Dimensional Travels: World at War-Chapter 80: Silence before the Storm

Heith sat on his throne as he looked at a report. The envoy that brought the report to him was shaking in fear. She quivered as mana fluctuated around Heith. The air seemed to press on her neck as she refused to so much as speak.

Heith clenched his jaw. "Mickey is dead, and Ryan’s whereabouts are unknown?"

It was clear he wasn’t asking a question.

"Very well. I will decide what to do after a conversation with my father. Continue searching for Ryan. Call him on those devices the other worlders have."

After Heith left the room, the envoy gasped in relief. She ran her hands along her throat, finally standing up.

"We have to find Ryan, or else."

In the next room, Mithrael’s avatar came to life. Heith stood silently, waiting for his father to speak. His eyes widened as he felt the aura surrounding the Avatar. It was not as oppressive as it used to be.

"Father?"

Mithrael regarded Heith coldly. "Speak nothing of it boy."

Mithrael sat down, crossing his arms. "I saw the threads connecting the berserker hero fade. Did I not tell you to recall the heroes?"

Heith clenched his fists."the messages never made it through, father."

He showed Mithrael the phone. "Error 404." was on the last message.

"Father, we must respond. These rats hiding behind the mountains have now-"

Mithrael held up his hand, silencing Heith. "Silence."

Heith’s body stopped moving. He tried to move his lips or eyes, but couldn’t. His body was frozen under the edict of his father.

"They are not ’rats’, child. No divine member of my household will use that term to describe those we have lost to. You are still speaking as a mortal. You have foolishly sent large armies down the teeth of mountains. Against a vastly technologically superior enemy, that is foolish."

Mithrael stood up, his back to Heith as he looked to his right.

"We will deploy three brigades around the Esponia mountains. Set up the new Brios cannons, and implement the Sraiaz mana trackers." He turned back to Heith.

"And boy. Take out the tops of those mountains. I do not wish to see those otherworlders in their camps any further."

Eric arrived at Lady Bird Lake a few minutes after Mickey passed away. He looked around, seeing Jessica standing against Liam with her head on his shoulder. The surface of the lake was boiling, and shattered glass covered the streets. Sirens began blaring, ambulances arriving en masse.

The air was still. Eric walked up, counting the squad members. "Report."

Jessica gathered her thoughts. "Twelve assigned, twelve present. Hostile hero..."

She paused, trying to find the words for what happened.

"Disentegrated himself as we approached."

Eric nodded as he looked back at the lake.

"You did good, Jessica. I’m proud of you." He whispered before hearing doors opening and clapping noises.

The girl almost collapsed, but she nodded and smiled meekly. "Thank you Dad."

Civilians began to filter out of nearby buildings. A raucous eruption of cheering began to echo in the clearing. Calls of praise for Jessica rumbled from all around the lake. Jessica smiled back, her body still shaking. Liam’s fingers twitched towards his gun as some of the younger men present tried to approach.

After the cheering died down, civilians tried to approach, but Eric stepped forward. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I ask that you refrain from approaching at the moment." He yelled.

A soldier from the squad brought him a microphone, and he continued his commands.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, please refrain from approaching the area. We currently can not allow civilians to approach without verifying if the scene is safe or not."

Eric turned the microphone off as police began showing up. Soldiers and Police stared at each other. A quiet standoff began as Eric approached the Lieutenant.

Both men shook hands while the police began to cordon off the area. "Master Sergeant, what happened?" The Lieutenant asked after radioing for higher. Neither he nor Eric knew who took charge, so they both had contacted their chain of command.

Eric shrugged.

"In this world, magic and sorcery are real." Eric gestured to the body of Mickey. "Apparently this hero was tired of life and burned his own mana."

The Lieutenant shook his head as he studied the body. "Is it safe to approach?"

Eric shrugged again. "I have no idea."

It was then that Eric heard Mia over the radio. "Eric? This is Mia. Can you confirm the target is KIA?"

Eric held back a laugh at the absurdity of this situation. The Lieutenant looked at Eric with an eyebrow arched as he sipped on his energy drink. "My wife." Eric said with a shrug. The lieutenant nodded. "Shes a neko." The lieutenant dropped his energy drink, groaning. "God I hope my guys don’t find out-"

Eric laughed, pointing at the soldiers and cops intermixing. "I think it might be too late for that." Both leaders narrowed their eyes, turned to each other, and sighed. "Cigarette?"

They smoked in silence, watching their juniors intermixing with a sense of dread. "Welcome to my world." Eric said with a laugh, patting the Lieutenant on the back.

"By the way, name’s Damian." The Lieutenant said as he nodded to Eric. "Eric." They continued watching the perimeter as they waited for orders...

Then the news crews showed up.

"Fuck."

Both leaders sighed as they walked over. "All officers are to secure perimeter and do not answer any questions from reporters." Damian said as he lifted the yellow tape.

Eric waved at the soldiers to stay put. "Stay by the vehicles. Team Alpha cover East and West. Team Bravo, cover North and South."

Four news crews approached.

Voices meshed together as the reporters approached. Eric held up his hands. "Ladies and gentlemen, I understand your concerns, but as of right now we are unsure if the scene is safe. I ask that you do not cross the cordoned area. Any further questions will be directed towards the 6-8 PAO." He handed out the PAO’s card.

Damian approached in the same manner.

"The Austin Police Department public affairs office will also be responding to your questions. The details of the situation are at present unknown. We will hold a press conference at a later time today to answer any and all questions you may have."

One of the reporters approached Eric directly.

"Master Sergeant, do you believe more attacks like this will occur in the future?"

Eric referred to the card in the woman’s hand

"Ma’am, please reference the contact on the card for any further questions. I am not at liberty to answer."

After leaving the reporters to their own devices, Eric and Damian began checking on their subordinates. Eric walked up to Jessica. The teen was leaning against one of the trucks. "You okay?" He asked quietly.

Her hands were still shaking. "He was so..." She didn’t finish the sentence. "How do you do it?" She said, looking up at him with a sad smile. "You do this almost daily. To you, this is just a regular tuesday."

Eric laughed and patted the girl on her head. "You get used to the craziness, Jess." He said gently. "If you stop thinking along the lines of ’this is crazy’, and think instead: ’what next?’, you won’t go crazy even if a damn spaceship falls out of the sky.

Jessica nodded. Eric gave her a hug. "You’ll be alright kiddo. When we get home, hug your sister. Give her some kisses. Look at her face. Ground yourself in that moment. When you hold her, remind yourself that her future and your own..."

He nodded towards Liam.

"Are what you are fighting for."

He gave her one final headpat before rejoining Damian. "Man. Higher must be having a stroke or something." Eric groaned as he put a chew in.

Damian snorted. "Yours too, eh?"

The lieutenant pulled out another cigarette. "I keep radioing up, and i’m still getting the ’standbye’, mesaage. They must be sucking each other’s thumbs over who gets what."

Both men laughed again.

Both men’s radios came to life. Austin PD would take control of the scene, while Eric and his squad would head to HQ. Eric shook hands with Damian, and the men parted ways.

Back at HQ, Eric stood in front of Generals Miher and Milano. Various hints of frustration were plastered on their faces. Eric’s "what next" line to Jessica flashed in his mind as the Generals read Eric’s report.

"Alright. We will address the Ryan situation tomorrow. Your wife is the point of contact for more data on the hero situation." Milano finally said, rubbing his face in his hands.

"Dismissed."

Eric sat in his truck outside freedom town. He rubbed his face in his hands as he looked up at the sky. "What next, eh? Yeah. I wonder."

As he walked up to the house, he heard Liara screaming her head off. He walked in, seeing Jessica trying to console the baby. Toys were scattered across the house, with various clothes piled up.

"She didn’t like anything I put on her!" Jessica shouted.