Chapter 244 – Wrath of the General
Commander Allistor:
The deafening sound of thunder roared around me, mingling with the desperate cries of men being dragged into the tornado. I was flung through the air like a helpless leaf, my body battered relentlessly by the storm's unforgiving force. The cyclone, a monstrous vortex of swirling winds, devoured everything in its path. I collided violently with debris, soldiers, and even overturned carriages. Each impact was a bone-crushing blow, and every collision tore through the air with an ear-splitting crack.
Suddenly, the tornado unleashed a burst of devastating wind, hurling wreckage, bodies, and anything caught in its grasp far and wide. Amid the chaos, despair consumed me entirely. Entangled in tattered cloth, straw, and ropes, I was swept away like mere refuse in the storm's wrath.
I tumbled uncontrollably, spinning in every direction until—
"Ahhhh!" I screamed, my voice lost to the overwhelming cacophony as I crashed violently into a building.
'BOOM!' The wall shattered on impact, throwing me deep into the structure with bone-jarring force. I rolled across the ground, the sheer momentum carrying me through another wall, leaving behind a trail of destruction.
"Damn it..." I groaned through gritted teeth, my body still being tossed like a ragdoll. The sheer force of the impact had flung me to the top floor of the building, only for me to start falling again.
Summoning every ounce of magic I had left, I reinforced my body, attempting to control my descent. But before I could regain my balance, my fall was abruptly halted: a rope snagged my ankle, yanking me back with a brutal jolt.
'BAM!' My back slammed against a wall, leaving me dangling upside down. Pain shot through my body like a dagger, and I realized one of my bones had likely been dislocated. My breathing came in ragged gasps, my heart pounding wildly in my chest.
I glanced around, my vision blurry, and saw men plummeting from the sky in the distance. Their bodies fell helplessly, with no magic to soften their descent. It was a horrifying sight: those without magical defenses met their end in brutal collisions with the ground.
"Ahhhh!" Another soldier screamed as he passed by me, his eyes wide with sheer terror.
"Help!" he pleaded, but his cry was abruptly cut off by the sickening sound of his body smashing into the earth. The unmistakable, grotesque crack made me shudder.
My hands trembled as I fought to stay conscious. Somehow, I had survived, though my body felt broken from the inside out. With great effort, I pointed my hand toward the rope binding my ankle and fired a blade of stone, severing it.
I plummeted from the building, encasing myself in a water barrier to soften the landing. The impact was still agonizing, but it was far better than hitting the ground unprotected. I lay there, battered and breathless, but alive.
"Damn..." I muttered through clenched teeth, pain radiating through my body. "Shit..."
As I lay sprawled on the ground, trying to muster the strength to move, the chaos continued unabated. Soldiers rained down from the sky, their bodies hitting the ground with horrifying thuds. I spotted a few mages managing to land with the aid of their spells, though even they seemed shaken by the impact.
Above me, the top of the building I had just escaped from began to collapse.
"You've got to be kidding me!" I shouted, forcing myself to my feet.
"Commander!" A bloodied soldier appeared at my side, yelling. "Get out of there!"
The crumbling structure gave way. Summoning what little strength I had left, I propelled myself forward with a blast of water beneath my feet, narrowly escaping the cascading rubble.
'BAM!' The building came crashing down, debris landing exactly where I had been moments earlier. Gasping for air, I fell to my knees, my body trembling from exhaustion and the sheer terror of the ordeal.
"Are you alright, Commander?" the soldier asked, his voice laced with concern. I could only wave him off, trying to catch my breath. Blood dripped from countless wounds across my body. I glanced at my hand. It was utterly mangled, the bones shattered, likely during the tornado. My magic had done its best to shield me, but the mere fact that I was still alive felt like a miracle.
"Report!" I barked as another soldier approached, my military instincts taking over despite the chaos.
"There's nothing to report, sir. We have no idea what's happening."
I let out a desperate laugh, a bitter sound escaping my lips. The automatic demand for a report, ingrained by years of training, felt almost comical in the face of our current reality.
"What was that thing?" a soldier asked, fear flickering in his eyes.
More men were gathering, some helping the injured, others just standing there, frozen. I forced myself to refocus, trying to take control of the situation.
"Gather everyone who can still fight. Help the wounded. That tornado spell is tied to the Black Dome Scenario Spell. It's something that can't be used often. It damages the terrain itself. The dome is likely weaker now, and that kid must have burned through a lot of mana to pull that off. We'll focus on breaking through the clouds and killing him," I ordered, keeping my voice steady.
But the soldiers didn't move. They remained frozen in place, paralyzed. Frustrated, I scanned their faces.
"What the hell is wrong with all of you?" I snapped, my patience thinning.
And then, I heard it. A voice that sent an icy chill racing down my spine.
"Who said they were going to kill me?"
I recognized that voice instantly. Turning slowly, I saw him. Nathan Evenhart.
He was walking among us as if he had all the time in the world, completely unbothered by the armed men surrounding him. His sharp gaze swept over the soldiers, and his presence felt suffocating. He repeated the question, his tone calm yet dripping with menace.
"Who said they were going to kill me?"
The men around me were paralyzed, some gripping their weapons tightly while others shook uncontrollably. Cold sweat trickled down my back, and my body screamed with primal instincts:
RUN! RUN! RUN!
Yet another part of me whispered:
HIDE! HIDE! HIDE!
My mind was a maelstrom of fear as Nathan moved closer, his oppressive aura consuming the very air we breathed.
"Whoever moves, dies," his voice rang out, echoing across the battlefield.
"What!?" one soldier exclaimed, confused. In the blink of an eye, Nathan surged forward, gripping the man's neck with both hands. With a brutal motion, he crushed the soldier's head, blood splattering across the ground. The rest of us stood frozen, unable to comprehend the sheer brutality.
"Whoever speaks, dies," he repeated, his tone devoid of emotion.
"Y-You maniac!" another soldier managed to stammer, but before he could finish his sentence, Nathan darted toward him in a flash. His fist struck the man's stomach with such force it tore through him entirely. The soldier screamed as his body was hurled backward, slamming into a pillar before crumpling lifelessly to the ground.
"Whoever blinks, dies," Nathan said, his voice steady as he moved among us. Two soldiers collapsed instantly, their skulls crushed in a fraction of a second. They must have blinked.
"Whoever breathes, dies," he declared, circling us slowly, his gaze sharp and calculating. My body locked up entirely. No one dared to inhale. My lungs burned with the effort of holding my breath, and panic clawed at my chest. Nathan stopped in front of a soldier near me, his back to the rest of us.
"You breathed," he murmured. In an instant, he lunged, punching the man with a force so tremendous it sent him flying across the battlefield. The soldier skidded across the ground before slamming into a wall with a sickening crunch.
Nathan walked up to him, unhurried, and began to stomp on his broken body. Each strike echoed with the sound of bones shattering and flesh being pulverized.
The atmosphere was smothered by terror. No one dared to move.
Internally, I screamed, trying to suppress the rising panic. Around me, at least 200 soldiers stood frozen, paralyzed by sheer terror. Nathan stopped right in the center of us, the tension thickening with every passing second.
The boy continued to walk, his demeanor the most unnerving part of all. He moved without the slightest hint of concern, his back turned to us, every vulnerability exposed as if we were beneath his notice. Meanwhile, an entire army stood immobilized, crushed under the weight of his oppressive presence.
"Anyone feeling lucky?" he asked, his voice slicing through the silence. "I'm waiting. Whoever said they were going to kill me, come on. Say it to my face."
He strolled among the soldiers like a predator sizing up its prey, stopping in front of one man. Leaning in close, Nathan stared at him, his piercing gaze cutting straight into the soldier's soul.
"You," he said calmly, "do you want to kill me?"
The soldier didn't respond, his body locked in place. His hands trembled, sweat dripped from his brow, and his bloodshot eyes darted desperately. The fear etched on the man's face was undeniable as he struggled not to collapse under Nathan's relentless scrutiny.
"You stink of piss and fear," Nathan said with disdain, pulling back and leaving the soldier silently weeping.
Nathan continued to pace, unbothered by the terror spreading around him. Each step was deliberate, slow, yet no one dared react. My chest burned; I needed to breathe, blink, do anything to release the mounting pressure crushing my throat. But I couldn't. Fear was absolute, and I knew any movement, no matter how small, could seal my fate.
He stopped again at the center of the group, each step echoing in the suffocating silence. The men around me were drowning in despair, mentally begging him for mercy, praying he would spare us, allow us to survive another moment.
"Let's play a game," Nathan announced, his tone chillingly light. "I'll let you all go. I promise not to harm you. All you have to do is wait until I count to one."
He raised his hand toward the sky, and a fireball began to take shape above his palm, growing larger with every second. Bits of stone swirled into the flaming sphere, which pulsed with heat so intense it felt like the air itself was burning. I wanted to glance at the other soldiers, but even shifting my gaze seemed too risky.
The fireball swelled and glowed, shifting into a vivid, incandescent blue. The flames consumed the stones, compressing into a sphere the size of an apple, the blue fire burning fiercely, radiating unbearable heat.
"This is going to explode," he said casually, tossing the fireball into the air. A barrier of wind encapsulated it, holding back the inevitable detonation for now.
"Here's the game! Whoever's lucky enough to escape survives." His voice carried an eerie cheerfulness as he began counting. "Three…"
The first wind barrier wavered, allowing the flames to grow more volatile.
"Now for two!" The barriers shrank further, barely containing the furious blaze within. The heat became unbearable, and the final wind barrier strained to keep the explosion at bay.
"Don't move!" Nathan said, his calm voice dripping with malice. "Hold on… just a little longer…"
The fireball throbbed, its blue flames growing wildly. The last barrier flickered, on the verge of collapse. The fear in the air was suffocating.
"And everyone… can… run… at… one!" As he finished, the fireball reached critical mass, glowing with a blinding blue light.
"Run!" someone screamed, and in an instant, chaos erupted. We scattered in every direction, desperate to escape. I shoved past soldiers, clawing my way toward the doorway of a building. I reached it, breathless, thinking I was safe, until I saw him.
Nathan stood there, blocking the door, a serene smile on his face. He waved at me as if bidding farewell, then slammed the door shut, locking me outside, exposed to the inevitable.
'BOOM!'
The blue explosion consumed everything, swallowing me whole alongside the anguished screams of dying soldiers.