Embers of Eternity (Book 8 of the Keyblade Legends Rainimator Fanfic Series)

Chapter 107: Are We Prepared for This?

Rain's POV

This is it...

The day has come.

I took a deep breath in, it was wintertime now, so there was snow everywhere.

"It's c-cold!" Moon had complained.

"I love it," I replied. "It reminds me Glacierford."

Man, life was so easy back then. No zombie apocalypse... no girlfriends turning into demons... no catchy songs playing in the background for no apparent reason...

Speaking of girlfriends, Stella had to stay behind due to no longer being able to fight anymore.

I wasn't sure, but I think Stella was really disappointed in this.

I think she wanted to fight as well.

She'll be safe. I told myself. She's not going to be put in anymore danger.

"Rain!" Kyle yelled, drawing out his pistol. "You good?"

"Yeah!" I replied as Kyle jumped down from where he was standing and ran over to join the Undead Council. 

For the first time, I noticed that Meeps was taller than before, being just an inch smaller than Razer now.

Meeps was talking to Razer, making exaggerated gestures.  

I watched as Razer shook his head, as if he was protesting.

I watched this scene, slightly shocked at what was happening.

Meeps and Razer... rarely argued with each other. In fact, I can't even remember the last time those two fought. 

But Meeps clearly was pissed off at Razer.

Andrew stood there awkwardly and I felt a stab of pity for him. His younger sister is arguing with his boyfriend. 

Finally Kyle whispered something into Meeps' ear, causing the AI to relax. 

Relieved that the bickering was over, I looked around, thinking about where everyone was.

Moon is in one of the archery towers, Sheila is doing one last battle check, Ember is practicing his fighting skills, Alex is... doing something, I hope. 

Ember, Moon, Razer, Andrew, Alex, Sheila, Meeps, Kyle and I, plus our friends and allies... we surely have enough right?

I mean... the Overseer... he can't have that many troops, can he?

Right?

"Hey," someone said. I turned around to see Damian, staring at me awkwardly. "Uh, so I was wondering... can I join you?"

"What?" I asked as Hannah walked up to her boyfriend. 

"We wanted to fight along side with you," she told me. "My nature powers are fully developed as well, so I can do some nasty injuries with pine needles."

I shuddered. I never considered pine needles to be dangerous.

"Besides" Damian said. "I need to make a lot of amends for my crimes. But, I don't think I'll be able to do enough to be forgiven. And, I'm okay with that, it's better than being behind bars as I rot in jail for the rest of my life."

"Damian," I said. "Damian? Look at me," the young man looked at me, trying to avoid my eyes. "Damian, I want to let you know that I forgive you. Actually, I think we all forgive you."

Damian snorted. "Not Sheila," he said. "She hates my guts."

"She hated my guts for some time," Kyle said, walking up to Damian. "And she hated Alex for a long time as well. Sheila just holds grudges for too long, that's all."

 I remembered that the two of them were friends, back when Kyle worked for the Overseer and was Damian's right-hand man.

"Weird," I said. "Alex and you were best friends, and Sheila was already probably dating Alex by then..."

"We're not best friends anymore," Kyle said coldly. "I forgave him, but I don't want to... I don't think I belong in his future anymore... and I don't want to either." 

Kyle began to polish his gun. "The Undead Council is like a family to me," he said. "Alex was a great childhood friend, but I've grown. And, I want to stay in the Undead Council now, despite the land being desolate and very depressing."

"I would join you," Damian said. "But... not sure if it's suitable for Hannah."

"I could go down there and throw some plants here and there," Hannah said. "I wouldn't mind."

"Geez, if you decide to live in the Underworld, we might as well call you Persephone." Damian joked.

"Okay, Hades," Hannah replied.

As the three of them laughed, I stared out at the horizon.

Any minute now, the Overseer's troops will arrive. And at that moment, our sides will clash into battle. Many will fall, others will traumatized. We've worked hard for this moment, and with luck... our defenses will hold out.

Oh, and there might be a very catchy song playing in the background.

Are we prepared for this? Or are we playing a risky gamble?  

Are we sure of ourselves, or is this a game of chance?

It's a game of chance, we won't know the outcome. We can predict what might happen, but I think the only reason why we make predictions is because we want to be hopeful. We might all die today, and only the Fates will know.

For some of us, the string has already been cut.