Resurgence

Discussion

Rain

As he exited the forest, Rain saw a group of people leaving Dreadfort. He picked out Ser Patrick, Daryll, Stella, Kane, and Ciara in the group, along with a large number of regular soldiers. They spotted Rain and rode over.

Rain grimaced, knowing what was coming. He only hoped that he could share his information quickly and start trying to find a way to help Abigail.

As the group arrived, Ser Patrick swung off his horse and walked over. Once he was close enough, he smacked Rain.

"Where have you been?" Ser Patrick demanded. "First, you go off on an adventure that took much longer than you said it would, and then you go galavanting off in another mission without even informing me!"

Rain winced, from both the words, and the smack.

"I'm sorry, sire," Rain replied. "I heard about the warrior in the woods and decided to take a look. I didn't inform you because I knew that you would never send me alone, even though that was the best strategy."

"And how would you know that you have a better chance alone?" Ser Patrick asked.

"Because I found the warrior, and escaped unharmed."

Everyone stopped dead. Patrick stared at Rain in shock.

"You fought the warrior and survived?" he asked weakly.

"Yes," Rain replied. "And the can tell you who they are."

Patrick stared at him some more. Then, he shook himself.

"Everyone, we're riding back to Dreadfort. Someone send word to Lady Azura," he looked at Rain. "We will meet in the War Room in thirty minutes.

~ ~ ~

The War Room was more filled then Rain had ever seen it. Along with him, Stella, Kane, Ciara, Patrick, Azura, and Daryll, there was also a collection of people that he didn't recognize. There was a pair of women named Hilda and Dexter, along with another man that he hasn't been introduced to.

Patrick sat quietly, contemplating what Rain had told him. Rain had just told Patrick what he and his friends had done while they were gone.

"So," Patrick summarized, "you were cured of your curse and became and Ender Watcher, Stella was transformed into a Netherkin, you befriend Kane and Ciara, a pair of undead Netherbane, and now are searching for the End Crystals that Ceris hid from Naeus."

"That about sums it up," replied Rain.

"But you still hadn't explained who the warrior in the forest is," Patrick commented. Azura glared at him.

"Be patient, Patrick," she scolded. "He's getting to that."

Rain smiled as Patrick shifted uncomfortably. He was obviously not used to being corrected in front of such a large group.

"Anyways," Rain continued, "after we returned and I entered into the woods, I did eventually encounter the mysterious warrior. She is even someone that at least most of you will know of."

Rain saw Azura's eyes widen. She had put it together, the strange tactics and weapons, the secrecy, and Rain's reaction. The others however, were still confused.

"She?" asked Patrick. "This warrior is a woman?"

"Yes," Rain replied. "Or more specifically, Abigail the Nether Queen."

Rain could feel the tension in the room. He almost felt like he could touch it.

"What?" Patrick exclaimed. "Impossible! The Nether Queen is dead. You killed her."

"I know what I did," Rain replied. "But I also know what I saw."

Daryll however, looked at Rain doubtfully.

"Rain, you must be mistaken," he said. "Remember when I first told you about this? I told you that this warrior attacked both our troops and Nether troops. If this was the Nether Queen, then why would she attack her own soldiers?"

"That can be explained as well," Rain replied. "You see, Abigail is not in her right mind. She has a split personality disorder. Sometimes she is the Nether Queen, but at other times she's just Abigail."

"Split personality?" Azura asked. "That shouldn't be too hard to fix."

"Great," Hilda said. "Then let's send a force to capture her, and bring her back to let Azura work her magic."

Rain shook his head. "It's not that simple. This isn't like she routinely switches from one personality to another. Abigail and the Nether Queen are both actively fighting for control. Whoever is the strongest at a point in time determines who controls the body. If we send people to bring her in, even if she is Abigail at the time, the Nether Queen will recognize the Frostbourn as enemies and force her way into control."

"There is another problem," Azura added. "I cannot choose what personality is dominant after the procedure. As the Nether Queen is probably the most powerful of the personalities, we could end up restoring all of her memories, but the Nether Queen would still be in control. We would have to make sure that Abigail was not only the dominant personality, but also that the Nether Queen doubts her own identity."

"That will be extremely difficult," Kane added. "I do not know much about the Nether Queen, but from my encounter with her, I can tell that she is someone who knows who she is."

"I believe that I can reach her though," Rain said. "During the final battle with Herobrine, Abigail regained her memories before she died. If I can break through once, I know I can do it again."

"Then I believe that we have a plan," Patrick remarked. "Rain will go after Abigail alone and try to communicate with the Nether Queen. Dexter and Azura will be above the canopy in case of an emergency, while the rest of us will wait outside of the forest for Rain to emerge. When he does, Lady Azura will fly back here to prepare the machine." He looked around at everyone. "Any questions?"

Everybody shook their heads.

Rain was ecstatic. He couldn't believe that, after all he had gone through, he had another chance to save Abigail. This time, he would make sure not to mess up.