The next day...
"No! We are not leaving!" Sterling shouted, slamming his hands onto the table.
Nyx's brows furrowed as she stated in a calm manner.
"Sir Sterling…we have no choice. Five enforcers are dead seven are injured. This place is dangerous. We can' stay here any longer."
"But this could be the breaking point for chaos theory! For our understanding of the world! I can understand it, Nyx. There's no doubt in my mind."
"Is it worth the lives of 40 men?" Nyx asked calmly.
"Anything great has an equivalent price to pay, Nyx!"
Nyx drew a sharp breath, calming her anger. Then, she locked eyes with Charles who was just behind Sterling.
"What do you think of this, Mr. Charles?"
Charles puffed his cigar. "I wish to be neutral in this conversation."
Nyx nodded and went back to the conversation with Sterling. Sterling crossed his arms and asked in a raspy tone.
"Isn't there an alternative to this? Like can't we move a little farther away from the abyss?"
"The 'entities' that are in the abyss already know we're what good would that do?" Nyx replied.
Sterling gritted his teeth and then, he raised a brow.
"And I just realized…we can't even move from here…"
"What do you mean we can't move from here?" Nyx scoffed.
"He is right." David's voice echoed from the other side of the table.
The two spun their heads towards him as they continued to talk.
"We were able to move while transporting the AEOC lieutenant general because he could sit in the transport. Unlike his teammate who we had to lie on the floor. Lucky, his leg was healed enough that he didn't feel any major pain during transport."
Nyx's brows furrowed once more. "Does that mean…?"
David shook his head. "Unfortunately, supreme commander…the most we can do is move a bit farther away from here. Moving severely injured patients is something we cannot do on this type of terrain."
Nyx gritted her teeth and clenched her fist. "…Fine."
"Yes!" Sterling clenched his fist in victory.
He turned around and waved at Charles to follow him.
"Come on, Charles! Let's get back to work."
"I'll be there in a moment." Charles puffed his cigar.
Sterling exited the temple as Charles looked at Nyx.
"What do you plan to do now? This won't be the last time a possession happens." He adjusted his hat.
Nyx groaned, clutching her head. After a few seconds, he sat straight and replied in a calm tone.
"I guess I'll erect a barrier around the camp after we move it."
***
After Nyx gave the order, the enforcers began moving the camp. They pulled down the tents and set them up a little way away from the abyss. The chaos didn't die down not even one bit while they moved. Once the moving was done, Nyx stepped outside and reached out both her hands. With a heavy sigh, she drew the shadows, careful not to draw the darkness from the abyss. The shadows circled around the circumference of the camp as Nyx collected more shadows.
Finally, once she gathered enough, she erected a spherical barrier around the camp. The camp was instantly, shadowed by darkness as Nyx's shadows blocked out the sky. Then, she allowed light to pass which lit up the camp once again.
'If I was a little bit more rested…I could've made this barrier independent of me.'
She drew a heavy breath and tucked her hands into her pockets.
'Well…guess you it isn't life without some circumstances.'
Then, she chuckled lightly.
'I feel like Dante…'
Then, she headed back, preparing from any other chaos fragment that would spawn because she couldn't restrict the entry of chaos into her barrier.
***
Meanwhile…
In the medic's tent, multiple enforcers were getting treated by the small number of staff. The paramedics had managed to seal the wounds of almost all the seven injured enforcers. Though, five died in the process. The enforcers groaned and rolled around in their bed, pain still gripping their bodies.
Kay sighed and leaned back.
"What the hell happened out there…?" He mumbled.
Then, he swerved his head to the right where he saw Harvey was sitting straight.
"How are you feeling. Mr. Harvey?" he inquired.
"I'm feeling fine. It's nothing." Harvey chuckled.
"You have a literal hole in your side. How are you okay?" A man stated.
Arthur sat beside Harvey, holding his weighted vest with Maple. Harvey groaned slightly and looked at his captain with a slight smile.
"Captain, it's really nothing." He assured.
"At least be comfortable." Arthur, placed the vest of the ground and stood up.
He helped Harvey slide down and lay flat on his back. Harvey eased his muscles and relaxed his eyes.
"I'm really sorry about cutting you. I should've been more careful." Maple lowered her head.
Harvey opened an eye. "Don't worry, sweetie. It's not your fault."
Maple nodded with a hint of guilt. Arthur and her left their teammates and began walking towards the exit. Right then, Maple noticed something in the corner of her eye.
"Is that…Major?" She blurted.
Arthur heart squeezed as he looked where Major was. His group was sitting around a wounded Saul who had a scar across his chest. He bit his lip and approached them with Maple right behind.
"Major." Arthur called out, hands in pockets.
Major lifted his head, locking his dead eyes with the lieutenant general. "Yes?"
Arthur looked at Saul, then, at Jasper and Frank. He drew a deep breath and inquired a soft tone.
"Who was possessed?"
The room went silent for a moment before Frank slightly raised his hand.
"It was me…" He stated.
Arthur nodded slowly. "…And how is Saul?"
When asked that question, Major burst into tears.
"I-I'm just glad he's alive…" He said with a cracking voice, as tears quietly streamed down his face.
Arthur froze – Maple froze. Their mind simultaneously felt guilt and their hearts clenched with the same feeling. Frank and Jasper wiped the tears in their eyes as their superiors looked at them with guilty eyes.
'I failed to protect them…' Arthur bit his lip.
'I should've been there for them.' Maples wiped her tears as well.
Arthur's lips parted. "Well…get well soon."
Before Saul could respond, he turned around. Maple followed after a slight smile to Major's team. Arthur and Maple walked away in silence, the weight of failure heavier than any wound they carried.