Transmigrated As An Extra In The Apocalypse
Chapter 103 - 102: Stopped

Chapter 103: Chapter 102: Stopped

The truck jolted again, the impact rattling through my bones.

The conversation in the darkness hadn’t stopped, and I found myself straining to catch every word.

"Although it was the richest people and the highest-ranking government officials who got to leave first," the female voice continued, her tone calm but laced with something bitter, "the person who told me said it wasn’t as easy for them as they thought."

"What do you mean?" the male asked, his voice sharp with curiosity.

"They wanted to leave without a trace," she said. "That was the problem."

I furrowed my brows, processing her words. Without a trace?

"Think about it," she went on, as if she could sense our unspoken questions. "If they had just up and disappeared all at once, people would have noticed. The city was already on edge. If the civilians realized that all the people with power were escaping while they were left to die, chaos would’ve erupted."

She wasn’t wrong.

The government might have been corrupt, but they weren’t stupid.

If the city knew they were being abandoned, riots would have broken out before the Orc Lord even made his move.

The fragile order would’ve collapsed in an instant.

"So they had to be careful," she continued. "They spread out their departures, made sure it looked like business as usual. A few left under the guise of ’official duties.’ Some faked emergency meetings. Others went on ’inspections’ of nearby safe zones and just never came back."

I could almost picture it.

The wealthiest, the strongest, the ones who were supposed to be protecting us, slipping away one by one, dressed in their expensive suits, escorted by Awakened who should have been fighting beside us.

Soo stupid.

"By the time people started realizing something was wrong, it was already too late," she finished, her voice quieter now.

The weight of her words settled over us like a heavy blanket.

They had planned this.

They had calculated it.

It wasn’t a last-minute decision made in the face of overwhelming odds.

It wasn’t an act of desperation.

They had always intended to leave us behind.

A slow burn of anger curled in my stomach.

Beth let out a scoff beside me, but it lacked her usual sharp edge.

It was tired.

Worn.

"Of course. Cowards," she muttered.

The truck rattled violently as it hit another bump, jerking me forward before slamming me back against the cold, hard surface beneath me.

The conversations around me hadn’t stopped, but now, they felt heavier, weighted with a realization none of us wanted to accept.

"That’s why they couldn’t redo the barrier," the female voice spoke again, her tone edged with quiet frustration.

I turned my head slightly in the darkness, listening.

"The mage Awakened tried," she continued, "but the range and strength of the barrier... it can only be maintained by high mages, Master-level Awakened."

So that is the reason.

"They weren’t present," the woman said, her voice tight. "That’s why everything fell apart so quickly."

I swallowed hard, my hands clenching into fists against the dried blood on my gloves.

The city had relied on that barrier.

If it had been done well, maybe things wouldn’t have ended the way they did.

Maybe Edward, Beth, the soldiers, the Awakened... maybe everyone wouldn’t have been slaughtered so easily.

"So they abandoned us," the male muttered, his voice dark.

"Not just us," the female said bitterly. "They abandoned the city itself. They knew without the Masters, the barrier couldn’t hold. They knew the moment the Orc Lord arrived, it would be over. And they still chose to leave."

Beth let out a slow breath beside me.

I glanced at her, barely able to make out her expression in the dim light.

She didn’t look surprised, just exhausted.

"It makes sense now," she murmured. "We never had a chance."

A heavy silence followed, the weight of the truth sinking in.

The murmurs in the dark faded into background noise as I forced myself to sit up.

My muscles ached, stiff from the awkward position I had been lying in, but I ignored the discomfort.

There was no point in wallowing in what had already happened, we were here now, and that meant I needed to figure out exactly where here was.

The floor beneath me was rough, uneven, and smelled of rust and decay.

A truck.

I had realized that much earlier.

But where was it taking us?

I reached out, my fingers brushing against the nearest wall.

Cold metal.

But something felt... off.

Frowning, I pressed my palm against it, focusing.

A familiar pull stirred in my chest, the sensation of my ability reaching out, seeking to drain the wall.

Nothing.

I tried again, this time with more intent, letting the energy flow through my fingertips, waiting for the slow, familiar sensation of depletion.

Still nothing.

My heartbeat quickened slightly.

That wasn’t right.

When I tried again.

It worked.

I was draining the wall.

But something felt off.

Ash of Nullification.

I exhaled sharply, resisting the urge to curse.

Of course, they wouldn’t just throw a bunch of Awakened into a moving truck without some kind of safeguard.

But that would take time.

Time we might not have.

I clenched my jaw, pressing my forehead against the wall for a brief second before pulling away.

"Damnit"

The stale air inside the truck pressed down on me, thick with the scent of sweat, rust, and something metallic, probably blood.

My fingers still tingled from the attempt to drain energy from the walls, but the Ash of Nullification here seemed to be more different and stronger like it was specifically made against me, it made sure I wouldn’t get far anytime soon.

I exhaled sharply, shaking off the frustration before turning to Beth.

She was still sitting, her back straight despite the exhaustion on her face.

I could still see the dried blood on her clothes, the tense set of her jaw, the way her fingers tapped impatiently against her knee.

She might not have been outwardly panicking, but she wasn’t exactly relaxed either.

I shifted closer and spoke low enough that only she would hear.

"The walls are created with Ash of Nullification."

Beth’s fingers stilled.

She turned her head slightly, her eyes locking onto mine.

"That’s a problem," she said flatly, but I could hear the undertone of unease beneath her usual confidence.

I nodded.

"If I try to drain it, it’ll take time, more than we might have."

Beth let out a slow breath, processing that.

"And yeah," I said, my stomach twisting at the implications. "The orc lord knew what we could do. He knew how to counter us."

I let my hand slide against the metal again, feeling the Ash of Nullification enforced on it.

"If this truck didn’t have Ash of Nullification on it, we could’ve ripped through this truck in minutes."

Beth scoffed.

"Minutes? I’d give it seconds."

A small smirk tugged at the corner of my lips, but it faded quickly.

"Point is, they wanted to make sure we stay put."

Beth ran a hand through her messy hair, eyes flicking toward the barely visible figures around us, the other captives, murmuring amongst themselves in the dark.

"And you’re sure you can drain it? Just... not fast enough?"

I hesitated before nodding.

"I can drain it fast, but... Do we have enough time. You know this truck has been moving for quite sometime now and we might probably almost come to a stop any time soon" I sighed.

Beth clicked her tongue.

"So how long do you mean by fast, hours? Days?"

I smiled slightly.

"No, only minutes"

Beth leaned back against the wall, eyes narrowing.

"Then let’s waste no time, we better figure out where the hell they’re taking us."

I didn’t disagree.

But deep down, I knew one thing, if we didn’t find another way out soon, draining that wall might be our only choice.

Beth tapped her fingers against the metal floor, the rhythmic sound echoing through the dim, claustrophobic space.

Her eyes flickered toward me, assessing, thinking.

I could almost hear the gears turning in her head.

Rolling my eyes, I pressed my palm against the metal, closing my fingers as I reached out with my ability.

I closed my eyes, focusing, pulling the Ash Of Nullification.

Beth watched silently, her usual impatience kept in check, barely.

I sighed, pressing my palm harder against the metal, feeling the Ash of Nullification pulling out.

Suddenly the truck jolted violently, the metal walls groaning as it lurched to an abrupt stop.

My body tensed instinctively, fingers gripping the cold floor to steady myself as the motion threw me forward.

Around me, muffled curses and sharp intakes of breath filled the enclosed space.

Beth let out a breath beside me, rolling her shoulders as if shaking off the stiffness from the rough ride.

"Well," she muttered, "Seems like you were right after all."

A thick silence settled over the group.

The realization was sinking in for everyone.

Wherever here was, it was where the Orc Lord had wanted us.

The air inside the truck felt heavier now, the lingering scent of rust and dried blood pressing against my senses.

In the darkness, I could barely make out the faces of the others, but I could feel the tension thickening like a storm cloud.

Some were breathing fast, shallow.

Others sat frozen, as if moving would somehow make things worse.

I swallowed hard, my mind racing.

What happens next?

Were we about to be dragged out like livestock?

Executed on the spot?

Or worse, used for whatever twisted purpose they had in mind?

Beth exhaled sharply, shifting closer to me.

"Stay sharp, Golden Girl," she whispered, her voice low but steady. "No matter what happens."

I gave her a small nod, though my heart was hammering against my ribs.

Outside, the sound of heavy footsteps grew closer.

The clang of metal.

A deep, guttural voice barking orders in a language I barely understood.

The doors would open soon.

And when they did...

I wasn’t sure what kind of nightmare was waiting on the other side.

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