"So explain to me why we're here again?" Gregory asked as he ducked under a massive vine, before swinging his sword above his head and cutting the thing in half.
"Simple," I replied. "The griffoness we talked to said she thought the bog could be saved, turned back to the lush forest it used to be. Yet every time she tried, a leftover fiend from the Fiendlord's army fought her back and undid her efforts. If we take care of this creature, then she and her kind can move in to restore this place to its former glory."
Copper turned her turret to flamethrower mode and blasted the massive plant creature, causing it to roar. It reminded me a lot of a Marlboro, actually. Massive body, huge amounts of tentacles, horrible breath coming out of its huge maw. I declined to get any closer, instead choosing to blast the creature with magic from a distance.
Sombra apparently agreed with my assessment, and fired lances of flame over our heads to set the creature afire. The beast roared again and spewed a cloud of noxious gas from its mouth. We all backed up and let the gas dissipate harmlessly, before Justice fired balls of plasma from his weapons systems. The beast roared once more before Copper let loose with a long blast of her flamethrower, causing it to slump over as the fires consumed it. I carefully drew close before poking the creature with my sword, and when it didn't get up again, I nodded before turning to Copper. She nodded as well and set the corpse of the massive plant-like creature on fire again, burning it to ashes.
"Taking no chances," she said.
"A wise policy," I agreed. "And with this done, that griffoness shall be able to help this land recover from its boglike state. The forest shall recover once more."
"It may take them some time," Justice observed. "But it will be possible without the monster inhabiting the bog."
"And with this, the next thing we have to take care of," I said before looking at Gregory. "Is helping to remove the monsters from the Crypt of Heroes, so that the king can have it repaired."
Of course, the griffon had been divided on stepping foot in here. Partially because this is where his dearest friend Cedric had been laid to rest once his body had been recovered, and partially because no griffon was supposed to disturb the dead.
However, once he saw that the dead were already being disturbed, he was a little more eager to help out. The shades and creatures of darkness fell easily to our magic. We left no survivor, no last imp or shadow, no creature to haunt the crypts anymore. We supervised the workers once we'd cleared the crypts out of anything to threaten them, and when we were occasionally wrong, we protected them from having harm befall them.
Once the last creature fell before us, I sheathed my blade, before looking at the door at end of the crypt. A name was written on it. One Cedric Bravewing. I looked at Gregory and asked a simple question.
"Do you want to see him?"
The griffon started, before nodding grimly and pushing the door open. Within lay a simple coffin, that had a simple inscription on it.
CEDRIC BRAVEWING
HE WHO TRIED TO
DESTROY THE
FIENDLORD
Gregory drew the Masamune and lay it down before the stone container. "Cedric, I have returned," he said. "I brought that which we fought for."
A misty form rose out of the coffin, that rapidly condensed into a griffon that looked down on Gregory. "I always knew you would take up my mantle and become a fine knight," he said.
"Cedric," Gregory said. "I have returned."
"Indeed, and the Fiendlord is slain. You have done well and come far, Gregory."
"If only I had helped out sooner," our griffon lamented. "Then we would both be here."
"None of that now," Cedric's spirit said. "What's done is done. I died doing what I could to reveal the Masamune to the world. While I might not have been the proper wielder, I helped you on the path to becoming it. You have done so very well in helping to keep the kingdom safe. Promise me, you will never stop, you will remember the things that truly matter."
The misty form began to dissipate, though not before saying one last thing. "Protect...the queen..."
"Cedric!" Gregory called before bowing his head. "I will, I promise. I will never forget what matters most. May you rest well, my dear friend."
The Masamune began to shine brightly, before it split apart into the two colts we had seen back when we were getting the blade. "Wow, that was some heavy stuff," Masa said.
"Definitely," Mune agreed. "Don't you feel a lot better getting it off your chest?"
"It...does feel as though a weight has been lifted," the griffon agreed.
"See, all that stuff was dragging you down," Mune said.
"Mind over matter," Masa agreed. "But now..."
"Now what?" Gregory questioned.
"Now that you can give it your all," Masa said.
"So can we," Mune finished as the two colts looked at one another. "Ready Masa?"
"Together Mune!" his brother spirit agreed before they rushed at one another and reformed back into the blade. Only this time, it seemed to...glow with power. Gregory gasped as he grabbed ahold of it.
"The Masamune...it brims with power," he said. "Is this it's true form?"
"More likely than not," I said. "The heart of a hero is the strongest weapon in his arsenal. Now that yours is unleashed, you are stronger, and your blade reflects that."
The seven of us looked at the simple inscription on Cedric's coffin. It had changed.
CEDRIC BRAVEWING
HERO OF THE REALM
LOYAL FRIEND
MAY HE REST IN PEACE
The workers came back and restored the entire tomb to its former glory, before the king showered us with rewards for aiding in the reconstruction of the Crypt of Heroes. There was even a feast and everything. Perfect timing as well, as I had been hungry after having slain so many monsters.
Three quests down. Two to go. Next up, we would have to find two shining objects. One that shone across time itself, and the other that shone within the Badlands, at least according to Hora.
The Sunstone should be the easier one to get, though...