Lance couldn't believe it, but Jason had crossed the entirety of the Greatbridge in half the time they had taken on their initial crossing. Almost exactly, in fact, in three and a half days! Crossing that distance in a week had been impressive, but to see the Rhino cut that time in half was near ludicrous. It wasn't even the fastest vehicle in the Eighth Arm's arsenal, according to Jason this was 'standard'. She could hardly imagine what the world would be like if vehicles like this were commonplace… Akan-Dar didn't seem so far away from the Faewood now, the Bloodlands were just a hop away, even distant Florovis could likely be reached in a mere month if not less.
Not that they had any reason to go to Florovis of course.
"The land is ash here as well." Belaine noted, examining the gray flat land around them, "The trees that had been here are gone, just piles of dust. None will go to try and claim the Fiendwood for themselves now, the soil is dead, all life is absent, it will take a century at least for life to grow here again- but grow it shall." Belaine nodded to herself, "I am confident in that."
"It's good that it's dead land." Jason said, "The Romai won't have much use for it once they surface, and I'm sure they will."
"Right. That is what we must warn the Harkhall of first and foremost." Belaine crossed her arms, "The Faewood will be their first target, of this I am certain. They have nothing they can use to build ships, so they won't be going to the Blastlands, so they must cross the Greatbridge." She nodded, brows narrowing into a determined glare. "The Romai are a force of evil, one that must be destroyed with haste."
Jason shook his head, "The elves can't beat them."
Belaine's hands tightened to fists, "What was that?" She asked, sounding offended.
"They outgun you, first of all." Jason told her, "They had already developed their own ballistic weaponry, but they're now producing copies of my weapons. They have powered suits of armor as well, arrows and blades aren't going to puncture those."
"They made armor based off of yours?" Belaine asked, shocked.
Jason shook his head, "No, the design they had was far too different from mine, and with a different power source as well. It is likely that they had developed those suits before my capture, considering that they never got the chance to examine the inner workings of the Phalanx suit, I fully believe their gear was a separate development. They did manage to study Michael and Cat's armor, but that isn't the same thing as modern Ternan power armor and they don't have the means for reproducing tungsteel."
Belaine let out a sigh of relief, "Then they can still be slain easily enough, they are only dwarves, after all. Outside of their vampires, they should die just as easily as those Akan-Dari thugs."
"Negative." Jason told her flatly, "Their capabilities for warfare currently outstrip the Bastion by an order of magnitude you can't even begin to fathom. If you dismiss the Romai, then they will burn your forest to the ground."
"I respect your crude honesty, it is a trait rarely seen in anyone." Belaine admitted with a hint of admiration, "But you clearly underestimate our Watchers, Tree-Hunters, and Bramble Guard. Not to mention the Harkhall itself, which consists of some of the most powerful mages in the world, on top of possessing particularly potent Dok-ah."
Lance hung her head, "He's right Belaine. I hate to say it, believe me I do… But if the Romai come out in force, there will not be much we can do to stop them. Their Long Lords individually would have been a match for Kazon, and they have an army of vampires at their disposal- we will need…" Lance hesitated, "We'll need- guh," She said, disgusted, "We'll need aide to defend our lands."
"Lancela." Belaine said, shocked, "You'd allow inferior creatures into the Faewood!?"
"Things have loosened up since you left." Lance told her with a sigh, "We allow the Atheyare through freely to trade, human caravans will pass to go to the Fiendwall, as well as adventurers looking to delve abandoned ruins, just to name a few restrictions that have been lifted."
Belaine's expression was something Lance struggled to describe. The way Belaine's brow furrowed, the way her lips contorted into an open-mouthed frown, those disbelieving crimson eyes were the only way Lance could find a meaning to such a foul-looking expression. Disappointment and disgust.
Belaine shut her eyes, taking a deep breath before saying, "The Faewood is doomed. It has fallen. Pillars preserve us."
"Belaine," Lance sighed, "It isn't that bad, the woods are preserved, and we still eliminate those who would harm the forest. We simply either warn or guide well-meaning travelers through, we don't allow the forest to be harmed."
"It's over." Belaine said despairingly, putting her head in her hands.
"Belaine…" Lance frowned, reaching across the seat to put a hand on her shoulder.
"You're overreacting." Jason chimed in, sounding somewhat annoyed. "Get a grip."
Lance felt Belaine stiffen under her hand, and she withdrew it, as if she'd just touched a hot stove. After a verbal jab like that, the blonde may as well have been a steaming stovetop. She sat up, glaring daggers into the back of Jason's helmet.
"Overreacting!?" Belaine shouted, "Would it be overreacting if I choked the life out of that stupid bull neck of yours!?"
For an instant, Lance once again she felt like she was in the presence of Terlin, and recoiled further out of instinct. Belaine didn't seem to notice as she maintained her horrifying glare.
"Obviously it would be." Jason replied flatly, "And your hands are way too tiny to do something like that, I doubt you could even fit your hands around an apple."
"I-" Belaine stumbled, "You- Yes I can!" She yelled indignantly, face growing red with anger.
"A half-grown one, sure." Jason replied.
"Your brain is half-grown!" Belaine retorted, "Thinking you can talk to me in such a manner.
"You look like a tomato. Take a deep breath before you explode." Jason told her in that same deadpan tone.
"Where is all this sass coming from all the sudden?" Lance asked, confused by his behavior.
"I'm in a good mood." Jason said, the slightest hint of mirth in his tone.
"You're having fun with these childish insults!?" Belaine questioned, bapping the back of his helmet with an open hand.
"Negative." He admitted, not reacting to the blow, "I'm just glad we're almost back to the Faewood."
"So why are you provoking her?" Lance questioned, furrowing her brow.
"I thought that was supposed to be normal. I saw you and Michael doing this back in the Faewood, on the way to the Death-Day celebration." Jason explained.
"Oh Jason…" Lance said, pinching the bridge of her nose, "That's banter, it's different."
"I know- was that not banter?" He asked, sounding genuine.
"No that was not banter, that was you being rude." Belaine huffed, crossing her arms, "Proper banter is friendly, not mean."
"I wasn't being mean." Jason countered, "You really did look like a tomato and your hands are actually tiny."
"I am a small woman." Belaine said, gesturing to herself, "Of course I have small, feminine hands, but they can fit around an apple, I'm sure of it."
"You never tried?" Jason asked.
"Not for over a thousand years. If you recall, the Fiendwood didn't exactly have any orchards around, at least none that bore fruit." Belaine pointed out. "I haven't so much as seen an apple, or any other fruit in quite a long time."
"You could have found an apple-sized rock." Jason countered.
Belaine threw up her hands, "Ah yes, I should have spent my millenia of torment scrounging for rocks." She said sarcastically, "That is beneath me."
"Of course rocks are beneath you." Jason said, "They're on the ground."
Lance put a hand over her mouth, shocked. She looked over to Belaine, her lips slowly twitching… upwards.
"Hahaha!" Belaine laughed, doubling over, "I suppose you're right about that!"
"I did it." Jason said, seemingly to himself in a deadpan, "I was funny."
Lance then burst out laughing as well, joining in with Belaine as the two cackled with one another like witches. Jason merely nodded to himself, apparently satisfied with the results.
You had better not change, you oaf.
The laughter went on for a long while, for every time Lance and Belaine were about to cease giggling, they would make eye contact, before bursting into laughter again. Her face hurt but by the Pillars, she just could not stop laughing!
"Is there something wrong?" Jason asked, "This is inordinate, stop laughing."
That just made it worse, sending Lance and Belaine into a more violent fit of giggles. Her abdominals now also began to ache, and she could hear the chains around her wrist clanking together as she convulsed. The Rhino came to a stop, Jason turning to Lance before grabbing her by the shoulders.
"Lance?" Jason asked, clearly concerned.
"I'm fine!" She kept laughing, "It's fine trust me-heheheeee~" She wheezed.
"This doesn't seem right." Jason continued, "Maybe you were exposed to something in the air-"
"No!" Lance whined, slapping his chest plate, "We're just having a good time, calm yourself!" She shouted, before promptly beginning to laugh again.
Hesitantly, he released her, but still didn't resume driving as both Lance and Belaine continued to laugh. After another ten minutes had passed, once Lance's face and core ached to the point of failure.
"Alright Jason, we're done now." Lance sighed, catching her breathe, "Please keep going, we're almost home."
After a minute, Jason did so, driving on until Lance's lips, despite the pain, quirked up into another smile. All she had to do was look back at Belaine with that stupid grin on her face, and the Fire-Eyes broke. The elves burst into pointless fits of laughter once again, causing Jason to shift uncomfortably in his seat. Never in her life would she think that she'd die from something as stupid as this, but she could feel her core screaming for her to stop- that they could not take much more of this torment.
It was another half-an-hour before they both managed to stop themselves, Lance's face red as she gasped for air. Belaine was in a similar state of exhaustion, her face in her hands as the back of her head rested on the top of her seat.
"No more…" She mumbled, "My face will grow biceps at this rate, I am done."
"Me too." Lance sighed, resisting the urge to smile yet again. "Jason's earlier claim was right, however." She began, smile finally lowering, "The Romai aren't a joke, Belaine, when they surface, be it a week, month, or year from now, we need to be as prepared as possible. We can't face them on our own, in fact, I don't believe any nation on Ahkoolis could… save for Sailen of course, but only because Legolanthas is their ruler."
"So are you proposing that we form an alliance with the other races, and march on the Romai in their dens?" Belaine asked, "Very well, but this hypothetical alliance must not be allowed to march through the Faewood. The Fiendwood… no, I say we give it a new name- the Ashlands- has a shoreline they can use to access it from the Eires sea."
"I do think we need to warn the others of the Romai's return." Lance nodded, "If they believe us, then we can consider asking for their aide, and I agree, if they can use the Eires sea instead-"
"Negative." Jason told her, "Accessing the Fiendwood- or Ashlands, by sea is inefficient and stupid."
Belaine glared at him, "Stupid?" She questioned, a hint of danger in her tone.
"Is it not stupid to risk crossing an ocean to make landfall in a barren land with no supply lines with thousands of troops?" Jason asked, "Negative, the best thing to do would be to barricade at the mouth of the Fiendbridge on this side with an armed retinue of soldiers, preferably those armed with ballistic weaponry."
Belaine opened her mouth, her eyes aflame with indignation, but at the last second, Lance could see something change in her fiery eyes. Belaine shut her mouth, took a deep breath, and exhaled. When she opened her eyes, Belaine's gaze had changed, instead displaying… meekness? Yes, meekness, Belaine was making an active effort to humble herself, something Lance had rarely ever seen from a Fire-Eyes. Still, despite this shocking emotion, Lance could still see an undercurrent of indignation still there.
"You're right." Belaine said through clenched teeth, "But where would we get such weaponry? You do not have nearly enough guns for an entire army."
Jason paused, before his helmet tilted up toward Rhetyna, "Not down here we don't. I might have an idea for how we can do that."
"What is that?" Lance asked.
"If I can somehow restore power to it, the Sparrow could be capable of flight again. The problem is that I have no idea if it's still functional. The hull is mostly intact, so if I can get it running, then I might be able to land the Sparrow down here somewhere." Jason explained, "There's an entire armory aboard, loaded with munitions that would be crucial in fighting against the Romai."
"You know how to fly it?" Lance asked.
"I know how to operate any Ternan ship or vehicle," Jason told her, "As long as it's functional. The problem is that I only know basic maintenance skills for field vehicles and my own weaponry. If the Sparrow is damaged, it would be out of my scope to repair it."
"You're a genius." Lance told him honestly, "I'm sure if you put your mind to it, you could figure it out easily."
"...I appreciate the compliment." Jason told her, "But ship repair wouldn't just be out of my range of skills, it would take far too long on my own. A few experienced hands might not have any trouble, but as it is, we're on our own."
"Do you think the Ternans might want to help get the Sparrow back in working order?" Lance asked.
"If they did, they wouldn't want to use it to defend the Faewood. It's Eighth Arm property, they wouldn't want to make it operational just to use it in a conflict they have no interest in." Jason explained, "They may even use it to try returning to Ternan space, if they haven't accepted that this is a different dimension yet." He then paused, before saying, "If the weapons on the Sparrow are still operational, then I might even be able to blast the Romai to nothing from orbit. Again though, this all depends on if I can even get the ship running again."
"Your ship could smite the dwarves from so far away?" Belaine asked, skeptical.
"Affirmative, if power can be restored then I could fire super-heated tungsteel rods straight at New Romai. If it doesn't wipe them out, it will at least cripple their infrastructure-" He paused again, though Lance wasn't sure as to why. It seemed a good idea to her, why was he hesitating?
"The power of such a weapon is on par with that of the Pillars." Belaine said, shocked, "I'm almost surprised that you don't want to return it to your fellow Outworlders, you gave them the Franklin, after all." Belaine noted. "Your armor and gear as well, why did you not give that to them?"
"I would give them the Sparrow." Jason said, "But I need to make Ahkoolis safe for Lance first and the Romai need to be crushed for that to happen… as for my armor and weapons, I feel I've earned them."
Lance's eyes widened, the peaks of her ears warming at his words.
"The Pillar-Born emerging are also an issue." Belaine pointed out, "They'll bring this world to ruin, as they've done throughout history, do you intend on standing against them?"
"Affirmative." Jason said, "If I need to neutralize them all to make that happen, then I will."
"Even your previous companions?" Belaine asked.
Jason didn't answer the question, his expression unreadable behind that helmet. If he truly wanted to rid the world of Pillar-Born, then he had to understand that also would mean facing off against Twindil, Kid'ka, and Alistair at some point, either that or finding a way to cure them of the madness. It was impossible though, there was nothing in this world that could prevent the Pillar-Born from going mad from their divinity. An awkward silence dragged on for a while until eventually, Belaine spoke.
"I suppose we cannot just sally forth regiments of men wielding swords to face the dwarves, can we?" Belaine asked, "They'd be blasted to pieces before they could so much as reach the Romai."
"Affirmative." Jason replied, "That's why we'll need ballistics."
"And what if you can't bring the Sparrow down?" Belaine asked, "You said it yourself, it will take a week to fly there and back, and I'm guessing you can't bring it all back in one trip."
"Affirmative, if I were to take the time to make trips, it would be three or four months before I could bring back everything." Jason told her.
"Giving the Romai plenty of time to rally and march on Ahkoolis." Belaine sighed, crossing her arms before tapping her fingers on her red robe, "Though in truth, we have no idea how long it will be before they emerge. It could even be years before they set foot on the surface, for all we know."
"They will send out scouts first." Jason said, "They need to survey their surroundings, find the Greatbridge, and cross it. I'm fairly sure they will want a sitrep on the state of the world before they send out an army."
"Could they not just sail across the Shots?" Lance asked.
"With what?" Jason asked, embarrassment warming Lance's face. They had discussed this very thing not that long ago, now she looked like a dunce. "They have no wood to build with anymore, it's all gone. They might have some fungal trees but I doubt that will be enough to build an armada with, not only that but with their isolation below ground all this time, they won't have any experienced shipbuilders or sailors- no," Jason shook his head, "The only way they can make it across is if they use the bridge, unless they manage to build submarines… hmm…" He said, seemingly to himself, "They could build ships with steel and other certain alloys."
"Alloys? Steel?" Belaine asked in disbelief, "Metal doesn't float, Jason."
"Naval battles aren't as commonplace as they used to be back in my dimension." Jason began, "Most battles take place in the air, space, or on land, but back during early Earth's history, we built ships made from steel, aluminum, and corrosion-resistant alloys. I'm sure the Romai could figure this out as well, they are an intelligent foe."
"I still don't understand how metal is supposed to float on water. It is far too heavy." Belaine told him, still skeptical.
"Hollow tubes filled with air can be installed in the hull of the ship, allowing it to float." Jason explained.
Belaine blinked, sitting back in her seat before putting a hand on her chin. Lance could practically see the gears working as the blonde blondered- Lance suppressed a giggle, putting a hand over her mouth. As the blonde pondered Jason's words.
After a moment, Belaine began to nod, eyes going wide, "That would work." She said, "You say that the Romai would be capable of figuring that out?"
"I guarantee it." Jason said, "The reason I say to guard the Greatbridge instead of the shoreline isn't just because of how defensible it is, but because we have an advantage in the fact that the dwarves don't have anyone that would be experienced with shipbuilding. They might take the easiest route before innovating and trying to cross the Shots."
"...Unless the Long Lords know how to do it." Lance pointed out.
"You have a point." Jason said, "At this point, unless we learn more on what they're planning, we're blundering in the dark. For all we know, they could already be planning on making naval vessels, we just don't know. What I do understand is that if Ahkoolis wants to stand a chance against them, then there needs to be some kind of force gathered to repel them."
"Perhaps your next great adventure will be exactly that." Belaine said, "Going out to try uniting the world against the Romai, for whenever they emerge. In that case, you must seek out Legolanthas and ask for his help. The power of a Dragon is near to that of a god, I don't think even the Long Lords could stand up to him."
Lance sighed, "That might be a bit… difficult."
Belaine nodded, "I know, it's quite the long journey to Sailen from here, but unless you attain an audience with the Dragon of The East and request his aide-"
"I punched him in the mouth." Jason interrupted.
Belaine's face went pale, "Wha-" She stumbled, "What the hells are you saying?"
"He made me angry, so I punched him." Jason explained, as if he had merely had a spat with another boy on a playground.
"Lancela!?" Belaine questioned, grabbing Lance by the shoulders, "He's joking again, but it wasn't funny. Tell him it wasn't funny."
Lance shook her head, "He's not joking, I'm afraid."
Belaine's jaw dropped, and she released Lance before falling back in her seat.
"...I don't think you'll get an alliance with him." Belaine said after a long stretch of silence, "I have no clue how you aren't dead."
Before Jason could answer her, the Fiendwall became visible, barely peeking up over the horizon. Lance let out a sigh of relief at seeing it, she wasn't on the other side of the wall yet, but she had actually done it! Lance had come back from the Fiendwood alive, it would be good to see her family, to relax, to spend time with Meris, among other things, things that made her nervous to even think about.
How was she going to tell her father and mother about her intentions with Jason? How would they react? She didn't have a clue, only that it probably wasn't going to be good. Lance would hold off on telling them until she and Jason were ready to leave, she wanted to relax in the Faewood without it being horribly awkward. There was another thing she was uncomfortable with thinking about… mostly the heroes welcome they'd receive once they were on the other side of the Fiendwall.