Stranding

9 | Shattered Reflections

The cold came first. A creeping, bone-deep chill that slithered through Jake's limbs as consciousness dragged him unwillingly back to the waking world. His eyes fluttered open, vision hazy, head throbbing with a dull, persistent ache.

The village was gone.

Instead, Jake found himself lying on damp ground, the sky above an endless grey haze, suffocating, pressing down on him like a weight he couldn't shake. The trees around him were unnaturally still, their branches bare, reaching toward the sky like skeletal fingers.

He forced himself to sit up, wincing as a sharp pain shot through his side. He looked down—his shirt was torn, his skin scraped and bruised. But there was no sign of Mia or Raj. No sign of anything familiar.

The last thing he remembered was Mia's eyes, blank and lifeless, staring into him as the island's whispers clawed at his mind.

Now, he was alone.

For a moment, Jake just sat there, letting the numbness settle over him like a shield. There was no point in panicking. He couldn't afford to lose control. Not here.

Not yet.

He pushed himself to his feet, his legs unsteady beneath him. Every muscle in his body ached, but he forced himself to move. Staying still felt too much like surrender.

The forest around him was silent. No wind, no rustling leaves. Just the oppressive stillness of the island, watching. Waiting.

Jake's hands shook as he stumbled forward, each step feeling heavier than the last. His mind was a blur, flashes of memory and fear swirling together in a tangled mess. He couldn't tell what was real anymore.

But he had to find the others.

If they were still alive.

***

Hours passed—maybe more, maybe less. Time had lost all meaning in the suffocating grey of the island. Jake wandered through the forest, his thoughts growing more fragmented, more disjointed with every step.

It wasn't just the physical pain. The island was doing something to his mind, warping his sense of reality, twisting his memories. His thoughts came in jagged pieces now—Mia's face, Raj's blank stare, the whispers that had followed him through the forest.

He couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched.

And then, in the distance, he saw it.

A flicker of movement between the trees. Too fast to catch, but unmistakable.

Jake's heart leapt into his throat. "Hello?" His voice was weak, cracking under the weight of fear.

No response.

But the figure was still there, just at the edge of his vision, disappearing into the shadows.

Without thinking, Jake broke into a run, crashing through the underbrush, his breath ragged, his heart pounding. He didn't know who it was—didn't know if it was even real—but he couldn't ignore it. He couldn't afford to be alone anymore.

He had to find someone. Anyone.

The figure darted through the trees, just ahead of him, moving too quickly for Jake to keep up. His lungs burned as he pushed himself harder, the branches tearing at his skin, the world blurring around him.

And then, just as quickly as it had appeared, the figure was gone.

Jake skidded to a stop, his chest heaving. He stood in a small clearing, his eyes scanning the trees, searching for any sign of movement.