Silvana was fully immersed in the events of Fallen Crypt, as were all the Operators in their squad.
However, even though she was an Operator, she couldn't know everything, not only because she was a human and not a robot, but also because some of the information she didn't have access to or prioritized.
'Shit, shit, shit, what are these statues? Are they supposed to be here? I haven't studied Fallen Crypt at all, just basic information from the academy. I didn't expect Adam to get into the Yellow Threat area.' Silvana pondered nervously biting her nails.
She watched Adam carefully as he ran up to the main gate with Oskar and the others. However, of the six of them, only Adam and Oskar were running, the rest were on their shoulders...
Click.
Suddenly, someone joined her private channel where only she was.
"Agh?" Silvana's eyes went wide in confusion. She didn't remember giving anyone access to her network.
It was worth realizing that when Silvana contacted Adam about trivial matters within the Citadel, such as to discuss plans, they used the normal channel like all people.
However, during missions, the military, in cooperation with the missions department, assigned special channels for Operators, Phantoms, and their squads.
This wasn't for security reasons, because ordinary people couldn't interfere with their work in any way. These channels had a much more stable and faster connection, which meant that they were more expensive to maintain.
Moreover, other Operators not previously associated with the mission could connect to these channels if necessary, although this was quite rare.
'Hello, I wish I could say good morning, but it's already a deep and dangerous night.'
Suddenly, a calm and kind voice echoed in Silvana's ears, as if from a mother or a woman who had been through a lot but found her place in life.
Strangely enough, Silvana was familiar with this person - it was Riska, Tron's Operator, and former Phantom who had decided to become an Operator. She was truly rare and unique.
'What? Riska? What are you doing on my channel? I don't have time to talk right now!' Silvana said quickly, intending to remain polite.
After all, Riska was the Operator of the K3-Phantom. Compared to her, Silvana was a simple office worker.
'I know. I'm here to help you. You need to tell Adam about the statues around Fume Cathedral. It could be very important.' Riska said seriously.
Silvana gulped as she nodded. She wasn't used to getting help from her elders, as she usually managed on her own. But, she wasn't going to be arrogant, especially when Adam's life could depend on this information.
"Riska, were you referred to me by someone in the missions department?" Silvana asked in confusion.
'No.' Riska shook her head, 'Tron asked me to do it.'
The eyes of the statues were motionless, as well as they should be because they were statues - lifeless pieces of stone.
Right?
Adam flinched slightly when the eye of one statue moved sharply, staring at him intently.
But, as Adam blinked and stepped forward, everything returned to normal.
'Wait? Was I imagining things?' Adam internally muttered, as there was no evidence to be seen that the statues were actually alive.
Then, Adam shook his head with a slight frown.
'I can't think about that right now. All I have to do is step over the gate line and that's it.' Adam said to himself before rushing forward.
A few steps later, without any danger, Adam found himself inside the Fume Cathedral, just like Oskar.
Step. Step. Step.
At the same moment, they saw the first monsters approach the gate. Strangely enough, there were several Gray Stalkers.
Sure, Gray Stalkers were not the strongest or most dangerous monsters of the huge horde that was moving towards them, but due to their size, they were quite fast and were able to reach Fume Cathedral sooner than the others.
In fact, among the Light Yellow Threat monsters, the Gray Stalkers were one of the weakest and there was no one in this wave of monsters whose strength level was lower than theirs, that was for sure.
Oskar frowned as the ten Gray Stalkers approached the gate. Saliva was falling from the edges of their jaws, while they licked their fangs insidiously with their long tongues. They clearly wanted to devour Oskar, Adam, and the others.
The Gray Stalkers were sure that the Phantoms were now trapped and had nowhere to escape!
"Shit! What do we do? Keep running?" Oskar asked with a slight panic in his voice.
Adam wanted to answer, but suddenly he heard another person's voice - Silvana's.
'Adam! I must tell you urgently about the nature of those statues around Fume Cathedral!' Silvana exclaimed actively.
"What, right now? I don't have time for this! Monsters are running for us! Gray Stalkers have already come up to the gate!" Adam said while staring at the Gray Stalkers.
The monsters only had a few more meters to go and they would cross the line.
Whooooooooooooosh.
Before Silvana or anyone else could say anything, a huge spear blade came down on the Gray Stalkers, literally smashing them into the cold stone in front of the gate.