Heir Of Chaos

They spent a few minutes in silence before Erin decided to speak again. "In case it wasn’t clear, I am your handler and I’m in charge of delivering you to your station and relaying the necessary information to you."

Dale nodded, ’It makes sense and it was within my expectations.’

Seeing that he understood, she continued. "There are many things you need to be aware of so pay close attention to everything I say. If you forget a single step, it could end up badly."

Before he could reply or ask for a pen, she started.

"We will be delivering you to a ’dead zone’ within the nation. Now, a dead zone is vastly different from a death zone — the former is a large citywide area without any humans while the latter is just death for humans."

Dale’s eyes widened a little. ’I knew death zones were bad but damn, they’re worse than I thought.’

So, from what she was saying, there was little to no chance of running into another person where they were going to deliver him.

Erin’s voice resumed. "Now, this dead zone is a couple of hundred miles from any civilization so food, shelter, and various materials will and have been provided for you to ease you into your stay.

"On the other hand, the said dead zone is also a couple of miles away from a pack of worm-type beasts. They tend to stay in dry regions so the chances of them actually moving are astronomically slim, but we can’t take the chance so someone has to watch them." She paused.

Dale’s mind started to race as he processed the information passed on to him. From what she said, not only were they worm-type beasts but if something went wrong, he’d be the only one facing it within a two-hundred-mile radius.

’Tch.’ He sucked his teeth. At least, he knew what type of beasts they were and their preferred habitat.

With this came a new thought. ’If the military already knows this much about them, why not just kill them off?’ That way, they wouldn’t have to waste resources and soldiers watching over coelenterates.

Erin reached into a pocket and brought out a small rectangle with a smooth screen—a phone.

She handed it to Dale, who promptly took it in hand.

"This is to serve as a means of contact. Reinforcements, if needed, will be in the closest city. There’s only one number saved on that phone and if the need arises, call it."

Dale stared at the phone in his hand. So they weren’t leaving him to the wolves, after all.

At least before the worms could cover two miles, he would’ve called them before he started sprinting for his life to at least distract them.

’Wouldn’t that be ironic? The human being used as bait instead of the worm.’ He almost smiled at the grim mental image.

It wasn’t long until Dale finally started to notice the ground once more. The helicopter slowly dropped from its height and Dale couldn’t help but look at the scenery in pure awe.

A wide plane as far as the horizon was before him, completely covered in a reddish-brown sand. Occasionally, there were metallic contraptions that would reveal themselves as a gust of wind rolled through the sandy dunes.

The sun hung high in the sky, scorching the earth with blistering heat.

Despite still being in the helicopter, Dale could already feel himself getting thirsty.

’Ahh... running will be a lot more troublesome than I had hoped.’ It wouldn’t be too much of a problem though.

He prided himself, after all, on his ability to adapt and survive.

When they landed, Dale immediately removed the seat belt and jumped out of the helicopter.

He winced slightly as his feet hit the hot sand. The air around him rippled as the heat spread in all directions.

It had barely been a minute since he landed yet he was sweating. ’Aren’t worms like earthworms? They should be loving water, not this dry place.’

Ability pools were annoying like this. Because of their existence, worms like those he had to watch existed.

Erin stepped out of the helicopter, a bead of sweat rolling down her face.

She tapped Dale’s shoulder and pointed West. "That is where your shelter is. Follow me."

They left the pilot of the helicopter who refused to step out merely because of the heat.

After about ten minutes of walking, a large structure revealed itself to Dale. It looked like a strange combination of a tower and a warehouse.

It was as large as a two-story building but with the thick, defensive build of a warehouse. ’Haha, perhaps I can hide in this if the worms move towards me. At least it’s better than running blindly into the desert and becoming human jerky.’

Erin led him further until they were at the base of the building. "Watchtower One. That’s what we call her. Isn’t she beautiful?"

Dale turned to her and lingered for a moment then answered in his most deadpan voice, "I am not too sure. I don’t think I’ve taken out my time to see what type of buildings are attractive but to each their own, I guess."

She opened her mouth and closed it a couple of times before ultimately deciding to keep silent.

Her finger pointed to the very top of the building where a lens the size of Dale’s torso could be seen.

It actively reflected the sun’s light to the sky. ’How is it this clean?’ Certainly, being in the desert, it was bound to be dusty.

That was when he noticed solid, metallic steps on the side of the building leading up to the top of the very tall — and very dangerously so — building.

Dale turned back to her and gestured to the lens. "Why didn’t you tell me that you guys hired someone who’d clean that lens? Because I’m VERY sure it’s not me who’ll do it."

Erin smiled softly. "You noticed the telescope? Nice. Once you’re in, go to the highest floor and you’ll see it. Use it to monitor the general cardinal direction they move."

He nodded but still gestured to the telescope’s lens and her smile widened until it became a little unnerving.

"Well, you are right and wrong. We did hire someone to clean it—" Dale smiled and turned around, ready to enter the building but her next words made him freeze, "— but it’s you we hired."

Well, that figured. He wasn’t that lucky.

Dale nodded and she handed him the keys to the place. With nothing else to do, he walked to the building.