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CHAPTER 36 – DUST, BLOOD, AND COLLAPSE
Tch... Elias groaned, his knees buckling as he strained under the weight of a massive concrete slab resting on his shoulder. Cracks spiderwebbed along its surface, each creak sending fresh waves of panic through his chest. Dust clung to his sweat-slicked skin, making it hard to breathe.
Around him, the wreckage of the building groaned ominously. Steel rods twisted like skeletal arms. Shattered glass and fractured stone filled every crevice. They were completely enclosed—no light, no wind, just suffocating darkness, heat, and weight.
Spike was on her knees a few feet away, her back arched beneath a slab of fallen ceiling. Her hands trembled as she braced herself against the crumbling stone above. Astrid lay wedged between two collapsed beams, her legs partially pinned. Blood ran in streaks down her forehead, mingling with the grime.
"Damn it, Spike—what the hell is wrong with you!?" Astrid hissed, her voice shaking with strain as she grit her teeth, trying to free her elbow. "Why the hell did you rush at that unknown stranger?! We nearly got flattened!"
"He... he was gonna get caught in the rubble!" Spike snarled, straining against the weight pressing on her back. Her muscles were trembling, mana surging faintly around her shoulders. "I... I thought I could reach him before it collapsed."
"Reach him?! Do you even know who he is!?" Astrid spat, her glare sharp even through the dirt smearing her face.
"Tch... I don't. But he looked like he knew Frank." Spike's voice dropped, uncertain. "Something about his stance... I just—"
"Hey!" Elias snapped, sweat dripping from his chin as he looked between the two. "You two are gonna have to shut the hell up if you want to make it out of here alive!"
Astrid scoffed. "And who are you to talk? If we hadn't gotten caught under this junk, you'd be dead anyway—"
"And yet, here we are!" Elias cut in, eyes narrow, voice edged like a blade. "I'm not exactly thrilled to be sharing air with two cultists either. Especially while cuffed at both hands, without access to my Skill, and trapped under what I estimate is about ten tons of debris. So I'll ask again—"
He strained to look at them both, veins bulging at his neck. "Are. We. Good?"
Spike sighed, lowering her head. "Yeah..."
Astrid rolled her eyes. "Tch. Fine."
"Alright," Elias continued, trying to steady his breath. "Let's focus on surviving. First off—we don't know the fate of the others. They may be buried under another section. And we—" he shifted, wincing, "—are enclosed under what's left of this building. If the floor beneath us gives way, we're finished."
"Judging by the structure's tilt," Astrid added, glancing toward a cracked column nearby, "we're in a collapsed cavity. The rest of the structure hasn't pancaked yet."
"But the weight above is shifting... subtly," Spike said, glancing up. Tiny flecks of dust fell onto her cheek as the rubble creaked. "One bad move, and we'll get crushed."
"We could reinforce our bodies with mana," Astrid suggested.
"That's still a risk," Spike replied instantly. "If we get buried deeper, you think raw muscle's gonna save us? You won't have the strength or space to dig yourself out."
"We don't have time to argue!" Elias barked. "We can't last much longer in this oven. And you're right about one thing..." He sighed, voice suddenly lower. "I do know Frank."
"What?" Astrid blinked. "So what—are you with him?"
"No. I got here using one of my Skills. It lets me exchange positions with objects or things I've previously marked with Mana. Kind of like... a tag-and-switch."
"That your ticket outta here?" Spike asked, staring as more dust rained from above.
"Yeah." Elias met her gaze. "But I need both hands free."
Spike narrowed her eyes. "You want us to uncuff you. And what—just trust that you won't bail the moment you're loose?"
"You don't have a choice," Elias said, voice rising. "Look at this place! It's all caving in! Either you help me or we all die."
The floor beneath them groaned ominously. A fracture split through the tiles under Elias's left foot.
"Shit—" Spike hissed, yanking out a tiny device from her belt. A chip with a blinking rune.
She stretched her hand out slowly.
Elias stepped forward carefully. As he reached for the chip, the rubble above shifted with a choking crack. A breath of dust spilled over them.
BEEP.
The cuffs on his wrists clicked open and clattered to the rubble.
Elias gasped as he flexed his hands. He didn't waste time—immediately he reached up, grabbing a chunk of the falling debris, holding it just above Astrid's head.
"I still—my Skill's not activating—!"
"It's the collar," Spike said, eyes widening.
"Spike!?" Astrid snapped. "You didn't tell me he had a collar!"
"Calm down!" Spike shouted as she reached for her own wrist, pulling out another chip.
BEEEP.
The collar unlatched, falling to the floor with a metallic thunk.
"Now—" Elias extended both hands. "We need to synchronize. Interlock your hands with mine. Hurry!"
Astrid and Spike didn't hesitate. Their palms clasped around his in a triangular grip.
"Okay—what now?!" Astrid cried as the ceiling above groaned again.
"Mana transfer," Elias muttered, his eyes already closed.
"What?!"
"You heard me—now!! Channel your mana into me!"
---
Almost immediately, the entire chamber rumbled. A blinding flash enveloped the three of them.
---
Huh?... "What was that?" Jack asked, gesturing to his ear. "I didn't quite hear that," he exclaimed.
"Six years ago," Augustus spoke up, slowly removing his deep violet tourniquet, the glint of the metal beneath catching the moonlight.
"Huh?" Jack responded, eyes narrowing.
"What were your cults doing six years ago?" Augustus asked as he took slow, deliberate steps forward, his gaze unwavering.
"What's he—?" Raymond's thoughts stirred, unsettled by the General's sudden aggression.
"What we were doing six years ago?" Jack repeated, a smirk forming. Augustus was closing the gap fast.
"Well, we were busy cleansing a whole villa—"
"STAND DOWN," Augustus snapped, cutting him off.
A sonic BWEEEM echoed through the air.
Suddenly, a dense pressure dropped across the entire area—like a massive, invisible weight blanketed the battlefield. The very air became thick, heavy with magical intensity. Dust swirled upward as if gravity had been reoriented. The ground beneath Augustus cracked subtly with each step, and an ominous white glow began to pulse from the gem embedded in his gauntlet.
"Tch... I... can't... move!!" Roi gasped, his entire body frozen in place, sweat beading on his forehead.
"So this... is the skill of the White Knights' General," Jack thought, unmoving. His veins bulged across his palms as he strained to twitch even a finger.
"This... this amount of mana!" Kaido cried, eyes wide with disbelief.
"It almost feels like I can't breathe... as if there's a mountain sitting on my lungs," Tayla muttered, staggering toward Raymond.
Yet Raymond remained still, arms folded calmly as he watched Augustus.
"Raymond...? Did you know this would happen?" Tayla asked, her voice low.
"Oh, the fact that he could handle all this on his own and still followed protocol by sending only a portion of the Lajaran soldiers, a few White Knights, and some hired adventurers? Yeah. I knew," Raymond replied, nonchalantly. He shrugged. "Always a friggin' show-off."
"Hehe... that's our General for you," Laura added with a smirk, joining them.
"What... is this mana?" Scott called from the support team's position.
"Hey, I'm guessing it's from the General," Joel replied, staff glowing faintly as she pointed toward Augustus.
The Vance followers, once burning with resolve, now shook where they stood. Their limbs trembled. Their confidence shattered.
Augustus moved like a force of nature, unwavering. "Why did you attack that small town?" he asked, now only a step from Jack.
"Is that any way to speak to someone whose town you just blew up?" Jack countered with a venom-laced smirk.
Suddenly, a dark shadow formed on the ground beneath them—a murky void twisting into existence. A single finger slowly emerged.
——
"This... what's this energy...?" Frank's thoughts raced as he clutched his chest. He looked up to see a collapsed building.
"That's where I was before!" he gasped. "But this pressure… this aura... it's overwhelming!"
He turned to run—but—
"Don't make a move, Frank!" a familiar voice rang out.
Frank spun around to find multiple drones hovering, each armed with lasers aimed directly at him.
"Bill...?" Frank said, lowering his hands in confusion.
"I said no moves!" Bill barked, tablet in hand, blood trickling down his temple.
"What—dude, what's going on—?"
"How did you escape!?" Bill demanded.
"I... I don't know," Frank replied honestly. "One minute I was with you guys, then boom—I was here. That's it. I'm not lying."
A tense silence.
"You have to believe me, man. I mean... you've seen what I'm capable of. Those drones won't stop me from knocking you unconscious," Frank added, stepping forward.
"Okay?" Bill said flatly.
"Look, it's obvious my people attacked to get me back. I told you—"
"You were heading to the mana signature, right?" Bill interjected.
"Y-yeah," Frank nodded. "I felt it too... it was everywhere."
"Still... you let off way too easy," Frank said, narrowing his eyes.
"It's not you I'm worried about," Bill murmured.
"Spike, right?" Frank sighed. "She's probably fine... But what I don't get—"
He paused, eyes scanning the ruins.
"What?" Bill asked.
"There's no screaming. No cries for help. It's too... quiet. Where are the injured?"
"They're safe," Bill replied. "Each resident has a teleportation gem. Emergency protocol."
Frank exhaled in relief—until—
"Huh?" He stumbled over something.
"What the—?!" he gasped, looking down.
Lying under a crushed beam were three bodies—two men and one female ogre. Blood soaked into the gravel beneath them. One man's arm was twisted at an unnatural angle, his face caved in. The ogre's lower torso had been crushed entirely, intestines seeping out. The last man was missing an eye, his mouth still half open as if frozen mid-scream.
"Of course... some didn't follow protocol," Bill said coldly, stepping over them without flinching.
Frank froze. A flashback slammed into his mind—the mangled corpse from the mutant Shadow Crawler attack.
"Where are you...?" Bill murmured.
"What?" Frank asked.
Bill stared at the cracked glass of his tablet. Two red dots blinked close together on a grid overlay. Buildings and landmarks flickered as the satellite mapping recalibrated.
"She's supposed to be here," Bill muttered.
Frank's eyes darted. Then—
A sword. It was half-buried near one of the bodies.
He reached down—
"H...help...me..." came a slurred whisper.
Frank recoiled. The man was alive—barely. His legs were gone, shredded into bone and flesh. Skin pale. His chest barely rose with each breath.
"I... I can't..." Frank said, jaw trembling.
"P-please... h-help—"
THOOM!
The man's head exploded. Blood splashed across Frank's face.
Frank stumbled back, sword in hand, eyes wide with horror.
"It was the only way," Bill said quietly. One of the drones lowered its still-warm barrel.
"I know... I know... it's just..." Frank shook his head. "Let's just—"
THUD!!
A humanoid form crashed down into him, sending him sprawling.
"GARRGH!" Frank cried out.
"Whoa!!" Bill shouted.
Three figures appeared in a shimmer of distorted space.
"Spike!?" Bill gasped, rushing forward.
"Urrgh..." Spike groaned, brushing dust off her shoulders.
"Hnghh!" Elias groaned, clutching his side.
"YES! It worked!" Astrid whooped, her massive blade slung across her back.
"I'm okay guys! Thanks for asking!" Frank said sarcastically from the ground.
"Huff... Huff... Elias?" Frank called, spotting him.
"Frank... we need to get out of here—now," Elias warned, katana drawn and leveled at Spike, Astrid, and Bill.
"Whoa whoa, buddy... Glad to see you too, but maybe let's talk first?" Frank said, rising.
"Ooh, I like this one," Astrid purred, unsheathing her colossal blade. "Don't know how you escaped, pretty boy... but we still have to bring you in."
"Wait, what the hell is going on!?" Bill shouted.
"I thought we had a deal!" Spike snapped.
"How is he here...?" she wondered. "It must be that skill again..."
"Alright Frank, we can take 'em. Big blade lady and the other guy first, then we focus on her," Elias said, eyes fixed on Spike.
"Dude, we don't have to fight—"
"Fight?! These are the psychos that tried to kill you for a damn cult!" Elias scoffed, katana catching the moonlight.
"Spike...?" Bill whispered, unsure.
The moon hovered silently above as tensions crackled in the air, the next moment hanging like the breath before a storm.
---
"Huh? … What was that?" Jack muttered, raising his hand to his ear as if to better catch the words.
"I didn't quite hear that," he added, eyes narrowing, his voice laced with mock confusion.
"Six years ago," Augustus spoke, calm and cold as he slowly removed the purple tourniquet around his left arm. His silver hair glinted beneath the light.
"Huh?" Jack blinked, perplexed. "Six years ago?"
"What were you cults doing... six years ago?" Augustus asked, voice echoing through the tense air as he took steady steps forward, closing the gap between himself and the enemy.
"What is he…?" Raymond thought, narrowing his eyes, staying sharp.
"What we were doing six years ago?" Jack scoffed, almost amused. He tilted his head with a crooked grin. "Well… we were busy cleansing a whole villa—"
"STAND DOWN."
Augustus's voice cut through the words like a blade.
And then—
BWEEEM!!
A massive surge of energy erupted across the entire field like an invisible shockwave, washing over everyone like a thunderous tide. The air grew dense, heavy enough to push grown warriors to their knees. It wasn't just mana—it was an oppressive presence, something deeper, primal. The atmosphere quivered with the pressure, warping slightly around Augustus's frame like a heat mirage.
The ground trembled.
Even the leaves on distant trees shivered violently, and particles of dust rose and froze in the air like they had been locked in time. A hush fell across the area, not from silence, but from suffocation.
"Tch... I... can't... move!!" Roi grunted, every muscle in his body rigid. Sweat beaded across his temple. His arms refused to lift.
"So this is the skill of the White Knights' General…" Jack mused with a forced smirk, his limbs unmoving, eyes twitching. "Pretty befitting…"
Veins bulged across his forearms and neck as he strained to twitch a single finger.
"This... this amount of mana!!" Kaido gasped, clutching his staff as it rattled in his grasp. His knees buckled under the unseen pressure.
"It… almost feels like I can't breathe," Tayla exhaled, stepping toward Raymond, her voice shaking. "It's like something's pressing on my chest…"
Raymond stood calm, arms crossed, his coat flapping slightly in the mana wind.
"Tayla…" she heard him mutter as he watched Augustus walk ahead, boots echoing in the silence.
"Raymond? Did you always know this would happen?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"Oh, the fact that he could handle this all on his own," Raymond replied, expression calm. "And still chose to follow protocol by sending half the LaJaran squad, a few White Knights, and some hired adventurers…"
He shrugged.
"Yeah. I knew."
Tayla blinked.
"Always a friggin' show-off," Raymond muttered with a smirk.
"Hehe… that's our General for you," Laura chimed in, casually walking up beside them.
"W-What is this mana…?" Scott whispered from where he stood with the support team, hands trembling.
"Hey… I'm guessing it's from the General," Joel added, clutching her staff tightly, eyes fixed on Augustus.
The battlefield had changed.
Those Vance followers who once charged in with bloodlust and fanatical resolve now stood trembling. Their eyes shook. The power in front of them was not something you fought—it was something you survived.
"Why did you attack that small town?" Augustus asked, his voice eerily calm as he now stood before Jack, whose expression had grown serious.
"Is that how you talk to someone… whose town you just blew up?" Jack growled.
But just as the tension tightened—
A dark aura began to pulse from the ground behind them. A shadowy mist slithered like ink in water.
A finger slowly emerged from the swirling blackness.
---
Meanwhile…
"This… what's this energy?!" Frank clutched his chest, heart racing. His lungs fought for air like he was standing beneath a waterfall of invisible force.
He turned his eyes toward the collapsed structure in front of him—the building where he had just been.
"That was where I was..." he muttered, eyes widening.
Still, it didn't compare to this aura—the suffocating intensity gripping the world around him.
"Gotta get out of here…" he thought, turning to sprint—until—
"Don't move, Frank!!" a voice barked behind him.
Frank froze. He knew that voice.
He turned around slowly—
Dozens of hovering drones circled him, red laser beams activated and trained on every inch of his body. Sparks of electricity arced along their cores.
"Bill?" Frank muttered, hands raising slowly.
"I said—no moves!" Bill shouted, both hands gripping a cracked tablet. Blood ran down the side of his face, leaving a smear across his cheek.
"Wait, what the hell is this? Bill, you're bleeding—"
"How did you escape!?" Bill snapped, stepping forward. His eyes were bloodshot with a mix of desperation and disbelief.
"How did I—? Dude, I don't know! One minute I'm standing with you guys listening to your crap, and the next, I'm here!"
Frank's voice was calm but firm, a rare stillness behind his eyes.
"I'm telling the truth."
There was a long pause as Bill's gaze narrowed, fingers hovering near the drone interface.
"You have to believe me, man. I mean… you've seen what I'm capable of. These drones aren't gonna stop me if I really wanted to knock you out," Frank said, expression hardening.
Bill snorted. "Okay."
Frank lowered his hands slightly. "It's obvious your town was invaded by my people to get me back. I told you guys that."
"Whatever you're gonna do is pointless. I was heading for wherever the mana signature led—"
"Right," Bill cut in. "I felt it too."
Frank blinked. "You did?"
"Yeah. The presence. It was… everywhere." Bill nodded, eyes unfocused.
"But you let me off too easily, Bill…" Frank muttered, his gaze scanning the wreckage.
"I'm not worried about you," Bill replied flatly.
"Spike, right? Typical." Frank smirked. "She's probably safe somewhere."
But something wasn't sitting right.
"…Where are the screams?" Frank whispered.
"What?" Bill looked at him.
"The screams of the injured. Of the dying. This whole place got bombed but…" Frank stepped forward slowly. "Where are the wounded?"
"Oh. They're somewhere safe, I assure you," Bill said casually. "Each resident was given a teleportation gem."
Frank let out a slow breath. Relief, maybe.
Until—
"Huh?"
Frank's foot hit something under the rubble. He looked down.
"What the…?"
Two men and an ogre woman lay motionless beneath twisted debris, their bodies mangled. One man's head was split open, his blood soaked into the dirt. The ogre woman's chest had caved in. The last man's arm was bent in an unnatural angle, a jagged bone piercing out.
Bill didn't flinch. "Of course, there are those who didn't follow protocol."
Frank's chest tightened. A memory flashed.
The disembodied man from the Shadow Crawler attack.
"Not again..." he thought.
"Where are you?" Bill muttered suddenly, tapping at his tablet.
"What?" Frank asked, moving closer.
The cracked screen displayed a geographical map—a three-dimensional rendering of their sector. Two blinking red dots glowed close together.
"She's supposed to be here…" Bill muttered.
Frank scanned the area… and then spotted it. A sword, lying beside a body.
He stepped closer.
"H...heellp...meee..."
The man he thought was dead stirred.
"Huh!?" Frank jumped.
The man's voice was hoarse, wet with blood. His body was shattered. Both legs were missing. A thick trail of blood had soaked into the earth. His skin was pale, almost translucent.
"I…I can't…" Frank whispered, eyes wide.
"Pleeaasse... h...help... pleeeeaa—"
THOOM!!
A thunderclap of energy rang out. The man's head exploded. A spray of blood splattered across Frank's face.
He stumbled back, eyes frozen.
Beside him, a drone cooled its laser, retracting.
"It was the only way," Bill said coldly. "He lost too much blood."
"I know… I know it's just—"
THUD!!
A humanoid figure crashed down from the sky, slamming into Frank and knocking him flat to the ground.
"Garrgh!!" Frank grunted.
"Whoa!!" Bill shouted, stepping back.
Three figures materialized from thin air.
"Spike!?" Bill exclaimed, eyes wide as he rushed forward.
"Urrgh…" Spike groaned, dusting herself off.
"Urrgh…" Elias hissed, staggering to his feet, body trembling with residual pain.
"Yes!! It worked!" Astrid shouted, swinging her giant blade and landing with a grin.
"I'm okay, guys…" Frank wheezed, lying on the ground. "Thanks for asking…"
"Huff… Huff…" Elias panted, looking at him.
"Frank, we need to get the hell out of here—now." Elias said, katana drawn.
"Whoa, hey, I'm glad to see you too, buddy, but let's—let's calm down—" Frank said, hands up again.
"Ohh, I like this," Astrid said, her enormous blade now pointed at Frank. "Didn't think pretty boy would escape, but hey—we're still bringing you in."
"Wait! What's going on!?" Bill shouted, eyes darting between them. "I thought we had a truce!"
Spike's jaw clenched. Her eyes fixed on Elias… then shifted to Frank.
"How is he here?" she thought.
"Was it that skill he used again?"
"Alright, Frank," Elias said through his teeth. "We take them now—she's the biggest threat," he said, motioning to Spike. "We handle the muscle after."
"Dude. We don't have to do this," Frank said, stepping forward. "Given the situation they're in—"
"Situation!?" Astrid snapped, raising her blade.
"They're the same sickos that wanted to sacrifice you for some unknown god!" Elias barked, blade gleaming in the moonlight.
"Spike…?" Bill called out, uncertain.
-