Into the Desert

The twins, Darius and Entsy all new that there was truth in what Lance had said. It was just that seeing so many people suffering and not being able to help them felt devastating.

Darius first waked to Lance and laid a hand on his shoulder. He was followed by Yu Ying, Entsy and at last Yu Yan.

Lance himself wasn't feeling so good about abandoning the people to their deaths, potentially. But the time in the Time Manipulated Chamber had made him mature and think more. After analyzing everything that was happening, he had decided that this was the best course to take.

Nodding at them all, he said, "Let's go. We shall first follow the road as far as it goes before going into the desert. Our objective is to reach the pyramid as soon as possible. The best thing is to find a jeep or vehicle which can travel in the desert. Entsy, can you run reconnaissance? Check for any such vehicle close to us. We will be on this road."

Nodding, Entsy bent for a second or two before shooting off. Although he wasn't at his maximum speed, it still seemed like he had shot forward like a bullet.

"As for us, lets get as far away from those things as possible. As Entsy should find us again, lets stay on the road. Don't forget to drink water every hour. I've noticed that it can only hold a maximum of one cup."

The remaining 3 nodded before following behind Lance. There was a sullen atmosphere as each and every one of them were still reflecting on their actions.

Almost all initiates who had grown up with their ancestors were like this. Since childhood, they would be taught the importance of good morals and responsibility. As for those who did not, many still showed an urge to protect the earth especially after carrying out missions. The missions were also designed to inculcate such a sense of duty in initiates' mind.

Still, there were many exceptions. In the end, it all boiled down to whether one would follow orders or not. Regardless of whether they felt the duty to protect or not, it would be fine if they followed orders to the letter.

The road led into the desert itself but it stopped after a certain distance. The 4 waited there for Entsy to return while standing there.

Lance kept looking around. Although everywhere around him was only swirling sands, he still kept a strict lookout.

This paid off. To their east in the distance, another comet shaped object was slowly approaching.

Noticing this, Lance immediately said, "Another object like the one we saw before is approaching. Should we fight or hide? I would prefer hiding but there is no space to hide around us.", said Lance. All around them was just open space and sand. There was no guarantee that they could destroy the object even if they attacked as it seemed to be made of an unknown material. Also, there was the possibility that it might attract more and more objects to their location.

Realizing this, the rest also agreed that it was best to hide. Darius had something additional to say, "Leave the hiding to me. Follow me and stay close."

Trusting him, the other 4 followed into the desert. After walking for a bit silently to a spot where the road was still visible, Darius said, "Take in as much air as possible. We will have a limited supply of air soon."

Hearing this, all of them started breathing in deep. After a few seconds, Darius pointed at a side of a dune a few inches from them.

The sand under them started sinking. The twins let out a small shriek before calming down seeing Darius put a finger on his lips. Even Lance had been shocked and had been prepared to jump out.

In seconds, the sand swallowed them up as they found themselves again standing on sand which didn't sink like before. Around them was a round wall of sand. with Darius standing arms up, as if holding the sand up with his will.

"I can only hold for 10 minutes. Lets hope it passes by before that", he gasped, before going back to concentrating on the sand.

Thankfully, none of them were claustrophobic. It seemed that Darius really was holding it up by his will. They marveled at his IN while trying to breathe in as little air as possible.