As Sylvanni drew closer to the spot, she focused on her Light, sensing its strength. A constant steady pull at the center of her chest, as though a tiny black hole had taken up residence between her lungs, the steady inward draw of the void was a familiar sensation to her. She'd practiced with other disciplines, but somehow Voidwalker was the choice she kept returning to.
Its strength seemed to increase as she thought about it, each inhale easier than the exhale that followed it as drawing the breath inward was more natural than pushing it out again. The void left her feeling empty, but not necessarily in a bad way. She was like an instrument—a drum or a chime—hollowed out in order to resonate when struck. No distractions, nothing to sway her intent. With the void consuming all, she was steady precision, raw focus.
Periodically, she sighted down her scope, trying to get a clearer view of whatever it was she was approaching. Now, closer, she could see that the land rose in a gentle slope, and the source of the rising darkness was hidden by a cleft in the land. Through the focused glass, she began to make out distinct shapes within it, small specks, rather than smoke.
Birds? She frowned, pausing. She wasn't certain exactly what kinds of fauna were common on Mars, especially in uncharted terrain as far out as she was.
As she drew closer, beginning to climb the ridge obscuring her sight, she switched over to her scout rifle and whispered under her breath. "Ghost, can you tell me anything about those creatures? Something about them feels off to me."
"I can't get much from a scan at this distance," he said. "My personal databases don't have much on birds, but I am noting that whatever they are doing doesn't seem to match natural flocking patterns."
Sylvanni crested the edge, hiding behind a low boulder to obscure her from the other side. Taking a steadying breath, she stretched to sight over the top, just enough to look down the length of the scout rifle.
A ship like a tripod lay at an odd angle in the recess, badly damaged from what must have been a crash. Hundreds of the birds surrounded it, some perched on the side, others flapping about, a constant stream of them arriving and leaving. She had only a moment of confusion at the sight, then it clicked into place.
"That's because they're not actually birds," she whispered. "They're crows."
Directly behind her, a footstep crunched on the loose dirt and stones, dangerously close. She spun, rifle training on the source of the sound even before she recognized who it was who had sneaked up on her.
An Awoken, with dark hair and glowing golden eyes, held a hand cannon steady, aimed at her head. They stared at one another silently for several tense heartbeats.
Finally, she was the one who broke the silence, a lifted eyebrow the only movement in her body. "Your Highness."
