Chương 97: 2.38 Unread

//18 potentia gathered. Potentia available: 93. // Hector lifted his hand from the spine thrasher, scanning the stony field to ensure nothing nearby had heard the battle—quick as it had been—and come to investigate. The only sound, other than the stiff breeze shifting the shale-like gravel, was the faint burble of air bubbling up in the nearby pool. He didn't think another thrasher was lurking in the water; the one he'd killed had just emerged, and there didn't look like room for another.

To be sure, he tossed a flat piece of damp stone into the pool and watched. Nothing stirred the ripples he'd created. Judging the pool and the boulders piled nearby a suitable spot for the others to hide, he turned and jogged up the slope to where he'd last left them. They'd been making painstakingly slow progress, but such a pace was required; Hector had to scout, clear patrolling or lurking rift creatures, and then guide them from staging point to staging point.

Even their movement was slow, though; none of the others were in perfect health after a week on the rift world with insufficient shelter from the environment. More than that, they had a member who couldn't walk at all. Ling was surprisingly spry, despite his injury, and he seemed able to keep up with just one of the stronger team members to lean on. He timed his steps with theirs, hopping with one arm over their shoulder.

Most often, it was Freddy helping Ling—Kristy's knee was bothering her more than she'd admit, and Mathews was… aloof. Some people might see Mathews and her strange behavior as a sign of a rift symbiote infection, but Hector thought it was more likely trauma from her ordeal. As he'd told Kristy, the commander had been through hell. Walking that line, so close to real death, could take a while to come back from. He knew that all too well.

On his way to the team's current hiding spot, he paused to observe a massive spine-bag drift over the stony plain off to his left. It was probably half a klick distant, but he wanted to ensure it kept moving away. It did, and when it was another hundred meters distant, he inhaled sharply as half a dozen smaller shapes fell from it amid a deluge of foamy liquid discharge. The thing had just offloaded some spine thrasher spawn.

Hector squatted, perfectly still, watching as the creatures scurried off in different directions, hunting for prey or a suitable ambush spot. When he was confident none would cross paths with him and the others, he continued on his way, crouched low as he jogged up the slope. He found the others right where he'd left them, huddled together in a small depression near the base of a large stone outcropping. Mathews, Freddy, and Kristy squatted in front of the others, rifles held ready.

When Hector, as silent as a person could be, his steps carefully avoiding loose rocks, came gliding out of the shadows beside the outcrop, Freddy jerked his gun toward him.

"Damn it!" the young Royal said with a chuckle, shaking his head, "third time you got me."

"Don't beat yourself up, kid," Mathews said, "Hector's had more practice sneaking around than any of us expected." She turned her opaque visor on him.

"Maybe if we all live through this, he'll tell us more about himself." Hector brushed it off.

"Yeah, maybe. Ready to move?" As everyone grumbled, Evie sent them all a map update with the next stop's coordinates.

"I'll go ahead again, but keep your eyes peeled. Spine-bag just dumped off some juveniles about half a klick downslope to the southwest."

"How much further must we go?" Willa asked. Hector noticed how the tech's hand shook, the SMG she carried rattling slightly against her thigh. He walked over to her and took hold of the weapon's rail, lifting it and tilting it to the side, into the air. While she stared, he gently turned the gun left and right.

"You're going to cramp up or exhaust yourself holding it like this. Relax, Willa. We're not even halfway yet. Have you been hydrating?"

"Um…" She gave a weak nod. Her transparent facemask made it easy to see the pale clamminess of her flesh.

"I've been reminding her…and everyone," Paige said. Hector nodded, tugging on the gun again.

"Let go." When Willa released it, he could see relief wash over her—either at the relaxation of her death grip or at the mental release of not holding the weapon. Hector clipped it to her belt.

"If it comes down to shooting, leave it to the soldiers first. If you need the gun, it's right there." She nodded.

"Th-thanks."

"Right." Hector glanced at everyone else.

"Let's move." With that, he turned and jogged ahead again, scanning the slope for hidden dangers. //You have enough potentia for the archetype change if you're interested. // Probably not smart to put myself in a vulnerable position now, Evie. I think it's going to be hard-charging all the way to the end from here. When we get out, we'll re-evaluate. //Probably wise. // As Hector considered the obstacles between him and that eventual exit through the rift, another opinion materialized in his mind.

What about the Berserk to Shadow Step change? Is that going to hit me very hard? If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it. //Not nearly so much as a level-up or archetype change. It'll be even less severe than a new ability, because you'll be overwriting established pathways. // All right. Start that one then. Here's hoping it doesn't knock me out while a hook titan is chasing me.

//Please confirm: you want me to spend 50 aura potentia on the Berserk to Shadow Step upgrade, correct? // Do it. //50 aura potentia applied. Pathway revisions are being mapped and will be implemented to convert Berserk to Shadow Step. This process will be relatively mild, though brief moments of disorientation are likely, given the nature of phase abilities. Please take caution; do not operate machinery or motor vehicles, and ensure greater than usual nutrient intake.

The process will complete within the next 6 hours. Aura potentia remaining: 43. // What the hell, Evie? //That was the default message, Hector. I'm sure you'll be fine. Well, mostly sure. // ### When the message arrived, Sass was watching the train updates on her AUI, zoning out as the little blue blip on the track approached the bigger, yellow blip that represented Kessler's Reach.

She almost didn't look at it, figuring it was either something from her cousin or a bill collector—she'd left more than one utility unpaid back at her old apartment—but something in her gut made her focus on the icon and expand the message. Ever since her call with Iris Sparling, she'd been uneasy. Of course, a few days with no contact with anybody hadn't exactly been good for her nerves, either. Still, it was standard protocol, wasn't it?

She and the rest of the team weren't exactly supposed to be chatting it up—not with their payroll coming from a criminal organization. There were other factors to worry about, too; Hector had stressed that much to her—make her trip quick and quiet-like, and he'd explain things to Lemon and the others himself. When the message expanded, and she saw it was from Hector, the wave of relief that washed over her was like a dip in a warm bath. Tension melted from her shoulders, and she exhaled a long, slow breath.

Smiling, she tapped the voice memo and listened as Hector's voice spoke into her ears as though he was sitting right beside her:"Hey Sass. If you're getting this message, I'm either dead or we didn't make it back through the rift, in which case—" Sass paused the message as the realization hit her; Hector wasn't back. He hadn't sent her this message just now. He'd sent it to her back before he went into the rift.

It was a— "It's a dead-man protocol," she hissed, the term coming from some deep memory—probably something she'd heard in a spy serial. Heart racing, irrational tears brimming in her eyes, she pushed the play button again: "… I'm probably dead. I guess there's a chance, but it's pretty slim. In any case, I'm not sure how long Grando's going to want to keep everyone out in Kessler's Reach. If the rift's back to normal, my team and I could be trapped for a month. Yeah, not good.

"Anyway, I took care of Lemon; don't worry about her. I hope you did that little errand I sent you on. If you did, thanks. I've got another job for you, though. I'm not sure what's going to happen to the villa—the rental—but I left something there I want you to secure.

"I know I'm asking a lot—for a dead man—but I was hoping you'd hang onto it for me, along with the thing I had you retrieve back in Redwick. Hang onto them until the IG sends a team through the rift next month. When they get back, you'll know if I'm dead or not—for sure, I mean." Sass paused the message again, blinking her eyes. The sinking sensation in her stomach was so overwhelming that she had to look out the window for a while, staring as the red desert drifted by.

She felt a new connection to that empty landscape; like it, she felt empty—like everything she'd done in the last few weeks, all the new hopes and plans she'd developed while working with Hector, had suddenly been erased, leaving a yawning chasm in their place. Of course, she'd watched the newsreels about the rift "incident" at Kessler's Reach. When the reporters said the raid team was feared lost and that "next of kin had been contacted," she'd refused to believe any of that could apply to Hector.

He'd planned for contingencies. Hadn't he said so? He wasn't like other people, she'd told herself. Now she felt stupid—stupid and hopelessly naïve. Well, at least I still have some bits on this locker. She patted the little device in her pocket and suddenly felt very guilty. Was that all that mattered—that she could pay off her debts and go back to her old life? Sniffing, she wiped her nose, then her eyes, and pressed play again:"The thing I need you to get is in a backpack.

It's stuffed into the insulation above the ceiling in my bathroom. Get it and put yourself up in a hotel or something. Sass, I can't stress enough how important it is that you don't let anyone see what's in that backpack—or the object you got at Redwick. Hide them." For a second, Sass thought the message was over, but Hector had just paused, and when he spoke again, his voice was different.

It was softer, and when she heard it, she could imagine it might be how he'd sound if he were speaking to someone he cared about. That's in your head, dummy. But it wasn't—there was something in his tone she'd never heard before.

"I'm glad we met, Sass. Training you has been nice, and spending time with you has reminded me that living can still feel worthwhile, even if it's just a tourist stop on the way to… Well, never mind. Anyway, thanks for that." There was another long pause, and Sass heard Hector clear his throat. Then he spoke again, his voice all business: " Right. If I'm dead, you'll get another message in a month telling you what to do with the objects you're keeping safe for me.

You'll never have to worry about money again if you follow my instructions. Stay sharp, Sass. I probably have some enemies watching out for me." The playback ended, and Sass restarted it, sure she must have missed something—some clue indicating that Hector was fine—but it was just the same, and all it did was make her feel worse. For the second time since she'd left the resort in Redwick, she sent Lemon a message on their secure board.

She didn't hold out much hope that the other woman would respond; Sass's first message was still marked unread. Still, she tried; she wanted to talk to someone who'd understand what she was feeling, and she honestly couldn't think of another soul. After sending it, she leaned her forehead against the window, looking out into the desert. Once again, she was struck by the strange appropriateness of the bleak landscape.

She might have dozed for a while, or maybe she didn't, but time seemed to slip away, and when the train's AI conductor chimed, announcing their imminent arrival, she turned back to her message window and stared at the note she'd sent to Lemon. Beside it, a single word glowed in the header: Unread.