Rot || ONC2024

──●Twelve●──

    As the morning sun began to creep past the horizon, I emerged from the bush I had hidden in. Thankfully, the Hunters were more worried about searching the trees for me, so bushes and abandoned burrows were golden hiding spots. Their search also never took long, they were back before the sky even showed a lick of light. Maybe they thought I died from my injuries.

    Speaking of my injuries, I undid the gauze that was wrapped around and put on a fresh layer. I tossed the used gauze into the bush. Hopefully humans had medics, too. If not, I'd be in for a rough ride.

    I began to creep closer to the camp. With every step, my heart began to beat faster and faster. Vomit threatened to spill from my mouth. My body began to shake, either from the pure nerves or the blood loss. I didn't know, nor did I care.

     Stepping foot on human soil, I braced for more shiny orbs to lodge themselves in my body. When no orb, or even person, noticed my arrival, I smiled. I made it alive. 

     Just as quickly as it came, my smile dropped. This camp looked abandoned.

    The camp was nestle into the underside of some sort of steep, but small, rocky ledge. The rest of the camp was surrounded by a ring of trees, the trees I immersed from. In the middle sat what was once a large campfire, the only thing remaining of it was some charred wood and sizzling embers. On the side of the camp stood a rickety watchtower. The roof looked like it was barely holding on, while some of the rungs to make it into the tower were completely rotted away.  Opposite to it was sleeping quarters. What was once a door was torn away, revealing a few old blankets and pillows that, in some places, were growing mold. Spots of the roof were completely rotted away, exposing any occupants to the elements. Adjacent to that was the remains of, or what I presumed to be, a storage shed of some sort.

     As I investigated further, I couldn't help the tears that welled in my eyes.

    "Damnnit!"

    I collapsed to the ground, burrowing my face in my knees.

    "So close, so god damn close to death! And the first damn camp I find is fuckin' abandoned! Fuck me!"

    Upon hearing a crunch of the grass behind me, followed by an all too familiar click, I sprung up. 

    "You have 10 seconds to leave before I shoot."

    "I'm not here to hurt anyone!"

    The masked human let out a breathy chuckle, their gaze still fixed on me. "Likely story."

    "It's true! I can explain!"

    "Go before I shoot! "

    I grabbed for their shiny stick and threw it to the ground, causing the human to shriek.

    "I'm not here to fucking hurt anyone! Now stop shoving that damn stick in my face and let me explain!"

    The human stepped back, creating distance between us. I took this as my sign to continue.

    "My name is Mara, and I've been having strange visions. They involve a human. My camp won't give me any answers, so I figured humans could help. I need to look at files-"

    "Are you out of your damn mind!"

    I picked up the shiny stick and pointed it at them, which caused them to gasp. 

    "Let me talk! I'm trying to say I need files to identify her! The medic at my camp told me she could be related to a past relative, or even a past life of mine. I just... I need to know, to make them stop. The visions."

    The human stepped closer, a look of puzzlement and uncertainty on their face. "Can you...drop the gun?"

   "The what?"

   They gestured to what I was holding. "Drop that, so I can put the safety back on."

    As I dropped it, they quickly ran towards it. They slid a switch before popping it back into their waistband. "Just, uhm, some general gun safety here, don't hold it like that. The way you had it, you could have shot yourself."

    "Oh-"

    "Yeah, and you kinda can't get help if you're dead."

    "You're gonna help?" Despite my better judgement, my voice rose with excitement. 

    "Not quite yet. Before I bring you in, I need to make sure you're not going to kill us. So you'll stay out here for the day, as well as night. If you succeed without killing any members, I'll bring you in. If not, you're dead. Got it?"

     I nodded quickly, a smile spreading across my face. "Thank you thank you! You won't regret this ma'am or sir!"

     The human, surprisingly, chuckled.

    "You can just call me Koda, and I go by mx."

    "Okay! Thank you Koda, you won't regret it mx!"

    "I sure hope I don't."