"I'll guide the exploration team while the others wait in the helicopters. You should know that the descent could be violent, especially when there's no safe ground to land on." Jonathan had changed into mountain gear, where his equipment was not only ideal for this place but also camouflaged him.
Doug guided the search team, while Jonathan, accompanied by Wednesday and a few more soldiers, traveled in the back to better visualize the surroundings ahead of them.
They all carried top-quality equipment; after all, they were ready to face any kind of situation in which they might find themselves involved.
Jonathan had to say that the soldiers the Order deployed in operations where reinforcements were requested were all good listeners, trained, and ready for whatever was in front of them.
None of them doubted his orders, and that always surprised Jonathan, who thought it would be obvious for them to refute some of his decisions.
Maybe it was his surname and the influence his family had in the military, but Jonathan wasn't sure, as he hadn't dug deeply into the dark matters that involved him.
"Weren't these things done alone? There's normally not much personnel in other jobs I've been observing." Wednesday asked a question that bothered him.
"Low-rank operatives work alone. The levels we're facing now aren't something a handful of people can deal with." Jonathan sniffed the air, sensing something new when he entered this place.
"Monitor the substances in the air. Everyone, put on your masks."
Everyone quickly put on their masks to protect themselves from any substance present in the air. Jonathan had felt something—something had changed and he needed to find out what it was.
"We haven't discovered anything, Guardian. Do we keep the masks on?" An assistant asked, wanting to know what stance Jonathan would take.
"We keep them on. We need to move forward." This order was not to be taken lightly.
Even less so in a forest where demonic invocations might have been performed. They would be the first to come into contact with the enemies here, and to survive, they at least needed to stay alert.
Jonathan was the only one who could notice things others couldn't; his perception had improved so much that everything he sensed had to be taken very seriously or they would surely die.
His eyes saw black mists in the air, indicating evil. He perceived particles and different smells when they were near something supernatural.
"Here, I see blood…" Wednesday, who had been advancing along a higher path, immediately reported what she had found.
Jonathan approached, looked at some pine needles, and without giving any order, a group came forward to analyze the sample. "Is it from some animal?"
"There isn't much trace of blood. It shouldn't be from an animal."
"What do you think, Billy?"
Billy approached, took a knife from his belt, and lifted the green leaf that had blood on it. "It's not animal."
"Just by looking at it?"
Doug, who had been waiting for the results, lifted his gaze for everyone to remain silent. Many were eager to participate in a large-scale operation, but none of them had any idea what that truly meant.
For those who didn't know, Billy was a former special forces soldier who worked as a tracker. He was normally deployed in jungles to track enemies, and his word carried much more weight at this moment than Jonathan's.
Jonathan let his eyes move across the distant pines, hoping to find something, but no matter how much he observed, there was nothing but trees and a silent environment that seemed to warn them of the danger this forest hid.
"Have you sensed something the rest of us haven't?" Wednesday had much more confidence with Jonathan than with other people.
Jonathan extended his hand so Wednesday would lean in, pointed between the trees, and said: "Look through your scope at what's behind those leaves, beyond what most can see, and wait."
"Are those people?" Wednesday could see some shadows that weren't visible even with thermal sights.
"They're not. What even normal humans can manage to see that isn't alive is known as a forced presence. That means that no matter who's here, they will witness supernatural events, and that's something really bad." Jonathan pulled out a silver knife and stabbed it into the ground.
Wednesday learned a lot from Jonathan; she was practically improving a great deal at his side, so everything she didn't know was something she would gradually learn.
"Sir, we confirm it's human blood."
Jonathan stood up, looked around, and just as he was about to give orders, they all heard the radios emit screeching sounds before a human voice came through the intercom.
"Zz… Can anyone hear me?"
"What do we do?"
"Look around, raise defenses to level one, and wait for orders." Jonathan grabbed his radio and, after thinking for a moment, asked: "Zz… We hear you. What is your situation?"