The Beginning of

Rise of the Paragon - Volume 2: Exodus

Chapter 53

The First Exodus

June 3rd, 2026

I sat on top of Alex's roof, taking in the fresh morning air. The past several days since our claiming of the Leyline had been... Interesting. The revelations that Astia and Ahenna had provided had shaken me to my core.

At the moment I even empathized with the Titan Atlas—tasked with holding up the weight of the world. After all, in reality, that was the task that had been heaped upon me by the two deities. Superficially thinking about it, I could feel excitement at the prospect of being tasked to become some sort of 'hero' of the world.

But the more I thought about it, the more I realized I was no hero. I had made mistakes, and I had nearly gotten people killed. I was near-unanimously trusted with the mantle of leadership within the Community, and up to this point my decisions had nearly gotten people killed, in fact, it was only luck that had kept a disaster from happening. In my mind, I was suddenly considering myself no better than Liam. He was just more... opaque about it.

The sun had just dropped behind a layer of clouds, and the frost of the mana zone was beginning to return somewhat. I doubted it would ever be as severe as it had been before, considering a Lich had likely manipulated the temperature within the area. But, it was cold enough where I could see my breath permeating the morning air in front of me. As my vision became slightly obscured by the mist, my mind was thrust back to the moment I had been expelled from the Round Table.

I had laid on the ground, practically paralyzed—mute. I couldn't say a word, so overwhelmed I had been. We had returned to the Community in silence, while Rick's men stayed behind examining the area. The others asked me questions that went unanswered. All I could bring myself to say was that I "needed time."

And time they gave me.

I meditated for hours on end, attempting to reconcile the various thoughts clamoring for my attention. My responsibilities to the Community, to my family, to Rachel, and now to the God's themselves. Indeed, I had inherited the same quest Kevin and I had been tasked with while playing Holy Arc Online—repel an interplanar demonic invasion. In this case, it was no longer some sort of far-off virtual world, but our own reality.

I took a deep breath and slowly stood up. I had taken up enough time from everyone. My ultimate conclusion: I could either dwell upon my past mistakes, or I could move forward, with a determination to learn from them. I decided that for the benefit of everyone, I would choose the latter.

Where did this lack of confidence come from? I couldn't help but wonder. I had been so confident, running at a horde of demons during the first day of the apocalypse without a care for my own life. I fought a towering treant, a massive monster floweroid, repelled an existential invasion by a Lich, and defeated Tier 2 crystal golems—yet I was still overwhelmed by inadequacy.

Was it the new timeline that Astia and Ahenna had declared? It should be early June at this point. Ahenna had said we would have until the longest night. Which could only mean the Winter Solstice... Six months then?

Six months.

The words kept reverberating in my mind. At first—harrowing. Then somewhat comforting. The more I repeated the words, the more confidence I accrued. The more inspiration that appeared from the deep recesses of my mind.

Six months was more than enough time to grow strong enough to defeat a Demonic Champion.

I smiled, for the first time in several days.

The weight upon my shoulders gave way and then morphed into something that I had not expected—motivation. I had been hoisting a boulder upon my shoulders, and now it was replaced with a current of will that could only push me onward. The fate of humanity? That was surely motivation enough.

I jumped off of the roof and landed on my feet. Even that mere act was exhilarating.

Rick's men were supposed to be leaving today. They had accomplished what they came here to do. Today also happened to be the day that the first convoy of refugees would be arriving.

There was a lot of work to be done, and I had shirked off a lot of my responsibilities over the past few days.

My quick reflection revealed several unfortunate truths. Had I really just wasted several days, wallowing in depression? The mere thought filled me with a strange sense of frustration. I was the leader. I needed to incorporate that thought into my very being. I couldn't just out myself like this. The one benefit that came from this however was a deeper understanding of my role, of my purpose. I was ready.

I stood still for a moment and looked around Alex's backyard. The short picket fence that surrounded the property was already decaying—remarkable considering only a few weeks had passed. Some segments were missing though, apparently commandeered by my Father for his farming project. Currently, he was moving like a machine, non-stop and with complete efficiency. The man was motivated by his more altruistic nature and was preparing for the eventual reality that hundreds would soon join the community—that food would soon be a major and prominent concern.

I smiled, so caught up he was in his work, that my father had yet to even notice me. I preferred to keep it that way, no use distracting him further.

I had been well aware of the gazes of pity directed towards me over the past several days. Even Priscilla, the hardass that she was, had attempted to apologize, thinking that her words the other day may have contributed to my recent condition. Of course, that wasn't entirely the case, she had just provided the wake-up call, while the meeting at the Round Table had been my reality-check.

I was likely going to have to announce an apology the first chance I got.

As I walked into the house, Alex was the first who noticed me.

He stood there, his light brown hair reminiscent of a wet mop on his head, appraising me for just a moment. The look in his eyes made me smile. He was surprised because I was no longer giving off my previous depressing aura. "It's good to see you back brother," Alex said as he walked up to me and gave me a hug, "Sorry to cut your break short though, we probably need you out front. Rick said that the refugees are getting close and have already entered the Mana Zone. I would've taken care of it myself..." he paused, appraisingly, "but seeing that you are back in action, I'll let you take the lead, boss," my brother threw out the title with a mirth-filled voice.

I lightly shoved him aside, "and you better remember that," I winked, a sly grin plastered on my face.

With a small bout of laughter, we walked towards the now open front door. Several other members of the Community were already standing outside, anticipating the arrival of the refugees—new members of our Community. As I stepped outside alongside Alex, several individuals turned around to look at me. There were eyes filled with concern, others with relief. I made eye contact with Priscilla, who averted her gaze. Then Rachel, who looked at me as though I had just returned from a long stay at a mental health ward. I returned her gaze with a weak smile.

Then there was Kevin, a stupid smile cemented onto his face. I couldn't help but morph my faint smile into a wide grin in turn. "Look whose come back from the dead!" Kevin exclaimed, immediately causing the rest of the members of the Community to turn.

My mother and Kaitlyn, with visible relief. Apinya clasped his hands together and bowed slightly—strangely reminiscent of a common Japanese greeting. The children; Ariel, Daija, Maria, Max, Emry, and Ross—who was currently holding on to a much larger Manes—were filled with curiosity. Manes caught my attention for several seconds. His snow-white fur, speckled with a mane of greenish-blue emeralds glistened in the morning light. His tongue was currently flopped out, with the signature panting of a dog. The canine looked like a juvenile wolf, yet had one of the friendliest complexions I had ever seen. He had grown quick, that was for sure. He was no longer the size of a small pup, but the size of a large German Shepherd; and he was still growing. A quick appraisal revealed that indeed, Manes was a tamed monster. His name indicated such: [Juvenile Cicero Canis] - Level 3 |Tamed|

Off to the side, Noah and his girlfriend, Emma, were currently in some sort of heated discussion. And Atasha, Harrison, and Jackson were currently going through a pile of clothes—organizing them.

The sight of the Community gathered together like this just felt... Right. Granted, we were missing a few. Antonio was bedridden—still in a coma—and was likely being accompanied by Alejandro, his brother. While my father was probably so preoccupied with farming that he likely forgot the significance of today. Maybe I should have grabbed him? Probably too late now.

Ahead of me, at the head of the asphalt driveway leading to Alex's house was Rick and several of his men. It looked as though they were fully prepared to be the first ones greeting the convoy. In fact, I could see the signs indicating their approach. In the distance I heard a slight shriek of brakes being activated, signaling the need for their replacement. Plumes of dark smoke—the smog of vehicles—arose in the sky in the direction of the westward gate.

We all stood, waiting with rapt attention. I walked towards the head of the driveway with Alex, and Kevin in tow. As I thought about it, I couldn't help but feel appreciative of both of them. Alex had taken the role of a subsidiary leader in the community, and frankly, he was a natural at it. Perhaps due to his history in administration at the local hospital. Kevin on the other hand had always been much more adept than myself in matters regarding the system, he also happened to be my best friend. So there was no question why he was always at my side.

We arrived at where Rick was standing as soon as the column of trucks pulled forward, escorted by several camo-colored Humvees. Looked like this was a pretty serious operation. It made me wonder how Camp Edward was managing to pull together this many resources for a simple relocation of refugees.

If I looked at it from their point of view, then clearly the Community of Genesis held some measure of strategic value. If their primary goal was to contain the expansion of the Demons, then having a presence here was certainly reasonable.

The trucks came to a stop, and Rick acknowledged my presence, "Good to see you're back in action Thomas."

I nodded, "I guess I just need some rest after what happened."

Rick glanced towards me with searching eyes. "You'll still have to let me in on what happened. After all, I'm not gonna be leaving anytime soon."

Wait... Is Rick not leaving?

I raised a brow at the man, questioningly. He simply smirked and turned to greet the approaching military officer.

Apparently, he wasn't the only one that now had questions. Plus who said I was letting the man stay anyways? I internally brooded.

As soon as the Officer approached, Rick went straight as a piece of wood, and saluted. The two men subsequently exchanged some words of quick greeting. Then Rick raised his hand, palm outstretched towards me—almost as though the whole interaction had been rehearsed. The Officer nodded and walked over to me.

"Captain Elliot Sherman," the officer said, introducing himself, "I presume you are Thomas Parker?" I nodded, my eyes widening as I glanced quickly towards the insignia denoting his rank on his shoulder. Sure enough, this man was a Captain in the army. However, that only served to confuse me; the convoy was certainly not "company-sized", so why was there a Captain here?

I nodded and verified my name, "Thomas Parker, and the reluctant leader of the Community of Genesis."

The man smiled, and then in reference to my comment, "well, Leaders aren't born, they are made. Sometimes we just so happen to be unwilling participants," his smirk widened.

At least he has a sense of humor, I thought.

"Right to business then, Mr. Parker!" The Captain said as he promptly turned around to reference the groups of people disembarking from the train of armored military trucks. "We've been informed you have agreed to begin housing some refugees from Camp Edward, and we are here to deliver!" The Captain said animatedly, then turned his head towards me for a brief moment—all so he could wink at me.

He then continued, as though performing a presentation, "Medical Professionals, Construction Contractors, Masons, Metalworkers, and Researchers, the whole nine-yards! They are all here to help you. And all they ask is a place to call home," the Captain emphasized his words as he finished.

The indicated groups had slowly arranged themselves in front of us, almost like they were lining up for a mug shot.

I glanced at all of them, most were looking pretty ragged—understandable considering what I've heard regarding the conditions of refugees at Camp Edward. They all appeared to be from different backgrounds, some dressed nicer, others looked like they had been wearing the same pair of clothes for several days. Then there was an overwhelming amount of diversity. Hispanics, Blacks, Whites, Asians, there was no uniformity or preference for particular individuals within the lot. After all, the only thing that mattered here was talent and skill.

However, the one thing that was shared by every single man and woman in front of me was a particular expression. A look, and a hope, that said: "I've found a new home."