Aye here we go. Sorry if some of this seems rushed. This chapter is well over 3,500 words, and I had a lot of fit in. However, regardless, I hope you enjoy :)

The next few days were absolute hell. Marisa, Zeke, Jayed, Hedi and Orion hadn't been heard from since they went to the cave, and the feet of the four that were off to get water were extremely sore. They did, however, manage to find some, and used carved out rocks and shells they found as ways to hold it. 

"I thought we were leaving right when Marisa said we were," Nico complained, taking a sip of water. Now that they thought about it, they should have had less people going to get water, since they had already drank a lot of it.

"We didn't even have the right supplies, Nico," Lany responded. "Trust me, I want to leave just as bad as you do."

"But what was the point of her speech if we were just going to stay here for a whole more week? 'We need to leave now! It's what Sparna would have wanted!' Who knows what she would have wanted?"

"Can you guys hurry up?" Ty groaned from behind them. "If you haven't noticed, I'm carrying a human here." Talon kept apologizing, but Ty kept shrugging it off. They adjusting her position, grinding their teeth as they did so.

Lany downed another seashell full of water. "We're all gonna die if this is all we have out in the open."

"Why is everyone so negative?" Talon asked. 

Lany raised his eyebrow. "Because it's us against the universe, the same universe that has killed most of our friends already."

Talon sighed. "Touché."

"Whatever. Less talking, more walking. My feet are killing me," said Ty. 

Suddenly, Nico yelped. Ty quickly turned to him, Nico trying to act like nothing happened. However, Ty saw the log that he had just "passed over." 

"Real smooth," they joked.

"Shut up," Nico snapped in response. He was extra careful not to "pass over" any more logs after that.

***

"It might have been a shitty trip to get here, but I must say, it was worth it." Zeke felt the smooth bark on his hands, gripping it tightly. Marisa had led the group back to the cave she had visited a while ago, and they had found a bunch of weapons and supplies. Zeke was particularly fond of the spear that had a hand-shaped rock at the end as a point.

"I'm glad that you think that," Marisa said, voice shaking. Sure, she knew that coming back would invoke some negative feelings, but she didn't expect for be as frightening and unsettled as she did at that moment. Jayed walked up beside her, grabbing her hand.

"You'll be okay, Marisa," he said, trying his best to comfort her. "You have us. Nothing is going to happen."

"I had Sparna and Liam with me, yet they're both dead." Marisa jumped as the words left her mouth. "Oh my God." She turned to Jayed and started shaking his shoulders. "I'm the only one left! I'm going to die!"

What do you mean? Orion signed. At that point, most people understood some basic signs from him, so Zeke didn't need to translate as much.

"William! Liam! Sparna! They're all dead!"

Yeah, but why does that mean you're going to die?

"Because we were the ones that left that one time! That one time! We were the 'strongest' of the group! I'm the last one, so I'm going to die!" She started pacing back and forth, twitching and sometimes randomly screaming. Zeke tried to calm her down, but nothing really worked.

"You're not going to die just because they did, Marisa," Hedi reassured, although he wasn't sure what to believe. To be fair, they were on an island where monsters were lurking around. Logic didn't exactly exist anymore.

Zeke, Hedi and Orion went over to Marisa and tried to explain that what she was saying didn't mean anything. Jayed's attention, however, wasn't on her. It was instead directed at the book that was shoved behind all of the weapons.

What the... he thought. He leaned forward, reaching for it, pushing aside a dirty hair ribbon that was on top of it as he did so. As soon as he touched the cover, he flinched. It was almost impossible to get a good grip of it because of how much dust was on top of it, but once he did, he flipped to the first page.

The font was almost impossible to read at first, but once Jayed read a few lines, it became a little easier. It was definitely a woman's handwriting, since the curves in the "o" could have only been made by the delicate hands of a female. However, what really caught his eyes were the dates. They were oddly spaced apart, some not even real dates.

September 30th, 67

Finally, I have arrived.

December 20th, 67

It's going well. Few bugs but will be worked out soon

January 8th, 68

Really wish I had brought more supplies with me. Luckily, the ocean sent me something even better.

July 15th, 68

Everything is blurry. Cant think straight. Haven't eaten, slept, or drank in three days. Might die

February 1st, 69

Didn't die

June 31st, 69

Almost died

April 47th, 71

This was a mistake

November 55th, 71

She tells me I've gone insane. I think it's more insane that an impossibly beautiful woman like her washed onto the shore of a deserted island destined to murder us all.

March 11th, 73

They killed her. Fire wasn't quick enough.

The entries ended there. There was so much to process, but only one thing really stuck with Jayed. The last entry.

"Fire," Jayed breathed. "It's fire."

***

Claws. Fangs. Bodies capable of running faster than the human eye could process.

But most of all, ears.

Ears that could pick up on even the slightest of humming bird humming. 

They had been lucky before, lucky that the things had been too preoccupied with the traps they had fallen into...

But luck can't get you out of every situation.

Especially when that situation involves a pack of failed experiments running towards the place you once thought of as safe.

***

Zeke's eyes went wide. "We've got to tell the others!"

Marisa furrowed her brows. "Will we be able to find them? They might not even be-"

"Yes, we will find them, because we are in danger and we need to tell them how they can fucking survive before we all die!" Hedi snapped. He grabbed her hand, rushing out of the cave as fast as his legs could take him. The other three followed, grabbing a few supplies and dodging the boulders and rocks on the ground. 

Once they got out of the cave, Zeke pulled Marisa from Hedi's grasp. "I just need to do something real quick."

"Zeke! We got to go!" Marisa argued, but before she could finish her thought, Zeke planted a kiss on her lips. Shocked, Marisa took a second to realize what he had done, then leaning in and kissing him back. 

When they released, Zeke smiled weakly, trying to hide his pain. "A kiss for good luck."

***

Naya couldn't stop staring at Dylan's body. It was so hypnotic. In a gruesome, grotesque-style way. And it was absolutely horrifying.

Eira had tried to comfort Naya, but nothing really helped. Sure, Dylan was a jerk, but he was the closest thing Naya had to a friend. And he certainly didn't deserve to die. 

After an hour of sadness, Eira grabbed a few acorns, threading them through a loose piece of string that she broke off from her shirt. She tied it together, nudging Naya.

"What?" she asked defensively. When Eira showed her her creation, her face softened. "Oh. Um, thank you." Naya slipped the bracelet on, tilting her wrist so that she could get a good look at it. "It's... cute." Eira realized that she was probably being sarcastic, but that didn't bother her. Deep down, Naya liked it, even if she wouldn't admit it.

"I'll, um... I'm gonna go now."

Eira bit her lip sadly. Poor Naya. At first she didn't even think she had emotions, but it was clear that she might have even more than the average person, just doesn't choose to show it.

That's when she noticed the shadow pass over the trees, and it definitely wasn't just because the sun was setting.

Eira's mouth dropped open. It didn't look like the monster that killed Arabella, nor the monster she, Jayed, Hedi and Dylan saw in the trees. It was moving slow, but ten times more horrific to look at.

"Naya!" she screamed, but it came out more as a whisper. A hoarse, weak whisper. What was she expecting after so long without using her voice? 

She waved her arms frantically, trying to get the girl's attention. However, she didn't even see her. Or maybe she did, but just didn't care. "Naya! Beside you!"

Finally, she turned around, and Eira noticed that she was on the verge of tears. "What is it now?"

"The-"

It all happened faster than either of them could process. Naya's limp hands fell to the ground, no longer clutching the makeshift knife. Eira didn't have a chance to breathe her last breathe before she collapsed, head slamming the hard soil she had been standing on. And the only sound left in that area was the panting of the hellish beast, rushing away from the scene with a broken acorn bracelet in its teeth.

***

It wasn't too long before the groups bumped into each other, both of them running at full speed. It was crazy how fast you could run with the threats of monsters catching you in the front of your mind.

"Fire!" Marisa shouted at Lany, Talon, Ty and Nico. "It's the only thing that can stop them!"

"How do we get fire?" Lany asked, catching his breath.

"Find the thickest piece of tree you can, and light it on fire. Naya taught Nico and Ty how to make it, I presume." Marisa's heart dropped in realization. "Where is Naya?"

Ty bit their lip. They were... crying. Not sobbing, but there were definitely tears in their eyes. "Naya and Eira were attacked by a monster, I'm guessing, and I'm not sure how Dylan-" Lany stopped himself. He didn't need to finish. They were on a time crunch, anyways.

"We've only got nine left..." Nico said, his voice breaking. "I can't lose any more of you."

Orion wrapped an arm around Nico. Don't worry about that, buddy. As long as we have fire, we're good.

"Do you have the boat?" asked Zeke.

"Yeah, we brought it to the shore," Talon explained, her eyes watering, too. She was never going to unsee what her group saw. "We were just getting you."

"So go!" Hedi urged. "Ty. Nico. Light torches. And Orion, Talon will carry yours."

Why?

"Because you're gonna carry her. You're one of the strongest, after all."

It was complete and utter chaos. Nico and Ty desperately tried to get their sticks to light while also trying to avoid setting the grass on fire, and the rest gathered more sticks for torches. They had just finished their last torch when the growls of a hundred monsters filled their ears.

"Go!"

It wasn't their intention to split up, but that's what ended up happening. Everyone was so distracted by the beasts coming at them that they didn't look at anyone else. 

Nico and Ty, however, stayed together, since they knew they couldn't fight them individually. They were simply too small. They stayed back to back, taking turns waving the flames in the creatures' faces, burning their paranormal skin right off. 

However, they were forced apart when a monster came right between them.

Nico tried to hide his fear, but his hands were shaking too much to hold the torch straight, but Ty lifted their fire up, about to slice its head with it.

"Kill that motherfucker, Ty!" Nothing happened. He peaked over the side of the monster's body, and saw the monster stabbing its claw right through Ty Anderson's stomach.

"NO!"  Nico quickly turned to the monster and jabbed it in the side with his torch. The creature shrieked in pain, disintegrating instantly.

Nico turned to his friend, his breaths broken up and shocked. They were falling now, the shock from the injury stained on their face. Nico sprinted over to catch them, resting their head on his knee.

"Ty... no... no..." Nico muttered in disbelief. Ty grabbed his hand, and when it touched his skin, he realized just how cold and weak their hand was, along with bloody. Ty pursed their lips, forcing their eyes closed in pain.

Nico squeezed their hand, choking on his gasps and sobs. "Ty, please, please," He begged.

A few tears flowed down their face, and they screamed out in pain. Nico put his other hand on top of Ty's, letting his tears drip onto Ty.

"Nico," Ty started, their words breathy and weak. It was obvious that they really had to work to get them out. Their eyes were filled with tears that streamed down their face and neck, even when they were closed. "I'm...sorry."

They paused.

"Ty?"

That's when the world went quiet. 

No roaring. No screaming. No sobbing. Nico's eyes darted around, refusing to stay still. His chest moved in an unpredictable fashion, trying to fathom what just happened. He said their name. He felt it roll off of his tongue, this time sending a different feeling than it previously had.

Then came the tears. Instead of hearing himself screaming the name over and over again, he heard the utter silence that was consuming him in that moment. He felt the skin that was once full of life, full of love, and only felt despair. He touched the smooth hair that used to give him chills whenever he touched it, but not in the same way it did now. And he stared at their lips, the lips that would never part and take in a breath again. 

Even when Marisa came to drag him off, he continued fighting and screaming screams that didn't process in his mind. His eyes became foggy, squeezing his friend out of his vision, and suddenly, his whole body became numb, void of all feeling and care. It was only his eyes that moved, pumping out droplets of liquid, and with that, all the joy he had left.

***

"Go on to the boat! We're almost there!" Marisa ordered to Lany. He nodded, running as fast as he could with his multiple injuries. Nico was still crying, but now he couldn't even move. Marisa had gone from dragging him to carrying him in her arms.

"It'll be okay," she whispered to him. Even though she didn't know him nearly as well as Sparna or Talon did, she was the only one there for him at the moment, and she had this motherly instinct to take care of him.

Jayed and Hedi were running towards the beach together. They weren't in terrible shape, not compared to Lany. Just a tiny burn on Jayed's hand and some scratches, besides what happened to Hedi earlier. They were so close. So close.

Those two were the first to reach the boat. Once they climbed in, they kissed each other in celebration.

"We did it," Jayed whispered, kissing him again.

"We sure did." Another kiss. And another. And another.

Lany was next. It was a surprise for everyone that he made it out, not because he was weak, but because of all the injuries he acquired on the way. Heck, he even started with an injury. 

But something happened that Lany didn't tell anyone.

While he was fighting, he had hit his head on a tree. He had fallen down to the ground and, it took a second, but he remembered. Not everything, but a few things. His middle name, which was Darwin, his family, and even that incident on the swim team with Karimah Leya she had mentioned.

And with that, he gathered his strength and set the monster on fire.

"I have a sister," he had muttered. Sure, she might have hated her, but it was something.

Nico and Marisa were next. Marisa sat the whimpering Nico next to Jayed, she herself sitting next to Lany.

"What happened to Nico?" Hedi asked.

"Ty," Marisa answered. Jayed put his hands to his mouth. Nico sniffed.

"They... they had a good fight," Lany said, trying to comfort the young boy. He said nothing, continuing to cry.

Then, Zeke jumped into the boat, joining Jayed, Hedi, Marisa, Nico, and Lany.  "Thank god we made it." He let out a sigh of relief. However, it was gone after a few seconds, and not just because he saw Nico's face. "Where's Orion?"

No one answered, he asked again, more serious this time. "Where is Orion?" He was right in front of him earlier, he had assumed he already made it.

"I don't know..." Marisa said, her voice shaking slightly.

Zeke's eyes widened. Before anyone could stop him, he was already out of the boat. Lany screamed for him to get back in. "Some monsters might have survived!" he yelled. But Zeke didn't listen.

"Orion! Orion, where are you?!"

He was nowhere to be seen on shore. Zeke's heartbeat speed up to a thousand per minute, his breaths faster and absolutely terrified.

Zeke continued to call Orion's name, disregarding the shouts of fear coming from the boat.

He can't be dead. He can't be dead. He can't be dead. He can't be-

A high pitched scream arose from the woods. Without thinking, Zeke ran faster than words could describe to the source. The thought keep circling his head.

He's not dead. It's not happening. This isn't happening.

The first person he saw was Talon. She barely standing up, a long, bleeding wound on her leg and her whole face and body a shaking and crying mess. What she was saying was so full of pain it was almost impossible to make out.

"Zeke! He's there! He's there!" Zeke turned to where she was pointed, and his body froze.

"No," he whispered. He was there. But it wasn't what Zeke wanted to see.

Orion was lying on the ground, cuts on every inch of his body. He was bleeding in multiple places, especially his arm. His usually ginger hair had turned a dark shade of reddish brown by dirt and blood. His eyes were closed, his chest still.

"Orion!" he screamed, crying at the same time. He sprinted to him and collapsed, his legs failing to work anymore as he fell on top of his friend's body. He mumbled things as he sobbed, scrunching Orion's shirt in his hand.

"You were such a good friend, Orion," he choked out. "You had so much life ahead of you! So much you could do! You didn't deserve this!" He didn't even wash off the blood that was getting on his face.

Then, when he let out his biggest sobs, he sat up, looking at his friend's pale face while holding back tears. He met his closed eyes. 

"Do... do you remember when we first met?" 

He tried not to cry when he didn't answer. Talon walked up behind him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"Well, um, I remember it," he said shakily. "It was your first day back at school after your surgery... and we were in the same math class. You were really nervous, I remember that." He laughed sadly. Talon let out a whimper. "Our teacher introduced you in front of the whole class, and despite your nerves, you were still friendly and you said hello to everyone. A few kids asked why you didn't talk, and you politely explained it. That's what I liked most about you, how nice and caring you were..."

Zeke choked a little, trying to smile. But he found it too painful, so he kept telling the story in a saddening way, crying alongside it.

"A-And then you sat next to me. I said hi. You were kinda shy around me, which I thought was weird since you seemed really outgoing to the rest of the class. I guess that should have been a sign." He paused. "Anyways, I didn't really have many friends in Math, so I wanted to get to know you. We passed notes at first. It only worked for about a week, since we became closer and couldn't always write anymore. So, I surprised you by learning sign language. The pure look of shock on your face when I told you was... well, it was really cute."

He couldn't go on. He scrunched up his face to catch the tears falling down his cheeks. "Rion..." He reached out and touched his hand, just lightly enough so that he could feel it. He looked down so that nobody could see his eyes in that moment.

And then, slowly, Zeke felt the movement of the fingers he was oh so delicately holding.

Zeke's head shot up, looking first as their hands. Orion's hand was gently moving his hand so that it was gripping Zeke's, lacing their fingers. 

Eyes wide, Zeke moved his glance to Orion's face. His eyes were still closed, but seemed to be trying to open. His breathing was slow, but there. 

Zeke felt a small squeeze in his hand, followed by Orion's eyes fluttering open. He was confused at first, but then he saw Zeke's face. His face formed a warm smile. Zeke, he mouthed.

He was utterly stunned. Then, he started laughing in relief and happiness. He whispered, "Orion."