The barriers had been breached.
Two men were heading toward the barrier's interior from the outside as one of them carried a contraption clumsily.
"This was a bad idea, just as I had expected!" Yveres complained, his voice filled with panic.
"It looked to me as if you hadn't, you lunatic!" Falles, who held the contraption in his hands, retorted. "Those mongrels might be after us for a while."
"Well, we couldn't just hand over that gizmo to them! We pulled this thing out, we're going to bring it back inside!"
The two rushed toward the entryway as quickly as they could.
Then, something quicker, lurking in the dark, went ahead of them.
Taking the form of a humanoid wolf, the creature stood at an imposing height, towering over them.
At the sight of the terrifying entity, the two stood motionless, utterly bemused by its peculiar form.
The creature radiated a vicious, petrifying presence, and the atmosphere of the place shifted ominously.
A brief moment of silence passed until, in a swift blur, the creature dashed between them, instantly tearing off Yveres's arm with ease.
Shock overwhelmed the two before pain set in as the brute threw the severed arm to the ground, where it landed with a soft thud.
"Arghhh!" Yveres cried out, immediately turning to Falles. "Go!"
Falles couldn't move.
Before him was the horrifying sight of Yveres sprawled pitifully on the ground, blood hemorrhaging from his severed arm.
Yveres's body convulsed in agony as he desperately tried to stem the bleeding, the creature's presence momentarily slipping from his mind.
The mere sight transfixed Falles, his visage etched with utter terror, rendering him incapable of any movement.
"What the hell are you doing?! Run! Go!" Yveres cried, his hoarse voice filled with pain and desperation.
Falles glanced at him, his gaze searing with despair.
"I'm sorry."
Then, mustering all his strength, he fled from the area toward the portal leading to the barrier's interior.
As Falles slowly shrank from Yveres's sight, Yveres began to feel his consciousness fading. The monster that had torn his limb apart stood fiercely before him.
For a moment, Yveres glanced at the beast, almost as if testing its savagery.
"What is it... that you vile Partians want from us?" His voice was harsh as he spoke, not expecting an answer.
The Partian slowly turned toward him, its ferocious, phosphorescent eyes piercing through his very soul.
Then it spoke:
"Nothing in particular. I was simply ordered."
Yveres stiffened at its words—out of both shock and fright.
"Heh, you dogs could talk too?" he asked, trying to mask his fear.
"Your companion will join you soon enough." A pause. Then, a smirk curled on the Partian's lips. "After all, the priest himself is going after him."
Yveres tried to process his thoughts, questioning their reason for pursuit.
Then, something immediately came to his mind.
"That apparatus... why would your kind be after it?" he asked, furrowing his brows as he clutched his wound.
"Ask that damn priest," the Partian huffed, its gaze drifting away briefly in irritation.
A couple of seconds later, the priest arrived, holding the contraption Falles had run away with—now smeared with blood.
Yveres recognized the apparatus, his countenance twisted with panic, yet all he could do was lie sprawled helplessly on the ground.
"W-What... did you... do to him?"
The priest turned toward him, a condescending sneer tugging at the corner of his lips, amused by Yveres's state.
"And this?" he asked, turning to the Partian, then back to Yveres.
"Is... Is he alive?" Yveres faltered, dread etched into his eyes.
The priest looked at him for a couple of seconds, his face sill bearing the same smug expression.
"I did not kill him, though he might be in a graver state than you are."
At his words, a flicker of rage crossed Yveres's face as he clenched his teeth.
"You... you bastards..." he muttered in his stupor before losing consciousness.
A brief moment of silence passed after Yveres blacked out.
"What do you plan to do with that thing?" the Partian asked, glancing toward the contraption, then back to the priest.
"This machine was used by these vermin to bypass that barrier." A pause. Then, the priest gently lifted the contrivance to give him a clearer view. "From what you can observe, they seem to have come from the other side of that enormous wall. If we could use it as they did to breach these barriers, we could enter their world and rule their lands."
He gave him a quick, understanding glance.
"With your kind as our army, those humans will never have the power to counterattack."
"We do not have enough manpower to battle against a god reigning over that land," the Partian stated matter-of-factly, his tone calculating.
"Eukeia's god is buried."
At the priest's words, the Partian furrowed his brows in disbelief.
"That is ridiculous. Each land enclosed by barriers is governed by a deity. Are you to say that those humans have buried their own god?"
"Long ago, they might have, according to the legends, that is."
"And yet, you think that we could subjugate the same humans who were strong enough to suppress their own deity?" the Partian asked, a hint of skepticism in his voice.
The priest looked at him intently, then harrumphed in response to his doubtful remark.
"We are Partians, Vlarge. We are essentially the strongest and most evolved entities in existence. Anything a human can do, we do better," he declared, his tone laced with finality.
"Hmph. Suit yourself," Vlarge snorted before walking away.
"Do I smell a sense of cowardice?" the priest remarked tauntingly, a sneer creeping onto his lips.
"If everything you have planned does not end well, I will be rejoicing over your carcass," Vlarge retorted bitterly, then deftly disappeared from the area.
In a Vague Chamber
Everything was dark.
Yveres opened his eyes. His severed arm felt numb, and his cold body was permeated by restlessness.
Suddenly, the thought of Falles crossed his mind once again.
Am I finally dead?
Abruptly, the lights flicken on, instantly illuminating every corner of the room. As the chamber lit up, the bright light dazzled his groggy eyes.
He found himself in a cell, bound in chains and seated in a chair. Before him stood the priest he had encountered earlier.
Though unable to move, rage coursed through his veins at the mere sight of him, momentarily driving out his trepidation.
"It's... you," Yveres muttered, wincing as a faint sting of pain shot through him.
The priest tossed the contraption onto the table before turning to him.
"Who invented this piece of machinery, and how had they done it?" he asked inquisitively, his gaze locked onto Yveres's—hard and steady.
"Pfft—you can flay me alive, and you still won't get any answer from me!" Yveres's voice echoed through the room, a determined smirk curling at the corner of his mouth.
The priest simply stared at him flatly, his gaze unwavering.
"Your friend is alive." He paused, as if expecting a reaction from him. "In exchange for his whereabouts, I will have to require your answers to my questions."
Yveres stiffened. Not out of shock, but from a glimmer of hope. The pain from his severed arm didn't subside, but for a moment, it slipped from his mind.
"Like I'll believe you!" he exclaimed, though his voice faltered slightly, betraying a hint of doubt.
"Would you like to take the chances that he is alive or not?" the priest taunted, squinting in amusement.
At this point, Yveres couldn't bear the thought of Falles being dead. No matter how much he resisted giving up the information, a part of him still wanted to believe the priest—that Falles was still alive.
"What are you going to do with it?" he asked, glancing at the apparatus, its surface crusted with dried blood, before looking back at the priest.
"We are going to use it for the conquest of your land, establish a new deity, and perhaps exterminate a portion of your kind when necessary."
"You mongrels will never succeed in taking our nation." Yveres's expression tightened, his voice unyielding. "You can try as much as you'd like, but the rulers will make sure you're struck down instantly."
The priest squinted dubiously at his words, unsure whether it was bravado or a genuine threat.
Rulers? Not a god?
He crossed his arms, assessing the weight of his words.
"Tell me—"
"Boss!" A deacon barged into the room frantically. "Someone has intruded the castle!"
'Tch, now?'
The priest's gaze hardened at the deacon before glancing at Yveres.
"Interrogation may be another time."
With his mere presence, the lights instantly deactivated, plunging the room into pitch-black darkness.
All of a sudden, an overwhelming pressure bore down on Yveres, seemingly from the sheer presence the priest exuded. Stupor struck him momentarily, but he endured it, managing to say conscious the entire time.
The priest and the deacon darted hastily through the hallway toward the entrance of the castle.
"Any information on intruder?" the priest inquired, his gaze flickering around the place as if searching for something.
"According to the others, it was a human."
"Tch, another one from the barrier?"
"We could not obtain the exact details, but apparently, but it seems the guards were unable to restrain him."
They both made their way to the bailey, the source of the commotion, to investigate.
In the Pitch-Black Chamber
Falles... I'll have to make you wait a little longer.
Yveres slowly channeled his Rage into a single point of his back. Though he was no wielding this power, he could gauge the strength of the chains restraining him, allowing him to estimate the amount of Rage needed to break free. After a couple of seconds, the chains shattered, and he was free.
The room's surroundings were imperceptible, completely engulfed in utter darkness. Even though he had already broken free from the chains, he still couldn't escape his confinement.
The walls were robustly built, and Yveres had only a small amount of Rage left in his arsenal.
Suddenly, the ground began to quake.
What's happening?
The surface shook jarringly, though the walls of the confinement didn't seem to sway.
Everything seemed to move in slow motion.
He watched as the ceiling was ruptured by a luminous blast, its purple radiance dazzling him, followed by a thunderous roar that was almost deafening. His ears were ringing perpetually as he lay on the ground, bracing for protection.
How did it come to this?
Slowly, he managed to stand up and scanned his surroundings. Looking slightly above him, he saw a glimpse of the palace in a demolished state.
'Falles... are you alive yet?' he muttered under his breath in despair, agape at the landscape. Then, he realized that they had been taken far away from the barriers.
He took a moment to contemplate whether to save Falles or abandon his beliefs and save only himself, only to end up deciding the latter.
The palace seemed to be situated near the countryside.
Yveres's body plowed through the dusty air, running along the hallway partially blocked by debris.
I would never want to die in a place like this!
He stumbled along the path, and his severed arm started to bleed from overexertion.
Just a little more!
He felt his body weakening as he trudged forward.
Suddenly, he heard another loud blast nearby, causing the ground to shake once more. He quickly lost his balance and tripped, causing him to groan in pain.
The exit was just there, illumining the dimly lit hall that seemed to waver faintly. Standing before it was the silhouette of someone.
As Yveres's vision became less blurry, he slowly recognized the figure. Their vibrant purple hair irradiated the scenery, amplified by their pristine violet eyes. Held by their hand was the contraption that seemed to be already broken.
A human?!