Chapter 249:Leaving.
Morning came quietly.
After the chaos of the previous night, Silver had expected everyone to wake up exhausted, irritable, or at least somewhat shaken. Instead, the camp slowly came back to life beneath the pale morning sun.
The first rays of light spread across the rocky landscape, illuminating the dried blood scattered around the vehicles and the deep scratches left on several of the cars by the attacking beasts.
The remains of the small beast tide had already been dealt with.
The valuable parts had been removed, the corpses dragged farther away from the camp, and the ground around the vehicles had been checked for anything that might attract other creatures. There was no sign of another attack, but the atmosphere had changed.
Everyone was more alert but they still had that nonchalance that high ranking Contractors had. Last night attack was just a little blip in their journey, an occurrence compared to that of being attacked by the a rank one beast.
Even with that, Silver noticed the change in their demeanor immediately. The fun was over.
The Ranked contractors were quieter than usual as they prepared breakfast and checked their equipment. Weapons were kept within reach instead of being placed inside vehicles, and several people repeatedly scanned the surrounding grasslands while they ate.
Silver didn’t think any of them were afraid, just cautious. The previous night’s attack had reminded everyone that the wilderness could change without warning.
Ravenna stepped out of their tent with her hair slightly messy from sleep. She looked toward the vehicles then back at Silver. She hurriedly smoothed her hair before speaking to him while occasionally glancing toward the group.
"They’ve been awake for a while."
Silver nodded.
"Hhhm, most if then didn’t go back to sleep after the attack. They were just talking amongst themselves the who night."
She looked at him.
"Did you sleep?"
"Some."
"That’s not an answer."
Silver smiled.
"Enough but I was too tense to even close my eyes fully. Atleast I managed to get some form of sleep for the first night."
Ravenna narrowed her eyes.
"So you were awake for most of the night."
"Maybe."
She sighed.
"You should sleep more... I can drive while you sleep."
"I’ll sleep when we’re somewhere safer."
"That could be a while."
"I know, but this little sleep won’t affect my performance."
She shook her head, but there was a small smile on her face.
Antony eventually emerged from his tent as well. He looked surprisingly energetic.
"Good morning my people."
Silver looked at him.
"How did you sleep?"
"Wonderful, best sleep ever. The adrenaline helped. "
Ravenna stared at him blankly.
"Really?"
"Yes."
"We were attacked in the middle of the night."
"I know, that’s the whole point of it."
"You weren’t worried?"
Antony shrugged.
"I was awake for the attack, so no, I wasn’t worried."
"That’s not what I meant."
"I knew everyone here was strong." He stretched his arms. "And I wasn’t alone."
Silver raised an eyebrow.
"That’s your reasoning?"
"Yes." Antony smiled. "Besides, if I die, I won’t be able to complain anymore."
Ravenna stared at him.
"That might be the worst thing you’ve ever said."
"Thank you."
Silver shook his head.
The three of them joined the others for breakfast. The meal was simple.
There was no reason to prepare anything elaborate so early in the morning, especially with the convoy planning to leave shortly afterward.
Silver ate while listening to the conversations around him. The main topic was naturally the attack.
Victor believed the beasts had been pushed toward the road by another predator. Marcus thought they might have been following prey. Elena suggested that the creatures could have simply been wandering.
Nobody had a definite answer.
Silver listened quietly. He didn’t have enough information to determine the cause either, but he couldn’t help wondering if their proximity to Death Row Valley had something to do with it.
The original story had described the valley as an unusually dangerous region. There were several reasons for that.
The terrain was difficult, the creatures were unusually aggressive, and the closer one got to the border of the Red Zone, the stranger the environment became. None of them knew what they would actually encounter this time.
Larry eventually stood.
"Everyone."
The conversations stopped.
"We’re leaving."
He looked around the camp.
"The vehicles have been checked."
A few people nodded.
"The route ahead is going to become rougher." Larry paused. "We’ll be leaving the main road later today."
That immediately caught Silver’s attention. Several contractors exchanged looks.
Larry continued.
"We’re still following the registered route, but there are stretches where the road isn’t maintained." He pointed toward the horizon. "Once we reach the outer approach to Death Row Valley, we’ll begin moving slower."
Nobody objected.
"Stay together."
Larry’s gaze moved across the group.
"If you see something unusual, report it." His eyes narrowed. "Don’t investigate it yourself."
The contractors nodded. Larry then looked toward Silver, Ravenna, and Antony.
"That includes you three."
Silver nodded.
"Understood."
Antony raised his hand.
"What if we see something really interesting?"
Larry stared at him.
"Ignore it."
Antony lowered his hand.
"Understood."
Ravenna covered a smile.
Larry continued.
"We’ll also increase the distance between vehicles slightly."
Silver understood why. If something large attacked, having enough space to maneuver would be important.
"Any questions?"
Nobody spoke.
"Good." Larry turned away. "You have ten minutes."
The camp immediately became busy. Tents were dismantled, supplies were packed, weapons were secured, and the vehicles were checked one final time.
Silver returned to their car. Ravenna helped him pack the remaining equipment. Antony wandered around until Silver eventually asked him to stop touching things.
"I was helping."
"You were moving things without much of a destination."
"That’s helping."
"You put the medical kit inside the food compartment."
Antony looked at him.
"It fit."
Silver sighed. Ravenna laughed.
"You really shouldn’t let him organize anything."
"I’ve learned that."
They finished preparing. Silver climbed into the driver’s seat and Ravenna sat beside him. Antony took the back seat.