Starhoppers

16 - The Calm Within the Storm

The heavy pattering of raindrops entered my ears long before I acknowledged my regained consciousness. During that short span of time, staring into the back of my eyelids and listening to the trickling of the rain, a feeling of peace rested over me like a heavy blanket, fighting to drag me back into the dark depths of my slumber.

I winced as a thick droplet of rain splattered against my face, the cold water pooling into my eyes.

All at once, memories flooded back into my mind, a gasp escaping from my throat as I struggled to push myself up onto my elbows. I groaned in agony, falling back into the dirt as pain surged through my left arm. My gaze drifted hesitantly towards the wound; a white cloth was wrapped around the hole in my arm, the material stained a dark red. I stammered quietly, turning my eyes back towards the sky. A canopy of sticks and leaves had been built clumsily around me, droplets of rain slipping periodically through the various cracks in its structure and onto my skin.

Though the canopy seemed to be doing a fair job at keeping the rain out, my clothes remained soaked through all the same. The structure encapsulated me in a bubble of sorts, like a makeshift tent with a single small opening on one side of it. I squinted as I peered through the holes in the leaf wall, a loud crack of thunder roaring in the distance. The forest outside of the tent was dark, my eyes only barely registering the spattering of raindrops against the ground just beyond the opening in the wall. It had to have been several hours since we'd escaped from the parasite.

Since Isaac...

A soft chittering to my right caught my attention. I pivoted, finding Bit staring back at me from the backside of the leaf tent, his spherical head tilted curiously as he studied my face. His metal legs tapped against the floor excitedly as I spotted him. The droid chirped happily, his head spinning atop his torso.

"Bit...?" I murmured, frowning as the tiny robot scurried quickly towards the opening in the tent.

Bit disappeared from view around the corner, anxiety filling my gut. "Bit?" I repeated, groaning quietly as I pushed myself upright. I winced as I leaned against the back of the tent; it appeared to have been built beside a tall rock wall. "Guys?"

I waited in silence for a time, a bright flash of lightning briefly illuminating the darkened forest outside as I awaited the robot's return. Within a few short moments, the heavy sound of footsteps slapping against mud entered my ears.

I narrowed my eyes, nearly jumping in surprise as Ellie's face peered suddenly from around the corner, shrouded in darkness. "Oh, my God..." she whispered, her eyes lighting up in the pitch black of the night. "Zach!"

The girl knelt before me a short second later, her arms wrapped tightly around my neck as I fell backwards against the rock wall. "Ow!" I scoffed. Ellie's hair obstructed my face, and her body felt cold and wet against mine, but I didn't care.

Ellie didn't apologize, holding onto me tighter as more footsteps approached from somewhere outside. "I thought we'd lost you, too..."

I frowned as a man leaned before the opening in the tent, his muttonchops framing the smile on his lips. "Ralph?"

"Welcome back. That's quite the nap you took."

"You're alive," I said, resting my arm on Ellie's back. "I didn't think..."

"We're doing just fine," Ralph said, gesturing behind himself as another man leaned into view, his face barely recognizable in the darkness. "Don't you worry about us."

"Hey, kid," Ezra sighed.

"Jesus... what happened?" I asked, shaking my head as Ellie pulled away from me.