THE LAST BROTHER

[Pureimp10 5691]

 

 

Spoiler

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b57blgJIBkw

 

THE LAST BROTHER

 

Grand Prince Otto Sigmar, c. 1760

Portrait by Alaine Ferri

 

---

 

Otto Sigmar stepped out of the Ekaterinburg Palace and looked up at the clouds, gray and high in the sky. A sure sign of rain to come later in the day. He limped his way to the city square, hoping to find a way to pass the time before he was forced inside from the rain. After taking a seat at one of the tables outside of the tavern, he looked around at all the people in the city, smiling to himself that joyful life had finally returned after the long Rubern War.

 

“Gruncle Otto!” a high, unfamiliar voice called out. He turned his head in the direction of the voice but could see no one. He frowned, surely someone was attempting to play him. As he slowly sunk back into his daydream, he heard it again, “Gruncle Otto!” A frown formed along his lips as he again turned to the sound. It was a voice he had heard before, one he knew. Yet he couldn’t quite place it. As his eyes scanned the square, the mist from the rain-to-come congealed before him. With it, two young figures formed; as real to the man as his own flesh. As the youthful faces faded into view, their names returned to him. A young Aleksandra and Maya Alimar stood by the monument to Marius I, giggling and waving at him. “This is an illusion, some magical trick,” he thought to himself, though the vision reminded him of his younger days. He rubbed his eyes and the misty girls dissipated back into the air. He found himself alone again, resting for a time.

 

“Is this seat taken?”

 

“No, actually. Feel free to join m-” His words cut off as he saw who he had been speaking to. A strange woman clad in bright red sat down at the table, offering Otto a smile as she sipped from a glass of wine. He squinted at the woman. This time the figure was almost unrecognizable, foreign. Though she seemed a stranger, he knew he had met her before; another of the faces he had long since forgotten. Valentina, he realized. The woman frowned, noticing the man’s blank gaze. He reached out to touch her arm, to tell her he remembered, but no sooner had he extended his hand that she too disappeared into a wisp of vapor, much like the other two had. Otto rose to his feet and began to walk away from those lost to the memory of the old Alimar, rubbing his shoulder anxiously as he did so.

 

As he stood, flashes of color whisked by him: red, blue, yellow. The triplets of Reza ran through the streets, laughing giddily as they played, and with them darted their cousin Adryana. He remembered them all, though only faintly. Seeing the colors themselves reminded him of the girls. “Amelya... Analiesa, Alexandria,” he recited quietly as he had so many times before. The names of those near-forgotten. He falters, attempting to remember the name of the final girl. “...Adryana,” he recalled after a moment, the lack of an assigned color causing him difficulty. Close behind them ran his sons, Godfric and Georg, their guardians, shouting out joyous complaints as the young girls ran. He’d named the boys after his own brothers, the two men he never thought he would have to live without. Yet they had been taken from him so many years ago, and all that remained was Otto’s memories of them. He called out to the children, though only one seemed to hear him. Young Amelya, the red princess, turned to face him, darting over. “Eja, Uncle Otto!” She smiled brightly at her beloved old uncle. She reached out, almost touching his sleeve to grab it as she always had done before briskly turning and sprinting to return to her game of chase. As she ran off after the already-fading figures, her body, too, began wavering in the breeze.

 

He continued his walk, following the path the children had taken towards the front gate of the city. There stood a young, blonde woman, watching the energetic younglings with a smile. Otto squinted, attempting to make out the woman’s face before gasping breathily in surprise. His wife Ambrosia, who he had not seen for decades, called out to their sons, telling them to behave; to be careful with the children. He edged closer to the group of his raven-haired kin, hoping to embrace his long lost wife, but the closer he got, the more abstract the figures became. Though he attempted to resist the dissipating mist, his family disappeared around him, just as those before them had. He cried out sorrowfully as the stormy winds carried them off. As he lowered his gaze once again, he could faintly make out two figures through the fog, two men. He limped towards them, pausing just before the pair as they came together.

 

There, amidst the vapor, stood his two brothers: Godfric and Georg, the two men that had never faded from his mind. Otto took a step forward, quickly drawing to a halt. He wouldn’t have these figures vanish at his touch too, and thus he planted his cane in the gravelly street. He looked across the small front-square, rubbing the fog from his spectacles as he looked his brothers over. Georg still had his red and black checkered overcoat and the spectacles that he had worn during his time as regent. Godfric was clad in his black studded armor; hands covered by dark leather gloves. They held out their hands to the man, beckoning for him to come to them. He hesitated, the fear of losing them again panged deep, but their extended arms were insistent and he was not one to deny. Though as he reached them, slowly taking their hands in each of his own, they did not disappear. “Go with us,” they seemed to say, their unforgotten voices echoing in his broken mind.

 

And go he did.

 

---

 

REQUIESCAT IN PACE

Prinzen Otto Sigmar Barbanov-Alimar

1690 - 1764

 

Give not, yield not

 

((ty to miko

[Piov 2643]

Georg stood with Godfric as they greeted their brother Otto arriving into a new place to call home. Georg remembered a time when times were much hectic and uncertain, where the strain of duty had shirked him. However, his brother Otto could not be swayed by such a calling, standing to see the success of a kingdom on the verge of collapse into a prosperous, glimmering province of hope. He had stood with great pride knowing that it was Otto who withstood the test of time, taking on the duty of serving to shepherd the kingdom for the Crown, the very same vocation that Georg remembered well before his demise. As he remembered his last day before being taken to what would become the shared destiny with Godfric, Georg recalled his last memory - the fear of abandoning the burdens of office to Otto and a family forever bereaved by loss. The days had become weeks. The weeks had then become months. The months culminated into four decades until the Lord God called upon his great servant, Otto Sigmar Alimar, to return to the skies and be one with those who shared in his youth.

[Jaigalar 541]

Spoiler

 

     Godfric, always keeping a watchful eye on his brother from above, stood beside Georg as he realized Otto was reaching his final days. He felt nothing but pride for his brother and the man he had become. He smiled at his every accomplishment and wished nothing but the best for him. He'd cheer alongside Georg after every victory, he'd lament after his defeats. Though Godfric watched Otto begin to slip, his mind ever so alert beginning to make way for his old age; his ever vigilant gaze on the other Alimar remained, to the end of his days he watched, waiting for him to make his way back to them.

     

      His thoughts drifted back to his final years with his brothers, the stress of the war took their toll on each of them, but no matter the obstacle, they had each other. Godfric knew at the end of every day who would be there for him, his mind eased when he thought of his three brothers. He had traveled so far beyond with Georg and Josef, but it had felt as though they were still beside Otto every step of the way. Godfric reflected on his own final day, his last thoughts were only of his brothers, his life wasn't quite so complete without them. He felt sympathy for his estranged brother, wondering what must have gone through his mind for him to slip, for he had lived a whole other lifetime without them. Regardless of the wait, he stood by with his brother, and upon the arrival of Otto to the divine, he brought him into an embrace along with Georg. He had waited so long to hold his brother again. Tears of sorrow at his departure from the world, tears of joy at their reunion, both filled his eyes. It seemed as though their hold on Otto lasted a decade, it still did not seem enough.

 

"We've got you, brother."
 

[MikoMonster 1396]

Amelya Valeriya’s eyes widened as she read the missive. She fell back on her bed, hands shaking as her vision clouds. “U-Uncle Otto?” murmurs the girl in disbelief, her breathing quickening as she heaved. “Did you… did you remember me before you went?” The young princess tugged at her sleeves, rising from her bed with a start no sooner than she had lowered herself onto it. This man had been one of the only parental figures she had left, now there was only one.

 

The girl stood in the middle of her room, remembering back to the day months ago where her beloved uncle had forgotten her name. “I can’t quite remember your name, but I know that you’re someone I love.” he had told her, the man having forgotten his whereabouts, thinking himself to be back in his youth. It pained her to think of her uncle’s deteriorating health, but what hurt more was to know one of the men who raised her could no longer recall her name.

 

The girl crumpled the paper between her palms, her knuckles whitening as she did so. Though her sisters were usually the first she ran to, they were not the first on her mind. Out of her room, the girl sprinted, thundering down the stairs. Tears streaming down her face, the girl ran for the Alimar manor, one thought on her mind. Her Uncle Godfric, the only father she had left.

She barged in through the doors, hurrying frantically to where she spotted her uncle, seated silently at the table. He turned as she entered, and the young girl barrelled into his chest. “I- I love you.” the child whispered, before descending into a fit of child-like sobs.

[AndrewTech 3330]

Upon hearing of the passing of the great Otto Sigmar from his nephew Alaric, a tired and elderly Sir Konrad Stafyr slumps deeper into the velvet of his armchair.

 

He had fought many battles alongside the Grand Prince over the last fifty years, some of them martial and others political. While they had never been the closest of friends, Otto had played a very important role in his life, before, during, and after their time together in the Government of King Andrik III.

 

As Konrad further reflected upon his passing, he began to realize that one of the last Haeseni veterans of the War of the Two Emperors besides himself had perished from Terra. Upon the revelation that he himself might now be one of the last men in the kingdom to have fought with Joseph Marna, the old man lets out a deep sigh.

 

The end of an era was coming, and the passing of the Grand Prince of Mudlav may well have marked the beginning of that era’s end.

[The King Of The Moon 7016]

Klaus literally starts foaming at the mouth upon hearing the man died before he could avenge his legs.

[winterblood 11181]

reserved

[Zaerie 3747]

Reserved

[Axelu 4333]

Aleksandra Sophia, long since gone, recalls her memories, good and bad, with the Prinzen Otto and the remainder of her husband’s siblings. ”At last, you old cod,” the Grand Princess rasps mutedly, as she sat alongside Josef by a hearth, shrouded by its warmth and comfort.

[Drew2_dude 2636]

Sigmar recalls the past, looking back to his days as a young Lord. He remembers the 3 young Alimar brothers, Georg, Godfric, and Otto as they stood upon the dais with Marius I during the War of the Two Emperors. The 3 brothers that commanded respect, that led us through the hardships along with his Uncle Lerald. He then recalls the Reconstruction under Andrik III, the number of brothers dwindling 3 to 1, the lone Alimar brother Otto standing proudly to help rebuild a nation and later an Empire as he took the position under Emperor Alexander. He recalls the service of Otto Sigmar, from beginning to end, signing the Lorraine as he sit up from his bed, his aching bones reminding him of his age too. “Rest well Otto.” 

[Legoboy7984 3155]

Stefan Vyronov gives a nod upon hearing the news.

“May he rest well with his fallen family members in the seven skies.”

[Eryane 3698]

Within the seven skies where two Alimars were seated in a small home, Maya Alimar set down her glass of Carrion Black and rose from her chair next to Aleksandra. There was a heaviness in her heart, as she felt another member of her family -of the small few who remained- enter the seven skies. She closed her eyes shut tight before leaving the home, knowing that her children would face another pain, but she found solace in knowing that someone else was at peace.

 

When she saw Otto at the gates, tears welled in her eyes. They weren’t tears of sadness, but a joy – in knowing that someone who had endured so much and given even more had found happiness, peace. And he would finally be reunited with his brothers. 

 

---

 

Eleanor wiped away the tears with the back of her hand as she stared down at piano keys before her. She had been practicing in the royal academy for hours, even if the songs were basic in their form. The Alimar didn’t quite understand death in her young age, but something was missing from her life. Someone.

 

As she tried to contemplate her grandfather’s passing further, it only ended in further knitted brows and more tears. She continued to plunk through the notes as a distraction, and hoped that wherever her grandfather was – he was safe.

[Lhindir_ 3691]

Ser Khroll mourns the passing of another from the days of Marius. 

[Zanthuz 1863]

Nikolaus sat amply in his armchair at the Kortrevich Estate in Markev; where he would be reading a copy of the ‘A Proclamation of the Resolute Realm’ by the acclaimed Alistar Wailer of St. Karlsburg. His wife Lotte sitting to his right-side as she knitted cloth garments. Before long, Otto’s assent was made aware to those closest to him who waited for his arrival for many years. Not too long after, Otto made his final sendoff from the war-torn realm of Arcas, Nikolaus would soon gather word that his last day arrived and that his life on the overworld was no longer. Upon this news, Nikolaus closed the leather back text and reminisced on the past triumphs and sorrows both he and Otto shared on the battlefield as fellow war-compatriots. 

 

He recalled the time they both spent fighting in the ‘War of the Two Emperors’ through till the 'Battle of Hangman’s Bridge' at the decennial anniversary of the everlasting Rubern War. 

 

He recalled the time of the past where he allowed Otto to specifically train Wilheim to be a squire under his own directive.

 

He recalled the time of the past where they together commanded the Battles of Upper & Lower Rodenburg, the Sieges of Helena & Guise and the frequent amount of defenses against the cities of Reza and New Reza against attacking ruthless brigands.

 

While Nikolaus recalled the years they had shared together on the battlefield they too shared a personal connection like many other brothers in arms; although it was one that wasn’t well-illustrated. Their relation was primarily associated with their cohesive discussion regarding the Knightly functions and for a period of time, Otto and Nikolaus closely cooperated together up until the ultimate sacrifice Nikolaus made to his country.

 

Nikolaus soon after his recollection of past memories would greet Otto with a large embrace; the embrace was neither long nor short as their friendship was nothing to be remembered but nevertheless Nikolaus dipped his head briefly and offered just a few words before assisting him to the skies above:

 

“Come Your Highness, we’ve been waiting.”

[koanda 620]

Ester had roamed the Seven Skies for nearly two decades at this point, so long that she had seen many of those from her life enter into the new place she called home. Even in her comfort, she would find herself yearning to see those who had yet to arrive, Prince Otto being one.

Taking on the Alimar name was one of the things she took most pride in during her life, regardless of the pain it brought. Through the hardship of her marriage, she was told time and time again by Otto and his kin that she was safe in Haense, that she had found a place to rest, a respite for her soul, and a family to call her own.

With the old Alimar’s long awaited arrival it was finally her turn to repay the favor, meeting him just at the gates with a warm smile settled on her expression. 
                                     “Welcome home, Otto.”