[NO LONGER UPDATED] AVEM → A Different World

Chapter 9: The Light

- 4 Days Later -

The newer buildings soon gave away to old, deserted ruins as we continued on the Main Pathway, and my drone warned me that we were moving away from familiar territory, just like the others' in the squad for the mission.

Speaking of which, they insisted that I went on this mission because they thought that I was more familiar with the Neutral Territories. They were simply treating me as one of them, and one who knows a lot about drone technology and a very intelligent person. I could not let myself accept the fact that I was the one being complimented; I was a nobody and it would be irrational for somebody to think otherwise. After all, I did nothing for them, and whoever —

"Potential danger detected. Main Pathway, about a mile away." My drone suddenly called, cutting through my thoughts like a knife. 

"What's wrong?" Someone asked worriedly.

Suddenly I forgot about all the nonsense of questioning myself and spoke up. "Did somebody else's drone detect this danger?"

"No, mine said nothing." Answered the person at my right, who earlier identified himself as #77757, and the temporary leader of the group. The others nodded in agreement and re-activated their drones into stealth mode. "But remain cautious, as we're nearing Red Nexus territory after all. Be careful, everyone."

No one questioned anything more on our way towards the destination of the viewpoint. Our goal was to let our drones scan the area more closely to detect signs of Red Nexus turning hostile. To show that this wasn't a small-scale invasion on the Walkers' side, none of us was armed, and all of our drones were just personal drones with the advanced scanning module, with no firepower at all. However, a small question still arose deep in my mind. Why, of all the drones, did my drone gave that warning? Of all the drones in this team, mine was the least modified -- it was only given a basic scanning module, nothing else. Maybe some of its software was malfunctioning, and it was giving wrong alerts? I shook my head free of worries. There was too many questions surrounding just this week. There were more important things to worry. Like our mission. You need to concentrate on your new job, okay? Don't let your mind sway off wondering again. Wondering about unimportant things is useless! It's worthless, and it's not getting you anywhere! My rationality screamed loudly inside my mind, and I listened to it obediently.

We walked on until we reached a certain point, where a half-fallen stone statue rose from the side of the road. Overgrown grass surrounded it, and a small blue trangle lay in the grass, reflecting the sunlight and giving off a little light. We stopped there for a little rest. #77757 reported back to the Team with his drone. "Reporting to Team. Halfpoint reached. All clear of dangers. Over." 

Just when he was signaling his drone to go back into the air, we heard a suspicious sound. An attacker drone shooting laser beams. It was unmistakable. Traumatic memories flooded back in, but I pushed them out decisively. This wasn't time for terrifying dreams and visions. This was a time to stay alert and act quickly.

#77757 signaled for some of us to hide behind the gap between the statue and the ruins of a fallen building, and the others to run for a more stable building a little distance from the statue. I picked my speed up to run. If I was not nearly as knowledgeable as my teammates, at least I was capable of moving quickly. I kicked the ground fiercely, running with all my power, as I tried to reach the other side of the deserted road. My drone first decided to follow suit, but as I neared the building, it signaled me to turn around and enter a dark alleyway between two buildings. At times when your survivability was put to risk, your brain would automatically follow anything guiding you, thinking by default that it was correct, with a questionable function or not. All it knew was to run, to hide faster from the trouble. I followed the drone quietly, taking turns at many small, crooked alleyways. For a split second I turned around to see whether any of others' drones guided their owners to the same place as well, but all I saw was a silent alleyway, with the subsequent echoing of firing lasers. I wondered if my companions were okay, praying that none of them was hurt, and they returned to the base safely.