Tamara stood with her team at the entrance to the Rift Zone. They were all fully armored, each with a gun that would shoot a stream of concentrated darkness that would tear any creature from the Rift apart in a matter of seconds. They had a new team member named Faun who was gruff, unfriendly, and imposing-totally unlike his name suggested. He was nearly seven feet tall with broad shoulders and a constant scowl, and spoke harshly. From the start, he tried to take command of the Team, but Tamara was having none of that. Despite having to train with him for five months, tensions were still high between them and Tamara didn't trust him one bit.

 Tamara lifted her arm and signaled the Gatekeeper to open the heavy, iron door leading them into the space between the wall and the Rift. The girl nodded and pressed a button,  allowing them to enter. The Team was on a mission to retrieve some samples from the rocks just inside the edge of the Rift, for scientific study, and Tamara was feeling disappointed. She wanted a more important mission, but there was really nothing else to do besides the Night Watch which involved staying up all night to shoot any monsters that dared climb up from the Rift.

The four stepped into the barren land between the wall and the Rift, slightly nervous. So far, extreme safety precautions had ensured that nobody had fallen into the Rift, but there was always the off-chance the ground could collapse beneath their feet. They walked the three-hundred feet or so to the edge and paused for a moment to simply stare in awe at the horrible crack in the ground.

Since it had formed, it had grown to span across three states and at its starting point was half a mile across. Nobody dared build a bridge across it, so the only way to get to the other side was by going around. Horrible purplish mist constantly drifted from it and was accompanied with a smell like death and horrible moaning and screaming noises.

Tamara took a deep breath and led her Team to the edge, readying her gun. She scanned the land around for any signs of trouble, but the Rift was mostly silent and totally motionless, as always, and nothing happened. Faun stepped forwards and began taking samples from the rock silently while the other three quietly talked amongst themselves and kept watch.

"...Do you think we can trust him?" Tamara whispered so Faun couldn't hear. Jack wouldn't meet her eyes, but Lee shook his head, his helmet muffling his voice. "Something's off about him. We need to keep an eye on him and only discuss certain things when he isn't around." He murmured. "We were already punished once, and for all we know he's just another spy. I get that you want to talk about my cousin, but it's dangerous." Lee finished. 

Tamara scuffed her boot in the dirt. "They didn't need to interrogate us, though. They got everything they needed from the bug that Alexa was carrying." Without looking up from the ground, Jack took a few steps closer to them. He seemed to be struggling with what he was going to say next. "I didn't tell you this before, but when they interrogated me about it, they used force. I didn't tell them what they wanted to hear, so they hurt me. Please don't make me go through that again," He whispered, his voice strangled. Tamara could tell he wasn't telling them everything.

Tamara couldn't keep a startled gasp from escaping her mouth and Faun looked up at the three suspiciously. "What are you three plotting?" He growled. Tamara shook her head. "Nothing, I thought I saw something, but it was just my imagination." She lied. Faun held her stare for a few seconds then turned back to his work, hunched over and muttering angrily.

"Why didn't you tell us, Jack? They can't just do that to you!" She hissed, worried. Jack looked down and avoided her gaze once more. "I...I dunno," He turned and walked a few steps away, keeping watch as an excuse to avoid her question. Lee crinkled his forehead unhappily and elbowed Tamara, telling her to leave him be until they could talk again later. She nodded, still worried.

The four were silent for nearly twenty more minutes as Faun carefully chipped away at the rock and placed certain pieces in a small bag. The other three stood in a semicircle around him and did their respective jobs grimly, until a sudden rumble caught their attention. Out of nowhere, the ground began to shake and the Rift began widening. Without a second thought, Tamara ran forward and dragged Faun backwards just before the ground he had been standing on crumbled and fell into the chasm.

Tamara stumbled, trying to run towards safety, but she was dangerously close to the edge and the buckling ground was sending her stumbling every which way. She felt one last sickening lurch beneath her feet before the ground gave way and she felt herself falling into the terrible chasm. She heard herself screaming as the air whipped past her, and everything went dark as suddenly as it began.

****

From above, after the earthquake, Jack, Lee, and Faun stared in frozen horror at the place where Tamara had been just minutes before. Nothing remained to show that she had ever been there, not even a single footprint. After a number of endless minutes, Faun finally managed to find his voice. "She saved my life," He croaked. "She could have saved her own but she saved mine, when all I've done to her was be cruel." His usually emotionless expression collapsed into one of guilt. "I'm so sorry," He whispered, but the other two didn't listen. Jack removed his helmet and wiped his eyes, then grabbed a shocked Lee by the arm and began gently dragging him towards the door without a word.