Aftermath
The rest of the battle went rather rapidly after the horde mother collapsed. The majority of the spiderlings burned along with her, so all that was left was dispatching the four already wounded full grown abominations. Several of the guardsmen were left with gruesome injuries, but there were no deaths on the side of the humans.
Gregor, Amar, and Logan had to be excavated from the horde mother’s corpse, but they were mostly fine, if covered in a disgusting, thick layer of entrails and webbing. After a thorough dousing, the three of them were right as rain, and engaged Grenneth in a debrief.
“Today will be a day that Alteep celebrates for generations. That all the injuries incurred today shall heal with time is nothing less than a miracle. And no one can claim more credit than you three, you should be very proud. Thank you especially, Logan Brewer, I fear what would have occurred had you not been here to sound the alarm.”
“I only managed to do so because of Old Jeremiah, and excuse me sir, but I need to go check on him. He’s tough, but he had been hurt pretty badly when I last saw him.”
Logan turned to leave, but a sight at the edge of the forest brought him to a standstill. Bennett the bear had shown up, but that wasn’t what had claimed Logan’s attention. Slung over the bear’s enormous back was just the person Logan had been about to look for.
With a quick teleport Logan closed half the distance between them. As he got a closer look, he realized something was horribly wrong. Jeremiah’s side was stained red, and he hadn’t patched up the wound. Beyond that, the large man was much too still. Logan couldn’t see any breathing.
Running up to Bennett, the fear of the enormous bear temporarily forgotten, Logan checked on the old man. Before he even laid a hand on him though, he knew. Old Jeremiah had passed from this world. Logan just stood there in shock.
Hadn’t they saved the day?
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Jeremiah’s death shook Logan to his core. Literally, as he had found his tentacles quivering whenever he wasn’t paying attention to them. To be fair, Logan’s actual body had been shaking just as badly. Up until that point, adrenaline and discomfort had always pushed his mind forward, and that wasn’t sustainable. Up until that point, he had treated this world like a game almost, knowing there were dire consequences here, but not facing any yet. Up until that point, the point where the person he had just lived with for two weeks died, Logan could pretend he was ok.
Upsettingly, the villager’s didn’t seem too perturbed by Jeremiah’s death. Their indifference would have absolutely infuriated Logan, if he hadn’t found a compatriot in his grief and pain.
Amar had been the only one to feel as devastated as Logan at the old man’s passing. Gregor had offered his sympathies, but the girl with the luscious white hair had cried with him. Both of them had been a mess for hours, until they pulled themselves together to try and lay the man to rest. Somehow, Logan sensed that her hurt might even surpass his own.
Together with Bennett, the two had trekked out deep into the Forest. As if sensing their mood, the Inaug kept its denizens in check, leaving them to find their destination unmolested. They settled on a clearing at the base of an old oak tree. Seeing it had made the two of them shed a couple more tears, as it just had the same presence as Jeremiah had in life.
Laying him at the tree’s base, they both used Root to gently manipulate the oak’s hearty gnarls. Soon, the roots fully encased him, and resubmerged into the soil. Afterwards, all that remained to tell the great man’s fate was upturned earth and ancient oak.
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Logan wanted to do more to commemorate it, but knew the old man would be against disturbing nature too much. No, he would much prefer what they had done, and both Logan and Amar had known that without saying it out loud. It spoke to how deeply Amar knew Jeremiah, and Logan wanted to ask about it, but now wasn’t the time.
Leaving Bennett to his forlorn calls, the two began to make their way back to Alteep village. Even if the Forest’s creatures had avoided them so far, come nightfall they would not be so lucky. It was with shattered hearts and crystalized memories they left the clearing with the great, proud oak.
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With Amar and Logan gone, Gregor was left to direct the cleanup. He had the injured carted into town after first aid for more thorough treatment to be rendered. Others were clearing the fields and finding ways to smother the chemical fires. Some industrious guards were even bottling the stuff, figuring it might have value to traveling traders.
Despite the relatively simple procedures, it wasn’t until it was almost turning from day to night, that Gregor finally got away. Still, he didn’t rest, instead seeking out his father, who had gone into town to direct and reassure the citizens that the threat had been vanquished. Gregor was glad none of the gentler folk had witnessed the crazed battle. Even with minimal casualties, the abominations would surely be haunting the dreams of many of the guardsmen.
As Gregor pulled up next to his father, he asked, “What will be the next moves? If there are new creatures in the Inaug Forest, we should send people to scout and document.”
“We’ll send word to the Legion. When they hear of abominations from the Inaug, an outpost will be constructed here.”
Gregor was stunned. Grenneth was a truly independent man, and it seemed to go against character for him to bring an outside influence into his home. Was he that shaken by the battle? As if reading his thoughts, Grenneth shook his head.
“Austen needs to know if there is a threat. The safety of the villagers is more important than any pride we might have.” Then he added with a wink, “And besides, maybe my son will end up staying in his village after all. Stationing someone in their hometown is standard procedure.”
“Father…”
“I’m just ribbing you son, I’ll request you be stationed elsewhere. I’ll draft up the letter first thing tomorrow, and you can take it with you when you enlist.”
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The next morning came quickly after Logan and Amar returned. He hadn’t wanted to sleep at Jeremiah’s, so after asking Gregor he borrowed a spare bedroom and passed out there. As the morning light streaming through the shutters woke Logan, the half second before he remembered everything made that decision worthwhile.
Strangely, when he woke Logan realized he had lost his Napalm Spray Blessing. Or more accurately, it seemed to have broken down in his soul, leaving even smaller fragments caught where his tentacles met. It didn’t cause Logan any pain, and it wasn’t enough to upset him even further, so he left it alone. He could deal with it later.
When he wandered downstairs, apparently the Greatwoods had one of the few multistoried buildings, Logan found Gregor and Amar dressed in full traveling gear, organizing large packs as Gregor’s parents gave seemingly unwanted help and advice in equal measure.
“You’re leaving? Right now? Are attacks like that so common?”
Everyone in the room looked up at him. Amar and Gregor met him with a wave, while the elder Greatwoods just pursed their lips.
“Logan, Amar and I intended to join the Legion after the festivities. Now, well, we need to notify the Legion of the appearance of abominations in the Inaug, so we are being sent to deliver a missive while we enlist.”
The Legion? Like the Roman army? Probably not, seems pretty unlikely, but still, sounds cool enough.
As Logan thought about it, he realized that he should probably follow Gregor and Amar. Not only were they both good people, but they seemed strong. And sticking next to the strong people sounded like a good plan for staying alive.
“Well then, count me in. Let me just get one thing and we can hit the road.”
This seemed to take them aback for a second, but Amar quickly recovered.
“Be our guest, just don’t take too long now, you hear?”
Her eyes still red from crying, glinted with steely determination. Clearly this meant a lot to her. Gregor was nodding next to her, already starting up on packing again.
“It’ll be just a second, don’t worry.”
Walking through the entrance room, Logan emerged from the front door into a small courtyard.
You out there, little guy?
-Yeah! It safe? Logan ok?-
Yeah, just tired. Logan responded. What would you think about going on a little adventure, bud?
-Is fun?-
Hopefully, Remy. Hopefully. Logan mentally replied, while looking at the rising sun