The next day, Falnii and Hejema came down to have breakfast with Wilson and Emma. Emma looked to Falnii as she sat down. \u201cYour Majesty?\u201d she asked with care. \u201cHow did you sleep?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Not very well,\u201d replied Falnii. \u201cI had nightmares about my home. Nightmares about the Final War. Seeing him again\u2026\u201d Falnii shuddered, then steadied herself. \u201c\u2026I saw Yulduk last night.\u201d Hejema\u2019s eyes goggled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTh\u2026the Dark Revenant Father?\u201d she gulped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe same.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHoo boy!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRevenant?\u201d asked Emma. \u201cAs in a zombie?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cZombie 2.0,\u201d corrected Hejema. \u201cIn the Realms, while Zombies are just mindless beasts that don\u2019t remember anything and are still decomposing, Revenants remember everything about themselves when they\u2019re brought to life. Their soul is returned to their original corpse, and they can take in mana through the air to continue living as they once did. Only old age can kill them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOr a restricted spell known as Ensakunde,\u201d supplied Falnii. \u201cBut, given that I personally sent his soul to the place of eternal torment and he got back out with the Author\u2019s help, according to Megumi, Optimus, and Arsha, it\u2019s safe to say that that spell won\u2019t work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRight, he\u2019s most likely got a body like mine,\u201d muttered Wilson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Do you think he stole Mike\u2019s roof?\u201d asked Hejema.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd the Blister Twins\u2019 roofs too,\u201d recalled Emma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026You know, it\u2019s a possibility,\u201d mused Falnii. \u201cHe likes to get his hands dirty. It inspired the troops under his command during the Final War.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell, we\u2019re gonna stop him!\u201d declared Wilson. \u201cWe won\u2019t let him torment you!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026I need to tell the Small Controller,\u201d resolved Falnii.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAre you sure you don\u2019t want to stay here and recover?\u201d asked Emma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI DO want to stay, but the railway\u2019s under threat of an enemy after my head and we need all the help we can get. We\u2019re telling him when we get to work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They arrived at the sheds as the Small Controller was ready to give out the assignments. \u201cAh, right on time!\u201d greeted the Small Controller. \u201cThat will perfect! Now, everyone-\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSir,\u201d interrupted Falnii, \u201cI hate to interrupt, but we\u2019ve got a big problem, one that the four of us believe is linked to the roof thefts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou have a lead?!\u201d asked Mike. \u201cWho did it?!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is gonna sound weird, but I need to tell you what I learned last night.\u201d Falnii then told everyone what happened and who Yulduk was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u2026Interesting story,\u201d remarked Mike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMike!\u201d hissed his green friend, Rex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou seriously expect me to believe that a glorified zombie\u2019s stealing roofs?!\u201d argued Mike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMike, enough!\u201d snapped the Small Controller. \u201cGiven what the Skarloey Railway went through two days ago with an enemy of their visitors coming back from the dead, it\u2019s not entirely implausible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat can we do to help?\u201d asked a yellow engine with a tall funnel, Jock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cRight now,\u201d replied Falnii, \u201cwe need a constant look-out for him AND the Lords.\u201d She was feeling a little better now that someone outside her circle of friends offered to help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell, we have numerous opportunities to spot him on today\u2019s jobs,\u201d remarked a blue engine with a tall funnel, Bert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSpeaking of which,\u201d said the Small Controller. He then assigned everyone their duties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rex and Falnii were on wool-delivery duties. Rex looked a little more cautious than one would normally be allowed. Falnii didn\u2019t understand it. \u201cOkay, I\u2019m nervous because of Yulduk coming after my head,\u201d she said, \u201cbut why do you look so nervous? It\u2019s not like you\u2019re herding the sheep.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not that,\u201d explained Rex. \u201cI just had a bit of an accident during the first wool delivery of our railway. I was boasting, you see, saying that this kind of job would be easy, but I reckoned without a man named Willie dawdling and spilling his load of wool onto the line. He tried to warn me and I tried to stop, but the trucks pushed me forward and I ran into the load, getting myself knocked onto my side. The cleanup took no time at all, but I was teased ruthlessly for my boasting. Oddly enough, that accident boosted the railway\u2019s reputation. Still, these days, I\u2019d rather not be so careless about wool deliveries.\u201d Falnii grinned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou know, I had something like that,\u201d she remarked as they got underway. \u201cThis was during the first days of the Final War. Apparently, there was some trouble in casting the strength-enhancing spell, Taravimday. I couldn\u2019t understand how anyone could have trouble with that simple spell. All you do is thrust your wand at yourself or someone else and call \u2018Taravimday\u2019, then the person would have the strength of ten Trolls and Dryads for an hour. Apparently, it was the wand thrust that people were having trouble with. I offered to demonstrate with the Orc in charge as my target. During the demonstration, however, things went a bit wrong. I thrust my wand at him and\u2026well\u2026I THOUGHT I said \u2018Taravimday\u2019. But, given that the Orc in charge was a sheep, it was painfully clear that I said \u2018TaravimBAY\u2019, the target to sheep transformation spell. I was never so embarrassed in my life. They got him back to his Orc form and he told me to find someone else to demonstrate Taravimday instead of Taravimbay. I did and then hid in Arsha\u2019s quarters on the Endeavor<\/em> for the rest of the day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cOh dear,\u201d sympathized Rex. \u201cI\u2019m sorry that\u2026\u201d he trailed off when he saw something moving behind the bushes near the line. \u201cHang about!\u201d he said. He then called to the person. \u201cHey! You\u2019re way too near railway-!\u201d Yulduk then sprang out of the bushes and ran along the line!<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAFTER HIM!\u201d shouted Falnii. Rex increased his speed and Falnii drew her wand. She then swung it across her front and fired a magic blast. Yulduk rolled out of the way and threw a small fireball at them. \u201cCANURTO!\u201d shouted Falnii as she held her wand in a reverse grip and thrust her hand forward. A large stream of water then spouted from the grip of the wand and doused the fireball. Yulduk took the opportunity to sneak away, out of Falnii and Rex\u2019s sight. Falnii hissed in irritation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYulduk was by the line?!\u201d yelped Bert once Rex told his fellow engines about the incident at the end of the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWhat was he doing?\u201d asked Blister I.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWell, we\u2019re not too sure what he was doing before we arrived,\u201d remarked Rex, \u201cbut he was certainly trying to roast us after we made it clear we saw him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAre you all right?\u201d asked Jock.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cBelieve it or not, we ARE all right. Falnii\u2019s magic saved us AND the wool.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThank goodness for that,\u201d sighed Sigrid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThat still begs the question,\u201d remarked Mike, \u201cof what he was doing there in the first place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cScouting,\u201d said Falnii to her team outside the cottage at the end of the day. \u201cIt has to be scouting. He won\u2019t send his troops into a battlefield he doesn\u2019t know about.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnother commander who cares about their troops,\u201d remarked Wilson, remembering the reports of Team SKR.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe councilors of the Realm Trinity Empire all cared about their troops. That\u2019s what made the Final War drag on for so long.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe need to find him,\u201d declared Hejema. \u201cWe strike at their base of operations-!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe go right into a hornet\u2019s nest. No, we have to maintain our position here on the railway. He needs to make the mistake of coming after us, not the other way around.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026You\u2019re sure about this?\u201d asked Emma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPositive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Well, if you\u2019re sure, then we\u2019ll do as you suggest,\u201d said Hejema. \u201cYou coming in?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNot yet. I\u2019ll be with you shortly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAll right. But please be careful.\u201d Falnii\u2019s teammates entered the cottage and she looked out beyond the fence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026I know you\u2019re there.\u201d Yulduk came out from the bushes. \u201cAh, there you are, right on schedule.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cTattling on me?\u201d chuckled Yulduk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou know what Dr. Borg said about information. It\u2019s one of the few things our side ever agreed with her about.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cSo, we ARE alike in some respects. We know how people are interdependent.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIndeed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201c\u2026Well, I think I\u2019ve seen enough. I\u2019ll see you again, but it won\u2019t be as pleasant as tonight.\u201d Yulduk then vanished. Falnii sighed, thinking about how to stop Yulduk.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The next day, Falnii and Hejema came down to have breakfast with Wilson and Emma. Emma looked to Falnii as she sat down. \u201cYour Majesty?\u201d she asked with care. \u201cHow did you sleep?\u201d \u201c\u2026Not very well,\u201d replied Falnii. \u201cI had nightmares about my home. Nightmares about the Final War. Seeing him again\u2026\u201d Falnii shuddered, then […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5119,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[754,880],"tags":[482,9,146,597,337],"class_list":["post-6429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-journey-through-wonder","category-story-journey-through-wonder","tag-fantasy","tag-kamen-rider","tag-sonic","tag-thomas-and-friends","tag-transformers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6429"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6429\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6430,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6429\/revisions\/6430"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5119"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samueljvinton.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}