Chapter 86: The Western Path

Ember’s POV

The echoing beat of the individual's footsteps was now audibly close by. I no longer needed to close my eyes to focus on hearing them. Turning toward Sky and Faith, I tip my head toward the remaining swords and axes piled a few feet away. Their initial shared glances of confusion quickly vanish as they understand the potential severity of our situation. Swiftly crawling over to the pile, we all quietly grab a weapon, the hushed sounds of wood and steel briefly clattering against one another.

Sky and I grab an axe while Faith snags a sword. Faith and Sky then looked toward me for guidance on what to do next. I rolled my eyes, not wanting to take on any leadership responsibility. But given the circumstances, I guess I don’t really have a choice.

Putting a hand over my shoulder with a thumb pointing at one of the two paths behind me, I take the extra step to ensure the other two understand what I’m trying to say.

"West," I whisper, hoping they put together that I’m referring to the westernmost path out of camp. Sky and Faith nod, which I take as a sign of their understanding.

Thmp. Thmp. Thmp.

Gesturing with two fingers that somebody is walking before pointing at the ground and circling my finger around to represent the three of us, Sky and Faith also pick up on this message. Not a peep was made as I returned a nod, focusing my attention back on the path as I quickly repositioned herself behind one of the crates.

THMP. THMP. THMP.

With my current sightline, I could keep an eye on the path without exposing my location. Picking up on the quiet shuffle of feet next to me, I comprehend that Sky and Faith had done the same, each finding a crate to hide behind. And they did so just in the nick of time.

Out of the corner of my eye, I detect a quick, indiscernible color that vaguely whisks by behind a forestry veil of thick tree trunks, drooping branches covered with viridescent leaves, and stocky bushes. Glancing at Sky and Faith, who were flipping their attention between me and the path, I waited until they looked at me before I pointed down at the ground and mouthed, 'He's here.'

THMP. THMP. THMP.

Neither understood my message, but I didn't have time to explain. So, instead, I only pointed back toward the path and quickly nodded a few times before looking back at the path myself. I could only hope they would understand my sudden action, a slick gleam of sweat along my forehead and neck as I anxiously waited to see who it was.

THMP! THMP! THMP!

Glints of indiscernible color occasionally appeared and disappeared as I remained laser-focused on the path. Thinking back to who had taken the western course yesterday, I remembered that it was the duo of Cliff and Blue. And by the sound of these footsteps, they weren’t loud enough to be Blue’s, leaving only two possibilities.

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This is either Cliff… or Crow!

My hearing was not necessary at this point… the individual was close enough to where they could appear any second from the forest. Knowing this, I took a gamble, looking away from the path and trusting that Sky and Faith could handle that job themselves. Opening my body up to what was behind me, I stared at the seemingly endless forest, quickly skimming over everything, starting with what was closest. And after only a little searching, I saw something.

Black feathers were tucked away between two branches coated with a surplus of lime-green leaves. Narrowing my focus on that exact spot, the bird immediately took to the skies, revealing itself as a crow, before flying out of sight.

THMP! THMP! THMP!

Alarmed thoughts began to flood into my mind.

The path! It's Crow! We need to get out of here or-!

My thoughts went blank as I watched Cliff sluggishly trot into view with a stainless steel sword lying against one shoulder and a bow strapped around the other. A quiver with a plethora of arrows was peeking out over his shoulder from where his sword rested, and the bulkiness of his backpack bulged out from behind his body. His clothes were also wrinkled and filthy, stained with dirt. After taking a few lethargic steps into camp, Cliff stopped and looked around, his face wearing an expression of confusion.

"Anybody here?" he called out, preparing himself for combat as he held up the sword he had brought, circling around to ensure nobody could catch him in a blind spot.

As he did so, I made eye contact with Sky and Faith again. Cliff was only about twenty feet away from us, and if we attempted to whisper back and forth, he would undoubtedly pick up on the noise. Considering this, I resorted to a very straightforward gesture. I showed Sky and Faith a thumbs up with one hand and a thumbs down with the other, followed by a shrug.

Faith looked over her shoulder toward Sky, the furthest away from me. Sky moved the bottom of her face from side to side, her lips hidden inside her mouth as she contemplated what to do. After carefully laying the notebook on the ground, she displayed a shaky thumbs up, giving me a contemplated look as if to say, 'Why not?' Faith then matched my gaze and nodded in agreement with Sky's judgment. Mouthing an 'okay' to them and putting up a hand, I show them all five fingers.

"Can anybody hear me?" shouts Cliff with his baritone voice. After waiting a few seconds and not hearing a response, he grunted and approached the firepit.

As I tucked my thumb into my palm, the other girls recognized I was counting down.

Good, now for the next part.

Bringing my other hand to my chest as I dropped another finger, I patted and pointed to the heart of my chest as I mouthed 'only me'. I didn't expect either of them to understand what I meant straight away. Still, I remained optimistic as I transitioned into only two fingers.

"What the hell happened to everybody…?" Cliff muttered to himself as he dropped his backpack on the ground and continued looking around with a sword in hand, assuring that he couldn't be easily ambushed.

With only my index finger raised now, I gestured to Sky and Faith to stay put with my other hand. I then brought the last remaining finger to my mouth and dabbed it on my lips, signaling to be quiet. They both nodded simultaneously, and with that, I closed my eyes and quietly took a deep breath.

Opening my eyes again, I had too many questions rattling around my brain as I wiped at my sweat.

What was the crow in the trees doing? Did Crow track Cliff here? How did Cliff get those weapons? Where is his axe? Why is he alone? Where is Blue? Did Crow attack multiple groups? Was the second signal flare from his group or Forests? Did he also find any markings like Sky did?

Remaining in my hiding spot, I finally say, "Cliff, it's me… Ember. I'm here, and I have some questions for you."