Ascendant Zion gulped as he watched the bedlam being wrought in the sky. Several winged creatures shot across the heavens with terrifying speed. But with even more terrifying velocity, strange distinctive beings crashed into the winged creatures, mercilessly and wickedly tearing them apart before they got a chance to dive downward.
Of course, as effortless as the tearing process appeared to his eyes, these distinctive creatures still encountered considerable resistance during their assault.
Nonetheless, it was appalling to witness. Only Sage Rian and his creatures were containing the situation in the sky. And they were facing Behemoths.
He felt his throat grow desert-dry. Over and over again, he tried to surmise how powerful each one of the guy's subordinates must be.
Sages? Ascendants? Paragons?
It typically took a Paragon to take on a Behemoth. Depending on the kind of Ascendant—if they had rich experience spanning around ten years, a honed combat style, and had managed to prepare thoroughly for battle—they could probably handle a Hazardous or Disastrous Behemoth.
But Calamity? Catastrophe?
They wouldn't even dare.
'I wouldn't even dare…'
A fresh Ascendant like him couldn't even come close. He had achieved his rank merely four months ago and had come to the Trade City hoping for vacation and rest. But his rotten luck had led him to this predicament instead of the peaceful respite he sought.
Someone like him could never handle a Hazardous Behemoth. His hands might shatter from a single strike. And yet...
He focused on Night Terror, who ferociously, relentlessly, and persistently slashed at the winged behemoths. Sometimes the creature would use its lower hands to swing swords while wielding viciously curved claws with its upper limbs.
Zion shifted his gaze to the being he had thought strange. That one just hopped from one abomination to another. But Zion could see the precision in each step. Even though the abominations flew with unstoppable speed, the creature would simply shift and jump, landing just as another abomination hurtled toward it.
It was almost as if it was anticipating their movements. Then there was the human who cleanly followed with his own unerringly accurate strikes, shattering creatures with ferocious, enraged attacks.
He would shout gruesomely as he clashed with some abominations, as if they had stolen something precious from him.
There were several others too, and honestly, Zion just wanted to remain rooted to his spot, watching with cold excitement as they engaged the monsters with overwhelming power.
But he also had other things to do.
Ascendant Zion shifted his stance and frowned with evident seriousness as he watched people maintain a line and trail into the tall rift standing before the fountain, leading to the Illusionary Haven.
The air vibrated with disturbing shrieks and distant crashes. Orders echoed from Drifters far ahead, cascading down the chain of command.
People wept openly, a tense and melancholic atmosphere enveloping the evacuation. A saddening mixture of panic, confusion, sobbing children, frantic parents, and fearful glances skyward made the air heavy and burdensome to breathe.
A young man rushed toward him and bowed quickly, speaking with a hurried, reportorial voice.
"This is the last line of civilians, sir. The next shall be those in the hall. But there's a little problem."
Ascendant Zion frowned as he studied the young Drifter's uneasy gaze.
"Speak on."
"There's a lot of opinions circulating. Certain merchants feel they don't know the state of where they're going—as far as they're concerned, it might be another trap. They're demanding the Paragon himself escort them out and protect them personally. Some refuse to leave their precious goods. The Drifters among them are rather devastated and contest that they can't push through a monster-infested forest when there's a safe place. They claim we're misaligning priorities."
Ascendant Zion remained silent for several heartbeats. A tense frown creased his features, his brown eyes gleaming with obstinacy.
"It seems we have quite an issue on the ground."
The fellow Drifter standing guard before him nodded and awaited his response with focused intensity.
Ascendant Zion crossed his arms, contemplating deeply for a moment.
Of course, he could understand some concerns, but some people were just so infuriatingly shortsighted.
The merchants had been thorns in everyone's side since the beginning of the blockade.
First, they hoarded resources, refusing to release supplies for the entire populace to survive on. Eventually they relented, but only with strictly controlled distribution, prioritizing themselves over others when rationing their goods.
Many couldn't blame them entirely—they were merchants who'd rather perish than squander resources. A handful would face bankruptcy after this ordeal concluded, forced to scavenge to rebuild—if they survived at all.
Paragon Raizel had shown patience with them to some extent, but when his tolerance waned, he resorted to threats. That had prompted their reluctant release of goods, though they maintained control through deception or manipulation.
The Drifters, too, were being foolish. Their inflated sense of importance led them to believe they deserved protection over civilians who "didn't benefit the world as much as they did."
Of course, there were more sensible Drifters than these moronic ones.
Ascendant Zion exhaled deeply and refocused on the young Drifter.
"Just focus on those willing to evacuate. Separate them from the rest and begin their immediate relocation. Take a group of elites and prevent the resistant Drifters from forcing their way into line. You can request Sage Mack's assistance with that. Don't resort to violence unless absolutely unavoidable, and even then, ensure no fatalities. We've lost enough people."
He paused and glanced at the busy Paragon Raizel, then upward before returning his gaze to the young man.
"Right now, people are risking their lives fighting to protect everyone. It would be quite the shame if we were fighting amongst ourselves and killing each other."
"Yes sir!"
The Drifter responded with vigilant urgency and rushed away, leaving Ascendant Zion to himself.
The Ascendant looked upward, his face draining of color.
'Sage Rian is fighting, we have Sage Rhama and his brother on standby, and everything seems to be under control now. But would we be able to persist?'
He couldn't answer the question himself. Everything appeared stable for the moment, but the worst was yet to come.
And more ominously, there was a terrifyingly massive hand hanging from the rift.
Just in that moment, a disturbing sound made the Ascendant pause his thoughts. Then he shifted his gaze to his side and raised his brow in confusion.
"The healer? What is he doing?"