-Terry Pratchett

John had nowhere in particular to go, so he took Sophia and Seras out to the courtyard and began to discuss things with them. Nothing in particular about the war… ironically, so close to something so massive and risky, all John could think about were the little things. Perhaps it was his mind's way of distracting him.

"So… today, tomorrow, a week, a year… whenever this is all over, what did you actually think of that bathtub? I could probably make a bigger one if you wanted. Or just a stand-up shower… though I'd have to figure out a way to get water flowing. Considering we only just got to the Iron Age, though, it might take a couple millennia."

"Father, perhaps you could convince Tricia to join us? In the little time I have had around her since my first appearance, she certainly seemed the least offensive of these Order soldiers you have us assisting, and her intellect and strange devices could aid our advancement. She holds some measure of fear for me, but does not seem to channel it into anger and fury the way the others do. I cannot blame her for fearing my potential, or the strength of our clan; soon we will be even more powerful than her masters."

"There is a lot to unpack there… let's settle for saying that I have already offered a space in our world to her. She has not yet provided an answer. Whatever - and whenever - she decides, we will honor it."

"Are you certain? I do not believe that she would resist us too harshly given her current situation is little better. And Tricia seems to have adapted quite well to her captivity here."

John's mouth dropped a bit, and he had to fight to regain his composure. Ignoring the mental instability that Sophia was none the wiser to, and the ways that Tricia was very much not okay with her situation… "Did you just suggest we kidnap someone?!"

"Slavery to a kind and honorable master is not the worst of fates. It is quite common for my species to take advantage of the survivors of any inter-clan wars for manual labor; those are the only tasks which they can be trusted with unless and until a bond can be forged which is worthy of trust, and every member of a flock must earn their keep, no matter how petty the task."

"I have so much to learn about your culture. That conversation we need to have keeps getting longer," John groaned. "Anyway, moving on from Tricia - Seras, you seem as if something is bothering you. What's going on with that? You haven't been nervous going into a fight since… wait, no, you've almost never been nervous. You were more nervous about being naked in the park than you ever were about a scrap."

"T-that's totally different!" Seras blurted out, tucking her head into her shoulder as she tried to repress the memory flooding through her. John couldn't really blame her… his creations caught a lot of flak for his unpreparedness lately.

"Are you upset about Etriyya? I know you two were talking a bit when we stayed back here, but Etriyya would never tell me. I wasn't exactly going to pry, but… well, that's out the window now."

"N-nothin' much. We were talkin' about you, the Order, lotsa stuff!" Well, that was as vague and suspicious as John could imagine from the buxom police girl, but John was done crowbarring secrets away from people for the day and the foreseeable future. He brushed the topic away with an off-handed shrug.

"Doesn't matter now, I suppose. We've moved out and I don't really see her coming calling any time soon after that. I wish I could say it got me more than six stat points and a…"

John paused as he realized he'd never actually examined the object which was given to him. Bringing up his inventory John looked over the Blarney Whetstone with a newfound curiosity.

Blarney Whetstone - A tool for sharpening blades, forged from a lost fragment of the Blarney Stone in Ireland. Don't worry, no one will miss it.
Effect: When Crafted with a weapon, boosts its base damage by 10% (both minimum and maximum). This does not consume the stone. Only works on Common or Uncommon weapons.

"I have a- Evellyn! I have a rating system?! Why hasn't that been showing up!?"

"ERROR RETURNED: No items acquired have been of Uncommon rarity or above yet. Item rarity system not fully operational."

Evellyn somehow managed to have the expression of a windows error message, if such a thing were possible, and was gone as quickly as she appeared. John waved away the remnants of his messages, realizing he wasn't going to get answers to the system that seemed designed to both aid him and still obfuscate as much as possible. The worst part was that he couldn't disagree; even the Order's blade was just a generic one they gave to recruits, same with all the other gear… and anything he could make with his minimum-level Crafting and Runeforging abilities wasn't going to be more than Common, most likely.

"Well, if I had a weapon, I could use this. For now, I'm going to stow it away. Once I make some Iron Ingots and forge myself something a little more durable, I can worry about this."

"Do you think you could make somethin' outta rocks? You don't need any tools to make stuff with that, and it's nice an' fireproof. You could just… craft a big rock slate with a bunch of square 'oles, then pour it in outta your inventory?"

"That's… that's actually a good idea. A lot easier than making a proper smeltery, and once they qualify as ingots I don't need any tools. Seems to only need big things - buildings, or facilities, or at a minimum something more well-formed than a tower of clay. Still mad I had to do that manually."

"Weapons and lessons are two things best forged by one's own hand… when you have an appreciation for something, be it steel or wisdom, you will wield it far more wisely."

John didn't immediately recognize the voice that had interrupted them, and was quite surprised to see none other than Kim Moon. She looked almost identical to the last time he had seen her… same battle garb, and the same blade dangling by her hip. Like everyone else around here, she seemed ready for war.

"We did not get much of a chance to speak last time we met, John Newman. The throes of battle can be as fiery and as passionate as any other, with little time for words. You seem somewhat stronger, but that was less than a day ago. Perhaps that is merely the results of you not being quite so fatigued? Then again, that aura of yours…"

Kim's glare could've pierced through a mile of solid steel to gaze at John's body just then, her inscrutable expression undeniably judgmental, though what the result of that was, John could not tell.

"My Father seems quite unnerved by the way you are staring at him. Tell us why you have come here, or turn away your prying eyes."

Kim took in Sophia's form, eyeing her in a way not completely dissimilar to how she had been staring at John. Unlike Moira, there was no taste of disdain in her gaze, and unlike Tricia, she didn't seem to be studying the harpy as an object instead of a person. It was… almost refreshing, as brutal and uncaring as the gaze may have been.

"This one has spirit, and far less fear than the rest of you. Be sure that your attitude does not place your… 'Father' in unnecessary danger, and you will make a proud warrior."

"I am a mighty and proud warrior," Sophia said, raising her head up. All the same John saw the glint of pride in her at the compliment from what was almost a total stranger to her.

"Perhaps. We shall see - our forces are gathering and preparing themselves. Join us, John Newman, Seras, and…"

"Sophia," the Harpy Whirlwind offered. "Sophia Newman"

"Sophia Newman," Kim replied, tasting the name on her tongue. She quirked an eyebrow at the addition of the last name, but said nothing. "I will remember that name. Now, come with me. Last time we saw what our forces could do alone, working in tandem. Today you will witness what happens when they work together."

_

John and his companions arrived at the garage in time to see Moira directing a group of Order soldiers escorting a member of the Moon Clan, clambering into the back of one of the Order's many vans. The entire area was thrumming with the sound of idling engines, and if it wasn't for what must have been amazing ventilation, he was sure they'd be **** on fumes. Moira didn't notice them for quite a while, but Kim was not a woman to be ignored, calling out to the Warden shortly after they cleared the doorway.

"I have retrieved your honorary Knight and his companions. I assume the preparations have been finished while I was away?"

"A rendezvous has been set with the Legion, and the Barrier mages are in place. The drivers are aware of the routes, we've chosen the shortest route we can comfortably hold in the event of a rout, and your father has assisted us with assigning posts to soldiers once their search and destroy is completed."

"Why do I always get left out of the actual details?"

"Because this is still your first war, John," Moira sighed. "Besides, as always, you are to accompany me. Despite my misgivings about you, both those justified and otherwise, you are growing rapidly as a warrior. You will make the push into what we believe to be their primary headquarters alongside myself, Kim, and Julianna. I believe that your creations along with our talents will provide a formidable offensive."

"Hang on, seriously, this is the final attack, right? Or… it could be? Why are we making the push? What about your dad? I still can't even see his level, he must be strong enough to take care of this!"

"Indeed, he would be. And if that were our only hope of winning, I'm sure he would be here with us at this very moment. But there is every chance we are walking into a trap and may require a wave of reinforcements for rescue. Walk with me," Moira interrupted herself to usher them all toward a van, opening the doors while continuing to explain. "Furthermore, Kim's father and my own are concerned. Aside from the Cabal's push into our territory initially, they have made very few offensive forays against us, and all were half-hearted at best. We are worried that they may be planning to bait us into this attack. As such…"

"They're going to stay here to defend the Manor, and wherever the Moon Clan are from," John said. "It… makes sense, if your father believes we can handle it without unnecessary casualties."

"I believe we can. So does he, of course… but I am the Warden of the Golden Rose, and I would not place my men in needless danger."

"If this is indeed a trap, this approach should allow us to negate the worst of it. My clan are capable of handling themselves against criminal filth such as this. Though my father's presence would not be unwelcome, it is not necessary - and if it comes to a surprise attack, he will slay any Cabal that dare set foot on our lands before they have soiled too much of our sacred ground."

"Wait, what about Julianna?" John asked, thinking back to the ivory-haired swordswoman he'd met only briefly. "Isn't she the leader of her clan?" Moira slammed the doors to the van shut behind them after three Order Knights followed them in, filling the now-cramped rear section of the van with a cozy eight people.

"The Forgotten Legion are nearly nomadic by virtue of what they are and where they came from. Perhaps, if she respects you enough once we are done here, she might consider telling you more. We have not had many opportunities to work with them; if we could secure them as more reliable allies, and if they prove themselves trustworthy, it would benefit us greatly. Especially since if we succeed in this mission, we will soon be neighboring each other in whatever manner we divide the taken Cabal territory."

"Moira, all communications are in place." The voice of Tricia resonated from Moira's gear, and from a pocket that John couldn't quite perceive in her lower breastplate. Moira produced what appeared to be an ordinary handheld radio. "I've just finished running a final set of tests on all equipment, including the antennae and upgraded communications devices. As long as the Barrier mages contracted can retain control over the area, you should have full contact with all units, regardless of distance or whether they enter or exit the Barriers. I've done some tinkering with the channels as well.

"Your radio has access to channel one - that broadcasts to all devices, overrides other broadcasts, and can be heard on all channels; it's blocked on all other devices so that there will never be too much clutter between squadrons. You will be able to hear and speak at the same time; however, any broadcasts you make on channel one will cut off other communications, so be wary of overuse. Channels two through ten are assigned to your designated squad leaders. Eleven is for all medical requests and information, twelve is for communication between fortified positions, and I am using thirteen to monitor the situation and provide tactical updates from any visual or auditory feeds I have access to - I will ensure any messages transmitted on it reach the proper devices regardless of the channel they are tuned to. Fourteen and fifteen are for usage by the Moon Clan that have not joined us here and the Forgotten Legion, respectively, though I cannot guarantee that the Legion have even chosen to keep the devices I sent them. I will, of course, monitor all channels and forward you any relevant communications."

"Excellent. Deploy your drones in the street as you deem necessary. I will be focusing primarily on the tip of the spear; I'm leaving it to you and Knight Commander Landon to ensure that the positions we take remain ours."

"Understood."

Moira twisted a knob at the top of the radio, and then took one deep breath before beginning to speak in a tone he recognized well.

"Knights of the Order, warriors of the Moon Clan, and soldiers of the Legion - the threat of the Cabal ends today! They are far from the only threat in the area, but they are the largest hostile **** in Springfield, and the only ones to so boldly and openly defy what is just, what is right, and to try to take what is ours! Whether you fight for justice, for honor, or to protect those you care for, make no mistake, today we fight for what is ours. The Cabal are dazed, reeling, about to break. Let us strike one final blow against them and remind those who would stand against our forces that we are not to be trifled with! That the righteous will prevail, and the wicked will fall. Today, we end the war. Today we end the threat of the Cabal!"

Moira ended her speech with two loud bangs of her armored fist against the front of their compartment. As one, John heard some dozen engines revving up together.

"So… this is really it. The war's really about to end."

John sighed as their vehicle lurched into motion. Could it really be that easy? Was anything, anymore?