-Callia-

  When I went into the dungeons, I never imagined they would store so many people here. Luckily I decided from the start not to rush myself in the transfer process. Small groups of several hundred packed to the limit and then rushed through the gate as fast as possible. Then while waiting for a new group to form, I would rest until my mana fully recovered. Somehow the evil presence wasn’t catching on to the mass escape of prisoners, which meant even as the hours passed, nobody came to check the prison. As the cells being emptied moved deeper and deeper into the dark of the prison, I also moved the gate itself further from the entrance. At some point I lost track of time, with most of my effort lying between waiting and watching the evil presence's reaction and communicating with Callen to facilitate the transfer.

  The shift of confusion and then rage in the presence signaled the end of peaceful transfers. Immediately its focus scoured the prison, finally locking in on me with burning hatred. Since I had its attention, there was no reason not to be cheeky. I looked upward and mockingly gave it the middle finger for just a moment before sending the next crowd through. Turning to the people forming for the next group, I left them instructions.

  “The guards have caught on. I’m going to delay them, but I’ll be back shortly; keep everyone gathering here for me.” With that, I darted back through the darkness towards the entrance. I arrived at the door into the prison block only moments later and caught the vault guards right as they were pulling the door open. Without hesitation I summon my bow and open fire on the doorway. Arrows whiz through the distance, and I can hear two men drop before someone slams the door shut. I can’t help but give a small smirk in satisfaction now that they are the ones who have to bypass an angry archer protecting the door. Then again this isn’t a permanent solution. If I had to make any bets, I would almost guarantee a secret passage into the prison to be used in scenarios like this. Or I will eventually be confronted by the sword psycho that is their captain again.

  I shifted my focus entirely to my senses. Just on the other side of the door I could hear the guards quietly breathing as more and more men stacked up and prepared to breach together. Behind me I could also tell that the last of the prisoners were moving towards the gate. I hadn’t been keeping track of how many were left until now, so finding that I was nearly done was a huge relief. Despite my efforts I couldn’t tell if there were any secret entrances. The prison block was large enough to fit thousands of people, so my ability to perceive was limited by the size of the facility.

  As the last of the prisoners gathered, I started searching the void for anything that might be big enough to buy me time to send them off. Unfortunately, I already offloaded most of the random materials we had leftover from past use. Everything left was practical supplies like wands, arrows, and some incomplete inventions. Only two things big enough to bar someone’s passage were Callen’s emergency defensive stone sphere and the mobile traveling shelter. The sphere wouldn’t really function to bar their paths, as nothing stopped them from rolling it aside, so I set my sights on the only alternative, the mobile shelter. I briefly remember the hours Callen put into making the shelter, but set that aside. I’m sure he’ll only be mildly upset about having to make a new one later. I dash forward, closing the distance between me and the door before reaching out and concentrating. The shelter was far bigger than anything I had tried summoning prior, and I immediately found myself struggling to shift it out of the void.

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  The presence must’ve signaled the guards because the moment I stopped, they rushed through the gate. I pressed more mana into the skill, pressing with all my strength to try to manifest the door as the guards closed in. I felt something crack, and in the next moment the shelter ripped apart with half materializing in my hand directly above the guards. I leaned to the side at the last moment as the foremost guard lunged forward, escaping the chunk of shelter. I swung my foot out, catching the guard's feet in a smooth leg sweep, sending him tumbling to the ground. I glanced at the chunk of the shelter and found the other guards hadn’t been able to get past and were crushed. With one hand I charged a mana strike, and with the other I summoned the other half of the shelter on top of the first. I turned around as the guard got back on his feet and lunged past him while casually patting the guard's chest, causing him to scream and collapse inwards. I reached over to Callen, giving him the signal to open the gates while I sprinted back to the gate.

  “Go!” my voice echoed out to the crowd, and the last of the prisoners took the chance to flood through the gate. At the very back of the crowd, the elder I gave the key to stopped before passing through.

  “Saviour, thank you; before I go, you should know that there are others who have been taken elsewhere.” I gave a nod of understanding, and he immediately followed the others in passing through the gate. Instinctively I accepted his statement with a sense of foreboding. Before I could spend more time contemplating the issue, my eyes snapped to the sound of metal plates hitting and pressing against stone. A team of twenty vault guards ran to me from the opposite side of the entrance. Fortunately, it seems they were just a bit too late. I stored the void gate and raised my bow. Arrows whistled through the space, hammering the guards relentlessly. Some managed to intercept in the initial volley, but as I started mixing up my use of skills, they faltered and collapsed. The foremost of the guards without cover were turned to pincushions, and those behind, seeing the swift dismantling of their companions, dived for cover in the prison cells.

  Behind me I heard the shattering of stone. Something had just shattered my blockade. I darted forward, zipping past the hiding guards. I leaned on my instinctive tracking to trace the guards' paths back to the secret passage. One of the guards I darted past stepped out, taking a shot at me with his bow, but I easily twisted out of the way and kept going. Further behind me, I could feel the ramping pace of heavy hooves stomping firmly against the stone. I slide to a stop as the tracks twist into a nearby cell and come to an end. Immediately I notice the small groove around the edges of the bed, but I can’t seem to find a trigger to open it from this side. The pounding of the hooves slowly closed in. I pulled out a stoneshaping wand and forcefully shifted the stone to open the way. Just before whatever monster was sent after me arrived, I slipped into the tunnel below.

  A vault guard below in the tunnel tried to stop me, but a firm boot to his chest sent him flying backward into the wall and out of my way. I ran deeper until I felt reasonably sure whatever it was in the prison wasn’t pursuing me anymore. I let out a relieved sigh and took the chance to get my bearings and decide on what to do next. I take a moment to debate between trying to hunt down and rescue the others or rejoining with the paladins. Eventually I sigh as I give in. If I weren't being watched by the demon in charge, maybe trying to rescue the others would be reasonable, but as things stand, I can’t be sure if escaping on my own is still within my power. At the very least I won’t have to deal with the space mage locking me down, so it should be comparatively easier to escape and return for the others later.

  With my plan set, I turn my mind back to the present. I continued down my only path until the sound of heavy boots echoed from the darkness ahead. Far down the dim light of the hall, the forms of heavily armed vault guards marching in formation behind metal riot-style shields came into view. I tested them with a power shot, and predictably, the shields glowed as they resisted the first arrow. My second arrow, imbued with unblockable, raced off, piercing the enchantments with ease, but it lacked the strength to push through the thick metal. I couldn’t help but frown as I realized that this was equipment specially designed to counter me. I backed up at the pace of the guards marching, my mind racing on what to do. I didn’t trust myself to handle close combat with more men than I could accurately count from listening. Looking between the dungeon and its monster and the formation filled to the brim with guards, I weighed my options grimly. My eyes locked on the shields, and as I summoned my spear, I made my choice.

  Daniel 12:2 NIV - Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt.