The merchant area was on fire. Rick, Carmilla, and Natasha ran through streets full of smoke and fear.
People ran in all directions, some holding onto things and others just trying to stay alive. The heat was so strong that it made the air shimmer, and waves of it came off of burning buildings. The Ancient Black Dragon roared again, and the sound was so deep that it shook Rick's chest.
"There!" Carmilla pointed to a building that had fallen down and was on fire. "I hear someone yelling inside!"
They ran toward it, and Rick could hear someone calling for help from under the rubble. He saw movement and a flash of gray hair through the holes in the wall that had fallen down. His Basic Combat Awareness skill sent him information about weak spots in the building and how the fire was spreading.
Rick said, "The support beam is about to go."
"We might have thirty seconds before it all falls down."
Natasha raised her staff, and ice spread over the burning wood, keeping the flames at bay for a short time. "Go! I'll keep it stable!"
Carmilla and Rick jumped into the hole and pulled away debris with all their might. A woman in her early forties came out of the wreckage, coughing and covered in ash. A heavy wooden beam was holding down her leg.
"My store," she said in shock. "Twenty years of work..."
"It's okay... all that matters is you're alright," Carmilla grunted as she moved under the beam. "Rick, on three."
"One, two, three!"
They all lifted together, and the woman got away just as Natasha's ice broke and the flames came back to life. They got her out of the building just seconds before it all fell down in a shower of sparks.
[CIVILIAN RESCUED: MARGARET STONEWOOD, 43]
[+20 EXP]
[EMERGENCY QUEST PROGRESS: 1/???]
The woman held onto Rick's arm tightly, and tears streamed down her face, which was covered in soot. "Thank you... and thank the gods. "I thought I was going to die in that place."
"Go to the central plaza," Carmilla told her firmly. "The city guard is putting up a place for people to leave there. Go!"
Margaret nodded and left, limping with the help of other civilians who were also running away. Rick felt a small wave of warmth go through his body as he realized what had happened, but he didn't have an opportunity to think about it. This time, a roar came from closer.
"Get out of the way!" Natasha yelled.
They ran deeper into the merchant district, where the damage was worse. Rick observed bodies strewn across the street and a row of shops transformed into flaming wreckage.
Some people didn't make it out. He had to keep going even though what he saw made his stomach turn. The living needed more help than the dead, who needed to be mourned.
A woman's scream broke through the noise. Rick turned around to see a mother trying to protect two kids from falling debris. She couldn't move fast enough to get away from the burning sign that was about to crush them.
Rick's body moved before his mind did. He threw himself forward and held his shield above his head. The burning wood hit the shield with a force that shook his bones, and pain shot up his arms, but he held on. It was so hot that he could smell his own hair burning.
"Run!" he yelled. "Get out of here!"
The woman took her kids and ran away. Rick threw the trash away and staggered back, his arms shaking. He could feel Carmilla's protective pride and Natasha's sharp approval through the Spirit Bond.
[CIVILIANS RESCUED: ELENA FAIRHAVEN (37) AND CHILDREN]
[+30 EXP]
[EMERGENCY QUEST PROGRESS: 4/???]
Rick saw the dragon directly above him this time after another roar. It was so big that it was difficult to believe. Its black scales reflected the fires below like dark mirrors.
As it looked at the damage it had done, its eyes glowed with an unsettling intelligence. Thereafter, it opened its mouth, and Rick saw the telltale glow of flames in its throat.
"Get down!" Natasha yelled.
As a stream of dragonfire swept across the street, they dove behind an overturned cart. Rick thought his skin was going to melt off because it was so hot. The street where they had been standing was now molten glass and burned stone when the flames went out.
"We can't keep doing this," Carmilla said, her face red from the heat. "We need to get people out of the way of the dragon's attack."
"The residential blocks to the west," Natasha said as she moved. "The dragon is now concentrating on the merchant district. We can get people out of the area before it spreads."
Rick saw people who needed help everywhere he looked as they walked through streets that were on fire. A baker's assistant was stuck under a collapsed oven, an old woman was stuck in her house, and a merchant was trying to save her stock as fire closed in around her.
Each rescue ended up the same. Every one of them gave him a little bit of experience, a notice that barely registered in his mind. Rick stopped paying attention to the numbers and instead focused on the next person, the next problem, and the next time he could help.
He saved a woman in her fifties from a burning carriage. Her expensive dress was torn and burned. She wore a lot of jewelry, so she was probably a noble, but her face looked the same as anyone else's when they were scared or thankful.
[LADY BEATRICE THORNROSE, 52, RESCUED]
[+25 EXP]
He helped the wife of an innkeeper carry three kids to safety while avoiding falling debris and spreading flames. She was in her late thirties, strong and able, but the chaos was too much for her.
[MIRANDA WHITEHALL, 38, RESCUED]
[+20 EXP]
A seamstress is stuck in her workshop, surrounded by fabric that is on fire and can't see through the smoke. Rick led her out by voice alone, feeling his way through the thick darkness until they found fresh air.
[SARAH THREADBORNE, 45, RESCUED]
[+20 EXP]
The experience kept coming, and each rescue added to his total, but Rick didn't really care. His arms hurt from picking up trash.
He was breathing in smoke, which burned his lungs. He had burned clothes in a dozen places, and he had lost track of the small burns on his hands and forearms.
He got strength from Carmilla's ability to keep going and Natasha's laser-like focus through the Spirit Bond. They worked together like a well-oiled machine, each knowing where the others were and what they needed.
Carmilla's raw strength broke down barriers, Natasha's ice magic controlled fires and kept structures stable, and Rick organized their efforts while putting himself in the most dangerous situations.
"Three blocks north of the tall building!" someone yelled.
"People are stuck on the top floors!"