Robert leaned against the southern barricade, his staff resting beside him. The air was quiet now, save for the distant hum of the portal and the occasional crackle of a lingering fire. Snow stood nearby, her turret lazily spinning over her shoulder, as if it too was tired from the night's efforts. The few refugees still trickling in looked more like ghosts than people. They had gaunt faces, hollow eyes, and clothes stained with soot and blood.
A small family approached hesitantly: a man with sharp features and a protective arm around his wife, who carried a sleeping child. Their movements were slow but deliberate, and when they reached Robert, the man spoke first. "You're the one they've been talking about. The Magister." Robert straightened, brushing the ash off his sleeves. "That's me. Robert," he said simply, gesturing for them to take a seat on the edge of a supply crate. "What's your name?"
"Jacob," the man said, his voice hoarse. "This is my wife, Jenny, and our daughter, Jaylee." Chaucer, sitting nearby sharpening one of his stars, chuckled. "Jacob, Jenny, and Jaylee. Now that's some dedication to alliteration." Jacob grinned faintly but kept his eyes on Robert, clearly unnerved by the kobold. "We've been lucky to make it this far," he said, his voice breaking slightly. "We hid in an old cellar since this whole thing started, scraping by on scavenged food tins. I… I didn't think we'd ever get out alive." Robert sighed, his tone calm but firm. "You're safe now. A safe place is just a little further, and we'll get you there."
Jenny reached out, touching Robert's arm lightly. "Thank you," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "For saving us. For saving so many." Before Robert could respond, Jaylee stirred in her mother's arms and opened her eyes, blinking at the unfamiliar faces. She glanced up at her parents, her voice soft but curious. "Is that the man who saved us?" Jenny beamed gently and nodded, whispering something reassuring to her daughter. Jaylee squirmed until her mother set her down, and with timid steps, she approached Robert. She held something small in her hand—a crudely drawn picture of the animated lawn gnome Robert had sent to deliver his message. Its stubby arms and round belly were captured in shaky lines, but the vibrant Crayola colors gave it a lively charm.
"This is for you," she said softly, holding the drawing out to him. Robert took the picture carefully, staring at the shaky lines. "Oh look! My little messenger hero I put to work," he said with a faint grin. He showed it to Hamish and Lillia near him, who both grinned at it. Jaylee smiled bashfully, happy her gift was being shown off and well received. Jaylee agreed, her small voice carrying more confidence. "You saved us. You're a hero." Snow, watching the exchange, flashed Robert a grin. "See? You're an inspiration now. I bet you'd be a great father yourself." She slyly slanted her eyes at Lillia, who had flushed a remarkable shade of red at her words, but swatted laughingly at her.
Hamish approached, hefting his sword over one shoulder. "Lads, we've got to get moving. The last of the stragglers are coming through. Best we make sure none of the Cu Sith catch up." Robert tucked Jaylee's drawing securely in his satchel, and patted her on the head. "Thank you Jaylee. I'm going to keep this forever and EVER! Would you and your family like to go see where I live and find a new haven?" Robert asked her, but his eyes met Jacob's encouragingly. Jacob sighed in relief at Robert's offer. Jaylee's mother voiced her opinion. "Absolutely we would. Take us from this nightmare. Our… Our home is gone." Snow beamed and took her by the arm. "And we can get you a new one. Come on." Jacob scooped up his daughter, ready to head out.
The trip out of town was mostly uneventful. After soldiers had gathered up all the refugees that had found the southern checkpoint and provided instructions, Robert led the team southward, following torches that had been placed to signal the way to the portal. Once the city had fallen behind a ways, Robert felt it was time to test out his Rook ability. He conjured a protective dome of light, blending earth for strength and fire for bite. He'd spotted a clever loophole in the Mana Knight's aura, letting his Talent weave a dome that scorched anyone crossing it unbidden.
He could sense the damage wouldn't be much, but it was a start. Who knew how much that would improve as he practiced the skill. About halfway to the portal, some Cu Sith leapt out of the shadows, at the glowing dome of light and fire. The Cu Sith came in fast, their glowing green eyes locked onto the group as they charged straight at Robert's dome. The first few slammed into the fiery light, snarling in pain as the barrier singed their spectral forms.
One stumbled back, its claws scraping at the ground as it tried to recover, but Snow's turret whirled to life, firing precise blasts of ice. The creature froze mid-snarl before shattering into glowing fragments. Another Cu Sith darted around, searching for a weak point, only to be struck by one of Chaucer's throwing stars. The sharp edge left a streak of fire trailing through the air before embedding in the beast's chest. It yelped and dissolved into smoke. "You are getting good at those things," Snow called over her shoulder, her voice calm but focused. Her turret spun again, firing at another leaping Cu Sith, knocking it out of the air, its body shattering as it struck the ground.
Chaucer smirked, already reaching for another star. "I know. I love them. I'm going to give them all names. All twenty-seven." Robert watched from inside the dome, his left eye glowing softly as he monitored the barrier's stability and the terrain outside. He focused his intent firmly on the shield, and kept the twenty or so people safe huddled 'neath it. The Cu Sith were relentless, but their attacks grew weaker with every failed attempt to breach the shield. Although Hamish waited inside the dome to beat down any Cu Sith that entered the dome, it wasn't needed. Chaucer, Snow, and her little bouncing floating turret rapidly dealt with any incoming threat. The skirmish was short and disorganized, but no one was hurt to Robert's relief.
They continued on down the road then, leaving the skirmish behind. Robert was surprised upon arriving at the south military camp. A friend was there waiting for him. Piles of dead spectral canines were stacked unceremoniously at the edge of the camp, Captain Scotty coming forward to welcome them. "Kernel is here!!" Snow cheered happily. It was true, Lillia had skipped over to him, black curls bouncing along behind her.
They hugged his legs, all rock, twigs, and moss. Scotty laughed. "Yeah, he about scared the souls out of us when he came marching through. We were trying to fend off a wave of these damned creatures, and out he comes from your little town's doorway. We nearly shit ourselves." It wasn't long, the great brute was slamming his fists into the Cu Sith, flattening them with brutal swings. He sent their broken bodies tumbling into their allies, before plunking down by the portal, guarding it like a stone sentinel.
Robert chuckled up at Kernel. "Good job Big K! Keeping Doras Dagda safe?" Kernel inclined his head, revealing a growing intelligence and ability to understand Robert's language. Impressed, Robert smirked and sincerely told him, "Thank you. With you on the job, I imagine anything that wants to come at Doras Dagda will have to think twice." Kernel bared his rocky teeth in the semblance of a gorilla smile, and smacked the ground with a fist, making the noise, "OOKY-OOK!" in gravelly agreement of Robert's words.
Nodding in agreement with Kernel's proclamation, he turned back to Scotty. "Jacob, Jaylee, Jenny, this is Captain Scotty. He's what's left of the command in this area, but he is going to see you safely to Doras Dagda. I see there's a line though, so take a moment to get some water, a bite to eat, and maybe a warm blanket, until you can get in and sorted. I have friends through that portal that will take good care of you and get you a place to stay." Jacob agreed appreciatively and shook hands with the Captain.
Jenny, however, was more uneasy, gazing at the portal. "I feel like I'm goin' a wee bit looney. That's a… window, goin' somewhere outside, but we're outside." Snow took over to help her understand and walked her closer to it. "Come with me Jenny. It's an important piece of magic… lets us go where we need to go." Snow helped her get used to the new marvels after such a long ordeal.
Scotty approached Robert again, and lowered his voice, "Can we speak a moment, Robert?" Nodding to Scotty to continue, he began, "We've been stuck here for almost two days, I think. It's hard to tell with all of that smoke and poisonous pollution coming from the Nuck. And we haven't been able to raise anyone on radio, or heard from any command. We've just been doing our original orders to save people if we could, but there's nothing now."
"I'm… honestly quite worried the military base has been compromised. Someone should be answering the radio calls… We haven't even seen a plane in some time…" Scotty let the words hang in the air for a moment and lowered his voice further still.
"The men are uneasy there's no chain of command anymore, or if there's even a government anymore…" Scotty lit another cigarette, attempting to settle his concerns.