Chapter 21 - Saga 3, Anything’s Fate
Resolution
*
Todd ignored the knocking, clicking the screens back on to the battle. Archer looked from one to another, watching DarkGuardian fall to the earth, his dwarven eyes still in eternal slumber. Chaosnake was laughing, gloating, taunting the rest of the Fellowship, Drexlin stepping up and swinging a mug. The swing missed, Fury shoving the barkeep to the ground then brutally, cruelly kicking him. He then raised his Mod blade and giggled before decapitating Drex, relishing in the crimson drops specking his face.
“You can still save them, Archer! Why, why do you persist, what are you fighting for? Life? There is no room for such paltry concepts in Lore. Become a General Mod and save your friends, trog. It’s the only way. Your dream of Anything has ended, your vision of this so-called ‘Life’! Look, as even your faithful Fellowship embraces Game!”
The remote thrusting forward for a second in fervent button-pressing, as Acid_Flux appeared on the monitors, though barely recognizable. He had turned into something altogether different, though still a NoThRoG at his core. He loomed over the battle, idly keeping back, Gaston giving up the fight for his attention as well.
Another knock, this one much louder, more forceful. But again, Todd ignored it, continuing what Archer now figured as utter nonsense.
“Game is good, genuinely good, Life is never really good, full of all the negative things of existence. How can you adhere to such pain, sorrow, misery? I don’t want any part of it, for Game is pure, now perfected. Show me a vestige of Life, and I will only see that which makes me wretch, vomit, and die-”
The two were startled as a sword blade erupted through the door, then withdrawing amidst the splinters and rapidly returning, as whoever was behind seemed completely possessed with the task of tearing through the door and making as dramatic an entrance as possible. Todd only stared in horror, Archer smugly stepping aside to watch as well, as the sword thrusts stopped. The wooden entrance stood, broken, wide crevices apparent, until it was violently kicked, shattering into a dozen pieces now splayed across the room along with countless specks of sawdust and splinter material.
And there stood Lady Tornhawk.
She didn’t say a word, allowing her presence to sink in, as a single bitter tear sliding down her cheek. She was scowling at Todd, Archer guessing she’d been just outside listening for quite some time. The silence was thick, the air sickly, the moment awkward.
Tornhawk slowly extended her blade, facing sideways, her gripping fist forward and palm down. She then opened her hand in a fleeting gesture as the weapon dropped to the broken wood below. With that, she glanced at Archer for a brief moment and abruptly left.
Archer slowly turned to Todd, not daring to break the silence, as words weren’t necessary anymore. Todd stared blankly into nothingness for a moment, blinking on occasion. He then gave a heavy sigh and reclined in his seat, rubbing his temples and muttering something incomprehensible.
The heroic troglodyte grinned as he watched the almighty reach for his remote as if it were a deadly snake about to bite. He slowly gripped it, limply, staring at it for a second.
The Mod of all Mods then chuckled, smiling slightly, shaking his head and looking up at Archer.
He slid out a hidden keypad from the remote and began typing for a couple seconds before sliding it back in. Archer continued to stand silently, as Todd then looked at him, considering him, then nodding firmly as he pressed one more little button.
*
Archer blinked, furrowing his brow and looking about. He vaguely recognized his surroundings as he stood and stretched. The trog turned, discovering a nice tavern behind him. He stood in disbelief for what seemed like an eternity as familiarity kicked in. Though he hadn’t frequented this particular bar all that often, he had heard a great deal of good word about it.
He didn’t step in yet, admiring his surroundings. Every square inch of the ground in front of him, the smell of the air and its subtle changes ever second. The sound of idle conversation not quite understood from here, the taste of ale already passing his lips.
The former leader of the New Fellowship entered the establishment, appreciating its rich atmosphere. He strolled up to the bar, sitting and beaming.
“Hey Archer! Great to see you in here today, what’ll it be?”
The half elf, half dwarf behind the counter grinned, working over a mug with a dingy rag even as he spoke. Archer could only laugh in response, loud and heartily, Drex hesitantly backing off a little.
Archer then stopped laughing, leaning forward and studying Drexlin’s neck. He watched as a nervous Drex gulped, then he began laughing anew until interrupted by someone else entering.
He turned, watching as a handsome being confidently strode forward. Archer ran forward, yelling “CardinalFang!” and tackling him, holding him in the air with a huge bear hug, rocking him back and forth and squeezing mightily as CFang’s back loudly popped humorously, the tuxedoed one’s face turning blue until Archer limply dropped him to the ground.
Drex frowned as the Mod left. “Sorry there friend, Archer’s acting rather bizarre today, I haven’t seen CardinalFang for a long time.”
Fang got up, groaning as he held his back, looking at the bartender with disbelief. “No, that’s the thing, I’m CardinalFang, I’ll explain, but… how’d he know?”
Archer was giggling maniacally, crazed, running around randomly through the streets of Anything. He gasped as he came across Reject3016, babbling a smit-smattering of rif-raffing baffling brambling rit-tattering rambling. The Mod of Anything drew his giant Bow of Flaming, plowing a highly-explosive missile into Reject, who was reduced to a pathetic whimper somewhere in the resulting crater.
The troglodyte laughed, dancing about, flexing his muscles, as all the denizens of Anything around stared in stark wonder. He fell to his knees, crying for joy, smiling as widely as he ever had before, looking to the sky and pumping his fists and soaking in the moment and yelling
“YEEEEEAAAAAH!!!!”
He bent over and kissed the ground, by now the gathering crowd having sufficed to shrug and leave, never knowing of the immense struggle for their realm.
Somewhere an archery contest was being held, Acid_Flux and Stormcrow meeting in the finals with yewbow, Acid mentioning that he’d never trade in a good solid crossbow for any other weapon. Stormcrow grinned as yewbow complained that it wasn’t fair to compete with crossbows against mere longbows.
General_Lund rounded a corner, bumping into DarkKnightZach who proceeded to kill him until he was utterly bored.
DarkGuardian was trying out his new hammer somewhere, knocking willing volunteers over the horizon. Few stepped forward to experience the thrill.
Advocate_of_Lycanthrope sighed, longing for something a bit more exciting than postal work.
GreenDestiny walked over to Ter-Soth, staring him down intensely. Nothing was said, the being of light and reason walking away, GD finding it hard to believe that he’d been a boy scout once.
MatB began to unpack, JWalker and Sorscha1 smooching nearby, the factional Mods left to their homelands.
Jordan0447 farted, NirvanaTool searched for DarkKnightZach, StarkTheBloody took a shower, Ranzadule did something a bit more impressive, Kelanor posted a long article, Ghed-Jennar didn’t find his other self yet.
BATMAN, nightcrawler, siege911, Superman2d3 and Manji sat around comparing capabilities and throwing threats back and forth, a nasty rat emerging from Manji’s… self.
Haplo ran frantically around his castle, cursing himself for only having a few thousand bathrooms.
ShadowcatX and Matrim sat on a happy hill, surrounded by idyllic stuff like flowers and such. Halcyon era of Anything, you get the gist, as they began to speak.
“So, uh, anything interesting happen in Anything today?” “Nope.” ”... I guess that’s a good thing.”
Both chuckled, Morghen overhearing and joining them.
“Hey guys, what did the latest debate thread and the Hindenburg have in common? They both went down in flames!!”
The lich laughed a bit too loudly as the others groaned.
YOYOY smiled contentedly as his latest work, finally finishing the saga he’d been working on for what seemed like forever. He wondered what the heck he’d do next.
And they all lived happily ever after. Relatively.
* The End *
© Eric Bailey