am-books Chapter 545: Missing Remains
Chapter 545: Missing Remains
Chapter 545: Missing Remains
So, youre his girlfriend? Dark asked.
One of the negatives of having a dragon in ones realm was that the dragon had access to a lot of information, not to mention that it, like Dallion, was an empath.
Something like that, Eury replied. Maybe because it was the only entity she could talk to, she found the dragon rather amusing.
Cool. Are you stronger?
Shes strong enough to beat you to a pulp if you dont start flying straight, Dallion interrupted.
Watching his trainee and hopefully still significant other discuss him wasnt the most comfortable experience. Now he understood how Vend must have felt at the time. The only difference was that Dallion didnt consider himself as annoying.
Dark snarled, then deliberately made two hoops in the air. The sad thing was that Dallion couldnt tell whether it was to annoy him, or to impress Euryale. Mostly likely it was both.
Having a dragon to fly with definitely presented an improvement to the standard mode of transportation. With Lux unable to manifest fully for some reason, Dark reduced the amount of time spent traversing the realm from weeks to hours. Already he was above the desert sea, which marked the mid-point of the realm. So far, there had been no trace of all the towns and settlements on the map. They hadnt come across any temples or other structures, either. The only hope remained the last major city in the hilt area.
What level are you? Dark asked.
You cant ask that. Dallion sighed.
Why not? The dragon sounded surprised. Im twenty-nine.
You need to keep your level and skills secret. Otherwise, opponents will use that against you. Im starting to sound like Nil again, Dallion thought.
Its alright. To Dallions surprise, the gorgon didnt seem to mind. Im seventy-two.
Dallion did his best to hide his surprise. It had been a while since they had discussed levels, but he distinctly remembered her not being that high. Similar to him, she had increased quite a lot levels recentlyfar more than Dallion had. Clearly, her desire to rejoin the hunter guild wasnt a fancy made at the last moment. It was clear that Dallion was going to have to up his game and, in more senses than one.
Wow! Thats a lot! No wonder you can beat him up. Dark didnt miss a jab as his mentor. Maybe you should train me instead. I might actually learn something.
Guess Ill need to have a word with Harp, Dallion said in a low voice.
The dragon instantly tensed up. If there was one being he remained terrified of it was the nymph guardian.
Pleased with the result, Dallion split into instances to check the map.
The fifth temple should be on the other side of the sea, he said once back to normal. At least it used to be. Maybe well get lucky and he abruptly stopped. Eagles!
Everyone prepared for battle. Even this high up in the air, there were still creatures willing to fight. In this case, the culprits were massive eagles that rivaled Dark in size. Individually, they werent difficult to handle. However, they were quick to adapt and just as stubborn as the other predators in the world. It seemed that the plague had changed the fauna in exactly the same way, the dryad ruler had hoped it would change the population. All non-awakened creatures had perished, some faster than others, leaving only awakened to roam the land. Even small critters like mice and rabbits were awakened at some level. As for the larger predators, they had developed egos and abilities reserved for one at the top of the food chain.
COMBAT INITIATED
Line attacks split the air, flying towards Dark and his passengers from a flock of eagles so far in the distance that they looked like dots in the sky.Visitt (.)co/m for the latest updates
Both Dallion and the dragon burst into instances. Dark used his acrobatic skills to fly safely from the attacks, while Dallion shadowed him, making sure to intervene only when the dragon messed up. Fortunately, there was no need to.
Passing through the cats cradle of destruction, Dark let out a cone of air aimed at the flock of enemies. To no surprise, it didnt hit any of its targets. The eagles easily evaded the air cone, not even going through the trouble to resort to combat splitting.
Youre too far away for ranged attacks, Dallion said in a harsh voice. Keep the element of surprise until you can actually do something with it.
The dragon snapped his tail like a whip. It was obvious that he felt embarrassed by being corrected in front of Eury.
A second groups trying to flank us, the gorgon said. I expect there might be one more hiding in the clouds.
Theyre using strategy? Dallion sounded surprised. Thats not something you see often.
You say that because you havent had to hunt shadow crows.
The desert sea below was coming to an end, changing abruptly into wide plains full of grass and flowers. Looking from above, it seemed like an idyllic place. Yet, to a non-awakened it was like slow poison.
There was no sign of the temple at the coast or any large cities, for that matter. However, in the distance, Dallion managed to glimpse something familiar.
Theres a city of towers, he said. Think we should check it out?
Euryale didnt reply.
They might know something.
If you want, she didnt sound convinced. Not with dark, though. He might freak them out.
I can change into someone else, the dragon quickly said. I can change into a gorgon even.
Despite his looks hes pretty good at illusions, Dallion admitted. I think itll be better if he keeps his form, though. Less people will be inclined to attack a dragon.
Alright. Just be careful.
A dozen instances of Dark flew to the city, landing on the tallest tower. In none of them was there any attack. In fact, in none was there any reaction at all.
Drawing his harpsisword, Dallion prepared for an attack as he walked about the roof of the tower. But that didnt happen either. After a while, Dallion started noticing subtle signs that the place was abandoned: grass growing in the cracks, moss visible in parts of the walls, not to mention a complete silence only broken by the whistle of the wind.
Is anyone here? Dallion shouted in dryad. His worlds bounced off the towers with a slight echo, but nothing happened. Gleam, check the buildings on the ground. Dark, you fly about and keep an eye from the sky. Well check the towers.
Why do you get to have fun? the dragon asked, but still flapped into the air.
Its hardly fun, Dallion thought.
Soon he was proven right.
The remains were on the eleventh floor of the main towera pile of clothes in the center of what should have been a gathering hall. The entire floor was nothing but one big open space with partial walls depicting pictures of a glorious past: mighty rulers in heroic poses, the Star bringing its blessings from the sky, the city in its creation, the erection of the towers. At some point, the dryads must have believed that they were on the verge of achieving a utopia. Maybe they had died believing it as well. There was no sign of the bodies. Dallion had no idea how people form in this realm would die, but judging by the animals, they must have left bodies behind. The fact that he couldnt find them suggested that someone had done something to evaporate them, or put them to rest.
On the floor, carved with crude letters, was a phrase: the last thing someone must have written before giving up on life.
What does it say? Euryale asked.
We thank the Star, Dallion whispered. They probably died waiting for him.
In that case, its better that they died before seeing how wrong they were.
It was a harsh thing to say, but Dallion saw her point.
Do you think the plague got them?
That or starvation. When theres no awakened to bring safe food, theres nothing they can do.
Maybe some managed to get out and reach another city? Dallion suggested.
Maybe, Eury said in a tone of voice that suggested that she didnt believe it.
We should bury them, Dallion said, moving away from the message on the floor.
There arent any remains left to bury.
Theres still the clothes.
Its pointless.
Maybe, but at least we can get a Moon to see what happened and do something about it.