Though fear can be crippling it also has a side to it that triggers the will to survive. Once that appears, something else takes over – adrenaline. It was adrenaline that kept the teens going through the cold winter night. There was little time to rest as they hurried along the road on foot. The rising sun showed their supplies. One black bag, a gun each and whatever ammo was left in them. All it had taken was a single moment for their situation to go from bad to worse.

Shai was so cold that the pain in his leg had been completely taken over by numbness. However, even if he could feel it he probably wouldn't have noticed. Another thought was at the front of his mind. He had left a friend behind.

"I think...I think we're alone now," Roanna panted.

Realizing he was ahead, Shai slowed and turned. He saw the others had come to a stop. Roanna was bent over, hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. Mav stood, gazing down the road in the direction from which they had come.

"Damn it!"

Lake's voice drew Shai's attention.

The boy who had sworn was by a tree. He slammed his hand against it, not considering that the pain would be inflicted on him and not the tree.

Swinging around, Lake let go of his gun and sank to the ground. He dropped his head in his hands.

Noticing eyes one him, Shai turned to see Asumi wordlessly watching.

Mav ran a hand through his hair. "What happened back there?" he asked the question the others had kept in during their flight.

Shai refused to meet anyone's eyes. "He was pinned." Emotions bubbled beneath the surface, yet he kept it together. There was a time to mourn. It wasn't now. "He didn't want to get b..." the sentence was left incomplete.

Mav gave a curt nod. He walked over to Asumi and snatched the black bag she held. The girl didn't protest but watched as he began to rummage through it. It took but a few seconds for him to look up.

"Three flares, a grenade...some rounds of ammo."

"Well that's just great." Roanna straightened. "Looks like the camping trip just got a lot more fun, folks."

Shai's eyes returned to Lake to see the boy had picked up the gun and was turning it over in his hands. "At least we have enough bullets to put us out of our misery."

He was about to make a move but Asumi beat him to it. She reached and snatched the gun from their friend's hands. "Leave the bullets to those of us who want to live."

"Oh?" Roanna let out a snort. "Now she wants to live?"

Asumi didn't turn.

"What, it takes one death to make her an unresponsive piece of baggage and another to wake her up?" Roanna cocked her head to the side. "So what happens when the next person goes? Are you going into shut down mode again?"

Lake jumped to his feet. He was upon Roanna in a flash, grabbed her, and shoved her back. "A friend just died. Show some respect."

The two exchanged glares before Roanna calmly lifted her hands and broke Lake's grip. She took a step back. "I'm sorry if I can't show much emotion. I didn't know your friend very well. He's gone, I'm here and I and might be a bit preoccupied trying to decide how to deal with an infector next time we run into one."

Shai decided that this was perhaps a good time to share his suspicion. "I don't think we need to worry about running into it."

All eyes turned to him.

The rifle was adjusted from where it hung over his shoulder. "I think that's the same one from the city."

Silence.

Asumi nodded, confirming that she had been thinking the same thing.

"Wait..." Roanna pushed past Lake to get closer. "You're saying an infected followed us all this way?"

Ignoring the question, Shai turned to Mav. The other boy had showed little reaction to the suggestion making curiosity tug at Shai's mind. "Back there and in the city, you knew about the flares. You also said it depends on how hungry it is or how often it gets exposed?"

Mav nodded.

"The how often would the flares work?"

"What!?" Lake whirled. "You're saying even the flares won't work against that thing forever?"

"Not if it's the same one." Mav calmly slung the bag over his shoulder.

To the side, Asumi had begun to examine her revolver.

"Figure it has to do with them trying to gauge if it's dangerous," Mav continued. "Once they realize it isn't then..." He drew a finger across his neck.

Roanna's eyes narrowed. "We were taught they're nothing more than an animal with a drive to kill. Now you're crediting them with actual intelligence?"

No answer.

"Great. It bites and it thinks." Lake threw his hands in the air. "Next you're going to tell me it takes tap dancing on the side."

Humor? Shai shot him a glance. It seemed that his friend had also realized the time to mourn Fabian wasn't now.

Roanna's hands crossed over her chest. Her chin was bobbed in Mav's direction as she asked the question on Shai's mind. "Just how do you know all this?"

Watching the other boy closely, Shai waited on an answer.

Mav let out a sigh. "Let's just say I've had quite a few run-ins." He turned and nodded in the opposite direction from which they had come. "I suggest we head on before the infector comes back."

"I second that." Lake sprang forward. "Besides, those infected may catch up..."

"Doubt it." Roanna walked joined him in beginning to walk down the road. "They're slow...if the infector doesn't stay near them they'll break up and wander...once they lose our scent that is."

"If it can think won't it bring them with...the infector that is?"

"Nah." Roanna's head shook. "Too slow to keep up. It'll probably find new ones to round together...or turn some of us."

"Hey!" Mav's voice stopped them. "You guys are going the wrong direction!"

"Don't think so. The road is going this way..." Still walking Roanna pointed a finger down the road. "Unless you're wanting to head back and keep those flesh eaters company."

"That was the way," Mav agreed. "When we had a car. You keep going now and it'll take you three times as long...not to mention all the towns with infected on the way."

Lake and Roanna stopped in their tracks.

"He's right." Shai spoke up. "That's not the quickest way anymore. Not without the car."

"Marvelous." Roanna turned. "One of you boys better say you have the map on you."

"Something better." Mav tapped his forehead. "It's right here."

Shai and Asumi exchanged a glance.

"Well congratulations!" Roanna turned and headed back. "Mav just rose to the rank of most important member." She came to a standstill. "Unless one of you others memorized the way?"

Shai shrugged and Asumi didn't respond as her attention turned back to the gun in hand.

"Well then." Roanna motioned. "Lead the way."

Mav shot her a smile before he calmly turned and walked off the road, right toward the line of trees.

"Oh? Hiking." Roanna bounded after him. "I always like to have a change of scenery."

Lake stomped his feet and blew on his hands. "If I don't get bit, I'll die of cold." He was after the others.

Shai watched for a moment. Feeling a presence beside him, he turned to see Asumi standing there, Lake's gun and her own in hand. "If that thing really followed us...if it's the same one as from the city..." her eyes were on the group that was steadily drawing toward the trees.

"Then it's most likely the same one that bit..." Shai began to finish the sentence for her but trailed off.

Asumi's head turned and Shai found himself staring into a pair of eyes that were no longer clouded. Instead, they were burning bright. "I'm going to kill it."

Shai nodded. He knew better than to argue with her. He took a step forward to follow the others but Asumi's hand on his arm stopped him. He turned to shoot her a questioning look only to find her staring at retreating group's backs.

She opened her mouth as though to say something.

Shai's eyebrows rose.

The mouth closed. There was no explanation as Asumi marched forward and made her way after the group disappearing in the trees. Shai was about to take a step to follow when something made him pause. His eyes darted to the sky. Did I...? Not a cloud was in sight as the vast blue abyss stretched out above. He shook his head. Just my imagination. With that he was off after the others.

They walked with their heads down, refusing to rest for fear that if they fell asleep in the cold they wouldn't get back up. The trees provided cover from the wind for a while, but their branches also blocked the sun.

When dusk came it was Shai that shot the rabbit. Asumi made the fire. Though the flames and meat provided warmth to their bones and stomach, the teens still visibly shivered. It wasn't so much the cold as the realization that there was something hunting them.

"Why doesn't it just attack?" Lake muttered, eyes darting around the area. The flames cast eerie shadows on the trees around.

"Maybe the flares scared it?" Roanna suggested. "Might be the first time it was exposed to one."

"Second."

Heads turned to Shai.

"If it's the same as the one in the city then it's the second time." He raised his head and his eyes met with Mav's.

The other boy nodded.

Roanna poked at the flames with a smoking stick.

"Maybe it's enjoying the hunt." Asumi's chilling words cut through the momentary silence.

Shai glanced over to see she was staring into the flames. He nodded in agreement. "I wouldn't be surprised. If it's following us it could have attacked at any point. Keeping up shouldn't be too hard." He paused. "A predator that hunts for sport."

Lake shivered. "Well I won't be having nightmares," he muttered.

"Honey, you're living one." Roanna reminded him.

The response she got was a glare.

"We should get some sleep." Mav took over. "Regain some energy and take off as soon as possible. We have a long road ahead." He leaned back against a tree.

"No kidding." Roanna snapped the stick. "It was three days by car...we had what, about half way under our wheels? That should leave..."

"Three to four days depending on how quickly we can move," Asumi murmured.

Mav nodded. "Let's take hour shifts to keep watch. That gives us four hours to sleep each."

"That's five hours for the infector to pick us off," Lake complained. "We should keep going."

"Do you want to drop from exhaustion?" Mav replied.

No answer.

"I'll take first." Mav stood. "Don't worry." His eyes landed on Lake and he smirked. "I won't let it come near you."

The reply was a grumble.

Roanna scooted back, using a tree to support herself. She laid her head back and closed her eyes. Asumi simply curled up on the spot.

Shai shifted, trying to get into a more comfortable position. His rifle rested across his lap where he could easily access it. Feeling a presence near him, he looked up to see Lake had come over. His friend took a seat next to him.

Neither boy spoke for a moment but Shai could feel the question coming.

"You...you think he suffered?" Lake finally murmured.

Shai picked up a small stick and tossed it into the fire. Both boys watched the sparks erupt.

Fabian's face flashed through Shai's mind. He knew the moment in the car would come back to haunt him. Just as the time from his childhood always did. However, he would deal with the nightmares when they came, not now. "He probably went with a smile."

Lake nodded.

Another moment of silence. A snore erupted from where Roanna. Even Asumi's eyes were closed and her chest already rising softly. How the two girls were able to drift off so soon in their circumstances left Shai in wonder.

"I wouldn't be able to do it," Lake continued.

Shai turned his head to see his friend staring intently at the flames. "I've thought about ending it one my own...but I don't think I could." Lake's head tipped back and he let out a bitter laugh. "I'm such a coward."

"We all are," Shai told him.

Lake's head shook back and forth. "No. Not you...not Asumi...not those two." He nodded in Roanna's direction. "And definitely not Fabian."

Shai placed a hand on his friend's shoulder. "You stayed for us. A coward would have run."

Again Lake shook his head. "I stayed because I didn't want to live with the guilt of not knowing..." He took a breath, shoulders rising and falling. "I'm saying it now because I won't have the courage when it happens." He turned to look at Shai. "If it happens to me...if my time comes...help me out, okay? Help me like you did Fabian."

Shai slowly let his hand drop from his friend's shoulder.

"I know it's a selfish request." Lake turned back to the fire. "I can't even imagine what it must do to you..."

"Lake."

His friend ignored him. "Not all of us are going to make it."

"Lake," Shai repeated.

His friend turned and Shai became painfully aware of the fear raging in his eyes.

"Whatever happens. I have your back. I promise."

A look similar to relief flashed through Lake's eyes. "Thank you," the boy murmured. In the next moment Lake lay on his back and closed his eyes.

Shai tipped his head back to stare at the view above. Trees rose, their branches entwining to shield the ground below from the moonlight. Yet here and there was a break where a twinkling star winked through.

Feeling a pair of eyes on him, Shai looked back down. Sure enough, Mav was regarding him and Shai couldn't help but wonder for how long. Perhaps he had overheard the conversation?

Ignoring him, Shai fell back so that he was lying down next to Lake. "Just stick with me and I'll get you home, Lake." Shai addressed the boy next to him.

Lake didn't respond, yet he did shift making Shai sure he had been heard. Turning, Shai tried to ignore the cold. His eyes closed and he prayed for sleep to come.

Unbeknown to the teens, a pair of eyes watched from where a body was cloaked in the dark. A soft hiss escaped, so quiet it would be hard to detect by a human ear. The creature, however, did not make a move. It was bidding its time. It was enjoying the game with its prey.