It's a Kid's World
5.2: Stand Together
After battle tactic discussions and training were concluded in the morning, Lincoln and Clyde spent a while in the former's bedroom during the early afternoon hours of the day. Eventually, the two walked out with Lincoln sporting a very worried, pessimistic look on his face.
"Come on, buddy. Cheer up. There won't be any need for that video we just recorded. You'll see, things will work out." Clyde tried to reassure him.
"Eh, I guess." he said with a very unconvinced tone.
Lincoln then encountered Lucy in the upstairs hallway…
"Wow, you're radiating pure gloom and doom right now. Trust me, I know." Lucy remarked.
Not wanting to pass on his growing worries to his sister, not that it was very likely she wasn't already sharing his anxieties anyway, Lincoln tried to put on a brave face and tell her he was okay.
"Don't worry about it, sis. Like Clyde said, everything will work out just fine." Lincoln stated before walking away.
As Lincoln was walking down the stairs, he realised he couldn't let his mind be plagued by thoughts of doubt and worry. He needed to be a strong leader for the army of young children, all of whom were about to fight for their lives against a terrifying evil.
He then told himself something that only made sense in context, but it was a valid self-criticism all the same…
"Come on, snap out of it, Lincoln! That stupid video recording was just a way to vent out your fears! No human survivors or aliens from the distant future will ever see it! You have to keep your mind focused on what needs to be done!" he strictly told himself, determined to shake off his doubts and focus on defeating the dead.
As the day went on, Carl Casagrande found his psyche being plagued by thoughts of regret, guilt and deserving loneliness that raged inside his head…
His talk with CJ and the others earlier in the dungeon and their latest rejection of his offer to join him only heightened the internal mental struggle he was dealing with.
Just as Carl was pondering to himself what he should do next, his attention was diverted towards what was happening to the room on his left.
The door was partially opened, allowing him to see what some of his minions, including one he briefly befriended, Arms, were doing to one captured poor boy. He was tied up to a chair as Arms and the other three suited cronies surrounded him.
"So, you thought you could swindle us with that drugs exchange we agreed on?!" Arms asked the boy.
"NO! I swear! I didn't cheat you guys!" the boy cried desperately.
"Oh… so you're a liar, too?" Arms then asked him.
"No, I'm not… I'm sorry!" the boy insisted.
One of the other guards then handed Arms a bottle of bleach as the boy in the chair gulped out of nervousness…
"What are you going to do with that bleach?!" the boy asked.
"*Sshhh* Keep quiet, runt." Arms cruelly ordered.
"Please don't!" he pleaded with his captors.
"Oh, shut up and take your punishment like a man!" one of the other guards said.
"To hell with you, you sick *****!" the boy then shouted in frustration.
"Well, it looks like we have to wash this boy's filthy little mouth out! Let's get started!" Arms said as the other guards forced the captured boy's mouth open and he force fed the bleach down his throat.
The boy then coughed after he swallowed the harmful substance.
"Alright, guys. Let's leave this brat to suffer overnight as the liquid destroys his body tissue from the inside out and screws up his breathing. He should be dead by morning." Arms callously said as they had tortured and pretty much executed yet another poor child in the name of the mafia.
Carl then turned away after seeing that horrific sight and quietly asked himself…
"What am I doing?"
Carl then ran across the headquarters as he endured the mentally painful realisation of just how low he had sunk, and the kind of vile, underhanded institution he was actually working in.
Once he made it back to his throne room, he slammed the doors shut before getting down on his knees. He was sweating a little, breathing heavily, and remembering a lot of what his friends and relatives had told him…
"You've become as bad as Don Morito! You're a jerk! I want nothing more to do with you!" he remembered his brother CJ tell him.
"What the hell is your problem, Carl?! I remember a time when family meant everything to you! Once you would have swore revenge if someone did anything to hurt someone in your family! Now look at you!" he then remembered his cousin Ronnie Anne tell him.
"No, Carl! She's right! You've forgotten what's important at some point in all this! I just hope that you come to your senses before it's too late… for all of us." were words from Lincoln that all stuck in his mind as he began to regret everything he had done.
All the drug trading, kidnapping and torturing, oppression and slavery… whether he was on top of the pecking order or not, Carl knew he had to face facts… he was way over his head with this whole mafia business. He wasn't an evil, tyrannical crime lord at heart… he was just a little boy. He had just let the power and respect that he always wanted cloud his better judgement.
"Carl! Despite everything you've done, I know there's a good person still in there! Please, prove me right." were the words he recalled that his brother said to him earlier that very day which finally caused him to snap.
"NOOOOO!" he roared at the top of his lungs before storming out of the throne room and into the hallway, where one of his guards was loitering about.
"Is everything okay, boss?" the guard asked as Carl was still visibly tense and shaking.
"*Sigh* No, it's not. I've done something really stupid. Listen, amigo… there are some things that I need to do. Mistakes I need to put right. But first, I want you to round up all the boys! There's a task I need you all to do for me." Carl turned and said to the guard.
"Yes, sir." the underling then obliged without question.
Carl knew what he had to do, and he was going to see it through.
As the afternoon began to progress, the Loud siblings became very tense, anticipating the worst was approaching their doorstep rapidly. They remembered what Viribus said to them back in the forest; that his efforts were only delayed by a mere week. That amount of time had already passed, and they expected the dreaded 'Human Harvest' to come to them at any minute…
Some of the sisters were sitting together in their living room as they waited nervously for something bad to happen, as they all collectively sensed it was going to go down any time. Luan, Lana and Lily were all on the couch, while Lucy was sat on the coffee table. Asherah also accompanied the group, as she was sat in the chair beside them.
"So, Asherah… that one outcome where we win, please tell us it's this one?" Luan asked.
"I can't tell you that. It won't happen if I do." Asherah answered.
"So… yes? Because if you're afraid to say it, then that says the chance of winning is still on the table." Lana pointed out.
"All I can tell you is to go out there and fight your hearts out for the people and the world that you love. That's all any of us can do now." the seer said.
"Be honest with us. Is there any way we can actually win this war?" Lucy asked her.
"Well, I admit our chances look bleak at best. With all the allies we've managed to gather, we're maybe two thousand strong when giving an optimistic prediction. Compare that to the hundreds of thousands, if not millions of undead warriors on the opposing side." Asherah weighed in.
"Always full of the prep talk, aren't ya?" Luan sarcastically replied.
"I'm sorry, but you did ask me to be honest. Truthfully, and I think you all know this, we don't stand a chance in this fight. Our only hope is the genius of your sister, Lisa. That's why I encouraged you to go out and rescue her. As things stand, Lisa restoring the world's adults in time so they can help us fight off the zombies and robots is our only chance of survival." Asherah explained.
"So, we're really just going out there and fighting to stall for time?!" Lana blurted out.
"I'm afraid so." she gloomily confirmed.
"Luan, what about all those booby traps and pranks you've had in store for us over the years? Could you use any of those to add to our defences and increase our fighting chances?" Lucy then suggested.
"Yeah, or even just buy us a little more time?!" Lana desperately said.
"Sorry, but I just haven't had time to set all that up. We were gone for months, then we came back, but we spent all that time on journeys or training the other kids to fight. I've got nothing." Luan then regretfully informed them.
"Besides, I highly doubt mere bobby traps would be able to do much against an army possessing this much might." Asherah weighed in.
All the Loud sisters present in the room then hung their heads down, feeling utterly defeated and demotivated after Asherah's grim judgement of the situation. Sensing she needed to raise their hopes again, the faux fortune teller left them with one brief but powerful statement of encouragement…
"I know it sounds bad, but you must have faith in your sister and your friends. Besides, you can never be sure when the scales will tip in your favour. Sometimes, help can come at the unlikeliest of times and from the most improbable of places. Even my predictions are not flawless in their accuracy. There could be hope yet."
"What does that mean?" Lucy asked.
"Yeah, this is no time to be cryptic!" Luan told her.
"All I'm saying is that you need to just keep doing what you've been doing throughout this whole journey. Keep pushing forward and fight on!" Asherah stated.
"*Sigh* She's right! We've just got to keep going! Like me, I could have let myself lose it when Lola was killed, and I almost did. But something just keeps me motivated to keep pushing on… almost like a belief, or a hope. A hope that Lola is still out there somewhere." Lana said as her voice began to reflect the optimism and hopefulness of her belief that Lola was still alive.
Luan, Lucy and even Lily all stared at her sceptically, before looking at each other awkwardly. They admired her optimism, but they didn't believe Lola was still alive. They didn't want to have to tell their sister she was wrong, but they also didn't want to feed her false hope, either. Luan decided to speak after a moment, but she knew she had to approach this talk with sensitivity.
"Lana, I appreciate the thought, but…" she began to say but was interrupted.
"Don't say it!" Lana snapped, knowing what she was going to tell her.
"I'm sorry, Lana. I hate to say it, but Lola is…" Luan tried to say a second time, but was cut off again.
"COME ON! You gotta believe me, you guys! She's your sister, too! You know how strong and resourceful she can be! Lola would never get taken out by some lousy little tree! You know she's still alive, too! Don't deny it!" Lana argued passionately, refusing to believe her twin was truly gone.
Everyone in the room could hear the fire as well as frustration in Lana's voice. She was desperately clinging onto the notion that her twin sister was not dead, no matter how unlikely it seemed.
"Well, I hope you're right, Lana. I really do." Luan acceptingly said, deciding to let her sister keep believing for the time being.
Asherah then got up and walked out of the living room, but she left the four present Loud sisters with one final comment…
"Like I said, help can be found in the unlikeliest of places." she hinted at before leaving the sisters to themselves.
The sisters then sat there for a moment in awkward silence as they weren't sure what else there was to say about the whole situation. Eventually, the quietest of the siblings decided she would speak first for once…
"You know? Even for me, things are a little dreary in here. Maybe you would all benefit from me reading one of my poems." Lucy suggested.
"Erm, thanks for the offer, but I'm not sure one of your poems would help to lighten the mood, Lucy." Luan replied.
"How about a song?" Lana indifferently proposed.
"Sure, I guess. Does anyone have any decent songs?" Luan replied.
Lucy then negatively shrugged as she clearly wasn't one to express herself in all-out song form.
"Don't look at me, guys. Luna was always the one who liked singing." Lana said.
Upon the mention of her sister Luna, Luan remembered the song she, Luna and Lori sang together after resolving their high school club cancellation conflict one time. She decided the song and its lyrics were quite relevant in this situation, though the meanings behind them were a lot darker and more dire this time around…
"When you lose something you love, you fall off-track"
"And you do whatever you can to get it back"
"At first we tried to do it on our own"
"But together we're stronger, and look at how we've grown"
Luan sung the first verse of the song by herself, much like Luna did on the original occasion. However, she sang it slower and with a much more eery, far less bombastic tone this time, which was fitting given the current grim situation. Despite this, it still provided a sense of uplifting for the sisters present.
Drawn into the emotions of the moment, Lana and even Lucy then joined in and sang the last half of the song with her. Even Lily, with what limited speech she was capable of, did her best to sing along…
"So you've gotta stand together"
"'Cause together you can do anything"
"you gotta stand together"
"You gotta listen to what we sing"
And as this small group of sisters sang together to try and lift their spirits just a little bit, the other children in Royal Woods were doing exactly what they were singing about. Many different groups were united in an effort to stand together against an insurmountable foe. The Vikings were arming themselves ready to fight on the front line of the upcoming war. The monks were prepared to defend their Tigress with their lives. The entire community was gearing itself ready for a deadly war against a mass of monsters; a war it seemed they were almost never going to win.
But they were going to do it together.
Lisa was working hard as she did her best to reverse engineer the machine she saw in David and Boris's lab. She knew what she was doing, but even for a genius as advanced and capable as herself, she knew it wasn't going to be a quick and easy task to complete, even when operating at maximum capacity.
At the very least, she had her trusted friend Darcy with her as an assistant of sorts. Essentially just someone to speed things up a little by passing equipment to her and doing other little things.
"I must thank you again for your assistance, Darcy. It really is something I am finding valuable right now." Lisa said as she was using a wrench to attach two pieces of the machine together.
"It's okay. I'm just glad to be spending time with you, Lisa." Darcy replied.
"With David gone, you're my only true friend left. Well, unless you unconventionally count my remaining siblings as 'friends'. Then I guess I'd have more. Even so, our friendship is part of the reason I've asked you to help me in here. I don't believe you would survive out there in battle for a long duration, and to be truthful, I don't want to lose you." Lisa said.
Lisa then signalled Darcy to pass the bolt that was in her hands, so she did as they continued to talk.
"You know? You have genuinely managed to surprise me in all this, Darcy. You are exactly the type of child that was vulnerable in this new world. You're innocent, cheerful and morally pure… if a little inexperienced and naïve. By all accounts, you should have been manipulated and overpowered by everyone around you. But while so many other children have suffered because of this new world we now reside in, you have managed to keep yourself in relatively good standing. I guess what I mean to say is… I'm pleasantly surprised you've made it this far." Lisa complimented her bestie.
"Well, I've had a lot of friends like you to help me along the way." she graciously stated.
"In a certain respect, it would seem we have been 'lucky' in context, at least in direct comparison to certain others." Lisa claimed as she then put on her safety gloves, opened the interior of the machine she had partially created and began to tamper with the wiring.
"Lisa, be honest. Are you scared?" Darcy curiously asked the usually emotionally withdrawn girl.
"Honestly? I think we're all scared. I've spent my entire life, which is admittedly only four years, creating inventions that many would say are well above my expected capacity, given my age. But now, the pressure is really mounting up. The survival of the entire human race depends on how quickly I can complete this invention, and if it even functions correctly when I do so. So yes… I'm terrified." Lisa admitted, with a very fearful and panicky tone emitting from her lips with that last sentence.
The compassionate and selfless, thoughtful best friend of the young science prodigy then approached her for a hug, doing her best to comfort her apparently not-so-stoic best friend, while also getting a little bit of comfort from the embrace herself.
It was a truly dire situation, and everyone ranging from all different intelligence levels and contrasting contents of character knew it. Every child in Royal Woods, deep down, was scared of what was about to happen. However, their bravery was showing in that it wasn't going to stop them. After their hug, Lisa and Darcy continued with their work, knowing how important it was for them to do so.
Lynn was on lookout duty as the evening came about. She was standing on the roof of a tall building in the middle of town so she could use binoculars to view the edge of the forest from afar. As she was watching to spot any ascending monsters on the move, an old friend of hers approached.
"Hey." said her ex-boyfriend, Dexter.
"Oh, hey." she replied as she turned to face him.
"So, I've been meaning to ask. I've been seeing you around lately, but I haven't seen that Maxie guy with you. Where is he?" he asked.
"He died." she said with a regretful tone.
"Oh… I'm so sorry." he said sympathetically.
"Don't mention it." she replied.
"May I ask how he… um, you know?" he delicately asked.
"He died the way he lived. Kicking butt until he was out of breath." she answered.
"Well… at least one of you made it. You've got your family back, though! That must feel nice after being away from them for so long!" Dexter tried to perk her up.
"Thanks. Look, I can see what you're trying to do, but I'd rather just focus on my job and not talk about all the hard stuff I've been through." she said, trying to end the conversation.
"Oh, okay. I'm sorry for bothering you." he apologised before walking off.
"Ugh… wait! I'm sorry. I don't mean to be snappy. You're just trying to show concern. I get it." Lynn then apologised herself.
"I understand. You've been through a lot." Dexter said.
"Still… I'm not the only one. My brother's been through worse and he's still his same old self." the psychologically damaged jock then pointed out.
"Oh… you mean the white-haired guy? Why? What happened to him?" Dexter curiously asked.
"He got crucified." she nonchalantly confirmed.
"WOAH! Seriously?! But then how is he even still alive?!" Dexter blurted out in disbelief.
"He got brought back to life by some machine thingy, or so I've been told. I dunno. I wasn't there." Lynn vaguely explained.
"Wow! A few months ago, I never would have believed you… but after everything that's happened these last few months, I'm ready to believe just about anything now." the nerdy boy then claimed.
"Still, it goes to show that you can go through tough times and still make it out unscathed. I guess it's just me; I'm so weak." she said, putting herself down.
"You?! Weak?! You're the strongest person I've ever met in my life!" Dexter complimented.
"Not physically… I meant in here!" she clarified as she pointed at her head.
"You mean…?" Dexter tried to question.
"Ugh! Forget it!" Lynn then brushed him off, not wanting to go further into the discussion, given her distaste for revealing her inner weaknesses to others.
"No, come on, tell me! I want to know what you meant!" Dexter interrogated her, wanting her to spill the beans.
Feeling pressured in the midst of the conversation, Lynn finally cracked and let loose some of her inner grievances…
"I'm mentally weak! I mean, look at me, I'm an absolute mess! I take competitions and being number one way too seriously, I let my need to have strength over others get to my head, and…" Lynn began to negatively say about herself, before she was cut off.
"Lynn, just stop! Seriously, you're getting yourself all worked up about nothing! Sure, you can be just a little bit too abrasive at times… but everyone knows you're a good person at heart." Dexter tried to tell her.
"Am I? Because a good person is probably a lot nicer than I am. Also, I'm a terrible sister!" she said as her insecurities really began to show.
"Why do you say that?" he asked.
"Well, considering how I've treated my brother over the years…" she started to say.
"Whatever beef there is between you and him, just apologise and promise to make changes to your attitude if you think you have a problem. I'm sure he'll understand! He seems like a very understanding kind of person." he told her.
"I have, and he does! Because Linc's just that; a very understanding type of guy! But let's face it, they're just words! It's one thing to talk about something, but it's another to actually do it." Lynn then responded, doubting her own ability to truly match the promises she's made to be a better person towards her family.
"Well, I believe you have what it takes to better yourself in whatever way you feel is necessary." Dexter reassured her.
"I'm not so sure, because it just seems like every time I learn something, I revert back into…" the jock was about to reveal to her ex-boyfriend, before stopping mid-sentence as something in the corner of her eye caught her attention.
Lynn then picked up her binoculars and looked in the direction of the forest just outside town. She saw an exceptionally alarming sight…
"Ut-oh." she worryingly said to herself.
"What is it?" a concerned Dexter asked.
"Find your brothers and get ready to defend yourselves! It looks like the harvest is happening now!" she warned him as she grew a serious expression on her face.
Dexter then left as he knew his conversation with Lynn would have to wait until another day… if they were still around to have it. They both knew there were much bigger things about to happen…
"GET INTO YOUR POSITIONS! PREPARE THE FORMATION! WAR IS HERE!" Lynn then began running around and shouting to all the kids in the area, alerting them to the oncoming presence of the enemy.
Ronnie Anne was talking with Lincoln at that moment. They were in Lincoln's bedroom, reflecting on the current situation…
"So, we're all about to go to war with an army of undead monsters and metal titans, huh?" Ronnie Anne asked her friend rhetorically as she reviewed the extremeness and near absurdity of what was happening.
Lincoln replied with a simple "yeah" as he too understood just how surreal the scenario actually was to them.
"Who would have ever thought just a few months ago that you and I would be leading the charge against an army of abominations?" she then joked.
"Who would have thought I would end up being a knight?" he joked back.
"Still, you make a pretty good knight." Ronnie complimented.
"Thanks. I guess I've had to become more than just a little comic book geek in his undies. I mean, when you think about it, everything that's happened since the vanish has been leading up to this." Lincoln reflectively stated.
"I'll say! All my previous battles in Detroit and Great Lakes will seem like nothing compared to this!" Ronnie claimed.
"Yeah, things really have escalated. I remember the first fight my family had just after the adults disappeared! We were fighting off a bunch of bullies with Lily's dirty diapers!" Lincoln recalled, realising just how much darker and greater in scope things had become for him and his allies.
"Woah! Talk about being a stinker!" Ronnie Anne joked, using amusement to mask her inner fears.
"Now look at us… we're about to fight for our lives against an army of monsters we can't ever hope to beat!" Lincoln grimly stated.
"We don't know that! With all our strategy and training, we might stand a chance." Ronnie encouragingly argued.
"Oh, come on! We both know we don't stand a chance at all! Remember, this whole thing is just a way to stall for time so Lisa can hopefully finish her invention and bring back all the adults! Also, let's not forget that we're not military generals! We're just a bunch of kids desperate to survive. Who knows if our strategies are even going to work!" Lincoln stressed.
Both of them then remained silent for a brief moment, as it seemed the situation was truly hopeless. Eventually, the unspoken tension in the room began to make them feel nervous, so the ponytailed tomboy decided to say whatever came into her head to block out the feeling…
"Say we do we make it out of this alive?" she suggested.
"Huh?" the surprised boy responded.
"I'm just saying, maybe those little fighters out there do better than we're expecting, and we live to tell the tale. Then what?" Ronnie asked him.
"Well, to be honest, this is such a big thing, I haven't really been able to think that far ahead." he told her.
"Lincoln… if we do make it out of this in one piece, and your sister does manage to bring all the adults back, how do you feel about calling the police to take care of Carl and the mob?" Ronnie Anne then suddenly decided to ask.
"Huh?" he blurted out in confusion.
"I'm just saying! If we somehow survive, our army is going to be totally battered and depleted, but Carl's mafia will be as strong as ever! On the other hand, if the adults are back then there will be no problem! If we call the cops to bring Carl's little playtime empire down, then everything will be cool! I mean, we know the location of their HQ, and we know they have children captured, locked up in a dungeon and even forced to work for them… we could easily get them to deal with it!" Ronnie enthusiastically suggested.
"Hmm… I don't see why not. It is their job to deal with this sort of thing, after all. Also, you're right, we won't have much of an army left if we do somehow survive this." Lincoln replied.
"Great! Oh, and while we're at it, I'll advise them to bring a special ops group with them, too!" she continued.
"What?!" Lincoln then questioned.
"What do you mean 'what'? I said I'd get them to bring backup. Trained officers of the law they may be, but those mafia jerks are devious little…! They might need it!" Ronnie Anne defensively put it.
"Ronnie Anne! What was it we talked about before?!" Lincoln angrily asked her to remember.
"What are you talking about?" she asked him, sounding slightly confused by his question as well as his objecting tone.
"I told you that I understand why you've had to be ruthless and willing to kill to make it through things in this new world! But… we also said that if we finally managed to bring all the adults back, then we could stop being like that, that we should put all the violence behind us! Instead, we'd find other ways of dealing with things! Remember?!" he argued.
"Yeah, I remember us agreeing on that. What's your point?!" Ronnie argued back.
"My point is you calling the cops is one thing, but why ask them to bring some glorified hired killers to help? It sounds to me like you want these military guys to do the job because you know it will involve a lot more killing that way. You know what they'll do, they'll rush into the mafia HQ without any restraints and slaughter everybody, even innocent servant workers! I know what the mafia did to you and your family was despicable, and you want to see everyone you love walk free after all this is over… but this isn't the way to make that happen! We both know the cops will be more than capable of handling it on their own. You're just making up excuses to get them involved because you want revenge, and while I can understand why, I can't agree with it." he softly and understandingly but also sternly tried to tell her.
Ronnie Anne avoided eye contact for a brief moment before uneasily looking at him in the eyes again, knowing he had a valid point but still strongly disagreeing with it. She tried to think of what she could say to change his mind.
"Look Lincoln, I know you're just trying to help, but maybe…" Ronnie Anne started to say, but her sentence was cut short by Lynn, who suddenly kicked the door wide open as she warned them of what was about to happen.
"Hey! You two love birds better get yourselves pumped up ready! The army is here! Now get out there and lead your army, Ronnie Anne! Lincoln, you're with me!" Lynn told the duo before rushing off to go stand guard outside Lisa's bedroom.
"Well, I guess this is it." Lincoln said nervously as he and Ronnie Anne walked out of the room.
"Hey, Lincoln… good luck." she said.
"You, too." he said back.
The two children put their disagreement on hold as both of them fully shifted their attention towards the current threat. They both had to keep their cool to the best of their abilities. Especially Ronnie Anne, who was about to go out and fight alongside her men.
Lincoln, meanwhile, went and stood side by side with his brave if brash sister Lynn as they acted as a last line of defence for their hard-working saviour of a sister, Lisa.
"You ready?" she asked him.
"Hey, a man's gotta do what he can to survive. I know what needs to be done!" he assured her.
"Good. Anyway, I've got a lucky four-leaf clover in my pocket. Hopefully, that will be enough to help us get through this." she informed him.
But it was going to take much more than luck to save the day. The children of Royal Woods took their positions and prepared to go to war with a formidable army of converted killing machines…
…there they stood, just outside of town. There was a humungous mass of animate corpses, standing together as more and more of them kept piling out of the woods to join them.
There were so many zombies present that the mere sight of this undead unit was enough to terrify most of the kids. However, they knew they had to push through the fear, as their lives quite literally depended on it.
Standing among all the thousands and thousands of zombies were the robotic generals, looking as tall and imposing as ever. Front and centre among them was their leader, Lord Viribus himself, now transformed into the deadliest metal monster of all.
The defenders of the living knew at that exact moment…
The Human Harvest had just begun.
Author's Footnote:
And… we're at the climax. The big battle is about to commence. Who will win and who will fall? Find out next time in 'The Human Harvest'.
Also, sorry to those of you who have sent me personal messages these past few weeks. I've been rather busy recently, so I haven't had much time for casual talks. But I'll probably talk more after this story is over. Keep the support and feedback coming and be assured I am taking notice of it. It is always appreciated. Anyway, I'll be back up with chapter 3 on Friday or Saturday.