Chapter 12: The Most Important Thing is Survival

CLACK, CLACK, CLACK.

The sound of canteens clashing against one another over and over abruptly wakes me out of my deep sleep. Rolling over on my side, I attempt to use the outside of the sleeping bag to muffle the sound.

Of course this doesn’t help. Damn, all this noise better not become a normal morning thing around here…

The flap to my tent whistles open, and I hear Ace mutter to himself behind me, "You're kidding me, right? Scar, are you really going to be this much of a problem to wake up every morning?"

I grumble back, "Look, I'm awake. Give me a few more minutes, and I'll be right out. And for the sake of my eardrums, don't make any more noise."

Ace hums to himself, saying, "I don't buy it. Prove you're getting up, or else…"

I lay there motionlessly, hoping I'll fall back asleep, "Or else what?"

Ace kneels behind me. I can feel the warmth of his breath on my arm as he tries not to laugh. He quietly clinks the canteens together again and then touches the sleeping bag.

"Or I'll throw you outside myself."

Slowly turning over, I grumble while stretching out my arms and legs. As I open my right eye, Ace comes into focus.

Ace grins as he taunts the canteens in front of my face.

He says, "So what will it be, Scar?"

Sharply exhaling through my nose, I sit up and push the canteen away.

Talking with two others, Code says, "Okay, just as we planned last night. Sky and Ember, you two will take a group, while Ace and I take one. We'll keep the groups small enough to cover ground quickly. Scar will stay behind at camp and keep things running here.”

Sky nods while Ember says, "Let's hope things go smoothly today."

Nervous, Code takes a quick breath, "Let's hope so."

Sky shifts her focus across camp and spots me walking out of my tent, with Ace following close behind.

Sky says, "Looks like Scar is finally awake. Let's gather everybody together."

Code sighs, "Right."

Ace asks, "Are you sure you're okay with staying here?"

"It's like Code said, one of the five of us should stay behind and keep things going at camp. I drew the short twig, so that’s my duty,” I reply.

"You're levelheaded, smart. I'm glad we have somebody reliable who is staying behind. But if I’m being honest, I wish you were coming with me today,” says Ace.

"Code will do the job; he has some smarts to him, too. You'll balance each other out well."

“Yeah, well…” says Ace with a hint of reluctance. “We'll see how things go."

Walking up to where everybody has gathered, we approach Code, Sky, and Ember standing together.

"Everybody here?" asks Ace.

"Yeah! We're ready to get started,” replies Sky.

Ace asks, "Do you want to tell them Code, or… do any of you want to tell them?"

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“I got it,” says Code, clapping his hands together to grab everybody’s attention. “So today, we are going back into the forest, but please hear us out, as this time, we are going out prepared."

Immediately, Hazel queries, "Didn't somebody just die yesterday? Shouldn't we stay here, where it's safe?"

Ace replies, "If we stay here, will we actually be safe? There's no guarantee. Which is why there's got to be something out there today that can give us some answers."

He wraps his right arm around Code's neck. Code looks at him in annoyance for a brief moment but then adjusts his expression for the sake of the people.

“Code and I here will be taking a group,” declares Ace, pointing toward Ember and Sky. "And these two lovely ladies will also be taking a group."

Releasing Code, Ace takes a step forward, "We are going to cover as much ground as possible and absorb as much information as we can today."

Code adds, "Food, water, shelter, fire… these are basic survival needs. Eventually, we will run out of food and firewood, and we will need to know where we can go and get those resources. Where it's safe as well as where it's not safe. Knowing where we can't go. We don't know anything right now; we are living in an environment entirely new to us, so, one way or another, we will eventually have to establish some boundaries that grant us safety before it's too late. The most important thing to all of us right now is survival."

I look out at the crowd and see mixed reactions.

Code may have run his mouth a little too much just now, so everybody is probably thinking the same thing. However, nobody can deny what he’s saying.

Sky steps forward, "I know, I understand. You're scared. And trust me, we're scared too. But if we don't fight, we won't live."

Taking a step forward to join her, I add, "Here's what we planned, and feel free to speak up in disagreement once I'm done explaining. We'll split up into three groups of five. One group will stay at camp, help tend to the fire, gather more firewood, and build various shelters. Right now, if it rains, the fire will go out, and it'll be difficult to relight it. If that happens, we won't be able to boil water or cook food, and it won't be long until we begin to grow weak."

I turn toward the path that was taken yesterday and point, "Another group will go out and explore that path into the forest. We already know there is a creek very close by that way. That group will stay by the creek and travel in the opposite direction from where the group went yesterday. If anything happens, you'll be able to get back to camp quickly and safely."

I point down a path leaving from the other side of camp, "The other group will depart from this path. They'll be treading into unknown territory, so they'll have to take it slow and be extra careful."

I fix my gaze back on everybody, "The swords that we found in the crates will be split evenly among both those groups, along with a few axes, as we won't need that many here. That's all. Ask away if you have any questions or concerns."

Faith raises her hand and speaks up, "Wait…"

She rises to her feet and begins to address the group, including us five, "We– we can't be so careless with our lives. A group of four left and went into the forests yesterday, and only three returned. I understand you're all emotional about what happened yesterday. Still, we must keep our rationality in check, even in times of stress such as right now. I know that we can survive this, that we can persevere. We'll overcome whatever is to come, but we must stay level-headed."

We lock eyes, and I can see genuine sincerity in her eyes, "So, unless you tell me right now that this choice to leave camp today isn't the result of premature thoughts after yesterday, I will stand against this decision."

Everybody looks back at me as I calmly respond, "It's not."

Ace steps forward, "We thought this through, and we believe this is our best course of action to ensure everybody's survival moving forward."

"Alright. Then I have faith in you, all of you, that this was the right choice."

Faith sits back down as I ask, "Does anybody else have anything they’d like to say?"

I hear a faint cry and look toward where I hear the sound.

Violet is on the verge of tears as she utters, "I understand why you’re doing this, but… I just can't go, I can't leave…"

"I understand, and don't feel like you're alone on that. I will be staying here at camp too, and I'm sure others feel the same way,” I say to Violet before addressing everybody again. "If any of you would like to stay here, please stand up."

Violet stands, and Hazel quickly does so as well. Cliff rises and after a few more seconds, Faith joins.

I wait a few more seconds, and nobody else stands up. Exchanging eye contact with each one, I say, "Don't feel ashamed or guilty for staying; we'll be doing our part here, too."

Ace says, "It looks like the rest of you have chosen to leave camp today. Thank you for that."

Hunter says as he bites his bottom tip, shaking his head, "That girl, Flora…"

He looks at Ace, his eyes brimming with determination, "I won't let anybody else die as she did."

Ace says, "And nobody else will."

Code’s eyes nervously glance toward Ace before he composes himself a second later. Nobody picks up on it.

"The rest of you, split yourselves up, grab some food, and fill your canteens up,” says Ace, ending the meeting as people slowly get up and disperse in various directions.

Taking a deep breath, Ace steps forward and swivels around to face us.

"You all ready?"