Chapter 179: The Escape, Part 1

The three would be quick in leaving the building, with the sounds and screams of people nearby, finally taking notice in the intruders upon their sacred land. Manipura would gesture for them to follow, with Fiona carrying Vial by his arm, while the Pastor paid attention to the flooring, remembering his tracks when he first visited. Despite the blood and gore, it was still a sidewalk to him. He knows exactly where to go, and exactly how to get there in the fastest way possible. Every turn he'd take, he'd be met with the citizens running towards him in a frenzy, pitchforks and knives at the ready, shouting and hollering to drive them away. Each turn at each corner he'd take, the mob seemed to have covered that specific path already. It was clear that they wouldn't let up until all of them are gone as well. In some cases, he would even pull the two into a secluded alley and wait, watching the mob storm through and search as much as they can, and always, without fail, spot them. "They're relentless....We may need to have someone act as bait to divert them." Manipura would state, with Fiona shaking her head as a response, pointing towards the rooftops. This would make him confused. "Why....exactly do we need to go there?"

"Last time I checked, There's no danger there! Plus, we can go through this place faster if we take that route!" Despite such flawed logic, Manipura would adhere to Fiona's demands, utilizing it alongside his own plan to ensure maximum safety, with the Pastor breaking off and garnering the attention of the townspeople, allowing Fiona and Vial to escape up to the roof and traverse through the area with relative ease. When the two got to the rooftops and scaled through each brickwork, hopping across them to try and reach towards the exit, they'd scream once more. They'd yell and squeal, having something new chase after the two, much to the Pastor's Dismay: Creatures in all black, spouting a draconic appearance, with an eye attached to its center.

The Dragons.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me..." Fiona mumbled to herself, trying not to look at such creatures, shifting positions by having Vial be carried over her back, running across the tilework and being just as fast as the Pastor, recognizing the bigger threat. The Dragons swooped in and tried to destroy the houses, their claw-like wings smashing and battering the buildings, reducing it to mere rubble within an instant. It would force the two to go different directions, taking a longer path, being a more opportune time to get struck down by the behemoths. Seeing their change of pace, the monsters would try to take advantage, trying to split up and have one of them be in front, the other on the back, both covering on different sides in order to force Fiona to gaze upon the eye on its center. The Archer, however, refused. She maintains her vision as close to the rooftops or to anything on her personal as possible, much to Vial's confusion. Despite this, by instinct, he recognized that staring towards the dragons would lead to an irreparable outcome, one in which he would forever scar himself. That was when an idea came to his head, trying to reach out and touch Fiona's eyes. "Wh-HEY! What are you-!?" She would state, her annoyance as she tried to evade his grasp, yet Vial was quick on answering.

"Lemme touch 'em eyes real quick, Missy! I'mma gonn' give 'em a reflective texture!" Vial's response would make Fiona realize the plan, allowing her eyes to be open in order to apply it, her cornea slowly becoming a mirror, before quickly looking up, gazing at the eye directly, as well as the Dragon holding it. Vial would keep his head low, only hearing the sounds of roaring as the beast became infected with its own magic. The Dragon being unfortunate to come under its effect would have its optic nerves burned almost immediately, being blinded as a result, a result that the Archer was aware of. It was mimicking the very eclipse itself.

Meanwhile, Manipura would run across the alleys and streets, gaining more and more attention as the mob came in such a heavy swarm, with his sights on the fallen dragon, taking advantage of its situation, climbing up towards the beast and applying his Chakra Magic on it, striking at the different points with Anahata, slowly healing the beast and attaching back its sight, only now under its obedience. Striking at the heart and making its way across the void-like body, his Chakra would quickly heal such injuries and register its nerves to function in another path, putting them into shock once more. The Pastor would then utilize the Dragon to make short work against the townspeople, letting its eye open once more, forcing everyone to be blinded under its effect, watching them fall as they succumb to the eclipse. He would even have the Dragon face off against its other, making the two scuffle so that the trio can escape easier. Just as they tried to advance further, they would hear something.

Kracc....Kracc.....Kracc....

The sound of bone breaking. It was faint, but it was there. The trio looked towards the source of the sound, watching as the citizens began to shift. Their eyes were still impaired, yet their body began to get up, snapping themselves in place. That was when they noticed something under their clothes. Something growing out of their skin and coating their flesh: Moss. The Marrow was here as well, and it managed to infect the populace with its magic, slowly puppeteering their body with the moss, snapping their body in place and invading their eyes in order to grant them a new method of sight. The group would be confused. How was this possible? How was it doing that? Before they would have any further thoughts, they'd be blindsided on their right, the Dragon swooping in and throwing the other body, slamming them into the ground, causing a small crater and multiple properties being destroyed, just to ensure such damage connected. The group would slowly come in on all sides, ready to issue punishment to the invaders.