420 Apocalypse (2)
The portal was visible in the demon continent and the entire world! People all across the globe could see it in the sky, and it was customary to think that it was the end of the world they knew.
“We are all dead! The end of times is near!”
They yelled from different places, in other languages, but their perception was the same. It did not look like a good situation, and even Arthur, someone confident in his strength, was scared!
“Leonard, the portal… they… they already opened it!” Arthur said, pointing at the sky with his right finger.
He did not want to admit it or recognize what was happening before his eyes, but there was no denial. The portal Leonard was talking to opened, and they were too late to stop it.
“Fuck. What should we do now?” Leonard said.
Arthur calmed down after a deep breath, “we should first get my friends who are trapped down here,” he said, and Leonard nodded in response, agreeing with whatever Arthur was suggesting, even though he did not know who these friends were.
“They are down there? Let’s go now; this is the best opportunity. The dungeon guards will surely go outside to see what is happening, so we have a chance.”
It was the same thought Arthur had in mind, so he and Leonard went inside the dungeon, using the small entrance he had found a few minutes before their conversation after digging it.
A tiny one and each one had to go separately, which hindered their movements by a little, but nothing that should get in their way. The world was ending, after all, and the elves were not concerned about guarding some prisoners.
“Are you sure they are here? We have other things to do with this whole end of the world thing.”
“I am sure, trust me. Also, do you know how to stop this portal?” Arthur asked.
While his avatar was there, his main body was inside the Von Stein family, and if they were the ones who started this mess, then indeed, their territory would have the answer on how to stop it.
Also, his main body was the only one at rank four — his avatar was still in the third rank — so it was not like he could win against the horde of beasts using his avatar.
“I am unsure, but the Von Stein family is behind this thing, so we have to return to the castle and stop this before the situation gets irreversible. I bet Tessa, her father, Malak, and the entire Blue Rose Order are already thinking of a way to stop this.”
“I hope they are because there is no reason to kick the Von Stein family out of the command chain if there’s no world to rule.”
Leonard did not say a word afterward, and both focused on finding Jake and Agatha. So, they sneaked inside the dungeon’s tunnels, looking everywhere for Arthur’s friends, and although the jail was big, there weren’t that many prisoners around.
A handful of cells with elves Arthur had never seen, and two of them he had, Jake and Agatha. They were in separate ones, and they could not hold their tears when they saw Arthur.
“Arthur! You are here to save us?” Jake said, kneeling on the damp harsh dungeon floor, with his clothes ragged, especially in the knee parts.
Not only Jake but all the other prisoners there saw Arthur as their savior, and they all asked for help.
“Please, get us out of here! The elves are insane and practicing some weird stuff. We did not do anything, only seek the truth, and look what they did to us?”
Arthur did not know if he should believe in these other elves, but Jake, who could not lie to him after selling his soul, said, “they are speaking the truth, Arthur. This is a prison built only for those seeking answers who disagreed with how the elves were acting!”
He looked at all of them and said, “Alright, everyone. I know you are happy to leave this prison, but something is happening outside! A huge portal opened up in the sky, and beasts came from it. We can safely say this could be the end of the world, and I will not let you die inside this place like rats.”
Arthur then opened up each cell, yet all the elves inside were still shocked, trying to process the words they had just heard.
Some of them believed it was only a joke, and of course, that was what everyone on the planet wanted to believe in, but the facts right in front of their eyes were pointing to something else, and when all of them went outside, seeing the portal with their eyes, they believed in Arthur’s words.
“This… The world is truly ending!”
They all ran away from that forest and dungeon, going as fast as they could, looking for their families. Agatha wanted to do the same, and Jake went with her.
“Are you sure you don’t want to come with me? You know you have to obey me,” Arthur said when he and Jake were alone.
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“All right. You shall go, but if this world does not end, you must keep serving me, understood? And keep that love of yours safe, will you?”
Jake smiled, “you betcha,” and then he left, running away with Agatha, looking for her family.
All the elves left, leaving only Arthur and Leonard in there, who knew exactly what their next moves should be.
“We have to return to the Von Stein castle, now!” he said, jumping up high and flying away with magic’s help.
Arthur did the same, but he flew using his red mantle, and when he passed by Leonard, he grabbed him by the arm, “we don’t have much time; we have to go faster!”
Leonard did not have a saying in that as Arthur increased his speed using his red mantle, and the two vanished on the horizon.
~~~~
The massive portal in the sky was even more significant when looking at it from the Von Stein family castle — that was its origins, after all.
Arthur looked at it, and with the help of his avatar and the explanation given by Leonard, he knew the answers to stop whatever was happening lay in the very castle he was in.
“I must hurry,” he thought as he wandered around in the castle, trying to look for answers, yet before he could do anything, the two rank four mages appeared before him.
Harker and Alastair, the two rank four vampires who took care of the Von Stein family. Judging by the look on their faces, they weren’t there to say hello, or ask how Arthur’s stay was going.
“Placidusax, may I ask what you are doing?” Alastair, the ancient vampire, asked.
Arthur looked at him and smiled, “don’t you see? You are the ones who opened up this portal, and I am the one looking for a way to stop it.”
When he said that, both parties went silent, staring at each other with hatred.