by Tom Harem
"How much longer? I asked Vic, "Maybe we should have come at night.
"Not a little, but not much either. And, believe me, during the day it's better. Most people avoid the hottest hours. Especially in the desert."
"I have yet to see how we are going to get out of here and get to the ship," I told them. It wasn't that I didn't believe we were going to make it, but I was starting to get saturated.
"Nothing in life is easy. Now silence," Emma commanded.
Neither Vic nor I were willing to ignore her orders. Not only because we were afraid of her but also because we knew she was right. Silence was important there. We walked for an hour, two hours, maybe even longer. It was impossible to know the time on that end of the world and the clocks and communicators did not even work. From the way Vic looked everywhere every time the mountain broke into different sections, it seemed she had no idea where we were. And yet Emma said nothing. We followed her wherever she decided to go.
"We're being followed," Emma said, "don't look. I only saw part of his shadow. Maybe the men from before were not alone or this boy is with another group," she said.
"Boy?" Vic asked, as quietly as possible.
"Yes, he doesn't look very tall. He must be about 20 years old. He's thin."
"He must be an observer. They usually wander around, spying the area, looking for victims. They're fast and they're usually imperceptible,"
"I know. I was once one of them. Not here, of course," Emma added, "He could have called for help, but he didn't. Most likely he's checking where we're going. Maybe they're waiting for us on our way out. Kane save the few bullets you have. They might be needed," she told me.
"Don't worry. I wasn't thinking of using them," I said to her, "but do we keep walking anyway?"
"Yes, act as if nothing had happened. Let's not draw attention," Emma said, "so far this is going well for us,"
"Well?" I asked her.
"We are still alive, aren't we?', she answered me and, truth be told, I could not deny it, 'now silence. The sun will soon be out. We have to take advantage of it in order to escape as soon as the night sets".
"Yeah, we're closer now. We'll make it," Vic said and smiled, seconds before an arrow struck one of her toes.
She screamed loudly enough to ward off some crows that had hung over the naked grey bushes. Emma readily covered her mouth and whispered to her to control herself before any more groups approached.
Suddenly, another arrow landed on the ground in front of her. Whoever it was had failed on purpose this time. We looked up. A girl with a brown cloak and short hair of the same color had another arrow pointed at us.
There was no one else around. The silence descended on the mountains. The girl was standing in front of the sun and the rays of light spread to the remaining cracks.
"Who are you and what do you want? Emma asked her.
The girl did not answer. She stayed in the same place, still with an arrow pointed at us, some strands of hair sticking to her forehead, sweat acting as glue.
"I'm talking to you!" Emma screamed, with her right hand already on the knife.
"Put your hand down," the girl in the bow said, "I won't ask twice,"
Emma obeyed. No matter how rebellious and courageous she was, she also knew when to stop. Her desire to die, or her lack of fear of dying, seemed to have faded since she had joined us. Although only a few days had passed, she seemed more at ease. Maybe it was just an impression, but something told me that she was happy to have a group by her side. I didn't think she ever had people willing to help her. Obviously, the rest of the crew didn't like her yet, but in time I wouldn't be surprised if they did. And I know that Emma knew it too.
I was still wondering when a man showed up. He had black hair up to his shoulders and green eyes like emeralds. Besides, he was probably 5'2" and about 80 pounds. He alone could cover the whole rift around him, making it impossible for us to get to one of the two exits we had. We could turn back but most likely one of us would die on the way. The man had an axe in his hand, covered in dried blood at the edge. He smiled at us. Yellow and rotten teeth, some missing at the bottom of the front.
"Where do you think you're going? He asked. A strong, razor-sharp voice.
"We don't want any trouble. We are leaving," Vic told him.
"Are you leaving? I don't think so. You have youthful bodies. I can sell you as slaves."
"Slaves? I asked him.
"Of course. We are not as wild as people think we are. Deep down, we live in a society. A little out of control, yes, but it exists. There are large groups who are looking for slaves or even people who they can eat," he said.
"But everyone here is a cannibal?" Emma asked, raising her voice.
The man laughed. He spat on the floor next to him and stepped forward, "You shouldn't speak so loudly. Jenna, confirm that there is no one around. If there is, kill them," he ordered the girl with the bow, while looking at her "Everyone makes sacrifices to survive here. There is no other way to do it. But you were lucky. You don't look too hurt. I don't think you've found any big groups along the way. Unfortunately, for you, this is where your journey ends," he said and took three barbed wires out of his pocket, grabbing them by one of the ends.
"Are you going to tie our hands with that?" Emma asked him. She was looking upwards to confirm that the girl had already returned.
"It will only hurt in the first few hours. Then you will become desensitized to them," the man said, walking towards us.
We had never dealt with anyone so big, let alone someone who seemed calm despite where we were. I'm sure he'd been there for years.
The girl with the bow returned before Emma could act. We had no way out of there. Emma looked at me, glancing down at the gun I had concealed. Damn it. I didn't even remember. I could use it. One shot at the girl with the bow and everything would be fine. The problem wasn't shooting, the biggest problem was hitting her at that distance, especially with her body shrouded by one of the suns. I could never do it. But... but I had to try. It was better to try and die there than to end up as a slave or eaten by savages. I placed my hand next to my leg, the cold of the metal freezing my fingers for a few seconds. I couldn't hesitate. I was about to do it when Vic spoke.
"Jenna, that is your name, right?" She asked the girl.
"Yes." She answered.
"Don't answer them! I told you not to talk unless I tell you," the man said, looking at her.
"What if we give you a chance to get away from here? With us? Don't you want to leave this planet?" Vic asked the girl. She didn't reply.
"What are you doing?" Emma asked her.
"What do you think I am doing? Trying to find a solution,” Vic answered Emma before continuing, “If you want to come with us, you just have to hit him with an arrow. We'll take care of the rest." She said to the girl who now seemed to be thinking about it. She diverted her attention between us and the man, and her arm was shaking.
The man laughed, "Do you think the little kid's going to betray me? She knows what happens if she does. She belongs to me and only to me.
"You have a chance here to become your own person. Are you going to take it or waste it and remain at the mercy of someone who doesn't care about you?" Vic said, insisting on it. She already had on knee on the floor. The pain was spreading but she acted like it didn’t hurt that much. She definitely was not the princesses I had heard other people talking about.
"It's not working," Emma told her and nodded, looking at me. It was time for me to shine. I was going to save them.
"Wait, look at her," Vic screamed and pointed at Jenna.
The girl had changed targets. She was now pointing her bow at the man, her hand shaking and the bow wire trembling as well.
"What do you think you're doing?" He asked her, with his fist clenched, "Don't you dare to shoot at me. I will punish you for your boldness." He said, for the first time losing his composure. Now that he had lost his trump card, he wasn't so calm anymore.
"Shoot him! Vic shouted.
And yet, Jenna didn't do it. Her arm was still shaking. She was lost, not knowing what to do. I had already been in that situation several times. I stepped forward. I looked at her and asked her if she really wanted to leave.
"Yes,' was her only answer.
"What are you waiting for then? Come on, let's get out of here," Emma said, removing the knife she had hidden under her clothes, fastened to her belt.
"Give her time" Vic said, "It's not an easy choice. I didn't decide to run away overnight either," Vic said.
"But we don't have time," Emma said and looked at the girl again, "we promise to get you out of here if you help us," she added.
The man's eyes grew and the veins in his arms emerged as luminous strings. The girl hadn't made up her mind yet and time was running out. I still had my hand beside the gun. I was willing to use it if it came to the point where it was needed. I couldn't hesitate. This was one of those moments like the one that had happened in the ship. A second of hesitation and someone could get out of there hurt or even worse.
"You have to decide now," Vic said to Jenna.
"Jenna, my dear, I saved your life, and this is how you are repaying me? Can you do it? Can you do it while you look me in the eyes?" The man asked her, "I'll treat you better. Forget what I said before. I can get better. Everything will be..." The man was saying when an arrow landed between his eyes.
He fell to the ground. Dust rose up around his body. A pool of blood settled under his forehead and the red liquid flowed under his right arm.
"Yes!” Vic said, and raised her hands, "I knew you would make the right choice, Jenna. I can call you that, right? Come down fast. We have to get out of here. There must already be groups on the way here," she said, with one knee on the floor. I helped her getting up by placing my arm around her thighs.
"I'm... I'm coming." Jenna answered, "I have to go around to get out of here. 2 minutes. Wait for me..." She asked. Without the man on her side, she looked like a different person. She was afraid that we would have used her and now we would leave her there. It was easy to see why. In a place like that there may be few people who can be trusted.
"Don't worry. You helped us, we'll repay you," I replied and smiled.
She smiled timidly back and turned her back, disappearing as she walked to the opposite side.
"Do you think your Captain Amelia will accept her?" Vic asked us.
Emma looked at me, "Of course, she's a lovely person," she replied, trying not to laugh.
"Emma! Amelia is a difficult person, but I don't think she'll object after knowing she helped us," I told Vic.
Chapter XXVI
A few minutes later, Jenna stepped in from the same opening where the man had come from. She passed one foot over his body, and only then the other. She still looked at him and, for a moment, I thought she was going to spit in his face, but she didn't do it.
"Well, time to get out of here," Emma said, "Are you sure we're on the right track?"
"Yes, it's this way, isn't it?" Vic asked Jenna.
"Yes, but it won't be easy to get out," Jenna told us, "There are always people at the entrance, waiting exactly for people like us who want to run away," she said.
"What do we do then?" I asked her.
"I'm not sure. It's the only way out. I think the only way is to kill them," she answered me.
Damn it. I wasn't really going to get out of there without killing someone. I was piling up bodies. It was definitely not what I thought I would do when I ran away from home. I wanted new adventures and adrenaline, not to almost become a killer.
"Well, that works for me," Emma said and held the knife, "one more, one less, it won't make any difference, either.
She was exactly the opposite of me. Maybe that was what attracted me most to her. The fact that she acted when I could not, that she was the real embodiment of that part of me that repeatedly reminded me, in my ear, that I had to kill in order to get out of there. Damn it. I wondered if my father had also gone through this. However, I think he edited his diary so as not to contain all his doubts and frustrations. In all the stories where death could become his new companion, he never talks about having to kill anyone. There is always a solution that falls from the skies and real life is not like that. But when I was a child, everything sounded beautiful and even poetic.
We continued our journey; more detours, long brown corridors, crows dancing across the air, some standing there watching us.
"Aren't crows a sign of death? Vic asked.
"Yes, but it won't be ours," Emma replied and winked at her.
"I hope not. Vic replied, "It would be very anticlimactic. Jenna, don't you feel much better now that you're free?" Vic asked, smiling, carrying more enthusiasm in one hand than probably all of us together.
"It depends whether I die now or not," Jenna replied. Her answers were short and dry. She wasn't very chatty. She also didn't know who we were or what we were doing there so it wasn't so hard to guess why her answers were so laconic.
She kept her bow close to her left leg. On her back, over the brown mantle, she carried a bag of dozens of arrows. She had even gone to the trouble of picking up the arrows that were on the ground, including the one that had been on Vic's foot and the one between her ex-boss's eyes. Finally, we seemed to be circling the mountain and heading for an area close to where we had entered. No one spoke. The silence was overwhelming. I could hear my heart beating louder than usual. The only one who was making noise was Vic. Even after Emma's help in stopping the blood on her toe, she still had trouble walking. She put her back foot on the floor before the front. She told us that it hurts less to walk like that.
As we were in a crack twice as big as the rest, the sun fell on us as if it was a heat wave. The clothes stuck to the body and sweat flowed down our foreheads. The only thought in my head was that I should have stayed on the ship or at least on the waterfall. My feet and knees were already aching. Even my chest felt heavy.
There weren’t even any wind breezes going through there. Nothing refreshed us. We were doomed to that scorching heat.
"We're getting there," Vic said to us.
"I didn't even ask before, but how did you know which way to go?" Emma asked her. It was a good question.
"I had done it before. Several times even. But I had never had the courage to try to leave this place by myself. One of the people who had come with me had warned me of the dangers, of how the savages waited at the entrance. All the mountains here are the same.
"You did well then. Especially when you knew someone was coming to rescue you. Not everyone is that lucky," Emma said to her, biting her lip, moving forward on her own.
"What the hell is wrong with her?" Vic asked me.
"A difficult past," I answered her. It was not my job to tell her and the last thing I needed was to have Emma mad at me.
"We all do," Jenna added.
I nodded. We arrived at another crossroad; this time five tunnels leading to other similar passageways. Vic guided us into the second entrance. She took us to a wide space where the walls seemed older than the others and where the sun shone with all its might.
"The exit is after we pass that sand arch," she said and pointed to an arch that connected two sides of the mountain, giving way to another ample space.
No one took a step forward. We were all waiting for someone else. We had come this far, and no one wanted to be left behind.
"I'll go first. Kane, give me the gun," Emma told me.
"Do you have a gun?" Jenna asked, surprised, her green eyes now glowing in the sunlight.
"Yes, but only with two bullets. We had to spare them," I replied.
Emma elbowed me in the belly. I knew right away that I shouldn't have said anything. Emma still didn't trust Jenna. I mean, not that she trusted anyone. I pulled the gun out of the holster and handed it to her. I wasn't exactly confident about it, but if anyone could get us out of there, it was her. After what I had seen on the ship, I d
idn't think there was anything she couldn't handle.
"Come on," Emma said and moved on. We followed her, "Jenna, prepare the bow. There must be people at the top of the mountain," she said.
As soon as she said it, we all looked around. No one saw anything, but the feeling of being watched hung in the air. Emma placed the gun under her clothes.
As soon as we walked under the mountain arch, a chill ran through my body. I was sure someone was behind us or above.
And it didn't take long for someone to show up. This time a group of five men.
"Weapons to the ground. Don't think you're getting out of here." One of them, probably the leader, told us.
We all looked at Emma. Her eyes drifted between the men. I knew that she was picturing all the different battle possibilities. Four of them had a sharp spear and only the leader had a semi-automatic weapon. She only needed to shoot him and then we could run away, hoping that none of the spears would catch us. The problem was that Vic couldn't run.
"When I tell you to start running, run like never before" Emma said, with her hand already slipping towards the gun.
"But there are five of them," Jenna said, yet to know Emma's skills.
"And I can't run," Vic added, "Run for your lives,"
"Are you stupid? We came here to save you and you think we'd leave you behind now?" I said to her, "Jump on my back. I will run like I never have in my life,' I said to her, already prepared for everything.
We only had to get to the ship. By now, Matilda had already solved all the problems and Amelia should be waiting for us, well-armed. Damn it. I should have asked her for a bigger gun, or at least one with more bullets.
"I'll trust you..." Vic said, the voice trembling.