Hybrid

Chapter 11 : Among the monsters

You wake from your slumber, not feeling tired anymore but far from feeling energized. Ace, Claudette, and Yui wave at you, inviting you to chat and play poker with them. You're not even surprised that Ace had that pack of cards on him, before getting kidnapped by the entity. You sit between the two girls and play for a bit. None of them brings up the topic of your last match against the doctor, and you're grateful for that. The conversation mostly goes around Ace's anecdotes and some questions about the video game you used to play.

While you're giving your best bluffs, other survivors had been selected twice for a match, putting more and more pressure on you as you wonder when you'll become the killer again.

"Is everything all right, Smarty?"

Claudette must have felt your stress and now the three of them are looking at you, worried. You need an excuse, quick.

"Y-Yeah. I'm feeling dazed, to be fair. I think I've stayed near the campfire for too long. Can't stand the heat anymore. I'll get some fresh air if you don't mind. "

They all nod in agreement, moving from their spot to get a bit farther from the fire for their own comfort.

Nea stands up and calls for everyone:

"Ok, you folks! Time to search for that killer camp again! Giving five minutes to any volunteers to join me !"

She walks near the trees and waits, arms crossed over her chest. Jake and Jonah are already tagging along. Meanwhile, four new survivors are selected for a trial.

You don't feel safe anymore here. At any instant, you can get called in front of them and you will be done. You don't want to lose their trust but you can't stay with them. There is only one option left for you:

"I'll come with you this time. I will try my best to recall my path from when I found it. Can't promise anything but better trying than staying."

The troublemaker smiles at you, happy that you finally get your shits together and help them. But leading them isn't your plan, as you will separate from them as soon as they turn their back on you. You will get to the killers by yourself and stay with them for a bit, at least, until you understand better your second identity. Then, you'll go back to the survivors' side, pretending that you heard something and got lost in the wood again, and got captured by the killers, which prevented you from coming back.

Yes. It sounds good enough. You'll refine that story before leaving the killers.

The group counts a total of seven people; starting with Nea, then Jake, Jonah, Felix, Ada, Zarina, and you. You all sink into the forest and walk for a good five minutes before you feel the first symptoms of the woods. It's still manageable to hide your health state to them but you will need to get away soon. You notice that nobody seems to feel sick, other than you, which means that you're the only one getting those symptoms and it may be related to your hybrid nature. You also believe that this is why you can find the killers' camp but not them, as you have a reason to go over there. Finally, it explains why killers never got to the survivors' side as they must be stuck like your friends by this invisible barrier that only you can cross.
All of these are pure theories but it is most likely that you're close to the truth.

Another five minutes pass and you're not feeling good at all and have greatly slowed your pace down. Gladly, none of them paid attention to this which makes the perfect opportunity to vanish. Instead of going forward, you step aside and crouch, making your way through the trees until you can't see them anymore, then you stand up and start running. You soon hear Nea's voice calling you, followed by the other five that accompany her. Pretending to be lost, you call them back, as if you were trying to guide them. If your theories are correct, if there is a barrier blocking killers and survivors to meet each other, then your friends will never find you.