From the Tongues of Witnesses

"From the Tongues of Witnesses" is a BOTGD 2 thread written on [IRL DATE].
== Summary ==
As the battle wages on, the ground trembles and explodes, and a massive demonic body emerges from the ground, controlled by the Warden but bound by Vidar’s contract. It has an unconscious Stonegit and a weakened Yun trapped in its belly, using them as fodder for its own energy. It begins to approach the rebels, but Grey and Shadow take flight to distract it while Libulan takes Lila and manages to swipe Vidar out from under the demon’s feet. Juro teleports onto the construct and begins climbing to help those trapped inside. The Arbiter assists with hindering the construct. Stonegit wakes to Hel’s voice speaking to him, showing him that Nala’s original own sigil with Hel is broken, and that Nala’s will is stronger than anyone suspects. [UNFINISHED]
== Full Text ==
The Warden: The stone was warm and humming under Stonegit’s battered hands. For a brief second, the beast stared into his eyes, and then suddenly, he saw a vision so intense, it may as well have been right in front of him. 
Nala stood before him, but her form was none he had ever seen. It was a nebulous scarlet female spirit, with a face as blank as her mask and wide, glowing eyes. She had both her hands up across from his, against what he could now feel was similar to an extremely thick glass barrier. It seemed like she was trapped in a spherical room, with no exit, and in the very center was a pedestal with an orb similar to the one Stonegit had seen emitting the suppressing aura from before. She gazed at him as he caressed her new, lifeless form. The visible center of her essence was pulsing slowly, like a heartbeat. Her hand lifted and reached forward as though to touch his face, then slowly skidded her fingers down the barrier as her arm lowered. There was a ring of runes matching Vidar’s around her wrist. A molten tear streaked down her face.
I’m sorry.
***
Vidar/The Construct: Vidar watched breathlessly as Stonegit faced the Warden’s construct. He had his gloved hand around his bare wrist, and between his fingers, the forced contract between him and the demon softly glowed red. Had it worked? The entire room was still, besides the soft rushing and splashing of water as it began to flood down into the lower chambers of the Jaw.
The construct screeched again, deafening everyone below and above ground, and then it contorted in a horrifying kind of way, its abdomen rolling forward, expanding and blazing with scarlet light before scooping up both men in front of it like each rib was a sentient limb. It neatly closed up, caging them inside, and then used one of its smaller vestigial limbs to scoop Vidar around the waist and collect itself in a more compact, tangled frame of metal and clicking parts. It groaned as tension built, and then it tilted its head up and its entire neck telescoped upward with a blinding rush, crushing the ceiling of the chamber and sending dust and dirt and mud and liquid scattering through and above the earth.
***
The ground thundered as both Rebellion and Conclave turned their heads to the south, where the largest guardhouse of the residential area suddenly blew out its own windows and then start to crumble, bending in half towards the center and sending planks and chunks of masoned stone flying hundreds of feet through the air. A monstrous noise that was nearly dragonlike pierced the sky, and in the storm, they saw something emerging from the ground, limbs twisting and ticking in deafening harmony and lifting itself to stand close to fifty feet above the rooftops. Lightning crashed and thunder rivaled the being’s cry, and its true form was revealed to the entire battlefield. Its chest was flaming with scarlet light, and its eyes were like crimson searchlights, lighting up the pouring rain that pounded against its limbs of metal limbs and metal plating. Instead of an ordinary tail, it had several shifting knife-like joints, rippling at the ready. Silhouetted against the dark ribs outlined in light were two human figures, the larger built one hanging unconscious from the construct’s chest, the smaller one moving, but barely.
“IS THAT STONEGIT!?”
Ericsons/Changeling: Lila’s grip on her sword faltered as this… Thing emerged from the ground. What the Hel was that thing. Was it an enemy or a weapon? How in Aidorin could they fight something of that size. As it looked out over the rebels it glowed with a familiar aura. “Nala…” She murmured quietly in disbelief, her sword almost leaving her hand. ‘What chance do we have?’ The Half-breed thought. The tip of the sword touched the ground before she tightened her grip. ‘I think like that they have already won.’ She examined the creature quickly from top to bottom and noticed the two captives. She also noticed Vidar on the ground near the creature and scowled. Even if it didn’t help them, she was taking down Vidar, today. If he died the Conclave would go with him. At the very least they could not let him escape or they would never be rid of him.
She quickly called through the network. “Alright everyone, stay focused. That thing is big but we’re rebels we’ve fought bigger. Don’t wait for it to attack us assume hostility. Jari I’m gonna need a tactical appraisal.”
The Pooka was jumping from roof to roof currently. “It’s big and it can dig real good that’s what I’ve got for you right now.”
“Well keep on it, we’re gonna need every advantage we can get. For now everyone try to stay out of its way.”
“Boss it’s got another one of them anti-magic things at around it’s chest. About 10 feet all around it.”
“Thanks Changling.” Lila replied. She quickly sought out each nix through the link. “I’m gonna need a lift. I need to get to Vidar and then both of us need to get the Hel away from here. Hopefully if I can take him down it’ll solve our monster problem, if not, it’ll be another dead fascist asshole at least.”
The Nixes: A silent nod through the mental link from Libulan, and he appeared and disappeared quickly with the Commander by his side, leaving Azul behind to continue giving support to the rest of the rebels.
They teleported through falling debris and Conclave soldiers, appearing only a few feet away from the spot Lila had indicated. Immediately Libulan widened his circle of water, catching himself, Lila, and Vidar around the knees and bringing a wave over all of their heads, hoping to pull all of them in one motion and away from the thick the new danger.
–
Akkey Black: Akkey whirled around in a frenzy as she heard the scream. Her eyes widened, following the large figure rise above them.
“Stonegit! That’s… Nala…” she could only choke out under her breath as she took in the sights. Blood pulsed in her head deafeningly, What do I do what do I do I have to get Stonegit what do I– Her finger joints cracked under the strain of attempting to open a portal right where she could barely make out Stonegit and Yun were, but she couldn’t see well. It was too far or… again, it was that blindness. Shit.
The long way, then. She ran and teleported faster than she ever had before.
–
Juro Jin: The air rippled and warped in the rain, a few ways away from where Yun laid shivering above Stonegit’s limp body, far enough from the emptiness that the magic oppression incurred. Even beneath the roar of battle and weather and demon, one could make out a faint hum of a portal. The circle of bent space held for a moment then folded into itself, procuring a young, lean man, his scarf whipping wildly in the wind and glasses glinting in the scarlet light. He landed quite a few feet away from the chest, on a limb, catching himself with ink stained fingers and digging his heels into the construct as it moved dangerously enough to make him fall if he wasn’t careful.
“Vir, I’m gonna need you to watch my back if I fall,” he said as he climbed slowly towards the time jumper and the bodyguard.
Firkugaan: The loudest call to action from an enemy had left everyone paralysed for a few moments as they gazed up in awe at the beast before them.
Firkugaan tried to reach out, find any trace of his mentor, but the brief glimpse he could catch was blocked by what felt like an impenetrable wall.
I don’t know what has happened, but The Warden is not fully in control. Her mind caged. He said through to the rebels, and though his voice was still hear by many, his words were directed towards Lila. If you intend to fight vidar, you’ll need cover, either from his armies, or from… That. He gestured towards the mountainous figure that faced them.
It didn’t take the sharpest of all minds however to see that his emotions were taking over, a small mouth began to widen and open, dripping with his purple essence, and an aura began to build around him. I have participated in too many battles where I could not help those I care for. I will not sit idly and let it happen again. Finally, he slashed the swords in front of him and returned his own roar. Though less mighty, it still resounded and gave his signal that he was ready to battle.
Grey Bergman: “That thing…is the Warden?!” Brandt asked in complete shock as he, Grey, and Shadow stared up at the Construct with widened eyes. “How…? When…?”
“No time to worry about that now!” Grey said as she mounted Shadow. “Stonegit and Yun are trapped inside, and we need to find a way to get them out. Lila is going to take care of Vidar, and we have to distract this thing.”
“How do you propose we do that?” Brandt asked as he followed his wife and got on Shadow’s back behind Grey. 
“We’ll have to try to reach her,” Grey said. “Let’s go, girl!” 
Shadow crooned in response and took off into the sky. It reminded both Grey and Shadow of Midgardsormr’s trial…how they flew up to the Dragon God to try to reason with him. The Construct had to be 40…50 feet tall, and it made the Chief realize just how small they were compared to it. She refused to back down. They were going to get Stonegit and Yun out of there. They had to. 
“Shadow, fire a plasma blast!” Grey said as a small purple flame formed in her hand. “Let’s get this thing’s attention!”
“Sorry, Nala…” Grey thought to herself. Her friend…one of her kids’ aunts was trapped inside, and they were essentially fighting her to save her. 
As soon as Shadow formed a fire ball in her mouth, both she and Grey fired at the Construct’s head. 
Milae/Construct/Yun: Across the Jaw, in the rear ranks of the rebels, Milae stumbled and put a hoof to his head, gritting his teeth. He felt the ghost of a draining energy he had encountered several times before, and for a moment, he panicked, unable to fight it off without the protection of Valhalla–but it suddenly dawned on him. It wasn’t actually happening to him. He looked across the Jaw, at the glowing ribcage nestled in the belly of the beast. 
The demon snapped its head in the direction of the opening portal, but as soon as its blinding red light moved, it blinked and shuddered as an explosion of smoke and violet fire bloomed around its face. It moved through the blast, trailing water and ash as its throat expanded and it let out a mechanical scream. 
Wood and stone and brick shattered and flew at high speed as the construct suddenly blurred into motion, running on all fours like a Monstrous Nightmare scrambling with its winged claws. It tore across half the Jaw in several strides, chasing after the swift Night Fury that had gotten its attention.
One of its limbs slammed down right in front of the Warden’s original body, which flared with violent purple light, and with a swift, prepared slice, the Arbiter slashed her swords upwards and chopped off half of the monster’s foot, which made it trip and forced it to slow. It scrambled and then kicked its rear limbs above its head, twisting its middle body around to land back on all fours. The area where the Arbiter stood glowed bright red with a furious gaze, but the construct also flashed back and forth to the dragons that had begun to swoop around its head. A section of its lower face split and dropped, and a large pulse of energy began to hum and spool up within as it decided between targets.
Miraculously, the Bookkeeper somehow managed to hang on between all of these maneuvers. The rotating of the demon’s body had him on the backside of the construct now, and he made his way to the very first set of cagelike ribs. The light inside shifted and cast a dark shadow over him as the single conscious figure inside noticed him, moved overhead and stuck a soaking wet tattooed arm out through the elaborate swirling bars, reaching for him with clawed fingers. “Jin!” Yun yelled, voice shrill with terror and pain. “Jin, help! She’s feeding on us!!” 
Grey Bergman: “Take hold of Shadow’s reigns,” Grey said as she stood up and maneuvered herself so that she was standing behind Brandt on Shadow’s back. “I’m going to keep our friend busy.” 
“Be careful,” Brandt called to her as he scooted forward and grabbed onto Shadow’s reigns trying to keep the Night Fury balanced so that his wife wouldn’t go flying off. 
“Shadow, fire another blast when ready, girl!” Grey shouted. 
The Night Fury crooned and opened her mouth ready to fire another blast at the head while Grey used both hands to create purple flames. 
“Ready…ready…fire!” the Chief shouted. With that, both the Chief and the Night Fury fired their respective blasts at the Construct yet again. 
Stonegit Elmiss/Hel: The ringing…
The muted sounds of chaos…
“Wake up.”
Stonegit opened his eyes, a red haze surrounding him as the garbled war cries filled his ears. And he could feel it. He could feel Nala suffering, and his strength getting sapped away. Channeling into…
He closed his eyes. He had been a fool. So much of what he had done had been for Liam, and Nala. But it had also been for him. It was never supposed to go this far, and subsequently get this bad. He turned about in the red void, not sure how much of what he saw was in his mind, or his actual physical presence. He could see traces of her presence, and his hands reached out, trying to connect with her, help her.
Stonegit’s fingers brushed along a broken circular sigil, and Rhenco’s face flashed behind his eyes, his hand tearing away at the constructs of Nala’s mind and spirit.
“I sought to tell her myself…but my granddaughter did not seek me out…”
“This was the sigil you gave her when you mandating that she protect us…” Stonegit murmured. “Is that why this is happening now?”
“No…despite what many may have thought. My order to Nala…it was never mandated. I put that sigil there as nothing more than a place holder. If your Warden had actually tried to resist it, she could have broken it as easily as that human did. I made it that way in case she ever doubted her own goodness and well intentions for you…”
Stonegit gave a push against the, what felt like, spiritual level of restraints surrounding him. “I thought you said you’d never talk to me again…why now?”
“I do what I want.”
And with that she was gone. Stonegit mulled over the words, the information. Why would she bother to tell him that? Why now, when it would make no difference. He blinked. Maybe it did…even if it was just a little bit.
He lifted his head as he thrust his contract carved hand upwards. “Woodchuck!” He yelled, still unsure how much of what was happening around him was mind or body. “You were never bound by anything other than yourself! Good or bad, you always chose! And when it looked like you couldn’t, you found a way!”
Stonegit, unsure if it was even possible, began to channel all his might into ripping back his contract from Vidar’s control. “Choose me Woodchuck! Choose me and come back home!”
And you… Stonegit hurled his mind toward Vidar. Maybe nothing would happen, maybe he’d just have the whispered feeling of Stonegit’s thoughts. But he put it put there never the less. Get away from MY catalyst! As far as I’m concerned, you and I are still fighting!
With one of the feet cut, he turned to be face to face with nala. Watching as she charged up an attack from her mouth. He watched as people swayed on her chest and knew he had to keep her attention. He held both the swords in one hand before grabbing a boulder and pelting it up at her. Returning the sword to his hand he moved nimbly around her, doing his best to keep her attention. The red light of her gaze occasionally lighting him up.
Dario Hjort: Please don’t be too late, please don’t be too late, please don’t be too late…
Dario’s head continued to throb from the last incantation – it was one he had never actually used in any practical sense, and only received lessons on how to properly perform it. He was stunned that it had worked at all, let alone well. The temporary pain in his head couldn’t deter him from helping to accomplish what an entire Rebellion set out to accomplish.
Though they could see the monstrous entity from their current point, it was still going to be a bit before they reached the chaos that was ensuing around and below it’s immense form. The stag huffed heavily as his hooves thrust against the ground below, with his partner’s own falling quieter and quieter as time went on. He stopped quickly, nearly skidding to turn and call out to Milae.
“Hey, you good back there?”
Milae: As Dario stopped, Milae did as well, several paces behind him, pinning the haft of the glaive into the mud and bending over with a hoof against his knees. His throat was swollen and his lungs felt shallow, and he couldn’t get rid of the draining feeling that he felt in the core, though he still couldn’t explain it. As the stag turned back to face him, Milae stumbled forward and caught his arm, squeezing it while he pointed to the demon and gasped for air.
“I need…to get…”
Dario: He could feel the goat’s discomfort radiating off of him, and as Milae grabbed hold of Dario’s arm, the deer hunched himself down to meet his partner’s level. He placed a hand on the back of Milae’s neck and his other on his right arm. He immediately noticed the trembling of a very exhausted caprinae, and began rubbing his neck to try and foster some calm.
“Hey, hey… just focus on breathing. I know it’s hard, but you’ve got this.” He angled the goat’s face upward to open his airway, taking advantage of the moment to land a quick kiss. “I’ve got an idea.”
Dario shuffled himself around, allowing the goat to wrap his arms around his neck. He stood slowly, adjusting Milae’s weight and holding his legs in place.
“This will be easier. You need all the strength you can muster for whatever is coming next.”
He took off once again, taking great care to not throw his weight down too much as he ran. They were ever closer to meeting up with the rest of the group forming in greater numbers, and he wanted to get there as fast as they could.
Gods, please give us a win on this one. 
The Construct: Another explosion around its head and the construct had decided on its target. Shadow’s wings lit up with dark veins as the light blasted from behind her, and a rumbling repeated hum that grew in volume and pitch. But the projectile that rocketed upwards from the ground clipped its chin, and as soon as the beam lit up, it shot straight into the stormclouds above, creating several misty halos, and then as the construct recorrected, it swung its head down in an arc and the fiery arc of energy swept through the top of one of Fenrir’s canines, and it began to slide and fall down to crash to the buildings below in a cloud of dusty ivory.
The beam flickered and powered back down, and the Warden screamed again, lifting to stand on its rear legs and tower higher over the Jaw, thoroughly disoriented and furious.
Juro: Hearing that old name caught him off guard for a moment, but Juro quickly shook it off. He knew that was what he referred to himself in the timeline where Yun was from, so he pushed the intrusive thought away and turned his attention back to the terrified time jumper.
Yun saw a scruffier, thicker, more battle-worn Jin lean closer to meet him with a calloused hand, gently touching the palm of his hand with his fingers; he could tell there was a difference, but despite that– their eyes. It was the same, ancient amber that glowed softly in the storm. 
“Hey kid. Time to get you out of there, yeah?” Juro said with a lopsided grin, before letting his gaze travel all around the enclosure that caged the two men, pulsing the fiery demon red as it drained their energies. He brought his hand towards the light filled space tentatively, unsure if he himself would get affected in the same way if he got any closer.
Virion crooned invisibly from where it followed them in zigzags, avoiding the construct but staying as close as it could. It rippled again, and this time spat out a curious sword, dark as night but still shining brightly, its straight, simple edges catching the red light from the construct at the right angles. It threw it towards Juro, who caught it with one hand.
The Bookkeeper stopped himself, looking back at his golem incredulously, “That boy’s meteor sword? Are you serious, Vir?!” The air rippled again in an uncertain shrug, and Juro sighed under his breath, muttering something about not wanting to waste such a valuable payment from the Water Tribe; nevertheless, he relented.
“One sec, kid,” he adjusted his grip, making sure to avoid where Yun and Stonegit were, hoping and praying that it would work. Right as he swung to hit it, however, the construct reared itself, and Juro was swung violently around; he dug his fingers and heels into where he stood– he couldn’t afford to slip now.
–
Libulan: Frost climbed up the pillars of a taller building, before exploding into shards of ice, through which the First Prince leapt through, returning immediately from his quick side quest for the Commander. He appeared right beside was Dario was running with Milae on his back, unfortunately, and caught the deer half breed in surprise.
Libulan recognized them from the portal train and immediately caught them in a cold wave of water, and the couple picked up speed very quickly as the nix brought them along with him, riding on the rising water levels and popping through portals, getting closer to the construct that was Nala.
Yun/The Construct: Yun’s hand shot out and grabbed Juro by the neck of his shirt, crying out as his entire arm strained to keep the Bookkeeper from falling. Juro was unaffected by Nala’s attention for now, but that only seemed to be a small blessing.
The construct had neared some end of its patience. The demon stretched its head up towards the heavens, and every limb and rib and spine on its body clicked rapidly and shivered as a noise echoed across the land…but it wasn’t heard with people’s ears. It was heard with their minds. It was a voice they knew, but nobody recognized the heavy, dead, bassy cadence with which it spoke.
S U B M I T
A translucent scarlet tidal wave rolled out from the Warden’s new body, encasing the Jaw in a matter of seconds. In Yun’s eyes, Juro saw a dramatic change from tear-filled and panicked to blank with a scarlet gleam. Yun’s inked fingers uncurled from his tight grip on Juro and his arm fell to his side as he stared straight ahead out at the pouring rain. Nearer to the construct’s feet, Nio grabbed either side of their hat and fell to their knees, wearing the same expression as their ice collapsed around them, and though Milae had little way of showing it, he too went limp over Dario’s shoulder.
Kendra braced an arm against the wave that struck her and the dragon, and though her senses threatened to be overwhelmed, she managed to sit upright again, blinking at the monster in shock. Liam was the same on the ground, shaking off the influence he was so used to through his life, and he desperately hooked his claws into the roof tiles of a house nearby and jumped to its peak, holding the chimney to keep him stable. “Nala, stop!!” he begged, as loud as he could, with both his lungs and whatever mental connection he could try to foster with his guardian. 
Grey/Brandt: The red haze shot out of the construct’s body. 
“GREY!” Brandt shouted.
There was no time to react as the red haze seemed to hit the Chief, her husband, and the Night Fury square in the face. All of a sudden her body felt like lead, and she couldn’t hear or see. It was all red and silent. She couldn’t see Shadow or Brandt or even the Construct anymore… She was all alone. She had never experienced anything like it since she sacrificed herself to save Shadow during the Trial by Fire. It was almost as if she was floating…but she didn’t know which way was up, down, or sideways. 
“Brandt…” she thought to herself. “Brandt! Shadow! Where are you?”
“Grey!” Brandt thought as he experienced the same thing. He couldn’t hear or see his wife or her Night Fury. It was almost as if he was spirit that was floating about, but where was he going. 
—-
From down below, those who were able to shake the red haze…could easily see the Chief, her husband, and the Night Fury falling to the ground. 
[AUTHOR'S NOTE: hubwalker1's reply was here, however, it is being delayed for clarity's sake.]
Dario: Dario had no time to stop himself from being instantly impacted by the sudden wave that emanated from the towering being. He dropped himself down to one knee, unsure of whether he need to brace for what was about to happen, but as the force passed through him, he barely felt more than a light rush in his head. It was… familiar.
Watching the remaining energy distribute behind him, he could feel a goat slipping down his spine, falling backwards onto the ground beneath them. He spun as quickly as a swift motion would allow, and pulled Milae’s body upright into a sitting position. He watched as his partner slumped forward, seemingly unable to comprehend what had just occurred. The stag grabbed Milae’s face in both hands, placing his own face just inches from the caprinae’s.
“Milae, hey, look- look at me, what’s happening?” Though he wasn’t necessarily unconscious, there was no outward response on his face. Not a muscle moved in Milae’s entire body, and the lack of response shook Dario’s core. “Gods, fuck. FUCK!”
He pushed himself with all the force he could muster back to his feet, swinging Milae over his shoulder with strength he wasn’t previously aware he could generate. With whatever just happened, there was no chance that Milae was the only one impacted by it. Knowing that the goat was still alive was enough for now; grouping with others and not being alone in the open was the only logical move from here.
By pure happenstance, as the stag turned to run further towards the entity that caused this, he could see the distant tumble of two Rebellion members and their dragon.
Odin… we’re fucked.
Akkey: It was like hitting a wall of ice head on; except the ice was dark and bright simultaneously. One moment, Akkey was charging straight for one of the construct’s smaller limbs, then the next moment she had fallen, like a switch was flipped and turned her off.
It was orange… No. It wasn’t. It was Nala, she knew– but it was beyond orange. It was red. Angry, neon, and bloody; it wasn’t anything like back then. It trapped her, raged against her, forced her down to her knees, succumbing her in her mind, tightly binding her until she couldn’t see or hear or breathe; and yet she felt everything. It was screaming at her– a valkyrie, a goddess, ferocious, wild snapping teeth of a wolf-! The demon! 
The red flared again.
Nala, help me… please! 
The strength in her all but disappeared as she slid downwards, hand only feebly grabbing empty air for a hold. Eyes blank, tears spilling over her cheeks; she tumbled down a limb as the construct roared.
–
The Nixes: The Rebellion started dropping like dolls. A haze of red washed over Libulan and Azul, and for a moment they both faltered. Azul fell to her knees, feeling unnaturally heavy in her head, but she fought to keep her eyes open with a vigorous shake.
“The Chief!” a rebel cried beside her. She glanced up, and through her blurry vision she saw the Chief, her husband, and the Night Fury falling dangerously fast towards the ground. 
“Azul! Catch them!” Libulan called out, faring better than his aide did. She complied with a grunt, mustering up all her strength and throwing both of her hands up in fists, sending a very thick tendril of water towards the Felmans. It widened tremendously, and with an unceremonious splash all humans and dragons fell into the deep pool that was suspended in the air. Her arms dropped as the dragon’s weight made it difficult to hold them up. They broke through the bottom of the makeshift pool, but now they fell at a considerably slower pace, landing in the soft mud, bruised, unconscious, but safe. Azul fell to her hands and knees, the sounds of battle dull, but still conscious.
Immediately after Libulan’s order, he sped towards the construct, skating on the frozen ground, dodging Conclave and Rebellion soldiers alike. He sent a wave of water of a house and froze it, launching himself up in the air and clearing a good amount of distance between himself and the construct.
He landed on the tip of a wide pillar, balancing himself with agility that could rival Akkey’s; the moment his bare feet touched surface, his pulled his leg in a wide circle around him, activating a studied stance as he threw his arms up and around towards their current enemy. 
The flooded water below him rushed towards Nala in a massive torrent, taking many, many Conclave soldiers with it, roaring and engulfing the construct up until its pelvis. Libulan pulled his arms into an X in front of him; and the water froze immediately in enormous, immobilizing spikes all on one side, exactly in the moment Jari’s  attack hit.
–
Juro: “Ki–!” The word didn’t even manage to leave Juro’s lips as he was knocked back, his foot and hand hold on Nala all but gone, fingers slipping from Yun’s. The amber in his eyes disappeared, leaving a crack across his glasses, he fell away from the construct unconscious. Virion immediately warped and appeared below the Bookkeeper, suspending him in its true form, a bird-like creature, with a long neck and beak, six dark black eyes with three on each side of its small head, and feathered wings peppered with a ten foot wingspan and a blue and white pattern. 
It caught Juro by the back of his robe, a harsh caw escaping it as it tried to wake its master up.
Chains wrapped around his limbs when he opened his eyes. Or it wasn’t even his eyes, he knew that. Darkness spread to his left and right, front and back; he knew immediately where he was. He pulled against a chain; it pulled back. “No. No. No no no no no not now! Let me go! Let me go back! I need to wake up!”
There was one snapping sound. Then another. And another. And another, all overlapping closely against each other. 
Snap.
“J? Are you alright?! No.. no no no… not this again! J, you can’t do this again!”
Snap.
“Your Majesty? What’s wrong? He’s not waking up! Is it the Library? What happened to the chains?!”
Snap.
“Jin! Hey, wake up! What the fuck happened to you? This isn’t funny… Jin? Jin!? JIN?!”
Snap.
Stonegit: Everything was still a haze. A fog. A mystery as to how awake he truly was, and how much of this was a fever dream…
And yet he still reached out. Sought to feel her presence. Looked for that thrumming heart and prison he saw her in…
Nala… Stonegit’s scarred hand searched outward, hoping beyond hope that the lines on the back of his palm would once again light up with the glow of her possession. I still can feel it…your hurt…his gain through this… It was wrong. It was vile. How dare he take something that they held so dear, and use it like this. 
He looked at his hands and arms. One was burnt, second degree, nothing even natural healing wouldn’t be able to handle. The other was burnt the same way, but also broken. Not beyond movement, but it ached. Badly. Stonegit drew a shuddering breath. He had to wake her up. Had to get her to focus on him. 
His magic power had been pushed with that last punch. But he could muster more. He could get her attention. He could break this hold. Or at least…he could try.
The fumes of gas and magic began for form around his arms again, and he gritted his teeth as he focused on building it up. You don’t have to listen to anyone Nala. Not me. Not Hel. Not Vidar. So I’ll be damned if I let you feel trapped like this. Everyone was fighting so hard on the outside. He had to do something from within. The vapors continued to build. 
By Frigga, Loki and Odin’s great beard….this is going to fucking hurt…
Jari/Changeling: Jari was mid jump as it happened. She winced as she landed, the shock helping her shake off the Construct’s influence. “Changling give me a sitrep, what the fuck just happened.”
“A lot of us just went down.” They replied. “Your brother included… And your aunt.” A tugging feeling pulled her gaze towards the plummeting dragon.
Time seemed to freeze as she started to think as fast as she could. Working out possible theories and solutions she could try out. Even with some additional brain power from her partner it was difficult as blood began to trickle out of her nose, her breath was quick and shallow. “I’ve got something.” She said as she began dashing across the roofs at a much faster pace now. “If I can break her concentration, get her focused on me I might be able to break her hold on them. I’m gonna need some help on this, love.”
She ran from roof to roof to roof, in leaps and bounds, taking seconds to cross each one. Finally she jumped from one building all the way to the Construct, grabbing on to it’s side. “Now!” She called through the link. The Changling cut the connection from all the other soldiers, only maintaining theirs and Jari’s, pouring as much power as they could into the Half-breed as arc energy began to pour out of her body and into the Construct’s, giving it all she could, consequences be damned. 
The Construct: Waves crashed, sky thundered, people screamed. The first jitters of electricity snapped up the construct’s legs as Jari channeled her everything into stopping the assault on the Rebels, and the Warden began to twist and jerk in response, as the metal-based construct reacted to the thousands of volts traveling through its body. The red fog that permeated the stormy air began to pull away, and people snapped to consciousness, crying out with new injuries and fear from their unnatural lapse in attention. Yun sucked in a huge breath and lurched forward to grip the bars to keep himself upright, his suddenly-clear eyes darting around in a panic. Beside him, Stonegit was breathing heavily, clenching his fists; Yun smelled the familiar gas.
“Jin? Jin!?”
Milae kicked in shock and suddenly latched onto Dario. Nio blinked and immediately roared as they felt a cold blade pierce their gut, pulling all of the available water and rain inwards towards themselves in a thousand shining daggers and shredding the opportunistic Conclave soldiers standing around them as they cupped their bleeding belly, filling it with ice.
Liam still felt entirely numb despite being unaffected by Nala’s attack; his mouth was agape as he watched Jari slam into her and every muscle in her body shine with electricity. The monstrous being was trying to turn and face its many new attackers, but its head was jittering oddly and it was making several repeated motions with its limbs. Above Liam, the Stormcutter raced past his head, and he heard his sister’s shrill cry as she aimed directly for the construct. 
“NO!”
A cascade of writhing water encased the demon’s lower body, and then lightning and liquid met in a blinding display of sparks. Then the lightning jumped to the ribcage, and the tendrils suddenly blazed as they struck something else.
Everything collided and the blazing white light from the mix of reflectiveness, energy, and magic shone for miles in a cascade of psychedelic pearls and pinks and golds, rolling outwards like a cloud. The blast was felt as a wave of both heat and cold, with a thousand particulates rolling past every mortal in the area like coarse sandpaper. In the whiteness, a black silhouette could be seen, loosely swaying back and forth with its head tilted skyward, for several breathless moments. The light flickered and glittered as it faded, almost like snow drifting to the ground, and then the construct slowly began to crumple at the knees, falling vertically downwards as though gravity had finally demanded its formerly impossible law upon its massive limbs.
***
The Warden: Nalaagura Ep’ha screamed with no voice as pure, raw energy blistered around her, and it hurt, she wanted to tell it all to stop, she wanted it to end, but she knew she deserved this, she had deserved every blow against her for what she had done–and suddenly, it all blew outwards and released. She opened her eyes and collected her essence in sudden being, looking at her hands in shock.
The burn around her wrist was slowly melting away, the diabolical inscriptions twisting and blurring until they were unrecognizable. But then, her essence itself began to do the same, bending back past her, and as she looked over her shoulder, she saw the dreaded artifact where it used to lie, only now, it hovered menacingly in a rolling twist of void. Its aura was now magnetic, and instead of deadening the world around her, it began to pull violently.
She refused. She refused to go out in a mere snuff after everything everyone had put themselves through. Death was an unknown to her. It would continue to be, for as long as she had the ability to resist.
The demon of wrath threw her arms and claws out of her newly broken prison, scrambling for anything, everything that would give her strength. They dragged along the fabric of reality as her very being vibrated in a new, rebellious voice.
Her claws snagged on something. Nala’s eyes widened.
A scarred, bruised, bleeding hand, with an old sigil carved into it.
The Warden pulled with all her might, and everything went white.
***
The final debris and dust settled out of the air, helped along by the rain, which was slowing its torrential downpour, and as people tilted their heads to behold the construct, which had nearly ended everyone’s lives, they saw that it was standing broken and lifeless in the center of a massive ice sculpture. Its limbs were slack and its face was empty and devoid of light. The only thing holding it upright was a huge icicle piercing through its dark, broken ribcage.
Akkey/Juro: It was a like a vacuum sucked everything out then rushed back into place, like a bright bulb that was suddenly turned on, chains and fire disappearing. 
Akkey and Juro gasped where they were, one on the ground and the other in the air. They both looked wildly at the construct above them, now calm amidst the rain. And they saw it at the same time.
Blood ran cold, and two screams pierced the air.
Injuries forgotten, Akkey swept the ground with an arm and shot herself up to land on the icicle, exactly as Virion folded into itself again and disappeared, Juro landing nimbly right beside her.
“Stonegit!”   “Kid!”
The Warden: It was almost despairingly dark and empty inside of the cage that held the construct’s human fuel, but as Akkey helped chip away the icicle to peer inside, they saw two battered, broad shoulders hunched over and facing the demon’s innards, and though it was obviously cut and bruised from taking the brunt of falling against the massive shard of ice, they were moving with breath. Alive.
Stonegit stirred, and from underneath his arm, a tousled head of black hair was revealed, the first feature revealed of someone semiconscious but also breathing. The bodyguard uncurled his arms from around Yun and shook his head free of ash, debris and frost, squinting up at Akkey and Juro with his signature lazy eye. His unharmed eye was mostly clear, and they could see his pupil was unnaturally thin.
“Rabbit-kind?” he said woozily.
Akkey/Juro: Akkey blinked, not expecting him to answer her like that at all. She leaned against a broken rib for support, holding out a hand for him to hold, “N-Nala…? Are you alright?” she was almost too afraid to ask.
Juro ignored the other two; they were none of his business. He grabbed Yun by the forearm without waiting, pulling him upright and holding him up against his side. His kind eyes were unusually and unnervingly glaring; he pulled his glasses away roughly, intent on walking him out to fresh air. The Bookkeeper’s grip on the Time Jumper was hard.
The Warden/Yun: The most reaction that Yun was able to muster was a slight, tearful exhale, his fingers weakly tangling into Juro’s clothing. The Warden watched the Bookkeeper help him out of the gaping hole, and then she shifted Stonegit’s eyes back to Akkey, gathering her bearings.
“I…I think so…” She put his hand to his forehead, rubbing it clumsily and then looking at it when she realized it was twinging because it was broken. Everything felt extremely dissociate and distant. “He must not be awake…we should…take him to a healer.”
Liam’s feet hurt with how hard they were pounding towards the silent, smoking construct above him, leaving oily footprints behind him as he shed his shadows. While he headed in that direction, he nearly tore his throat out yelling, “Dad! Kendra!!” 
Grey/Brandt: The red haze cleared, and as soon as it did, Grey took a deep breath and jolted awake before she suddenly cringed in pain. Her body didn’t feel like lead anymore, but it felt littered with bruises. She quickly noticed that she was lying on the ground on her back staring at the sky, and she slowly sat up looking that the unmoving construct with its gaping hole. It all came back to her, and she turned to see…her husband and her Night Fury on the ground beside her coming to as well. 
“Brandt! Shadow!” she shouted as she crawled over to her husband. 
Brandt looked up at the sound of his wife’s voice. It felt like it had been ages since he heard it no matter how frantic it sounded, and he wasted no time gathering her into his arms. “I’m here,” he said. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m okay…I’m okay,” she said hugging him as tightly as she could. “Are you okay?” She pulled away taking his face into her hands.
“I’m okay, I promise,” he said gently before kissing her hand. 
That wasn’t good enough for Grey as she suddenly brought his lips to hers kissing him…only to be interrupted by Shadow, who nuzzled them both.
“Oh, Shadow!” Grey said hugging Shadow and keeping Brandt close to her. “Are you okay?”
Shadow crooned and nuzzled Grey’s cheek. 
“Let’s never do that again…” Brandt said with a smile.
“I’m totally fine with that,” Grey said placing her forehead against Brandt’s. 
Dario: Dario had approached dangerously close to the antagonizing being, watching different avenues of sedation, or attempts at such, take place. His eyes looked up as the fog dissipated in a seemingly ominous departure. The sudden grasp of Milae onto him caused his run to slow considerably, but without a full stop he maneuvered the goat back onto his back, careful not to distract from his end goal. His gaze caught the sight of a dragon carrying a familiar duo of father and daughter with impending impact straight into the beast, along with the image of a young half-breed watching the same in awe out of his peripheral vision.
“Lia-”
The sudden eruption of light and pressure had hit before Dario could even fathom avoiding it. In an instant, he threw himself and Milae to the ground and surrounded the goat with his own body, not knowing if this blast would send the pair flying. The feeling of varying temperatures against his skin was overwhelming, and it didn’t take long before his surroundings fell silent once more. The onset of rain against his skin was almost… refreshing. He situated his body in a way to observe Milae, who was now somewhat responsive and seemingly coherent. Without losing a single moment, the goat returned to his position on Dario’s back, and the deer stood back on his feet and continued towards the last place he could remember seeing the eldest Arnason child. Though it seemed as if the being posed no more threat to the Rebellion, Dario remained cautiously aware of it. There was no telling what would come next.
He could hear the strained cries of Liam Arnason in the distance, and followed until he could see the young half-breed sprinting into the ruins. Dario picked up his pace to get himself into close enough proximity before calling out.
“Liam, I can help, please! Don’t get yourself too close-”
He wasn’t sure if his words were heard – Liam kept running, as the stag knew he would. He maintained a safe distance behind, ready to aid if something were to transpire. He could still hear the frustrated, tired yelling out of a young man’s mouth; a plea in a tone that was almost foreign coming from Liam.
You two… please, Gods, just be alright.
The Changeling: The Changling rushed into the jaw faster than humanly possible. Their connection had gotten scrambled from the explosion of energy, but now they knew exactly where she was. They’d taken on a Pookan form and designed their body to be as quick as could be. They slid to their knees next to Jari, only a couple of feet from the construct. They quickly checked her over both visually and a scan of her body. They sighed in relief as they realized she was breathing, but she was absolutely exhausted. That relief quickly turned to rage. They quickly connected to the rest of the Conclave soldiers, straining themselves to do so. “I suggest you all surrender. Because if any of you want to keep fighting after this I will personally come to each of you and rip you limb from fucking limb.” Their voice had started calm, but quickly turned into a snarl, each soldier feeling the absolute, unbridled rage that was boiling inside them.
Firkugaan: Firkugaan had been knelt on the ground from the mental waves, swords held in the ground. He stood slowly and trudged over to the head of the downed monster. Searching for anyone, all he could hear and see and feel was chaos. He needed someone he knew, and with Nala out of the titan she had to be somewhere. But the wave and resultant chaos had disoriented him. A strong negative energy was flowing to the armies, chases were happening with dragonback. He chose to focus his mind so he may understand clearly, so he focused on the face of the beast, falling to his knees and staring into its dead, hollow eyes. He reached out and placed a hand on it speaking words between himself and nobody in particular, may you never be unleashed again.
His tired mind began to search for Nala’s presence. Another chorus of shouts was heard, but he tried his best to find her as he knelt, his eyes closed to try not to cause distraction.
The Warden/Liam: Between the massive explosion, the Changeling’s snarl, and the reinvigorated rebels, the Conclave slowly began to back away down the streets, away from the destruction and chaos left behind after the construct’s rampage. They had little place to go, however, and the Rebellion began to tidy up their work, hijacking dragons and taking to the sky to intimidate the leftovers into surrendering groups.
The Warden barely brushed against the Arbiter’s mind to let him know that she persisted in life, but she was too exhausted to do much more than that. With Akkey’s help, she led Stonegit’s body down after Yun and Juro, and upon reaching the ground, she fell to his knees, breathing deeply as Stonegit’s injuries wore on her as well. I’m sorry, she murmured, trying to stand again.
Liam finally found a flicker of his family’s minds, and he sought them out by taking a hard right, plunging his paws into a pile of rubble that used to be a shop and hurling boards aside, letting firelight shine into the debris and revealing the dragon mostly curled around his sister and his father. Kendra was sitting upright with Vox, scrubbing her face with her forearm as tears ran thick and fast. Her leg was at an awkward angle underneath her. Liam threw himself down to her side and carefully held both her arms before rapidly signing, What happened? Where does it hurt?
No… She shook her head, indicating that her distress didn’t come from her injuries, and she pointed at the Stormcutter behind them. After watching for a moment, Liam saw that its sides were still, and it didn’t move. It had died on impact with the ground, but its positioning had ensured that she and Vox had lived through the crash. Her lower lip trembled as she tried not to sob at the sight, and Liam let out a ragged breath and hugged her head close to his chest, rubbing her back. As he rested his chin on her head, he peeked at Vox with wet eyes, making a half-smile, half-grimace that indicated that though things felt bad, he was glad they were okay.
Vox: Though his body ached from the sudden impact, there was no pain greater than watching his daughter grieve the dragon’s sacrifice. Vox returned Liam’s expression with one of his own – there was mutual understanding, even in it’s unfortunate timing. The scout reached out his hand to cradle the chins of each of his children, looking into their still fearful eyes. Absence of danger didn’t relieve them; only time could do that now.
I’m so proud of both of you. His signing was slow, but deliberate. This isn’t going to be okay for a while, and I want you to feel everything you do right now. Be angry, be upset…
He felt his eyes well up, but fought to suppress what he could.
…but promise me that you will be hopeful as well.
–
Dario: The pair of half-breeds were not far behind Liam, and arrived just as he completed his frantic scattering of debris to reveal the two relatively unharmed Arnasons. Though he could tell the duo were feeling the full impact of their crash, seeing Kendra’s distress at the loss of the brave and selfless Stormcutter tore at his heartstrings.
Placing Milae carefully down near the three family members, as he was still coming back to grips with the past few moments, Dario crouched next to Liam, instinctually placing a hand on his back. He could feel the heavy air of grief filling each of their lungs, and his hand gently rubbed as comforting as it could. 
“Let me know if you two are okay to move.” He signed as he softly spoke, taking note of Kendra’s potentially limiting injury. “Though it seems like the worst might be behind us, I don’t want to keep you two here in case I’m wrong.”
Liam/Kendra/Milae: Liam sniffed and held still for a moment, and then leaned into Dario’s shoulder with his forehead, his face contorted further by grief.
“Yeah…I have…I have to find…” His throat stuck. Who was he kidding?  “Whatever’s…left of Nala.” The words sounded too far away to him; he could hardly believe he was saying them. It would settle in soon. He wiped his cheek on his shoulder and looked to Kendra. Can you get up? 
Kind of. She shifted her weight and immediately cried out, grabbing Vox’s shoulder for support. Milae, leaning on his glaive behind them, looked around at the area, and then spotted a few figures in the distance and briefly gripped Dario’s arm, indicating that he would be just a few yards away, before slowly starting down the street, using his weapon as a walking stick.
Grey/Brandt: As soon as Grey, Brandt, and Shadow recollected themselves, Grey immediately shifted focus. Knowing that her husband and dragon were okay made it easier to shift back into “Chief mode,” so as she grabbed Brandt’s hand as they stood up, she looked around. She and Brandt shivered as the wind blew on their soaking wet clothes and hair.
The Chief made a mental note to ask why they were so soaking wet later, but for now, she had her comrades to worry about, especially her nieces and nephew. Once she saw that Changling was taking care of Jari, she found Vox, Liam, Kendra, Dario, and Milae nearby. They immediately ran over to help despite Grey’s body protesting and throbbing in pain. 
“Is everyone okay?” Grey asked as they met up with their comrades. 
Juro: Juro tried to bring Yun away from the now unmoving construct, but the time traveler had no more to give, so with a single smooth movement, he wrapped his arms around his waist to lift him as Virion brought them down. They landed a little apart from the small group of rebels that had already started to gather, leaning Yun against a large piece of rubble, eyes still flashing in the moonlight.
It was a few seconds before Juro could respond as he knelt before him. His brows furrowed heavily, and he brought one hand up to pass over Yun’s face and torso, hovering enough that he didn’t make contact. He reached in certain recesses of his mind, then the Bookkeeper’s hand glowed, shifting blue, then white, then gold. At first there was nothing, then Yun very slowly began to feel a little lighter, better. The Bookkeeper was… healing him.
Juro sighed, ancient magi disappearing, then spoke in a low, tired voice, “What are you doing here Y– kid…”
–
Akkey: Akkey had tried to assist Nala in bringing Stonegit’s body down to ground level with a wave, but the demon still collapsed in the mud.
“Nala! Stones…” the nix rushed to support the demon and bodyguard. Her hands hovered wildly; it was always in moments like these, where it was time to heal instead of wound, when she felt the most helpless.
She looked around frantically for help. Rebels were coming closer, and she spotted familiar faces– Grey, Liam, Arbiter, and–
“–Dario!” she choked back a sob as she felt Nala sink lower, the bodyguard’s frame leaning heavily against her own small one, “Stonegit… and Nala… Somebody help them!”
Dario: The familiar voice forced Dario’s head to swing in her direction, and the sight of a visibly distraught Akkey pushed Dario to sprint as quickly as he could to the group. As he approached, he could see her feebly gripping to the body of a familiar man, though not one who’s name he could immediately place had she not said his name.
“Alright, okay, Akkey… let’s lower him down over here… yes, that’s perfect, good job.” He leaned over the frail human, and made observations of what may have transpired. “You said… Nala? Is she?…”
There wasn’t any time for an explanation. He looked over Stonegit’s body once more, taking note of his most severe injury – a very darkened, broken arm. While his other was by no means in good shape, this one couldn’t wait to be repaired. It would be beyond his own experience in healing, but this wasn’t a moment for doubt. Feeling Akkey tremble closely to him, he took her hand in his own right and gave it a tight squeeze. With his other, he motioned it over the man’s arm, speaking an incantation with a hoarse and deeper voice than he was accustomed to; the physical demands of the day had taken their toll on the deer as well.
Léttu guðunum og endurheimtu þetta líf, því heimurinn getur ekki haldið áfram án þín.
The arm took some time to show any difference under the glow of gold that emanated from the stag’s hand, but in time, Dario and Akkey could see the colors adjust to a more normal hue. The distorted bone formation slowly, and likely painfully, shifted audibly – the sounds grated against the ears of anyone close enough to hear it. The deer kept his eyes shut tightly, concentrating all of his abilities into fixing this. Though he wasn’t sure the likelihood, he wanted to believe having Akkey’s hand in his own was providing it’s own energy to get all of them through this.
Before too long, he opened his eyes slowly, seeing the arm in a modest degree of normalcy. It still appeared somewhat battered, but most certainly more usable than moments before. His eyes wandered, and took note that much of the rest of his body had resumed a fairly cohesive color as well – a byproduct of the incantation he showed the least confidence in, much to his own surprise. He sighed, resting an arm in front of him and leaning against it.
“I can do more, I just… need a second.”
The Warden/Milae: “No, please…” Nala gripped Dario’s wrist, meeting his eyes. She could feel Stonegit’s consciousness tugging at hers. “You have done plenty.”
From behind Dario, a smaller goat half-breed rushed forward and knelt on Stonegit’s other side, saying in a rush, “Warden, you need energy.”
“No–”
He gripped Stonegit’s hand with his hoof and looked Nala fiercely in the eye, and without saying anything more, he allowed her to feed on part of his consciousness, and she slowly regained strength bit by bit as she consumed memories of several worlds and people past that he could no longer travel to. As she did so, Milae looked across the field, his animal eyes landing on someone he had only met once before, but instantly recognized.
-
Yun: Yun slowly lifted a hand to his own stomach, feeling whatever had been bashed inside slowly repair and realign. He lifted his chin, his breathing labored, as he focused on the man above him. Inwardly, Milae’s memories told him that this wasn’t quite Jin, but…the assured feeling of comfort and safety he felt with him nearby was exactly the same. He grabbed Juro’s hand before it moved away.
“Cause…I couldn’t help you guys before…” he repeated quietly. “I’m helping you now.” He smiled faintly up at Juro, and then it dissolved into a worried frown. “I…I helped, right?”
Juro: It was the large eyes that stared up at him with fear and concern that seemingly knocked the wind out of him. His arm moved out of its own accord, and before he knew it he had the younger man wrapped underneath the sleeves of his robe in a familiar, tight embrace.
Juro quickly pulled back, like a hand to sizzling hot pan; his face morphed into something like a stranger, a shadow of his former self that he had chained up and locked away, never seeing the light of day for hundreds of years. 
It was only for a moment, but that felt like an eternity; this Jin… this Juro Jin that was the same yet so, so different. The lightheartedness, the optimism, the honesty… it didn’t exist. It was masked. buried deep beneath so many layers of secrets and pain.
The air hung tense, then Juro forcibly twisted his face back into a smile, that smile, laying a reassuring hand on Yun’s head, and said kindly, “You did, kid. More than you could ever know…” He meant it.
He got to his feet before Yun could even respond, twisting his head slightly in the direction of the small group that was crowded around the bodyguard. His eyes met with Milae’s.
Yun/Milae: “O-okay, cool…” Yun was nervous at the change he had seen, but still a bit too lightheaded from the hug to dwell on it. He watched as Milae slowly strode over to Juro, his goat muzzle quirking up in a wry grin as he looked at the Bookkeeper towering over him. He adjusted his hooves around the glaive and sighed, looking up at the construct.
“It seems that this was something neither of us could predict, was it?” he said in his odd Wildersouth accent. The entire experience had blown him away–Stonegit’s incursion, the construct living beneath the ground, the appearance of Juro and Yun himself. He craned his neck around to look at the boy, and Yun waved awkwardly, still sat in the damp earth. “You included.”
Juro: “You’re telling me…” Juro flicked his eyes between the two souls in some wry amusement. It was an interesting experience, to say the least. But still, he kept his distance, the back of his mind raced as he processed everything that happened in the short amount of time. 
***
Today was the Hina Matsuri in Nippon, the celebration of spring. It’d been a couple months since Juro left Haligan Island, taking some time off from Aidorin and wandering back to his home; although, truthfully, it was also partly in his attempt to avoid Yun Milae. An attachment to the goat was growing within him, and that was dangerous, especially for him, the Original Bookkeeper. The chains had already snapped twice.
So he left. And for weeks he was back to his old job, collecting stories and watching the world pass him by. Just as it had always been. But that day, while flipping through journal entries in the Library, he noticed something was off. Stable timelines fizzed for a moment, entries began to appear and disappear erratically. Juro sat up, his eyes flicked left to right quickly as he read.
“What the…” he squinted as the same certain event popped up in three separate timelines, “Fenrir’s Jaw… already? That shouldn’t be…” He lifted himself off of the banister upon which he sat, scanning documents and parchments for more logs on the battle. Blood and death; there was no good ending. So far.
“Virion… the Jaw.” The golem complied and opened a small portal to the south where the dead god’s bones laid, and Juro immediately heard the clanging of weapons and cries of soldiers.
“That’s impossible,” the Bookkeeper passed a hand over the opening, stretching it wider so he could see more. He couldn’t believe his eyes. It shouldn’t be now… There’s only been two accounts of this. It’s too early for–
He suddenly inhaled so sharply that his throat stung, his brows immediately creasing as he willed his golem to focus on two people trapped within a moving cage that glowed red. Th-that’s supposed to be just one person. Only the bodyguard… A chill went down his spine.
“…what are you doing here, Yun?!”
***
somewhere else [A Side to From the Tongues of Witnesses Pt. 5]
***
No help, no harm… The Bookkeeper shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind, and did what he knew best. He twisted his lips into the same crooked smile, suppressing all intrusive thoughts.
“In any case, it seems that we’ve made it out alive… barely, but alive…” his gaze returned towards the ever growing crowd as the tension in the air began to slowly clear. 
Grey: The Chief and her husband walked around the area trying to assess who was alive and who needed assistance. The Chief saw Stonegit with Dario and Akkey, and they immediately ran over to the group. 
“How’s he doing? Is he okay?” Grey asked frantically as she looked over Dario and Akkey’s shoulders. “Any word from the Warden?”
Brandt and Shadow looked over her shoulders trying to assess if the body guard and the Warden were both okay. 
Stonegit: Stonegit’s blackened eyes finally cracked open, and he glanced blearily at all the faces around him. “Hey…guys…” He said through swollen cheeks, and seemed just a tad confused at their appearance. He ventured to sit up a bit with a wince. “What are you all doing…here…?” He trailed off when he met Dario’s gaze, squinted, and then looked away as his eyes widened, at least as well as they could have in their state. A moment of dumb shock flickered over his features, a clear ‘oh shit’ moment in the works, and then he hastened to address other matters. His hand, still tender and hurt, shot out to grab Akkey’s wrist. “Akkey…” He said with a hiss. He stared wide eyed at her for a moment, and then quickly pulled her down into a hug. 
Akkey: The new relationships concerning them and Blunt wasn’t exactly a secret, but it wasn’t common knowledge either. Affections between them were already rare, the Rebellion knew that, but what was even more shocking was seeing the rabbit half breed returning the embrace just as tightly as her thin little arms could muster.
Akkey held him close, before separating them, her cheeks wet with overhelming emotions. Her thoughts were in a jumble, adrenaline mixing with pain and regret. She grabbed him by the shirt, not painfully but enough to show her frustration, eyes bright from tears and anger. She didn’t know where to begin; how she didn’t think too much into their departure, how she didnt ask questions, how she was the one who sent them here…
She was at a loss for words, before she whispered hoarsely, fresh tears spilling in relief, “You fucking idiot, I’m so glad you’re alive. Blunt’s waiting…”
Stonegit: The relief knowing Blunt was also well was palpable in the guard, and he sat up straighter still. “Yeah…” He slowly frowned again as he realized just how many people were actually there. But his eyes fell over Liam, and he gave the man a small, pained grin.
Nala…Rhenco…Liam…Vidar…
Him…
For Stonegit at least. A chapter had been closed today. And he only hoped that Liam and Nala felt the same. Even if in a small sense. He gave Liam a shakey thumbs up. “Hey…I got em…”
His shoulders heaved as he tried to get up further. “I know I look a little rough around the edges…but you should Good Hel what is happening over there!?” The bodyguard’s mouth dropped open as he saw the backdrop of Central.
He knew he and Nala had gone out to make a splash. But this was a godsdamned hurricane.
Firkugaan: He stood and put the swords away, slowly following the small mental bump from Nala. He found many people sat on the ground, and recognised Akkey, Stonegit and a deer half breed he only vaguely knew on the ground by the chest of the being, along with two strangers. He could see the arnasons in each others arms and gave a small smile.
Slowly and gently he knelt down and scooped up Akkey and stonegit, along with the deer, he gave a gentle bump to Nalas mind, and motioned the action to the people in his palms. I am glad to see that you are safe.
Liam/The Warden: Upon seeing Stonegit, Liam immediately jumped to his feet and skidded to a stop in front of the Arbiter, looking at the group in disbelief. “Nala?” he breathed.
Guardian embraced ward in a tidal wave of warmth, and Liam choked back a relieved sob, covering his mouth with one hand and hugging his gut with the other. He fell to his knees and the two of them exchanged thoughts at a near instant speed.
I thought you were– I know.
The Hel were you thinking? I wasn’t.
Can I hit Stonegit? Absolutely not. But– No.
Are you okay? I will need time.
Liam shivered and wiped his nose, finally feeling the effects of the winter storm. Are you staying with him?
For the moment. When we get the chance, you and I can commune as much as we want.
Promise?
Promise.
You owe us big time, he thought, both tearful and grumpy.
I know. Trust me, I know.
Liam turned to the other adults in the area, looking between all of them. “You…got him?” he croaked in question, meaning the Jarl. “Where is he?”
Grey/Brandt: Grey heard Liam’s question, and she quickly looked around…trying to find any sign of the Jarl…or one of her nieces. Jari and Kettil were nearby thankfully, but…their oldest sister. Grey felt her heart drop as she remembered where Lila went.
“And…w-where’s Lila?” she asked aloud as she gripped her husband’s hands into hers. “Brandt…w-where are they?”
Lila: A few moments later Lila rose up from the portal Ambon had created, the Nix and Jarl in tow. She held Vidar at sword point and looked around. It took her a few moments for her to realize where she was. But when she did she just grinned. She was stood atop the head of the Construct and her flare for the dramatic enjoyed that immensely. She cleared her throat and spoke loudly, projecting her voice for all to hear. “Soldiers of the Conclave! Your army lays defeat, your construct destroyed, your city captured, and your leader at my mercy! Surrender to the rebellion and I promise no harm will come to you!”
Stonegit: Stonegit, from where he leaned heavily on Akkey’s side, turned his attention away from backdrop of Central, and towards the Jarl. The pieces fell together well enough. He had no idea how his little side quest had set off such a powder keg, but he was smart enough to fill in the blanks given what was before him. With two fingers, he very deliberately pulled his sleeves back down into natural position. He motioned vaguely to Vidar’s various wounds as Lila made her declaration. He had to admit to himself that the sight of the man at the feet and mercy of a half breed was more than refreshing. 
“Nice extra pockets…”
He then tilted his head back, glance at Liam, and then turned his eyes back to Vidar. The warning him them was colder than the darkest depths of Hel’s waters. 
“You got anything else to say today?”
Vidar: Vidar, who towered above Lila, hunched his shoulders and glared down at Stonegit. Somehow, this one man had set off a chain reaction that had begun the downfall of his entire faction, and the thought made him shake with rage. His gaze was caught by two sudden movements–Liam, who took a few steps back and clenched his fists, clearly unsettled, and Yun, freshly gotten to his feet, seeing Vidar and lurching to hug Juro from behind in fright, his eyes peeking up from under Juro’s startled arm. Milae tilted his glaive to lean in front of both of them, meaning to protect them if Vidar should decide to make an aggressive move somehow.
“You’re all pathetic,” he growled, his voice shivering due to the state he was in. He clenched his wrist tighter, which still oozed blood in a mess down his tunic. “None of you can handle what lies before you. You’re all weak.” He coughed after the last word, his vision blurring briefly. Then he tilted his head back to Lila, his dark eyes challenging. “Do what you will, filthy hare.”
Lila/Changeling: She frowned and chewed the inside of her cheek for moment. “Men, take the Jarl to a cell, the Changling can show you the way.”
The Changling grins, still holding Jari’s unconscious form close. “Oh I know exactly where to put him boss.” They said, sending the soldiers who would escort the Jarl the directions to the cell where they found Liam.
“If he even blinks the wrong way you end him.” The Commander murmurs to the soldiers. As they lead him away she turns back to the crowd of rebel fighters. “As for the rest of you, you all fought hard and given much for this rebellion, for our freedom. Today we have struck a mighty blow to Central! But this victory is not without sacrifices. There were many of our fellow soldiers, our brothers and sisters, who gave their lives here today so that we might be free. We can never repay that sacrifice, but we can honor them, and remember their bravery, so that our children and our children’s children, could grow up not as slaves, but as free people. Our fight is not over, but this is the beginning of the end for Central, and it’s hateful ways!” 
Grey/Brandt: The Chief smiled with absolute pride as she watched her niece give her speech. She was getting to be quite good at that, and she loved seeing Lila becoming more and more like a leader. It reminded her of Haddock and his speeches…and when she was a fiery, passionate 21-year-old rebel herself. She noticed her whispering to the soldiers, and the soldiers began to guide Vidar away. She couldn’t help but glare at the vicious warlord. She wanted to see him…to see what made him tick…and to make sure he didn’t have any tricks up his sleeve. 
“He’s not going anywhere, Grey,” Brandt said placing a hand on his wife’s shoulder clearly reading her thoughts. 
“I know, but…I just…I just want to see…” Grey said as she squinted at Vidar. He was someone who had been a thorn in her side for a long time. It had been a long time since she had been face-to-face with someone from High Central…other than Darien…the guard who killed her friend when she was 16…the weapons smugglers…Rosso and his men…even Olansee…and his men. “Plus, I…I just want to be extra sure, you know?”
Brandt sighed and shook his head with a smile. “Okay, I’ll stay up here with Lila and Shadow,” he said, “and help get things ready to head home.”
Grey smiled and kissed him on the cheek. “You’re the best,” Grey said.” This shouldn’t be too long.”
“Hey…maybe deck him for me down there, too,” Brandt said taking her hand. “After all…seeing you punch Rhenco,” he wiggled his eyebrows.
Grey rolled her eyes. “I’ll fill you in later,” she said before turning back to the guards. After whispering quickly to Lila that she was going to make sure the guards take care of Vidar…she followed them. 
Stonegit: “Hey!” Stonegit called after the guards as he held up a finger. With shaking, busted fingers, he carefully rolled one of his absolutely solid socks down off his foot, and then into a fist sized ball. He lobed it over to them and pointed at Vidar without looking at him. “If that petulant shit says one more unoriginal insult, or so help him a slur, I’d like you to gag him with that please. His tongue could be yanked from his mouth and it would still wiggle around. So let’s save ourselves the earache.” 
Rebels: One of the soldiers a young giraffe half-breed grabs it and ties it in his mouth before pushing him forward, the rest of the squad’s weapons out and ready. They begin moving towards the guardhouse as they see the cells have been flooded, Grey in tow.