Daniel pushed through the dense underbrush, each step deliberate, his mind racing with thoughts of the encounter from the day before. He had wanted to forget it, to push it from his mind and return to his solitary existence. But her voice—Lily—kept echoing in his head. Strength in numbers.

Strength had gotten him this far. Alone. He didn't need anyone else. But her face, her words, and the way she looked at him—it was like she saw right through the facade he had built, down to the fear he buried beneath it all.

The ground beneath him was littered with debris from a long-forgotten highway, twisted metal and broken concrete, fragments of the old world. Daniel’s fingers flexed around the steel pipe he carried as his primary weapon, alert for any sign of danger. He hadn't seen any patrols yet, but he knew the machines were always out there, waiting.

He reached the top of a small rise, the view ahead obscured by thick, dead trees and the perpetual gray sky. Pausing, he let his eyes adjust to the shadows, scanning the distance for movement. The group had camped further north, but Daniel had veered east, away from their likely path. He told himself he was moving in the opposite direction because he didn’t want to get involved. It was the truth, or at least part of it.

But doubt gnawed at him. He hadn’t left the area yet. There was a part of him, deep down, that didn’t want to leave.

He turned his attention to the horizon. The landscape remained as barren as it had always been, no sign of the machines, but he couldn’t shake the sense that something was wrong. The air felt heavier, the oppressive silence unnerving. Then, faintly, a sound reached his ears—a mechanical whirr, distant but growing louder.

Daniel froze, instincts flaring to life. He ducked low, pressing his body into the charred remains of a long-dead bush, eyes narrowing as he scanned the area. It took him only a moment to spot them—three machines, humanoid in shape but covered in segmented armor, their movements unnervingly fluid as they patrolled the perimeter of what must have been their territory.

They looked like scouts. No, worse—hunters.

He clenched his jaw, weighing his options. He could stay low and let them pass. Or he could engage. Three against one wasn’t ideal, even with his training, but it wasn’t impossible. He had faced worse odds before.

But before he could decide, his eyes caught something else—movement further up the hill, among the rocks. A flash of dark fabric, a figure shifting out of sight. His heart sank.

It was them. The group. Lily and the others.

He swore under his breath. The machines hadn’t noticed them yet, but it was only a matter of time. Daniel’s grip on his weapon tightened as he shifted his stance. This wasn’t his fight. He didn’t owe them anything. He could slip away unnoticed, leave them to fend for themselves. But the thought didn’t sit right with him.

Before he could convince himself otherwise, Daniel was moving, slipping from shadow to shadow, closing the distance between him and the machines. His movements were fluid, practiced, his breathing controlled. He knew what he had to do.

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As he neared the closest machine, he waited until it turned its back to him, scanning the opposite direction. With a burst of speed, he sprang forward, silent as death, and brought the sharpened edge of his steel pipe down onto the machine’s exposed neck joint. Sparks flew as the metal buckled, and the machine staggered, collapsing to the ground.

The others reacted immediately, their heads snapping toward him with precision. Daniel didn’t give them a chance to open fire. He dashed forward, keeping low, moving between cover as they adjusted their stance. His next strike landed on the leg of the second machine, knocking it off balance. The machine swung at him, but he ducked, the blow whistling past his head. With a swift upward strike, he drove the pipe into the machine’s chest, disabling it.

The third machine didn’t hesitate. Its mechanical arm extended, a barrel protruding from its wrist, and Daniel dove to the side just as a burst of gunfire shredded the ground where he had been standing.

He gritted his teeth, rolling to his feet in time to see the machine take aim again. But before it could fire, a sudden, unexpected blast rocked the machine from the side. It jerked violently, its sensors flickering as it staggered backward.

Daniel whipped around, eyes wide. Lily stood at the edge of the rocks, holding a scavenged rifle, smoke still trailing from the barrel. She had taken the shot. The machine recovered quickly, turning its attention toward her.

“Get down!” Daniel shouted, rushing forward. He leaped into the machine's line of fire, driving the pipe into its torso, twisting hard. The machine sputtered, its circuits frying, before it collapsed in a heap at his feet.

Panting, Daniel turned back to Lily. She was breathing heavily, but her eyes were calm, focused. The others had gathered behind her, watching the aftermath of the fight in stunned silence.

“You—” Daniel began, but the words caught in his throat.

“You saved us,” one of the group members, a young man, said, stepping forward cautiously. His face was pale, his voice shaky.

Daniel shook his head. “I didn’t do it for you.”

Lily stepped forward, her rifle still in hand. “Why did you then?”

Daniel didn’t have an answer. He stood there, heart pounding, his thoughts racing. He should have left. He should have stayed out of it. Yet here he was.

Lily’s gaze softened. “Thank you,” she said quietly.

He didn’t respond. The silence stretched between them, thick with unspoken words.

The group huddled together, murmuring amongst themselves, while Lily kept her eyes on Daniel. There was something in her expression he couldn’t quite place—determination, curiosity, maybe even trust.

“We should move,” Lily said, turning back to the group. “There’ll be more soon.”

The others nodded, gathering what little they had before moving to follow her. Daniel watched them for a moment longer, then turned away. He had done his part. He had saved them. That should be the end of it.

But before he could leave, a hand touched his arm. He stiffened, instinctively jerking away, but it was only Lily. She pulled back slightly, her expression softening.

“You don’t have to leave,” she said, her voice low. “We could use someone like you.”

Daniel’s stomach twisted. The last thing he needed was to get involved with them. He had made it this far alone. He didn’t need anyone else. But as he looked into Lily’s eyes, he saw something he hadn’t seen in a long time. Hope.

“I’m not staying,” he said, his voice rough. “But…I’ll make sure you get out of this area safely.”

Lily didn’t push further. She simply nodded. “That’s enough.”

The group moved out, and Daniel followed at a distance, keeping watch as they navigated the treacherous terrain. The machines would be back, and they needed to stay ahead of them.

As the hours passed and they moved deeper into the wasteland, Daniel couldn’t shake the feeling that something had changed. He had spent years avoiding people, distancing himself from the world. But now, with every step he took, that distance seemed to close just a little bit more.

He wasn’t sure if he liked it.