#implied mcd

Sally turned and patted Gordon’s cheek with a grin.

‘Your Dad’s been dealt with but I think it’s going to require both of us to shift your brother.’ ‘YeP,’ Gordon agreed, popping the ‘p’ deliberately.

In the end though it was easier to get Virgil out precisely because their Dad had already gone. That and the man was practically asleep on the spot anyway.

Gordon helped his wingman back to the hotel where Alan, John and Kayo were already sleeping (Alan) or plotting (John and Kayo). Of their father there was no sign, not that that surprised anyone.

Virgil was asleep before he hit the pillow and, once Gordon had removed his boots, he went to join the schemers.

While all this was happening Sally sat at her eldest grandson’s bedside and continued to fill him in on what had happened since the last time she’d been there.

Scott didn’t wake up though. He was as still as he had been since they’d dug him out from underneath that collapsed mine.

No - not collapsed. While her mouth carried on talking what was effectively “white noise” Sally’s brain couldn’t help but dwell on what had happened.

It had been a trap carefully designed to kill Scott. If it hadn’t been for his Scooter Sense telling him that something wasn’t right he’d have been much farther in and most definitely dead.

Instead, he was languishing in a coma while his body healed. A coma he should have woken up from by now.

Whispers of “traumatic brain injury” and “facing facts” had finally pushed her son over the edge and Sally and sent him and Virgil to rest.

‘And we really need you to wake up soon, Scotty. Our family is falling apart without you.’

She kept one hand on his arm and settled down to wait.

A gust of wind threw rain against the window and the promised storm broke overhead with a blaze of lightning and a roll of thunder that had Sally wincing.

~

Jeff staggered out of the diner in time to get caught in the downpour.

He sighed deeply. Of course the rain would wait for him to leave…and boy was it raining! He’d forgotten all about the storm that had been forecast to hit.

Last time he’d checked the weather Jeff had had a sad chuckle that the tropical cyclone forecast to hit was called Grant…now he was cursing the timing of it all.

Dodging around the back of the hospital to avoid the encamped press, Jeff ignored the sympathetic looks of staff as he strode to the elevator.

He as relieved beyond measure when the doors opened and the car was empty. But that relief was short lived as on the next stop a doctor entered. His hand reached out to press the floor he wanted only to be withdrawn without pressing anything

Just Jeff’s luck the man wanted the same floor.

The man studiously ignored him and Jeff started to relax…only to stiffen when he caught the man glancing at him from the corner of his eye.

There was something about the doctor that made Jeff’s gut ache. And Jeff always trusted his gut.

The lights flickered and the elevator paused, and Jeff cursed. If the storm shorted out the power…no, he was being stupid. Hospitals always had backup generators for just such occasions.

Still, he breathed a sigh of relief as they moved again. But it was short lived as the power cut out completely.

The car ground to a halt with a jerk as the emergency brakes kicked in and the green emergency lightning flickered on.

They seemed to hang there for a moment before the generator kicked in white a whine that lasted for about 30 seconds before it too died.

Jeff pressed the alarm button but the line was dead. With a sigh he turned to face the Doctor.

‘Is this your doing?’

The man raised a quizzical eyebrow.

~

The man known internationally as The Hood was spitting fire as he charged through his ship.

That trap was perfect! The eldest son of his arch nemesis – and yes, he did view Jeff Tracy as such – should have been dead in the rubble and he should now be gloating!

Instead the man’s brothers had managed to dig him out and keep him breathing long enough to reach a hospital.

‘If you want something done right then do it yourself.’

He set his ship in stealth mode and made his way to the hospital, ensuring that his disguise was firmly in place. The rain didn’t help improve his mood, and he was just thankful that no one challenged him once he’d entered the building.

There was a task he needed to do before finishing the job completely - something that would keep security busy and by extension the Ear That Hears and his niece too - so he adjusted his disguise, made his way to the basement, snipped a few judicious wires, and returned to the lobby in his original look.

And then the lift doors opened and the last person on earth he wanted to see at this precise moment was already in the lift.

He ignored him, pretending to need to press a floor button as he got himself under control. It wouldn’t do him any good lose it here of all places.

The timings had been perfect but the lift stuttering and pausing threw that all out of the window so instead of lurking near the boy’s room when the generator died he was now stuck in the lift with him instead.

At least he hadn’t seen through his disguise.

One minute Jeff Tracy was stood at the control panel, the next minute he’s pinned the Hood against the lift wall, arm across the man’s throat and already choking him.

Belah Gaat could never match Jeff Tracy physically. The man towered over him at 6’3” versus his own 5’11”, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t fight back.

It took three hefty punches to Jeff’s kidney before he finally dropped Gaat to the floor where he scrambled to get as far away from Tracy as he possibly could. Jeff was no different, standing in the opposite corner and clutching his side while he watched Gaat heaving for breath.

‘How did you know?’ ‘How did I know it was you? Your watch. No doctor worth his salt wears a watch when on the rounds.’ ‘Ah. So simple.’ ‘So you thought you’d come back and finish the job, Hood?’ ‘Why not?’ ‘You’re not even denying it. That’s the worst part. Careful…’ ‘Or what? Are you going to give me another speech about how I’m a villain if I don’t change my ways? How’d that work out for you last time, Jeff?’ ‘I didn’t make you what you are. And neither did my sons. But I promise you this…’ ‘What?’ ‘You touch any of them…if Scott doesn’t survive this you’ll have pushed me beyond my breaking point.’

Gaat sneered.

‘Never did like getting your hands dirty, did you? Isn’t that why you send your boys out, day after day, to save mankind when in actual fact it’s just to stop feeling guilty yourself? Guilty that you couldn’t save her. So you sacrifice them instead.’

Afterwards Jeff wouldn’t remember if he had screamed or not.

Seed doesn't want to focus on the negatives, the what ifs; they want to have hope, trust the king to save them, but Lookout can't help but read the writing on the walls: the crystallization plague reducing the population of the kingdom, the pollution making agriculture difficult, light creatures migrating southward at the wrong time of year (what are they sensing?)... It doesn't help that after The Incident Terem has been having prophetic dreams of chaos, darkness, and "the scary red place."

Lookout starts to mull future plans. If the city will one day fall (probably sooner rather than later), the family should consider leaving before that happens, while things are still relatively safe. But there's one problem: both Lookout and Seed have duties in the city, and abandoning their posts at the wrong time could lead to their arrests for dereliction of duty, leaving Terem all on their lonesome.

The corruption of the crabs around the city and the crab attacks that killed a child and injured several others (including Terem), leave Lookout antsy and on edge. Now more than ever they can feel the dread apocalypse approaching.

"Let's not return to the city, let's flee southward," Lookout tells Seed one night while the family is taking a much-needed vacation at the Reef. But Seed reminds them of the consequences of desertion in a time of conflict and need; "they'll send troops after us, we'd be arrested, tried, imprisoned and Terem left basically an orphan. Right now everything is stable, it's been a long time since the lights went out. If things start to go downhill, we'll deal with that bridge if and when we get there."

In the peace and tranquility of the reef, Lookout relented. Maybe they were just anxious, maybe things weren't as bad as they'd wound themself up to believe. But it still continued to eat at them--if not now, then when? At what point in the kingdom's decline and fall should they abandon their duties and try to save themselves?

The family returned from the reef vacation lighter and calmer, but it was clear the realm's decline was progressing, the threat of darkness weighed down on them--not just on Lookout, but also on Seed who couldn't deny the signs any longer, and Terem whose brush with death granted them the strange new ability to see ghostly glowing figures of the departed scattered about the landscape.

The family only got a week or two more of normalcy before the prophet unexpectedly summoned Lookout and Seed to the temple. The Prophet of Fire, servant to the Elder and the King themself, knew about Terem's dreams and had been keeping an eye on the child.

"Terem is special, they have the gift of prophecy," the Prophet spoke to the parents. "Allow me to take them with me to the Cave of Prophecy for prophecy training so they might develop their skills and succeed me one day."

The offer was a surprise... and suspicious. Terem was far too young to undertake the prophecy training and Lookout knew it. Why was the prophet suddenly trying to take their child away from them?

Maybe it was the stress finally boiling over, or parental instinct to protect their child, but Lookout drew their sword and leveled it at the prophet and demanded an explanation--the truth. Even more surprising, Seed--ever the hater of weapons and violence--did not object or stop them.

The prophet dismissed the guards so they were alone and told Lookout and Seed the truth:

"Precious little light remains to power the lighthouses; the fall of the city is imminent and the darkness will spread across the lands. There is nothing anyone can do; the kingdom's doom was sealed long ago."

"But the king has a plan--far away on furthest southern island of the kingdom, on the Isle of Dawn, the Cave of Prophecy has been stocked with food and water--enough to sustain a small group of people for a long time. Representatives from each realm--children and a few guides--have been selected to shelter there, hopefully long enough to outlast this dark invasion--as a life raft of our knowledge and species."

Lookout let the sword drop from their hand. So there it was. They had been right his whole time and their worst nightmare was coming to pass. The world was ending, they were going to lose Terem, and then be consumed by the darkness.

"Give it some thought," said the prophet. "You have until I depart southward in three days' time to decide."

Lookout and Seed stumbled out of the temple and headed back toward their house leaning on eachother, crushed under the weight of the revelations and what the prophet was asking them to do--give up their child and then stay behind waiting for death to take them (they were forbidden from telling anyone about the imminent fall).

There was no choice, they had to do it, had to let Terem go with the prophet. Seed and Lookout's lives might have been forfeit, but if there was a chance for Terem to survive...

"No," Seed said, stopping in the middle of the narrow alley between buildings. "This is not the end of the world--I refuse to believe it."

"I have hope--no, I KNOW that things will get better. The darkness will recede, the light return to the land, our civilization will rise once again. And we WILL see our Terem again, in three months time, once they're done with prophecy training."

Seed's hope, their confidence was so strong, so bright, it was a lighthouse for Lookout, lifting their spirits out of the pit of despair and for a moment they entertained the idea it was possible.

"Well take a trip, we'll travel to the Isle of Dawn and pick up Terem ourselves after their training is over," Lookout said.

"That's a great idea! I've always wanted to travel through all of the realms," Seed added. They threw their arm around Lookout's shoulders and the pair continued homeward.

That afternoon, when Terem came in from playing, their parents told them the news. "You're going to go on a big trip with the prophet to another island for prophecy training." Terem was understandably upset and didn't want to go. "We'll come pick you up in three months when it's over," Seed explained. "It's only for one season, that's not so long." In the end, Terem uneasily agreed to go, doubting that their destiny was to be a prophet.

Over the next three days, they prepared for Terem's departure, preparing a travel pack, spending time together, letting Terem say their goodbyes to their friends and favorite places in the city. Then, the fated morning arrived and the Prophet arrived on their doorstep to take Terem away. The family walked to the boat landing, hugged, and said goodbye, and waved as the boat sailed up and away from the Last City.

It was the hardest thing in the world for Lookout to do--to let their child go, knowing they'd likely never see them again and yet keep hope and faith that they would in three months. Both realities existed in Lookout's mind, one they could not deny and the other they clung to desperately, bolstered by Seed's ever unshakeable confidence in a better outcome for their lives.

Lookout allowed themself one good cry at home alone while Seed was was out working, but they knew they couldn't dwell negatives, the what if's. They had to take a page out of Seed's book and keep hope.

There was an emptiness in Terem's bed where they didn't sleep and at the table during meals, Terem's seat was empty, but Terem wasn't gone, they were just out playing late. They were in class. They were having a sleepover at their friend Opeta's house. They'd see Terem again in a few hours. A few days. In three months.

And so Lookout and Seed carried on living in hope, for eachother and for Terem.

Over the next weeks, the lighthouses flickered more and more frequently. The soldiers tasked with powering the lighthouses grew more desperate, scavenging for every shard of crystal and every mote of light to supplement the meager supply piped in from the factories and down from Eden.

The question still stewed in Lookout's mind: at what point should they abandon their posts and flee to save themselves? If the city fell, perhaps they could escape and travel to the Isle of Dawn ahead of the all-consuming wave of darkness. Perhaps the furthest edges of the kingdom would be spared from the onslaught and they could live there with Terem.

But no moment seemed best. Lookout and Seed were needed now more than ever. The city needed guards vigilant for dragons and crabs and all the healers and medics they could get to deal with the worsening crystallization plague. Seed was committed to as much as possible, doing what they could to alleviate suffering for as long as possible. Lookout too couldn't help but feel a similar obligation. And the urgency to flee had somewhat lessened, now that they knew no matter what, Terem was safe.

Three weeks after Terem's departure, the lighthouses flickered, then went out. Dragons swarmed the city, but the soldiers managed to get the lights back on... at least for a little while longer.

The order went out to all soldiers--this was it. There was no more light to be had. The darkness was upon them. The goal became to evacuate the surviving civilians to the temple, then send them onward into the Vault. What chance of long-term survival they had there, Lookout didn't know, but there wasn't time to worry about it.

Lookout wanted to find Seed, and they hoped they could flee the fallen city, but they knew it might be too late. Did they have hope to survive the trek through darkened dragon-infested lands?

That was a consideration for later, they had to keep watch and signal with horn blasts the approach of the dragons as the soldiers battled to keep them at bay long enough to save all the civilians and secure the temple.

It was an endless night of chaos. Dragons charging destroyed buildings, collapsing the cloister roof, punching holes in the city walls and gate, killing or eating anything that moved. The soldiers' communications broke down as the ranks thinned. A unit of manta riders from the Valley arrived and helped fight the dragons in the air. Lookout kept a sharp eye out for Seed, watching as they helped collect and carry off the injured to the temple.

There was a lull in the onslaught (had they survived all the darkness had to give?) and Lookout descended from the broken roof of the cloister and searched for survivors, for anyone he knew, for Seed.

But where was Seed?

They searched through the rubble, then the youngest member of the scout squad, Courageous Soldier, came to Lookout with news of an injured medic near the temple gate. Lookout took off with Courageous Soldier pointing the way. Sure enough, there they found Seed, shot in the back with an arrow (caught in crossfire of the manta riders) but still alive. Lookout picked up their beloved and carried them back toward safety. Suddenly, dragons appeared--without Lookout or Courageous at their posts, there was no one to warn the soldiers on the ground of the next wave of terrible beasts.

It was a mad dash through the sand and rubble and the ruins of everything they ever knew and loved, hunted by dragons. But Lookout was strong and Courageous handy with a sword and together they survived and made it to the makeshift medic tent pressed against the cloister inner wall.

They gently set Seed down and assessed the injury. Lookout wasn't a medic themself, but they knew where the arrow was in Seed's back was a very bad place for one to be if you want to live for very long.

"Where's the other medics?!" Lookout asked frantically. "I'm the last one," Seed admitted tiredly and Lookout's heart sank.

So this was it then? This was the end. The city was destroyed, the kingdom being consumed by darkness, Terem far, far away, and Seed bleeding out in front of them. This was how their story ended.

"We're going to go see Terem in 2 months, right?" Seed said, as if reading Lookout's mind.

"Right. Yes," Lookout nodded, suddenly remembering. "They'll be so happy to see us," they added.

"Don't forget that. This isn't the end. Everything will work out," Seed grasped Lookout's hand in a shaky grip.

"I will never forget that," Lookout told them. Even in the darkest night, there was Seed, ever the beacon of hope. Despite the overwhelming night, Lookout felt hope in their chest like a flame of light.

"Lookout, I'm sorry, but listen, our job's not done," Courageous interrupted. "The temple gate still needs to be closed in order to seal the temple. I can do it, but I'll need help."

"Go," Seed told them both. "I'll be waiting right here for you."

"Alright. Don't move and don't get eaten," Lookout told their beloved Seed. "I'll be right back."

"I trust you," Seed replied and sat back against the wall.

"Go on ahead--but be careful! I'll climb up and see where the dragons are and then I'll come join you," Lookout instructed.

"Got it!" Courageous nodded then turned and ran.

Lookout paused, turning to look back at Seed, laying propped up in the medic tent watching Courageous sprint toward the temple.

A sharp sickening pain stabbed Lookout's stomach and he cried out. Looking down, he saw a spore of a darkness plant sticking out of his middle. He collapsed to his knees, his strength rapidly diminishing as the dark plant stole it away to sprout stems and leaves. And he knew, this was how he was going to die.

When do we leave? When is the best time to abandon our posts and flee? When do we go save ourselves? That question that had haunted Lookout for months never did get an answer. Never it was a good time to leave and now at the end of all things, it was too late.

Was this their fate all along?

Lookout looked up at Seed, who stared at them eyes wide. They struggled, trying to get up and go to Lookout, but couldn't, the arrow wound taking its toll. Lookout raised their hand toward Seed who responded in kind.

No this wasn't their fate! This wasn't the end! Even though the sky was dark and the city in ruins, even though Seed was too weak to stand (and never would again) and even though crystals formed on Lookout's body and their skin turned grey, Lookout refused to believe it, chose to have hope.