Chapter 144: Illusion
And then, he vanished. Puff, gone. Just like a damned magic trick. One second he was there. The next, he wasn’t. The others caught up and investigated. There was no body left behind.
As for the oasis... It was never there. Just endless sand. "An illusion..." Vaelira growled.
No one had the energy to search for the man. They just accepted the fact that remaining in the group formation was for the best. No one ran ahead after that.
They walked in grim silence. The survivors were few now. Tensions were so thick they could almost choke on them. No one looked at each other besides Kaiden and his girls, afraid of a conflict breaking out. Even the drama queen, Vaelira, had long since given up on picking fights with Kaiden and his team.
Every step forward felt heavier than the last.
They just kept walking.
Because turning back meant crossing the desert again.
But then, from one moment to the next, the sands abruptly shifted, parting away. The pyramid, which had always been on the horizon’s edge like a carrot on a stick, was suddenly right in front of them.
"Thank the gods..." was all that Jack said before stepping forward with shaky legs. What stood before them was heaven itself.
They didn’t even have the energy to stop and marvel at the optical illusion or whatever it was that had taken place. Instead, the group merely stepped inside unceremoniously.