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"… Mnnn yawn…"
Scratching his back, he grunted faintly, "I'm tired."
'I should have slept instead of finishing that damn book.'
Despite his complaints, Silver's morning went as normal.
He woke up with the sun and dove into the cold shower, rinsing himself of the tiredness from his latest adventure into the realm of spirits and dreams.
While many things had changed in recent weeks, some things remained constant.
Like always, his first target was the kitchen, where he prepared himself and his sleeping deity a meal worthy of her stature so it would help her throughout the day.
Hestia woke shortly after, wobbling her way downstairs as she rubbed her eyes… And was quick to wake up to the spreading aroma of bread and cheese.
Despite doing nothing to care for herself, her beauty remained unquestionable, and the snoozing woman proved to him, yet again, why she was a deity.
The two shared another moment of peace before the wooden table, the faint sunlight breeching through the curtains as they finished their meals.
And so, once they took care of everything else, Silver escorted Hestia to her workplace before finding himself atop a large clock tower…
/CLANG!/
/CLANG!/
/CLANG!/
Under the echoing of a dozen bells, Orario woke up to another beautiful morning in half-cleared skies.
As everyone left their homes, Silver sat upon the edge of a clock tower, thinking about what to do next.
He pulled a thin notebook from a dark vortex behind him, '… With the debt from the Dian Cecht Familia cleared, all of my problems are suddenly so… meaningless.'
'There's no need to wait for the revenue from the Loki Familia, and neither do I need to sell my materials either. I have so much money left I could buy a complete set of high-quality equipment for my Level.'
He threw the book aside, which was quickly swallowed by the vortex as it fell, 'I had carefully planned the remainder of the money to raise those funds… but all of a sudden, I'm left with so much free time.'
Silver coughed faintly as the cold wind brushed past his face, "But what to do now? Should I go around buying the remainder home appliances?"
He shook his head. He knew Hestia would want to be part of it, so he threw those ideas aside.
Decorating a shared living space required all afflicted parties after all…
He rested his chin on his hands, '… I've been feeling a bit down recently. With my schedule broken, I'm not in the mood to study or do anything…'
He slumped down, "I feel like lazing all day long…"
But as he always did, Silver pushed on. He had to, for there were things that wouldn't be finished if he didn't get them going.
His body had recovered greatly following his return from Terra's Spiritual Land. While his mind remained conflicted about what he had learned.
Nevertheless, he was thankful for having that soreness cleansed to some degree.
'Even then… it wouldn't be right to return to the Dungeon either.'
'Loiju won't give me any commissions to do even if I beg him for it, and I've promised several people I wouldn't be pushing myself more than necessary…'
He looked at the distant castle, 'The Loki Familia will continue with their post-expedition procedures in the coming days, so there isn't much to do there either…'
"I'm not in the mood to study, and neither is my body ready to resume exercising… It seems I'm in a bit of what one would call an impasse."
He leaned forward, looking down as he noticed priests and civilians gathering together for their morning prayers.
Something he hadn't explored very well due to how busy he was, but in an age of Gods walking amongst men, religious practices were as strong as they had ever been.
'… Should I go pray a little?… Would Hestia get angry if I participated in another deity's sermon?' He wondered as he got up from the ledge
But he shook his head, Silver wasn't a particularly religious person. Even when the Gods were right before him…
If he had anything to say, then he'd say it to their face. What was the point of saying his words to the deities that remained in the heavens above?
Would they come down and make fun of him if he did so?
… He looked left and right across the city's perimeter, and his eyes eventually stopped in a district circled by tall walls…
He smirked, 'Right. In this age, when men get bored, they go to the red-light district…'
But as he thought of it, Hestia immediately popped into his mind, screaming a thousand words at once before he finally let go of the idea, "Some curiosities are better left for more fitting times…"
Silver stood there for a few more moments, before he finally had enough of it all and jumped down.
Vanishing amidst the wind, Silver made his way across town.
…
/Later…/
"Bye bye!"
"Thank you, mister!"
"… Until next time!"
Silver waved as a group of children ran down an alley, exhaling faintly as his smile slowly faded.
'I did this to pass the time, but taking care of children tires me more than anything there is… I'll take this as my good act of the week.'
Every once in a while, doing a small righteous act didn't feel bad. Regardless of the connotations, Silver wouldn't bother with such if it meant pleasing his own restless mind.
As the kids returned to their orphanage, Silver turned around, checking the time by looking at the yellow sky.
'There's still around an hour or two before nightfall. What now?… I've already run enough for a day.' He thought as he walked down the street
He walked through the dilapidated streets bordering Daedalus Street and a familiar sensation spread through his chest… of something he had left behind.
"… I wonder how those girls are doing." He mumbled with a smile as he walked into the distance
…
/CRACK!/
A translucent fissure opened in space before a man jumped right into it…
/Sha!/
Beyond space and time, another crack formed in a world very much like the one before. Amidst dust and flames, a red gauntlet reached towards a charred brick wall…
"… Cough… So this time, I come out inside a half-burnt building?" Silver muttered as he raised his left arm before his helmet
He looked around him, but aside from rubble and destruction, Silver saw nothing of interest.
'This might play in my favour. Hiding these can be complicated in such a frantic place, though I don't think there are many who would seek anything of value within a burnt house like this.'
The red knight tapped the ground, his body floating slightly above the ground as he moved away from the smoking wood.
"… Everything looks about the same."
Around him, the same scene of destruction repeated itself. But compared to before, it seemed a bit calmer…
While the streets still smoked with half-extinguished flames, he did not hear the bellowing of the panicking population, nor the echoes of combat in the distance.
He did not let his thoughts drop his guard. Under the darkening sky, Silver looked into the distance and frowned.
'I think I just heard something.'
Silver flew onto a nearby building, gazing down at the city from the toppled roof, '… I'm certain of it.'
"There's a fight going on. Not just one, but several…"
'Strange… Has it just begun?' He thought as he put his left palm over his eyebrows, "… I need a better look."
Silver crouched, and with a powerful impulse, flew high above the city!
…
At the highest point of the city, a single woman gazed down at the world below. Expressionless, emotionless, yet ever so pristine, devoid of flaws and impurity.
There could be no such perfection in this world… which only revealed her true identity.
"…"
The platinum-haired deity observed the world from her silent throne. The struggle for survival, in this bloody war that had deprived this once golden city of its luster.
Leaving nothing but rubble behind.
/Glint…/
"Hmm?"
But in her silent observation, a spark of light caught her attention.
In recent times, amidst the flames and cries, countless sparks came and went. The determination to live of countless Souls, burning into cinders as they reached the pinnacle of their fervor.
But such sights bored her. No… they were an utter disappointment.
If a flame is to burn like this for but a moment, then… it would've been better if it never burned in the first place.
The countless embers that were extinguished before they could gather lumber to burn brighter.
These Souls squeezed of everything they were worth for but a moment in her eyes, like the stars flickering in the night sky.
However, what truly infuriated her wasn't that, for the individual should be given the right to burn themselves away in pursuit of their dreams and aspirations.
What made her roll at night instead were the elusive perpetrators. Foolish, arrogant, and cowardly, who pushed these clueless children down a path of early ruin.
… What amusement was in the obvious? These tiny flames, nothing more than sparks… to be squashed before they could truly shine?
"That is…"
Which was only why the glint caught her attention even more. It was an unusual color, far more exuberant than others, perhaps far more than it should've been.
A mixture of colors that should've been chaotic, if not unpleasant to look at. But once she caught sight of it, she was utterly unable to look away.
Its brightness was daunting in this age of despair and confusion.
The deity was consumed by curiosity, 'How can there be such…'
The prismatic Soul reached for the skies, like a firework aiming to burst right before her eyes… But as it reached a height perhaps no lower than hers, it stopped.
For a moment, the Soul was all that existed in her world. Somehow, she felt she could understand what the Soul sought, for just like her, it too gazed down at the world from above.
And for a moment, it trembled, the fire around it wavering, not as if about to extinguish, but rather… as if it was about to spread beyond control.
/Dive!/
"Ah…"
Before she could reach out to it, the burning Soul dove into the convoluted city, where countless other shining Souls converged.
The sight was euphoric to her. Like watching the final piece of a puzzle fall onto a decorated shelf, completing it once and for all.
Words she once heard from someone she'd rather forget echoed at the back of her mind. Perhaps they were true… Could it truly be that such colors attracted each other?
She approached the translucent mirror, the glass wall that led into the abyss beneath her:
"It's like seeing something… that does not belong to this world."
The deity pressed her right palm against the glass, her eyes piercing through her own reflection.
…
/LAND!/
Silver landed before the factory, his armored boots crashing against the loose rubble, sending pebbles flying outward.
/Shuaa…/
The wind caught up a moment later, stirring the dust around his legs.
"… I can hear it far more clearly now."
Before him stood a broad building of weathered brick, its tall windows clouded with grime.
Thick pipes followed the outer walls before disappearing through the stone, while a chimney rose above the sloping roof, 'This looks like a Magic Stone Factory.'
/CLANG!/
Silver raised his head as a sharp impact rang from within, followed by shouts and the heavy crash of something overturning…
/SLAM!/
The walls broke as something flew out from within, crashing in a pile of wood and debris next to him. A hooded man, wearing a full dark robe.
(Image)
The man grunted faintly, but Silver wasn't confident about his physical condition. Nonetheless, he didn't have the time to worry about such people.
His gaze turned to the factory, "I knew it. Things were far too peaceful."
As his thoughts were spoken aloud, he could see several people approach him from a distance.
/Step step step!/
Armed figures crowded the factory's immediate surroundings.
Men in white tunics and orange sashes guarded the doors and adjoining alleys, their red masks turning toward each new sound from inside.
(Image)
'These people must be Ganesha's children.' Silver thought as soon as he saw their masks. Only one Familia adorned such unusual attire
Several black-robed prisoners knelt near the wall. Their discarded weapons lay in a heap beyond their reach, watched by over adventurers whose attention kept shifting toward the fighting.
"Keep them away from the entrance!" One exclaimed as they parried an arrow with a knife
"… H-Help!!"
Someone hurried past carrying a wounded companion, one arm hooked beneath the man's shoulders. His boots dragged across the stones, together with a red trail…
Silver moved aside to let them through. Thankfully, his armor seemed to make him blend in with them all… It would be best to say they couldn't spare the time to worry.
'A siege in enemy territory? Or are they defending against it?' He thought as he looked around, but quickly sorted through his worries, 'No… I know this day.'
From above, he had seen it. Such scenes occurring all throughout Orario.
Tonight was the day the allied forces struck back in full to end Evilus once and for all, an all-out siege of numerous fronts by the city of heroes' greatest Familias!
He had taken some time at night to study the Dark Age. The records were plenty, but often vague… A single book covered 90% of what the Guild was willing to share with the public.
Silver took one of their copies, reading it before bedtime… 'There is only one moment that matches this occasion. Tonight is… the start of the Great Feud.'
'Orario's darkest time.'
…
/BURN!/
A fireball burst through a wall, crashing near a collapsed library… Silver raised his left hand, blocking the debris with telekinesis as he walked closer to the sight.
A guard noticed him, raising his hands, "You there! Stay back! This area is—"
/BANG!/
Another body was thrown outside, bursting through a window as Silver's stomach turned.
The guard glanced over his shoulder, his warning interrupted by the voices within.
Meanwhile, Silver snapped his fingers, and a wave of energy flowed through the factory, scanning its insides… Bodies left and right as no less than a dozen groups bulldozed their way through Evilus' defenses like a hot knife through butter!
It was hard to discern them from the chaos, but a few of those outlines caught his attention.
A sweep of crimson hair disappeared behind a column as he focused… Further inside, a green cloak flashed between the fighters, with others covering for her left and right.
His fingers flexed at his side as he recognized those adventurers, 'We meet again.'
/CLANG!/
And amidst all of that stood a blue-haired girl. Perhaps of them all, she was the hardest not to recognize.
Silver's thoughts returned to his studies, 'Many of the heroes who fell in these times were recorded down in history so they wouldn't be forgotten.'
'Amidst those, some were given a few pages of their own…'
He frowned, "And if I'm not wrong…"
Silver stepped forward, walking past the guard who had run to help his companions.
…
/CLANG!/
Moments before, the battle had reached its climax within an old factory. The clash of steel echoing between thick stone pillars, beneath cracked pipes, cogs, and idle equipment.
/CLACK!/
Dust drifted from the rafters above with every heavy impact, settling over the shattered bricks, wooden boards… and the bodies scattered across the floor.
/FWOOSH!/
A red-haired swordswoman pressed forward through the fighting, blazing through everything in her path.
A blonde elf in a green cloak followed close behind her. Yellow and green flashing through all corners.
Nearby, a dark-haired woman wielded a slender blade to cut off another retreat, steadily forcing the remaining defenders deeper into the building, pushing one after the other into unconditional surrender.
/SLASH!/
/BANG!/
/CLANG!/
Their encirclement was tightening… yet the woman facing them showed little concern, "Tche. So in the end, he didn't come. That bitch gave us false information."
With short, disheveled pink hair and a dark coat hanging open over her torn clothes, she watched her dwindling forces with a crooked smile, almost as if it were of no concern to her.
Her gaze moved between the approaching blades, lingering on their wielders as though waiting for something.
…
"… Shit."
That smile bothered the small girl watching from the edge of the fighting.
Partially sheltered behind a stone pillar, she followed the spider's gaze across the factory.
Between the clashing weapons and shifting bodies, she could see her companions steadily gaining ground, but rather than rejoice, all she felt was a growing sense of unease.
The dark-haired girl's voice carried over the fighting as she pushed another cultist aside, "It's a melee…! Fine, I'll see them take their last breaths!"
"HUPP!"
Beside her, the Elf's green cloak swept through the mad fighters, dancing amidst them as her blade struck each one of them down.
'… Something smells fishy. Very fishy…'
Her eyes narrowed.
/CLANG!/
Another defender staggered back, leaving a gap that was quickly filled by the advancing swordswoman.
Their encirclement tightened further, yet the pink-haired woman barely spared the fallen fighter a glance as her eyes moved from one corner of the battlefield to the next.
The small girl shifted beside the pillar, trying to get a better view, 'Come on… what's wrong here? What is that damn woman planning this time?'
She knew things couldn't end this cleanly. There had to be a trap… It was the only fitting piece.
Nine out of their last ten confrontations ended like that. This operation, no matter how carefully it had been hidden, was far too large to escape their foes' ears.
The total annihilation of Evilus. The time had finally come to put an end to this story.
Their bases had all but been located. Dozens of Familias across Orario gathered under one banner to eradicate evil once and for all… How could the final fight end in such a calm manner?!
/SLASH!/
/SPLAT!/
With each passing moment, more and more members of Evilus fell to their blades. Either permanently or not… they were disabled and secured under the punitive force's advancement.
But Lyra's gaze remained sharp, '… You don't need the commander's intuition to see that something's wrong here…'
She searched the spaces between the machinery, then glanced toward the passages beyond. Was someone waiting there? Were they being drawn away from an entrance?
She thought of everything within her creativity. Poison, traps, reinforcements, magic weapons, mages, monsters…
Even though the small girl's mind could not compare to the fabled man, the child of the clown. But experience alone told her that such vile people would never put their heads on a platter!
A sharp laugh pulled her attention back, "Not bad! Hahahahah!"
The woman's shoulders shook with amusement as Lyra's fingers tightened around her weapon.
/CLANG!/
/SLASH!/
From where she stood, she could see the faces of those still resisting. Lyra looked from them to their smiling leader, searching for some sign she had missed.
'What is that woman planning on doing this time?!'
"G-Gya!!"
Then, amidst the battered fighters, a smaller figure appeared… A little girl, even smaller than her.
Her face was half-hidden beneath the cloth, her slight frame almost lost among the adults surrounding her… Fear was plastered across her face as she wobbled left and right between them.
A small knife rested in her palms. As it struck their armor, it bounced off with little effort, not even leaving a mark behind.
"Ugh… W-What?! A child?!"
The blue-haired young woman nearest to the child faltered. Her weapon lowered slightly, alarm crossing her face as she noticed the small figure as it attempted to stab her…
"To go so low… as to involve children in this!" She exclaimed as she tried getting the knife off the child's hands, "You can't! Don't fight for someone who forces you to wield a weapon!"
She kneeled before the child, trying to get her to calm down, "See? I'm not here to hurt you. Drop your weapons… yes… come here—"
As she saw the child arrive, Lyra's stomach went cold. That strange sensation struck her yet again…
The heroes of the past charged forward with nothing but good intentions. But what was humanity before the words of the divine?
The child, still clenching the shabby knife… cried, "Goddess… I… want to see Mom and Dad!"
"Wh—"
Mankind would always find ways to dig deeper into the trench of insanity. When the Gods themselves proclaim it is holy to do evil, there is no bar too low for a believer to fall into…
The first piece to end this game had been cast.
A flash of white overtook the factory.
/BOOM!/
…
For a moment, the factory disappeared behind a curtain of light.
/Shuaaa!/
A torrent of dust fell from the ceiling as everyone's eyes adjusted to the trembling factory.
"Careful!" Someone exclaimed in the dust cloud
"ARRRRG!"
/CRASH!/
An entire wall collapsed outward, burying someone alive as a section of railing bent beneath a fallen beam, its metallic shriek barely audible through the ringing in their ears.
The lights on the walls flickered while some burst into pieces. Exposed wires sparked, setting nearby wood aflame!
"… Huh?"
The blonde Elf stood motionless, her eyes wide open.
Where the blue-haired girl had knelt, the floor had been torn apart. Shattered bricks and twisted metal lay scattered across a blackened hollow, while dust poured from the damaged pillars overhead.
She tried to see through it, a glimpse of light and color… Sounds, motion, even a scrap of pale cloth…
Anything…
"No, that can't be…"
The red-haired swordswoman's blade lowered. Her beaming confidence, which never seemed to crack… wavered.
Beside her, the dark-haired woman stared at the same patch of destruction, her lips parting. The woman who had once acted with grace and calmness gasped in horror.
"No way…"
"… A suicide bomb?" The words slipped from Lyra's mouth as her eyes sank
Her earlier suspicions returned all at once. From her careless smile to the fighters who refused to surrender even as their companions fell.
Their willingness to let the adventurers close in… She understood right then and there that this was no resistance.
They planned to turn this place into their tomb, bringing with them as many adventurers as they could!
/Gasp!/
Nearby, a woman with short blue hair stood with her eyes fixed upon the settling debris. She drew in a sharp breath as blood drained from her face, "Ardee…?"
Nothing answered her… only laughter.
"Pfft… HAHAHAHAHA!"
Valletta threw her head back, her shoulders shaking as she took in their faces, "Thanatos, you freak!"
"Are you watching this?!—"
Her words rang inside her mind, but soon, she stopped listening to them as her own mind deafened all of reality.
Amidst this, Valletta only seemed to laugh harder.
She wasn't the only one lost in their own thoughts… Not far from her, the blond Elf… Ryuu's eyes shook, wishing it all to be nothing more than a nightmare.
"… No."
She reached for her hair, almost pulling it off, "No, no, no…!"
With each outcry, her voice cracked further, her nails pushing against her skin as she took a slow, heavy step forward.
"Ardee?!"
Lyra turned at her voice. The outcries of her companion were far too difficult to bear… but before she could respond, the movement near the floor caught her attention.
One of the fallen cultists was stirring… incapacitated from fighting, but not out of commission.
His weapon lay beyond his reach, and his blood pooled beneath him.
He made no attempt to rise again… Instead, his arm drew close against his body beneath the folds of his robe…
"!!!"
Lyra's breath caught against her chest as her eyes darted around. Further away, another did the same.
And another, and another, and another…
She spoke with such strength her lips bled, "—Alise! Kaguya! Get away from the bodies on the ground!"
The two turned in a heartbeat as Lyra's ran, "They're about to explode!"
At their feet, a hooded man lifted his face. His blood reflecting his mangled face, he cried, begging the gods for their attention:
"Lord… Allow my soul to reach the one I worship—!"
The warning gave them barely enough time to move.
/BOOM!/
Flame burst between the pillars, swallowing the place where they had stood.
/SLAM!/
The red-haired swordswoman landed hard, boots skidding over broken masonry, while the dark-haired woman twisted away behind a machine as a large nail punctured through her shoulder like a bullet!
"Guh…!"
Fragments rattled against the iron casing, some slashing through her robes and leaving her in a mangled state.
/CLATTER!/
Through the rising smoke, the pink-haired woman watched with undisguised delight.
"Ahaha!… To think something so small would bring such results!"
"The machine made of Flare Stone and a hammering system! This is great! Truly ingenious!!" She exclaimed as the flames burst around her
Lyra stared at her, biting her lips hard as Valletta put her hands over her chest, "You've outdone yourself! A suicidal machine that anyone can easily operate! Trully—"
"You freak!!!" Lyra shouted in anguish, "You sacrificed all your people and—"
But Valletta's gaze was stoic, marked only with her immense sense of superiority, "What took you so long to realize?"
The woman spread her free hand, indicating the factory and everyone within it.
"The building's surrounded? The troops are arrested? It all doesn't matter to me—"
Her grin widened, "These people are just my weapons! Would you cry if your blade cracked? NO! You just…"
"Replace it." She added as her grin widened
…
/… BOOOM!/
Outside, the men guarding the perimeter turned toward the noise.
"W-What was that explosion?!"
Dust spilled from the factory's openings as a blast of air struck their chest. One of the guards, an orange sash draped over his white tunic, stepped toward the entrance.
His companion caught a movement beside them.
A prisoner in black robes had drawn closer, head low.
"—H-Hey, what are you—"
The man raised his head, red eyes flaring with zealous rage.
… Light flared beneath the dark cloth.
…
/BOOM!/
Elsewhere along the encirclement, a white-haired woman with furry ears recoiled as the prisoners beside her clasped their hands together in prayer.
"Oi! Don't you dare move!!" She claimed, but they didn't listen
"… I've committed a sin, and I shall give my life to settle the debt!" The hooded woman said as she fell to her knees
The girl's ears flattened as she took a step back.
She reached for her companions, "N-Noin! Asta! Run—!"
/BOOM!/
…
The dark-haired swordswoman braced herself as a crack raced up the nearest pillar, "Dammit! They're all—"
/BOOM!/
Overhead, the pipework shook loose from its supports, crashing over her!
Meanwhile, Valletta took a step back, withdrawing into the smoke, "You thought things would end today? Come on, Finn…"
"This isn't going to end anytime soon."
She stepped into the swirling flames, waving her right hand as she did so, "Goodbye, adventurers. So long."
"… Tsk!"
The red-haired swordswoman hesitated to go after her, but immediately turned around to help her friends in need.
Her gaze snapped left and right as she ran to her buried friend, lifting the massive pipe and throwing it aside as her friend spat dirt and blood on the ground.
/Tremble…/
With each explosion, the factory shook harder… 'The building isn't going to last…'
"… Shakti! Lyra! Kaguya! Get out of there!"
"I know, but…"
Lyra's momentary hesitation made her miss the critical moment. As she clenched her fingers, the green cloak slipped past her and into the burning halls!
"No, Ryuu! Stop!"
The distressed girl continued to cry for her friend, "Ardee! Ardee!"
Ryuu stumbled over a broken pillar, but kept going toward the place where the first blast had struck even as a rusty nail punctured through her palm.
"Don't go there!" Kaguya shouted as she grit through the pain in her chest, "You'll be buried alive!"
The voices clamoring for her snapped her out for a second. In the chaos, Ryuu screamed her suppressed thoughts, "But Ardee is still out there!"
Her face twisted with a desperation none of them had an answer for, "She's out there all alone!"
/BOOM!/
Another impact staggered her, but she scarcely reacted, lifting an arm against the dust before trying to push deeper into the rising smoke.
"Give me some time, Alise! Wait for me, everyone!"
Her voice cracked, "I'll go get it… Ardee's body is still there!"
The once bright lady, the Elven girl whose rare smile brightened their days… reduced to this state… They could only stare in response.
Then a blue-haired figure moved through the smoke… or better said, appeared. Perhaps out of everyone, she was the one most affected by all of it.
Frozen stiff before the sight of the explosion, she almost looked like a statue…
As Ryuu saw her, she faltered, "Shakti!"
Tears spilled down Ryuu's cheeks, "T-They… what have they done…"
She stopped within an arm's reach of Ardee's older sister, whose eyes shifted past the Elf and toward the shattered floor… Her lips parted, but no words came.
For one brief moment, her face held the same helpless disbelief that plagued the young girl…
Then something overhead snapped! A massive wooden beam fell above them!
"… DAMN IT ALL!" She screamed
/SLAM!/
Shakti slapped it aside with all the rising anger within her! So mighty was her strike the thick beam split open, its fragments flying across the burning halls!
/CRACK!/
Her expression changing by the second, she seized Ryuu by the shoulders and screamed, "GO, Alise! We're leaving this place!"
"… Everyone!"
Alise turned toward the exit, her crimson hair fluttering behind her, driving the others ahead of her as another section of machinery toppled to the floor beneath them!
/THUD!/
As everything around them collapsed, Ryuu struggled with all her might. Her boots scraped across the floor as she lashed out, but what she failed to understand was how battered she herself was.
The closest of them all to the first explosion, Ryuu took the full brunt of its blast directly.
Thankfully, with her Level 3 Status, it did little but burn her armor a little, but the internal injuries she suffered, coupled with her cracked mental state, made her lashes no better than those of a child's.
As she was pulled away by Shakti, her hands reached toward the rubble, "Ardee…"
Shakti's jaw clenched, pulling the Elf against her will, forcing them both through the thinning gap between falling debris.
"ARDEE!"
They burst out of the factory.
Behind them, light filled the broken windows.
/BOOOOOOM!/
The walls split, and the roof came down.
…
The signal flare ignited what would be later known as the bloodiest days of Orario.
/BOOM!/
Throughout the entire city, thousands of cultists swarmed from all corners one could imagine. Holding within a single order…
To eradicate all, no matter how, who, until they breathed their last breath.
Their real target was made apparent: the destruction of Orario!
…
"N-NOO!"
/SLASH!/
"DIE! Ignorant sinners! Today, Orario disappears!"
/SPLAT!/
"You all will pay! Even if I have to shed my life away!"
"HELP! ANY—"
/BOOM!/
"G-Get awa—"
/PIERCE!/
A white-haired man plunged his blade onto an old man's chest, "— Go! Bring true devastation to Orario!"
""YES!""
Dozens more jumped from the rubble, plunging into the crowds of defenseless civilians.
Led by Evilus' greatest warriors, there was little they could do but scream.
"M-Momm—"
/BOOM!/
…
"R-Run away! It's Evilus!"
A red-haired man walked against the running crowd, his stoic expression slowly twisting as he raised his eyes to look at a burning tree.
In this dark night, even when lit up by the flames, he saw no color. Cursed to live in a world of black and white, the only paint that brought life to his world…
Was red.
/CLAP!/
He clapped his hands, though none seemed to pay him any heed, "Everyone! Don't rush! The show's about to start."
"A thousand years of peace all led to this moment. It is the end of an era, the closing chapter of humanity's tale of struggle and survival!"
"Tonight we move onto the next chapter. If I were a God, I'd name this moment its opening ceremony!"
/SCREAMS!/
He put one hand on his chest as screams rang behind him…
"Let's dance and sing at this festival! In this delightful tragedy, I expected all of you… to entertain me fully!"
He reached for his waist… "What is this if not a feast? In tonight's banquet, what can we do if not hopelessly get ourselves drunk?"
/SLASH!/
He cut down the first person he saw, watching closely as their "paint" stained the streets.
He smiled… laughing soon after.
The chaos continued.
…
/BURN!/
Amidst the flaming streets, Valletta walked. With one hand, she brushed her hair back. With the other, she swung her cursed blade aside, cleaning it of the blood that stained it.
Her back leaned back, "Yes… what a great chorus!"
/Boom!/
"Bravo… This is what I've been expecting!" She exclaimed as the outcries of the people rang beyond the streets
/THROW!/
She threw her blade at a fleeing couple, plunging it into the woman as the man fell forward, screaming as he realized the fate of his companion, "This time, not a single one of you will escape."
Valletta thought of her last outing a few days prior. Her failure had left quite a bitter taste in her lips, the kind no wine could rinse.
Finally, she was able to sink her teeth into something more delectable.
"My deity… I wonder what you'd say… yes, something like that…"
"The Great Feud between evil and justice. What kind of answer will come from this debacle?!" She asked aloud as she walked to the crying man
She stopped before him, raising her leg, "Well, it doesn't matter."
"I'm having plenty of fun already."
/SPLAT!/
…
/Meanwhile/
/Step…/
Ryuu couldn't remember when Shakti had let go of her.
She remembered her warmth, her hands around her shoulders... The flash of light that followed, together with the powerful blast and heat that struck their backs…
After that, there were voices. Someone calling their names, counting the replies…
The memories slowly came to her as the ringing almost made her spin… Ryuu remembered answering their words… at least, she must've at some point.
After that, she walked… but even she didn't know where. All she knew was to look back every few steps towards the sky.
Beyond the rooftops, a thick column of smoke rose from where the factory had stood. She watched it until another building blocked her view, often crashing against the fleeing civilians as they ran in the opposite direction.
"… Ryuu."
A hand touched her arm… She slowly turned toward Alise, but the red-haired girl was already looking down the street ahead of them.
Orange light shone across her face, prompting Ryuu to turn also.
They had reached an intersection, "…!"
The street opened onto a market Ryuu recognized. She had walked through it days before.
There had been volunteers calling across their stalls, carts squeezing between pedestrians as food and sweets were distributed to those in need…
Now, one of those carts lay overturned across the road. Its contents spilled between broken stones.
Fruit rolled beneath fleeing feet, crushed into a red paste as people scrambled past… making her wonder if its color was of its own making…
A stall's canvas roof burned overhead. Beyond it, flames poured through the windows of a house whose upper floor had collapsed into the one below.
The heat reached them even from here… For the first time, Ryuu drew a deep breath, only to cough.
Smoke scraped down her throat, her mouth tasting of dust, and when she tried to swallow, she discovered how badly it hurt.
Only then did she notice the red staining the palm she used to cover her lips.
"… I… I'm still here…"
The words escaped so quietly that she barely heard them.
She was standing, breathing… but alone.
As she turned to the side, she noticed the friend who always helped her… had never been there after all.
Driven mad by the desire for comfort… "AAAAAH!"
A scream tore through the street.
…
On nearby street blocks, the other members of the Astrea Familia continued with their futile efforts. Doing everything in their power to help one more survive…
"Over there! I heard someone in that building! Neze!!"
"On it!"
/SLAM!/
A man stumbled out from between two buildings, one hand pressed against his head as he burst out of a burning door.
He looked behind him, crying, and nearly fell over a broken chimney, then bolted toward a narrow passage.
"D-Don't go that way!" The furry-eared girl shouted
Neze's ears flattened as she sprang after him.
"Come back—!"
/BOOM!/
The passage disappeared behind a burst of dust and fire, almost sending her flying back.
…
On the other side of the passage, a disembodied hand flew past the startled Elf.
Ryuu flinched, her eyes shaking uncontrollably as she turned toward the smoking alley.
Before she could understand what was going on, another scream rang behind her, catching her attention, "Adventurer! Help!"
A woman stood beside a damaged stall, clutching her skirt clear of the rubble. Blood ran from a cut near her hairline as she gasped for air.
Lyra hurried toward her, waving toward the road behind them. The path Ryuu had come from.
"This way! Quick! Head toward the center of the city—"
A flash swallowed the space between them.
/BOOM!/
Ryuu threw an arm across her face as her hair was blown back. Heat washed over her as her ears rang a second time, pebbles striking against her armor as her legs quivered.
When she lowered her arm, Lyra was crouched several steps from where she had been. Her hand was still stretched forward, and her eyes were heavy…
But the woman was no longer standing before her.
"… Damn it."
Lyra stared into the smoke. Her fingers curling as she gritted her teeth, "DAMN IT!!"
The more Ryuu saw, the deeper she fell into despair… But then, a voice brought her back, "Everyone, keep them moving!" Alise shouted, "Get them off this street!"
She ran toward a pair of civilians struggling beneath the weight of an injured man, helping all of them as Ryuu watched in silence.
/Chatter…/
Neze's voice rose somewhere beyond the dust. Another voice answered her, then another, all overlapping with the crackle of burning wood.
Ryuu tried to follow them… Her foot moved in their direction…
Then a child screamed behind her. She turned toward the sound instinctively, already walking forward…
"Somebody, help—!" A mother screamed as she held a silent body in her arms
"A-AAARRRG!"
But another cry came from the opposite direction.
/BOOM!/
/BOOM!/
/BOOM!/
Ryuu's breath caught as another house was blasted asunder, sending wood, stone, and something indescribably into the sky.
Where?… Where was she supposed to go?
"… Ah…"
Her hand hovered beside her sword, "Ahhhhh…"
'This is hell…'
/SLAP!/
"Don't just stand there, you fool!"
A sharp pull nearly took her off her feet. The searing pain in her face made her take a second breath as her heart skipped a beat.
Kaguya pulled her aside as a stone block struck the place where she had been standing.
/CRASH!/
"… K=Kaguya!"
"Draw your sword, you fool!"
Kaguya released her with a shove. Her robes were torn, and she held one arm close to her injured chest, but her eyes remained fixed on Ryuu.
"We don't have time for this!"
"But…"
Ryuu looked past her. A burning beam fell across the street, blocking the path for the fleeing citizens.
Beyond it, a man tried to lift someone who would not stand, tugging uselessly at their shoulders…
"This… this can't be happening…"
Her voice thinned, "It's like hell… we've fallen into hell…"
"Look at me!"
Ryuu's eyes returned to her… Now that she took a better look at her, she realized just how terrible Kaguya's state was.
Gasping for air, Ryuu could see the effort it took her to remain upright. Blood had soaked into the fabric beneath her hand, staining the white clothes beneath her robe crimson.
"Don't avert your eyes from what's happening!" She said, "You can't let it swallow you!"
/BOOM!/
Another explosion shook dust from the roof beside them. But neither of them paid it any heed, "Move. Fight. Save whoever you can reach!"
"I…"
"We can't keep losing people! We…" Kaguya's voice caught, just for a moment, "… We've already lost enough."
Ryuu's face crumpled. She tried to breathe, but what came out was a broken whimper. Ardee's smile returned to her with such clarity that, for an instant, the burning street blurred—
"HELP!"
Then someone cried for help again. A civilian had fallen, one of their legs… was no more.
He was trying to crawl beneath a toppled cart as an armed figure stepped over the wreckage toward him…
Ryuu's fingers closed around her sword. The sight of the cultist drove her to the edge of a new emotion she had never felt before.
Pain shot through her wounded palm… but all it did was make her grip it harder.
"Ahhh… AAAAAH!"
The blade scraped free.
Still crying, Ryuu pushed past Kaguya and ran.
…
"… Ngh…"
A woman opened her eyes in darkness, her face twisting as she tried to move, only for a dull pain beneath her ribs to force her back onto the cold ground.
For a few seconds, she remained still, listening to the faint ringing in her ears as she struggled to remember what had happened…
There had been shouting, someone standing before her, and then—
"…!"
Her hand swept across the ground beside her, fingers brushing against loose rubble before catching on a small sleeve.
The child lay within arm's reach, curled on their side with dust clinging to their hair.
The sight made her push herself upright despite the ache in her body, leaning over them as she carefully brushed their face clean.
Despite everything the child had done to her, she did not lose conviction, "Hey… can you hear me?"
There was no answer, but their chest moved beneath her hand.
She leaned closer, feeling a faint breath against her cheek before checking the blood staining their clothes… Most of it had dried, and the scratches she could find were shallow.
"… Thank goodness."
The blue-haired girl let her head hang for a moment, her fingers still resting against the child's shoulder.
Only after checking once more did she allow herself to look around… and realize she couldn't see much of anything.
A broken beam burned a short distance away, its flames crawling along the splintered wood. Around it lay pieces of stone and twisted metal, some still glowing from the heat, while smaller fires flickered farther into the darkness.
Their light revealed the ground beneath her, but no walls, no doors… Even when she looked up, there was nothing to tell her how far the ceiling might be.
'Where are we…?'
She remembered the factory, but this didn't look like its interior.
Still lying beside the girl, she stood with one arm wrapped around it, "… Is anyone there?"
Her voice faded without an answer, with not even a echo returning.
… She waited, expecting to hear footsteps or someone calling back, but all she heard was the quiet crackling of the scattered wood turning to ash.
The silence made her chest tighten. Had they perhaps been buried too deep to even hear anything?
She glanced down at the child again, drawing them a little farther from a smoldering fragment before struggling to her feet.
Her legs ached, and the first deep breath made her wince, but nothing seemed broken… Somehow, she was still able to move.
/Crackle…/
A piece of burning timber collapsed into itself, briefly casting more light across the ground.
The moment it did, it revealed something in the darkness. At first, she thought it was another pile of debris, but then the fire shifted, revealing a boot, an outstretched hand…
It was a man.
"… Sir?"
She took a hesitant step toward him, sizing him up as she tried to determine if he was an enemy or not.
But as she grew determined, she moved closer. One step then another, trying to make out his figure through the uneven light.
He lay facedown several paces away, one arm folded beneath his chest as though he had fallen while trying to get up.
And as she approached, her eyes settled on what remained of his armor…
She took a small burning piece of flooring and waved it before her, 'Red armor?'
'Was there anyone amongst the advance party who wore such?…'
As she got closer, her steps slowed… For a moment, the darkness before her gave way to a flash of white, so bright that she remembered seeing it even through her closed eyelids.
The moment she reached for the child, and the same moment she dropped her guard, giving it the chance to strike at her throat…
She unconsciously reached for her neck. Thankfully, it seemed she had missed… Nonetheless, her memories continued to flow.
At that moment, something tugged her from behind, pulling her so suddenly that her feet left the floor.
She remembered clutching the small body tighter, a glimpse of red passing beside her… Then an arm holding them both as the heat struck beyond the both of them.
That was the last thing she remembered.
"… You were…"
She knelt beside him, reaching toward his shoulder before her hand froze still.
The armor across his back had been destroyed. Thick plates had split and bent inward, their broken edges buried among scorched cloth and flesh, together with foreign pieces of incandescent rubble.
In places, the metal had warped until its shape was barely recognizable, clinging so closely to him that she couldn't tell where it ended and the burns began.
Blood had spread beneath his body, disappearing into the darkness beyond the firelight.
"…!"
She stiffened, but she forced herself to lean closer, watching him until a shallow movement passed through his side.
He was breathing, barely, but he was.
The man who had pulled them away from the explosion… Silver lay motionless before her, his ruined back turned toward the place where she and the child had fallen.
Ardee looked down at herself, at the scratches on her hands and the soot covering her clothes, before her gaze returned to the shattered armor, and the bloody trail beneath it.
She swallowed, her hand hovering above him before settling carefully beside his head.
"C-Can you hear me?"
He didn't respond, and for a moment, she found herself wishing he would. Even a groan, a movement, anything to tell her what she should do…
But his breathing remained faint, and the blood beneath him continued to spread. So she understood it was time to take things into her own hands.
"… Wait here. I'll find something."
She barely knew why she said it, but speaking helped her move. Her hands went to her own supplies, finding a torn strap and the remnants of her pouch.
'I figured it wouldn't survive. Sis is going to snap me in half. Those weren't cheap at all…'
She checked the surrounding ground, then what she could reach at his waist without disturbing him…
There was nothing she could use, 'A potion… anything…'
Ardee lifted her head, searching beyond the scattered rubble. Most of what she saw had come from the building, broken wood and stone thrown about without order, but farther away, something stood upright.
In fact, it was exactly where the man was directed. Further into the room, with his head pointed right at it… was a shelf.
She stared at it for a moment before noticing the boxes beneath it, their straight edges strangely untouched amidst the surrounding destruction.
In fact, that wasn't the only strange thing about this room. The ground itself, darker than the night, was unusually smooth and devoid of elevation.
She originally mistook it for ash and sooth, but now, she wondered if they were even in rubble. Instead, it was more as if they had been dragged inside a room, 'Was someone… living here?'
"Cough…"
Another strained breath brought her attention back to the man. Taking hold of her makeshift torch, she hurried toward the shelf, the small flame revealing more containers scattered across the dark space beyond as she moved deeper into the darkness.
'It's almost like a warehouse… are we in one? Has he brought us somewhere near the factory?'
But if so, why couldn't she hear anything? Her hearing seemed fine, given that she could still hear herself.
Above all, the splinters around them shared another story. All she saw made her think the explosion happened right behind them.
But as she looked back, all that welcomed her… was the same swirling darkness… So she turned to the boxes.
Some were closed, others loosely covered, but none offered an explanation for where she was.
She set the makeshift light nearby and lifted the first lid, finding folded clothes. After taking a few, she then moved to the next box, her fingers slipping against its edge before she pulled it open.
/Clink…/
Several bottles rested inside, separated by padding. Ardee picked one up and brought it toward the flame, turning it slowly as she examined the liquid within.
Her eyes narrowed at the markings, then widened as she checked the bottle beside it.
"… An Elixir?!"
'How can there be so many? I thought that with the factories broken, we could only produce a few…'
Her fingers tightened around the bottle, and she gathered the cloth against her chest before hurrying back.
…
/POP!/
Ardee knelt beside Silver, pulling the stopper free as she looked over his injuries again.
The broken armor worried her… Some pieces were lodged too deeply for her to remove, and she didn't dare pull at them.
She knew basic first aid, but this was beyond what she had been taught to heal. That said, an Elixir was supernaturally powerful, but it could not replace a doctor.
Once the flesh grew, it might end up burying fragments of metal and twisting unaligned bones in the process… But in his state, there was little she could do but trust it.
Hesitation wasn't the answer, so instead, she brought the bottle close to the exposed wounds, steadying her wrist with her other hand.
"… I hope this is yours." She murmured, trying to keep her voice from shaking, "Otherwise, we'll both have some explaining to do… I don't have the money to pay for these…"
'We'll just have to beg for forgiveness together…'
She tilted the bottle, letting the liquid flow carefully over his back, following the gaps between the ruined plates as she slowly removed what she could… at least the things that offered little resistance.
/Sizzle…/
Smoke rose from his back. Beneath the elixir, the torn flesh drew together, and a faint movement passed through his shoulders as Silver gasped for a second.
"… I know… it hurts a lot, but bear with me."
'His condition is dire. Whatever struck us, he bore most of the damage to shield us.'
She shifted the potion as a droplet of blood ran down her fingers, watching carefully before pouring a little more where the burns were worst.
Her hands were still shaking, but she could work with that.
/Shake…/
Behind her, the child stirred faintly in their sleep, and Ardee glanced back before returning her attention to the man beneath her hands.
"Just a little more… ~Star of beginning…"
One hand held the potion while another hovered over his back as Ardee began to chant.
The seconds passed as the sizzling continued.
"… Dia Kaumundi!—"
/Light…/
Multiple strands of light flew from around her, wrapping themselves around Silver as his skin healed at an even faster pace.
However, as she saw him recover, Ardee's eyes were pessimistic, 'Even with this, his wounds remain this gruesome…'
When one Elixir proved insufficient, she took another with mild hesitation, twisting its cork before tilting it to his back…
"… Enough." A voice echoed before her
"?!"
Ardee was taken by surprise, almost dropping the potion in her hands as Silver pushed himself from the ground.
"Those are expensive… I just bought them." Silver claimed as he sat down, his back still facing her
Ardee slowly pulled the potion away, "You're awake… Are you okay, mister?"
Silver did not reply at first. Just like her, he took a few moments to adjust himself to the surroundings.
In truth, he had awakened a few moments after she administered the Elixir. The extreme pain flushed him awake, but he was so weak he could barely offer a response.
After he took a few breaths, he replied, "I can move… What about you?… And that child over there?" Silver said as he turned his head faintly.
Ardee moved back, standing on her knees, "I'm good enough to fight!" She claimed as she tapped her biceps.
The strange knight before her gave Ardee a strange feeling, one that was quite difficult to describe.
Someone like this… did not quite seem to belong in this place. Perhaps this feeling would be better understood by the fact she couldn't remember seeing him around.
With his appearance, it would've been difficult to forget someone who stood out so much.
To her words, Silver opened and closed his palms, "Then we should get moving. The world outside is in utter mayhem." He replied as he got to his feet.
"W-Wait! You're in no condition to move like that!"
Silver ignored her concern as he got to his feet, blood dripping from his back and onto his armor, "These wounds are mostly superficial. I'm good enough to fight…"
"This is barely an inconvenience."
While it seemed as if Silver was trying to act tough, from his gestures and words, Ardee had a feeling he spoke the truth.
He looked around, "We have bigger issues to worry about, trust me."
With that, he turned to face her. That was the first time they met eye to eye.
Ardee saw, beyond the flickering flames, inside the darkness of the red armor, a pair of shining silvery eyes, like watching the moon peek through the clouds in the night sky.
Before she had the chance to do anything, he walked to the side, "Don't worry about the Elixir. Since it's open now, it's best we use it."
"Take the chance to heal whatever wounds you have." He said as he raised his hand
And with a snap of his fingers, the darkness was dispelled!
/FLASH!/
"Ugh!… !!"
Ardee's eyes narrowed as the sudden brightness blinded her. But as she recovered, she was flabbergasted at the sight.
The world had turned into a long hallway, orbs of light shining above them, illuminating two transient walls filled to the brim with shelves and boxes.
She finally understood what lay beyond the darkness. The answer was quite direct…
Nothing. The darkness itself was the wall. Like a black curtain swaying with the wind, it was an impossible scene for her to describe.
"W-What is this place?" She questioned as her eyes darted around
Silver, who had already walked to the side, responded without much delay, "This is my Magic. A small space separated from the outside world."
"A… separated space?!"
The words didn't quite make sense for her, but when put together, they made for something so bizarre and interesting that Ardee, in her youthful curiosity, couldn't ignore it.
'Was magic like this possible? A-Amazing…'
While she marveled at the sight, Silver finished grabbing a few items before he turned around and walked to the child, kneeling before her.
Ardee was momentarily concerned for its safety, but she chose to trust the one who saved them, walking beside him to see what he was about to do.
/Pop!/
Silver opened a small vial, which she quickly identified as a basic healing potion, before mixing it with another vial of an unknown substance.
After both were mixed into a cloudy purple substance, Silver fed it to the child before he got up.
Only now did Ardee notice how tall he was. Perhaps it was the armor itself, but when he stood before her, it was enough to block the lights above her.
It was important to note that she too wore armor, and even then, it didn't seem to make much of a difference.
"It's time." He said as the vials were put aside
The sudden words woke her up, "… What did you feed her?"
"A simple healing potion, coupled with a pain suppressant. Though to a small child, that dose will put her to sleep for the remainder of a whole day."
His words grew heavy, "I feel sorry for her, but I can't let her be without some precautions. It's either this… or I chain her up."
"…"
Ardee's chest tightened, but she did not retort. All of her bubbling anger was directed not at the one who almost took her life, but at the ones responsible for pushing her to make said decision.
She looked at the Elixir, and in one gulp, she drank all of it before wiping her lips, "Phew… Thank you… I'll repay this another time."
"Please… can you tell me what happened?"
Ardee put her two hands before her, but rather than act flustered, she seemed ready for action, able to draw her sword at a moment's notice.
"… The child was a decoy." He claimed as Ardee's expression fell
Silver recounted the little he could remember. To some degree, it wasn't solely what he saw, for he shared a little of what he had read about as well, "They strapped some sort of apparatus on her chest."
"I didn't get the chance to observe it in full… By the time I arrived, I only had time to pull you away before it detonated."
His tone grew dimmer, "I hesitated for a moment… wondering whether or not I should save the child… I opted to do it, but by then, it was already too late."
"She activated the hidden mechanism within the strapped item. I might've been able to stop it, but instead of risking it a second time, I cut it off and pushed it behind us."
There was one thing he omitted, that is… Right before the child detonated the mechanism, she used Ardee's moment of weakness to… slash her throat!
If not for Silver's moment of consciousness where he healed her, mending her wounds and saving her life, perhaps neither he nor she would be walking at this moment.
If Silver would've survived his wounds or not… that was a question of hypotheticals. One way or another, his actions led to Ardee saving him later.
Meanwhile, Ardee finally understood what had happened. So the flash of light… the thought of it alone made her stomach grow cold…
She bowed deeply, "Thank you for saving our lives!"
Silver smiled under his helmet, "Don't mention it… And you shouldn't be thanking me just yet."
He walked past her, into the other side of the hallway. This revealed his back to her, '!! It healed this much already?!'
An Elixir was an incredibly potent potion, and even when combined with her healing magic, was it possible for so much to heal within a minute or two?
Before she had the chance to ask, a large door took shape in the darkness. Silver reached for its knob, turning to face her, "Are you coming?"
"Y-Yes!"
They stepped through the door as it opened, going into the light beyond…
…
/Shuaa…/
"… Eh?… GUAAAAAA!!"
As she stepped beyond the door, she found herself face to face with the stars… and soon enough, a sense of lightlessness as her face soon turned, plunging into the city below!
She screamed for a second as every sense in her body flared at once, but it immediately came to an end as something seemed to catch her, lifting her against everything she thought possible!
As she floated in the sky, she turned to the side to see the knight staring down at the city with his arms crossed, 'H-He's flying?! We… We're flying!!'
Silver did not share a shred of her surprise, "It's worse than I thought."
Ardee turned her head amidst her confusion, only to pale at what she witnessed.
/BURN!/
From above, the fires stretched across entire streets, spreading between rooftops as thick smoke rose to meet them.
Through the gaps, Ardee could see people running… crowds of them rushing through the alleys and roads. Some toward the larger avenues, others doubling back as flashes erupted ahead of them.
Every explosion left fewer people standing.
/BOOM!/
A large bell tower collapsed at the corner of a street, its massive structure falling down the street.
"N-No!"
Dust swallowed the fleeing figures, and when it thinned, a few were crawling away… Others remained beneath the stones, with only an arm or a leg showing where they had fallen.
It was like seeing ants dispersing as their nest broke open…
Ardee's lips parted again, but the chaos was only spreading.
Farther down, armed figures poured into the street, cutting through those too slow to escape. A woman fell beneath a blade, and the person who stopped to help her was struck before they could even kneel.
The screams reached them a little later, overlapping until Ardee could no longer tell where one ended and another began.
There were adventurers among the crowds, recognizable by the way they turned toward the attackers.
Some held narrow passages while the wounded fled behind them; others dug through rubble with their bare hands, pulling people free as burning beams fell around them.
Some… ran in fear.
… But even as she watched one person being saved, another disappeared beneath the smoke.
Blood ran between the paving stones, beneath abandoned shoes and hands that still reached toward those passing by… And above it all, the heat carried the smell of burned flesh.
Ardee pressed a hand over her mouth. Somewhere down there were her sister, her friends… She searched for a familiar street, a building, anything that might tell her where to look.
/BOOM!/
Another flash lit the smoke beneath them, and like many other times before, Ardee saw herself wishing her sister would guide her…
Silver had seen enough, "Let's go."
Ardee's smile had long vanished, "… We'll put a stop to this."
/FWOOSH!/
The two flew into the burning streets!
…
.
.
.
Notes
This is the second chapter of the "First Tear Arc". These chapters, for old readers, have replaced the previous Arc of "In Flames", so to some degree, both hold equal principles.
That is where their similarities end, however.
Following Arcs will follow similar structures to what we've used to, though we'll worry about those when we get there.
Thank you all for reading, until the next chapter!