Eternium ~ 44!

Sorry for the delay! Got caught up writing CC3! lost track of time. 3500 words in I looked at the clock!!  

~ Forty-four ~ 

Dale and Minya spent a few hours watching nearly the entire population of Mountaindale vanishing into the air, and for a short while the sound of silence reigned supreme. Then there was a deep groan from the mountain as a few sections of stone shifted around, and there was a constantly increasing amount of ruckus from the dungeon as new monsters continued to spawn without anyone in the area to cull them. Dale listened to the noise level increase, then frowned as he realized that there couldn’t be this much noise from the dungeon alone.

He crawled to the edge of the roof and looked over. He recoiled in shock at the rows of metal-clad warriors standing in perfect formation. They must have been moving with perfect precision and control to have only alerted them when they were this close! He watched as the men stood aside as a much taller… person? Walked to the front and spoke into the dungeon.

“Great Spirit!” The voice was raspy and strange. “My people, The People, ask to receive your blessing as we enter this new land! I have taken the place of my elder brother, and am now the Warchief of our nation!”

<You’ve got to be kidding me.> Dale heard the words, even though they weren’t directed at him. <You convinced everyone that your punishment is the life they should choose?>

“The blessing of might has proven its worth, Great Spirit.” Aiden smiled, showing silvery-white incisors. “They have all decided that they would like to join me on this path to power.”

<All of them?>

Aiden frowned. “There are a few squads that have refused to transform, but as of now they are outcasts. They will arrive separately.”

<Well… alright.> Dale shook his head at their eagerness in Cal’s thoughts, though Aiden likely couldn’t catch it. <You’ll owe me for this.>

“I don't mind at all.” Aiden grinned darkly.

<Alrighty then, Aiden Silverfang, progenitor of the Wolfman race.> The Warchief’s smile only broadened. <Bring your people along, and welcome.>

Aiden turned to his people and shouted, “I have secured special favor with the dungeon! We will be the first race to properly accept the gifts it will offer, and we have earned much! Onward, to our new lands!”

There was a sound of thunder as the collective group slammed a fist into their chest and began marching forward. This procession was much larger than what had been on Mountaindale, as an entire nation of people, but still moved through faster than the unorganized rabble had managed. Dale took calming and soothing breaths constantly, doing his best to calm the ragged edges of his soul. “This is fine, I’m fine…”

<If it helps, being able to feel your soul and interact with it has increased your rank.> Cal interrupted Dale’s inner monologue. <B-rank… two? The very leading edge of it?>

“When did I get B-rank one?” Dale was shocked by the shift. 

<Not my job to monitor you all the time.> Cal grumbled and moved away. Dale smiled, seeing the interaction in a different light after the conversation with Minya.

“Aww, he does care!” Dale chuckled along with Minya as they watched the last of the silver-metal-clad warriors pass below. He rubbed his chest, wincing as his mind returned to the pain that he was feeling in his soul. “Feels like the worst heartburn of my life, mixed with an infected claw wound.”

<Hey. Dale.> the dungeon interrupted Dale’s grumbling in a sudden reversal of situation. <Can I eat those buildings if no one is in them?>

Dale looked around at the empty structures and shrugged. “I see no reason not to do so. Go for it.”

In an instant, the buildings furthest away from the portal began to tremble; then sank into the ground over the next few minutes. The wall that had been built around the city crumbled inward, and soon all that was left behind was open land with grass quickly growing over it. Closer and closer the destruction crept, until all that remained were the academy, a few buildings directly around the portal, and the Guild’s building that still swarmed with people. It was fun to watch ‘nature’ reclaim in an hour what should have taken hundreds of years.

The young Mage felt a pang in his heart as the city that he had played a crucial role in creating underwent such rapid destruction. He put a smile on his face and motioned for Minya to join him in another area; Cal wanted to get started on this building next. As they tumbled through the air, they saw a glimmer of golds appear from the portal area. Before they hit the ground, there were a swarm of High Elves in the area. The Elves glanced at the Humans, sniffed disdainfully, and strolled to the Soul Portal.

Not a single one of them failed to bow to Barry as they passed through, though the S-ranker only acknowledged a single one of them: the Elder who paid the tribute. As the procession started, Dale’s pain levels shot up. Not a single one of these people were under the B-ranks, and the only saving grace was that there was only a few thousand total that came through. More humans started arriving then, and as the day wore on, the line to escape the incumbent doom only grew.

Barry had the Guild members who policing the area begin to force everyone to run through the portal, and soon the entire sea of species began to follow suit. For the vast majority of the people, only a slight shuffling jog was needed, but as the pace continued there was significant progress made. The moon was looming ever closer, and if they didn’t make it through, they would all die. Only three days remained until the worst began to arrive, but there were smaller chunks arriving daily.

At one point a huge detachment of Wood Elves arrived, though all that were able to go through the portal were the children and otherwise young members of their race. Each group of five were clustered around a sapling, and they transported it with utmost care. Whenever they went through, they would always ensure that the tree would fit through the portal. For reasons unknown, if the tree wouldn’t fit, the group would leave. Dale wondered why they didn't just put the tree in a spatial storage device, but there was no response coming, and the Wood Elves he got close to would vanish like morning dew under the sun. 

Dale and Minya spent the entire day watching various groups and factions pass through, and as the hour got late the people started becoming more ragged, or singed, or seemed to be injured or in shock. At one point, people coming through the portal were screaming, and moments later a massive gout of flame raced out of the portal after them. The operator cut the link, and questioned those that had made it through. It seemed a moon stone had landed near the city, and it had apparently been obliterated.

Nodding, the portal operator simply opened the gate to the next location and told them to hurry. Dwarves started rumbling through, carrying very little in the way of physical wealth. Barry stopped them and informed them that their toll had not been paid. They explained that they had broken from their tribes in an attempt to survive, and most of their gear had been taken before they were allowed to escape. Barry stared at them, seeking any hint of deception, then notice a few wearing Guild badges. With a sigh, he motioned for them to hurry, and the full group started coming through.

Dale stared after the group as they moved through, and wondered if they had enough of a population to stay viable over time. Then again, the High Elves had only arrived with seventy-five hundred people as well, and the Dwarves numbered at least ten thousand. The human shrugged and wished the best for them, returning to his comfortable spot to watch everyone passing. He smirked as the Dwarves finished; Barry had stepped away to go to a meeting, and hundreds of Dark Elves chose that moment to erupt out of their embassy and through the portal, carrying everything they could possibly get their hands on. 

Not only the things that they were bringing to offer, they also made sure to rob the treasury that Barry was collecting tribute in. There was a roar that crossed the entire mountain, and the last Elf lost a leg as he dove through the portal. Barry tried to go after him, but passed through the portal and into the wall of the building. Dale dropped to his knees and wheezed from the pain of the man brushing his soul, but it seemed that the S-ranker couldn’t enter the portal even if he tried. The Dark Elves were safe from him - for now. A few of the Mages were set as guards to the treasury, and the constant flow continued.