[center][h3]Dead Zone Hinterlands - Epilogue: A Chapter Concluded[/h3]
Harry’s [@Eviledd1984]  Amaterasu’s [@DracoLunaris] Chosen Undead’s [@Simple Unicycle] Level 11 Big Band (14/110)
[b]Word Count:[/b] 1118[/center]

Together, the team stepped out into the evening light, then set off back down the mountain. They had a lot of ground to cover, but the downhill trek was a mercy compared to the demanding slog it took to reach Witch’s Nose in the first place, and this time there wouldn’t be a spine-chilling detour in the derelict, horror-infested Curien Mansion. As he made his way downward, Band allowed himself to feel cautiously optimistic about the situation as a whole. Nothing had been solved just yet, but after all that standoffish deliberation back in Molly’s cave the conclusion of this layered story had been postponed, hopefully long enough that he and the others could bring the truth to light. All signs pointed to him making the right choice, but at the end of the day he was still just holding out hope–hope that he’d been wrong about neither Molly nor Bardon.

He, Harry, Amaterasu, Kit, and Heismay followed the platoon of guards back to Martira at a respectable distance, the wide berth they kept indicative of how much they trusted Bardon’s men. They did not trail so far behind, though, that when shouting broke out amongst the guard corps about five minutes to Martira, neither Amaterasu nor Heismay couldn’t catch up. Apparently, the men had stumbled into a wandering troop of goblins. Small, unintelligent, and poorly-equipped, the goblins didn’t pose much of a challenge, but during the scramble Morris and two other guards took advantage of the commotion to make a break for it, fleeing in different directions. Without a word, Heismay and Amaterasu gave chase, quickly passing the other pursuers and catching up to the runners. One of them tried to fight back, and got a lucky hit on both thanks to his magic igniter, but he quickly found out just how grave a mistake he’d made. Once the others saw what happened to him, they gave up without a fight and stayed down once tackled. Band took the chance to free both Amaterasu and Heismay with a friend heart while waiting for Bardon to catch up. The moment he arrived on the scene, Morris and the other man began begging for their lives.

Morris admitted to kidnapping children, but pleaded that he’d been coerced into doing so by Lady Joanna, the sanctoress he ruled the town. He explained that after he racked up so much gambling debt, Joanna had given him a choice: find sacrifices to feed the monster beneath the castle, or he would be fed to it himself. His co-conspirator backed up his story without question. Bardon listened with an expression of terrifying severity on his face the whole time, astounded by the accusations against the sanctoress he’d served and respected for so many years. After that, he ordered that the perpetrators be hauled away and locked up until he could come up with a plan for what to do next; it seemed like he meant to take the accusations seriously and approach Joanna herself about the matter, backed by the loyal members of the guard corps. At the same time, he did not at all intend to let Morris or the others off the hook. As Heismay said earlier, the innocent blood on the hands of these monsters would be repaid.

Once the guilty had been dragged off, Bardon thanked Band and the others for their help with the investigation, and offered his apologies. The coming days of confrontation, against monsters of very different kinds, would not be easy, but he would endure whatever trials and tribulations lay ahead for the sake of truth, justice, and the wee ones of Martira. Big Band expressed his approval, and mentioned that if Bardon needed more firepower to deal with the monster beneath the keep, Stein might be able to lend a hand.

Band’s time was up, however. He’d originally been part of a small team dispatched to Martira to gather supplies while the Seekers of Light were involved in the Dead Zone, but learning about the missing children had obliged him to stick around. Now, with the kids safe in Molly’s care and Bardon around to deal with the real problem, he had other places to be. After all, even though they’d more or less closed the book here, the fight against Galeem was far from over. Band offered Harry, Heismay, Kit, and Amaterasu the chance to join the real fight to change things for the better, and one day save all worlds from the Lord of Light.

Despite his typical indecision, it did not take long for Heismay to make his choice. There was nothing in or around Martira anchoring the eugief here, and after seeing Band and the others in action, he had been inspired to come out of hiding and once again take up arms for the sake of a brighter tomorrow. “My skills are yours,” he declared. “Rest assured, I was once a member of the Shadowguard, and the years have not dulled their edge!”

Once everyone gave their answers, Band called up the Avenger to request an appropriate amount of fulton devices. Sandalphon herself teleported to Band to drop them off, offering the flabbergasted new recruits her greetings in the process. She offered an especially gracious hello to Amaterasu, whose divine significance the archangel seemed to identify. After that, all that remained was to activate each fulton, shoot up into the sky, and be collected by the airship that would become the heroes’ home in the day to come.

Their time of arrival aboard the Avenger was just before sunset, after the conclusion of the memorial service in Stolen Moments, though they would still be able to get some leftovers from the cafeteria if so inclined. Sandalphon expressed her apologies that she could not show the newcomers around herself, since she had an urgent appointment to attend to, but encouraged the others to explore and better acquaint themselves with their new surroundings. It would be quite the drastic transition, but they would find no shortage of friendly faces to welcome them to the campaign against Galeem.

Once she left, Band apologized too. He was exhausted from all his physical exertion today and needed a break. Heismay, after getting over his amazement at waking up inside such an incredible airborne Gauntlet Runner, offered to grab them both a meal from the mess hall and chat as they ate together. Band gratefully accepted the offer, and just like that the newcomers had their run of the place, free to see all the sights and meet all the people they wanted until the time came to find a room and bunk up for the evening. After all, a new adventure would begin tomorrow.