Chapter 86: Alien World In the distance, about fifty miles away, maybe more — distance was hard to judge in this warped space — stood a towering mass Finn had initially mistaken for a mountain range. Its massive peaks stretched toward a bleak, gray-colored sky, looking like a natural wall that stretched across the horizon. But then his Ferropteryx eyes focused, and he realized with creeping horror what he was actually seeing. These were no mountains... They were waves! Frozen waves of a sea so vast that its curvature was visible even from this distance. Each ’mountain’ was a tsunami suspended mid-crash, standing thousands of feet high, caught in some kind of frozen state that held them perfectly still. And the wrongness radiating from that distant sea made the barrier they’d just crossed feel like a walk in the park by comparison. Finn saw an eager look morph on Tron’s face after the initial shock and terror that gripped all three of them. "Don’t," Finn said sharply, shaking his head at whatever Tron had been about to suggest. "Don’t even think about going near that." "I agree with Finn," Althea said with a grim expression. "That’s death." "Can’t you see how the natural laws there have been completely fucked. If we get anywhere near that sea, we’re done." Finn added with a hiss after seeing Tron still having that look in his eyes. "Or you know what? Just do whatever you want. You can go there if you feel like it. But we’re not going with you." Tron narrowed his eyes at Finn for a second, then cleared his throat and pulled out his map. "This whole area is not on the map. But I can see..." He pointed behind them, away from the time frozen sea. "That looks like it matches the description of the forest region mentioned in the briefing. The one with trees the size of towers — the Weald." Finn turned, following Tron’s gesture. Sure enough, perhaps three or four miles behind them, the landscape transitioned into what looked like forest — if ’forest’ could adequately describe trees so massive they dwarfed anything that should exist on a natural world. "So we’re on the edge between the Weald and this... whatever this sea region is called," Althea said, pulling out her own map and the specialized stylus. "Which means our job is to document the boundary, establish markers, and add this section to the master map." "This sea," Tron said, eyeing the vast body of uncanny-looking water that was frozen still. "If we can survey it properly and document its properties and boundaries, we’d be providing the Ossuary extremely valuable intelligence." He looked at Finn and Althea as if this were obvious. "I still say we should head towards it. Map as much of the coastline as we can safely manage. That’s the assignment, isn’t it? To survey and document?" "Absolutely not," Finn said immediately. "Did you not hear what I just said? That thing will kill us. Not might. Will." "You don’t know that for certain," Tron countered, looking at Finn dismissively. His gaze instead went to Althea. Finn’s voice hardened. "Well, I said you can go if you want. No one’s stopping you man..." "I agree with Finn," Althea said firmly. "Whatever information we might gain isn’t worth the risk. We head toward the Weald. Document the boundary region from a safe distance. That’s more than enough for a first deployment." Tron’s jaw clenched, clearly frustrated at being outvoted. His eyes lingered on the frozen sea for a while longer, and for a second, it seemed as if he was going to go off on his own. But then he turned his Griffin sharply and headed towards the distant forest. Finn and Althea followed after. Though, not without Finn grumbling about Tron’s attitude. Eventually though, after a few minutes, Finn mellowed. The disgruntled feeling was replaced by an awareness of his surroundings. As they flew, he realized he couldn’t shake the vague feeling that they were being watched. And not by people — his senses would have picked that up. By the space itself. As if the World Tear was aware of their intrusion and was deciding whether to tolerate their presence or simply erase them... As they approached the Weald, Finn’s mind was already working through possibilities. This forest, he thought, eyeing the massive tree trunks that were beginning to resolve into individual details as they drew closer. It’s the perfect place to get separated and find privacy... The scale alone would make it nearly impossible to keep constant visual contact. And if he could manufacture a reason to split off from Althea and Tron for even a few hours... That might be all he needed to attempt the Garuda adaptation... The trees grew larger with each passing moment of flight, and soon it didn’t look like they were approaching a forest anymore, rather, it looked like they were entering a whole different world itself. The first tree they passed was as wide as a large apartment complex building. Finn’s enhanced vision traced its trunk upward, following its massive bark ridges, past branches thick enough to hold a car, all the way up to a canopy so far above that it disappeared into a perpetual overhead haze of green. The three Ossuarists looked on in silence, awed by the spectacle all around them. It’s like those documentaries about prehistoric Earth, with massive fauna and wildlife, Finn thought. Except this is even more massive... They flew deeper into the Weald, and the pressure of the place began to thicken and settle over them. The light changed first. The canopy above was so dense that sunlight — or whatever passed for sunlight in this broken world — filtered down in scattered, green-gold beams that created a twilight atmosphere despite it being midday outside. The next uncanny thing were the sounds. It wasn’t silent like Finn had half-expected, rather it was a cacophony of wrong noises. Creaking that sounded almost like speech. Rustling that had rhythm to it, as if something massive was breathing. Everything seemed to be alive in a way that was unfamiliar to him. "Stay alert," Althea said quietly as she scanned the surrounding vegetation with visible wariness. "Something about this place feels..." "Alive," Finn finished. "Everything is watching us..." Tron added. It seemed even he could recognize when to be cautious at times. They were right to be wary. So far, Finn’s enhanced senses had picked up movement everywhere — deliberate movement. Vines that shifted position when they thought no one was looking. Flowers that tracked their flight with petals that looked disturbingly like eyes. Even the barks of trees seemed to ripple occasionally, as if the trees themselves were... adjusting. "There," Finn said suddenly, pausing in the air. "Three o’clock. Something just moved." Althea and Tron immediately shifted without hesitation, readying themselves for anything... But for a long moment, nothing happened. Then the tree beside them moved. It whipped a massive branch Tron’s way with an uncanny blistering speed that took them off guard even though they were prepared. "Scatter!" Tron barked. They broke formation instantly, each diving in different directions as more branches lashed out from the surrounding trees. Finn’s Ferropteryx reflexes kicked in immediately. His wings snapped with precise aerial maneuvers that would have been impossible with his human coordination alone.