved Nora had been reduced to an injured, horrible mess. And there was nothing left in this world binding him.


The Seer was numb. Confused. Why had it been happening? Why to Gunnar? For the purpose of creating a champion? Had they gotten in far above their heads? Orin felt the grip of a broken man, wanting nothing more than to retreat. He would come into their lives like a Shade himself, flickering back from death and then flickering away again. But Nora wanted nothing to do with him. He could feel it by the poison in her voice and the spite in her words. He had done something unforgivable. He had left.


But what could he do about that? Branches hit their faces as they rushed deep into the forest, with Gunnar wanting nothing more than to retreat to the idea that Nora would still be waiting for him at home. Still beautiful. Still alive, and still with his child. He'd missed everything. His thoughts had been slashed as Orin tripped over a root, catching himself at the last moment on a tree trunk. Veldard had long since disappeared, with them in the deep thick of the forest, so much so that light had barely permeated the treetops. What light had permeated the treetops was wracked by soot, causing an almost permanent darkness around them.


"Gunnar..." Orin said, panting. He was nearly physically unable to go on, and more than surprised that Gunnar was, but that wasn't the question at hand. "I... I'm so sorry..." he said, unsure how to console the viking. Still, something nagged at his mind. A nightmare. One that wouldn't go away. "Sit down, please, we can't keep running."


Regardless of whether Gunnar had, Orin fell to his knees. He couldn't think. Not while they were running. As much as he'd wanted to run as well, they had to deal with it, but -


The fucking headache.


He brought a hand to his head, realizing that his Seer eye had been open. More open than it had ever been before. He was seeing something, but it was fuzzy, because he was blind. It was a shitty combination of powers. And they were unfortunate people. But he'd felt it pertinent, nagging at him, because it wouldn't go away.


Orin slowly stood. He reached his hands out, feeling for where Gunnar had been. He met his shoulder, and then went to his face. It had been the first time he'd really felt what Gunnar had looked like, and he wasn't sure if it'd be the last, but he had a message to deliver.


Suddenly, light populated Gunnar's vision. What Orin couldn't see, he could. A story had come, taking him away from the horribleness of the moment. At first, it was his own.


...


"You're being sentenced to death..." The voice whispered to him, his voice inside the man's head as if they were his own thoughts. His voice was cold, unforgiving, yet, he spoke only in a whisper. "You better pay attention. They may be the last words you ever hear."


Gunnar was taken back. He was taken, unwillingly or willingly, to when he'd first fallen. He saw himself, beaten, bloody, bruised, at the hand of an Avar who may very well have long since passed. He saw himself outside himself, floating like Dio as he watched himself be hurt and beaten further.


And then cast down.


It was a story he already knew. One that he'd grown familiar with. The one that he remembered. And then he snapped back. Back to Veldard, where Nora laid in rest.


She was sick, fiery red hair tressing down as she keeled over in bed. But it wasn't an infection. He already knew the story; he'd gotten the gist of it. But now, it was playing before his very eyes. He'd seen her, sick, alone. And then he'd seen her in fast forward.


All of the pain, all of the hardship. Waiting long days at the door, taking up arms of her own even whilst pregnant. She stood valiantly, weapon in hand, at the bridge of a Veldardian skyship, looking. And then time passed again. He watched her like a ghost, how Dio had watched them. Unable to influence, even as he reached out to touch her. To tell her that he was there. A wisp of hair moved, but nothing else. He was pulled away again.


She nursed in her arms a baby boy. Sprite and lively. For the first time in a long time, she smiled down at him. Hoken. His son. He saw the wetness of her tears and his, the last semblance of his life beforehand just out of reach. He was only being given a vision, so why did the child cry when he'd caught his eye? He stood over them like a guardian angel - one whose wings had been clipped, who couldn't stop them from being harmed.


For Orin, it was seconds. For Gunnar, it was hours. Days. Months, in which he'd reviewed, taking in every single solitary detail inside of his head. It was a message, either a gift ... or the inverse of one. He'd seen his child, growing up. Not knowing the love of a father, but the strength of a mother. Missing him. Even though he was there! He was right there, watching everything unfold before him. As he reached out for his son, growing now to be a teenager, angry and hate-filled, he suddenly morphed.


He morphed into a man. Nora grew older, red hair turning into grays and whites before her time from the stress. Her eyes looked vacant and sad. That was, before Sigurd had come into the room. A smile had come to her face again. At first, Gunnar could only feel rage. And then it went away, feeling the warmth of her gentle smile. She was happy again. So much time had passed.


Time went on, passing before Gunnar's eyes helplessly. Time wherein his beloved lived a full life, time in which his son had a daughter. Astrid. She had gotten frail, and old, as had Sigurd. They fought valiantly, and when they couldn't, Hoken did. Astrid did. They took up arms like their mother, their grandmother, and they took up arms like Gunnar as well. They tried hard, but eventually, Nora had gotten injured. She saw Sigurd pass before her, being pulled from the battle by Hoken himself.


He had grown to be a fine man.


Still, she lay dying. Hurt, and alone. Alone, for not one of her beloveds, but two had gone and passed. And then he had come back again.


...
 
Gunnar's heart was broken. There was no way around it as Orin's gift came to a close. Gunnar had no idea how long he had spent in there, what seconds in the real world had been months to him. His heart was aching, his eyes free flowing as he had watched his son grow up and his wife find love again without him. He watched as she grieved for years and years, not once giving up on the idea that he could be alive. Not until she was growing older herself, the stress of losing him too much to bare. He wanted to hold her one last time, to make their last meeting much less brutal. He knew Nora didn't have much longer in this life and he knew that she had long since moved on so for him to tear open that long healed wound once more before she would past had been pure torture. To add salt to the poor old woman's wounds she had just lost her life long husband, only to see her first one reappear as if by magic.


"I.... I..." He groaned, trying to speak words to Orin who had witnessed all that himself as well. It was a strange, life altering vision. One that he was thankful for but also cursed to take with him forever now. "Orin..." He said, trying to formulate words on what to say. He had just been given the gift of watching the son he always wanted grow up without him, watching his beloved grow old and gray without him. Everything he had ever wanted to do in life was condensed into a vision. A vision completely without him. Both of the two in the forest were struck with another vision, one of complete darkness instead of light. It was hard to see at first, white spectral forms passing over their field of view only for them to be thrown deep into the abyss. After what felt like ages of falling both Gunnar and Orin could see one another, standing before a massive wispy figure. What they thought was a man was much more frightening than that.


What they thought was a man was the pupil of an eye. Looking all around them they couldn't comprehend on the being they were seeing but they did know that they were infinitely smaller than him. Corpses and spirits all bound together into one form created the massive being before them. Gunnar and Orin were starring at the eyeball of Necras himself, the god of death appearing before them for the first time ever before. He was so mind mindbogglingly massive that they could simply only focus on the god's pupil. His voice crept into their minds, not physically using his own mouth as it was just too big to speak normally with.


"Not many mortals gaze upon my form." His voice was as if millions of voices whispered at once, Necras' voice so unsettling that it made both Gunnar and Orin sick to themselves just by hearing him. "I bring you both here as a lesson..." His voice was sickening, the longer he spoke the more maddened they became. "I showed you her life to show that you are not needed by mortal men and women. You are not important to them anymore... You are important... to us." Necras said, the sickening voice growing louder and louder. "We are preparing you for... war." The echoing in Gunnar's head was making his head spin, the physical form of Necras beginning to distort. "Both... of... you..." He whispered, growing even darker. "Your personal attachments make you weak... You are blessed by death itself... You will become our Champion... Our... Reaper." Gunnar held his head as the god's voice was becoming too much for his head to handle as was Orin's. "And you... Boy... Will see to it that Gunnar is the champion we need... Just as you will be the Champion another needs..." Soon they felt a massive rushing sensation as they were being transported back to their bodies. "Do not.... fail us.... again."


Darkness gave away to light as Gunnar and Orin were now standing in the forest again, both looking towards eachother wondering what the hell just happened. Then, the water works came. Gunnar fell to his knees once more as did Orin, the two of them embracing eachother as they began to weep together in the forest. This had all been too much for the two adopted brothers, them sharing the most intense emotional moment together alone. Gunnar held on to Orin as if he too was going to leave him like Nora, not wanting to lose another person he held dear to him.


"I... didn't ask for this..." Gunnar said, breaking away after they shared that moment. "I... My life was... stolen from me by a god... and forced to be some twisted champion I..." He shook his head, "Why have I been cursed, brother? Why..." Tears were free falling down Gunnar's eyes and deep into his beard, he no longer cared if Orin witnessed him weeping like he was. "I have lost nearly everything I hold dear... And the life that I love and the woman that I would do anything and everything for hates me now I..." He bowed his head in shame, "I wish I stayed dead."
 
As they were both bestowed with a set of visions far too depthful for any mortal, they both nearly collapsed, wracked with not only emotional pain but physical, given a vision that disoriented them heavily as they felt they were falling into an abyss one moment and then the next, they were on solid ground. Orin looked very much like he was nearly ready to vomit, but the ground beneath him steadied him, settling his stomach. He held onto Gunnar, the very vision of death itself shaking him to his absolute core. Instilling in him a fear of Necras, and a fear of death. He shook for a while, unsure what to do, what to think, having his power and his mind invaded for the purpose of a God.


"I'm sorry..." Orin said, completely overwhelmed. "Champion...? For another?" he asked, though there were no more visions, no more answers for the Seer. What did that mean? Necras' words reverberated in his head, though, and they were unmistakable at best. He didn't mishear a word. He looked for Dio, finding that they were alone for a moment. "I ... don't know ... I'm so sorry, Gunnar, I wish - I wish that that didn't happen - that you hadn't slept so long, and that ... that your family was still waiting for you, but -"


He stopped. "You ... you have a place with me, and Sinna, and Balor. You have - you have a family with us - it's not Nora, but..." he said, feeling Gunnar's pain as he, too, watched Nora grow old and have a family. He felt the heartbreak, watching as they could do nothing but observe. "Please ... please don't wish that you would die -" Orin cried. The idea of being alone in such a world, with such Gods, was one that invoked a deep, unrelenting fear in him. The idea that he could be killed at any moment, and nearly had been sent to that terrifying abyss made him realize just how dire their situation had been.


"It's so ... so bleak." Orin said, defeated. "I don't want to die, or ... be left alone. I thought blindness ... was the worst darkness I could see, but this -" he said, shaking. "I can't imagine if you had been lost to it, forever, Gunnar ... I would be, too. We'd both be gone. You wouldn't have washed up, and Sinna and I -... we'd be gone. In that abyss. I don't want to think about that."


Orin took a moment to compose himself, but he wasn't given the gift of coming back to the light. The vision still danced in his mind, hurting it.


"I'm sorry, I - it might be selfish, but ... I'm glad that ..." he stopped, unsure if Gunnar would take his words kindly. "I'm ... glad that he brought you back, because you would be lost to it, as well. All of those Shades at the Church, tortured or killed. We'd all be gone."
 
"At... least... some good came from this... From me losing everything." Gunnar said, just staring at Orin as he tried to figure out what had just happened. He grunted, not use to expressing such a huge amount of emotion all at once like this and nonetheless with another man. He was about to try and make light of things as he usually did but it wouldn't come out. He then mulled over Orin's words, of the abyss and how he didn't want to be lost in it. It gave Gunnar an idea, knowing of Nora's current situation. "DIOOOOOOOOOO!" Gunnar roared into the air, an intensity to him that had been stripped from him after arriving here. His anger was boiling over, more so than his sorrow ever could. Dio had been actually hiding, afraid of Gunnar's wrath but the wraith soon appeared before him. "You... Knew..." Gunnar said, his words practically poisonous as he talked to the Wraith. "You didn't... tell me..."


"Gunnar... Necras would not allow me to speak on the matter. I care for-" Gunnar lunged forward and actually ripped Dio straight into the physical realm and pinned him up against a tree. The Wraith's form was still ambiguous, the shadows concealing his true form but they could see a masculine form of an armored man. Gunnar had a hold around his throat and was actually hurting him, being much stronger than Dio could possibly know. "-PLEASE!" The Wraith screeched, his voice sounding shrill and incredibly harsh to the ears. "I CARE FOR YOU AND ORIN! I WOULD NEVER HURT YOU ON MY OWN ACCORD!"


"LIAR!" Gunnar roared back, slamming Dio again and again into the tree out of frustration. "YOU DID IT AND YOU DIDN'T TRY ONCE TO TELL ME!" He yelled until his voice was hoarse and his face red. "YOU MADE ME COME HERE TO SEE THIS FOR MYSELF BECAUSE YOUR MASTER TOLD YOU TO! HE MADE YOU HIS BITCH AND THEN YOU SAID THANK YOU AFTER HE GOT DONE FUCKING YOU! MY LIFE IS RUINED AND ALL YOU CAN SAY IS SORRY? THAT'S FUCKING IT?!" Gunnar threw Dio to the ground before placing his boot against the Wraith's head. "I wonder if there is an afterlife for the dead?... Or if there is nothing?"


"PLEASE SPARE ME!" Dio screeched, begging Gunnar not to destroy his wraith form. Even Dio didn't know what happened to the spirits that got extinguished, if they were able to reform or if they were simply reduced to nothing. "I WILL DO ANYTHING!" He plead.


"Take... me... to... Necras..." Gunnar said, applying more pressure. "I will rip you out of me and kill you again... and again... Unless you take me back. Now." Dio struggled underneath the boot until Gunnar released him, the wraith slipping back into the veil. Gunnar soon got what he wanted however as he was once engulfed by a vision of the afterlife, his physical form falling to the ground as his very spirit entered Necras' domain. There the monstrosity glared at him, the spirits composing Necras seemed to be fluttering faster and faster, its rage evident of Gunnar's sudden intrusion. The pupil of the god's eye seemed to be walking towards Gunnar aggressively until Gunnar stood defiantly before the god.


"You were not summoned to us..." Necras growled, his voice menacing and hostile as soon as Gunnar arrived. Dio's spirit stood next to Gunnar, his head hung low as he had brought Gunnar right to Necras. "We have nothing more to say to you mortal. Continue to grow stronger... Do not make us intervene again or there will be sever-"


"Fuck you." Gunnar said, causing all of the spirits to be shocked at his brashness.


"What... did you just say? To Death? Are you da-"

"Fuck you." Gunnar said, once again. It seemed as if Gunnar was engulfed in flames as Necras showed him what he was capable of, sending Gunnar to the equivalent of the underworld for those who lived an evil life. Flames flickered across his body and the screams of the damned filled his ears yet Gunnar did not falter. "I came back to tell you this isn't how this is going to work, Necras. I am not your pawn. I am not your tool. If I am to be your champion then we work together."


"No champion has ever been foolish enough... to not only interrupt me... but to also come before me with demands?" Necras let out a chilling laugh, millions and millions of individual laughs taunting Gunnar. "You are nothing but our tool... Our champion doesn't mean you get a say in what happens in the realm of gods OR death... You are just an Unclaimed... A Savage... You... are... nothing..."


"Then we're done." Gunnar said, shrugging. "Send me here. It'll be the worst mistake you spirits make though... I'll just come crawling out of here and kill you. One... by one..." He said, knowing that while the idea was insane it wasn't totally impossible. "Even if it took centuries and centuries of torture... and pain... I would destroy you Necras. You know me... You've seen what I am capable of..." He stood at the ready to charge at the god's pupil, willing to go to war. "I will work with you... But only if you make something right for me."


"What... is it... that you... wish?..." Necras whispered, the flames and torture disappearing for the void once more. "You have some nerve... Mortal..."


"You took my life away." Gunnar said, walking forward. "I can accept such a terrible thing on one condition." He paused, seeing that Necras' full attention was on him now. Countless amount of souls were starring right back at Gunnar, his first encounter with the god enough to drive him mad but he overlooked all of that for one reason alone. "Nora. I do not wish for her to join your form... Or that hell we were just at... No... She deserves more. Her... and her husband deserve more." Necras was intrigued, he had not expected this from Gunnar. "I demand that you ensure that their afterlife is better than the life that you gave them. That you took from me... I want them to rest for eternity in pure happiness."


Silence overcame the spirits as they all joined in thought, thinking whether to smite Gunnar or to grant his request. It was possible, Necras being composed of the vengeful dead while those who led good lives were given the afterlife they wished. After what felt like years of waiting, Necras finally spoke again.


"Nora of Veldard... dies in three hours... twenty four minutes..." Necras read off, as if seeing the time she had remaining. "When that time is gone... She will be eternally at peace. Happy. She will not join me." Necras' pupil seemed to draw eerily close to Gunnar however. "You have proved to be the champion we were looking for after all... No other has dared starred us in the face and made demands. Do not make a habit of this however... Gunnar of Veldard. We are now... even..."


Gunnar roared back to life in front of Orin as he snapped back to reality, startling the hell out of the boy. He jumped to his feet and looked down at his hands, trying to figure out if what had happened really was all real. When he seen the nervous form of Dio he knew it to be true.


"Please tell me you just fucking watched that happen." He said quietly, "Because you won't believe me if I told you."
 
As Gunnar had gone to Necras, he had collapsed, Dio's own form merging with Gunnar's and then disappearing. Gunnar fell to the floor, hard, and then went completely limp. Orin had heard him fall, lacking the sight to catch him at all. He skidded to the side of the Viking, panicked, trying to lift the deadweighted human up again. "Gunnar?!" He said, lifting a hand to feel for his heartbeat.


It wasn't there.


Orin's mind knew well that Gunnar might be okay. Right? He'd asked Dio to take him to Necras. But what did that mean? What did it entail? Necras, the God of Death ... was Gunnar gone? The last time he had died, it had taken sixty years to come back. Orin waited for Gunnar, holding his limp form close. He was blind, in a foreign land, placing all of his trust in his Viking friend to guide him through. But what if he'd stepped too far? What if Necras had decided to claim him permanently? The thought had gotten more and more pertinent the longer Gunnar had spent under, and it panicked the poor Seer more and more, until he was a drivelling mess, lost alone in a forest, in a foreign land, hundreds of feet above his own home.


"Gunnar...?" Orin asked, voice breaking the long silence. It had been another thirty minutes until the Viking's corpse twitched, and when he did, so too did his vision. Orin's mind was suddenly filled, with visions of defiance and bravery. And stupidity. He saw Gunnar challenging Necras, then suddenly engulfed by flames and hellfire, the tormented screams of Necras' amalgamative form ripping at his mind. Even in memory it tormented him, but... as he watched his friend face off against Necras... He felt proud. And when they had woken up again, and they were finally free from the visions of death, the leaves had fallen on their corpses, bodies feeling particularly cold. Orin had been gone for a while, but Gunnar had been gone longer.


It took a moment for Orin to rouse himself, not snapping to his feet the same way Gunnar had. He was exhausted, holding Gunnar's dead form one moment, and then the next, being thrust into the very same vision. But he wouldn't have to re-explain. Sapped of mana, Orin was tired, but not nearly as exhausted as the Viking who had watched his old life crumble before his very eyes. He gave a curt nod, color returning to his face, and stood.


"Fuck..." Orin managed, leaning down to brace himself against his own knees. "I don't know why this is happening, why you? And us?" he asked, dread taking hold of his chest. "Way ... way to make a God your bitch, though." Orin said. Normally, they would have laughed, but the situation at hand was far too serious.


"You went cold, Gunnar. Don't go see Necras again. Please." he said, exhausted to his very soul. "Three hours ... do you ... you want to go see her, before ..." he started, completely unsure how to ask the question at all. It was enough, though.
 
"I couldn't be there for her in life." He replied, helping Orin to his feet. "But... in her final moments... I can be there for her one final time. She's... still the same stubborn girl I love. I can't imagine what she must have thought me coming in there and not recognizing her. Probably broke her heart seeing me again, her dead husband of over sixty years... Only to not recognize her." Gunnar let out a long sigh and patted Orin on the back, "Today ain't our day... That's for sure." He said, weakly trying to be optimistic as he led the way back into town. The suns had began to rise again already, their trip up to the islands taking most of the night away as they arrived back in Veldard. To Gunnar it no longer felt like home but a strange land with people that looked like him. Nora was the last one who knew of him from the time before here and within a few short hours she'd be gone too.


"You have some nerve coming back here, Gunnar." Hakon said, keeping his arms crossed as he stood at the door to the small cabin. "My mother doesn't have very long. She... Doesn't want to see you." The old man took notice of how Gunnar was looking at him. Much differently than the man that had originally shown up at the cabin. There was so much love in Gunnar's eyes, a warmth for his own flesh and blood that hadn't been there before. Hakon wasn't sure why, he didn't exactly have the best of encounters with Nora or any of them there. "Speak... Gunnar." Hakon ordered, "Why are you looking at me like that?"


"I... was there." Gunnar said, managing to stutter out what he was trying to say. "I was there in spirit, watching you grow Hakon." This further confused the viking as he listened to Gunnar. "The same god that brought me back to life must have made it where my spirit was watching over you all while I was dead. Either that or that's what I did originally and only remember it now I'm not sure... But I've seen it all... son." He said, feeling odd saying that especially to a man easily forty years his elder. "I watched you from the day you were a small sprout to a big strong man. I remember when your mother taught you how to use a spear... a bow. How I desperately watched from the other side as I wished to show you how to defend your mother with an axe, a sword... To teach you how to hunt, to laugh... To shave." He paused, then began to laugh. "Just kidding. You got your beard genetics from me and I'm glad you didn't waste them." Although Hakon was absolutely confused he couldn't help but smile at what Gunnar had to say.


"What are you trying to say?" He replied, "That you were watching from beyond? That... that forgives you from missing out on my life? My mother's life?... Hell, your granddaughter's life?"


"I am not here for forgiveness, nor your trust... All I want you to know is that if I could go back and be there with you son..." He smiled, "I'm not sure I could have done a better job at making you into a better man than what I see today. I love you. I always will..." Gunnar let out a long sigh, "Maybe in another life we can do it over. The three of us making the way things should have been." Hakon didn't know what to say, the grizzled old man simply nodding in response as he had literally nothing to say to that though his eyes looked to be glossy as his actual father said those words to him. "If you don't mind... I'd like to say my final words to Nora and... Get on my hands and knees to apologize time and time again." He frowned, "It will be the last chance I ever get."


Hakon stepped out of the way for Gunnar, allowing him in but motioning for Orin to take up a seat with him. It was going to get too personal in there very quickly. Astrid was tending to Nora who seemed to be seeing the other side more so than the physical realm now, the poor woman sweating and cursing as she knew her time had come. Astrid looked to be a big mess as she tried desperately to help Nora but there was nothing she could do.


"Astrid." Gunnar said, startling both of the women. "I got it from here." He said quietly, walking slowly over to Nora's bedside as the young girl took a few steps back and nodded softly.


"I love you grandma..." She whispered, bending down to kiss the old woman on the cheek before quickly excusing herself. Nora let out a long sigh when her granddaughter was gone, finally, she looked to Gunnar with a much more exhausted look than earlier. The woman had seen and done a lot of things but she still couldn't get over how her late husband was standing before her.


"You can't be a fever dream... Astrid can see you and so did my boy... What are you doing... here... Gunnar?" Nora asked weakly, frowning at the man. What he did next surprised her greatly as he strolled over to her and got into bed with her as he had done time and time again. It was a practiced movement, one formed out of habit as he lifted the back of her head gently up and rested her in the nook of his arm and held her quietly. Although she had been hostile to him before the old woman's heart skipped a beat when her late husband was back again finally, just holding her. She had cried many tears when he had left before, now they had returned as she leaned into his arm and got comfortable. "You still... know how to make this old woman's heart race. You know at my age that isn't a good thing."


"Glad to see I can still get you excited." Gunnar replied, holding her tighter as he laid there with her. "Even though you're about sixty years older than me now we can still... you know. Want to go for one last time?" When he seen her wrinkled face grow red he couldn't help but laugh, he still had it. "That'd be a hell of a way to go. We were pretty good at it too. I'm just teasing but... I don't want you to go unhappy or feeling like you didn't live the fullest life you could Nora. Necras has chosen me to... protect this world or something. Something in my blood or who I am made him choose me and though you had a rough time without me... You eventually found someone who took care of you and gave you a happy life. It's all I ever wanted for you... even if that didn't mean I got to be in it." This caused Nora to really cry, the old woman barely having the strength to handle that as Gunnar made everything alright again. "I might not have been there for our life together but... I can be here for you in the end. I've seen the other side my love and... I ensured that you will have the best afterlife you can possibly ever have."


"Wha- what do you mean Gun?" She said, looking up to him as she had done countless times before. "What did you do?"


"I went to Necras himself... Told him you are going to give the woman I love eternal happiness in the afterlife or I'm going to rip you apart spirit by spirit." This caused Nora to laugh even though the tears, he hadn't changed one bit. "He might have thought it was a bluff but... I would have done it if it took me forever. I am so sorry tha-"


"Shut up." Nora said, resting her fragile head on his chest now. "Just shut up. You're making me more upset that you passed away so soon into our lives... Making me think of what could have been if you just didn't die on me... When you were here earlier I could have sworn you didn't love me anymore. Seeing this old woman with several kids, another dead husband... Wrinkles and white hair... Barely skin and bones." She looked up to him, "But you still did all that for me? Even after I was upset that you came back?"


"I will always love you Nora. No matter what form we're both in. Living... dead... Together or apart. I faced off against a god for you and I'd face them all if it meant you were happy." He cuddled her closer, "We don't have much time left together but... We've been given just a little longer to be here. Together." What he said comforted her, even while she was looking at the face of death. "Have you... said goodbye to our boy? To your other children?" She nodded, weakly as she buried her face in his chest.


"I'm... ready." She whispered, her voice growing weaker by the minute. "I've told them I love them... That it's my time..."


"Then... I can hold you here until it's time. Would you like that?" Once again, the weak old Nora nodded softly. Although she was in pain a big smile was on her face as she clutched onto Gunnar as if he was going to disappear again. He didn't this time however as they laid in her bed and passed her last few hours just talking. While her body may have changed her spirit still burned brightly, Gunnar feeling that much more in pain as he seen her grow weaker and weaker as the time got lower and lower. When it was about time, Gunnar leaned over and planted one last kiss upon Nora's lips. "I love you Nora..."


"I... love you... Gunnar."


Those were her last words.


...


Gunnar left her there with her family as Hakon and Astrid along with several other children and grandchildren gathered inside to grieve that Nora had passed away. Gunnar didn't belong there, not with them. Some of them may have been blood but he hadn't been in their lives. Not for very long anyways. He found Orin waiting for him outside. Gunnar began to walk towards him only for Hakon to stop him by placing a hand on his shoulder.


"Thank you... Gunnar. For being here for her." He said, not sure exactly what to say to the man. Hakon had gone over time and time again what he would say to his father if he ever got to meet him, now that he was starring him in the face he was at a loss for words. "I will take care of the rest... I am sure you are destined for a greater purpose being alive once more so... Good luck and..."


"You don't have to say anything, Hakon." He seen how much his son was struggling with his words. "Your mother was my home and with her gone... I don't belong in Veldard anymore. You're much older than me now as well so I doubt you need the father that wasn't there around now. You've done fine without me. But..." Gunnar surprised Hakon by embracing him, holding him tightly for an uncomfortable amount of time that nearly shattered Hakon completely as he held back tears. "Be strong for her. She loved you more than you can ever know and... She will be waiting for you in the afterlife." When Gunnar let go the old man before them simply shook his head up and down and stumbled his way into the room to comfort his family. Gunnar turned to Orin, "Let's... leave. Please."
 
Orin quietly nodded, following Gunnar as he walked away from the last remnants of his life. It was hard, indeed, especially as Orin had seen firsthand the entirety of the life of the woman that had passed away inside. Gunnar was stronger than he, however, and so he'd turned the situation the very best he could. He stood in the face of death, and quite literally said, 'fuck you'. After Orin began to recover, he'd taken a look of admiration into his features. One wracked with grief, still, but it was admirable nonetheless. "We... should see if Slaw is still there. He maybe hasn't left yet, but ... I don't know how much time passed in that forest. You were out for a whole. I thought you were really gone."


Orin sighed.


"Your son looked strong. I ... when I have the visions, I can see. They're nightmares, though, usually. I can almost see the color again. I guess that means I should be grateful, but... anyways, I saw Nora. And you're right. She was beautiful. I've never seen so many humans in my life." He said. "You're all so resilient. You've all gone through so much. Every day. I don't know if I could take this all and keep going." He said, unsure, not really helping but barely able to think of the proper words, anyhow. "But you do it. Or, you're going to do it. Because if you don't, and you think you can just ... die after this, I'm going to personally find you in the underworld and beat the shit out of you. Even if it means ..." He shuddered.


The two dragged back on through the Veldardian village that had been worn away by siege and time. They had gotten their spare looks, but they had looked just as bedraggled as the men and women that fought there. Orin kept his head low, wanting nothing more than to simply get back through the village without drawing much attention. He ignored Dio, instead reaching his hand up to grasp a stray strap from Gunnar for movement.


Soon, they had gotten through the village, ending up back at the broken landing bay. Lo and behold, in front of them, the ship had still been parked. The sun was setting, a long time having passed since they had come into the village. But Slaw was still waiting. Waiting for them. He had long since fallen asleep at the helm of the ship, leaned back in his chair, with his ankle propped up on the control board.


When Orin had come to the front, using a balled up fist to bang on it, he awoke with a startle. The Avar scrambled awake, nearly falling out of his chair in the process. He stood, hobbling to the front window, leaning down and looking over the side to find Gunnar and Orin waiting for him at the bottom.


"...Slaw?" Orin asked, worried. "Did you wait for us, or just fall asleep ...? Could you maybe ... Give us a ride back down?" he asked.


Slaw peered down at them. They had looked a thousand times worse than when they had left into the village, with pale skin and red eyes, they had certainly been through a lot.


"Sure."
 
Sure was good enough for them as Gunnar stepped up into the ship, assisting Orin up the steps and inside the ramshackle airship. He didn't even consider Cheslaw being there as an option but to find him gave the viking some relief. Before he closed the bulkhead behind him he took a look at Veldard one last time. He wasn't sure if he would return ever again, let alone see the place once more. It had made sense why he didn't recognize it even after it was battle torn. So many new buildings and more people had entered the area in those several decades. They were once a proud people, only to be remembered as savages that died like savages. Human colonies were common, but none ever grew this much. To see progress be set back even further pained Gunnar as he sealed the bulkhead up, doing his best to leave Nora in the past where she belonged.


"Thank you... Cheslaw." Gunnar said quietly as he patted the bulkhead as he walked in. Instead of staying near the command deck to watch Veldard go by Gunnar began to head back to where Sirius was at in the back, "Can we... Go anywhere but here?" He asked, giving away that obviously things had gone terribly wrong in Veldard. "We are needed in the town of Dorn on the southern coast of the Eye of Mana but... I forget where it is and I can't ask you to task us directly there. Just... drop us off wherever and I'll pay whatever you want. I'm going to... I need to lay down." He was fighting back tears once more, the once proud Viking reduced to a mess of a crying mass of muscle and hair. He stumbled past Sirius who was walking out from the back.


"What'd I miss?" He asked, trying to speak to Gunnar but he insisted on walking right past him to go try and fall asleep in one of the spare rooms. The Masked Caelilian tilted his head as Gunnar walked away, then snapped it towards Orin and Cheslaw. "I did some cleaning back there, lot of dust and nasty shit from the rooms you didn't touch in the ship Slaw. Took me a MEAN nap too... Must have been nearly 14 hours hot damn." He shook his head, causing his mask to rattle. "Sure beats having to lay down every night like you sleepy heads. Say what hap-" When he noticed Orin's demeanor and Cheslaw's confusion he let out a sigh. "Divorce city? Did something happen in the town?" Sirius gasped, "Is everyone dead?"


Gunnar couldn't help but stop in his tracks as Sirius began to ask questions, so, he answered them.


"Most of the town is dead. I just cradled my wife while she died in my arms." He said, his voice hoarse and his body trembling. His back was to them, he couldn't even face his own friends right now. "Everyone I've ever known is dead." Gunnar added, still trying to wrap his head around that one. "I told death to fuck himself and he nodded his head at me... Nearly killed my wraith. Met my son." He turned to look at Sirius, "All while you were napping." With that, he turned once more and headed to go lie down leaving Sirius totally silent.


That was, until he finally said, "Damn." Breaking the silence as the airship took off. Gunnar's sole mission had been to return to Nora's loving arms, which he ended up doing but unfortunately it was for the last time as he had been sleeping for decades and decades. He had missed her life, her love and even perhaps more importantly his son's entire life. All because of one god picking him as his Champion. Gunnar laid in bed as the airship hummed to life and soon departed, the man thrashing about trying desperately to calm himself but he had never felt such an intense sorrow like this before in his life. He missed his people, he missed his life, he missed Nora so much that he contemplated jumping out of the airship if he knew that he wouldn't come back from it decades later.


A lone spirit visited Gunnar that night, one that cradled him back as she rocked him to sleep. Gunnar wept for the loss of his wife but had the luxury of her returning one final time before her long slumber. Nora's spirit whispered to Gunnar until he finally managed to fall asleep after hours of intense grief, the once proud Veldardian huntress spirit finally passing on now that she knew he would be okay one way or another. The hum of the ship and Nora's whispers caused Gunnar to rest a deep sleep, one that he desperately needed.


End of Chapter 8 - Reunion​
 
A long time had passed since Sinna, Balor, and Amara had arrived in Dorn. It was a quaint shoretown, half of the small fishercity stilted on docks. The smell of ocean had taken it up, becoming nothing soon as the trio had settled in. They found themselves in the Prismatic church of Dorn, though the homely church was nothing in comparison to the one that had burned down weeks previous. It was a single-floored thing, with a sole, overworked Prismatic Caelilan manning it. He wasn't quite the alchemist that Balor had been, and Balor had been taking up his supplies in turn for teaching the timid man. He noted nothing of the network; undoubtedly, the small church didn't house Shades.


Sinna and Amara had taken up the back, taking temporary sanctuary there during the nights. Sinna had continued her training with Amara, though she'd spent a lot of her freetime sulking, every day that Orin and Gunnar not having arrived feeling like an insult. They should have gotten there before they had all hit the road, before the siege on Moiran, let alone weeks later. But they waited. Some, like Amara, a little more inpatient than the others. With every day that passed, however, Sinna's worry had turned into power, and she'd taken it out on Amara in their training sessions. So much so that she had come back bruised and fuming, to the displeasure of Balor.


"I've been meaning to ask you ..." the Caelilan alchemist said, furrowing his brow at Balor as Sinna and Amara stormed into the church. He looked to them with worry, never before having seen such people within the confines of his own building. "The Ifrit ... you said you were all of Prisma? Are you ... I don't mean to question, but are you sure?"


"Sure of what?" Balor asked, abruptly, almost startling the poor man. He looked down on him, keeping his interactions with him curt and even a little rude. He'd hoped his demeanor would simply inspire silence, but after so long, the Priest had gathered the courage to push the question further.


"That ... that you're all of Prisma?" He asked, voice small.


"Do you normally only offer those who are of Prisma sanctuary in this church? Is that why your beds are so empty? Lack of hospitality?" Balor asked, words sharp but tone more condescending than anything.


"No - no it's not that. I just - I just see them leave every day and then come back ... what could they possibly be doing?" He asked, hushing his voice as the two passed, as if afraid of the two women.


"They're fighting. Prisma or not, Ifritian women and men learn to fight at an early age. It's a part of their culture, and they do often stall their vows to fight for country. Mainland or not." Balor explained.


"Balor!" Sinna called, from the back resting area of the church.


"I'll be back. Finish the batch. You'll have to create an ice chest if you want any of your potions to last, by the way." Balor said, stepping away from the Priest. He retreated to the back, where Sinna had been unwrapping her hands, sighted daggers aimed down at them. "You two should really take it easy. If you over-exert yourself or get hurt, you're not going to help anyone." He said, not too pleased to see them both in such a state. "It can be unhealthy. As much as I do think you should be learning -"


"How long do we wait before we go out and look, Bal?" Sinna asked, interrupting him. "He was supposed to be here when we got here. Him and Gunnar. They could be hurt somewhere, Orin could be lost. Taken by Central, or killed. How long are we going to stay and pretend that everything is going to come out fine? This town is a straight shot." She snapped. "We should be taking action, like we took action back in Moiran! He isn't coming!"


"And what if he does, and we aren't here? You know that your brother and you can't stay in one place for long." He said, tone just as severe as hers.
 
"If something or someone killed that viking before I get my hands on him then I will raze their cities to the ground." Amara growled, "No one has ever beaten me in a contest before. Especially not pretty little Sinnamon here." Amara smirked, teasing Sinna during their training had been part of what was making the girl excel so quickly. The anger she got from Amara getting under her skin was making her strike true rather than pulling her shots, something that Amara appreciated and approved of greatly. "It's why she keeps coming back home all beat up. I'd rather me be beating on her than some stranger. She gets use to the pain then it'll make her a better fighter, not an overly defensive one or a cowardly one. I'm forging her into a warrior... She can't be afraid of a blade. Besides..." Amara took a seat and kicked off her boots, followed by unwrapping her hands as well. She had taken up using training equipment with Sinna, using her abilities being too much of a disadvantage for the girl's training. "What trouble could that blind boy and the viking get into anyways?"


A long, painfully awkward silence filled the room as they all just starred at eachother mulling over Amara's question.


"Okay... little blind squirt I can understand getting into trouble. I can also understand Gunnar getting into trouble but-" She paused, "I'm not making this any better am I?" She shook her head, unsure of how people comforted one another when a loved one was missing. She never had any loved ones, not for a very long time at the least. Amara struggled with what to say next so she managed to stammer out, "Gunnar will protect Orin. I know of that for a fact. He made sure we all got out of the Central attack alive... While I was off trying to be the hero he played it smarter by saving my ass. He'd rather us live than win so I can see him giving everything for Orin."


Amara let out a sigh as she suddenly sprung to her feet, "We can't just leave here either Sin, as much as I fucking want to." She frowned, "What if we left JUST as they were getting here? That'd be a pain in the ass. They know where we're expecting them so eventually they'll turn up. If they don't then-" She paused yet again, having a really hard time trying to comfort the two of them. "-then we'll turn this motherfucking continent upside down looking for them. We'll put your new battle skills to the test and I'll chop in half every Central soldier from her all the way to Central if I have to. It's been a little bit since I tasted blood, if it's for a good cause even more the better."


"I would suggest we split up and maybe you stay here Balor but then me and Sin wouldn't know if they turned up or not so... What the hell do we do?" She asked, "I'm no leader. All my expertise is in hurting things. Do we set a day limit then go out and search for them? Maybe... Orin is blind and Gunnar is dumb. Maybe they walked the opposite way?" As hilarious as that sounded it could be very possible they thought they were in Dorn but actually in an entirely different town altogether.
 
"We stay." Balor said. "If it comes down to it and we do have to search - which I would like to wait before doing, by the way - then I would wait here while you two looked, returning within a specific timeframe and letting me know where you're going before you do venture out. If you were lost after that? ...I'm not sure. But we'd leave a message behind for Orin to wait. Not that I'm sure he'd follow it."


"It's also ... possible that he intentionally went the wrong way." Sinna said. "Orin ... isn't exactly one to follow directions, and Gunnar was pretty heated before they got locked out. We fought before that about him wandering off, so ... I'm just afraid." she said, frowning deeply. Her hands went to her arms, squeezing herself tight. It had been obvious to the both of them by the look on her face and her body language that she was more than a little worried.


"I just... I can't imagine losing him, and it feels like every day that passes, I'm getting way too used to him being gone." she said, eyes coming to a mist. She turned away, crossing her arms as she looked out the clear portion of the stained glass window to the sea. Then, she gave a short laugh. "It's way too easy for me. Gotta make my life difficult somehow."


Balor looked to Sinna, then to Amara, mouth pursing. He didn't want to exascerbate the situation anymore than it had been, with the Ifritian girl's mood being on a steady downcline. He'd wanted to comment on how irresponsible he'd found Gunnar, how he was just a viking with an inclination to be rash, but ... he didn't. Instead, he approached Sinna, placing a hand on her shoulder.


"He'll either come to us or we'll come to him. But it hasn't been long. Let's be patient and not worry as much." Balor said. "Or turn that energy into something productive. We can look at a map, plan out where to branch out toward happen that it does come down to looking for them. Train, just ... be careful. Gather supplies for travel. But we will meet up with him - and Gunnar - again."


Balor looked to Amara. "How are you faring?"
 
"Just peachy. I'm beating the shit out of Sin-Sin on the daily, I love the beach. Fish is getting kind of old as I'm more of a land creature kinda gal. I just went to war and helped Moira liberate an entire city..." Amara smiled, "I'm faring well Balor. After a battle such as that I am glowing for weeks after, it's in my nature. You seem to be in good spirits all things considered, having a punching bag of a priest to shape up. Me and you are one in the same Balor." She was sure he would hate her saying that. "Have someone to bully a little, make us feel alive. You fit in well here in Dorn. The sun could surely do you some good, isn't Prisma the goddess of light or something?" She chuckled, not exactly knowing for sure what Prisma covered. Mostly out of not caring, Onyx and Ichor being enough for her.


Amara walked over to the window Sinna was looking at, nudging her a little as she walked beside her. "Maybe when we get Orin and the... viking... back... You all move in and have a big happy church service here." She couldn't help but laugh. "Praise Prisma and all that. I can't believe you have that priest out there fooled... Like I could ever be one of you people. Too happy. Too weak... Preaching pacifism in a violent and cruel world." Her discomfort being in such a place was obvious, Amara never quite felt like she belonged anywhere but she knew Prisma had a problem with her and by being in her domain was like poking a hornet's nest. "I feel like I'm going to be smited any minute here... Too clean, too quiet."


"I'm going to go buy supplies. When I get back have the map ready. See if we can play needle in the haystack with a blind boy and a slab of meat." Amara began walking out the door to the outside to go adventure Dorn on her own. "Sinna." She said, pausing just before she left after saying such insensitive things about Prisma. "I'll make your life plenty difficult with him gone. He'll turn up sooner than you think, don't get comfortable with being comfortable, girl." She said, trying to hide a smirk behind bitterness. Amara had grown to like Sinna, as evident by her stopping to even offer her such words. "Spend some time with Balor... You're smothering me." With that, Amara exited the church and walked right out onto the stilted platforms of the fishing village.


The church was on solid ground near the perimeter of town while the majority of the other buildings were situated on stilts or other floating barges. Many of the homes were actually on rafts and simply tied down to the boardwalk, meaning that many of Dorn's citizens were nomads. People of all kinds were walking the streets from amphibious creatures to ones that looked like they belonged up in the clouds to even ones that looked like they were about to melt from the heat. The ocean breeze rolled in, brushing over Amara's face causing her hair to blow in the wind. She smiled to herself at how pleasant it had been, only for her grimace to return as she tried her best to look as tough as possible as per usual. She spent about an hour gone wandering the streets before she came up with some fresh meat and other traveling supplies that they could possibly need. Regardless, she was getting tired of waiting for Orin and Gunnar. Very, very tired of being in one place for far too long especially. It made her skin crawl.


Amara returned to the church shortly after and dropped the supplies on the table, startling both Sinna and Balor who were both deep in thought looking at the map.


"That's for the road, if we decide to leave soon. Do we have anything?" She leaned down to look closer at the map they were studying, "They wouldn't go north, that's for sure. So we're stuck with the southern end here and maybe even the Blazing Isles if they were crazy enough..." She smirked, "It's what I'd do."
 
Sinna and Balor had taken up over the map, staring at it with vacancy when Amara had arrived. When she had, they both looked up to her, the looks on their faces revealing just how stumped they had been. Balor spoke up first, and slowly. "That's what you would do ... and it's a possibility that we've considered. The Floating Islands are here," he said, pointing to the area south of the Bridge of Fire. "It would make sense, if Gunnar were trying to get back to his people, but I'm not entirely sure he's quite as selfish."


Not stopping to let Amara interject at Balor's rude comment, Sinna spoke out. "Okay ... but they could have gone anywhere. Including into the forests, past Dorn and further down the coast, and nearer to the eye of Mana. If they did any of that, they're in danger, and if they went toward the Blazing Isles, then they're really in danger." she said, the same worry from earlier highlighting her features.


"I can't imagine they would go into the forests unless they were hiding from something, or someone. They're ... inhospitable, to say the least. I sincerely hope the Viking doesn't make me regret trusting him with Orin." Balor said, his hands gripping the map, crumpling it slightly. He'd been having a hard time controlling his own fear for the situation, attempting to be the strong party for all of them, but if he had said he wasn't worried, he would have been lying. Instead, he looked away from the map to Amara's supplies.


Weapons, clothing, rations. It was enough.


"If you're getting too smothered, Amara, you can go look for them." Sinna said, forcing a smile up at the woman. "Don't want you getting lost, though, 'cause we can only send so many people out."


"I didn't anticipate this being an issue, because I gathered that Orin and Gunnar would be here, but ... I'm not sure how long we should stay here, as well. We do simply look like worn travellers, but the last thing I want is unwanted attention on yet another Prismatic church, small or not." he said, voice low in rememberance. "Camp the church in anticipation of their arrival, but possibly make ourselves sparse."
 
"That'd be a good idea." Amara replied, "Watching the church, not me leaving to go look for them. Moira tasked me with protecting you two and-" Sinna gave her a look, one of calling Amara out. She was lying, blatantly so as Moira had nothing to do with her coming along with them. In reality, Sinna had asked her to and Amara simply said yes and uncharacteristically so. "Okay, she asked me to watch out for you two. If I left you now who knows what would happen... Especially to a Shade." She whispered, knowing that Balor's heart would jump as soon as she said it out-loud in unfamiliar territory. "Central knows by now of the incident at the last Prismian church... The odds of them NOT checking each one they come across now is low. If a Central patrol passes through town these are a prime target for searches now."


It was a terrifying idea, that Central was smart enough to check every church now that one had been compromised. It was true however, Amara knowing fully well what those people would do in order to find forbidden ones. She had done this whole deal before, finding and protecting forbidden signed civilians.


"I've seen them do it. I once guarded a group of Ichor kids, younger than you Sin. Barely any adults holding them together. They were hiding in the cellar of a general store. They were found... I managed to drive Central off but a few hunters survived and next thing I hear is that a bunch of Forbidden ones get turned up because Central figured out that store managers were hiding them in cellars, particularly behind a bunch of food goods that no one bothered to move. These churches are no longer safe... They're marked."


She frowned, seeing both Sinna and Balor reflecting over the fact that they may have potentially sent Orin and Gunnar to a trap.


"Listen, the priest would have mentioned something if they had been caught here before. I recommend we find a shack or a home to take up in. An Inn maybe, I have the coin. We'll watch this church like a hawk and make ourselves scarce, if they don't show up in a few days I'll go out and look for them. Maybe you are right, Balor. Maybe that viking is selfish enough to drag Orin up to the Isles. If that's the case... I'll go find a ship myself and drag them back down to the planet. See how they like the treatment I give them after they've made us wait for days... and days... and days..."


Amara reached for the satchel of supplies and slung it over her shoulder. "You should say bye bye to the priest. That way if Central does come by he can mention how two suspicious people and a little girl who can't hardly hold a sword passed through here. Might even mention something about a good looking, yet intimidating, elf with them." She said with a smirk, teasing them. "They'll know it's me and run the other way. Central is afraid of me."
 
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