After the second dose, her muscle spasms seem to calm, though she continues to sweat profusely. My worry only gets worse because now Sayda is no longer fully conscious. The medication and toxin have both taken a toll on her.
Her fast and weak pulse tells me Sayda’s blood pressure has dropped. I have Radek use his knife to prop up an infusion bag on the tree next to her. The height of the bag will allow gravity to infuse the fluids faster. After this, the only thing left for us to do is wait to see how she responds. The three of us are now forced to hold the same agonizing vigil that Sayda once held over each of us.
Chapter 10
The night is restless for us. The only one, other than Sayda, who gets any sleep is Baran. Before this trip, he did not know Sayda, so her condition does not affect him as much. The rest of us take turns watching over Sayda and monitoring our perimeter.
In the middle of the night, the continuous murmur coming from the forest is disturbed by something moving in the trees around us. The creature moves fast, always staying out of sight. We all bunch together around Sayda and the fire, holding our weapons ready. The trees shake for a minute longer before the movement stops. My rifle aims in the direction we last heard the movement. Suddenly, a blinding light slices through the darkness. My vision washes out from the intense light. As I cover my eyes, a piercing alarm sounds, threatening to rupture my eardrums. The animal must have activated our motion detecting deterrents.
When the sensory barrage ceases, the forest becomes dead silent. At least, I think it does. The ringing in my ears makes it difficult to hear anything else. When the others recover from the effects of the alarm, we spread out to search the immediate area. We find no sign of any lingering predators. I make a mental note to have our researchers tone down the intensity of the deterrent. It worked well, but the effects are too disorienting to us. If the threat was not scared off, we would be left defenseless until our senses recovered.
After resetting the motion sensor, we all lay back down. Only Sayda was undisturbed by the effects of the alarm. She remains bound by the paralyzing effects of the venom coursing through her veins combined with the sedating medications meant to help her.
Throughout the rest of the night, the hidden creature never returns. As the sun begins to rise, Sayda finally stills. Her muscle spasms cease and the sweats relent. Despite the change, she has yet to regain consciousness.
“Is she gonna make it?” Hadwin asks me in a whisper.
“I think so.”
My answer is less confident than I would prefer. Truthfully, she could go either way. I want to believe she remains sedated because of the medication, but there is no way to know for sure. I reach down to her wrist, again checking her pulse. Compared to last night, her pulse is much stronger. That alone is encouraging.
While we wait to see what happens with Sayda, another urgent need pulls at us. The water we carried in our packs has run out and the only sterile fluids we brought were used up last night. Even if she wakes up, Sayda will need to drink more water to replace the fluid lost from her constant perspiration. The other four agree to search for a stream while I watch over Sayda.
Baran thinks he might have heard a stream back the way we came. None of us heard the flow of water, so Radek and Hadwin split up from Korin and Baran in case he was mistaken. I try to hand my rifle to Hadwin and Radek, but they both refuse, insisting I keep the weapon to protect Sayda. While they are gone, I keep one eye on her while packing our supplies. Even if Sayda does not wake soon, we cannot stay here.
After taking down the tent, I notice Sayda shivering. This could be another effect of the venom. Either way, I go to stoke the fire. As the flames grow, her shivering subsides. With her calm again, my attention returns to packing. I cautiously gather the motion detectors, keeping my rifle ready in case anything surprises me. When the last one is packed, I again check on Sayda. What I find brings a wide smile to my face. Sayda has awoken and is struggling to prop herself upright.
“Sayda, you’re up!” The relief makes my voice come out a little too loud.
“I feel like I fell out of a tree,” she groans.
Sayda’s strength has been drained by the venom. Despite her effort, she remains on the ground. Of course when I go to help, she tries to push me away. I ignore the weak shove and help her sit up against a tree. “That thing had a nasty bite, didn’t it?”
“What thing?” she asks.
The venom and medication must have erased her memory. I point to her shoulder. “An insect bit you. You’ve been fighting the venom all night.”
She briefly glances at the bite before scanning our surroundings. When she does, the confusion on her face turns into concern. “Where’s everyone else?”
“Looking for water. They’ll be back soon,” I reassure her.
I hand her some gruel to help rebuild some strength. As she forces the food down, a yell comes from a distance. The voice definitely sounds human. I spring to my feet and point my rifle. The yell came from the direction Baran and Korin took. If they came across a predator, they will be running back here for help. While I watch the trees down the barrel of my gun, a loud blast rings through the air. A moment later, a second blast follows. They are shooting at something. After the echo from the gunshots fades, only the normal sounds of the forest remain.
My legs twitch from agitation. I want to go to help, but Sayda would not be able to keep up. My only choice is to stay with Sayda and wait for the others to return. Unsurprisingly, Radek soon bursts into our camp with Hadwin trailing behind him, completely out of breath.
“Are you guys okay?” Radek asks as he runs right past me to check on Sayda.
“The shots came from the direction Baran and Korin went. Stay with Sayda, I’m gonna go check it out.” I turn to leave.
Before I take more than a couple steps, Baran bursts through the forest. He does not stop running until he is safely behind us. Only then does he slump over, resting his hands resting on his knees, gulping for air. Baran’s sweat soaked uniform has a tear on the sleeve, showing multiple abrasions on his exposed skin.
“What happened? Where’s Korin?” I ask, still focused on the forest.
“We were going around the field where the snakes were when some animal came from behind us. It knocked us over before running off. I fell into some bushes. Korin went down the hill into the snake pit. He tried to shoot them, but it was too late,” Baran tells us while staring at his feet.
I motion for Radek to come with me. “Hadwin, stay here with Baran and Sayda. We’re gonna go get him.”
“You can’t get to him. He’s already dead and his body is surrounded by snakes,” Baran warns.
I ignore him and head off with Radek following right behind me. The snakes do not matter. We have to try to save him. While we run through the trees, I briefly update Radek on Sayda’s progress. The news would have been a lot more encouraging if we were not going from one life being in jeopardy to another.
When we reach the snake pit, Korin lies face down with slithering reptiles all around him. Even from here we both can see he is not breathing. Baran was right. Korin is out of our reach and already dead. He died much faster than I would expect from a rattlesnake bite, but then again, he was probably bit by more than one snake. Leaving Korin there feels wrong, but even if we used another Cleanser, there are just too many snakes. We would both get bit while retrieving his body. That also means we have no way to confirm Baran’s story. Nothing in his history suggests he would be lying, but I have learned to take nothing for granted.
The same empty feeling inside that has become a frequent companion to me returns. Death has been following us too often lately. Unfortunately, I have been around to witness most of it. I walk for another twenty yards toward our camp before realizing Radek has not moved. He crouches over on the top of the hill, poking at the ground with his head tilted to the side.
“What is it?” I ask.
“It’s probably nothing, especially since there’s a lot of leave
s and grass on the ground. But I can’t find any animal tracks,” Radek says absently while looking at the ground.
“I don’t know what to make of this either, but let’s keep our guard up just in case,” I tell him.
Neither of us would be considered experts at finding and interpreting tracks, so maybe not finding anything is normal. The way things have gone out here, nothing ever happens how we expect it to. Just like the animal last night, this one could have come and gone without leaving a trace. That does not make us any less suspicious though.
Radek looks back at Korin’s lifeless body one more time before getting up. Our defeated return moves at a much slower pace. Not only has the loss of Korin affected us, but we need to conserve our energy since the day ahead will be a difficult one. Back at our camp, Sayda leans against the same tree with Hadwin and Baran next to her. Baran looks at us with his eyebrows raised as if to say, ‘I told you so.’ I barely suppress the urge to slap the look off his face before turning to the others.
“Korin was in the middle of the field with the snakes,” I tell them.
“Baran, which way did the animal go?” Radek asks.
“I didn’t see. It hit us from behind. By the time I got up, it was gone,” Baran replies.
There were trees around, so his explanation does make sense if the animal jumped on them from there.
“Let me see your wound,” I tell Baran, wanting to see if there are any clues in his injury to what attacked them.
He pulls away from me. “It’s barely a scratch. I’m fine.”
Radek steps forward, making it clear we are not moving until I see the wound. Baran shakes his head while holding out his arm for me to inspect. He is right, there is barely a scratch. I cannot tell if the abrasion was from a rock on the ground, an animal, or something else. Seeing how minimal the injury is lucky for him, but also strikes me as odd considering how deadly all the predators we have encountered are. No matter our suspicions, we need to get moving. Even so, Radek and I will be keeping an extra eye on Baran.
Sayda’s legs have not yet regained their strength, leaving her unable to stand on her own. Radek and Hadwin are both more than willing to help her. Before leaving, I grab Korin’s pack and shove it into Baran’s chest. His insistence on returning to that area led to Korin has death, so he may as well be responsible for carrying the extra load of equipment. I motion for him to go ahead of me, making sure he is never out of my sight.
Just before the gunshots, Radek and Hadwin managed to find a small stream. We follow them there to refill our supplies. They lead us to a deep crevice, cradling a small flow of water at its base. The minimal amount of water barely makes any noise at all. Being this quiet and obscured from view, it is a wonder they were able to find this little stream at all.
I hand my rifle to Radek, who not so subtly makes sure to keep Baran in the sights of the weapon. Even if Baran was not aware we were suspicious of him before, he is now.
Before filling our containers, I take out the water purifier from my pack. The hand activated pump takes water from the stream and runs it through internal filters, removing any pathogens. This device contains a smaller version of the filters we use to purify water from The Caves for Securus. After collecting as much water as we can carry, our group again sets off. Like before, I stay in the back of the group to keep an eye on Baran. We should be able to reach Munitus in a couple more hours if we are lucky. That’s a really big if, the nagging voice in the back of my mind reminds me.
While I watch Baran, Radek and Hadwin take turns helping Sayda and leading our march through the forest. Baran does a poor job of pretending not to notice the extra attention from Radek and me. With each tiresome step, my mood tumbles downward. This will be the last time I come out on one of these expeditions. Dealing with death incessantly stalking us out here has taken a significant toll on me. I am growing weary. It is time for someone else in Securus to shoulder this burden.
With little else to occupy my thoughts, my mind replays everything that has gone wrong lately. The faces of my fallen friends flutter before my eyes, making me feel even worse. After a while, I am almost ready to accept staying in Securus forever. That place may not be immune to misery, but the misfortune we experience in there is not nearly as unrelenting as out here. The barrage of negative thoughts drains my energy, slowing my pace.
When I look past Baran, something strikes me. While Radek was helping Sayda, everything seemed normal. As usual, he was kind and gentle with her. The part that stands out to me is when he reluctantly switches with Hadwin. There is a subtle change in Sayda. She now rests her head against Hadwin as they walk. She did not do that with Radek. Hadwin and Sayda stop for a second as she whispers something to him. I cannot hear her words, but whatever she said put a smile on Hadwin’s face. When he starts walking again, his steps are more energetic. I guess she has finally made her decision.
Seeing them walking together makes me think of Talia. It reminds what we are fighting for and why we are out here. Those thoughts do not elevate my darkened mood, but at least they stop it from plummeting any lower.
Soon, the sun shines brightly overhead. As we continue our determined march, a gentle breeze sneaks through the trees. The wind feels weird. I have only felt this in the open plains outside of Securus, never in the woods before. The others’ heads shoot from side to side, also noticing the odd change. When Radek looks back, he sees the way Hadwin and Sayda hold each other. The heartache on his face is difficult to see. I turn away, only to see him fall from view out of the periphery of my vision. He must have tripped because of the distraction from seeing Sayda and Hadwin.
For some reason, Hadwin drops Sayda, jumping toward Radek and grabbing onto his arm. Hadwin dropping Sayda like that to help Radek from the ground seems weird and unnecessary. Only when I look past them does the reality of Radek’s situation sink in. A tall, thick bush obscures the path, but further ahead, the trees have disappeared. The forest has been replaced by the vast blue sky.
My heart rate triples, realizing Radek did not fall to the ground at all. He is dangling on the edge of a cliff. I drop all my gear and leap over to help. Radek hangs over the edge with Hadwin clinging onto his left arm. The only thing that kept him from falling instantly is the grip his right hand has on a tree root protruding from the cliff. When I reach over to grab Radek’s forearm and hand, the sheer drop off makes my vision spin. Hadwin and I brace ourselves to pull him up. Once he finds a foothold, Radek lets go of my hand and grabs another root to pull himself up. With his knees resting on solid ground, we all breathe a sigh of relief.
“I owe you Hadwin,” Radek says, leaning over to catch his breath.
“I’m just returning the favor,” Hadwin replies with a rare show of modesty.
Now that Radek is safe, I fall back onto the ground in a seated position, resting my hands on my knees. That was too close. Like usual, Radek does not take long to recover. After a few deep breaths, he looks back up from the ground, ready to stand up and move on.
Only, when Radek lifts his head, his eyes grow wide. He springs to his feet as I hear rapidly approaching steps from behind us. It happens too fast for any of us to react. A dirty boot flies past us, kicking Radek square in the chest before he is able to get in position to defend himself. The blow knocks him off balance, sending Radek flailing backward.
I reach out to grab Radek’s hand, but my fingers only graze his as he falls backwards off the cliff. I become paralyzed by shock from seeing Radek plummet over the edge. My body turns numb when hearing his frightened screams halt as he collides with the ground one-thousand feet below. Radek is dead.
It feels impossible to move. My eyes refuse to believe what they see and cannot turn away from the sight in front of me. Not again! my mind screams, refusing to acknowledge what just happened. When it finally hits me who was wearing that boot, my anger breaks the spell of denial. To my side, Hadwin stands with his back facing the cliff. His hands tremble, but not from fear.
�
�I couldn’t let you guys get to Munitus,” Baran informs us in a matter of fact tone.
The sound of his voice sends a dark wave of fury through me. Tears of sadness and rage pour from my eyes as I glare at the man who just murdered Radek. In the confusion, Baran picked up my rifle. He now has it aimed at us. Sayda still lies on the ground in front of him, too weak to fight. Remorse nearly takes my feet from under me. Radek and I knew something was wrong. Baran killed Korin, not some ghostly animal. I should have done something about it when we first suspected him. Because of my failure to act, Radek is dead.
“What are you doing?” Hadwin demands.
“What needs to be done.” Baran cracks a devious smile as he responds. “It was obvious Radek suspected I killed Korin, so I couldn’t wait any longer. This opportunity was just too good to pass up. I knew if I could get Radek out of the way, killing the rest of you would be easy.”
“But why?” Hadwin asks.
I already know the answer before Baran says it aloud. There is only one reason he would want to stop us from reaching Munitus. He must be one of the Agents of Guidance.
“Because Securus is where you belong. You’ve all become infected by the false hope of escaping your true place and destiny. We can’t have your sickness spreading to another colony. When the Controller finds out about this, Securus will be destroyed. For my service, me and my family will finally be recalled to Caelum,” Baran explains.
“You knew about the snakes, didn’t you?” I ask, remembering he happened to be in the lead when we stumbled upon it.
“There are a few special areas out here. Their secrets have been passed down through my family since the last attempt to escape Securus. I led you to the snakes, but I didn’t count on the Cleanser helping you escape,” he says, stepping to the side to get a better angle on us. “By the time Korin figured out why we were going back there, it was too late. Funny, he had the same look in his eye that Radek did just now.”
The Seat of Power (The Securus Trilogy Book 3) Page 11