"Is a thing that is thought but not yet birthed bound by an Ego?" - Without Theorem.
A couple of weeks had passed since Kali's life was upended by forces far beyond his control. In that time, he had thrown himself into training under Markus's watchful eye—grueling combat drills, relentless sparring, and shooting exercises with every kind of firearm the outpost could offer. Blisters gave way to calluses, and hesitance transformed into instinct.
Each day, he grew more grateful to Rizen. The cybernetic enhancements had reshaped him from the inside out. His reflexes were blisteringly fast now, allowing him to dodge and counter with a precision that defied muscle memory. Fatigue faded quickly, injuries healed in hours, and learning came at an almost predatory pace. He was no longer the same man who had stumbled through the obelisk's trapdoor.
He could feel the others noticing. Markus didn't say anything directly, but there was a shift in his tone—less condescension, more respect. The others probably chalked it up to his supposed Kreithian lineage, exotic and unknown enough to excuse any anomaly.
Physically, he had changed too. Muscle clung tighter to his frame, carved from long days of sweat and training. He was still lean, but the wiry strength underneath was impossible to miss. He moved differently now, like someone who had stopped being afraid of breaking.
And today Kali was on his first official mission with the Vanguard, no longer a porter, but a full-fledged operative. He sat at the back of the truck, jostling with every bump and dip in the uneven terrain. Four others rode with him, their fatigues catching glints of sunlight through the slats. Just behind them, an armored hauler rolled steadily, carrying the cargo they'd been assigned to deliver.
"Anxious?" asked Corvus, leaning forward with a grin. He was a rough-edged but reliable member of Markus's squad, and one of the few who had taken an early liking to Kali.
Before he could respond, Markus snorted from the front bench. "Anxious? This one's got balls of titanium."
"I'd love to see that," Naomi chimed in, raising a brow and flashing a teasing wink toward Kali.
He shook his head with a crooked smile, used to their antics by now. This squad wasn't gentle, but they were loyal, and they'd started treating him like one of their own.
Once the laughter faded, Kali turned serious. "Are we expecting trouble?"
Markus's expression darkened a touch. "Like you wouldn't believe. The route cuts straight through the Wastes. Usually just scavvers and ferals, but sometimes... worse."
"You think we'll run into something?" Kali asked, already feeling the adrenaline stir beneath his skin.
Markus gave him a long look, then smirked. "You feeling lucky?"
Kali leaned his head back against the truck wall and exhaled. "No."
Corvus laughed. "Good. Lucky people die first out there."
Naomi checked her rifle, her tone light but eyes sharp. "Unlucky ones just get to watch."
The truck hit a hard dip, jarring them all, and for a moment the camaraderie quieted. Outside, the terrain was turning bleaker, flatter—ashen soil stretching into the horizon under a washed-out sky. The Wastes were coming.
Kali drew his automatic rifle closer, the familiar weight of it grounding him. With a quick motion, he reached behind and brushed his fingers over the twin short blades strapped at the small of his back, still secure. He exhaled through his nose, trying to still the rising hum in his veins.
Then it came—trouble, sudden and loud.
Four vehicles burst onto the road from a blindspot in the ridgeline, kicking up walls of dust and gravel. They were fast, rugged scavenger trucks reinforced with scrap armor and bristling with makeshift weapons. Their engines howled like beasts, bearing down on them in a loose V-formation.
"Contacts, six o'clock!" Corvus shouted, already turning to the rear window.
"Hostiles confirmed!" Naomi barked, unholstering her sidearm and pulling up her rifle in one fluid motion.
The driver cursed and accelerated, but the scavengers were built for speed.
Markus stood, gripping a ceiling strap to steady himself as the truck rocked. "We hold them off while the hauler gets clear! Naomi, take the right flank. Corvus, with me! Kali, you're with me too."
Kali nodded without hesitation, heart thudding, adrenaline crashing through him like a wave. He positioned himself near the rear hatch as it was thrown open, wind and grit slamming into his face. The scent of oil and metal and distant blood filled the air.
Gunfire cracked from the scavenger convoy, bullets pinging off the rear plating and kicking up bursts of dust around the wheels. The hauler behind them swerved but stayed steady, its own escort turret swiveling to return fire.
Kali took aim. Then he fired.
The bullet punched through the windshield glass, then flesh. The figure behind the wheel spasmed, head snapping back in a crimson burst. The rover veered sharply, tires shrieking, then slammed into a rock outcrop. Flames burst from its undercarriage, swallowing it in fire and smoke.
Kali froze for just a breath. He had killed.
It hit him, sudden and heavy—but not enough to stop him. This world didn't allow hesitation. It demanded a price, and today, he paid it in bullets.
Gunfire rattled again, and another scavenger rover pulled up beside their truck, trying to flank. Without thinking, Kali slung his rifle and climbed, boot heels pounding the roof of the truck as it bounced beneath him. The wind screamed in his ears, grit scouring his face.
Then he leapt.
Boots slammed onto the scavenger's roof with a hard clang. He rolled with the motion, handgun drawn before he even steadied his breath. A scavenger popped up through the sunroof, wide-eyed and yelling.
Kali didn't hesitate.
Two shots—center mass. The man collapsed back inside, and Kali dropped through the same opening, landing hard inside the vehicle.
The driver turned, startled, raising a weapon but Kali was faster. He squeezed the trigger. The shot echoed inside the cab, deafening. The rover swerved, still barreling forward. Kali grabbed the wheel, fighting it back under control as the body slumped beside him. Smoke choked the air. The vehicle now under his control, Kali yanked the door open and kicked the body out. It tumbled onto the road, swallowed by dust and speed. Sliding into the driver's seat, he gripped the wheel and took a breath. The adrenaline burned, but his hands were steady.
Up ahead, motion caught his eye—Priene.
She had emerged from the hauler like a wraith, climbing its roof with that unhurried grace of hers. She leapt, landing on the third scavenger truck in a crouch, her rusted machete already in hand. With precise, brutal efficiency, she carved through armor like it was paper. Screams rose, brief and cut short. Sparks flared. Steel split. And even after all he'd seen, Kali still couldn't help but marvel.
Only one scavenger truck remained now.
Kali slammed his foot down, roaring forward. His scavenger rover surged with a growl of protest, engine coughing smoke. He turned the wheel slightly, aligning with the final enemy vehicle.
Then impact.
Metal crunched. The two rovers collided with a violent screech of steel. The last scavenger was shoved off balance, tires skidding for traction. Kali kept pushing, ramming again, harder this time.
The scavenger truck buckled sideways.
Kali jumped out just before it flipped, letting momentum carry him into a rough tumble. Dust. Heat. Pain.
He rolled to his feet, handgun already drawn just in case. But the flipped truck stayed still, no survivors emerging from the wreckage.
It was over.
For now.
He turned toward the others, still breathing hard, eyes burning from smoke and grit. And for the first time, Kali felt not like the lost man from a forgotten world but a fighter in this one. A part of it. Changed.
"Not bad for your first mission," Markus called with a grin, jogging up beside him.
Kali chuckled, wiping blood from his brow. "Told you. Titanium."
"We've got company!" Naomi shrieked, her voice cutting through the crackle of burning wreckage. Her rifle was already up, sights trained. "Velarachne!"
From the dunes came the clicking storm, four-legged terrors sprinting with inhuman speed, their obsidian carapaces glinting under the brutal sun. Each moved with alien grace, a blur of limbs and predatory purpose.
The squads didn't hesitate and gunfire erupted.
Muzzle flashes lit up the sand. Bullets tore through the advancing swarm, but the Velarachne were relentless. Some went down in sprays of ichor, others climbed over the corpses of their kin, undeterred.
"Fall back!" Markus barked. "Circle formation! Keep it tight!"
Kali joined the retreat, firing short, controlled bursts as he moved. One of the creatures lunged at him, mandibles snapping, but he ducked and spun, slicing with one of his short blades—its edge sharper than any alloy he'd ever known. The blade cut through leg and nerve in a blink, sending the thing tumbling.
Naomi laid down cover fire as Corvus dragged a wounded soldier back. "We need the hauler now!" she yelled.
"On it!" Kali broke from the circle, sprinting back toward the armored vehicle. Behind him, gunfire echoed and Velarachne shrieked like warped metal. He leapt into the cockpit, kicked the engine alive, and turned the hauler toward the squad.
The doors flung open as the others piled in, one by one, breath ragged, wounds fresh.
"Where's Priene?!" Corvus shouted.
"I saw her take down two on her own—" Naomi started, then they all turned as something landed hard on the roof of the hauler.
Priene dropped down into the passenger bay, blood-spattered but alive. "Drive."
No one argued.
Kali hit the accelerator, tires kicking sand behind them as the Velarachne fell away into the horizon, unable to match the roaring engine's fury. The other truck following closely behind.
Only once the clicking faded and the dust settled did anyone speak.
"Next time," Naomi said, slumping against the wall, "let's just fight humans."
Kali wiped the grime from his face, heart still hammering. "No shit."