Coldsnap: Storm's Call

Chapter 45 (Finale): What We've Learned

We last read Chapter 44, which had three main segments. First, Geode takes Coldsnap, Firebird, and Keena on a boat ride through the skies of the Grand Terminus—where he unveils a massive parade created in their honor—before conversing a little with Keena about his past and how he became the Earth Sect mage he is today. Second, Typhoon continues to have her way with her commander, Windsor Galeforce, in an isolated cave within the Firelands, with Galeforce completely helpless to resist her acts of violence and assault and lacking the protection of the Mage Aspects in retaliation for all of his crimes against humanity. Third, Firebird has one last conversation with her informant about the hyperactive fire spirits.....a conversation that soon segues into the relationship between Firebird and her former mentor, Morton Flamestar, a relationship which she likens to the one between the Storm Sect and the rest of the Mage Aspects.....in short, it is imperative to understand what went wrong in order to improve as a people. This time, we check in on both the President and Coldsnap one last time, as the President gives his address on the situation and Coldsnap recaps the morals of her latest journey, wrapping up yet another adventure with the Mage Aspects for the time being.....

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-Royal London Hospital, London, England-

After taking a while to recover from the shock of having his motorcade attacked, his closest advisor being exposed as a monstrous air elemental, and nearly ordering a completely unwarranted nuclear strike on Russia solely on said elemental's input, the still-unnamed President of the United States was still recovering from his injuries in his hospital room. However, by now, he had at least recovered enough that he could walk by himself without any troubles and put on his typical suit unaided. To that end, he requested his caretakers to briefly disconnect him from his intravenous pump and ordered a camera crew to come in so he could record an address to the U.S. regarding the recent events. He sat in one of the normal chairs within the room—not his hospital bed—and dressed himself just as if he were in the White House, before looking at the camera stoically and letting the person behind the camera know to begin streaming.

The operator gave the President a thumbs-up to indicate that the camera was rolling, and once he saw it, he cleared his throat and proceeded to speak to his nation from the heart.

"Good evening, my fellow Americans.

As a country......no, as a world.....we all watched in horror as the prestigious Louvre Museum in Paris, France—which has always been one of our most steadfast allies through thick and thin—was seemingly bombed by people from our own soil. Negotiations with the representative diplomat did not go particularly well, and as if we didn't have enough to deal with, our precious Hoover Dam was nearly breached by terrorists from Russia, and we also witnessed a terrible, brazen attack on my motorcade just as we were on our way to resolve those issues. However, thanks to the timely intervention of one of the so-called 'Mage Aspects' who goes by the pseudonym of 'Firebird', I was quickly alerted of dissent and treachery within my own circle. Another Mage Aspect I must commend is known as 'Coldsnap', who came to my rescue more immediately and safely pulled me away from the attack zone so I could be tended to in short order.

Thanks to the efforts of Firebird, Coldsnap, and, later on, my own intelligence department, we now know that the perpetrators of all of these attacks were a powerful, rogue faction of Mage Aspects known as the 'Storm Sect'. To the other allied countries with whom we share this wonderful world with......please accept my deepest apologies for my rash actions. I should have known that this investigation would need more time to be conducted before action could be taken. To anyone I may have angered.....and to anyone whose lives were lost as a result of this series of attacks.....know that I am deeply sorry, and that I offer you and yours my thoughts and prayers. As for the Storm Sect, I would advise that we let the Mage Aspects take care of them, since they are their own; who are we to get involved?