Chapter 982 Swarms (2)
Skullius saw the swarm descend earnestly, and land right over the frightened civilians who couldn't do anything in the face of the vast tide of living unknown. Their eyes could hardly see the movements of the creatures, and thus, even their response to what occurred next was belated, if it even existed.
The scene devolved into something out of a horror epic. No. Perhaps, for Skullius at least, it reminded him of what happened during the Premium Age Royale, the unseen process that led to the pillar of souls that were dropped into the seal which had been carved on the ground to resurrect Rayn.
As the creatures of green and blue nestled on top of the heads of thousands of Sif in fractions of time unfathomable for the common man, they became bathed in a whitish-pink, starry light that flaked over their victims and caused them to freeze.
The manner in which it happened was rather unnerving. It was almost as though time had stopped over every individual target.
Skullius frowned lightly.
In the next instance, he watched, with a feeling of shock and urgency, the seahorse-like creatures rise up with the speed of shooting stars, below them, ghostly yet fragrant and luminous shapes like bent crystals rising along with them, nabbed from their victims!
Unfortunately, the strength of the victim didn't matter. Even experts were caught in this.
Watching the scene from a broader perspective, like Skullius and Ashema, gave a greater appreciation for the sheer beauty of the disaster.
Thousands of glinting shapes flying upward from the vast Aurora only to vanish when they reached a certain altitude… it was a gorgeous sight, not to mention ironic.
Skullius' head fell to the bodies of the Sif who dropped like logs a micro-moment later.
His eyes narrowed.
He saw the same thing happen again and again in different sections of the Aurora.
'Fascinating…' he thought, disregarding the burning urges from the green, tormenting him with the call to glorious purpose.
Fascinating indeed.
There was no choir of terror from the victims.
They were put at ease by the flakes of light from the blue and green creatures and then extracted from without harm, quite literally.
No Sif was killed or wounded as a result of the actions of the summoned monsters.
'Mana… That's all they took…?' Skullius thought.
The target of the summoned monsters, was mana.
The Hybrid Luman wore a grin.
His senses couldn't have been fooled. Nothing to do with mana escaped his understanding now, and even to say the enemy was after a simple resource like mana, was an oversight that was quickly cleared with his senses.
What was taken was actually…
'A large sample of the soul's information was extracted through their pure mana,' Skullius thought. 'The mana core is linked to both the body and soul, and it produces pure mana which is then transformed through the Refinery. That pure mana on its own… possesses so much information on the soul that it might as well be a document of the individual's current and future potential…'
Skullius' eyes turned cold.
He watched as the whole Aurora turned silent in the next instance. All the creatures left, heading for another pasture to quell their appetite. They rushed off like a locust swarm with the sounds they made with their chip-thin wings rattling the hyper-sensitive skin of the Hybrid Luman immensely.
'Disgusting,' Skullius thought.
When the swarm had left, he dropped with Ashema to the tranquil streets strewn with the bodies of common Sif and combatants alike.
The look of their immense numbers, as some stacked over of each other, brought about a dire sought of feeling even with the knowledge that they weren't dead.
Skullius felt Ashema spill from his grip, but he was too absorbed in thought to beckon him back. The dark Carven would be left in the open as soon as he fled from the Hybrid Luman's touch; [Absolute Zero]'s embrace drawing away.
'What is the goal here? Gathering the soul's information… There must be some real knowledgeable people among the men from Emeradis. It shouldn't be a surprise. A nation that focuses heavily on Energy Forming is bound to be proficient in that stuff…'
Skullius extended his vision through the Preeminent Attegoth and saw the same scene that happened in this Aurora occur over multiple within seconds. Some were completely defenseless against the unexpected attack, but the rapid reinforcement from the Sif forces, which had saved many from the loud gong and the Maqian warriors' advance, was working just as well here. Well, almost.
The swarms of these creatures were so overwhelming in number that some countermeasures which had been efficient before, were useless against them. The great, enchanted trees that swallowed civilians into the safety of their trunks, for instance, were unable to stop the creatures from flooding into the expansive spaces they made, which effectively left the Sif within trapped.
Skullius clicked his tongue.
There was so much activity.
So many of these buggers.
'Hmm?'
Something stole his attention amidst the chaos.
The Maqians…
The Hybrid Luman saw each and every one of them stick to a bizarre stance as their Aura flooded out. They all – wherever they were – had their arms pointed down with their palms open, fingers retracted, facing the ground. Their legs were spread out, their feet digging so deep into the ground that they might have been hammered in there.
The Aura around them, seemingly prompted by this stance, shrouded them in what looked like a stylish lady's bow, albeit a little morbidly tattered.
'I suppose all this is what Viccil and Sevill heard. The Maqian forces look like they were prepared for it well too…'
Indeed. It was so.
The summoned glorified mana mosquitoes completely ignored all the Maqians striking the stance.
SLUUURRRRRRP!
"Yeeeergh!"
SLUUURP!
Skullius turned at the sudden noise.
He found Ashema crouching down over the body of one of the unconscious Sif. On her neck was a large gash from which a stream of blood formed a soft shape to trickle into Ashema's mouth. The dark creature drank, savored, shivered and spat it out.
"I gave it a chance. No. Not for me. That's foul. Did all that drain away the quality of the taste perhaps?" he said a scowl that turned his already terrifying face, even more treacherous. To exhibit his dislike of the flavor, he kicked the Sif responsible for it and she flew all the way out of the city.
Skullius snapped his fingers and the woman was warped back.
"That was excessive. Keep your violence to yourself," Skullius said as he tried to quell the panic he felt the surrounding nature as a result of Ashema's actions.
The Carven scoffed.
"What will you do now? Save everyone?" he said with hints of mockery. "It feels like these little bastards won't stop pouring from the Abyss. Can you really handle that?"
"Well, that won't… What did you say?" Skullius turned Ashema with a stunned look.
What he had just said…
Ashema didn't miss the shock in the Hybrid Luman's voice… and on his face. A malevolent look of glee transitioned upon his visage.
"Oh, you wouldn't know now, would you?"
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