It had been a downright terrifying experience to face but the relaxation time had been awarded generously. 18 hours was more than he had expected and it reignited his hope of getting to the 300 KM mark.
Maybe even further if things went really good? Who knows what could happen in the future.
"Mark" the voice shouted at him and had turned his head to see Alan making his way toward him with hesitant steps. Really, the kid had been the real MVP of the fight with how well he did.
"You were such a good shot, kid. I'm so proud of you" Mark called out in a gentle voice but for some reason, the child just frowned at him. What was wrong with him? Was it not enough praise for him?
"Don't speak like you are going to die. You kill that monster, right? Isn't everything alright now?" the teen asked in a panicky voice which was rather cute in Mark's eyes and it drew a laugh out of him in reflex.
"Don't worry, I'm alright. The monster is dead and we have 18 hours of free time. Let's go back and drive as far as we can before the limit expires" Mark stood up which was difficult at first but got easier at times.
The teen was watching him with the hawk vision so he had to pretend to be fine but he felt the scope of the collision. But walking made the pain easier to bear and it did not take them long to get back toward their cave.
His kitten rushed toward him as soon as he stepped inside the cave and he picked her up. Mark allowed her to settle in his arms as he took his own at a rock place near the car. Alan followed his example and almost collapsed.
"Want something to eat?" Mark asked as he took out some fast food he had packed. Despite his personal opinion on that thing, it was an excellent source of instant energy and was really beneficial after a high-energy workout.
The teen took the offering and ate it in a hurry. Clearly, the tussle before had taken a lot out of him too.
Mark passed some bits of kitten biscuits to his companion in his lap who relished in it wholeheartedly. It was a comfortable setting that passed far too quickly and soon the party was ready to head out.
They had to make the best of the time they have left after all.
The desert canyon was empty of life when they passed through it. Mark was sure that he was breaking every speed law that existed in any part of the world but he had no other choice than to do this.
Already he could feel the time escaping through his grasp. The teen was napping away at his side and the kitten was near the window, looking at the passing landscape. It was a blur but Mark felt better at such a high speed.
The sand was a big issue though and the HMMWV did not have enough water currently to keep the wiper on for long. The water itself was an issue since it stuck to the lower end of the window.
He had to stop a few times in between the stops to wipe it off by hand. It was a tiresome process but one that was well worth it.
Alan woke up after a few hours, his body still stiff but Mark did not envy the teen at all. He had slept a lot while he had to do the work and the back pain was well worth whatever he was feeling.
"Are we there yet?" the teen asked him, his eyes still half shut with sleep. Without the monsters, it had been a smooth ride till here. He had 3 more hours of the allotted time left and he felt good since the 300 KM mark was just around the corner.
"Not yet but we're halfway done. The green line marks the 300 KM mark. I'm hoping to get deep enough and find a safe stop for today. The car also needs to be refuelled" Mark told the teen who nodded.
Alan was looking at the map but Mark was not sure how much he understood just looking at it. Mark himself found it difficult to read at times but he never had an interest in games or geography before.
The kid most likely had played games before and that much could be understood by his words alone. Perhaps he would be better at reading the map if he had enough time to be familiar with it.
Mark would like to provide him with this opportunity but the risks outweigh the advantages and that held him back.
"There is food in the back seat if you are hungry. Feed Kuro while you are at it. I ate when I stopped a while back" Mark told the teen while driving all the time, his eyes on the road.
He did not hear the teen reply but the noise from his side told him that the teen was bending forward to look for the food. There was a cry of victory before a heavy crash was heard from his side.
Mark wanted to see but he could not break his concentration from the road or it might end up in a disaster. There was a tearing noise and then munching.
"Come here Kuro" the teen called out to the cat who jumped in his lap. Mark liked this moment and this atmosphere a lot. It was relaxing and serene, something he liked to imagine he would have had if everything was normal.
But he no longer had the luxury to even imagine something like that.
Soon he crossed the 300 KM mark he had set for himself. There was no real fanfare or anything surprising. It was all quiet and uniform, just as it had been still here.
He was going deeper still, the vehicle moving at a constant speed he preferred before he felt the beep of the safety time coming to an end. Thankfully, he had driven toward the safe point cave nearby and it was no problem to get there in the few minutes that were remaining.
The cave was a nice shelter and he felt himself almost collapse when he tried to stand up and stretch his legs. They fell asleep while he was driving and now they ached. How did that happen when he had been constantly using them? That was a mystery for him too.
The cave was identical to the last one down to the smallest detail making him realise that the designing team was most probably lazy. Alan did not comment on that at all, just sat at his side quietly.
Mark let his feet soak in water once he felt comfortable enough to move, then washed his face. It had collected a lot of sand in the time it took to get here. Mostly because he had to manually wipe the window from time to time.
The feeling of water on his face was refreshing.
The night felt darker somehow, the sky empty of any star and Mark could only watch from inside the cave as the gloom descended on the canyon area. It was not a happy place to be at all.
The sounds were beginning to pick up, the howling of animals and monsters alike. Some sounded normal while others sounded like a mockery of the normal voice these animals possessed.
A pair of desert foxes ran across the cave opening, their small body playing and blending with the surrounding sand and the dark helping them camouflage with the background. This was a first for Mark - to see normal animals in their natural surroundings.
How long would this last, he wondered. Animals were already becoming a rare sight to him, his eyes accustomed to seeing monsters more than animals in the last few days. He had killed more animals in the last few days than he had lost in his 5 years career.
It hurt somewhere deep inside but between his life and a monster's he had his priorities set up straight.
"Come inside and sleep. You complain that being tired would not help us tomorrow" Alan called him from inside and Mark took a last look toward the plains in front of him before sighting and coming back inside.
The sleeping arrangement was similar to the last night and it was still uncomfortable but Mark's body was too tired to comprehend the comfort when all it wanted to do was shut itself off.
Once again, the thing that woke him up was the alarm that sounded inside his mind and he woke up with a pound. This was also something that was becoming incredibly familiar in the past few days.
He quickly freshened up and picked himself up before he took a look at himself. His face was sunken in fatigue, his eyes haunted and it was clear that he was not holding up well at all. Yet he felt more alive inside himself than ever before.
Waking up his other party members' it was soon time to depart for the rest of the journey which was looking increasingly difficult every second of the way that was coming to his way and fasts.
The car was refuelled and restored with everything he could spare. The weapon and medicine restocked from the system store. He was ready for what might be the most difficult day of his life till now and Mark was terrified of what would happen.
But once he started the engine and drove out of the cave, there was no going back.