Chapter 23: Through fire and dust
Rhys rushed out of the Burrow before anyone could stop him. As he crossed the threshold, chaos overwhelmed him. People running, children crying, adults pushing each other with panic in their eyes. Some rebels shouted orders, others handed out weapons or helped guide the weaker to shelters.
He wasn’t there to help.
His gaze searched the crowd for a face. Just one.
"Eun-woo..." Rhys murmured, more to himself than anyone else.
His feet began to move before he could think clearly. As the terrified crowd fled, he did the unthinkable: he turned toward the heart of the chaos. He pressed on, weaving through desperate bodies, debris, and shattered concrete.
People of all ages walked past him, faces pale, covered in dust and fear, stumbling over each other in their desperation to survive.
Rhys dodged them one by one, steady and without stopping.
The streets were open with cracks that hadn’t been there before, some filled with fire, others smoking. Above, the sky twisted into violet hues, as if the city were being swallowed by a nightmare. The air gave off a metallic smell.
The mechanical roar coming from the public address system pierced Rhys’s ears. The alarm wasn’t a preemptive signal. It didn’t warn of danger before it arrived. It couldn’t detect the breach in the veil between dimensions until it was too late.
Human technology could barely register the changes in pressure and energy when the Rift was already open... when the monster had already arrived.
Before, when Espers still existed, it was different.