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<blockquote data-quote="Silver Moon" data-source="post: 2713638" data-attributes="member: 8530"><p><strong>Chapter 154, “The Protectors Arrive” , Saturday, January 21st, 1882, 12:15 A.M.</strong></p><p></p><p>The night goes on. Shortly after midnight Kate is on guard duty, watching from the mouth of the cave, when she sees some riders appear at the tree line. They are following the wagon ruts left by the caravan that hauled away the chimera, tracing the trail back to where the creature had initially fallen. Storm Golden Eye appears beside Kate and says, "It is your friends from South American. They have questions for you about how the earth spirit died."</p><p></p><p>Kate replies, "Storm would you wake the others, let them know that visitors are on the way? They don't have to come out if they don't want to, but they should know," she said quietly to Storm's spirit. "I should at least guide them." Kate began an incantation and four balls of light appeared in front of her. They floated down the mountain toward the men and once they were noticed, Kate had them lead the men up to where she stood in front of the cave mouth.</p><p></p><p>Storm gently shakes Chester. He awakens with a start and reaches for his rifle. "What's going on? Is something wrong?" The centaur replies, "No, your weapon is not needed. Katherine's friends are coming to the mountain. She felt you all should know." "Thank you, Miss Storm." Chester puts fresh wood on the fire.</p><p></p><p>The men ask permission to come up and Kate lowers the rope. Some of Kate's companions have awakened by the time all four men have climbed up to the cave. Seeing the dragon Antonio de Surce says "So the earth spirit to be protected still lives. That is good. We will help to keep her and her child safe." </p><p></p><p>The human William Miller says "We saw the body of Ihuaivula, the killer of my uncle. The human named Cody tried to take credit for killing it, but he had neither the weapons or any spellcaster among his group to have accomplished such a task so we know that he was lying. Will you please tell us how it was slain?"</p><p></p><p>Kate replies, "I'm sorry for the falsehood. Some things happened here that Cody wasn't prepared to deal with. Earlier today the creature flew above, trying to draw the hunting parties here. Mr. Riley shot at it with a hand cannon we acquired and hurt it, but not enough to kill it. </p><p></p><p>Later on Mr. Dodge's party arrived and started setting up a cannon a little farther up the mountain. The creature returned, and Chester was able to shoot it with the hand cannon again, this time with magical ammunition. Dodge's people used a magical wand of fire to strike it. Nanuet used a special paste on his arrows that was also very effective. Between us we brought it down. </p><p></p><p>Afterward we talked to Dodge, but there was an earthquake shortly after the earth spirit died, and that ended the conversation rather quickly. He and one of his sons went up to deal with the cannon while one stayed with the carcass and the other watched us. We suspected they were going to attack us, but we didn't want to fire first in case we were wrong. But once the cannon was pointed at us his intentions were clear. There was a fight. Dodge and two of his sons died, the other ran off into the mountains. </p><p></p><p>Mr. Cody came along before we could do any cleaning up. We didn't want another altercation with a hunter, and we didn't want him asking too many questions about bodies with bullet-holes in them, so Sonoma talked to him and led him to believe he could take credit and we wouldn't argue. Since our only goal was to protect this dragon, we have little care who claims to have slain the creature." </p><p></p><p>Kate sighed. It was the most she'd said in days. She hadn't realized how tiring talking could be. "We'll be glad of your assistance in protecting the dragon. She says she should be ready to leave tomorrow, but there are still dangers." Bolivar says "When she and the child are ready to leave we will accompany her for as long as she wishes. We will keep them safe."</p><p></p><p>Kate answers, "It's comforting to know that she will still have some protection, I know your skills are formidable. Thank you. There's a small fire inside, and tea if you want it. Why don't you gentlemen get some rest before morning comes? I'm sure keeping up with her will require you to be well rested." Katherine ushered them inside the cave and made sure everyone was comfortable before she went back to her watch.</p><p></p><p>They sit for a while and enjoy the tea. Miller thanks them for assisting with destroying the killer of his Uncle and says that the man will be able to now rest comfortably. Storm Golden Eye says "That's not how it works." He gives her a quizzical look and then turns back towards the fire. Kate turned her head to look back toward the cave. "How does it work?" she asked in a flat voice.</p><p></p><p>Storm replies "With death I made my choice, to stay and be a conduit between those who I watch over now and those that lead the spirits from the other side. I was given a choice and a mission to protect and lead and teach as those from the summer lands see fit. Most who die move on quickly and peacefully even when their deaths are violent or unexpected. </p><p></p><p>It is only with great magics that a choice can be made from your world to stay in it, even after death has come, and the cost is very great to the soul. Often a goodbye will take place at the time of death to a loved one if it is something that has been planned and both people are aware that death is coming, otherwise even the most violent passing is a place of peace at the end." "Thank you." Kate turned her face back to the mountains and blinked away the tears the clouded her vision.</p><p></p><p>As she spoke so of death and its meaning the four South Americans turn and look at Storm. Only then do they notice the bullet hole in her forehead and realize that she is more than the Native American centaur that they took her for. They exchange glances but none of them are sure quite what to say. </p><p></p><p>The dragon comes forward and in response to their unasked questions says "Storm perished over two weeks ago. She was a priestess of the Earth and was given the opportunity to stay and help assemble my protectors. Her guidance was instrumental in all of you being here now. Without her I would now be the one being hauled away by the hunters instead of Ihuaivula." </p><p></p><p>Feeling more comfortable speaking to the giant earth dragon than the dead centaur, Antonio de Sucre asks "I have heard of such things before, but how is it that she can take physical form?" The dragon replies "That is only due to my presence to her. Once we are separated she will once more be closer linked to the spiritual realm, her only remaining bonds to this world being Nanuet and his animal companion." </p><p></p><p>The dragon then says to the men "Thank you for agreeing to accompany me. You came here seeking revenge against Ihuaivula. Why is it that you have agreed to help me?." Antonio answers "Nanuet told us of your purpose and how you will teach the next spirit for the South American continent to share your values. We have served as leaders of that land and wish to see it prosper. It is time for the violence and misery that has held the continent in its grasp for the past several centuries to come to an end. Anything that we can do to facilitate that is worth any sacrifice that we can give, up to and including our own lives if necessary." </p><p></p><p>She replies "It should not have come to that. I believe that we can be mutually helpful to one another. I know the land of North America as well as any creature living on it. We should be able to travel unhindered to my next destination, the Canadian province of British Columbia. But the movement of the humans is unpredictable so this journey is not without risk. Your company would be greatly welcomed."</p><p></p><p>Kate listened to the men and the dragon speaking of things that she had never imagined a month ago. Traveling with one who had been dead, protecting an Earth spirit, and sitting with men who had once ruled countries. Vaguely she knew these were amazing things, there was wonder in them that should excite her. Kate tried to focus on the conversation. "I hope you will return to Promise City someday. I'm sure my teacher would pleased to see you again, as would I. It has been my pleasure to meet you. And you," she said to the Earth spirit. "It is good to be reminded of how much there is in the world that I have yet to learn."</p><p></p><p>Ruby had slowly woken up when she heard the last group was coming. She sat up and stretched but her body told her she should still be sleeping, and the bruise on her leg hurt. She wanted nothing more then her bed and some whiskey. She listened to their conversation for a while, but all the talk of saving the world bored her, so she grabbed her legs and pulled them to her and put her head down in her lap. She wondered if Jake had returned yet. It had been 5 days now and he should be back. She would be so happy to get back to the Lone Star and see him. With that thought she turned toward the wall and laid back down, and went back to sleep.</p><p></p><p>Watches continue throughout the night comprised of one party member and one from the South American group. The night passes uneventfully. Guards continue into the morning but since there is no immediate need for anyone else to be up they let the others sleep. It is close to 9:00 AM when the baby chimera lets out a loud cry that wakes everybody who is still asleep. The mother apologizes for her infant, stating that it was hungry. He is already eating solid food and gobbles down a stockpile of salted meats that she had gathered together prior to its birth.</p><p></p><p>Chester wakes with a start at the sound. He grabs for his rifle again, but relaxes slightly when he sees it was just the baby. Ruby hears the child's noise and sits straight up, wide eyed, obviously startled. She calms down once she sees everything is under control. She slowly gets up and makes her self some of Dorita's tea then waits, for what, even she wasn't sure. </p><p></p><p>Seeing the creature eat Chester Chester inches away slowly from the baby. "Wow. That's really… nice. Does he eat, umm, a lot?" She replies "Well yes, after all, he has three mouths to feed. His body also has three stomachs. I'm glad you friends are joining us for this journey. I'm sure they will be very helpful in finding game for us to eat along the way."</p><p></p><p>For a moment, Kate had thought the Chimera's cry was part of the nightmare she had been having. None of her dreams were pleasant anymore. Being woken by the child was a relief. She rubbed the sand from her eyes and sat up. Even with it's three different heads and frankly, monstrous form, the foreshortened features of the creature gave it a childlike look that appealed to Katherine. She quickly pushed down the feelings of longing and sorrow that welled up. "It seems very sturdy, and certainly has a powerful voice," she said. "A good start for South America's new steward. Who will influence that continent until the child is able to do it?"</p><p></p><p>"I wondered about that myself" Bolivar comments. The dragon replies "The continent is bordered on both sides by two great oceans, each of which has its own spirit. They will help watch over it until the child has been taught what to do by me and is old enough to protect and defend himself."</p><p></p><p>"Well, if today is the day, I'd best go out and see how we're going to get the horses back down the mountain. The terrain has changed quite a bit since we came up here." Kate headed out to what was left of the ledge and looked at the mountainside, trying to determine whether the animals would be able get down in any way.</p><p></p><p>The group discusses how to get their horses down. The dragon offers to assist but the horses are too afraid to allow them near her. Carlos Wyman says that he has some spells that might work, but that they might be needed to deal with the still levitating cannon instead. </p><p></p><p>Eventually they come up with a plan using blankets, ropes and saddles to make up harnesses to lower the horses one-by-one. The dragon provides the strength needed to hold and lower them while Sonoma calms each animal. Once the mounts are all down they are moved off a safe distance. She then uses the harness system to lower her child before climbing down herself. </p><p></p><p>Wyman examines the cannon as best he can from the ground, unable to determine what is holding it up. He casts a Levitate spell onto himself to get up for a closer look. He then casts a Detect Magic spell, which reveals four invisible magical devices fastened on the device, each a round disk approximately five-inches in diameter. He has everyone move back when he casts a Dispel Magic spell onto it, the cannon crashing onto the volcanic rock below. The disks are now visible and no longer levitate, although appear to still be magical. He says that there are probably control words needed to activate them. </p><p></p><p>Ruby looks at the discs curiously. "I wonder what kind of magic that is?" she says out loud to no one. "Could be useful though..." She snaps out of it and looks to the dragon. "So, is it time to go?"</p><p></p><p>The dragon says "Yes, best not to stick around here in the open given how busy it was yesterday. We will probably do most of our traveling at night but with the assistance of these men several miles today are also possible if we are cautious." Storm Golden Eye says "I will accompany you for the first day as well." </p><p></p><p>The four South Americans say their goodbyes as well to the party. The British human William Miller tells Chester "We will have to meet again some day. I have some stories of my Uncle that I think a former soldier like you would enjoy hearing." Chester shakes Miller's hand. He says, "I'd like that. I bet he had some adventures. It was nice meeting you and your friends, Mr. Miller. Have a safe trip."</p><p></p><p>Carlos Wyman tells Ruby "Your friend Gonzalez should be able to help you figure out how to use those disks. I'd like to apologize once again for the disturbance at your saloon. I enjoyed what little I heard of your singing it would have liked to have had an opportunity to hear some more of it." </p><p></p><p>"Oh I didn't say we would take them. I mean, we would take them but... " Ruby just stops and smiles at Wyman. "We will take them." Why would they need them anyway, right? Ruby thinks. </p><p>"You don't have to apologize at all for the disturbance as you put it. Those Whipples don't own the place anymore and I hope things like that won't happen now that Jake and I own the place. I do hope you will be able to visit again. It's a shame for you to miss out on my singing!" She gives his hand a little squeeze. "So please try to stop by again so I can finish singing for you. And I'm sure Mr. Gonzales would like to see all of you again too."</p><p></p><p>Bolivar and de Surce take Kate aside. Antonio says "Goodbye Katherine, I thank you for helping to reunite me with young Consuela. The reunion was a happy one for all of us. The events that you have helped put into motion will be of benefit to hundreds of women in the years ahead." Kate replies, "I was in the right place at the right time. Consuela is a lovely woman, I'm glad to have played some small part in your reunion. It's good to see people happy." </p><p></p><p>Bolivar tells her "After we have helped to bring the dragons to their new home we will travel to Los Angeles to help enlist the labor for the renovations of the hotel and restaurant. Are there any messages you would like for us to bring to your friend Maggie Whipple?" </p><p></p><p>"Ah, yes, thank you. I'll write something, if you don't mind waiting a few moments." Katherine went over to her bag and wrote a note to Maggie on a piece of paper ripped from her journal. There wasn't much to tell, as she hadn't seen Maggie's family after Maggie left. She waited a few moments after writing it to let the ink dry and folded it carefully. </p><p></p><p>"Thank you," she said as she handed the letter to Senor Bolivar. "I know she will do well. I wrote it, but tell her I miss her. It's been a pleasure meeting you, I hope we'll see you again. Thank you for taking this to Maggie, and for letting me be part of helping those women, in whatever small way I could."</p><p></p><p>Before they head off Storm Golden Eye asks Nanuet to join him for a few minutes. She places her hands on his shoulders and says "Thank you for all that you have done. It was unfair of Geronimo to ask you to take on my responsibilities. Your work here is more than I should have asked of one person and you have performed admirably in these tasks. Please give some thoughts as to what you wish for your future and I will do what I can to assist you to achieve that. We will meet again although I will no longer be in a physical form at that time." She then kisses him lightly on both of his cheeks.</p><p></p><p>He states, “Storm, I have done little in the repayment of your life that you gave for my selfish reasons. I proudly take on any responsibilities that you had in life, it is the least I could do. I appreciate your kind words, they bring me much honor. As for my future, I do not know. I have always been a traveler, a wanderer if you may. I like it here, although it has been a busy place over the past couple of weeks. At the moment I plan on trying my hand at ranching and expanding my shaman skills, but I am not sure for how long that will appease me. I am glad to hear that we will see each other again. Your influence and guidance have been good for me.” </p><p></p><p>Storm and the four South Americans depart along with the dragon and her infant. Kate watched the creatures fly away low over the trees as the men kept up moving along the ground. She breathed a sigh of relief and turned back to the cave. It only took a few moments to douse the small fire and collect her things. She lifted the saddle bag over her shoulder, wincing a bit at the weight on her still-bruised shoulder. "Everyone ready?" she asked as she went over to shimmy down the rope.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Silver Moon, post: 2713638, member: 8530"] [B]Chapter 154, “The Protectors Arrive” , Saturday, January 21st, 1882, 12:15 A.M.[/B] The night goes on. Shortly after midnight Kate is on guard duty, watching from the mouth of the cave, when she sees some riders appear at the tree line. They are following the wagon ruts left by the caravan that hauled away the chimera, tracing the trail back to where the creature had initially fallen. Storm Golden Eye appears beside Kate and says, "It is your friends from South American. They have questions for you about how the earth spirit died." Kate replies, "Storm would you wake the others, let them know that visitors are on the way? They don't have to come out if they don't want to, but they should know," she said quietly to Storm's spirit. "I should at least guide them." Kate began an incantation and four balls of light appeared in front of her. They floated down the mountain toward the men and once they were noticed, Kate had them lead the men up to where she stood in front of the cave mouth. Storm gently shakes Chester. He awakens with a start and reaches for his rifle. "What's going on? Is something wrong?" The centaur replies, "No, your weapon is not needed. Katherine's friends are coming to the mountain. She felt you all should know." "Thank you, Miss Storm." Chester puts fresh wood on the fire. The men ask permission to come up and Kate lowers the rope. Some of Kate's companions have awakened by the time all four men have climbed up to the cave. Seeing the dragon Antonio de Surce says "So the earth spirit to be protected still lives. That is good. We will help to keep her and her child safe." The human William Miller says "We saw the body of Ihuaivula, the killer of my uncle. The human named Cody tried to take credit for killing it, but he had neither the weapons or any spellcaster among his group to have accomplished such a task so we know that he was lying. Will you please tell us how it was slain?" Kate replies, "I'm sorry for the falsehood. Some things happened here that Cody wasn't prepared to deal with. Earlier today the creature flew above, trying to draw the hunting parties here. Mr. Riley shot at it with a hand cannon we acquired and hurt it, but not enough to kill it. Later on Mr. Dodge's party arrived and started setting up a cannon a little farther up the mountain. The creature returned, and Chester was able to shoot it with the hand cannon again, this time with magical ammunition. Dodge's people used a magical wand of fire to strike it. Nanuet used a special paste on his arrows that was also very effective. Between us we brought it down. Afterward we talked to Dodge, but there was an earthquake shortly after the earth spirit died, and that ended the conversation rather quickly. He and one of his sons went up to deal with the cannon while one stayed with the carcass and the other watched us. We suspected they were going to attack us, but we didn't want to fire first in case we were wrong. But once the cannon was pointed at us his intentions were clear. There was a fight. Dodge and two of his sons died, the other ran off into the mountains. Mr. Cody came along before we could do any cleaning up. We didn't want another altercation with a hunter, and we didn't want him asking too many questions about bodies with bullet-holes in them, so Sonoma talked to him and led him to believe he could take credit and we wouldn't argue. Since our only goal was to protect this dragon, we have little care who claims to have slain the creature." Kate sighed. It was the most she'd said in days. She hadn't realized how tiring talking could be. "We'll be glad of your assistance in protecting the dragon. She says she should be ready to leave tomorrow, but there are still dangers." Bolivar says "When she and the child are ready to leave we will accompany her for as long as she wishes. We will keep them safe." Kate answers, "It's comforting to know that she will still have some protection, I know your skills are formidable. Thank you. There's a small fire inside, and tea if you want it. Why don't you gentlemen get some rest before morning comes? I'm sure keeping up with her will require you to be well rested." Katherine ushered them inside the cave and made sure everyone was comfortable before she went back to her watch. They sit for a while and enjoy the tea. Miller thanks them for assisting with destroying the killer of his Uncle and says that the man will be able to now rest comfortably. Storm Golden Eye says "That's not how it works." He gives her a quizzical look and then turns back towards the fire. Kate turned her head to look back toward the cave. "How does it work?" she asked in a flat voice. Storm replies "With death I made my choice, to stay and be a conduit between those who I watch over now and those that lead the spirits from the other side. I was given a choice and a mission to protect and lead and teach as those from the summer lands see fit. Most who die move on quickly and peacefully even when their deaths are violent or unexpected. It is only with great magics that a choice can be made from your world to stay in it, even after death has come, and the cost is very great to the soul. Often a goodbye will take place at the time of death to a loved one if it is something that has been planned and both people are aware that death is coming, otherwise even the most violent passing is a place of peace at the end." "Thank you." Kate turned her face back to the mountains and blinked away the tears the clouded her vision. As she spoke so of death and its meaning the four South Americans turn and look at Storm. Only then do they notice the bullet hole in her forehead and realize that she is more than the Native American centaur that they took her for. They exchange glances but none of them are sure quite what to say. The dragon comes forward and in response to their unasked questions says "Storm perished over two weeks ago. She was a priestess of the Earth and was given the opportunity to stay and help assemble my protectors. Her guidance was instrumental in all of you being here now. Without her I would now be the one being hauled away by the hunters instead of Ihuaivula." Feeling more comfortable speaking to the giant earth dragon than the dead centaur, Antonio de Sucre asks "I have heard of such things before, but how is it that she can take physical form?" The dragon replies "That is only due to my presence to her. Once we are separated she will once more be closer linked to the spiritual realm, her only remaining bonds to this world being Nanuet and his animal companion." The dragon then says to the men "Thank you for agreeing to accompany me. You came here seeking revenge against Ihuaivula. Why is it that you have agreed to help me?." Antonio answers "Nanuet told us of your purpose and how you will teach the next spirit for the South American continent to share your values. We have served as leaders of that land and wish to see it prosper. It is time for the violence and misery that has held the continent in its grasp for the past several centuries to come to an end. Anything that we can do to facilitate that is worth any sacrifice that we can give, up to and including our own lives if necessary." She replies "It should not have come to that. I believe that we can be mutually helpful to one another. I know the land of North America as well as any creature living on it. We should be able to travel unhindered to my next destination, the Canadian province of British Columbia. But the movement of the humans is unpredictable so this journey is not without risk. Your company would be greatly welcomed." Kate listened to the men and the dragon speaking of things that she had never imagined a month ago. Traveling with one who had been dead, protecting an Earth spirit, and sitting with men who had once ruled countries. Vaguely she knew these were amazing things, there was wonder in them that should excite her. Kate tried to focus on the conversation. "I hope you will return to Promise City someday. I'm sure my teacher would pleased to see you again, as would I. It has been my pleasure to meet you. And you," she said to the Earth spirit. "It is good to be reminded of how much there is in the world that I have yet to learn." Ruby had slowly woken up when she heard the last group was coming. She sat up and stretched but her body told her she should still be sleeping, and the bruise on her leg hurt. She wanted nothing more then her bed and some whiskey. She listened to their conversation for a while, but all the talk of saving the world bored her, so she grabbed her legs and pulled them to her and put her head down in her lap. She wondered if Jake had returned yet. It had been 5 days now and he should be back. She would be so happy to get back to the Lone Star and see him. With that thought she turned toward the wall and laid back down, and went back to sleep. Watches continue throughout the night comprised of one party member and one from the South American group. The night passes uneventfully. Guards continue into the morning but since there is no immediate need for anyone else to be up they let the others sleep. It is close to 9:00 AM when the baby chimera lets out a loud cry that wakes everybody who is still asleep. The mother apologizes for her infant, stating that it was hungry. He is already eating solid food and gobbles down a stockpile of salted meats that she had gathered together prior to its birth. Chester wakes with a start at the sound. He grabs for his rifle again, but relaxes slightly when he sees it was just the baby. Ruby hears the child's noise and sits straight up, wide eyed, obviously startled. She calms down once she sees everything is under control. She slowly gets up and makes her self some of Dorita's tea then waits, for what, even she wasn't sure. Seeing the creature eat Chester Chester inches away slowly from the baby. "Wow. That's really… nice. Does he eat, umm, a lot?" She replies "Well yes, after all, he has three mouths to feed. His body also has three stomachs. I'm glad you friends are joining us for this journey. I'm sure they will be very helpful in finding game for us to eat along the way." For a moment, Kate had thought the Chimera's cry was part of the nightmare she had been having. None of her dreams were pleasant anymore. Being woken by the child was a relief. She rubbed the sand from her eyes and sat up. Even with it's three different heads and frankly, monstrous form, the foreshortened features of the creature gave it a childlike look that appealed to Katherine. She quickly pushed down the feelings of longing and sorrow that welled up. "It seems very sturdy, and certainly has a powerful voice," she said. "A good start for South America's new steward. Who will influence that continent until the child is able to do it?" "I wondered about that myself" Bolivar comments. The dragon replies "The continent is bordered on both sides by two great oceans, each of which has its own spirit. They will help watch over it until the child has been taught what to do by me and is old enough to protect and defend himself." "Well, if today is the day, I'd best go out and see how we're going to get the horses back down the mountain. The terrain has changed quite a bit since we came up here." Kate headed out to what was left of the ledge and looked at the mountainside, trying to determine whether the animals would be able get down in any way. The group discusses how to get their horses down. The dragon offers to assist but the horses are too afraid to allow them near her. Carlos Wyman says that he has some spells that might work, but that they might be needed to deal with the still levitating cannon instead. Eventually they come up with a plan using blankets, ropes and saddles to make up harnesses to lower the horses one-by-one. The dragon provides the strength needed to hold and lower them while Sonoma calms each animal. Once the mounts are all down they are moved off a safe distance. She then uses the harness system to lower her child before climbing down herself. Wyman examines the cannon as best he can from the ground, unable to determine what is holding it up. He casts a Levitate spell onto himself to get up for a closer look. He then casts a Detect Magic spell, which reveals four invisible magical devices fastened on the device, each a round disk approximately five-inches in diameter. He has everyone move back when he casts a Dispel Magic spell onto it, the cannon crashing onto the volcanic rock below. The disks are now visible and no longer levitate, although appear to still be magical. He says that there are probably control words needed to activate them. Ruby looks at the discs curiously. "I wonder what kind of magic that is?" she says out loud to no one. "Could be useful though..." She snaps out of it and looks to the dragon. "So, is it time to go?" The dragon says "Yes, best not to stick around here in the open given how busy it was yesterday. We will probably do most of our traveling at night but with the assistance of these men several miles today are also possible if we are cautious." Storm Golden Eye says "I will accompany you for the first day as well." The four South Americans say their goodbyes as well to the party. The British human William Miller tells Chester "We will have to meet again some day. I have some stories of my Uncle that I think a former soldier like you would enjoy hearing." Chester shakes Miller's hand. He says, "I'd like that. I bet he had some adventures. It was nice meeting you and your friends, Mr. Miller. Have a safe trip." Carlos Wyman tells Ruby "Your friend Gonzalez should be able to help you figure out how to use those disks. I'd like to apologize once again for the disturbance at your saloon. I enjoyed what little I heard of your singing it would have liked to have had an opportunity to hear some more of it." "Oh I didn't say we would take them. I mean, we would take them but... " Ruby just stops and smiles at Wyman. "We will take them." Why would they need them anyway, right? Ruby thinks. "You don't have to apologize at all for the disturbance as you put it. Those Whipples don't own the place anymore and I hope things like that won't happen now that Jake and I own the place. I do hope you will be able to visit again. It's a shame for you to miss out on my singing!" She gives his hand a little squeeze. "So please try to stop by again so I can finish singing for you. And I'm sure Mr. Gonzales would like to see all of you again too." Bolivar and de Surce take Kate aside. Antonio says "Goodbye Katherine, I thank you for helping to reunite me with young Consuela. The reunion was a happy one for all of us. The events that you have helped put into motion will be of benefit to hundreds of women in the years ahead." Kate replies, "I was in the right place at the right time. Consuela is a lovely woman, I'm glad to have played some small part in your reunion. It's good to see people happy." Bolivar tells her "After we have helped to bring the dragons to their new home we will travel to Los Angeles to help enlist the labor for the renovations of the hotel and restaurant. Are there any messages you would like for us to bring to your friend Maggie Whipple?" "Ah, yes, thank you. I'll write something, if you don't mind waiting a few moments." Katherine went over to her bag and wrote a note to Maggie on a piece of paper ripped from her journal. There wasn't much to tell, as she hadn't seen Maggie's family after Maggie left. She waited a few moments after writing it to let the ink dry and folded it carefully. "Thank you," she said as she handed the letter to Senor Bolivar. "I know she will do well. I wrote it, but tell her I miss her. It's been a pleasure meeting you, I hope we'll see you again. Thank you for taking this to Maggie, and for letting me be part of helping those women, in whatever small way I could." Before they head off Storm Golden Eye asks Nanuet to join him for a few minutes. She places her hands on his shoulders and says "Thank you for all that you have done. It was unfair of Geronimo to ask you to take on my responsibilities. Your work here is more than I should have asked of one person and you have performed admirably in these tasks. Please give some thoughts as to what you wish for your future and I will do what I can to assist you to achieve that. We will meet again although I will no longer be in a physical form at that time." She then kisses him lightly on both of his cheeks. He states, “Storm, I have done little in the repayment of your life that you gave for my selfish reasons. I proudly take on any responsibilities that you had in life, it is the least I could do. I appreciate your kind words, they bring me much honor. As for my future, I do not know. I have always been a traveler, a wanderer if you may. I like it here, although it has been a busy place over the past couple of weeks. At the moment I plan on trying my hand at ranching and expanding my shaman skills, but I am not sure for how long that will appease me. I am glad to hear that we will see each other again. Your influence and guidance have been good for me.” Storm and the four South Americans depart along with the dragon and her infant. Kate watched the creatures fly away low over the trees as the men kept up moving along the ground. She breathed a sigh of relief and turned back to the cave. It only took a few moments to douse the small fire and collect her things. She lifted the saddle bag over her shoulder, wincing a bit at the weight on her still-bruised shoulder. "Everyone ready?" she asked as she went over to shimmy down the rope. [/QUOTE]
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