Adlai woke, if one could call it that. His eyes were still closed, and his brain was still slowly separating dreams from reality. It was strange existing in that state of semi-lucidity, where everything seemed real and fake all at once. Adlai found comfort in the unreality of it, so he kept his eyes closed.

Slowly, bit by bit, the flecks of unconsciousness began to fall off, and he felt himself get dragged towards reality, and all his memories started to trickle back. With it, the dull throbbing he felt in his leg slowly sharpened into a feeling of pain. That trickle grew into a flood, washing away Adlai’s contentment. Averi. Adlai gasped like he had gotten his first breath of air, only to feel a solid weight on his leg.

Shawna looked back at him, her eyes soft and a weary smile on her face.

“Averi?” Adlai rasped, his voice hoarse.

Shawna’s smile slipped slightly. “She’s doing okay.”

Adlai grunted as he tried to get to his sister. Shawna put her hand on her chest and steadily pushed him back down.

“You’re gonna get hurt if you get up. You’ve got a hole right here.” Shawna poked at the wound with the repurposed remains of his pant leg.

Adlai winced at the pain slightly. “I stayed alive.”

That rare, kind smile of hers appeared. “Guess I’ll have to specify next time.”

A warm feeling swept over Adlai again, and he felt happy. Averi flashed into his mind, and the feeling faded.

“How bad is it?”

Shawna’s face settled into her normal impassiveness. “Not horrible, but not good. She wasn’t charred, but she’s covered in blisters. All that fuckers fault.”

“Where is she?”

Shawna gestured with her head to where another bedroll was laid out. On it Averi’s pitifully small figure laid, her clothes sooty.

“The prosthetic probably got her the worst.” Shawna said.

Adlai cursed internally. The metal of the prosthetic would’ve conducted the heat, and there was a good chance that the straps that Averi used to attach the prosthetic to her leg would’ve melted onto her. His thoughts must’ve been clear on his face because Shawna put a hand on his chest again.

“No walking, dumbass.” Before Adlai could protest, Shawna flicked his forehead affectionately. “You took care of me before, it’s my turn.”

That same warm feeling rose in his chest, and for the first time in what felt like ages, Adlai finally relaxed. All the emotions, the thoughts, the memories, everything rushed out. He held back tears as he processed what had happened. So much in such a short time. It almost felt wrong to do this; to just let go for a moment.

They were safe, for now. Adlai breathed deeply, feeling lighter than usual. It was a relief not to be responsible, even if it was temporary. Shawna had walked off towards Averi, the soaked rag in her hand. Adlai looked at his scar ridden leg, his eyes tracing the lines up to the raw red stab wound.

They had been lucky on the first encounter with the needle worms, with the worms acting more on reaction than actual hunting. The result was a few grazes, and even then the venom was potent. This was the first and hopefully last time he’d be stung by a needle worm.

He sat up slightly, careful not to move his injured leg too much. Shawna was leaning over Averi, fiddling with her prosthetic. Adlai could hear Averi’s whimpers, and they broke his heart. His sister had been closest with Nire, and the researcher repaid her like this. Averi’s whimpers grew into sobs as Shawna finally extricated the prosthetic from the burnt flesh. The other girl’s reaction told him what she was going to say long before she sat down.

“How bad?” Adlai asked.

“Bad. It’s going to take a while to heal.” Shawna absentmindedly wringed the rag she was holding.

“The other signal?”

“From the radio?”

Adlai nodded.

“They could help” Adlai said, his voice hoarse.

“They could, or they could be another bunch of psychos like Nire.” Shawna sighed frustratedly.

The familiar weight of decision-making rested on him alone. Again.

“Let’s wait.” Shawna suggested.

“The Hunter?”

“It got burnt thanks to the freak, I don’t think it’s gonna be coming back here for a while.”

Adlai sighed, another bit of relief replacing the earlier weight. It would be nice to rest. For the first time, Adlai properly looked around, although there wasn’t much to see. The darkness seemed to have gotten even darker if that was possible, with Adlai barely being able to see five feet past the dim light of their lanterns.

It was quiet again, the occasional ululating call ringing through the darkness and faint glows in the dark. The smell of must and decay had gone away, replaced with the smell of wet stone. The ground was no longer solid stone, gravel was filling in the cracks. It was getting colder as well, a moist chill in the air.

Shawna sat down next to Adlai, her leg touching his shoulder. “We’re gonna make it.” Shawna said.

“Yeah.”

Shawna looked around once or twice, her face red. “I’m glad you’re alive.”

Adlai felt his cheeks flush. “Me too.”

Shawna smirked. “Try not to get yourself bitten next time, I won’t be able to save your dumbass.”

“Thanks for that. I think I had it.”

“Was that humor?”

“Maybe.”

Shawna laughed, and Adlai felt more than content. That moment was broken when Averi woke up screaming. Shawna shot up in the air, her eyes wide; Adlai had risen like a corpse. She quickly stepped towards Averi and Adlai watched as she comforted his sister. Averi’s cries faded into sobs and she tightly hugged Shawna.

A quick pang of jealousy hit his heart, but he dismissed it. He wished he could get up but knew that Shawna would probably tackle him if he tried to move. Adlai contented himself with watching Shawna slowly lay Averi back down. His stomach began to growl, and he wondered if they had brought any food with them.

After Averi’s crying turned into muffled sniffling, Shawna came back to Adlai holding some water. He thanked her and drank deeply, the water reminding him of how thirsty he’d been.

“Is she sleeping?” Adlai asked.

“I think so.” Shawna’s eyes were filled with pity as she looked towards the prone figure of Averi.

He sighed again. It was nice to be safe, but everything seemed to be catching up with them. “Do we have food?”

Shawna shook her head. “It’s all next to the pit. Food, water, flashbangs, all our shit.”

Memories of what happened filled his head and Adlai shivered, wishing the movement could shake them out of his mind. Averi’s screams were still in his head. It was his fault, wasn’t it? He should’ve left Nire, should’ve listened to Shawna. You should’ve gone to the other signal. This is all your fault. You made the decisions, and others paid for it.

Shawna grabbed his shoulder. “You okay?”

Adlai nodded.

She stared hard at his face. “Alright.”

She walked off to tend to Averi, leaving Adlai alone with his thoughts.

It hated them. It hated them so much. The Hunter hissed, a high pitched vehement sound filled with indignant rage. Its snout still burned from the fire. The infected one had ruined everything. It hadn’t been going to hurt them, it was just going to scare them. Drool dripped from the slightly opened jaws.

For the first time, they hurt it. This wasn’t much fun. This just made it angry. A deep growl came from its gut. It didn’t want to play much longer. It wanted to rip them apart, turn them into shredded meat. It wanted to tear them and make them scream until they couldn’t. It wanted to get the one that got away. It wanted to hurt that one the most.

It wanted to make that one scream.

Adlai hated sleeping. He didn’t mind the actual sleep, but he hated waiting for sleep to come to him. Shawna had suggested they rest, although threatened was a little more accurate. She was asleep now with Averi. Adlai stared at the cave ceiling, watching the little spots of light flicker and on and off. It was like watching a dim parody of the night sky. He could feel his thoughts wandering now, a pack of aimless hoppers grazing.

His thoughts kept coming back to Averi and Shawna however. When he thought of Averi, his chest tightened. Everything that had happened to her had been his fault. Every action he had taken had directly led to her getting hurt. It was an undeniable fact, and one that made him hate his position as the de facto leader even more.

When he thought of Shawna however, things changed. The Shawna who was asleep now was miles away from the Shawna he had met in the barracks. That Shawna was mean and cruel, finding joy in causing pain. This Shawna was different. She was still confusing to him, but she was kind, funny, and she cared about him. This Shawna could forgive him.

Adlai stared into the dark, wishing he could watch something more interesting than lights turning on and off. Averi’s words popped into his head again. “You blame everything on yourself”. It didn’t make much sense to him. Actions had consequences. Whoever decided on those actions was to blame. He wasn’t blaming everything on himself. He was just accepting responsibility for what he’d done.

Still, the words bounced around in his head. What exactly shouldn’t he be blaming on himself? Adlai kept thinking, his mind running like a ticking clock. A feeling of cold climbed his spine and he shivered again. It was nice having the time to think, but he wished he could sleep. He closed his eyes, but his mind was a hover-train, racing past thought after thought after thought. Eventually, that train slowed, and Adlai’s mind finally came to a halt. His eyes closed, and he fell asleep. He didn’t dream of anything which was a blissful comfort.

He woke up later, feeling rested and refreshed for the first time. Shawna was up and walking around, grabbing a lantern.

He yawned and Shawna turned and smiled.

“Morning.” She said.

Adlai mumbled a greeting.

Shawna’s eyes twinkled with mischievous intent. “You know you snore, right?”

“Huh?”

“You snore. Loud. I thought it was an alien when I heard it. Scared the shit out of me.”

“Liar.”

Shawna raised her hands in the air, an admission of innocence. “I’m gonna grab all our stuff from the pit.”

Adlai felt the familiar tightness of anxiety in his chest. “I’m coming.”

Shawna’s slight smile slipped off her face. “No you’re not. You’re just gonna get hurt worse if you come.” Before Adlai could protest, she pointed towards a waking Averi. “We need someone to watch her too.”

“Wait!” Adlai called.

Shawna turned her head, her face stoic.

Adlai’s face burned. “Stay safe.”

Shawna laughed again. “I will.”