OOC note: I recommend that you read Midnight Shipment before continuing with this story. I'm not going to say much of the previous story since it's all there. There is one more story after this one is posted.
"Beautiful city, isn't she?" The captain would ask as he looked out toward the city.
"Aye, I just hope that things there are calmer than Regalia." Connak would reply, keeping his eyes locked on the city.
"One would hope the opposite. This your first time going to Hallonq?"
"No, I was unfortunate to be born there. This is a needed trip for me, and I'm sure a lot has happened in my absence."
"Well, you'll be surprised at what has changed. It's not much but the city is doing something about the leech problem. As for the crime rate, nothing has changed." The captain would say as he turned to Connak.
"Both problems can't be as bad as they were before I left." Connak would say as he climbed off his small perch.
"To be fair, you're probably one of the few people on my ship that's optimistic about Hallonq. Mind if I ask why you're heading there?" The captain would ask with a raised brow.
"I have family in the city that I haven't seen since the Sanguine occupation that just ended recently. I felt it was time for me to take a bit of a vacation from Regalia." Connak would reply as he turned to the Captain for a moment.
"That is an understandable reason. Well, I told the crew that we're going to be pulling into the harbor by sunrise. So I might as well tell you the same, butch." The Captain would say with a kind smile before heading to his quarters.
"Thanks for the heads up." Connak would say with a nod before turning his gaze out toward the city.
As sunrise slowly came, so did the ship to the harbor. By first light, the ship was beginning to dock. After a slow, careful maneuver, the ship would come to a stop and the crew would begin to unload whatever cargo was stored on the ship while Connak got off the ship with his rucksack. Once he got on the pier, Connak would turn his gaze toward the street that was slowly coming to life as the day began.
"It's been so long since I was last here. Let's see if I still remember where my grandmother's house is." Connak would think to himself as he began to navigate his way down the Hallonq streets.
As the Suvial walked down the streets, familiar aromas of breakfast would fill the air. With each one, brought a memory of his mother's cooking and how he used to cook for his family. While the aromas of breakfast food filled the air, the streets had a good number of people milling about. Some of which were vendors while others were tradesmen. Eventually, Connak would reach the door to his grandmother's house after a long walk from the docks. Inside the house, voices would be heard. He could sort of tell whose voice was whose but couldn't figure out what they were saying. He'd draw in a breath and knocked on the door.
"Don't worry, I'll get it." One of the voices said. Shortly after that, the door would open and the person who opened the door was none other than Connak's son.
"D- Dad?" Dellraek asked, as if he couldn't believe his eyes.
"Aye, it's me Dellraek. I'm home. After all of what happened in Regalia, I'm finally home." Connak would reply with a smile as he opted to move inside the house.
Dellraek was quick to wrap his arms around his father once he was inside. Connak would wrap his free arm around his son in the embrace before it ended.
"So who was at the do-" A voice would ask as it came around the corner.
Connak would look over toward the corner where the voice was coming from and waited to see who it was. To Connak's eyes, it was his grandmother Alyndra, who had a smile on her face as she saw him
"Connak Tibalt, it's great to see you again. Welcome home." She would say as he approached the Suvial.
"Grandmother, it's been so long." Connak would say as he set his rucksack on the ground. He'd move toward the Teledden. Without much of a thought, he'd take a moment to embrace his grandmother.
"Is something wrong Connak Tibalt? Why are you here in Hallonq?" She'd ask while seeming a bit uncomfortable in his embrace.
"I missed my family too much, it was splitting my mind appart, and I also needed a break from Regalia." He'd say as he pulled himself away from the embrace. "Sorry grandmother, I forgot that you weren't keen on hugs." He'd add on as he scratched at his beard a bit.
"It's fine, Connak Tibalt. With everything that happened in Regalia, it's understandable that you'd forget." She'd say as she looked down at his rucksack. She'd let out a bit of a sigh trying to imagine how heavy it was with everything he had brought.
"I only plan to stay for a few days before I sail back to Regalia with Yansa, Dellraek and Domri in case you were wondering how long I planned to stay. I'm going to visit mum's grave tomorrow. I figured I'd spend the rest of the day here to catch up with everyone." He'd say as he shifted his stance a bit.
"Wonderful. Now, I made breakfast for everyone in the kitchen in case you were hungry. If I recall, you had quite the appetite whenever you visited as a young man." She'd say as he moved toward the kitchen.
"Well, I guess I could eat. The ship's cook didn't really cook all too well." He'd say as he followed into the kitchen. Dellraek would follow his father and great grandmother into the kitchen.
In the kitchen, Connak would be greeted by Yansa; his wife, and his daughter; Domri. From there, he'd tell them everything that happened during the Sanguine occupation and listened to them with everything they had to deal with in Hallonq. As the day progressed to night, the conversation that Connak had with his family would change from topic to topic and eventually, the door opened. A voice would echo after the door was shut.
"Mum, I'm home." The voice would say as it approached the kitchen.
The voice would belong to a man that looked similar to Connak's father, and when Connak caught sight of him, the Suvial would look at the Teledden with confusion. The Teledden would look at Connak in the same way before he would speak.
"You must be my nephew. Jeez, it's been so long since I've seen you last, Connak." The Teledden would say with a slight smile.
"Wait, 'father' had a brother?" Connak would ask as he looked between his grandmother and the Teledden.
"He did, Connak Tibalt. Your father never wanted you to meet him because, well, you already know why." Alyndra would say with a slightly somber tone in her voice. "What your father did was wrong."
"Yeah, he shouldn't have disowned you the second your mother picked you up. She did the right thing to bring you in, and look how you turned out." The Teledden would say. "Oh, where are my manners? Connak, I'm your uncle Theodluin."
"It's finally good to meet family I didn't know I had." Connak would say as a smile came to his face.
The group would spend time talking until nightfall. One by one, they would retire to their beds. First to go was Domri, then Dellraek. After that would be Yansa, then Alyndra. The last to retire would be Theodluin moments before Connak.When it was time for Connak to retire to bed, he'd go into his rucksack and write the events of the day. He'd smile the entire time and then looked out a nearby window to see some of the city's beauty and then looked back at his journal to write the following.
"It's been a long time since I left Hallonq, it feels wonderful to be back home and even better to be with my family again. Out of everyone here in the house, I'm not sure how I feel about my uncle. He appears like 'father' but isn't anywhere close to his personality. Uncle seems far more positive than 'father' was. Which I think might be a good thing. He did seem happy for me that I cleaned myself from my Katharic origins. He also seemed interested about my Manathar days and how I came to be the Suvial he sees today. It feels strange in a way knowing that uncle is very supportive of my actions. It's like he's trying to be a father figure for me even though the time for that is long gone. All in all, it feels refreshing to be with my family again in the city I have missed for quite some time."
Once he finished writing, he'd close the journal and crawled into bed beside Yansa who was already asleep. He'd lay down on his back and stared at the ceiling until he drifted asleep. Once he did, a sense of calmness would wash over him which would help him in his slumber.
Family Reunion
As the ship slowly sailed during the early hours of the morning, Connak would be holding onto the mast via it's ropes as the city slowly broke the horizon. The ship's captain would walk over to Connak and stood beside him for a while until breaking the calm sounds of the waters around him.
"Beautiful city, isn't she?" The captain would ask as he looked out toward the city.
"Aye, I just hope that things there are calmer than Regalia." Connak would reply, keeping his eyes locked on the city.
"One would hope the opposite. This your first time going to Hallonq?"
"No, I was unfortunate to be born there. This is a needed trip for me, and I'm sure a lot has happened in my absence."
"Well, you'll be surprised at what has changed. It's not much but the city is doing something about the leech problem. As for the crime rate, nothing has changed." The captain would say as he turned to Connak.
"Both problems can't be as bad as they were before I left." Connak would say as he climbed off his small perch.
"To be fair, you're probably one of the few people on my ship that's optimistic about Hallonq. Mind if I ask why you're heading there?" The captain would ask with a raised brow.
"I have family in the city that I haven't seen since the Sanguine occupation that just ended recently. I felt it was time for me to take a bit of a vacation from Regalia." Connak would reply as he turned to the Captain for a moment.
"That is an understandable reason. Well, I told the crew that we're going to be pulling into the harbor by sunrise. So I might as well tell you the same, butch." The Captain would say with a kind smile before heading to his quarters.
"Thanks for the heads up." Connak would say with a nod before turning his gaze out toward the city.
As sunrise slowly came, so did the ship to the harbor. By first light, the ship was beginning to dock. After a slow, careful maneuver, the ship would come to a stop and the crew would begin to unload whatever cargo was stored on the ship while Connak got off the ship with his rucksack. Once he got on the pier, Connak would turn his gaze toward the street that was slowly coming to life as the day began.
"It's been so long since I was last here. Let's see if I still remember where my grandmother's house is." Connak would think to himself as he began to navigate his way down the Hallonq streets.
As the Suvial walked down the streets, familiar aromas of breakfast would fill the air. With each one, brought a memory of his mother's cooking and how he used to cook for his family. While the aromas of breakfast food filled the air, the streets had a good number of people milling about. Some of which were vendors while others were tradesmen. Eventually, Connak would reach the door to his grandmother's house after a long walk from the docks. Inside the house, voices would be heard. He could sort of tell whose voice was whose but couldn't figure out what they were saying. He'd draw in a breath and knocked on the door.
"Don't worry, I'll get it." One of the voices said. Shortly after that, the door would open and the person who opened the door was none other than Connak's son.
"D- Dad?" Dellraek asked, as if he couldn't believe his eyes.
"Aye, it's me Dellraek. I'm home. After all of what happened in Regalia, I'm finally home." Connak would reply with a smile as he opted to move inside the house.
Dellraek was quick to wrap his arms around his father once he was inside. Connak would wrap his free arm around his son in the embrace before it ended.
"So who was at the do-" A voice would ask as it came around the corner.
Connak would look over toward the corner where the voice was coming from and waited to see who it was. To Connak's eyes, it was his grandmother Alyndra, who had a smile on her face as she saw him
"Connak Tibalt, it's great to see you again. Welcome home." She would say as he approached the Suvial.
"Grandmother, it's been so long." Connak would say as he set his rucksack on the ground. He'd move toward the Teledden. Without much of a thought, he'd take a moment to embrace his grandmother.
"Is something wrong Connak Tibalt? Why are you here in Hallonq?" She'd ask while seeming a bit uncomfortable in his embrace.
"I missed my family too much, it was splitting my mind appart, and I also needed a break from Regalia." He'd say as he pulled himself away from the embrace. "Sorry grandmother, I forgot that you weren't keen on hugs." He'd add on as he scratched at his beard a bit.
"It's fine, Connak Tibalt. With everything that happened in Regalia, it's understandable that you'd forget." She'd say as she looked down at his rucksack. She'd let out a bit of a sigh trying to imagine how heavy it was with everything he had brought.
"I only plan to stay for a few days before I sail back to Regalia with Yansa, Dellraek and Domri in case you were wondering how long I planned to stay. I'm going to visit mum's grave tomorrow. I figured I'd spend the rest of the day here to catch up with everyone." He'd say as he shifted his stance a bit.
"Wonderful. Now, I made breakfast for everyone in the kitchen in case you were hungry. If I recall, you had quite the appetite whenever you visited as a young man." She'd say as he moved toward the kitchen.
"Well, I guess I could eat. The ship's cook didn't really cook all too well." He'd say as he followed into the kitchen. Dellraek would follow his father and great grandmother into the kitchen.
In the kitchen, Connak would be greeted by Yansa; his wife, and his daughter; Domri. From there, he'd tell them everything that happened during the Sanguine occupation and listened to them with everything they had to deal with in Hallonq. As the day progressed to night, the conversation that Connak had with his family would change from topic to topic and eventually, the door opened. A voice would echo after the door was shut.
"Mum, I'm home." The voice would say as it approached the kitchen.
The voice would belong to a man that looked similar to Connak's father, and when Connak caught sight of him, the Suvial would look at the Teledden with confusion. The Teledden would look at Connak in the same way before he would speak.
"You must be my nephew. Jeez, it's been so long since I've seen you last, Connak." The Teledden would say with a slight smile.
"Wait, 'father' had a brother?" Connak would ask as he looked between his grandmother and the Teledden.
"He did, Connak Tibalt. Your father never wanted you to meet him because, well, you already know why." Alyndra would say with a slightly somber tone in her voice. "What your father did was wrong."
"Yeah, he shouldn't have disowned you the second your mother picked you up. She did the right thing to bring you in, and look how you turned out." The Teledden would say. "Oh, where are my manners? Connak, I'm your uncle Theodluin."
"It's finally good to meet family I didn't know I had." Connak would say as a smile came to his face.
The group would spend time talking until nightfall. One by one, they would retire to their beds. First to go was Domri, then Dellraek. After that would be Yansa, then Alyndra. The last to retire would be Theodluin moments before Connak.When it was time for Connak to retire to bed, he'd go into his rucksack and write the events of the day. He'd smile the entire time and then looked out a nearby window to see some of the city's beauty and then looked back at his journal to write the following.
"It's been a long time since I left Hallonq, it feels wonderful to be back home and even better to be with my family again. Out of everyone here in the house, I'm not sure how I feel about my uncle. He appears like 'father' but isn't anywhere close to his personality. Uncle seems far more positive than 'father' was. Which I think might be a good thing. He did seem happy for me that I cleaned myself from my Katharic origins. He also seemed interested about my Manathar days and how I came to be the Suvial he sees today. It feels strange in a way knowing that uncle is very supportive of my actions. It's like he's trying to be a father figure for me even though the time for that is long gone. All in all, it feels refreshing to be with my family again in the city I have missed for quite some time."
Once he finished writing, he'd close the journal and crawled into bed beside Yansa who was already asleep. He'd lay down on his back and stared at the ceiling until he drifted asleep. Once he did, a sense of calmness would wash over him which would help him in his slumber.
