Chapter 1375 (1/2)

The soft yellow curtains along Tessa’s windows were pushed back to reveal the whole of the situation of the outside world. From the 23rd floor of the Rosebud Apartment Complex, which was one of the newer housing developments thrown up along Franksburg’s Westside, Tessa had an excellent view of the ominous battle that was happening in the sky above Earth.

In her opinion, her vision was too unobstructed. She almost couldn’t look away.

Tessa winced as another strange tremor of pain radiated outward from the darkness above. She couldn't sense it coming, but it hit her and locked out her brain as her soul tried to manage the abrupt pain. Turning away from the window, she walked across her study, out into the hallway, then down to the kitchen. Her hands were trembling as she removed a glass from the cupboard and began filling it with water from the faucet.

But right as she was lifting the glass to her lips, another horrible, jarring wave hit Tessa. She spat out the water on her lips and her numbed hand dropped the glass into the sink. It shattered with a loud noise, bits of glass skittering across the smooth metal surface before they gradually spun and settled.

At first, the people of Franksburg had wondered if the darkness in the sky had been a reward for passing the trial, but word had quickly come out from the Order Ducis that this was not a reward of any sort. It was something much worse. And while Tessa was glad to see that the Order Ducis was finally taking some responsibility for keeping the Earth united, she only felt despair when those horrible waves radiated downward from what was happening above.

It was clear just from experiencing the intermittent waves that whatever was happening was not good for Earth. The System that had given them all strength was being attacked directly by an enemy bent on its permanent destruction.

Tessa slumped onto the tiled floor of her kitchen, too exhausted to address the issue of the shattered glass in her sink. She wrapped her arms around herself, trying to quell her shaking. Her fingers tightened on the fine cotton of her blouse. “I know I wished the System would be destroyed and we would no longer need to horde power… but… I didn’t want things to end like this-”

CRACK!

It was a small noise, but one that made Tessa squirm in immediate discomfort. Then her eyes widened and she scrambled to her feet. It was clear that something had changed with the struggle that was going on in the sky. When she rushed back through the hallway and into her study, Tessa arrived just in time to see a huge amorphous blob of darkness smash into the rolling hills West of Franksburg. Small stones and dust blasted outward in an earthy sort of halo.

A few smaller blobs of darkness could also be seen dropping from the sky toward other locations, but it seemed that whatever this new foe was, it would come toward Franksburg first. The largest portion had come here.

Due to the fact that the area around the Rosebud Apartment Complex was still being developed, Tessa had a completely uninhibited view out of the city. Which meant she could see Lucifer striding along the low wall that ran around Franksburg and the smoky crater a few hundred meters beyond the wall where the dark blob had landed.

Seeing both set the hairs along the back of her neck to slowly rising. The difference in tension gave her a bad feeling.

Gradually, figures began to stir within that crater with an almost lazy energy about them. Strange, twisted monsters that seemed to just be silhouettes skittered outward from the shadows, raising their heads to examine the air in front of them. From her vantage point, Tessa could see the air around these inky-black monsters rippling and shimmering with their passage. It was as though the very substance of their bodies attacked the surrounding space, constantly corroding the air.

And as Tessa watched, that impression of corrosion was reinforced as the area around the impact began to ripple and shudder. Tessa even had to blink several times to see if she could clear her vision, but the distortions continued to get worse. It seemed that the space in the surrounding area was deteriorating before her very eyes. Everything was vibrating lines and blurry details.

First a dozen of the monsters, then a hundred, then an additional hundred each second erupted from the impact site in a vibrating swarm. They didn’t form up in any sort of organization as they appeared, but each just began to wander outwards, radiating a dreadful energy that was practically palpable to the viewer. Tessa watched as Lucifer barked out some orders and a hundred of Franksburg’s most powerful Classers stepped forward to the edge of the wall.

As one, they fired powerful ranged Skills targeting the strange monstrosities that wandered nearest to the edge of the Village. The Classers’ aim was accurate, but Tessa didn’t miss the way most of the Skills dimmed and slowed as they neared the foes. Several monstrosities were smashed by the attacks and knocked over, but they soon straightened and turned their focus toward Franksburg with an animalistic fury. The disparate groups of monstrosities began to gather and rumble forward as more and more reinforcements flowed out of the impact point.

By this point, Tessa was convinced they were corroding the Earth just by their presence. Looking toward the crater and all the surrounding visual distortions was enough to give her a headache. But she didn’t dare to tear her eyes away.

She was afraid that if she looked away for a second, humanity would start to die and she would be taken by surprise when her own death arrived at her doorstep.

Her shudders of fear had grown worse. Tessa pressed her palm against the cool glass, wishing this was all a dream. This was why we let you rule over us Randidly, despite how poorly suited to the role you were. So… please… just…-!