Post by makvhug on Jul 8, 2011 11:50:17 GMT -1
A tumbleweed hits him in the face, causing him to wake.
Another trip sucessful then.
He takes a look at his surroundings. Desert, Cactus as far as the eye can see, and great pillars of rock rising on the horizon. This was unlike the usual thing he expected. The sun was incredibly intense. He wondered how anything could survive out here.
He slowly got to his feet, dusting off his legs. He was a different man now in a way, assuming a human-like form. But always carrying his mighty battle axe on his back. After all, no telling what he might find.
"Hey mister! You ok? I saw ya fall over like a hungry bear!
Makvhug turned to see a young girl, no more than 9 years old, smiling at him. She had an old bucket in her hands.
"Here mister! I brought you some water! I figured you might be parched."
Makvhug smiled, taking the bucket and drinking a heroic gulp. The girl laughed at this.
"My my, you're thirstier than a lizard on the plain!"
The girl had the innocent smile only a child could ever know. Makvhug looked at her for a moment, thinking of how much she looked like his daughter.
"I'm Makvhug. I'm a... traveller. Whats your name little girl?"
The little girl looked at him with a raised eye. "Makvhug? What kinda name is that? Sounds like city talk if you ask me. Of course it does sound familiar... I'm Barbara. But most call me Barb!"
Makvhug rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah... thats right. I'm a traveller... from the city. Tell me, where do you live? Is there a town nearby?"
The girl nodded, and grabbed his hand, tugging him. "Come on! I'll take you home! Come on!" Makvhug decided not to bother resisting, allowing her to tug him home.
She dragged him around one of the giant rock pillars, and Makvhug could make out the outline of a small town. Looked like mostly wood buildings. He also noticed it was built right in the shadow of the rock face. Very clever, he thought. So thats how they survive out here.
A small crowd seemed to greet them as they entered the town. Some seemed scared, others confused. Their clothing was tattered, their faces a little grimy, and unlike the innocent smile of the child, their faces were of gloom and hopelessness.
"What are you doing child? What did we tell you about strangers?" Makvhug turned to find a bearded man, slightly less filthy than the rest, with an angry expression on his face. Clearly something bad had been going on here, for them to be so distrusting of strangers.
"I apologise if I scared you sir. But rest assured I mean you and your people no harm. I'm from the city you see, and I came for information, nothing more."
The man stared Makvhug down for a moment, checking him carefully for deceit. "...I believe you. There's something about you I don't get, but I don't think you're here to cause trouble. Names Casey. I'm the bartender at the local saloon, and when it calls for it, the mayor of Hopeville. Yeah, thats the name of our little town. Don't sound so fitting does it?" He nodded his head towards the saloon. "C'mon. Come have a drink and i'll explain whats been goin' on."
As they sat in the Saloon, Casey poured them both a Bourbon on the rocks, before sitting and explaining his story to Makvhug.
"This town was founded about 2 years ago now, when the gold rush started. Hey, the idiots still needed a place to sleep, right? But anyway, things were great here for a while. Then four months ago, Sunny the Kid, and his partner in crime Meldara rolled into town. Demanded protection money or they'd burn the town to the ground. What choice did we have? We had to give them all the gold that the rush brought into town. Problem is, they keep returning. Every month. And demanding double what they had last time. Last month, we couldn't make the payment. So... so they..."
Makvhug had seen this sort of thing happen too often. No matter where he traveled in the multiverse, there was suffering. "Its ok sir. Take your time."
Casey wiped his eye. "I keep telling Barb that her mother is out of town... but how long can I keep up that lie? She's the happiest of us... and I know that if she finds out, she'll become as hopeless as the rest of us... Heh... Hopeville. What a crock of shit."
"Surely there's local law enforcement? Don't you have a town officer or something?"
Casey sneered, looking angry. "That useless bastard couldn't enforce the law if it was in a bottle of wiskey. He was assigned to our town after the first visit from the Sunny gang. But he spends the whole day drunk off his ass. Last time they came, he just sat there sipping his drink as they killed my wife goddammit!"
Makvhug downed the bourbon, trying hard to ignore that the drink felt like it had punched him in the stomach. Sounds like I should go have a talk with this Sherrif.
"Where's the Sherrif's office? I was... sent from the city to talk to him about his position.
Casey pointed out the window, to a small shack on the edge of town. "Sherrif Avron lives over there, fat lot of good he does us."
Sherrif Avron?! ...this just went weird.
The door was unlocked. Makvhug just pushed it open.
"Shut the fuckin' door! Ya lettin' the light in!"
Well, he certainly looked like Isaan, except slightly emaciated and clearly unable to stand. "...Never expected to find you like this old friend."
"Friend?! HA! I'm nobodies friend. I'm just the one everyone blames for everything..." He stopped to take a swig from his bottle of wiskey. "What chance could I have against a whole gang? None, thats what. Besides, they took my shooters away when they last came."
Makvhug rubbed his forehead. "Sounds to me like you're just making excuses. Besides, your guns are right there. Tell me old boy... why are you really hiding in here, drinking all the time?"
Makvhug glared at him, his cold blue eyes shining a little brighter. Just use a little of my power... just a little, to force the truth out of him.
Isaan put a hand over his face and began to sob lightly. "I'm too scared... I only took the job because back in the city it just meant paperwork... didn't expect to be sent out here."
Makvhug sat back for a moment, thinking. Normally he had a personal rule not to interfere. But the little girl and her innocent smile kept tugging at him. So much like my daughter... yet not. Why is this thought following me? His eyes dimmed again. It was time for action.
Fuck it.
"What would you say if I told you that I knew an Isaan, like you, who was a hero?"
Isaan sneered, downing another gulp of booze. "I'd say you were talking bullshit, like everyone else does."
Makvhug lifted his hand. In a mere second, Isaan's eyes were wide open, almost filled with shock. Images had flashed through his mind. Images of himself, saving people, killing the guilty, and punished the wicked. Suddenly, the realisation. Of a destiny unfulfilled.
"Where I come from, you are the savior of the universe. But you don't fight for good. You are a different kind of evil - the necessary kind.
For the first time in his life, this Isaan looked at Makvhug with a renewed sense, actually wanting to hear more.
"I've already interfered more than I ever should have... but i'm telling you now. Be the evil that these people need, and you'll find your own destiny in this world. And i'll be it will still be as a hero."
Makvhug said nothing more, instead turning and heading back to the saloon. For some reason he felt like getting another kick in the stomach from that Bourbon.
The rest of that day passed quietly. The people still glum, going about their daily lives. Some packed their things and were leaving town, anxious about what was to come tomorrow, when the Sunny gang rolled back in.
Makvhug was sitting on the stairs of the Saloon as Casey closed up shop for the night. "I just put Barb to bed for the night. Read her a good bedtime story." Makvhug smiled, puffing on a Cigar. "What story did you read her?"
"Oh, just one of her favorite stories. The adventures of Krell the Wizard."
Makvhug smirked. So many differences, and yet everyone still seemed to exist here in some form. "How are you holding up?"
"...Tell the truth, i'm terrified. They're comming back tomorrow, and we're probably all going to die. But if I take my daughter from here we'll probably just die in the desert anyway. What can I do?" He turned to Makvhug, a small glimmer of moisture in his eye. "Please... can you take my daughter from here? Take her to the city. I beg you. I don't want to see both my Wife and Daughter die in the same year."
Makvhug replied by shaking his head with a slight smirk. "Just wait until morning. I assure you, there will be no danger to you, your town, or your daughter. If he don't act tomorrow... I will." Makvhug had never been so serious. He was willing to totally throw his policy of non interference out of the window here. And yet he still could not figure why.
"Are you insane? There's a good dozen of them! You'll be torn to bits!" The Saloon keepers eyes were mixed with concern... and hope. One of lifes greatest strengths and weaknesses.
Makvhug pointed to the Axe on his back, his eyes glowing a bright blue. "I can assure you they wouldn't lay a fuckin' finger on me." He smiled at Casey, reassuringly. "Go on. Get some sleep. You'll be needing it for the morning. Its going to be a long day."
High noon. And the doors are all locked, bolted, and windows boarded up. Makvhug sits on the stairs of the Saloon, where he has been all night, smoking his cigar. Casey watches from the upper windows of his saloon, his daughter trying to peer out of the windows too. But no sign of Isaan.
Like clockwork, the thunderous sound of a dozen horses roll into town. At their head, a very grubby looking Sundavar and Meldara, looking mean.
Heh, "Partners in crime" Wherever they go it seems.
"CASEY! Come on out! You owe us a tripple shipment!" Sundavar was as loud and annoying as ever. Meldara as expected, didn't seem to say anything. The men they had with them laughed at the empty looking town.
"You're not getting anything."
Makvhug grinned. The old boy was finally making a stand.
Sundavar howled with laughter. "Really?! Is this all the resistance you could muster Casey? Pathetic. Lets kill this fool and raze the town. If there's any gold here we'll find it."
"He raised a little more support than that, 'Sunny'. And you're going to turn around and leave right now."
"Oh really. So two men think they can best 12 of my boys and come out unscathed."
Sunny pulled his pistol and shot a single round at Isaan. He didn't seem to move, but at the same time, it was as if the bullet had gone right through him. "...What the?!"
Makvhug almost laughed. "Perhaps you're not so different from my Isaan after all. Want to take this one?"
Isaan was actually rather suprised. "How... how did I do that?"
"Simple. When you focus... and are sober of course, these things come naturally."
Sunny had clearly had enough. "Boys! Kill both these fuckers and leave their bodies to rot in the sun!"
The fight lasted 4 seconds.
As the smoke cleared, Makvhug sat upon one of the horses, puffing his cigar. Isaan had Meldara lifted up by her throat. All the men were dead, their necks had been snapped at what must have been incredible speed. With the exception of Sunny, who seemed to have had his heart ripped out. "You are going to pass along a message for me. Tell your friends, your criminal buddies, that if they ever come near Hopeville EVER again, they will die. Are we clear?"
She nodded swifly, clearly in a state of absolute terror. Isaan let go of her, walking back towards the Sherrifs office. Mel ran off into the desert as fast as her legs could carry her, likely never to return.
The townspeople cautiously looked out of their doors, and were within a minute cheering and dancing in the town square. Casey walked up to Makvhug, hurling his arms around him and embracing him. "Mister, we're gonna put up a goddamn statue of you and the Sherrif. We owe you for our lives and our town."
"Please. Give the credit to Isaan. He's the one who killed the bandits, not me. I just helped. Besides... I would prefer if you never mentioned I was here."
"Aaaaahhh. Little trouble with the law yourself eh? Its ok. We'll let it slide for what you did here."
Makvhug nodded. "Yes... thats it. The law. Thank you for the descretion." He looked sternly at Casey. "Listen. You're going to have to tell your daughter about her mother. She can't live a lie. Its going to be painful... but if you are both together, it'll be easier to get through.
Casey sighed. "I know... its just.."
"Its ok daddy. I already know that mother is gone."
Casey looked at his daughter with suprise. "...You already knew... but then why?"
Barbara sighed at her father, but then gave that same innocent smile Makvhug witnessed when he first met her. "I did it for you silly! I knew how it made you feel. I figured if I pretended you didn't know, it'd give you some hope! And we all need hope!"
"Barbera... I..." Casey picked up his daughter in his arms, embracing her, as for the first time in months, both finally wept for the loss of their loved one.
Makvhug was ready to turn and start walking, when he heard a voice from behind him.
"Going already?"
Makvhug looked to see Isaan, smiling as he lit up a cigar.
"Thats right... its back to the... city for me."
Isaan lit a cigarette, looking at him with a smirk that Makvhug knew all too well. Now thats more like the Isaan I know. "Two things. I can already tell you are an annoying dick. and you're right. This town does need an evil to keep it safe from other evil. I'm gonna stay here and do what is right."
Makvhug smiled warmly. "I'm glad I could help you. I hope you do well here. Its a shame I won't be around to watch over you though."
Isaan almost chuckled. "I saw more than just images of myself when you showed me your powers Mak. I know you're not from this universe. And besides. I already have a Mak to look out for me here. Take care of yourself."
Isaan simply nodded to Casey and then turned, walking back to his office, a simple wave of his arm as he walked away. Makvhug looked back to casey, rather suprised all the sudden.
"Casey... is that your surname?"
"Yeah... thats right. Makvhug Casey, at your service. I never got your name stranger."
"Oh!I know his name! Its Ma-"
Makvhug interrupted before she could say it. "Mark. My name is Mark. Its been a pleasure to work with you Makvhug."
He turned and began to walk away, grinning from ear to ear. Finally the dots connected. She reminded me so much of my daughter because in a way, she -was- my daughter. Well, not exactly. Ah, these dimensional incidents never cease to confuse me.
Casey and Babara waved franticly as he walked into the sunset.
"Travel safe now mister! Y'hear?!"
"Come back soon! Take care!"
Makvhug never looked back. His journey had only just begun.
Another trip sucessful then.
He takes a look at his surroundings. Desert, Cactus as far as the eye can see, and great pillars of rock rising on the horizon. This was unlike the usual thing he expected. The sun was incredibly intense. He wondered how anything could survive out here.
He slowly got to his feet, dusting off his legs. He was a different man now in a way, assuming a human-like form. But always carrying his mighty battle axe on his back. After all, no telling what he might find.
"Hey mister! You ok? I saw ya fall over like a hungry bear!
Makvhug turned to see a young girl, no more than 9 years old, smiling at him. She had an old bucket in her hands.
"Here mister! I brought you some water! I figured you might be parched."
Makvhug smiled, taking the bucket and drinking a heroic gulp. The girl laughed at this.
"My my, you're thirstier than a lizard on the plain!"
The girl had the innocent smile only a child could ever know. Makvhug looked at her for a moment, thinking of how much she looked like his daughter.
"I'm Makvhug. I'm a... traveller. Whats your name little girl?"
The little girl looked at him with a raised eye. "Makvhug? What kinda name is that? Sounds like city talk if you ask me. Of course it does sound familiar... I'm Barbara. But most call me Barb!"
Makvhug rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah... thats right. I'm a traveller... from the city. Tell me, where do you live? Is there a town nearby?"
The girl nodded, and grabbed his hand, tugging him. "Come on! I'll take you home! Come on!" Makvhug decided not to bother resisting, allowing her to tug him home.
She dragged him around one of the giant rock pillars, and Makvhug could make out the outline of a small town. Looked like mostly wood buildings. He also noticed it was built right in the shadow of the rock face. Very clever, he thought. So thats how they survive out here.
A small crowd seemed to greet them as they entered the town. Some seemed scared, others confused. Their clothing was tattered, their faces a little grimy, and unlike the innocent smile of the child, their faces were of gloom and hopelessness.
"What are you doing child? What did we tell you about strangers?" Makvhug turned to find a bearded man, slightly less filthy than the rest, with an angry expression on his face. Clearly something bad had been going on here, for them to be so distrusting of strangers.
"I apologise if I scared you sir. But rest assured I mean you and your people no harm. I'm from the city you see, and I came for information, nothing more."
The man stared Makvhug down for a moment, checking him carefully for deceit. "...I believe you. There's something about you I don't get, but I don't think you're here to cause trouble. Names Casey. I'm the bartender at the local saloon, and when it calls for it, the mayor of Hopeville. Yeah, thats the name of our little town. Don't sound so fitting does it?" He nodded his head towards the saloon. "C'mon. Come have a drink and i'll explain whats been goin' on."
As they sat in the Saloon, Casey poured them both a Bourbon on the rocks, before sitting and explaining his story to Makvhug.
"This town was founded about 2 years ago now, when the gold rush started. Hey, the idiots still needed a place to sleep, right? But anyway, things were great here for a while. Then four months ago, Sunny the Kid, and his partner in crime Meldara rolled into town. Demanded protection money or they'd burn the town to the ground. What choice did we have? We had to give them all the gold that the rush brought into town. Problem is, they keep returning. Every month. And demanding double what they had last time. Last month, we couldn't make the payment. So... so they..."
Makvhug had seen this sort of thing happen too often. No matter where he traveled in the multiverse, there was suffering. "Its ok sir. Take your time."
Casey wiped his eye. "I keep telling Barb that her mother is out of town... but how long can I keep up that lie? She's the happiest of us... and I know that if she finds out, she'll become as hopeless as the rest of us... Heh... Hopeville. What a crock of shit."
"Surely there's local law enforcement? Don't you have a town officer or something?"
Casey sneered, looking angry. "That useless bastard couldn't enforce the law if it was in a bottle of wiskey. He was assigned to our town after the first visit from the Sunny gang. But he spends the whole day drunk off his ass. Last time they came, he just sat there sipping his drink as they killed my wife goddammit!"
Makvhug downed the bourbon, trying hard to ignore that the drink felt like it had punched him in the stomach. Sounds like I should go have a talk with this Sherrif.
"Where's the Sherrif's office? I was... sent from the city to talk to him about his position.
Casey pointed out the window, to a small shack on the edge of town. "Sherrif Avron lives over there, fat lot of good he does us."
Sherrif Avron?! ...this just went weird.
The door was unlocked. Makvhug just pushed it open.
"Shut the fuckin' door! Ya lettin' the light in!"
Well, he certainly looked like Isaan, except slightly emaciated and clearly unable to stand. "...Never expected to find you like this old friend."
"Friend?! HA! I'm nobodies friend. I'm just the one everyone blames for everything..." He stopped to take a swig from his bottle of wiskey. "What chance could I have against a whole gang? None, thats what. Besides, they took my shooters away when they last came."
Makvhug rubbed his forehead. "Sounds to me like you're just making excuses. Besides, your guns are right there. Tell me old boy... why are you really hiding in here, drinking all the time?"
Makvhug glared at him, his cold blue eyes shining a little brighter. Just use a little of my power... just a little, to force the truth out of him.
Isaan put a hand over his face and began to sob lightly. "I'm too scared... I only took the job because back in the city it just meant paperwork... didn't expect to be sent out here."
Makvhug sat back for a moment, thinking. Normally he had a personal rule not to interfere. But the little girl and her innocent smile kept tugging at him. So much like my daughter... yet not. Why is this thought following me? His eyes dimmed again. It was time for action.
Fuck it.
"What would you say if I told you that I knew an Isaan, like you, who was a hero?"
Isaan sneered, downing another gulp of booze. "I'd say you were talking bullshit, like everyone else does."
Makvhug lifted his hand. In a mere second, Isaan's eyes were wide open, almost filled with shock. Images had flashed through his mind. Images of himself, saving people, killing the guilty, and punished the wicked. Suddenly, the realisation. Of a destiny unfulfilled.
"Where I come from, you are the savior of the universe. But you don't fight for good. You are a different kind of evil - the necessary kind.
For the first time in his life, this Isaan looked at Makvhug with a renewed sense, actually wanting to hear more.
"I've already interfered more than I ever should have... but i'm telling you now. Be the evil that these people need, and you'll find your own destiny in this world. And i'll be it will still be as a hero."
Makvhug said nothing more, instead turning and heading back to the saloon. For some reason he felt like getting another kick in the stomach from that Bourbon.
The rest of that day passed quietly. The people still glum, going about their daily lives. Some packed their things and were leaving town, anxious about what was to come tomorrow, when the Sunny gang rolled back in.
Makvhug was sitting on the stairs of the Saloon as Casey closed up shop for the night. "I just put Barb to bed for the night. Read her a good bedtime story." Makvhug smiled, puffing on a Cigar. "What story did you read her?"
"Oh, just one of her favorite stories. The adventures of Krell the Wizard."
Makvhug smirked. So many differences, and yet everyone still seemed to exist here in some form. "How are you holding up?"
"...Tell the truth, i'm terrified. They're comming back tomorrow, and we're probably all going to die. But if I take my daughter from here we'll probably just die in the desert anyway. What can I do?" He turned to Makvhug, a small glimmer of moisture in his eye. "Please... can you take my daughter from here? Take her to the city. I beg you. I don't want to see both my Wife and Daughter die in the same year."
Makvhug replied by shaking his head with a slight smirk. "Just wait until morning. I assure you, there will be no danger to you, your town, or your daughter. If he don't act tomorrow... I will." Makvhug had never been so serious. He was willing to totally throw his policy of non interference out of the window here. And yet he still could not figure why.
"Are you insane? There's a good dozen of them! You'll be torn to bits!" The Saloon keepers eyes were mixed with concern... and hope. One of lifes greatest strengths and weaknesses.
Makvhug pointed to the Axe on his back, his eyes glowing a bright blue. "I can assure you they wouldn't lay a fuckin' finger on me." He smiled at Casey, reassuringly. "Go on. Get some sleep. You'll be needing it for the morning. Its going to be a long day."
High noon. And the doors are all locked, bolted, and windows boarded up. Makvhug sits on the stairs of the Saloon, where he has been all night, smoking his cigar. Casey watches from the upper windows of his saloon, his daughter trying to peer out of the windows too. But no sign of Isaan.
Like clockwork, the thunderous sound of a dozen horses roll into town. At their head, a very grubby looking Sundavar and Meldara, looking mean.
Heh, "Partners in crime" Wherever they go it seems.
"CASEY! Come on out! You owe us a tripple shipment!" Sundavar was as loud and annoying as ever. Meldara as expected, didn't seem to say anything. The men they had with them laughed at the empty looking town.
"You're not getting anything."
Makvhug grinned. The old boy was finally making a stand.
Sundavar howled with laughter. "Really?! Is this all the resistance you could muster Casey? Pathetic. Lets kill this fool and raze the town. If there's any gold here we'll find it."
"He raised a little more support than that, 'Sunny'. And you're going to turn around and leave right now."
"Oh really. So two men think they can best 12 of my boys and come out unscathed."
Sunny pulled his pistol and shot a single round at Isaan. He didn't seem to move, but at the same time, it was as if the bullet had gone right through him. "...What the?!"
Makvhug almost laughed. "Perhaps you're not so different from my Isaan after all. Want to take this one?"
Isaan was actually rather suprised. "How... how did I do that?"
"Simple. When you focus... and are sober of course, these things come naturally."
Sunny had clearly had enough. "Boys! Kill both these fuckers and leave their bodies to rot in the sun!"
The fight lasted 4 seconds.
As the smoke cleared, Makvhug sat upon one of the horses, puffing his cigar. Isaan had Meldara lifted up by her throat. All the men were dead, their necks had been snapped at what must have been incredible speed. With the exception of Sunny, who seemed to have had his heart ripped out. "You are going to pass along a message for me. Tell your friends, your criminal buddies, that if they ever come near Hopeville EVER again, they will die. Are we clear?"
She nodded swifly, clearly in a state of absolute terror. Isaan let go of her, walking back towards the Sherrifs office. Mel ran off into the desert as fast as her legs could carry her, likely never to return.
The townspeople cautiously looked out of their doors, and were within a minute cheering and dancing in the town square. Casey walked up to Makvhug, hurling his arms around him and embracing him. "Mister, we're gonna put up a goddamn statue of you and the Sherrif. We owe you for our lives and our town."
"Please. Give the credit to Isaan. He's the one who killed the bandits, not me. I just helped. Besides... I would prefer if you never mentioned I was here."
"Aaaaahhh. Little trouble with the law yourself eh? Its ok. We'll let it slide for what you did here."
Makvhug nodded. "Yes... thats it. The law. Thank you for the descretion." He looked sternly at Casey. "Listen. You're going to have to tell your daughter about her mother. She can't live a lie. Its going to be painful... but if you are both together, it'll be easier to get through.
Casey sighed. "I know... its just.."
"Its ok daddy. I already know that mother is gone."
Casey looked at his daughter with suprise. "...You already knew... but then why?"
Barbara sighed at her father, but then gave that same innocent smile Makvhug witnessed when he first met her. "I did it for you silly! I knew how it made you feel. I figured if I pretended you didn't know, it'd give you some hope! And we all need hope!"
"Barbera... I..." Casey picked up his daughter in his arms, embracing her, as for the first time in months, both finally wept for the loss of their loved one.
Makvhug was ready to turn and start walking, when he heard a voice from behind him.
"Going already?"
Makvhug looked to see Isaan, smiling as he lit up a cigar.
"Thats right... its back to the... city for me."
Isaan lit a cigarette, looking at him with a smirk that Makvhug knew all too well. Now thats more like the Isaan I know. "Two things. I can already tell you are an annoying dick. and you're right. This town does need an evil to keep it safe from other evil. I'm gonna stay here and do what is right."
Makvhug smiled warmly. "I'm glad I could help you. I hope you do well here. Its a shame I won't be around to watch over you though."
Isaan almost chuckled. "I saw more than just images of myself when you showed me your powers Mak. I know you're not from this universe. And besides. I already have a Mak to look out for me here. Take care of yourself."
Isaan simply nodded to Casey and then turned, walking back to his office, a simple wave of his arm as he walked away. Makvhug looked back to casey, rather suprised all the sudden.
"Casey... is that your surname?"
"Yeah... thats right. Makvhug Casey, at your service. I never got your name stranger."
"Oh!I know his name! Its Ma-"
Makvhug interrupted before she could say it. "Mark. My name is Mark. Its been a pleasure to work with you Makvhug."
He turned and began to walk away, grinning from ear to ear. Finally the dots connected. She reminded me so much of my daughter because in a way, she -was- my daughter. Well, not exactly. Ah, these dimensional incidents never cease to confuse me.
Casey and Babara waved franticly as he walked into the sunset.
"Travel safe now mister! Y'hear?!"
"Come back soon! Take care!"
Makvhug never looked back. His journey had only just begun.