Chapter Eighty-Seven: The Last One (Not A Dragonheart Reference This Is Literally The Last Chapter)

Silence inhabited the library in the days that followed the latest summoning. Tim wasn't around very much as he had work to do with his various endeavours, but even when he was around, he wasn't quite himself. Whenever Meg saw him he seemed lost in thought, and gazing into the distance. She once saw his shadow on the floor by her desk, and looked up to see him milling around on the roof. Assuming that he was probably just upset by how badly he was beaten, Meg kept on with her work, thinking that he'd get over it eventually, and there wasn't much she could do regardless.

Eventually, Tim had to come back upstairs to get notes for an idea he was planning to put forward to the guild, and Meg took the opportunity to speak to him.

"You okay?" She asked, turning to look at him.

"Hm? Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about stuff." Tim replied, not seeming down in the slightest.

"Well, two heads are better than one. If you need it, I'm here to talk."

A small smile appeared on Tim's face. "That's awfully nice, coming from you. Do I really seem that bad?"

"It's just unusual for you to be so restrained. Consider it you own fault for how you normally behave."

Tim chuckled lightly. "Yeah, I suppose you're right." Tim gathered up the notes he came to get, slipped them away, and turned to leave.

"I'll be out for a while." He said. "...Thanks."

"Yeah, don't mention it."

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"Edgar." Tim said, swinging open the soon-to-be king's study door.

"Oh great, you again." Edgar looked up at Tim with a sour expression, before frowning. "What's wrong? You don't seem all there."

"Seriously? I've just got stuff on my mind, alright?" Tim said, dropping into a seat. "How's the reconstruction going?"

"It's getting there. I met the architect the other day, he's a weird one. He seems to spend most of his time ranting about how he only gets to make worthless houses, and never anything of substance. I reminded him that he was constructing a palace, and he told me, 'No home of any man could ever hold meaning beyond the ones that inhabit it.' Then he told me to never speak to him again unless I had something meaningful to say."

"He sounds very pretentious."

"Quite. Problem is, he's also the best man alive at his job, so I can't just dump him. The man knows his materials, and I'm afraid if he weren't supervising, the damn thing would collapse."

"That so... Well, when he's done, tell him to get in touch at the library. If he wants to do something useful, Meg might have a job for him in the long run."

"I highly doubt you have the money for that."

"I'm working on it. You found any new information about what they were doing here before everything burned?"

"Only some notes on magic we retrieved from a cave to the South that they were using as a testing lab. Nothing spectacular, except the notes they had on their human experiments. Apparently they only had a couple of subjects that actually survived the procedures."

"Well, they're dead now. One was the guy attacking the library, and the other died in the final assault."

"We did assume they weren't around anymore."

"But nothing else?"

"Nothing beyond the purview of our own magic researchers."

"How is Thomas?"

"Very happy that he gets to keep whatever he finds."

"Good, good..." Tim leant back in his seat, and gazed into the ceiling for a moment.

"Hey, Edgar?"

"What?"

"Do you ever wonder... About what there might be in other worlds?"

"Only what we can salvage from the one idiot you brought through. Anything more isn't something I can waste my time concerning myself with, I'll leave that to the storytellers."

"Hmm..."

"Why?"

"Well, after all the different tools and weapons they had after only a few short years, I can't help but think... The world he came from must've been far more advanced, if he had such knowledge readily available to him."

"Maybe, but that doesn't really make a difference for us."

"True." Tim stood up, and after saying goodbye, he left.

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Tim stood in the doorway of a small house in the city of Sanbo, home to the Goddess of Fire. The house was situated somewhere between the upper-class and the lower-class residential areas, and the house reflected that midway point. Tim knocked on the door, and waited.

"This better be the right house." He said to himself as he waited for a response. After a moment, there was a noise on the other side, and the door swung open.

"Tim!" The woman who opened the door yelled out in joyous surprise.

"Hello Rose." He replied with a smile, before being ushered in. They went into a small living room, and sat down.

"How have you been?" Rose asked.  "I haven't seen you since the wedding."

"Yeah, sorry about that."

"Oh don't worry, we all had fun. So what brings you here?"

"Well, I was in the area on business, and I figured I'd drop by."

"What kind of business? Is it that war that ended recently, or is that all sorted now?"

"I should've guessed you'd figure out I was involved in that."

"There is literally no way you wouldn't be."

"You're not wrong." Tim said. The two chuckled, and began to talk about their lives since they last met. Eventually the matter of Rose's child came up, at which point Tim blank-facedly said he was going to slap Meg, because she had once again failed to inform him of life changing events in his friend's life. Eventually Rose calmed him down, and after a while of talking, it was about time to leave.

"Oh, by the way, Rose?"

"Yes?"

"...Have you seen Abby?" He asked as they headed to the door.

"Not since the wedding."

"Yeah, I figured as much."

They got to the door, and Tim turned to say goodbye before he left.

"Tim..." Rose said before he could say goodbye. "Come visit us again won't you?"

Tim smiled softly.

"Goodbye Rose."

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At the entrance to the lair of the Goddess of Fire, the priest guards were shocked when Tim dropped from the sky onto the stone ledge.

"I don't have an appointment." He said, walking up to the door. "Is that okay?" The guards looked at each other, and stepped aside.

"Good." Tim said, pushing open the large doors, and heading in.

"Hello Tim." Hino said with a smile as he entered. "I didn't expect to see you again so soon, if I'm honest."

"Well, you're kind of the only god I can readily talk to as an equal." Tim said with a shrug. "Abby's never around, when I talk to Metz I feel like I'm bullying her, and I get the feeling the others don't like me."

"I wonder why."

"It's truly a mystery."

"Indeed. So, why are you here?"

"Well, two things. Firstly, I'd like an assurance from you."

"Oh? And what's that?"

Tim reached the glowing throne on which Hino sat, and he spoke in a serious tone.

"Should any plot come about, be it human or no, to take the library and remove the current occupant... I'd like you to stop it."

An inquisitive look appeared on Hino's face, and her lips smiled, as her eyes bore into Tim.

"And why would you, of all people, need my help in that."

Tim smiled, and hid himself from her stare with a cheerful veneer. "Well, I can't be everywhere at once, can I?"

Hino gave a short laugh, before replying. "Well, no. I suppose you can't. And what would I gain from this?"

"I would be in your debt."

"Now that is a fine offer... I suppose that's not an unfavourable deal. What's the second item of concern?"

"...Do you know where Abraea is?"

Hino gave a slightly sneering smile. "I do." She said.

"Could you tell me?"

"Oh Tim... You said you only had two things you wanted to discuss."

"...I guess I did." Tim smiled sadly for a second, then turned to leave.

"I'll hold you to your word, Hino." He said as he walked away.

"And I you." She replied, watching him leave with a satisfied expression.

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Time passed without much more of note occurring, until it was once again the day before a full moon.

"Meeeeg." Tim called out as he approached the working woman in the morning.

"What?"

"It's the full moon tonight."

Meg stopped, her eyes widened, and she slowly turned to face him.

"You cannot be serious."

"What? The mid-year festival's nearby this year. Wanna go?"

Meg stared at Tim in shock.

"...Eh?"

"A festival. You know, food, bonfire, dancing, excessive amount of alcohol..."

Meg shook her head out of confusion. "I, I was not expecting that." She said.

"Yeah, I know, it's a lunar festival. But Metz won't be there, so it's fine, right?"

"That's not what I meant and you know it."

"Would you rather I change my mind?"

"No, no. A festival sounds good."

And that was how Meg found herself out in a village drinking warm cider and watching a giant fire burn down, as the villagers and locals danced around it.

"You don't look like you're enjoying yourself." Tim said, heading over to her after getting a refill of his drink.

"Well I'm warm, the alcohol's nice, and the music's not bad, so I'd say I'm fine."

"Well, fair enough."

"Tim!" A man's voice yelled, and the two turned to look. A very rich looking man was walking toward them with a smile. Though he called out happily enough, he still seemed to hold himself in some measure of control, with a straight back, and a limited expression.

"Oliver!" Tim yelled back, and smiled as the two shook hands. "Oliver, this is Meg." He said, and Meg waved awkwardly as the man gave a little bow. "Meg, Oliver."

"Very pleased to meet you miss, I've heard much about you."

"Well, I've heard nothing at all about you."

"I expected as much." Oliver said with a chuckle. "Tim here isn't one to bring people up if he's nothing to say."

"It's your fault for being so dull."

"Very true, very true."

The two men laughed, seemingly quite amused by each other, and Meg looked on rather confused.

"So, Tim tells me that you're quite ambitious." Oliver said, his eyes peering into Meg's.

"I have plans, of a sort."

"Oh I am very much aware, in fact, I'd like to offer you a service."

"...A service?" Meg looked to Tim with skepticism, and he nodded back at her.

"Indeed. You see, there are things in this world that, try as you might, no amount of money can buy. Things that require... Connections. Such things might be items, or they might be permissions to act in certain locations, or manners. I happen to be very adept at acquiring such things."

"...I see."

The man chuckled. "No need to be so worried. It's an unpleasant business, yes, but nothing untoward. It's just important that I maintain a reputation of sorts, to aid my work."

"Is that so..."

"It's fine Meg." Tim said, stepping back into the conversation. "He might be a creepy weirdo, but his heart's in the right place. He's willing to help you with anything you might need when you're trying to get your ideas out there. If the institute won't help, the merchant's won't back you, and the nations themselves don't want you, he knows how to get stuff done."

"Such a ringing endorsement." Oliver said with a smile. "Whatever did I do to deserve this?"

"You won me over with your charming smile, and debonair demeanour."

The two men laughed again at each other, and Oliver said his goodbyes, and headed off back into the crowd.

"Tim, who is that man?" Meg asked once he was gone, in a very concerned manner.

"Well Meg, when people have a lot of money, they tend to think they can do whatever they want, as long as it's a secret. And when those secrets are particularly odious, I'll occasionally receive a letter about it."

"Ah."

"Don't worry. He's a good guy, and definitely someone you want in your corner."

Meg didn't say anything, but as Tim looked back to the party, she watched him with a sad expression.

When they returned to the library the next day, after staying in a nearby inn, Meg spoke to Tim when they were on the top floor.

"You know Tim... I'm not an idiot." She said to him.

Tim smiled, and looked out through the great window at the front of the library.

"I know." He said quietly.

Meg watched him for a moment, then went over to join him. They both leaned against the balustrade at the edge, and looked out.

"Since when?" She asked.

"I've been thinking about it since the end of the war." Tim replied. "But that last battle sealed it."

"Do you have to?"

"...Yeah."

"Can't you live without the fighting?"

Tim looked down, and with a hollow voice, replied.

"No."

They said nothing, and eventually Meg turned around, and headed back to her work desk.

"Hey." Tim called out. "...Let's go to Helen's tomorrow."

"...Okay."

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"Did you really have to order a round for everyone?"

"Why the hell not? Let's make it a party."

"Someone has to clean up here."

"Yes, but not me."

"Keep on going and see if that doesn't change."

"Eep!"

Meg was admonishing Tim, when Helen arrived to sit with them. Tim was especially troublesome this afternoon, and whilst the other bar-goers were happy about it, the staff weren't similarly inclined.

"Is Charlie here today?" Tim asked Helen.

"Yeah, he'll probably be heading home about now."

"Right." Tim took a deep breath in, and the two women quickly covered their ears.

"CHAAAAAAARLIIIIIIIIIE!" He yelled, startling everyone in the room.

"He won't hear you, you jackass." Meg said, clipping him around the head.

"Did someone shout?" A voice came from the door.

"Ha!"

"Shut up."

Tim waved, Charlie noticed, and came over to sit with them.

"Hi there Charlie." Tim said as he came over. "How's work going?"

"It's great." Charlie said happily. "I've been able to travel a bit, and it's been good meeting new people."

"Good." Tim said, nodding. "Bet you still want to go further though, don't you?"

"Well yeah, but if I want to do anything beyond picking up local deliveries, I'd have to become a member of the merchant's guild. I don't have that kind of money."

Tim nodded, pulled out a letter, and handed it to Charlie.

"What's this?" He asked, confused.

"It's a letter of recommendation." Tim said. "Take that to one of the guild buildings and they'll set you up with a master to tutor you. You'll also have a dedicated shipment assigned to you, namely that of regular food deliveries to the library, paid for in advance. Keep the change."

Meg and Helen looked between Tim and Charlie with surprise, while Charlie just stared gobsmacked at the letter in his hands. He then began to look between Tim and the letter in shock, which the other three found highly amusing.

"Don't let me down." Tim said with a smirk.

"I... I won't!" Charlie yelled, excitement setting in. "Thank you so much! I have to go tell mum!" Charlie quickly turned and ran out the door, leaving Tim laughing as he watched him go.

"Oi." Helen said, jabbing Tim with her finger. "What're you doing stealing our staff?"

"Hey now, I just made him an offer. If it's better than what you were giving him, that ain't my fault."

Helen continued to jab at Tim, while Meg watched on with a hint of melancholy, until they started talking normally again, and Charlie returned. The night went on, and as he messed around drinking and being merry, Tim kept his eye on another figure in the room. Eventually, that figure got up and left. Tim made his excuses, and quickly followed behind. Once they were away from the inn, the figure turned around.

"What do you want Tim?" Jacobson asked with distrust.

"Don't worry." Tim said, and held out a letter to the priest. "I won't be any trouble for you."

"What's this?"

"It's for your boss, the one who had you watch me."

"And what does it say?"

"That you won't need to worry much longer."

Jacobson looked back at Tim quizzically, but Tim simply smirked, and went back to the inn. Outside the entrance, however, he was stopped by Helen.

"What's up?" He asked.

Helen stared at him for a moment. "I'm an old woman Tim." She said eventually. "Did you think you could get one past me?"

"Well, you're not that old."

"Old enough, and I've watched far too many people leave over the course of my life to not notice it when I see it."

"I don't doubt."

The two stared at each other for a while, until Helen let out an exasperated sigh.

"Is it really necessary?"

"Yes."

Helen shook her head, and turned round to go back inside.

"I guess I'll overlook your antics then." She said. "Just for today."

"I am going to do my utmost to make you regret that." Tim said, with an intensity to cower any man or god.

"...You have an unbridled talent for ruining the mood."

"Thank you. I do my best."

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"I'm taking Holly out." Tim said to Meg while she worked. Meg stopped, and thought for a moment.

"Will she be coming back?" She asked.

"No."

Meg nodded to herself. "That's probably for the best." She said.

"There are still some wild horse herds away from people, I'll take her to one."

"Right."

Tim left with that, and Meg thought for a moment, unable to concentrate on her work. After some thought, she put together a bundle of clean papers, and began to write.

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The full moon rose.

Tim and Meg stood on the top floor, by the altered summoning circle. The circle now did the precise opposite of what it had been used for all this time. Instead of bringing things to it, it sent things away. Tim stood in front of the circle, looking down at it, while Meg watched from just behind him.

"Well..." Tim said, turning around to look at Meg. "Guess this is it."

"Guess so..."

A heavy silence sat between the two for a moment.

"It won't be forever though." Tim said, with an attempt at cheerfulness. "I'll be coming back."

Meg sighed, picked up a small stack of papers she'd hurriedly bound together, and slapped them onto his chest.

"What're these?" He asked, flicking through them.

"Various spells and their effects." She said. "Like the one that'll bring you back here. Idiot."

"Oh..." He said, and pulled out a scrappy piece of paper with a rough sketch on it. "Guess I won't need this then."

Meg scoffed at the thing, and at her own worry that he wasn't actually intending on returning, and snatched it from him. Tim smiled at her, and she shook her head at him in disbelief.

They looked at each other for a moment, then Tim took a step back, so that he was stood on the circle.

"You know how to summon me anyway." He said. "So if anything does happens, just drag me back."

"Oh yeah." Meg said, and nodded.

"Or if you need something doing, and the others are too incompetent."

"Of course."

The two nodded at each other in silence, until Tim couldn't take the heavy atmosphere anymore, stepped forward, and wrapped his arms around Meg. Meg grabbed him back, and they stood for a while, saying goodbye.

"Don't do anything stupid before I get back."

"Ha. I won't even bother telling you that. So... just don't die."

"I won't."

They parted, and smiled at each other. Then Tim stepped back onto the circle.

"See you later." He said with a wave.

"See you." Meg said, waving back.

The circle began to glow, and after a second, there was a pop, and a rush of air.

And silence fell in the library.

The End

For Now

Dun Dun Duuuun

No but seriously though I'm going to re-edit the whole lot up till now into what will hopefully pass as an actual novel, and then I'll get to work on the follow up. The next part will be a much shorter one, titled 'Twilight of the War God'. So if you've been paying attention, you'll know precisely what that's about.

If you've enjoyed this garbage, let me know. If you haven't, I question how you got this far, unless you're one of those arseholes that reads the ending first, in which case you are a monster. Leave.

Seriously though if you enjoyed it, share it with someone you think might also enjoy it, that'd be swell. And feel free to ask any questions, let me know what you liked, or didn't like, and anything you might want to see in the future. Storyboarding for part 3 is a nightmare, so it's all open for changes at the moment.

Well, see you in the next one.

Or not.

It's not like I want you to come back.

B-Baka.