Lunise barely retained her bearings enough to catch her hand on the chair she had been run into. She did give Sabine a look with the side of her eye, but ultimately she let herself fall into the moment without confirming whether they had been taken out of time.

All the same, it was possibly the last time they would have such a moment together.

Lunise put on a strong, if struggling face in response to Meesei's tears. She held her by the shoulders and spoke clearly, with a quiver to her voice. "Thank you, Meesei. I love you. I will see you on the other side. Wherever that may be."

---

After Fendros realised the subtle signs, he waited for his moment. Instead of getting up or encouraging Ahnasha's mischief, he gently cupped her cheeks in his hands.

"Ahna," he said sweetly with a small smile. "Something else is bothering you."

As difficult as parting with Lunise was, she had to let her go. While she would certainly see her again before the invasion, it would not be in this way. When serving her professional role, she may as well have been a different person. In any case, Meesei was at least happy to be able to part with her on such a positive note.

With Lunise gone, Meesei did not bother putting up the ward again, since it was not needed. There was something of an awkward silence for a few seconds with Sabine, but Meesei broke it with a chuckle. "Sorry, I just...well, it is not as if I will be able to give her a kiss for good luck at the portal, so I had to take the opportunity while I could. There are just a few last things I wanted to say to you, too. Things that...I am sure you have been expecting me to say, but I still feel it is important for you to hear them. I cannot begin to say how proud I am of you, Sabine."

---

Ahnasha gave a sigh, somewhat frustrated at her inability to hide her feelings. That, or she had just underestimated how much Fendros could see past her. "It's nothing I'm sure you can't guess." She answered.

Reaching up, Ahnasha took a hold of one of Fendros' hands. "It's not like I'm immune to fear. I just didn't want to focus on that. I can let myself be...hopeful. I'm stronger now than I have ever been, or even expected to be. Say what you like about Neesa, but she upheld her end of the bargain. I feel powerful, and I won't even need to raise the dead to feel confident on the battlefield."

The red flush on Sabine's face had begun to fade by the time she was addressed. She cleared her throat and held a hand against the side of her neck awkwardly. "I understand," she said. "It was just a surprise."

In spite of the repeated praise, Sabine was keen to move on.

"Well, I still would not be here without you," she responded. "You already know how grateful I am."

---

Fendros squeezed Ahnasha's hand. "This is all sounding like you are at your most powerful now." He raised his brow. "But you know I am afraid as well. But more than that, I'm confident in us. Unless there is something else, that might be easier to focus on."

Meesei grinned back at Sabine. "I will not deny my role in it, but it is your potential that I unlocked. You have been the best student, and the best daughter, I could have hoped for."

Pausing briefly, Meesei stepped forward and gently took Sabine's hands in her own. "There has been a lot to motivate me over the years. When I started out, it was mostly just my own pride. My desire to be the most powerful being I could be. Then, it was my devotion to Hircine. I had a master I found worthy and was loyal to him and his goals. Then, I had a pack I was responsible for. People who relied on my strength and judgment. Then, my pack became a family. People I care about and want to see living happily. I found love; someone who makes me want to fight for my survival, to come back home and see her again. Whether it was Vile or any other threat, I've been fighting through all of that, and all of those things have given me the strength to keep pressing on. They have all motivated me to see our struggle through to the end."

Meesei gripped Sabine's hands more tightly and pulled them up closer to her. "But no one has ever motivated me more than you, Sabine. The greatest reason I have to fight is to give you the life you deserve to have. You are my legacy in more ways than one. You will carry on my teachings beyond my own lifespan, which I feel is important for any mage, but even aside from that, the person you have become is someone I am unquestionably proud of. I just know that, wherever you go, and whatever you do in your life after this war, you will improve the lives of everyone around you."

---

"I know magic that even Meesei hasn't mastered. There is a lot more power in Daedric magic than just summoning thralls. More similar forms of magic than just conjuration. I used to feel like Meesei would always be more powerful, but maybe I would make a good successor to her as Champion? If I actually wanted that responsibility, that is. I will be honest, I don't envy you having that weight bearing down on your shoulders. All that work, always having everyone relying on your decisions...I don't think it's worth being considered the "strongest." Not for me." Ahnasha said with a shrug.

Ahnasha embraced Fendros more tightly, moving her hands around his back and pressing herself against him. The look in her eyes and the grin she wore started to move back towards her more suggestive attitude from before. "I think we're all lucky to have you, you know? Someone brave enough to put up with that responsibility. I don't really want to be such a...I guess you would call it a public figure. The leader everyone is always looking up to. But, you can be confident knowing you'll always have me with you to support you. You'll always have my advice, always have my power to protect you. I mean, hopefully it will be a while before you have to take up that kind of leadership, but once you do, I will be glad to be your own deadly weapon. And if anyone ever threatens you or hurts you, I will just rip our their soul and enchant it into a cheese knife." She said, albeit with something of a cheerful grin.

This was not the first time Meesei had expressed similar sentiments to Sabine. But each time brought tears to her eyes, and now was no exception.

"I will remember that," Sabine managed to say, before throwing her arms around Meesei and hugging her tightly. "That is what you do. Improve everyone's lives. I have always wanted to be like you in that way."

---

Fendros guffawed louder than he expected to. "Where have I heard that before?" he laughed, though he quickly returned Ahnasha's embrace and lowered his voice. "Ahna, I could not imagine doing half the things I do without you by my side. I don't care if either of us becomes champion. As long as we can do it together."

He kissed her gently and deeply. The moment lasted long enough for Fendros to have a different look on his face when they pulled away.

"Can I ask what new tricks you have learned? Or...will I have to wait?" he asked suggestively.

"Well, you have been doing a good job of it." Meesei replied, keeping her arms tightly around Sabine. "I will not lie, I wish I could keep you here in safety, but I do not think we can do this without you."

Meesei eventually released Sabine and gave a quick glance to the exit. They would not be able to put off starting their day forever, but at this point, Meesei was starting to feel that she was ready. "Just promise me you will keep yourself safe out there, alright? We are going to be...creating our future for our world today, and more than anything, I want you to be able to live in it."

---

Ahnasha gave a shrug. "Honestly, I don't know if I can describe all the...tricks I have now. Really, I think the best way for you to understand them would be to see them with your own eyes. If I want to give up on any illusion of humility...I would say that what I can do is just outright amazing."

Ahnasha took a few steps towards the tent's exit, though continued looking back towards Fendros with a grin and an excitedly swaying tail. "It does sound like I have a lot to show you today. Maybe we should hurry?"

Sabine nodded. "I promise I will. And I do want to help." She stepped back and held Meesei by the upper arms. "I want you to be there as well."

Aware of the time they had left, Sabine looked to the exit as well. She took a long breath in through her nose. "If there is nothing else, I should get ready," she said sadly.

---

Fendros stifled a laugh at Ahnasha's answer. "Maybe we should," he said, stepping up and taking her hand with a smile on his face. "But first..."

He took Ahnasha's shoulder and kissed her one more time for a moment neither of them hurried, and then motioned to leave with her.

It went without saying that there was an air of anxiety in the camp throughout the morning, but there were few present who were not professionals. Regardless of the danger ahead, all three armies had capable warriors that were prepared to face it. Since they were not directly responsible for any more preparations, Meesei’s pack had been free to spend their morning as they saw fit, but ultimately, they did need to get outfitted at least an hour or two ahead of time.

The camp itself now felt empty, as the majority of the warriors from all armies were now taking positions out in the clearing near the great gate. Meesei’s pack, meanwhile, had gathered near the tents next to the portal back to Tamriel, being outfitted in their equipment that had just been brought in from the Silent City. The children were present as well, though after this, they would need to return back to Tamriel.

Meesei, now in her werewolf form, was the first to be equipped, and in the dragonbone plate, she was truly a sight to behold. There was something fitting about a lycanthrope being protected by bone, though it certainly helped that it was also stronger than any metal that could be forged. The plates across much of her body were large and tended to overlap with one another, and any parts that were naturally spiked were kept short for practicality’s sake. Joints and other sections between plates were covered by chainmail made from ebony, and the helmet itself was, appropriately, made from the dragon’s skull. It was open enough to still allow Meesei to use her teeth in battle. Beyond its natural durability, the armor, and all of their new equipment, was enchanted to her exact specifications. Being that Meesei could still use her magic, the enchantments primarily augmented that strength, giving her an expanded magicka pool and quicker regeneration. There were also enchantments to provide additional resistance to magical attacks, in case any were to break through her wards. They were perhaps not the most unique enchantments, but they were practical, useful, and complemented her strengths.

For the others, the Forgemaster and his assistants went around one at a time to help equip each of them in the armor they had selected, either for their beast forms or normal forms. Although he tried to hide it, one could tell he was watching each of them closely for their judgments on his craftsmanship.

There was a giddiness in the air for everyone, and not just in the pack. The upcoming mission made sure of that at the least. However, the new equipment left a jump in the pack in particular. The way they felt, the way people looked at them, the way they moved in their hopefully final suits of sour in their lives -- it made them feel all powerful.

Fendros stepped up in his Dunmer form, though he could have been mistaken for some sort of small humanoid dragon, clad head to toe in broad rows of near-impervious grey and blue scales. Behind his full helmet he could hear and see just as effectively as if his head was bare, and better than before at a distance. His upper body had segments lightly shimmering with a green sheen as he tested the draw of an unusually heavy ebony bow. With the special arrows he requested and the impossible draw weight in his arms, he doubted there was anything he could see that he could not wound.

Janius stepped up, heralding his presence in his werewolf form by slamming a curious large gauntlet made from dragonbone on the ground. Protruding from its fully hand-covering design was a huge axe blade aligned with the point of where his claws would normally be. The rest of his dragonbone plate held a similarly terrifying visage to Meesei's, if more likely to cut a swathe through ranks of enemy daedra than to be a storm of magic. His enchantments made him fast and resistant to whatever might come his way. A hammer to the anvil that was his wife Kaleeth-Rei.

The least physically imposing of them all was hardly the least noticed. Sabine emerged with a functional design for her dragonscale armour. In her Breton form, she waylaid all pushes for extravagance and replaced it with as much alchemical equipment and enchantment as she could practically manage on the battlefield. The air silently thrummed with precharged magical power that could turn into virtually anything. And in both hands was her primary weapon: The Staff of Magnus.

"Look closely, siblings," Rhazii said. "That's why they'll come back."

Regardless of what form they were in, the members of Meesei’s pack serves as inspirations to their warriors, and their new armor only made that morale boost even stronger. Lorag, for this battle, was taking on his werewolf form, with dragonplate armor just as heavy as Meesei’s. For such powerful creatures as they were in their lycan forms, the weight itself meant almost nothing, and for Lorag, one of his enchantments enhanced his physical strength even farther. Between the plates of dragon bone and scales, and the ebony chainmail underneath, there was hardly a part of him that was unprotected. Since the blacksmiths only had two dragon skeletons to work with to begin with, his helmet was not made from the actual skull of the dragon as Meesei’s was, though it had been shaped with a similar visage. Aside from his strength enchantment, the rest of the magic bound to his armor focused on magical defense, making him more resistant to nearly every form of destructive magic. It would not confer complete immunity, but it would make him nearly as resilient against arcane threats as physical ones. Lorag did not have a blade integrated into his armor as Janius did, but each of the fingers on his gauntlets were tipped with a dragonbone spike to essentially serve as his claws, and to allow him to fight as he normally would in this form. One hand was even given shock enchantments, which were particularly effective against most Daedra.

Ahnasha, meanwhile, had kept her normal form, and much like Sabine, was equipped in light dragonscale armor. Normally, she was not one to wear armor at all, instead preferring to rely on magical protection, but the craftsmanship of this set was superb enough that she was practically excited to wear it into battle. Like Meesei, she did have enchantments to enhance her own magical capabilities, but instead of defense, the remainder of her enchantments focused on maneuverability. Not only did the feather enchantments make the armor seem pretty much weightless when worn, but they also quickened her movements and overall agility. The muffle enchantment also made her steps unnaturally silent, so stealth would still be an option for her. She had a matching bow to Fendros, and two blades crafted from Daedric metal. The longer of the two was a curved blade, like a saber, with a shock enchantment, while the other was shorter and straighter with a paralysis enchantment.

Of course, among the most impressive sights out of any of them was Kaleeth, transformed, and in her full armor. The largest portion of the dragon bones were used in her armor, as there was simply much more of her to protect. She was more massive than a daedroth, and with the dragonbone plates covering her from nose to tail, it was hard to imagine what could possibly even hurt her. She did not worry too much about agility, since she did not have much to begin with. She had worried that, more than most, her beast spirit would not be too accepting of wearing any parts that might restrict her movement, but Meesei had pulled her aside privately before they had gone to be equipped and gave her something to help in that regard. Now, she was wearing the full suit, which even provided some protection for her long, muscular tail, though that was mostly flexible dragon scales and chainmail, rather than plate armor. Her helmet was even tougher than Meesei’s, as the blacksmiths had essentially been able to use the other dragon skull as the helmet with only few modifications, so it retained nearly all of its natural strength. Only her lower jaw was not armored, as her bite strength was too important to her in battle to restrict it. Her enchantments were almost identical to Lorag’s, with one enhancing her already overwhelming physical strength, and the rest giving her more resistance to magic.

Kaj-Julan was not sure whether or not to be impressed or frightened of his mother. Not only did she tower over everyone else, but between that armor and the skull she was wearing on her head, she almost looked like a dragon. When Rhazii spoke up, though, he grinned, nudged him in the side, and pointed at Kaleeth. “No, she’s why they’re coming back.”

While the Forgemaster’s assistants were working on getting Kaleeth into her armor, the Forgemaster himself took a sword from a crate that had been separated from the rest. From afar, it was hard to tell if there was anything special about it, but the Nord clearly looked nervous holding it. The scabbard was finely made from polished wood and leather, but obscured the blade within.

Taking a deep breath, the Forgemaster approached Fendros directly. He held out the blade across both palms and bowed as he presented it to the Dunmer. “Fendros Avarul, it is my greatest honor to present my…finest creation to you. You will find no greater blade in Tamriel, or any plane of Oblivion.”

Upon drawing the sword from its scabbard, Fendros would find that it was not made from ebony, nor even Daedric metal, but dragonbone.

Narsi, with her arms crossed, scoffed at Julan and Rhazii's game. "I don't care which one of them makes 'em come back. They'd better come back either way."

Narsi's grumpy tone belied what they were all worried about in the first place. Rhazii had no response except to curl in his lips and cross his own arms.

When the forgemaster presented the sword, Fendros shouldered his bow to grant his full attention. He reverently pulled the weapon from its scabbard with a dull scrape and held it up vertically. His eyes transfixed on the middle of the blade with a deep fascination.

"How did you do this?" Fendros asked rhetorically. "It's unlike anything I've ever seen." After a short moment testing the sword's weight in his hand, Fendros lowered his eyes to the Nord that made it. "You honour me with this creation, forge master. Does it have a name?"

Fendros' other hand was on his family sword at his waist. He had an idea for what to do with it already.

"There was just enough usable bone left for one weapon. I may have created it, but its name should be yours to choose. You're the hero that will be wielding it, after all." The Forgemaster replied. Ahnasha, naturally, took interest in what was happening now that she was equipped and ready. Especially with the comments she overheard from Fendros. She moved up alongside Fendros and immediately set her eyes onto the sword. Reaching out, she ran her fingers down the flat of the blade, though she found it somewhat annoying that she could not feel it directly through her gauntlet. She did not care quite enough to go through the trouble of removing it, though.

Ahnasha chuckled and nudged Fendros' side. "Figures that you would get the one thing that could make me feel jealous while having a Daedric sword on my belt." She remarked, calling attention to her new sword of, what would usually be, unrivaled quality. "I'm surprised you didn't choose to give it to the Champion herself, Forgemaster."

The Nord laughed, shifting somewhat in place. "Yeah, I, uh, did try to present it to her last week." He answered, shooting a glance over to Meesei, who was watching the whole exchange from nearby.

"As honored as I was by the gesture, a sword like that should go to someone who will use it." Meesei commented.

The Forgemaster nodded in response. "Aye. That blade does deserve to taste Daedric blood. Once the Champion turned it down, I had it enchanted to the specifications you gave me the last time we spoke Fendros."

As they were speaking, they would be able to hear some heavy footsteps approaching behind them, followed by a Bosmer woman's voice. "You can also have a mount fit for a hero." She said as she guided Leaps-On-Elves up to the group. Much like the rest of them, Leaps had received some improved equipment for the upcoming battle. The Bosmer, and a few other handlers, had spent the last hours carefully fitting his new saddle and additional armor. For such a massive creature as a wamasu, it was not made from anything so expensive as ebony, but he did now have plates of Dwarven metal situated strategically over his body to give him the most protection possible, without making him too agitated or encumbered to tolerate it. He did not particularly like having his joints restricted in their movement, so armor there was light, but most of his head and other vital areas were protected. Naturally, the saddle was also enchanted to protect the rider from the wamasu's own lightning.

Fendros nodded, just as intrigued as Ahnasha was. "You've done a great job, forgemaster. I wish I could express my gratitude more, but beyond Ahna's jealousy here, I will have to settle for slaying our enemies with it." He laughed and held the blade out to one side, testing its weight. "I could give it some easy name like 'Vile's Thorn' or 'Banisher', but I feel a better name will come about in its first battle. Thank you again." He took the forgemaster's hand in a firm, appreciative handshake.

Leaps' appearance drew a broad grin from Fendros and Janius both, though Fendros was in a better position to comment. "Look at you! All dressed up." He thanked the Bosmer similarly to the forgemaster. "You have done a job I did not think possible."

"Leaps-On-Daedra!" Janius called through his snout, giving Leaps a pat on his armoured head.

Fendros turned rather than immediately mounting up. "Before we go," he smiled and beckoned Rhazii forward. "Come here, little one."

Rhazii suddenly grew nervous from the attention. He peeked side to side and then paced forward.

Fendros, sheathed the dragon bone sword, unfastened his family sword from his belt, and then held it out by the scabbard. "It's may be small for your hands, but I need you to take care of this while we're away. It has a lot of history. It's part of who we are as Avaruls."

Rhazii hesitated as if he was afraid to take it.

Ahnasha stayed close by Fendros’ side, grinning up at Rhazii. Of course, even though she was trying to keep up the appearance of an upbeat, confident attitude, there was no avoiding the reality of where they were right now, and what they were doing. Rhazii and the other children had already been allowed to stay in the Hunting Grounds longer than most before the battle, and after they were done here, there would be no choice but for them to go back home. Once they parted ways here, they would only see each other again after the battle.

“It’s alright, you can take it, Rhazii. It’s not like he is going to need an extra sword taking up space on his belt during the battle.” Ahnasha remarked.

Although Julan had no apprehension about his parents’ beast forms themselves, seeing them fully armored as they were did make it somewhat harder for him to approach them. Given their roles in the clan, he knew that he was not supposed to bother them when they were doing “important” things. Consciously, he knew the situation was a bit different right now, but it still took seeing Rhazii with his own parents for him to finally approach them. Of course, even if he had not, they certainly would have called him over soon enough in any case. As for actually knowing what to say, however, Julan quickly ended up stumbling over his words. “I, um, that armor looks very…neat. Is it true that it’s better than steel and, um…metal?”

If Lorag was being honest with himself, this was a moment that he was more nervous about than the actual battle ahead. Rhazii and Julan were speaking with their parents, so Narsi was alone, and Lorag had no excuses he could use to fill his time at the moment. Giving the girl the training she deserved as both a lycan and an Orc, he could handle that, but “emotional” situations were far from being one of his strengths. He honestly was not sure if Narsi cared in the slightest about him, if she should care, or if he should even want her to care. Contrary what some might think about them, Orcs, even Lorag, were not entirely heartless, but he knew that he was no father to her. Not in the way he should have been. Lorag did start to obviously give her his attention, but he mostly just ended up staring in silence for a while. “So…” He finally uttered.

With Ahnasha's reassurance, and Fendros holding the sword out just a little further to encourage him, Rhazii carefully took it in both hands. When his eyes turned up to Fendros and Ahnasha, they could both see the beginnings of tears that he was clearly holding back. He pulled the sword two inches from its old, travel-worn scabbard in an effort to distract himself. It was not by any practical sense a special sword for the likes of his pack. Finely made steel, to be sure, but when compared to the equipment they were headed into battle with, it was a mantlepiece ornament.

The symbol of it caused a tear to fall from Rhazii's cheek. He might be the next in line to do all that his father did and more. He did not feel ready.

"Here," Fendros said, drawing his son's attention. "The worst rarely happens. But, should it occur, know you can take on anything in the world. We are proud of the young man you have grown into. You will surpass us. You and your brother and sister."

Rhazii's eyes scrunched closed. Fendros took his shoulders and pulled him into a hug. He soon let go of one side and invited Ahnasha into the hug.

Janius roughly lifted the visor from his dragonbone helmet before Julan had said a word, revealing his wolfish head with the fur depressed into the shape of the helmet's interior. His ears perked and he let out a low, rumbling laugh. "No steel or metal will have an easy time of breaking this. And it does not dent either. Want to touch it?" He offered his opposite hand and held the affixed axe behind him.

When Janius approached further, Janius held his head lower, kneeling down. "How are you feeling, son?" he asked.

Narsi was on the defensive the entire time, arms firmly crossed and eyes avoiding Lorag's. "...Mm," she responded, surprisingly nervous. She mumbled something under her breath. Lorag was barely able to hear some of the words. "...Y' said y'd teach me. C'm back alive."

Ahnasha enthusiastically joined in the embrace with Fendros and Rhazii, and since she wore an open helm, she could still stand up on her toes and kiss Rhazii’s cheek. It would have been easy for her to just stay in a loving embrace with her family until they were dragged away to the battle, but she was not going to leave him without a few words of her own. She had actually spent hours thinking of what she wanted to say to Rhazii before they left, but all of that planning quickly gave way to just saying what came to her mind.

“I love you, son. You’ve already made the both of us proud, and I’m sure that’s not going to stop anytime soon. Now, I know that nothing I could possibly say is going to stop you from worrying today, but I feel like I would be disappointing you if I didn’t at least try to tell you that you don’t need to. Sure, we’re going to be invading Oblivion itself, but I can command Daedra to my will. By the time we’re done, I’ll have Vile’s armies bowing down to me.” Ahnasha grinned. It might have been an obvious exaggeration of her abilities, but she did not want everything in their last talk before the battle to be serious and foreboding.

Julan ran his hands down across the dragonbone plates. In truth, they did not feel too different to the touch than most other bones, but the difference would be made clear once something tried to actually break through it. In many ways, the fact that his parents were even wearing the armor at all in their current forms was impressive. Even if they could be calm enough to allow themselves to be equipped with armor, most lycans would not be able to use it effectively. The animal instincts of their beast spirits would make them agitated to be so encumbered and end up detracting from their focus, or even make them lose control. It took experienced, well-trained lycans to be able to do what his parents were doing. Kaleeth in particular had not even been sure she would be able to wear the full set, but at the moment, she was demonstrating a remarkable amount of control, as if her mind was not clouded in the slightest.

After a few moments of looking anxiously at the armor, Julan finally replied. “I…wish we didn’t have to split up.”

Quickly, Julan decided to throw off what he was wearing and make his own transformation into his werecrocodile form. At his age, he was still not at full size, which was easy to see when comparing him to his mother. Though, as a crocodile, he still stood as tall as his father in werewolf form, and looked to be about as physically strong. His fear and anxiety was more difficult to read in the expression of his beast form, but they had no reason to believe it had diminished. His words came more slowly and intentionally through his crocodilian snout, since he had to put a more deliberate effort into speaking, but he was still clearly speaking with his own mind. “I’ve been…practicing a lot in this form. Control, I…control it a lot better now, see? Are you sure I can’t help you?”

Lorag’s stance mirrored Narsi’s, and it was not until she spoke up that he turned his head to look at her. “Hey, you better not come up with any excuses to give up. If I die out there, I expect you to keep trainin’ here, got it? I’ve given you all you need. I trained half the warriors in this clan, so if my teaching is worth a damn, then they can train you too. If the Daedra kill me and you end up gettin’ lazy, I swear my ghost will haunt you.”

The only sounds Rhazii made with his face down in his parents' embrace were soft, slow breaths from the back of his mouth, interrupted at times by deep sniffs. Fendros comfortingly rubbed his back. They were together for as long as was needed, which was a long time indeed.

"Don't..." Rhazii began. "Don't sacrifice yourself, okay?"

Fendros took a breath in and out. "You know we will be doing our utmost. Love you, little one."

Rhazii, taller than them both, to speak over a whisper. "Love you father. Love you mother. Good hunting."

Janius got halfway through "Me neither, son," before Julan began to shift. At this, he started to softly laugh.

After the transformation, Janius regarded Julan's words by looking into his eyes to see any trace of distraction. He only saw Julan's hidden anxiety. Janius bowed his head and closed his eyes, sighing quietly. "You have. You've done so much to help us, and you will do so much more. But right now, you, Rhazii, and Narsi need to stick together. Just like you've done before." He risked placing a hand on Julan's shoulder. "You're a growing young man. Your time will come to hold burdens like we do. But, if all goes well, your burdens won't have to be as heavy. Isn't that right, my love?" He glanced to Kaleeth.

"Oh, fuck you!" Narsi burst out, drawing everyone's eyes. She did not heed them. "I'll beat the shit out of every fighter under those damn rocks until I'm the best-" she jabbed a thumb at her chest. "-and I'll be the one to haunt your damn ghost!" She brought up her fists. "Won't be able to overpower me well enough just as a ghost!" She punched Lorag ineffectually on his armour. "So you better live!" She punched with her other fist. "So I can beat you like I promised!" She had one more punch before her fist just stopped, pressed against the gut of his breastplate. She was baring her teeth and hissing growls in and out. She didn't realise the tears going down her cheeks halfway through her tantrum.

Ahnasha tried to hide her tears as best as she could, again putting her focus on staying positive and keeping their parting words lighthearted. “Yes…the hunt of an era, isn’t it? And while we are hunting with Hircine himself, I think I will task you, son, with finding a good spot on the wall to mount the head of a god.”

For Julan, he felt almost desperate to avoid separating from his parents. He was old enough to understand the kind of danger they would be in, but not quite old enough to be completely rational about why he could not join them. He just wanted to be able to know what was happening with them, so he would not be spending the entire time during the battle worrying about them. In his werecrocodile form, he felt powerful, almost invincible. He was already as big as a werewolf, though Kaleeth’s approach did give perspective on how much more growing he had left to do. Especially in this armor, she was imposing enough to make him feel small.

For a brief moment, Julan instinctively recoiled at Janius’ touch, but he quickly wrestled back control of his mind. Kaleeth, meanwhile, moved up alongside Janius and put her arm around his back, pulling him in close to her. Her words came much more clearly than Julan’s, and she seemed even more comfortable speaking in this form than usual. “Your day will come eventually, Julan, but right now, you have to keep yourself safe. The war against Vile is the battle we’ve been fighting, and the one we are supposed to finish. Your challenges are still ahead of you.”

Julan was silent and contemplative before Narsi’s display quickly grabbed everyone’s attention. Like her, Lorag paid little attention to the others. There was something to be proud of in her spirit, he supposed. Relative to his total strength, it hardly took any effort for him to interrupt her striking by simply reaching a hand out and pushing her, knocking her onto her rear. “Bold words. I expect you to live up to them.” He replied, though soon enough, he ended up kneeling down in front of her and letting out a sigh. “There’s a lot of ways things could have been different in your life. Different for you, different for me…but the past doesn’t change. No point in dreaming that it will. The future can change, though, and right now, you have a chance to do something with yours. To be better, and stronger, than most Orcs could ever hope to be. Even if I failed to be a father, I at least want to give you that chance. If I die, then that’s what I’ll be leaving you with, so don’t waste it.”

All eyes were on Narsi. She glowered at Lorag while she caught her breath, but could not keep her eyes on him. "I won't, father," she finally said.

Orcish stoicism, in combination with Narsi's pride, demanded that she neither continued to cry nor show any affection. She instead stood to her feet while wiping her eyes dry with her arm, and gave Lorag a stern look. "Go take some heads," she struggled to say strongly. "Or whatever it is you do."

With that, the pack only had to pull themselves away from their children to get going.

As much time as they had to prepare for it, the moment ended up being a painful one for many in the pack. They had the time to show their children all the affection they wanted, but ultimately, they still had to get to the portal and get into position to start the final battle of the war. Despite her confident attitude, Ahnasha hugged Rhazii for about a minute longer than it took to become awkward, and Kaleeth almost forgot her own strength when embracing Julan. Lorag, while he did not show any physical affection, did actually give Narsi a look that betrayed his pride in her before they all finally had to leave.

Once they did finally part ways, there was no one who immediately demanded that they head back to Tamriel, but they were all certainly aware that they would be shepherded back if they did not do so on their own soon enough. Still, for Julan, it was a hard step to take. Heading back through the portal made their departure seem all the more...final, and in his current form, emotion held a much stronger weight within his mind. At the very least, it was not anger and rage being pushed to the forefront of his mind, which would have agitated his beast in a way he might not have been able to control. As it stood, it was just his tears that he could not control.

Julan stepped up between Rhazii and Narsi. He could not think of what he could or should say, and even if he had, he was not sure he would be able to articulate it. Finally, he decided to reach his arms out around them and pull both of them in close. In his current form, neither of them were particularly able to resist.

---

Even for Meesei, being gathered by the portal was getting her heart beating just a bit faster. All of the armies had their troops gathered and arranged into the formations they would take through the portal. Even with such a large gate, it would take time to move their armies through, so they would have to send in troops to clear the area around the destination portal, then send supplies to build fortifications for a defensive perimeter while they moved in the bulk of their armies. It was the stage of their invasion where they would probably be the most vulnerable, but thanks to Hal-Neesa's work on the Dwemer device, they were not going in blind. They would have the element of surprise, so there likely would not be much resistance around the portal, and they had been able to select a defensible position as their destination for their great gate. Meesei's pack would be the first ones through the portal, but they would not be alone, and it would not be the most difficult task ahead of them.

While the portal was having varla stones, and other sources of magical energy, arranged around it to power its activation, Meesei's pack was gathered with the rest of their leadership around their best map of Vile's realm to go over their plans one last time. Legate General gro-Tagnud and Teroiah were, of course, present, as well as Hal-Neesa and Ri'vashi. Once they had their foothold, the majority of their forces would take a direct path towards the source of power their map had revealed, including Hal-Neesa. Meesei's pack, meanwhile, would move with a smaller force through a mountain pass along the northern side of the battlefield, with the support of some of their more elite warriors. Not only were there watchtowers in the mountains that would be beneficial to capture, or at least deny to Vile's forces, but the vampire lord insisted that her power would overshadow the real threat of the empowered Rueful Axe, and Vile would not sense it until it was too late. If all went to plan, the majority of Vile's forces would be distracted fighting the main bulk of their combined army, leaving less resistance for Meesei's force. Even if Hal-Neesa and the others were held up in the center, the mountain pass would bring Meesei's pack into striking distance of the source of power, and hopefully Vile himself. They would also be deploying part of their forces along the southern edge of the battlefield, though their purpose would mostly just be to prevent flanking attempts to the center. Of course, they all had to be ready to improvise if events did not quite proceed according to plan.

The final meeting of their leadership was interrupted by a brief commotion nearby, followed by a tall, black-furred Khajiit shoving past two Aldmeri soldiers. It was the lycan who had confronted them upon their first arrival, Vykosa "the Ascendant". She slammed her staff down against the ground, keeping her eyes firmly on Meesei, though seemingly speaking to them all. "So you seek to make your plans without Vykosa. Do you intend to force them upon the Moon Hunter Pack as well?"