Arc 5: The heart within
Road to a Hero:
Three chances in another world
Chapter 29. A well-oiled machine
Due to all the chatter around him, Gray wakes up, moving side to side to prevent this. He’s about to drift back to sleep until he gets whacked in the face, causing him to fling up. He looks around, watching as Soku tries to hold in her laugh. Gray gets up, but with all his bodily injuries, he falls to the ground, unable to hold his weight. Soku, now feeling bad, gets out of her bed and tries to help him up.
Gray: “Where’s everybody else?”
Soku props Gray up on the bed, then goes looking for any extra crutches.
Soku: “They’re talking to Ryo, Lincoln, and Gordon outside.”
Gray: “Oh.”
Gray is at ease with her answer, until he realizes that Gordon, Ryo, and Lincoln should all be helping in the battle for Walgonia, causing Gray to scream out.
Gray: “What!?”
Soku grabs an extra pair of crutches, then walks back to Gray to help him.
Soku: “You’ve been out for like a day.”
Gray: “A DAY!?”
Gray looks around, not seeing any of the soldiers that were laying on the bed just moments ago.
Gray: “I just went back to bed! I didn’t mean to sleep past the war!”
Gray grabs the crutches, then starts wobbling out of the tent. He overestimates his strength, beginning to fall backward, barely benign caught by Soku.
Soku: “Chill out! Let me help you.”
Gray sighs but accepts her offer. So she holds one of his crutches so he can rest a bit of his weight on her. She winces, causing Gray to feel bad.
Gray: “You okay? I can walk, you don’t have to hold me up.”
Soku: “Nah, I’m fine. You just touched one of my bad cuts. Don't do it again or I’ll have to drop you though.”
Gray sarcastically rolls his eyes, then begins walking out of the medical tent. Once they make it outside, Gray’s blinded by the morning sun, then with the cold breeze of dawn hitting his roasted skin, he groans in pain. He breathes in, out, then repeats, trying to make sure he doesn't cry out.
Soku: “They’re in the castle’s main hall, so we gotta walk briefly.”
Gray: “Oh great, I’m so glad about that.”
While they walk into the castle, Gray thinks to himself for a minute, then realizes something.
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Gray: “Hey, why were you in the tent?”
Soku: “Cause, I’m tired, and these meeting things are boring.”
Gray: “You sure you didn’t miss me?”
Soku groans, then chuckles to herself once she notices Gray sticking the tip of his tongue out at her. Gray’s eyes light up with intense joy, surprised by her small laugh.
Gray: “You laughed! Not with me, but with me!”
Soku sighs, blowing cold winds out her mouth, directed towards Gray causing sensitive burns to act up. She continues to do this, not because she’s aggravated with him, just a bit embarrassed.
Gray: “UNCLE, UNCLE!”
Soku stops hurting him, then starts walking again. Once they start getting close to the main hall, they find the halls filled with civilians and soldiers. When they see Soku and Gray the hall goes quiet, moving out of the way to let them walk into the main hall.
Gray: “Lotta people.”
Soku: “They’re using the castle as a safe zone while the uninjured knights patrol the area, making sure they don’t miss any Anarchists.”
Gray: “Makes sense.”
They push into the main hall, finding hundreds of people, all injured and scared. Though even in this awful situation the people still hold their prejudice, separating themselves from the demi-humans.
Soku: “This stuff sucks.”
Gray: “Yep.”
Soku leads Gray into the armory, the same place they were gathering their things when they were in the knight exams. They find Rosemary, Edward, Julius, Peter, Lincoln, Ryo, and Gordon all talking. They look over to see Gray and Soku, excited to see Gray awake. Rosemary runs over to Gray, giving him a large hug, hurting him.
Rosemary: “Oh, oh, sorry Gray."
Gray: “It’s fine…I do wish people would stop hurting me.”
Gray gives Soku an intense stare, losing it after he starts chuckling. The others walk over to them with demotivated faces.
Gray: “What’s up with yall?”
Gordon: “We’re talking about what we’re gonna do when we declare the battles over.”
Lincoln: “Hell, it’s over anyway.”
Peter chimes in, interrupting the two.
Peter: “Can’t believe we won…it’s crazy.”
Ryo: “Nice to see you up.”
Gray: “Nice to be up. So when do you think you’re gonna officially end the war?”
Gordon: “Any minute now…I’m just a little stressed.”
Lincoln walks off, grabbing a bag of things from the corner. They all give Lincoln a strange look, everyone other than Ryo, who sighs.
Edward: “What’s in the bag?”
Lincoln: “Something I need you all to see, especially Edward.”
Lincoln spills the contents of the bag onto the floor, causing everyone to go silent.
Edward: “....Musashi…”
A sword, cloak, armor set, and black mengu mask with the design of a demon, even sporting two large silver teeth. All things belonging to Musashi. Edward drops to his knees in disbelief. No tears, no hate, no fear, just nothing. He then stands up and looks towards the door.
Edward: “We need to end the war, officially of course.”
Gray walks up behind him, putting his hand on his shoulder. They both nod at each other, then turn their heads to everyone else.
Gordon stares at his bow, staring off into space. He feels Ryo staring at him, causing him to snap out of it.
Gray: “What’s with all the runes?”
Gordon: “Don’t worry about it.”
They’re about to walk out the door when they hear the sounds of fighting and screaming. They all panic and run out of the door, watching in horror as Humans and Demi-humans argue, hit, and scream at each other. Gray panics, freezing in place. He looks around, watching Peter, Rosemary, and Soku start freaking out as well, not knowing what to do. Lincoln shoves Gordon, forcing him into leading action.
Gordon: “CALM DOWN! ALL OF YOU!”
The room suddenly goes quiet, and with all the eyes on Gordon, he stands his ground.
Gordon: “People of Walgonia! I am Gordon Hill, leader of the Leviathan army! We are a well-oiled machine! Or we should be.”
The citizens look on without knowing what to think. They know of Gordon and his skill, but they don’t know him as a real person, just a figure.
Gordon: “You’re hurt, sad, scared, and angry. And that is the fault of the government that’s supposed to protect you. The system failed, we failed. Even if the Leviathan Army isn’t entirely tied to the government, we’re still a part of it. Arthur Willams, the red dragon, was a fake. He was an Anarchist that made his way into power. He took us over legally, but due to his affiliation, he had to take Walgonia back.”
Civilians start to call out, asking “How did you all let this happen?” “What will happen now?” And mostly “Why should we trust you?” The faith has been lost once more, turning back into anger and arguing. Gordon swells up in anger, yelling from the deepest pits of himself.
Gordon: “STOP ARGUING! YOU ARE ALL WALGONIAN NO MATTER THE RACE! WALGONIA WAS BUILT ON BRINGING PEOPLE TOGETHER! THAT’S WHY WE HAVE WON EVERY WAR, KILLED ALL THAT’S ATTACKED US, AND WHY WE’RE EVEN STANDING! SO STOP YELLING, STOP FIGHTING, AND STOP ACTING LIKE CHILDREN. YOU ALL WILL BE TREATED AND SENT BACK TO YOUR HOMES! WE WILL HOLD ANOTHER MEETING HERE, FOR EVERYONE TWO WEEKS FROM NOW! IN THAT TIME WE WILL REBUILD, AND CHANGE A LOT ABOUT HOW WE AS A NATION DO THINGS! BECAUSE WE HAVE WON THE WAR! NOW, WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THIS NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN! SO PICK YOURSELVES UP, SWALLOW YOUR FEAR, AND BE THE BEST WALGONIAN YOU CAN BE!”
Gordon's quick but efficient speech echoes throughout the halls, getting everyone’s attention, and restoring their faith just a little bit. Gray looks on with a smile on his face, ready for what’s to come, a feeling all his friends can understand, because they have won. A journey they have been on since October has finally been resolved, they have won. But the end is yet to come because in two weeks they’ll be the official heroes of Walgonia.
END OF Vol 3: Chapter Twenty-nine