Desperate Escape

“Go Go Go! You Can Do It, You Can Do It!”

The four of them were carrying the coffin as best they could, while the Fairy yelled slogans like some sort of cheerleader.

The Delinquent had come up with this plan, and it was the best any of them could think of, seeing as they had no braces or sledge to drag it with. Fortunately the coffin was not a stone coffin, but instead appeared to be made of glass or crystal. Not necessarily light (with the weight of the Knight not helping), but not impossible.

“Yeah Yeah Yeah, Go Go Go, Make Your Way From Here To Fro!”

While they were carrying the coffin, they had run into the Loudmouthed Officer, who had actually begun searching for them after killing the butterfly. Having her there made the job ever so slightly easier.

“Come On Come On! If You Don’t Save Sir Knight I Will Be Very Cross!”

“Y-Yes~”

“Gah!”

“Uh-uh-Ulp-”

“...”

It must be reiterated that this conversation was happening in the middle of a collapsing and at times burning cave, despite the Fairies' blase attitude and occasionally broken rhymeschemes.

“Sir Knight! Sir Knight! He’s Our Man! If He Can’t Get Out No One Can!”

Is that a threat?

The Delinquent thought this as he was run ragged from the strain, but both he and the Loudmouth were lucky, both of them being in decent shape compared to the rest of the group. On one hand this meant more of the weight was put on these two, on the other hand it meant they were far less run ragged by it. The Poor Quack appeared half dead, whereas the Clown was close to vomiting.

“Hey Clown? Weren’t You Once A Member Of The Old Order? You’re Betraying Your Character Backstory.”

“H-huh?”

“Don’t You Know Anything? You Should Be Strong And Tough But Appear Weak And Washed Up. That Way When Hope Is Lost You Can Suddenly Whip Out Your Crazy Cool Skills That You Learned In The Past And Teach Some Kind Of Life Lesson About Respecting Elders. Like A Seemingly Retired Secret Agent Going Hog Wild On Assassins Sent To Kill Him!”

How has she seen enough movies to understand tropes? I don’t quite know how to tell her that training and good physique are far harder to maintain than fiction would suggest.

This is especially true when spending a portion of life as a hard alcoholic. Even the greatest of us can lose their edge if they fail to maintain discipline.

But she appears so innocent, ‘twould be heartbreaking to hurt her dreams.

Nevermind her being several lifetimes older than he, the Clown still chose to play into her fantasies as though she were a young child. Even if the strain from carrying the coffin mixed with his stutter made the proceeding statement somewhat… hard to parse.

“It's… oh… it's unfortunate I’ve… I’ve grown a bit… weaker, I’ve gotten a bit weaker over… over time but, but I, yes I’m still preserving my strength for a… yes a later point, a sacrifice play, to win the… the… so we… gosh… so we can win the day…”

The Fairy was silent for a duration which worried the whole group, even the Quack who was practically fainting, before erupting into cheers.

“Bravo Bravo! I Should Have Thought Of That! It’s Genius Genius I Say! Don’t Spoil Any More! Don’t Answer Any More Questions Even If I Ask Them! I Am So Excited.”

She truly did seem so blissfully and purely happy, it prompted the Clown to smile warmly. This in turn prompted a small thought to make its way through the Delinquent.

Is the reason he’s so accommodating and protective of kids… because he feels regret over how my childhood went?

It was truly a small thought, and one the Delinquent quickly shook away to keep on the target. But he could not erase it in totality, leaving a small sense of regret.

He feels guilt for how things went down between us, yet I feel no such guilt. Doesn’t a healthy relationship require a two way street?

Well whatever, as long as he doesn’t actually sacrifice himself, we should be able to talk things through fully after this thing ends.

The Delinquent actually found himself feeling oddly hopeful despite the surrounding area. While the Loudmouthed Officer noticed something entirely different. Under normal circumstances the Quack would notice such changes, but she was much too exhausted to think straight, much less compare and contrast weight. The only coherent thoughts she currently had were curses to the situation she now found herself in.

Eh? Why does the coffin feel a bit lighter… If I can… gosh this hurts… yes I can confirm, he is actually carrying a fair bit more weight now.

The Loudmouthed Officer looked to the Clown with some concern, while the Delinquent looked to his father with some hope, as the whole group continued their final trek through the cave.