100 Chapter 100 – Leaving a Bad Dream (1/2)

The ziggurat behind me was heaped with the dead. Tremble had snickered as he told me about how they were screaming in disbelief about how a hairless monkey could be killing like this, even as he howled and jabbered and mocked them ceaselessly right back.

Likewise, the plaza was carpeted in serpentfolk. We had killed thousands of them, a huge blow to whatever kind of population center this was. Serpentfolk didn't reproduce quickly, so butchering so many of them was going to be harsh on the ole sustainability index. Pity, pity.

”Let's go, Ecto. Honor guard, draw up!” My sword and board company ran up, their magical blades and shields lighting up impressively, the hyn refugees warded between them. We lined up smartly, and headed back up the ziggurat.

Most of the corpses were burning away, and an easy kick exploded them into ashes. I could sense a lot of eyes on us, and Tremble informed me there were a lot of hissing curses being ladled down upon my head, which terrified me to the bone, truly.

Unobstructed, passing layer after layer of the ziggurat heaped with the dismembered corpses of the serpentfolk, we headed to the top one more time, and the way home.

They hadn't tried to do something clever, like come up the opposite side of the ziggurat. Maybe the mounds of dead going vivic deterred them. Reaching the top, I walked right through the vortex to the far side, and yeah, there were snakes gathered up at the far side of the plaza beyond and down over there, looking back up at me with whatever passed for hate in their slitted eyes… but they weren't getting any closer.

My previous Interdiction had dissipated, so I just held my Null in tight as I walked back to the hynfolk, who had paused just at the top, staring at the vortex.

”Go. There's hard reality on the other side, probably where you came from. Without the priest to control it, it should shut as soon as you are all gone. And I just might rip it apart, to make sure.” I winked at Ecto. ”I hear you won't be going back home empty.”

He flushed. The hyn had volunteered themselves for the vital duty of looting the dead to the skin, and if they got to knife a few who weren't quite dead, well, cathartic release of stress and all that, we forgave them. Pretty much all the hyn were clutching bundles of gold, jade, and obsidian trinkets, and if some gemstones worked their way into the mix, I still didn't care.

Ecto solemnly stepped forward to take my hand. ”I-I've never even dreamed of seeing a hero like you, Sage Sama,” he managed to blurt out, as awed and overcome as the rest of the hyn after seeing me slaughter so many serpentfolk so fast. You just don't piss off someone who can take out an army solo, after all.

”Dream?” I cringed, and being a hyn, he got it instantly, and smiled despite it. ”Alright, quit poking fun at me. Off with you. Make sure you either sell ALL of that shit, or preferably melt it down. You don't want them using magic to track the stuff to get a lock on you again, right?” I looked over all of them, and they nodded quickly. ”Good, then. Off with you, and don't dream of this place.”

I made a shooing motion, and Ecto turned, indicating that the nearest of them should step forwards. His fellow hunters took deep breaths, and trotted forwards into the vortex. The yellow mists swirled over them, and swallowed them up.

”Go! Time differentials, go go go!” I ordered, and the rest of the hyn fairly jumped, dashing forward with all their might.

”Thanks again, Sage Samaaaaaaa-” Ecto began, and I grabbed and threw him after his fellows before any magical hijinks could separate him from the rest of them.

They all vanished, and I whipped out Tremble and Cut. The threads of magic holding open the dimensional breach shattered, and I Interdicted. The Veil slammed together like solid steel closing, the vivic burst as it did so making sure that there'd be no holes punched in the Veil here for a long, long time.

I looked around the top of the place, back at my men, who were staring at the place where the vortex had swirled with strange expressions on their face.

The hyn had escaped, but that was not their fate, and they knew it. If they took that portal, they'd just fade into mists of dream once more… except they probably wouldn't come back at Renewal.

-We have won this day.- Thousands of inner eyes turned my way. -More then any fight, more then any slaughter, we WON today.- I surveyed them all, letting them know how much I approved of what they had done, what we had done. -We fought for a reason beyond the Curse that makes us do so. Hopefully, we have done something good. We have saved those who needed to be saved, and delivered them home, at the same time we put our boots on the throat of a great and terrible evil and let them know what we think of them.

-I have never been so proud of you.- Chests came out, heads went up, and eyes almost teared.

-Now, what are you all standing around for?! Loot these bastards clean!-

They roared out happily, and went scampering gleefully for plunder.

Dead, and real Karma. The Glory Award of delivering the hyn home and closing the Portal ghosted over my soul with some real decent numbers, that would surely be useful when actual reality came around.