The first group disappeared in a flash of light. The villagers of the Echoes of the Forgotten Dawn were all gone, with the exception of Chief and little Felix who remained behind. The kid stood close to his guardian, his gaze shifting between the pulsing rift from which crates were falling out and the Formation, which was beginning to glow again.
[All aboard!] I called. We had less than half a minute left to leave, and people quickly moved, not daring to be even a second late. Everyone yearned for freedom, and they desperately clung to that one chance. The one chance I graciously granted them.
Nobody cared about their power or social standing from before. They were all equal as they squeezed together on the platform in the Ashen Wastes. Even Thalza, the proud Drow, stood without complaint beside other humans. She too let herself be guided for the chance at freedom.
I approached the rift, the Formation I left behind glowing with power, begging to be released, as a black sphere appeared in my hand. I tossed it inside without a second thought and then took a ring, placing it in the rift. The chaotic surface shook a second later, and the rift began to rapidly close. We were out of time.
However, as the edges of the closing anomaly approached the ring, the object glowed, pushing against the outside force trying to crush it.
I leisurely turned back and stepped on the platform, stopping beside the Chief.
“What was that you tossed through the rift?” The man asked, nervously looking at the ring keeping the rift open. Thener’s new invention was keeping steady, though it was already starting to show signs of wear. As he said, Celestial Metal, while extremely strong, could only hold out so long against the extreme power of the rift.
I looked at the man beside me. [Does it even matter?] I asked with a smile.
“N-No. I guess not.” He answered after a moment. “That place has nothing to do with me anymore.”
[Exactly.]
I grinned and extended my hand, pushing out a massive sphere of chaotic Qi. I let it go, allowing it to slowly float away, and the tied-off strands of energy began to fray, signaling imminent containment collapse.
I could feel the nervousness of the other passengers on the platform rising. Beside me was the Chief on one side and Thalza on the other. Behind was Thener and Bram with Eden and Calla. Even further behind, was the swine, its giant form just barely fitting on the platform.
“That thing looks like it is going to blow.” Thalza mentioned in a flat tone.
[It will.] I nodded and activated the Formation. [But we will not be here to see it.]
As the constraints were released on the long-distance transportation Formation, all of us froze, gripped by the energy from the magic, and with a flash, we were gone. The ball of energy left behind exploded mere seconds later, wiping the platform, the village, and the surrounding kilometer of the Ashen Wastes. It was spectacular. Probably. Too bad there was nobody there to see it.
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The first group of villagers just moved off the platform, when the Formation flashed again and the second, smaller group appeared. Immediately everyone noticed the giant hog in the back, the beast nervously looking around the grand underground hall that was definitely too small for it.
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People just began to move, when the creature suddenly squealed and lightning began to gather around its body. It rushed forward in a charge, knocking everyone out of the, aiming for a wall. Just before it crashed, though, lightning flashed one last time, and it was gone.
[Damn it, piggy! That’s how you leave? Not even a goodbye?!] They heard Gerald’s call.
“Master!” Onyx mentally shouted over the chaos. “You are back!”
The metal golem elbowed its way through the crowd, coming face-to-face with Gerald.
“Now hold on there…” John came behind him and squeezed himself through the sea of people. “Gerald. First of all, I’m glad you are back, but… What the hell is going on?! Who are these people?!”
Things were chaotic. People were shouting over each other, some still shocked by the lightning pig’s antics, others fell to the ground and praised the Heavens with tears in their eyes for being able to return to the real world.
It was loud, it was messy and confusing, and it was chaotic. Not at all a time or place to be giving out detailed explanations.
[Let’s speak somewhere else.] Gerald said and gestured for a few people to follow him. One of those was the Drow.
John groaned and massaged his forehead with the headache that was already forming from all of it. Still, he gestured for everyone to follow him and led them to his office.
“So?” He leaned against the desk and crossed his hands, waiting for the explanation.
[The Lower Plane sucks… for the most part.] Gerald stated and took a seat on a throne he summoned.
“I’m asking you about all these people…” John pushed.
[Right. No need to worry about them, they will be leaving immediately. I already talked things through with the Chief here. Just give them a map of the area and they will go find a nice little place to settle down in.]
John squinted his eyes at the old man Gerald pointed out, and the guy bowed deeply while cupping his hand.
“Hmm. Alright, fine. I expected you to tell me why they came with you, but I guess that can wait. What about these guys?” He pointed at the rest of Gerald’s entourage which included a little kid.
[Oh, these guys work for me. Or they used to, anyway. The kid’s name is Felix, by the way, I boosted his potential to infinity.]
“You… what?” John cocked his head, unsure if he heard things right.
[I purified his Soul. Completely. Anyway, he’s going with the Chief, so there is no need to worry about him. Just, if he asks for help in the future, do give him a hand, alright?]
“Uh, sure…”
[Great! Now, about these guys…] Gerald turned to the remaining five. [What do you think, guys? Want to continue working for me or are you going your separate ways?]
“I’d like to stay.” Bram said. “I still have much to learn from you, Master.”
“Same here. Unfortunately, I have nowhere to return to, so I’d like to stay and continue my studies if that’s fine with you…” Thener humbly added.
“Don’t think you can so easily get rid of me. I’m keeping my eye on you.” Thalza spoke with squinted eyes and an upturned nose. That was already three out of five.
[Cool, cool… The more the merrier, right? What about you?] Gerald turned to the last two. Eden and Calla. They both shook their head.
“It was fun while it lasted, but we’ve got our own things to do. Thanks for the lift, by the way. We really appreciate it.” Cala said.
Gerald nodded, not at all appearing surprised, almost as if he already knew it and just needed confirmation. [In that case, I wish you well. May we meet again, if fate wills it.]
“You done?” John asked.
Gerald grinned. [Yep. These three will stay, the rest can go.]
“Excellent!” John turned to the remaining guests. “Adam will show you the way out. Adam?”
“On it!” Adam called. He was waiting just outside the door, listening in. “This way, people! Please follow me.”
After they left, the office was plunged into momentary silence.
“So…” John began. “I think you owe me a bit of an explanation.”
[How much detail do you want? Got a few hours?]
“I was supposed to be working on some documents, but…” The man gestured at his desk full of papers. “Oh, what the hell, it’s not that important anyway.”
[Well, in that case...] Gerald rubbed his hands together and began the story. [So there I was, fighting that bastard of a Drow High Priest...]