Calculation in the Hinterlands
The air on Ethereal Island felt different from the oily humidity of the Sanctuary Isles across the way. Here, mangrove forests met barren volcanic land directly. The soil was damp, sticky with black mud, and between the rotten stench of the sea and the strange flora, there was a faint aroma of sulfur. The volcano where Lazarus Bunker was located loomed high, almost slicing the dark sky. It felt as though we were walking on the skin of a sleeping monster.
Dahlia, in my harness, was no longer in a clinical trance. My protective embrace, lined with cold Kevlar, began making her feel the new environment, but it only brought her heart rate back to normal, which I considered a small victory.
I had just secured the Zodiac in a narrow crevice, covered by thick man
