Chapter 363: A familiar voice.

Zyra had never wanted to look under Hunter’s skin more than ever. The system kept calling him a beast. And he could read an alien language! Clearly, he knew something deep down the rest of them did not. Maybe, something that had vanished with his lost memories.

The system chimed right inside Zyra’s head before she could even open her mouth to ask Hunter anything.

[Alert: Uninvited human heat signatures approaching. Count: Six.]

Before Zyra could even digest the ping, the system chimed again, broadcasting the warning directly to the rest of the squad’s helmet displays. The same warning appeared on their link bands.

"We have company and it might not be friendly!" Elfy said to Zyra before dropping into a low combat stance so fast her armor jointing whined in protest.

Koji immediately turned his gun toward the heavy fog, his finger resting lightly on the trigger. "Should we just shoot first and ask questions later? Saves us from being killed foolishly like villains that talk too much."

"Wait, wait!" Daniel waved his hands frantically. "They could be innocent people! Like_ lost hunters! Or tourists!"

Nero sucked his teeth loudly, a deep tch echoing through his helmet comms. He casually bounced on the balls of his feet, flexing his knuckles. "I don’t care who they are. If they want a fight, they will get one. And there is not such thing as tourists in a dungeon that nobody has ever heard of. I am more inclined to believe that they followed us."

Zyra tightened her grip on her spear, pulling her arm back, ready to launch the weapon the second a hostile shadow broke the pillar line. "There are six of them total," she reminded everyone, keeping her voice steady even though her heart was pounding. "Keep your eyes on their positions. Don’t get sloppy."

Out of the thick, white mist, six figures remained still behind the fog, but aimed their weapons at Zyra’s group. Red lasers cut through the fog, fixed on the team. "We know you’re out there!" a man’s voice came loudly. "We’re just scavengers! Nothing more! We don’t want any trouble but we are not afraid of a fight."

Zyra frowned. The voice sounded ridiculously familiar. She lowered her spear an inch. "Neil_?" she mumbled softly. Then, she popped her visor up and screamed at the top of her lungs, "Neil, is that you?"

The leader of the group froze. He aggressively shoved his way to the front of his squad, squinting through the fog. "Zyra!?"

"Over here!" Zyra waved both arms over her head like a stranded islander spotting a rescue ship.

Neil let out a wild laugh. In his excitement, he unclipped his oxygen mask to gasp in relief. In a second, he remembered that the air in this region was toxic, gagged once, slammed the mask back onto his face. Then, he charged forward for a big reunion hug.

He didn’t make it.

A huge, armored hand extended out of nowhere and slammed flat against Neil’s chest, bringing him to a dead, sudden stop like a cartoon character hitting a wall. Neil blinked, looking up the length of the giant arm until his eyes landed on Hunter’s cold, unblinking glare.

"Back up," Hunter warned. "Do not get too close."

Neil raised an eyebrow, hovering awkwardly in mid-air against Hunter’s hand. "Uh_ who are you supposed to be, tough guy?"

"I’m her husband," Hunter said, his voice flat enough to flatten steel.

Neil stared for a second, then burst out laughing, raising both hands in mock surrender. "Ah! Got it, got it. Respect the boundaries!" He took two steps back and turned to Zyra. "What in the world are you doing way out here?"

Zyra crossed her arms. "I could ask you the exact same thing. People don’t just stumble into a place like this. It has got to be hundreds of miles away from your home."

"I am treasure hunting, of course!" Neil grinned, pulling a crumpled, parchment from his vest. "The map brought me here."

Zyra squinted at the parchment. It was the exact same sketchy map he had pulled out back at Moonfall. Judging by the fact that they kept running into each other at secret, hidden dungeons, the map was somehow actually accurate.

Looking past Neil’s shoulders, Zyra looked at one of the descending staircases leading to somewhere. She pointed past him. "I assume you did some research before coming here. Where do those steps go?"

A tall woman behind Neil stepped forward, her armor sleek and polished. "They lead to the Great Bridge of Zion," she answered smoothly. "It’s an old tourist site from the old era that connects to these sky islands. We are in Somnivore territory or what used to be Somnivore territory before they were driven beyond the veil."

The entire group turned their heads in unison, staring at the mystery woman.

"Oh! Right, introductions!" Neil slapped his forehead. "This is Bertha. She’s my elder sister."

Achilles tilted his head, studying her sleek gear. "Bertha? Wait_ I’ve seen you at a few private auctions for the rich and stupid in the Capital. Couldn’t tell with the full-face helmet on, but you own the Alter Review Gallery, don’t you?"

Bertha nodded politely. "Guilty as charged."

Zyra nodded in understanding. So, Neil actually had family with a lot of money. Good to know.

Bianca let out a huge sigh of relief, slumping her shoulders. "I’m just glad Milly isn’t with you. Did that crazy woman ever recover?"

Neil chuckled sheepishly. "She’s recovering nicely back at base, thanks to Zyra and everyone who helped out that day. She’s still complaining that she left a treasure at Moonfall which she will retrieve someday, which means she’s fine."

Achilles stepped toward Bertha; his eyes narrowed with genuine curiosity. "How did you even get your hands on a map like that?"

Bertha held up a hand. "A good treasure hunter never reveals their sources." She gracefully walked past the men, stopping in front of one of the massive stone monoliths blocking the main path. She ran a finger over the glowing runes. "I see you guys have already started deciphering the clues."

Achilles snorted and pointed a thumb over his shoulder. "Don’t look at us. Credit goes to Hunter."

Hunter let out another low, exhausted sigh. "I told you, I didn’t decipher anything. My hands were itchy. I just wanted to scratch my palm against something hard." He pointed at the jagged surface of the monolith. "I rubbed it against the rock_"

"_And the rock moved," Zyra finished his sentence with a deadpan stare.

Tessi took it as a sign to pitch in. "And then you read the weird language that literally none of the rest of us could read."