100 Phase 87: Heroes

[Colin. Dear Colin.] Kyubia greeted him.

[Hello Kyubia.] Colin greeted her politely.

The two of them sat down to tea with a round white table between them, a teacup in Colin's hand and a bowl of tea for Kyubia on her side of the table.

[How are you doing?] Kyubia asked him.

[Quite well, for now.] Colin answered, still politely.

Around them, pirates went nuts trying to figure out what in all creation was going on. They were fighting each other, slapping themselves and trying to wake up, or jumping off their ships entirely as everything from big Christmas trees to fat orange cats wearing boots beat them around and talked in the voices of other pirates.

The Streak Foxes were having a party. Colin felt it only right to invite his other friends. He tapped his badge. "Sharpeye."

The Lord of the Crested Falcons appeared before him. He looked amused. [Tea?]

[Slaughter. Shiro's idea.] Kyubia told him, making the illusion of another bowl of tea for Sharpeye.

Sharpeye cried out to the open sky, and the sky was filled with his kin and clan. Falcons crested red, or green, or blue, or white swooped down to pay homage to their Lord and then struck at the pirate fleet.

"Oreb." Colin tapped his badge again.

The Lord of the Wood Owls appeared and joined the tea party. "Hoo, hoo." [Jasmine tea, please. No sugar.]

[Coming right up.] Kyubia supplied as the Owls joined the battle, hundreds of them appearing overhead.

Pirate ships were crashing into each other now, nearly upsetting their tea as they formed a floating cluster of battered vessels.

"Yachad." Colin tapped his badge, and the Lord of the Tree Cougars joined the tea party.

His clan charged through the cluster of tangled ships and wood, tearing apart every pirate they found.

"Lather." Colin called the Lord of the Twig Lizards to join them. "You guys don't mind sea water, right?"

[No problem. But I'd rather have tea.] Lather said, joining the table.

His clan dove into the waves and took the fight to the pirate creatures under water.

"Prisme." Colin summoned the Lord (or Queen) of the Feelo Wasps. The swarms of Lamico Forest joined the battle.

[More honey please.] Prisme requested, sitting at their table. [Actually, forget the tea. I just want honey.]

[Sure.] Kyubia grinned.

"I'll have to apologize to Rustle and Deeproot later." Colin sighed. "Those two and their clans are too big for ships."

The other Forest Lords agreed. Oreb hooted. [Are those the new clans you spoke of?]

Colin glanced over to where Katrin and his four transports were swerving to avoid the tangled clump of pirate ships. "Yes, that's them."

[It would be a pleasure to meet them later.] Oreb said.

Colin waved to Katrin as they neared the pirate ships.

"Colin! What are you doing?!" Katrin gasped.

"Having tea! Want to join us?" Colin asked.

"I can't get over there!" Katrin protested. "Besides, those ships are sinking!"

Colin sighed, knowing she was right. Kyubia and Yachad had summoned hundreds of their clan. Those small ships Katrin hired for transports couldn't possibly contain them all. "Guys, it's been a nice party, but I think it's time I headed back to the Lamico Forest. I'll summon you all from there."

"Arf." Kyubia nodded fondly. [Be well.]

"Kirin!" Colin called his Storm Swan, and they headed for the Forest.

Below, he saw Shiro's deadly plan take effect as the Green Sharks, having surrounded the pirate fleets and forces, charged in from all sides, letting none of the pirates escape. The Kraken had torn apart the first and second underwater pirate waves and was now getting to business on Scopia's seaweed Comrade. Scopia herself appeared to be in the middle of a tangled battle with Satrox, but she seemed to be trying to escape in a lifeboat at the same time.

"Hey, Satrox!" Colin delayed a moment or ten to talk to his friend. "What's going to happen to the pirates?"

"We've got Protectorate and Republic forces all waiting at Port Rachel. Sandy, Rita and Henry should have finished smashing their empty hideout by now." Satrox shrugged. "We'll nab them all."

"Hey!" Colin protested. "You never told me about that!"

"Sorry. I knew what you were up to and it was too good a chance to pass up. We just couldn't resist. Besides, you've been kicked out of the J-Knights, didn't you know?" Satrox told him. "You've got a trial in three nights!"

"Trial…" Colin sighed. "I'll handle that when it comes. Meanwhile, how's your fight with Scopia?"

"She's already gotten her strongest Comrades out there." Satrox nodded to the underwater fight. "All she's got here are the weaker ones."

"Well, then, I'll leave the pirates to you and the transports to Katrin. I need to get back to the Forest before the ships sink." Colin said.

"Ah… so you can summon the Forest Wilds…" Satrox mused. "I thought so. All right, Colin, leave this to me."

Colin nodded and swooped off on Kirin, headed for the Forest he ruled.

***

Kyubia brought the tea and the table back with her and Yachad when Colin called them from the Forest. Their clans came back with them, looking a bit disoriented and disappointed.

"Maybe I should leave the others in the fight." Colin said, thinking of how the owls, falcons and wasps could fly, and the lizards could swim.

Kyubia and Yachad sighed. [Well, at least we got to have SOME fun.]

Colin took to the air and called Katrin. "How's it going?"

"No problems. We're almost at the seaport. Your forest birds have been bringing me fallen Wilds to touch, though. I think they're meant to reject me and return to full HP, but a good number of them are staying with me as Tames. What am I to do with them?"

"Bond them, if you like." Colin invited. "Return them to their Lords, if you'd rather not. Just don't sell them."

"Understood." Katrin said, and cut the link.

Down below, the people of Lamico Continent appeared to be in a stir. Either the sudden disappearances of so many Forest Wilds had caused a fuss, or the capture of the Scopic Pirates caught everyone by surprise.

{Shiro really didn't let any of them escape.} Colin grinned. {I think we just made shipping feasible for the continent once more. We re-opened the trade routes without intending to.}

There was quite a crowd gathered at the seaport. Colin frowned, wondering if there would be trouble as his ships and all the Wilds he'd left with them reached port.

Waiting on the docks were Silvero and Sora.

"Hail Satrox!" Silvero shouted, raising his fix. "Hero of Lamico!"

"Hail Satrox!" Sora cheered, and a hundred Dreamers cheered with them. "Down with the Scopic Pirates!"

Even Satrox looked surprised. Colin landed near enough to hear him say, "What?! But this is Colin's shipment! I just took advantage…"

"Hail the Sage of the Ancient Ways, Champion of the Order of Justice!" Silvero cheered, and everyone cheered with him.

"Katrin helped too…" Satrox began.

"Who's Katrin?" Lucy, standing there with her father and Sora, wanted to know.

"Her." Satrox pointed. "She's a Detective Knight…"

"Hail Katrin, Knight of Justice!" Silvero raised another shout, and the people of Lamico hailed her as a heroine.

"What about Colin?" Satrox wanted to know.

"Yeah!" Lucy threw in. "Hail the Forester, Colin!"

Sudden silence fell.

"Hail the Order of Justice!" Silvero shouted, and the whole crowd went off into cheers again.

Colin got the message easily enough. "Forget it, guys. I'm a destroyer, not a hero. Just ask those ruins to the south."

Satrox, Katrin, Sora and Lucy all stared at the crowd. Sora spoke first. "But…"

"It's okay." Colin said. "The Forest Wilds are happy."

Indeed they were, both old and new. Owls were carrying moles from the ships to the docks, Falcons were giving squirrels lifts. The Feelo Wasps were greeting the Megants and the Twig Lizards and beavers were swimming out of the seas side by side.

{The beavers are swimming…?} Colin had forgotten that they could. {Wonder if they're the reason those ships sank.}

A large shadow dropped from the sky, and Lynn arrived atop Nightwind. "Not quite what I had in mind, but you seemed to have done just fine. I thought you'd leave the cougars and foxes out, though."

Colin let out a tired breath. "Yeah. I guess I should."

Lynn gave him a sideways look. "What? You're not really put off with this crowd, are you?"

"No…" Colin began, then paused. "Well, maybe a little."

Lynn laughed softly. "Forget them. Let's get the new clans instated and hold our own party."

"Yeah." Colin said.

"Let's go." Lynn took to the air and headed back to the forest, leading the crowd of Forest Wilds home.

Colin watched her go, then turned to find Katrin. She'll want to see this…

But Katrin was caught up in the cheering crowd, literally being thrown into the air by hands from below. Satrox, too.

Colin watched them go and said nothing. He turned back to his Forest Wilds and headed home to the Forest with them.