Chapitre 34: The Desert
"You've got to be kidding me..." Seeing sand all around him, Bryan shielded his eyes as an unexpected gust of wind blew sand into his eyes while thinking to himself.
"We're in the desert? I imagined we'd be in a jungle or having everyone crammed into a single zone, fighting to the death." Sophia muttered in a soft voice, however, after feeling her right hand was empty, she turned to look, and her heart abruptly sank.
In her vision, Flint is gone, and Bryan, who had reflexively covered his eyes with his right palm, has now realized that his other two teammates have vanished to his right.
He didn't even notice they were gone since there was no trace of them disappearing, as they just simply vanished. In a short, while later, Bryan then sighed at the realization that his speculation about them being in contact was wrong, and he reasoned that it was up to Lady Luck whether they were to meet up again later. It's a remote possibility, but still.
While hundreds of people were all still in a state of contemplation and were blasted by the sudden heatwave, all of a sudden, a voice sounded out at the front of the pack.
"Gather around everyone, I will become the head of this particular group. Although I'm not the best leader, I am one of the few who have been assigned with leading a group as a whole. So if there are no objections, then let's start." A dry and solemn bearded bald man spoke up firmly.
Hearing that commanding tone, In an instant, soft hushes of whispers can be heard in the crowd, as they discussed this bald man in detail.
Looking across the crowd, the bald man couldn't tell how many people were present, but if he had to estimate, it would be anywhere between 400 to 500 including the children.
After realizing this, he spoke up once again, saying,
"I checked, and it appears that the people here are perilously few. Taking into consideration that there have been thousands of people in the whole white cube, then we're among the few groups having scarce members. But don't worry everyone! Inspect your Hidden Book, and you'll see what I mean."
When they heard those words, the crowd promptly willed their Hidden Books to manifest. On the other hand, a small percentage of them had already materialized their Hidden Books as soon as they arrived here, Bryan and Sophia are amongst them.
[Trial by Blood and Fire]
Survive amid the world's most inhospitable environments, encompassing scorching heat in the western desert, bizarre and deadly lifeforms in the wild throughout the south, roaring waves in the east, vast plains in the north, and lastly the icy tundra in the central region.
[Game objective:]
Our fate is determined by how far we are inclined to go to stay alive, by the decisions we make to survive. We must do whatever it takes and live to tell the tale.
[Tip]
Pigeons die for food, humans die for riches, fortune and misfortune stick together, explore and seize what you desire, for the future is yours to reclaim. Worry not mortal, the cycle is eternal.
In the process of looking at his Hidden Book, Bryan is soaking in all the new information, meanwhile, the rest of the people took a stealthy glance around them, stepping back and forming little groups of company. Sophia, in the meantime, stood there looking at the bald man, waiting for additional instructions.
"First and foremost, I'm not responsible for your injuries or anything else detrimental since I'm merely leading you; and you can do anything you want as long as you don't disrupt the peace and order of the group. Second, if you are dissatisfied with my arrangement, you have two choices: speak out or quit the group. Finally, get yourself a battle buddy or some company, and a word of caution, never ever be a lone wolf, since it is always necessary to have a companionship to watch your back."
After finishing that brief speech, the bald man stared at the people in front of him and noticed that they're all looking towards him with overly serious expressions on their faces. Not long ago, they were having a brief gossip and was a bit rowdy, but it didn't last long, since they recognized that such recklessness might cost them their lives and as a result, they immediately became alert.
Upon seeing that change, the bald man nodded in satisfaction and continued,
"I'm gonna lie to you people, while I've been prepared mostly in the harshest conditions of the jungle due to the jungle-like environment in the Philippines. The desert, however, is a completely unknown area to me, so I'd need some volunteers, preferably one of you, as long as you're a survival expert, a brilliant planner, and also know the ins and outs of medicine. I will take all that you can give to me, so kindly step forward and let us partition you into groups, since the fate of your fellow companion's life, including mine, rests on your shoulders." In the end, the bald man knew his limitations from the start, plus he didn't want most of these people to die as a result of his lack of expertise, so he swallowed his pride and sought help.
Hearing such remarks from a genuine veteran, especially with his slightly shaky voice at the conclusion of it. Everybody realized that even though he had a wealth of skills to back it up, he was still a human and not a robot, so they clearly felt the intense emotions in his words.
Not long after his declaration, a couple of people stepped forward to thank the bald man for his bravery and sacrifice in assisting them, rather than forsaking them and leaving them to fend for themselves. Therefore they promised to help in these troubled times since they had specific skills in these circumstances.
With a small step forward, Sophia was about to go to the front, as even though she hasn't concluded her education, she is still a medical practitioner who wanted to help as well. Yet, all of a sudden, a rough hand grasps her wrist.
Having a look of confusion on her face, she said to Bryan beside her,
"What are you up to this time?"
"I'm advising you not to do it, even though what he said was touching, but how about you lay low every once in a while? Look. We don't seem to share the same mindset, as we've not generated a single spark ever since the time we met. And, frankly, it's a pain in the ass to stop you every time you attempt to do something radical, but I'll do it once more, and I'm once again urging you to stop for the greater good."
"Why are you always standing in the way of helping people? Just leave me alone, okay?" Sophia was exasperated, but she suddenly felt her wrist ache as Bryan's grasp strengthened, therefore she looked Bryan in the eyes, and upon which she saw an expression full of anger.
In a short period of time, Bryan's grip seemed to not be stopping anytime soon, so Sophia sighed and stated,
"I'm not always like this, however, the last challenge had caused me to feel so guilty. Since that was my very first time murdering someone. Despite the fact that I did not actually physically murder Lisa and Mia, But, I am the main culprit behind it. So, while we were in the white cube, I was constantly thinking of ways to make amends... So I'm sorry okay? It's all my fault. Now stop, you're really now hurting me now."
Hearing her response, Bryan's anger subsided, at the same time releasing his grip to her wrist, saying,
"Don't do anything that is detrimental to yourself or to me. Remember, you went to me and requested to be on my team, but that simple action I took in admitting you. All I receive from it is not even a small act of thanks but is a never-ending stream of problems. Remember, Sophia, you're not alone anymore. As I'm also receiving the blunt out of every action you take. So, just be cautious the next time, as well as take my advice about not stepping out. If you genuinely want to help, simply refrain from doing so at the start. Wait a while, and then go once you've determined that the coast is clear."
"Fine, we'll do as you say," Sophia took a deep breath and stepped back to her old previous location.
"I'm not saying that helping others is wrong as this could lead to good karma, but every step you take is an echo, and every poor decision you make is our undoing," Bryan said while turning to face the continuous selection of people, once again.
After that little squabble, in the process of segregating groups, the sun in the sky is growing blistering hot by the minute, and not a single one of them is free from having a lot of perspiration rolling down their cheeks, and slowly but surely the truly frightening thing when you're out in the desert is about to commence.
Cadeaux
-- Cadeau
reçu État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone