The group had to move slowly, so even after traveling for a day, they only covered a few miles. They were currently camping out in an abandoned building. The entire area was covered in debris from when the roofs caved in from being on fire. Only one large room was deemed slightly safe to be living in.
Blake and his girls sat in one corner of the room while the others sat around a fire cooking some wyvern meat that Blake offered them. He hoped after eating some, they would all gain a bit more strength. "This was a shorter trip than I had expected."
"Yeah, I thought things would have taken much longer but running into the headhunters really helped us," Tina said as she leaned her head on Blake's shoulder.
"Blake, do you know what we will be doing after the age of magic arrives?" Lillia asked.
"We will need to fortify our base as much as possible and begin to grow in strength. So the base will basically become a training ground until we can slowly begin to rise up once more. I also might go out and train a bit as well. I need to prepare for my evolution. I need to use as much mana as possible and doing so sitting in a safe area will not help stimulate my mana growth." Blake answered as he leaned back against the cold brick wall with his eyes closed.
"You are going to leave us behind?" Tina asked.
"Only for a short while, while I go out and train. We can not always be together. But I promise I will always return." Blake said as he squeezed Tina's and Lillia's hands.
"That's fine, but before you go, you need to impregnate both of us." Lillia suddenly said, causing Blake to open his eyes.
"Huh?" He looked stupidly at Lillia, who had a determined look in her eyes.
Lillia leaned over and kissed Blake's lips as she said: "We will be settling down soon. The base will be a place for us to hide out for the time being. I see no reason not to bring a new litter into the world."
"Lillia, I am not saying I do not wish to have a family at some point, but I am nowhere strong enough to even keep one safe. Right now, I am still weak. Drakes are still something I can not fight multiple of. To have a child now would only complicate things even more. So can we please wait a bit longer?" Blake wanted to be strong enough to protect those he had come to love. While anything can happen even when he got powerful enough, at least with some strength that was greater than what he had now, he would be able to keep any enemy at bay long enough to allow his loved ones to escape.
Lillia pouted her lip, but she understood what Blake meant. She hugged his arm and bit his shoulder lightly in protest but did not say anymore. Tina stayed quiet because she also felt the same way Blake did. She was not ready just yet. She wanted to grow stronger because she knew the new world was not going to be easy.
The next morning as the first dew dripped down under the morning sun, a loud earth shattering roar filled the skies waking everyone in Blake's group up. Blake opened his eyes wide and looked at his watch to check the date. "This... It's too early!"
*ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*
"Blake, what is going on!?" Tina hugged Blake as she looked up at him for answers because the roar just now was nothing like any of the other dragon roars she had ever heard.
"An Elder Dragonic....." Lillia was also hugging Blake's arm. She was worried that if the elder noticed her, not only would she die, but so would Blake. She did not want that.
"Mmmm... this is the signal that was heard when mana began to flood into the world. Lillia, suppress your mana as much as possible until we can make it to the base." After saying this, Blake stood up, pulling the girls with him, and looked at everyone else.
"We need to move and move now. If you can carry someone, carry them if they are too slow. We will be moving at a faster pace. Also...." Blake looked at Mack. "Mack, if you or anyone else here shows signs of turning into a monster, I will not hesitate to kill you."
"Huh? Wait, what do you mean!? What was that roar just now?" Mack was confused as to what was going on.
"The age of magic is now upon us! We have no choice but to move faster. If you fall behind, then you fall behind. I am sorry, but I can not wait for everyone at this point. Plans change, and we need to move as fast as possible. That is why if you can carry someone who can not move fast, then do it. I will not slow my pace anymore. We need to reach the base by nightfall at the latest." Blake's words caused a wave of unease to wash over everyone there.
Mack looked at Blake and remembered what he had said before about the age of magic and understood what was going on. "Understood." Mack turned and looked at everyone else. "Drop everything you have. We will no longer be bringing anything with us. Bring just your body, nothing else. We will help each other make it to the base. But we need to move quickly."
"Why should we leave our stuff!?" One woman cried out, holding her bag. She did not want to leave what she was able to save after fleeing her home.
"Because I will leave you behind if you slow us down. What is more important, helping those around you or keeping what little material items you own?" Blake asked coldly. He did not mind being the bad guy because it needed to be done. "Alright, I am not talking any more shit with you all. If you want to follow me, then listen to Mack's orders. Drop your shit, and let's go!"
After saying this, Blake did not even wait for them to question him more before he started walking off with Lillia and Tina in tow. Mack shook his head and motioned for his people to also move. They dropped their bags and kept what little ammo they had and weapons and began to help those who needed it.
But what no one expected was that as Blake walked past an elderly lady who was waiting for him to pass so she could follow, he knelt down in front of her and said: "Get on. I will carry you."
