041 THE ROAD TO DEATH
The military convoy rumbled across the desert of Anu until it reached a deep canyon, its jagged peaks stabbing into the sky like blades. Damen cracked his window, leaning closer to glimpse the barren landscape.
It looked almost ordinary, like something back on Earth, but the familiarity unsettled him.
He thought: "An alien world shouldn't feel this normal."
"If we didn't know better, this feels like a road trip through the deserts of Las Vegas," Zairgid muttered.
"You've been to Las Vegas?" Damen asked curiously.
"I've been through a VR tour in a theme park before", he replied cheekily.
"Don't underestimate this terrain," Captain Green warned from the driver's seat. "What looks harmless can hide dangers in the shadows."
Damen and Zairgid rode in the captain's Humvee, though neither of them was part of the official expedition roster. Captain Green had personally brought them along, and so their safety was his burden.
"Are there Shadow Hounds hiding in the canyon walls?" Damen asked.
"That's possible. When they keep still, it's impossible for our eyes to pick them out," Green replied without hesitation.
Zairgid leaned forward. "So, what's the actual mission here?"
"We're escorting the Veyran family's meta heroes through the Canyon of Death," Green said flatly.
Damen blinked. "The Veyran family? What are they doing out here?"
"They're looking for their missing princess. A troublemaker, if you ask me."
"Why?" Damen pressed.
Green's grip tightened on the wheel. "This is the fifth time she's slipped into this canyon without clearance, looking for her missing mother. And every time, our forces must risk blood and lives to drag her back."
Eryn Veyran was searching for her lost mother in the Canyon of Death. She came here five times, each ending with Fortress Myrone dispatching elite units to find and protect her.
Damen could see both sides of it.
He pitied Eryn's desperation, yet he also understood Green's frustration.
To Eryn, finding her mother was worth any risk. To the captain and his soldiers, it was needless peril thrust upon them all.
-----
The convoy finally rolled to a halt at the base of a looming mountain. Engines were cut off and soldiers disembarked, with the echo of boots and voices filling the canyon mouth.
Damen peered out. "Where is this?"
"This," Captain Green said, stepping out and scanning the jagged cliffs, "is the end of the Canyon of Death—and the start of the Road to … Death."
Zairgid slouched lower in his seat. "Can we just stay in the Humvee?"
"Nope." Green's voice was firm. "Those posts are already assigned. You're with me. That was the deal. If you want the military's special training, you run missions with me."
Zairgid groaned. "I'm telling you now, I'm not fighting anyone. The moment trouble shows up, I'm hiding."
"Fine," Green said with a thin smile. "Save us the trouble to mount another rescue if you disappear."
The captain's words weren't empty. Zairgid was heir to a major family, and if he went missing, the military would be forced to waste resources saving him.
"If you're that worried about Zairgid, maybe leave him out of this mission," Damen said.
Green shook his head. "No. His father insists he join. He needs real experience, real training. He couldn't get that hiding in his mansion….and besides his father gave us a generous donation to make sure he completes the mission."
Zairgid muttered under his breath. "Dang."
-----
A squad of soldiers moved in first, their shadows soon swallowed by the mountain's mouth.
After some time, crackles of radio chatter confirmed the way ahead was clear. Only then did the Veyran family's team proceed, their movement precise and commanding.
Captain Green's unit followed last, watching the rear.
As the crew from the Veyran team passed, Damen felt their eyes linger on him, their gazes sharp as knives and menacing.
"Am I imagining it, or are these guys staring at me?" he thought.
Even Zairgid leaned closer and whispered, "You're not imagining it. They still remember what you did to Lukas Veyran."
Damen frowned. "Think they'll try something funny here?"
Zairgid's expression was grave. "Hard to say. They may not kill you outright, with the soldiers from the fortress around….but in a place like this? Accidents happen. Just watch yourself."
Zairid's warning clung to him as they followed the Veyran group deeper inside. Damen quickly scanned those people with his mining app and added them into his favorite list.
For nearly an hour, the expedition pushed through twisting tunnels and stone corridors. Nothing stirred but the drip of water and the grind of boots against rock.
Scanners swept in silence, picking up no signs of danger.
Finally, the cavern widened into a vast hollow where a deep, rushing river cut through the mountain's heart. The air was damp and echoing.
"This was the last place Miss Eryn was sighted," someone from the Veyran side said.
"We'll set our command post here", another added.
The team immediately went to work. Equipment crates were unloaded and devices hummed as a command post was established.
With a post established, scouts were dispatched deeper into the mountain, vanishing into the dark tunnels looking for Eryn Veyran.
Damen glanced at Captain Green. "So… what are we doing here?"
Green folded his arms, his eyes on the outpost. "We wait. Our job is to get them here and maybe…protect them. The rest is on them."
Damen couldn't shake his unease.
The Veyran team moved through the cavern with practiced ease. They acted too comfortable for a place like this. Their formation was loose, their guard casual, as if the mountain itself posed no threat to them at all.
"Captain," Damen said quietly, "I've seen Shadow Hounds in action. In terrain like this, an ambush would wipe us out. Why are the Veyran team so confident?"
Green's eyes swept the cavern walls before he answered. "You're not wrong. But don't let their calm fool you. This mission's been too quiet, yes—but if Shadow Hounds are what you're worried about, relax. We may not be able to see them, but the Veyran scanners can detect a hound long before it's in striking range. Kilometers away, even."
Zairgid gave a relieved sigh and dropped beside a cluster of rocks, stretching out as if he were back at the academy.
"Great. I feel safer already." He closed his eyes without saying another word.
Suddenly, a man from the Veyran team broke off from the others and approached Captain Green.
"Sir, we understand that your team do not have track and control, we've prepared tracking devices for your squad. In case anyone gets separated." He held out a tray lined with small, round tags to be handed to the escort team.
"Have your team activate them—we'll sync them to our command post, and we can keep track of our people," he added.
The Myrone soldiers were not equipped with advance equipment to track their members, so if they were tagged by the Veyrans, it would improve their team's coordination.
Captain Green didn't think twice about the gesture and accepted the tray and handed the tags out, one by one.
Damen turned the button-shaped device over in his palm. It looked harmless enough, but he had a bad feeling about it.
"Captain, may I ask you a question?" Damen whispered to the captain. The captain nodded permitting him to speak.
"Are the Veyran's usually this nice… helping us to track and monitor our people?" Damen asked with suspicion.
Captain Green thought about it before replying, "They never helped us in previous missions usually treating us as backups and fodders…. But I guess we are on the same mission, there's nothing wrong if they offered us help."
Damen wasn't satisfied with the answer.
"Should I use the tag or not?" he asked himself.