They climbed the ridge and paused at the top. Wared felt his mouth drop as he took in the lush, green jungle ahead. Right there, half a mile away, was a lush jungle wedged into a valley that moments ago he had no clue even existed. The tube disappeared into the greenery.

"How about that," Wared said and pointed towards the trees that swayed in the breeze. "You don't see that every day."

"Most people don't even know this exists," Randee said.

"What do you mean? It isn't far from the city."

"Did you know it existed?" Randee said and looked at Wared.

"Come on," Shea said, and started down the other side of the ridge. "We need to keep moving. The jungle will give us shelter."

As they approached the dividing line between desert and jungle, the scents and sounds changed. The chirping of birds reached their ears as the came closer and the humidity in the air became more noticeable as they stepped across the line that separated the jungle from the desert. The scents of the jungle overwhelmed their senses to the point where Wared had to wipe tears from his eyes.

Although the canopy of the trees protected them from direct sunlight, it also reduced the amount of light as the rays of the suns had less opportunity to reach the jungle floor. They also quickly discovered that their progress slowed significantly due to the overgrown jungle floor.

"This isn't working," Randee said as he stopped and wiped sweat from his face. "It'll take us forever to get through this."

"We can't stop," Wared said as he took a swig from his canteen.

"What do you suggest?"

"How about we get on top of the tube?" Shea said and pointed towards the dull gray tube that ran across the jungle floor. "There's no vegetation on top."

Wared looked over at the tube for a few moments, then jumped to his feet and pointed. "That's a great idea. We can use the joints to climb up. Shouldn't take long."

They followed Wared over to the tube joint. Spaced regularly along the length of the tube, the joints provided a connection point for each piece of the tube. Although not its intended use, the metal wrap around the tube also allowed for enough protruding pieces for human hands and feet.

"Allow me," Randee said and put his hand on Wared's arm. "It's best if you don't take unnecessary risks. Before anyone could protest, he proceeded to climb the side of the tube and moments later, he stood triumphantly at the top, surveying the surroundings.

"How does it look?" Shea said.

"I just see more jungle up ahead. The good news is there seems to be some sort of road on the other side."

"A road?"

"Yes," Randee said and nodded. "It's over grown for sure but it looks a whole lot easier to move on than up here on the tube."

"So we climb over?" Wared said and made an arching move with his hand.

"Exactly."

Shea promptly climbed up the tube, followed moments later by Wared. As Shea followed Randee down on the other side, Wared took a moment to take in the view from the tube. Randee had been right. There was more jungle up ahead. Thick jungle. The vegetation covered much of the tube as well, which mean that it would be impractical to continue their journey along the spine of the tube.

The road Randee had mentioned barely deserved to be call a road. There was a clear trail that snaked through the brush. At some point in time, it had been wide enough to fit large vehicles but it had been a long time since anything traversed it in any direction.

Once on the ground, the continued onward. Progress was much quicker and they made good progress, able to move through the jungle at a rapid pace. Their only struggle was with the overwhelming heat and humidity that only seemed to get worse the further into the jungle they went. After several hours, Wared called for a break. They settled in under a tree while Randee heated up rations on an improvised fire.

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"How far do you think we still need to go?" Wared said as he sipped what tasted like chicken broth.

"No idea," Shea said. "The maps we found showed this jungle but it wasn't to scale so it's difficult to tell how far it leads. We do know it ends somewhere in the jungle."

"How so?"

"The map never showed it emerging again."

"So we're likely close," Wared said and took another sip of his soup.

"Or not. We just don't know," Randee said. "One thing is for sure. We can expect the Protectorate to follow as soon as they can. They never give up."

Wared downed the rest of the soup and stood up. Talk of the Protectorate had reignited his urgency. "We should get going. The sooner we can get to the end of this, the better."

They packed up their gear and continued. Light was fading by the minute now and as darkness fell, the sound of the jungle also changed as the animals that dominated the day gave way to the nocturnal. The jungle around them began to rustle as a variety of animals approached to take a peek at the new arrivals in their domains.

"I think we should stop for the night," Randee said during one of their breaks. Around them, the dusk of late evening had surrendered to pitch black. Randee swung his flashlight around to reveal dozens of eyes that quickly disappeared as the flashlight passed over them. "There are a lot of unknowns out there and I don't want to take a chance we'll run into something unexpected during the night.

"Right here, in the middle of nowhere?" Wared said with a frown.

"We'll pitch camp next to the tube. It'll give us some protection and fire should keep the rest of the critters at bay," Randee said as he dropped his backpack on the ground next to the tube. Shea collected large rocks for a temporary camp fire while Randee and Wared collected firewood. Fifteen minutes later, the flames danced across the matte surface of the tube, illuminating all of their faces with shadows. As the flames grew taller and the warmth spread, Wared realized it was cooler in the shadows than he had realized. He shivered as he was mesmerized by the dancing flames.

A deep growl somewhere in the vicinity startled him and he sat upright. Randee and Shea did the same. Wared was about to open his mouth to ask what the sound was when Randee held up his palm in the air and a finger across his lips. Be quiet. He nodded.

Randee reached for a knife with a black blade and serrated edge as his eyes scanned the perimeter of their camp. When the growl resurfaced on the other side of the camp, he turned quietly and took a few steps past Wared, towards the shadows. After what seemed like an eternity, Randee returned to his spot around the fire, but left the knife out next to him on the ground.

"Something is hungry," he said in a hushed voice.

Wared felt a shiver run down it's spine. "And we're dinner?"

Randee nodded. "Potentially, but not if I can help it," he said and stroked the blade of the knife next to him.

"What do you think it was?" Shea said and glanced towards the dark perimeter over her shoulder.

"No idea," Randee said with a shrug. "The wildlife out here is mostly unknown to us."

"Even after all these years here?" Wared said.

"As colonists, we've never really bothered to venture outside of our safe areas. I'm not sure why." Randee added more wood to the fire. "At one point in time, our forefathers were more exploratory. That is why we have the tube, after all, and the settlement. It just feels like our colony has stagnated since."

"Why is that?"

"We don't know," Shea said. "Our history as a colony is clouded, carefully protected by the Protectorate. I've tried to research how we came to colonize the planet in the first place and why, but finding information outside of the official line promoted by the Protectorate is difficult."

"Are they hiding something?" Wared said.

"Without a doubt," she said. "Maybe this journey will shed some lights on their secrets."

"But," Randee said and raised a finger in the air, "that is also a reason to be cautious. If the Protectorate believes that our journey can be a threat to secrets that they guard, we can expect them to hit us hard at some point. We have to be prepared."

Wared felt a flutter in his stomach. He couldn't help but think back to the men on the other side of the ravine. How long could it possibly take for them to make it across? Would it be hard for them to follow them, to track them through the jungle? The cold metal against his back reminded him that they were following a very visible landmark.

"Maybe we should get moving now?" he suggested as he looked around the perimeter of their campground, suddenly feeling uneasy to just rest.

"There's no point. The jungle is so thick it's unlikely they'd try to make it through in the dark. If they did, we would hear them long before they find us. We'll leave at first light."

With that, Randee settled down on the ground, his head on the bag, the knife close to his chest. Shea also laid down and closed her eyes and within minutes, they were both sleeping.

It wasn't so easy for Wared. The sounds of the jungle kept him awake and the thoughts of Protectorate goons marching into the camp just wouldn't leave him. He though of Tarun. Had he been captured or was he still free to move around? Had they compromised him just by showing up at his apartment. He hoped that wasn't the case. He wasn't sure he could live with himself if any harm came to Tarun as a result of his visit.

The concern for Tarun turned Wared's fear into a calm determination. Tarun had stayed behind to give them a chance to find the truth, to try to make a difference for their colony. It was up to their trio to follow the tube to the end, to find the truth behind the Departure Protocol and the key to their past. It was up to him now. He could not fail.

Before long, Wared's eyes shut and he drifted off to sleep.

~~~