Chapter 206:Temporary rest.
Silver switched off the engine before climbing out of the driver’s side. The moment both feet touched the ground, he stretched his aching shoulders.
Only now did he realize how tense his muscles had become. Ravenna stepped out beside him carrying her sniper rifle over one shoulder.
Her normally immaculate white hair was covered in dust, and there were several small tears in her jacket where flying stones had struck her during the battle.
She looked at Silver.
"You alright?"
Silver rotated his right shoulder once.
"My arm’s a little sore, nothing serious. You?"
She nodded.
"Just tired."
They walked slowly around their vehicle together. The damage was immediately obvious. The right side was covered in long claw marks.
Several deep dents ran along both doors where Boulder Lizards had slammed against the metal. The windshield had somehow survived, although several spiderweb-like cracks stretched across one corner. One headlight had been completely destroyed. The rear bumper hung slightly lower than before.
Silver crouched beside one tire, fortunately, it hadn’t been punctured.
"Could’ve been worse."
Ravenna followed his gaze.
"It definitely could."
She gently brushed her fingers across one of the claw marks.
"They almost tore straight through."
Silver nodded.
"If that happened while one of us was inside..."
Neither finished the sentence.
Nearby, several mechanics moved from vehicle to vehicle, helping contractors perform emergency repairs; a broken radiator hose was quickly replaced and a shattered side mirror was removed completely.
One truck had lost an entire door during the fighting. Its passengers simply tied a heavy tarp across the opening. Out here, function mattered far more than appearance.
Silver closed the hood after checking the engine.
"...Still running perfectly."
Ravenna smiled.
"Good. I’d rather not walk."
Silver chuckled.
"You’ll be dead on a few minutes."
Not far away, several medics continued treating the wounded. The smell of medicine drifted through the air. Fortunately, most of the injuries weren’t life-threatening.
The convoy had suffered but it had survived, only a handful hadn’t been so fortunate. Several bodies lay quietly beneath clean blankets near the edge of the clearing.
Their teammates stood nearby in respectful silence, even the loudest contractors lowered their voices. Death had become an unavoidable companion on the road.
The convoy leader, Captain Harry, finally climbed onto the hood of his vehicle. His normally relaxed expression had become noticeably more serious.
"Everyone."
Conversations gradually quieted. He looked around at the battered contractors.
"We’ve completed a headcount."
He paused briefly.
"We lost fifteen people."
A heavy silence settled over the clearing.
"We have thirteen injured, and three vehicles are no longer drivable." He looked toward the damaged trucks. "Their passengers will redistribute among the remaining convoy."
No one complained since there was nothing to complain about. Everyone understood. If they had remained inside the ravine, the number would have been much higher.
Captain Harry continued, "we’ve already contacted the checkpoint through long-range radio. They’ll send a recovery team tomorrow morning who’ll collect the damaged vehicles, and bring our people home."
Several contractors bowed their heads quietly.
Silver did the same.
They hadn’t known the dead personally, but they had shared the same road and sometimes, that was enough.
After giving everyone several minutes to recover, conversations slowly resumed. This time, however, they centered around only one topic.
The Alpha.
Silver happened to be tightening one of the straps securing their supplies when he overheard several veteran contractors talking nearby.
"...I’ve never seen one act like that."
A grey-haired marksman shook his head.
"Neither have I."
Another contractor leaned against his truck.
"It could’ve killed us, no question asked."
The first man nodded slowly.
"So why didn’t it?"
An older escort captain folded his arms.
"I’ve got a theory."
Everyone looked toward him.
"The Alpha already got what it wanted."
"What?"
"The kills."
He pointed back toward the distant ravine.
"It attacked everyone and fed on those who were probably taken by it’s minions. It also got to defend its territory." He shrugged. "If it wiped out an entire convoy on the main trade road, what do you think would happen?"
Nobody answered immediately.
The older man smiled bitterly.
"The Sanctuaries would notice and they’d probably dispatch a subjugation force. It will probably be rank Five or maybe Rank Six contractors. They’d hunt it until it died."
Several people nodded thoughtfully. One woman quietly added,
"Especially on a major supply route, the Association can’t afford to lose it. Creating another one is a bitch."
"Exactly." The older captain continued. "An intelligent Alpha understands that, it doesn’t need to kill everyone but only needs enough."
Silver listened silently,because the explanation made sense.
Another contractor, however, shook his head.
"I don’t completely agree."
Everyone turned toward him. He was a heavily built man with a scar running across his left cheek.
"I think it measured us."
"The convoy?"
He nodded.
"It watched the entire battle and never came forward first. It was clearly watching us." He looked toward the ravine. "If we’d broken and lost hope, it would’ve attacked but we didn’t. We kept moving and killed dozens of its beasts."
He folded his arms.
"It probably realized something. If it personally entered the fight, we would’ve had no choice except fight to the death."
Silence followed. No one laughed because dismissed the possibility.
The scarred contractor continued quietly, "It would’ve probably won, but it’d have paid for it. It would’ve lost an eye, a leg, maybe even worse. And after that..." He smiled grimly. "It still would’ve had to face the Sanctuary’s response."
Silver found himself agreeing. Intelligent predators didn’t survive by taking unnecessary risks. They survived because they understood which battles were worth fighting.
Ravenna stepped closer.
"What do you think?"
Silver looked toward the mouth of the ravine, now barely visible in the distance.
"...I think both explanations are probably true."
She tilted her head.
"The Alpha got enough food, protected its territory and also judged our strength."
He looked toward the surviving convoy. Although battered, nearly a hundred contractors still remained with dozens being rank Twos, several Rank Threes and at least a handful of Rank Fours. Even a Tier Five Alpha would think carefully before committing to such a battle.
Ravenna nodded slowly.
"I suppose intelligence changes everything."
"It does." Silver replied. "The smartest beast isn’t necessarily the strongest, it’s the one that survives."
Before the conversation could continue further, Captain Harry called everyone’s attention once more.
"We’re moving."
Several people looked surprised.
"So soon?"
One mechanic frowned.
"Shouldn’t we camp?"
Harry immediately shook his head.
"No."
He pointed back toward the ravine.
"We’re still too close. If another hunting group comes out or if the Alpha changes its mind, we’ll have nowhere to run."
That was enough to convince everyone. The contractors immediately returned to their vehicles. Mechanics packed away their tools. The injured climbed into trucks with the help of their companions. Supplies were secured once more.
Silver climbed back into the driver’s seat and Ravenna settled beside him.
She looked back one final time toward the distant cliffs.
"...Let’s hope we never have to cross that ravine again."
Silver started the engine.
"I wouldn’t complain."
One after another, the remaining vehicles pulled back onto the road. Though smaller than before, the convoy still moved together.