Finding Life

Chapter Ten: Planning

We found a small cave illuminated by a faint light, offering us a moment of safety. Elias sat in the corner, his usual joyful demeanor gone, replaced by a shaken, distant look. The events from earlier had clearly rattled him—had rattled all of us. We were down one person now, and the weight of it was heavy.

I leaned against the cool cave wall, trying to calm my thoughts. "We need a plan," I said quietly, but the urgency in my voice was clear. "We can't just stay here."

Daniel stood a few feet away, pacing. His brow furrowed in concentration. "We've learned a few things," he said. "As long as we don't panic, we can hold on to objects. That's one advantage we have. But we've got to keep our focus."

"And the shadows," I added, glancing toward the cave's entrance, where the light barely stretched out into the darkness. "They can't enter the light. If they do, we'll see their true form, and they'll be weak."

Elias spoke up, though his voice was quieter than usual. "But we can't stay here forever. The shadows might not come into the light, but they're out there. Waiting."

"We know the light makes them vulnerable," Daniel continued, "which means we need to find a way to use it against them. But more than that... we need to get Soph back."

I could hear the fear in his voice, though he tried to mask it. Soph was still out there, in the hands of whatever that shadow was. And the longer we waited, the more I worried about what they were doing to her—or what they would do if we didn't act soon.

"We have to lure them into the light," I said, thinking out loud. "It's our only shot. If we can get them in the open, we might have a chance."

"But how do we do that?" Elias asked, finally looking up from where he sat. "They're smart. They're not just going to walk into a trap."

Daniel nodded. "We'll have to outsmart them. And we can't afford to panic, no matter what happens. If we start losing focus..."

"We'll be as good as gone," I finished for him. The truth of it hung heavy in the air.

I crouched next to Elias. "We'll get her back," I promised. "But we have to keep it together. No panicking, no losing focus. We have the light on our side, and as long as we stay calm, we can do this."

Elias gave a small nod, though the fear still lingered in his eyes. It lingered in all of us.

"So what's the plan?" Elias asked, his voice still shaky but stronger than before. "We can't just sit here. The shadows could come back any minute."

Daniel's eyes lit up with determination. "We lure them into the light, force them to reveal their true forms, and we hit them where it hurts. But we'll need to find stronger light sources if we're going to stand a chance."

I nodded, standing back up. "Let's search the cave. Maybe there's something we can use. And if we have to, we'll make our way to the truck and grab anything we can find there."

As we started preparing, a faint sound echoed from deeper in the cave—a low, distant rustling. My heart sank.

"Did you hear that?" Elias whispered, his eyes wide with panic.

We all froze, the flickering light casting uneasy shadows on the walls. The rustling grew louder, sending a chill down my spine. Whatever was out there—it wasn't far.

"We need to move. Now," Daniel said, his voice low but firm.

This cave might not be safe for long.