The Dawn of the New World

A hush fell over the hall when the smokescreen lifted and they saw what had happened. It was so eerily quiet that one could hear a pin drop from a mile away.

The only sound that could be heard was coming from the heavy breathing of the few that were still left standing. And Arthur being the only one facing Hao Xuan was more shocked than anyone else of what he saw.

He wanted to move away but his body didn't listen to him. He was afraid, so terribly and completely horrified of what he was looking at. Leona's voice came from the back once more warning him.

"Put down your weapons!" she shouted again but no one listened.

Arthur was staring right into Hao Xuan's eyes but could see no recognition there. Only his own reflection stared back at him mouth agape and just as horrified because those eyes did not belong to a human.

This primal fear that Arthur felt when looking at Hao Xuan only made him more obstinate. How could he be so afraid? And then he realized why.

Two simultaneous loud thumps sounded from within Hao Xuan's chest accompanied by an invisible shockwave that passed through everyone on the floor.

Malina and Olav were the first ones to notice its effects.

Olav raised his quarterstaff and produced a quick chant but his expression turned somber a second later when he threw up a mouthful of blood. He looked towards Malina who was just finishing up her spell. Their eyes met and both of them knew what the other was about to say.

Their magics had gone out of control. Olav's being more sensitive to the changes completely backfired and injured him instead. Malina pocketed her wand and stood up with Leona.

"I-I think this is enough. We admit defeat! Our plan didn't work after all-"

She took a step forward but Arthur turned his head halfway to glare at her while mouthing the words 'Dont move!'

She stopped in her tracks right then and there but it was already too late. A second shockwave went out. This one was not only stronger but affected the surroundings as well. It started with the ceiling lights that started flickering for no reason whatsoever.

The temperature started dropping until people could see their own breaths. The lights dimmed all around or, rather it would be more accurate to say that the intensity of the lights that was previously enough to illuminate everything within the hall had become insufficient.

The small mound of solid concrete encasing Hao Xuan's legs cracked and started falling apart.

Arthur who was looking down at Hao Xuan a second ago realized that now they were the same height. His heartbeat increased severalfold as he realized something had gone terribly wrong.

His body was frozen in place and no matter how hard he tried it wouldn't move so he bit his tongue as hard as he could to draw blood. Sure enough, the pain was enough to kickstart his nervous system once more.

He quickly loosened the grip around the glaive and kicked and punched the other three back to their senses since they were in similar situations.

With his back and forehead caked in sweat, Arthur could barely even breathe right now. The air felt syrupy and his body heavy. When he tried to use call the glaive back to him his power didn't even work.

Some of the weaker Orcs were losing their grasp on even the most basic bodily functions. Their eyesight became blurry and one by one they started losing their balance. It felt like the ground was swinging back and forth.

Only Arthur and one other female Orc were still able to stand firmly on their own.

She looked towards Arthur from the corner of her eye, "What's going on?! I can't muster any energy. My body feels weak."

But Arthur had no answer for her. He shook his head helplessly and gestured towards the stairs.

"Go, leave quickly!"

The girl nodded but just as she was about to turn around she noticed another Orc not far from her. Thinking she could lend him a shoulder and take him with she stepped forward and heard Arthur's voice yelling in her ear, "NO! STOP!"

But by the time the words registered in her brain she was already upside down.

*BOOM*

A small explosion sounded as her flaccid body shot into the sidewall like a test crash dummy before falling listlessly back to the floor. She lost consciousness without even realizing what happened.

Hao Xuan on the other side pulled back his claw. Yes, claw. His hands were more beastly than human. He was still standing in the same place but now he was an entire head taller than even Arthur.

His back hunched against the ceiling while the light refused to go near him. The space within five meters of him was devoid of any illumination.