《Dead by Night》


 Departure

    I woke up to the sound of my alarm in the morning. It was 6:00 am and I checked my notifications on my phone for any messages from Reina or Peter.


    Reina was my best friend who had moved to Waterfront when we were 5 years old. We attended the same kindergarten school and on the first day she appeared, she was always quiet and never really spoke. She would always play by herself and spend lunchtime secluded from the rest. When I finally approached her the next day, I asked if she wanted to be my friend.


    Her face brightened up with a smile. Like she was happy someone had finally reached out to her. We ended up becoming best friends then and attended the same schools and the same classes. Our parents got to know each other more as we continued to hang out and do homework either in her place or mine.


    She really cared for me and so did I. Sometimes we would talk about moving out of Waterfront someday and into the big city. But we can only dream for now. We''re only high school juniors. Plus, I have Peter in my life now.


    I met Peter this year in school. I had a few classes with him in the previous year, but I never really took notice of him. He was always quiet, and he would always only hang out with his small group of friends. They always hung out to play card games and board games. I thought it was sweet and every time I hung out with them, they always seemed to have fun.


    He approached me after school randomly one day and told me to meet him on the basketball court. He stood in front of me and looked nervous then asked me out. It surprised me. I didn''t say or move for a second. I just stared at his nervous face, and I could tell his glasses were about to fall off from all the sweat he was beginning to accumulate.


    I didn''t know what I was really getting into back then when he confessed. But he seemed like a really nice guy, so I gave him a chance. If my parents ever found out, they would definitely kill me. So, we kept this relationship a secret since then.


    I stared into the brightness of my screen but there were no messages from either of them. I guess they were still asleep. Today our class will be going on an annual camping trip to Mt. Boulder for a week. I decided I''d wake up earlier than usual so that I would have enough time to double-check everything I packed the night before.


    This camping trip occurred every year only for juniors at Pinewood High. It was supposed to be a learning experience for survival. An important skill to have wherever you go. That''s at least what Mr. Flounders always told us. He was a survival enthusiast and my teacher. Sometimes during class, he would teach us a thing or two about surviving alone.


    If communications were obstructed and you were on your own in the middle of the woods or on an unfamiliar base, he reminded us to stay calm and to give ourselves time to think and plan ahead. He told us to figure out the situation first. Find any useful resources nearby and utilize them.


    I paid attention most of the time but sometimes I thought about when something like this will even happen. Plus, when I graduate high school, I do plan to move with Reina and Peter to the big city. Communication shouldn''t be a problem for high-tech places, and we wouldn''t be lost in the middle of nowhere since there will be a lot of buildings and people everywhere to support you. There will also be a greater chance of survival if there are that many people in a community.


    I sat up from my bed and began to tidy up my sheets. It was the fall season of October, and I could feel the cold spread out across my room. Where I live, we don''t typically get a lot of electricity. My parents can barely afford to provide just enough for our small cabin out in the woods, so we make do by wearing layers and blankets or putting up candles in every room.


    I looked over at my window and could tell that it was still dark outside and planned to head out by the time the sun began to rise. I opened my duffle bag, checked for the necessary amount of clothes I needed for a week-long trip, and then stuffed Mr. Brown inside. I took my childhood bear with me wherever I went. Somehow, he always made me feel safe.


    My parents had always talked me into giving it away to my 3-year-old baby brother, Jason because I let him borrow it for a day that one time. Now he just wouldn''t stop crying unless I gave him this bear specifically, although my parents had bought him another one.


    I don''t care if I''m 16. I can''t help but keep Mr. Brown to myself even if it''s my baby brother. Ever since then, I kept him hidden so that my parents wouldn''t find him.


    It was a bit hard to see everything with the dim lighting in my room. I looked for my backpack where I would keep the rest of my necessities ¡ª toothbrush, toothpaste, charger, my inhaler, etc.


    I heard a quiet knock on my door. My mother opened it and walked inside. She coughed and then proceeded to walk towards my bed.


    "You ready for today?" she asked as she sat on my bed arms folded to keep herself warm from the morning cold. Her voice sounded a bit weak and raspy.


    "Yeah. I was just double-checking that I packed everything I needed," I responded while digging my hands inside and looking to make sure I took what I needed with me.


    "If you ever need anything, call us, okay? Make sure you stay with your group and if anything, ever happens, let your teachers know, okay?" She looked at me with a bit of worry on her face and placed her palms on my cheeks. They were cold so I held them and blew them with the warmth from my mouth.


    "Yuri," she smiled. Then hugged me.


    My mother, Sarah, is a beautiful, caring, and kind woman. She was a cashier register and worked hard every day to earn money so that she could provide me with all the essentials I needed for school but when she met my stepdad, Ernie, and after she gave birth to my baby brother, she became a stay-at-home mom. My stepdad decided he would work instead so that my mom could stay in the cabin to take care of me and my brother.


    "Mom, I''ll be alright. I promise," I hugged her tightly then let go.


    "Did Ernie leave for work already?" I asked.


    "Yes, he left at around 5:00 am. He said he needed to¡ª," she coughed again but this time followed by multiple coughs.


    "Mom, sit down," I grabbed her arms and sat her back down on my bed. My mother has been sick for the last 3 days. We weren''t sure what exactly had caused her to fall ill. Ernie told me that it could just be the fall season breezing though. But I think it''s more than that. It was rare to see my mother this sick. She was strong and healthy. It was hard to believe she would ever look this tired and frail.


    My instincts tell me that something is polluting our waters in our small town of Waterfront. And since our cabin resides near a river, we were going to be more likely victims of this disease. Whatever it may be.


    Thankfully, I didn''t feel sick, nor did Jason have any signs of being sick at the moment. Ernie mentioned that he was feeling a bit of a headache and a slight loss of vision yesterday during dinner but that it was probably just from overstressing and overworking himself at the police station.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    "I prepared you some breakfast on the table. Don''t forget to eat before you head out, okay?" My mother walked out and headed back into the kitchen.


    "Thanks, Mom," I continued to pack the rest of the items I thought I would need for the camping trip. After about an hour the sun had finally risen. I checked my phone and it read 7:02 am which meant that I needed to start heading to school. It was typical for me to walk to school since I didn''t have anyone to take me.


    My mother had to stay home to take care of my baby brother. And Ernie had an early shift. Plus, I was more than capable of walking the 40 mins to school and I haven''t had any issues getting there alone. My mother would always remind me to stay alert and keep my guard up in case anything or anyone tried to hurt me.


    I walked out wearing my cap and carrying my backpack and my duffle bag. My mother walked me out the door and waved goodbye as I proceeded to follow the path that led me out of the woods and into the middle of town.


    I was finally out of the woods and was walking the side roads to get to town. As I proceeded to walk my heart pounded from the sudden sound of an ambulance rushing in the opposite direction of where I was heading. I stood there and watched as the vehicle disappeared in sight then proceeded to continue walking. Something serious must have happened but I didn''t dwell too much into it.


    I finally reached the street that led me to the front of my school. As I walked, I stared at the utility pole where a poster of a missing kid, Riley, had been taped. It has been up there for a couple of weeks now. His parents had been very worried so some people in our town volunteered to go on and scout the woods and everywhere they would think Riley would be. But we had no luck in finding the kid. I felt bad for Mr. and Mrs. Bennington. They never gave up and continued their search despite the discouragement they received from the police station and some folks in town. Most agreed to conclude that he was already dead.


    I disagree. I''d like to think Riley was kidnapped and taken to a lab and experimented on and turned into a flesh-eating monster. Of course, it''s only fun to imagine the stuff you watch in movies and the things you read in books come to reality.


    My phone went off and I pulled it out of my pocket. Reina was calling me, and I answered.


    "Yuri? Hello? What took you so long to answer? Are you almost here?" Reina sounded concerned.


    "Y-yeah. I''m at the front of the school. What''s up?" I responded.


    "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to make sure you didn''t oversleep today. I know you don''t really get excited to go on school field trips like I do but this will be fun! I promise! And guess what? We''re in the same group too! So don''t worry. I''ll stick with you throughout the rest of the week!" That''s right. Reina had been excited about this trip ever since last year when we were Sophomores. She thought about how this could be our chance to get to know more people from different classes and possibly make more friends along the way.


    I didn''t think too much about it. After all, getting to know more people didn''t interest me in the slightest.


    I could feel the wind beginning to grow as I walked past the sign that said Pinewood High. This school was the only high school in town. Our town is small enough that we even share this school with middle schoolers. After all, we''re only a population under 2,000. And every year I speculate it will continue to decrease. It''s in the waters, I tell you. No, it''s in the air. Yeah, I should stop delving too deep into this although it''s only for my own amusement.


    "I''ll see you soon, Reina," I reached the steps that lead to the door.


    "Okay, see ya," Reina hung up.


    I walked into the hallway full of lockers and students passing by. When I got to my locker, Peter was standing there waiting for me.


    "Peter?" I poked his forehead. He had been staring down at the floor holding a tissue that covered his nose.


    "Oh, hey Yuri," he looked up and smiled.


    "What''s wrong? Are you having a nosebleed?" I asked.


    "Oh, this. Yeah. I woke up this morning and my nose started to bleed. It cleared away before I got to school but it''s bleeding again," he brought his head up and then shook his head.


    "What are you doing?" That''s not how to treat a nosebleed. Let me take you to Mrs. Carriwood. I grabbed Peter''s hand and guided him over to the nurse''s office. I could feel his hands had been sweating. I held my hands up to his forehand with the other hand on my forehead to compare our body temperatures and he felt too warm. I don''t think he''s well.


    "It''s fine. I''m feeling okay. I think it should stop soon," Peter has insisted we don''t go. But I stayed stubborn. How could he be okay like this? We finally got to the nurse''s office, but no one was around. I checked my surroundings to see if there was anyone nearby who could tell me where Mrs. Carriwood had gone. But there was no one around.


    I dropped Peter on the only bed inside the nurse''s office so that he could lie down to stop the bleeding from falling.


    "Stay here. Let me go grab the nurse," I left the office and headed down the hallway and toward the principal''s office.


    I could hear voices talking and I saw Mrs. Carriwood arguing with the principal.


    "Mr. Wilbert, I don''t think you heard me clearly. I have been getting dozens of students in the infirmary in the last week or so. I do not have enough medical supplies to keep everyone treated. We need to request more funding in the medical department," Mrs. Carriwood was serious. It was unusual to witness her arguing with anyone. She was soft, sweet, and kind. You wouldn''t think this was actually her.


    "Mrs. Carriwood, would you please keep it down? I understand that there is a lack of medical supplies in the infirmary, however, our school has just been funded by the Forbs family through their generous donation for our county improvement plan," Mr. Wilbert stood up from his chair.


    "Please, I will schedule a meeting with the rest of the staff some other time about this plan. I am due for a meeting with the Forbs in a few minutes," he gestured his hand towards the door waiting for Mrs. Carriwood to leave the office.


    Mrs. Carriwood headed outside of the office and stood still when she saw me in confusion.


    "Yuri. What brings you here my dear?" She continued to walk back with me to the infirmary.


    "Peter''s nose is bleeding and his body temperature doesn''t seem normal. Can you please check on him?" I was concerned. I hoped Peter would be okay. It''s like everyone around me was getting sick and it was beginning to worry me.


    Peter was lying down, and he was beginning to look drowsy. I shook his hands to wake him up and he slowly opened his eyes. This nose was still bleeding but it seemed like the flow was lessening.


    "Alright, let me take it from here," Mrs. Carriwood grabbed some painkillers and some liquids for him to consume. She told Peter that he would need to stay until his body temperature went back to normal.


    I held Peter''s hand tightly and told him that he had time to rest before the field trip and that I needed to head to class for roll call. I told him to make sure he didn''t forget all his stuff because this was going to be a week-long trip.


    "You too. I''ll see you in a bit," he smiled then proceeded to lay his head back down on the pillow.


    I walked out of the nurse''s office and proceeded in the direction of the stairs that would lead me to my classroom on the second floor. As I headed in that direction, I noticed a couple was heading in the direction of the principal''s office.


    Mr. and Mrs. Forbs were on their way to meet with Mr. Wilbert. They walked past me, and I waved and smiled, but was ignored. I felt kind of awkward standing there. I wanted to think they didn''t see me but it''s hard to tell if they chose to ignore me because they had pride.


    Anyway, it was getting close to roll call time, and I began to run up the stairs when suddenly I bumped into a stern figure. I looked up to see that it was Cain Forbs. My classmate who everyone wanted to be friends with because of his parent''s reputation in a small town like Waterfront.


    Cain moved to Waterfront last year with his parents. They came from the big city but only moved here because of work-related reasons. I heard he was an only child. That''s probably why he doesn''t get along with a lot of students, even though they have approached him serval times, but he often ignores them. He was the only top student in the school. I''m sure that''s because he had a future to hold.


    "Oh, sorry!" I reacted after bumping into him.


    Cain stood there and glared at me for a second without saying anything. Then ignored my apology and proceeded to head down the stairs.


    What do I think of Cain? Well, he''s hard to approach that''s for sure. He gives off such a cold personality. He doesn''t seem to like anyone in town. Does he think he''s better than all of us because he''s rich? Maybe that''s what differentiates people like me who grew up here versus those who grew up in a big city. They often look down on us.


    I entered the classroom and saw Reina sitting on her desk double checking that she had all her stuff for the trip.


    "Yuri. Oh good, you''re here! Mr. Flounder said that he''ll be back in a few minutes, and we''ll start roll call," Reina hugged me and continued to check that she had all her tools like a flashlight and a pepper spray inside her backpack.


    "Alright, everyone please sit at your desk. I will begin roll call now," Mr. Flounder was back earlier than I had expected. It seemed like everyone was here except for Cain. But Mr. Flounder had already marked him present. I guess Cain had talked with Mr. Flounders initially and was excused because his parents were here to visit. Rich privilege, I''d say.


    After half an hour had passed it was finally time for the departure. Every junior student began to head over to the front of the school and lined up in their class''s designated school bus. There were only two Junior classes each containing about 20 students in Pinewood High, so we were only taking two buses for this field trip. Reina and I saw Peter lined up with his classmates on the other bus and waved. It seemed like Peter was doing fine now.


    Reina and I sat next to each other on the bus. She looked super excited once we sat down. I smiled at her slightly envious of that feeling. I looked to my right and noticed that Cain was sitting on the other end with Kyle, a shy timid kid.


    Once all the school buses were loaded, it was finally time to head over to Mt. Boulder which was about an hour or so from Waterfront. Why couldn''t we just do the trip here in Waterfront? It''s surrounded by trees anyways. But I guess Mt. Boulder was higher up the mountains and our school had a history of visiting Mt. Boulder every year for stuff like this.


    I looked out the window of the moving bus and could smell the trees as we cruised past them. I put on my earbuds and turned on some music to help me relax during this long trip. But didn''t realize I would fall asleep easily. Everything went dark and I could hear my music trailing away until everything around me went completely silent.


    "Yuri?" Someone was calling me, but I couldn''t figure out whose voice it was. Was I in a dream? I turned around and when I looked into the distance, I could see a tall dark figure standing still.


    My body moved on its own and walked in the direction of the figure until suddenly it started running towards my direction. I needed to gain control of my body, but something wouldn''t let me, so I stood still. My eyes were in tears as I attempted to pinch and bite myself. I bit my arms and I began to see a trail of blood running down and parts of my skin had been ripped off.


    No! Stupid body! Just move! But it was too late. The figure had already reached my body which had been standing still. It grabbed me and started to bite me. I could feel the scorching pain all over as I screamed for help, and then suddenly I heard a voice again.

 Warning Sounds

    "Yuri...Yuri wake up!" I woke up to the sound of Reina whispering in my ears telling me to wake up. I slowly opened my eyes and brought my head back up. One of my earbuds was hanging down my neck from my head falling forward. I removed my earbuds and noticed my phone was dead. But it wasn''t a surprise. It was the cheapest phone my mother could afford but I heard we would be provided with some electricity at the campsite, so I wasn''t too worried.


    "Yuri. We''re here!" Reina shook my arms to help wake me up. "Come on the day is just about to begin!" She grabbed all her small belongings and then grabbed my hands as we waited for everyone closer to the front of the bus to move out.


    The campsite was next to a lake and Reina and I stared at it until the field guide came along. When everyone had gathered all their stuff, we were taken to a small campsite stage surrounded by rows of wooden benches. As everyone was seated the field guide made a few announcements and then went over some rules and pointed in directions of where necessities were located on the campgrounds so that we could be familiar.


    "Alright, everyone. Listen up." Mr. Flounder went on stage. "We have 10 chaperones, including me, in this campsite and that means each student will be divided into a group of 4. Please come along forward and you will find your group number and your designated tent location on these papers."


    When the announcements were over, Reina and I headed in the direction of the stage like everyone else and we both saw our names on the same group. She wasn''t kidding. We were in the same group. Reina and I looked at our group''s pamphlet and saw that Cain''s and Dylan''s names were on there.


    Dylan was the typical extrovert in our class. He made friends easily and rumor had it that he dated multiple girls at once. How disgusting that would be. I typically like to steer away from rumors, but it might be true for this guy.


    "Hey hey, Yuri. Reina. What''s up." Dylan came by but I ignored him.


    "So, how''s Peter doing?" He looked at me and I could almost punch his face but I stayed calm.


    A few weeks ago, I caught Dylan fighting with Peter on the basketball court. He almost threw Peter''s glasses across the yard, but I stopped him and called the teachers on him. Peter looked so beaten up that we had to rush him to the nurse''s office to get treated. He ended up with a black eye and some bruises. I told him that we should take him to the hospital, but he insisted that we keep this on the low. He didn''t want his parents to know that he got into a fight at school or else they would scold him. I ended up going along but I wished I had come sooner and beat up Dylan myself.


    "We''re on campgrounds, Dylan. Please show a bit of respect or else you''ll regret it," I glared at him rolling my palms into a fist.


    "Hey, chill. I''m not trying to make a fuss here. Just wanted to say hi to the group," he smiled then turned in the direction of Cain who was heading this way.


    Cain looked rather bothered when he looked in my direction. Did he feel uncomfortable that I was in his group? But what did I do? I mean I only bumped into him by accident that time.


    We looked at the map together to figure out where our group tents were going to be situated on the campsite. We were group #1, and our chaperone was Mr. Flounders. The map showed that our tents were going to be located on the northwest side of the campsite, so we waited for Mr. Flounders to guide us through.


    We walked through the trails in the woods until we finally found the spot. It was near a river so that was advantageous for us as Mr. Flounders had mentioned. We began to unravel our tents and followed Mr. Flounders''s step-by-step tutorial on how to set them up. I looked over at Reina and could see that she was struggling to keep up, so I helped her slightly while I tried my best to keep up with Mr. Flounders. Dylan was also struggling to keep up. Mr. Flounders noticed that we were lagging so he paused and slowed down for us.


    Cain, on the other hand, seemed as if he was already ahead of Mr. Flounders. If I recall correctly, he did not look in the direction of Mr. Flounders one bit. Do rich people learn how to set up tents as well? I thought they just lived inside their comfy mansion all day and waited for their servants to get them whatever they wanted.


    Cain was known as a genius after all. It shouldn''t be surprising that he''s good at everything.


    "Yuri. Hey, Yuri." Reina had been calling my name.


    "S-sorry Reina," her touch caught me by surprise.


    "Are you okay? You look like you just saw a ghost or something," she chuckled.


    "Alright, everyone. It looks like we''re all set here. I''m proud of all your efforts in putting together your tents. They look amazing. You guys are even faster than the previous group of students I had last year," Mr. Flounders laughed.


    We all looked at each other''s tent, including Mr. Flounders, and proceeded to high-five. We unpacked the rest of our belongings inside our tents and then looked at the activity schedule laid out on the pamphlet for the first day.


    I asked Reina if she could tell me the time since my phone died early on. She responded that it was 11:35 am. According to the pamphlet, it was lunchtime. I should''ve bought myself a watch instead. It made me uneasy not being able to know what time it was.


    We followed Mr. Flounders back to the main campgrounds and met up with the rest of the juniors on the trip. Lunch was provided for everyone so we each grabbed a paper lunch bag from the basket that was held by one of the field guides. Everyone was heading towards the benches surrounding the stage and decided to eat there so Reina and I did the same. I looked for Peter and saw that he was already sitting down with his friends. Reina and I headed down the steps and sat with him and his crew.


    "Peter, how are you feeling?" I asked concerned about what happened early on.


    "I''m feeling a bit better now, actually. Mrs. Carriwood said I had a slight fever but after she made me drink some liquids I felt better afterwards." Peter looked at me and smiled. I could see his glasses beginning to fall off, so I pushed it back up for him.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    Peter reminds me of my baby brother, Jason. He''s clumsy and stubborn. Sometimes he''s unaware of his actions. It''s like he needed to be watched over and taken care of like a child. Like he needed to be protected. Of course, I didn''t mind that. He was kind to me and caring and that''s all I cared about.


    My attention shot in the direction of the lake when I noticed one of the field guide chaperones running in the direction of the main cabin holding their radio. They appeared to be in a panic state which made me feel a bit uneasy. I started to notice that a few more of the field guide chaperones were beginning to head towards the main cabin with their radios on. I couldn''t make of the sound that was coming out of them but looking at them that way, something wasn''t right.


    I looked at the other students and their attention steered towards the main cabin. We all fell silent wondering what was going on. I could hear some students whispering that one of the chaperons fell ill and began to act peculiar and that they had to bring them into the campsite''s infirmary immediately to get treated.


    "Alright, everyone. Please pay no attention to the field guides. They are currently working hard to make this a memorable trip so please let them handle this professionally," Mrs. Gordon stood on the stage and made a response to all the commotion that was happening in front of the main cabin.


    It still made me uneasy, and I could tell it was the same for everyone else. I looked at Reina and Peter and they both looked anxious. Tony, Bob, and Liam, Peter''s friends, all looked at each other with confusion. When some students were done eating, the field guides ordered them to stay with the rest of us in the camp stadium until this issue was resolved.


    It was suspicious. Something was definitely going on that we weren''t allowed to know about. After about half an hour, one of the field guides made an announcement on the wooden stage that they were just having a bit of an issue with their radio connections, so they needed to meet up together and have them fixed. They reminded us about our safety on this campsite and that in case communication was blocked it was important to stay together in case anything happened.


    The students were relieved after the announcement, so we all headed out of the camp stadium to meet up with our chaperons for the next activity. Before every group was allowed to start their first activity, all electronics needed to be confiscated. So, we handed our phones and anything that was considered electronic.


    Mr. Flounders was super excited to take us on a hike near the top of Mt. Boulder. This was next in Group #1''s activity for day 1. We headed back to our tent site and changed into appropriate hiking gear then set off into the wild.


    Mr. Flounders explained about a lot of different plants that grew on Mt. Boulder in the fall season. He went ahead and pointed at some birds you would also see traveling around at this time of the year. It was all really interesting but when was I ever going to use this information? I looked at Reina and she looked like she wanted to fall asleep from all the details being shot at her. Dylan looked as if he was paying attention but easily lost it from time to time. Cain didn''t even pay attention as he had been focused on some other parts of nature.


    "Alright, kids. Here we are," Mr. Flounder stood on top of a rock and pointed at the cliff a few feet from us. "Welcome to the top of Mt. Boulder," he grabbed his radio and made a quick status update informing the rest of the team below us that we made it for our first activity. We could also hear the other chaperones from other teams have made it to their first activity of the day.


    We proceeded past a few more trees until we were now near the edge of the cliff. It was breathtaking. You can see everything from here. Mr. Flounders pointed at a tiny location just east of the cliff and told us that that point right there was Waterfront. We could also see the tiny roads hiding under the sea of trees that led us to Mt. Boulder.


    I wished I had my phone so that I could take some photos of the landscape below us. Looking at the mountains and trees below gave me a sense of tranquility inside, so I closed my eyes and listened to the sound of the wind blowing through us.


    "Hey, isn''t that Waterfront?" Cain''s voice startled me. He sounded concerned and when I opened my eyes he had pointed in the direction of Waterfront. From this far distance, we could see smoke trailing upwards from the town and into the sky.


    Mr. Flounders reached for his binoculars and looked in the same direction. He stayed silent for a second then his radio went off and we could hear static sounds and some voices coming from the speaker, but the interference overcame any clear communication.


    "Alright, everyone. Follow me," Mr. Flounders had gestured for us to follow him back down the trail that guided us up to the top of Mt. Boulder. "We need to move back down a bit so we can get a better sig¡ª."


    Before Mr. Flounders could finish his words, we heard a faint explosion coming from the direction of Waterfront. Our eyes began to widen at the sight of the town as some more smoke trailed up into the clouds, turning them gray.


    Not even a second later, the warning sounds had gone off at the campsite. It was loud enough that it was beginning to hurt my ears, so I covered them while we continued to follow Mr. Flounders down the path back to the campgrounds.


    We rushed down with Mr. Flounders following from behind so that he could keep track of everyone. I could see the anxiety coming from Reina''s and Dylan''s faces. What happened back there? Did something happen in Waterfront?


    Reina tried to get close to me but ended up tripping. We all quickly stopped to help her up and she began to cry.


    "Yuri. My ankle. I think I sprained it," she panicked as I pulled her up with her arms. I could see her ankles had scraped through some branches and her skin began to bleed. Dylan and Cain looked disturbed at what just happened. Mr. Flounders rushed to get to Reina and ended up carrying her on his back.


    "Mr. Flounders. That was...that was Waterfront, right? W-was that an explosion from afar?" I asked him almost out of breath from running down the trail.


    "It sure looked to be like one. But we can''t be too sure what''s actually going on, Yuri," he responded while trying to catch his breath as he held on to Reina.


    We were almost at the campgrounds when we heard a scream coming from the direction of the small infirmary just adjacent to the main cabin. We stopped our trail when we witnessed a field guide forcefully open the door and rush out of the infirmary followed by another field guide that looked as if they had been attacked by something.


    We could see them covered in blood as they were crawling on the floor attempting to leave the infirmary. We stared in horror when suddenly their body disappeared from sight. Something had grabbed them back inside the cabin. The only thing we could see was their blood trail on the wooden porch from being pulled back in. We stood there and listened to their tormented scream.


    "Everyone stay quiet and don''t make a sound," Mr. Flounders had ordered us. I can hear the fear coming from his tone. After a quiet moment, we could see a couple more field guides running in the direction of the main cabin attempting to fix the communication from their radios.


    "Hey, maybe they can help us! We should go over now!" Dylan had stepped forward but was instantly pulled back by Mr. Flounders.


    Not a moment later, we could see what looked like two students running up to the field guides and aggressively attacking them, biting them, and eating parts of their flesh. Blood had splattered everywhere on the dirt and the two field guides looked as if they had woken up again but acted the same way the two students did. All four ran in separate directions then suddenly the warning sounds went off.


    Everyone was in shock. Even Mr. Flounders looked as if he didn''t know what to do. I walked over to where he had set Reina down and asked if she was doing okay. She had kept her eyes and ears closed this whole time to prevent herself from throwing up. It was difficult for her to handle seeing a lot of blood and the agonizing screams didn''t make it any better. I patted her shoulders, and she looked up at me with tears in her eyes. As I looked into her, I was reminded about Peter.


    "Peter! Reina, I need to find Peter!" I began to panic at the thought that Peter was still out there somewhere. What if he was running away or hiding from one of those things out there? I needed to find him and make sure that he was safe.


    "Yuri no¡ª!" I ran away before Mr. Flounders could reach me.


    Peter, please be safe somewhere. Wait for me, okay? I''m coming! Just stay put. I had hoped that Peter and his team were still located where they were having their first activity for the day. If I recall from seeing his pamphlet, it looked like they were going to fish southeast of Lake Muir which connected to the campgrounds near the main cabin.


    I pulled out the pamphlet which had a map of Camp Navier and a portion of Mt. Boulder. It was a bit difficult without a compass, but I needed to try. I followed a trial ahead of me and it eventually led me southeast of Lake Muir. I didn''t see anyone around, and I was beginning to get worried. Maybe their chaperone had already taken them to safety. I looked at the ground and could see that there were multiple shoe prints on the dirt that led in the direction of one of the bathroom cabins.


    I followed the shoe prints as quietly and as attentively as I could. When I got closer to the bathroom, I could see that in front of me was one of the field guides but only they seemed to act differently. They had their back turned to me and it looked like they were sniffing the walls of the tiny cabin. They were also making screeching sounds from their mouth.


    I took one single step forward and the sound of the puddle from the muddy ground made them instantly run in my direction. My eyes widened in fear and my body froze. Their face was covered in blood all over and I noticed that their mouth had been missing. I didn''t know what to do and my body didn''t want to move, so I instantly closed my eyes and accepted my fate. Then suddenly a rock was thrown in a different direction, bringing its attention somewhere else.


    I looked in the direction where the rock had come from, and my mind was relieved to see Peter and his team had been sitting on the roof of the bathroom cabin in fear of that thing. They looked at me with their index fingers covering their lips as a signal to remain silent.

 Broadcasting

    I stood there without making any sounds and waited until that field guide, no, that thing had disappeared in sight. I slowly and quietly moved forward hoping that it wouldn''t come back. I needed to get to Peter, and we needed to get out of here and head back to Mr. Flounders and the rest.


    I approached Peter''s team who had been anxiously sitting in silence. Their chaperone was not with them. I signaled for them to come down and follow me. I thought that we could be safer with an adult like Mr. Flounders. I couldn''t leave them behind.


    Peter was the first to stand up and he began to climb down the roof. It seemed like they were able to get on top of the bathroom cabin through one of the garbage bins nearby. Peter slowly and quietly stepped down onto one of the bins. I held out my arms for him to balance on as he finally landed on the dirt. He gestured for the rest to come down. One of them had been crying and shook their head sideways to tell us that they didn''t want to come down. The other two had followed Peter behind and were finally on the dirt ground. Peter looked relieved and quickly hugged me.


    We didn''t say anything but only made hand signals so as to stay quiet in case that thing was still around. I wanted to tell her that she was going to be okay and that we needed to hurry up and leave now before it was too late. I signaled for her to come down with a pleading hand sign. She looked at me and then looked at her surroundings. After a few seconds, she finally stood up quietly and headed down using the bin. We helped her get down and once everyone was on the ground, I gestured for everyone to follow me.


    We rushed back in the same direction that I came from so that we could find Mr. Flounders and the rest. We entered the dense forest leading northeast of the campsite, and I noticed how quiet it was. No birds, not a sound of crickets, no sound of leaves rustling on the trees, nothing. Just the sound of our own footsteps moving along the dirt path.


    On our way, I learned the names of the students in Peter''s group, two of whom were also his classmates. Tom and Henry were twins who I''d often see when I visited Peter in his classroom. They were typically loud, and I would sometimes catch them poking and joking around with each other during passing periods. Sally, on the other hand, was one of my classmates. I''ve never really talked to her or had enough time to familiarize myself with everyone''s faces during class this year since it''s only been a few months since we started. She was shy and often quiet. I didn''t see much of her outside of class periods, but that''s because she would usually hang out and eat by herself somewhere else. At least that''s what I heard from Reina and the other girls in my class.


    We tried our best to move fast but quietly to avoid getting the attention of those things. Those human creature-like things. I don''t even know what they are, and I don''t think anyone here had any clue as to what they were and why this was happening. I held Peter''s hand and noticed how sweaty they were. I looked at his face and smiled. He held my hands tighter. He must''ve been nervous and terrified. We all were.


    I turned my head back for a few seconds as I walked to make sure that everyone was doing okay. Hopefully, we''ll be out of this dense forest soon. Who knows when one of those things will come around.


    We kept moving forward until we encountered a figure up ahead. We stood quietly in fear at the sight of that thing sniffing the air like it sensed something was around. The longer I looked at its face the more I noticed that its eyes were covered by a layer of thick white cells. Maybe this was preventing it from seeing but it was still able to hear and smell. Peter''s team must''ve already speculated that before I spotted them on top of the bathroom cabin.


    We did our best to stay still and silent but after a second of standing, Sally jumped from her spot and screamed in pain when a snake bit her on the legs. Tom instantly grabbed a nearby branch and poked at it to drive it away. This was not good. I quickly ran over to Sally to cup her mouth and I could feel her tears dripping down on my hand. The venom was likely affecting her, so we needed to rush out of this and seek medical help as soon as possible. But before we were able to move, that thing had already made its way in our direction.


    "Henry behind you!" Tom shouted as he got into a ready position to swing the branch at that thing. Henry didn''t have enough time to react, so it pinned Henry on the ground. We stared in horror as it bit through Henry''s neck and half of his face. Tom kept hitting that thing with his branch, but it continued to bite Henry.


    "Leave my brother alone you fucken monster!" Tom was enraged. He stabbed the bottom half of that thing with the sharp tip of the branch, but it kept biting. Peter stood there shocked at the scene when suddenly he came back to his senses and picked up a big rock to the left of him. Without hesitating he rammed the rock onto the head of that creature. He rammed onto its head until it began to bleed out of his head, and we could see parts of his scalp were ripped open.


    This was a field guide. This thing used to be one of our field guides. I couldn''t think straight. I began to panic at the sight of its head and its now motionless body. We killed someone. Oh god, we killed someone!


    "Yuri. Look at me. It''s okay. It''s dead. It''s gone now. Henry is okay," Peter walked over and held my face as he must''ve noticed that I was panicking internally. Tom tried to move the thing''s body off of Henry. We helped him move the body aside and tended to Henry who was trying to utter some words.


    "T-Tom...my...my body feels...different. I can''t see anything," he attempted to speak.


    "Henry. Henry listen to me we''re gonna get you out of here, okay? Okay, listen to me. Peter, Yuri, let''s help him up. We can take you and Sally to a safe place, okay?" Tom was crying as he held on to Henry''s face. He couldn''t stand to see Henry in this condition. He was bleeding from his neck and cheeks. Parts of his skin were missing.


    As we moved his body to a sitting position, Henry grabbed Tom''s shirt and instantly pulled him towards his mouth, but Tom reacted quickly by shoving the other piece of the branch he was holding onto Henry''s mouth. This prevented Henry from biting anything. Peter and I held Henry''s arms down to stop him from moving around. We called Henry to knock it off, but he continued to act wild and only screeched at us. We began to notice that his eyes were the same as that dead field guide''s eyes.


    "Tom, he''s not Henry anymore!" Peter yelled at Tom. Tom cried and hesitated as he looked into Henry''s eyes.


    "Tom! Through the head! We have to kill him now!" Peter called out.


    "I¡ª. I know. It''s just¡ª," Tom continued to look at Henry.


    "Tom¡ª!" I heard Peter call again and this time Tom had grabbed the rock Peter used earlier and smashed it onto Henry''s head over and over until Henry''s body became at rest and he no longer resisted. I looked over at Tom and he wiped away his tears. I sat and stared at the ground, eyes wide open in shock, and blood splattered on my clothes and my face. I wasn''t sure why it became hard for me to move. It wasn''t right. No, this wasn''t right. They used to be like us. Why is this happening? My eyes began to tear.


    "Let''s go. We need to take Sally to the infirmary!" Peter patted my shoulder and then rushed over to Sally.


    I stood up slowly and turned to look at Sally who had been sitting on the ground in pain from the venom of the snake. She looked like she was about to faint. I removed my backpack and took out a small med kit that I had with me which was given to every student before the first activity. I was the only one with a backpack since Peter and his team didn''t have enough time to grab theirs when the creature found them near the lake. I took the bandage wrap and wrapped it around her affected leg to help with the bleeding. Peter and I pulled Sally up and we continued to make our way out of the dense forest with Tom following behind.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.


    I guided us to the same spot where I left Mr. Flounders and the rest, but they were no longer there. We can see the campsite from here but no trace of them or anyone that can help us from afar. Our option right now is to take Sally to the infirmary so that we find some painkillers for her and something to help clean out her wound. Peter, Tom, and I discussed how we should go about this. Taking all of us would put all of us at risk but having one person and leaving the rest could also be risky.


    Peter volunteered to head down to the campsite and into the infirmary to grab as many medical supplies as he could while Tom and I stayed behind to watch over Sally. I disagreed with his plan. I informed them that early on my team and I saw two field guides getting attacked by one of those things inside the infirmary. So, there was a likely chance that it was still there or by now who knows how many of them have turned into those things.


    I told them that we could maybe split into two. Tom and Sally can stay hidden inside a nearby bathroom cabin inside the campsite ahead of us, while Peter and I can grab some more medical supplies and possibly some water. We all agreed with the plan and proceeded to head down. Sally wrapped her arms around the back of Tom''s neck so that Tom could help her walk to the bathroom.


    Peter and I quietly walked to the open cabin ahead of us while looking left and right and stayed alert for any signs of those things. The closer we got to our target, I began to notice a nasty odor in the air, like decaying flesh. We continued to move forward and stopped to look again. Then we finally proceeded to reach the porch of the joined cabin. The smell got stronger, so I held my breath for a little. We noticed on our way that a few rooms had a couple of those things inside lying down motionless. Someone must have been here.


    The door of the infirmary was at the end and Peter and I sneaked ahead when suddenly we bumped into something, and we both reacted by stepping back. We looked up and saw that it was one of the field guides and she gestured for us to be quiet. It seemed like she was also heading towards the infirmary. She looked a lot younger than the rest of the other field guides.


    "Shhh...," She stopped her steps and held her hands out to gesture for us to stop proceeding as well. As we stopped, she peeked through the open door, and we could see that one of those things had been standing inside the room. She pulled out a knife from her satchel and slowly proceeded in front of that thing. She gestured for us to stay behind, and we looked at her with anxiety signaling her to come back. Before we knew it, she was already face-to-face with that thing. That creature resembled the same field guide we saw early on with Mr. Flounders.


    She held her knife with her right hand and held the creature''s head with her left for grip then silently stabbed its head with it. It fell onto the ground as she pulled the knife out of its head. Peter and I looked at each other and then proceeded to walk inside the infirmary.


    "You kids need to be more careful. These things. Whatever they are, they''ve spread across the campsite and the rest of Mt. Boulder," she began to look around the shelves and picked up some supplies, then stuffed them inside her satchel.


    "We need to get out of here quick," she rushed.


    "Wait. We came here because we have a friend who needs to be treated. She got bitten by a snake a while back. Can you help us treat her?" I asked.


    "If you''re looking for painkillers, that won''t do. It''ll only persist her bleeding. She will need to take an antivenin," she grabbed a small bottle and placed it inside her bag. She grabbed some more supplies. I did the same and began to pick up some medical supplies that I think will be useful and inserted enough to fit inside my bag.


    "Where is she? The field guide asked.


    "She''s with a friend who is watching over her inside a bathroom cabin nearby. There are four of us right now," I responded.


    When she finished, we all headed out of the infirmary and towards the bathroom nearby where Tom and Sally had been hiding. We got there and she immediately tended to Sally''s wound. Sally was sweating and she looked fatigued. We all introduced ourselves and learned that her name was Candace.


    She was a chaperone for group #10. She told us that she lost her team of four students and that she managed to get away from those things. It all happened fast for her, and she told us that her survival instincts kicked in when she was attacked. She fought about 5 of these things early on by herself and knew that the only way for your body to stop operating was if you shut down your brain. If so, then it wouldn''t be any different for these creatures. At least it was worth a try.


    She tested that theory by stabbing them with her knife. She also witnessed that people become these creatures when they come into contact. She told us that the time it took someone to turn into one varied by person. She theorized that coming in contact with blood or through body fluids of those things can turn you into one. A bite is what we''ve only speculated can turn someone into one of those things.


    Candace stood up as she finished treating and re-patching Sally''s wound. She told us that we should follow her from now on and stick together. She didn''t want to lose anyone to those things and to trust her to keep us safe.


    I ended up thinking about Reina. I missed her. I hoped she was safe with the rest. I wonder how they were doing. But then I remembered Mr. Flounders and how Candace sort of reminds me of him. They don''t seem like the type to give up. They continue to fight and are very much responsible. They know how to think things through before doing anything. I wish I could be more like them someday.


    "Alight, kids. The sun is going to set in about an hour. We need to find our way out of this campsite. It''s not safe here anymore," Candace opened the map she took out of her bag.


    "Wait, my group is still out there!" I cried.


    "Yuri. I understand how you feel about the probability of them being alive. But it''s too risky. We can''t just go out there looking for them when we don''t even know where they are! What if they''ve already turned into those monsters out there?" Candace looked at me with a serious expression.


    "But, we need to try!" I shouted. What if they were still alive? I couldn''t just leave them. Reina is my best friend and someone important to me. We needed to at least try or else I would never forgive myself in the future. I''d just blame myself forever. I know I would.


    Candace put her hands on my shoulders and softened her gaze. She told me that part of surviving means letting go sometimes. That no one will blame you for trying to save yourself.


    No. Something about it didn''t sit right with me. If it means there''s a high risk of me dying just to find people who mean something to me, to save them, then it''s worth the risk. I stepped backward and freed myself from Candace''s grip.


    "You''re wrong," I stared at Candace and then at everyone else. Slight tears were beginning to form in my eyes. But I tried my best to keep it from falling.


    I hesitated to leave. To go find them on my own like I did when I wanted to find Peter. But what if Candace was right? What if they had already turned into one of those things and it was too late to save Reina? I know Peter will be safe as long he stays here with Candace and the rest. I had to at least check group #1''s tent location. There''s a probability that they could have proceeded to stay there.


    I wanted to make a run for it but before my body moved, the sound of static interference was coming from the direction of the peak of Mt. Boulder.


    "Hello? Is this thing evening working? Hello? Can anybody hear me, over? This is Mr. Flounders with group #1...Hello? If anybody can hear me, something is going on in Camp Navier...Hello¡ª."


    The signal was cut off. It was Mr. Flounders! He was using the radio tower to broadcast. That''s right. He did point out that there was a radio tower ahead of us when we reached the cliff near the top of Mt. Boulder. This meant that they were still alive! I felt relieved.


    "I repeat. This is Group #1. We are at the top of Mt. Boulder inside a radio tower. Is there anybody out there, over?" Mr. Flounders persisted.


    "Yuri. I know what you''re thinking. But please, let''s go together as a group," Candace permitted.


    I was glad she was willing to go with me. This was it. We headed out of the campsite and proceeded to take the north trail to get to the top of Mt. Boulder. I guided them with Candace rushing at the back of us so that she could keep watch from behind. We rushed up as quietly and as quickly as we could hoping that we would never encounter any more of those things.


    We ended up making it at the top of Mt. Boulder and Candace told us that we were close to the radio tower. The sun was also beginning to set so we rushed as fast as we could while keeping it a suitable pace for Sally to walk as she held on to Candace and Tom.


    We could see the lights coming from inside the cabin where the radio tower was structured just up ahead. It was almost dark, and the lack of daylight was beginning to make it difficult to see. I took the flashlight from my backpack and turned it on to light the way. Candace did the same and handed her flashlight to Peter. We were almost there until we heard footsteps running in our direction. It was coming in fast. We looked to the left and realized that it was one of those creatures. However, something was different. It knew where we were from such a far distance. Maybe we were wrong? Were they able to see this whole time? No, but earlier it was different. The other ones seemed blind and slow.


    We panicked and rushed as fast as we could until a loud gunshot came from the window of the cabin below the radio tower. It was Mr. Flounders! He signaled for us to hurry, and I saw Reina and Dylan at the wooden door keeping it open for us. We got to the door, and everyone made it inside before I did. I noticed that my backpack had been opened so I quickly looked back to see if I dropped anything important. My heart began to race when I saw Mr. Brown on the ground behind us. I noticed that another one of those creatures was making their way over to us at the same speed as the one we saw earlier.


    No, I couldn''t leave it behind. I know it''s selfish of me, but. I ran back without thinking. I could hear them yelling for me to hurry up and that there was another one behind me. I tried to stay calm and picked up Mr. Brown. I wanted to run after I finally stuffed him inside my backpack, but instead, my body froze. The figure ahead of me was getting closer and closer and I just couldn''t move.


    I closed my eyes again until I heard another gunshot coming from the direction of the cabin. My eyes opened instantly and the creature in front of me had been shot in the head. Blood splattered on me and the sound of the gunshot was still ringing in my ears as I stood still.


    "What are you doing, you idiot!" Cain ran up and quickly grabbed my wrist. I noticed he had a gun in his hand as we ran back to the cabin below the radio tower and made it inside.

 Mt. Boulder

    "What were you thinking, Yuri!" Mr. Flounders shouted as he grabbed onto my shoulders. He looked at me with frustration. I stood there silently and could hear my heart beating loudly from the sprint. Reina grabbed me onto a hug from behind. I could imagine her worried face.


    "Nothing is more important than your life out there! Those things are dangerous, and you should already know that! Girl, you were lucky Cain got to you on time," Mr. Flounders continued.


    I didn''t know how to answer him, so I apologized. I could feel myself trembling from the lingering fear of events a minute ago. Mr. Flounders eventually sighed and softened his gaze. He looked at everyone and apologized for shouting at me. Peter quietly asked me why I ran back, and I told him that it was something important but not for him to worry about. I couldn''t tell him that it was because of Mr. Brown. He would probably think it was childish of me. I was glad he didn''t dig deep into the details.


    Mr. Flounders was relieved we all made it inside safely. Who knows when more of them will come again. But it was likely soon. Candace and Mr. Flounders were adamant that more of those things were on their way because of his earlier broadcast and from the sound of gunshots. The Sun had also set so it was dark outside, and it was hard to see.


    "How did you guys get in here?" Candace immediately asked.


    "Busted through the door. Can''t you tell?" Mr. Flounders responded as he and Cain pushed a couch followed by a dresser behind the door to barricade it.


    "I see you''ve been acquainted with the firearm storage underneath this radio tower," Candace stared at the wooden trap door that was half concealed with a rug. Mr. Flounders explained that they were lucky to have seen it already opened when they made it inside. Candace didn''t pay attention to the details as much so she went down the ladder and turned on the lights. We could see from above that it was a pretty tight square space. There were many different types of guns and combat weapons displayed on all walls.


    Candace informed us that the storage below the radio tower was built for hunting animals back in the day. Only a few park rangers were allowed inside and only they were allowed to use them. She had an older brother named Garry who used to be a park ranger in charge of watching over the radio tower. He would sometimes sneak her inside to show her how the broadcasting station worked. Eventually, he showed her the underground firearm storage which explained why she knew about it. She pestered her bother about learning how to use one and when he finally gave in, he taught her how to use them only when no one was looking. Garry later quit the job and moved over to the big city where he later started a family. Candace couldn''t get access anymore so when she heard Mr. Flounders''s broadcast early on, she was shocked someone made it inside the radio tower.


    I looked over at Mr. Flounders who was holding on to a shotgun and Cain who held a pistol. Dylan clinging to his metal baseball bat and Reina''s hands were empty. Knowing her, she wouldn''t hurt a fly, so it only made sense she refused to carry anything even if it was to protect herself.


    "Mr. Flounders had the right idea. If we want to survive, we need to learn to protect ourselves. It''ll only get worse out there from now on. Fortunately, there are plenty of weapons for all of us," Candace unlocked a few of the weapons and passed them along. She went ahead and explained the basics of handling one. I can sense the discomfort from the others. Their eyes almost in fear of holding one. It was certainly unsettling.


    I stared at the gun that was handed to me by Candace. It was similar to the pistol that Cain was holding. It felt big and heavy on my small hands. I thought about the time when Ernie took me to go hunting with him far back of our house. He had spotted a deer that was standing still on its own. Ernie handed me his hunting rifle so that I could have the chance at it. We instantly set ourselves into a hunting position with me following his movements. I aimed the rifle at the deer but in the end, I couldn''t bring myself to do it. Ernie took the rifle from my hands and told me that it was okay. He never hesitated. He was calm, quiet, and focused and the next thing I remember, the living creature that was once breathing lay motionless on the dirty path ahead of us.


    It was disturbing to think that what I was holding in front of me could kill someone. But if I wanted to survive out there, I needed to learn how to handle it. What if my family was in trouble and these creatures had already reached Waterfront? I needed to protect them. But how could I make it out of this to protect them if I couldn''t save myself?


    I looked at Reina who resisted holding the gun handed to her then looked over at Peter. He stared deeply into the shotgun then grew curious of its features. I could see him trying to fiddle with the trigger and I grew nervous at the thought of him accidentally shooting it, so I told him to be careful. He didn''t listen and before I could hold my hand out to him, he immediately aimed the gun at Dylan.


    "Fuck you, Dylan! Go to hell you fucken bastard!" Peter yelled from across the cabin. Everyone grew silent and didn''t move from the unanticipated event. Dylan looked frightened and immediately stood cautiously with his metal bat in front of him as if it could deflect a close-range weapon.


    "Peter. Let''s calmly put the gun down, okay?" Mr. Flounders held his palms out gesturing for Peter to put the gun down and trying his best to lower the tension in the room.


    "How does it feel to be scared now, huh? You beat me up and treated me like shit. Do you know how much I''m suffering because of you?!" I could see Peter trembling as he kept Dylan at gunpoint. I knew how Peter felt about Dylan and I knew they never got along. I''m sure if I were Peter, I would probably have done the same, but this wasn''t right. Was he holding this pain inside of him the whole time? Why didn''t he tell me he was suffering this much? This could explain why he felt somewhat quiet and distant the last couple of weeks. Peter, please don''t do this. Without thinking I rushed in front of Peter holding the gun so that the tip was pointed at my chest.


    "Peter! Don''t do this! Please put it down. Please stop-."


    "Yuri, stay back." Peter''s eyes grew cold, and he was starting to feel like he wasn''t the Peter I thought I knew. Mr. Flounders attempted to calm the situation down again, however, Peter persisted, and I tried my best to stop him. When it seemed like Peter wasn''t going to give in, Candace immediately pinned and locked Peter on the floor while taking the shotgun out of his hands.


    "This isn''t the time for this. Letting your emotions get to you won''t help anybody here!" Candace became impatient and her temper grew from the sight of Peter and Dylan. She went on about how it''s important to let go of the past and worry about the current situation now. That we all had a goal and that was to survive together. Those creatures still exist out there and our minds should be focused on saving ourselves so that we can get out of Mt. Boulder.


    This was a war between those creatures and us. That''s at least how Candace saw it. And if we wanted to stay alive, we had to work together as a team.


    "Hello-." We heard some interference coming out of the radio. "This is Waterfront p-lice dep-ment. Is there an-one out -ere, over?" A voice came from the radio of the broadcasting station. Mr. Flounders took the call immediately. "Hello, this is Mt. Boulder. Did you say Waterfront police department?" He spoke through the radio. My eyes widened after hearing that it was the police department. Ernie''s team might be looking for us. Maybe they''re okay.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.


    "Hell-. This is R-chard. Yes, th-s correct. Who am I s-king to?" The man asked.


    "You are speaking with Mr. Flounders. Please send a rescue team as soon as possible! Listen, there''s something going on in Mt. Boulder. These things, these creatures, whatever they are. They''re out there!" He responded desperately but with a sign of relief.


    We don''t know exactly what happened over at Waterfront when we witnessed the trail of smoke coming out of the town when we were up the top of Mt. Boulder, but it looks like the police department was still operating.


    "Sor-, can you rep-t that, over?" The man seemed to have lost connection through the call. It seemed like there was an interference between every word and we could hear more static sounds in the background.


    "I repeat, this is Mt. Boulder. People are dying here, do you copy!?" But after Mr. Flounders responded, there was a moment of silence. No voice had come out of the radio for a while. He let go of the mic and cursed. I looked at Reina who tightened her grip on my arms. Mr. Flounders looked hopeless.


    "We can''t rely on the police department to come and rescue us. We have to get out of Mt. Boulder. Who knows when more of them will come. This radio tower will only keep us safe for a short time. Plus, our bodies will eventually dehydrate from the lack of water," Candace let go of Peter as he had finally calmed down and sat on the floor. I leaned down to comfort him, but he let go of my hand and turned the other way.


    "We should move in the morning. It''s quite an early assumption but based on my confrontations with a few, every one of them seemed to have no vision during the day. Without the capability to see, they seem to move slower," Candace added. "But with the two just now..." She paused and thought for a moment.


    "The two just now moved a lot quicker and their vision seemed to amplify in the dark. In other words, their vision lacked any obstruction," Cain continued Candace''s thought.


    "Just what I speculate!" Candace''s head shot up. She put her bag down and rummaged through it until she pulled out a notebook. She began to write on it and after a few seconds, she closed it and put it away. She told us that she had been writing down any thoughts and speculations she had about these things. That it started early on when she was attending to a patient in the infirmary.


    Based on her descriptions, the patient was a student named Adam Lock who was brought over to the infirmary by one other student from his team. That patient had early signs of vision loss and fatigue. He was having difficulty breathing and his nose started to bleed. When they were finally settled in the infirmary, they began to act peculiarly.


    Their pupils were slowly forming additional cells that turned white and had completely gone blind. Candace didn''t have time to write everything down as she needed to head back to her team for the first activity.


    I walked over to Sally to check up on her while Candace continued her thoughts. Mr. Flounders had pitched in his theory of these creatures based on their encounters with them when I separated from the team at that time. Sally seemed alright. She was sitting on the floor trying to catch her breath. She looked weak and dehydrated so I pulled out my water bottle from my backpack and handed it over to her. She thanked me and then handed it back. I could feel it almost half empty. Candace was right, we won''t survive here if we stay any longer. We''ll eventually run out of water. Lake Muir was located in the center of the campsite below the peak of Mt. Boulder. I asked Candace if we could go back to the campsite for water, but Candace thought it was too dangerous to go back and marked it as a danger zone.


    I stared into the window of the cabin near the broadcasting station. Darkness really overtook the outside scenery, and it reminded me of the moment I stood out there immobilized in fear of them. Was Candace and Cain''s theory true? Could they really see in the dark? But how? And their speed was a lot faster. Like they were on a different level from those we''ve encountered during the day.


    I don''t know what got into me, but I ended up walking closer to the window and placed my palms right on the glass. I stared into the darkness and for a moment I thought I had imagined someone was out there. The moment I removed my palms from the glass window, my heart raced. Right where I had placed my palms a second ago, a hand was visible on the other side. Blood dripping on its fingertips. I backed away quickly terrified of what I was seeing. The moment I backed away everyone could see it. Reina screamed in horror and Candace and Mr. Flounders shouted for all of us to back away from the windows.


    There was someone standing outside, only it wasn''t someone, it appeared to be one of those things. What was actually more disturbing was that they were smiling through the window. It slowly tilted its head sideways with eyes wide open piercing directly at me.


    "Everyone stay quiet and keep your guard up." Mr. Flounders instructed as he held on to his shotgun standing with caution. The creature moved away from the window and disappeared from sight. A second later we all jumped in place from a loud bang on the door of the cabin. Candace, Mr. Flounders, and Cain instantly brought their weapons in front of them and aimed them in the direction of the sound.


    "Huh?" I quickly looked over at Reina who was standing right next to me. I could have sworn she lightly whispered into my ears just now, but her eyes had been fixated on the door, so I brushed it off. Then suddenly, an indistinct flash of events overcame my mind, and I could feel the stabbing pain expanding across multiple locations in my brain. After I opened my eyes and let go of my head, my focus reverted to the door. It must have been from dehydration and anxiety that it led me to start hearing and seeing things. That creature banged on the door again followed by the sound of it screeching in the air.


    After a minute, everything went silent. As if the creature had disappeared. We all waited for any more sounds coming from the door or any more of them showing up on the window but after a while everything was quiet as if it was safe to say they were gone.


    "Yuri, are you okay?" Reina looked at me. She pointed out that I was sweating on the forehead and that up close my breathing sounded irregular. It started to become hard for me to breathe, so I pulled out my inhaler and quickly let the medicine through while I inhaled my breath and then slowly exhaled.


    Mr. Flounders took notice and immediately asked if I was okay. I responded with a yes when suddenly a loud thud was heard on the roof of the cabin. Everyone panicked and looked up. It sounded like they were trying to break open the roof and we heard a loud screech coming from the top.


    Our attention immediately turned to the window where a few more of them had been banging on the glass. We were surrounded. We stayed alert as best we could. Candace handed Peter back his shotgun and everyone was holding on to a weapon in front of them.


    "Alright everyone, we don''t have any other choice," Candace announced.


    "Agreed." Mr. Flounders and Candace strategized that we should open up the window and shoot them from that opening. That way it prevented them from breaking the glass, but it was too late. The glass window broke open and the two of the four had quickly jumped inside. Candace instantly shot one in the head while Mr. Flounders shot another one. Both fell to the ground immediately. Their aim was incredible.


    The other two made their way inside as well and Peter had shot one but missed the head, so it ran right towards him and grabbed his rifle off his hands. Dylan tried to hit it with his metal baseball bat, but the creature wasn''t affected. Candace kicked the rifle off the creature and did not hesitate to shoot it in the head instantly. I was shaking and I wanted to aim right at them, but I couldn''t. I looked over at Reina who had thrown up on the floor from all the mess of blood and flesh in the room.


    Tom and Cain stood in front of Sally who was standing at the corner of the room. Both had their attention on the roof and as the creature made an opening, it jumped down and attempted to bite Tom, but Cain had shot it directly into its brain.


    I could see its brain shattered into pieces. I still couldn''t get used to seeing so much blood coming out of them. Again, I stood there in panic. I was useless. Then I saw one heading towards Reina and I screamed for her to move but she couldn''t hear me clearly, so I pushed her to the side and the creature landed on me.


    "Yuri!" Peter and Reina shouted. Mr. Flounders aimed at the creature heading towards me, but he didn''t have time to reload as it all happened fast. So fast that I thought it had already been over for me. But when I opened my eyes, I didn''t feel any pain. Instead, the creature on top of me had gone quiet, loosening its painful grip on my shoulders. I realized that the gun I was holding had gone off before I knew it and it fortunately aimed right at the creature''s brain.


    I sat there on the floor shaking, my hands and forehead sweaty, as Candace and Mr. Flounders checked for any bite marks on me but didn''t see any. They asked if I was in pain, and I responded with a negative. They both helped me up to my feet and we all looked at the aftermath. The strong smell of decaying flesh was all over the air as we stared into the motionless bodies of those creatures.


    The rest of the night under the radio tower was quiet as we took turns keeping watch so that some of us could fall asleep. When the sunrise had finally set, we headed out of the radio tower and stayed alert for any more signs of them. Candace knew a shorter way out of Mt. Boulder, which was the opposite way of the campsite, so we followed her direction. We planned to leave Mt. Boulder and follow the road that would lead us back to Waterfront. Our families were there, and we wanted to get back to them as soon as we could, hoping they were still alive. Who knows how many more of them had escaped out of Mt. Boulder, so we kept our guard at all times.


    "Alright everyone, we''ll be going downhill from here so watch your steps," Candace informed us in the lowest voice she could in case there were any of those things nearby. We followed Candace as Mr. Flounders stayed right behind the group to keep watch.


    I looked back at the radio tower that was high and further up behind us. It wasn''t clear to me why, but last night when I heard those voices, a vision of a lily flower appeared in my mind. If the voices weren''t Reina''s then...was I really just hallucinating?


    -------------------------


    Chapter Epilogue


    "Hell-. This i- Richard from Wa-front police dep-ment! If anyone can hear me! Do not return to Waterfront! I repeat! Do not return to-.


    Ah-!"

 The Cabin

    We finally reached the bottom of Mt. Boulder. Luckily, we only encountered a few of them along the rocky path down. As Candace had theorized, these creatures couldn''t see us during the day, although their hearing was good, it was easier to kill them. The more we killed, the more I grew accustomed to the sight of blood. But I could never get used to the rotting smell.


    Candace ushered us to stay on the same path as we skewed away from the roads and into the woods. It would take longer if we followed the windy road, so we took the shortcut deep into the wilderness. I glanced over at Peter. He was focused on what was ahead. I wanted to check up on him and ask if he was doing fine, but somehow, I didn''t have the courage to walk up to him. I realized that his pace had also increased since we reached the bottom of Mt. Boulder.


    Maybe he was sulking over the event last night when he lost control and aimed his shotgun at Dylan. Peter had never shown that side of him before, at least not in front of me. He never ranted in front of me, and he never really wanted to talk to me about his personal feelings whenever I wanted him to.


    "Hey, you okay?" Reina''s hand reached for mine and looked at me. Her brows were raised in a worried state. I told her that it was nothing and that I was just getting tired from all the walking. It was going to take us a long time until we reached Waterfront. Mr. Flounders and Candace had informed us that it would take a little more than a day to get there on foot. Besides the two, the rest of us were unfamiliar with the southern part of the county since there weren''t many things out here. Only park rangers who run Mt. Boulder and field guides like the ones who volunteer at Camp Navier would often run errands, so they were familiar with the road.


    We walked for what felt like hours until the majority of the group began to slow down. Candace turned back to look at us and agreed that we should take a break so that we could catch our breaths and regain some energy to keep going. I walked over to where Peter was standing alone a few feet away from the group. I offered him my water bottle since he had lost his back at the campsite. He took it and thanked me. I could tell he was finally calm.


    "Yuri. I''m sorry...about earlier. I didn''t mean to let my frustrations out. I never told you, but Dylan and I used to be close friends. And ever since¡ª." Peter paused and hesitated. I could tell he was nervous about what he wanted to tell me. "He changed ever since his father passed away from saving me one day when our families went camping together. Dylan and I were playing near the river. I couldn''t remember much but suddenly I found myself drowning in the rapid water. His father jumped after me and saved me but when I woke up, Mr. Pike had already passed. Dylan blamed his father''s death on me and ever since then, he''s always reminded me that it should have been me." Peter looked down on the ground with a sorrowful expression.


    "But¡ª. But even then, he shouldn''t be doing this to you. Tormenting you when it wasn''t even your fault. You were just a kid and his father just wanted to help! It doesn''t give him the right to treat you like this!" I cried.


    "Yeah...but I still have to live with this guilt. Maybe the river should have taken me then so I wouldn''t have to feel this burden." Peter turned to face me and apologized for letting me hear him out.


    "Don''t say things like that. And don''t apologize for telling me. I''m glad that you''re opening up." I smiled at Peter, and he slightly smiled back. We headed back to the group, and it looked like they were getting ready to move again.


    "We need to head out and find somewhere safe to stay before it gets dark." Candace looked at her watch. We didn''t have our phones with us since they had been confiscated early on at the campsite. I guess it wasn''t just students but the chaperones too. It also seems like Mr. Flounders and Candace lost their radios during the events at the site, so we had no form of distant communication.


    It was way past noon and we reached a nearby river. Candace informed us that this was an extension of Lake Muir but that this river was going to be heading west from here and not towards Waterfront. There won''t be any rivers ahead once we pass this one until we reach the town.


    Mr. Flounders suggested that we refill our water bottles from this river, so we did. Cain and Dylan had refilled their empty bottles since they offered theirs to Tom and Sally during the break. I helped Reina refill hers and then we moved further to the other end to wash the blood away from our arms and faces.


    I looked over at Reina who stood on the other end of the river. I told her to stay close and to be careful in case she slipped.


    "Yuri, look! There''s huckleberries right here!" She stood right next to a branch of huckleberries that grew near the river. "My parents and I used to grow these when I was a kid. We had hundreds of these back at my old home." She started picking out a few of them and placing them inside the pockets of her backpack.


    "Reina, be careful and get back here now!" I tried my best to be as quiet as possible so that I wasn''t shouting. But Reina continued to pick out some more. She started going on about how these were her parent''s favorite berries because of how sweet they were.


    The sound of the water wasn''t helping so I decided to walk through the shallow waters to get to her on the other side. But before I took the step forward, I stood frozen in place and my eyes widened in fear.


    "Reina, don''t move." Reina finally turned her head to face me as she finished picking out some huckleberries. She looked confused at my expression and then she heard the footsteps of something behind her. It was one of those creatures, only, it didn''t look like a student or one of the field guides we had only seen. It was a man wearing a red plaid top and jeans covered in blood. Its eyes were white, and its jaw appeared to have been dislocated.


    I pulled out the pistol that I stored in the pocket of my backpack and aimed it right at the creature''s head. Reina attempted to move away as quietly as she could but panicked and slipped on the side of the river. The creature heard her scream and began making its way in her direction. I was shaking and it was hard for me to aim at their movement. I fired the pistol but missed its head. I shot multiple times but continued to miss.


    The creature was getting close to Reina who had been sitting on the muddy ground from slipping. No, please don''t get close. I continuously panicked. Then the sound of another gun had gone off and, in an instant, most of the creature''s head went missing.


    "You outta be careful in these woods. Those monsters will come huntin'' for ya." An old man stood on the other side of the river holding a shotgun. Candace and the others came rushing to where Reina and I were located after hearing the gunshots.


    "Yuri! Reina! What the hell!" Candace grew furious. She had been looking for me and Reina this whole time and stopped her tracks when she noticed the old man on the other end of the river. She yelled for us to come over, so I quickly ran up to Reina and helped her up. But before we could get back, we heard some rustling from a distance, and we could see some more of them running in our direction.


    "This way!" The old man gestured for us to follow him. Mr. Flounders ran up to where Reina and I were standing, and he carried her in front of him. We ended up following the old man as we continued to shoot at the horde behind us. I turned around and realized that there were no more signs of them chasing us. He eventually led us to a cabin nearby and we all made it inside.


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    We all stood inside panting from all the running. I bent down on my knees as I tried to catch my breath. I looked over at Reina who had been holding her ankles. It seems like she sprained it again, but it looked worse this time.


    "I thought I myself clear when I told everyone to stay as a group. Why did you two run off somewhere else!?" Candace shouted at me and Reina.


    "You don''t have to shout you know!" I responded while gripping the zipper of my jacket. The guilt dwelling within me. She didn''t have to be this angry. But I understood her concern for us. I know it was risky, but still, I couldn''t stand her growing furious at Reina. We just wanted to feel a sense of freedom from the crowd.


    "Do you know how risky that was? What would''ve happened if this old man hadn''t been there to save your asses?!" Candace continued.


    "I had it there okay! I-I almost had it..." I trailed off and then stared at the pistol I was holding. I didn''t have it. I couldn''t handle the situation. I panicked. I didn''t realize we had gone that far. Candace was right. If the old man hadn''t been there for us, Reina could''ve been dead. I glanced over at Reina and then at Candace and apologized to her.


    Candace eventually walked up to me and sighed. She apologized for shouting and blamed herself for losing sight of us early on. She told us that she was glad we were okay but to never leave her sight again next time. Reina and I promised and then she asked the old man if he had any ice packs.


    The old man introduced himself and told us that his name was Wilbert and that he lived with his wife Mary who had fallen sick the last couple of days. She was upstairs in their bed resting and he asked if we could keep it down. This was their house and he told us that he had been fighting off these creatures since yesterday when he noticed one had chased him and tried to bite him, but he shot them in the forehead before they could get the chance.


    We looked out the window and could tell that it was almost getting dark again. Those creatures out there will eventually act differently, and it''ll be harder to survive the night.


    Mr. Flounders attended to Reina''s ankle and applied the ice pack that Wilbert had provided. We eventually applied an ointment to help reduce the soreness and I helped him wrap the bandage around Reina''s ankle. Candace grew curious about Wilbert''s wife and wanted to know her case, so Wilbert led her upstairs to take a look. Tom had followed them upstairs as well.


    Everyone else was exhausted but grew cautious as the night was approaching. I looked over at Sally who was sitting on the couch. She looked a bit better than before, but she was still struggling to properly walk on the leg that was bitten. I gave her the ice pack that we used for Reina to help ease the pain a little.


    "Mr. Flounders, do you think we''ll see our families again?" I asked after the thought of the smoke coming out of Waterfront replayed back in my mind. Somehow, I had this bad feeling that those creatures had already reached the town. And those voices continued to cloud my mind.


    "We can''t start thinking like that. At a time like this, it''s important to imagine they''re safe out there waiting for us." Mr. Flounders paused and then chuckled. "You know what keeps me going? Imagining the smiles on my wife and my little girl. They give me the strength I need to keep going. Sometimes, thinking positively will get you where you need to be." He sat down and placed his shotgun on the floor. "Don''t lose hope, Yuri. Your family is safe. I promise." Mr. Flounders smiled as he turned to face me.


    "Yeah," I responded while thinking about Jason, my mother, and Ernie. I know that they were probably anxious about my return. I imagined them standing at the front door of the cabin, anticipating my figure showing up on the pathway. Jason would be crying and begging for me to hold him. He never really wants to admit but he''s taken a liking to me more than my mom or Ernie. My mother would be smiling with relief that I hadn''t forgotten the way back and Ernie would just be glad that I survived and made it alive. I wanted to relax as I sat next to Sally on the couch but when it felt like I could finally close my eyes to rest, we heard a sudden gunshot upstairs followed by an agonizing scream.


    The sound brought everyone on their toes, and I could hear the stir of panic and confusion in the room. Everyone stayed silent and stood in place. Our eyes instantly shot in the direction of the stairs where we could hear the sound of footsteps running down. Candace and Tom appeared; fear had struck their faces as they kept looking back at what was behind them.


    "Candace! Tom! What''s going on?" Mr. Flounders screamed as both had finally made it down to the first floor.


    "That old woman is¡ª." Tom tried to catch his breath as his eyes stayed fixated on the stairs.


    "She''s turned into¡ªand her head is¡ª." Candace panted and began to aim her shotgun in the direction of the stairs.


    "What about Wilbert? What happened to that old man?!" Mr. Flounders looked in the direction of the stairs searching for the old man to have followed them down.


    "She...ate his entire body." I could hear the fear coming out of Tom''s words as he tried to explain. His face looked traumatized from what he saw.


    "What?!" Mr. Flounders was shocked then suddenly, we could hear what sounded like really heavy footsteps upstairs. It walked in several directions as if it were trying to find its way down but didn''t know how. I could hear my heart begin to pound the closer the footsteps walked towards by direction from above. The sound grew louder the closer it got to where I was standing right below it. Then everything went silent as if it halted its movements. I tilted my head up and looked at the ceiling right above me. I stood still, my body trembling in place, anticipating for something to happen.


    I slowly tilted my head back to face Candace who was digging for something in her backpack. She pulled out what appeared to be a grenade. She must''ve packed some from the firearm storage when we were under the radio tower. She caught my eye and gestured for me to move away. She then gestured for everyone to stand over by the doorway, so we quickly followed suit.


    "Hey, you understand that that can blow up the tire cabin don''t you?" Mr. Flounders reacted after seeing Candace hold on to the grenade in one hand.


    "Just what did you guys see up there?!" Mr. Flounders aimed his shotgun at the ceiling.


    "That won''t work. It''s...it''s not like one we''ve encountered before!" Candace screamed sounding nervous, and everyone grew even more confused and frightened by her words. What did she mean? What exactly is that thing upstairs and why was Candace so terrified by it? She''s never looked this anxious before whenever we''ve fought against them. The sound of the footsteps moved again, and it began to make its way toward the stairs.


    "Everyone get down!" Candace shouted and I immediately covered my ears as I dropped down like everyone else. I could see Candace throwing the grenade in the direction of the stairs far enough so that it made its way up to the second floor.


    Mr. Flounders rushed over to where Sally and Reina had been standing and covered their ears. Everyone fell to the wooden floor, our bodies lying flat as our ears began to ring from the sound of the explosion. After a moment everything went silent. No one moved or made any sounds, and we could no longer hear the heavy footsteps on the second floor.


    I looked in the direction of the stairs, anticipating any signs of the creature but there was nothing. Was it dead? Did the grenade work? Candace and Mr. Flounders stood up from their spot and looked at the stairs. Then everyone diverted their gaze in the same direction.


    "Did it work?" Dylan stood up and looked around. He grabbed his metal baseball from the floor and decided to walk towards the stairs.


    "Stop. We can''t be sure." Candace held her arm out and stopped Dylan from going further. Then a moment later, the sound of heavy footsteps continued and began to make its way down the stairs. I could see the terror in Candace and Dylan''s expressions as they immediately backed away from the steps. The creature was making its way down quickly and I could hear the gunshots firing. As it finally made its way down to a level we could see, fear struck our faces as we were now looking at what appeared to be a nearly headless creature. It was moving without a brain and its body size was triple that of a human. Blood was dripping down its mouth and leaking onto the wooden stairs. As it moved, it left trails of sticky fluid on the floor. Nothing was stopping its advances. What was this thing?


    I noticed Cain in front of me shuffling around. He grabbed his backpack and began digging for something. After a second, he immediately pulled out a lighter and ran into the kitchen. What was he up to? We backed away from the creature as it made its way to the first floor. Peter, Tom, and I all aimed our weapons and shot at the moving thing, but nothing seemed to weaken it.


    The creature stood still for a second until it targeted Candace who was panicking as she reloaded her gun but before she could react, she slipped and fell on the sticky fluid. It grabbed her by the arms, attempting to bite her. Mr. Flounders tried to shoot its mouth, but it didn''t seem to affect the creature. Dylan ran up to it and shoved his metal baseball bat in between its teeth to prevent it from biting Candace, and she was able to loosen herself from its grip.


    "Hey, over here you bastard." Cain suddenly appeared and was holding what looked to be a glass bottle of alcohol with a damp rug sticking out of the hole in the bottle. He held his lighter next to the rag and began to light it up. The creature immediately diverted its focus on Cain and ran in his direction. Cain reacted by throwing the bottle right at the moving figure and as it landed on the creature, flames emitted out of the bottle surrounding its entire body. We could hear the screeching sounds coming out of its mouth as its movements rapidly decreased and fell to the ground drowning in its own fluid.


    It eventually stood in place, and we could no longer hear its screeching sounds. We stared into the burning flames as they began to diminish. After a moment, the creature turned black. Its body lay motionless on the floor. Luckily the fire didn''t spread far enough as we tried our best to contain it.


    "What the hell." Mr. Flounders panted as he took notice of the sticky fluid that surrounded the creature.


    I rushed over to where Candace had been sitting down. Her right arm was badly injured, and I could see blood dripping down her sleeve. She ripped out a piece of the fabric from the shoulder part of her top and held the other end with her teeth. I quickly pulled the alcohol out of her backpack and directly poured some on the affected skin. I noticed how deep the markings were and the more I looked at it, the more I felt like fainting seeing so much blood flowing out. But I tried my best to stay composed.


    She began tightening the fabric around her arm and afterwards, the look on her expression appeared as if she wasn''t in pain. Candace seemed so strong. If I were in her shoes, I don''t think I''d be as calm as she is at this very moment.


    "Guys..." Tom''s voice trembled as if he was nervous about something he had seen. I noticed he was staring out the window and when my head traced the same direction, we could see them. The same creepy smiles as the one we saw back at the radio tower. Their palms painted in sweat and blood and their eyes were as clear as a human''s. This time there were multiple figures, their heads tilted, and their eyes locked on us from outside.


    This was bad.