One of my favorite “smaller” scenes in Three Immortals is the one where Vyoz Vyooma and his special forces team march across the desolate, twilight terrain of Prral. There’s something about the image of these elite soldiers trudging through the arid, gravity-heavy wasteland that evokes a sense of isolation and endurance. It’s not just a mission; it’s a struggle against both the environment and the unknown. And all the while, there’s a tension in the air—something isn’t quite right. It’s a scene that reveals a lot about both the characters and the world they inhabit.
“The Elite Walks”—More Than a Motto
In the Nominate’s armed forces, there’s a saying: “The elite walks.” It’s a bit of dark humor, poking fun at the fact that special forces have to do what others don’t—march, often for days on end, through the harshest terrain, while the rest ride in hover transports. For Vyoz and his commandos, walking is more than just a necessity—it’s part of the job. Their mission to infiltrate an enemy base on Prral demands complete stealth. Vehicles would draw attention; walking in doesn’t.
But the act of walking itself becomes symbolic. It represents discipline, endurance, and the weight of duty. Vyoz and his team aren’t just navigating a hostile planet; they’re also carrying the burden of the mission, step by step, through unfamiliar terrain.
The Strangeness of Prral
Prral, the planet where this mission takes place, is a world that stands apart from others. Tidally locked to its star, it has two extreme sides—one bathed in eternal daylight, a scorching wasteland, and the other in perpetual night, a frozen glacier. The only place where life can survive is in the thin twilight zone between these extremes. This twilight region is where Vyoz and his team are dropped, and it feels as alien to them as any world they’ve encountered. The gravity is much higher than they’re used to, making every step a physical challenge, even for seasoned soldiers.
It’s these little details that add layers of difficulty to the mission. It’s not just about enemy combatants—every element of the planet itself is working against them. I wanted the setting to feel as hostile as the situation, where even the ground beneath their feet is an adversary. Prral is a planet that demands respect, a place where survival is as much about outlasting the environment as it is about fighting the enemy.
The March Into Mystery
As Vyoz and his team move through the slot canyons, things are not what they seem. Their scanners, which should be reliable, give inconsistent readings. Canyons appear where they shouldn’t, leading the team to dead ends and forcing them to backtrack. This uncertainty amps up the tension. There’s a sense of being lost in an alien landscape, cut off from the usual methods of navigation.
When they pick up life signs, the situation becomes even more surreal. At first, they think they’ve stumbled upon an enemy patrol, only to realize it’s some unknown local creatures—small, scaly, and quick—disappearing into burrows. But their scanners can’t find the creatures anymore, and when they follow them, they come across something far more interesting—a hidden stone corridor, part of what seems to be an ancient structure buried beneath the planet’s surface.
This moment flips the mission on its head. What was supposed to be a simple forward base infiltration now turns into an archaeological mystery. Vyoz’s team wasn’t supposed to reach the target yet, but here it is—a structure that’s not showing up on any scanner, invisible to even their high-tech equipment. The unknown becomes the real enemy.
The Symbolism of Exploration
For Vyoz and his team, this mission isn’t just about completing an objective—it’s about confronting the unknown. They’re soldiers, trained to follow orders and adapt to hostile environments, but here, they’re stepping into something that’s beyond their training. The structure they’ve found, built of perfectly cut stone, suggests a level of sophistication they didn’t expect. It’s not just a base; it’s something older, something forgotten.
In a way, this mirrors real-world explorations. Think of ancient ruins discovered by modern archaeologists—places that reveal civilizations we didn’t know existed, forcing us to rethink our understanding of history. Vyoz and his team are stepping into the unknown, not just physically, but intellectually. They’re discovering something that challenges their assumptions about the enemy, the planet, and the mission itself.
A Small Team, A Big Task
The scene wraps up with Vyoz and his team deciding to enter the structure, despite the uncertainty. There’s no hesitation, no debate—they’re soldiers, and they have a job to do. But this is where the weight of the unknown settles in. They’re walking into a place that doesn’t show up on any scans, a place where local creatures disappear without a trace. It’s the kind of situation where, in most stories, you’d expect things to go wrong—and maybe they will.
But for now, the mission continues. The elite walks.
This scene highlights one of the core themes in Three Immortals—the clash between the known and the unknown, the tension between what we think we understand and what we’re about to discover. It’s a moment where the characters, despite their training and expertise, are as much explorers as they are soldiers. And it’s a reminder that sometimes, the most dangerous enemy isn’t the one you can see—it’s the one that’s hiding in the dark, just out of sight.
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