The Miscreants of Xiphoid Camp [NOT UPDATING CURRENTLY]

» 2130 « Chapter 5 - The forest

The morning had swept by unfairly quickly. It was twelve o'clock, and Avior was about to participate in his first official 'camp activity'. He wasn't sure what to expect. Some people, like Bradley, looked thrilled. They were bouncing on the balls of their feet and positively bursting with anticipation.

Other people, like Todd, looked completely and utterly bored. They yawned and stared off into space. At least Avior knew his way around the camp. Arin had spent the past few hours with him, showing him where to find the trash cans, how to get food that was edible, all the shortcuts and all the most interesting places. There was an entire area sectioned off by a tall metal fence that hummed and buzzed with the promise of a swift shock to anyone who dared try and scale it.

"I have no clue what that is," Arin had said, eyes wide, tone somber. "I wish we were allowed in,"

"What if they're hiding something awful in there?" Avior had theorized, staring intently at the fence. "Like a sinister beast that rips out your bones and hangs your skin from a hook on the wall if you go near it!"

"Are... are you okay? Mentally?" Arin had asked. Avior hadn't dignified that with a response. He still was on uncertain ground with Arin. They weren't as bad as he had expected, but they were dangerous all the same. Making friends meant getting attached to people that would undoubtedly leave you behind eventually. Avior didn't like getting left behind. It made him feel small.

Opposite the mysterious fenced-off land, there was, much to Avior's dismay, a school.

"Y'know, 'cause camp runs during the school year, and you can't just go without school for several months," Arin explained. Watch me, Avior had thought.

He disliked school. Loathed it entirely. He was all right with numbers but terrible when it came to reading. He was probably the stupidest person at Xiphoid. His stepmother once had him drop out of school halfway through the year because his teacher had said that he was going to have to be held back a year. Not to mention the private tutor—uptight, french, and entirely horrible—that his father had hired in a last-ditch attempt to 'knock some brains into the boy'. That had gone poorly, and everyone finally left Avior's education alone. He obviously hadn't mentioned any of that to Arin.

"Aaaall righty then! Listen up, campers!" Fred Finch bellowed, pulling Avior out of his reverie, bounding to the center of the circle that they had formed with each cabin clustered together in their own small groups. "We are going... on a scavenger hunt!" he announced.

Caryn stepped forward. "Each cabin will go in a different direction. Each cabin will have an assigned leader. You will have three hours to complete the scavenger hunt. First to return wins. Look for anything eye-catching, strange, or unusual. You may not return until each camper in your cabin has collected at least five items," Caryn said.

Avior had never been on a scavenger hunt before, but that didn't sound remotely like one. He was pretty sure that scavenger hunts involved an actual list of things to look for, not just a vague description of 'look for strange stuff'.

"And now for the cabin leaders!" Fred Finch cried. He cleared his throat and began to call out a list of names and cabins. Avior stopped paying attention. This was not interesting to him. He wanted to just get on with the scavenger hunt and get it over with.

"..et! Okay! On the count of three, turn around and embark on your quest! One! Two! Three!"

Avior and the rest of Tertius turned around and immediately set off towards the dark, wild forest that surrounded Xiphoid Camp. Bradley immediately took charge, marching to the front of the group. Once they reached the edge of the trees, he abruptly stopped and threw his arms out.