[3/3 personas have been selected for reintroduction!]
"This is...mind-boggling!" Rutma roared like an excited child while Vizer stared both down and around the beast in a daze.
It had been a minute since they had readily accepted to come with Arken and gingerly step onto the tamed metal beast's back, just as a portal appeared in the deserted lands and they went through it upon Arken's prodding.
They had burst through the dungeon's entrance and had stopped right where the rampaging monsters had gathered below.
Arken looked on with an approving look, "impressive, they have more or less blockaded the path into the town. Now it's our time," he spoke to Vizer and Rutma, "hold fast. Rabha," he addressed the beast who groaned, "get ready."
Upon taming it, he had been instantly able to establish a telepathic link with it and so far it was in his control.
He had used [Extra] to mask his presence at the same time.
"Now dive and devour."
GROAARR
It lowered its head on cue and began to suck in multitudes of monsters inside it's body, it's cylindrical gears gnashing and tearing them apart on the way.
The goblins, orcs, lizards, wolves all struggled to maintain a balance but they were no match for the suction of the giant above them, who gobbled them all up greedily.
"Kalni!" He screamed, "if you can hear me divert all the people to the slums!"
Then turning his head to Rutma who was holding on for dear life he grinned, "you brought the thing?"
Rutma nodded, and grabbed his bag to bring it forward, "thought you'd never ask."
☆
Whether she had heard it or it was her imagination, the sight of the unholy monster above them gobbling whatever was on the other side of the divide spurred her into action.
"Som, Kor help me," she left her spot and ran back to the people who were stunned at the sight in the sky, "people we need to move. Now."
They didn't need much persuasion then but it got more serious when a sudden explosion rocked the other side and they immediately turned tail, sacrificing curiosity for concern.
BOOM!
Another blast tore through the roads leading up to the dungeon entrance and where the monsters had gathered, killing several and blowing apart their insides in heated waves of flames.
"Yeah! Take that, and that," Rutma's eager launches from above made Arken and Vizer look on in a concerned manner but they didn't stop him.
"We need to drive them back into the dungeons."
"Ah but the entrance has collapsed," Vizer pointed with closed eyes and a sweaty forehead.
"Dammit," Arken cursed himself.
He had had no choice but to allow Rabha to smash through the dungeon's entrance when he had been allowed back into the real Ambrenia. But now it was a pain.
The monsters simply didn't have anywhere to go.
"Mind if I get down and help your people? I'll be more useful that way and I'm bad with heights." Vizer said with a bowed head.
"Alright then, Rabha," Arken urged it to pivot and face the dungeons now making it an effective blockade against the remaining monsters.
Vizer slowly got down and went towards the people running away.
Seeing the tall, sparsely clad man with old wisdom made them pause as he spoke.
"Friends, please this way quick. I've been dispatched by your benefactor Arken who commands that beast up there," his words were drowned by the crowd's sudden clamor.
"Arken?! Arken's back?"
"Where? Where?"
The Scarves lined up, pushing their way through and Vizer found himself facing a group of young boys.
"We are ready to fight with him. What is our Lord's instructions?"
Vizer merely smiled and turned back, to point to the sky, "son do you really think he needs help now?"
They all stared in wonder and awe at the huge sucking beast that was annihilating them and shivered at the random blasts occuring.
☆
"How much you got left?" Arken asked as they descended to the ground slowly.
Rutma rummaged and brought his hands out, "few to spare." He looked around them, "is it over?"
THUMP
SQUELCH!
Rabha had landed right in the carcasses of the monsters and Arken nearly slipped along with Rutma in the grimy, slippery grounds caked with blood.
The entire area was a mess.
The roads with holes in them, cratered by Rutma's mana explosives still smoked. The surrounding buildings with cracked walls and crumbling infrastructure.
But other than that there was only silence.
"Yeah I think it's more than over."
Arken turned to Rabha and whistled to which the creature crittered and became small again, now leaving this huge gap in the middle of the town's west corner to be inspected better.
Rabha came to him in circles and he said softly, "go fly around and find some place suitable to you. Meet me back here."
With that Rabha drifted away and Rutma came forward with squinting eyes at the Sun.
With his hands on his hips Rutma asked with surveying eyes, "so this is Andluri?"
"It has seen better days for sure, thank fuck this didn't happen to the slums. It's already in worse shape as it is."
They both met up with Vizer after passing by the crude embankments.
With Rutma and Vizer on either sides, Arken walked into the alleys where his cultists, slum dwellers and a ragtag group of people were huddled, recovering from the past day's trauma.
Seeing him made their eyes lit up, "Arken's here! He's back, everyone."
Arken walked to where he saw Kalni was crouched, looking a bit sick but she quickly recovered and ran to him stopping from a hug.
"Are you alright? What happened? Where—who are they?" She eyed the men.
"This is Vizer and this is Rutma. I'll tell about them in detail but for now we have work to do. Use Som and Kor to gather the people. I need to speak to them."
She nodded and didn't have to even call out to Som and Kor who had immediately joined to first greet Arken and began to get busy hurdling the crowds to a gathering.
Old, young, wounded, excited...the entire motley group of the slum folk and the ones who had sought shelter were brought in but later on the outsiders were filtered out and separated.
Arken looked at all of them in the eye, "first things first, you will not mention that creature you saw in the sky. Not to anyone. And certainly not to the outsiders. It never happened and you don't know what it is."
They murmured but agreed in tandem. Suddenly a commotion behind them made them turn.
CLOP
CLOP
CLOP
CLOP
Sounds of metal hooves hitting cobblestone neared from the far end of the alley which connected the main town with the slum and the people turned in fear.
From the roofs of a building, a Scarf shouted, "the soldiers! They're coming back with the commander!"
The crowd began to panic but Arken silenced them, "stay calm. Remember what I said."
Then they waited for the shadows to emerge from the corner.