CHAPTER 11: Wastelands Of Tora Vali
Welcome back to another instalment. After thinking it through, I decided to move onto original content and do something other than a retread of the plot. Don't worry... I'll try not to make it boring... With that said, on with the show...
One Week Later
Ostensibly tapping away on your desk trying to figure out how to write each and every day must be infuriating for any journal or diary keepers. If there's nothing really interesting to say, then don't say anything. Well, it's been a week and yet all I can talk about is the events one week ago.
For all you Paragon lovers out there, be thankful. Shepard decided to take a chance on the Rachni Queen after she extracted the necessary data. Of course, the information was far from complete. That would only come with the Feros' fragment and Saren's beacon on Virmire. Just my luck this damn thing has to be dragged out. While I'm sure sending an anonymous tip regarding the location of the Mu Relay and the Conduit would be a splendid idea, I'd rather keep my advantage clean and simple, not convoluted and politically charged to say none of the accusations that will discredit any progress I've made thus far.
Liara is... well... still locked in depression. Every day like clockwork, she would go about her daily routine in a surly manner. Meals were always a quiet affair when she was around and Shepard had to practically make her mother a taboo subject ever since one of the privates, a Richman Lars was sent to the med bay with bruised ribs on account of a 'ceiling accident'. Don't ask... If there was need to talk of mission parameters, her words were short, to the point and frustrated if it dragged on for too long. All in all, a recovery step from flooding her room with tears.
As for me, here I am writing down this tear-jerking crap into a journal I'm quite certain I will burn if I get home unless I want to get tossed into a mental institution and I have no feelings about it all. None. I tried crying. I tried to be upset, angry, start banging my fists against the wall. Nothing, like it never even happened at all. All that elicited emotion was looking out my window and seeing the slipstream of the ship graze beautifully in the midnight sky. This must be what serial killers call an average day indeed...
Rather than wallow in my lack of self-emotion, waiting for something to change, I paraded myself as a helpful worker, unloading and resupplying my strange new home with the necessary providences required to sustain us. The whole week was nothing but shipping crates, upgraded gear that oddly reminded me of trite RPG progress and a few choice conversations with the locals, one of which managed to help translate that scrap of paper I found on the salarian. Turns out, the poor bastard was only days away from signing a marriage contract with his better half in one of the higher caste families. My acquaintance offered to accompany me to the family's estate where I turned over the letter. I left almost immediately when I saw his parents give off an air of complete indifference, muttering something about having other sons to carry on the family legacy, making sure to transfer some credits to my compatriot for his time. Much thanks for reassuring my lack of faith in humanity, game...
Near the end of the week, my mind was completely consumed by the plan to go home, nearly rendering me blind to my surroundings and muttering under bated breath for extended periods of time. Scores of data flooded my omni-tool every night, nothing but Tora Vali and the locations of those mineral deposits. I even considered at one point asking my benefactor Larry for aid, thinking better against it for fear of dragging another poor soul into the mix again. So, I found myself with Joker and Shepard at the helm, discussing the matter heatedly.
"Look, Tora Vali's a hotspot. Saren sent an entire battalion there just to go mine some minerals? Obviously, there's gotta be something there that's worth checking out." I trailed behind Shepard, attempting to convince her to give the planet a chance. This was by no means my first conversation regarding the matter, having already tried to sell that prospect in the wee hours of space morning. Needless to say, her ruffled platinum blonde hair and weary emerald eyes tilted back and forth before she held up a hand to stop me and return to her dreamland after having been so rudely awakened. Well, I thought it apt not to press the matter lest I end up with my head caved in on the ceiling.
"Saren's not there anymore." Shepard starkly reminded me of the fact, idly combing her hair at one point as we entered the cockpit. Yes, I get how that word is overflowing with some sexual tangent. I'm not five, you know...
"Besides, it's not like we aren't following the ramblings of a mad person already..." Joker chimed in on our conversation, rolling around in his swivel chair like a bored person in an equally boring presentation. He met with a glaring look from Shepard and an uncomfortable chuckle elicited by my own flapping mouth, Joker saw it best to back down.
"Sorry, bad joke..." he muttered in vain apology. With that out of the way, I returned to business. As far as business involving sociopathic spectres with a geth army could call it... Remind to sell my life story when this is all over. I'm quite certain some sci-fi nutcase will pay a fortune for the first signed copy. Sorry, back on track...
"All I'm asking is that you let me check it out. Could be something... Could be nothing. What we gotta lose?" I shrug, weighing my options. If Shepard did not consent to the ideas, hopefully there will be other opportunities to grab ahold of some Kronostyl-2. Preferably yanked from the cold, dead, grubby paws of Saren, that at least was a certainty. I watched as she paused in thought, juggling both pros and cons. She even eyeballed the crew as they carried on with their everyday duties, pondering meaningfully for some inexplicable reason. Turning around, she addressed Joker quickly.
"We have an extra shuttle, right Joker?" She asked, her voice tempered and strategic in all but tone.
"Yeah, why?" he quizzed puzzlingly, clasping both his palms and interlocking his weak fingers around each other.
"Well, the Normandy is en-route to Feros and Tora Vali is just off on the tangent. Maybe we can make a little pit-stop before we get on with saving the world." Shepard remarked, drawing up a planetary map and zooming out into galactic view to prove her point. Again, I had to remind myself in the wake of my gaping mouth that I was living four centuries ahead of everyone. Wonder what they call an accelerated senior citizen?
"Going rogue on me, Shepard? Thought I'd never see the day..." Joker clapped, genuinely surprised. Technically, it wasn't by any means illegal but it was certainly off the books. Discretion seemed the best option when dealing with magic crystals capable of bending time and space on an illuminate scale compared to element zero. Ignoring him for a split second, Shepard spun back to meet me with a glint in her eye. 'Oh, no... What has she got planned now?' was all I could hear when she started speaking.
"Well, looks like you got your ride." She told me plainly speaking.
"Great!" went my exact feelings in tandem with my lips.
"But I'm sending Kaiden and Ashley with you." Shepard quickly added post-haste.
"Ashley? Gee thanks." I shot back in an almost rehearsed tone. Watching too much State of Decay has probably not done wonders for the marvel that is my brain. Then again, I'm in a world of myriad dangers. My mind is the least of my concerns...
"She's a veteran soldier, which is more than I can say for you. And anyway, getting her out of sight could help alleviate the mood around here." Shepard responded wearily, aware of the growing resentment that me and Ash had. Going off the last few missions, anything and everything I seemed to do pissed her right the hell off. When I would find myself inexplicably listening to other people's conversation entirely by accident, I was always reprimanded by her in the harshest of ways for poking my nose where it don't belong. When I was the one to clean her out on the crew's weekly poker game, she grumbled and glared at me for the rest of the game, arms crossed and brows furrowed haughtily, my poker face always faltering if I looked too long into the black hole of anger. Even worse, she just seems to find the worst times to show up looking for help, especially when in the middle of using the omni-tool to access my Earth's websites for any details I may have forgotten or simply ignored, as if she was intentionally attempting to discover my secrets. How it got this far or when it ever started, I'll never know. I'd rather live in the present for the moment and get back to earning every second of air I've got in this universe, whatever it takes.
"I'll tell Kaiden to ease up. Ashley's enough for our xenophobic diatribe." I replied in tonal similarity. Alison seemed to catch on that and thought it wise to give advice.
"Give her a chance. Maybe she'll surprise you..." I heard her utter with an all-knowing wink. Those words did stick with me. After all, she took a chance on me, a guy with martial skills ranking low even for her lot, no weapons, tech or biotic training, naive on a political and militaristic level and even less fortitude than a fat man in a marathon. Or if you want something less offensive, a sloth in a race...
I admit, writing this merely an hour after her chat left me pondering some things. Chances. What really gave meaning to that word? Was it the chance to live in a world that any physicists, chemists, engineers or scientists worth their salt would kill for? The chance to aid the forces of good against the forces of evil? Or the chance to make up for past misdeeds? The last sounded completely ballistics, considering the calibre of people seemingly traversing the landscape of Mass Effect universes nowadays. Heroes, the lot of them... Was that it? To be something I'm not or never wanted to be? Maybe I could try and reach out, see if there's anyone far gone that could give some helpful tips.
That time would not be now. As impromptu leader of this little scavenger hunt, I was given the pleasure or rather displeasure of informing my two companions of our mission. Needless to say, Ashley Williams was the most vocal of the two.
"So, what's so important that you had to drag us away from lunch? I'm kinda starving." Kaiden drew up his chair at the conference roundtable just as Ashley herself shuttled in, her boots clapping on the tiles beneath. That took my attention for a few moments, to which I had to snap myself back to Kaiden's probing questions.
"I'll try and be brief, Kaiden. Sorry for the interruption." I apologized, seeing his hand wave it off. Ashley took a seat next to him at the table, looking particularly disturbed. What's eating at her?
"Don't worry about it. So what is it?" he asked.
"Okay, so you know Matriarch Benezia?" I shot back the question.
"Yeah, Liara's crazy mother?" Ashley responded before Kaiden could, with nary a hint of disguise to hide her disgust at the woman. Say what you will about Bioware. At least they had the decency to hide the inherent racism with tragedy. Now, I was as pissed off with her behaviour as I was the politicians, regardless of merit.
"Not the exact words I'd use to put it, but if you want to be as blunt as a hammer, sure. Let's go with that. Anyway, she had some interesting things to say about Saren and the Reapers." I replied sarcastically to Ashley before readdressing Kaiden.
"The Mu Relay and his operations on Virmire? We covered this already in the last debriefing." Kaiden pointed that out.
"Well, apparently Saren had a mining operation on Tora Vali for some reason." I spoke quickly.
"Do we know why?" He asked in kind.
"No, but anything Saren-related is worth investigating." I shrugged, hoping that all the times acting alone in my bedroom paid off more than going for drama classes.
"Let me guess, we're the lucky ones who get to play detective." Ashley quipped rudely, receiving a hushed look from Kaiden and a dark stare of confusion from me. Thankfully, she took the hint and shut her big flap.
"Shepard and the others will head on to Feros to deal with the civilians there. They'll swing by and pick us up after they're done." I explained begrudgingly. It wasn't an ideal situation. Shepard and I agreed with Joker and Pressly that we could afford no spare time to go gallivanting on a possibly cold lead when a warmer one is starting to freeze. That meant no fire support and no immediate help. In a word, we were pretty much alone on this mission.
"And who's leading this wonderful expedition?" Ashley queried.
"Me?" I smiled half-heartedly and weakly, my hand raised in the air. Now she started to chuckle as she took in my entire appearance, not much to say the least.
"Hah, nice try kid. If we let you lead, we'll end up in coffins before the end of the day. I'd rather have the Lieutenant here take the helm." Ashley thumbed over to Kaiden, shades of pink flooding his cheeks at being tossed onto the stage without prompt warning.
"Uh, okay... Kaiden, how about it?" I deferred to him, seeing as he's an expert at this. Either way, that quality could be levied with near everyone involved on this crazy journey.
"Yeah, this should be fun." Kaiden replied, still unsure with his shot to fame. Perhaps some time alone was best...
"So we're in accordance. ETA estimate is four hours. I suggest we..." I began, only to see Ashley rise from her seat and shuffle out of the room with a snort.
"We're not recruits. We know what to do... Can't say the same for you." She bemusingly replied, clearly annoyed that a rookie was telling her how to do her job. Kaiden gave a wordless apology as he followed after her, hopefully in my mind to give her his two-cents on the issue. That just left me alone to muse, to ponder. Again...
"Thanks for the pep talk..." I muttered to no-one in particular as the cold silence folded back in, the silent breeze of oxygen humming through the vents the only sound left standing.
Taking stock of my life at this point forward, I realized that this journal felt more like someone's word-for-word autobiography, boring, not fun to read and certainly not engrossing unless a.) you're a famous figure in history or b.) you're part of that person's family. That's my thinking. But then again, I wasn't proud to hold onto my high-school cursing, swearing and jockish mannerisms. It was a mistake that alienated both sides, the jocks sneering at my attempts to be one with the cool kids and the geeks angry for deserting them. I learned that lesson quite well.
You might be wondering what prompted this almost zen-like philosophical thinking. Simple. It helps fill my head with random crap that doesn't make sense so I don't contemplate all the stuff I've had to do the last few months. And it almost worked, till I heard Kaiden rap on my door, seeing as how I locked it to give me some privacy.
"Hey, Isaac. We're all geared up." I heard Kaiden speak through the hardened steel frame, dense as it was.
"Be down in a minute." I replied, shutting this very journal and stashing it somewhere hidden for safekeeping. If anyone decided to comb or even skim these pages, my secret would be hanging out like... things you'd find in a nudist colony. With that out of the way, I went about the task of fitting the various components that comprised my armour set and double-checking my custom firearms.
"I can wait. Gunnery Sergeant Williams is being a little prickly today." Kaiden replied, sounding slightly perturbed. Joy, now I have two emotional wrecks on this rollercoaster. If this doesn't turn around, we're done for.
"I noticed." I respond cooly. Okay, weapons check. Sniper rifle, pull bolt back, fresh supply of clips. Scope seems functional, grime all cleansed off the front. Check. SMG. Extended clip still hanging on, full functionality. Iron-sights adjusted, aligned on center of mass. Perfect. Serrated steel blade, clean of Rachni piss and tears. Handy backup. That goes there... Looks all set.
"She seems a bit off today. Like something went wrong or something." Kaiden resumed the conversation. Thinking back, my first thought was 'Shoot, is she getting indoctrinated? That sounds like a recipe for disaster. Or maybe not...'
"Maybe she's having a bad day. It happens." I keep my musings to myself. It became clear to me that Kaiden had the exact same misgivings, though in a different light going by the debriefing Shepard jammed into everyone's heads down in the conference room. Still, I had no time to consider it further. With my gear stowed away and all my plating where it needed to be, I finally depressed on the button next to the door to let it part automatically like the Red Sea. And with that, Kaiden escorted me down to the shuttle, still lost in his own thoughts on the matter.
My fears of space-sickness was in full effect, hurtling towards a vomiting conclusion were I to stay any longer cramped in a tiny airborne craft whizzing at speeds reaching new heights with two compatriots squashed against me like I was a sardine packed in a tin. The little comfort that I could parlay into my mind vanished like water vapour with just one glance over to Ashley, still with a sickening glare of contempt, darker than any mascara known to me at least.
To my credit, I never did notice what Ashley usually packed on missions and this was the first time I fully took stock. Thankfully, some entity or whatever being exists above spared me and others from being beholden to her pinkish-white stock armour set, instead adopting her with a suit of heavy-plated armour. Some of the padding was laced with some sort of hardening gel, which while tightening the bonds of the plating together so it would withstand the elements much better resulted in a tight fit, akin to a corset from the mid 1700s to 1800s if I had to guess American history or any fashion wear from that era. Never was a fashion guy, just wore what was comfortable, end of story. The colour scheme was more reminiscent of her Alliance background, navy blue with a light white tint and the logo adorned almost patriotically so on each of her shoulder-guards. On her back, two main weapons folded into metal blocks formed the backbone of her fighting stance. Arguably the most common asset of soldiers barring me of course would be the standard workhorse of any modern army, the assault rifle. As far as I could tell, she was packing a beefy rifle, possibly the M-55 Argus if I had to hazard a guess. To complement, she also carried a rocket launcher with auto-target acquisition to paint enemy targets.
Kaiden on the other, seeing as how he's equipped with the power to fling boxes and urgghh... explosive barrels at his foes' feet, heat had to compensate as well as his armour, so not to overexert himself and create a situation where he had no strength to stand let alone fight. To that end, his armour set remained perfunctory of lightweight approaching medium if there was any clearer method to imply the middle. Guns-wise, a simple pistol was all it took. His combat knowledge seemed to serve him well, picking an unknown weapon which he explained to me as an older firearm, the first of the M series. Honestly though, I was half-asleep by the time he went into details on his personal enhancements to the system.
When we did hear our pilot radio us that we were nearing our destination, I breathed a sigh of relief. Finally, hopefully fresh air with a zero percent chance of death and sunny days all around. That's only if... Curiosity answered that in one fell swoop falteringly.
"I forgot to ask. Anyone know what Tora Vali looks like?" I clear my throat, desperately hoping for some relatively safe answers. To my surprise, the nameless pilot (who will remain nameless to date. Apologies for my anti-social nature...) chirped up in the midst of sideswiping an incoming asteroid according to his account later on in the debriefing.
"Not much. Just barren wastelands and caves. There's not much worth here so most people steer clear of this place." He told me. Really? Was there nothing of interest? Not even a tiki bar? Awww...
"Not even pirates?" I responded, somewhat baffled by his reply.
"Fewer natural resources and sustenance? Not even hardened mercenaries dare come here often." He joked, thinking it was a comfort that the supposed new guy would be more than thrilled with this kind of news. And I was at first, my inner child jumping up and down on the imaginary bed in my head until it was cut short by the realization that it practically meant this planet was near 100% inhospitable for periods of time. Then it really soured my dejected mood.
Thanks a lot for killing my mood, killjoy pilot. I wonder if I could return the favour... When you think about it, a good-old fashioned prank war involving space balloons and deliberate connects of door circuits in the wrong receptors sounded like the best thing to bring some cheery nature back into my life, infantile as it may sound.
Beginning its final descent, killjoy pilot (Hey, I finally did give him a name!) settled the flying hunk of metal into the planet's atmo, the composition sparking against the hull with a crackle with each feet we descended, like a sadistic fireworks that felt like there was no end in sight. From high above, it looked like a completely arid, desert zone and it was expected to be so in that order. About 10,000 or so feet from the ground, I finally took notice of an unusual site. Several buildings constructed out of simple materials akin to a research facility dotted the traverses of the valley we were to touch down in. Kaiden immediately drew my attention when he claimed to see signs of hasty defences at the outskirts followed by those that indicated the same people tried to pack up and fled before most of the work was accomplished. Two things that told me either this planet was either home to a hostile race of species I've never seen or heard of or a bold band of mercs with the stones to try living on this damn space rock. Regardless, it meant we had a lot of work to do.
"This is your stop. Bring me a souvenir!" The pilot informed me sarcastically, flairs of Joker clearly rubbing its influence on the dude. I weakly laughed, its words strikingly cutting on my morale. As I carried out my equipment along with the rest of the necessary gear, among which was a complete set of mining tools for dummies, I saw Kaiden rap once to signal the pilot.
"We're clear." He told him. The doors hermetically sealed behind us and he was off to the races, awaiting the signal for his imminent return. Guess it makes sense. Still, seeing it float away out of atmo just solidified the idea that we were actually doing this in my head. Ah, well. We still had a job to do. And damn if I was going to screw this one up, considering the possibility of returning home at stake.
"Okay, boss. What's the plan?" I echoed my enthusiasm, remembering to bite my lip when I met Ashley's face. She seemed less aggressive and more passive, which I pegged as professionalism, not some 180 spin of judgement.
"Spread out. Look for any sign of survivors. Meet back at the tower in the middle at 1000." Kaiden waved his hand to his right and left, taking the middle path as he commanded us. With a curt nod, Ashley drew the right path while I followed the left.
"Got it." I acknowledged his orders without further question, deferring to his judgement. My feet hit the ground running in my jubilance, barely heeding the code of conduct most paid soldiers would follow. While not exactly a soldier, I look back and find it foolish not to listen to people who make it their life's work to 'supposedly' uproot threats wherever they may tread. The first structure I came across was one of the more packed up. Half the steel ramparts were folded into a bale, ready to be transported out. Parts of the building were also folded into stacks, such as several key components of the door frame and the panels that once consisted of a wall. The other half just felt... incomplete. It was like seeing a story half-done, a tale never to be completed. It gave me pause, writing this. Would I never finish telling this tale? Doomed to let pen and paper fade into obscurity and its characters to suffer eternal slumber of a different kind? Overthinking again...
It wasn't a total waste. Rifling through one of the drawers, I discovered several notes regarding the Kronostyl-2 that intrigued me. With a deft hand, I plundered the files and shut the door behind me with a simple deadbolt to serve as an early warning for nosy people. My fingers eagerly flipped through the page and the results were promising. While the scientists or researchers had some of the crystals in stock, most of it was depleted in attempts to uncover its exquisite properties, all in vain. Thank god. The thought that they could unlock these deadly secrets would be numbing. Even better, the file even mapped out a cavern just a few clicks from here with several deposits' worth for us to plunder, more than enough to make a grand escape.
With a tender fumble, I fingered around the drawer for a thumbdrive and received one in the form of a Cerberus logo. Fan-freaking tastic. Of all the organizations to get caught up in this, it had to be everyone's favourite terrorism society. With trepidation, I copied the files into my personal omni-tool and with the skill-sets I've acquired from days of training under Tali's tutelage, I encrypted the files to my fitting. Then I deleted all pertinent information regarding the research's results and hard-wired it to read classified for every category except for topographical data.
"Kaiden, come in." I radioed over the comm link, a buzz of static bursting and crackling to life as soon as my finger pressed on that button.
"Reading you with heavy static." Kaiden replied dryly, his tone commanding and flaccid. The guy had no clue how talented he was at commanding people. Why he refuses is a mystery.
"Found some files. Heavily redacted, but the topographical data is still intact." I surmised, walking out with my other hand to my hip, ready to yank the ol' trusty out for a tussle if need be.
"And?" Kaiden responded, waiting for a more thorough explanation.
"Few clicks from here. Too far to walk though." I commented when I reread the now-redacted file. With a simple swish and a few button presses on the hovering keypad, I transferred the file to Kaiden's omni-tool for his own perusal which I assumed he then handed off to Ashley afterwards. For a minute, I continued my search in the building opposite it, the better evident signs of armed conflict appearing with worrying frequency. Smoking bullet holes, cooling thermal sinks and charred walls all screamed of an ambush gone wrong. The only question left to answer, where did those bodies go?
"Then let's hope there's a vehicle amidst all this mess." Kaiden finally chirped at last.
"Ashley, how copy?" he opened the channel to Ashley to join in and share her two-cents on the issue.
"Not much on my end. Empty buildings and an armoury. All the firearms are off the racks though, sir." Ashley mused, her voice a hint high in the quiver department and several decibles higher in grim rage.
"Did they go down fighting?" Kaiden asked, sick to his stomach that he could predict her answer.
"Seems like it, sir." She muttered, barely audible.
Cold silence followed, none of wanting to pile on some half-assed excuse that they could be saved. Nothing could have been done that hasn't already been done. There was no point in beating ourselves over the head with a stick for a crime we were never around to prevent. So we did the next best thing, pour our emotions and our hearts into the task at hand, making their sacrifices not be in vain. More so for my case, as they would realize long after the fact.
One of the structures, perched on the peak of a small hill offered some entrancing world view to gaze upon for the majority. Vast deserts, rolling fields of dust and solitude rolled into my eyes. The canyons high above felt even grander than the namesake in the West, stretching to what I prescribed as the height of gods. In that moment, you could forget that an entire village remained in shambles behind my back, the worries of the world melting away to empty nothingness. And in that time, serenity and a utopian legacy pervaded my thoughts. Ah, what I would give to see my own lands again...
"Come in..." my channel crackled back to life, Kaiden's voice chirping amidst the wailing white noise.
"Reading you, Kaiden. Any luck?" I asked excitedly.
"Come and see for yourself." I heard him reply, the conversation cut short.
"Alrighty..." I murmured to myself, wondering what kind of grand prize got his knickers in a twist. So, I walked down the dusty trail like I was a country slinger with my hand to my hip and an imaginary duster hat breezing against actual wind. Almost reminds you of the wild frontier if you squint your eyes and pretend you're John Marston. Heh... Up ahead, I noticed the faint shadow of Ashley and Kaiden in front of a sizeable garage, the metal door sealed shut like a birthday gift waiting to be unwrapped.
"So... Where's this wonder bird?" I called out, striding in big steps toward them. Kaiden as if planned, moved to the button on the box next to the gate and slammed on it with force. The frame slid upwards like those old garage doors you'd normally see, the anticipation a build-up. And then that sleek, little white beauty rolled up and glistened with new ship paint.
"Whoa." My mouth went pear-shaped just looking at the damn thing. Feet of engineering marvel just standing right in front, ripe for the taking? Now I get how kleptomaniacs must feel all the time...
"Is that a Cerberus Hammerhead, sir? I thought those things were still prototype, last I heard from the chatter." Ashley spoke incredulously, brushing her fingers against the steel hull like she was seeing a mirage before her eyes.
"Figures top brass would keep this a secret. Ashley, you have the wheel. Do a systems check and get back to me." Kaiden barked his orders to the letter. Ashley saluted him, returning to her work as instructed, disappearing into the belly of the mechanical beast to get it running. He turned to me all serious like, his face unreadable.
"On it, sir. I heard her call back before he spoke.
"Isaac, do a second sweep. Gather anything that looks useful and dump in the storage container at the back." He gave me my assignment. I looked behind my back. There had to be at least a dozen buildings in this packed cluster of rubble. It would take hours to clear through this mess. But orders were orders, even if I was under no obligation to follow them.
"Happy to do so, boss." I replied with false cheer, setting out with haste so that my task may be done swiftly.
"Come on, people. Let's get to work." Kaiden attempted to rally. What we remained unaware of was a set of illuminated goggles peering at us from a dark crevice beneath the hill, watching our every move. I was told later that he would inform some nasty folk of our intent.
Intent that collided with theirs, intent that would see our efforts retaliated with evidential risk...
Another chapter done and dusted. I must admit, this chapter has me questioning my writing style. Thus, I'll be releasing this and the next chapter to come at the same time, giving you guys more material to dig through and exploring which writing style suits me best. Thanks for sticking around, like, favourite and have a good day...
