They had been running non stop, and Zephyr was behind. He would've long left everyone ahead of him in the dust if he was in top shape, but he wasn't. In fact it was a miracle he was able to run at all. He'd turned off his pain receptors after the pain from moving so quickly had gotten too intense, distracting him from focusing on the mana barrier spell that prevented them from going crazy like every other living thing around them.
"ARRGGH!" A scream of pain came from the front as someone was snatched by a mad beast lost to mana deviation. Every other person switched directions to evade before continuing straight ahead. Jet was spearheading their dash, along with Kathelyn and a few others they had met along the way. Everyone was running to higher grounds out of the forest. Even beasts had put aside their natural instinct to attack, choosing to run for survival. It was only the weaker beasts that devolved into madness relatively quickly, attacking anyone and any moving thing within sight, including their kin.
The current situation was so unbelievable that it wouldn't even pass as a drunk man's tale if recounted to anyone outside. The recruits were running right alongside beasts at the top of the food chain. Beasts that could mow them down within seconds. Alpha Skarnids with their midnight black carapace were eating ground as they ran in formation around their queen. Most of the lesser Skarnids— the workers, had devolved into frenzied beasts, cannibalizing on each other. It was only the higher tiered beasts like the Alphas and the Queen that were still sane. Instinctively, they moved toward a safer area, oblivious to the multitude of other predators and humans around them. Even the solitary Clydrax, with their centipede-like anatomy, fled alongside their sworn enemies. Other high tiered beasts like Cragfoots and Grimfangs were also running to safety. They were occasionally stopped by herds of insane low tier beasts along the way, but they got rid of them relatively quickly.
The chaos among the beasts inadvertently facilitated the recruits' escape, with only the stragglers— those evading the Alpha beasts ahead— posing any significant delay.
There were about twenty three recruits running within this group, asides Jet and Kathelyn who were frontrunners, Zeke and his makeshift team were also running right behind the two prodigies, with the injured girl he carried previously nowhere to be found. Asides them, the rest of the recruits were a mishmash of two node, four node and eight node awakeneds. Some were here still alive and kicking because of their talent, some just their skill, some because of their ability to hide, while most were just lucky.
A lot of the recruits had lost their lives, and it was safe to say anyone who wasn't here was either dead, or soon to be dead, unless another group equally fortunate and equally desperate was fleeing elsewhere.
Cedric and Anna were nowhere to be found, but Zephyr had spotted Helga running ahead some ways away. She had a blank look on her face as she ran. Zephyr hoped for the best, trying not to think negatively about Cedric and Anna's fates. His main focus at the moment was simply to survive.
"We're out!" someone ahead shouted as they finally emerged from the forest, beginning the steep climb up the hill they had descended earlier. The beasts running alongside them suddenly veered off in another direction, causing a ripple of panic among the fleeing recruits. Should they continue on their own path or follow the creatures who likely knew the rift world better than they did?
The hesitant ones glanced toward the front, seeking guidance from Jet and Kathelyn. But they showed no signs of stopping.
"Hey! Shouldn't we follow them?" Jamie from Zeke's team called out as he ran. "They know this place better than us. Who knows what's up ahead!"
Aside from the few uncertain recruits, no one paid attention to his shout, making him grit his teeth in frustration. With no choice but to stay with the group, he continued running alongside them.
Soon, they reached the top of the hill, slowing to a jog. Many of the recruits immediately collapsed to the ground in exhaustion, panting heavily.
"What the—"
"What's that?!"
Exclamations of disbelief erupted as the recruits beheld the devastation unfolding beyond the black forest. Even the usually composed Kathelyn stood dumbstruck. They had all known something was wrong when they saw the beasts running like their lives depended on it, but physically seeing the reason was a different matter all together. It re-lighted their instinct to survive like never before.
"RU—RUN!!" They took off like cats with their tails on fire, charging straight for the center of the rift.
"WHERE'S THE LIGHT?!—"
"I DON'T SEE THE PILLAR!—" Frantic shouts filled the air as they searched in vain for the familiar beacon of safety. Now that they were out of the forest, Zephyr tried to orient himself based on the terrain features, and it seemed Jet and some others were doing the same. They all headed in the same direction with the rest of the recruits in tow as a terrible premonition brewed in their minds. Where was the light? Was their only hope of safety already gone? Were they going to die here?
They pushed on regardless of their doubts, drawing closer to the dome with every step.
.
.
"AAARRRGHH!!" Smiling Devil's gut wrenching cry made Alyra shudder as her sister carefully fried his innards with a very precise fire threaded spell.
"Whew… You're a tough one. I'll give you that." She dusted her gloved palms as she straightened up. "But no worries. There are plenty of people who've dedicated their lives to this waiting outside for you. I just have to keep you alive." She shrugged. The fact that she couldn't get any information out of him pissed her off. He was content to run his mouth just a few minutes ago, but now he was tight-lipped and proving to be a tough nut to crack. If only she could've executed that render perfectly. She sighed.
Still, this was all well planned. Even though her father, the current patriarch of the Ryvelin family—Theodore De'Vera Ryvelin, had caught a whiff of something fishy going on, even taking precautionary measures by sending her into this rift in secret—a measure she had thought to be overkill for a world of such small value—it seemed they had still underestimated the invaders.
"The Umbral Tower…" She muttered in thought as Smiling Devil shuddered and spasmed on the ground, the after-effects of her terrible spell still causing him great pain. He forced out a delirious laughter through it all, muttering repeatedly, "Down together… Down together… Down together… Down together."
The words sounded like a death knell, with a tone of finality that had an effect on Alyra, but not Mistress Regina. "No one is going to die here. Not even you." She smiled lazily as she pulled out a fist-sized exquisite-looking jade box from the single storage ring she wore on her finger. She paused for dramatic effect before slowly opening the box.
As it cracked open, it suddenly seemed to be the focal point of the whole world. Its surroundings felt more corporeal than anywhere else. It seemed like… life.
Smiling Devil's eye widened as she opened the box fully. A tiny crystal glowing with an otherworldly light floated upward, warping the space around it as it settled in the air. It looked like a tear in reality, a tear that looked the same no matter the angle you looked at it from. Its presence felt superimposed.
"Twenty-three percent pure condensed world origin." She motioned at the floating crystal. "Enough to hold a render through the void when this world collapses."
Realization dawned on Smiling Devil, and he decisively reached deep within, trying to trigger the kill switch every member of the Umbral Tower had embedded for dire situations… but it was to no avail.
"Did you think I was simply torturing you earlier?" Mistress Regina laughed mockingly from where she stood. "I told you. You're not dying just yet. You have a lot to answer for."