Capítulo 18: Question in Silence

In a room filled with broken, collapsed bricks, dust and debris, several figures could be seen sitting around a large, broken table.

The figures sat in silence amid the ruins. Crumbling walls enclosed the space, remnants of a structure now in disrepair. Dust floated through shafts of dim light peering through gaps above.

With Valeria, Aziza, Moren, Seraphina, and Riana sitting on the left side of the table, the right side was occupied by Alissa, Lucian, Robin, and Scarlet.

Scarlet had her hands on her head as she sighed in weariness. The others, including Robin downed their head not showing their facial expression.

"Let's not fight against each other, there is a mission that was given to use by the commander." Scarlet spoked.

...¹

After the explosion happen on Luvengton.

Scarlet ran through the forest until she reached a nearby cliff. What showed before her was a collapsed city filled with black corrupted mucus.

"The recon squad lost it's signal near the city." Scarlet mumbled to herself with her hands on her chin.

Scarlet pulled a locator on her spatial pouch and check the exact location where the recon squad lost it's signal.

"mmm, it seems like it is within the Luvengton city."

Scarlet backed away from the cliff edge and took a moment to stretch her body, she removed her traveling shoes and reached into her spatial pouch once more. Pulling out an advanced pair of shoes with feathered wings attached onto it's back.

Taking a deep breath, Scarlet stepped back and ran towards the cliff. With a powerful leap, she threw herself into open air and dived over the edge.

Winds rushed past Scarlet's face as her hair flew back. She extended her arms out and pressed her body into a straight vertical position to reduce momentum, just as she had been trained for parashoot diving.

With a rank of a Hunter, Scarlet is able to withstand the pressure of diving down without additional equipment.

As the ruins drew nearer, Scarlet remained calm despite the adrenaline coursing through her veins. Free-falling at terminal velocity through the open air would terrify most people without proper training, but not for her.

Just as the rubble-strewn grounds came into sharp focus, Scarlet acted. With light, nimble steps, she took another mighty leap from her plunging body. Just like within the games, her downward momentum suddenly arrested as her boots activated on command. Scarlet began a slow, controlled descent the last few dozen meters.

Scarlet began a slow, controlled descent the last few dozen meters. The anti-gravity function in her specialized shoes allowed her to lower gently towards the littered surface.

She take a gently touch down on the surface and brush the few flecks of debris from her clothes, then took out her locator and surveyed her surrounds.

"It seems like, I'm still far away." Scarlet mumbled.

She took out her spatial pouch and withdrew a sword, she unsheathe the sword just to check the durability of the blade. The mysterious metal shone as bright as the day she had uncovered the weapon.

"Huh, it's this one," She thought to herself, after recognizing the shiny blades.

Scarlet hold the hilt of the sword and swung it through a few practice, she nodded her head satisfied with the sword, and returned the sword swiftly back to it's scabbard.

With her locator gripped firmly in her left hand, Scarlet set off deeper into the ruined city, moving with great caution.

The ruined city of Luvengton is filled with heavy silence and grim atmosphere. Monstrous roars can heard occasionally, it echoed through out the rubbled ruins, warning the nearby species that it is guarding the city.

It was a very normal occurrence for someone like Robin, since he isn't a person who is from the world of the trials, However to people like Scarlet, this new phenomenon was deeply troubling. In the past, the walkers showed no signs of intellect or ability to organize.

Hence, the survivors are able to survive in the apocalyptic world, walkers can be easily avoided or to be killed since they don't walk in clusters.

Yet in the past recent months, the walkers acted in a very weird pattern. It started to cluster up and guard the ruined city of Luvengton.

To Scarlet and the other survivors, this new behavior was deeply confusing and concerning. What was there for the mindless walkers to guard? The ruined buildings held no resources, and the walkers showed no ability to claim or defend territory in the past.

Someone, or something, had to be influencing and directing this inexplicable change in the walkers' behavior. This alarming development pressed heavily on Scarlet and the other survivors.

Hence, the survivors sent out a recon squad to gather more information about the current situation for months, However in the past week, the recon squad hadn't respond with a new signal, so the survivors decided to send out Scarlet to investigate the situation.

Scarlet, who was hiding behind a ruined wall, peeked out to check if there were any nearby Walkers.

Seeing that there were no nearby walkers within the area, she swiftly ran towards the lost signal, finding the next nearby ruined rubble in order to cover her tracks.

Finally, after a long hide and seek, she arrived at the location where the last signal came from. With caution, she moved closer to the nearby building.

-Creak

Hiding behind a wall, she peak out to see what had happened within the last signal where the recon squad lost it's signal.

As Scarlet approached the lost signal, a disturbing scene came into view. Broken pieces of the locator were laying on the ground, with Corrupted Walker corpses laying on the area. A long black spear had pierced through these corpses.

"What happened here," she mumbled to herself.

Scarlet cautious approach the corpses, to check if she could find any clues other than the obvious long black spear.

After minutes of surveying the area, there doesn't seem to be having any clue related to the missing scouts.

Scarlet squinted her eyes as she rubbed her temples. before she shook her head, she walked away from the scene and began approaching the explosion that abrupted from before.

As she approached the scene, Scarlet saw countless Walkers scattered across the area, seemingly searching for something. She stopped near a broken ruin and cautiously checked for hidden dangers within the crumbling structure.

Suddenly, Scarlet's breath caught in her throat as she felt an immense pressure emanating from a specific location. Her vision began to distort, hallucinations appear before her and slowly collapse to the ground.

...

Hours later, Scarlet awoke in a nearby forest. She sprang to her feet, instantly stayed alert and pose herself in a battle stance. After surveying her surroundings, she spotted a man lying unconscious on the grassy plain.

Scarlet retrieved her spatial pouch from the ground and withdrew her sword.

Moving closer, she observed the man was covered in dust, his clothes tattered and soaked with blood.

Scarlet contemplated whether to save this mysterious stranger, leave him, or end his life. After a moment of internal conflict, something within her urged her to help him.

She treated his wound and examine the man in front of her.

"I'll test him once he wakes up," Scarlet muttered to herself.

...¹

Natalia's Office

After Scarlet explained all the incidents that had transpired, Natalia tapped her fingers on the table, deep in thought.

Scarlet silently waited for Natalia to speak, meanwhile she ponders on the strange situation. She questions herself on why had she not died from the being that emanates such immense pressure, and why or how she had awakened near the woods.

Judging by how Robin had reacted from before, he cannot be the same exact being.

'Unless someone is attempting to help him.'

Scarlet shakes her head, attempting to clear out her useless thoughts. Natalia took a glance on Scarlet and rested her chin, waiting for Scarlet to clear her mind.

After a while Natalia spoke up.

"I received an information."

She spoked with ease as though it doesn't seem like a big matter, however to Scarlet who knew her personality, knows that deep inside Natalia, she is also shocked about the information as well.

Scarlet patiently waits for Natalia to continue. Natalia turned her gaze to stare out the window pensively.

"Their plan is to summon their god into this world," she said grimly.

Scarlet's eyes widened in disbelief. She struggled to remain outwardly calm even as her sweaty palms betrayed her mounting anxiety.

Natalia now faced Scarlet directly.

"Can I trust you?"

...¹

"There are five squads that are going to carry out this mission," Scarlet explained as she pulled out a map of Luvengton. All the members of the Abyssal Hunters leaned in, ready to hear how the plan would unfold.

Led by the Resilient Lions, their goal is to hold down and control the center of Luvengton city. There members are filled with close combat, heavy tanks, high agility and long range awakeners.

They act as a insurance for the whole mission in case, something wrong happened through out the whole plan. There role is to support any of the other squad incase something happen.

As for Nightfall Raven, they will act as protectors. There goal is to patrol around the city and kill out any lone Walkers. There members are usually filled with high agility awakeners or sensing awakeners.

They will lower the number of Walkers around the city, this would help lower down the pressure of all the other squads.

Now for The Sentinels, they are the most important squad that are going to be present within the mission. There members are mostly filled with healers, supports, wide sensing and karma related awakeners.

They act as rears, with there goal to give out information present on the field to the all the squad and they also act as squad supports, with the help of wide sensing awakeners, the supports are able to buff all the squads present within their senses.

Sensing awakeners at times would get disrupted by other factors within the plan, to fix this hole on the plan, the Nightfall Ravens will need step in.

Twilight Reapers, they will be the elite killers, with the goal of reducing the threat level of the mission. they have the highest death rate out of all the squads, yet they are also the strongest out of all the squad members.

There members are filled with variety of awakeners, and they also have the most Hunter ranked awakeners out of all the squads.

The Twilight Reapers cooperates with The Sentinels and Nightfall Raven, in order to find out any dangerous areas. And eliminate it as fast as possible, It might be clustered walkers or any dangerous corrupted creature.

Lastly Abyssal Hunters, there goal is to Investigate and stop the descent of the Corrupted Lord. there team members are the most flexible out of all the squads.

~~~

After Scarlet explained the whole plan, she dismissed the team to begin preparations. The operation was slated to take place within the next few weeks, so I had some time for mentorship from Scarlet.

I took a walk around town to clear my head as night fell. So much had happened since I began my trial, I still had more questions than answers. Gazing up at the dark sky, I pondered silently.

'When will I find out the truth.'