AN: My apologies that this was so late in coming. I've spent most of the weekend unconscious due to medicating my headache. The high pollen count, and getting rain on a bit, sort of took its toll on me. Anyway, we've come to the end of this volume. I tried to see what else I could have added to it, which also prolonged the time it took to put this out. Anyway, this seemed the best place to stop since it also set us up for next volume and the wonders to come.

Origin ARS [Like any finished story that I am currently working on.] will be taking a one month hiatus before it returns, though there should be a few chapters upon its return. I need to finish cleaning up the story, cleaning Galactic Fist, and work on other things. :) Enjoy.

Chapter 85: Epilogue

Night had fallen by the time that the trio had returned to the city. It was Scott's first time driving a vehicle through the busy streets. Rhea had to show him how to do so without worrying about accruing a traffic ticket. As things turned out, it was illegal for him to drive through town without a permit. He took it slow and did his best not to draw attention.

Thankfully, their sweet new ride was not as bizarre as some of the other vehicles. Blending in with the strange and whimsical was much easier than either of them anticipated.

"So, you want to get to third and seventh, before you heard toward the place where Greelak works." said Rhea. She pointed at an upcoming turn. Scott took it with all of the grace expected of someone driving a new vehicle in a foreign city. The sudden change in direction caused him to overreact slightly. He nearly clipped the curb, and narrowly managed not to hit a light post.

Rhea snickered at him gently, but Scott was not ashamed. Even with wheels, their sweet new ride did not take well to sharp turns. Completing that turn in one piece was wonderful as far as he was concerned.

The local police did not seek him out to fine him, and nothing more was made of his poor driving skills. Several more sharp turns were navigated before they found their way to the Sub Machine Gun shop that Greelak operated.

Parking was sparse, but they found a spot nearby after a moment of trial and error. Inside the shop, Scott noticed that a handful of patrons were checking out the guns. No one held a sandwich bag, however.

"Yo, Greelak," said Scott, as he walked up to the counter.

The orc looked up from the onions that he was chopping. "Hey, my man. Welcome back."

"Good to be back." Scott turned to Rhea and to Herbert. "This is my fiancé, Rhea. The furry badass there is my buddy Herbert."

Greelak eyed Rhea for a moment then looked down to Herbert. "Good to meet you. Name's Greelak Elfsmasher."

"Elfsmasher?" asked Rhea curiously.

The orc laughed in a jovial manner then waved his knife around in a friendly sort of way. "I'd explain, but it wouldn't be polite in front of a lady."

Rhea laughed softly, but then made it obvious when she stepped closer to Scott. Greelak's meaning was quite clear.

Scott gently patted her on the arm, and then looked back to Greelak. "I think we've brought you some stuff that you might like."

Orcish eyes widened in delight. "Did you now?"

"Yeah, man. Do you have somewhere to unload stuff, or do you want me to bring it in the front door?" asked Scott.

"You got the stuff nearby?" asked the orc.

"Crankshaft hooked us up with a sweet ride. It's out front," said Scott. Mention of Crankshaft caused Greelak's eyes wide shimmer slightly. It was quite disturbing for Scott, actually. The rough and tumble orc looked almost man-pretty for a moment.

He showed no concern for his shop as he went outside. Scott asked him about it on the way, but the orc merely waved him off. "They steal from me, I'll hunt 'em down."

A low, slow, whistle escaped Greelak's lips as he saw Crankshaft's handiwork. "Now, that's a beaut."

Scott grinned at him then pulled a minigun out of storage. Greelak's eyes lit up once more. "Oh, now you're speakin' mah language, man!"

The group shared a warm laugh then the exchange began. Greelak stored all of the weapons in a bag then motioned for them to follow him around the side of the building. They entered his shop from a side door, and found themselves entering into a beautiful wonderland filled tools of death and mayhem.

"Damn. I need a shop like this," said Scott. Bits and pieces of guns, robot parts, and various blades were strewn about the place.

"Everyone who gets to see it, says it." Greelak laughed loudly then locked the door behind them. "Can't have people gettin' in here. This is where mah real money comes from."

"I figured that the sandwiches weren't the real attraction, even if I liked them," said Scott.

Greelak grinned at him briefly, and then started to pull the guns from his bag "Give me a moment to test 'em. Need to so how much of a bonus to give ya."

Scott nodded to him then went to stand near Rhea and Herbert. The rodent sat on a nearby table in order to see everything better. Rhea slipped her fingers between Scott's and leaned against the wall. All that was left to do was wait.

Sparks flew while Greelak went about his business. Now and then a gun barrel would rotate swiftly in place then come to a stop with a series of clicks. He finished his task after a few minutes then turned to look at Scott. "I've seen better, but I'll take 'em!"

The orc weaponsmith and restauranteur held up one finger then left the room. A brief few minutes later he returned with a small brown sack. "One gold for tha shipment, and another hunnerd fifty silver for quality."

"I won't say no to that," said Scott, a slight grin on his face. Sure, the guns would have been worth a lot more if they actually worked. Earning over two gold for a contract was amazing at the current level of his group.

Greelak tossed him the sack. The moment that Scott caught it, his Crystacom made a beeping noise. The contract was complete. Not long after that his headache began to subside.

"You find better, bring 'em to me. I'll buy 'em," said Greelak.

"It's a deal," said Scott. "We'll see about finding some more."

"Bring me something really nice, and I might give ya a special bonus," said Greelak with a grin.

Scott laughed then nodded his head. "Sounds good. See you later with some better stuff."

They left the back room after business was complete. The trio were quite satisfied with their pay for a job well done. The weapons that they had traded in were worth considerably more if fully functional. Broken, and missing parts, they were little more than scrap to anyone without a high level of gunsmithing skill.

The crew hopped in their rad mobile then went back to their hotel. It was slightly costly to stay there, but it was easier than hunting through the city every time they came back to town. Plus, they kept a few items in their room.

Once they entered their room, the team split up temporarily. Rhea went to do whatever elves did when they answered the call of nature. Scott sat down in front of the C-Vision screen. Herbert went to check on his helmet.

Scott fiddles with the controls briefly. There were few channels, nothing like on Earth, and all of them were focused on infomercials at the moment. Sadly, none of the advertising-centric offerings interested him. Mostly, the current shows were focused on household supplies and jewelry with no stat bonuses.

Just as Rhea finished her business in the restroom, Scott sat up straight. The infomercial on the screen was interrupted by an emergency news broadcast.

"What the—?" began Scott. Rhea joined him just in time to see what had gotten his attention.

"That's right, we are coming to you live from the scene of carnage that is taking place in the Trinity Highcrowne region." The footage on the holographic screen showed a live broadcast of an attack on the all-too-familiar settlement.

Dark armored monstrosities stalked through the streets, their axes rising and falling in a bid to slay anything that they could come near. Scott's eyes narrowed when he saw one of the living armors slam its axe into the door of the inn that they had been staying at recently.

"Shit," he said, his chest heaving.

"Looks like we left just in time," remarked Rhea.

"Just in time?" Scott looked at her like she had lost her mind. "People are dying over there."

Rhea pointed to the screen. Scott looked back to it then blinked. The reported had pulled back and now showed the true scope of the battle. Thousands of armored warriors were revealed.

"We would have died if we were there. By the time Valkovia marshals an offensive, that outpost will be long since dead," said Rhea. She held a quite grace about her as she said it, like she had accepted an inevitable thing.

"Crankshaft, and those people..." said Scott.

"Who knows? We won't be able to find out anything until the task force is readied," said Rhea. She bit her lip. "The timing sucks."

"There's a good time for something like this to happen?" asked Scott, and incredulous expression writ large on his face.

She nodded to him. "Absolutely." Rhea frowned cutely then said, "I have to head back to work. Otherwise, I would try to join the task force that they are probably trying to put together."

"Damn," muttered Scott. Her logic was impeccable from a game stand-point but felt a bit cold from a humane view-point. Still, she had given him an idea. "There's a task force?"

"Probably. If you turn the channel to the local access station, it'll probably have information," said Rhea.

Scott did as she suggested. The screen now showed a man in black armor. Below his image, a repeating banner provided information about the call to arms. "All brave people in Valkovia, heed this call to arms. The Storm Tyrant has begun a new offensive in the North. Meet on the plains outside the city before dawn."

Rhea poked Scott in the shoulder. "You should go."

"They'd let me join up with them?" Scott looked up to Rhea, his eyes curious.

The elf maiden grinned at him then nodded. "Absolutely. You'll gain a lot of contribution and social experience is nothing else."

"Contribution... What can I do with it, anyway? I haven't seen anything," said Scott.

"All kinds of things," said Rhea. "Equipment, land, discounts, specialty items, and even free services in the area, there's plenty of stuff that you can do with contribution."

"How do I use it?" asked Scott.

"You'll probably have to wait till the crises is averted, but when it's over you should go to the city magistrate's office to expend it. At the very least you can trade it in for money," said Rhea.

"Man, it's too bad you can't go." Scott reached over and took Rhea's hand. "How am I going to survive another week without ya?"

She smiled warmly at him. "Well, aren't you sweet?"

"It happens," said Scott. "Try to at least text me or something when you can?"

"Of course! The time-dilation might make them come several hours after I send them, but I'll write," said Rhea.

Herbert took the chance to chitter loudly. They looked over to him and discovered that he was pointing at his skull helmet. It beautiful construct was finally finished.

"Good job," said Scott. "I couldn't have made that."

The grass rat waved him off then laughed in his own special chittering manner. He then patted the helmet and pointed to Scott.

Eager to see what would happen, Scott picked up the cat skull helm and placed it on his head. The item quickly began to twist and wriggle, soon it fit him perfectly. He clasped and then tightened the chin strap before turning to look at Rhea. "So, do I look barbaric and sexy?"

Rhea threw a hand to her face and laughed. "You're certainly something."

He grinned at her then turned back to Herbert. "Thanks for this! It's great."

A somewhat bashful chitter was the little fellows response. He rubbed the back of his head then dragged his foot from side-to-side on the table.

At the moment, Scott looked a great deal like a barbarian who had joined a local circus. It was a strange sort of ensemble that he wore. Red, yellow, and blue clothing mixed with an animal skull helm and a similar set of fur bracers. There was no chance that someone would fail to recognize him in a fight. That much was certain.

"Hey, will you be going with me to join the task force?" Scott looked to Herbert for an answer.

The Grassrat shook his head. He had other plans.

"I see. You want to train or something?" asked Scott.

Herbert nodded then performed a happy little jig. His feet needed to be in motion. It was the only way to live.

"Guess it'll just be me." Scott rubbed his chin lightly. "Wonder how long the task force will take?"

"It depends on the number of troops in the battle. I'd guess a few days, if the Storm Tyrant doesn't attack with reserve forces," said Rhea.

"Right, you have a lot of experience with large-scale battles in this world," said Scott. "How bad is this?"

"This?" Rhea shook her head. "If the reporter showed everything properly, the main forces would be swept back in about a day. There'd be another day or two of hunting for stragglers."

"Without Thunder Reign, the Storm Tyrant doesn't seem as strong," said Scott.

"It's probably the only reason that he has a chance to do any real damage. The eldritch armor knights that attacked here seemed to be around level twenty-five to forty. Pretty standard low-end cannon fodder," said Rhea.

They continued to discuss the Storm Tyrant for a time. Rhea revealed all that she knew on the subject. Level design, event coordination, and creature placements were not her department. Most of her direct knowledge came from actively exploring the world.

Their conversation stuttered to a halt a few minutes later when Scott noticed something on the C-Vision. "Hey, is that the idiot trio?"

Rhea and Herbert looked at the screen alongside Scott, each of them eager to see if it was true. As it turned out, Scott was correct. Clarence screamed bloody murder as he ran down the street, an arm in one hand, and a leg in another. A quartet of armor knights appeared before him, and he fell back. Even from the great distance that the camera man was positioned at, it was obvious that Clarence was terrified. He unleashed what appeared to be a scream, but his outcry was drowned out by the sounds of battle. Massive axe blades fell upon him with brutal efficiency. The constant nuisance who had for a time been known as First Guy, lay dead on the street. His various bits and pieces were strewn about with no regard to his former humanity.

They watched the grisly scene for a moment. It was a stark reminder of the fragile nature of life in this world.

"You know. We're all still together for a few hours," said Scott. "Want to make the most of it?"

The trio looked to each other, and then nodded. Rhea would leave soon to return to work. Scott, would be fighting the monstrous hordes of the Storm Tyrant alongside people he had never met. Herbert? Well, Herbert just wanted to dance.

For a time, the vagaries of life in a fantasy world would tear them apart once more. Now, however, they had a few more hours to spend in each other's company. It was the little moments that allowed for the greatest of joys, and granted reminders of what each of them fought for throughout their lives.