Chapter 244:Checkpoint.
"I know you do." Larry looked toward the others. "But they don’t want to risk having to protect someone during an emergency."
Silver nodded.
"Understood."
Larry lowered his voice.
"If something happens, stay close to your vehicle unless there’s a reason to move."
"We can fight."
"I know." Larry looked directly into his eyes. "But you don’t need to prove it."
Silver appreciated that. Larry wasn’t insulting them, he was simply trying to prevent unnecessary complications.
"We’ll stay out of their way."
Larry nodded.
"Good to hear that."
He walked away.
Antony waited until Larry was several steps away before speaking.
"So we’re the weaklings."
Ravenna sighed.
"Apparently."
Silver shrugged.
"Let them think that."
Antony looked at him.
"You’re not angry?"
"Why would I be?"
"They’re looking down on us."
Silver glanced toward the group of Rank Fours.
"Let them."
Ravenna crossed her arms.
"You really don’t care?"
Silver shook his head.
"We’re here for Death Row Valley." He looked toward the road leading beyond the checkpoint. "Not to prove ourselves to a group of strangers. This isn’t a circus we want to join."
Ravenna nodded.
That was exactly how she felt as well. There was no reason to start a conflict simply because someone underestimated them.
If anything, being underestimated could be useful. They could move without attracting unnecessary attention.
Antony scratched his chin.
"That’s actually smart."
Silver looked at him.
"You sound surprised."
"I am."
"Why?"
"Because you two look like the kind of people who would get offended easily."
Ravenna raised an eyebrow.
"Excuse me? You know you joined this team, right?"
Antony immediately shook his head.
"Nothing."
Silver laughed.
The three of them walked toward the small food area inside the checkpoint. There were several tables beneath a covered structure where contractors could eat.
The food wasn’t particularly impressive. Most people bought simple meals or heated prepared rations.
Silver purchased food for himself and Ravenna while Antony disappeared for several minutes. He returned carrying far more food than necessary.
Ravenna stared at him.
"What?"
"That’s enough for three people."
Antony looked down, then back at her.
"Exactly."
Silver shook his head.
"You eat too much."
"I burn a lot of energy."
"Doing what?"
"Being both beautiful and handsome. You wouldn’t understand my plight."
Ravenna snorted. Silver laughed. They found a relatively quiet table away from the larger group.
The Rank Fours were eating several tables away. They weren’t speaking to the three of them with Silver didn’t mind.
He was actually glad. He preferred peace over forced conversation. As they ate, Ravenna looked toward the others.
"They really don’t like us."
Silver shrugged.
"They don’t know us."
"That’s true." Antony leaned back. "They probably think we’re going to slow them down."
Ravenna looked at him.
"Are we?"
"No." Antony grinned. "At least I don’t think so."
Silver shook his head.
"Don’t worry about it."
He continued eating.
Outside, vehicles were already preparing to leave the checkpoint.
The convoy wouldn’t stay long. They had traveled far enough already, and the farther they went into the Yellow Zone, the more important it became to maintain their schedule.
Silver looked at his watch.
"Twenty minutes."
Ravenna nodded.
"We should finish."
Antony swallowed his food.
"I’m ready."
Silver gave him a suspicious look.
"You’ve barely started."
"I’m always ready for anything."
"That’s not true."
"It is."
Ravenna smiled.
The three continued eating. For once, the journey was simply quiet, but Silver knew better than to mistake quiet for safety.
Silver finished his meal and stood.
"Time to go."
Ravenna rose beside him. Antony followed.
They returned to their vehicle. The other contractors were already preparing to leave. Victor looked toward them once, then turned away.
Silver didn’t react.
He opened the driver’s door. Before getting inside, he looked toward the massive gate ahead. The outer barrier was opening. Beyond it stretched an endless landscape of dry grass, scattered stones, and distant hills. Whatever happened next would happen in the Yellow Zone.
Silver climbed into the driver’s seat and Ravenna settled beside him. Antony climbed into the back.
Silver started the engine as the convoy began moving. Slowly, they passed through the final gate. The moment they crossed it, the fortified checkpoint disappeared behind them.
Silver adjusted his grip on the wheel. Ravenna looked at him.
"Should we pray or something?"
Silver nodded.
"Let’s just go you can pray inwardly."
The convoy accelerated.
The convoy continued moving long after the checkpoint had disappeared behind them, the fortified walls eventually becoming nothing more than a faint shape in the distance before even that vanished beneath the rolling landscape.
Silver kept his attention on the road, following the vehicle ahead of him while occasionally checking the mirrors. The road itself was still in relatively good condition, but there was an obvious difference between it and the roads inside the Green Zones.
Cracks ran through the surface in several places, patches of old repairs covered portions of the asphalt, and the edges had begun to crumble where nature was slowly reclaiming the road.
The landscape was also changing. The lushness of the Green Zone had almost completely disappeared.
The grass was shorter and more yellow than green, with large stretches of dry vegetation covering the plains. Scattered rocks rose from the ground like the remains of something buried beneath the earth, while low hills stretched across the horizon.
In some places, the terrain dipped suddenly, creating shallow valleys and enormous depressions that looked as though water had once flowed through them.
Silver had expected the Yellow Zone to become more hostile immediately since that was how it always has been.
Instead, it was strangely quiet.
"There haven’t been any attacks," Ravenna remarked after nearly an hour.
Silver glanced at the road ahead.
"No."
Antony leaned forward from the back seat.
"That’s good, isn’t it?"
"It should be."
Ravenna looked at Silver.
"But?"
Silver shrugged.
"But it’s unusual. We should have been attacked by even a Teir two if Teir three was too high but now, there is nothing"