Capítulo 30: The Journey (1)
"Mohg, have you finished your task?"
"Yes, my lord."
"Good. Make sure you treat them well. We will send them back after that 'Day'."
"As you order, your Majesty."
Raphael sighed and looked around. Professor Obel and his assistant Beth were sleeping. Luster, Kim, and Dorn would wake up soon and bring more information about what was happening in Central Antarctica. Sunny was also sleeping after returning.
"Sigh… I need some coffee."
Raphael's body was unique, so he didn't really need sleep. But sometimes, he wanted to feel more "human" and do things that humans did.
An hour later, Sunny woke up. With him, the pods slid away, announcing the Awakeners' return.
Sunny looked at the three awake Awakeners and spoke:
"Quentin, Belle, Samara – your turn."
The three Irregulars couldn't wait to get some much-needed rest. They were so exhausted that they didn't even stay to hear the report from their colleagues about the Dream Realm. A minute later, all three were gone to the sleeping pods.
"So?"
His soldiers exchanged glances. After a few moments, Dorn was the first to speak.
"It's not good, Captain."
…This time, Sunny did smile.
"Wow. Who could have guessed?"
The giant man nodded awkwardly, then started the report.
"From what we found out, East Antarctica is still under human control, but the Antarctic Center… it's a mess."
His face darkened.
"The Saints managed to kill one of the Titans, but two more remain. A part of the mountain chain was destroyed in the battle. But that's not the worst part…"
Sunny let out a frustrated sigh.
"Just get to the point."
Dorn looked down.
"The siege capital our division was supposed to establish… it's gone. Wiped off the map. The survivors – soldiers and civilians – are retreating to other strongholds. There's no organized First Army force left between here and Mount Erebus, sir."
Sunny stayed silent for a long time, his expression resentful.
'Just like that.'
Their 400-kilometer journey… had just become 1,000 kilometers.
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Two days later, they finally received word from Master Jet. The message had passed through several people before reaching Sunny. It was simple – retreat to Erebus and meet with Davis and his cohort of Irregulars.
Raphael and the others were inside the Rhino, waiting for Sunny's command.
After a few minutes, Sunny's voice came over the communicator.
"…Luster. Bring the Rhino to the edge of the coastal highway."
When they reached Sunny, Raphael stepped out of the Rhino and asked:
"What's wrong, Captain?"
Sunny didn't answer. He simply pointed at a line of military vehicles.
'Civilians…'
The convoy was already close, but they hadn't noticed him yet.
Striking the butt of the Cruel Sight into the ground, Sunny hesitated, then activated the [Light Eater] enchantment.
Immediately, the spear's silver blade glowed brightly. It looked like a small sun in his hand. Behind him, Belle and Dorn emerged from the APC with their weapons ready. Samara lay on the roof of the vehicle, resting her chin on her rifle.
The other three Irregulars stayed inside, guarding Professor Obel and Beth.
The spear's light was too bright to ignore. Finally, the soldiers protecting the convoy reacted, turning their turrets toward the unknown threat.
Their faces were tense and fearful. The lead vehicle slowed down.
'I hope they don't start shooting blindly…'
Using the Extraordinary Rock and its [Sonorous] enchantment, Sunny amplified his voice. Calm and heavy, it rolled across the highway, cutting through the wind's howl.
"This is Captain Sunless of the First Irregular Company. Think twice before you shoot."
Luckily, the soldiers held their composure. No bullets flew.
A few minutes later, the convoy's lead vehicle screeched to a halt near the Rhino, forcing the others to stop. A figure in military uniform stepped out, hesitated, and walked toward Sunny. Judging by the lack of armor and the way he clutched his coat, shivering in the cold, he was an ordinary human.
"I'll leave this to you, Captain."
Sunny nodded at Raphael.
Raphael stepped forward. The soldier saluted.
"At ease, soldier."
Raphael examined the convoy, carefully assessing it.
After finishing, he returned to Sunny.
"What's your name and rank?"
The man hesitated, fidgeting with his collar.
"Sergeant Gere, sir."
Sunny glanced at the battered convoy behind him and sighed.
"Here's my order, Sergeant Gere. I'm taking command of this convoy. You did well getting them here. Leave the rest to me…"
Raphael sighed at hearing this.
"So, why were they going south?"
Sunny replied without looking at him.
"They were heading to LO49 to escape on the Ariadne…"
"Oh…"
Sunny gathered the cohort and explained his plan.
First, they needed to reach an abandoned military bunker to check the convoy's vehicles and repair them if necessary. Second, one transport would be emptied, and all passengers moved to the others. The sleepers would be transferred to the infirmary.
Luster would drive the Rhino. Each cohort member would guard a transport. Belle would stay with the infirmary.
Raphael would protect the rear, killing anything that attacked from behind. Sunny would lead the defense at the front.
"Sergeant Gere, your crews are responsible for their own vehicles. Same protocol applies."
The soldier nodded.
"Yes, sir."
Everyone stared at Sunny.
He raised an eyebrow.
"What are you waiting for? Go! I want off the coast as soon as possible."
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Raphael took his great sword from one of the eggs and looked around.
Half an hour ago, they reached the bunker only to find it had become a nest for one of the Monster species.
With Sunny's help scouting ahead, they took down the nest quickly.
As the last of the creatures fell, shadows surged across the underground complex, dragging the corpses out of sight.
…About an hour after entering the bunker, Sunny emerged from the darkness and breathed in the cold air. Then, he looked at the soldiers waiting outside and calmly said:
"Bring the transports inside."
The soldiers stared at him for a few seconds, then turned and walked toward the vehicles without a word.
…What was there to say?
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In the end, they stayed in the derelict bunker for three days. The vehicles of the convoy had turned out to be in a worse state than Sunny had thought, so it took a lot of work for Kim and Samara to get them in shape with Quentin's help. The patchwork repairs they implemented were not pretty, but at least the transports were not going to fall apart on the road, stranding dozens of refugees and bringing the convoy to a halting stop.
In the freezing cold of the polar night, stopping meant death. That was without even considering the swarms of Nightmare Creatures prowling in the dark... the world itself was more than happy to kill them.
The reason for their departure even though the convoy wasn't ready, was because of two horde of abominations, one coming from the east and one from the north.
After three days of rest for some, and back-breaking work to prepare the convoy for the journey ahead for others, the small fleet of vehicles finally left the hangar of the old bunker.
The blizzard had yet to come back, so their position was instantly revealed to everyone who would bother to look. Cutting the darkness with beams of bright light and tearing the silence apart with the rumbling growls of powerful engines, the convoy moved north.
Their long journey had begun.
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Three days had passed, and Raphael wielded his great sword more often than his fingers, hands, or legs.
Killing abominations had become a habit. If he didn't kill at least 30 abominations a day, then something must be wrong!
The convoy had stopped because one of the transports had broken down.
Raphael sat atop the infirmary. From the front, he heard the two Echos that Samara and Quentin had acquired during one of the battles in the past three days. They were growling…
Suddenly, his ability [Seer] began showing him visions of different futures.
In one vision wrapped in a golden thread, he saw a ghastly creature that looked like a mix between a bat and a leech. It had leathery wings, a long neck, and a head that seemed to be one giant, fleshy, circular maw.
In fact, he saw thousands upon thousands of them.
The hazy veil obscuring the sky wasn't caused by the returning blizzard. It was a horde of flying abominations, so vast it resembled a rolling stormfront in the distance.
That massive swarm of abominations was moving swiftly in their direction.
Waking up, Raphael quickly descended and ran toward Sunny.
"Captain! We need to go NOW!"
Sunny, who was talking with Samara, looked at Raphael in confusion.
"I don't have time to explain; we need to leave fast."
"Vice-Captain, the vehicle isn't ready for departure."
"Forget the vehicle!"
For the first time, Sunny saw Raphael lose his composure—which meant something really bad was about to happen.
Raphael looked around and finally spotted Kim. He quickly ran to her and said:
"Kim, share my vision with the others now!"
Kim was surprised and shaken but quickly responded.
"Y... Yes!"
Raphael used his ability, amplifying the vision tenfold beyond the limits of an Ascended.
When Kim shared his vision with the others, they finally saw it...
"D-Damnation!"
Sunny didn't waste time. He ordered the refugees from the fourth transporter to be moved to the infirmary.
A few minutes passed, and everyone was ready to leave.
The refugees were terrified. How could they not be, when even their leaders were visibly afraid?
At the back of the convoy, Raphael glanced eastward.
'...Move, move, move! God damn it.'
Raphael didn't care about himself—not at all. What he cared about were the refugees...
The children crying in their parents' arms, the parents fearing for their children, and the men and women longing to reunite with their families.
He swore on his life that no one would die— even if it ment exposing himself!
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the convoy began moving.
The convoy sped through the mountains as quickly as possible, but the swarm kept closing in.
Raphael gritted his teeth and climbed through the vehicle's hatch.
Standing atop the vehicle, Raphael made himself bleed from every part of his body as quickly as he could, not even slowing his regeneration!
Within minutes, hundreds of blood spears rose into the sky.
The soldiers stared at Raphael, their hearts racing, all thinking the same thing:
'That's why they call him the Fallen Angel of Blood!'
But Raphael didn't care what they called him.
Standing firm on the vehicle, he sent his blood spears toward the horde of flying abominations, while poison-coated bullets fired in tandem.
[You have slain an Awakened Beast, Brood of the Devouring Cloud...]
Raphael continued manipulating the blood spears, killing hundreds of abominations. Yet the horde seemed as endless as before.
At the front of the convoy, the Rhino took a sharp left turn. The vehicles trembled as their wheels left the relatively intact road and entered a more dilapidated one.
Raphael noticed this and realized they were nearing the old tunnel—the nest of a Corrupted Terror. But it didn't matter. They needed to get the refugees to safety, even if it meant entering a dragon's lair.
The convoy wasn't fast enough, and the swarm began attacking. Raphael was sliced and torn apart, but his regeneration outpaced their onslaught.
Looking back, Raphael saw the swarm converging on the Rhino—specifically, on Sunny.
'He must've used that memory.'
Now surrounded by abominations, Raphael was hidden from sight... giving him the opportunity to unleash his full power.
Releasing his control over the blood spears, Raphael raised his hand and commanded:
"Come forth, oh Darkness, and devour everything!"
Darkness erupted from the ground, ripping, melting, smashing, and consuming each abomination in its path.
Noticing Sunny approaching him, Raphael quickly canceled his ability.
"Captain, what are you doing here?!"
"Saving your ass!"
At the same time, black walls rose from the ground, encircling the convoy. Hundreds of Brood beasts crashed against them, but the walls held—at least for the moment.
Ahead, the Rhino finally reached the tunnel and disappeared into its lightless depths. One by one, the other vehicles followed, with Nightmare Creatures in pursuit. The Irregulars swiftly gunned down or destroyed the attackers.
The vehicle Raphael and Sunny were on entered the tunnel last. It rolled forward for a few seconds before coming to a screeching halt.
Raphael jumped to the ground, landing in a roll before standing quickly.
Sunny fell from the roof and hit the ground hard but staggered to his feet. Another wall of shadows rose, sealing the tunnel's mouth behind them—thicker than the previous ones.
It immediately came under savage assault. Though uncracked, its black surface visibly trembled under the relentless blows.
In the echoing silence of the tunnel, Sunny bent over, spat blood, and looked up tiredly.
His voice was strained:
"Someone better blow up that entrance, fast..."
With Sergeant Gere's explosives, Kim's ability to pinpoint weak spots, and Professor Obel's knowledge of mundane science, they managed to collapse the tunnel entrance with small charges, cutting themselves off from the outside world.
There was no turning back now. Only forward, deeper into the darkness.
But at least they had escaped death... for the moment.
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I think the journey to Falcon Scott will take around 2 or 3 more chapter, since every chapter here is around 30 in the main novel.
Anyway see you tomorrow👋
Also don't forget to write a review on this chapter!
For anyone wants to know which chapter ended on chapter 930 in Shadow Slave.
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