Return of the Fallen Volume 12 Chapter 84
In the end, everyone agreed to have Dredinkar lead them. Not because he was better per se, but rather he became the obvious choice between them. Kazuki was the stranger to them all while Carta was seen as immature and Specxzu was far too cold in everyone’s eyes. Dredinkar on the other hand was not too cold nor too welcoming. He was the oldest, which did not guarantee wisdom but with his age came a long line of experience.
With his calm demeanor, he came across as someone you could trust. After things were decided, they all introduced their groups to one another. Carta had two companions with them. Both had scale-like skin and long thick tails. Dark wings that wrapped around them and fangs that could pierce a Soul weapon. On Dredinkar’s side, there were merely two young men. These two men looked like younger versions of Dredinkar. The only noticeable differences were their darker eyes and reddish-brown skin.
As for Specxzu, his allies as well looked very similar to him. Large wasp-like heads with multiple eyes. Thin see-through wings and hard-looking torsos made of some type of exoskeleton and multiple spikes raised all over their bodies. They as well had a different color tone compared to Specxzu.
Kazuki introduced the beast woman Nala and Fleck need no introduction at all. Everyone kept things even leveled for the time being as they all awaited the Black gate.
Deep in space, the Starpath-sized gate was on a straight path toward them. Surrounding the Black gate was a thick layer of dark energy. It was like a blanket of miasma or mist. Following the Black gate one could see a long wide trail of Gods. Even though there were clearly tens of millions of them following, due to the size difference, they all appeared like tiny specks of dust chasing after the Black gate.
The black and purple mist of energy kept expanding and retracting at seemingly random intervals. Because of this, many did not dare follow the Black gate too closely. Still, there were those who did not shy away from danger and unfortunately, some of them suffered the consequences of their folly.
A few quickly got caught up in the foul energy and they froze on the spot. The bright glow in their eyes dimmed and the energy in their core was no more. Their soul, in an instant, had been corroded and destroyed by the nasty energy.
The smarter ones witnessing this were glad they had kept their distance while a few others just laughed at the sight.
Some were even greedy seeing Gods die left and right. With them dying like this, it meant there was no longer a claim over their storage rings. This meant free treasure for whoever took their rings. A simple swipe job. A few did just this and instantly made a fat profit on whatever they collected. Seeing several people all of a sudden expand their riches, how could the others stand idly by doing nothing?
Again, this was a foolish mistake. These greedy Gods swooped in and tried to take a few more rings here and there but just like a tide of the ocean, the corrosive energy came flooding forth and thousands more were swept within it. When the dark energy retreated, more dead Gods were left in its wake.
One would think after this happened once or twice, other Gods would stop getting so close but no, this only made them greedier. The Black gate was a powerful force to be reckoned with and with it, there was a fierce gravitational pull that came with it. Because of this, the Gods that had died did not simply float away. They and all their treasures were dragged along with the Black gate.
As more and more Gods died left and right, the treasures piled up more and more. To these Gods who came for fortune but were not strong enough on their own or did not have a powerful backing like a faction or clan. This pile of treasure floating in front of them seemed to be their only opportunity to ever make it anywhere in this godly life. This was a chance that may not come ever again. How could they stop now?
And so a vicious cycle continued as these factionless lonesome gods kept chasing after the fortunes of others. Some would die and many more would come running up from behind to collect what has been dropped but the success rate was anything but desirable. Out of the hundreds of thousands that participated in this opening gamble, only a handful managed to walk away with not only their life but also treasures galore.
Once again, the luck of these lonesome fools was truly low. Even after escaping death from the Black gate and walking away with a fortune, unfortunately, there were greedy eyes already on their back. There were a few folks who teamed up or who had smaller groups. These people were like bandits and pounced on the lone Gods, murdering them right there and then and taking what they wished before scattering across the stars, escaping with their spoils.
The true Factions and Clans did not care about the petty squabbles among the weak and poor. No, they had much bigger fish to fry. To devote their attention to the lowly ones would simply be a waste of time.
The factions and clans flew in larger groups of a few thousand here and there but everyone knew they kept their main forces inside small worlds they carried with them. Following along, they stayed inside their Vajra ships. The ships all had their barriers completely lowered so as to not feed any random tear in Chaotic space. Because of this the random tears that did make a sudden appearance were easily dealt with and did not expand dangerously.
They used their physical bodies and weapons to batter these tears or contain them. It all depended on their own specific situation. Dealing with Chaotic space was only one part though. As they followed behind the Black gate, the nasty energy that kept expanding and retracting also came toward their ships. This was the only time the barriers would be activated to ward off the dark energy.
A few thought they were wise and tried to use bigger groups to prevent any mishaps but the larger the group only made working alongside one another that much more challenging. There was less and less room to work as people would be bumping into one another and hitting one another with attacks.
In order to prevent a sudden war with other factions from the offset, they all agreed to use smaller numbers until they entered the Black gate.
While these people dealt with all the hassle, meanwhile, Kazuki and the others were preparing to enter a much safer route, or at least they hoped it was safer.
As the Black gate got closer and closer, Chaotic space began to open at a much quicker pace around them all.
Dredinkar asked what everyone else wished to know.
“Fleck, when and where will this path open for us?”
Fleck of course had no answer. What he received from the Black gate only left a message, a map to this spot, and the infecting dark energy. He looked to Kazuki.
“Dredinkar, Fleck does not have the answer. The only thing we know is that the location pointed us all here. There is no set time nor exact spot. All we can do is wait.”
The other Gods did not like this and an argument quickly sprang up among them. Kazuki did not shy away and told them.
“If you have a problem with what I just said, then do something, otherwise, you are wasting everyone’s time with petty arguments that solve nothing.”
A few cold glares zeroed in on Kazuki and Fleck but at this point, there really was nothing to be done about it. Fleck did not know what he did not know and even if he were lying what would be the point? They were all already here and there was no way they would let Fleck or Kauzki out of their sight. So in the end all they could do was stand by and defend themselves from Chaotic space opening all around them.
This though would not last long. As the Black gate approached them, Arc called out to Kazuki.
(Kazuki…I’m sensing something familiar. Get ready.)
(That’s a little vague don’t you think?)
(Damnit brat just get ready!)
Kazuki didn’t argue from here and he warned everyone else as well.
“Get ready!”
The moment he said this, the barrier they were inside was destroyed and in its place Chaotic space opened once more. A few Gods quickly tried to deal with it and were immediately knocked back.
Dredinkar stopped anyone else from trying to attack it and called out.
(STOP! Somethings different about this one.)
Everyone looked at this tear that quickly formed into a neat doorway of energy. The same dark energy from the Black gate poured out of it and everyone quickly raised their barriers up to protect themselves.
In the distance, the Black gate was still nowhere near them but this energy, they could tell it was exactly the same.
(Brat, I can feel it…My missing piece…It’s inside there.)
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