CaptainPoussouf

  Ethan secured the st of their supplies in the back of the hover trud gnced over at Lyra, who was adjusting the rifle strapped to her side, eyes focused and ready. After extensive pnning and prep at the guild, it was finally time to set out for Xelthar's territory. They had a long journey ahead, through rough and hostile ndscapes teeming with Xelthar's scouts and patrols. Knowing what awaited them, Ethan double-checked his helmet's systems, ensuring the reaissance features were fully operational.

  "You ready?" he asked, running a final diagnostic s on his HUD.

  Lyra nodded, giving her own gear a once-over. "Let's go before we attray unwatention."

  They set off, the hover truck gliding smoothly across Kynara's rugged terrain. The helmet's navigation uided Ethan through a series of hidden paths, avoiding known patrol routes. Mountains loomed ahead, casting jagged shadows over the barren pins, and the journey was quiet at first, though Etha his gaze sharp, sing the area through his helmet's dispy. The HUD highlighted any movement, giving them an advantage over any scouts who might be lurking nearby.

  Their first stop was a small, battered outpost led in a valley. The settlement appeared nearly abandoned, its buildings scarred and half-destroyed from ret flict. A handful of survivors were tending to the remnants of the pce, casting wary g the unfamiliar hover truck as it approached.

  Ethan disembarked, l his visor to swit his helmet's thermal s. It revealed no immediate threats, only the faint outlines of civilians moving among the wreckage. He stepped forward, rations in hand as a gesture of goodwill, and a gaunt older man approached, his face lined with both weariness and caution.

  "Xelthar's men did this?" Ethan asked, gesturing to the ruins around them.

  The man nodded bitterly. "Came through two nights ago. Took ahey thought was useful, killed the rest. Said it was a warning to anyone who wouldn't cooperate with the syndicate." The man's eyes darkened as he spoke. "They're using something straoo. An alloy or metal that gets in people's heads. We had some men go with them willingly, like they weren't themselves."

  Ethan exged a look with Lyra. The mind-trol alloy he'd reported to the guild had made its way into Xelthar's operations, firming that the warlord was using it to enforce loyalty and fear.

  "Did you see which way they went?" Lyra asked, her tone low but direct.

  The man pointed east, towards the mountains. "Toward Xelthar's stronghold. If yoing after him, you'll find his men there."

  They left the outpost with a new urgency, each silent as they processed the implications. With the alloy in py, Xelthar's grip was stronger and more sihan they had anticipated. As they tihe terrain grew harsher, the rocky ground being steep cliffs and narrow trails ideal for ambushes.

  It wasn't long before Ethan's HUD pinged a signal, deteg movement up ahead: a group of three scouts patrolling a ridge. He motioo Lyra, and they took cover, the patrol's pattern as they passed. Using his helmet's tactical overy, he noted each guard's position, marking a clear route for a quick ambush.

  They moved in sync, creeping forward as the scouts tiheir patrol. Ethan moved swiftly, engaging his sileo take down the first guard, while Lyra dispatched the sed with a quick, silent shot. The third guard had barely turned before Ethan reached him, his movements swift and deadly. The HUD firmed that the area was clear.

  After seg the se, they resumed their journey, carefully navigating the rough terrain while staying on high alert. Signs of the syndicate's influence were everywhere: fresh tracks, discarded equipment, and trails leading in and out of the area, indig a ret movement of reinforts. The syndicate seemed to be aware of the guild's increased focus ohar, and they were fortifying his pound accly.

  At dusk, they reached a rger, more fortified outpost poputed by scattered survivors and makeshift tents. The exhausted survivors watched them with wary eyes, though one woman with tired eyes and a quiet resolve stepped forward.

  "Are you with the guild?" she asked.

  "We are," Ethan replied, his voice steady. "We're here to take dowhar."

  A glimmer of hope flickered in her eyes. "He's been…taking people, even children. They don't e back. Some kind of alloy, we think. It ges people. We don't know why or how, but it's like they're not themselves anymore."

  Ethan's expression hardened. "We'll do what we ."

  They took some time to rest and gather intel, going over the updated map with Lyra's notes on the most ret troop movements. As darkness fell, they reviewed their approach, studying the pound's yout through Ethan's helmet dispy, which mapped the area with pinpoint accuracy.

  "There are more patrols than we pnned for," Lyra observed, frowning as she analyzed the routes on his HUD. "If we go in head-on, we won't st long."

  Ethan nodded, his mind w through their options. "We'll o thin them out first, set traps, take them down in smaller groups. It'll take time, but we 't risk an all-out assault."

  They marked key entry points and high-traffic areas where patrols would be easiest to intercept. With the pn ihey moved uhe cover of night, the helmet's night vision enhang Ethan's field of view as they crept along the outskirts of the pound.

  The first ambush went smoothly: Ethan tracked a patrol along a narrow path, waiting until they were within range before activating an EMP grehe bst disabled the guards' equipment, and before they could react, he and Lyra moved in, taking them out swiftly and silently.

  As they proceeded, the enters grew more intense, with rger groups patrolling in tighter formatiohan's HUD tracked eaent, allowing him to adjust their strategy on the fly, signaling Lyra to cover him as he engaged cle with his psma dagger. Each skirmish was quick, brutal, and effit, thinnihar's forces little by little.

  After hours of careful sabotage, they found a high vantage point overlookihar's main pouhan sed the area, using his helmet's zoom a vision to detey hidden guards or ining patrols. The pound was massive, surrounded by tall walls and illuminated by floodlights. His HUD outlined guard pts and highlighted critical points: on caches, ots in the fortifications, and supply lines leading to the interior.

  "It's fortified like a fortress," Lyra murmured. "Direct assault is still out of the question."

  Ethan's jaw tightened. "We'll keep up the pressure. Create chaos, weaken their defenses, and force them into tighter groups. We'll have a better ce of slipping inside ohey're spread thin."

  With their phey desded from the ridge, moving into position. The series of attacks would test their endurand strategy, as they'd o hit multiple targets quickly and quietly to avoid dete. Ethan's helmet systems were vital here, highlighting possible entry points, alerting him to any nearby threats, and trag each route to maximize efficy.

  Throughout the night, they executed ambush after ambush, eae drawing them closer to Xelthar's stronghold. Ethahe weight of the mission press down on him, each skirmish a reminder of how critical this was. Xelthar and his syndicate allies were a threat that o be dismantled, one piece at a time.

  Finally, as daroached, they reached the outskirts of Xelthar's main base, now guarded by a fra of its usual forces. Ethan quietly searched for paths that would lead them to a secure entry point.

  The real battle y ahead, and they'd need every skill and strategy they'd refio finish what they'd started. Ethan gave Lyra a final nod, their resolve unwavering as they prepared to take dowhar ond for all.