After five hours of flight on a cargo plane, Lu Shen disembarked in Yanghoun.
The heat hit him, stealing his breath.
"Shen'er." His father came toward him. Upright, in uniform with his cap pulled low over his head, he advanced with two men in tow.
Lu Shen went to meet him. "General," he greeted him.
The other placed a hand on his shoulder and steered him toward a jeep, which set off toward the interior.
Lu Shen looked out over that unpleasantly familiar land: arid, barren soil and trees that created small patches of shade.
It was not his first mission on foreign soil. When he had enlisted, at his father's insistence, he had done so on the condition that he would work exclusively for the troops of the World Organization for Peace and only for defensive purposes: he was responsible for protecting the participants in the missions. He had never fired a single shot at anyone.
Although most of the four continents were at peace, in corners and kingdoms, more or less remote parts of the Earth, power struggles between humans, sorcerers, and supernatural beings were still being fought.
They reached the camp after an hour and a half. The general accompanied Lu Shen to a large tent set up beyond the southern perimeter. "If you need anything, ask the soldiers I've assigned to you."
The sorcerer nodded and went inside.
The furnishings were essential: a cot, a crate beside it, and a table on which a map of the settlement was already spread open.
The sorcerer changed his clothes and went out with the map in hand. He walked the entire perimeter, noting the fixed points he could use, then returned to his quarters: the sooner he got to work, the sooner he would be able to leave.
Despite his fatigue, he prepared the first artifact, then went to the mess hall to get something to eat. When he was done, he returned to the tent and prepared the second artifact, charging it with the necessary energy.
Night came quickly. He ate a sandwich and lay down on the cot, the sounds of the camp muffled by distance.
At last, exhaustion overcame him and he slipped into sleep.
It was the fifth mission he had taken part in. The enemy army had been pressing them since the previous day, as they tried to escape through the forest. His task had been to hide them from the enemies' sight, but they must have had a tracker with them because, despite his efforts, they were still able to locate them.
Then he had been wounded, and the magic protecting the others had failed.
His companions had begun to fall under enemy gunfire. Their screams of pain were more deafening than the sound of the rifles.
He had tried to restore the screen, to build a shield, but he hadn't succeeded. He had used the last surge of energy he had left to save the soldier who was trying to stop his bleeding.
Lu Shen woke up drenched in sweat, his heart pounding wildly. Sitting on the cot, his hands clenched the sheet as he struggled to breathe.
He ran his hands over his face and then clasped them behind his head, leaning forward and resting his forehead on his knees.