I do not own Chaotic nor anything related to it. It belongs to TCDigital.
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The Dead Rest
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Kiru City. Twenty days after Austin's death.
He looks asleep, except for how absolutely still he is. The color is his cheeks is fake, though, makeup concealing whatever color his face is now. His hair and beard are neatly combed.
He's dressed in the clothes he arrived in Perim in: black suit and slacks, white-collared shirt, thin black tie, white socks and black shoes. He's lying on a stone table, his body surrounded by flower petals. His hands are on his stomach, one on top of the other.
Other Humans have died before Austin, due to illness, in battle, and in other ways. Austin, however, has accomplished what no other Human on Perim has done: dying of old age.
Many people have been delivering speeches throughout the day, with eulogies praising Austin as a leader and a warrior and laments over having lost a good friend. I see tears on faces, hear trembling voices. But then, I also see false expressions, and I hear strained voices forcing false emotions.
Maxxor is standing in front of the stone table now. He's listing the many things Austin has done for Kiru City, for the Overworlders, and for Perim. He isn't raising his voice dramatically. The quiet grief in his voice is plenty real.
Chaor, here in Kiru City only for the funeral, is speaking now. He's relating the times he'd seen Austin in battle, and at times his voice is laced with awe and jealousy. If Chaor is truly mourning over Austin's passing, though, then he is burying it deep in his heart.
Two young men, Austin's grandchildren, are quiet for a long time, simply standing and looking. Then they speak, and there are no stories, no anecdotes, only sorrowful words of farewell.
Now it's my turn to speak. I stand up. "Austin was..." I choke on the words a bit. I take a deep breath, and I begin again. "Austin was brave. Almost everyone today has mentioned his courage in one form or another, but not many people know exactly how brave he was."
I swallow a lump that was threatening to form in my throat. "Austin did not know about Perim when he arrived here almost thirty-five solans ago. He had to learn about this world from the very beginning, without the shortcuts that many other successful Humans were able to start with. And yet, with all he didn't know, he still chose to serve."
I look down at Austin's body. "Austin was brave because, even without knowing who his neighbors were, he threw his all into helping them." I gesture with a sweep of my arm at the walls of Kiru City. "When a creature that sought to cause harm attacked this city so long ago, he was the first to organize a effort to rebuild these walls. Each stone in these walls carries marks of his willingness to help and serve total strangers."
I look around at the crowd. "With Austin's passing, Perim has lost one of its brightest lights. I believe, and I hope that you do too, that Austin is now using that light to make the next world a brighter place."
I'm done. I'm going to lose my composure if I say anything more. I return to my seat, and another person stands to pay his regards.
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The stone table is being carried to an elaborate tomb. Four creatures hold the table: an Overworlder, an Underworlder, a Mipedian, and a Danian. Four humans each carry a different Tribal flag, standing on either side of the entrance to the tomb as Austin is carried in.
Trumpets play a mournful song as the pallbearers leave the tomb, and the stone door to the tomb is slowly dragged closed. Eventually the trumpets silence, and the door seals shut. That door will never open again.
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Up next: The Young Royals
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