Max moved.
Dust kicked up beneath his boots as he approached the massive body. The settlers watched, still and breathless.
From his pouch, he pulled the vial of Maxveil. In the pale light, the liquid inside looked like melted shadow.
He climbed the creature's side. The hide gave slightly under his steps, soft and thick like old leather. The worm twitched. A ripple passed down its length.
Max didn't slow.
He found a seam in the armored hide, drove the vial between the plates, and cracked it in one swift motion.
The liquid sank in.
The air held still.
Then the worm lurched.
A scream tore from its mouth—raw, metal and thunder. Its body thrashed, lifting and twisting. The ground heaved. Dust sprayed like water, debris crashing in all directions. Settlers stumbled back. Cries rang out. A few dropped to the ground, shielding their heads.
Ash braced himself, heart hammering.
'If this doesn't work—'
The worm collapsed.
Its body went still. No more spasms. Just a low, steady breath, slow and even.
Max slid off its back, wiping his brow. His shoulders eased.
"Now we know how long it lasts. That should hold it."
Mark stepped through the dust.
"For how long?"
Max met his eyes.
"Not long enough."
He turned.
"Start shaping."
The earth users dropped into position. Palms pressed flat to the cracked stone. Their veins pulsed with force. The ground answered, shifting with groans and low cracks.
Stone rose like it had been waiting.
It wrapped around the worm's sides, layer after layer, building a thick shell. The shape formed—long and wide, just enough to cradle the beast's bulk. Wheels took shape next, round and thick, grinding into place under the weight.
The ground rumbled.
The cart groaned.
It moved.
Slow at first—stone scraping over stone. But it moved.
Max stood at the edge, arms crossed, eyes hard.
"Good. Keep it moving."
The settlers gathered behind. They pushed. Pulled. Steered. A trail formed behind the wheels, carved deep into the earth.
Ash walked beside Kael. Their steps fell into rhythm with the cart's slow roll. He glanced ahead. The horizon was a line of faded gold and endless dust.
Kael nudged him.
"You good?"
Ash gave a nod. But his fingers wouldn't relax around the hilt.
"Let's go."
Max moved with steady steps, eyes locked on the horizon. His shadow stretched long behind him. The settlers followed in silence, their feet dragging through dust. No one spoke. Every footfall felt heavier than the last.
The stone cart moaned behind them. The worm who was trapped chest rose and fell beneath its rocky shell, each breath slow.
Ash kept his eyes forward, but he didn't need to turn to feel it. The weight behind them. The hum in the ground. The wrongness in the air.
Something still lingered. Not just the worm. Not just the ruin they left behind.
Each step pressed into cursed earth. The kind that remembered screams.
He didn't say it out loud. But he felt it.
The worm was only the beginning. They had moved it, for now, but the valley was a graveyard. And whatever came next, Ash knew—this wasn't just the end of their settlement. It was the beginning of something worse.
---
Days bled together.
The caravan crawled across the sands, slow and uneven like a wounded creature. The desert stretched in all directions, flat and cruel. Heat shimmered off the ground. The sun didn't rise—it loomed.
Earth veinflow users moved between the wagons. Hands down. Eyes sharp. The sand shifted beneath their fingers, hardening into paths. Stone smoothed into tracks. Sweat poured down their necks. When one team slumped, another took their place.
The stone cart inched forward. Always forward. Its wheels cracked and groaned, the sound of strain echoing over empty dunes.
Ash stared into the distance, eyes narrowing. A figure loomed on the edge of the horizon—another worm. Its head, covered in the jagged ridges of its segmented body, watched them from afar. It didn't move, didn't approach. It simply stared, its eyeless head locked on the caravan.
Kael stepped up beside him, gaze following Ash's.
"That still looks kinda creepy," he muttered.
Ash didn't blink.
"Yeah, this has been going on for days. I wonder what they're planning."
Kael let out a rough snort.
"Planning? I bet they're just scared to come close."
Ash didn't reply. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong, that the worms weren't just watching—they were waiting.
Then, the cart jerked.
The worm inside twitched, its thick body twisting against the stone. A deep rumble passed through the ground. Sand shifted. Dunes trembled.
The watchers—those other worms on the horizon—vanished.
One by one, they slipped beneath the sand like ghosts, leaving behind swirling clouds of dust. The ground cracked in places, echoing with the grind of earth closing over them.
Ash's hand went to his blade.
Max didn't break stride.
He reached into his pouch, fingers brushing over the cool curve of a vial. No hesitation. He pulled it free. The worm's jaw had parted just enough.
He threw.
Glass cracked against flesh. Black liquid spread into the skin. The worm spasmed, body shaking with sudden force. The cart groaned. Stones shifted.
Then it stopped.
The shudders faded. The breath slowed. Sleep returned.
Max's shoulders dropped with a single breath. He turned to the others.
"Let's hurry."
They moved.
The Earth Veinflow users were already pressing their hands into the ground. Stone paths bloomed beneath the cart. The wheels rolled forward again, slow but steady.
The settlers fell into rhythm—no words, just work. Pushing, walking, reshaping the earth beneath their feet. Every motion said the same thing:
Keep moving.
Ash's gaze drifted to the horizon again, but this time, it wasn't the worms that caught his attention. It was the vast emptiness ahead, stretching endlessly in every direction. They didn't know how long it would take to reach the end of Sandworm Valley—or where they were going at all.
All they knew was that the journey would continue, as it had for days. The destination was a mystery, a vague hope whispered in the wind, but they had no choice. They had to keep moving.
Behind them, the cart rumbled. Ahead, the desert offered no welcome.
The worms were still out there. Waiting and Watching.
And the road hadn't run out yet.