Chapter 65: Finding Shelter...
Closing the map, Sophie looked to the horizon. The sun had nearly vanished now, the last streaks of crimson slowly fading into violet dusk. The trial wasn’t just about combat; it tested survival, endurance, and adaptability.
So for this first night of the trial, the recruits had to fend for themselves.
They had to find a safe spot to rest, shielded from mutant attacks, from the cold, and from the dangers of the Outlands. Those who adapted creatively, building shelters, crafting makeshift defenses, using the terrain to their advantage, could even earn extra points.
Sophie, however, already had her plan.
She remembered spotting a cave earlier, hidden near a rocky ridge that overlooked the plains. Isolated, naturally reinforced, and far from mutant tracks, it was perfect.
Her crimson eyes softened as she gazed in that direction. "That’ll do for the night," she said quietly.
With that, she began walking through the twilight field, her boots brushing against the dry grass. The air was cooling, the sky darkening, and yet, despite the stillness around her, her heart was alive.
Alive with warmth.
With excitement.
And with the simple, fluttering thought of him.
...
Meanwhile, Bruce, utterly drained after the relentless battle, didn’t bother to move far. He simply slumped back onto the cooling corpse of a mutant hyena, its thick hide still faintly warm beneath him.
The scent of blood hung heavy in the air, mixing with the faint musk of the beasts. It wasn’t pleasant, but at that moment, comfort wasn’t something he could afford to think about. He lay there quietly, eyes half-open, watching the dying sun bleed across the horizon.
The sky was painted in shades of red and gold, clouds drifting lazily as dusk settled in. It was oddly beautiful, the kind of beauty that only came after chaos.
He didn’t know how long he stayed like that, motionless, listening to the soft hum of the wind sweeping through the battlefield. But eventually, practicality kicked in.
He sighed. "I’ll need something to sleep on."
He pushed himself up slowly, glancing around at the dozens of corpses scattered across the torn field. The ground was soaked with blood, and he wasn’t planning to sleep here, not in this stench, not with the risk of more beasts coming to feast.
He’d need something to make camp elsewhere, a mattress of sorts.
His gaze settled on the nearest hyenas. Three of them, killed cleanly, their hides unblemished by gore. "These will do."
He knelt beside the first and unsheathed his dagger. The blade gleamed faintly in the fading light as he began skinning. The motions were rough, unrefined; he wasn’t a tanner, but they were efficient. Years of surgical precision lent him a steady hand even now.
One hide came off clean. Then the second. Then the third.
When he was done, he rolled up the furs neatly and tied them with a strip of torn fabric. The makeshift bundle wasn’t elegant, but it was good enough.
He straightened, exhaling a long breath as he slung the hides over his shoulder. The battlefield stretched behind him, a graveyard of shattered bodies and cracked earth, a testament to the brutality of his fight.
He didn’t look back.
With slow, steady steps, Bruce began walking away, the faint crunch of dirt beneath his boots the only sound that followed him.
Before long, he stopped, raised his wrist, and spoke quietly. "Ranking."
The holographic interface flickered to life in front of him, casting a pale glow against his face.
[RANKINGS]
[Bruce Ackerman — Points: 300]
[Sophie Reign — Points: 300]
[Jean Frost — Points: 155]
[Ozai Thorne — Points: 80]
[Aria Stormheart — Points: 59]
[Dominic Savior — Points: 50]
[Luke Drot — Points: 50]
[Average Joe — Points: 43]
Bruce blinked once, expression unreadable. Then, quietly, a small, almost amused sigh escaped his lips.
"What are the odds," he muttered.
For the briefest moment, as the wind passed, a faint smirk touched his face, soft, fleeting, and gone just as quickly.
He tightened his grip on the rolled hides and continued walking into the deepening dusk.
Sighing once again, Bruce dismissed the rankings from his mind. Now wasn’t the time to be proud or sentimental. What he needed was rest and shelter.
He glanced at the horizon. The sun was sinking fast, its orange and pink glow bleeding across the savannah, painting the cracked plains in fading light. The air was still hot, but the wind had grown cooler, carrying with it the scent of dust, blood, and dry grass.
Bruce exhaled softly, scanning his surroundings. "I’ll need fire."
He began gathering dry sticks and brittle twigs from the scattered brush, his movements slow but deliberate. He remembered the old wilderness techniques from survival manuals, how to start a flame with friction, the use of dry grass as tinder, the rhythm of patience over panic. He didn’t need matches or lighters; this trial was meant to also test the practical knowledge of the recruits... And Bruce knew that
But he had no intention of lighting it in the open. The last thing he wanted was to draw every hungry mutant in the area to his location. He’d need cover, a cave, a hollow, anything that could serve as a den for the night.
His gaze swept the terrain again, calculating. If that first hyena was a scout, he reasoned, then the main pack must have been nearby. Which meant their den should be close.
Mutant hyenas were territorial creatures. They always built their nests near large caves, deep ravines, or cracked stone formations. If he found one, he’d find shelter.
As the sun dipped lower, the savannah began to change. The once-golden grass turned the color of ash. The shadows stretched long and dark, and the temperature dropped steadily.
Bruce’s lone figure moved through the dry expanse, quiet, focused, a dark silhouette framed against the bleeding sunset. The rolled-up hides were slung over his shoulder, brushing lightly against his back as he trudged onward.
Minutes passed. The light dimmed further. The world seemed to hold its breath.
Then he saw it.
A faint, jagged outline ahead, half-hidden between a cluster of rocks. A wide cave mouth, large enough for several beasts to pass through side by side.