Ambience
“Kindness, something so simple and overlooked in importance yet it could mean the difference between making an enemy or a new friend. For the people of Acre, the Musins and their metal men, the Wizards and their magic along with one special wizard named Greg the ‘big boned’, The people of Haense who allowed her to live despite the numerous antics and tantrums and lastly the Du Locians who despite accidentally throwing alchemist fire on her, each of them showed kindness towards a feeble minded creature and thus earned their name and place as friend and family especially the De Vilains who gave her a home, food and showed what it truly meant to be in a family a normal family...”
Each striking blow that grazed her body would send ripples of memories and visions, ones from her past she had long since forgotten on her desperate trek to find where her home truly was. As the sword cleaved into her leg she could reminisce about the numerous attacks on Acre she had to defend against, helping Gustav to hold a portal open so that they could vanquish a demon from their lands as it had become such a frequent occurrence within those lands. However, her time spent reminiscent would be bittersweet and cut off just before the conclusion as the armored men in an attempt to subdue her began to cast and hurl flames towards the creature thus causing another memory to surface taking her back to the two times she had been set ablaze by alchemist fire on accident, the scars years later still permanently etched across her body, in wounds and cuts she hadn’t bothered to care for so they could stay there for her to remember those events by.
The smell of flames entering her nostrils would take her back once more as she clinged to life wanting to relive each of these times once more, bringing her to the time Acre would host a feast where she helped to make food for the first time and it was met with great success despite the numerous burnt meals she had prepared all she could remember was their happy faces and compliments telling the simple creature that it had done a good job. Continuing her pursuit of such similar feelings of gratification the Olog would in an attempt to cater to the small mouse men coming to visit with their metallic creatures spent hours of her day making tiny Musin sized products of honey in order to give it to her new furred friends, all of whom she would be mindful of and careful of not to upset or trample upon frightful of their might, strength and knowledge that they might possess. While an ologs belly may never be full, Grub often found herself at times torn between accepting a bribe to satisfy her hunger or to wave it away… torn between desire and instinct only because she felt wrong, she felt something new - a feeling of guilt if she were to take food not given to her at Acre where her Family were. It was where she wanted to be, becoming frightful overtime of the unknown outside of the forest and farmlands.
Her mind raced as each vision that passed began to crumble and fade, she was dying and there was nothing she could do about it. Her family and home were long since gone, as images from her past displayed themselves for the last time from the creatures escaping from portals in trees, the tentacle monsters, the obese wizard she carried all the way to a gravel pyramid, to having been turned into a bunny by one of those aforementioned wizards. Truly this creature had lived a thousand lives and had a thousand stories to tell yet.. She would be unable to do so.. Not by her death but by her incapableness, no matter how hard she tried, learnt or studied it never seemed to settle, it never seemed to click unless it was basic enough to grasp, matching in intellect to that of a mere toddler.
Despite not knowing emotions nor the meaning behind common ones such as sadness, depression, regret and guilt it would be obvious to those gathered around her witnessing her final moments that Grub had been suffering from years of true mental pain as tears streamed from her eyes with sounds escaping her maw akin to that of a creature in agonizing physical and mental pain, years spent being mistreated, alone and pushed out of place from place had caused her to break in her search for home this trauma she endured was likely something which she had been in for some time now..
Gazing upwards she saw the masked bronze face lift up and in those remaining last minutes, she saw not an enemy - not a stranger but someone from her family she thought she had lost, she knew now she could go, to no longer fight nor walk the land in pain for she found her home. Home was where her family was and by his side she would allow herself to pass, echoing the words they had taught her years ago. ”Family.” before the creature's eyes drew to a close, collapsing onto the ground with a heavy thud the ignited flames that took up the majority of her body had begun to extinguish themselves.
By his side she would die for she will always remember who her true family were. She will always remember never giving up in an attempt to free him from his “Prison” in Haense despite the threat of guards and their weapons blocking her path each time. He was a mentor, family and above all albeit strange for an Olog, he alongside his son were like father figures to this creature despite it being hundreds of years older, they had taught her more than she could ever learn had she been left to wander alone… Grub was finally given reassurance that she could at last sleep and join her family. Carrying with her a thousand lives and a thousand different stories to tell them for she truly had seen so much and it is with that she allowed herself to pass on, content with the lives she had lived, the family and friends she had made, and the stories she created.