In One Fell Swoop!

Cuthbert

....along with some that I can safely say are NOT friends!

One thing I must say that I am rather glad that Roland had insisted on us arming us with Apprentice Revolvers. While cumbersome and awkward to the guns I and my friend shall earn in the end, they were meant to trump up our appearance and lessen any seeming insult of seemingly sending mere boys for this vital mission. It was to show we were serious in our regards to these "Draconians".

Now?

Well, I and Alain shall put them to good use and today we all shall remember the faces of our fathers, no matter what the outcome!

Bullets fly and spell are flung. Blood is shed and brains are spilt! Indeed, in some instances life was taken by sword thrust! See, in addition to this hopping mess Jarlath's group got sucked into this maelstrom!

In the end he and his friends stand over the corpses of their enemies, as well as the inadvertent fellow teleportees. Let us just say that a LOT of the confusion and danger still about here. The Draconians who are very much like the ones that Queen Astral befriended here are rather....wary of these folks who just appeared in their midst, let us just say. While they know that the humans here didn't attack them, the violence was something else! Draconians are not known to be the most civilized of people on Kyrnn, let us just say, but at least for the moment their is a guarded truce!

Wounds are tended and some survivors silently look at the fallen.

Some have the almost perverse pleasure of taking the life again of hated foes. Several Rolands have the pleasure of having slain "The Big Coffin Hunters" (a band who'd been responsible for the apparent death of a woman known as Susan Delgrado). Some take satifaction of having shot a Gray named Gnasher (urban gang member from Lud who'd kidnapped Jake). Things of that nature.

Confusion.

There is much of that as well, for how often does one actually meet mirror image of themselves in the flesh? Fortunately, the analogs (as what is they are) seem to be pleasant enough so with that the instant brotherhood associated with doppelgangers (ala Terra Prime style) happens. No, they may not understand how this is all happening, a lot of them, but at the moment they trust their mirror images for some reason. Even love them as brothers. Such is the way of things.

Long lost loves are reunited (much to the confused delights of the various Rolands). The Susans on Midworld had soon met each other had gotten out of harms way (with the aid of a rather lost ka-tet).

See, as what was stated earlier, there were a lot of duplicate Rolands and friends running about. Point in fact, besides Roland, the ones duplicated where the ka-tet (Jake, Eddie, and Sussannah). One group who'd been duplicated had been, by their view, ready to board a malignant train called Blain when a flash had happened and they'd ended up near Susan Delgrado's place. Having remembered what little they'd heard of her from "their" Roland (who was missing), they'd recognized her for who she was. They would have steered well clear of contact (fearing the consequences of changing what appeared to them as the past), but circumstance came to be where the other duplicates of Susan on Midworld (all three) met and the short is they and this displaced ka-tet ended up together. They were soon in a plot on stopping Eldred Jonas and his band (aka "The Big Coffin Hunters") in their rebellion. Then they had ended up here in the middle of an epic, deadly battle!

Thank whatever Powers you believe (or do not believe) in that they all came out relatively safe!

Things eventually were sorted out and it it appears that the lost ka- tet of Roland was something of a broken set. What happened is that Roland the Younger now has two ka-tets to deal with. One is the one he'd grown up with and one is made up of people he'd only now met (i.e. the lost ka-tet). That is...with the exception of Cuthbert. Enchanted by Joan 2's exotic beauty, he feels he must follow her to Terra Prime...and after the Dark Tower....he can not return to Midworld. For better or worse, Cuthbert's destiny is now elsewhere. Perhaps it lays with Joan 2 D'Honaire...but that remains to be seen.

Weird business.

Kang and Slith, alarmed that their guest had disappeared into thin air, soon arrive (via their dragon forms) and...after a lot of talk with their analog counterparts (coupled with the nature of analogs meeting and instantly loving each other if not hating each other) a rampart was reached. They were escorted quickly into the Draconian Nation (their intended destination anyway) with open arms. Then explanations on several other issues were settled. The analog Draconians had been sporting on several parts of their body mirrorbright scales. They'd been rather worried at the increasing changes of their scales and within themselves. Their innate natures seemed to be slowly changing and they, at night, kept on having thes odd.....dreams. Dreams of themselves flying as dragons.....but able to change into their Draconian forms at will. Dreams of a Dark Tower and of, at the top of it, a Power that....cared for them and called to them.

Some may call this Power God. Some may call It (or He or She or They) by a different name. The Rules and Agents call the Power(s) the Higher Up (s). Hell, it could even be some kind of thing were this Power isn't really a Deity at all! Whatever the case, the Draconians soon all came to the Tower along with the Rolands and friends....and all were changed in one way or another. It was something that they couldn't clearly remember (confusing images afterwards) but they'd always know of to the ends of their days. Even Jarlath's group would do that...and perhaps eventually....eventually they would understand more....as will all the Champions...

That is for later and that is a tale for another time.

Rebellions put down.

Trade established.

Love proven and estranged couples united again. Yes, under the control of Hannah the unicorn lass, the Mirror of Truth was able to show Roland's mother what actually was within herself and the heart of her husband....

And the last thing finally done. While the accident (Jarlath admitted to the mistake....should have figured on that warning and ka-tet stuff) they finally were on their way back with their wedding guests!

After all, in the end that's one of the things they had gone out to do, right?

So, they all soon arrived back on Nantucket Earth and met a few folks. Perhaps the most interesting was meeting that one Californian history professor known as Ian Arnstien (who sometime was known to mutter about hoping to not meet his story characters after all he'd put them through in his books). Probably the funniest scene was a rather heartfelt comment about wishing that either the Voyager (with her universal translators) or the magic users from Terra Prime (with their translation spells) had come earlier so establishing communication with those back in England of this time period on Nantucket Earth would have been easier....

All in all a fine time....

1. Went pretty smoothly until....some folks from what is called the Blake 7 universe were gathered up for the Wedding of Dr. Who and Inquirer....

That, however, is a different story.....

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