His stomach sank. Jake finally realised why he did not realise his location. Whether it's a dream or.not, he has stumbled upon 5he holy grail of all history.
The Void Era.
The era from where all current events, beings and tools began. This is the era where the mystical pathways first emerged, leading to eras of might and justice, tyranny and bloodshed. This was also from when the myriad races first stepped into the wide universe.
Filled with anticipation and fear, Jake tentatively followed them, trying his best to ensure that they don't suspect him further than they should. He prayed that their interrogation is shirt, with them quickly meting out his 'punishment ', him completing it, and leaving the dream or whatever it is.
As he prayed and marched towards the command central, he tried to talk to his capture again. Well, tried at least, for they longer entertained his questions, just answering him with a few prods here and there to keep his mouth shut.
Just as his captors (and him) could nonponger bear the questioning and journey, they finally felt a huge shadow lookong over them. Standing in front of them stood a large bronze building. It's walls(?) loomed over them, causing its presnece above the entire camp. Glyphs constantly floated across the fabric, etched with what Jake could feel as various protection and anti-surveillance spells.
As he watched in awe at the sheer magnitude of the tent, a deep voice called from within "Come in, and bring that... boy, with you."
Hearing this confirmation, soldier A and Soldier 149 both looked at each other, before nodding and opening the tent door. As they both entered the tent, 149 also dragged Jake in roughly. At the unexpected yank from her, he stumbled and fell face first into the tent. Before they could drag him further in, he jumped onto his feet.
As he was made aware of his surroundings, Jake gaped at the scene, eyes wide open at the sheer magnitude of the place. Inside were hordes of every type of creatures imaginable, from Floxies and Trixies shuttling paper everywhere, to Cyclopes tiptoeing across corridors, lugging barrels of what seemed to be coffee in their hands. Wulfus' stood erect near doorways, gaurding them so that no enemies might sneak in.
Before he could further process the scene, the male soldier commanded "Move along now, deserter. The Secretary wants to see you now." Heeding his words (and also realising that solider A probably had feelings for 149), Jake promptly complied. As he entered the tent, he was met with a massive hulk of a man, who sat behind a large Blackwood desk.
A thick stack of paper is held in his hands. His eyes rapidly flew across the pages, perusing whatever is written on them in rapid pace. His right hand continuously flipped through the pages, exhibiting a demeanor of ease, as if he does this everyday. As soon as they both entered, without taking eyes off the papers, he asked in a bass voice "I had high hopes for you, cadet Benson. You have failed me, and the company, terribly. We, especially I, had high hopes for you. I hoped that you would eventually replace me one day, but it seems that I have misjudged, again."
Feeling the disappointment in his words, he did not know what had taken over him, but Jake defiantly spoke "I will prove that your decision was not wrong Sir. To repent for my actions, I will do whatever you order Sir!"
The Secretary slowly put down his stack of papers, before raising an eye "Oh, you will do whatever I say? Very well, by my authority, you are hereby sentenced to the frontlines, where you will follow Task Force 145 Bravo. You are ordered to engage in frontal assault with the Elder Treants until raid party has succeeded in their mission. Do I make myself clear?" His deep voice finished Jake's sentencing, before returning back to his papers. Seeing this, soldier A and 149 took Jake back outside, where they unlocked his shackles, and led to Task Force 145 Bravo's campsite.
As Jake returned back to his senses, he did not why he had the sudden urge to answer to the Secretary the way he. He just felt that it was the right thing to do, although it scared him to no end, for he knew that this was not his usual self. He had always a sinking suspicion that it was somewhat related to the book, but he could not prove it.
After reaching the campsite, he did not have time to get himself introduced to the others, for the operation was scheduled the next day, which meant that everyone was too busy preparing themselves to care for anything else.
Looking at the current situation, Jake just shrugged his shoulders, before taking whatever little he had left in this timeline, and packing them together in a small bundle. Disappointed in the size, he shrugged once more, before going back to his tent, ready for sleep. It's just a dream anyways...
The next day, after reconfirming everything, TF 145 B started their march towards the Elder Treant lair. On the way, everyone spoke with each other, gossiping to decrease boredom, and their fear. Jake initially did banter around with a couple of them, but slowly stopped once they started reaching their destination. Gone were the laid back and lazy posture, in was steel straight backs, weapons held in uniform manner.
Just when Jake thought they would go on for days, the commander stopped in place, before signaling with his hands for them to set camp. Being court martialed, Jake was one of the unlucky ones to be chosen as scouts. He scoured up into a tree, using binoculars to gaze into the distance.
Tall, dark, lush trees covered the entire forest. Their leaves danced across the wind, soft rattles being emanated from their dances. Dew reflected from each leaf, casting rainbows across the vast, blue sky. Despite the lush vegetation, not a single wildlife was heard. All that was seen were lone trees sometimes shaking, moving across the vast fields, roaming around in haphazard manner.
They have reached the Elder Treant alcove.