The stranger led them to a nearby dilapidated house and scanned all horizons before opening the creaking door. He stepped in, and Wolf followed, which prompted the rest of the squad to do the same. Rosek’s mech suit barely fit through the door. There was no furniture in the house, nor were there any windows or load-bearing walls. It was just an old, warped floor of dusty wooden planks, with a trail of heavy use from the center of the floor to the door. The ceiling sagged toward the middle. August thought it might collapse any second.

“What are we doing in here?” Wolf said.

The stranger didn’t answer, at least not with words. He followed the trail of dustless flooring and crouched at the center of the building. He plucked a tiny metal loop that was wedged between two wood planks and pulled. A square or flooring lifted, and a dank smell snuck into the house.

Wolf approached and looked into the hole. The stranger descended a ladder and said, “follow.”

The squad exchanged a few looks and stood still until the general finally nodded and followed the stranger underground. The others descended until only August and Rosek remained above-ground.

“How are you gonna get down there?” August asked the bulky mech.

“You go first,” Rosek said. “I know what I’m doing. Just keep clear of the ladder once you get down.”

He wanted to ask how she felt pain-wise but thought better. He still felt responsible for her wounds. As the armored soldier, he should have done a better job at protecting the vulnerable squadmate. He was just happy that Sterling or the others hadn’t been there to see his pathetic display. If the others were there, Rosek wouldn’t have gotten these wounds.

“Are you going, or what?” Rosek snapped.

August nodded. He looked down into what he thought was going to be an abyss of darkness. Instead, he saw a dimly lit room where earth made up the floor and three walls. There was no ladder, at least not a wooden or steel one. To get down, August had to use grooves that had been carved into the side of the wall.

He made it to the bottom, where the rest of the crew waited patiently.

“You might want to move,” Wolf said to August as the rookie loitered near the bottom of the earthy ladder.

“Right.” August obeyed just in time as Rosek’s bulking form crashed to the earth a foot behind him.

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“I told you not to stand there,” Rosek said. She looked away and moved forward before he could answer.

“Follow,” the stranger said again.

They did.

The stranger started forward, and the squad trailed him in single file. Wolf was right behind the stranger, followed by Sterling, Rosek, August, Belmont, and Dalton West at the rear. The tunnel was lit by tiny, yellow lights, all connected by long cords. For some reason, August had been expecting torches or something more primitive. He wondered how they got their energy outside of the Big Four’s jurisdiction.

Belmont took an audible breath behind him. “Isn’t this great?”

August glanced back.

“The smell in here,” she said. “It reminds me of Granny’s closet garden. My idea of heaven is just sitting in a place like this and breathing. That earthy smell. Mmm. Mmm.”

August wished he shared her fondness for the smell, but to him, it was dank, heavy air that weighed down in his lungs. It was difficult to breathe, and he personally couldn’t wait to get to the other side of the tunnel, wherever that might be.

They marched along in silence for the better part of an hour. Nothing seemed to change, and it started to feel as if they were walking in place somehow, as if on a giant treadmill. Every step showed the same kind of earthy wall, with the same glittering lights. The only noteworthy sights were the odd tiny bulb that had burnt out or a narrow rodent hole here and there. Other than that, August had spent his time staring at the mech suit’s footprints and had inadvertently returned to imagining his squadmates in frightening perilous situations.

“Stand back!” General Wolf shouted, nearly tearing August from his skin in the process.

The stranger halted and turned back with wide eyes. Wolf moved past him, taking the lead with his skybeam aimed forward. He took a few heavy steps before sighing and lowering the weapon.

“What is it?” Belmont asked, craning her neck to get a view around the mech.

She didn’t need an answer as the squad gathered around the thing that had excited the general. A dead dolo lay half-buried in the wall. It had been long dead according to the state of its withering husk. A mere touch of a boot would have likely been enough to crumble its shell.

“We call him Halfer,” the stranger said.

“I’m hoping that’s because he marks the halfway point to wherever the Hel we’re going?” Sterling said.

The stranger nodded.

Rosek made a disgusted grunting sound. “Even in death, they sicken me.”

The rest of the squad mumbled in agreement, and the stranger wordlessly continued onward.

“We’ve learned the dead dolo’s name,” Wolf said, “what about yours?”

The stranger never looked back. “Farscout.”

“Far scout?” Sterling repeated the name as if it were a question.”

“Correct,” Farscout said.

The squad fell back into silence. The silence and repetitive sights continued for about another hour until Farscout finally signaled a halt. “Wait here.” He turned left into a corridor August hadn’t even seen.

The squad gathered and waited in a close circle. Farscout’s voice drifted around the corner, along with another man’s. They couldn’t make out the words, but the tone was calm like idle conversation. It stopped. Farscout reappeared around the corner with a beaming smile. “You’re allowed to come up.” He turned and disappeared into the corridor to the left.

Wolf looked over each squadmate before falling in behind their guide. The rest of the squad followed and climbed another earthy ladder into a world August thought impossible.